Actor Kriti Sanon, who is being lauded for her performance as the titular character in the film ‘Mimi’, on Sunday shared a workout video of her challenging transformation from ‘Chubby Sanon’ to the ‘Param Sundari’ figure.

Taking to Instagram, the ‘Bareilly ki Barfi’ star posted a Reel full of snippets of her workout with powerful, motivational music in the background. Kriti had put on 15 kgs for playing the mother in ‘Mimi’ and these workout clips belong to her challenging journey of losing those kilos, in order to get back in shape and shoot for the song ‘Param Sundari’. She penned down the caption, “While putting on 15kgs for Mimi was a challenge, losing those kilos wasn’t easy for Chubby Sanon either! and… I had kept Param Sundari for later so I have the motivation to get back in shape!”

Kriti further talked about the difficulty of carrying so much extra weight for the first time, without doing any workout.

She wrote, “Having put on so much weight for the first time ever and not working out for 3months(not even yoga!), my stamina, strength and flexibility had gone down to Zero! In fact, I had to slowly get back to mobility with my joints clicking constantly.”

The ‘Luka Chuppi’ actor added an inspiring message in her video, “Yes, the struggle was real… But..NEVER GIVE UP!” Apart from ‘Mimi’, Kriti has an impressive lineup of films including ‘Adipurush’, ‘Bachchan Pandey’, ‘Bhediya’, ‘Ganapath’ and ‘Hum Do Hamaare Do’.

MUMBAI: Aditya Roy Kapoor and Sanjana Sanghi are gearing up for the next shooting schedule of their upcoming film ‘Om- The Battle Within’. Taking to Instagram, Sanjana posted a picture of a photo of her and co-star Aditya Roy Kapur from what appears to be an airport. “Onto our next leg,” she captioned the post.

In the image, Sanjana is seen wearing ripped jeans and paired with the same colour denim jacket over a white tee. On the other hand, Aditya chose to wear a grey T-shirt and paired it with loose tracks.

According to reports, the team is in Qatar for the shoot of ‘Om’, which is being directed by action director Tinu Verma’s son Kapil Verma. The film is touted as an action thriller.

Even as fans are eagerly waiting for the Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt wedding, Lara Dutta believes that it might take place this year. She was responding to a question on a rumour about Bollywood celebrities that might be true.

Lara said that she is from the ‘older generation’ and is not in the know about which couples from the younger generation are currently dating. “I might say something about some couple and I wouldn’t even know if they are still together or not,” she said.

However, on being given Ranbir-Alia’s wedding as an example, Lara felt that they will soon tie the knot. She told Times Now, “I believe that they are getting married this year.”

Ranbir has been in a relationship with Alia since 2017, and they have even bonded with each other’s families. Ranbir’s mother Neetu Kapoor and Riddhima Kapoor Sahni are quite fond of Alia and often shower her Instagram posts with love. Ranbir is also often seen chilling with Alia’s sister Shaheen Bhatt and mother Soni Razdan.

NEW DELHI: Ayushmann Khurrana has recently been appointed as UNICEF’s Celebrity Advocate for their global campaign EVAC (Ending Violence Against Children). Through the initiative, the ‘Article 15’ actor wants to build awareness on a national level about online safety for children in India. Talking about the need for such an initiative, Ayushmann said, “The internet, as we know, is a double-edged sword. We have seen its myriad benefits during this pandemic. At the same time, it has its own risks. As the internet grows further in its reach, the number of children at risk of online abuse like cyberbullying and online sexual exploitation, also increases.”

The actor says “while we need to end violence against children everywhere, online and offline, we also need to equip our children and adolescents with knowledge and digital tools so they can safely navigate and participate actively in the ever-evolving digital society.” UNICEF India and Facebook had launched this one-year joint initiative on ending violence against children and protecting their rights, which was flagged off by Ayushmann. Speaking about this new partnership, he said, “The partnership between Facebook and UNICEF is a powerful example of stakeholders from diverse fields and sectors coming together to protect children and their rights. We need to bring in other stakeholders, such as the government, civil society and private sector to join hands for ensuring the safety and wellbeing of our children.”

