Sangram Singh, Shruti Ulfat, Rehaa Khann, Jaanvi Sangwan & Anusha Srinivasan Iyer Grace Sumit Mishra’s Art Show Vimarsh

Art is and has always been an extremely powerful medium to spawn an intellectual discussion on all facets of society. This, stood true, also for the inaugural ceremony of Art-Director cum Artist Sumit Mishra’s art show, apltly titled Vimarsh.
The inauguration happened at the hands of Wrestler-Actor Sangram Singh, Actor Shruti Ulfat, Miss Mermaid International Asia Rehaa Khann, Filmmaker-Animal Activist Anusha Srinivasan Iyer, Jaanvi Sangwan among other such distinguished guests at Nehru Centre AC Art Gallery, Worli.

Averred Sumit Mishra, “My exhibition is an effort of engaging social and political discussions with its observers. Technically, the flat canvas is synonymous to an experiment to project a third dimension, having presented intellectually and ideologically. Expressing your point of view through Art and the reaction of the observers is the possibility of making my thoughts better.”

Sumit Mishra invites you to take a deeper look at the combination of colours and shapes as an attempt to convey his words.

The Differently Abled And Bravehearts Are Heroes

Producer-Philanthropist Dr. Aneel Kashi Murarka, through Ample Missiion, recently organized the Bharat Prerna Awards and the Shoorveer Awards. The event held at the Bombay Stock Exchange, to felicitate ordinary people who have achieved extraordinary acts of bravery, was attended by a bevy of celebrities from the corporate world, film and the television industry, and the social field. Besides hosts Dr. Aneel Kashi Murarka and Siddhant Murarka, mention may be made of Mukesh Rishi, Pooja Bedi, Raju Srivastava and wife Shikha, Abha Singh, Shibani Kashyap, Devangi Dalal, Manju Lodha, Raghav Rishi, Prachi Tehlan, Jinal Pandya, Jiten Lalwani, Shubh Malhotra, Ashok Dhamankar, Bobby Khanna among many other celebrities who walked in hordes on a Sunday morning to encourage and cheer for the awardees.

Patron Kashi Murarka encouraged and appreciated the achievements of the differently-abled with his wise words, inviting each of those present, to take a step forward, and “be the difference,” something that son Dr. Aneel Murarka strives to take to the next level each year with the Bharat Prerna Awards. “This is the first time we have curated the Bharat Prerna awards and Shoorveer awards together so as to make it even better! With dignitaries and celebrities supporting us, on behalf of Ample Missiion, we are grateful,” averred Dr. Aneel Kashi Murarka. On the other facet, the Shoorveer Awards is a unique initiative that honours common men and women who have achieved uncommon goals, from across the country. It honours brave-hearted individuals who have known no fear and have persuaded extraordinary acts of bravery, often at the expense of their own lives!

Some of the Shoorveer awardees include Bhargsetu Sharma, Gulafsha Ansari, Reji Thomas, Pushpa Preeya, Mumtaz Chand Patel, Reshma Pathan, Seema Waghmode, Sufiya Shaikh and Ketan Chodvaidya while the Bharat Prerna awardees include Sagar Patil, Divin Visariya, Pooja Shah, Karan Shah, Virag Shah, Sarika Jain, Shabana Aziz, Sushil Shimpi, Samir Kakkad, Deepak Saini and Kamlesh Patel among others.

Kudos to such initiatives! 

Arbaaz Khan, Lalit Pandit, Kainaat Arora and Stars Launch Jeeoguru App

Jeeoguru, a popular streaming platform and entertainment app with original web series, award winning short films, original fusion music, Bollywood movies, foreign movies and lots more was launched today at a star-studded event at The View, Andheri West.

Soumyajit Ganguly and Sukanya Gupta, the forces behind Jeeoguru, launched the mobile entertainment app in the presence of Chief Guest Arbaaz Khan, music director Lalit Pandit, actors Kainaat Arora, Joy Sengupta, Sayantani Ghosh, Seema Singh, Arun Bakshi, Anang Desai and Piyush Munsi, singers Aneek Dhar, Abhay Jodhpurkar and Meghna Mishra among many others. 

