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'Ant-Man And The Wasp' Reveal Supports Popular 'Avengers 4' Theory

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“Avengers 4” is going to involve time travel, right? Like, can people just admit that already?

Following the release of some leaked photos from the upcoming “Avengers” film set (which show the Avengers, including Ant-Man, visiting past scenes from the franchise), fans have surmised that time travel via the Quantum Realm is the most likely way the superheroes are going to undo the events of “Avengers: Infinity War” ― and more evidence is piling up to support that theory.

“Ant-Man and the Wasp” director Peyton Reed confirmed to HuffPost that Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) — who we last saw stranded in the Quantum Realm after Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), Janet van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) and Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) disappeared into dust due to Thanos’ fatal (for half the universe) finger snap — does not have the enlarging Pym Particle disc he used to escape the other dimension in the first “Ant-Man.”

“This is a new suit, so it really wouldn’t have the same growth that he had in the first movie ... I would answer, ‘No, he does not have it.’ He can’t go to that well twice,” said Reed.

That means Lang is stuck in the Quantum Realm, which was Reed’s plan all along. 

“It seemed like we kind of knew what we wanted to do with or to Scott Lang,” said the director, “and then the other ones, it was just sort of like we talked about all these different versions and where we ended up just felt like, ‘OK, this feels right. We know where things could go from here.’”

Here’s where the time travel comes in: Before Ant-Man gets stuck in the Quantum Realm and Janet van Dyne is turned into dust, she warns him to watch out for time vortexes while in the other dimension.

So, could Ant-Man show up in past “Avengers” scenes via time travel? Reed was optimistic.

“Based on the science that we’ve set up in the first movie and this one, I won’t rule out the possibility,” Reed said, “because, again, we are dealing with a time vortex. That could happen.”

The director confirmed that more Quantum Realm is “definitely a priority” in the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but he wouldn’t reveal much more about where the story is headed.

“I have to be careful here, as you well know,” Reed said before referencing the “Marvel snipers” who are supposedly always on the lookout for spoilers.

Despite the hesitation, Reed was (mostly) willing to address some of the movies’ other vital questions, each one more important than the last: What did Janet van Dyne eat in the Quantum Realm all those years? Was that giant ant in Lang’s house housebroken? And most importantly, what happened to the giant Hello Kitty Pez dispenser?

Ant-Man and the Wasp doing their thing.

Janet van Dyne had been stuck in the Quantum Realm for years. What’s she been eating down there?

She would start breakfast with a serving of Quantum Krispies with Quantum soy milk and then move onto ... just [something with] “Quantum” in front of it. Whatever you have for breakfast, lunch and dinner, put “Quantum” in front of it.

I don’t know if you saw the after-credit scene with an audience yet, but people went crazy when Hope, Hank and Janet disappeared.

I love it. Yeah, I mean ... it was the subject of a lot of conversation, obviously, about how we were gonna deal or if we were gonna deal with the events of  “Infinity War” and if we were going to ... it kind of had to be in keeping with the tone of “Ant-Man and the Wasp,” which is obviously a very different tone. And when we landed on that structure, it just felt right to us. It felt like our movie and the playful attitude of our movie ― where we could have a structure, where our story is contained and has its own resolutions, very neat resolutions ― and then hit them with that scene. We knew even before we put it before an audience. We hoped this feels like we’re kind of screwing with the audience in a really fun way.

During Marvel Cinematic Universe credits, there’s often a phrase saying the characters will return. But here, you have a question mark show up after it, so it says, “Ant-Man and the Wasp will return?”

We do ... we were putting the end together, and we had that thing we just played around with it, and those things have always — I’ve always loved those since James Bond movies. “James Bond will return in ‘For Your Eyes Only’” or whatever, and I like the idea of adding this dumb question mark at the end. It felt like the tone of our movie.

How’d you decide Hope, Hank and Janet would disappear in the after-credit scene and who would be present?

A big part of it was deciding who was going to be in that scene to begin with, because there was a version of that scene I think where it’s like, “OK, maybe Bill Foster is here as well, maybe Ava Starr is here as well.” We talked about versions with ― and maybe Luis, or whoever, it could’ve been anybody ― but then there’s a certain percentage issue that’s set up obviously in “Infinity War” that we couldn’t ignore. When we finally landed on the version that you saw, the final version in the movie, it just seemed right.

Is Cassie OK?

Is Cassie OK? Well, obviously, we don’t try that case in the movie, but it became a thing of people asking us what happened to Cassie? What happened to Luis? What happened to Kurt and Dave? People get really, really wound up about this, which is great, which I hope means that they have a connection with these characters and they care about them, but I can’t tell you a thing.

In the movie, Cassie gives Scott a trophy saying he’s the World’s Greatest Grandma. Is he really the World’s Greatest Grandma?

Absolutely, he’s earned that title. We knew we needed to have this sort of McGuffin of where’s the [Ant-Man] suit going to be hidden to bring Scott Lang to Cassie’s school, and we talked about this trophy. For a long time, it was going be maybe an award he won for a production that he had in prison for an acting job he did in prison.

What was the prison acting job?

He was going to have done ― maybe, like, he was going to be the lead in “Carousel” or something, in a performance, a prison performance in his drama group in prison. We had all these different versions, but then we really liked the idea that it was a gift for Cassie, and it had this little kid quality to it, and it was really representative of this bond between the two of them.

What happened to the giant Hello Kitty Pez dispenser?

