Mumbai: Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone, who plays a spy in the upcoming spy-thriller film ‘Pathaan’, has been called a bonafide action star by the film’s director Siddharth Anand. As one can see from the trailer and the assets that have been released so far, the actress can be seen pulling off the action and sultry bit with equal ease.
Talking about his liking towards femme fatale in films, Siddharth said, “There is nothing more cool or sexy than a woman wielding a powerful weapon on screen. As a film-buff, I have always loved women doing sick action sequences and so, when we got Deepika Padukone in ‘Pathaan’, we wanted to present her in her most badass self – a gorgeous, gun-toting, femme fatale spy that people have never seen before!”
Recollecting a sequence from the film, the director added, “In one of the action sequences of ‘Pathaan’, Deepika wields the gatling gun and you have to see the sequence to believe how legit she is as a bonafide action superstar! She steals the show in this scene and I’m sure people will cheer the loudest for her every time she does action in ‘Pathaan’.”
‘Pathaan’, which sees Shah Rukh Khan returning to the silver screen after four years, also stars John Abraham. The film is set to release on January 25 in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu.
Dr Muzaffar A Macha has been a ‘golden boy’ throughout. At AIIMS and abroad and now home as head of IUST’s Watson-Crick Centre for Molecular Medicine, after working extensively on head and neck cancers, he has been able to identify an antidote for managing the excruciating pain during all cancers. In a freewheeling conversation with Masood Hussain, the young scientist talks about his research career and the immediate goals he has set for himself and the centre
KASHMIR LIFE (KL): How was your journey from Kashmir to the USA and then back to Kashmir?
DR MUZAFFAR A MACHA (MAM): I have done my schooling at Madrassa Taleem-ul Islam (MTI), Tral. Then I did my bachelor’s in Biochemistry and Environmental Sciences from SP College Srinagar. After that, I went to the Jamia Hamdard for my master’s, which I completed in 2005. I topped there and also received a gold medal.
Then, I applied to various universities including Jawaharlal Nehru University, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, CCMB Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, and Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics for PhD. I was selected by three Universities, but I choose AIIMS, because of my personal preference and because of the good translational (applications to humans) research work that was being carried out at AIIMS.
There, I joined the laboratory of Dr Ranju Ralhan. Then I was shifted to another mentor, Sham Singh Chauhan who is the head of AIIMS’s biotechnology department.
I completed my PhD in 2010 and was awarded with a Gold medal called Gita Mittal Award for the best PhD student with the best publications. My PhD work was mostly about head and neck cancer.
After that, I went to the University of Nebraska Medical Center for my post-doctorate. There, I joined Dr Surinder Batra, a scientist and a pancreatic cancer specialist. I worked extensively there on cancer biology. Since I had worked on head and neck cancers during my PhD, because of the fact that India has the most cases of this cancer, I started a group to work further on this.
We continued to work for four and a half years till the completion of my Postdoc. After that, I was inducted there as an Assistant Professor in the same department. I continued there until 2019 and moved back home because of certain family reasons and eagerness to serve my own society.
After coming back, I applied for the Ramanujan Fellowship and Ramalingaswamy Fellowship and I was selected for both fellowships. I joined the Central University of Kashmir (CUK) as a Ramanujan Fellow.
A year after working there, I moved to the Watson-Crick Centre for Molecular Medicine of the Islamic University of Science and Technology (IUST). Soon joining as a Ramalingaswami fellow, I was selected as an Assistant professor for Molecular Medicine in the Centre. Presently I am heading the centre.
KL: Cancer is among the most life-threatening diseases. Where the science is right now in the understanding of cancer?
MAM: In the last 10 years, the technology that has emerged to identify cancer, to know the cause of cancer and to understand the basic molecular biological concepts proved to be useful and convenient. To a very large extent, we have conquered the battle against cancer. The immunotherapy that is often used these days is yielding good results in treating cancer. Recent studies and clinical trials all over the world proved that immunotherapy is good among all methods for treating cancer.
