TV STAR OPENS UP ABOUT WORK AFTER LOCKDOWN AND HIT SHOW
by MOHNISH SINGH
AFTER staying at home for almost four months due to the restrictions brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, Mahima Makwana resumed shooting for her show Shubharambh last month.
Like many people around the world, the 21-year-old is working under challenging conditions, but despite her young age she is up to the challenge. The young actress has had a successful run, which started as a 10-year-old with popular Colors show Balika Vadhu, and has been working non-stop ever since then.
An 11-year-long career has seen her front the cast of several notable shows such as Sapne Suhane Ladakpan Ke, Adhuri Kahaani Hamari, and Rishton Ka Chakravyuh, which have all helped solidify her standing as a highly versatile actress. She is portraying the lead character of Rani Dave Reshammiya on daily soap Shubharambh, which marked her return to Colors after a decade.
Speaking to Eastern Eye, Mahima opened up about returning to work amid the rising cases of coronavirus, the response her show has garnered after airing fresh episodes post-lockdown, her proudest achievement and more.
With the entertainment industry crawling back to normalcy after a shutdown of almost four months, how are you coping with life in this new world?
Firstly, I am grateful that I have my work to get back to because there are thousands of people who have no work at all right now. Besides, it is a difficult phase for a lot of people out there, so it does get tough to keep yourself sane. But I have learnt that it is important to live one day at a time.
Isn’t it difficult to shoot for your show Shubharambh under new normal?
I was too apprehensive at first for Covid-19 is a music that keeps on playing in the background, but one has to keep up with it, while taking all the necessary precautions and safety. We are shooting with limited people. We ensure that we maintain social distancing and have tried inculcating scenes with less crowds under the new normal. While doing so, we make it a point to not compromise on the quality of work.
What kind of response has Shubharambh been getting for its fresh episodes after the shooting was resumed?
The response has been lovely. People have been loving the new drama. The show resumed with a twist in the story line wherein Rani, my character, loses her memory and both protagonists get back to each other.
Do you feel that you have anything in common with Rani?
The fact that she is confident and wants to live independently is something I think is similar between us.
What is the post-lockdown version of Mahima Makwana?
I believe that lockdown has really made a huge difference. Gratitude is the best attitude. I am grateful for the smallest of things that I have now. I have also realised that to live in the present is what is really important.
When did you know you wanted to be an actress and how did your life change after you became one?
I started off auditioning when I was around nine or 10 years old. After giving tons of them, and getting some little work, I climbed up the ladder and realised this is where I belong, and it’s something I want to pursue. I don’t let my personal life get affected by success or failure. Professionally, the only constant I want is to keep growing and moving. You started acting very young. You are still a young woman, but you have had more than a decade of experience in acting.
What is it about your profession that appeals to you so much?
There is a long list. I think that storytelling is something, which appeals to me as, while acting, I am just not myself, but a lot of characters. Acting lets me execute the writing to become the being and reach out to the audience. Even after tons of retakes, it should appear as if it is happening for the first time. Acting is a pure representation of someone else. A different world that one is in.
Looking back at your career so far, what is your proudest achievement?
Everything that I do makes me feel proud. At the same time, the fire of doing better and bigger never mellows, which I think is a great thing. I am excited and keen about my web series Flesh, which will be coming out soon on Eros Now. It is something that I am really thrilled about.
What's your dream role?
I don’t really have a particular dream role. I’d love to do everything exciting and interesting that comes my way.
You turned 21 on August 5. What are your dreams for the future?
My dreams would be to see myself at the top in my profession and travel around the globe.
What are your biggest passions away from work?
I love dancing, and would love to explore the traveller in me.
How do you see the Indian entertainment industry post Covid-19 era and how is creativity changing in the television industry in particular?
A lot of people are out of work in every industry, including entertainment. Besides that, creatively, the writers have tried to keep the norms and guidelines intact in script, which is nearly impossible. Apart from this, television has a different set of audience for it to change or upgrade its content, so the change has been slow and steady.
Most actors see themselves on the big screen. Do you ever think of transitioning to Bollywood one day?
Obviously, Bollywood has always been a huge part of the bigger dreams. I hope I get there soon.
Finally, please give a message to your fans in the UK?
Thank you so much for all the love and support. Keep the love coming. Stay happy and be grateful.
Eli Lilly had announced a steep price rise of up to 170% for Mounjaro.
A new discount deal with UK suppliers will limit the increase for patients.
Pharmacies will still apply a mark-up, but consumer costs are expected to rise less than initially feared.
NHS pricing remains unaffected due to separate arrangements.
Eli Lilly has agreed a discounted supply deal for its weight-loss drug Mounjaro, easing fears of a sharp rise in costs for UK patients. The new arrangement means that, from September, pharmacies and private services will face smaller wholesale increases than first expected, limiting the impact on consumers.
