iPhone 7 to ditch 3.5mm jack; Apple to release wireless headphones

EFT Report, Mumbai: If rumors are to be believed, Apple may ditch 3.5mm headphone jack on the iPhone 7. According to an allegedly "confirmed" information from iPhone supply chain, Apple will release wireless earphones alongside.

Citing people in the iPhone supply chain, Andrews Forum reports that the iPhone 7 will not have a 3.5mm jack. This, however, doesn't mean that your existing EarPods won't be compatible with the iPhone 7. The report adds that Apple will make available a Lightning "convert up" to allow headphones with a 3.5mm outlet to be used with the Lightning connector.

Last year, a report claimed that Apple was planning to ditch the 3.5mm headphone jack in an attempt to make the iPhone thinner by 1mm. The new report has corroborated he reasoning, adding that Apple also plans to promote its wireless headset. The previous report also claimed that the Lightning connector will retain the same size, and will also come with a digital-to-analogue converter for backwards compatibility with wired headphones.

The removal of headphone jack might not sit well with users. Almost every smartphone, tablet, desktop, laptop currently ships with this audio port. But considering Apple's past record, removal of the 3.5mm port doesn't seem unlikely. The company ditched the compact disk drive from its computer lineup with the MacBook Air, and soon many rival manufacturers were doing the same. Last year, the company launched the MacBook which has just one USB Type-C port for data transfer and power input.

Besides, the Cupertino-based company has been hinting at its dislike towards the 3.5mm jack for a while now. In 2014, the company introduced the MFi (Made for iPhone) program specifications to allow third-party manufacturers to make earphones that could be connected to the iPhone or iPad via a Lightning cable. Philips Fidelio NC1L, which features battery-free active noise cancelling technology, connects to an iPhone via a Lightning cable.

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'Sanskari James Bond' trending on Twitter

EFT Report, Washington: After the censor board has slashed 50 percent of the kissing scenes and some swearwords in the latest franchise of Bond, 'Spectre,' Twitter has reacted very sharply and they just can't stop trolling '#SanskariJamesBond.'

Here are some of the funniest tweets.

"I don't stop when I'm tired, I stop when billi rasta kaat gayi. #SanskariJamesBond," posted Billo.

"#SanskariJamesBond has a small idol of Ganeshji on the dashboard of his Aston Martin," posted another Twitter user.

"Villan- Come in Mr. James Bond, I've been expecting you. Bond- Ji joote kahan uttaru? #SanskariJamesBond," said a Bond fan.

"#SanskariJamesBond will ride a bullet proof Rath, will wear dhoti, will drink branded Mutra and will touch heroine's feet to turn her on," said ROFL.

"#SanskariJamesBond eats dahi shakkar before leaving home when he goes on a mission," Muskaan said.

"# SanskariJamesBond seduces women by lighting aggarbattis in his bedroom and then introduces them to his Mom," said Purba.

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SRK finds Deepika, Ranveer fantastic

EFT Report, Mumbai: Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan has hailed Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh as fantastic actors as well as human beings.

At a promotional event of their upcoming film "Tamasha", the duo had dubbed the pair of Shah Rukh and Kajol as "palangtod".

When asked about the remark, perceived as risque, Shah Rukh said, "I look gentle but I am not gentle. We are married people, so don't talk like this. They (Ranbir and Deepika) are wonderful people, they are great co-actors. They are beautiful people. I read what they said. They have a big heart to say this".

Shah Rukh and Kajol's 1995 release "Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge" was a cult film which has been a chartbuster for many years.

"We have been here since over 20 years and we (Kajol and I) have tried to give our best. We don't have this thought of working on it (chemistry). I think both (Ranbir and Deepika) on them are fantastic (sic)," he said.

That chemistry between Shah Rukh and Kajol is back with yet another love song, "Gerua" from Rohit Shetty's upcoming entertainer, "Dilwale", composed by Pritam, which the actor considers as the most special song from the album.

The 50-year-old actor said the makers of the film have made him look best on screen.

"I think director Rohit Shetty, Pritam who gave music, producers and all technicians put the best effort to make me look better on screen. They make me look like a lover, it's good of them to do that," he added.

