As ‘Friends: The Reunion’ special is just around the corner, the much-loved sitcom’s star Matthew Parry has released a line of limited-edition merchandise inspired by his iconic character Chandler Bing. The 51-year-old actor announced the news on Thursday via an Instagram post. He shared that the collection, including T-shirts, sweatshirts, and even items for babies and pets, will only be available for three weeks. The price of the merchandise range from USD 14.99 for a bandana that reads, “Could I be any more of a dog?” to USD 44.99 for the “Could I be more me?” hoodie. The designs mostly feature takes on Chandler’s signature catchphrase written in the classic ‘Friends’ font.

Per Page Six, a few pieces nod to the character’s fondness for baths, while others are printed with the definition of sarcasm, which is Chandler’s preferred method of communication. Meanwhile, a baby onesie reads, “I’ll talk to you about it later,” while a particularly timely T-shirt asks, “Could I be any more vaccinated?”

The interested ones will have to place their orders soon as the line has high-profile fans like David Beckham champing at the bit. “I need one,” the footballer commented on Perry’s post. The announcement about the merchandise comes on the same day as a new trailer for the highly anticipated ‘Friends’ reunion released, in which Perry can be seen – in a very un-Chandler Bing move. In the trailer, Perry is getting emotional and being comforted by Jennifer Aniston.

As reported by Page Six, the reunion, which was taped in April, is set to premiere on HBO Max on May 29. Perry, Aniston and the rest of the gang including David Schwimmer, Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc, and Lisa Kudrow, are all returning. David Beckham, Justin Bieber, and Reese Witherspoon are slated to guest star, with James Corden set to host.

Young change-maker Philem Rohan.

With so much devastation in the world right now, shopping for clothing has taken a backseat for most people. However, clothes are also a necessity. The best way to marry one’s conscience with one’s sartorial needs, is to buy clothes that support a worthy cause. Young change-maker Philem Rohan’s initiative ‘Cycling for Humanity’ offers the best solution for this. Describing himself as a cyclist and social activist, Rohan founded the ‘Cycling for Humanity’ campaign in 2018, through which he would cycle the length and breadth of the country spreading knowledge about socially relevant and pressing issues. In 2019, he began manufacturing and selling his range of T-shirts to collect funds in support of his work.

These T-shirts are made in Manipur, which is Rohan’s home state, and are targeted exclusively at a young and ‘woke’ audience that believes in fighting for their rights. This makes them especially popular with students of schools, colleges and universities. “Sometimes, we set up small and temporary pop-up shops in restaurants or coffee shops where we sell our T-shirts to people who are interested in buying them. These measures have been very popular,” Rohan shares with a smile.

Perhaps the biggest draw for people is the fact that 100% of the proceeds from sale of these T-shirts goes to the ‘Cycling for Humanity’ charity and everything related to its campaigns and activities. In 2018, Rohan turned his fondness for cycling into a drive through which he felt he could best contribute towards the betterment of society and humanity. He partnered with a team of youths who shared his vision of serving people, and began this noble initiative.

The first campaign was a drive for a pollution free India, when they cycled from Delhi To Imphal in January-February 2018. The second one in March of that year, aimed at raising awareness on excessive pollution and the increasing use of narcotics. He once again covered the Delhi-Imphal distance in October-November 2018 to initiate conversations about saving the Sangai – the state animal of Manipur. When the Pulwama attack happened in early 2019, he cycled in honour of the Pulwama martyrs and helped raise funds for the family of one of the victims in Assam. Next, he undertook a journey from Kashmir to Kanyakumari from June to September of 2019 under a campaign he named #WaterforLife, to spread knowledge on the need for sanitization of water. His most ambitious project to date was the one where he was scheduled to cycle from Delhi to Tokyo in February 2020, which was to honour the voice of inclusion, dignity and respect. Unfortunately, this project was stalled in Kolkata because of the onset of COVID-19. He picked up his efforts again in 2021 to feed the hungry, by cycling around four major metro cities of India, including Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru and Delhi from February to April.

The ‘Cycling for Humanity’ community-driven initiatives have been feeding the homeless for over a year in Manipur, since the imposition of the COVID-19 lockdown by the government. Rohan shares that he has received a lot of support from people around him, as well as donations from private organisations. However, he has not received any sponsorships or grants from government bodies and is hoping they will extend their support soon.

His philanthropic acts have helped him build quite a following throughout the country, however, Rohan’s greatest fans are students. Since 2018, he has interacted with more than 2 lakh students from over 200 schools and universities across the country and has even been felicitated by Shri N. Biren Singh, the Chief Minister of Manipur, for his heartfelt activism.

When asked why he chose T-shirts as the mechanism to spread his message, he responds, “I wanted to create something that could be useful and memorable at the same time, and I realised T-shirts are the best medium for this dual purpose. As of now I do not have plans to expand my collection to include other kinds of merchandise, but I sincerely hope that more people will show their love and affection toward our work and buy our T-shirts.”

‘Cycling for Humanity’ offers three categories of T-shirts – the Round Neck ones made with pure cotton are sold for INR 500 and those made with polyester are sold for INR 300. The Polo T-shirts go for INR 700, and each one of these styles is available in both black and white colours. One can reach out to Philem Rohan on Rohan111philem@outlook.com to purchase these T-shirts or contact him through his Instagram handle @philem_rohan.

