Ever since the baffling trailer of Bawaal was released at an event in Dubai two weeks ago, fans of its lead stars Varun Dhawan and Janhvi Kapoor have been left wondering what acclaimed director Nitesh Tiwari's next offering might actually be.
Tragic love story? Time travel saga? Romantic comedy?
I am here to report that it's none of the above. In fact, I am still at a loss as to what the film actually is.
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Dhawan plays Ajay Dixit, a history teacher from Lucknow who, ashamed of his very ordinary life, builds a carefully crafted image of a confident, seemingly wealthy and popular man. As a result, he's considered something of a hero by his students and extended community, much to the exasperation of his parents.
That sham image is also how he found his wife, Nisha (Kapoor), an independent and well-educated woman who's been unable to find a husband due to a medical disorder.
But their marriage unravels on the night of their wedding. And yet, despite the "saint" Nisha being made to sleep on the floor, they stay married because Ajay needs to keep up appearances.
While the story unfolds swiftly in the first few minutes, it's when the main narrative is set up that things begin to take a strange turn.
An incident at the school forces Ajay to take off on an unplanned trip across Europe, on a Second World War trail. The ever-forgiving Nisha also tags along. Because, you know, appearances.
As the couple travel through Paris, Normandy, Amsterdam, Berlin and Auschwitz, they relive the horrors of the deadliest conflict in history. Each scene then turns into a history lesson, with Tiwari inserting dramatic black-and-white recreations of the war at each location.
The usually reliable Dhawan gives a grating performance, hamming up his exaggerated machismo to frustrating levels, while Kapoor's sacrificial Nisha is hardly given a chance to grow.
A tired Bollywood comedy schtick in the form of a colourful Gujarati family that Ajay and Nisha encounter on their travel, fails to stir any laughs either.
Tiwari co-wrote the story based off an idea by his wife, the writer and director Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari. It's baffling how the director who gave us films such as the heart-warming Chillar Party and the inspiring Dangal, would offer up this muddling tale of self-discovery that never finds itself.
Christopher Robin
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Haley Atwell, Jim Cummings, Peter Capaldi
Three stars
Did you know?
Brunch has been around, is some form or another, for more than a century. The word was first mentioned in print in an 1895 edition of Hunter’s Weekly, after making the rounds among university students in Britain. The article, entitled Brunch: A Plea, argued the case for a later, more sociable weekend meal. “By eliminating the need to get up early on Sunday, brunch would make life brighter for Saturday night carousers. It would promote human happiness in other ways as well,” the piece read. “It is talk-compelling. It puts you in a good temper, it makes you satisfied with yourself and your fellow beings, it sweeps away the worries and cobwebs of the week.” More than 100 years later, author Guy Beringer’s words still ring true, especially in the UAE, where brunches are often used to mark special, sociable occasions.
Drivers’ championship standings after Singapore:
1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes - 263
2. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari - 235
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes - 212
4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull - 162
5. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari - 138
6. Sergio Perez, Force India - 68
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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5
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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Saudi Arabia
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South Korea
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Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Company%20profile
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BRAZIL SQUAD
Alisson (Liverpool), Daniel Fuzato (Roma), Ederson (Man City); Alex Sandro (Juventus), Danilo (Juventus), Eder Militao (Real Madrid), Emerson (Real Betis), Felipe (Atletico Madrid), Marquinhos (PSG), Renan Lodi (Atletico Madrid), Thiago Silva (PSG); Arthur (Barcelona), Casemiro (Real Madrid), Douglas Luiz (Aston Villa), Fabinho (Liverpool), Lucas Paqueta (AC Milan), Philippe Coutinho (Bayern Munich); David Neres (Ajax), Gabriel Jesus (Man City), Richarlison (Everton), Roberto Firmino (Liverpool), Rodrygo (Real Madrid), Willian (Chelsea).
Zakat definitions
Zakat: an Arabic word meaning ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’.
Nisab: the minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to pay zakat. Traditionally, the nisab threshold was 87.48 grams of gold, or 612.36 grams of silver. The monetary value of the nisab therefore varies by current prices and currencies.
Zakat Al Mal: the ‘cleansing’ of wealth, as one of the five pillars of Islam; a spiritual duty for all Muslims meeting the ‘nisab’ wealth criteria in a lunar year, to pay 2.5 per cent of their wealth in alms to the deserving and needy.
Zakat Al Fitr: a donation to charity given during Ramadan, before Eid Al Fitr, in the form of food. Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of the needs of themselves and their family must pay two qadahs (an old measure just over 2 kilograms) of flour, wheat, barley or rice from each person in a household, as a minimum.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Barcelona v Liverpool, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE).
Second leg
Liverpool v Barcelona, Tuesday, May 7, 11pm
Games on BeIN Sports
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Profile of Foodics
Founders: Ahmad AlZaini and Mosab AlOthmani
Based: Riyadh
Sector: Software
Employees: 150
Amount raised: $8m through seed and Series A - Series B raise ongoing
Funders: Raed Advanced Investment Co, Al-Riyadh Al Walid Investment Co, 500 Falcons, SWM Investment, AlShoaibah SPV, Faith Capital, Technology Investments Co, Savour Holding, Future Resources, Derayah Custody Co.
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
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