Colombian pop star Shakira wants the press to leave her nearly 2-year-old son with Spanish footballer Gerard Piqué alone, she said in an interview published on Sunday. She shared the first public photograph of her first son Milan sleeping in Piqué's arms on the Unicef website just days after he was born on January 22 last year, along with a request that people donate to the UN children's agency. The multi-Grammy-winning singer, who is expecting her second child with Piqué, has shared other pictures of Milan on social media sites but in recent weeks, she has declined to be photographed with her son. "I liked being able to share with fans and the people who have always supported us the experience of being parents and the first months of my son's life," she told daily Spanish newspaper ABC. "But now that Milan is growing and has stopped being a baby, I would prefer it if the press did not focus so much on him. I would like him to enjoy a normal childhood, as much as that is possible." – AFP
Hunger Games survives at top of US box office
The latest Hunger Games movie beat back competitors to survive the Thanksgiving weekend in the top spot of the North American box office, according to industry estimates published on Sunday. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1, starring Jennifer Lawrence (pictured) as rebellious Katniss Everdeen, grossed nearly US $57 million (Dh2.08 billion) this weekend after its debut a week ago that pulled in $123m, according to box office tracker Exhibitor Relations. Fox's animated-animal film Penguins of Madagascar pulled in about $26m in its first weekend in cinemas, earning the second box office spot. That debut knocked animated robot flick Big Hero 6 from second to third on the charts, after the Disney feature took in nearly $19m in its fourth weekend in theatres. Space exploration film Interstellar, directed by Christopher Nolan, grossed almost $16m to take the fourth spot. Horrible Bosses 2, the sequel to the 2011 workplace comedy starring Jennifer Aniston, hauled in $15.7m in its weekend debut. – AFP
Gauhar Khan slapped for wearing a short dress
The Indian model and actress Gauhar Khan was slapped by an audience member while hosting India's Raw Star, a reality show, at Film City in Mumbai, police said. Khan was attacked and threatened by an audience member who said that "being a Muslim woman, she should not have worn such a short dress". The accused, identified as Mohammed Akil Mallick, 24, also touched her inappropriately during a break in the filming, but was immediately overpowered by security guards. – The National staff
Snooki ties the knot in New Jersey
Snooki has officially tied the knot. Former Jersey Shore reality TV star Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi married boyfriend Jionni LaValle in a church ceremony on Saturday in East Hanover, west of New York City. The Record newspaper reports that among the guests were Jersey Shore castmates Sammi Giancola, Deena Cortese and Jenni Farley. Polizzi currently stars with Farley in MTV's Snooki and JWOWW.
A few dozen onlookers waited outside the church. Seventeen groomsmen and 15 bridesmaids attended the ceremony, which had a Great Gatsby theme. Polizzi and LaValle have two children, ages 2 and 2 months. – AP
Shraddha Kapoor wants dad Shakti in the Guinness World Records
Shraddha Kapoor, daughter of the veteran actor Shakti Kapoor, says her father deserves a place in the Guinness World Records because he’s acted in more than 700 films. “My father has done more than 700 films so actually he should get a place in Guinness World Records. I will speak to their officials about it,” the actress said at an event in Mumbai on Sunday. Shakti Kapoor, 56, is known for playing villains as well as comical roles in Bollywood over his 30-year career. – IANS
KJo amasses 5 million followers on Twitter
Bollywood filmmaker Karan Johar now has five million followers on the popular micro-blogging site Twitter. He has thanked his fans for “listening” to him. “A huge heartfelt thank you!!! Just realized I have touched 5 million followers!! Thank you for listening... lots of love... always!,” he tweeted on Sunday. Apart from his huge fan base, his followers include Bollywood A-listers Amitabh Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan, Sridevi, Madhuri Dixit and Juhi Chawla. – IANS
Herc's Adventures
Developer: Big Ape Productions
Publisher: LucasArts
Console: PlayStation 1 & 5, Sega Saturn
Rating: 4/5
Company profile
Company name: Fasset
Started: 2019
Founders: Mohammad Raafi Hossain, Daniel Ahmed
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $2.45 million
Current number of staff: 86
Investment stage: Pre-series B
Investors: Investcorp, Liberty City Ventures, Fatima Gobi Ventures, Primal Capital, Wealthwell Ventures, FHS Capital, VN2 Capital, local family offices
Company profile
Date started: December 24, 2018
Founders: Omer Gurel, chief executive and co-founder and Edebali Sener, co-founder and chief technology officer
Based: Dubai Media City
Number of employees: 42 (34 in Dubai and a tech team of eight in Ankara, Turkey)
Sector: ConsumerTech and FinTech
Cashflow: Almost $1 million a year
Funding: Series A funding of $2.5m with Series B plans for May 2020
The bio
Favourite book: Peter Rabbit. I used to read it to my three children and still read it myself. If I am feeling down it brings back good memories.
