Plans for Arabic version of Project Runway



An Arabic version of Project Runway is coming to our screens on MBC this year. Speaking exclusively to The National, the broadcaster's official spokesman, Mazen Hayek, said the new show, Project Runway Middle East, will debut towards the end of the year. The judging panel and host will be announced soon. "It should be in the next couple of days," he says. "We are in the final preparation stages of closing off all the deals with the mentors, coaches and jury." This will be the second Arabic version of the show – the first had a two-season run on Future TV in 2006-2007. The original American production was launched in 2004, with season 15 to be broadcast this year. – The National

The Voice Kids winner to sing at Yas Mall

Lynn Hayek, the winner of MBC's this year's The Voice Kids, will perform at Yas Mall's Spring Festival on Friday. The 12-year-old from Lebanon was one of six youngsters who made it to the final round of the show. Lynn has now amassed a big teen following in the Middle East and she will make her first debut in the UAE at Yas Mall. The mall's nine-day festival, which ends on Friday, features live stage performances and shows, entertainment, family workshops and art displays. – The National

SRK backs Hashmi’s book about son

Shah Rukh Khan has helped to promote a book written by fellow Bollywood actor Emraan Hashmi about the latter's 6-year-old son Ayaan's battle with cancer. The book, Kiss of Life, deals with the hardships Hashmi and his wife, Parveen Shahani, have faced since learning in 2014 that their son, who was 4 at the time, has the disease. SRK and Hashmi met and posed for photos while holding the book. Sending his love to Ayaan, SRK wrote on Twitter: "May Allah bless you and your family with health and happiness. Good to see u Emraan. My love to Ayaan." "FAN moment! Lots of love. Thank you for all your support SRK," Emraan responded, thanking the star, whose next movie will be Fan. Other Bollywood celebrities, including Salman Khan, have also praised the book on social media. – IANS

Mick Jagger embarrassed by odd outfits

British singer Mick Jagger says he flinches at most of the outfits he wore over the years while performing as The Rolling Stones frontman. However, he says that when a performer is on the stage, it is a different ballgame, he told The Telegraph. The 72-year-old singer has been unearthing dozens of stage costumes and garments from the band's heyday for a new display, EXHIBITIONISM, which will open at The Saatchi Gallery in London next week, reported Female First. He says putting the costumes on display for "exhibitionism" makes them seem even worse because the impression they created on stage was very different than what they will look like in a dark room. He says some of the outfits were in hideous taste, but that made them funnier to him and he went along with it for a laugh. The singer also pointed out that in the 1970s, being outlandish was like a norm. – The National

Hrithik Roshan apologises for ‘affair with Pope’ remark

Bollywood actor Hrithik Roshan has apologised for hurt caused to “religious or other sentiments” by his controversial comment on “affair with the Pope”. “Seems my tweet about His Holiness has led to misunderstanding. My apologies for hurt caused to religious or other sentiments. Was unintentional,” Hrithik posted on Twitter. The actor had landed himself into legal trouble when a Christian group slapped a notice on him for hurting religious sentiments.

The Krrish star is already in a legal tussle with Kangana Ranaut, on the tweet where he said: “There are more chances of me having had an affair with the Pope than any of the (I’m sure wonderful) women the media has been naming.”

IANS

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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

A State of Passion

Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi

Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah

Rating: 4/5

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The story of Edge

Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, established Edge in 2019.

It brought together 25 state-owned and independent companies specialising in weapons systems, cyber protection and electronic warfare.

Edge has an annual revenue of $5 billion and employs more than 12,000 people.

Some of the companies include Nimr, a maker of armoured vehicles, Caracal, which manufactures guns and ammunitions company, Lahab

 

UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions

Champions parade (UAE timings)

7pm Gates open

8pm Deansgate stage showing starts

9pm Parade starts at Manchester Cathedral

9.45pm Parade ends at Peter Street

10pm City players on stage

11pm event ends