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16 December 2017 SPORTS www.theasianindependent.co.uk President, PM hail Mirabai’s World Championships gold feat New Delhi, President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday congratulated weightlifter Mirabai Chanu, who became the first Indian in over two decades to clinch a gold medal at the World Weightlifting Championships in Anaheim, United States. “Congratulations Mirabai Chanu for winning a gold medal in the World Weightlifting Championship. India is so proud of you. And congratulations Manipur for giving the country such a wonderful series of champion sportswomen!” President Kovind’s tweet read. Wishing the weightlifter for her future endeavours, PM Modi wrote: “India is proud of Mirabai Chanu, who has won a gold at the World Weightlifting Championship. Congratulations and best wishes for her future endeavours”. The 23-year-old’s feat is India’s first at the prestigious World Championships since Karnam Malleswari’s medal in 1995. Chanu, who is employed with the Indian Railways, lifted 85kg in snatch and 109kg in clean and jerk to total an impressive 194kg in the women’s 48kg, in the process setting a new national record. The Indian pipped the title favourite Thailand’s Sukcharoen Thunya by just one kilogram to clinch the yellow medal. While Thunya bagged the silver with a total lift of 193, Colombian Segura Ana Iris bagged the bronze with 182kg. Nearly 400 athletes from about 70 countries and regions, including six reigning Olympic champions, will be competing through December 5 at the competition. This will be the first world championships featuring eight weight categories for both men and women. Some of the world’s top weightlifting nations such as Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Azerbaijan could not take part in the competition due to issues related to doping. Australia, Belgium arrive for HWL Final Bhubaneswar, Defending champions Australia and world number three Belgium arrived to a rousing reception at the Biju Patnaik International Airport here on Sunday for the Men’s Hockey World League (HWL) Final, which is scheduled to begin at Kalinga Stadium here on December 1. The teams were welcomed by Odisha state government officials accompanied by host Hockey India (HI) amidst hockey buffs longing to click a picture with their favourite international stars. Argentina, Germany and the Netherlands will arrive in the city on Monday, said a statement. With the top teams in the world vying to live up to the billing, it will be hard to predict or single out one team as a clear winner, expressed Australia chief coach Colin Batch. “You can’t predict which team will make the Final of the tournament. If you see the Sentinel Women’s Hockey World League Final in Auckland, it was hard to predict till the end who will make the final. “It is a matter of playing well early on and play your best hockey from the quarter-finals onwards. It is going to be an exciting tournament in that respect. We have played England, Spain and Belgium earlier this year so it will be important to assess our team against the other top teams of the world,” Batch stated. The defending champions will meet India in their first Pool B match on the opening day of the tournament and Batch expects a good contest. “They (India) are playing at home and will have big expectations. They have some talented players from the Junior World Cup last year where they did very well. We play them in our first match which I am sure will have a good atmosphere and I am very much looking forward to that,” added the coach. Virat inspires me to be fit : Mithali Raj New Delhi, India Women’s cricket team captain Mithali Raj on Thursday heaped praise on skipper Virat Kohli and said it is commendable how he stays focused on staying fit throughout the year. “It feels great that all of them are getting their due, and It feels great that all of them are getting their due, and that people are finally recognising them,” the 34- year-old said at the CNN- News18 Indian of the Year 2017 that people are finally recognising them,” the 34-year-old said at the CNN-News18 Indian of the Year 2017. “I’ve come so far playing cricket in an era where it was not really appreciated, and responding to trolls is not really worth my time. “There are so many people who inspire me every day, not one person. But if I do have to name someone, it’s got to be Virat Kohli, for bringing the focus on fitness. Be it the men or women, everyone wants to be the best in international cricket,” Raj added. I-League : Aizawl hold East Bengal to a 2-2 draw Kolkata : Aizawl FC’s William Lalnunfela scored deep into stoppage time to pour cold water on East Bengal’s victory ambitions and hold them to a 2-2 draw in an entertaining I-League football encounter here on Tuesday. Brazilian defender Eduardo Ferreira (66th minute) and Japanese midfielder Yusa Katsumi (72nd) gave the hosts a two-goal cushion only for Lalnunfela (74th) to pull one back in the next minute. Just as the match headed towards the final whistle, a corner by substitute Lalthathanga Khawlhring was tapped in by Lalnunfela to achieve parity and send the reigning champions into wild celebrations. Only a handful of spectators turned up at the revamped Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan –hosting an I-League match after early 2016 — due to the match being organised in three days’ time. Initially the state government had said that regulations do not permit two matches to be held in 48 hours’ time at the same venue. Indian Super League (ISL) side ATK played FC Pune City last Sunday at the same venue. But after dilly-dallying, permission was given very late, leaving the club with little time to print tickets. Coming to the game, East Bengal’s Trinidadian forward Willis Plaza was guilty of missing two good chances in quick succession, early on in the first half. First, U-22 defender Mehtab Singh crossed for Plaza inside the box but the latter took a touch too many for visiting defender Kareem Omolaja to clear the ball. Seven minutes later, Rafique teed up the 30- year-old but Aizawl goalkeeper Avilash Paul dived low to keep the effort from close at bay. It was one way traffic for the home side as the likes of midfield general Yusa Katsumi and the impressive Brandon Vanlalremdika tried to make inroads only to be thwarted in the final third. The red and gold brigade’s best chance came 10 minutes to halftime but Plaza was unlucky here to see his longranger from 25 yards cannon off the upright. Both teams went into the break locked goalless. In the first minute after the restart, Syrian midfielder Mahmoud Al Amna — moving to the right flank with Katsumi coming inside — missed the goal by a whisker. Avilash then pulled off a pair of superb saves to deny Plaza twice in the space of three minutes. East Bengal finally broke the deadlock and it was Ferreira who rose highest after Md. Rafique flicked the ball in his path from a Katsumi corner. Minutes later, Rafique’s attempt to a big deflection off Katsumi squirmed over the line. Lalnunfela, in the next minute, headed in the ball in front of an empty net and in stoppage time scored again. East Bengal and Aizawl now have one point from their first outing this season.
www.theasianindependent.co.uk CHITRANGAD SINGH had almost got named JODHA BAI Chitrangda Singh, who is currently shooting with Sanjay Dutt for Tigmanshu Dhulia’s Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster 3, has said she was almost named Jodhabai. The actor was born in Jodhpur and is happy to shoot in the city. She plays a Rajasthani girl in Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster 3. The actor has been utilising her time between the shoots to revisit her childhood. “My mom told me about the army hospital where I was born and even remembers the room number. I saw the place and it felt special. Then, I also got to know that I had almost been named Jodhabai. According to my mother, the lady who was looking after me at the time had taken to calling me Jodhabai. Thank God mom didn’t go by her suggestion,” the actor said in a press statement. On her upcoming film, the Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi star said, “We are staying in a 300-year-old fort and there’s so much history here. It’s a different world altogether. I play a Rajasthani girl in the film and that shows in my outfits and the way I speak. The look is not urban so we had to work on the costumes carefully. I also had to take some dance lessons as part of my prep to get the traditional moves right." Chitrangada started shooting for Saheb Biwi aur Gangster 3 in Bikaner this September. Talking about reuniting with Tigmanshu, Chitrangda also said, “Tigmanshu and I were supposed to work together way back in 1997, when he was making his first film, Haasil. Somehow, that didn’t work out. If it had, it would have probably been my first film instead of Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi. Today, neither of us recalls why the collaboration didn’t work out then. Tigamanshu is extremely edgy and I like his style of filmmaking.” ENTERTAINMENT December 2017 17 I become rude in public : Jennifer Lawrence Los Angeles, Actress Jennifer Lawrence says she becomes “incredibly rude” in public. Lawrence is widely regarded as one of Hollywood’s most down-toearth stars. However, she says her attitude towards people changes as soon as she enters a public space, reports variety.com. “Once I enter a public place, I become incredibly rude, I turn into a huge a**,” Lawrence said. “That’s kind of like my only way of defending myself (from fan attention),” she added. The 27-year-old actress said she has no qualms about declining to pose for selfies with her fans. “That’s like my only defence. One of my best friends is Amy Schumer. I take my dog to the park all the time, Central Park. As soon as I meet her in the park, we’re f****d,” she said. AKSHAY KUMAR FIGHTS FOR MENSTURAL HYGIENE IN & AS PADMAN In cinemas worldwide on 26th January 2018, through Sony Pictures Entertainment, India ‘Dad and I never spoke about box office battle A superhero is a heroic stock character, who is dedicated to protecting their public and fighting evil and oppression at all costs, often single handily. However, contrary to popular folklore, not all superheroes wear capes and can sometimes blend in with the conventional public. Here’s introducing the inspiring story of one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential entrants Arunachalam Muruganantham, a rural welder from India turned incredible innovator and inventor, who certainly