Entertainment: King Khan celebrates 52nd birthday

Bollywood King Shah Rukh Khan turns 52 today. He celebrated his birthday in his farm house at Alibaug. His fans were unaware about his plans, so many of them gathered near his house Mannat to wish him.

Many Bollywood stars attended his celebration, including Katrina Kaif, alia Bhat, Deepika Padukone and Karan johar. He received many wishes from the B-Town. Twitter exploded with the birthday wishes for King Khan. Aamir Khan tweeted a warm message for Shah Rukh:

Here is an example of the superstar’s wit at its best at the Yale University lecture after being detained at the New York for over two hours:

Society doesn’t like women who confront tormentors: Big B

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan rues how patriarchal mindsets still dominate most part of India, where the society has not allowed women to freely use the fundamental right of legal recourse in cases of harassment.

“Many crimes against women go unreported because women are scared to go to the police station, where they may face further harassment. Legal recourse is the fundamental right of every citizen and women have been denied that right because society does not like a woman who confronts her tormentors,” Amitabh, 75, has penned in a foreword for Pink: The Inside Story (HarperCollins).

The book, by film historian Gautam Chintamani, chronicles the making, impact and script of Pink, which bagged the National Award for Best Film on Social Issues for proviking discussions on crimes against women.

Amitabh’s statement fits in a pertinent way as far as the current scenario in the global entertainment industry is concerned.

After multiple women stood up and raised their voice against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein for sexual harassment and rape, more women have spoken out about their experiences with filmmaker James Toback and even actors Kevin Spacey and Dustin Hoffman.

“Women today are more educated and financially more secure; they are ambitious and assertive; and yet, there seems to be no end to the atrocities perpetrated against women. You just have to pick up the newspaper every morning to know this,” Big B writes.

He says he himself chose to feature in a film like Pink (2016) -- which highlighted how “no means no” -- because “as an older member of the industry, I felt there needed to be a change in my engagement with my profession”.

In the film, he essays Deepak Sehgal, a lawyer who fights in favour of three girls and makes valid arguments to highlight the issue of consent and a woman's right to say no.

Big B says in the book that his relationship with the three girls reminds him of his own bond with his granddaughters.

“It's important for me that they grow up in a society that offers them the necessary protections and privileges.”

Farah Khan surprises Akshay, Sajid Khan on show's set

Choreographer and filmmaker Farah Khan brought along a "lot of cheer and fun" to the set of The Great Indian Laughter Challenge, which is co-judged by her brother and director Sajid Khan and actor Akshay Kumar.

During the shooting of one of its episodes, Farah made a surprise entry. This was when super judge Akshay was amidst an egg breaking contest between judges Shreyas Talpade and Sajid. Farah joined the three on stage sans make-up.

“I knew Farah shoots next door but never expected her to turn up on our set. It was a pleasant surprise. She was sporting enough to shoot sans make-up and her presence added a lot of cheer and fun to the atmosphere,” Sajid said in a statement.

The episode will air on Star Plus on Saturday.

With inputs from IANS