Dramatist, playwright and former president of Bangladesh Pothnatok Parishad Mannan Hira has passed away.

He breathed his last at 8:30pm on Wednesday at a hospital in the capital, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy Public Relations Officer Hasan Mahmud confirmed.

The 64-year-old playwright was rushed to the hospital immediately following a heart attack. He died shortly after being taken there.

Read Also: PM mourns death of eminent playwright Mannan Hira

Known as one of the most eminent dramatists of Bangladesh’s television and theatre arena, Hira also had made great contributions to the development of Poth Natok (street play) in the country.

He wrote 15 theatre plays including “Laal Jamin,” “Bhager Manush,” and “Moyur Singhasan.” Hira also wrote and directed many street plays, including “Murkho Loker Murkho Kotha.”

He debuted on the silver screen as a director in the government-funded children’s film “Ekattorer Khudiram” in 2014.

Bangla Academy Award winner Hira was also a senior member of Aranyak Natya Dal.

Hrithik Roshan is one of the biggest movie stars in India, but even he could not help but admire veteran Bollywood actress Dimple Kapadia for her performance in American movie 'Tenet' that marks her Hollywood debut.

Sharing a picture of 63-year-old Dimple and lead actor John David Washington from the movie directed by Christopher Nolan, Hrithik took to Instagram to share his appreciation for the actress who was discovered at the age of 14 by none other than Raj Kapoor.

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“Hers is unmistakably one of the best performances by an Indian actor in an international film. Just brilliant!!!! The charm, the power, the poise, the seductive eyes, Dimple aunty you are something else! Go see Tenet for HER," Hrithik wrote.

Earlier, Dimple’s daughter Twinkle Khanna had praised her mother for her wonderful performance in ' Tenet', after she watched it in the United Kingdom with husband and Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar.

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“Finally saw Tenet in the theatre and though my mother is so laid-back that she refuses to do any publicity around it, she has a wonderful part and is completely incredible,” she wrote on social media.

After Raj Kapoor cast her in blockbuster romantic flick 'Bobby' in 1973 that gained her wide public recognition, Dimple tied the knot with then superstar Rajesh Khanna and gave up her acting career.

Also read: Hollywood calling for Hrithik Roshan?!

Dimple made a comeback in 1984, two years after her separation from Rajesh. Her comeback film 'Saagar', which was released a year later, revived her career. Through her work over the decade, Dimple established herself as one of Bollywood's leading actresses.

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Though she received acclaim for her performances in commercially successful films like 'Kaash' (1987), 'Drishti' (1990) and 'Lekin' (1991), she won the National Film Award for Best Actress for her role  as a professional mourner in 'Rudaali' (1993)

Since the mid-1990s, Kapadia has restricted herself to playing supporting roles in a few moves, including 'Dil Chahta Hai '(2001), 'Being Cyrus' (2006), 'Luck by Chance' (2009), 'Dabangg' (2010), 'Cocktail' (2012) and 'Finding Fanny' some six years back.

Also read: Bollywood's Hrithik Roshan set to make his Hollywood debut?

Rakul Preet Singh is the latest Bollywood celebrity to have tested positive for Covid-19. She is currently in home isolation in the southern Indian city of Bengaluru.

"I'd like to inform everyone that I have tested positive for Covid-19. I have quarantined myself. I am feeling fine and will rest up well so that I can be back to shoot soon," Rakul Preet wrote on Instagram.

She has also requested all the people who have come in contact with her in the past few days, to isolate and get themselves tested for coronavirus. "Request everyone who met me to kindly get yourself tested. Thank you and please stay safe," the 30-year-old wrote.

Rakul Preet started her career as a model while in college, during which she also made her acting debut in the Kannada (southern state of Karnataka) film Gilli (2009). Two years later,

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she made her Telugu (Andhra Pradesh state) debut in Keratam.

In 2014, she also made her Bollywood debut in Yaariyan. Across Indian film industries,  Rakul Preet has acted in several successful films like Venkatadri Express (2013), Current Theega (2014), Rough (2014), Loukyam (2014), Kick 2 (2015), Sarrainodu (2016), Nannaku Prematho (2016), Dhruva (2016), Spyder (2017) and Theeran Adhigaaram Ondru (2017).

