Socialite sisters Kim and Khloe Kardashian were among the global celebrities spotted in India on Friday to attend a lavish three-day wedding ceremony staged by Asia’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani.
Ambani’s youngest son Anant and fiancee Radhika Merchant, both 29, will tie the knot over the weekend in the financial capital of Mumbai following months of pre-marriage parties that have set a new benchmark in matrimonial extravagance.
Earlier celebrations included a European cruise for 1,200 guests, a purpose-built Hindu temple at the Ambani family’s ancestral home and private performances by R&B star Rihanna and Canada’s Justin Bieber.
The Kardashians are the latest in a long line of famous foreign VIPs to make an appearance.
Elder sister Kim shared an Instagram story showing her car mobbed by Indian photographers shortly after her arrival and both siblings receiving flower garlands from staff at their luxury hotel.
Former British prime ministers Boris Johnson and Tony Blair were also spotted by reporters arriving at Mumbai airport ahead of the party beginning later on Friday.
In June, the couple embarked on a four-day Mediterranean cruise, where singer Katy Perry performed at a masquerade ball at a French chateau in Cannes.
The Backstreet Boys, US rapper Pitbull and Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli also provided entertainment.
Guests at earlier galas have included Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and former US president Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka, along with a who’s who of India’s sporting and entertainment worlds.
This week’s opulent celebrations are set to raise the bar, with even more celebrities, politicians and global business elites jetting into the monsoon-hit megacity of Mumbai.
Former US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, boxing star Mike Tyson and actor John Cena are among the other names rumoured to be attending.
Anant’s father Mukesh is chairman of Reliance Industries, a family-founded conglomerate that has grown into India’s biggest company by market cap.
The patriarch is the world’s 11th richest person with a fortune of more than $113 billion, according to Forbes, and is no stranger to making a statement when it comes to family marriages.
He held the most expensive wedding in India to date for his daughter in 2018, which reportedly cost $100 million and saw US singer Beyonce perform.
Ambani is also a key ally of India’s right-wing Hindu nationalist leader, Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
He inherited a thriving industrial enterprise spanning oil, gas and petrochemicals and grew it into a commercial behemoth with lucrative interests in retail, telecommunications and an Indian Premier League cricket team.
His 27-floor family home Antilia is one of Mumbai’s most prominent landmarks, reportedly costing more than $1 billion to build and with a permanent staff of 600 servants.
Merchant is the daughter of well-known pharmaceutical moguls.
Kunle Afolayan’s Mother Passes On: A Tribute to a Pillar of Strength
The Nigerian film industry has been thrown into mourning as Nollywood actor and director, Kunle Afolayan, loses his mother.
According to reports, Kunle Afolayan’s mother, Mrs. Afolayan, passed away on at the age of 81. The cause of her death is yet to be disclosed.
Kunle Afolayan took to his social media page to announce the passing of his mother, saying: “My dearest mother, I will miss you so much. You were my rock, my confidante, and my best friend. I will never forget the sacrifices you made for me and the love you showed me. Rest in peace, mama.”
The news of Kunle Afolayan’s mother’s passing has sent shockwaves through the Nigerian film industry, with many of his colleagues and fans taking to social media to express their condolences.
“Kunle, my brother, I’m so sorry to hear about the passing of your mother,” wrote actor, Ramsey Nouah. “May she rest in peace and may God give you the strength to bear the loss.”
Kunle Afolayan’s mother was a pillar of strength and support to him throughout his career, and her passing will be deeply felt by him and his family.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has given reasons for re-arresting controversial crossdresser Idris Olanrewaju Okuneye, known as Bobrisky.
Speaking in a telephone conversation on Friday morning, the EFCC spokesman, Mr Dele Oyewale, said the self-styled ‘Mummy of Lagos’ was arrested because he refused to honour several invitations sent to him.
Oyewale noted that the crossdresser was arrested in connection with the allegation of bribery against him.
“We arrested him last night and we took him to Abuja because our team investigators are in Abuja,” the EFCC spokesman said.
He continued: “He was trying to run away from mentioning those he said collected bribes from him. We sent him an invitation, but he refused to honour our invitation, and he was trying to leave the country.
“This was why we arrested him. We want him to come and mention the names of the officials involved in the bribery, but he has not shown up.”
