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Marvel doesn’t want a repeat of what’s worked well: Robert Downey Jr

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By Natalia Ningthoujam
Singapore, April 15 (IANS) Actor Robert Downey Jr, best known for playing superhero Iron Man since 2008, says the creative team of Marvel Studios doesn’t believe in repeating what has worked well in the past movies.

“I read in some magazine that the number one fan-voted moment was the airport fight in ‘Captain America: Civil War’ because there are so many superheroes at once. And now that the universe has expanded even more…

“But one thing that the creatives (of Marvel Studios) don’t want to do is do a bigger repeat of something that’s already worked well,” Downey Jr told select media, including IANS, here on Sunday.

Without giving away much about the forthcoming Marvel movie “Avengers: Infinity War”, the actor, who is hailed as the “patriarch” by his co-stars like Chris Evans, said: “The challenge this time was how to top or better or expand something without repeating something that has been executed well before. It’s kind of like the anti-process.

“Usually, if something works, you keep doing that.”

The star, who matched his red and black eyewear with his red, black and white outfit, admitted: “We might be making the movies, but we also are fans and critics of our own work. We try to make it better. But I think this time, we might have nailed it.”

“Avengers: Infinity War”, co-directed by the Russo brothers — Anthony and Joe — is logistically, the “most complicated movie” put together in history.

“We shut down Hollywood for a year because we had every actor working in the business scheduled somewhere in the movie,” said Joe.

The forthcoming movie will see superheroes like Iron Man, Thor, Doctor Strange, Spider-Man, Star-Lord and Nebula up against the supervillain Thanos. But going by the film’s trailers and posters, one character that is missing is Hawkeye, played by Jeremy Renner.

Joe said: “We did not forget the twice-nominated Renner – and those are Oscar nominations. We have a really interesting story cooked up for Hawkeye, so I would say, patience is a virtue.”

Recalling the time when British actor Benedict Cumberbatch joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) as Dr. Stephen Strange in the 2016 film “Doctor Strange”, he said: “It feels a little intimidating, to be frank. When you first step on to a set with a roster of iconic characters as well as iconic actors and then you go about doing your day’s work and forget about the numbers of 18 plus films and 14 plus billion dollars.”

Talking about her “weird, creepy, fun character” Nebula and her association with MCU since “Guardians of the Galaxy”, actress Karen Gillan said: “I’m honoured. It’s very exciting to get to be in more than one Marvel movie. I love the character that initially was a villain.

“Then we got to know her back story and started to question whether she was a villain or not.”

She was so excited to be a part of MCU that she didn’t mind shaving off her head.

Twenty two heroes, six infinity gems, one mad titan — “Avengers: Infinity War” releases on April 27 in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu in India.

(The writer’s trip to Singapore is at the invitation of Disney. Natalia Ningthoujam can be contacted at Natalia.n@Ian’s.in)

–IANS
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Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma

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World-renowned business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has supported Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission. In memory of his mother, Late Veena Verma, who was a 3 term Rajya Sabha MP.

Dr. Verma dedicated a state-of-the-art free permanent shelter for the attendants of patients at KGMU Medical University, Lucknow, under the aegis of Vijay Shree Foundation. His daughter, Nicolle Verma, inaugurated the shelter.

During the event, Foodman Vishal Singh honored Nicolle Verma by presenting her with a memento. Mrs. Nidhi Sharma and Avantika Yadav, associated with the organization, welcomed her with garlands. Following this, Nicolle Verma distributed essential items to the attendants and also handed out fruits. She became emotional remembering her grandmother on her birth anniversary.

On this occasion, she also inaugurated the “Veena Verma Sevalaya” in memory of her grandmother, Veena Verma, to serve the attendants. She expressed, “I feel proud that my family is engaged in nation-building as well as social service. Today, in collaboration with Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh Ji, I feel immensely proud to dedicate this shelter for the poor, helpless, and needy attendants of patients battling serious illnesses like cancer. I am honored to be associated with the Hunger-Free World Mission for humanity.”

Inspired by the continuous humanitarian service provided by Vijay Shree Foundation over the past 17 years, Nicolle Verma donated 10 lakh rupees to support the cause. The purpose of this donation is to ensure that services continue for the needy attendants of patients suffering from severe illnesses in hospitals, as facilitated by Foodman Vishal Singh.

It is noteworthy that Dr. Abhishek Verma’s family has a legacy of public and philanthropic service. They are helping millions to carry forward the values and service work of their parents. On the occasion of his mother’s birth anniversary, Dr. Abhishek Verma dedicated this state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College to serve the attendants of patients through the Vijay Shree Foundation.

Supporting Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission, Dr. Abhishek Verma assured that he would continually support keeping this flame of humanity alive. He also promised to assist in providing medicines to the helpless patients.

Continuing her grandmother’s legacy of service, Nicolle Verma personally served food to the needy patients and attendants. She said, “It is our good fortune to have received the joy of doing this noble work today through Foodman Vishal Singh. I have taken another step forward in carrying my family’s values and cooperation by joining hands with the Vijay Shree Foundation. My father taught me to serve and help the needy, and I feel happy when I bring a smile to someone’s face.”

On the birth anniversary of the late Veena Verma, the event organizer, Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh, said, “We feel proud and happy that Dr. Abhishek Verma, a globally renowned business tycoon, has extended his support to uplift our country from the hunger index. Today, on his mother’s birth anniversary, he inaugurated a state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College, which will always be helpful for the needy attendants of patients. It is a pleasure for me and the organization to receive the affection of Mr. Verma.”

The event was attended by General Manager Verma Family Office Hemant Garg, Sonu Rajput, and the organization’s volunteers, including Sandeep Singh, Parmeshwar Ji, Prashant Rao Gautam, Balram Singh, Ramesh Chaudhary, Suman, Jeetu, Anil, Suraj, Vinay, Manish Bhadauria, Manas Mehrotra, Vivek, Apurv, Happy, and others.

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