His mortal remains was shifted to the Parumala church for public homage from 6 am to 7 pm and thereafter to the church headquarters in Devalokam, Kottayam. The funeral will be held at Devalokam chapel on July 13, and he will be buried in the Devalokam campus thereafter.

Born on August 30, 1946 in Mangad village near Kunnamkulam in Kerala, he was named K.I. Paul. After graduating in Physics from St Thomas College, Thrissur, he joined the Orthodox Theological Seminary in Kottayam and obtained a theological degree from Serampore University, West Bengal. He also took an MA in Sociology from CMS College, Kottayam.

He was ordained as a priest in 1973 and consecrated as bishop in 1985. He took the name Paulose Mar Milithios and was the first bishop of the newly formed Kunnamkulam diocese. In October 2006, he was made Catholicos Designate by the church parliament. Following the abdication of his predecessor His Holiness Baselios Marthoma Didymus I on account of ill-health, Milithios Metropolitan was enthroned on November 1, 2010 as the 91st Catholicos of the East and 21st Metropolitan of the Malankara Orthodox Church with the name Baselios Marthoma Paulose II.

The Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church is one of the ancient Christian churches in India which traces its historical roots and tradition to AD 52. The Orthodox Church is one of the three main Christian groups in the world, the others being Roman Catholic and Protestant. It is made up of a number of self-governing Churches such as the Indian one.

It was during the late patriarch’s reign that the Supreme Court of India delivered the landmark judgment of July 3, 2017 clearing the long-standing dispute between the Orthodox and Jacobite churches.

An unassuming and warm religious leader, he took a special interest in enhancing bilateral relations with heads of various Orthodox churches in other parts of the world such as the Ethiopian, Armenian, and Russian Orthodox churches, as well as with the Roman Catholic Church.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and leaders from various walks of life have condoled the death of the patriarch. Modi tweeted that the Metropolitan “leaves behind a rich legacy of service and compassion. In this hour of grief, my thoughts are with the members of the Orthodox Church.”

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor tweeted: “Saddened by the passing of the supreme head of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church of India, Baselios Marthoma Paulose II, just four months after recovering from COVID-19. A man of infinite compassion and grace, he will be widely mourned. RIP.”

Playback singer KS Chitra remembered the special relationship she shared with His Holiness and how he had christened the cancer ward at the Parumala hospital after her late daughter Nandana.

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In his endeavour towards the achievement of his life’s mission, many honours and accolades have come his way.

Dr.Oommen David has been conferred with Rajiv Gandhi Shiromani Award for outstanding contributions done in the field of Education; Best Teacher’s Award from Rotary Club of Dombivli; Ragasudha Award for meritorious service in social work; JWALA Education Award 2010; Rotary Ratna Award 2010 received from Rotary International President Nominee Kalyan Banerjee; Excellence Award 2011 from World Malayalee Council; Excellence in Education Award from Shri.Shankarnarayan, Governor of Maharashtra; Best Educationist Award from the Newspaper ‘Sunny News’; ‘Bharat Gaurav Ratna Award 2012’ from Union Minister Manish Tiwari.

He was conferred with the International Gold Star Millennium Award at Bangkok for his excellent contribution in the field of education.

The BharatiyaLokdhare Sahitya Kala Academy bestowed on him an award for his contribution towards the social and cultural ameliorations and for his dedication towards the noble cause of education.

He has also been conferred with Mother Teresa Gaurav Puraskar-2013 for exemplary work and stupendous contribution in the field of education from Human Rights Department.

During Kerala in Mumbai 6th Anniversary 2016, Dr.Oommen David was conferred with Achievement Award for excellence in the field of Education; the Kashmir to Kerala Social Foundation conferred the Best Educationist of Mumbai Award 2017; the Indian Journalist Compendium awarded Quality Excellence Award 2017; the True Indian Information & Guidance Society conferred him with True Indian Leading Light Award 2017 in appreciation of his being a leading educationist and Philanthropist; and the Educational Idol – Couple Award by Jwala Publications 2017.

As recently as May 2018, the Kites (TV Channel) Kerala recognised his with Award for contributions in educational field.

In February 2019, the PEET Alumini Silver Lines Award for exemplary services to the profession, society and to the Nation was conferred on him.

Dr.Oommen David was given the All India Malayalee (AIMA) Award of Appreciation in the presence of Minister Vinod Tawade in 2019 and the Education Excellence Award 2019 by Amchi Mumbai, a TV channel.