The Awantipora Molecule
KL: You have worked extensively on Head and Neck Cancer during your PhD. What were the major takeaways from the research?
MAM: As per the studies and statistical data, India has a huge consumption of tobacco products. Head and neck cancer is mostly because of the consumption of tobacco-based products. My research project during my PhD was based on “How cancer is caused by the consumption of Tobacco based products?” I identified cancer development at the molecular and cellular levels. I identified the novel signalling pathways that get activated and lead to cancer.
Along with this, I identified the usage of natural compounds like Curcumin and Guggulsterone to nullify the effects of smokeless tobacco. These compounds can largely reduce the effects of cancer-causing smokeless tobacco.
KL: Has there been any kind of comparative study? I mean is the pattern different for cancers caused by smoking and non-smoking cancer agents?
MAM: It has been studied and is widely accepted all over the world that smokeless tobacco agents mostly cause mouth cancer but smoking usually causes lung cancer. Still, there are cases of people in India and even in Kashmir who have lung cancer even though they had not consumed any smoking or non-smoking product. Thus it is not only the eating habit, which may lead to cancer, although in the majority of cases, it is true but there are genetic causes also. The off-springs of individuals suffering from cancer are more susceptible to cancer because of certain mutations.
KL: Were your findings accepted by the market and what was the response from academia?
MAM: During my PhD days, we ran a clinical trial in the department of biochemistry and the department of head and neck Surgery of AIIMS. Patients with head and neck cancer were given Curcumin and the effects were studied. I found out that curcumin prevents cancer to some extent. It also reduces the size and recurrence /regrowth of cancer.
KL: After completing the successful clinical trials, things usually move to the pharma sector. Is there any such thing based on clinical trials that the market was triggered by your findings?
MAM: In India, clinical trials were done for curcumin and there are even curcumin derivative compounds in the market that are used as cancer-preventive agents. In the advanced and late stages of cancer, these compounds are not effective but they help in preventing the occurrence of cancer at the early stages.
KL: You did your Postdoc in the USA, What was your research about, and what were the major takeaways from that?
MAM: Initially I worked on pancreatic cancer under the mentorship of Dr Surinder Batra. There, I recapitulated the findings of my PhD work, that is how the natural compounds can prevent the development of cancer and decrease cancer-causing active signalling pathways present in head and neck cancer. I attempted to use the same for pancreatic cancer. My other colleague was working on a molecule called Mucin (MUC4). The findings of my PhD proved that Guggulsterone decreases the expression of Mucin/MUC4.
Expression of Muc4 in the cells increases the tendency of having more aggressive and proliferative cancer. My research study was to reduce the proliferation (Metastasis) and aggressiveness of cancer cells using Guggulsterone.
After that, I created a group of dedicated people to study head and neck cancer. I also came to know that MUC4 is expressed in around 90 per cent of cancer patients, and it causes drug resistance against cancer with time. I came to know that MUC4 is an important factor in the development and metastasis of both pancreatic as well as head and neck cancer.
Dr Muzaffar A Macha (WCCMM-IUST)
KL: What was the follow-up of your research? You must be in touch with the labs still because the scientific community remains in touch with each other. Has there been any kind of formal movement to what you did during your Postdoc?
MAM: No one worked on the MUC4 for quite a long time, but when I was inducted as an Assistant Professor, I started to work on one more molecule called NR4A2 (a transcription factor). I concluded that this molecule has a major role in causing intense pain during cancer. I along with other colleagues are working to design an inhibitor against it. We have identified three inhibitors and we are going to publish this very soon. Inhibitors reduce pain across all cancer patients to a very large extent.
Besides, we found that the pain in pancreatic cancer due to the Perineural-invasion (i.e., Cancer cells penetrate into the nerve cells), is also because of the NR4A2 molecule and can be cured with the help of inhibitors.
