Sunday, March 4, 2018

COVE

R STORY

PG 2&

3

LLEWELLYN FLORESDOHA

ISIT the Hotel Park on a Friday morning and you are most likely to come across young roller- skaters whizzing past on the concrete pathways. Or perhaps,

see some wobbling as they try to maintain their balance.

These youngsters, some as young as three, have become a club of skaters trained by Naoussi Kemgang Nazaire Gery, an avid roller skater.

A 26-year-old Cameroonian, Gery, himself started skating at a young age. “My parents bought me my first pair of

skating shoes when I was turning four and I started skating then,” he said. After showing some promise in the sport, he was introduced to a coach when he was five which led to two Federation Camer-ounaise de Patins à Roulettes (Fecapar) championship trophies in the junior cat-egory of speed skating, jump and slalom. The first he won in 2010 and the second in 2011.

Although he is no longer competing, Gery’s passion for the sport persisted. He came to Qatar in 2011 with the objective of establishing a roller-skating community in the country. “Through internet research, I realised Qatar didn’t have any roller-skat-ing community. That was my main reason to travel to Qatar, to bring my passion for roller-skating to this country.”

Naoussi Kemgang Nazaire Gery giving his young wards pointers.

(Top and bottom) Young roller-skaters compete at the first Qatar Roller-skating Championship.

Once in Qatar, Gery became a common sight in different parks in Doha spending most of his time skating. “I trained most of my friends and convinced them to join the sport,” he said. This is while keeping a job as Assistant Manager at SH Al Mana. “A lot of people showed interest. Some of them happened to be coaches,” he added.

Gery trained enthusiasts at sports complexes, residential compounds and parks across the country. “The community that did not exist, began to grow and now we have a population of roller-skaters in Qatar. This is something that I am very happy to see in this country,” he said.

In 2014, Gery finally established Gery’s Sports also known as Qatar Roller Skat-ing. It became a registered organisation in 2017. Gery’s Sports aims to turn Qatar into one of the biggest roller-skating communi-ty in the Middle East and train children to become future athletes representing Qatar in world championships.

“Our objective is to use roller-skating as a way of promoting health and fitness with a promise of fun for the entire family,” Gery said. “Our company believes that with our highly qualified and passionate team of coaches, roller-skating will become one of Qatar’s favourite sports.”

On National Sport Day, Gery’s Sports launched the first roller-skating champi-onship in Qatar that took place at Al Ahli Sports Club. It had over 50 participants competing and over 200 spectators. See-ing the product of their hard work and perseverance, Gery said, “I felt emotional, happy and proud of what we have achieved because of our passion for roller-skating – the first edition of the roller-skating cham-pionship in Qatar.”

Roller-skating has many types. Gery’s Sports focuses on inline skating – a multi-disciplinary sport that uses skates with wheels arranged in a single line. It now coaches children and adults in its different types such as speed, slalom and fitness-skating in more than 25 schools. It also conducts training sessions at public parks.

Inline speed-skating is a competitive form of skating in which the competi-tors race each other in travelling a certain distance while slalom skating involves performing tricks around a straight line of equally spaced cones. Fitness-skating is skating for a specified length of time. “It’s a great fat-burning exercise,” said Gery of the sport. “It’s good for the mood, works the arms and legs, great at improving bal-ance, agility and coordination, improves endurance, and can be done anywhere.”

Gery added that “roller-skating can be a way of life.” The sport benefits not just the body but also the person’s well-being. And it is easy enough to engage in. The equipment needed is relatively cheap and the venue where it can be practised – parks and practically any open, solid and flat surface – are free. Also, age is not a barrier in learning the sport.

Thirty-year-old Amal said, “I never knew I could still be able to skate at this age. I thought it was only for kids. But Gery

convinced me that there is no maximum age in learning to skate. Today, I can skate very well.”

The basic equipment needed for inline skating are shoes, helmet and elbow, hand

and knee pads. But often people fail to choose the appropriate accessories, Gery said. “All they have to do is call us and we can guide them on what to buy. They can send us a picture of the item they have

selected and we can confirm if it’s the ap-propriate equipment to get,” he added.

Seeing the children he teaches skate in parks, brings Gery pride and joy. He said, “Roller-skating can teach children disci-pline and help make them stronger. It also gives them a sense of belonging and that empowers children.”

The children are equally proud of their achievement and grateful for having learned the skill. “If today I can skate well, it’s because of Gery,” said Nord Anglia International School student Ahmed al Jaber. He is grateful that he can now skate backwards.

Aarya, on the other hand, who was able to complete a 23 on-km round track – from Old Airport to Hamad International Airport and back to the Old Airport – said, “I didn’t think I was capable of doing that. I am so proud of that achievement.”

Gery is also proud that Gery’s Sports has become a part of sports development in Qatar. But he intends to take roller-skating in the country farther. “We hope to see Qatar generating its own competitive roller-skating, world class athletes.”

Those interested in enrolling themselves or their children for roller-skating lessons may contact Gery’s Sports at 30171264 or info@rollerskatingqatar.com. For more information about the organisation, visit www.rollerskat-ingqatar.com.

Winners in the first Qatar Roller-skating Championship held at Al Ahli Sports Club On National Sport Day.

Young roller-skaters get ready for a race at the first Qatar Roller-skating Championship held during National Sport Day.

Gery trains young roller-skaters indoors.

E is a full-blooded Filipino but his heart is set on cook-ing Japanese dishes. Chef Dionysus “Jojo” Garados Geva of the D’Chopstix Res-

taurant in Holiday Villa Doha Hotel & Residences has been dishing out Japa-nese delicacies since 1997.

