Sunday, September 25, 2011

Bollywood actress helps domestic violence victims


Bollywood actress helps domestic violence victims

Years after Somy Ali left her glamorous life as a Bollywood actress, she heard a knock on her door from a Bangladeshi neighbor, asking for help.

The woman said she'd been sexually and physically abused for a decade by her husband, his father and his brother. Ali paid for the woman's apartment and divorce.

"I said 'There have to be more women like this,'" Ali said.

So she founded a not-for-profit organization called No More Tears Inc. in 2006. So far it has helped 48 women. Ali funds her organization in part by giving 10 percent of the revenue from her clothing company, So-Me Designs.

"These people have become part of my family," she said. "There is nothing more gratifying than rescuing a woman."

Ali's own life reads like a Bollywood script. She grew up in an opulent 26-room mansion in Karachi, the daughter of a Pakistani movie producer father and an Iraqi mother. When Ali was 9, she moved to Florida with her mother and brother.

At 15, she decided that she wanted to marry actor Salman Khan, whom she calls "the equivalent of Brad Pitt in India," and that she wanted to move to India.

Eventually, she got her way. While in a Mumbai hotel lobby, a producer's assistant spotted her and launched her career in film. Soon after, Khan saw her at an agency by chance and cast her in a movie.

Her Bollywood romance lasted a few years, but Ali soon broke up with Khan and came to back to Florida at age 24.

Now, at 34, she is trying to get the message out to victims of abuse. She puts her brochures in mosques, churches, and ethnic grocery stores, and even in Indian and Pakistani restaurants.

"If you want to help someone, it comes naturally," she said.

She meets the women in public places because she is afraid of being followed home, and usually helps the women financially for three to six months. Some women have been helped for a year. She also makes sure they get counseling.

Currently, she said, she has only $50 in the bank, so in October she is expanding her So-Me Designs that help fund No More Tears. So far, she has designed T-shirts (for $24.99 each), baby shirts ($26) and hoodies ($45). The new collection includes dresses (starting at $150) and formal tops (starting at $60).

Each T-shirt has a design Ali created with the help of her graphic artist, who is also a woman she has helped. The most popular design is a clipboard with boxes to tick off either White, Black, Hispanic or Human.

Ali says as a child she would cross out the "other" in such questionnaires and write the word human instead.

"I consider myself a Muslim," she said. "I pray every night the Muslim way. It's important for me, for my sanity."

She says she would like to go back to Pakistan and help women, but she fears she would be killed or kidnapped.

"I just feel like I have a lot of work to do," she said.

Edith McEacheron, 35, originally from Venezuela, was put into contact with Ali in March after she says her husband left her and their toddler son with no money and no way of getting any. She is now in the final stages of trying to get a work permit and is looking for a job. No More Tears pays for her room and her attorney.

McEacheron says that without the organization, her life would be different.

"I guarantee you one thing, I probably would be in the street," she said.

Saman Movassaghi, an attorney who also helped McEacheron, gives Ali's clients the discounted rate of $500 per case.

"I really enjoy helping them in the respect that they know that there is somebody out there who listens to their case and fights for them," she said. "I didn't go to law school to do traffic tickets ... I went to law school to help people."

Laura Finley, a professor of sociology and criminology at Barry University and a No More Tears board member, donated her purple station wagon to one woman.

"It feels really good to see somebody be safe," Finley said.

Hot Babe Neha plays Bollywood actress for Hollywood


Neha plays Bollywood actress for Hollywood

Our Neha Dhupia is going places. To Hollywood, quite literally.

The stunning Bollywood star has been invited by a leading television channel in the US to be part of a mini series called Bollywood Hero. It is a three-part comedy and has Neha playing a Bollywood actress named Alima Lakhani opposite American actor/comedian Chris Kattan who is best known for his work on the sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live. British actor Julian Sands of cult film Warlock and the television series 24 is also in Bollywood Hero.