The writer is a lawyer who pens lifestyle articles for various publications and her blog www.nooranandchawla.com. She can be contacted on nooranand@gmail.com.

Mega star Chiranjeevi and his son Ram Charan are not only known for being stalwarts of cinema but also for being philanthropist. In 1998, when Chiranjeevi was reading a newspaper, he came across an article about a patient who unfortunately passing away because they couldn’t find blood on time. Moved by the article, he immediately launched a life saving landmark, the Chiranjeevi Blood Bank.

Over the years, this helped save the lives of several people across the Telugu states and the entire country. With the Covid pandemic currently shaking the country to unimaginable bound, with some succumbing to oxygen deprivation, Chiranjeevi has risen up to the cause by announcing the creation of an Oxygen Bank to curb the oxygen crisis across the states of Telangana and AP. The Oxygen Banks will be monitored by his son Ram Charan and are said to be handled by the Fans Association President of various districts. Chiranjeevi Charitable Trust debuted on Twitter to announced this news. The tweet mentioned that the bank is going to be operational in a week’s time. Chiranjeevi and his son have been actively helping a lot of Covid patients. Fans collectively echo that words can’t express the life saving help that the duo are doing for society in current tough times.

Arjan Bajwa last seen in Zee 5’s State of Siege 26/11 series, has received great accolades. Arjan will be next seen in an Amazon Prime series, opposite Shruti Hassan. It is adaptation of the book ‘The Best Seller She Wrote’ by Ravi Subramaniam and it also stars Mithun Chakraborty. Arjan Bajwa spoke to The Daily Guardian about the new venture, lockdown and much more.

Lockdown/Pandemic has been a curse and boon for many, how has it been treating you? Lockdown has been intense for everyone, as we live in the same ecosystem but at the same time I have kept my head up and keep my loved ones happy and healthy around me do as much as I can help others, be positive and pray for well being of everyone. How was the experience working for web series? How different it is from films? It has been an amazing experience working for both the web series be it State of Siege 26/11 or the one with Shruti Hassan. Shoot process is the same for films and web series, the only difference would be the time and mode of watching it.

We saw you in State of Siege 26/11, and now in an adaptation of The Best Seller She Wrote, how was it working for both and what was the process and preparation for being a part of them? State of Siege 26/11 was pretty intense and was based on a book so I had to prepare a lot as I was playing an army person. The training was done in order to get perfection in the role of a commando and we had to go through intense training. The other one with Shruti Hassan for that too we have had lot of reading sessions to get the characters into perfection. How was the experience working with Shruti Hassan and Mithun Chakraborty? The experience was amazing working with Shruti and Mithun sir.

MUMBAI: With back-to-back brilliant performances, Aditi Rao Hydari has been winning all the hearts this year. After delivering a power-packed portrayal of a middle-class girl in ‘Geeli Pucchi’ from Ajeeb Daastaans, the actress is back with yet another sweet tale, Sardar Ka Grandson.

The Pan-India actor is playing the younger version of Neena Gupta’s character Sardar in the Netflix Original. The film explores the emotions of partition and eternal love while talking about the last wish of an ageing grandmother.

Aditi’s command over the punjabi diction and the way she captured the essence of a young sardarni from Lahore before partition is simply remarkable. Hailed as the most versatile actress, the stunner easily slipped into the part of young Sardar and gave a beautiful  performance on screen that stays with you long after the film is over. The infectious chemistry between her and John Abraham also left many wanting for more.

Touted as an impeccable performer Aditi has yet again managed to impress the audience and the critics. Yearning to watch more of the incredible actress on the screen, a critic said, “Aditi has evolved a lot in recent times, and this is another excellent performance from her,” while another commented that her “performance has a touch of needed poignance.”

Aditi’s captivating screen presence and breathtakingly beautiful looks also made an indelible mark on the audience’s heart. With her recent outstanding offerings, The Girl On The Train, a Malayalam film, Telugu film, Ajeeb Daastaans, and now Sardar Ka Grandson, the powerhouse performer has hit the right chord and won the hearts of people all across India.

MUMBAI: Arjun Kapoor and Parineeti Chopra’s edgy-thriller ‘Sandeep aur Pinky Faraar’ is set to premiere on May 20, 2021, announced streaming giant Amazon Prime Video on Thursday.

Amazon Prime Video announced took to Twitter and unveiled that the movie will be released in India and across 240+ countries and territories. They also shared a poster of the film and wrote, “@ParineetiChopra and @arjunk26 are on the run… But this time for themselves! #SandeepAurPinkyFaraarOnPrime watch now: http://amzn.to/SAPF @Neenagupta001 @JaideepAhlawat#RaghubirYadav #DibakarBanerjee @SAPFTheFilm.”

Produced, written, and directed by Dibakar Banerjee, the movie also stars Neena Gupta, Raghuvir Yadav, and Jaideep Ahlawat in pivotal roles.

‘Sandeep aur Pinky Faraar’ follows the story of two completely different individuals whose lives suddenly intertwine. Pinkesh Dahiya or “Pinky” (essayed by Arjun Kapoor), is a Haryanvi Police Officer, while Sandeep Kaur (essayed by Parineeti Chopra) is an ambitious girl from the corporate world.