Todays E-PAPER (121-12-12)

ART & CULTURE
FrIDAY,
sePTeMBer 29, 2017
8
Celebs Go Dating stars reveal
what it's like to be on the show
We've all wondered what it's like to
date a celebrity - the fancy
restaurants, paparazzi and exclusive
events, reports BBC.
For the daters on E4's Celebs Go
Dating show, this has become a
reality.
Members of the public get to date
the people they've seen on shows like
Made in Chelsea and The Only Way
is Essex.
We spoke to the show's agents and
daters about what it's like to go out
with a celebrity.
Celebrity dating agents Eden
Blackman and Nadia Essex have
been guiding celebrities since the
show first started in September
2016.
This series' contestants are
Georgia Toffolo, Bobby Norris,
Sarah-Jane Crawford, James
Argent, Charlotte Dawson, Frankie
Cocozza and Calum Best, who have
appeared on shows like The Only
Way is Essex (Towie), Ex on the
Beach, The X Factor and Celebrity
Big Brother.
Eden's expertise comes from his
online dating website, which he set
up to stop people "catfishing",
meaning they lie about who they
really are on social media in order
'Drop-dead gorgeous' Wonder
Woman 'not breaking ground'
says James Cameron
Avatar director James Cameron has
launched more criticism at the recent
Wonder Woman reboot, saying: "She's
absolutely drop-dead gorgeous. To me,
that's not breaking ground." , reports
BSS.
He told Hollywood Reporter: "She
was Miss Israel, and she was wearing a
kind of bustier costume that was very
form-fitting.
"They had Raquel Welch doing stuff
like that in the '60s."
He said in August that its star Gal
Gadot played "an objectified icon".
But the film's director Patty Jenkins
hit back, saying "there is no right or
wrong kind of powerful woman".
She pointed out the film's "massive
female audience who made the film a
hit... can surely choose and judge their
own icons of progress."
Wonder Woman is the highest-ever
grossing live action film directed by a
woman. The highest grossing film with
a female director is Frozen, which was
co-directed by Jennifer Lee.
Cameron told the Hollywood
Reporter that Wonder Woman could
be compared with Linda Hamilton in
his 1991 film Terminator 2: Judgment
Day.
"Linda looked great. She just wasn't
treated as a sex object. There was
nothing sexual about her character.
"It was about angst, it was about will,
it was about determination. She was
crazy, she was complicated.
"She wasn't there to be liked or ogled,
but she was central, and the audience
loved her by the end of the film," the
director said.
It's rumoured that Hamilton is set to
return to the Terminator franchise,
with Cameron at the helm.
"As much as I applaud Patty
directing the film and Hollywood, uh,
'letting' a woman direct a major action
franchise, I didn't think there was
anything groundbreaking in Wonder
Woman," Cameron continued.
"Hollywood doesn't get it about
women in commercial franchises.
Drama, they've got that cracked, but
the second they start to make a big
commercial action film, they think
they have to appeal to 18-year-old
males or 14-year-old males, whatever
it is".
But he did concede that he thought
Wonder Woman was "good" and said:
"I like the fact that, sexually, [Gadot]
had the upper hand with the male
character [played by Chris Pine],
which I thought was fun."
Analysis - Emma Jones, editor of the
Electra media website, which is
"dedicated to women in film and
changing the narrative"
lure people in.
He says from working on the show
he's been able to work out who
genuinely wants to date a celeb and
who just wants the fame.
"We can tell from the daters' social
media if they're in it for real reasons
or to be on TV for their 15 minutes of
fame," he tells the BBC.
"The show has a huge team that
interviews the daters and we have a
conversation with them, asking all
sorts of questions.
"When we sit down with the daters
we ask first, why a celebrity dating
agency?
"They say it's to try something
different, it's a different kind of life,
that celebrities are very organised,
very driven people.
"Some people just want to see or
they just fancy Joey Essex and that's
why they want to come on the show.
"There's an element of fun, as
we've seen from Love Island, the
perks of being the face that makes it
through are enormous."
Paul Godfrey, 29, dated Bobby
Norris from The Only Way is Essex
on the show and says his life has
changed since then.
"I work in fashion styling and
events and I've dated people in the
public eye before. "I meet people in
the field I'm in and it just depends if
we get on, I like to look at the person,
not the job title.
"With Bobby I was lucky to meet
someone honest and genuine, we
had a lot in common and that was a
good ice breaker.