‘Dabangg’ dominates Bollywood awards with 6 prizes


‘Dabangg’ dominates Bollywood awards with 6 prizes

TORONTO — "Dabangg," a tale about a corrupt police officer, dominated the 12th International Indian Film Academy awards, snagging six prizes including best picture at the star-studded event in Toronto — held on North American soil for the first time.

"My Name is Khan" also scooped up top honors at the five-hour award bash that started Saturday night and rolled over into early Sunday. Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan took the prize for leading male role for the film, about the treatment of Muslims in a world of heightened suspicions following the Sept. 11 attacks.

Khan played the family’s Muslim patriarch who suffers from Asperger’s syndrome. The film, nominated in seven categories, also took home the prize for best direction and best story. Khan was handed his award by Bollywood superstar Anil Kapoor and two-time Academy Award winner Hilary Swank, who congratulated Bollywood for helping to unite the world through film.

"Hollywood and Indian cinema must bring the world closer together," said Swank, draped in a glittering sleeveless deep red gown. "I believe in IIFA’s vision — one people, one world."

Cuba Gooding Jr. presented the best director award to Karan Johar for "My Name is Khan," declaring that he was impressed by the power of Indian films around the world.

"I think it’s absolutely wonderful how India has traveled the world of entertainment and I would love to play and be a part of a Bollywood movie myself," said Gooding, who broke out into a few dance moves.

"Dabangg" led the awards tally sweeping trophies in the music category in Toronto’s packed Rogers Centre, filled with more than 22,000 Bollywood fans and stars. The hit took the prize for best playback singer female, best playback singer male and best music director. A playback singer pre-records songs so Bollywood actors can lip sync to them in their films. "Dabangg" star Sonu Sood won for best performance in a negative role. The film also garnered the awards for best screenplay and best female debut went to Sonakshi Sinha for her role in the film as Sood’s love interest.

Anushka Sharma won the best female lead for her role as an assistant to a wedding planner in "Band Baaja Baaraat," a film about the world of wedding planning. Arjun Rampal took home the best male supporting prize for political thriller "Raajneeti," and best supporting female role went to Prachi Desai for "Once Upon a Time in Mumbai."

Kangana Ranaut, the model turned actress, gave the night’s first performance with her fellow "Double Dhamaal" actors Arshad Warsi, Javeed Jaffrey and Ashish Chaudry. The film was one of several that premiered during the IIFA weekend.

A lifetime achievement award to was given to Dharmendra Deol, patriarch of the Deol dynasty, who received the special award for his 55-year-long career. Dharmendra’s sons, Sunny and Bobby Deol, Bollywood stars in their own right, performed with their father for the first time on stage to a song from their film "Yamla, Pagla, Deewane."

Outstanding achievement in Indian cinema went to Sharmila Tagore, who has starred in such films as "Mera Sapnon Ki Rani," ”Namkeen," and "Chingari," and has spent 52 years in the industry. Tagore’s son is the popular Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan. She said her son wanted to attend the weekend festivities, but couldn’t because they are both finishing films.

Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty gave a speech at the ceremony, which also saw a number of energy-packed Bollywood dance numbers and tributes, capping the three days of festivities. McGuinty lured the IIFA to the city by pledging $12.25 million.

Roughly 16,000 of the 22,000 tickets to the awards ceremony available to the public sold out in minutes. Those lucky enough to get seats were charged between $49 and $126, while resellers offered last-minute tickets online for more than $1,500 each.

Launched in 2000 at the Millennium Dome in London, the annual IIFA awards have traveled around the world in the hopes of exposing the genre to various audiences and opening trade markets.

Holding the event in Toronto was a strategic move as India’s cinematic royalty makes a bid for a piece of the North American box office. Held previously in Amsterdam, Sri Lanka, Macau, London, Malaysia, Dubai, Singapore, Bangkok and Johannesburg, IIFA is capitalizing on the already huge Bollywood following in Toronto, which has an estimated population of nearly 700,000 South Asians.