International recognition

In 2018, the British Parliament House, London recognised his contributions to society by conferring him with ‘Mahatma Gandhi Samman’.

On November 24, 2013, the Open International University for Complementary Medicine conferred upon Mr. Oommen David, Chairman of Holy Angels School and Junior College, the Honorary Doctorate (Doctor of Literature (D.Litt) at a convocation function held during the proceedings of the World Congress of Integrated Medicines held at the Bandaranaike International Auditorium, in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

This honour has been conferred on the basis of achievements in humanitarian services and merits of excellence. The Honorary Doctorate was conferred on Mr. David by Prof. Dr. Sir. J.U.Ligotzky, Director, European Representative, Germany.

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Beneath the smiling face is a man who with sheer grit and integrity built up an educational institution that is the pride of every Mumbaikar. As an institution builder, Dr.Oommen David has earned a reputation that few in the State of Maharashtra would dispute. Many honours that have come his way are testimony to Dr.Oommen David’s immense contribution in the field of education and social service.

Oommen David was born as the eldest of the two sons of CG David and Kunjamma of Nambalathu House, at Kuttamperur in Mannar, Chennithala. Since his maternal grandfather was a school teacher who was insistent that his sons and grandchildren should have sound education, there was no doubt that little Oommen would get the best of education.
Oommen David had his primary education at Kuttamperur Primary School and secondary education at Chennithala Mahatma High School to which he had to walks a few kilometres every day. After passing the Secondary School Leaving Certificate examination in flying colours, Oommen David joined St Berchman’s College in Changanassery, where he excelled in studies as well as drama. He was even selected as the best actor in college once. During this period he was staying in the college hostel.

Oommen David secured BSc and B.Ed from University of Kerala. His love for Shakespearean dramas saw him pursue his post-graduation in English literature from the Agra University. During his student days Oommen was a prolific writer in school and college magazines.

In 1974, after completing his studies, Oommen, in his search for a career that best suited his education, landed in Mumbai, then Bombay. He was fortunate enough to secure a teaching position in a school in Panvel where he spent one year. He then joined Model English School, Dombivli as a teacher, a job into which he put his heart and soul.
After a few years of teaching, due to his academic proficiency, administrative acumen and leadership qualities he became the Principal of the school at a young age. During his tenure as Principal, Model English School grew in stature and academic excellence. Oommen David spent 15 long years in the school, shaping its character and destiny, that is to say that he left an indelible imprint on the institution.

Oommen David also headed the St. Thomas English School in Kalyan as the Principal for ten years.
After working for many years as Principal, Oommen felt that his sublime ideas of education could find better expression if he could start an educational institution on his own. He initiated all the necessary steps towards this goal and in 1989 started the Holy Angels’ School and Junior College managed by the Trinity Educational Trust, which today is an institution of repute, known in Maharashtra and beyond.

It is an intense passion for sound human values that sustains Dr Oommen’s life vision and life mission. Holy Angels’ School is all that this great educationist visualised in an educational institution. It is what Oommen David envisages an ideal educational institution that would not be just a centre of academic excellence but one that would be in line with the philosophical ideas and moral convictions of the educationist that he is and that would form the vision and mission of the institution.

Dr Oommen has a deep understanding about the objectives of education. He feels that education must sharpen the intellect and purify the heart. Wisdom must be combined with compassion. A capacity for deep thinking and a habit of serene meditativeness should be inculcated in the minds and hearts of young students.
Although it had started with Maharashtra State Syllabus, it had switched over to the Central Board of Secondary Education in 2007. In fact the institution can be proud that it is the first school in Dombivli with the CBSE syllabus.

For Oommen David teaching is not a profession but service to humanity. He feels that the teacher-student relationship of yesteryears is missing in the modern world. If earlier the teacher was the sole source of knowledge, today there are many other sources as well and this may be a factor that led to the decline of the importance of a teacher.

If earlier, teaching was a dedicated profession and service to society, today most teachers see it only as a source of income. Teachers are also chasing a mirage and riches like any other professionals in the world. Teachers or gurus of yester years had few wants unlike now, Dr. David Oommen says.

He also holds the view that the system of education needs to be rebuilt with a national outlook. Education needs to be reworked with more stress on practical orientation and a new education policy should be implemented. Only then will a generation of talented youth would be created, Dr.Oommen David says.

