The live performance of the high energy “Naatu Naatu”, from the Indian blockbuster “RRR”, received a standing ovation at the Oscars. The song, that went viral worldwide, is the first song from an Indian film to win an Oscar.  Despite all the positivity surrounding the song, the live performance at the award show has been called out as many netizens pointed out that “none of the dancers were of Indian descent”. International media have identified the two men who danced the key roles — played in the film by South Indian actors Ram Charan and Jr NTR — as Billy Mustapha and Jason Glover, who are Canadian and American, respectively, reports NDTV. Several netizens have openly criticized this, stating that using non-South Asian dancers weakens the song's anti-colonial message in the film, set in pre-independence India. Read More: Oscars 2023: Vogue misidentifies Deepika Padukone as Camila Alves Bollywood star Deepika Padukone introduced the thrilling performance of “Naatu Naatu” at the Oscars, which was sung live by Rahul Sipligunj and Kaala Bhairava, the singers behind the now worldwide popular number. The authenticity ended there, said many, as none of the dancers appeared to be South Asian, yet were misidentified as such.  Although Indian audiences enthusiastically enjoyed the performance, which was undeniably exciting and a highlight of the Oscars event, the South Asian community in the United States protested the lack of representation. "The Oscars Naatu Naatu performance was meant to have been a tremendous celebration of pride for all of us, and yet we were left feeling empty-handed and rejected," US-based dancer Joya Nandy Kazi wrote on Instagram. Read More: This is how Oscar winners are decided “Two brown passing guys sang a song about colonialism with lyrics that said no dance is as wonderful as a villager's dance. They were fantastic, but why weren't two skilled dancers from our own community selected as leads with a mostly South Asian ensemble?” — Joya asked. “The colonists are the butt of the joke of this song, and trying to replicate the movie scenario even with a bunch of men who should represent the natives as anything other than South Asian leaves me balancing between being stunned and smiling at the absurdity. We need to do better," she said. Shivani Reddy, a Telugu-American film critic, told CBS News, “It just felt very exclusionary that the one race they didn't include was the one that was supposed to be represented because of the film and where it's from…It's unfortunate because there are so many South Asian dancers that I know that are in the industry trying to get into those spaces that just don't get afforded those opportunities. And for the one time that we maybe could have gotten access, we were denied.” Raj Kapoor, Oscars producer, said in an interview that the initial intention was for lead actors Ram Charan and Jr NTR to dance to “Naatu Naatu”, overseen by “RRR” choreographer Prem Rakshith.  Read More: First Indian film song to win Oscar: ‘Natu Natu’ from ‘RRR’ makes history “In late February, we were informed that Ram Charan and NT Rama Rao Jr would be attending the Oscars, but they did not feel comfortable performing the live number on stage. The change was brought on because of their other professional commitments and the limited amount of time to rehearse,” Kapoor stated. “Naatu Naatu”, from SS Rajamouli's mega hit “RRR”, won the Oscar for Best Original Song, beating out Lady Gaga's “Hold My Hand” and Rihanna's “Raise Me Up”, among others.

The High Court has banned the streaming of “Faraaz” – an Indian film based on the 2016 terrorist attack at the Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka’s Gulshan – on online platforms in Bangladesh. The HC bench of Justice Md Khasruzzaman and Justice Md Iqbal Kabir today passed the order after hearing a writ petition filed against the screening of the movie directed by Hansal Mehta. Barrister Rokan Uddin Mahmud and the lawyer Ahsanul Karim stood for the petitioner at the court. Deputy Attorney General Bipul Bagmar represented the state. Read more: Holey Artisan victim's mother vows to fight release of Bollywood film on tragedy The petition was filed against the streaming of the film online and screening at movie theatres by Ruba Ahmed, mother of Abinta Kabir who was one of the victims of the attack. “As the film is yet to be approved by the Censor Board, today’s directive does not mention a ban on screening in cinema halls,” the petitioner’s lawyer Ahsanul Karim told UNB. Produced by T-Series and Benaras Media Works, “Faraaz” is loosely based on the terrorist attack at Holey Artisan Bakery on July 1, 2016. At least 22 people, including 17 foreign nationals, were killed in the attack. Faraaz Ayaaz Hossain and Abinta Kabir were among the victims alongside Tarishi Jain and Ishrat Akhond. Read more: Abinta Kabir Foundation sends legal notice to FARAAZ movie producers Two police officers were also killed in the attack. Since the trailer of Hansal Mehta’s much-talked-about Bollywood film “Faraaz” was released, Ruba Ahmed took to the media to express her objections to releasing and promoting the film in Bangladesh. Ahmed, alongside the mother of Tarishi Jain, an Indian national who was killed in the attack, has also fought a legal battle at Delhi High Court to stop the release of “Faraaz”. However, the Indian court refused to block the film which was released in theatres across India on February 3. Read More: Holey Artisan Victim Faraaz's Heroism is Now on the Silver Screen

