The Information and Broadcast ministry has issued guidelines for smooth resumption of cinema halls from October 15. (Express photo by Abhinav Saha)The government on Tuesday announced the Standard Operating Procedure for the resumption of cinema halls from October 15 across the country. Information and Broadcasting minister Prakash Javadekar tweeted the list of precautionary measures including, alternate seating, mandatory use of masks and sanitisers and encouraged use of digital mode of ticket payment, to be applied by theatre owners to ensure the safety of viewers that includes
The government has also made use and installation of Aarogya Setu app advisable, while discouraging audience to move during intermission. Also included in the guidelines is regular cleaning and disinfection of the box office, and other areas of theatres and sufficient opening of counters of the box office. Floor markers should be used for physical distancing for queue management and only packaged food and beverages shall be allowed and delivery inside the halls will be prohibited, read the SOP.
Thermal screening should be carried out allowing only asymptomatic individuals inside the hall, while contact number of audience members shall be taken for contact tracing. The government further said that any kind of COVID-19 stigmatisation will be dealt with strictly.
If any person is found coronavirus positive, the hall premises will need to be disinfected, while PSA’s (public service announcements) on wearing masks and physical distancing should be made before and after the film’s screening and during intermission.
The government last week announced the re-opening of cinema halls at 50 per cent occupancy in a huge relief to exhibitors, theatre owners and the Hindi film fraternity, who had been rallied for the resumption of cinemas for weeks citing that the six month lockdown had wrecked havoc with the business, causing severe loss of livelihood.
Ahead of the launch of Mirzapur 2 trailer, actor Shweta Tripathi has shared that she will be seen doing heavy-duty action in the upcoming season for which she had to undergo intense gun training.
“I still remember the first time I held a gun; the loud shook me completely. I knew right then that I had to train for this. We used real guns and so I worked with stunt director Manohar Verma for the next 10 days at his training arcade near Film City. I used to take Cheeta (Chaitnya Sharma, husband) on training sessions and he was supremely excited to see me push the boundaries and prepare for Golu 2.0. I used to put on earplugs and music while training. The real confidence came on the set," Shweta said in a statement.
The trailer of the second season of ZEE5 series Poison is out. Directed by Vishal Pandya and produced by Panorama Entertainment & Bombay Media Works, Poison 2 stars Aftab Shivdasani, Zain Imam, Raai Laxmi, Pooja Chopra & Rahul Dev, Vin Rana, Asmita Sood, Gaurav Sharma, Taher Shabbir, Sakshi Pradhan, Joy Sengupta and Pawan Chopra. It will premiere on October 16 on ZEE5.
Siddhant Chaturvedi recently took to Instagram and shared a video of himself singing.
Pooja Bedi took to Twitter to share that her e-commerce website registered in Goa has been hacked. The actor also shared that she filed a complaint with Goa police's Cyber Crime Cell. Pooja tweeted, "Dear @DGP_Goa, my ecommerce website http://happysoul.in HACKED AGAIN last night & this time they state if i don't pay ransom, they will sell DRUGS on my website. I have registered FIR in old goa police cyber cell last week but no action from cops. My company regd in Goa @goacm."
Aamir Khan is currently in Delhi shooting for his upcoming movie Laal Singh Chaddha. He has instructed the film's team to employ women-driven Sakha cabs for the entire Delhi schedule. On his show Satyamev Jayate, Aamir first had appreciated Sakha cabs for providing employment opportunities to women who have been victims of domestic violence.
Sushant Singh Rajput's sister Shweta Singh Kirti shared a photo of the late actor and wrote, 'Har Har Mahadev! 🔱 We believe in you God! 🙏🌺🙏 #AllEyesOnCBI.'
Veteran Bollywood actor Vishal Anand, known for 70s movies like Chalte Chalte and Taxi Driver, passed away on Sunday. The news was confirmed by popular actor and former VJ Purab Kohli, who is Anand's nephew. READ MORE
Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films on Monday released Uss Din, a short film starring Rajkummar Rao in the lead role. Directed by Vikram Gupta, Uss Din is the story of "two young boys, who are caught in the middle of a brutal conflict that plagues their families."
Ayushmann Khurrana shared a video and wrote, "Two years of this masterpiece 😎🙏🏽🎹 #Gratitude #2YearsOfAndhadhun."
The teaser of Akshay Kumar-starrer Bellbottom is out. It comes days after the shooting of the much-anticipated film was wrapped up in the UK. The Ranjit M Tewari directorial also stars Huma Qureshi, Lara Dutta and Vaani Kapoor. The teaser features a dapper Akshay at an airbase. The actor looks the part of a RAW agent in the espionage thriller said to be inspired by true events. READ MORE
AR Rahman's journey from a young boy from Madras to one of the most celebrated artistes across the globe has been traced in the latest episode of National Geographic's Mega Icons season two, which premiered on Sunday. AR Rahman said he always aspires to create music which resonates with people across age, gender, caste, class and interest. In his almost three decade-long career across languages, he believes he has been fortunate enough to work with people who strive to achieve harmony. READ MORE
Salman Khan on Sunday announced he has resumed shooting for his action-drama Radhe: Your Most Wanted Bhai. The 54-year-old actor was shooting for the Prabhudheva directorial before the lockdown was announced in March. Taking to Instagram, Khan shared a picture from the set, wearing a jacket, with his back facing the camera. READ MORE
Mira Rajput Kapoor shared a photo of herself with the caption, "Split personality. Also gave myself a haircut. #tamethesplits #punintended" However, the caption irked a few netizens. A comment on her post read, "Split personality is an actual disorder and not a funny caption."
Soon-to-be mom Anushka Sharma shared a black-and-white picture of herself on Instagram. And like always, fans are flooding it with likes and comments.
A recent photo of Sanjay Dutt is going viral. In the photo, the actor seems to have lost some weight and thus fans are concerned about his health.
Sharing photos, Kangana Ranaut tweeted, "Good morning friends, these are some stills from yesterday’s early morning scene discussion with my absolutely talented and most affectionate director A.L Vijay ji, there are many amazing places in this world but the most soothing and comforting to me is a film set #Thalaivi."
Pankaj Tripathi took to his social media accounts to share the date and time of Mirzapur 2's trailer release. He wrote, "नोट कर लें कल 1 बजे ट्रेलर का प्रबंध कर रहे हैं 🙏🏻#Mirzapur2(Note that we are arranging the trailer tomorrow at 1 o'clock #Mirzapur2)"
"It's been 25 years at the movies for me.. A journey that started in October of 1995.. an overwhelming and emotional one. I proudly say, I’ve seen the highs and the lows. The one thing these 25 years have taught me is, to never give up; always bounce back and keep moving ahead! Looking forward to another 25 years with my colleagues at the movies with a promise to be worthy of all your love and support and to entertain you till my end credits roll out!" the actor posted on Instagram.