Happy, happy holiday!
Priya is India’s first female superhero, and she is on a mission to stop the spread of the evil coronavirus. And this time, she’s got a friend: Pakistan’s own Burka Avenger. Enjoy the two-minute short film ‘’ voiced by Vidya Balan et al. And download the comic book for free .
YET ANOTHER VIRUS MUTATION South Africa recently reported a new strain of Covid—which is similar to the one detected in the UK. But more worryingly, it may be linked to higher rates of severe illness in younger people. Various countries have now slapped a travel ban on South Africa. And the UK claims it has found two cases with the South African strain. Its Health Secretary : "This new variant is highly concerning, because it is yet more transmissible and it appears to have mutated further than the new variant that has been discovered in the U.K." has lots more details. The silver lining: AstraZeneca says it has tested the Oxford vaccine against the UK strain, and it works! has that story. On another positive note: The Sikh community in Kent has set up to feed truck drivers stuck at the port in Dover. OTOH: There was no langar for 500 passengers from the UK who at Delhi airport for eight hours waiting for the results of their Covid test. A good related read on India’s numbers: on what past festival-related spikes can teach us about what to expect this holiday season. In happier India news: According to data published by Bharat Biotech and government researchers, its vaccine candidate has generated a “” in early trials. What this means: it triggers both antibodies and protective T cells which offer longer lasting immunity. Before we get too excited: This data is from early trials with only 380 volunteers. Phase 3 trials are just kicking off. ISRAEL HEADS FOR ELECTIONS… AGAIN! The country will hold a national election on March 23—its fourth in just two years. Each of the past elections has failed to yield a decisive victory to either current prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu or his rivals. The present government is a precarious coalition between Netanyahu and his opponent in the last election, Benny Gantz. And it fell apart when the two sides disagreed fiercely over the budget. has more on why the ‘unity government’ fell apart. explains why Netanyahu's fight for re-election is likely to be an uphill battle. THE UK MAY AVOID BREXIT DEBACLE Boris Johnson was poised to exit the European Union without any trade deal in hand—which would have been disastrous for the pandemic-hit UK economy. Happily, after months of tense negotiations and playing chicken, an agreement is round the corner. And just in time: Time for negotiations would have run out on January 1—when both would have to slap widespread import taxes on each other's goods, sending prices skyrocketing. has more. The UK vs Arnab: The Office of Communications (Ofcom) has fined Republic Bharat—its Hindi news channel—£20,000 for broadcasting content that included “offensive language”, “hate speech” and “ abusive or derogatory treatment of individuals, groups, religions or communities.” The cause: A ‘Poochta Hai Bharat’ episode hosted by Arnab on the Chandrayaan 2 mission that aired on September 6, 2019—which for some odd reason veered into “a comparison of India’s space exploration and technological advancements to Pakistan, and Pakistan’s alleged terrorist activities.” One of the examples : > “In the programme, the presenter and some of his guests conveyed the view that all Pakistani people are terrorists, including > that: ‘their scientists, doctors, their leaders, politicians all are terrorists. Even their sports people’; ‘every child is a > terrorist over there. Every child is a terrorist. You are dealing with a terrorist entity’. One guest also described Pakistani > scientists as ‘thieves’, while another described Pakistani people as ‘beggars’. In the context of these criticisms, the > presenter, addressing Pakistan and/or Pakistani people, said: ‘We make scientists, you make terrorists’.” BISHAN SINGH BEDI WALKS OUT The cricketing legend is furious at the Delhi and District Cricket Association’s (DDCA) decision to install a statue of Arun Jaitley—who was its president in the past—at the Feroz Shah Kotla ground. He asked the DDCA to remove his name from a spectator stand named after him, and has given up his membership in the association. The reason: He thinks Jaitley was a terrible administrator unworthy of the honour: > "My reservations about the choice of people he hand-picked to run the day to day affairs of DDCA is well known… I think I was > too headstrong, too old school, and too proud an Indian cricketer to be co-opted into the corrupt darbar of sycophants Arun > Jaitley mustered at the Kotla during his stewardship." has more on the story. Read Bedi’s statement . DDCA—and its president, Jaitley’s son Rohan—has not offered any comment. FACEBOOK’S DESPERATE OFFER As US authorities were getting ready to sue Facebook for acting like a monopoly, the company came to them with an astonishing proposition: > “One of the ideas Facebook floated would have allowed another firm or developer to license access to its powerful code—and its > users’ intricate web of relationships—so that they could more easily create their own version of a social network.” But it was rejected by the government’s lawyers. has this exclusive. HONDA INDIA CANCELS BEST SELLING MODELS The company is shutting down its Noida plant—which manufactured its two most popular models: the Civic sedan and the CR-V SUV. It is shifting its entire operation to its factory in Alwar which does not have the ability to make these bigger cars. As a result, neither the Civic nor the CR-V will be available once the current stocks run out. has more. INDIAN SAILORS ARE STRANDED AT SEA For months now, China has been engaged in a steadily intensifying battle with Australia. In one of its hostile moves, Beijing banned all coal imports. The