Latest news with #Aakash
Time of India
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Aakash Nagi on joining Chakravarti Samrat Prithviraj Chauhan: The biggest challenge was playing a bilingual character
Aakash Nagi and (right) as Jaal in Chakravarti Samrat Prithviraj Chauhan Aakash Nagi is excited to be part of Chakravarti Samrat Prithviraj Chauhan, which also marks his debut in the historical genre. He plays the role of Jaal, an Afghani character who infiltrates the Rajput camp in Ajmer under the orders of Ghiyassudin. Speaking about his role, Aakash shares, 'For me, the most challenging aspect was that my character is bilingual — he speaks both Afghani and Marwari/Rajasthani. Another major challenge was performing action scenes while constantly wearing heavy costumes and accessories. However, my theatre experience helped me a lot in managing these demands.' One of the intriguing aspects of playing Jaal is the character's use of disguises. He explains, 'Jaal takes on various disguises — as a trader, a soldier, a dancer, and many more — to accomplish his mission and assassinate as many Rajput kings as possible, including Someshwar and Prithviraj.' Working on the show also gave Aakash the opportunity to collaborate with veteran actor Ronit Bose Roy, who portrays King Someshwar. Aakash says, 'It was a dream come true to work with Ronit Roy sir. We've shot some scenes together, and he's extremely accommodating on set. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 새로 나온 '실비보험' 최적가 가입추천! "주요 보험사별 맞춤견적+가성비 굿"... 굿리치 보험대리점 (등록번호:제2006038313호) 가입하기 Undo He gives other actors the space to improvise and ensures everyone feels comfortable while working with him. I haven't had the chance to shoot with Padmini ma'am yet, but I did get to interact with her. She is truly a gem of a person.' Aakash's journey into acting is a unique one. Originally a mechanical engineer, he completed his engineering degree in 2018 and began working in the field. However, his passion for cinema eventually led him to pursue acting full-time. 'I was always drawn to cinema. During my engineering days, I used to watch up to three movies a day,' he recalls, adding, 'I started doing theatre in college, and it laid the foundation for my acting career. Initially, I did unpaid roles while working my day job. I landed my first paid acting role in 2020 with the Punjabi show Kamli Ishq Di, which was shot in Chandigarh.' Following that breakthrough, he made the decision to move to Mumbai and try his luck in the mainstream entertainment industry. 'Moving to Mumbai was a difficult decision and surviving there was a struggle at first. But once I started getting commercial work, it became a bit easier to sustain myself. I eventually landed my first lead role in the Hindi television serial Mere Desh Ki Dharti, and things started to fall into place after that,' he concludes.
Hans India
7 days ago
- General
- Hans India
5 students of Aakash Educational Services Limited from Hyderabad Become Top Scorers in JEE Advanced 2025
Aakash Educational Services Limited (AESL), a national leader in test preparatory services, proudly announces that 5 of its students from Hyderabad have Become Top Scorers in the prestigious JEE Advanced 2025, one of the toughest engineering entrance examinations. The results were announced by IIT Kanpur. This outstanding performance highlights the dedication of the students, their relentless hard work, and the robust academic support provided by AESL's expert faculty and comprehensive curriculum. Notable students are Kotha Dhanush Reddy who secured AIR 74, Samhitha Poladi secured AIR 130, Harssh A Gupta secured AIR 210, Raghavan Epuri secured AIR 770 and Viswa Navadeep Gunje secured AIR 877 amongst others. The students were a part of AESL's classroom program designed specifically to crack the JEE Advanced. Widely considered one of the most rigorous entrance tests globally, JEE Advanced demands a deep conceptual understanding and strong problem-solving abilities. Reflecting on their journey, the students said, 'We are thankful to Aakash for providing a solid academic foundation and consistent mentorship. The content and classroom coaching at AESL helped us master difficult concepts in a short span of time. This achievement wouldn't have been possible without their support.' Congratulating the students, Dr. Dheeraj Mishra, Chief Academic & Business Head, Aakash Educational Services Limited, said: "These results are a reflection of the academic rigor and discipline that AESL instill in its students. We are incredibly proud of our achievers and wish them the very best in their future endeavors at IITs and beyond." JEE Advanced is conducted annually for students who have qualified JEE Mains organized by one of the IITs yearly. While JEE Main is for admission to several National Institute of Technologies (NITs) and other center-aided engineering colleges in India, JEE Advanced is considered as the sole prerequisite for admission to the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT). However, Students must appear for JEE Main to sit for JEE Advanced. Aakash offers comprehensive IIT-JEE coaching through various course formats tailored for high school and higher secondary school students. Recently, Aakash has intensified its focus on developing Computer-Based Training. Its innovative iTutor platform delivers recorded video lectures, enabling students to engage in self-paced learning and catch up on missed sessions. Moreover, mock tests simulate real exam conditions, equipping students with the necessary familiarity and confidence to tackle the examination effectively.