Why the price rise was announced
Earlier this month, Eli Lilly said it would raise Mounjaro’s list price by as much as 170%, which could have pushed the highest monthly dose from £122 to £330. The company argued that UK pricing needed to align more closely with higher costs in Europe and the United States.
Discount deal for UK suppliers
The revised agreement will see the top-dose price set at £247.50 for suppliers. While pharmacies and private providers will still add their own margins, the increase for patients is now likely to remain under 50% for higher doses, and even lower for smaller doses.
Eli Lilly confirmed:
“We are working with private providers on commercial arrangements to maintain affordability and expect these to be passed onto patients when the change is effective on 1 September.”
Impact on consumers
Around 1.5 million people in the UK are currently on weight-loss drugs, with more than half using Mounjaro. Most of these patients—around 90%—pay privately through online services or high street pharmacies.
Prices vary between providers, depending on the level of lifestyle and dietary support offered alongside the injections.
Olivier Picard of the National Pharmacy Association said:
“This rebate will mitigate some of the impact of the increase, but patients should still anticipate seeing a rise in prices from 1 September.”
NHS pricing unchanged
The deal does not affect the NHS, which has secured its own heavily-discounted price for patients prescribed the weekly injection.
Mounjaro works by helping patients feel fuller for longer, reducing food intake and supporting weight loss of up to 20% of body weight.
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The Department of Health said the rollout would reduce missed days at nursery and school, cut time parents take off work, and save the NHS about £15 million a year. (Representational image: iStock)
CHILDREN in England will be offered a free chickenpox vaccine for the first time from January 2026, the government has announced.
GP practices will give eligible children a combined vaccine for measles, mumps, rubella and varicella (MMRV) as part of the routine childhood vaccination schedule. Around half a million children each year are expected to be protected.
The Department of Health said the rollout would reduce missed days at nursery and school, cut time parents take off work, and save the NHS about £15 million a year. Research estimates chickenpox in childhood leads to £24 million in lost income and productivity annually.
Minister of State for Care, Stephen Kinnock, said: “We’re giving parents the power to protect their children from chickenpox and its serious complications, while keeping them in nursery or the classroom where they belong and preventing parents from scrambling for childcare or having to miss work. This vaccine puts children’s health first and gives working families the support they deserve. As part of our Plan for Change, we want to give every child the best possible start in life, and this rollout will help to do exactly that.”
Dr Gayatri Amirthalingam, Deputy Director of Immunisation at the UK Health Security Agency, said: “Most parents probably consider chickenpox to be a common and mild illness, but for some babies, young children and even adults, chickenpox can be very serious, leading to hospital admission and tragically, while rare, it can be fatal. It is excellent news that from next January we will be introducing a vaccine to protect against chickenpox into the NHS routine childhood vaccination programme – helping prevent what is for most a nasty illness and for those who develop severe symptoms, it could be a life saver.”
Amanda Doyle, National Director for Primary Care and Community Services at NHS England, said: “This is a hugely positive moment for families as the NHS gets ready to roll out a vaccine to protect children against chickenpox for the first time, adding to the arsenal of other routine jabs that safeguard against serious illness.”
The eligibility criteria will be set out in clinical guidance, and parents will be contacted by their GP surgery if their child is eligible.
WHEN broadcaster and journalist Naga Munchetty began speaking openly about her experiences with adenomyosis and debilitating menstrual pain, the response was overwhelming.
Emails and messages poured in from women who had endured years of dismissal, silence and shame when it came to their health. That outpouring became the driving force behind her new book, It’s Probably Nothing, which calls for women to be heard and to advocate for themselves in a medical system that has too often ignored them.
“For so long, so many women haven’t been listened to by the world of medicine,” Munchetty said. “I knew this from my own experience of not being given adequate pain relief, or waiting years for a diagnosis. My motivation was to help women and people who love women to advocate better for women’s health.”
The book blends Munchetty’s personal journey with the voices of other women who have faced similar struggles, alongside expert insights from medical professionals. Its purpose, she said, is clear: to empower people to fight for their health.
“We need to be unafraid of saying how we have been weakened by our symptoms,” the BBC presenter said.
“Too often, we try to keep afloat, keep our head above water, but we don’t want to seem weak. That needs to change.”
Munchetty’s candour is striking. She describes the shame of being told her excruciating periods were “just normal,” leaving her to feel weak and whiny for struggling.
“You might as well have told me people have heart attacks while I’m having a heart attack,” she said. “Debilitating pain is serious — it may not be lifelimiting, but it is life-impacting.”
Her determination to challenge that culture led to her giving evidence in parliament, contributing to what became a Women and Equalities Committee report, published in December 2024.
The report made headlines for its stark conclusion: medical misogyny exists.
For Munchetty, seeing that phrase in black and white was transformative. “It was almost self-affirming,” she said. “We now know it’s there, so we can challenge it. Women can say: I know my body, I know there’s not enough research, and I am entitled to push for answers.”