reason: Australia $14 billion in coal to China. The collateral damage: Dozens of ships carrying Australian coal have been stranded off the Chinese coast: > “China has said the ships are free to leave and has placed the responsibility on freight forwarding companies for resolving the > impasse. The companies do not want the ships to return as they stand to incur huge costs having already taken the coal off the > hands of Australian exporters, and have appeared unable to find other buyers to offload their cargo.” Stuck along with the ship: 1,500 sailors of which at least 39 are Indian. China will not allow them to leave the ship due to Covid concerns. has more. SISTER ABHAYA GETS JUSTICE Father Thomas M. Kottoor and Sister Sephy—the priest and nun convicted of her murder—have now been sentenced to life in prison. We explained the case in detail . FIVE CURIOUS THINGS A new mineral: has been in Cornwall and it has a name: Kernowite. It’s pretty and green and pretty darn “amazing”: "Considering how many geologists, prospectors and collectors have scoured the county over the centuries in search of mineral treasure, it's amazing that in 2020 we are adding a new mineral." Airport glamping: is a thing in Singapore. Changi airport is charging $269 a night for the chance to camp at a very fancy tent—and use the public restrooms. Tickets are sold out. has more. A mysterious publishing scam: Someone is tricking prominent editors and writers into sharing unpublished manuscripts of their books. Among those targeted: Margaret Atwood, Ian McEwan and Ethan Hawke. Here’s how it works: > "Emails are tailored so they appear to be sent by a particular agent writing to one of her authors, or an editor contacting a > scout, with tiny changes made to the domain names — like penguinrandornhouse.com instead of penguinrandomhouse.com, an “rn” in > place of an “m” — that are masked, and so only visible when the target hits reply." But being a celebrity isn’t a requirement since even debut novelists have been scammed. And no one has been caught trying to sell the stolen documents on the black market. has more KFC’s game console: The company best known for chicken wings has rolled out a game console more powerful than PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X. Oh, and the KFConsole has a built-in ‘chicken chamber’ to keep your food warm. As you can see from the , they’re pretty darn chuffed with themselves. has more details: Octopus punch fish: The two species are known to hunt for prey together, but as with all partners, the relationship has its rocky moments. Scientists have now discovered that octopuses throw —out of sheer spite, and to keep them in line. has lots more. THE ‘COMING 2 AMERICA’ TRAILER IS HERE! The sequel to Eddie Murphy’s hilarious 1988 flick is dropping on March 5 on Amazon Prime. But the is already out for you to enjoy. has more details on the movie. ONE CHRISTMAS THING President Emmanuel Macron's rescue dog Nemo is to help to raise awareness about adoption—just in time for Christmas! As you can see, is so cute he doesn’t have to do much except, well, sit in this starring role. Point to note: 100,000 pets are abandoned every year in France. THREE PHOTOS TO SAY AU REVOIR One: This is the winner of the Ocean Photograph Awards shows appearing to comfort one another. has the story behind the image. You can also watch an amazing video of the two penguins . You can see the other winners . Two: An amateur photographer took a stunning image of the great conjunction between Jupiter and Saturn—taken with a camera attached to a telescope. See it . Also: magazine has rounded up the best photos shared on social media. Three: put together the most hopeful images of 2020. This is Sammy and he likes paddle boards.
Some guy drove around LA and caught influencers doing the on camera. Watching it is guaranteed to fill your daily quota of belly laughs.
A HOLIDAY VIEWING SCHEDULE FOR YOU! : This is the most promising holiday romantic drama on Amazon Prime—and it's already out. Set in 1950s Harlem, it’s a rare Black love story between an up-and-coming saxophonist and an aspiring TV executive. has a review. : Vikramaditya Motwane’s new comedy is a bit meta: A director (Anurag Kashyap) kidnaps an actor’s daughter (Sonam Kapoor), and her father (Anil Kapoor) frantically tries to rescue her. Everyone plays themselves in this movie. There have been three trailers so far—and each offers a different twist to the movie. The one below has the most details on the plot. It drops on Netflix today. Read interview with Motwane. : This Pixar offering—featuring Jamie Foxx and TIna Fey—promises to be a whole lot of fun. It tells the story of a middle school band teacher who dies in an accident, and is desperately trying to recover his soul. For reviews, check out and . Available on Disney Plus on Christmas Day! This standalone sequel to ‘The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl’ has hamaari Priyanka Chopra. Check out a synopsis . This drops on Netflix on December 25. : With a star cast that includes Samuel L. Jackson, Hugh Grant, Lisa Kudrow and Kumail Nanjiani, this comedy special is surely a winner, right? Watch for it December 27 on Netflix! and have more on this mockumentary. A related watch: , a one-hour comedy special that gives 2020 a big cathartic funeral. It premieres on December 30 on Amazon Prime. : This is the last season and it drops on December 31 on Netflix. A perfect binge-watch if you plan to spend New Year’s Eve snuggled up at home. has everything we know so far about this season.
Shankar Mahadevan jams with Boman Irani: ‘Kal Ho Na Ho’ meets ‘My Way’. David Attenborough narrated the beginning of Adele’s ‘Hello’ video. Enuf said. “My girlfriend talks in her sleep. I've noted them down for weeks, and turned her dreams into Rupi Kaur poems.” The rest are here. Joy to the world? This one gets the job done.
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