Latest news with #Monica
Time of India
7 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Soubin Shahir's 'Monica' hook step; Lokesh Kanagaraj grooves along
Malayalam actor set the stage on fire at a recent award function with a performance that no one quite expected—but no one will forget either. Dancing to Monica, the chartbuster from 's upcoming Rajinikanth-starrer Coolie, Soubin turned the evening electric, leaving even director Lokesh visibly impressed. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Soubin vs Monica: And the hook step winner is... Wearing a vibrant yellow kurta, Soubin matched the beats with unfiltered energy and style. What made it more special? The song Monica, originally picturised on Pooja Hegde, was expected to be the talk of the town for her glam presence—but it was Soubin who ended up stealing the thunder. His version of the now-trending hook step went viral within hours, drawing praise from fans across language barriers. The performance was shared by the official Coolie page and has since clocked millions of views. The comment section? A storm of claps, fire emojis, and people jokingly suggesting Soubin should have featured in the actual video. One comment read, "He is the true highlight of the song." Another comment read, "Soubin chetta is a true vibe." Lokesh Kanagaraj's reaction adds to the buzz Director Lokesh Kanagaraj can be seen cheering from the audience, visibly enjoying Soubin's grooves. Insiders say he walked backstage later to personally congratulate the 'Ambili' actor. A familiar rhythm, A familiar charm This isn't the first time Soubin has gone viral for his dance moves. His performance in Njan Jackson Alleda from the film Ambili had earlier shown audiences a rare combination—comic timing with rhythm. What sets him apart? He doesn't just dance. He acts while doing it. About 'Coolie' Meanwhile, 'Coolie' starring in the lead, is all set to hit the big screens on August 14. The movie also features Nagarjuna, Shruti Haasan, Soubin Shahir, Aamir Khan, and many others.
Daily Mail
19 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Joy Taylor rallies around family in the Bahamas and posts sultry vacation pictures after shock Fox Sports exit
Joy Taylor looked to be completely unfazed by her shock departure from Fox Sports as she posed for more vacation photos on Tuesday. Taylor, whose exit from the network was announced on Monday, took several racy snaps from the family trip to the Exuma Islands in the Bahamas. The former sports host, who was embroiled in a bombshell sex lawsuit a few months ago, posed on a swing wearing just a blue bikini in one of the photos. In another, she seemed to be enjoying a boat day with her sister-in-law, Monica. She is married to Taylor's brother, Jason, the former NFL player. Then a bikini-clad Taylor left little to the imagination in a third snap as she stood in the crystal clear ocean. It was revealed on Monday afternoon that the 38-year-old had been ousted from the network as part of a brutal overhaul, which saw three shows axed. Later that day Taylor shared a video on Instagram of herself in a tight-fitting blue workout set performing a series of exercises. Taylor could be seen jumping rope and carrying out arm workouts with a resistance band on an outdoor deck overlooking clear blue sea. At one point in the clip, Taylor was even captured doing a number of weighted hip thrusts with a dumbbell as a bikini-clad friend lounged on a day bed behind her. 'Couple sets before the beach,' she wrote in the caption, along side a flexed bicep emoji. Taylor shied away from any mention of her exit from Fox Sports as news of the network's brutal moves ran rampant online. As well as FS1 show 'Speak', which Taylor co-hosts, Fox is also cancelling two of its morning programs, as per The Athletic. All three shows are said to have struggled to find a huge audience, meaning they have now been brought to a close. Taylor, who co-hosted sports talk show Speak with ex-NFL star Keyshawn Johnson and NBA icon Paul Pierce, leaves Fox just months after she was accused of using sexual relationships with colleagues to further her career in a bombshell lawsuit filed by an ex-employee. The 38-year-old was also alleged to have told make-up artist Noushin Faraji to 'get over it' when she confided in her about claims she was sexually assaulted by top programming executive Charlie Dixon. Taylor denied the allegation. After nearly a decade with Fox, Taylor's contract was up this year and the network has reportedly decided not to renew it. FS1 is also said to be cancelling morning shows 'Breakfast Ball' and 'The Facility'. Colin Cowherd's 'The Herd' and 'First Things First' with Nick Wright, Chris Broussard and Kevin Wildes will continue as usual, with FS1 likely to produce new shows to replace the three that have been cancelled. has reached out to Joy Taylor's attorneys for comment. Two weeks ago Taylor finally spoke out about the lawsuit that embroiled several Fox Sports stars in scandal, claiming the allegations left her battling 'dark times', 'grief' and 'trauma'. 