"Your life does change when you
date someone famous, people
followed mine and Bobby's story as
we were the first LGBT couple on the
show. "I get stopped most days on
the street, my followers have gone
up on social media but I've not had
one bad comment."
Khancha to vie
for best foreign
language film
in 'The Oscars'
DHAKA : Khancha, a film
made under the banner of
Impress Telefilm Ltd with
government grant, has been
picked up to vie for the best
foreign language film in the
90th Academy Awards, The
Oscars.
Bangladesh committee for
the 90th Academy Awards
nominated the movie
directed by Akram Khan
over "Sona Bondhu", reports
BSS.
The declaration was made
at a press briefing held at a
city hotel. Bangladesh
Federation of Film Society
and Bangladesh Oscars
Committee chairman
Habibur Rahman Khan, Prof
Abdus Selim, film director
Mushfikur Rahman Gulzar,
Abu Musa Debu, Abdul Latif
Bachchu, Khancha director
Akram Khan, actor Azad
Abul Kalam and Impress
managing director Faridur
Reza Sagar addressed the
function, among others.
Khanca was made on the
story of eminent short story
writer Hasan Azizul Huq,
while the screenplay was by
Akram Khan along with
Azad Abul Kalam.
Ibeyi: 'They tried to bury
us, but we were seeds
Lisa-Kainde Diaz, one half of French-Cuban
duo Ibeyi, has an inadvisable habit.
Every time she puts music on YouTube,
she waits half an hour then checks the
comments, reports BBC.
"It's my little ritual," she says. "I always
look at the first 15, then I stop because, well
you know!"
Recently she uploaded a song called
Deathless, whose lyrics tackle police
brutality and racism.
Given the sometimes toxic atmosphere of
YouTube's comments section, Lisa-Kainde
might have expected to see a stream of
hatred. But one message stopped her in her
tracks.
"This girl wrote something that really
touched me," she tells the BBC. "'They
buried us, but they didn't know we were
seeds.'"
The quote comes from poet Dinos
Christianopoulos, who was sidelined by the
Greek literary community in the 1970s
because he was gay.
But it could easily be a lyric from
Deathless, a cathartic response to Lisa-
Kainde's wrongful arrest, at the age of 16, in
Paris.
The performer says she was on the Metro
going to a piano class when a policeman
started asking her if she drank, smoked or
took drugs.
When she replied "no" the officer got
"quite rough", making her remove her shoes
and tipping the contents of her schoolbag on
the ground.
"It was clearly racist," says the singer. "The
only reason they stopped me was the fact
that I had an afro. They thought, 'Oh, for
sure, she's selling crack.'"
The gendarme only relented when he saw
her textbooks and musical scores lying on
the ground. "He froze," she says.
"I think he thought, 'She might have a little
intelligence.' So he gave me my bag and left."
"We're so proud to mix Yoruba sounds
into our music," says Lisa-Kainde
Lisa-Kainde says she "buried" the incident
for years. "At the end of the day, it was
nothing. They didn't touch me, they didn't
push me, they didn't try to hurt me that
way."
It was only when stories of police brutality
started to crop up with increasing regularity
in the news that Ibeyi's producer, Richard
Russell, suggested she address it in her
lyrics.
"I remember saying, 'Why would I write a
song about it? My story is nothing compared
to what is happening to people every day.'
"Then Naomi said something quite
incredible. She said: 'Lisa, you don't need to
be raped or be killed for it to be wrong. What
happened to you was already wrong.'"
Lisa-Kainde decided Deathless should be a
rallying cry for people who feel helpless in
the face of oppression.
"I was like, 'Let's do something!'" she says.
"And what we can do, even if it's small, is
write a song for everybody to believe, truly
believe, for three minutes that we are
beyond death.
"That we are so powerful. That we are
large. That there is no end to the power we
have together.
"We can make people sing 'We are
deathless', every night like a mantra. And
that's our little anthem."
Hugh Hefner: Playboy magazine
founder dies aged 91
Hugh Hefner, American founder of the
international adult magazine Playboy, has
died at the age of 91, reports BBC.
Playboy Enterprises Inc said he passed
away peacefully at home in Los Angeles,
from natural causes.
Hefner began publishing Playboy in his
kitchen in 1953. It became the largest-selling
men's magazine in the world, shifting seven
million copies a month at its peak.
Cooper Hefner, his son, said he would be
"greatly missed by many".
He paid tribute to his father's "exceptional
and impactful life as a media and cultural
pioneer," and called him an advocate for free
speech, civil rights and sexual freedom.