The native of Bicol Province is proud about his humble beginnings that led him to pursue a career as a chef despite lacking a formal educa-tion. He said his talent and skills in concocting the best sushi and tempuras is driven by his experience in various Japanese restaurants in Manila and abroad. Satisfaction of his diners is his top priority.

“Why specialise in Japanese food? Because it was one of the best cuisines that I learned that brought out my creative side. Whenever I prepare any Japanese food, I make sure to do it to the satisfaction of my guests and with thoughts of my family back home. I make sure to always cook from the heart,” Jojo told Qatar Tribune in an interview.

But Jojo’s culinary journey is far from the typi-cal story of someone who really desires to venture into the field. In fact, he said, he never thought he would be wearing a chef’s hat someday.

“I don’t have any formal education in cooking. I took up automotive repairs in college but I was not able to land a proper job with that. When I left our province to try my luck in Manila, I ended up doing construction work. And then I landed a job as a security guard in a Japanese restaurant. But when an opening for a steward (dishwasher) position came, I grabbed it and that’s where I had my first at-tempt at a job in the kitchen. Then I was given a chance to work in the preparations section until I became a cook,” he said.

Jojo started as a cook in Sugi Japa-nese Restaurant in Manila in 1997 and continued till 2004. He honed his skills by working in different sections in a Japanese kitchen. And then he was given a chance to work abroad in a restaurant in Saipan called Kimpanchi Japanese Restaurant. He also worked in

other Japanese restaurants abroad and then went back to Manila to further his culinary education.

Despite doing well, he grabbed an-other opportunity to work abroad but this time away from his comfort zone of Japanese food. He tried his hand at preparing other cuisines as a private chef for one of the most prominent

families in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. He stayed with the family for a few years, learning the Arabian menu until he saw an opportunity to go back to cooking his first love - Japanese food at a hotel in Qatar.

Jojo has been with Holiday Villa Doha Hotel & Residences since July last year. He feels grateful for the opportunity given to share his passion with the diners of the hotel.

“Filipino chefs are more flexible. While we take pride in what we do, as do most chefs, we tend to listen more to our diners. If the

guests have negative comments on our food, we will not insist on our standards but instead go back to the kitchen and make sure to return with a dish that would bring smiles to their faces,” said Jojo.

“Filipino chefs are also friendly and don’t mind sharing our knowledge with others in the kitchen. Here in the hotel, where I am currently working, I am happy with the camaraderie of the chefs and those who work in the kitchen. We are like one family,” he added.

While enjoying his work in Qatar, Jojo said his ultimate dream is to be an entrepreneur. He wants to open up Chef Dionysus “Jojo” Garados Geva at work.

Reports by Ailyn Agonia

For events and press releases email

qatar.editor@gmail.com or call (974) 44422077

HE Philippine Institute of Civil En-gineers, Qatar Chapter (PICE-Q) in-ducted its new set of office-bearers.

The officers who were elected dur-ing the 11th PICE-Q General Assembly, last year, were sworn into office by Atty. Roussel Reyes, First Secretary and Consul General at the Philippine Embassy Doha. They were formally introduced to the PICE-Q members at the event.

The roster of officials who will lead the activities of the professional group this year is headed by President Aileen A Buenaflor. Others include Alden P Cayaga (1st Vice-President), Luisito S Carlos (2nd Vice-President), Elvin D Fajutagana (Secretary), Ma. Michelle A Revillosa (Treasurer), Sheila Medel (Auditor), Felipe D Catinoy (Business Manager), Russel D Flores (Public Relations Officer) and Belinda E Dela Cruz (Sergeant-At-Arms).

The PICE-Q Committees for 2018 are headed by Medel F Dalida (Com-mittee on Membership), Newcesar T Templonuevo (Committee on Ways and Means), Emilio M Manalo (Committee on PICE Qatar Affairs), Bernard Y De Vera (Committee on Honors and Profes-sional Licensure Examination), Loraine C Radan (Committee on Continuing Professional Advancement) and Alfonso Belito C Betita (Committee on Publica-tions and Information).

Reyes, who also served as the guest

speaker during the induction ceremony, cited the organisation’s accomplish-ments in the previous years which

earned them the Best International Chapter Awards for Best Newsletter and Public Service. He also lauded the

organisations support to the govern-ment and to its fellow countrymen as evident by its various public service programmes including scholarship and green school building to name a few.

Following the induction ceremony, PICE-Q also organised a beach clean-up drive in coordination with Qatar Petro-leum, in Dukhan. Forty-five members of PICE-Q together with their families sup-ported the campaign dubbed ‘Save Life Below Water’. The ocean conservation drive was carried-out under the auspices of the PICE-Q’s Committee on PICE Qatar Affairs chaired by Emilio M Manalo. The activity was one of the many community service initiatives the organisation plans to undertake this year for the host country and also in the Philippines.

his own restaurant in the Philippines, a Japanese restaurant, of course! He said that he has started saving up for his dream business that he hopes to realise in a few years.

When asked what is the proper way of preparing tempura which is a very common Japanese dish, Jojo gave some pointers in proper handling and clean-ing of shrimp and the right tempera-ture of the oil so as not to overcook the seafood coated with perfectly seasoned batter. But the most important tip, he said, is cooking your tem-pura with feeling. “Fry the shrimps with love!”, Jojo said fondly.

Chef Dionysus “Jojo” Garados Geva at his work station in D’Chopstix Restaurant in Holiday Villa Doha Hotel.

PICE-Q members cleaning the Dukhan beach.

k d i h i d i d h h B I i l

New PICE-Q office-bearers inducted by Consul General Atty. Roussel Reyes.

Handing over of presidency of PICE-Q from former president Allen Nicario (right) to newly elected President Aileen Buenaflor

atter. But the most mportant tip, he said,s cooking your tem-ura with feeling. “Fry he shrimps with love!”,ojo said fondly.