'I won't say that there were not dark times, but I'm very blessed to have an amazing family and amazing friends and mentors and an amazing team,' she told ' The Breakfast Club '. 'People that know me and have known me for my whole life reminding me of who I am and what I deserve.' Taylor continued: 'I have felt a lot of different emotions - I think it's a grief process when anything like that happens,' she told The Breakfast Club. 'I'll say, I've been through a lot of traumatic things in my life. A lot. And I think any time you go through a trauma or a grieving period of something, you can't decide who you are when it's happening. 'And that's been the biggest thing for me. It's this or that. I'm working on it, but it's this or that. And I know years from now I'll look back, and I will feel differently than how I feel right now. 'I'm trying to be patient with myself in that way, because it's a lot to adjust to. It's a new reality. And I'm trying to choose myself and be gentle with myself in that sense.' Despite the furor, she continued to present 'Speak' and 'Two Personal', her podcast which includes graphic admissions about her sex life . Taylor explained why decided not to hide from the scrutiny, telling The Breakfast Club: 'It was intentional to show up as I did' She explained: 'When you know yourself, it's easier to continue to show up as you are. And there's always going to be things that happen in life, that happen in this business, that happen when you're a front-facing person. 'And when you get into the business, that is the risk we take. Of putting ourselves in front of the camera, of putting yourself out there. That things, at some point, might not be the best for you. I mean, what's meant for me is still coming.'
Pink Villa
20 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Pink Villa
Coolie: Was Soubin Shahir's character Dayal originally written for Fahadh Faasil? Lokesh Kanagaraj reveals
Coolie, starring Rajinikanth in the lead role, is slated to release in theaters on August 14, 2025. Ahead of the movie hitting the big screens, the director, Lokesh Kanagaraj, revealed his first choice for the character Dayal before finalizing on Soubin Shahir. Who did Lokesh Kanagaraj approach first for Coolie? In his conversation with The Hollywood Reporter, Lokesh Kanagaraj revealed that he initially wanted another actor for the character Dayal instead of Soubin Shahir. In response, Loki said, 'Initially, I didn't write the character for Soubin sir, but it was written for someone else, some other star. I don't want to mention the name, but I couldn't work with him for various reasons. I didn't know where else to go after that because I really wrote it for him.' The director continued, how his second choice was Fahadh Faasil and said, 'I want to work with Fahadh sir again, but sir was also not available, and I didn't want him to do the same thing he had done in Vikram. So I was searching for a lot of other actors, and finally, I've signed on Soubin sir.' Soubin Shahir as Dayal Soubin Shahir was one of the first cast announcements from Coolie that was made back in the day. As he plays the role of Dayal, the Manjummel Boys actor was seen shaking his legs alongside Pooja Hegde in the song Monica. About Coolie Coolie is an upcoming Tamil-language actioner starring Superstar Rajinikanth in the lead role. The film is said to revolve around a harbour and the lives of labourers, with Nagarjuna Akkineni and Upendra Rao playing key roles. Apart from the veteran stars, Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan will be making a cameo appearance in the movie. Moreover, an ensemble cast of actors like Shruti Haasan, Soubin Shahir, Sathyaraj, Pooja Hegde (dance number), and more are also part of the movie. In the recent interview itself, Lokesh Kanagaraj confirmed that Coolie's trailer will be released on August 2, 2025. The director does not want to reveal much about the plot ahead of its release. On the other hand, Fahadh Faasil is soon set to appear in the Tamil film Maareesan. The movie directed by Sudheesh Sankar is slated to release on July 25, 2025, with Vadivelu as the co-lead.
