Not being fit is limiting for an actor: Parineeti Chopra
Mumbai: Actor Parineeti Chopra says she is happy that the variety of roles being offered to her has increased since she underwent weight loss two years ago.
Taking a break from films in 2016, Chopra spent most of her time working on her physical fitness, and the actor said it paid off as she got Rohit Shetty's "Golmaal Again" only because she "looked fitter" than before.
Asked if filmmakers began viewing her differently after her weight loss, she said, "I think yes. It is not necessarily the typical way that 'Now, she is looking sexy so, we will look at her in a different way.' Not at all.
"It is not like that. Our directors and producers are beyond all of this. They just saw that I could do something different," she said.
Chopra said staying fit gives filmmakers a chance to visualise an actor in various roles.
"When you look a certain way, your expectations from that person are of a particular type, that may be she can only do these many roles," she said.
"But when you give them a shock like this (her weight loss), they see you in a different way, which is why I got 'Golmaal Again', because the girl had to do a lot of action in the film. I don't think I would have gotten it had I not been fit," the actor said.
Chopra was speaking at the launch of this month's edition of Grazia magazine, with her on cover.
The actor will next be seen in "Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar" co-starring Arjun Kapoor.
She also has Karan Johar's production, "Kesari", opposite Akshay Kumar. The film will go on floors next month
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Russian military hardware, spare parts for Indian military to be manufactured in India
New Delhi (PTI): Russia agreed to encourage joint manufacturing in India of military hardware and spare parts for maintenance of Russian-origin arms and defence equipment.
Ways to bolster overall bilateral defence cooperation figured prominently during summit talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday.
It has been a long-standing grievance of armed forces that the supply of critical spares and equipment from Russia takes a long time, affecting the maintenance of military systems procured from that country.
"Both sides agreed to encourage joint manufacturing in India of spare parts, components, aggregates and other products for maintenance of Russian origin arms and defence equipment under Make-in-India programme through transfer of technology," a joint statement said.
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It said both sides also agreed to set up joint ventures for meeting the needs of the Indian armed forces as well as subsequent export to mutually friendly third countries.
The joint statement said the India-Russia defence partnership is being reoriented to take up joint co-development and co-production of advanced defence technology and systems.
In their meeting on Thursday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Russian counterpart Andrey Belousov resolved to expand bilateral defence cooperation.
In the meeting, the Indian side showed keen interest in procurement of additional batches of S-400 missile systems from Moscow to bolster its combat prowess.
In October 2018, India signed a USD 5 billion deal with Russia to buy five units of the S-400 air defence missile systems, notwithstanding a warning by the US that going ahead with the contract may invite US sanctions under the provisions of Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).
Three squadrons have already been delivered.
The S-400 systems played a crucial role during Operation Sindoor. India may also look at procuring the S-500 missile systems from Russia.
In the Modi-Putin talks, the two sides also agreed to continue jointly developing systems of bilateral trade settlements through the use of national currencies.
Additionally, the two sides agreed to continue their consultations on enabling the interoperability of the national payment systems, financial messaging systems, as well as central bank digital currency platforms.
Modi and Putin appreciated the ongoing intensification of the joint work on a free trade agreement on goods between India and the Eurasian Economic Union, covering sectors of mutual interest, the joint statement said.
They also directed both sides to intensify efforts in negotiations on a mutually beneficial agreement on the promotion and protection of investment, it said.
India and Russia also welcomed steps to ensure long-term supply of fertilisers to India and discussed the potential establishment of joint ventures in this area.