The Jeeoguru entertainment launched four new ventures including a talent hunt, beauty pageants and two web-series. 

Jeeo Singing Star is a new talent hunt where the youth and the multi-talented from all fields of entertainment, whether it is music, feature or short films, are encouraged to participate and prove their mettle. Jeeoguru’s Soumyajit Ganguly and Sukanya Gupta averred, “In our constant endeavour to find new talents, we are organising a music talent hunt program where the participants need not stand in a queue for the auditions. They could just subscribe to the app and upload their songs.” After the various aspects of judging and factoring in the votes of the judges, the final 24 participants would be hand-picked where they will perform live in front of Chief Guests – Actor Arbaaz Khan and Music Composer Lalit Pandit. That’s not all, Meghna Mishra and Abhay Jodhpurkar would play mentors to the contestants while the entire show will be hosted by singer Aneek Dhar. 

Jeeo King And Queen, unlike other reality shows, also incorporates a beauty pageant. Organized by Jeeoguru, there are 3 categories for this reality show, Mr, Miss, and Mrs. On this offbeat glamour hunt, the app owners mentioned, “We don’t believe in so called external beauty. Hence, colour and shape of the body isn’t important. What’s important is their inner beauty and the language they speak and nothing else would not be a barrier to their success.” Actors Arbaaz Khan and Kainaat Arora will be the Chief Judges of the reality show.

M For Mom, a familial web series focusing on a unique mother-son relationship where the son hates his mother but is very close to his fathers’ office colleague. She is the only person who is there beside him in his loneliness. To know why he hates his mom and where does the hate takes them you have to watch it. Starring actors Joy Sengupta, Sayantani Ghosh, Piyali Munsi and Krish Gupta, M For Mom is directed by Jiit Chakrobarty and assisted by Sabysachi Mandal, while the story concept and creative direction is by Sukanya Gupta. The show gets its music from Pinaki Bose.

Bhabiji Main Aaun, another offering of Jeeoguru entertainment app saw its trailer and music launched in the presence of celebrities and dignitaries. A Bhojpuri item number, ‘Bara Baje Aana’, a track voiced by Priyanka Singh while the music composed by S Kumar, followed by one hindi peppy number called ‘Nachenge Saari Raat’, sung and composed by Bengali rapper Tanmoy Saadhak, were released at the celeb studded event. The story, screenplay and the direction by Soumyajit Ganguly brings about a fresh comedy, purely for entertainment, where two young bachelors are attracted to a young married ‘Bhabhiji’. Through the twists and turns, the story turns to an unexpected end. That is not all. For the first time, Seema Singh – the famour Bhojpuri item queen, is doing a full fledged web-series with Prem Singh and Areya while the voiceovers are by Arun Bakshi.

Allowing customers to watch a wide variety of web-series, movies and exclusive shows, Jeeoguru announced a special subscription plan where the subscriber could stream all the media of the app for a nominal subscription fee of just Rs 79 for an entire year. Be it drama, horror, suspense, thriller or comedy, Jeeoguru has it all! The Jeeoguru application is available on iOS on the App Store and Android on the Google Play Store.

BHAMLA FOUNDATION’S WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY CELEBRATIONS 2019

Aaditya Thackeray, Sonu Sood, Jackie Shroff, Shaan, Sophie Choudry, Maniesh Paul, Karanvir Bohra, Anu Malik, Shiamak Davar, Vivek Goenka, Zarina Wahab, Aditya Pancholi, Emiway Bantai & Many Others From The Films, Social, Political & Business Fields Graced The Occasion

                                

Air pollution in India is a serious issue, ranking higher than smoking, high blood pressure, child and maternal malnutrition, and risk factors for diabetes. In urban areas, most emissions come from vehicles and industry, whereas in rural areas, much of the pollution stems from biomass burning for cooking and keeping warm. In autumn and winter months, large scale crop residue burning in agriculture fields – a low cost alternative to mechanical tilling – is a major source of smoke, smog and particulate pollution. Air pollution increases the risk of heart diseases, causes allergies, bronchitis, asthama, contributes to the premature deaths of 2 million Indians every year, and is also responsible for causing mental health issues, including depression. The air pollution epidemic is evident all over the globe; animals have reportedly died after ingesting fumes and breathing in toxic, polluted air.