wasn’t wearing a cape when he was moved to provide women with access to high-quality and affordable sanitary pads 20 years ago. His story has been fictionalised for its silver screen debut with PadMan, the world’s first feature film on menstrual hygiene releasing in cinemas around the world on 26th January Co-produced by Mrs Funnybones Movies, Hope Productions, KriArj Entertainment, and Sony Pictures Entertainment, India, PadMan is written and directed by ad-man turned film-man R Balki (Paa). It is billed as the most progressive family entertainer yet, starring international megastar Akshay Kumar (Toilet: Ek Prem Katha) who assumes the titular role of Arunachalam Muruganantham to once again showcase his commitment to social entertainers. He is joined by critically acclaimed actresses Sonam Kapoor (Neerja)and Radhika Apte (Kabali). The story of Arunachalam Muruganantham was first fictionalised in the Founder of Mrs Funnybones Movies, Twinkle Having witnessed two of his biggest films clash at the box office with actor Aamir Khan’s movies — Ghayal with Dil in 1990 and Gadar with Lagaan in 2001 — actor Sunny Deol is not new to the concept of box office battles. This year, his film Poster Boys released on the same day (September 8) as Arjun Rampal’s Daddy. However, Sunny, son of veteran actor Dharmendra, prefers to count himself among the old school actors, who never worried about box office clashes or got involved in the number game after their films released. He says, “I don’t think that clashes made any difference back then, and neither did they have any significance even when my dad was active in films. It’s just hype created for people to talk about.” Amid several films racing to make it to the coveted 100 crore club nowadays, Sunny says that it has never been his game plan. “We, my dad and I, have done it several years ago. The difference is that we never spoke about it at that time, and so we were respected. Those days, nobody fought. But now, actors and filmmakers talk about it, and they are all fighting for it,” the actor says. Talking about how big the number game has become these days, Sunny says people no longer go to theatres to enjoy a film. “They go in large numbers to watch a film and if they don’t like it, it doesn’t matter to them. It’s no longer restricted to the desire to see something because it might make you feel nice,” he adds. Sunny maintains that all these years, all he has focused on as an actor is to do great cinema. “That’s how I want to be known. I’ve never bothered about where and how it happens. I didn’t even know when [my] films were a hit or how big they had become. I never sat down and planned my way ahead. So, it’s best to go on and keep moving ahead if you want to enjoy it,” signs off Sunny. Khanna’s award-winning book of short-stories, The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad. A renowned vocal women empowerment champion,interior design entrepreneur, best-selling author, newspaper columnist and producer, Twinkle Khanna then felt compelled to project Arunachalam Muruganantham’s story to a wider audience by coproducing PadMan under her banner Mrs Funnybones Movies. PadMan traces Arunachalam Muruganantham’s international journey from an outcast exiled from society for his endeavours to delve into such a taboo subject, to becoming a super-hero of India’s modern history, as he followed his dream to bring a revolution to menstrual hygiene in India. Akin to the tagline of the film Superhero Hai Yeh Pagla (He’s a Crazy Superhero), PadMan is nothing short of an impulsive, flamboyant and driven entrepreneur extraordinaire, who refused to give up in the wake of scrutiny and ridicule, using his resilience and initiative to invent India’s low cost sanitary napkin making machine. An extreme enigma in his home town, Arunachalam Muruganantham’s super-heroic efforts led to a business that today employs hundreds of women across India. Issues relating to menstrual hygiene are a global phenomenon. Whether this is a result of the stigma and taboo resulting in the marginalisation and disempowerment of women in societies, the economic and social impact of “period poverty”, to the consequences on women’s health, there is a need to educate both men and women on the impact and to ensuring all women have menstrual dignity. Committed to the cause of women empowerment, Arunachalam Muruganantham faced the risk of isolation and marginalisation as he challenged the stigma and stereotypes associated with menstrual hygiene head-on in order to improve the lives of thousands of women. As is the case with many superheroes, it’s the element of social segregation that makes Arunachalam Muruganantham’s story so special. He is challenged by the extreme backlash of a bigoted society stuck in its ways, to liberate and empower women across the country – just like a superhero. Whilst his exterior may resemble that of a regular man, Arunachalam Muruganantham is the paradigm to the theory that not all heroes wear capes! PadMan is a tribute to every ordinary and simple man and woman, who dare to dream and impact the lives of millions of others. Padman releases in cinemas worldwide on the 26th January to inspire all the capeless heroes amongst us, through Sony Pictures Entertainment, India.
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