The parliamentary report went further than acknowledgement. It called for ring-fenced funding for women’s health hubs, better training for GPs, and greater investment in research into reproductive conditions like adenomyosis and endometriosis.
It highlighted how symptoms are routinely dismissed as “normal,” delaying diagnosis and disrupting women’s careers, education and daily lives. Munchetty wrote in her book — referencing the report — that medical misogyny is not about blaming individual doctors, but about challenging a system built on insufficient research into women’s bodies.
“It gives women the language and the confidence to not just be heard, but to insist on being taken seriously,” she wrote.
Her book also tackles the additional barriers faced by women from minority communities, who may be discouraged by stigma or embarrassment from speaking about menstruation or menopause. To them, Munchetty has a clear message: “You are so much more valuable than you realise. If you don’t prioritise your health, you are lessening your ability to hold up everyone around you.”
Those featured in the book are friends, colleagues, charities and everyday women who contributed their stories, many for the first time. “I was surprised at how many friends are in that book with such powerful experiences,” Munchetty said.
“It told me all the more that we’re not speaking about it, and that it is sadly so very common.”
At a launch event for the book, contributors, family and experts filled the room with what Munchetty describes as an “electric and inspiring atmosphere.”
She said, “It was full of joy, of women who felt safe to speak up and be heard. This is not a whiny book — it’s a positive book. People felt they were part of making things better, part of this women’s health revolution.”
For Munchetty, writing the book was exhausting, but transformative, she said.
“I never thought I’d be an author. I’m a journalist. But this is journalism — facilitating people’s stories to be told powerfully and truthfully. People trusted me, and I’m proud of that.”
And Munchetty’s aim is for the book to be a tool for change: arming women with the language, confidence and strategies to advocate for their health.
“It’s not easy to admit you need help, and it’s not instinctive for women to prioritise themselves,” she said. “But this book will help you do that. It’s the silent friend who has your back and gives you strength.”
It’s Probably Nothing - Critical Conversations on the Women’s Health Crisis is now available in all good bookshops
The Shree Kunj Bihari Vrindavan (UK) Temple has officially launched its project to establish a grand home for Shree Banke Bihari in London.
The inaugural event, held in Harrow from 4 pm, featured devotional chants, the Deep Pragtya ceremony, and a presentation outlining the temple’s vision. Speaking at the gathering, Shalini Bhargava described the planned temple as “a spiritual home promoting bhakti, unity and seva for generations to come.”
Several dignitaries were honoured at the ceremony, including Cllr Anjana Patel, Mayor of Harrow; Anuradha Pandey, Hindi and Cultural Attaché at the High Commission of India; Kamakshi Jani of the Royal Navy; Councillors Janet Mote, Nitin Parikh and Mina Parmar; Krishnaben Pujara, Chairperson of ALL UK; and Truptiben Patel, President of the Hindu Forum of Britain.
Organisers said the launch marks the beginning of a new spiritual and cultural hub for London’s Hindu community, offering a centre for devotion, learning and community service.
Martin Dickie has announced his departure from BrewDog and the alcohol industry.
He co-founded the Ellon-based brewer with James Watt in 2007.
Dickie cited family time and personal reasons for his exit.
His departure follows recent bar closures as part of a company restructuring.
BrewDog confirmed no further leadership changes will follow.
BrewDog co-founder Martin Dickie has announced he is leaving the Scottish brewer and the wider alcohol industry for “personal reasons.” Dickie, who founded the Ellon-based business with James Watt in 2007, said he wanted to spend more time with his family after more than two decades in brewing and distilling.
Early beginnings
Dickie and Watt launched BrewDog at the age of 24, starting from a garage in Fraserburgh and selling hand-filled bottles from a van at local markets. The company grew rapidly to become one of the UK’s best-known craft brewers.
Leadership changes
James Watt stepped down as chief executive last year after 17 years in the role, moving into a non-executive position as “captain and co-founder.” Dickie’s exit marks another major shift in the company’s founding leadership.
Dickie’s statement
“Leaving BrewDog isn’t easy, but I’m ready to spend less time travelling and spend some more time at home with my young family,” Dickie said. He added: “It has been an honour to have worked with incredible, like-minded colleagues who live in a world of flavour and experimentation. In James Taylor and Lauren Carrol, BrewDog is in very strong hands and I will always remain a massive fan.”
Company response
BrewDog chief executive James Taylor praised Dickie’s contribution, highlighting his focus on product quality, workplace safety, sustainable supplier relationships, and new product development. “Martin’s contributions to BrewDog have been immeasurable,” Taylor said. “His creativity, passion, and relentless drive have shaped our company over the years and inspired countless others in the industry.”
Recent challenges
The announcement comes a month after BrewDog closed ten of its bars, including its flagship Aberdeen Gallowgate site and a Dundee outlet, citing commercial unviability. The company stressed that Dickie’s departure will not result in further leadership changes.