Tempura

TRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK

HE Indian Ladies Achieve-ment Awards (ILA Awards), a first initiative of its kind, was launched recently in celebration of womanhood and to recognise

the contribution of Indian women in vari-ous fields.

ILA Awards provides a unique plat-form to women from India, who are residents of Qatar, to be recognised for their talent and efforts. This award is a great way to honour the contribution of women who have excelled in their re-spective fields, which will inspire future generations of women to achieve their full potential.

The guests of honour at the launch and award ceremonies were:

Asma Al Ghanem & Partners Found-ing Partner Advocate Asma Muftah al Ghanem

National Human Rights Committee of Qatar Legal Consultant Hala al Ali

Qatar Professional Women Network-ing Head Susie Billings, and,

Qatar Women of the Year Awardee Maryam Ahmad al Bishri

ILA Awards were presented by the guests of honour along with the Lizzie Andrews Memorial Trust Trustees Hema M Pereira and Ushas Andrews. The inau-gural ILA Awards were instituted by the Lizzie Andrews Memorial Trust, a socio-organisation of Kerala, working for the needy and poor in India.

Six Indian women from different

categories won the award. The recipients of these awards are women from various walks of life, who have achieved success and led by example.

Indian Cultural Center (ICC) Presi-dent Milan Arun received the ILA Award of Community Services, for her outstand-ing leadership and support extended to the Indian community and as the first woman president of the ICC. A self-made woman at the helm of affairs of the ICC is indeed a moment of pride for all working women, who not just contribute towards the welfare of their families but also the society equally, dedicating their ener-gies and resources to personal as well as professional life.

Recipients of ILA Award of Humanitarian Services were;

Dr. Smitha Anilkumar (for her dedicated medical assistance to the community through medical camps, awareness classes and labour camp visits), and,

National Cancer Center for Care and Research Case Manager Rati Pillai (for her dedication and loyalty towards the sick and the needy. Also being part of cancer awareness pro-grammes, she was able to educate and console many of the patients and their families in the community)

Thankom Thomas received the ILA Award of Philanthropist (for her

efforts as a silent benefactor of the community) .Through her charitable foundation she has silently reached out to many underprivileged and needy people, and directly created positive change in the life of many families.

ILA Award of Entrepreneur Excellence was presented to Kausar Hassan a leading businesswoman. Earlier recipient of NEEDS-Mumbai Entrepreneur Award and One of the Hundred Super Women of the Middle East By Gray Matters (UAE) (for her outstanding and stellar achievements in the business world)

Crunch Doha owner and Co-founder Saima Bhukhari won the ILA Award of Emerging Entrepreneur (as a rising star and a promising future in the business industry)

During the launch of the award, and as a tribute to the host country the ILA Award of Academic Excellence was presented to Maryam A al Bishri, a Reservoir Engineer at Qatar Petro-leum, who graduated from Texas A&M University at Qatar with a bachelor’s degree in Petroleum Engineering and a minor in Geology. She was also a recipient of Qatar Today Women of the Year Award for Female Engineer of the year. In 2016, she was awarded for her excellent academic perform-ance by the Qatar Petroleum CEO and President.

The event was compeered by Usha Ravishankar. The launch and the award ceremony was followed by a musical en-tertainment by Malini Gopan and Shabit.

((Standing top from left) Asma Muftah al Ghanem, Maryam Ahmad al Bishri, Sussie Billings, Hala al Ali, Hema Mervin Pereira, Usha Ravishankar (and, standing below from left) Ushas Andrews, Smitha Anil Kumar, Kausar Hassan, Milan Arun, Rati Pillai, Thankom Thomas, Saima Bukhari and Asandra Andrews

(From left) Maryam Ahmad al Bishri, Hala al Ali, Ushas Andrews, Hema Mervin Pereira and Usha Ravis-hankar

(Standing top from left) Asandra Andrews, Maryam Ahmad al Bishri, Sussie Billings, Hala al Ali, Asma Muftah al Ghanem, Hema Mervin Pereira, Usha Ravishankar (and, standing below from left) Ushas An-drews, Smitha Anil Kumar, Kausar Hassan, Milan Arun, Rati Pillai, Thankom Thomas and Saima Bukhari

TRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK

HE Doha Chapter of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) elected the new managing committee for the year 2018 at their

36th Annual General Meeting recently. More than 100 members representing various business institu-tions attended the meeting.

Rupalakshmi Setty was elected as the chair-person. The other members of the new executive committee are Rukkaiya Pachisa, vice-chairperson; Sandeep Chowdhary, Secretary and Nirlep Bhatt, Treasurer, along with Jithu Koshy, Ankit Agarwal, Abdul Nassar and Jaison PT as Members of the Committee.

The chair and the vice-chair both being women is a proud moment for ICAI Doha Chapter and an example for other institutions. The year 2017 under the Chairmanship of Gaurav Kakkar was full of activities and benefits to its members and for the second time in the row ICAI Doha was the proud recipient of Best Overseas Chapter award by ICAI under Category II.

TRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK

IRLA Public School distributed the hall tickets to the XII Board examinees for the year 2018, in a ceremony held recently.

The function was graced by Chairman Lukose Chacko, who was also the chief guest, Directors Mohan Thomas and CV Rappai, life member Naray-anan, school authorities, parents, teachers and well-wishers. The programme began with the school prayer rendered by Malavika of the 2018 class, fol-lowed by the lighting of the lamp by the dignitaries.

Class representatives from all the sections of Class XII addressed the audience, revisiting memo-ries and expressing gratitude to all academic and non-academic facilitators of the school. This was followed by the distribution of the hall tickets to all the students.

