Nepal Showbiz Latest News and Updates

Melinda Messenger has ended her engagement with her fiance, Dr Raj Joshi, six months after he proposed. The former Page 3 model, 53, reportedly called off the wedding after disagreements about their lifestyle.

Naman Ramachandran Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) South Asia has a sizzling summer slate lined up in the kids space including a mix of anime and homegrown IP. Launching on the Indian animation-focused Pogo channel in May is new Indian IP “Jay Jagannath.” The series portrays the friendship between the Hindu God Lord Jagannath, who has taken the form of a child, Jagan, and his devout follower Balaram.

EXCLUSIVE: Noah Media, producer of Netflix’s 14 Peaks and Sky’s Villeneuve Pironi, has restructured to focus on international docs and laid off a small number of staff.

The 19th edition of the International Youth Media Summit (IYMS) will be held in Zanzibar in July. 

Naman Ramachandran U.K.-based sales agent Reason8 Films has sold 2023 Venice title “The Red Suitcase” to HBO for Europe and Suraya Filem for Malaysia and Brunei. The 15 territories covered under the HBO deal include Albania, Czech Republic, Slovak Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Moldova, Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia and Bulgaria. Reason8 Films said that advanced negotiations are on for North America and Latin America.

Al Jazeera.If the bill surmounts those obstacles, Thailand would become the third Asian country to legalize same-sex nuptials, following Taiwan and Nepal.The bill changes references in current law from gender-specific terms like “man,” “woman,” husband,” and “wife” to gender-neutral terms. It grants surviving partners inheritance rights in the case of one partner’s death and allows same-sex couples the right to adopt.“I want to invite you all to make history,” Danuphorn Punnakanta, the chairman of the parliamentary committee, said ahead of the vote.

Convicted killer Charles Sobhraj has spent almost half of his life in prison. The French national was accused of committing a trail of robberies and scams in his 20s, which led to him being imprisoned in Afghanistan.

True crime fans are obsessed with BBC1's The Serpent. The drama series - first screened in 2021, but now available to view on Netflix - tells the incredible story of convicted killer Charles Sobhraj.

Freed serial killer Charles Sobhraj, who allegedly murdered 20 backpackers in Asia, has been spotted amongst tourists in London.The 79-year-old French man was released from a Nepalese prison in 2022 after spending nearly two decades behind bars. Sobhraj, who inspired the hit BBC drama The Serpent in 2021, is suspected of killing at least 20 Western tourists who were travelling through Asia's "hippy trail" in the 1970s and 1980s. Now pictures show him visiting the UK wearing a false beard and wig, while he his being filmed for a documentary.

I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! star Kiosk Kev, whose real name is Mark Herlaar, looks worlds away from his role on the show as he has swapped TV for living in Nepal with gurus. Known for his unruly long hair on the ITV show, Mark has shaved his head and is now completely bald, but has kept his recognisable beard.Taking to Instagram, where he boasts 17.1K followers, the TV star gave an insight into his experience in Nepal, where he could be seen dressed in a robe and spending time with locals. Sharing a video to the platform, he explained that the new shaved head goes with new role of becoming a guru.

EXCLUSIVE: The now-released serial killer known as The Serpent, who was played with aplomb by Tahar Rahim in the eponymous mini-series, is to appear in a Channel 4 documentary where he will face psychological and criminal interrogations over murders he was never tried for.

Room to Read, a global education nonprofit tackling illiteracy and gender inequality, announced a partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery for the premiere of , the first nonprofit-led animation and live-action film project to promote gender equality through the stories of young women around the world.

Naman Ramachandran Warner Bros. Discovery and Room to Read have partnered on “She Creates Change,” an animation and live-action film project to promote gender equality through the stories of young women around the world. Room to Read is a global education nonprofit aiming to creating a world free from illiteracy and gender inequality.

It’s 50 and counting for Dragon’s Den.

Christopher Vourlias London-based world sales company Taskovski Films Sales has acquired the sales rights to “Until I Fly,” a coming-of-age story by directors Kanishka Sonthalia and Siddesh Shetty, ahead of its world premiere March 10 at the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival. Produced by Sonthalia at Kopuku Films, in co-production with Christilla Huillard Kann of Elda Productions, the film tells the story of Veeru, a resilient young boy of Indian Nepalese heritage, who has to face the daily challenges of cultural rejection in an Indian Himalayan village, where most of the inhabitants look down on his mixed identity.