Kajol, who was also present at the event, said there is no hidden secret behind the chemistry between herself and Shah Rukh.

"I think we just look at it as our job and we give our best," she said.

Echoing her views, the actor said, "We never thought of doing it (chemistry) in a special way. We looked at it like an ordinary thing. Over the years people have asked us about chemistry. We don't know how good we can be".

Besides Shah Rukh and Kajol, Varun Dhawan will also be seen romancing in the film.

"Rohit is going to give us two tickets for Iceland. We will go there and play the song in Ipod and enjoy. I don't think any actor thinks of recreating the magic they (Shah Rukh and Kajol) have. They have wonderful chemistry, they are best actors," he said.

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Land Rover launches luxury SUV 'Range Rover Evoque'

EFT Report, Mumbai: British car maker Land Rover on Thursday launched its latest luxury SUV, 2016 model new Range Rover Evoque.

"This luxury SUV has been setting benchmarks in the industry since its launch and with the introduction of the 2016 model, we are confident of its continued success," said Rohit Suri, president, Jaguar Land Rover India Limited (JLRIL), in a statement.

Starting from Rs.47.1 lakh (ex-showroom, pre-Octroi in Mumbai), the new model is available in four variants with the highest variant going up to Rs.63.2 lakh, the statement said.

The models are Range Rover Evoque Pure, Range Rover Evoque SE, Range Rover Evoque HSE and Range Rover Evoque HSE Dynamic.

The SUV is powered by a 2.2-litre, four-cylinder turbocharged diesel engine which delivers 140 kW at 3,500 rpm and produces a maximum torque of 420 Nm at 1,750 rpm.

New Gesture tailgate function, which allows automatic opening and closing of the tailgate by waving a foot under the car's rear bumper, and customer configurable mood lighting with a range of 10 colours are 2016 model new Range Rover Evoque's noteworthy features.

Other top features include surround camera system, 17 Speakers, 825 watts Meridian surround sound system, rear seat entertainment, nine speed automatic transmission, LED day time running lights, and head up display.

In India, Land Rover vehicles are available through 22 retail outlets in major Indian cities.

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Akshay Kumar to be seen in new avatar in 'Rustom'

EFT Report, Mumbai: Actor Akshay Kumar will soon be seen in a new avatar in the upcoming film “Rustom”, which is set in the late 1950s.

Co-produced by Essel Vision, Cape of Good Films and Kriarj Entertainment, the film has been written by Vipul Rawal and will be directed by debutant Tinu Suresh Desai.

Slated to release during the Independence Day weekend next year, “Rustom” will be inspired by real life incidents.

“The film is set in the late 1950s and is a pure work of fiction. 'Rustom' is inspired from certain real life incidents that happened in the past and will be shot in India as well as in Britain,” Shital Bhatia of Friday Filmworks said in a statement.

“Akshay Kumar’s character in ‘Rustom’ demands a completely new avatar. Ameira Punvani who is the costume designer has already begun work on Akshay’s look. Though we can’t reveal much, the role is something that he has never played before," Bhatia added.

The music of the film has been composed by Ankit Tiwari with Santosh Thundiyil as the cinematographer.

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McKinsey to help Yahoo with reorganization

EFT Report, New Delhi: Yahoo Inc has appointed management consulting firm McKinsey & Co to help with the reorganization of its core businesses, technology news website Re/code reported on Monday.

McKinsey will help Yahoo decide which units to shut, sell or invest in, Re/code said, citing several people close to the situation.

Yahoo, which is preparing to spin off its 15 per cent stake in Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, declined to comment, as did McKinsey.

Yahoo has been struggling to boost revenue from ad sales in the face of stiff competition from Google and Facebook Inc.

Under chief executive Marissa Mayer, Yahoo has been trying to revive its core media and online advertising business by spending more to get users on its websites.

There has been little progress, however.

After deducting fees paid to partner websites, Yahoo's revenue fell to $1.0 billion in the third quarter from $1.09 billion a year earlier, and the company forecast a drop to $920 million-$960 million in the current quarter.

Top executives at Yahoo have been asked by Mayer over the last month to make three to five-year commitments to the company, sources told Re/code.