The Guardian gathered Friday afternoon that Bobrisky has been flown to Abuja to answer questions relating to allegations of bribery and corruption.
Bobrisky was stopped and removed from an Amsterdam-bound KLM flight at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos and detained by immigration officers late Thursday night while attempting to leave the country for London, the United Kingdom.
The popular crossdresser posted on his Instagram page to alert followers about the arrest, stating that he had sustained injuries during an altercation with the immigration officers.
Bobrisky alleged that the EFCC was responsible for his detention.
He wrote, “Nigerians help me, EFCC just arrested me. I’m badly injured.”
Bobrisky had, in a voice note shared by a controversial social critic, Martins Otse (aka VeryDarkMan) allegedly said he bribed EFCC officers with N15 million to drop money laundering charges against him.
Although the EFCC denied the allegations, it set up a committee to investigate the matter.
At a press briefing on Thursday, the Director of Public Affairs, Wilson Uwajaren, had hinted that Bobrisky could face a fresh charge from the commission if the allegations against the EFCC were false.
Uwujaren stated that one could be charged for giving false information to the EFCC, let alone making false allegations against the commission.
As the weekend approaches, many of us are looking for a way to get into the spooky spirit. One of the best ways to do this is by watching a scary movie. Here are some spooky movies from 2020 to 2024 that are perfect for watching this weekend:
2020 Spooky Movies
The Invisible Man (2020): This movie is a modern retelling of the classic H.G. Wells novel, and it follows a woman who escapes from an abusive relationship, only to be haunted by her ex-boyfriend, who has become invisible.
Gretel & Hansel (2020): This movie is a dark retelling of the classic fairy tale, Hansel and Gretel. It follows a brother and sister who are lost in the woods and come across a witch who has sinister intentions.
The Lodge (2020): This movie follows a family who becomes trapped in a remote cabin with a sinister presence.
Antebellum (2020): This movie follows a detective who must solve a series of murders that are connected to a mysterious figure from the past.
2021 Spooky Movies
Candyman (2021): This movie is a sequel to the 1992 classic, and it follows a group of friends who are haunted by the vengeful spirit of Candyman.
The Night House (2021): This movie follows a widow who discovers that her recently deceased husband was hiding a dark secret.
Those Who Wish Me Dead (2021): This movie follows a smokejumper who must protect a young boy from a pair of assassins in the wilderness.
The Forever Purge (2021): This movie is the fifth installment in the Purge franchise, and it follows a group of people who must survive a night of chaos and violence.
2022 Spooky Movies
Scream (2022): This movie is a reboot of the classic franchise, and it follows a group of friends who are being stalked by a masked killer.
The Black Phone (2022): This movie follows a young boy who is kidnapped by a serial killer and must use a mysterious phone to escape.
Barbarian (2022): This movie follows a woman who books a rental home, only to discover that it is already occupied by a strange man.
Smile (2022): This movie follows a woman who is haunted by a mysterious smile that seems to be spreading to those around her.
2023 Spooky Movies
M3GAN (2023): This movie follows a robotic doll that becomes self-aware and starts to wreak havoc on its owner’s life.
The Pope’s Exorcist (2023): This movie follows a priest who is tasked with performing an exorcism on a young boy.
The Last Voyage of the Demeter (2023): This movie is a horror film based on the true story of the Demeter, a ship that was said to be haunted by vampires.
Insidious: The Red Door (2023): This movie is the fifth installment in the Insidious franchise, and it follows a family who must navigate a haunted house.
2024 Spooky Movies
The Exorcist: Believer (2024): This movie is a sequel to the 1973 classic, and it follows a group of people who are haunted by a demonic presence.
The Conjuring 4 (2024): This movie is the fourth installment in the Conjuring franchise, and it follows a pair of paranormal investigators who must solve a series of mysterious events.
A Quiet Place: Day One (2024): This movie is a prequel to the 2018 film, and it follows a family as they navigate a post-apocalyptic world where monsters that hunt by sound have taken over.
Hellraiser: Inferno (2024): This movie is a reboot of the Hellraiser franchise, and it follows a group of people who are haunted by the vengeful spirit of Pinhead.
These are just a few of the many spooky movies that you can watch this weekend. Whether you’re in the mood for a classic horror film or a modern thriller, there’s something on this list for everyone.