KL: You are currently working at the Watson-Crick Center for Molecular Medicine of the IUST. What is your individual research focus there?
MAM: In Kashmir particularly, gastrointestinal tract cancers like oesophageal cancer, stomach cancer, and colorectal cancer are more common in people among all the cancers. Kashmir has the third highest number of oesophageal cancer patients all over the world after China and some areas of Iran.
Although there has been a lot of research work on colorectal cancer and oesophageal cancer, but the actual biology and high throughput technology have not been used here in Kashmir until now. We still do not have the cell-line models and animal models which are necessary to study cancer.
My current project under the Ramalingaswami Fellowship is to develop in-vitro models in order to better study oesophageal and gastric cancers. These models can be used to study the underlying biology and molecular biology of cancer.
KL: Since your Centre is newly established, what is the present state and status of its infrastructure?
MAM: The Watson-Crick Centre for Molecular Medicine started in 2018 but the faculty recruitment was done in 2020. I along with my colleagues like Dr Rais and Dr Arsheed joined in 2020. We started from zero. There was very little infrastructure around and within less than two years, we achieved a great feat. It is all with the help from the higher authorities at the IUST. We now are at the stage of working at an extensive pace and for longer durations. Earlier we had the limitation of culture rooms here but now we almost have everything to do full-fledged research.
KL: Do you have the limitation of any major equipment because high-end research essentially needs sophisticated machinery?
MAM: We do not have high-end and high-throughput machinery, but we have basic instruments. We have procured many instruments and machines and we are in the process of procuring many other. We have an allotment of around Rs 6 crore of funding grants of which Rs 1 crore is for procuring instruments. Projects that require high-end instruments are mostly being done in collaboration with other departments or are outsourced.
KL: Many times more than one university work on the same research topic, but every university has a different vision and different priority. Is any other institution in Kashmir working on the same topic as you do?
MAM: As such, there is only one scientist at Sheri Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences working on the in-vitro models, but I do not know what stage has he reached. Importantly it is worth knowing whether you have the expertise for the research or not. During my Postdoc and Assistant professorship, I have personally made many in-vitro models, so I have the expertise to carry forward that work in our Center at the IUST.
Islamabad: The Petroleum Division has warned the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) that the stocks of petroleum products may dry up as banks are refusing to open and confirm Letters of Credit (LCs) for imports.
Like other sectors, the oil industry in Pakistan is facing hurdles to opening LCs owing to the US dollar shortage and restrictions put in place by the SBP, The Express Tribune reported.
An oil cargo of Pakistan State Oil (PSO) has already been cancelled while LC for another cargo, scheduled for loading on January 23, has not yet been confirmed.
In a letter to the SBP Governor, the Petroleum Division drew his attention towards the difficulties being faced by oil refineries and marketing companies in establishing the LCs.
According to sources, the Pak Arab Refinery Limited (Parco) has planned to import two crude oil cargoes of 535,000 barrels each but banks are not willing to open and confirm the LCs.
One crude oil cargo of 532,000 barrels for Pakistan Refinery Limited (PRL) is scheduled for loading on January 30. However, its LC has not so far been confirmed and it is being negotiated with a state-owned bank, The Express Tribune reported.
Two petrol cargoes of PSO, which are in the pipeline, are also awaiting the confirmation of LCs by local banks.
According to industry players, 18 cargoes of petrol booked by other oil marketing companies (OMCs) like GO, Be Energy, Attock Petroleum, Hascol Petroleum and others also require the opening and confirmation of LCs.
To tackle the situation, a series of meetings have been held since the second week of January.
First such huddle was convened on January 13 that highlighted the banks’ refusal to open LCs in favour of OMCs and refineries for the import of crude oil and petroleum products, The Express Tribune reported.
Four days after Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg being detained by German police during a protest against coal mine expansion in the west German village of Lützerath, the German Police has been nominated for Oscar in best supporting actor category.