Several top executives, including Media head Kathy Savitt and chief development officer Jackie Reses, have left in the last couple of months.

Re/code said Yahoo insiders expect at least two people reporting directly to Mayer to leave the company.

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PwC to develop hi-tech traffic system in Uttar Pradesh

EFT Report, Agra: The Agra traffic police department is in the process of setting up a modern control room (MCR) to roll out the proposed integrated traffic management system (ITMS) and smart city surveillance system (SCSS) for monitoring traffic better and catch offenders of traffic rules. The systems will have 20 smart sensors-enabled traffic signals and high resolution CCTV (closed-circuit television) cameras to enable surveillance of 75 critical public places and make vehicular movement safe for commuters.
 
Talking about the automatic traffic light system, Abhishek Singh, superintendent of police (traffic), said, "These traffic lights will have sensors that can estimate the number of vehicles waiting at the signal and automatically calculate the time (in seconds) for which the light should be green to allow all these vehicles pass. A modern control room to operate this system and to keep round-the-clock watch on traffic across the city is currently in the process of being designed."

According to Singh, the ITMS will provide an integrated platform to centralize management of all traffic systems such as traffic signal control and traffic monitoring. It will also provide real time traffic information to motorists through electronic message signs that will enable incident management, tunnel and highway monitoring, he added.

"To design and implement the project, the state government had floated a tender and hired a consultant firm, Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC). The entire project will cost an estimated Rs 200-250 crore and would be functional around July 2016," the SP said.

According to another senior police official, "In the next few months, we are going to have a high-tech MCR in Agra, which will monitor traffic round the clock and respond to any traffic flow crisis through a dedicated response team. Agra is among the most visited tourist destinations in the world, and our aim is to make roads free of congestion."

In some developed countries, smart road projects involve measures to control, monitor and ensure smooth traffic flow. In the US and Canada, sensors have been installed on roads every few hundred metres to track traffic flow. An electronic monitor then sets the most suitable speed limit and adjusts the signage to inform motorists. In some other places, to reduce congestions, ramp metering devices stop traffic on slip roads and release the vehicles one at a time to the main road. 

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Nawazuddin, Juhi to get Indira Gandhi Award 2015

EFT Report, Mumbai: Bollywood actors Juhi Chawla and Nawazuddin Siddiqui are among seven prominent personalities from different fields named for the prestigious Indira Gandhi Memorial Award 2015, a top official said here on Wednesday.

The other awardees include international athlete Kavita Raut; first woman editor of a Marathi daily Punyanagri, Rahi Bhide; author Kavita Mahajan; academician Farida Lambay and industrialist Megha Phansalkar.

Well known actor Nawazuddin, who played the lead role in the film "Manjhi: The Mountain Man" is the only male selected in this year's list, said Mumbai Congress President Sanjay Nirupam.

"Two prominent personalities - former Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, the first woman to hold the august post, and All India Congress Committee general secretary Janardhan Dwivedi, who both worked with late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi for many years, shall be the chief guests and felicitate all the awardees," Nirupam told IANS.

The honour carries no cash award or other benefits. The birth anniversary of Indira Gandhi is celebrated by felicitating leading personalities from different walks of life for their achievements, he added.

The function will be held at Y.B. Chavan Auditorium here on Thursday on the occasion of Indira Gandhi's 98th birth anniversary in the presence of top Congress leaders, former union ministers and past and present lawmakers.

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Paytm engages EY, McKinsey to hire 3,000 people

EFT Report, Bengaluru: Electronic payments and commerce company Paytm is looking to hire 3,000 people to roll out its payments bank services by the first quarter of next fiscal. The Alibababacked firm has got on board Ernst & Young and McKinsey to help in the hiring process, an executive from the company said.

Paytm has over 104 million wallet users at present and plans to add another 50 million by the end of March. According to sources, the structure of the executive committee for the payments bank is being given shape while Paytm awaits a final nod from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

Paytm's hiring plans come at a time when a few tech startups have streamlined their businesses by laying off employees. While a payments bank is a completely new business for Paytm, it is also simultaneously looking to add another 400 people to its existing employee base of about 4,400.  