"For the first time in its 12-year history, IIFA makes its North American debut, and its biggest stars are you," Kapoor said in a mix of English, Hindi and Punjabi while pointing to the audience. "Thank you Ontario. Thank you so much for making us feel the warmth in Canada."

Organizers say more than 200 filmmakers and actors came from overseas in the bid to gain inroads into the North American market and build production partnerships.

The awards gala is considered India’s biggest media event and one of world’s most-watched televised spectacles, with hundreds of millions of viewers tuning in.

Warner makes Bollywood debut with kung fu comedy


Warner makes Bollywood debut with kung fu comedy

(Reuters) - Director Danny Boyle's Indian foray paid off with the award-winning film "Slumdog Millionaire," and now Warner Bros. Pictures hopes its debut Bollywood film will reap some U.S. box office success.

Billed as the first ever Bollywood kung fu comedy, "Chandni Chowk to China" opens on Friday in India and on more than 125 screens in the United States and Canada -- the largest Bollywood release in North America, says Time Warner Inc's Warner Bros.

"Chandni Chowk to China," starring veteran Bollywood star Akshay Kumar who has made more than 120 films, tells the tale of a poor cook who travels to China to become a kung fu hero. The film, whose title refers to the bustling Chandni Chowk market of Delhi, is the studio's first Indian production.

"There have been lots of Bollywood films in the past which had have the potential of crossing over, but could not cross over mainly because they did not have a studio backing it with a strong distribution network," said director Nikhil Advani.

"If this one succeeds, even if it marginally succeeds ... I think there will be a wave of more Bollywood films," he told Reuters in a recent interview.

Bollywood, as the Indian film industry centred in Mumbai is called, churns out about 1,000 movies a year and is known for its colourful sets, extravagant costumes and elaborate song-and-dance sequences.

The new film, which Kumar said cost about $8 million (5.5 million pounds), is also being released in 30 other countries, but Richard Fox, executive vice president Warner Bros international, said the studio doesn't have grand expectations.

"This one, we think, will play broadly, but to the Indian diaspora. We're not fooling ourselves," Fox told Reuters.

"Our film is totally in Hindi, so we're going in especially in a market like this (in the United States), in the U.K., in Australia. Our audiences here don't like subtitled movies so we're going in with a handicap right away," he said.

NO 'SLUMDOG' BOOST

Advani and Fox said Fox Searchlight's Golden Globe Award winning "Slumdog Millionaire" -- the story of a boy searching for love on a quiz show which pays tribute to Bollywood with a dance number -- is not expected to boost to their film.

"It's great that they're both in the marketplace because one is a pure Bollywood film and the other one is a really brilliant film that takes place in India, in Mumbai. They complement each other," Fox said.

Advani, who met Boyle when they were filming their movies on sound stages next to each other in Mumbai, said that while Bollywood is attracting more international directors it would be difficult for foreign directors to make a Bollywood film.

"It's very important for you to be able to understand the Indian culture for you to be able to make a Bollywood film," he said. "People will be a little shocked when they see the film for the first time ... by the kind of in-your-face emotions, whether its comedy or heroes crying. You have to get used to watching a Bollywood film."

The Bollywood industry has, in recent years, been moving from a notoriously inefficient family-based business to a more corporate structure in finance, production and distribution, modelling itself after Hollywood.

That has brought more investors, including Hollywood studios, such as Warner Bros, Walt Disney, Fox Searchlight, NBC Universal, Viacom and Sony Pictures.

While Hollywood is easily the No. 1 film industry in the world, Bollywood is one of the fastest growing with some experts forecasting it could double in size by 2012.

Boxer Arturo Gatti's death: Suicide or murder?


Boxer Arturo Gatti's death: Suicide or murder?

To look at them together it's clear: Amanda Gatti lives for her 3-year-old boy, Arturo Jr.

"He's everything I asked God for," Amanda told "48 Hours Mystery" correspondent Erin Moriarty in her first American television interview. "Junior makes me complete."

