Activists urged US rapper Sean 'Diddy' Combs on Tuesday to push for better working conditions after revealing clothing for his fashion line was made in a Bangladeshi factory where 110 staff died in a fire. Labour rights campaigners shot and distributed dozens of images of labelled clothes inside the gutted remains of the Tazreen Fashion factory, where the ferocious blaze took hold on Saturday. "We found clothing of ENYCE (Combs's label) and Faded Glory (a Walmart range)," claimed Kalpona Akter, director of the Bangladesh Center for Worker Solidarity. ENYCE and Combs, who was formerly known as Puff Daddy, were not available for comment, but Walmart said it was terminating its contract with the clothing supplier. * AFP
Anil Kapoor remakes 24 for Indian audience
The Bollywood actor Anil Kapoor is to produce a version of the hit US espionage show 24 for Indian television. Kapoor, who starred in the American series alongside Kiefer Sutherland, will make the show for the Colors TV network. The project is Kapoor's first foray into Indian television as well as being the first venture for his new production company Anil Kapoor Film Co. Kapoor, said: "24 was my destiny... I had made up my mind to bring this show to India. In less than a year I bought the rights to produce an Indian version". The show, which is filmed in a real time narration of events, is due to screen in the summer of 2013. * National staff
Shweta Menon baby birth film sparks anger
Mahila Morcha, the women's wing of the conservative Bharatiya Janata Party, has slammed Shweta Menon's new movie Kalimannu, saying the actress's on-screen, real-life delivery of a baby is "exploiting motherhood for commercial purposes." On September 27, Menon gave birth to a baby girl at Nanavati Hospital in Mumbai. The labour was captured on film by director Blessy, with a view to to incorporating into his upcoming Malayalam-language movie. But Mahali Morcha chairwoman Shoba Surendran condemned the filming. "Even if the actress had agreed, a director of Blessy's repute should not have shot the scenes for the film," she said. "We have already asked the state government to see that permission is not granted (to show the scene) because a bad precedent is being set in the name of the art." Previously, Blessy has said the controversy is unfounded as no one has seen how the baby's birth appears in the movie. * IANS
Mumbai attack movie profits donated to victims
The profits earned from the movie about 2008 terrorist atrocity in Mumbai, The Attacks of 26/11, will be donated to the victims, says its producers. The indicent saw 10 Pakistani terrorists attack various locations in Mumbai, including the Taj Mahal Hotel, Oberoi Trident Hotel and and Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus railway station, killing 166 people. Producer Parag Sanghvi said: "I don't look at this film as a commercial venture. The profit that will be earned from the film will be given to the victims and heroes of the Mumbai attacks. "It is a huge film for me. The idea to make the film is that we want the world to see what happened that day. It's been a very emotional journey. We are planning to release the film early next year. I want to take this film across the world," he added. * IANS
Low-key publicity for Talaash was deliberate
The director of Aamir Khan's latest movie, Talaash, has said the film was deliberately being under-promoted. Reema Kagti said that because the cop movie was being released around the time of other blockbusters Jab Tak Hai Jaan, Khiladi 786 and Son Of Sardaar, the decision was made to be more low key in publicity. "We had two choices - either we made ourselves heard louder than these biggies, which was impossible; or we spoke in a much quieter tone than our competition. We've chosen the latter option," said Kagti. * IANS