Bollywood couple Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan took time to announce their pregnancy, but now that they have, the couple is going all out, with regular media appearances that flaunt the baby bump. The latest on the pair is that Kapoor and Khan will soon be heading to Dubai for a babymoon before Kapoor the baby comes in December. According to Indian newspaper Times Of India, the couple wants to relax on the beaches of the UAE, splurge on shopping and get spa treatments, before returning home mid-October. Recently, Kapoor has been vocal about her thoughts on juggling motherhood and work, and has been championing the cause of working mothers. Khan's Rangoon, opposite Kangana Ranaut, and Kapoor's Veere Di Wedding with Sonam Kapoor are both slated for release next year. – Sonali Kokra
Bamboo returning to Dubai in October
Filipino musician and singer-songwriter Bamboo will return to the Dubai World Trade Centre on October 27 as part of a series of live shows. Francisco Gaudencio Lope Belardo Mañalac, known affectionately as Bamboo, will take part in the concert having finished recording another series of the popular TV show The Voice Kids. "It's always a great pleasure to return to the UAE as the fans there never fail to give me a warm welcome," says the 38-year-old star. "By the time we reach Dubai, we will already have played live shows in Canada, Scotland, England and Ireland as part of the 2016 World Tour so I hope to see a lot of my Dubai friends when we get to the UAE." A music icon in his homeland for more than 20 years, the singer — who first found fame in the mid-1990s as lead vocalist of Rivermaya before going on to front his own eponymous band Bamboo — will also perform in Doha. "It's going to be fun and it's going to be loud. I'm expecting a lot of energy from the crowd, as well as myself and the band. I want it to be a family affair and would love to see the audience come to the shows with their kids." he added. Ticket information is available from www.spicylemon.rocks and https://dubai.platinumlist.net/. Prices range from Dh125-175. — The National
Denzel Washington to star in Equalizer 2
Actor Denzel Washington is to star in The Equalizer 2, the first sequel of his career. The 61-year-old actor is to reprise his role as Robert McCall in a follow up to the 2014 vigilante thriller based on the 1980s television series of the same name. Shooting is expected to begin in September next year. The project has been confirmed by The Equalizer producer Todd Black, who is now on the hunt for McCall's nemesis — the film's villain. Best known for his 2001 Academy Award-winning movie Training Day, Antoine Fuqua will also return to direct the film — having steered through the original. Denzel can currently be seen in Fuqua's newly released movie The Magnificent Seven which is a remake of the 1960s film of the same name. The film has topped the box office, picking up a solid $35 million in its opening weekend, beating out Sully which had held the top box office slot for two weeks. – IANS
Future wide open for actress Nimrat Kuar
Indian model and actress Nimrat Kaur says she is happy to go with the ebb and flow of her film career. The 34-year-old, who is currently in Canada shooting the television series Wayward Pines, says she is under no pressure to sign her next Bollywood project. "Quite honestly, I have no idea about how anything will turn out," Kaur said on the sidelines of an Audi A4 car launch in India. "I think I have really lived a very unpredictable life so far, the last three years. Since The Lunchbox released, life has been just a complete roller-coaster ride for me, I really don't know what is going to be around the bend." Kaur is best known for her role in the 2013 film The Lunchbox, and television shows including the American political thriller Homeland. "What all I try to do is that I just keep my arms open for new opportunities, fun avenues, new lands and adventures," she says. "I always try to associate myself with stuff that I'd like to watch. That's kind of like a benchmark." - IANS
US country singer Jean Shepard dies
Jean Shepard, who played a pioneering role for women in country music has died at the age of 82. Shepard, who had a No 1 hit in 1953 with the song Dear John Letter, performed into her final years and published a memoir titled Down Through the Years. She was invited to join the Grand Ole Opry, Nashville's famous country music weekly programme, in 1955 at the age of 22 and at the time of her death, she was its longest-serving member. In 1960, she married singer Hawkshaw Hawkins. In March 1963, when Shepard was eight months pregnant with their second child, Hawkins died in the plane crash that killed country singer Patsy Cline. She remarried twice, including in 1968 to her husband of almost 50 years, musician Benny Birchfield. — Reuters
