Kriti Sanon has revealed that she will start filming the highly anticipated romantic drama Dilwale with Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol next month. "Unfortunately, I haven't shot with them yet," she said. "It's going to be in mid-August when probably all combination shots and scenes are going to happen. So I'm really looking forward to working with them." Dilwale is Sanon's second film, following her debut in Heropanti, opposite Tiger Shroff. Khan and Kajol, one of Bollywood's most successful on-screen couples, were last seen in My Name is Khan (2010). Dilwale is due to be released on December 17. – IANS
Abu Dhabi TV scouting for actors
Abu Dhabi TV has launched a hunt for aspiring actors to be a part of its latest talent show. The broadcaster – a part of Abu Dhabi Media, which owns The National – will launch the debut season of Arab Casting on September 20, in which wannabe actors will compete to win a contract to appear in a television drama on the channel. There will be a male and a female winner. The judging panel for the show has yet to be unannounced, but will feature actors and industry professionals. Contestants between the ages of 16 and 60 should film an audition video and upload it on abudhabitv.ae/arabcasting. "We will choose the contestants from various countries from the Arab world and they will undergo intensive exercises and challenges from some of the best actors and trainers from the region," said Abdul Hadi Al Sheikh, executive director of television at Abu Dhabi Media. – The National staff
Actor Depardieu gets five-year Ukraine ban
Ukraine has banned Gérard Depardieu from entering the country for five years. In 2013, the French actor took Russian citizenship to escape high taxes in his home country. He angered Ukrainian authorities by supporting Russia’s annexation of Crimea last year. The news website Apostrof on Tuesday published a letter from Ukraine’s national security service, the SBU, saying Depardieu has been banned “in the interest of ensuring the security of our state”. Security spokeswoman Elena Gitlanskaya said that the ban came at the behest of the culture ministry, which this month drafted a list of actors, musicians and other cultural figures it considers security threats. – AP
Netflix announce new Keith Richards film
Netflix will debut a documentary about The Rolling Stones' Keith Richards. Keith Richards – Under the Influence will be available from September 18. Directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Morgan Neville, the documentary will examine the guitarist's musical influences, the genesis of his sound, and follow him as the 71-year-old artist prepares for his first solo album in 23 years. – AP
Trump is comedy gold, says Tina Fey
Donald Trump's run for president is "great for comedy", says Tina Fey. "I'm sure Saturday Night Live wishes they were on the air right now," the comedy writer and actress said during a panel discussion at the summer Television Critics Association meeting. Fey was head writer and a cast member on Saturday Night Live before she went on to create and star in NBC's 30 Rock. Now she is a co-creator and executive producer of the Netflix series Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Other comics also have been unable to resist comedy criticism of Trump and his controversial comments during his campaigning to win the Republican party's nomination as its candidate for US president. The Daily Show's Jon Stewart has described him as a gift to his last few weeks as the show's host before he steps aside, while Stephen Colbert, whose hosting reign on The Late Show, replacing David Letterman, doesn't begin until September, recently posted a video on the show's YouTube channel mocking Trump's announcement that he wanted to run for president. – AP
US rapper condemns ‘violent’ Aussie crowds
Outspoken New York rapper Azealia Banks says she is fed up with playing in Australia, because the audiences are so badly behaved. Banks performed at the weekend at Splendour in the Grass, an annual festival in the eastern beach town of Byron Bay. She was unhappy when Australian radio host Paul “Browny” Brown sarcastically congratulated her for completing a full performance in the country. In 2013, she walked offstage at a Melbourne festival when she was hit by a can of beer. “You guys are terrible crowds to play for. You’re violent and belligerent and I simply will not put my safety at risk,” Banks wrote on Twitter on Tuesday. “Plus you guys are too far away and honestly, the show guarantees are never really worth the trip.” – AFP
Birkin takes name off Hermes handbag over animal cruelty concerns
British singer Jane Birkin has asked luxury manufacturer Hermès to remove her name from its crocodile-skin handbag after learning of the cruel methods used to make the iconic accessory. Costing tens of thousands of euros, the Birkin bag is a symbol of wealth much-loved by celebrities, but the version made out of crocodile skin has attracted anger from animal-rights activists. “Having been alerted to the cruel practices reserved for crocodiles during their slaughter to make Hermès handbags carrying my name ... I have asked Hermès to debaptise the Birkin Croco until better practices in line with international norms can be put in place,” Birkin said. Animal rights group PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) recently published an expose on crocodile farms, from Texas to Zimbabwe, where the animals are allegedly crammed into barren concrete pits before being “crudely hacked” to death. PETA said it takes two or three crocodiles to make one handbag. “At just one year old, alligators are shot with a captive-bolt gun or crudely cut into while they’re still conscious and able to feel pain,” said PETA. “The investigator saw alligators continuing to move their legs and tails in the bleed rack and in bloody ice bins several minutes after their attempted slaughter.” Birkin is best known as the former wife of French singer Serge Gainsbourg. – AFP
US sitcom Welcome to Sweden outstays its welcome on NBC
TV viewers aren't going to see the love story on US TV comedy Welcome to Sweden play out. NBC has cancelled the show, starring Greg Poehler, just two weeks into its second season. Poehler's sister Amy, star of the recently ended sitcom hit Parks and Recreation, served as one of the executive producers of the series. Welcome to Sweden was an international production, filmed in Sweden with American and Swedish actors. The plot was based on Greg Poehler's real-life experience of falling in love with a Swedish woman and moving to her home country to be with her. – AP
