Actress Raveena Tandon has cancelled plans to promote her upcoming movie Maatr – The Mother on The Viral Fever (TVF), following the sexual harassment allegations against its founder and CEO Arunabh Kumar.

"I was not aware of the controversy as I was in New York and in the middle of a snow storm," Raveena said in a statement.

"Our film deals with a very strong message about zero tolerance to any form of violence or abuse against women. The film's producers and actors feel that until allegations against the producer and the channel are proven wrong, we will refrain from promoting the film or any of the actors appearing on the said show," she added. 

TVF is an online entertainment platform that satirises Indian politics, movies, life-style, and the social system.

Maatr co-producer Anjum Rizvi pointed out: "Raveena's character is a working woman. Our film has been inspired by incidents which are happening in India today. Right now, we felt we should not get into it, so we have opted out of the TVF show."

"It's a sensitive issue and we have to handle everything with care and not use whatever tools and means possible. We need to be careful of how we promote the film."

Rizvi said that "Raveena is a vocal personality and doesn't mince her words".

"She is also involved in every aspect of the film as the subject is very close to her heart. As filmmakers, we can raise issues, though we can't come up with solutions. We are just highlighting the issue, but talks about whether women should or should not take law into their hands and how long they should wait for justice to be meted out," said the co-producer.

Coal India Ltd (CIL), which contributes 84 per cent of the country's production, is likely to end the current fiscal with a shortfall against its annual production target for 2016-17, analysts and industry stakeholders say.

They, however, predicted that the production and sales are expected to achieve "marginal growth" over the last fiscal.

During 2016-17, the miner set a target of producing 598.61 million tonnes (mt) of coal with an 11.11 per cent growth over the 538.75 mt produced in 2015-16. Its sales were at 534.50 mt in the last fiscal.

"Coal India is expected to end the year with an around 550 million tonnes of production, thereby missing the annual target by 40-50 million tonnes. The miner needs to produce about 90 million tonnes in March to touch even 570-578 million tonnes as envisaged by the Coal Ministry. This is quiet unlikely," Emkay Global's Research Analyst Gautam Chakraborty told IANS.

So far, the average monthly production in the current fiscal is around 45 million tonnes, he said.

"Production has been impacted due to lower dispatch. Higher production without growing dispatch will add more to inventories."

"Off-take growth till February was around 1.6 per cent and I don't think it would change significantly in March," he said.

According to provisional data, the miner's off-take, from April 2016 to February 2017, was at 490.86 mt as against a target of 540.31 mt.

"CIL's off-take for the entire year is expected to be around 540-545 million tonnes, which will be marginally higher than last year. Previously, we found the miner's internal issues, along with scarcity of railway rakes, were the main constraints for flattish off-take. But, this year, subdued coal demand has largely impacted its dispatch," a Mumbai-based analyst told IANS.

The miner's provisional data also showed its production during the first 11 months (April to February) of the current fiscal grew by 2.3 percent to 488.06 mt against a target of 535.38 mt set for the period.

"Going by the trend this year, I expect whatever has been achieved so far in terms of production growth will continue in the same line for the last few days of the current fiscal. No dramatic change is expected," former Coal India Chairman Sashi Kumar told IANS.

"Never ever has Coal India had any reason to be concerned about its off-take. But now it is unsure of its off-take," he said, adding the miner should explore alternative market apart from India to boost its sales and thereby production.

Moreover, stocks at CIL's pit head were at 56.33 mt as on March 5, while 26.48 mt was at thermal power plants.

However, Coal India Chairman Sutirtha Bhattacharya, in the last Annual General Meeting, said going forward, the miner needs to move to a double digit growth rate in order to meet the production target.

When told the production and off-take are not moving on expected lines, he said: "We look at the target for meeting the need of the people (consumers)."

"CIL's trend of growth was affected by introduction of blanket ban by the Environment Ministry in 2010. But after the ban was lifted, the growth restored to seven per cent in 2014-15. In the last year, we had the highest ever growth of 8.9 per cent," a company official told IANS.

"As many as 121 ongoing projects are under implementation and are expected to contribute 400 mt in 2016-17," he said.

The miner's projected production volume is 660.7 mt in 2017-18 and it envisaged production of 908.10 mt in 2019-20 with a CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) of 12.98 per cent, with respect to 2014-15.

