Latest news with #Guilty
Black America Web
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Black America Web
Cavin Yarbrough of 'Yarbrough & Peoples' Passes Away at 72
Source: Michael Ochs Archives / Getty The music world mourns the loss of Cavin Yarbrough, one-half of the iconic R&B duo Yarbrough & Peoples, who passed away at the age of 72. Yarbrough passed away on Thursday, June 19, due to complications from heart disease, as confirmed by his wife and musical partner Alisa Peoples via press release. 'He was the love of my life, my protector. Now he's my guardian angel,' Alisa said. The duo's longtime friend and rep, Michele Elyzabeth, added: 'Cavin was not only an extraordinary talent, but a kind man with a great heart. His legacy will live on in the music, in our memories, and in the hearts of everyone who knew him.' Known for their chart-topping hits and enduring partnership, Yarbrough & Peoples left an indelible mark on the 1980s music scene. The duo first captured hearts with their 1981 smash hit, 'Don't Stop The Music,' a funky, electronic anthem that soared to #1 on the R&B charts. Alisa's soulful vocals paired with Cavin's musical prowess created a sound that resonated deeply with fans. Their success continued with hits like 'Heartbeats,' 'I Wouldn't Lie,' and 'Guilty,' solidifying their place as one of the top R&B acts of the early '80s. Cavin and Alisa's journey began long before their rise to fame. The two met as children in Dallas during piano lessons, forming a friendship that blossomed into a songwriting partnership and eventually a romantic relationship. Their talent caught the attention of Charlie Wilson, who helped them secure a songwriting contract with Lonnie Simmons' Total Experience Records. It wasn't long before their vocal abilities turned them into recording artists. Despite their success, the duo faced challenges, including disputes over compensation and the pressures of the Los Angeles lifestyle. In 1986, they left Total Experience Records, married the following year, and returned to Dallas to focus on their personal and spiritual lives. There, they launched a production company and served as music directors at their local church. Yarbrough & Peoples continued to tour and even ventured into acting. In 2021, they were honored at The Black Academy of Arts and Letters in Dallas, celebrating the 40th anniversary of 'Don't Stop The Music.' Cavin Yarbrough's passing marks the end of an era for fans who cherished his contributions to music. His legacy, however, will live on through the timeless hits and the love story that inspired them. SEE ALSO Cavin Yarbrough of 'Yarbrough & Peoples' Passes Away at 72 was originally published on Black America Web Featured Video CLOSE
Indian Express
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Kesari Chapter 2: Akshay Kumar's courtroom drama accidentally exposes Bollywood's handling of sexual misconduct
A few years ago, Karan Johar debuted his Dharmatic Entertainment banner with a Netflix film called Guilty. It remains memorable for two reasons; first, Kiara Advani is terrific in it, and second, it's perhaps the only time that Bollywood has addressed the #MeToo movement head-on. Guilty, which made solid use of the Rashomon effect, ended with a rather on-the-nose title card about Bollywood having turned a blind eye to the accusations made against some of its most prominent figures. Years later, their alleged crimes are essentially forgotten. Many of the accused continue to work freely, while several of those that raised their voices were quietly outcast. Entirely by accident, Johar's recent co-production, Kesari Chapter 2, turns out to be an accurate indictment of why, as a system, the industry failed its most vulnerable members. Directed by the debutant Karan Singh Tyagi, Kesari 2 is a particularly problematic example of post-truth cinema. It doesn't embellish, it fabricates; it doesn't deviate, it distorts. Marketed as a fact-based drama set in the aftermath of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre — the film's subtitle is 'The Untold Story of Jallianwala Bagh' — Kesari 2 invents a court case between the historical figure Sankaran Nair and the British Crown. In the movie, the British sympathiser Nair sues the Crown for genocide after experiencing an awakening. Nothing of the sort happened. In fact, he was the one who got sued. Imagine if Aamir Khan had tried to convince us that a group of Indian villagers actually beat British soldiers in a game of cricket; imagine if SS Rajamouli pretended like two major historical figures really had a dance-off. This is what Kesari 2 does. Also read – Jaat: Bollywood stars are incapable of laughing at themselves; if Himesh Reshammiya can do it, why can't Sunny Deol? At a time when history textbooks in schools are literally being rewritten, a movie like Kesari 2 is deeply irresponsible. Everybody involved needs to introspect: is this really something that they'd show to their children? What makes this enterprise hard to understand is that they could've simply stuck to the facts and achieved the exact same results. Kesari 2 doesn't reframe the British as heroes — although it wastes time in humanising the dastardly General Reginal Dyer — but it chooses to vilify them with lies even though it already had the truth on its side. How strange. It's like the film Major inventing sequences that depict the late Sandeep Unnikrishnan as a bigger hero than he already was. As if his real-life sacrifice wasn't dramatic enough for a movie. For all its failings as a courtroom drama, however, Kesari 2 exposes the farcical manner in which our systems operate. This is entirely accidental, mind you. The movie doesn't intend to do this. In fact, it's oblivious about the irony of professing free speech while actively spreading misinformation. In the wake of the #MeToo movement, organisations set up internal committees to investigate accusations made against men in positions of power. Many of them were given a clean chit and rehired in