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Kerala-based firm launches eToilet mobile app

EFT Report, Thiruvananthapuram: Eram Scientific Solutions, the only manufacturer of electronic toilets in the country, on Wednesday unveiled a new eToilet mobile app for such toilets a day before the World Toilet Day on November 19.

The app can be downloaded for free by android users from Google Play Store by typing keyword 'etoilets'.

Its unique features include locating the nearest eToilets, besides understanding mode of operation and access, information on facilities such as napkin vending machine, incinerator and sharing feedback on user experience of eToilet. 

Through the app public can also suggest new places for setting up eToilets.

K. Anwar Sadat, CEO of the Thiruvananthapuram-based company, said it has set up over 1,300 eToilets across 18 states in India, and won numerous national and international awards.

The Chennai Municipal Corporation has the most - 150-plus - eToilets in the country.

The company has sought feedback from users and administrators to better the app and plans to bring out the final version on January 1, 2016. 

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Ola raises US$500mn to accelerate growth

EFT Report, Bengaluru: Leading mobile application-based cab service provider Ola has announced raising $500 million (Rs.3,306 crore) to fund its expansion plans in India, including capacity building.

"The fresh investment will be used to fuel supply initiatives, capacity building and newer use cases," the company said in a statement here.

The sixth (series F) round of funding was led by venture firm Baillie Gifford and other venture firms Falcon Edge, Tiger Global, SoftBank group and DST Global participated.

"The additional funds will help us to spur growth and build mobility for a billion people," Ola co-founder and chief executive Bhavish Aggarwal said. 

With a million bookings a day and 350,000 cars on its rolls, the Mumbai-based Ola operates in 102 cities across the country, offering cab services with incentives.

"We will also focus on building the ecosystem for our driver-entrepreneurs and enable more drivers to grow as entrepreneurs," Aggarwal asserted.

With the latest funding, the hi-tech-driven firm has cumulatively raised $1.3 billion so far, with $400 million in fifth round (series E) from DST and other venture partners in April, $210 million in fourth round (series D) from SoftBank and others in October 2014.

Tiger Global, Matrix Partners, Steadview Capital, Sequoia India, Accel Partners US and Falcon Edge are among its early investors.

According to a recent mobile intelligence study, the company's mobile applications (apps) are used by 78 percent of its customers across the country, including tier-two and tier-three cities.

Some of the apps are named Ola Share, Ola Prime and Ola Money and its options are 'Kaali-Peeli' taxis in Mumbai, auto rickshaws in six cities and yellow taxis in Kolkata.

"Our Ola Share app is on beta testing in Bengaluru for social ride-sharing option within their groups of choice," Aggarwal noted.

Aggarwal co-founded Ola with fellow IITian Ankit Bhati in January 2011, with an app to integrate city transportation for customers and drivers on a technology platform.

The apps are available on Windows, Android and iOS platforms for downloading.

Ola acquired Bengaluru-based cab aggregator TaxiForSure for $200 million (Rs.1,238 crore) in a cash and equity deal in March this year from its co-founders A. Radhakrishna and G. Raghunandan.

TaxiForSure operates in 50 cities across the country with 25,000 cabs registered on its platform as an aggregator.

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Micromax launches first 4G smartphone 'CanvasXpress4G'

EFT Report, New Delhi: Amidst reports of partnering with Reliance Jio for VoLTE devices, domestic handset manufacturer Micromax on Wednesday launched its first 4G smartphone "CanvasXpress4G" at Rs.6,599.

The world's tenth largest smartphone vendor also announced its long-term 4G devices strategy.

The announcement comes after rivals Samsung and Lenovo featured in market research reports as the top players to sell multiple 4G devices.

"As the market has shifted to 4G, Micromax is also shifting its strategy to bring in more 4G devices. Almost 40 percent of smartphone sold online is 4G. 

"Almost three out of four phones that Flipkart, who is also our exclusive online partner, sold was 4G," said Vineet Taneja, chief executive officer of Micromax.

"We currently have 13 4G devices in our portfolio and most of them are in mid-range segment. Micromax's strategy revolves around combining 4G, power of online sales channel and value for money proposition," Taneja explained.

He said an average life cycle of its smartphone across sub-brands like Fire, Nitro, Canvas and Bolt was six to nine months.