Situated in the outskirts of Dombivli, spread over two acres of land dotted with luxuriant trees and ever green shrubs, Holy Angels’ School and Junior College has over 2,000 students coming from the different strata of society, irrespective of caste, creed and religion.

Dr. Oommen David sees former President of India Dr.Sarveppalli Radhakrishnan as his guru and follows in his footsteps. He gives a lot of importance to sports and games in moulding the character of young students.
According to Dr Oommen, “One of the chief objectives of education should be to widen the windows through which we view the world. Education should kindle a child’s imagination, broaden his vision and open for him the super highways of knowledge. The aim of education should be to convert the mind into a lining fountain and not a reservoir.”

“Principle-centered, value-based education is the need of the hour,” says Dr Oommen. He is of the opinion that in today’s educational system deep human values such as honesty, selfless service, a compassionate attitude to the economically and socially marginalised are being ignored. There is a mad pursuit towards temporal success and achievements and to stem this swelling tide of crass materialism the school has initiated lectures, seminars, debates, etc. on the core issues of sound human values. Dr Oommen believes that only a principle-centered, value based education can produce enlightened patriotic citizens.

Dr.Oommen David believes that the current crisis in education is less about declining test scores and more about the failure to provide the ‘education for citizenship’. Making students become more socially responsible represents an essential objective for today’s institutions. Creating social responsibility amongst students must become the purpose of the academic environment, as young people’s formation also means to create a high level of awareness about involving these young members of society in solving social problems.

Students’ social responsibilities mainly focus on taking responsibility for one’s own actions. It is a promise every student should make for the society while working for the social, cultural and, ecological causes. These responsibilities are ethically binding and propose that each person acts in such a way that minimizes the adverse effect to those immediately around them.

The well-known educationist believes that the primary duty of a student is to learn and acquire knowledge, improve their intellect and widen their mental capabilities. It is estimated that nearly 15 per cent of the total population of India consists of students. The students, therefore, constitute a great potential force capable of leading a nation to great heights of progress.

It is well said that the Destiny of a Nation is being shaped in her Classrooms.Dr.Oommen strongly believes that schools have a tremendous role to play in making better citizens of the country. School is the platform wherein students learn the good traits of life such as discipline, obedience, dutifulness, diligence, respect to elders, honesty, and patriotism. It is the duty of every student to acquire these fine qualities of life which will enable him/ her to stand in good stead in the future.

Students can play an important role in improving and strengthening the society and can also act as the guardians of society. It is their duty to fight against all evils existing in society. They have a tremendous responsibility to see that injustice, inequality, oppression, exploitation, corruption, criminalization of politics, communalism, casteism, misuse of public money, etc., are done away with. Students have great strength to oppose these evils of society.

Dr.Oommen says that students do pay a vital role in society and have a strong bearing on how a society is shaped in the forthcoming generations. The society should give students the love and encouragement due to them. When students are treated with due respect and responsibility, they will also live up to be responsible and respect the society in return. When they are recognized, they will have the motivation to work for a better society even by facing hardships rather than giving up in between.

Family

Leelamma Oommen, who was the Principal of a School and Jr. College in Thane, is Oommen’s life partner who has stood by him through thick and thin. The couple has two sons, Bijoy and Manoj. Bijoy Oommen, who has an MA, B.Ed and M.Phil, is the principal of Holy Angels’ School and Junior College at present. Manoj Oommen is working in the United Kingdom.

http://hm9.b0c.mytemp.website/honours-and-award-for-oommen-david/

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Bloomberg reports that this billionaire who is also a vaccine investor has surpassed the Indian businessman to become the continent’s wealthiest man. His name is Zhong Shanshan.

Shanshan’s fortune grew by more than $70 billion in 2020, putting his net worth at an estimated $77.8 billion, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index. He is now the world’s 11th richest person after Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison. Although Ambani may have lost the top spot in Asia, he’s not far behind: the Reliance Industries chairman is still worth $76.9 billion.

The 66-year-old billionaire is known as the “Lone Wolf” because he is not involved in politics or business. He rarely makes public appearances or speaks to the media.

Bloomberg reports that the sources of Shanshan’s wealth are his roles as chairman at two major companies: bottled water maker Nongfu Spring and Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy Enterprise, which makes vaccines and hepatitis test-kits. Nongfu Spring reported $3.5 billion in revenue in 2019, while the pharmacy enterprise reported revenue of $171 million.