Greta Thunberg was part of the large group of activists who reportedly broke through a police barrier, while police waited for “Role Camera Action” shout. Greta Thunberg encroached on a coal pit which was not entirely secured by the officials, revealed a police spokesperson.
Later the same day, Greta Thunberg posed with the German Police officials showing victory sign after the day shoot was over. The picture of Greta Thunberg with German Police Officials went viral on social media, and Oscar jury nominated the German Police officials for Oscars as a wild card entry.
The Oscar nomination were already closed but jury didn’t want to miss the epic acting of German Police and hence, selected it under wild card entry. 95th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, will honor films released in 2022 and the nominations of the same will be announced on Jan 24th.
[ Disclaimer: With inputs from The Fauxy, an entertainment portal. The content is purely for entertainment purpose and readers are advised not to confuse the articles as genuine and true, these Articles are Fictitious meant only for entertainment purposes. ]
New York: Indian-American New York City Councillor Shekar Krishnan is facing the ire of protesters for supporting drag queens reading out to children in public libraries.
Krishnan, who is the Council Member for District 25, came home last week to find anti-drag protesters shouting slurs and vandalizing the sidewalk outside his home in Jackson Heights.
“…after a meaningful day of reflection on Dr (Martin Luther) King, I came home to homophobic and transphobic protesters outside my door, again, vandalizing the sidewalk & shouting slurs with my children inside,” Krishnan wrote on his Twitter handle.
The protesters screamed “Shekar is a pedophile, he is a groomer” when his wife and children were inside the house.
“This disgusting behavior is another reminder of the work ahead of us,” Krishnan, the first Indian-American ever elected to the City Council in history, tweeted.
A civil rights lawyer and a long-time community activist, he stated that the New York City Council is committed to Drag Story Hour and to LGBTQIA+ communities across the city.
“This @NYCCouncil is committed to Drag Story Hour. With every display of hate, our commitment to love and inclusivity only grows,” Shekar wrote in his tweet.
The next Drag Story Hour in Jackson Heights is on February 24.
Krishnan was also targeted in October last year when Drag Story Hour protesters defaced his district office with spiteful graffiti.
He told CBS News that vile messages also clog his social media and phone lines because he supports Drag Story Hours, activity parents can choose for their kids or they can avoid.
Last week, drag opponents vandalized Councilman Erik Bottcher’s office and home for supporting the Drag Story Hour event in Manhattan.
Drag Story Hour protests have been on a rise in the US for the past few weeks, with demonstrators calling it “inappropriate” and that “it should not exist”.
These Drag Story Hour events usually hosted at public libraries and bookshops — are aimed at children aged between three and 11 years, to introduce them to diverse role models and LGBTQ+ people.
The first event was founded in San Francisco by LGBTQ+ author and activist Michelle Tea in 2015, who said she came up with the concept as a child-friendly way to introduce her young son to LGBTQ+ culture.
New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has filed a charge sheet against 20 members of the now-banned Popular Front of India (PFI) in connection with the murder of BJP Youth leader Praveen Nettaru in Karnataka last year.
The charge sheet has been filed before a Special NIA court in Bengaluru.
On Friday, the counter-terrorist task enforcement agency declared a reward of Rs five lakhs on two PFI members — Kodaje Mohammed Sheriff and Masud K.A.
Nettaru was murdered by PFI members on July 26, 2022, in Bellare village of Sullia Taluk in Dakshina Kannada district, with the intention to strike terror in society and create fear among the people.
Bellare Police lodged a case and was looking into the matter which was later handed over to the NIA by the Ministry of Home Affairs.
“Investigations revealed that the PFI, as part of its agenda to create terror, communal hatred and unrest in society and to further its agenda of establishing Islamic Rule by 2047, formed secret teams called Service Teams or Killer Squads to carry out killings of its ‘perceived enemies’ and targets.