Although the company will phase out exclusive 2G models, it will continue to sell feature phones which accounts for 50 percent of the company's sales volume, he said.

The company also said that the XpressCanvas4G will be available only via domestic e-commerce player Flipkart via open sales starting Wednesday.

The new device will be powered by a 1GHz MediaTek MT 6735 processor and a 2GB DDR3 RAM. 

It will come with a five-inch HD display, eight-megapixel rear and two-megapixel front camera and an internal storage of 16 GB.

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Epica launches glass free 3D TV, tab, mobiles

EFT Report, Kochi: Sharjah headquartered Epica, the animation, VFX and 3D division of the Aries Group, has launched glass-free 3D products - Epica 3D TV, Epica 3D Tab and Epica 3D Mobile Phones - in Kerala.

The USP of these products is not just the 3D visual experience but also the 3D immersed sound system, developed in partnership with Belgium-based Auro Technologies.

The products have been developed jointly by Epica and Dimenco, with the IP of Philips.

"Epica 3D TV is currently aimed as a professional B2B 3D monitor, which can be used for commercials, out-of-home advertisements, training, medical and engineering educational content display. We hope to redefine the advertising scenario with our LED 3D display and replace 2D displays across the world and facilitate the ultimate glasses free 3D viewing experience," said Sohan Roy, chief executive officer of Aries Epica.

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Farah Khan to be honored at Cairo Film Festival

EFT Report, New Delhi: Choreographer-director Farah Khan will be honoured with the Faten Hamama Award for excellence in cinema at the 37th Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF). Her 2007 film "Om Shanti Om", starring Shah Rukh Khan, will also be screened there.

"I feel that it's an honour for the Indian film industry to take our movie or a director to give an award at an international film festival. I think it's great for the entire industry. 

"In Egypt, they love our hardcore commercial Bollywood films and I think there is no better example than 'Om Shanti Om'. They are premiering it over there. Also, I represent the women of our country and in that way, it's a dual award," Farah told IANS over phone from Mumbai. 

She will be honoured on Wednesday and the movie will get a special screening outside the venue.

Asked how special "Om Shanti Om" is for her, Farah said: "All my movies are special for me. I think 'Om Shanti Om' somewhere down the years, stands for the quintessential Bollywood film. 

"It is special for me in many ways. I was pregnant with my babies and shooting at the same time. Also, it was a very happy time as the whole industry came to do a song in the film. It was my most critically acclaimed film."

Farah launched actress Deepika Padukone with the 2007 film, which is based on reincarnation.

Produced by Shah Rukh's wife Gauri Khan, "Om Shanti Om" also features Arjun Rampal, Shreyas Talpade and Kirron Kher. 

Over 40 Hindi movie stars appear in the course of the film, including 30 of them in the "Deewangi deewangi" song alone. 

The ongoing 10-day film festival will conclude on November 20.

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'Bal Sangam' children theatre festival in Delhi from Nov. 21

EFT Report, New Delhi: As the much-awaited Children's Theatre Festival by the National School of Drama is scheduled to run November 21-25, children in the capital have a lot to look forward to.

The ninth edition of the festival will showcase performances from 13 Indian states focusing on folk theatre like Chhou from West Bengal, Yakshagana from Karanataka, Bhand Pather from Jammu and Kashmir and Rass Leela from Manipur. There will be workshops on paper puppet making, origami, madhubani paintings, mask making, potter craft to educate and enrich experience for the young children.

“This is a unique effort to expose the children and young citizens to real strength of Indian folk and traditional performing arts. It is also an effort to understand the roots of our heritage and cultural treasure. Bal Sangam is about sharing, learning, teaching, enriching and gaining confidence for showing our indigenous cultural identity,” said NSF director Waman Kendre.

Elaborating on this year’s edition of Bal Sangam, Abdul Latif Khatana, chief of Theatre in Education, said: "Bal Sangam is an effort to bring folk and urban face to face. Where there are children today lost in the internet and technology, TIE festival brings the open and varied folk to the kids of today, amalgamating the past and the future in the present.”

