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EYE SPY – BOLLYWOOD GOSSIP WITH ASJAD NAZIR

RICHA’S HOME TRUTHS

ACTRESS Richa Chadda hit out at women who opt to go on the casting couch and said she gets angry with women who are ready to sleep with producers. She said although it was a personal choice of women who do it, they make it difficult for other actresses because some producers expect them to do it too. Talking of the talented actress, she confirmed her relationship with Ali Fazal and will be starring alongside him in their comedy sequel Fukrey 2.


CHOPRA LETS HIMSELF GO

He may not have been a great actor, but Uday Chopra looked after himself and regularly showed off his impressive physique. But he seems to have really let himself go since Dhoom 3 released in 2013 and shocked. Bollywood fans when these photos of him emerged. With no film offers on the table Uday is now concentrating on producing so perhaps isn’t bothered about having a movie star appearance anymore.

OMUNG GOES BHOOMI

A FEW weeks back I said Omung Kumar had jumped the gun by announcing Sanjay Dutt would star in his film The Good Maharaja and it was highly unlikely the actor would work with him again if their film Bhoomi failed. Well Bhoomi failed miserably and Sanjay won’t be working with him again. In fact the film did so badly that Omung will find it difficult to get anyone to invest in him. Meanwhile Sanjay is busy shooting the third instalment of Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster.

NOT SUCH A BAD BOY

IN FORTHCOMING film Padmavati, Ranveer Singh is supposed to play a ferocious villain named Sultan Alauddin Khilji, but instead of striking fear the first look made a lot of people chuckle. He looked more like a naughty fakir playing dress up. Some women found it sexy, but that isn’t the point of his character. In stark contrast the first looks of Deepika Padukone and Shahid Kapoor received a much more positive response.

POP PIONEER RETURNS

SINGER Sonya Aurora Madan was one of the first British Asians to crack the western mainstream with Echobelly in the early 1990s. The band showed they had lost none of their magic when they made a comeback earlier this year with their fifth album Anarchy & Alchemy. I have heard their new single Faces In The Mirror, which releases next month and it is superb. They have a series of live dates planned to coincide with the song’s release. Look out for my revealing interview with the pioneering pop star next month.

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Sir Keir Starmer
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Comment: Can Starmer turn Windrush promises into policy?

Anniversaries can catalyse action. The government appointed the first Windrush Commissioner last week, shortly before Windrush Day, this year marking the 77th anniversary of the ship’s arrival in Britain.

The Windrush generation came to Britain believing what the law said – that they were British subjects, with equal rights in the mother country. But they were to discover a different reality – not just in the 1950s, but in this century too. It is five years since Wendy Williams proposed this external oversight in her review of the lessons of the Windrush scandal. The delay has damaged confidence in the compensation scheme. Williams’ proposal had been for a broader Migrants Commissioner role, since the change needed in Home Office culture went beyond the treatment of the Windrush generation itself.

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Eye Spy: Top stories from the world of entertainment

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Ed Sheeran and Arijit Singh’s ‘Sapphire’ collaboration misses the mark

The song everyone is talking about this month is Sapphire – Ed Sheeran’s collaboration with Arijit Singh. But instead of a true duet, Arijit takes more of a backing role to the British pop superstar, which is a shame, considering he is the most followed artist on Spotify. The Indian superstar deserved a stronger presence on the otherwise catchy track. On the positive side, Sapphire may inspire more international artists to incorporate Indian elements into their music. But going forward, any major Indian names involved in global collaborations should insist on equal billing, rather than letting western stars ride on their popularity.

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If ayatollahs fall, who will run Teheran next?

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If ayatollahs fall, who will run Teheran next?

THERE is one question to which none of us has the answer: if the ayatollahs are toppled, who will take over in Teheran?

I am surprised that Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Hosseini Khamenei, has lasted as long as he has. He is 86, and would achieve immortality as a “martyr” in the eyes of regime supporters if the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, succeeded in assassinating him. This was apparently Netanyahu’s plan, though he was apparently dissuaded by US president Donald Trump from going ahead with the killing.

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Comment: Talking about race isn’t racist – ignoring it helped grooming gangs thrive

A woman poses with a sign as members of the public queue to enter a council meeting during a protest calling for justice for victims of sexual abuse and grooming gangs, outside the council offices at City Centre on January 20, 2025 in Oldham, England

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Comment: Talking about race isn’t racist – ignoring it helped grooming gangs thrive

WAS a national inquiry needed into so-called grooming gangs? Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer did not think so in January, but now accepts Dame Louise Casey’s recommendation to commission one.

The previous Conservative government – having held a seven-year national inquiry into child sexual abuse – started loudly championing a new national inquiry once it lost the power to call one. Casey explains why she changed her mind too after her four-month, rapid audit into actions taken and missed on group-based exploitation and abuse. A headline Casey theme is the ‘shying away’ from race.

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FUNNY UK TOUR

The tidal wave of top Indian stand-up stars touring the UK continues with upcoming shows by Shraddha Jain this July. The hugely popular comedian – who has over a million Instagram followers – will perform her family-friendly show Aiyyo So Mini Things at The Pavilion, Reading (4), the Ondaatje Theatre, London (5), and The Old Rep Theatre, Birmingham (6). The 90-minute set promises an entertaining take on the mundane and uproarious aspects of everyday life.

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