"If the miner has the target to produce such amount, everything should fall in line. Otherwise, it will always be below the target," Kumar added.

According to a company official, the improved dispatch and production, as compared to the past, has resulted in a downward trend of coal imports.

As of last December, coal imports reduced to 144.87 mt as compared to 146.12 MT for the same period in 2015-16. Further, the total coal imports in the last fiscal were 199.9 mt as compared to 217.8 mt in 2014-15.

In 2016-17, up to January 31, the power utilities imported 16.6 mt coal as against import of 31.6 mt during the same period in 2015-16.

Coal India Ltd (CIL), which contributes 84 per cent of the country's production, is likely to end the current fiscal with a shortfall against its annual production target for 2016-17, analysts and industry stakeholders say.

They, however, predicted that the production and sales are expected to achieve "marginal growth" over the last fiscal.

During 2016-17, the miner set a target of producing 598.61 million tonnes (mt) of coal with an 11.11 per cent growth over the 538.75 mt produced in 2015-16. Its sales were at 534.50 mt in the last fiscal.

"Coal India is expected to end the year with an around 550 million tonnes of production, thereby missing the annual target by 40-50 million tonnes. The miner needs to produce about 90 million tonnes in March to touch even 570-578 million tonnes as envisaged by the Coal Ministry. This is quiet unlikely," Emkay Global's Research Analyst Gautam Chakraborty told IANS.

So far, the average monthly production in the current fiscal is around 45 million tonnes, he said.

"Production has been impacted due to lower dispatch. Higher production without growing dispatch will add more to inventories."

"Off-take growth till February was around 1.6 per cent and I don't think it would change significantly in March," he said.

According to provisional data, the miner's off-take, from April 2016 to February 2017, was at 490.86 mt as against a target of 540.31 mt.

"CIL's off-take for the entire year is expected to be around 540-545 million tonnes, which will be marginally higher than last year. Previously, we found the miner's internal issues, along with scarcity of railway rakes, were the main constraints for flattish off-take. But, this year, subdued coal demand has largely impacted its dispatch," a Mumbai-based analyst told IANS.

The miner's provisional data also showed its production during the first 11 months (April to February) of the current fiscal grew by 2.3 percent to 488.06 mt against a target of 535.38 mt set for the period.

"Going by the trend this year, I expect whatever has been achieved so far in terms of production growth will continue in the same line for the last few days of the current fiscal. No dramatic change is expected," former Coal India Chairman Sashi Kumar told IANS.

"Never ever has Coal India had any reason to be concerned about its off-take. But now it is unsure of its off-take," he said, adding the miner should explore alternative market apart from India to boost its sales and thereby production.

Moreover, stocks at CIL's pit head were at 56.33 mt as on March 5, while 26.48 mt was at thermal power plants.

However, Coal India Chairman Sutirtha Bhattacharya, in the last Annual General Meeting, said going forward, the miner needs to move to a double digit growth rate in order to meet the production target.

When told the production and off-take are not moving on expected lines, he said: "We look at the target for meeting the need of the people (consumers)."

"CIL's trend of growth was affected by introduction of blanket ban by the Environment Ministry in 2010. But after the ban was lifted, the growth restored to seven per cent in 2014-15. In the last year, we had the highest ever growth of 8.9 per cent," a company official told IANS.

"As many as 121 ongoing projects are under implementation and are expected to contribute 400 mt in 2016-17," he said.

The miner's projected production volume is 660.7 mt in 2017-18 and it envisaged production of 908.10 mt in 2019-20 with a CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) of 12.98 per cent, with respect to 2014-15.

"If the miner has the target to produce such amount, everything should fall in line. Otherwise, it will always be below the target," Kumar added.

According to a company official, the improved dispatch and production, as compared to the past, has resulted in a downward trend of coal imports.

As of last December, coal imports reduced to 144.87 mt as compared to 146.12 MT for the same period in 2015-16. Further, the total coal imports in the last fiscal were 199.9 mt as compared to 217.8 mt in 2014-15.

In 2016-17, up to January 31, the power utilities imported 16.6 mt coal as against import of 31.6 mt during the same period in 2015-16.

On the occasion of World Water Day on Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged the fellow countrymen to save every drop of the crucial resource and praised the UN for choosing 'wastewater' as its theme.