An inspiring message was given by V P Radhika Rele. The highlight of the programme was the sol-emn ‘Passing the Light’ ceremony, where teachers lit the candles held by students, to the accompani-

ment of hymns. It was followed by a special prayer rendered by the Senior Vice-Principal Shirly Rappai who had earlier initiated the candle ceremony.

The chief guest and the principal addressed the

students encouraging and blessing the students for the Board exams, as also in their future endeavours.

The programme concluded with a motivational speech by Vasantha Mareth.

The 8th batch of Class XII students of Birla Public School gathered to receive hall tickets for their Board exams starting on March 5

Chairman Lukose K Chacko and other Board officials, flanked by Principal AP Sharma, Senior Vice-Principal Shirly Rappai, and Vice-Principals George Edison and Radhika Rele give away hall tickets to Class XII students

BPS Chairman Lukose K Chacko lighting the lamp and inaugurating the function with other Board officials

Teachers “Passing the Light” to students, to the accompaniment of hymns

TRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK

PS-MODERN Indian School hosted inform-ative sessions on the topic ‘Basic First Aid and CPR Procedures’

recently for its senior teaching and non-teaching staff to equip them with essential skills needed to handle an emergency.

The workshop, conducted by Hamad International Training Centre officials Alice George, MS Jini Joy and Siddiqui pro-vided knowledge needed to recognise, prevent and respond to cardiovascular emergencies in adults, children and infants, cardio-pulmonary resuscita-tion (CPR) and other topics such as choking, foreign-body

airway obstruction, breathing emergencies, and prevention of disease transmission. Par-ticipants had the opportunity to learn the skills of hands-only CPR, a life-saving activity that calls on people to act in critical situations. They practised chest compressions on mannequins and received instant construc-tive and corrective feedback.

TRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK

HE Qatar Chapter of the Institution of Engineers (In-dia) organised a full-day workshop on ‘Flow Network Design and Surge Analysis’ at Oryx Rotana recently.

Eminent speaker, Professor Arun Moharir, Chemical Engineering Department, Indian Institute of Technol-ogy, Mumbai, conducted four technical sessions on flow networks design and surge analysis with various real-life examples on utility (steam, potable water, cooling water etc.) networks in process plant, potable water supply utility networks, chilled water networks of district cool-ing systems and cross-country transportation networks

for petroleum products & natural gas. He also presented case studies using PAnORaMA (Piping Analysis, Opera-tions Research and Maintenance Application) developed at IIT Mumbai.

As many as 40 engineers benefitted from the workshop. Asim Anwar, Third Secretary, Embassy of India graced the function as chief guest and felicitated the speaker.

On this occasion, IIT Mumbai announced special dis-count for online Piping Engineering Certificate Course to members of IEI Qatar Chapter. Those interested can register within one month to avail of the special offer.

For enquiry, email to: ieiqatar@gmail.com and gvk-shmi@iitb.ac.in

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TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

ATE in the World War II drama Darkest Hour, Winston Churchill – played, in case you hadn’t heard, by Gary Old-man – delivers his famous ‘We

shall fight on the beaches’ speech in the House of Commons, a piece of oration so rousing that it brings his listeners to their feet.

For a moment ripped from the pages of history, the scene feels curiously pro-phetic: less a blast from the past than a dress rehearsal for Oscar night.

If he wins the Academy Award for lead actor on March 4, as he is widely expected to do, Oldman will likely earn another standing ovation, this time while wearing a tuxedo rather than a fat suit and prosthetics.

The same goes for Frances McDor-mand, Sam Rockwell and Allison Janney, heavily favoured to win the Oscars for Lead Actress, Supporting Actor and Sup-porting Actress, respectively. All four have already triumphed at the Critics’ Choice Awards, the Golden Globes, the Screen Actors Guild Awards and the British Acad-emy Film Awards, a rare confluence of press and industry opinion that is almost certain to repeat itself once more at the Oscars, to much applause if also a weary-ing sense of anti-climax.

Not everyone will find it wearying, of course. Those who believe that the year’s most indelible feats of big-screen acting can be found in Darkest Hour, I, Tonya and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri will join the applause without hesitation. And even those who don’t might be heartened by the recognition of veterans as respected as Oldman, McDor-mand, Rockwell and Janney.

Is it petty, then, to long for an upset or two? To wish that those prior awards ceremonies had supplied a less unani-mous, more interesting set of responses? Was there not a voting body that felt inclined to shed some well-deserved light on, say, Sally Hawkins for The Shape of Water, Mary J Blige for Mudbound or Willem Dafoe for The Florida Project? Was it ageism that kept them from bestowing a prize on either of the two most exciting dis-coveries of the year, Timo-thee Chalamet in Call Me by Your Name and Daniel Kaluuya in Get Out?

Every awards season tends to converge toward predict-able outcomes. Even still, the near-unprece-dented degree to which the same four actors have steam-rolled their competi-tion strikes me as an unusually

misguided example of the consensus machine working overtime. It’s not that the performances given by Oldman, McDormand, Rockwell and Janney –

wonderful actors all, it scarcely needs

mentioning –

are without their individual merits. But lauded together, over and over again, they amount to a skewed, lazy and finally unrepresentative sampling of what was an exceptionally rich and varied year in movie acting.

Is it pure coincidence that McDor-mand, Janney, Oldman and Rockwell all played such fierce, stubborn, self-isolating characters? Fictional or fact-based, these men and women always seem at war with the world around them – none more liter-ally than Oldman’s Churchill, bickering with his allies, seething at his rivals and ultimately defying Adolf Hitler himself, all while giving a master class in scenery chewing to make the Blitz look restrained by comparison.