Hefner's trailblazing magazine helped
make nudity more acceptable in
mainstream publications, despite emerging
at a time when US states could legally ban
contraceptives.
It also made him a multi-millionaire,
spawning a business empire that included
casinos and nightclubs.
And in terms of sexual mores his early
permissiveness - daring or shocking
depending on your taste - now seems, if not
quite quaint, then certainly not unusual.
In that respect Hugh Hefner was ahead of
his time, for good or ill.
He claimed to have slept with more than
1,000 women, and credited the impotence
drug Viagra with maintaining his libido.
H O r O s C O P e
ArIes
(March 21 - April 20): Aries will
enjoy a stable energy when it comes
to their career today. You seem to be
on a predictable path to advancement; and
nothing pleases you more than knowing that
you are getting ahead. Take time to be grateful
for all of the many steps along the way that have
brought you to this place. No one makes it alone!
TAUrUs
(April 21 - May 21): Taurus, you
should enjoy this last day of pushing
your boundaries before more
practical matters take hold. Have a little fun today
and let loose! Pushing your own limits has never
been so fun, and you will enjoy the challenge of
bending your mind in new directions. Learn a
new skill today just for the fun of it!
GeMINI
(May 22 - June 21): You may find
yourself taking a pause to ponder
the deeper side of life today, Gemini.
The Moon is still in your 8th House of Death
and Regeneration, so questions of your life
direction may be front and center in your mind.
Are you doing something that will truly make a
positive impact on the world?
CANCer
(June 22 - July 23): Cancer, there is
no greater pleasure than a job well
done. It seems like you are facing a
million distractions right now and you may
want to focus your energy anywhere but work
right now. But if you put in the necessary time
now you will find you are fully able to focus on
the fun later. Work first-then play!
LeO
(July 24 - Aug. 23): Leos may
discover a hidden talent today. You
love being in the spotlight and are used
to having a steady stream of admirers. But this new
talent will come as a surprise to even you, and you
will delight in adding this skill to your wheelhouse.
Be proud of yourself for continuing your journey of
self-discovery and delight in your newfound talent.
VIrGO
(Aug 24 - Sept. 23): Life is a juggling
act, Virgo, but you may be feeling the
urge to quit the show. It sure does take
a lot of will and responsibility to keep life running on
track. Sometimes it may feel like your good deeds go
unnoticed; however, rest assured that you are very
appreciated for all you do. No one else is so adept at
managing life's stresses with a smile. Bravo!
LIBrA
(Sept. 24 - Oct. 23): Libras will be
happiest focusing on one goal today.
It's tempting to say “yes†to
every request that comes your way. And no one
enjoys pleasing people as much as you! But you run
the risk of over-committing if you aren't clear about
what you can handle. Agree to one item that is close
to your heart. You will thank yourself later!
sCOrPIO
(Oct. 24 - Nov. 22): People around
you have certainly been in a strange
mood, Scorpio. It's tempting for you
to try to get to the bottom of this; however, the
offending parties may not be ready to share any
details. Rest assured that whatever has them
irked doesn't concern you, and they will be back
to their usual selves soon.
sAGITTArIUs
(Nov. 23 - Dec. 21): Sagittarius, people
are looking to you for leadership right
now. Jupiter is in your 11th House of
Hope/Wishes/Friends, and you naturally attract
some of the best people around with your jovial and
adventurous nature. You may be selected as the
head of a project today or simply made the
“unofficial†leader of your group of friends.
CAPrICOrN
(Dec. 22 - Jan. 20): There's something
you've always wanted to do, Capricorn,
but you have been too afraid to go for
it. Well, today is your day! Push
yourself outside your comfort zone and sign up for
that class you have always wanted to take or that trip
you've always wanted to go on. You can achieve
anything with your “can-do†attitude, and you
are sure to have a blast in the process!
AQUArIUs
(Jan. 21 - Feb. 19) : Love may find
you in a surprising place today,
Aquarius. You are usually focused on
so many different things at once; you may not
have noticed that you are making quite an
impression on someone. This could be someone
you would have never thought of in a romantic
way, but give yourself time to adjust to the idea.
PIsCes
(Feb. 20 - Mar. 20) : Pisces, you have
recently taken someone under your
wing. This may have been someone
new at work or school who seemed to
be struggling to find their place. Under your careful
care and guidance they are beginning to find their
footing and you can see how comfortable they are
starting to feel. The world would surely be a better
place if everyone behaved as honorably as you.