"On 'World Water Day', lets pledge to save every drop of water. When 'Jan Shakti' (people's power) has made up its mind, we can successfully preserve Jal Shakti (water power)," Modi said in a tweet.

"This year, the UN has chosen a valid theme — wastewater. It will help further awareness on water recycling and why it is essential for our planet," Modi added.

According to a Unicef report released on the occasion, by 2040 nearly 600 million children, one in every four worldwide, will live in areas with extremely limited water resources.

The report warned of the threat to children's lives due to the lack of safe water and of how climate change is exacerbating the problem.

On the occasion of World Water Day on Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged the fellow countrymen to save every drop of the crucial resource and praised the UN for choosing 'wastewater' as its theme.

"On 'World Water Day', lets pledge to save every drop of water. When 'Jan Shakti' (people's power) has made up its mind, we can successfully preserve Jal Shakti (water power)," Modi said in a tweet.

"This year, the UN has chosen a valid theme — wastewater. It will help further awareness on water recycling and why it is essential for our planet," Modi added.

According to a Unicef report released on the occasion, by 2040 nearly 600 million children, one in every four worldwide, will live in areas with extremely limited water resources.

The report warned of the threat to children's lives due to the lack of safe water and of how climate change is exacerbating the problem.

Roger Federer's comeback from injury has been so successful that his compatriot Stan Wawrinka believes he can become the oldest world number one in history at the age of 35.

Federer beat Wawrinka in the final of Indian Wells on Sunday for his second win of the year following his triumph in the Australian Open – his 18th grand slam title and his first in four and a half years.

Those wins have propelled the Swiss master to sixth in the world as he makes excellent progress after a six-month layoff caused by a knee injury.

Compatriot Wawrinka believes that not only is Federer back in form but he is playing in a noticeably different manner that gives him a chance to return to the pinnacle of the rankings.

"He's playing really well, what is different maybe is he is playing closer from the baseline, preferring, using less his slice, he is using more top spin, putting more pressure all the time, returning better that's the difference I seem," Wawrinka said yesterday at the Miami Open.

"For sure he has a shot for number one, he has just won the first Masters final. For sure he has a big shot," he told reporters.

Andre Agassi holds the record for being the oldest player to hold the men's No.1 ranking, at the age of 33.

"It is going to be interesting to see. Rafa (Nadal) is playing well also and we will see when Novak (Djokovic) and Andy (Murray) are back from injury, it is going to be really interesting for tennis fans," Wawrinka said.

Wawrinka said it wasn't a shock to see Federer, who now has 90 career titles, back to such form but that he was particularly impressed by his movement.

"From him nothing is a surprise, but for sure to see him moving that well at that age it is something amazing. It is good for me to see that you can be at the top (at that age).

It is amazing to see how he is playing after a six-month injury.

In a major development to the 2007 Ajmer Dargah blast case, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) special court on Wednesday sentenced Devendra Gupta and Bhavesh Patel, the two accused in the case, to life imprisonment.

A NIA court had on March 8 acquitted Swami Aseemanand and had convicted Devendra Gupta, Bhavesh Gupta and Sunil Joshi (dead). Senior Rashtriya Swaymsevak Sangh (RSS) member Indresh Kumar had also been acquitted.

The conviction was made under Sections 120 (B) (criminal conspiracy), 295-A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) of IPC, 3 / 4 of Explosive Substances Act and Sections 16 and 18 of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

The case was handed over to ATS Rajasthan and was later transferred to the NIA, which re-registered the case at the NIA police station in New Delhi on April 6, 2011.

There were as many as 149 witnesses in the case and 451 documents were examined, and the NIA filed three supplementary chargesheets in the case.

The incident took place on October 11, 2007 during the month of Ramazan and targeted the Khwaja Chishti shrine, killing three pilgrims and injuring 15.

Pakistan's new ODI and T20 captain Sarfaraz Ahmad avoided speaking on the PSL spot-fixing scandal, which has rocked the cricket community, but admitted that the country's cricket was going through tough times.

Terming the coming series in the West Indies as a big challenge for Pakistan cricket, the wicketkeeper-batsman told the media on the eve of the team's departure for the Caribbean that the first target was to win the three match ODI series and qualify directly for the next World Cup.

"I don't want to comment on the PSL issue but yes we are going through tough times and we need to do well in the coming series to boost our people," he said.