Extending his support for the initiative, Ayushmann continued, “As UNICEF India’s celebrity supporter, I am honoured to extend my support and voice to this important initiative. I welcome this initiative that will create awareness and help children, parents, teachers and other actors understand better the safety and wellbeing of our children in the digital era and take appropriate preventive and responsive measures.” Meanwhile, speaking about Ayushmann’s upcoming slate of work, he is currently in Prayagraj shooting for his forthcoming film, ‘Doctor G’, which is being helmed by Anubhuti Kashyap. Ayushmann will soon be seen in ‘Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui’, and ‘Anek’. 

NEW DELHI: Lara Dutta who underwent a major transformation for the espionage thriller Bell Bottom, said that her husband Mahesh Bhupathi was ‘shocked’ to see her look. She plays former prime minister Indira Gandhi in the film, which also stars Akshay Kumar, Vaani Kapoor and Huma Qureshi. To look the part, Lara went through an arduous make-up and prosthetic process. She looked unrecognisable in the trailer of Bell Bottom. In an interview with Zoom, Lara opened up about Mahesh’s reaction to her Indira Gandhi look. “My husband was shocked. He probably felt very unsettled with the look. He was like I don’t want to hug you. You don’t really look like yourself.”

Lara also revealed how her daughter Saira reacted. “She was intrigued. She saw it come alive in front of her… She came in and she saw whole silicon on my face and said, ‘Mum they are going to kill you, you can’t breathe.’ She was so worried. Ya, but having said that, she was also very intrigued and was like, ‘Can I touch the nose, the eyebrows? Can I do this, that?’” Bell Bottom, directed by Ranjit M Tewari, is set in the 1980s. Akshay stars as an undercover agent tasked with rescuing 210 hostages from a hijacked plane. Lara said that she spent three hours in the make-up chair every day, as it was important to get the look right. “The idea was to capture everything correctly and make sure we are as close to the resemblance of Mrs Gandhi as possible. At the end of the day, either I play Indira Gandhi as Lara Dutta or we make Lara Dutta a close resemblance to Indira Gandhi,” she said. Bell Bottom, produced by Vashu Bhagnani, Jackky Bhagnani, Deepshikha Deshmukh, Monisha Advani, Madhu Bhojwani and Nikkhil Advani, is set for a theatrical release on 19 August.

After being a part of Booo Sabki Phategi, Shweta Gulati is set to do another series with streaming giant ALTBalaji. Shweta will be seen playing a hairstylist in ALTBalaji’s latest release Crimes and Confessions.

The Daily Guardian spoke to Shweta Gulati who spoke about ‘Crime and Confessions’ and her ‘Remix’ days.

What intrigued you to be a part of the web series ‘Crimes and Confessions’? The story is something I’ve never encountered before. I was never offered something so wonderfully written and very socially relevant. I wanted to be a part of. Furthermore, my character was very challenging for me because in 18 years of my career I never performed a character so different. I have done a series with ALTBalaji before so what better platform than ALT. The kind of reach that they have and the kind of stories they offer is amazing. So, if you want to take a story like that to the audiences then I think ALT is the right platform.

You were a part of television as well Remix was you debuted with, journey after that and any regrets for being away from television? I firmly believe in destiny. If I had to do something different, I would have. This is how it was supposed to pan out. I’m very glad and happy with the way it (career) panned out because God has been extremely kind. I really did not have to walk into production houses asking for work. I always got work. So, I think more than having regrets I just need to have gratitude for what has been offered to me and given to me without really struggling for it. You know how ruthless this industry can be. The number of people who want to become actors and to get work without really struggling for it is something to be grateful for. I was extremely blessed and privileged to have the kind of work that I have gotten. So, I’m quite happy with the way my career has panned out and the journey that I have lived. I just wish social media was there back then.

Shweta Gulati is a part of the ‘Shame Shame’ segment of the anthology alongside Jasvir Kaur and other actresses. Crimes and Confessions is an anthology series with four stories that are set in different eras. In addition, every episode of the series has a confession post facto a crime.