Read Also: Bollywood drugs scandal gets bigger by the day

A number of Bollywood celebrities, right from singer Kanika Kapoor to Amitabh Bachchan and his son Abhishek, had been tested positive for the deadly virus. Luckily, all of them have recovered from Covid.

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Bollywood actor Sunny Deol tests Covid positive

Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt 'recovers from cancer'

India's narcotics control authority probing the Bollywood drugs scandal grilled model-turned-actor Arjun Rampal for over six hours in the city of Mumbai on Monday.

"We have not arrested Arjun, but that does not mean he has been given a clean chit. We have found discrepancies in his statements in connection with the seizure of electronic gadgets and some banned drugs during raids at his home last month," a senior official of  the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) told the media.

Also read: Bollywood drugs scandal: Celebrity hairstylist held

Arjun made his acting debut in romantic flick Pyaar Ishq Aur Mohabbat in 2001 and went on to act in more than 40 films since then. He played lead roles in a number of romantic films such as Deewaanapan (2001), Dil Hai Tumhaara (2002), Dil Ka Rishta (2003), Vaada (2005) and I See You (2006), but tasted success in 2002 for hie performance in Aankhen.

Arjun was earlier questioned by the anti-narcotics sleuths for close to seven hours on November 13. His live-in partner was also grilled over two days, while her brother was arrested in connection with the seizure.

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NCB started probing the drugs scandal following the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput in June. Among the first to be arrested in connection with the case were his actor-girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty and her brother Showik. Both are currently out on bail.

Rhea was, in fact, arrested by NCB on September 9, following days of questioning, and accused of procuring cannabis for her late actor-boyfriend, whose body was found hanging from a ceiling fan in his Mumbai flat on June 14.

Also read: Bollywood drugs scandal grips India's entertainment industry

Immediately after the arrest of Rhea, the names of at least 20 top Bollywood celebrities — from actors to filmmakers to designers — surfaced in the drugs case. Several of them, including leading female Bollywood actors —  Rakul Preet Singh,  Deepika Padukone, Sara Ali Khan and Shraddha Kapoor — were subsequently grilled by NCB.

The grilling came in the wake of WhatsApp chats retrieved from Rhea's mobile phone indicating that they procured banned substances like cannabis, weed and hash from dealers with links to foreign countries. All the actors, however, reportedly denied any links with such drug dealers.

Also read: Bollywood drugs scandal: Three leading actresses grilled in India

Abdul Kader, popular television actor who has recently been diagnosed with stage IV cancer, tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday.

The actor returned home from Christian Medical Hospital in India’s Chennai on Sunday and straight got admitted into Evercare Hospital in the capital, where his coronavirus test result came out positive on Monday, according to his family sources.

Kader went to Chennai on December 8 for treatment after feeling unwell and the doctors there diagnosed him with stage IV pancreatic cancer which has already spread to different parts of his body.

Also read: Bangladesh sees 32 more Covid-19 deaths, 1470 new cases

The doctors in Chennai could not provide him with chemotherapy due to the actor’s extremely weak and critical health condition.

Kader’s family was waiting for further progress of his ailing health so that he can be treated with chemotherapy once his body regains strength, however, things went more critical at this stage with him being positive for COVID-19.

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His family members are also going for further tests and asked for prayers to his fans and admirers for his recovery.

Abdul Kader is best known for playing “Bodi” in Humayun Ahmed’s iconic drama series “Kothao Keu Nei” and “Dulabhai” in Humayun Ahmed’s another popular drama “Nakshatrer Raat.”

Also read: Bollywood actor Sunny Deol tests Covid positive

He has been regularly active as a renowned and popular actor in television since the 90s’ and also had been a regular cast as “Mama” on the “Mama-Vagne” segment alongside actor Afzal Sharif on Hanif Sanket’s “Ityadi,” the most popular magazine show in the country.