Hindustan Times
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
Suresh Raina drops ‘breaking news' on CSK return in IPL 2026 with ‘fastest 50' teaser on live TV
India legend Suresh Raina, on Sunday, dropped a massive update on a potential change in the Chennai Super Kings dressing room for the 2026 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) as he hinted at his return to the tournament after five years. The update was shared on live TV during Chennai's final league game, against the Gujarat Titans at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Raina was part of the commentary panel alongside former India cricketers Sanjay Bangar and Aakash Chopra. The trio discussed what went wrong for the MS Dhoni-led side this season, as the five-time champions finished bottom of the table for the first time in an IPL edition. Raina then disclosed that Chennai are currently in talks to hire a new batting coach for the next season of the IPL. In a bid to get more information out of Raina, who has been part of the CSK set-up for 12 years, before he bid adieu in 2021, Aakash asked if the new batting coach's initials start with 'S'. In reply, Raina, who scored 5528 runs in IPL, teased Chennai fans, saying, "He has made the fastest fifty," before breaking into laughter. Aakash then said: "Chalo ho gaya bhai, you heard it first here!" (It's confirmed, you heard it here first!) For the unversed, Raina had scored a 16-ball fifty in 2014 against Punjab Kings, and is ranked second on the list of fastest half-centuries in IPL history. Former Australia cricketer Mike Hussey is currently the batting coach of the Chennai side, having been in the role since 2018. Opener Devon Conway and Dewald Brevis hit contrasting half-centuries to help bottom-placed Chennai end their IPL campaign with a crushing 83-run win over the Titans. The New Zealand international smashed 52, while the South Africa batter scored a fiery 23-ball 57 as Chennai posted a colossal 231-run target after opting to bat first in Ahmedabad. The bowlers then combined to dismiss Gujarat, who have already qualified for the playoffs, for 147 in 18.3 overs. For the 2022 champions, the loss dampened their chances of finishing in the top two. They have 18 points after a full set of 14 league matches and are still on top of the table despite the net run rate taking a nose dive after the result on Sunday. To maintain their position inside the top two, the Shubman Gill-led side needs Royal Challengers Bengaluru (17 points) to go down to Lucknow Super Kings in their final league match.
New Indian Express
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New Indian Express
Enforcement Directorate summons film producer Aakash Baskaran
The Enforcement Directorate has summoned film producer and director Aakash Baskaran about the findings related to the recent raids to probe alleged irregularities in TASMAC. Raids by the central agency sleuths have been taking place at sites related to TASMAC and Aakash Baskaran's production company Dawn Pictures and his residence for the past few days. The ED suspects that unaccounted cash amounting to approximately Rs 1,000 crore may have been laundered through TASMAC operations, allegedly using Dawn Pictures as a conduit. Aakash, who has been missing since the raids, will likely be grilled about the source for his back-to-back production projects featuring stars such as Dhanush (Idly Kadai), Sivakarthikeyan (Parasakthi) and Silambarasan (STR 49). Apart from Aakash, ED conducted raids at the sites related to TASMAC managing director S Visakan; AP Keshav Selvi of KS Smart Solutions, which obtained several state government departments' contracts; an executive of a bottling firm, Ratheesh Velu; a resident of Chennai with close ties to top government officials; and former AIADMK minister Sevoor S Ramachandran and AIADMK MLA Neethipathi. In addition to producing films, Aakash is helming Idhayam Murali, starring Atharvaa Murali in the lead.