In no small part, she says, because he's the spitting image of his father... a man they're both learning to live without.

"The smile is the same...just like his daddy," she said. "I miss my husband very much. I miss him when I go to sleep...I miss him when I wake up..."

It's a loss made all the more difficult by the shadow of suspicion that surrounds Amanda.

In July 2009, Amanda was arrested for murder and held before investigators shocked the world with their findings: Arturo Gatti, world class fighter who never gave up in the ring, had committed suicide.

"I knew. I knew. I knew," Amanda said in broken English. "My husband kill himself. Oh my God, my husband killed himself."

But even today, more than two years after Arturo's death, many of his friends, family and fans refuse to believe he took his own life.

By late 2006, Arturo Gatti had been crowned welterweight champion and amassed a multimillion-dollar fortune when, Amanda Rodrigues, then a struggling Brazilian immigrant, says they met walking dogs near his home in New Jersey.

She says she had no idea who he was. "I remember when I find out he was a fighter, I told him ... 'Oh... I thought you was even a movie star...but not a fighter...because he was so cute...'"

"Arturo was special. ...There was nobody like him," according to Tom Casino, a boxing photographer who had met Arturo years earlier -- soon after the fighter moved down from Montreal. "He looked like this little peanut."

But Arturo, then just 19, already had his eye on the prize.

"Did you have any idea the kind of fighter he'd become? Moriarty asked Casino.

"No, not a clue," he said. "Not, until I saw him fight."

That happened a few months later in an amateur fight where 19-year-old Arturo took on a much older, more seasoned fighter.

"The guy couldn't hit him... he's pot-shotting the guy and then hitting him like BANG," Casino explained. "He won and I was like 'Wow.' ...I've never seen anything like it. ...I knew this guy was gonna be a champ."

And Arturo Gatti became just that -- bobbing, weaving and punching his way to three world titles.

He won 40 fights - 31 by knockout. His relentlessness in the ring made Arturo a crowd favorite. And he partied outside the ring as hard as he fought in it.

"I would get calls that Arturo did something crazy," Casino told Moriarty. "Everybody that I met in the tri-state area had a party story with Arturo Gatti."

But it was his rivalry with one man that really made him a legend. "Irish" Micky Ward became a household name when actor Mark Wahlberg made a movie, "The Fighter," about Ward's life.

"I had three amazing fights with Arturo Gatti and in doing that became a very good friend..." he said.

The Ward-Gatti trilogy would become the stuff of boxing lore. Ward won the first fight; Gatti took the second.

"He caught me in the ear and I stumbled into the corner like this," Ward demonstrated in the ring for Moriarty, "and I went boom!"

And in their final bout, Gatti stunned the crowd by winning - with a broken hand.

"Gatti...it's just the poster boy of courage and heart," said Casino.

The battles Gatti fought with Ward brought out the best in both of them.

"It showed that two guys, we can actually try to fight, win and that we respected each other," said Ward.

Video: Micky Ward on his relationship with Gatti
Photos: Gatti's life and career

Gatti showed that respect after the third fight when a battered Ward was being examined by an emergency room doctor.

"And he opens up the curtain and says, 'We got someone here who wants to say hi to ya.' The next bed over is Arturo...he's laying there, he was getting stitched up also I believe," recalled Ward.

"Well you put him there," noted Moriarty.

"Right, and he put me there. And the first thing outta his mouth, he says, 'Micky, you OK?' And that showed me...what a kid! What a guy."

It would be the start of an extraordinary friendship.

Which is why, to this day, Micky Ward can't believe Arturo could have killed himself. "I just can't see him taking his own life," he told Moriarty. "That's just not him! ...Everything in life was going good for him."

In 2006, after almost two decades in the ring, Arturo met Amanda. In less than a year, he sat her down, popped a bottle of champagne... "And then he just asked me if I would marry him. ...I think it was one of the most beautiful moments in my life," she said.

