Catania hit back to draw 2-2 at Napoli

Milan: Catania came back from two goals down to draw 2-2 at Napoli in Serie A on Sunday after late goals from Nicolas Spolli and substitute Davide Lanzafame.

Napoli appeared to be cruising to victory after second-half goals from Blerim Dzemaili and Edinson Cavani. But Spolli pulled one back in the 75th and Lanzafame equalized in the 80th, two minutes after coming off the bench.

The result is a blow to Napoli's bid for third place, especially after Modibo Diakite's late winner gave Lazio a 1-0 victory against Cagliari.

Lazio is third, three points above Udinese and Napoli.

At the other end of the table, Novara was held to a scoreless draw at home to fellow struggler Lecce, which will have helped neither side's hopes of avoiding the drop.

'Kahaani' grosses Rs 75 crore at the Box Office

       New Delhi: As a straightforward, salt-of-the-earth thriller, Kahaani is unusual for its lack of a typical star cast. Its protagonist is a heavily pregnant woman in her mid 30s, the story unfurls in a city rarely used as a backdrop for mainstream Bollywood films and there is not even a lip-synched song in the narrative. Without any of the paraphernalia that go into making a typical Bollywood hit film, Kahaani has grossed Rs 75 crore at the Box Office. Let's look at the story beyond the numbers.
Kahaani, directed and co-produced by Sujoy Ghosh, was made on a budget of Rs 8 crore. Word of mouth ensured a good opening and business in the ensuing week. The thriller stars Vidya Balan, Parambrata Chatterjee and Nawazuddin Siddiqui in the lead roles.
The crucial numbers
Released across 1100 screens worldwide, Kahaani has crossed Rs 75cr in gross Box Office collections and is still running to packed houses. The overseas business alone has beaten several bigger and more expensive films in recent times, including 'The Dirty Picture' starring the same leading lady as Kahaani (Vidya Balan). The second weekend of Kahaani just saw a 10 per cent drop in business from the first weekend of release.
What the critics said
Kahaani carried an average critics and reviewers rating of 4 stars. Imdb.com, the authority on movie ratings worldwide, has put Kahaani in its Top 50 thrillers of all time, making it the only Hindi film to be featured in this list. Ormax Media people poll has seen Indian audience vote Kahaani as the No. 2 thriller of all times for Hindi movies.
As a script, Kahaani was everything a conventional Hindi film should not be - realistic-looking to the point of being grungy and no typical masala. Kahaani is a product of Viacom18 Motion Pictures (VMP), a new age studio that backs quality content and talent.
In just 18 months of being in business, VMP has notched up sleeper super hits like Tanu Weds Manu, Pyaar Ka Punchnama, Shaitan, Bbuddah Hoga Terra Baap and earned worldwide critical acclaim with path-breaking films like That Girl in Yellow Boots and Michael.
The success of Kahaani has given a boost for the prospects of titles like Anurag Kashyap's 'Gangs of Wasseypur' and 'Bombay Velvet (starring Ranbir Kapoor), Sudhir Mishra's 'Power Play', David Dhawan's 'Chashmebaddoor', Rani Mukerji starrer 'Aiyya', Ram Gopal Varma's 'Department', Akshay Kumar starrer 'Oh My God!', Ajay Devgn starrer 'Son of Sardar', Neeraj Pandey's 'Special 26', Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's 'Bhaag Milkha Bhaag' (starring Farhan Akhtar), Abhinav Kashyap's next after Dabangg and a set of very talented new and fresh directors with their low-cost, high-potential films.

'Agent Vinod' makes Rs 10 crore on opening day

New Delhi: Saif Ali Khan's home production 'Agent Vinod' has earned Rs 10 crore on the first day, and is the actor's biggest solo opening so far.

Made at a budget of Rs 50 crore, the film has been shot in Morocco, Russia and Latvia.
"Saif Ali Khan has grown as an actor and also grown as a box-office power. The number of screens first decide the craze for the film and the first day business is an indicator of its strength at the box office," said trade analyst Taran Adarsh.
"The massive figures only go to show that Saif has a rare combination of talent and box office pull," added Adarsh.
Directed by Sriram Raghavan, the spy thriller also features Kareena Kapoor, Prem Chopra and Ram Kapoor. While it is produced under Saif's 'Illuminati Films' banner, Eros International has distributed it.
Saif says it was the best time to release a film like 'Agent Vinod'.
"The concept should appeal to people... it's got an exciting plot... The style, the narrative - the strength of the story and its 'Tin Tin' qualities is the USP of 'Agent Vinod'. Times have changed and so have our movies. This is the right time for 'Agent Vinod'," said Saif, who feels he has challenged himself with a film like this.
"I have challenged myself physically in roles before. One such role was of Langda Tyagi in 'Omkara'. In 'Agent Vinod', I had to be fit, very fit. I had to train hard. It was a gruelling schedule to do action. It is very demanding. I have a lot of respect for action heroes because I've got to know what it takes to be one," he added.
The theatre owners are happy with the first day response to the film and hope that it will sustain in the coming weeks.
"The response to the film has been good. We have witnessed an occupancy of about 85 percent. The action and stunts of the film are quite appealing to the youngsters," Gautam Datta, of PVR Pvt Ltd told IANS.

World T20 ticket sale to begin on Monday

Colombo: Ticket sales for the upcoming ICC World Twenty20 tournament will start on Monday but the first four days will be reserved exclusively for fans from the host nation Sri Lanka.

International Cricket Council [ICC] chief executive Haroon Lorgat said on Saturday that fans from other countries will be able to buy tickets online starting March 30.

AP Photo

He said the ICC has taken steps to ensure tickets are accessible and affordable with pricing starting from 25 cents for some matches up to $45 for the final.

The tournament will be played from September 18 to October 7.

Afridi pulls out of National T20 tourney

Karachi: Pakistan allrounder Shahid Afridi has pulled out of the National Super Eight T20 championship, which begins in Rawalpindi on Sunday, even as all the top cricketers of the country are taking part in the week-long event.

"Not only Afridi but Fawad Alam has also pulled out of the Karachi Dolphins squad at the last moment," Siraj-ul-Islam Bukhari, the president of the Karachi City Cricket Association [KCCA], said on Friday.

AFP

"It is a big setback for us because Afridi is a top performer for us. He had initially turned down the offer to lead the Karachi Dolphins team and only wanted to play as an ordinary player. But now he has also refused to play because of some personal commitments," Bukhari said.

Clearly upset with the pull-outs, the KCCA president said Afridi had now informed him that he was committed to attend some charity event in the United States. "Similarly Fawad Alam has also pulled out because he is getting married," Bukhari added.

Afridi was involved in a controversy on Friday, when he attacked a fan at the airport here soon after his arrival from Dhaka where Pakistan won the Asia Cup.

Geo News and other channels flashed footage of an angry Afridi attacking a fan and pushing him to the ground. According to a report, the fan, who was badly roughed up, had pestered Afridi for an autograph. However, on the following day, Afridi apologised for his actions.

Don't tell me when to retire: Tendulkar

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Sachin Tendulkar takes a dig at his critics, saying he doesn't want to be advised on his retirement.