Preity Zinta was greeted by a horde of photographers after she landed in Mumbai on Monday. AFP
Preity Zinta was greeted by a horde of photographers after she landed in Mumbai on Monday. AFP
Preity Zinta was greeted by a horde of photographers after she landed in Mumbai on Monday. AFP
Preity Zinta was greeted by a horde of photographers after she landed in Mumbai on Monday. AFP

Today in Bollywood: Zinta injured after 'airport assault'

Plus Sanjay Puran Singh Chauhan to shoot sci-fi filn, Emraan Hashmi promises new brand of comedy and Japanese director Takeshi Kitano defends gangster movie.

The National staff

September 06, 2012

  • English
  • Arabic

The actress Preity Zinta says she was greeted by "the shock of 40 camera flashes" when she arrived at Mumbai's international airport on Monday, and ended up injuring her ankle. "Sitting at home with a twisted ankle post the airport assault by photographers," Zinta posted on Twitter. The 37-year-old returned to Mumbai after shooting in Prague for her new film, Ishkq in Paris. Photographers were supposedly waiting at the airport for Ashton Kutcher, who was in India this week to film his Steve Jobs biopic. Zinta added: "If photographers ask me politely, I will oblige, but next time I will file a police complaint because this is not fair. I am a human being, not some animal in the zoo!" In January, Zinta's car was damaged by photographers outside a private event thrown for Oprah Winfrey. - IANS

Chauhan to shoot science fiction film

Sanjay Puran Singh Chauhan, famed for his 2009 National Award-winning film Lahore, announced he is set to shoot his sophomoric project, a sci-fi thriller. "It took around two years for me to write this script," said Chauhan. "Although I can't reveal the star cast yet, I can say that we have some technical crew from Hollywood involved." Bollywood news websites are abuzz with rumours that Chauhan has signed on the award-winning American cinematographer Frederick Elmes (Wild at Heart, Blue Velvet) and the composer Wayne Sharpe. - IANS

Hashmi promises new brand of comedy

Emraan Hashmi, who is shooting the new comedy Ghanchakkar, reveals he is uncomfortable with slapstick humour. "That's why Ghanchakkar is different. I've seen other comedies in Bollywood and I can't do that kind of over-the-top humour - I don't even understand it. I don't find it funny. With this film I'm doing a comedy I enjoy and understand." Directed by Rajkumar Gupta, Ghanchakkar co-stars Vidya Balan. - IANS

Japan director defends gangster flick

The Japanese filmmaker Takeshi Kitano has defended the explicit violence in his new gangster flick Outrage Beyond, which is vying for the Golden Lion at this week's Venice film festival. Kitano said it felt right to include references to his country's 2011 earthquake and tsunami. He directed and stars in the film, a complex tale of warring yakuza families. His lead character goes on a revenge spree through a world of guns and luxury cars. Corruption in the government - particularly in the environment ministry after the tsunami - is a central theme of the film, which has the feel of a Japanese Godfather. "The state is not doing enough. Everybody talks about this … I think I was right to get this across in the film," he said, addressing the aftermath of the Japanese quake and nuclear disaster. "We have tried to describe a real-life situation." The cult director, who won Venice's top prize in 1997 and has returned to gangster themes after a more art-house phase, said he had already written the screenplay for a sequel. The Venice film festival closes on Saturday. - AFP

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

HAJJAN
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Abu%20Bakr%20Shawky%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cbr%3EStarring%3A%20Omar%20Alatawi%2C%20Tulin%20Essam%2C%20Ibrahim%20Al-Hasawi%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Tree of Hell

Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla

Director: Raed Zeno

Rating: 4/5

While you're here

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.”

Women%E2%80%99s%20T20%20World%20Cup%20Qualifier
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Which honey takes your fancy?

Al Ghaf Honey

The Al Ghaf tree is a local desert tree which bears the harsh summers with drought and high temperatures. From the rich flowers, bees that pollinate this tree can produce delicious red colour honey in June and July each year

Sidr Honey

The Sidr tree is an evergreen tree with long and strong forked branches. The blossom from this tree is called Yabyab, which provides rich food for bees to produce honey in October and November. This honey is the most expensive, but tastiest

Samar Honey

The Samar tree trunk, leaves and blossom contains Barm which is the secret of healing. You can enjoy the best types of honey from this tree every year in May and June. It is an historical witness to the life of the Emirati nation which represents the harsh desert and mountain environments

Tamkeen's offering
  • Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
  • Option 2: 50% across three years
  • Option 3: 30% across five years 
Gothia Cup 2025

4,872 matches 

1,942 teams

116 pitches

76 nations

26 UAE teams

15 Lebanese teams

2 Kuwaiti teams

Muguruza's singles career in stats

WTA titles 3

Prize money US$11,128,219 (Dh40,873,133.82)

Wins / losses 293 / 149

Kandahar%20
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Five ways to get fit like Craig David (we tried for seven but ran out of time)

Start the week as you mean to go on. So get your training on strong on a Monday.

Train hard, but don’t take it all so seriously that it gets to the point where you’re not having fun and enjoying your friends and your family and going out for nice meals and doing that stuff.

Think about what you’re training or eating a certain way for — don’t, for example, get a six-pack to impress somebody else or lose weight to conform to society’s norms. It’s all nonsense.

Get your priorities right.

And last but not least, you should always, always chill on Sundays.

THE%20HOLDOVERS
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:

- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools

- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say

- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance

- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs

- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills

- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month

- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues

BULKWHIZ PROFILE

Date started: February 2017

Founders: Amira Rashad (CEO), Yusuf Saber (CTO), Mahmoud Sayedahmed (adviser), Reda Bouraoui (adviser)

Based: Dubai, UAE

Sector: E-commerce 

Size: 50 employees

Funding: approximately $6m

Investors: Beco Capital, Enabling Future and Wain in the UAE; China's MSA Capital; 500 Startups; Faith Capital and Savour Ventures in Kuwait

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