The Hindu
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Rajinikanth compared ‘Coolie' with Mani Ratnam's ‘Thalapathi', reveals Lokesh Kanagaraj
Acclaimed Tamil filmmaker Lokesh Kanagaraj, who is awaiting the release of Coolie, his much-awaited action film with Rajinikanth, revealed on Monday (July 14) that the superstar compared Coolie with his iconic 1991 Mani Ratnam-directed film Thalapathi. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter India, Lokesh, while speaking about how he didn't want to change the idea of a Rajinikanth film, said that he wished to emulate the delicate balance of star-filmmaking and flair that Mani Ratnam's film had. 'Out of all the films he has done, I love Thalapathi the most, and I have tried to maintain that balance with this film. That is what I have tried to achieve in writing Coolie.' Fascinatingly, after watching the film while dubbing, Rajinikanth too seems to have understood what Lokesh was going for in Coolie. 'He hugged me and said, 'It looks like Thalapathi to me.' And that made my day. That was the night I slept very peacefully after so many months. Because that's what I was trying to achieve. This is what I was telling my friends, 'If at all I am doing a film with Rajini sir, it has to be something at least near Thalapathi.' I can't say I have done a film that's on par with Mani Ratnam sir's quality; that is impossible. But I wanted that little satisfaction in my film being compared with that film. And listening to the same words from Rajini sir is something I consider an achievement,' added Lokesh. Earlier, the director had revealed that he had a different story pitched to and approved by Rajinikanth, but that he requested the superstar to consider a different script. Now, while recounting the same, Lokesh has revealed that the original film was a fantasy film. 'And Rajini sir was immediately on board with that idea. The problem was that even assembling it took so much time. Moreover, to prepare, make everyone available and then go on the floors, it would have taken one and a half years.' But Lokesh didn't want to waste Rajinikanth's time. 'I had worked for two months on that film, and then one day I called him and asked to meet. I told him, 'Let's not do this film; let's do another story.' That's when I told this idea (Coolie),' said Lokesh, explaining how he had originally given the idea of Coolie to a director friend of his. 'This is an idea I had thought of 5-6 years ago. In fact, I had given this story to one of my friends to direct, and he was trying to make it, but he couldn't do it. Later, when I decided not to do that original film with Rajini sir, I asked my friend, 'Hey, give the story back. I will give you something else. Let me work on this,' and he agreed to it, and that's how this film started.' Slated to release in theatres on August 14, Rajinikanth's Coolie features an ensemble star cast that includes Upendra, Nagarjuna Akkineni, Pooja Hegde, Soubin Shahir, Sathyaraj, and Shruti Haasan. While Pooja Hegde is set to appear in a special role, teased in the recently released track 'Monica', Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan will feature in a special cameo in the film. Anirudh Ravichander is composing music for the movie, while Girish Gangadharan is the cinematographer. Anbariv is in charge of the stunt choreography. Produced by Kalanithi Maran of Sun Pictures, Coolie will face off with the spy action drama War 2, starring Jr NTR and Hrithik Roshan, at the box office. Meanwhile, Rajinikanth is currently shooting for Jailer 2. Directed by Nelson, the movie is a sequel to the hit 2023 movie. Anirudh is the music composer for Jailer 2, which will also feature Kannada star Shivarajkumar in an important role.
Time of India
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Fahadh Faasil initially planned to star in 'Coolie': Director Lokesh Kanagaraj reveals why he couldn't be a part of Rajinikanth starrer
Picture Credit: X The versatile actor Fahadh Faasil has worked in multiple star-studded projects and is highly praised for the roles he portrays. Director Lokesh Kanagaraj , who has worked with the 'Aavesham' actor in the superhit ' Vikram ', recently revealed that he initially planned to rope him in the upcoming Rajinikanth starrer 'Coolie', however, it could not materialise. Why couldn't Fahadh Faasil join? In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter India, Lokesh shared that Fahadh Faasil was initially his first choice for a pivotal role in the film. However, due to scheduling conflicts, the collaboration could not take place. Lokesh revealed that he had originally written the role played by Malayalam actor Soubin Shahir for Fahadh Faasil, and even approached him with the character. He spent nearly six months developing the role, hoping to bring Fahadh on board. But with Fahadh already committed to other projects, he had to decline the offer. Soubin Shahir stepped in Malayalam actor Soubin Shahir eventually stepped into the role initially written for Fahadh and has already made an impression. He was recently seen in the viral song 'Monica', sharing the screen with Pooja Hegde. Fans on the internet have been buzzing about Soubin Shahir's presence in the film. Although Pooja Hegde has made a captivating presence in the film, Soubin Shahir's energetic moves grabbed the eyeballs. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 월 2만원으로 아이들의 한끼 선물하기 굿네이버스 더 알아보기 Undo by Taboola by Taboola Cast of 'Coolie' Aside from Rajinikanth and Soubin, 'Coolie' also stars Shruti Haasan, Nagarjuna Akkineni, Upendra, and Aamir Khan, promising one of the most massive star lineups in recent Tamil cinema. With music composed by star musician Anirudh Ravichander, the film is expected to feature both pulsating action and a chart-topping soundtrack. The movie is scheduled to release on August 14th this year, during the Independence Day release window. It will clash with Bollywood's spy action thriller 'War 2' starring Hrithik Roshan, Jr NTR and Kiara Advani.