“These Service Team members were given Arms as well as attack training and training in surveillance techniques in order to identify, list out, and to mount surveillance on leaders belonging to certain communities and groups. These Service Team members were further trained to kill identified targets, on the instructions of senior PFI leaders,” the NIA has said.
As per the charge sheet, a meeting of PFI members and leaders was held at Bengaluru city, Sullia Town and Bellare village, the head of the District Service Team Mustafa Paichar was instructed to do a recce, identify and target a prominent member of a particular community.
Following the instructions, four persons were recced and identified and among them was Praveen Nettaru. They killed him in full public view with lethal weapons to create terror among the people at large and especially among members of a particular community.
The accused — Mahammed Shiyab, Abdul Basheer, Riyaz, Mustafa Paichar, Masud K.A., Kodaje Mohammed Sherif, Abubakkar Siddik, Noufal. M, Ismail Shafi K, K. Mahammad Iqbal, Shaheed M, Mahammad Shafeek. G, Ummar Farook M.R., Abdul Kabeer C.A, Muhammad Ibrahim Sha, Sainul Abid. Y, Shekh Saddam Hussain, Zakiar A, N. Abdul Haris and Thufail M.H. — have been charge-sheeted under sections of 120B, 153A, 302 and 34 of IPC and sections 16, 18 and 20 of the UA (P) Act, 1967, Section 25(1)(a) of arms Act.
Among the charge-sheeted accused, Mustafa Paichar, Masud K.A., Kodaje Mohammed Sherif, Abubakkar Siddik, Ummar Farook M R, and Thufail M H are currently absconding and rewards have been declared for information leading to their arrest.
Islamabad: Pakistan shipping agents have forewarned the government that all export cargoes could come to a halt as foreign shipping lines are considering stopping their services for the country after banks stopped remitting freight charges to them for lack of dollar availability.
Apart from bordering countries, almost all the international logistics from Pakistan are catered by sea and any disruption could create serious issues for the country’s international trade, Dawn news quoted chairman of Pakistan Ship’s Agents Association (PSAA) Abdul Rauf warning Finance Minister Ishaq Dar in a letter.
“If the international trade is stopped the economic situation will worsen,” the association warned, adding that the foreign shipping lines are already considering winding up their services in Pakistan due to reduced cargo volumes.
Rauf requested the ministries and departments concerned to intervene to ensure continuity in Pakistan’s seaborne trade by allowing outward remittance of surplus freight amounts to respective foreign shipping lines forthwith.
“Due to discontinuation of outward remittance of surplus freight amounts to respective foreign shipping lines, was hampering Pakistan’s seaborne trade which is heavily dependent on foreign shipping lines,” the letter added.
However, the crisis relates to the export cargoes as all the outward trade from Pakistan is container-based, as there are no liquid or grain exports from the country, Dawn reported.
The state-owned Pakistan National Shipping Company (PNSC) only handles imports of crude oil and other petroleum fuel through its 12 vessels.
The annual freight bill of Pakistan is around $5 billion, and foreign companies receive the charges in international currencies mainly the “greenback”.
SRINAGAR: At least five persons were injured in twin mysterious blast in Narwal area of Jammu on Saturday.
Quoting a senior police officer news agency GNS reported that the blasts were reported from two vehicles, leading to injuries to five persons.
The injured have been evacuated to nearby hospital.
“The area has been cordoned off and senior police officer along with other police personnel are at the spot and further investigations are underway,” he said.
Hyderabad: One person was killed and another injured when a speeding tipper lorry hit a motorcycle at Kukatpally on Saturday.
According to the police, the deceased Vinod Kumar along with his relative Hemanth Kumar was going on a KTM bike when a tipper lorry driver crashed into them.
fell on road and suffered serious head injuries. Before the ambulance arrived, Vinod died while Hemanth could be shifted to a hospital for treatment. The incident took place near metro pillar number 822.
The Kukatpally police booked a case and took the tipper lorry driver into custody. The vehicle has been seized.
