Ali Fazal, Kumail Nanjiani on cloud nine after Oscar nods
Mumbai: Actors Ali Fazal and Kumail Nanjiani are ecstatic as their films "Victoria & Abdul" and "The Big Sick" respectively scored nominations at the 90 Academy Awards.
The Fazal and Judi Dench-starrer bagged two nods in Best Costume Design, and Best Make-up and Hairstyling categories and the actor feels grateful for the recognition.
"And here's to the @TheAcademy for nominating us for Costume Design and Hairstyling and Make up at the 90th oscars this year. It's an absolute honour.
"And my heartiest congratulations to all the other nominees in all categories. Great year and great films to be rubbing shoulders with," he wrote on Twitter alongside stills from the Stephen Frears-directed movie.
Nanjiani's film received one but major nomination in the leagues for the Original Screenplay Oscar, which the actor co-wrote with his wife Emily V Gordon.
The Pakistani-American actor-stand-up comic, who also stars in the biographical film, said the Oscar nomination is surreal feeling for him and he would "never get over" it.
"Emily and I met when she heckled me at a comedy show in the back of a diner in 2006. We wrote a movie about it and 12 years later we're nominated for an Oscar..." he tweeted.
He also praised "The Shape of Water" for scoring the highest (13) nominations at this year's Oscars.
"Also, how cool is it that a Guillermo del Toro monster movie is the leader in Oscar nominations? The answer is very.
It's very cool," he wrote.
"Kobe Bryant and I have the same number of career Oscar nominations," Nanjiani quipped.
Veteran actor Anupam Kher, who also stars in "The Big Sick", took to social media saying he was proud to be a part of the film.
"Congratulations @emilyvgordon and @kumailn for the #OscarNominations for Best Original Screenplay for @TheBigSickMovie. So proud to be part of this gem of a film," he wrote.
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Surat LS candidate Nilesh Kumbhani whose nomination form was rejected suspended from Congress
Ahmedabad, Apr 25: The Gujarat Congress on Friday suspended from the party for six years its Surat Lok Sabha candidate Nilesh Kumbhani, whose nomination form was rejected over discrepancies leading to the BJP's Mukesh Dalal getting elected unopposed.
A statement from the Congress said the party's disciplinary committee decided to suspend Kumbhani after thorough discussion, adding it had come to the conclusion that the nomination form was rejected due to gross negligence on his part or "in connivance with the BJP".
"To be fair to you we have given time to you to explain your case but instead of coming before the party disciplinary committee you have gone incommunicado. After your form was rejected by the authorities, BJP went ahead and got form of other eight candidates withdrawn. This has deprived people of Surat their voting rights," the Congress disciplinary committee headed by Balu Patel said.
"People of Surat and party workers have become very angry due to your action and are expressing their anger in different ways. The Congress party has decided to suspend you for six years from the party," the press note said.
Kumbhani's nomination form was rejected on April 21 after his three proposers submitted affidavits to the district returning officer claiming the signatures on the document was not theirs.
The nomination form of Suresh Padsala, the Congress' substitute candidate from Surat, was also invalidated on the same grounds.
In his order, Returning Officer Sourabh Pardhi said the three nomination forms submitted by Kumbhani and Padsala were rejected after prima facie discrepancy was found in the signatures of the proposers and they did not appear to be genuine.
Kumbhani, a former corporator from Surat, had unsuccessfully fought the 2022 Assembly polls from Kamrej there.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's Mukesh Dalal was elected unopposed from Surat Lok Sabha constituency on April 22 after all other nominees, including one from BSP, withdrew from the fray one by one on the last day of withdrawing papers.