The stakes may be less world-shattering in I, Tonya, but Janney’s LaVona Golden – the perpetual devil on the shoulder of her celebrity daughter, Tonya Harding – seems to inhabit her own zone of angry solitude. She’s a self-styled truth teller in a world overrun by bullies and phonies.

Something similar could be said of McDormand’s Mildred Hayes and Rock-well’s Officer Dixon in Three Billboards (From left): Gary Oldman, Allison Janney and Sam Rockwell.

Outside Ebbing, Missouri, two unfriendly small-town outcasts and staunch adver-saries who reluctantly join forces in their bitter pursuit of justice.

WINNING FORMULAThe cumulative ferocity of these

performances is worth noting, in part, because it plays into the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ long-standing tendency to mistake aggressiveness for depth, to equate the showiest, most arresting and physically transformative acting with the best.

But to their credit, academy voters have also proved admi-rably willing to resist those more-is-more impulses, especially in recent years. Think of Mahershala Ali winning the sup-porting actor Oscar for his quietly tran-scendent performance in Moonlight, or Patricia Arquette earning supporting actress for her moving, flash-free work in Boyhood. The academy will always love its dazzling star turns and its disease-of-the-week histrionics, but it clearly also has voters who are willing to appreciate nuance and avoid the obvious.

This year there seems to be no avoid-ing Janney, whose acidly funny per-formance might be the best thing about I, Tonya but is far from the best thing nominated for supporting actress. Jan-ney makes a memorable Gorgon, to be sure, but she also reduces LaVona to a cardboard grotesque, the kind of side-show that can’t hold a candle to Laurie Metcalf’s infinitely more layered portrait of a tough-loving mom in Lady Bird.

There also seems to be no avoiding the Three Billboards duo of McDor-mand and Rockwell, whose joint win-ning streak over the last few months is

an unmistakable if somewhat excessive salute to the actors’ rough-hewn chem-istry. It also shows just how little the industry seems to care about the critical sentiment that has built up against Mar-tin McDonagh’s film in recent months, much of it directed specifically at Rock-well’s Dixon, an ill-tempered white police officer with a fondness for beating up black suspects.

If anything, the most glaring flaw in McDonagh’s screenplay – the callousness

with which it reduces its black characters’ suffering to a

mere plot point – is pro-ductively complicated

by Rockwell’s idiot-bad-boy swagger. He makes Dixon both a repellent moron and an in-sidious charmer; if he’s someone you love to hate, he’s also someone you

hate to love.

SHOW-STOPPING SPEECHPerhaps most of all this

year, there seems to be no avoid-ing Oldman and the admittedly remark-able metamorphosis he undergoes in Darkest Hour. It’s astonishing to see the actor who once played the thin, gangly Sid Vicious now fully inhabiting Church-ill’s portly figure, outsized persona and heroic legacy. Oldman doesn’t give a bad performance; he gives a grandiose one, impeccably scaled to the ham-fisted pro-portions of the dramatic vehicle at hand.

“He mobilised the English language and sent it into battle,” one of Church-ill’s rivals says with grudging admiration after that aforementioned speech. It’s an unwittingly apt summary of a perform-ance type that tends to excite awards voters, in which words are all but mar-shalled into action, pressed in service of grandstanding speeches and lump-in-the-throat line readings.

AFPGDANSK, POLOGNE

VYING for an Oscar, Loving Vincent is the world’s first animated feature film painted by

hand -- all 65,000 frames -- in the distinct style of Vincent van Gogh.

Centred on a probe into his untimely death, the film was shot on a shoestring budget of $5.5 million. That is 30 times less than Disney’s Coco, one of the film’s four Oscar rivals.

For director Dorota Kobiela, Loving Vincent has been a seven-year la-bour of love combining her twin passions of cinema and painting.

“Van Gogh’s style was perfect for the project; his paintings show all the details of his life, his day-to-day habits, his house, his room, his friends,” Kobiela said ahead

of the Oscar ceremonies in Los Angeles.

Kobiela and co-director Hugh Welchman already

have one Oscar under their belt; their BreakThru Pro-ductions film company won an Academy Award in 2008 for the animated short Peter and the Wolf,

based on the story and music by Sergei Prokofiev.

“We are the underdogs! Our category is normally dominated by

Disney and Pixar but I have a feeling we might be one of the big upsets this year,” Welchman, who is also Kobiela’s husband,

said.After five years of pre-production, it

took another two years for 125 artists from around the globe to bring the opus to life under Ko-biela’s watchful eye.

Working in a massive studio in Poland’s Baltic port city of Gdansk, they based their oil paintings on scenes initially shot on film with actors.

The film includes rep-resentations of van Gogh’s most famous paintings such as The Starry Night.

Painting the 93-minute-long movie was a painstak-ing task.

“The pace of work was very slow, averaging a quarter of a second of the film

a day,” said Kobiela, who spent seven years on the project.

A single second of the film represents an average of 12 hand-painted frames.

Each artist completed an average of six paint-ings a day, amounting to a half-second of the film for simple scenes.

But according to Kobiela, the quality of the hand-painted frames surpasses digital animation, making them well worth the extra effort.

“Often in animation, we have the problem that facial

expressions are limited. But in oil painting, we can show even greater expression if the portrait is painted properly,” said.

Best PictureCall Me by Your NameDarkest HourDunkirkGet OutLady BirdPhantom ThreadThe PostThe Shape of WaterThree Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Lead ActorTimothée Chalamet, Call Me by Your NameDaniel Day-Lewis, Phantom ThreadDaniel Kaluuya, Get OutGary Oldman, Darkest HourDenzel Washington, Roman J Israel, Esq.