He conceded that like in 2010 Pakistan cricket team would again have to do a lot to overcome the recent scandal, which has led to the suspension of five players.

During the tour of England in 2010, three players – then captain Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamir – were found involved in spot-fixing and banned for five-years.

Sarfaraz had earlier said that Pakistan would miss the services of opener Sharjeel Khan in the West Indies as he was suspended in connection with the spot-fixing scandal.

Head coach Mickey Arthur said while the PSL scandal and the involvement of his players was disappointing, one had to move on.

"Look what happened with Sharjeel and Khalid it is past now and although it is very disappointing one has to move ahead. Players need to take more responsibility, especially after this incident," Arthur said.

He said he had no doubt in his mind that any player found involved in fixing didn't have a place in cricket.

"I feel upset and sad when I look at the bright future ahead of Sharjeel as he had made his place in all three formats and he was getting fitter. But greed is always bad in sports and it is hurting cricket," he added.

US President Donald Trump will attend a NATO leaders' summit scheduled for May, the White House said.

"The President looks forward to meeting with his NATO counterparts to reaffirm our strong commitment to NATO, and to discuss issues critical to the alliance, especially allied responsibility-sharing and NATO's role in the fight against terrorism," the White House said in a statement on Tuesday.

It added that, in addition to meeting the leaders, Trump will host NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the White House next month.

The April meeting with Stoltenberg has been arranged to prepare for a May 25 summit in Brussels on the "new security environment, including the alliance's role in the fight against terrorism, and the importance of increased defence spending and fairer burden-sharing", CNN reported on Wednesday.

The announcement of Trump's attendance comes on the heels of a decision by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to skip a NATO foreign ministers' meeting, and instead host Chinese President Xi Jingping later this month, before visiting Russia in April. 

The State Department has suggested "alternative dates" to NATO for the meeting, said the report.

Tillerson's decision not to attend the NATO ministerial meeting in Brussels has led to consternation amongst the US' European allies.

"Seeing the Chinese, then going to Russia and avoiding NATO in the middle — it's weird," said one NATO diplomat. 

"It shows that they don't care about NATO. They are not multilateral."

State Department acting spokesman Mark Toner said that the meeting's dates didn't fit in Tillerson's schedule and a NATO official confirmed that the group was still negotiating with the State Department to schedule the meeting. 

Toner said the agency is "certainly appreciative of the effort to accommodate Secretary Tillerson".

Apple blossom season is here and tourists visiting the Queen of Hills can now have a feel of apple orchards with special packages for longer stay in the state on anvil.

Tourists, both national and international, visits Shimla but they stay in the capital city for just two-three days and then return, officials say. Hence, the Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (HPTDC) is planning to offer travel packages to tourists to visit the apple orchards surrounding the hill capital during apple blossom season from 15-30 April this year. But with this package, the Tourism Development Corporation is aiming to extend their stay and also to give them feel of horticulture economy of HP.

HPTDC Vice Chairman Harish Janartha said that the Corporation is planning to link apple economy with tourism activities in the state.

“Himachal endows immense natural wealth right from its delicacies to sprawling orchards and high hills, salubrious climate and offers number of adventure sports activities besides religious tourism to the visitors,” he said.

But now, the HPTDC is planning to exploit the vast tourism potential and offer special packages for giving a feel of the natural environment of orchards.

“A blooming apple orchard is always a soothing sight and it would freshen up the mood of tourists who visit the state to relieve stress during their sojourn in HP,” Janarthan said.

He said it would provide them knowledge about farming of apples and other fruit crops and give a chance to them to even pluck apples.

Under the package, the tourists would be facilitated two days tour of famous apple belt areas in Shimla district as Kotgarh, Theog, Kotkhai, Narkanda and Fagu. The tourists would cover a distance of 160 kms during these trips to apple orchards and they can book these packages online.

“If the visitors want to stay at apple orchards or want to indulge in camping at these sites, the Tourism Development Corporation would provide them with staying facilities,” Janartha said.

He said that the tourists can even put up in the Home Stays in the woods, if they want to. "We will provide the information on this."

It is worthwhile to mention that Congress government in HP, around a decade back, had planned to link educational tours of children from across the country with apple orchards and hydro power projects. It however, hung fire for general red-tape.