This World Environment Day, 2019, in India is being organized by Bhamla Foundation along with the Ministry of Environment and the United Nations Organization. With Beat Air Pollution as the theme of this year’s event, India is coming together to improve air quality and protect human health.

Bhamla Foundation, through its environment initiatives, is working towards curbing the menace of air pollution, keeping in line with the UNO initiative of ‘Beat Air Pollution’. Following the #BeatPlasticPollution song, ideated by Asif Bhamla, his foundation has come up with, yet another anthem. The #HawaAaneDe musical campaign was made a success by roping in many celebrities and influencers to carry out a message of air pollution threat, with Swanand Kirkire, Shaan and Rajkummar Rao making their presence felt among others.

Asif Bhamla, through Bhamla Foundation, had earlier set the thought in motion among the masses with the sapling plantation drive and make and use the paper bag initiative at the hands of Sanjay Dutt.

Besides Asif Bhamla, Meraj Husain and Saher Bhamla of Bhamla Foundation, Yuva Sena Chief Aaditya Thackeray, Sonu Sood, Jackie Shroff, Shaan, Sophie Choudry, Maniesh Paul, Karanvir Bohra, Anu Malik, Shiamak Davar, Vivek Goenka, Zarina Wahab, Aditya Pancholi, Emiway Bantai, Madhur Bhandarkar, Milind Deora, Ashish Shelar, Sachin Bhau Ahir, Ashok Kapoor, Parmeet Sethi and Archana Puran Singh, Edgard Kagan (Consul Gen of USA), Alok Kumar Choudhary (of SBI), Swanand Kirkire and many others from the films, social, political and business fields livened up the amphitheathre at Carter road, Bandra, and joined in the celebrations. Master of Ceremonies were Meraj Husain and Ruby Bhatia.

"We know how air pollution harms us, there is no excuse not to act. It threatens everyone from unborn babies to children walking to school, to women cooking over open fires. Remember, clean air is your right! Chal #HawaAaneDe," averred Akshay Kumar.

“Clean air is a basic human right. Together, let us pledge to make our lives and country pollution free. Chal #HawaAaneDe,” said Vicky Kaushal.

I am very proud to be associated with this initiative taken by the Ministry of Environment, United Nation, Bhamla Foundation and SBI on fighting air pollution. Clean air is what Nature has gifted us, and we’ve just made it worse,” shared Rajkummar Rao, “It’s high time we take it seriously.”

“Through the current year’s UN environment motto, we wish to inform and educate, not just the youngsters, but everyone,” imparted Shaan.

“We can produce anything in this world, from a pin to a plane. What we do not have is an instrument to produce natural oxygen. Natural oxygen comes from green plants. It’s time for all of us to be aggressive for more plantation of greenery,” expressed Ashish Shelar, MLA – Bandra West.

“Pollution is a hazard that the citizens of this country should really pay attention to. Small changes brought about by many of us will result in a very big change,” added Shankar Mahadevan.

Besides, Ayushmann Khurrana and Janhvi Kapoor have also recorded positive messages for Bhamla Foundation and The Ministry of Environment.

As the video rakes in more and more hits, the movement will gain momentum and awareness will spread among the masses. #HawaAaneDe song and campaign was created by the Bhamla Foundation in association with the Ministry of Environment, United Nations Organization as well as the entire film fraternity. As you see the peril is drawing closer and closer. It is not just an idea but a theoretical reality. Every warning about Global Warming is slowly getting true. It is also reported that unless mankind makes drastic changes in the coming years, the permanent damage because of environmental pollution will become inevitable.

Or as Asif Bhamla of Bhamla Foundation rightly put it, “I am glad that the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Maharashtra Shri Devendra Fadnavis, members of the entertainment fraternity have come together with our Bhamla Foundation with a hope to make a lasting difference, so our sons and daughters can breathe air that won’t harm them. This is the time now, to make a difference, before the very air we breathe, kills us!”