To add to the festivities, longmans, clowns, dhol drummers, tightrope walkers, jugaad band performers, acrobats, jugglers, behrupiyas, magicians, kacchi-ghodi performers, kathputli exponents, and many more will converge on the campus of NSD to present to the young minds the cultural heritage of the country.

Many students from Delhi schools, including those from Mayoor Public School, Jamia Middle School, Red Rosses Public School, Bengali Boys Sr. Secondary, Hingli Foundation, Andhra Society, will be bringing different components of folk culture to the festival.

NSD will be making special arrangements through various NGO to reach out and invite children from the less privileged class to be a part of the festival.

The festival will be held at the National School of Drama campus at Mandi House, from 4p.m. to 8 p.m.

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PM, B-Town condole death of Saeed Jaffrey

EFT Report, Mumbai: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday expressed grief over the demise of veteran actor Saeed Jaffrey, saying that the multifaceted actor “will always be remembered” for his versatility.

“Saeed Jaffrey was a multifaceted actor whose flair and versatility will always be remembered. Deepest condolences on his passing away: PM,” read the post by the official PMO Twitter handle. 

The news of the death of the Indian-born British actor surfaced on Facebook on November 15. He was 86. 

It is being reported that he passed away due to some age-related illness. 

Known for roles in movies like "Gandhi" (1982), "Shatranj Ke Khilari" (1977), "Henna" (1991), "Masoom" (1983) and "Ram Teri Ganga Maili" (1985), Saeed was married to co-actress and travel writer Mehrunima (Madhur Jaffrey). They parted ways in 1965. 

Bollywood celebrities including Shekhar Kapur, Rishi Kapoor and Madhur Bhandarkar today condoled the death of veteran actor Saeed Jaffrey.

Jaffrey appeared in several Bollywood as well as British movies and was known for his roles in movies like "Gandhi", "Shatranj Ke Khiladi", "Henna", "Ram Teri Ganga Maili", "Dil", "The Man Who Would Be King", "A Passage to India" among others.

Kapur, who worked with the actor in his directorial debut "Masoom", posted on Twitter, "Goodbye dear Sayeed. Started my career with you in Masoom. Cant forget your kindness and enthusiasm for your art and others." 

Jaffrey's friend and "Henna" co-star Rishi also paid tribute to him on Twitter.

"R I P. My friend, my colleague of several films- Syd Jeffries alias Saeed Jaffery to the world, leaves us. Cheers to you!" he wrote.

Filmmaker Ashoke Pandit said, "Sad to hear about the demise of a great actor & a superb human being. A great loss to the #FilmIndustry. RIP." 

"Million Dollar Arm" actor Pitobash wrote, "RIP Saeed Jaffrey Sir! You will be missed..." 

Bhandarkar remembered his stint as an assistant director to him in a film.

"Saddened by the demise of versatile actor #SaeedJaffrey ji. Had a privilege of working with him as a Asst Director. Condolences to his family." 

"What a Fabulous Actor!! Shatranj ke Khiladi!!! My fav. Saeed Jaffrey film... RIP," singer Shaan wrote.

Jaffrey's international career saw him working with Sean Connery, Michael Caine, Roshan Seth, James Ivory, Richard Attenborough and Daniel Day-Lew.

He was also the first Indian to receive the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his contributions to drama.

"The Lunchbox" actress Nimrat Kaur tweeted, "Never met Mr Saeed Jaffrey outside of all the amazing men he brought alive on screen...a class actor. Heavens are in great company today...

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Syed Akbaruddin became India's envoy to UN

EFT Report, New Delhi: Former Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin has been appointed as the Ambassador/Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations at New York.

Akbaruddin will replace Asoke Kumar Mukerji as the Permanent Representative of India at the UN.

Currently an Additional Secretary in the MEA, Akbaruddin served as the ministry's official spokesperson from 2011 to April 2015.

Prior to 2011, he was on deputation for four years at the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna.

He was also the director in the Foreign Secretary's Office from 2004 to 2005.

Akbaruddin is a 1985 batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer.

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Ramdev's Patanjali 'atta' noodles launched

EFT Report, New Delhi: Baba Ramdev-promoted Patanjali on Monday formally launched its whole wheat instant noodles, just a week after product leader Nestle's Maggi re-hit the retail shelves after a five-month ban imposed by the food-safety regulator.