Best thing about your job: Getting to help people. My mum always told me never to pass up an opportunity to do a good deed.
Best part of life in the UAE: The weather. The constant sunshine is amazing and there is always something to do, you have so many options when it comes to how to spend your day.
Favourite holiday destination: Malaysia. I went there for my honeymoon and ended up volunteering to teach local children for a few hours each day. It is such a special place and I plan to retire there one day.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
2.0
Director: S Shankar
Producer: Lyca Productions; presented by Dharma Films
Cast: Rajnikanth, Akshay Kumar, Amy Jackson, Sudhanshu Pandey
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Avengers: Endgame
Directors: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo
Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Josh Brolin
4/5 stars
COMPANY PROFILE
Company: Eco Way
Started: December 2023
Founder: Ivan Kroshnyi
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Electric vehicles
Investors: Bootstrapped with undisclosed funding. Looking to raise funds from outside
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Company Profile
Name: Direct Debit System
Started: Sept 2017
Based: UAE with a subsidiary in the UK
Industry: FinTech
Funding: Undisclosed
Investors: Elaine Jones
Number of employees: 8
The Bio
Ram Buxani earned a salary of 125 rupees per month in 1959
Indian currency was then legal tender in the Trucial States.
He received the wages plus food, accommodation, a haircut and cinema ticket twice a month and actuals for shaving and laundry expenses
Buxani followed in his father’s footsteps when he applied for a job overseas
His father Jivat Ram worked in general merchandize store in Gibraltar and the Canary Islands in the early 1930s
Buxani grew the UAE business over several sectors from retail to financial services but is attached to the original textile business
He talks in detail about natural fibres, the texture of cloth, mirrorwork and embroidery
Buxani lives by a simple philosophy – do good to all
FIGHT CARD
Featherweight 4 rounds:
Yousuf Ali (2-0-0) (win-loss-draw) v Alex Semugenyi (0-1-0)
Welterweight 6 rounds:
Benyamin Moradzadeh (0-0-0) v Rohit Chaudhary (4-0-2)
Heavyweight 4 rounds:
Youssef Karrar (1-0-0) v Muhammad Muzeei (0-0-0)
Welterweight 6 rounds:
Marwan Mohamad Madboly (2-0-0) v Sheldon Schultz (4-4-0)
Super featherweight 8 rounds:
Bishara Sabbar (6-0-0) v Mohammed Azahar (8-5-1)
Cruiseweight 8 rounds:
Mohammed Bekdash (25-0-0) v Musa N’tege (8-4-0)
Super flyweight 10 rounds:
Sultan Al Nuaimi (9-0-0) v Jemsi Kibazange (18-6-2)
Lightweight 10 rounds:
Bader Samreen (8-0-0) v Jose Paez Gonzales (16-2-2-)
Temple numbers
Expected completion: 2022
Height: 24 meters
Ground floor banquet hall: 370 square metres to accommodate about 750 people
Ground floor multipurpose hall: 92 square metres for up to 200 people
First floor main Prayer Hall: 465 square metres to hold 1,500 people at a time
First floor terrace areas: 2,30 square metres
Temple will be spread over 6,900 square metres
Structure includes two basements, ground and first floor
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
UAE medallists at Asian Games 2023
Gold
Magomedomar Magomedomarov – Judo – Men’s +100kg
Khaled Al Shehi – Jiu-jitsu – Men’s -62kg
Faisal Al Ketbi – Jiu-jitsu – Men’s -85kg
Asma Al Hosani – Jiu-jitsu – Women’s -52kg
Shamma Al Kalbani – Jiu-jitsu – Women’s -63kg
Silver
Omar Al Marzooqi – Equestrian – Individual showjumping
Bishrelt Khorloodoi – Judo – Women’s -52kg
Khalid Al Blooshi – Jiu-jitsu – Men’s -62kg
Mohamed Al Suwaidi – Jiu-jitsu – Men’s -69kg
Balqees Abdulla – Jiu-jitsu – Women’s -48kg
Bronze
Hawraa Alajmi – Karate – Women’s kumite -50kg
Ahmed Al Mansoori – Cycling – Men’s omnium
Abdullah Al Marri – Equestrian – Individual showjumping
Team UAE – Equestrian – Team showjumping
Dzhafar Kostoev – Judo – Men’s -100kg
Narmandakh Bayanmunkh – Judo – Men’s -66kg
Grigorian Aram – Judo – Men’s -90kg
Mahdi Al Awlaqi – Jiu-jitsu – Men’s -77kg
Saeed Al Kubaisi – Jiu-jitsu – Men’s -85kg
Shamsa Al Ameri – Jiu-jitsu – Women’s -57kg