Mumbai, July 31 (IANS) Playback singer Neha Karode, who has lent her voice to the track ‘Noida ka Superman’ from the streaming series ‘Tribhuvan Mishra CA Topper’, has had a long journey professionally from the art of baking, and directing documentaries.

Reflecting on her journey, Neha said, “Even my oldest memory includes me singing; I started singing as a child. I feel very grateful that just when I began singing professionally, I was called to sing the scratch for a song called ‘Mon’ by the legendary Jeet Ganguli da. He was extremely kind to me, and I now consider him my mentor. It was a Bengali song and turned out to be a success. I couldn’t believe I got my first song with Jubin Nautiyal.”

She has earlier sung ‘Likhna Mitana’ from the Shahid Kapoor-starrer ‘Bloody Daddy’, ‘Oh Mama’ from the Ayushmann Khurrana-starrer ‘Anek’ and ‘Pipni’ from ‘Mismatched’.

Neha, who hails from Noida, vividly remembered helping her father’s company during Diwali, baking and packing cakes as gifts.

She said, “I remember he would pay me Rs 10,000 for that. So yeah, I’ve dabbled a lot. From baking, working in a corporate job, directing documentaries to now being able to start living my childhood dream of being a singer, I have had a very unique journey.”

“I honestly feel very blessed to be associated with such incredible people. I come from a non-music background, so seeing my musical dreams turning into reality is overwhelming. The support I’ve received from my mentors and friends has been invaluable. Their belief in me has fueled my passion and determination to keep pushing boundaries,” she added.

–IANS

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Los Angeles, July 31 (IANS) Actress-singer Selena Gomez has shared throwback pictures with her baby sister Gracie Teefey, saying that she will always protect her.

Gomez took to Instagram to share throwback images with her sibling.

In the first couple of photos, Gomez is seen flaunting blonde hair embraced by Gracie as a young child. The siblings sat together on the floor in what appeared to be a dressing room.

“There’s nothing like a little sister and the bond you have,” Gomez wrote in the caption.

“I will forever protect you, help guide you, and love you through every single moment in life baby girl,” she added.

In some other images, Gomez is seen smiling as she looks down at Gracie hugging her leg while standing together in the same room, people.com reported.

Gracie is the daughter of Mandy Teefey and Gomez’s stepfather Brian Teefey. The siblings remain close despite the 20-year age gap, and Gomez regularly shares loving messages for Gracie on social media.

In other news, Gomez recently opened up about her feelings about the time in her life when she was photographed by the paparazzi and was dating American popstar Justin Bieber.

A clip of Bieber’s song ‘Company’ was shared with the caption: “I know and so do you that at the time she would never have gotten engaged to Benny (Blanco) (when) she was in her IT GIRL era.”

The text over the video also said Gomez’s former self “would never date Benny Blanco”.

Hitting back at the claim, she said: “Kinda makes me laugh because I was so depressed back then lol.”

–IANS

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Mumbai, July 31 (IANS) Actress Trisha Krishnan, who is gearing up for her upcoming film ‘Brinda’, has shared what intrigued her about the project and made her choose it as her OTT series debut.

In ‘Brinda’, she essays the role of a cop, which is a first for her.

She shared that she rummaged through the pages of the script on a flight.

She said, “Surya had sent me his script to read and when I was on flight I picked it up and decided to read a few pages. I was drawn into the story from the very first chapter and now the rest as we say is history.”

The series, which also stars Indrajith Sukumaran, Jaya Prakash, Aamani, Ravindra Vijay, Anand Sami, Rakendu Mouli and others in pivotal roles, weaves together elements of drama, crime, and mystery, delivering an enthralling viewing experience.

The screenplay of the series is penned by Surya Manoj Vangala and Padmavathi Malladi, with music by Shakthikanth Karthik, and Avinash Kolla as the production designer.

Talking about her character, the actress said, “The fact that I’m playing a police officer for the first time was a major draw. Any character is a fun challenge when you have a director with 100 per cent clarity on how he wants to portray his lead actor. We did a few readings and had extensive discussions about the body language and character sketch for Brinda. Readings, rehearsals, and brainstorming with the team make a world of difference. Sitting together and working with the entire cast before we start rolling makes life so much simpler on set.”

Written and directed by Surya Manoj Vangala and produced by Ashish Kolla under the banner Adding Advertising LLP, ‘Brinda’ is set to stream from August 2 in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Bengali, and Hindi on Sony LIV.

–IANS

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Mumbai, July 31 (IANS) Actress Shamita Shetty, who was last seen in the film’The Tenant’, is relishing the local cuisine of Uttarakhand.

The actress recently took to her Instagram, and shared a video of herself in a hotel room trying the flavours of the northern state.

In the video, she can be seen sitting on a couch with a big thaali spread out in front of her.

She said in the video, “My most favourite part (of a trip) is trying local cuisine. I’m Dehradun, and the chef has made this delectable thaali with a lot of love.”

The actress could be seen indulging in jakhiya rice, hemp paneer, kumaoni raita, kheer made from red rice, and rotis made from ragi.

She told her followers in the video, “I can tell you how simple and tasty this is. I don’t eat mutton but I can surely try the gravy. The food is not oily and doesn’t have a lot of spices yet it is filled with flavours.”

She wrote in the caption, “Indulging in the delectable flavours of a traditional thali. Thank you Chef Kadir for preparing this feast.”

Shamita, who made her debut with the romantic drama, ‘Mohabbatein’, is the younger sister of actress Shilpa Shetty.

She also participated in the reality show ‘Bigg Boss 15’, and finished at fourth place.

Her recent film ‘The Tenant’ saw her essaying the titular role of an attractive and bold woman, Meera, moves into a middle-class housing society.

–IANS

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Mumbai, July 31 (IANS) Actor Shahid Kapoor’s wife Mira Rajput Kapoor, who is holidaying in Europe with her family, has shared another glimpse from her vacation diary.

Taking to Instagram Stories, Mira, who has 4.8 million followers on the photo sharing application, dropped a picture of herself resting by the beachside.

The selfie features her wearing a purple bikini, a beach hat, and oval framed sunglasses.

She captioned it as: “Don’t wanna leave the beach.”

On July 30, Mira had shared a video attending the musical concert of American singer Taylor Swift, along with her daughter Misha, in Munich, Germany.

Mira and Shahid had tied the knot in July 2015.

The couple have two kids — daughter Misha, and son Zain.

On the professional front, Shahid made his debut with 2003 romantic comedy film ‘Ishq Vishk’, directed by Ken Ghosh.

The film also starred Amrita Rao and Shenaz Treasurywala.

He then went on to star in movies like ‘Fida’, ‘Dil Maange More’, ’36 China Town’, ‘Vivah’, ‘Jab We Met’, ‘Kismat Konnection’, ‘Kaminey’, ‘Phata Poster Nikhla Hero’, ‘Haider’, ‘Padmaavat’, ‘Kabir Singh’, ‘Jersey’, among others.

The handsome hunk was last seen in the science fiction romantic comedy ‘Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Uljha Jiya’.

Shahid will be next seen as a police officer in the upcoming adrenaline-pumping action thriller, ‘Deva’.

The movie also features Pooja Hegde and Pavail Gulati.

‘Deva’ is directed by Rosshan Andrrews, and produced by Siddharth Roy Kapur, the film promises an action-packed roller-coaster ride full of thrills and drama.

It is set to release on February 14, 2025.

–IANS

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