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Naseeruddin Shah goes to Lahore 'Khuda Key Liye' (Go To Top)

     Lahore: Veteran Bollywood actor Naseeruddin Shah, paid a secret visit to Lahore for three days for a feature film 'Khuda Key Liye'. According to the Daily Times, Shah visited Lahore on March 11 and stayed in the city for three days before flying back to Delhi on Tuesday. Shah is playing the role of a religious scholar in the film, directed and produced by Shoaib Mansoor, and shot in Pakistan, England and America. Shah's host, Yousaf Salahuddin, also arranged a musical evening for Shah, where ghazal vocalist Fareeda Khanum and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan enthralled the distinguished guest. Shah's Lahore visit was kept secret at his request. Besides Shah, the film also includes Iman Ali, Ali Zafar, Junaid Jamshed, Naeem Tahir, Imran Pirzada, Seemi Raheel, Shahnawaz Zaidi, Ayub Khoso and the Hollywood based English cameraman Nick.

Vatican slams 'Da Vinci Code' (Go To Top)

     London: The Vatican has publicly condemned Dan Brown's best seller novel 'Da Vinci Code', labelling it as a pack of "shameful lies". The book begins with a murder investigated by a couple who discover that Jesus got former prostitute Mary Magdalene pregnant and goes on to describe the secret Catholic society Opus Dei - whose members include Education Secretary Ruth Kelly - and makes shocking claims about the Church. "It's trying to intentionally discredit the Church with its absurd and exaggerated stories of manipulation", The Sun quoted cardinal Tarciso Bertone - a contender to be the next Pope - as saying. The Vatican had refrained from comment until they organized a conference to dispel myths about the book yesterday. "These lies need to be unmasked. It's like an anti-clerical pamphlet and what's even sadder is that it's being sold in Catholic bookshops. There's a real risk people will think this fairytale is real. We're being confronted by a formidable distribution strategy which in some aspects is also very perverse", said Cardinal Bertone, 70, who is also the Archbishop of Genoa. "I believe that faced with such shameful and unfounded declarations, it is time to act", he added.

Britney married Jason to reunite her family (Go To Top)

     Washington: Britney Spears has said that her infamous wedding to her childhood friend Jason Alexander in Sin City, Nevada, last year, was a bid to draw her parents' attention towards her. The pop diva candidly admitted that she didn't realise the chapel ceremony in Las Vegas City was legally binding, and she only agreed to wed there to wake up her mom and dad towards her as she needed them by her side. "I think that really kind of was a desperate cry to my family. I kind of feel it brought my family together, and that was something that needed to happen. I had felt lost for so long and my mom was getting my sister ready for showbusiness, and I'm on the road, just running around in Germany with my head cut off and not knowing what the hell's going on", RatetheMusic quoted her Britney as saying. I didn't need some counsellor. I needed my mom, and I needed my dad", she added.

Musharraf's grandson's diaper bag creates alert at airport (Go To Top)

     Islamabad: Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf's grandson Hamza's diaper bag recently created an alert at the San Francisco Airport leading to Musharraf's son Bilal, his wife and Hamza missing their flight to Frankfurt. According to the Dawn, when Bilal arrived at the airport along with his wife and child to board a United Airlines flight to Frankfurt, US security personnel believed that the baggage scan at the airport detected traces of TNT in Hamza's diaper bag. While Bilal Musharraf, his wife and son were asked to stand on the side, the bag was put through the X-ray machine half a dozen times, leading to Bilal and his family missing the flight in the end. Eventually the airport security cleared Bilal and his family and allowed them to leave.

Pak court reserves order on petition against Meera (Go To Top)

     Karachi: The Sindh High Court has reserved an order on the maintainability of a petition, seeking ban on release of the Bollywood film "Nazar" starring Pakistani actress Meera, reports the Dawn. Earlier, Muzafar Hussain Askari had submitted a petition against the screening of the film in Pakistan on grounds that Meera's actions were against Islamic ethics and moral values and Pakistani culture. It was further stated that it was also in violation of Islamic ethics as depicted in the Article of Constitution. The SHC's bench comprising Chief Justice Saiyed Saeed Ashhad and Justice Maqbool Baqar, on their part, after hearing, reserved order on maintainability of the petition.

Travolta credits counselling for his 14-year-old marriage (Go To Top)

     London: Had it not been for counselling, John Travolta's marriage would have fallen apart, if he is to be believed. According to Femalefirst, he admitted his 14-year marriage to Kelly Preston would have not lasted if it wasn't for the intervention of professional guidance. "I know for a fact that we wouldn't be together if we hadn't had counselling. We used to have counselling every six months for 12 years. Relationships grow and change. If you don't update your relationship with someone, you grow apart. So we updated our needs and wants from each other every six months," he was quoted as saying. "As we've evolved and got to know each other over the years, we don't use counselling as much. You begin to know the techniques a counsellor uses, so when there is a problem we say, 'OK, let's you and I do it.' Then you figure it out. But sure, I could have seen us separating without counselling," he added.

