1. Prologue
  2. Movies Awards
    1. Oscars: 87th Academy Awards
    2. 62nd National Film Awards
    3. Other Movies, Music, Peasants in news
  3. Books & authors in News
  4. Magazines & Newspapers in News

Prologue

  • Persons in news (PIN) for February And March 2015.
  • Utility of the article: non-UPSC exams and dozens of college admission entrance exams like Hotel Management, CLAT etc. lined up next 1-2 months.
  • Part 1: official appointments, Committees, civilian awards and dead in news.
  • Part 2: international places in news and states in news.
  • Part 3: books and movie awards in News. You’re here
  • Part 4: Sports and BizGK. coming soon.

Movies Awards

Oscars: 87th Academy Awards

Birdman and Budapest hotel- both won 4-4 awards each.
I’m not covering all awards, only the notable ones.

Best Picture
  • Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
  • Best director Alejandro G. Iñárritu for this movie.
Best Actor Eddie Redmayne for the film “The Theory of Everything” on Stephen Hawking’s life.
Best Actress Julianne Moore for the film “Still Alice”
Best Supporting Actor J.K. Simmons for the film “Whiplash”
Best Supporting Actress Patricia Arquette for the film “Boyhood”
Best adapted screenpay “Imitation game” film about father of computer Alan Turing.
Best foreign language film Ida (Poland)

62nd National Film Awards

National Film Awards

Infographics taken from theHindu

Haider @national award

  • Based on Shakespeare’s Hamlet. It won following awards
  • Vishal Bhardwaj: Best music direction and best dialogue (Vishal Bharadwaj),
  • best male playback singer (Sukhwinder Singh for ‘Bismil’)
  • best choreography (Sudesh Adhana for ‘Bismil’)
  • best costumes (Dolly Ahluwalia).
Best Actor Kannada actor Sanchari Vijay for role of transgender in movie “Nanu Avannalla Avalu”
Best Actress Kangana Ranaut for Queen (Director Vijay Bahl)
Best Director Srijit Mukherji for the Bengali thriller Chotushkone, a film about four directors coming together for a film with four different stories, all thematically connected by a common thread — death. Film also won best screenplay award
Best movie Court, directed by Chaitanya Tamhane, made in 4 languages Hindi, English, Marathi and Gujarati. Tell story of judicial procedure’s mundaneness, when an ageing folk singer charged with abetting the suicide of a sewage worker through his music
Best Popular movie Mary Kom (actress: Priyanka Chopra
Best Supporting actors Male Bobby Simhaa for Tamil film Jigarthanda. Female-Baljinder Kaur for Haryanvi film Pagdi: The Honour.