Reflecting on his family commitment, he said, “But more importantly than I am a husband and a father. We just had our second child, who is an amazing young boy.”
Banky W and Adesua married in South Africa in November 2017.
They welcomed their first child, Hazaiah Olusegun Wellington, in 2021.
US rapper Young Thug freed after guilty plea in street gang case
Rapper Young Thug was released from jail Thursday after pleading guilty to involvement in a criminal gang as well as drug and firearms charges, an abrupt twist to the longest trial in the history of the southern US state of Georgia.
The 33-year-old Atlanta artist, born Jeffery Lamar Williams, was one of 28 alleged street gang members indicted in May 2022 on racketeering and other charges.
Prosecutors accused Young Thug of being the leader of YSL, or Young Slime Life, a part of the Bloods gang, and charged him with violating state racketeering laws.
The underlying offenses in the racketeering indictment included murder, assault, carjacking, drug dealing and theft.
The Grammy-winning rapper pleaded no contest to racketeering charges and no contest to being a leader of a criminal street gang, but guilty to six other counts including firearms and drug charges.
The New York Times reported he was sentenced to time served and 15 years of probation by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Paige Reese Whitaker, who replaced a previous judge who presided over the protracted trial.
Online Fulton County jail records showed Young Thug was released Thursday in a listing under his birth name. The disposition of the charges were listed as “time served” or “probation” on the database listing.
Jury selection in the case began in January 2023 but opening arguments were not held until November 27 of that year.
During opening arguments, prosecutors said Young Thug’s record label, YSL, was a front for a crime ring and he was the leader.
“The evidence will show that YSL checks all of the boxes for being a criminal street gang,” Fulton County prosecutor Adriane Love said.
Love read verses from Young Thug’s track “Take It To Trial,” saying the lyrics the prosecution had identified had “an uncanny similarity to very true, and very real, and quite specific events.”
“We didn’t chase the lyrics to solve the murder, we chased the murder and found the lyrics,” she said.
The defense insisted that YSL stands for Young Stoner Life Records, a hip-hop label that Young Thug founded in 2016 and which, they say, amounts to a vague association of artists, not a gang.
Defense attorneys had sought to exclude lyrics from evidence, saying that “rap is the only fictional art form treated this way.”
A rap vanguard essential to the Atlanta scene, Young Thug is one of contemporary hip-hop’s most famous and most idiosyncratic figures.
BREAKING: Popular Yoruba Actor, Charles Olumo ‘Agbako’ is Dead
Veteran Nollywood actor Abdulsalam Sanyaolu, better known by his stage names Charles Olumo and Agbako, has passed away, leaving a profound legacy in Nigeria’s film industry. The sad news of Agbako’s death was shared by fellow actor Jide Kosoko in a heartfelt Instagram post on Thursday.
Although Kosoko did not disclose the details surrounding Agbako’s death, he paid tribute with a simple and poignant message: “Good night ooo, Baba Charles. a.k.a Agbako, 102 years, ba wasa ba. R I P,” indicating the actor’s remarkable longevity and vibrant spirit.Born on February 19, 1923, in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Agbako had a fascinating journey before finding his calling in acting. He initially worked as a mechanic and even dabbled in amateur boxing, displaying his multi-talented nature. In 1953, he took a decisive step towards acting, beginning his career with a drama group at the Apostolic Church in Mushin, Lagos State.
This was a turning point, as he soon became a beloved figure in Nigerian theater and, later, in Yoruba cinema.
Agbako’s impact on the film industry is legendary, particularly in the Yoruba-speaking regions, where his powerful performances captivated audiences.
Over the years, he starred in many popular films that cemented his status as a household name, including ‘Taxi Driver,’ ‘Jagun,’ ‘Amin Orun,’ ‘Aiye,’ ‘Jayesinmi,’ ‘Soworo Ide,’ and ‘Igbo Dudu.’ Each role showcased his versatility and skill, earning him a devoted fan base and respect from colleagues and viewers alike.
His career spanned over four decades, highlighting not only his enduring passion for acting but also his ability to adapt to the changing landscape of the film industry.
Known for his memorable performances and unique style, Agbako leaves behind an indelible mark on Nollywood and will be fondly remembered as one of the pioneers of Yoruba cinema.
His passing at the age of 102 is a reminder of a life well-lived and a career that inspired countless others.