• Bhangra and Bollywood come of age in Edinburgh
• Pharrell Williams voted King of Style
• Kate Winslet's dirty talk too hot to handle
• Pam has love-hate relationship with her breasts
• Sharon Stone and George Clooney voted sexiest stars over 40
• Michael Jackson to sing for Katrina victims
• Lance Armstrong gets hitched to Sheryl Crowe
• JK Rowling now has a three dimensional portrait
• John Travolta flies to hurricane victims aid
• Pamela Anderson raises money for Katrina-hit pets
• Sex begins at 40 for women

Bhangra and Bollywood come of age in Edinburgh  (Go To Top)

     Edinburgh: The Edinburgh Mela, an annual multi- cultural event started by the Pakistani, Indian and Bangladeshi communities in Edinburgh, has become so popular in the Scottish Capital, that a record number of over 30,000 people, from both the mainstream and Asia communities, turned up at the event last weekend. Due to its immense popularity, the Mela is being dubbed as the best multi-cultural festival in the UK. And with the number of visitors increasing every year, the organisers say that next year they will have to shift the Mela to a bigger venue to accommodate bigger crowds. One of the key objectives behind starting the Mela 11 years ago was to reflect and celebrate Scotland's cultural diversity, while retaining its roots in the south Asian communities, says The Scotsman.

      Like in the past, this year too the Mela was organised at the Pilrig Park last Saturday and Sunday, where artists from countries across the world gave performances, even as 80 stalls reported increased business from last year. On Saturday, Tariq Khan, DJ Bobby and MC Intensity joined South Asia's biggest pop sensation, Raghav, on the main stage, while on the following day, Bhangra pioneers "Alaap" performed along with Bollywood Bhangra musicians B21, chart hitters from Birmingham, and tunes from DJ Zeus, whose album Unda da Influence was one of the biggest sellers in the UK last year. Those who visited the Mela also had the chance to sample Asian teas and listen to acoustic world jazz, music and poetry in the Chai Serrai tent. One of the principal organisers of the Mela, Shami Khan said that the event had been a huge success. "This year there were more people from the mainstream community, which was the best way to celebrate peace and diversity. We had record numbers and so are looking forward to moving the Mela to a bigger venue such as the Meadows or Leith Links next year," the paper quoted him as saying. Lord Provost Lesley Hinds, the chair of the Edinburgh Mela Board, said: "This year's Mela has been the most diverse yet, with performers from all over the world, and a really fantastic atmosphere on the site - open, exciting and buzzing. The visitor figures show how the partnership between the city council and Out of the Blue, and between the city's cultural communities really can work."

Pharrell Williams voted King of Style (Go To Top)

     Washington: Rap producer Pharrell Williams has been voted the king of style in a new poll by men's magazine 'Esquire'. Williams beat out competition from 'The Day After Tomorrow' actor Jake Gyllenhall, rapper Kanye West and 'The Aviator' star Jude Law. According to Ratethemusic, the 'Mean Girls' composer got the honour for "injecting dressed-up luxury into hip-hop style, and thereby influencing a new generation of guys to consider more than just baggy jeans a reflection of their youthful vitality."

     Top five style icons are: 1. PHARRELL WILLIAMS 2. JAKE GYLLENHAAL 3. KANYE WEST 4. JUDE LAW 5. ANDRE 3000

Kate Winslet's dirty talk too hot to handle  (Go To Top)

     London: Hollywood beauty Kate Winslet made judges at the Venice Film Festival a little uncomfortable by her dirty talk in her new flick Romance and Cigarettes. Romance And Cigarettes is a musical love story about a New York iron worker, played by James Gandolfini whose wife (Susan Sarandon) catches him having a torrid affair with Kate's character. "I have to blame Kate a little bit. We didn't write some of the things she put in," Director John Turturro was quoted by The Sun, as saying. "There were things that had to be cut out that Kate said, they were just too dirty for the film," he added. At a press conference, the actor-turned-director defended the film's language. "If it was just crude, and not funny, I wouldn't have put it in. We had to explain some things to Susan Sarandon because she didn't understand them," he said.

Pam has love-hate relationship with her breasts (Go To Top)

     London: They are probably the most talked about, sought after, and envied assets in the world, but the woman who owns them claims she has a 'love-hate' relationship with them. However, Baywatch babe Pamela Anderson, is quick to add that she is very close to them. "My breasts - it's a love/hate thing but we're very close. "I'm glad I got my implants but sometimes they're in the way," The Sun quoted her as telling OK magazine. And just to emphasize how close she is to them, she says that she had her implants removed after her divorce, as a way of getting back at her ex hubby, rocker Tommy Lee. "I got divorced so I did what every girl does. I cut my hair and took out my boobs. "Well, maybe not everyone does the boobs part, but I was just like 'I'll show him'," she was quoted, as saying.

Sharon Stone and George Clooney voted sexiest stars over 40 (Go To Top)

     London: 'Basic Instinct' star Sharon Stone has been voted the sexiest woman over forty, according to a survey by women's magazine Health Plus. Others in the list included Demi Moore, Madonna and Goldie Hawn. While Ocean's Eeleven star George Clooney was voted the sexiest man over forty, followed by Sean Connery and Brad Pitt,reports The Sun.

     The list of sexiest women over 40: 1.Sharon Stone, 48, 2.Madonna, 47, 3.Lulu, 56, 4.Twiggy, 55, 5.Joanna Lumley, 59, 6.Carol Vorderman, 44, 7.Goldie Hawn, 59, 8.Felicity Kendal, 58, 9.Demi Moore, 42, 10.Honor Blackman, 79

     The sexiest men over 40 are: 1.George Clooney, 44, 2.Sean Connery, 75, 3.Brad Pitt, 41, 4.Richard Gere, 56, 5.Tom Cruise, 43, 6.Pierce Brosnan, 52, 7.Mel Gibson, 49, 8.Sting, 53, 9.Robert De Niro, 62 10.Johnny Depp, 42.