There is a famous saying that Matches are made in Heaven. But what will happen if, between the couple, one strikes under a spell of romanticism where the other feels himself a victim of castaway? So why not enjoy the bittersweet scenario rather than drowning in loneliness and confusion? Arjun (Ashok Selvan), the story's protagonist, thought so. He is a confused carefree young man who has a close friendship with Anu (Ritika Singh) & Mani (Sha Ra). One Day in a friendly drinking session Anu out of the blue, asks for the hand of Arjun & that's the start of a rocky road of marriage. At first, Arjun feels nothing wrong with being hitched to Anu. But then suddenly realize that he has no romantic feelings for Anu by heart. Now how will he resolve the tangled relationship? When Arjun struggled with Anu, his childhood crush Meera entered their life.  He knew what would come in his bittersweet life of loveless marriage! If you want to know what happened, How God came to rescue Arjun, or for Anu, you have to watch the movie of the week, "Oh My Kadavule," dubbed in Bangla 'Oh My God! “On Bongo, July 29, 2022. Famous director Ashwath Marimuthu directed the film, and the story was written by him too. Ashwath said, "Half of life's troubles start with getting married. And the other Half is trouble after marriage. So, this time, our story is about the dilemma of an unclued young man getting accidentally married and looking for a second chance to back out of the mistakes. And his urge for a second chance in life is responded to by God Himself (God's role played by Vijay Sethupati). What will happen next? Watch Bongo to enjoy the hilarious, fun-packed romantic comedy with a pinch of fantasy 'Oh My Kadavule aka Oh My God." Read: Bongo brings Bangla dubbed 'Beauty and the Beast' The film was first released on the Day of Valentine's on February 14, 2020. Korean Web Series "Operation Proposal Loosely Inspires this Movie." The film was also selected for official screening at the International Indian Film Festival in Toronto, held in August 2020. The film won South Indian International Movie Awards-SIIMA (Tamil) for Best Actor Critics (Ashok Selvan) in 2021. Also got five nominations for SIIMA Awards 2021: Best Actor in a Leading Role, Best Film, Best Cinematographer, Best Actress in a Supporting Role & Best Music Director. Bongo's Head of Licensing and Distribution, Karoline Hoeppner, said, "Bongo is pleased to publish South Indian romantic comedy with a fantastic vibe for our entertainment-seeking audience. We believe our audience will love it wholeheartedly. Now they can see numerous English & South blockbusters across genres of their choice. Bongo is thrilled to enrich its content library with more enjoyable international titles, and Bongo aims to cater to the most diverse content portfolio in the country. We cannot wait to release more global content in Bangla and see how our country's audience perceives the titles."

“Shaan” famed young Bangladeshi actor Siam Ahmed has joined the cast of “In the Ring (Story of a Burqa Boxer),” making his debut in a lead role for any Indian film project. World-famous entertainment website Variety reported the news on Friday, stating that Siam joined the cast alongside young Indian actress Mithila Palkar, popularly known for Netflix’s “Little Things,” and veteran Indian comedian-actor Jaaved Jaaferi. The film is a psychological thriller set in the female Muslim boxing society of Khidderpore, Kolkata, India, about Shama, a 17-year-old boxer who swaps places with her twin to fight in the national championship after she is accused of murdering her aunt. Alongside Siam, Mithila and Jaaved, the film also casts Razia Shabnam, one of the first Indian women to become an international boxing referee and coach. US-based Indian filmmaker Alka Raghuram will direct the Hindi-language film. She previously filmed the renowned documentary "Burqa Boxers," depicting the stories of Muslim women boxers in Kolkata. Sreyashii Sengupta of Singapore-based Darpan Global and Souvikk Dasgupta of India's Oriizon Global are producing the film, with Rick Ambros of Los Angeles working as executive producer. The film's principal photography will begin in India in December 2022. Also read: 'Shaan’ portrays the story of real Bangladeshi heroes: Siam Ahmed