Nicole Kidman wanted to be a witch (Go To Top)

     London: Girls of her age might be wishing to become a fairy queen when they grow up, but unlike them Australian actress Nicole Kidman had always wanted to become a witch. "I used to say 'please God make me a witch'," the Sun quoted Kidman, who is playing a beautiful witch Samantha Stevens in a movie version of sitcom 'Bewitched', as saying. Kidman is earning 9.3 million pounds for the role made famous by Elizabeth Montgomery on TV and said, "Since I was a girl people have told me I look like her."

Diana switched to the fatal car at the 11th hour (Go To Top)

     London: Princess Diana switched cars at the 11th hour on the fateful night of her death, as the vehicle in which she was supposed to be traveling in broke down forcing her to change the car, official documents reveal. The documents, released under the Freedom of Information Act, include a flurry of papers sent from the French capital after the tragedy in 1997. Diana was killed with her lover Dodi Fayed in August 1997. The chauffeur, Henri Pau, who was three times over the alcohol limit when the Mercedes he was driving, crashed in a Paris underpass, also perished with them.

Has Matthew Perry checked into rehab (Go To Top)

     London: 'Friends' star Matthew Perry has reportedly checked into a rehabilitation centre for alleged drug addiction. According to News of the World, the star, who was driven from his Beverly Hills home to hospital earlier this month, was overheard asking the hospital staff, "Where's the drug addiction department?" After discussing Perry's case with doctors, the medical staff placed him on an emergency 48-hour detox programme at the nearby Peninsular Recovery Centre. He was seen leaving the clinic from a side door the next day, before being driven back to the hospital for a further appointment with doctors.

Beckhams picked 'Cruz' during name calling game (Go To Top)

     London: David and Victoria Beckham picked the name Cruz for their new born baby while playing a game just days before his birth. According to The Sun, the Real Madrid star said that his wife was in the lounge and he stood at the bottom of the stairs, and started calling different names to Posh to find out which sounded best. Then he said Cruz, and the two immediately decided to call their baby by that name.

Marmite ads terrify kids (Go To Top)

     London: Advertising watchdogs have criticized TV advertisements featuring a giant blob of Marmite, which left children terrified and having nightmares. In one of these commercials, a crowd of people is seen running away from the blob before a woman, realizing what it is, turns back and jumps in. According to The Sun, six viewers have claimed that their kids, as old as two and three, either refused to watch TV after seeing the ad or had nightmares. The Advertising Standards Authority ruled they should no longer be screened on kids' shows. The Broadcast Advertising Clearance Centre (BACC), which evaluates commercials, however, argued that the commercial featured 'very mild horror that was clearly over the top and comical'.

Kirsten Dunst 'Punk'd' by Ashton Kutcher (Go To Top)

     London: 'Spider-Man' beauty Kirsten Dunst burst into sobs after being trapped by prankster Ashton Kutcher on US TV show 'Punk'd'. Kirsten Dunst became the TV trickster's latest victim in revenge for spurning his romantic advances four years ago. "I met her at a karaoke place and asked her out on a date. And she never called me back. Not calling guy back when he calls you is not cool. You should call him back. Revenge is a bitch", Fox news quoted Kutcher as saying on the show. The TV host who is currently seeing Demi Moore, conspired with friends of the actress to trick Kirsten into believing she was about to be arrested for drunk-driving after drinking a whole evening in a bar. Kirsten Dunst drank wine while close friends, Molly and Liat, sipped water disguised as vodka before quitting the bar and hopping into their car. But Kirsten along with her friends - were ordered out of the car at a police check-point for accidentally reversing into a patrol car. The actress then desperately tried to defend her friend as she told amid sobs to the cops : "She isn't drunk, she's just nervous" before Ashton appears to tell her she was just being 'Punk'd'. "I was so scared. That was really the best prank ever. I'm so happy it's not real ", the report quoted a relieved Kirsten as saying later.

Britney sued for stealing 'Crossroads' script (Go To Top)

     Washington: Popstar Britney Spears has been sued for 30 million dollars over her 2002 movie debut 'Crossroads', by a man who claims she stole his movie idea. The singer is being sued along with Parmount Pictures and MTV by Christopher Merrill, who alleges that the movie bears an uncanny resemblance to his script called 'Dream Alive', which he had submitted long before 'Crossroads' released. "We were working on this case for almost three years. We've been trying to negotiate with MTV and other production companies but they haven't responded" , Ratethe Music quoted Merrill as saying on the American TV show Celebrity Justice. "There's no question that they took his material," Merrill's attorney added.

Neve Campbell to be part of India's 'Partition' (Go To Top)

     Washington: Neve Campbell may join Jimi Mistry and Kristin Kreuk for the epic romance "Partition" in India. According to Zap2it, Campbell will play Margaret Stilwell, the lonely woman who helps Mistry who plays Gian try to live a quiet life after resigning from the army. After India achieves freedom from the British Empire in 1947, a new border is drawn between Hindu-dominated India and Muslim- dominated Pakistan. Gian saves young Muslim girl Naseem (Kreuk) from the massacres and strife that ensue. They share a mutual attraction, which is challenged by the political and religious unrest. The movie will be directed by Vic Sarin. Philip Glass and Ravi Shankar will compose the score.

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