Michael Jackson to sing for Katrina victims (Go To Top)

     Washington: Pop star Michael Jackson is set to record a song to benefit victims of Hurricane Katrina. The singer expressed his concern for the victims of the natural disaster and said that he will approach others within the music industry to join him in the noble cause. "It pains me to watch the human suffering taking place in the Gulf Region of my country. My heart and prayers go out to every individual who has had to endure the pain and suffering caused by this tragedy. I will be reaching out to others within the music industry, to join me in helping to bring relief and hope to these resilient people who have lost everything," E!Online quoted Jackson as saying in a statement. The song, titled "From the Bottom of My Heart," will be released on 2 Seas Records, a label owned by Prince Abdulla Hamad Alkhalifa of Bahrain.

Lance Armstrong gets hitched to Sheryl Crowe (Go To Top)

     Washington: World cycling champion Lance Armstrong is set to walk down the aisle with his rocker girlfriend Sheryl Crowe. According to E!Online quoting Armstrong's representative, the two, who met at a charity event in October 2003, will probably wed in the spring, and Lance's three children from his previous marriage are also likely to attend the ceremony. Sources have revealed that the Texan cyclist proposed to Crowe on August 31, as they holidayed in Sun Valley, Idaho.

JK Rowling now has a three dimensional portrait (Go To Top)

    London: A three-dimensional portrait of the Harry Potter series author, J K Rowling was recently unveiled by the author at the National Portrait Gallery in London. The Gallery's trustees had commissioned Stuart Pearson Wright, who won the gallery's BP Portrait Award in 2001, to paint the author of the Harry Potter books, reports Timesonline. His full-length portrait, showing her at a table with a notepad and a plate of boiled eggs, is the first painting of the author to enter a public collection. Although she posed at her home in Perthshire, the portrait alludes to her life as a writer and her role as a mother. Rowling has said that the character and plot for the Harry Potter books came to her "fully formed" during a train journey from Manchester to London in 1990. Later, as a single mother living in Edinburgh, she continued working on the manuscript in longhand, often in a cafi to keep warm. In creating a three-dimensional setting, a construction using oil paint on board with coloured pencil on paper, Wright said that he had been influenced by 18th-century toy theatres. He said: "It felt like being a kind of director bringing together a set design, actors and props and then lighting the whole thing." The portrait plays with perspective, using the technique of Regency toy theatres. The figure was placed in a threedimensional space with a raked floor to suggest distance. The props, including the table and chair, were placed at angles, to trick the eye into seeing two or three dimensions according to where the viewer stands.

John Travolta flies to hurricane victims aid (Go To Top)

     London: Hollywood actor John Travolta flew to the devastated region of Louisiana on his private jet to deliver five tonnes of food to victims of Hurricane Katrina. Travolta, an experienced pilot, flew to Baton Rouge with his actress wife Kelly Preston before touring New Orleans. He is among celebrities who have travelled to the area to offer help, including Oprah Winfrey and Sean Penn. As well as delivering food supplies, Travolta flew in 400 doses of tetanus vaccines to be given to rescuers, who he and his wife met on the trip. "What we've seen in the shelters is wonderful, because people are being taken care of. What we've seen in the city is disastrous," Travolta was quoted by the BBC, as saying.

Pamela Anderson raises money for Katrina-hit pets (Go To Top)

     Washington: As Hurricane Katrina wreaked havoc across Gulf Coast last month, almost everybody geared up to provide relief to the victims, but nobody cared for stranded pets, except for Stella McCartney and Pamela Anderson, who have teamed to raise cash for them. According to Contactmusic, McCartney and Anderson have decided to donate personal memorabilia items to an upcoming auction to raise cash for the pets caught up in the wake of the natural disaster. The two have pledged their support to animal charity People For The Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) by offering up items that will be sold off at PETA's 25th Anniversary Gala and Humanitarian Awards in Hollywood on September 10. While Anderson is offering a walk-on part in her hit TV show 'Stacked', McCartney is donating cruelty-free items from her fashion collection.

Sex begins at 40 for women (Go To Top)

     London: Women in their forties have the best sex romps inside their houses and even outside. According to Women's magazine, Health Plus, three quarters say sex is better than it was in their 20s and that they feel more adventurous. Six out of ten frolicked in their front room, almost 30 per cent got Steamy in the bathroom and 12 per cent grappled in the garden. Three-quarters think about sex daily and a quarter fantasise three times a day. More than 60 per cent made love at least once a week but wanted it more often. And half say regular orgasms were as important as cuddles from their partners. Sex expert Julia Cole, who worked on the poll of almost 2,000 women over 40, said: "Older women are better lovers and more likely to be multi-orgasmic. "They know what they like and often have intense orgasms because they don't settle for groping and a lack of experience." The survey for women's mag Health Plus found that 75 per cent feel more confident about their body now. Just 30 per cent reckon cosmetic surgery would boost their sex life and 70 per cent preferred to make love naked. Almost 80 per cent said they now knew what satisfied them and 90 per cent regularly varied their positions. Half said their sex lives soared when their kids left home. "Women experience their best sex after 40 and within marriage. They are tired of people thinking sex is only for 16 to 39 year- olds, with the possible exception of Liz Hurley or other celebrities who wear Versace and pout a lot," Health plus Editor Colette Harris was quoted by The Sun, as saying.

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