It is one of the fastest accumulations of wealth in history, and all the more remarkable considering that until this year he was little known outside China.
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His pharmacy company is among those developing a Covid-19 vaccine. Shanshan had an interesting career spanning journalism, mushroom farming and health care before venturing into bottled water business.

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The nine-year-old child star tops Forbes’ list of Highest Paid YouTube stars of 2020 for third year in a row, beating out other well-known You Tubers.

From June 1,2019, through June 1,2020, Kaji earned a whopping $29.5 million and nabbed 12.2 billion views on his videos.

Since beginning his You Tube journey back in 2015, Kaji- whose channel was previously called Ryan Toys Review, until he changed it in October 2019- has expanded his brand into toys, clothing and a preschool-aimed series on Nickelodeon, titles Ryan’s Mystery Playdate.

According to Forbes report, much of Kaji’s earnings come from these “licensing deals for more than 5,000 Ryan’s World Products – which included everything from action figure toys and walkie talkies, to bedroom decor. They also created masks amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Kaji channel, boasts 41.7 million subscribers almost double that of his 23 million subscribers in 2019. It includes videos of him unboxing toys (which he started when he was just 3 years old), conducting DIY science experiments , playing games, teaching young viewers how to complete tasks like brushing their teeth and more. He even shares educational videos, like teaching his viewers about all the states and their capitals, or how tsunamis are formed.

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The invaluable reference book would also include information about Malayali organisations, places of worship, educational institutions, clubs, institutions and establishments being headed by Malayalis, including information about date of establishment, history, founding and the current office-bearers.

The directory would also feature comprehensive information on 2,000 prominent Malayalis in various fields, their photographs, mobile numbers, mail ids and so on. The information on personalities in 20 different categories such as the cultural sector, politics, literature, music, education, government-private sector, sports, media, medical, banking, insurance, automobile, engineering, construction, hospitality, logistics, manpower, real estate, jewellery, trading , etc. will form an integral section in the directory.

The publisher of the comprehensive directory is Motivate Publishing India Private Limited, which have been publishing reference books on Malayalis in various states of India and abroad for the past 25 years.

‘Who’s Who Of Delhi Malayalis’ is being published under the patronage and supervision of prominent Malayali personalities in Delhi that includes Mr. M.G. George (Chairman, Muthoot Group), Prof. Omchery N.N. Pillai, Dr. Lilly George (Shalom Group of Schools), Mr. A.T. Sainudeen (Vice-President, Kerala Club), Mr. P.K.D. Nambiar (Managing Director & CEO, B Square Group of Companies), Mr. Babu Panicker (Managing Director, Panickers’ Travels), Mr. Raghunath (President, Delhi Malayalee Association), Dr. Ramesh Nambiar (General Manager, Air India), Mr. C. Chandran (General Secretary, Delhi Malayalee Association), and Mr.M.Manuel (CMD, Manuel Malabar Jewellers).

The information is being included in the directory free of charge. Interested people can fill out the free entry form which can be downloaded from the website www.malayali.directory, and sent along with a photograph. For more information call 011 – 455 73130 at the office number or 9288009111 (WhatsApp) or contact over the email id info@motivatepublishing.co .in, Chief Editor P. Sukumaran and Managing Editor N.V. Radhakrishnan have informed.

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K. Madhavan, the Managing Director of Star and Disney India, was recently elected as the President, Indian Broadcasting Foundation. A veteran of many media wars, the head of the Star and Disney in India, has been elected to the position at a crucial juncture in history of broadcasting in India.
He believed that Indian broadcasting space was among the largest in the world with nearly 100 million households without television. He stressed that getting the content right would get the viewers and pointed to the growth of Doordarshan on the back of mythological shows during the lockdown.

He opined that broadcasting is projected to grow to Rs.882 billion from Rs.787 billion by 2022 Mr. Madhavan said that the industry wanted to exceed that expectation and for that the support of policymakers and regulator was critical..

Mr. Madhavan also spelt out a few priority areas that he would be dealing with for the growth of the industry. Stating that three key players were needed for the growth of the broadcasting industry in the country, he said that the first priority of the IBF is to get broadcasters, policymakers and regulator together to create an atmosphere conducive to the growth of broadcasting. The idea was to meet the growth projections but he said that the New Tariff Order 2 was not conducive to growth.