हाल ही में, जोश फाउंडेशन ने हियरिंग एड डिस्ट्रब्यूशन्स अभियान में वंचित बच्चों को छह तकनीकी रूप से उन्नत श्रवण यंत्र वितरित किए। इससे पहले प्रसिद्ध ईएनटी विशेषज्ञ डॉ. जयंत गांधी और ऑडियोलॉजिस्ट-स्पीच-थेरेपिस्ट देवांगी दलाल की पहल से, जोश फाउंडेशन ने जरूरतमंद बच्चों के लिए 1,000 से अधिक हियरिंग एड वितरित किए थे। 

 देवांगी दलाल का कहना है कि "बधिर लोगों के लिए यह एक  महामारी है जो हमारी संस्था इसे नष्ट करने के लिए सजग रहती  है। प्रत्येक डिजिटल श्रवण यंत्र की कीमत 60,000 रुपये है। मुझे खुशी है कि हम इन बच्चों की मदद करने में सक्षम है। युवाओं के बीच बहरेपन को कम करने के लिए हमारे प्रयासों में आपका समर्थन जरुरी है।

Ample Missiion's Adivasi Welfare Mission

Team Ample Missiion, a NGO involved in philanthropic work, had recently organised a health outreach programme for tribal women in one of the Adivasi villages located in Aarey Colony, Mumbai. To improve the lives of one of the most impoverished sections of our society, they distributed first-aid kits, sanitary pads and soaps to the residents. They also conducted a hand-wash awareness session, a basic necessity that is often overlooked. “There is an urgent need for more such health initiatives for the tribal population, including a regular health check-up camp. In the coming months, we will look into the same,” expressed Dr.Aneel Kashi Murarka - Founder, Ample Missiion. Check out the adjacent pictures! 

Dr. Aneel Kashi Murarka & Team Ample Missiion distribute milk to the needy on Maha Shivaratri

On the occasion Maha Shivaratri, team Ample Missiion, that is into a lot of philanthropic work, distributed flavoured milk bottles to the needy in the areas of Goregaon & Malad in Mumbai. “Every year, during Maha Shivaratri, so many litres of milk is offered to the Gods in our country. We, at Ample Missiion, thought the better of it. We wanted to help the people who are deprived. And their expression of gratitude was priceless! We all felt so blessed,” shared Dr.Aneel Kashi Murarka, Founder – Ample Missiion.

SCARFACE… HIGHLIGHTING THE LIVING DEATH OF ACID ATTACK VICTIMS

Zakira Shaikh, Daulat B Khan, Dr.Aneel Kashi Murarka, Dr.Lalitha Vaidyanathan,
Megha Patil and Shirish Shete t veteran media photographer Shirish Shete's
 show Scarface on acid attack victims

As you take a walkthrough of the Press Club, you see ‘scarred faces’ screaming out at you from their frozen frames, from Shirish Shete’s frames in his show titled ‘Scarface’. A veteran media photographer, who has been with the Press Trust of India for over two decades now, Shirish Shete has been dedicatedly shooting acid victim survivors for over half a decade.

India records the highest cases of acid attacks in the world with the worst conviction rates. As is often the case with other crimes against women, acid attacks victims are treated with official apathy and societal indifference. The victims are usually women aged between fourteen and thirty-five, and the attacks often the result of rejection of a marriage proposal or sexual advances; unable to bring enough dowry; for bearing a female child; for professional rivalry; for as petty a thing as having cooked a bad meal, so on and so forth. Often at times, men are also not spared from acid attacks.

The Press Club, overcrowded with enthusiasts, citizens and lensmen, remained silent as Shirish Shete spoke of the system being as much a mute spectator. “I have been shooting this project for over half a decade. And it is still unfinished. It began in Delhi, when I met these survivors and got entwined in their lives and then my documentation work began. Whenever I used to meet the victims, they used to tell me their stories, and there was a point where I had to tell them to stop because I couldn’t bear to hear them continue, the stories were so bad.”