Other Movies, Music, Peasants in news

“Kirket” Name of the planned movie on Bihari ex-cricketer Kirti Azad. Director Sonu  Jha.
Aditi Arya This Gugaon girl won Miss India beauty pageant in Mumbai.
Angelina Jolie
  • Removed her overies and fellopian tubes because She has defective BRCA1 gene and history of cancer in her family.
  • She opened a center on Women, Peace and Security, was opened at the London School of Economics to help women in war zone.
Anupama Chopra This Film critique lady has written book about her show “The Front Row”
Ashok Chopra A Scrapbook of memories. Author himself is a noted book publisher- who released biography of Dilip Kumar etc.
Berlin film festival
  • Golden bear top prize given to Iranian director Jafar Panahi’s movie “Taxi”.
  • Indian movie maker Nagesh Kukunoor’s “Dhanak” won Grand Prix for Best picture at Berlin film festival. Its about a blind boy and his sister in Rajasthan.
Biswajit Chatterjee He had already made a documentary and a TV serial on Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. Now planning a movie on Bose.
Chapekar brothers A movie about freedom struggle, Om Puri to play the role of B.G.Tilak
Darkest hour WW-2 drama and biopic of Churchil’s life.
DDLJ This Yashraj production movie was released in October, 1995. Director Aditya Chopra. Actors: SRK, Kajol, Amrish Pur. It finished 1000 weeks in December 2014 at Maratha Mandir theatre, Mumbai. Then they decided to stop after 1009 weeks but later decide to continue to run.
Dibakar Banerjee
  • Director of movie Detective Byomkesh Bakshy! Based on books of Bengali writer Saradindu Bandyopadhyay.
  • Hero: Shustant Singh Rajpoot.
Fifty Shades Grey Censor board has refused to grant permission to this movie in India due to disturbing sadomasochistic sexual scenes in it. Malaysia, Indonesia and Kenya too have banned it for the same reason.
George Lucas Wealth-X report says he’s the richest Hollywood tycoon. He owns Star wars film franchise.
Hollywood Vampires New band formed by Actor-musician Johnny Depp (Pirates of the Caribbean fame) and singer Alice Cooper.
Irrfan Khan He’ll star in Jurassic Park 4 and its video game.
Kela Award
  • Given for most bogus movies and actors.
  • Sonaxi Sinha got for 3 time consecutivelyfor her work in Action Jackson, Lingaa and Holiday.
  • Arjun Kapoor worst actor for Gunday.
  • Worst film: Humshakals
  • Worst debuts: Tiger Shroff
  • Yo Yo Honey Singh’s Blue hai paani panni- most irritating song.
Lata Singer Lata Mangeshkar given ‘Laadli Voice of the Century’ award for gender sensitivity.
Lupia Nyong had won Oscar in 2014 for “12 years a slave”. Her pearl-studded dress was stolen after Oscar-2015 ceremony. She asked the thief to return it, saying all the pearls were fake. The dress was eventually returned.
Mahesh Bhatt Debut novel ‘All That Could Have Been’. Screenplay of his new movie ‘Hamaari Adhuri Kahaani’ is based on this.
Pahlaj Nihlani Censor board chief.
Priyanka Chopra Will star in an English serial “Quantico” as young FBI trainee, Quantico is located in Virginia.
Razzies Award Given to worst actors. Cameron Diaz and Kirk Cameron received 35th Annual Golden Raspberry Awards (aka the Razzies)
Rickey Kej
  • He’s the first Indian to win a grammy award for best new age album. Titled “winds of Samsara”, with his partner South African musician Wouter Kellerman.
Shashi Kapoor Dadasaheb Phalke Award for 2014.  A golden lotus, shawl and Rs.10 lakh. Famous movies: Deewar, Satyam Shivam Sundaram, Trishul and Kabhi Kabhie. He has won Padma Bhushan and 3 national film awards.
Sholay Made in 1975- finally permitted for theatrical release in Pakistan after 40 years.
Sonam Kapoor Caught swine flu in Rajkot, gujarat during shooting of film- ‘Ratan Dhan Payo’. Shifted to Hinduja Hospital, Mumbai.
Spectre Name of the 24th James Bond movie which is being made at Italy’s capital Rome.
Spielberg Directing a new movie on a lady war reporter Lynsey Addario. She had won Pulitzer prize in 2009 for report on Waziristan.
Stephen Hawkings
  • Oscar nominated movie “The theory of Everything” was made on British physicist Stephen Hawking.
  • He suffers from Motor neuron disease. Now Dr. Hawking aim to get his name trademarked just like J.K.  Rowling and David Beckham, so if any Company uses his name on commercial products, he gets money and even after his death- his children/foundation keeps getting the money
Zubin Mehta Western classical music maestro Zubin Mehta will perform with over 100 musicians of the Australian World Orchestra (AWO) in Mumbai, Chennai and Delhi.