HP’s apple economy is worth Rs 3,500 Crore and the crop is largely produced in the districts of Shimla, Kullu, Kinnaur, Mandi, Chamba and Sirmaur.

Apple is the most important cash crop of state as it constitutes 49 percent (around 1.25 lakh hectare area) of the total area under fruit crops and about 85 percent of the total fruit production.

Himachal Pradesh produces around 40 percent of the total production in country while Kashmir valley contributes around 50 percent of the total apple production.

Nieteen Opposition MLAs from the Congress and the NCP were suspended on Wednesday from the Maharashtra Assembly for nine months for creating ruckus during the Budget presentation in the House last week.

The suspension of nine Congress and 10 NCP members till December 31 came after a resolution to this effect was moved by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Girish Bapat and it was adopted by the assembly.

The Opposition members had disrupted the Budget presentation by Finance Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar in the assembly on March 18 demanding farm loan waiver.

Bapat said the Opposition MLAs had conducted themselves in a "disgraceful and unconstitutional manner".

He said everybody had the right to express themselves but setting the state budget copy on fire outside the House had never happened.

The members were being suspended for displaying banners, playing cymbals, shouting slogans and disrespecting the Speaker's directions, he added.

The MLAs suspended are Amar Kale, Vijay Waddetiwar, Harshwardhan Sakpal, Abdul Sattar, D P Sawant, Sangram Thopte, Amit Zanak, Kunal Patil, Jaikumar Gore (all from Congress) besides Bhaskar Jadhav, Jitendra Awhad, Madhusudan Kendre, Sangram Jagtap, Avdhut Tatkare, Deepak Chavan, Datta Bharne, Narhari Jirval, Vaibhav Pichad and Rahul Jagtap from the NCP.

Leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil said the government can suspend all the Opposition MLAs but they will continue to raise farmers' issues.

In a major development to the Maharashtra resident doctors' strike, the Bombay High Court, which was expected to hear the matter on junior doctors' mass leave on Wednesday, will most likely hear it on Thursday.

Reports suggested that because of unavailability of the CJ's bench, the hearing has been postponed to another day.

The court on Tuesday had asked the protesting doctors to resume their duties immediately and said it will hear the matter on junior doctors' mass leave on Wednesday.

The court also had added that continued protests might result in contempt of court as the doctors' association had in 2016 given an undertaking that it would not go on strike.

For the third consecutive day on Wednesday, over 3,000 resident doctors continued their mass casual leave protest against growing incidents of attacks by patients' relatives on them.

Medical services in 17 government hospitals in Maharashtra, including four in Mumbai, were severely affected because of the strike.

Thousands of patients have been deprived of medical care in the wake of the protest across the state.

Indians rate customer care service as the top factor while choosing a business and are willing to reward outstanding service by spending more as well as spreading a positive word, says a survey.

According to the findings of the American Express 2017 Global Customer Service Barometer released today, a great service experience can have a positive impact on brands.

Businesses in India should not just focus on providing a good value for money product, but also an equally excellent customer service experience to attract and retain customers.

The survey noted around 84 per cent of Indian consumers say the quality of customer service is very important when they are deciding to become or remain a customer.

Moreover, 86 per cent of Indians are also willing to spend more for a company providing excellent customer service experience; much ahead of United States (70 per cent), UK (59 per cent), Singapore (72 per cent) and Japan (33 per cent).

In addition, Indian customers talk much more about their positive experience, than any other country.

"Companies across the country pay a lot of emphasis on product value proposition but it is time for them to give an equal or more importance to customer service for a real competitive advantage.

Putting customers' needs first to deliver great service experience is not just the right thing to do, it also makes great business sense," said Pradeep Kapur, Senior Vice President, American Express Global Servicing Network Japan and Asia Pacific.

Besides, Indians are way ahead of their market counterparts when it comes to sharing their good customer service experience on social media.

Not only have they used social media for sharing their feedback, 64 per cent of Indians have also used social channel for availing customer care services, yet again the highest compared to Mexico, United States, Hong Kong and Japan.

On the other hand, 63 per cent of Indians chose not to complete a business transaction or make a purchase because of poor customer service; second highest amongst markets.

"Customer care is a real competitive differentiator.

Because of the growing importance of word of mouth about consumers' interactions with companies, creating an excellent service experience can be a game changer," Kapur said.

