Quality over quantity for Bollywood actor Rahul Bose

Plus: John Lennon’s hair sells for US$35,000 (Dh128,553) and Vietnam’s invite to Indian movies.

Bollywood actor Rahul Bose. Jagadeesh Nv / AFP photo

Bollywood actor Rahul Bose says that he never tried to become popular and his only intention was to produce first-rate films with industry peers he respects.

Speaking of his relatively low output, he said: “It’s not about doing a lot of films, it’s about the quality of films you do. I never tried to be popular — the only effort that I made was that when people watch my films, they don’t feel that they have wasted their money and that I respected their intelligence.”

The actor was last seen in a small role in last year's Dil Dhadakne Do, his first Hindi film for almost four years. He had, however, featured in Bengali, English and Tamil films during that time.

Bose was speaking at a charity auction dubbed The Idea of India, which he was hosting, and held in collaboration with his foundation.

“We want to raise money, so that the people who stand for an equal, non-discriminatory India will help us raise the money for us to fund kids who don’t have the same opportunities,” he said.

Lots for sale at the event included memorabilia belonging to sporting greats such as Roger Federer, Vishwanathan Anand and Sachin Tendulkar. — IANS

John Lennon's hair sells for US$35,000 (Dh128,553)

A lock of John Lennon’s hair that was snipped as he prepared for a film role has sold for US$35,000 (Dh128,553).

Dallas-based Heritage Auctions said that the 10cm lock was purchased by Paul Fraser, a memorabilia collector in the United Kingdom.

A German hairdresser kept the tuft of hair after giving Lennon a trim before the Beatle started filming How I Won the War, a dark comedy released in 1967.

The movie follows the World War II misadventures of British troops led by an inept commander. The hair was one of several Beatles-related items sold at the auction.

A photograph of the band signed by all four members went for $42,500. And a sealed copy of the band's "butcher" cover for the Yesterday and Today album fetched $125,000. — AP

Vietnam’s invite to Indian movies

The Vietnamese ambassador to India, Ton Sinh Thanh, has invited Indian filmmakers to shoot their movies in Vietnam to boost the 2,000-year-old cultural ties between the countries.

“Besides enhancing the exchange of artists, cultural troops, students and think tanks, we should try new areas such as exchange of movies and promoting film shooting in each other’s countries,” Thanh said at a seminar on Indo-Vietnam cultural relations called Retrospect and Prospect.

“We welcome an Indian cultural centre in Hanoi, we hope that there will also be a Vietnamese cultural centre in New Delhi,” he added.

Pointing out that Ho Chi Minh had been a great friend of the Indian people, he also said that a statue of the Communist leader in New Delhi would be an excellent symbol of friendship between the two nations.

"Cultural cooperation is one of the pillars in the strategic partnership between our two countries. Vietnam and India have many cultural similarities which have been accumulated by the interactions between our countries over the last 2,000 years," he said. — IANS