Books & authors in News

  • 50th Jnanpith award 2015 : Marathi author Bhalchandra Nemade won. Famous book “Kosala” (Cocoon)
  • As such many books released daily basis, I’m only listing those by important authors.
Akhil Sharma
  • His novel Family Life has won the Folio Prize 2015 in London. Took him 13 years to finish.
  • 1st Novel Obedient Father, won the 2001 Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award.
Amit Chaudhary ‘Odysseus abroad’
Amitav Ghosh
  • Kolkata Born Amitav Ghosh is the only Indian author among 10 finalists for this year’s Man Booker International Prize for his contribution to English language writing.
  • Famous book: Sea of Poppies.
  • Man Booker International prize is awarded every two years to a living author who has published fiction either originally in English or whose work is generally available in translation in the English language. Prize: 60k pounds.
  • The winner is chosen solely at the discretion of the judging panel and there are no submissions from publishers.
Catherine Mayer Charges: heart of a king. Book claims both Charles and Diana did not want to marry each other.
Dilip Hiro The Longest August — The Unfinching Rivalry between India and Pakistan (NBT)
Dinshaw Mistry THE US-INDIA NUCLEAR AGREEMENT
Harish Khare How Modi Won It: Notes From the 2014 Election
Hindol Sengupta
  • Recasting India: How Entrepreneurship is Revolutionizing the World’s Largest Democracy
  • This was one of the shortlisted books for Hayek prize given each year by Manhatten University.
Ilina Sen Insight Chhattisgarh. Her husband Binayak Sen was arrested for maoist links.
Jairam Ramesh
  • Book:  ‘Green Signals — Ecology, Growth, and Democracy in India’.
  • Mr.Ramesh is Senior Congress-leader and ex-environment /rural Development minister
  • Published by  Oxford press
K. Anji Reddy An Unfinished Agenda — My Life in the Pharmaceutical Industry
Kamal Aron Mitra Chenoy THE RISE OF BIG BUSINESS IN INDIA
Lance Price The Modi effect: insight Modi’s campaign to transform India.
Laxmi Narayan Tripathi This Transgender rights activist  wrote autobiography “Me Hijra Me Laxmi”. She was the first transgender to represent Asia Pacific at the United Nations
Makarand R. Paranjape Death & Afterlife of Mahatma Gandhi
Makarand Waingankar GUTS AND GLORY- The lives and journeys of 26 Indian cricketers from ‘Tiger’ Pataudi to Ravindra Jadeja
Mamang Dai The Black hill: on the written stories of the North Eastern tribes
Muguresan This Tamil writer was attacked by Gounder community for an allegedly obscene book “Balachandra- Enroru Peyrum Enakku Undu” (I also have another name Balachandran). This book deals with plight of a transgendered person.
Neelima Shukla Narasinha Mehta of Gujarat — Bhakti Songs.
Rajinder Puri Noted cartoonist worked with ‘The Hindu’ and ‘Indian Express’ wrote book “Recovery of India”.
Rajiv Dogra; Where Borders Bleed : Indo-Pak Relations
Rakesh Batabyal JNU : The making of a university
Ramesh K.  Arora, C.  K.  Sardana DISTRICT COLLECTORS — Recollections and Reactions
Ruskin Bond He joined Swacch Bharat mission , started working in Guwahati.
S.  Chandnibi EPIGRAPHICAL READING IN THE CHOLA HISTORY
Salil Tripathi ‘The colonel who would not repent’- based on Bangladesh liberation.
Salman Khurshid AT HOME IN INDIA — The Muslim Saga
Subrata Bagchi; BEYOND THE PRIVATE WORLD — Indian Women in the Public Sphere
Veena Das Affliction: health disease and poverty
Vikas Swarup Oscar-winning film Slumdog Millionaire is based on Vikas Swarup’s “Q&A”. Now this gentleman has replaced Syed Akbaruddin as the MEA spokesperson.
Vir Sanghvi Mandate — Will of the People. He is a noted journalist.
Vishwanath Pandey Pt. Madan Mohan Malviya and the formative years of Indian nationalism.

Magazines & Newspapers in News

Katharine Viner First woman editor-in-chief of The Guardian
PEN America This U.S. literary society will to honour French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. Terrorsts had attacked Charlie Hebdo office earlier.
RSF
  • The Reporters Without Borders (RSF) 2015 World Press Freedom Index RSF’s ranking put Iran, China, Syria and North Korea among the countries with the worst levels of press freedom out of the 180 evaluated.
  • The best-rated nations were northern European states such as Finland, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden.
The Tablet Catholic weekly- considered to be one of Britain’s oldest journals, is about to celebrate 175 years of uninterrupted publication.
TheHindu Its website was setup in 1995, has won Website of the Year (WOTY) India award for 2014 in the News and Information category from MetrixLab

Visit Mrunal.org/PIN for Persons in news, books-authors, awards and sports related current affairs for IBPS, SSC, CDS, CAPF, ACIO and state service exams.