The second one, Mr. Madhavan said, was to try to exceed expectations on growth. The third priority was the longstanding request to grant infrastructure status to broadcasting. This, he said, would bring cost side benefits and help formalise the business. This would help in availing loans for day-to-day business and also investment for content development.

Mr. Madhavan also brought the focus on GST and called for its revision as it would facilitate growth of the industry. He also called for a push for policies that will facilitate growth.

Talking about the present situation of the broadcasting industry in the COVID-19 situation, he said that the viewership has increased 25-30 per cent on both entertainment and news. With the Indian Premier League getting under way, there has been a 30 per cent rise in viewership. Mr. Madhavan believed that the sector paid a key role in keeping the audiences engaged while they were homebound. He claimed that broadcasters also supported cine artistes during these trying times when production had come to a standstill. He said that the industry had reinvented itself.

Mr. Madhavan also holds the view that there was a need for a separate regulator for the broadcasting industry. He said that the IBF believed in a dialogue between the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India. The IBF had tried to convey its points of view to the regulator but it did not heed its requests.

Setting new standards was nothing new to Mr. Madhavan who had proven his mettle early on in the television industry. When he switched career from banking, assuming a pivotal role in Asianet, the channel was in the doldrums and the television field a minefield. It was a bold step even by the most capable of professionals to step into the murky world of media that face the vagaries of fickle viewership and TRP ratings.

Given the fact that the television world was ruled by the likes of Zee TV and Times TV, the move of Madhavan to take up the role of Director at Asianet Communications Ltd in 1999, forgoing his years of experience in the banking world shocked many. He soon rose to the position of Managing Director and Chief Executive.

In 1999, when he joined Asianet, the regional brand from South India was on the verge of closing down. Turning a struggling channel into a media powerhouse, Mr. Madhavan ensured that the Asianet bouquet of channels became the undisputed market leader in Kerala.

Mr. Madhavan is post-graduate in Commerce from Calicut University and Certified Associate of Indian Institute of Bankers (CAIIB) and the driving force behind Asianet’s growth as the undisputed leader in Malayalam with more than 50% of market share.

Challenges did come his way and he took them head on consolidating the assets of the regional media company and soon built up an empire that some of the biggest media conglomerates came to covet.

Mr. Madhavan joined Star India in 2009 as its South head after Star India acquired a 51 per cent stake in Asianet, popular in the Kerala market then. Star eventually took full control and ownership of the channel in 2014 by which time Mr. Madhavan had taken Asianet to other markets in the south, sources said.
Under his leadership, the company has built a thriving regional entertainment portfolio.

Mr. Madhavan’s vision for the regional language network has led the company to set benchmarks in quality programming in South India, which is now being replicated throughout India. Under his trusted leadership, the channel has reached more than 100 countries. Mr. Madhavan believes in the entrepreneurial culture. His vision has forced many others in the field to set benchmarks in quality programming in the South, which is now being replicated throughout India. It is these expertise and negotiating skills that would hopefully aid Mr. Madhavan in his new responsibility in building bridges with the regulator and policymakers and bring in much-needed changes in the broadcasting industry in India.

Recently, the Confederation of Indian Industry appointed Mr. Madhavan as the Chair of National Committee on Media & Entertainment for 2020-21. He is responsible for driving the growth of the business, focussing on innovation and creating compelling content for consumers.

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According to a statement released by MGM Healthcare, the condition of SPB deteriorated on the night of August 13. Hospital authorities also revealed that the singer was currently under observation by a team of experts in critical care.

“There has been a setback in the health of Thiru S P Balasubrahmanyam who had been admitted at MGM Healthcare for symptoms of COVID since 5th August 2020. In a late night development on 13th August 2020, his condition had deteriorated, and based on the advice of the expert medical team attending to him, he has been moved to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and he is on life support and his condition remains critical,” said hospital authorities in the statement.

It was last week that SPB shared the unfortunate news of coronavirus infection through his Facebook page. In a video posted on his social media page, the singer revealed that his infection is mild in nature.

On August 5, doctors had asked SPB to isolate himself in his home. However, SPB insisted to get admitted to the hospital to prevent any further complications.