Moriarty asked Amanda, "Did you ever see him fight?"

"I only saw his last fight," she replied.

In July 2007, Gatti, now 35 and plagued by injuries, faces a much younger Alfonso Gomez. It would be Arturo's last professional fight.

"And I remember that...he was so sad...And he says, 'Baby, I wanted you to be the champion's wife." And I said, 'Baby, you're always gonna be my champion.'"

Despite his newfound love, retirement from boxing would hit Arturo Gatti hard.

According to Casino, "He partied like he fought... hard and heavy."

"48 Hours Mystery" reveals the truth about a man boxing the darkest shadows... and headed for a fall.

"I knew if he continued drinking something bad was gonna happen," Casino said. "...it was inevitable."

Arturo Gatti's Last Fight from 48 Hours Mystery 
(Full Episode Video)
For those who missed it last night on CBS, Arturo Gatti's controversial death was the subject of 48 Hours Mystery. Here's the full episode. I will warn you that there are photos of the crime scene, so if that sort of thing upsets you, you might want to avoid watching.
The episode has interviews and comments with Gatti's widow Amanda Rodrigues, former foe and trainer Micky Ward, and more, including experts on the case and family.
I don't have any idea what happened with Arturo Gatti. I know Brazilian authorities ruled a suicide. I know investigators believe he was murdered. I know it's a tragedy either way that he's gone.
I will say this one time: Keep the comments civil and clean. If you don't, you'll be banned. You can discuss this, but don't go overboard with inflammatory comments and things of that nature.
I do highly recommend watching the show. Personally, I just don't feel qualified to make some "decision" on what happened to Arturo Gatti. I miss him as a fighter and a personality in boxing. He was a fighter who will never, ever be forgotten.
Here's a bit extra from Ward, too:

Herman Cain Upsets Gov. Rick Perry to Win Florida GOP Straw Poll


Herman Cain Upsets Gov. Rick Perry to Win Florida GOP Straw Poll

ORLANDO, Fla. — Herman Cain, the former chief executive of Godfather’s Pizza, won the Florida straw poll today, defeating second-place Rick Perry after the Texas governor worked the crowd of activists with a breakfast speech Saturday morning.

Mr. Cain won nearly 40 percent of the 2,657 people who voted, more than doubling Mr. Perry’s total and that of Mitt Romney, who came in a close third.

All of the candidates spoke to the crowd of Florida Republicans who gathered here for the Faith and Freedom Coalition and Conservative Political Action Conference meetings.

But Mr. Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, left the state early Friday for events in Indiana and Michigan, effectively telegraphing that his campaign did not place that much importance on the result.

Mr. Perry stayed in Florida through Saturday morning and hosted the breakfast for conference delegates. A win for Mr. Perry at the straw poll might have helped blunt criticism that has been building of his performance in Thursday night’s debate.

Instead, the victory went to Mr. Cain, who had whipped up the attendees with a fiery speech on Friday afternoon that had the crowd on their feet for an extended standing ovation.

In a statement, Mr. Perry congratulated Mr. Cain but took a swipe at Mr. Romney.

“Floridians and voters nationally want a candidate who is clear on the issues and talks honestly about the future, not someone who takes multiple sides of an issue and changes views every election season,” Mr. Perry said. “Today’s vote demonstrates that Floridians are energized and ready to help get America working again.”

Representative Michele Bachmann, who has been struggling to recover from a series of disappointing performances since her win at the Iowa straw poll this summer, came in dead last, with only 1.5 percent of the votes.

That result is certain to add to her difficulties raising money. The Minnesota congresswoman has had some success raising small donations, but she has not convinced many high-dollar donors to help bankroll her campaign, according to recent reports.

The straw poll was also a disappointment for Jon Huntsman, the former governor of Utah, who made an argument to the gathering on Friday that those in attendance should choose the person who is most electable against President Obama.