The American Express 2017 Global Customer Service Barometer survey has been conducted across nine countries – India, United States, Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, Italy, Hong Kong, Japan, and Singapore.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday extended his greeting to people on the occasion of Bihar Day.

"On the occasion of Bihar day, I offer my heartiest greetings to the people of Bihar," the prime minister said in a tweet.

Bihar Diwas or Bihar Day is celebrated every year on March 22, marking the formation of the state of Bihar.

The state was carved out from West Bengal in 1912 and declared a separate state by the then colonial British government.

Jammu and Kashmir DGP SP Vaid has said that the people of the state should introspect on the prevailing situation in the Kashmir Valley, which was once inhabited by Sufi saints.

"Kashmir is a place which was inhabited by Sufi saints for centuries. I would like everybody to introspect where we have brought this heaven on earth to. Have we made it a hell?" 

"Kashmiri youths are for peace and for living a life of peace. No one likes violence and everyone wants to live a peaceful life," he told reporters here yesterday.

"Wahhabi element wants to change this," he said.

Replying to a question about the security arrangements for bypolls to the two Lok Sabha constituencies in Kashmir Valley, he said that police will do its job and ensure free and fair polling.

On the surfacing of posters warning people to stay away from polling, Vaid said, "We have identified some of the miscreants and cases have also been registered against them.

I am sure that people will defy the threat calls and participate in the polling process." 

"As far as security is concerned, whether it is the Line of Control or the International Border, the Army, the BSF and police are working jointly," he said.

Two and three wheeler major TVS Motor Company Ltd's agreement to make high powered motorcycles for Germany's BMW has come to fruition with the Indian company starting to ship out BMW branded 310cc bikes, said a senior company official.

He also said TVS Motor Company would invest around Rs.350 crore next fiscal towards expansion of capacity, launch one new model each of scooter and motorcycle are some of the targets for 2017-18.

In 2013, TVS Motor and BMW signed an agreement to jointly develop motorcycles in the 250-500cc range to be sold through their respective distribution network.

The 310cc motorcycle and its engine were developed jointly with the German automobile giant BMW on a common platform/architecture.

Not revealing any numbers about the number of units made or shipped out for BMW President and CEO K.N. Radhakrishnan said it is up to the German auto major to talk about the numbers.

Speaking to a group of journalists who visited the company's Hosur plant on Tuesday, Radhakrishnan said TVS Motor is yet to decide on the distribution model-separate network or sold through existing dealership – for its own 310cc bike Akula that would be launched next fiscal.

Radhakrishnan said the company has budgeted a capital expenditure of around Rs 350 crore next fiscal towards capacity expansion and other aspects.

"The investment will be funded out of internal accrual," he said.

According to him, the company has started rolling out BS-IV emission norms compliant vehicles.

Radhakrishnan said the company will close the fiscal 2016-17 with a market share of around 14 per cent as the sales scooters and motorcycles picking up.

He said the company's current market share in scooters is around 17 per cent (Q3 2016-17), motorcycles eight per cent (Q3 2016-17).

He said the company's revenue from spare parts sales is around 10 per cent.

Queried about the three wheeler market, Radhakrishnan said sales has dipped owing to various market factors, saying nearly 65 per cent of the three wheeler produced are exported where the market has gone down.

On the company's Indonesian venture, Radhakrishnan said the business is expected to breakeven next fiscal with losses halved this year to $3 million from around $6 million.

Writer and former actress Twinkle Khanna, who has turned producer with Pad Man, says she is proud of being associated with a movie that brings the spotlight on a "shamed" subject like menstruation.

The shoot of the film — inspired by Arunachalam Muruganantham who found a way to make cheap, affordable sanitary napkins for women in his village — got underway last week in Indore.

Talking about it, Twinkle said at an event here on Tuesday: "It (shoot) is going very well. Mr Muruganantham was also there. It's a wonderful project. It will bring awareness about something which has so far been cloaked and shamed, and I am very happy to be a part of the film."

The movie features Twinkle's husband and actor Akshay Kumar in the lead role, with Radhika Apte featuring as his wife. It is being directed by R. Balakrishnan, better known as R. Balki.

Twinkle spoke on the sidelines of L'Oreal Professional's launch of French Browns, the colour trend of 2017.