Time of India
19-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
It's not guns vs growth. Spending on desi defence tech can boost economy
By all accounts, Operation Sindoor has been a success. It has demonstrated the strength of India's air defence system, as well as its offensive capabilities in destroying training and logistical facilities of terror networks deep inside Pakistan. But this success was not achieved overnight. The Indian govt has been proactively investing in procurement and indigenisation of advanced weapons and surveillance capabilities in the past decade. Following the demonstration of the capabilities of indigenous technologies like Aakash, the confidence in indigenous research and development (R&D) is at its peak. This presents an opportunity to significantly increase defence spending, even if it requires loosening the fiscal deficit targets. This might raise a few eyebrows, especially among monetary hawks and bond vigilantes, but from the Spanish conquest of the Aztecs to the use of the nuclear bomb in World War II, history is replete with examples of epochal, and yet one-sided, battles that turned the page of civilisations due to technological superiority on one side. These tech advancements are often achieved with state backing through speculative R&D investments. A prominent example is the Manhattan Project behind the first nuclear bomb. Fiscal hawks will ask two questions when they hear suggestions of increased govt spending. First, how would this affect private investment? And second, how should this increased expenditure be financed? Focus on firepower: It makes sense to fund defence R&D even if it means relaxing fiscal deficit target The metric to assess the impact of the first question is called the 'fiscal multiplier'. To put it simply, fiscal multiplier tells us how much is the additional output (GDP) created by increasing govt spending by one rupee. A fiscal multiplier of greater than one means a positive spillover effect on the private sector, while less than one indicates otherwise. In her research published in 2019, Prof Valerie A Ramey of the University of California, San Diego, found that most types of govt spending have a multiplier of less than 1, i.e., they crowd out private activity entirely. A simple example would be a policy like free cash transfer to the poor. Such schemes can disincentivise some workers from going to work, thereby making labour more expensive, leading to firms cutting down their investment and production. But what about defence expenditure? What is its fiscal multiplier? A recent paper in The American Economic Review titled 'The Long Run Effects of Government Spending' by Juan Antolin-Diaz and Paolo Surico of The London Business School argues that by shifting the composition of public spending towards R&D, military spending boosts innovation and private investment in the medium-term, and increases productivity, GDP and consumption at longer horizons. Essentially, defence expenditure is distinct from other types of govt expenditures, including public infrastructure investment, due to its ability to spur R&D in both public and private sectors. Using extremely conservative methods for estimating fiscal multiplier, they show that military spending has a fiscal multiplier of nearly 2. In other words, a rupee spent on military spending creates an additional GDP of another rupee. Most importantly, the additional rupee comes from an increase in productivity that lasts a very long time. These quantitative estimates may vary from country to country, but they are unlikely to be significantly less than 2 even in a country like India. Moreover, while the quantitative effects may be surprising, the qualitative effects are entirely unsurprising. Increased R&D expenditure is likely to go to the most talented, productive, and ambitious people in the economy. It is entirely expected that allocating capital towards their R&D initiatives will create strong and robust second-order gains. The second question then is how to fund defence expenditure? In India's context (and even otherwise), tax would likely be the worst way to finance this increased defence expenditure. It has one of the lowest fiscal multipliers and will likely have serious repercussions on the GDP. But the govt can raise long-term money at a rate lower than 6.5% per annum. This makes the choice of funding source for defence expenditure clear: long-term govt borrowing. Given the sustainable benefits from defence spending, the govt should not have a problem repaying the debt. However, this requires a mindset change in the govt, where a certain segment holds a dogmatic view that debt is bad. Not all debt is bad; it is the debt to finance unproductive expenditures that causes trouble. Debt to finance defence R&D expenditure should be sustainable given the strong positive spillover effects. We hope that the govt considers relaxing the fiscal deficit target by 0.5-0.7% of GDP ($20-30 billion), borrowing long-term, and using it to fund defence expenditure that is heavy in R&D. This amount would go a long way in creating deep-tech defence startups making India stronger and, thus, more prosperous. Facing external threats from two neighbours—one reckless and one highly advanced—time is not on our side. Tantri is a faculty in finance at the Indian School of Business while Kuvalekar teaches economics at the University of Essex, UK Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email This piece appeared as an editorial opinion in the print edition of The Times of India.