Lead ActressSally Hawkins, The Shape of WaterFrances McDormand, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, MissouriMargot Robbie, I, TonyaSaoirse Ronan, Lady BirdMeryl Streep, The Post

Supporting ActorWillem Dafoe, The Florida ProjectWoody Harrelson, Three Billboards Outside Ebb-ing, MissouriRichard Jenkins, The Shape of WaterChristopher Plummer, All the Money in the WorldSam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Supporting ActressMary J Blige, MudboundAllison Janney, I, TonyaLesley Manville, Phantom ThreadLaurie Metcalf, Lady BirdOctavia Spencer, The Shape of Water

DirectorDunkirk, Christopher NolanGet Out, Jordan PeeleLady Bird, Greta GerwigPhantom Thread, Paul Thomas AndersonThe Shape of Water, Guillermo del Toro

Animated FeatureThe Boss Baby, Tom McGrath, Ramsey Ann NaitoThe Breadwinner, Nora Twomey, Anthony LeoCoco, Lee Unkrich, Darla K AndersonFerdinand, Carlos Saldanha

Loving Vincent, Dorota Kobiela, Hugh Welchman, Sean Bobbitt, Ivan Mactaggart, Hugh Welchman

Animated ShortDear Basketball, Glen Keane, Kobe BryantGarden Party, Victor Caire, Gabriel GrapperonLou, Dave Mullins, Dana MurrayNegative Space, Max Porter, Ru KuwahataRevolting Rhymes, Jakob Schuh, Jan Lachauer

Adapted ScreenplayCall Me by Your Name, James IvoryThe Disaster Artist, Scott Neustadter & Michael H WeberLogan, Scott Frank, James Mangold and Michael GreenMolly’s Game, Aaron SorkinMudbound, Virgil Williams and Dee Rees

Original ScreenplayThe Big Sick, Emily V. Gordon & Kumail NanjianiGet Out, Jordan PeeleLady Bird, Greta GerwigThe Shape of Water, Guillermo del Toro, Vanessa TaylorThree Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri Martin McDonagh

CinematographyBlade Runner 2049, Roger DeakinsDarkest Hour, Bruno DelbonnelDunkirk, Hoyte van HoytemaMudbound, Rachel MorrisonThe Shape of Water, Dan Laustsen

Original ScoreDunkirk, Hans ZimmerPhantom Thread, Jonny GreenwoodThe Shape of Water, Alexandre DesplatStar Wars: The Last Jedi, John WilliamsThree Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Carter Burwell

Original SongMighty River from Mudbound, Mary J BligeMystery of Love from Call Me by Your Name, Sufjan StevensRemember Me from Coco, Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert LopezStand Up for Something from Marshall, Diane Warren, CommonThis Is Me from The Greatest Showman, Benj Pasek, Justin Paul

Frances McDorm

and

IANS

ESSICA Alba will be re-turning to the small screen as Gabrielle Union’s part-

ner in a Bad Boys spin-off.Alba will also executive

produce the show, reports variety.com.

Union will star in the untitled drama as Syd Burnett, her character from Bad Boys 2.

In the show, she has left the DEA and now has a fresh start in her new job as an LAPD detective.

Alba will play Nancy McKenna, Burnett’s partner. McKenna joined the Army out of

high school and spent most of the 2000s in Iraq and Afghanistan. Women weren’t allowed in com-bat, so she joined the military police to get closer to the action. McKenna is now a detective raising two pre-teen step chil-

dren with her husband.Alba is a film and televi-

sion star who broke out in the action TV series

Dark Angel. She fol-lowed that up with roles in films like Sin City, Fantastic

Four and the sequel Rise of the Silver

Surfer, and Into the Blue.Most recently, she ap-

peared in the films El Camino Christmas and Mechanic: Resurrection.

Kevin McKidd and Arielle Goldrath

IANS

CTRESS Sandra Bullock is not married to her boyfriend and photographer Bryan Randall,

according to her representative.“They are not married,” Bullock’s

representative told people.com. The denial follows a flurry of

rumours claiming the two secretly exchanged vows.

Bullock started dating Randall in 2015.

“They started dating after Bryan photographed (Bullock’s son) Louis for his graduation,” a source said.

When Bullock, 53, adopted daughter Laila in 2015, Randall

stood by her side. They have kept their romance

low-key over the years, stepping out for occasional date nights in Los Angeles and New York together. Randall also accompanied Bullock at the October 2015 premiere of Our Brand Is Crisis.

Sandra Bullock and Bryan Randall

TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

EVIN McKidd has tied the knot with Arielle Goldrath.

The ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ actor - who has two chil-dren, 17-year-old Joseph

and 15-year-old Iona, with ex-wife Jane Parker - also revealed that Arielle is preg-nant with their first child.

Kevin shared the happy news on his website, KevinMcKiddOnline, writing: “Arielle and I are so happy to announce our marriage and new baby, who is soon to join our growing family. My kids are happy for us too and are looking forward to the arrival of their newest sibling! Close friends and family came together with my Grey’s family to share in our celebration day - an intimate, low key gathering culminating in a Scottish Cei-lidh dance. There’s much to be grateful for and we’re thrilled for the adventures

2018 will bring us all!”He also shared a picture of them

together, showing that he paid tribute to his Scottish roots for the wedding by wearing a kilt, while Arielle opted for a stunning white lace gown.

Arielle, 29, is a private chef and an animal rights activist.

Kevin, 44, has been divorced from his wife since December 2016 but he and Arielle only went public in January this year, when he posted a smiling picture of them together on Instagram.

He captioned the picture, which showed them both wearing cowboy hats: “Happy New Year to everyone , love from us! Love you all!! #forevercowboys #cuprunnethover #newyearnewbegin-nings (sic).”

The couple tied the knot at Calami-gos Ranch in Malibu, California and the ceremony was officiated by Rabbi Emma Lutz, according to PEOPLE.