prominent roles, presumably in exchange of lucrative salaries. Their actions weren't forgotten, but conveniently brushed under the carpet. In Kesari 2, the Crown constitutes a 'Viceroy's Commission' to investigate the allegations made against Dyer. Sankaran Nair is inducted as a token Indian member into this committee. This is when he first witnesses the Crown's inhumanity. It is as if the character had been living under a rock his entire life. He watches silently as Dyer is let off without even a slap on the wrist. It's only when a renegade young lawyer played by Ananya Panday gives him a speech that Sankaran Nair has a change of heart. Coupled with the guilt he feels about letting down a young survivor of the massacre, he makes the decision to 'sue the Crown for genocide'. What follows is a typically melodramatic portrayal of courtroom proceedings. You could be forgiven for suddenly craving a bit of Sunny Deol during these scenes. Deep into the second act, the movie makes an entirely irrelevant detour into actual sexual misconduct territory, and chooses an objectively improper path. The scene begins progressively enough, when Panday's character is asked to cross examine a young British woman accusing an Indian rebel of rape. 'It's called sensitivity,' she says, when the defence asks why she's stepping up at this stage of the trial, having purely been a spectator thus far. And then, she proceeds to systematically disprove the witness' accusations. So much for sensitivity. Kesari 2 projects its only instance of sexual misconduct as a ploy by women against men. This, in effect, becomes its sole statement on the matter. Read more – Ae Watan Mere Watan: Heartbreaking, the worst film you've seen just made some strong political points And because of how the scene is staged, it's the woman who ends up being vilified, even though she was pressured into levelling the accusations by the male officers. This is just one of the many bizarre creative choices that the movie makes. Entire articles could be written on its other basic missteps — Akshay Kumar's Punjabi accent barges into the room a few times, characters frequently use contemporary lingo, and the legal tactics on display are so contrived that even Jolly LLB would avoid them — but let's leave these issues for later. There is gold in those hills, but Kesari 2 is digging in the wrong places. Post Credits Scene is a column in which we dissect new releases every week, with particular focus on context, craft, and characters. Because there's always something to fixate about once the dust has settled. Rohan Naahar is an assistant editor at Indian Express online. He covers pop-culture across formats and mediums. He is a 'Rotten Tomatoes-approved' critic and a member of the Film Critics Guild of India. He previously worked with the Hindustan Times, where he wrote hundreds of film and television reviews, produced videos, and interviewed the biggest names in Indian and international cinema. At the Express, he writes a column titled Post Credits Scene, and has hosted a podcast called Movie Police. You can find him on X at @RohanNaahar, and write to him at He is also on LinkedIn and Instagram. ... Read More
Time of India
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Akansha Ranjan Kapoor recalls struggling through 8-month work break after 'Guilty' debut: 'I can't stand my own voice'
Akansha Ranjan Kapoor debuted with 'Guilty' in 2020 but faced an eight-month work break due to the pandemic. She's now more selective with roles and stars in Gram Chikitsalay, a series about a young doctor transforming a rural health center, streaming on Prime Video. Akansha Ranjan Kapoor entered Bollywood with her first film 'Guilty', but shortly after, the pandemic brought the industry to a halt. The actress shared in an interview that she faced an eight-month dry spell with no projects, during which she felt her career and life had come to a standstill. Lockdown Impact and Career Pause In an interview with Free Press Journal, Akansha shared that her film 'Guilty' was released on March 6, 2020, but just nine days later, the country went into lockdown due to the pandemic. She explained that her entire life, which had been focused on that significant moment, came to a sudden halt. She ended up staying at home for eight months with no work. Initially, she was receiving calls for meetings, new projects, and even another film with the same production house, but everything abruptly went silent. It took her a year to recover from this challenging phase. Becoming More Selective and Self-Critical She has become more deliberate in selecting roles, focusing on projects that leave a meaningful impact rather than simply blending into a crowd of actors. Discussing the challenges of being on camera, she shared, 'I'll send a voice note and immediately think, 'I can't stand my own voice.'' She often fixates on minor details, like the positioning of her hand in a scene, even though her sister reassures her that no one notices. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Giao dịch vàng CFDs với mức chênh lệch giá thấp nhất IC Markets Đăng ký Undo Acknowledging this as part of the nature of the medium, she said she wouldn't have it any other way but hopes to 'find a better balance and not be so harsh' on herself. Current Project Currently, Akansha is featured in the series 'Gram Chikitsalay', which tells the story of Dr. Prabhat, a young and idealistic doctor who takes over a neglected Primary Health Centre in a rural North Indian village. While he aims to implement vital reforms, he soon discovers that personal transformation is essential before any real change can occur. Directed by Deepak Kumar Mishra, the show also stars Amol Parashar, Vinay Pathak , Garima Vikrant Singh , among others. The series is streaming now on Prime Video. Check out our list of the latest Hindi , English , Tamil , Telugu , Malayalam , and Kannada movies . Don't miss our picks for the best Hindi movies , best Tamil movies, and best Telugu films .
