Deepika takes break from ‘Padmavati’ row to attend UAE awards

Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone
Updated 25 November 2017
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Deepika takes break from ‘Padmavati’ row to attend UAE awards

JEDDAH: Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone took a break from the “Padmavati” controversy at home on Friday to fly to the UAE to attend an awards ceremony.

Padukone received the Global Icon of India at the Asiavision Movie Awards 2017 held at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
“Thank you for this award, especially because this is one of the awards that honor South Indian talents. I can proudly say that I am a South Indian from Mangalore who studied in Bangalore (Bengaluru),” Padukone said in her acceptance speech, not mentioning her upcoming film.
The Asiavision Movie Awards have been held annually since 2006 to honor the artists and technicians of South Indian cinema.
“Padmavati” has been in the midst of a controversy since January, with Rajput groups and others accusing director Sanjay Leela Bhansali of distorting history.
A member of India’s Hindu nationalist ruling party offered 100 million rupees ($1.5 million) to anyone who beheads the lead actress and the director of the unreleased Bollywood film rumored to depict a relationship between a Hindu queen and a Muslim ruler.
Earlier this month, the head of the Rajput Karni Sena in Rajasthan said Padukone should have her nose cut — a symbol of public humiliation — for being part of a film that allegedly insulted the famed queen.
“Padmavati” is based on a 16th century Sufi epic poem, “Padmavat,” in which a brave and beautiful Rajput queen chose to kill herself rather than be captured by the Muslim sultan of Delhi, Allaudin Khilji. Over centuries of its retelling, the epic has come to be seen as history, despite little evidence.
Padukone plays Padmini, the legendary queen who committed “jauhar,” the medieval Rajput practice in which female royals walked into funeral fires to embrace death over the dishonor of being taken captive.

 

Mick Jagger’s fiancee ‘physically attacked’ at exclusive London club

Updated 12 February 2026
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Mick Jagger’s fiancee ‘physically attacked’ at exclusive London club

  • Melanie Hamrick, 38, dined with a friend before heading to private members’ club Annabel’s in Berkeley Square, Mayfair, where the incident happened
  • The author, choreographer and former ballerina has been in a relationship with the 82-year-old Rolling Stones singer since 2014 and they have a 9-year-old son together

LONDON: Melanie Hamrick, Rolling Stones singer Mick Jagger’s fiancee, said she was attacked at an elite and exclusive private member’s club in Mayfair, central London.

The 38-year-old said the incident on Tuesday at Annabel’s in Berkeley Square had left her heartbroken and shaken.

In a message posted later that night on Instagram, she wrote: “This is incredibly hard to share, but I was physically attacked at Annabel’s Mayfair tonight.

“I’m so thankful to my friends for protecting me. Two people grabbed me from behind and thank God for the good people who stepped in to help me.

“I’m shaken, sad and heartbroken that people can treat each other this way.”

The message was deleted a few hours after it appeared.

Hamrick has been in a relationship with 82-year-old Jagger since 2014, and she confirmed in April last year that they became engaged about two or three years earlier. They have a son, Deveraux, who was born in 2016.

Hamrick is a choreographer, author and former ballerina who performed with the American Ballet Theatre for 15 years before retiring in 2019.

Before the incident on Tuesday, she had dined with a socialite friend, Emma Thynn, before heading to Annabel’s. Sources at the venue said staff were not notified of an attack. The Metropolitan Police said it had not receive any report of an incident, the Daily Mail newspaper reported.

The incident is believed to have taken place outside of the club. In the past few weeks there has been a series of daytime heists targeting luxury goods stores across London. It is not known if the incident involving Hamrick was related to these.

However, the area around the prestigious Berkeley Square has become one of the worst in London, and even in Europe, for robberies and street crime, the Daily Mail said. Official figures show that people in the area were 30 times more likely to fall victim to crime compared with those in other parts of the city, the newspaper added.

Numbers of thefts and robberies, mainly of mobile phones, have tripled in London over the past four years, with tens of thousands of reported cases, particularly in the upmarket Mayfair and St James’s areas.

Organized criminal gangs have reportedly been targeting high-value luxury brands such as Rolex and Yves Saint Laurent across London. Some visitors have even hired private security while visiting the city.

Last month, the Daily Mail reported that Tom Cruise, 63, had abruptly moved out of his £35 million ($47 million) luxury apartment in One Hyde Park, a high-rise in West London, over safety fears.