The Chief Guests for the occasion were philanthropist Dr. Aneel Kashi Murarka who graced the evening with a group of acid attack survivors, supported by his organization Ample Missiion and Megha Patil, Ex Vice Chairperson of Mahila Arthik Vikas Mahamandal, Govt. of Maharashtra, Ex Member of State & Central Govt. Committee on Equal Remuneration For Women & Governing Council Member of Maharashtra United Nations Association.

“Nobody even wants to be next to them. These stories are not stories people want to hear. A photograph speaks a thousand words and with the right caption or accompanying the right story, it sensitizes society and raises questions. As a photojournalist, I’d be happy to have contributed in anyway whatsoever,” concluded Shirsh Shete.

On the occasion, the cover of Tezaab Tales, a coffee table book that highlights the alkaline truth behind the acid attack victims' lives. The photo documentary is by Shirish Shete, the text by Anusha Srinivasan Iyer and is being published by philanthropist Dr. Aneel Kashi Murarka of Ample Missiion.  

             

Shirish Shete, who is currently designated as the Chief Photographer with The Press Trust of India, has earlier worked with The Indian Express and Mid-Day, contributed to various magazines like Femina and Debonair among others; has travelled extensively around the globe with the Indian PM Narendra Modi, former Indian President APJ Abdul Kalam, former Indian PM Manmohan Singh on their work tours and has previously exhibited in various galleries across India. 

Art Patron Nisha JamVwal Presents Solo Show of Famed Artist Ritu Dhillon

Art Patron & High Priestess of Luxury Nisha JamVwal hosted the unveiling of Ritu Dhillon’s The Thinking Man at a grand art Champagne sundowner where Bombay’s glitterati including Zarine Khan, Suzanne Khan, Nisha JamVwal, Ritu Dhillon, Laila Khan, actor Sonu Walia, Nawaz Modi Singhania, Maya and Sunil Alagh, Brinda Miller, Aahna Miller, Consul General of USA in Mumbai Edgard D Kagan, Consul General of Israel in Mumbai Yaakov Finkelstein, Consul General of New Zealand in Mumbai Ralph Hays with wife Sonia Hays, Fitness Guru Mickey Mehta, Consul General of Canada Annie Dube, media baron Ashok Advani, Consul General Israel Yakov and Nurit Franklin, Richard Rothman and wife Tabu,  Designer Poonam Trivedi, Tanuj Garg, Sonu Walia, Ajoykant Ruia, Shashi Bansal, Dr. Mukesh Batra, Parvez and Roshni Damania, Architect Prem Nath, Shanti and Kasturi Chopra, Cyber Crime Chief Cop Brijesh Singh and Income Tax Officer Anjali Singh, Dr. Swati Pandey Director Film Institute were enthralled by the sparkling evening hosted by Nisha JamVwal, the artworks, the cuisine and floral decor at the prestigious Jehangir Art Gallery, Kala Ghoda.

Nisha JamVwal, superbly popular with the city’s glitterati and an award-winning luxury consultant and interiors architect known for her penchant for motivating and inspiring women achievers and promoting brilliant talent averred, “Ritu is an artist for the thinking discerning lover of art. I am currently immersed in the journey of her ‘Thinking Man’ sometimes contemplative, sometimes disturbing, sometimes provocative. Ritu’s ‘Thinking man’ immersed me in his contemplations and took me away from my everyday life into his deeply questioning rumination about our sometimes disquieting world order. I am at once uplifted as I am unsettled by his reverie.”

Curated and hung by Jamwal and inaugurated by Zarine Khan, Suzanne Khan and Jamwal, Ritu Dhillon’s solo show was an instant hit, not just with the casual viewers, but also with renowned collectors and lovers of Art who stayed and enjoyed the soirée.

Said an understated Ritu Dhillon, “An exciting evening indeed! Where the viewer is able to make the story of the protagonist their own story - it is then that our communication is complete”

Perhaps the Jehangir Art Gallery hasn’t seen such a swish evening in a long time that Nisha JamVwal managed to conjure with her enigmatic persona, swish in her magnificent in a Ravage by Raj Shroff roseate summer georgette gown.