Hindustan Times
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Akansha Ranjan Kapoor recalls 'sitting at home for 8 months' after her debut with Guilty: ‘It took me a year to recover'
Actor Akansha Ranjan Kapoor made her Bollywood debut with the film Guilty. However, soon after that, the pandemic took over the country. In an interview with Free Press Journal, Akansha recalled how she had no work for eight months after her debut and how her life went 'kaput'. (Also Read: Alia Bhatt has a sweet response to BFF Akansha Ranjan Kapoor's old audition tape from 2014) Akansha recounted how she sat at home for months due to Covid, and said, "Guilty released on 6 March 2020, and just nine days later, the country went into lockdown. My whole life, which had moulded itself around that one big moment, went kaput. I ended up sitting at home for the next eight months. During those initial days, I was getting calls for meetings, new projects, and even another film with the same production house. But suddenly, everything went silent. It took me a year to recover from that." She revealed that she has now become more conscious about her choices and wants to do quality work that creates an impact, rather than just being one of 18 actors standing in a frame. She further spoke about the pain of being in front of the camera, and said, 'I'll send a voice note and immediately think, 'I can't stand my own voice.' I obsess over the smallest things, like why my hand was positioned a certain way in a scene. My sister tells me, 'No one will notice,' but I just can't let it go. This is the pain of being in front of the camera. It's the nature of the medium. But I wouldn't have it any other way. I just hope to find a better balance and not be so harsh on myself." Meanwhile, Akansha is currently seen in the show Gram Chikitsalay, which revolves around the story of a young, idealistic, and brilliant Dr Prabhat, who takes charge of a neglected Primary Health Centre in a North Indian village, hoping to bring about much-needed changes — only to realise it is he who will have to change before anything else. Helmed by Deepak Kumar Mishra, the show also stars Amol Parashar, Vinay Pathak, Garima Vikrant Singh, and others in key roles. It is available to watch on Prime Video.
Time of India
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Akansha Ranjan Kapoor reveals Kiara Advani 'almost killed me with kindness' on Guilty set despite Kabir Singh success: 'She was like this mother figure'
Akansha Ranjan Kapoor , who made her Bollywood debut in Guilty , recently opened up about her heartfelt bond with co-star Kiara Advani . In an interview with Filmygyan, the rising actress praised Kiara's warmth and nurturing energy on set, recalling how the Kabir Singh star made her feel completely at ease. 'She was just too good, man. She was fab!' Akansha gushed. 'At that time, Kabir Singh had just released, so there was a lot of buzz. All of us newcomers were just buzzing around, unsure of what was going to happen. And there she was—this calming, nurturing presence.' From co-stars to close friends Akansha shared that Kiara had a way of being both playful and maternal on set. 'She would jokingly slap me for saying silly things, but she was like this mother figure. She almost killed me with kindness—but in the nicest way!' Describing Kiara's consistent warmth and encouragement, Akansha said, 'When we were together, she would always be so complimentary, so warm. We became extremely close during Guilty. That bond was honestly a by-product of just how lovely she was to all of us.' AKANSHA RANJAN KAPOOR ANANDESHWAR DWIVEDI AMOL On the work front, Akansha Ranjan Kapoor is gearing up for the release of Gram Chikitsalay , directed by Rahul Pandey and produced by Deepak Kumar Mishra. The film features a talented ensemble cast including Anandeshwar Dwivedi, Amol Parashar, Akash Makhija, and Garima Vikrant Singh. Meanwhile, Kiara Advani and Sidharth Malhotra have announced that they are expecting their first child. The couple shared the news on their Instagram accounts with a post featuring a pair of baby socks. Kiara recently showed off her baby bump at her Met Gala debut.