Naman Ramachandran Nepali filmmaker Min Bahadur Bham‘s journey to make Berlin competition title “Shambhala” was arduous but an ultimately rewarding one. Bham’s 2012 short “Bhansulli” debuted at Venice. His debut feature “Kalo Pothi” (aka “The Black Hen,” 2015) won the Fedeora best film award at Venice Critics’ Week and became Nepal’s official Oscar entry.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Two Taiwan-based production companies with features in this week’s Berlin Film Festival have joined forces to launch new venture, Long Hu Bao × An Attitude. Taiwan’s Yi Tiao Long Hu Bao International Entertainment, is one of eight co-producers on main competition film “Shambhala,” from Nepal’s Min Bahadur Bham.

Naman Ramachandran Streamer Lionsgate Play has teamed with Grameenphone, a leading telecom services provider in Bangladesh, to expand its presence in the country. Grameenphone, part of Norway’s Telenor Group, has some 82 million subscribers, to whom it offers a bouquet of streaming services.

A Manchester restaurant has shared its disappointment after more than 30 customers failed to show for a pre-booked meal on Valentine's Day.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Dark Star Pictures has acquired North American rights to “Zenithal,” a kung fu comedy directed by Jean-Baptiste Saurel, an up-and-coming filmmaker whose previous short, “The Dickslap,” premiered at Cannes’ Critics Week. “Zenithal” is being represented in international markets by Best Friend Forever, which will unveil an exclusive promo reel at the EFM. Currently in post-production, the film will world premiere this year.

Naman Ramachandran The late Pema Tseden‘s “Snow Leopard” (China) won the top prize, the Golden Cyclo, at the Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema on Tuesday. The film, which previously won awards at the Tokyo and Hainan festivals, also won Vesoul’s National Institute of Oriental Languages ​​and Civilizations (INALCO) jury prize and actor Tseten Tashi scored a jury special mention. Pema Tseden (aka Wanmacaidan) died in May last year, age 53.

Selena Gomez took to social media to share a throwback photo of herself wearing a bikini when she was 21. The flashback is not a body goals snap but a post of the actress and singer reflecting on her appearance then and now.Gomez compared her body in two images years apart, saying: “Today I realized I will never look like this again…” she wrote alongside a photo from 2013.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The CinemAsia Film Festival in Amsterdam has unveiled titles from seven different Asian countries for its competition section. The festival will play at the Studio/K, Rialto De Pijp and Rialto VU venues March 5-10, 2024. The event will close with the out-of-competition screening of “Gaga,” a drama about indigenous communities in Taiwan, directed by Laha Mebow. “Gaga” documents the challenges faced by a commune after the death of a respected tribal elder who, while alive, had held things together.

After five years away from Walford, EastEnders fans are in for a treat as soap legend Patsy Palmer has officially been spotted on set after agreeing to reprise her iconic role in the BBC soap. Patsy, who is best known to fans for playing Bianca Jackson in the soap revealed earlier this month that she had agreed to return to the soap and bring a touch of her trademark charm back to Walford.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Liam Neeson is to reprise his role as a truck driver turned rescue worker from 2021 indie hit “The Ice Road.” With director Jonathan Hensleigh (writer of “Die Hard with a Vengeance,” “Armageddon” and “Jumanji”) again on board, “The Ice Road 2: Road to the Sky” relocates its story from Canada in the original to Nepal in the sequel. Film production is set to shift from North America to Australia’s Victoria State. Filming will begin this month using Gippsland town of Walhalla as the backdrop for some of the picture’s action scenes.

Naman Ramachandran Bruce Dern will star alongside Nepali cinema stalwarts Dayahang Rai and Hari Bansha Acharya in Binod Paudel’s “The World’s Happiest Man.” The story delves into the plight of Bhutanese-Nepali refugees who settled in the Ohio-Pennsylvania area and fought alienation and displacement. Paudel’s “Bulbul” was chosen as Nepal’s entry in the Oscars’ international category in 2019. He won best director at Nepal‘s National Film Awards, where he had previously won the screenplay award for “Saanghuro” (2013).