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Age is definitely not a barrier to explore, learn and achieve. And of lately, Rajinder Singh, 73, from UK, popularly called ‘Skipping Sikh’, has set a stunning example for the younger generation by posting his workout videos that age is no criteria for a person to pursue his goals. Since the lockdown was imposed in England, he had been regularly posting workout videos on his Instagram and Twitter page . He is a source of inspiration to many youngsters to indulge in a healthy lifestyle.

Not only that, with the help of the videos and the adulation he got, he managed to raise around £ 15,000 for the UK National Health Service (NHS) to help them fight COVID-19. His videos on YouTube had garnered around 250,000 views.

And now for his good works, UK government has honoured Mr.Singh with the ‘Points of Light’ award for inspiring and making a difference in People’s life.

UK PM Boris Johnson had personally written a letter to Singh on this achievement, “Your ‘Skipping Sikh’ videos have given a lift to the thousands of people worldwide who have watched your videos online and taken part with you in daily exercise. You have brought people together and energized the Sikh community at a time when temples were closed.”

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The makers of Suresh’s Gopi’s upcoming film, Kaaval went the extra mile to celebrate the actor’s 61’st birthday on June 26, as they released a teaser of the film on social media platforms and YouTube. The teaser is a perfect treat for his fans.

The teaser sees Suresh Gopi with a bruise in his eye, as he takes out his gun from behind and yes, there is a punchline which is always the actor’s trademark. Actor Mohanlal, too, took to his twitter handle and shared the teaser of Kaaval and wished Gopi on his birthday.

Happy Birthday Dear Suresh Gopi. Happy to share the teaser of your new movie Kaaval on this special day.https://t.co/s53UvE5p84#HappyBirthdaySureshGopi

— Mohanlal (@Mohanlal) June 26, 2020

Nithin Panicker, son of Renji Panicker, has directed the movie. Starring Suresh Gopi and Renji Panicker in the leading roles, Kaaval is bankrolled by Joby George, under the banner of Goodwill Entertainments. As per reports, the film also stars Zaya David, Muthumani, IM Vijayan, Sujith Sankar, Alencier and Kannan Rajan P Dev in prominent roles.

Nithin’s debut movie, Kasaba with Mammootty courted a massive controversy for being blatantly misogynistic. Suresh Gopi was last seen in director Anoop Sathyan’s debut movie Varane Avashyamund. The film gave the veteran actor a memorable role after a long gap.

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Director Sujeeth,who helmed Prabhas’ Saaho, has been roped in to direct the Telugu remake.The film’s team confirmed the same and revealed that the film will go on floors once Chiranjeevi completes his another film Acharya. Currently,Sujeeth is working on the film’s script and the pre-production work is going on in full swing.The original film was the the directorial debut of actor Prithviraj Sukumaran.

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The actress teamed up with volunteer-based non-governmental organisation – The Robin Hood Army- to help the underprivileged with footwear. The actress reached out to over 1000 labourers in and around Ghaziabad in Murad Nagar, Govindpuram, Vijay Nagar, and distributed footwear across age-groups.

Bhumi pledge to contribute supplies, food, essentials and other such materials to the poor migrants during the lockdown. The actress also used her social media handles to request her fans to also reach out anytime to help the “vulnerable” in distress in fight against coronavirus.

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According to the police , the four were Thrissur native and approached the actor in the pretense of a marriage proposal.They told the actor that proposal is from a Tik Tok star who is a Kasaragod native.They had visited her house and later threatened to misuse her photos.The police further questioned them for more details.

Shamna told the media that she proceeded with the complaint to save others from such fraudulent activities.

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A Malayali industrialist based in Dubai is suspected to have fallen to his death from a building in Sharjah. T.P.Ajith (55) hailing from Panankav in Kannur district and living in Dubai Meadows Villa, fell from the top of a multi-storeyed building on Abdul Nasser Street in Sharjah on Monday and died.

Ajith, who has been living in the UAE for the past 30 years, owns many businesses based in Dubai. He was the owner of Space Max which had godowns, logistics, workshops and cold storage across the Gulf.Under his leadership ,the company provided its clients effective and efficient contracting solutions using the most modern construction equipment and planning methods.Through his leadership,Space Max maintains a track record of a number of challenging projects which have been executed successfully. He won the trust and appreciation of his clients by completing their projects on time and within budget.

His family was also along with him in Dubai. He had acquired a house in Kannur recently.