The "atta" noodle has been priced at Rs.15 for a 70-gram pack.

With the launch, Patanjali has entered another major food segment to take on multinational firms -- such as Tropicana's fruit juices, Kellogg's muesli and cornflakes, Mondelez "Cadbury" India's Bournvita -- not to mention well established cosmetics and home grown ayurvedic brands.

Last month, Patanjali -- which had a turnover of around Rs.1,200 crore in 2014 with a projection of Rs.2,000 crore this year -- had announced an agreement with the Future Group to sell its noodles through Big Bazaar and Nilgiri's supermarkets across 240 cities. 

It also has a similar agreement with Reliance Fresh.

"The profits we make from the sale of our noodles and other products will be used for educating the under-privileged children," Ramdev told a press conference here, adding that the launch was in line with the idea of introducing healthier products that are made in India.

"We are also planning six-seven large production units across India over the next one year. One factory with a capacity of 100-200 tonnes will be set up in the NCR (National Capital Region)," he added.

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Reliance Infra inks deal with Canada's PSP Investment

EFT Report, Mumbai: Reliance Infrastructure on Monday said it has signed a non-binding Term Sheet with Canadian pension fund management major Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments).

With this, the Canadian firm will acquire 49 percent equity stake in Reliance Infrastructure's integrated power generation, transmission and distribution business in Mumbai and adjoining areas.

The specified business is to be carved out on a going concern basis into a separate Special Purpose Vehicle, in which Reliance Infrastructure will own the controlling 51 percent stake and PSP Investments will own the rest 49 percent, the company said in a statement.

Reliance Infrastructure's Mumbai power business (known as Reliance Energy) distributes power to nearly three million residential, industrial and commercial consumers in the suburbs of Mumbai, covering an area of 400 square km and catering to a peak demand of over 1,800 MW, with revenues of Rs.7,700 crore in the 2014-15.

"The parties have entered into an Exclusivity Agreement valid till March 31, 2016. The proposed transaction is subject to due diligence, definitive documentation, applicable regulatory and other approvals and certain other conditions. 

"Accordingly, there can be no certainty that a transaction will result. Further announcements will be made at an appropriate stage," the statement said. As on March 31 this year, PSP Investments has Canadian $112.0 billion of net assets under management. 

"Reliance Infrastructure has recently entered into the defence sector. It has also announced the proposed acquisition of Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering Co. Ltd. (PDOC), which houses India's largest dry dock facility to build warships and other naval vessels.

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Salman's PRDP earns Rs.129.77 crore in opening weekend

EFT Report, Mumbai: Bollywood megastar Salman Khan's family drama film “Prem Ratan Dhan Payo” had a bumper opening weekend. The Hindi version of the Sooraj Barjatya directorial has minted almost Rs.130 crore in the first four days.

Released on November 12, a day after Diwali, “Prem Ratan Dhan Payo” reunites Salman with his "Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!" and "Hum Saath-Saath Hai" director Barjatya after a gap of 16 years. 

According to a statement, the Hindi version of “Prem Ratan Dhan Payo”, which minted Rs.101.47 crore within three days of its release, collected Rs.28.30 crore on Sunday.

Also starring Sonam Kapoor, Anupam Kher, Swara Bhaskar, Armaan Kohli and Neil Nitin Mukesh, “Prem Ratan Dhan Payo” narrates the story of a royal family and how an outsider, Prem, played by Salman, tries to mend the broken bridges of the family. 

According to trade analyst Taran Adarsh, the film has got a “solid” start but its upcoming collections will determine where the film is heading.

“#PremRatanDhanPayo packed a solid (four-day) weekend, maintaining consistent biz from Friday-Sunday. Monday onwards is crucial for the film. Weekdays will determine where #PremRatanDhanPayo is heading. With no major Hindi film releasing next Friday, should enjoy another good week,” Adarsh tweeted on Monday.

“While the response has been mixed (a commonality with all biggies), the families are patronising the film and that is a big plus. #PRDP,” he added.

“Prem Ratan Dhan Payo”, made on a budget of Rs.60 crore, also released in Tamil and Telugu.

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