Sheyniss Palacios has arrived in New York. The newly crowned Miss Universe is starting her new reign, a period of a year where she’ll prioritize various topics near to her heart in the name of the organization. In an Instagram Q&A, Palacios revealed some of the answers to the most pressing questions asked by her followers, including her reaction upon learning that she was this year’s Miss Universe.Miss Nepal Jane Dipika Garrett spoke about her journey of self-love and dealing with body shamingMiss Mexico, Melissa Flores, denies theft of her traditional costume: ‘It’s fake news’One of the first answers she addressed in her Q&A was the moment she was crowned as Miss Universe.

Miss Universe pageant faced controversy when there were reports of the traditional costume worn by this year’s contestant, Melissa Flores, Miss Mexico, being stolen. According to social media and local media, the dress went missing from the dressing rooms during the 72nd edition of the ceremony held in El Salvador.

Jane Dipika Garrett, made history at 22 years old after becoming the first plus-size finalist at Miss Universe. The beauty queen secured a coveted spot in the top 20 list duringthe final night of the 72nd annual Miss Universe competition held in El Salvador.While her selection as a finalist was filled with emotions, many people took to social media to express their dissatisfaction. Miss Nepal spoke with Fox News Digital about her journey of self-love and how she deals with body shaming.“I really did not expect to get that much applause on the stage or that much spotlight,” she said, referring to the commotion she caused during the swimsuit competition.

Naman Ramachandran Tatino Films, a French production and consultancy company involved in industry events in Asia and Europe, has teamed with Kazakhstan-based Alternativa Film Project and the Philippines’ QCinema Project Market for three film residencies. The partnership will yield two Pop Up film residencies called the Pop Up Alternativa Awards for filmmakers from Central Asia and one Pop Up QCFC (Quezon City Film Commission) x QCinema Award for Southeast Asian filmmakers to develop their upcoming film projects.

Taiwan-Japan documentary After the Snowmelt and Filipino fantasy feature Mother Maybe were presented with the TAICCA X CNC Awards at the close of the pitching forum at Taiwan Creative Content Fest (TCCF). Both awards came with a cash prize of $30,000. 

Jane Garret is this year’s Miss Nepal. The 22 year old is participating at this year’s Miss Universe, and marks a step forward in representation in the evolving pageant, becoming her country’s representative and an advocate for body positivity.Miss Venezuela, Diana Silva, on her legacy: ‘It’s pressure, it’s a responsibility, but above all, blessed to represent my country’Miss Universe 2023 contestants arrive in El Salvador: What are they doing before the competition?A post shared by Jane Garrett (@jadedipika_)Garret won the title of Miss Nepal after she surprised the jury with her natural beauty and her empowering statements. Over the course of her campaign as Miss Nepal, she’s demonstrated that she wants to take down outdated stereotypes of beauty.

Sarvnik Kaur’s documentary Against The Tide won the Golden Gateway Award at this year’s Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival, while the Silver Gateway Award went to Bahadur – The Brave, directed by Diwa Shah. The Special Jury Award went to Kanu Behl’s Agra. 

Marta Balaga During the making of his Jihlava Film Festival winning film, “Distances” director Matej Bobrik walked right into the middle of an argument. “Actually, I was standing a bit to the side. It was my cinematographer Filip [Drożdż] who was at the center of it all,” he jokes, recalling heated discussions of his protagonists: a Nepali family who moved to Warsaw in search of a better life.

Will Tizard Contributor From hulks of collective ruins to immigrant family struggles, marginalized communities and climate crises, the 27th Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival wrapped Saturday with honors for work from diverse perspectives on a myriad of pressing subjects. The Opus Bonum main prize went to Elvis Lenic’s Croatian doc “Ship,” an exploration of an unintentional monument to socialist worker collectives in the form of the Uljanik shipyard, once the country’s largest.

Back in the 1970s, Gopal Dangol was beginning to make a name for himself as one of the most popular chefs in Kathmandu. Known for his skill and excellent food creations, it wasn't long before he was recognised by a restaurant in the UK who knew he had to be snapped up immediately.