IANS

IP-HOP star Rick Ross was hospitalised after taking ill at his Miami-area home,

police said.Police and emergency teams

were called to his home after he was “found unresponsive” according to a dispatch report filed by police,

reported USA Today.According to the report, a 911

caller sought help for a man fitting Ross’s description “in distress” who was breathing heavily, “slobbing out the mouth”, and briefly combative.

They had no other information because the call to Ross’s home turned out not to be a law enforce-ment matter, said a spokesman for

Davie police.Some celebrities – including

Gucci Mane, LL Cool J and Missy Elliott – took to Twitter to send Ross messages of support.

“Prayers up for my guy,” rapper Snoop Dogg tweeted.

There were reports he was on life support, but his friends from the industry said it was never so.Rick Ross

Jessica Alba

IANS

SUPERNATURAL thriller, Pari is an unusual love story albeit with thrills and chills for good measure.

Set in Kolkata, Arnab (Parambrata Chatterjee), a Bengali gentleman, is an introvert and hence readily agrees to an arranged match to please his parents. Returning home after meeting Piyali (Ritabari Chakraborty), his father accidentally runs over an elderly woman, who dies.

Aiming to help the woman’s daugh-ter Rukhsana (Anushka Sharma) now an orphan, Arnab gives her shelter in his house for a few days as she is osten-sibly scared of “those men who want to harm her”.

Their unusual bond amidst startling revelations of her identity, forms the crux of the film.

The first half of the film suppos-edly has you on the edge of your seats, as there are jump scares galore, some well-timed, others deliberate and un-necessary.

The horror elements – gore and gloom, torrential rain, evil spirits, ac-centuated by sound design – are at-tempted at sending a chill down your spine, end up seeming a trifle inane and ludicrous, as these are grossly overdone.

The pace of the narrative, however, drags before the interval, leaving you unsettled and bored as the core of the film till then appears confusing and unclear.

The second half picks up and you discover there is a full-fledged story after all, albeit poorly told. And that is the undoing of the film. The manner in which the narrative propels forward, is a let-down.

The story although fiction, is heart-

warming and touches your heart, but fails to engage, as it unfolds after a long and convoluted run, making for tire-some viewing.

Director Prosit Roy sadly does not let the film rise beyond the initial horror elements and fails to focus on story-telling.

On the performance front, Anushka Sharma as Rukhsana, delivers a strong and unconventional performance, as the vile, feral, yet, loving and vulner-able girl. You empathise with her

instantly. The range of emotions she displays are astutely handled by her.

Parambrata Chatterjee as the quin-tessential introvert, essays his charac-ter with ease and panache, delivering a restrained performance. His demean-our and dialogue delivery are in synch with his character from the word go.

Rajat Kapoor as the Professor with a damaged eye, espousing the cause of a movement, is effective, but not neces-sarily outstanding.

Ritabari Chakraborty as Piyali, has a pleasant on-screen presence and ap-pears effortless.

The background score heightens the viewing experience as it resonates with the setting of the film.

The production values are decent and conform to the genre of the film.

Overall, this film with a promising story had a lot of potential, but it is the weak writing that becomes its Waterloo.

A still from the film Pari.

Film: Pari Rating: Director: Prosit RoyCast: Anushka Sharma, Parambrata Chatterjee, Rajat Kapoor, Ritabari ChakrabortyNOW SHOWING IN QATAR SCREENS

EVIL has no religion, says Pari co-producer Prernaa Arora of KriArj Entertainment after the film was

banned in Pakistan for being against religious ethos.

According to Pakistan Censor Board chief Mobashir Hasan, Pari was declared “unfit” for public exhibition by a panel followed by Central Board of Film Cen-sors’ (CBFC) full board review as it “flouts various sections of the existing rules and code of CBFC” and “innumerable dia-logues and scenes are against the estab-lished religious, social and moral ethos”.

Arora, who has produced the movie with the film’s lead actress Anushka Sharma’s banner Clean Slate Films, said: “They (the Pakistan censor board) seem to be taking random decisions. How do we explain why they would think of Pari as anti-Islamic? Evil, which the film portrays, has no religion.

“We as a responsible production feel very strongly about causing offence to any community. Earlier, our co-produc-tion Pad Man was banned in Pakistan for being anti-Islamic. Now Pari is also anti-Islamic. Can they please define anti-Islamic? I have no doubt Pakistan will find my next release Parmanu - The Story of Pokhran anti-Islamic too.”

Parmanu: The Story of Pokhran, co-produced by KriArj Entertain-ment and John Abraham, is about the nuclear tests conducted at Pokhran in 1998.

Prernaa Arora

IANS

ALMAN Khan’s Bajrangi Bhai-jaan, after over two years of re-leasing in India, got off to a flying

start in China by raking in Rs 18 crore.Bajrangi Bhaijaan is about a man

who reunites a Pakistani girl lost in In-dia with his family by crossing the tense border between two hostile countries.

The movie – Salman’s first to re-lease in China, where Aamir Khan’s

entertainers are the biggest Bollywood attractions – released recently.

According to Chinese box office observers, Bajrangi Bhaijaan has beaten the first day collections of Aamir Khan’s Dangal in China. How-ever, it fell well short of Aamir’s last release in China, Secret Superstar, which minted Rs 40 crore on its open-ing day in the country.

Overall, Dangal earned over Rs 1,000 crore in China and became

the highest-grossing Indian movie in China, where craze for Bollywood films is growing. Secret Superstar collected well over Rs 750 crore.

As of Saturday afternoon, Bajrangi Bhaijaan had already crossed Rs 25 crore.

“India has always been about style. The story reveals the human nature of the true good, the world peace. Worth promoting,” Lareina Yang, a user, wrote on Chinese ticketing website Maoyan.A movie poster of Bajrangi Bhaijaan in China.