Instead, the crowd chose Mr. Cain, who is trailing Mr. Romney and Mr. Perry in the national polls and in surveys of the early voting states like Iowa and New Hampshire.

Mr. Cain’s best hope may be in Iowa, where his message may resonate with conservative and religious voters. If he can beat Mrs. Bachmann and Mr. Perry there, it might give his campaign a boost, as winning Iowa did for Mike Huckabee in 2008.

Rick Santorum, the former senator from Pennsylvania, came in fourth in the voting, just ahead of Representative Ron Paul of Texas. Newt Gingrich, the former speaker of the House, came in sixth.

Here is the statement of the official results from the Republican Party of Florida:

Today at the Republican Party of Florida’s Presidency 5, 2,657 delegates cast their votes in the Party’s straw poll. The results of that straw poll are in and are as follows:

1. Herman Cain, 37.1%
2. Rick Perry, 15.4%
3. Mitt Romney, 14%
4. Rick Santorum, 10.9%
5. Ron Paul, 10.4%
6. Newt Gingrich, 8.4%
7. Jon Huntsman, 2.3%
8. Michele Bachmann, 1.5%

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal: Navy Lt. Gary Ross, Partner Dan Swezy Wed As Military's Gay Ban Formally Ends

Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal: Navy Lt. Gary Ross, Partner Dan Swezy Wed As Military's Gay Ban Formally Ends

DUXBURY, Vt. -- Just as the formal repeal of the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy took effect, Navy Lt. Gary Ross and his partner were married before a small group of family and friends.

The two men, who'd been together 11 years, decided to marry in Vermont in part because the state is in the Eastern time zone.

That way, they were able to recite their vows at the stroke of midnight - at the first possible moment after the ban ended.

"I think it was a beautiful ceremony. The emotions really hit me...but it's finally official," Ross said early Tuesday.

Hours before the change, the American military was also making final preparations for the historic policy shift. The Pentagon announced that it was already accepting applications from openly gay candidates, although officials said they would wait a day before reviewing them.

Ross, 33, and Dan Swezy, a 49-year-old civilian, traveled from their home in Tucson, Ariz., so they could get married in Vermont, the first state to allow gays to enter into civil unions and one of six that have legalized same-sex marriage.

Ross wore his dress uniform for the double-ring ceremony that began at 11:45 p.m. Monday at Duxbury's Moose Meadow Lodge, a log cabin bed-and-breakfast perched on a hillside about 15 miles northwest of Montpelier. The lodge says it hosted the state's first gay wedding in 2009.

Justice of the Peace Greg Trulson proclaimed the marriage at exactly midnight.

"This is Gary's official coming out," Trulson said.

Ross and Swezy were joined by close friends and some family members who shared champagne and congratulations with them after the ceremony.

Ross said he plans on having a full career in the military. "We're thrilled the policy is gone," he said of his and Swezy's reaction to the end of "don't ask, don't tell."

Pentagon press secretary George Little said Monday that the military is prepared for the end of "don't ask, don't tell," a practice adopted in 1993 that allowed gays to serve as long as they did not openly acknowledge their sexual orientation. Commanders were not allowed to ask.

Last week, the Pentagon said 97 percent of the military has undergone training in the new law.

In preparation for Tuesday's repeal, all branches of the military have spent several months updating regulations. Lifting the ban also brings a halt to all pending investigations, discharges and other proceedings that were begun under the old law.

President Barack Obama signed the law last December and in July certified that lifting the ban will not diminish the military's ability to fight. Some in Congress remain opposed to repeal, arguing that it may undermine order and discipline.

Existing standards of personal conduct, such as those pertaining to public displays of affection, will continue regardless of sexual orientation.

There will be no immediate changes to eligibility for military benefits. All service members are already entitled to certain benefits, such as designating a partner as a life insurance beneficiary or as a caregiver in the Wounded Warrior program. But Swezy won't receive military health insurance or access to a support group when Ross is at sea.

Friday, September 2, 2011

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