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Prithviraj will essay the role of Variyan Kunnath Haji, a self-made Sultan, who established his own parallel government and formed an army to fight against the British. In his post announcing the film, Prithviraj wrote: “He stood up against an empire that ruled a quarter of the world. Etched out his own country with an army that waged a never before war against the British. Through history was burned and buried, the legend lived on! The legend of leader, a soldier, a patriot. A film on the man who became the face of the 1921 Malabar Revolution.# Vaariyamkunnan.” According to the team, the film will narrate the untold story of this legendary revolutionary and his fight against the British.

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Bimal Shivaji

It is seldom that professionals step out of the rarefied world of banking industry or the corporate world in India to battle it out in the murky world of media that face the vagaries of fickle viewership and TRP ratings.

Given the fact that the television world was ruled by the likes of Zee TV and Times TV, the move of K. Madhavan, presently the Managing Director of Star & Disney India, to take up the role of Director at Asianet Communications Ltd in 1999, forgoing his years of experience in the banking world shocked many. He soon rose to the position of Managing Director and Chief Executive.

In 1999, when he joined Asianet, the regional brand from South India was on the verge of closing down. Turning a struggling channel into a media powerhouse, Mr. Madhavan ensured that the Asianet bouquet of channels became the undisputed market leader in Kerala.

Over the years Mr. Madhavan was seen in public during the Asianet Film Awards presentations, but behind the scenes the post-graduate in Commerce from Calicut University and Certified Associate of Indian Institute of Bankers (CAIIB) was burning midnight oil for taking on much bigger challenges in the years to come.

He has been the driving force behind Asianet’s growth as the undisputed leader in Malayalam with more than 50% of market share.

Challenges did come his way and he took them head on consolidating the assets of the regional media company and soon built up an empire that some of the biggest media conglomerates came to covet.

Mr. Madhavan joined Star India in 2009 as its South head after Star India acquired a 51 per cent stake in Asianet, popular in the Kerala market then. Star eventually took full control and ownership of the channel in 2014 by which time Mr. Madhavan had taken Asianet to other markets in the south, sources said.

Under his leadership, the company has built a thriving regional entertainment portfolio.

Mr. Madhavan’s vision for the regional language network has led the company to set benchmarks in quality programming in South India, which is now being replicated throughout India. The channel is now present in over 100 countries.  In the highly competitive Telugu Language market, the former banking professional’s strategy has taken Star MAA to a leadership position in a short span of time.

The veteran media professional says, “Impact to me is getting results, and for that one needs to inspire the team and consumers simultaneously.”

And he did inspire many talented youngsters to think up programmes that took Asianet to newer heights garnering more viewers and better TRP ratings.

Under his trusted leadership, the channel has reached more than 100 countries. Mr. Madhavan believes in the entrepreneurial culture. His vision has forced many others in the field to set benchmarks in quality programming in the South, which is now being replicated throughout India.

As Managing Director of Star and Disney India, Mr. Madhavan oversees the company’s television business spanning across entertainment, sports and regional channels and the studios business in India. He is responsible for driving the growth of the business, focussing on innovation and creating compelling content for consumers.

Mr. Madhavan was appointed as the Country Manager of Disney and Star India in December 2019. Before being promoted as the Country Manager, he was Managing Director of South Business, Star India, a position he assumed in 2016. He was overseeing the business ventures of Star in the four southern states and a portfolio of regional channels in Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil and Telugu.

Recently, the Confederation of Indian Industry appointed Mr. Madhavan as the Chair of National Committee on Media & Entertainment for 2020-21. He is responsible for driving the growth of the business, focussing on innovation and creating compelling content for consumers.

The post Media veteran with a Midas touch appeared first on The Gulf Indians.

A photograph of Shashi Tharoor, Thiruvananthapuram MP, and Meera Nair, film director and writer, playing the role of Antony and Cleopatra during college days is going viral on social media.
The incident took place in the early 1980s when Meera Nair was a student of Miranda House in Delhi and Shashi Tharoor was at St. Stephens. There was an understanding between these two colleges that they would support each other by sending actors and actresses when performing plays. An old black-and-white photograph in which they acted together has surfaced now.
After completing college Mira Nair took up cinema as her vocation and became known in world cinema, Mr. Tharoor reached the United Nations and became a world celebrity. The play also features the famous social anthropologist Susan Viswanathan.

The post When Shashi Tharoor wooed Cleopatra appeared first on The Gulf Indians.