Jacqueline intrigued by Osho's former assistant
Mumbai, June 10: Actress Jacqueline Fernandez has never done a biopic, but says she is intrigued by Sheela, former assistant of spiritual leader Osho aka Acharya Rajneesh.
Asked whom she would love to portray on screen, the actress, who interacted with the media here where she was announced as the official global ambassador for Nova eyewear brand on Saturday, said: "I think something that would suit me. Probably, something based on a sports figure.
"I have been watching Osho's biopic and his documentaries. There is a character named Sheela which is interesting."
Jacqueline's focus has always been "playing very interesting characters".
"The character that would suit my personality would be someone who is a sports personality but if there is one character that has really intrigued me right now, it's definitely Sheela who was part of Osho's life."
What is her personal style statement?
She said: "My statement would be ‘being yourself'. I think that's really important. At a time when people follow trends blindly and not think about setting the trend themselves... I think if we just be honest with ourselves then all of us would be amazing trendsetters."
"It is just that we need that confidence to believe in that. For me, my style statement has always been to be comfortable and be yourself as that's all that matters."
She also feels that her brand value "very slowly and steadily has gone up only because of the work that you do and the imaging that you have".
"I have always believed in work in commercial cinema that I have been part of. I have been very selective of the kind of movies that I have been doing. For me, it is about fun, commercial work, working with good directors and great actors..."
Jacqueline's forthcoming film "Race 3" is releasing on June 15 and the highly anticipated film "Sanju" will hit the screens on June 29.
Asked if the release of "Sanju" will affect the box office collection of "Race 3", she said: "Not at all. I think we all are in this industry together. We should always be happy for each other and support each other."
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Who is Iran's first vice president, Mohammad Mokhber, appointed acting president after crash?
Dubai (AP/PTI): Iran's first Vice President Mohammad Mokhber was appointed as acting president of the Islamic Republic on Monday after the death of President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash in the country's northwest.
Raisi's death under the constitution thrust Mokhber into public view. He is expected to serve as caretaker president for some 50 days before mandatory presidential elections in Iran.
Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei made the announcement of Mokhber's appointment in a condolence message he shared for Raisi's death in the crash Sunday. The helicopter was found Monday in northwestern Iran.
Despite his low-key public profile, Mokhber has held prominent positions with in the country's power structure, particularly in its bonyads, or charitable foundations.
Mokhber oversaw a bonyad known in English as the Execution of Imam Khomeini's Order, or EIKO, referring to the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
The US Treasury said the organisation oversaw billions of dollars in assets as “a business juggernaut under the direct supervision of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei that has a stake in nearly every sector of the Iranian economy, including energy, telecommunications, and financial services”.
“EIKO has systematically violated the rights of dissidents by confiscating land and property from opponents of the regime, including political opponents, religious minorities, and exiled Iranians,” the Treasury said in 2021 in sanctioning Mokhber. The European Union also had sanctioned Mokhber for a time with others over concerns then about Iran's nuclear programme.
As the head of EIKO, Mokhber oversaw an effort to make a COVID-19 vaccine during the height of the pandemic, pledging to make tens of millions of doses.
Mokhber previously worked in banking and telecommunications. He also worked at the Mostazafan Foundation, another bonyad that's a major conglomerate that manages the country's mega-projects and businesses. While there, he found himself entangled in a bitter legal dispute between mobile phone service providers Turkcell and South Africa's MTN over potentially entering the Iranian market.
Iranian media reports suggest Mokhber, who holds a doctorate in international law, was crucial in Iranian efforts to bypass Western sanctions on its oil industry.
Mokhber has been a member of Iran's Expediency Council since 2022, which advises the supreme leader, as well as settles disputes between parliament and the Guardian Council, Iran's constitutional watchdog that also oversees the country's elections.
Mokhber was born Sept 1, 1955, in Dezful in Iran's southwestern Khuzestan province to a clerical family. He served as an officer in the Revolutionary Guard's medical corps during the 1980s Iran-Iraq war, according to the pressure group United Against Nuclear Iran.
“Mokhber used the vast wealth accumulated by EIKO — at the expense of the Iranian people—to reward regime insiders like himself,” UANI said. “Managing the patronage network endeared him to the supreme leader, but at a cost.”