For Subscriptions Contact us at:Phone: 40002111 Mob.: 55878073Fax: 40002224 Post Box No.: 23493 Email: circulation@qatar-tribune.com

ACROSS1 Easy thing to do5 Lobster serving9 Great time

14 Skin opening15 Tra-__: refrain

syllables16 Main artery17 Snapchat co-

founder Spiegel18 Cyberzine19 Parakeets’

quarters20 Have things

finally go one’sway

23 Photo __: mediaevents

24 Charged particles25 Intl. news

broadcaster27 Singer’s quavers30 Recently35 Harry’s pal

Weasley36 Mosquito-borne

disease38 Penne __ vodka40 Singer Damone41 Trig ratio42 Engage in hard-

nosednegotiations

47 “Just a __!”48 Dress-for-

successaccessory

49 New York Giantslegend with 511career home runs

51 Used a bench52 Location53 Sponsors’ spots56 Make an annual

clock adjustment... and what theend of 20-, 36-and 42-Acrossmay literally have

62 Georgia statefruit

64 Smell65 Gold rush animal66 “Orange” tea

grade67 Kind of pittance?68 The “A” of NEA69 Drive too fast70 New England

NFLers71 Barnes & Noble

reader

DOWN1 Job detail, for

short2 Old Chevy

3 “I smell __!”4 Crossword

solver’s choice5 Remove dirt from6 Petting zoo

youngsters7 Bygone apple

spray8 Regular pay9 “Not so close!”

10 Extended pd.away from work

11 Golden Fleeceship

12 How-toinstruction

13 Soviet newsagency

21 Sanctified22 Declare

emphatically26 Drinks in

schooners27 Maria von __,

family singers’matriarch

28 Rich boy in“Nancy” comics

29 Groom’s newrelative

30 Author Hoffman31 Foot cover32 French dispatch

boat33 Guiding principle34 Standing tall

37 Heinz varietiescount, to Caesar?

39 Those in favor43 Failed suddenly,

as a laptop44 URL letters45 Political fugitives46 __ profit: make

money50 __ Brothers:

defunct financialfirm

52 Equine outburst

53 iPhonedownloads

54 __-sea diver55 Drink with sushi57 Frolic in a lively

way58 Thinking output59 Currency named

for a continent60 Choir voice61 Student’s

workplace63 Runner Sebastian

By Bill Zagozewski©2018 Tribune Content Agency, LLC

03/06/18

03/06/18

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword PuzzleEdited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis

(Answers tomorrow)THINK AFTER SMOOTH JUGGLEYesterday’s Jumbles:

Answer: He wasn’t sure how much sandpaper he’dneed, but he had a — ROUGH ESTIMATE

Now arrange the circled letters to form the surprise answer, assuggested by the above cartoon.

THAT SCRAMBLED WORD GAMEby David L. Hoyt and Jeff Knurek

Unscramble these four Jumbles,one letter to each square,to form four ordinary words.

NUWSG

RIHEK

CRUPES

CAYPFI

©2018 Tribune Content Agency, LLCAll Rights Reserved.

Chec

k out

the ne

w, fr

ee JU

STJU

MBLE

app

’ ”“Answerhere:

By Nancy Black, Tribune Content Agency, Linda Black Horoscopes

Take physical action with a part-ner. Discuss a shared passion and get moving, one step at a time. Follow the path of least resistance.

Games, sports and physical activity can get fun. Get out and move with someone attractive. Listen carefully and grab a passing opportunity. Stick to basics.

Create a dreamy romance. Get outside together and do something fun. Consider family when making decisions, especially in chaotic moments. Wait for developments.

Good fortune comes through studies and exploration this year. Fundamental team-work allows pursuit of a dreamy possibility. Summer fun and romance lead to an introspective phase that recharges your work, health and fitness. Plan winter gatherings and shared adventures to expand and connect.To get the advantage, check the day’s rating: 10 is the easiest day, 0 the most challenging.

You can do without fancy frills. Stick to simple ingredients. Slow to avoid technical errors. Discuss desired home improvements with family before starting.

Envision a new course. Put your imagination to work. Edit for simplicity, and review details closely. Inspire your team to victory, and share thanks.

Profit from a brilliant idea. Keep or change your agreements. List and schedule tasks and responsibili-ties. Don’t touch savings. Listen to your financial intuition.

Introspection reveals something new about yourself. Listen to your inner child with compas-sion. Handle a potentially tense situation with grace.

Things may not go as planned with friends. Expect disruptions and distractions. Avoid overindulging or overspending. Cleaning and organizational projects satisfy.

Accept team leadership and re-sponsibility gracefully. Share a clear view of what’s at stake and what’s needed. Invite participation and remain willing to compromise.

Keep digging. Your research benefits your career. New facts dispel old fears. Study what’s going on backstage. Put in a good word for someone else.

Listen closely to a teacher or mentor. You may uncover conflicting data. New evidence threatens complacency. Make an amazing discovery.

Collaborate with your partner on a financial challenge. Keep confidences and secrets. Consider risks, pros and cons. Answer the tough questions together.

ARIES (Mar 21-Apr 19 ) TAURUS (Apr 20-May 20) GEMINI (May 21-Jun 20)

CANCER (Jun 21-Jul 22) LEO (Jul 23-Aug 22) VIRGO (Aug 23-Sep 22)

LIBRA (Sep 23-Oct 22) SCORPIO (Oct 23-Nov 21) SAGITTARIUS (Nov 22-Dec 21)

CAPRICORN (Dec 22-Jan 19 ) AQUARIUS (Jan 20-Feb 18 ) PISCES (Feb 19-Mar 20 )

Solution to previous puzzle