It’s in a giant Marvel warehouse now and someone’s planning an elaborate heist to try and steal it probably.

Was there any trouble getting Hello Kitty? Because I heard you originally wanted Chipotle to be Scott’s job in the first “Ant-Man,” but Chipotle didn’t want to participate, so you went with Baskin-Robbins.

Chipotle was our original choice for Scott Lang’s job fresh out of prison, and Adam McKay at the time and I were just hell bent on ― it’s got to be Chipotle. And then we couldn’t get Chipotle. And then we talked about, do we create a fictional ... do we create “Chipotnick’s” and Chipotnicks is the new [place]? That didn’t make sense to us. Then we moved pretty quickly to Baskin-Robbins, because it seemed pretty fertile ground to cut to Scott in that pink colored apron serving out ice cream. Here, Hello Kitty was a pretty straight path. I think they got what we were kind of doing.

In this movie, you have a giant ant continually do Scott Lang’s routine so he can escape house arrest. Is the ant house-broken?

I don’t know. We really never tried that case. Ants are very discreet about how they expel their waste, but actually, he had been programmed. He spends two hours in the bathroom like Scott does. You made me think about it for the first time, but yes, you’re right. He’s potty-trained.

The second after-credit scene starts eerily, with half the world having been eliminated by Thanos, and it ends with the giant ant playing drums. How’d you decide on that one?

Well, I felt like it maybe leavened the drama of the events of “Infinity War” a little bit, and also we liked the idea that this ant ― that Hank and Hope had set up as a decoy for Scott when he’s [under] house arrest and had programmed to do what Scott did all day long ― that maybe if the ant got enough of this, it might start to like hanging out at Scott’s apartment. And maybe it likes playing the drums, and maybe is still staying and playing the drums. It just made us laugh. It seemed like the tone of our movie. The way the tone of our movie would deal with the events of “Infinity War.”

I know you actually play the drums. Was that you playing the drums in place of the ant?

I do play drums; it’s not actually me playing. I know that we at one point did research about how things are played, and it should end in a flourish, but there’s no motion capture. You won’t see a James Gunn next to Baby Groot dancing comparative video of me with the drums.

Was anyone playing the drums?

Well, the drum set in the shot was practical, and the ant that we do is a digital ant, but we definitely, I was very particular about animations where at one point it was like, “OK, I’m hearing a snare drum and a high hat cymbal, and that hand is playing a ride cymbal” … my drummer friends will nail me for that if it’s wrong.

Wasp is such a big part of this movie. Was there any talk of it being called “Wasp and Ant-Man”?

Yeah, there may have been a brief moment where we talked about “Wasp and the Ant-Man,” but because there’s a comics history of “Ant-Man and the Wasp” and a familiarity with certain fans and the idea of that, the Hank Pym /Janet van Dyne-era Ant-Man and Wasp were on the cover of “Avengers” No. 1, and she actually named the Avengers in the comics, so we wanted to maintain a little fidelity with that.

There’s a lot of talk about an all-female “Avengers” film. Since you inform the Wasp character moving forward, what would she do in an all-female “Avengers”? 

I’d like her running things. I’d like to see her as the head of the all-female Avengers. I know Evangeline sort of said ... maybe that would be “Captain Marvel,” because she does have the word “captain” in her name. But I think Hope van Dyne is a very decisive leader and a tactician, in addition to being a brilliant scientist. So she checks a lot of boxes in terms of who’s going to be running the Avengers, theoretically.

If you went to the Quantum Realm, what would you do?

I’d sample the food, I’d see what the food was like.

Yes! The Quantum Krispies?

Exactly.

This interview has been edited and condensed.


Winona Ryder Says She And Keanu Reeves Might Be Married

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Winona Ryder says a staged wedding ceremony for the 1992 film

Actors Winona Ryder and Keanu Reeves might have accidentally married each other in the ’90s ― and they might still be married today.

Ryder, 46, revealed the possible nuptials in an interview she and Reeves, 53, had with Entertainment Weekly while promoting the duo’s upcoming romantic comedy, “Destination Wedding.”

The actors starred together in the 1992 goth horror flick “Dracula,” in which Ryder says their characters, Mina and Jonathan Harker, tie the knot in Romania. However, according to Ryder, the wedding ceremony may have been legitimate.

“We actually got married in ‘Dracula,’” Ryder told Entertainment Weekly. “No, I swear to god I think we’re married in real life.”

At the time “Dracula” came out, Ryder was 21 years old and Reeves was 28.

Ryder’s character Mina may have married Reeves’ Jonathan Harker, but Dracula (played by actor Gary Oldman, pictured above) swept her off her feet.

“In that scene, [director Francis Ford Coppola] used a real Romanian priest,” Ryder explained. “We shot the master and he did the whole thing. So I think we’re married.”

Responding to the news, Reeves asked Ryder if they both said yes during the ceremony. He eventually accepted his possible fate and told the outlet, “Oh my gosh, we’re married.”

Whether Reeves and Ryder are bound by Romanian vows is still a mystery, but you can catch them together again in the anti-romance comedy “Destination Wedding,” which premieres in theaters on Aug. 31.

Mob Lynchings: Government Committee Told To Mull Changes To IPC, CrPC And Set Up Relief Fund

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People shout anti-government slogans during a protest against what the demonstrators say are recent mob lynchings across the country, in Ahmedabad, India, July 23, 2018. REUTERS/Amit Dave

The high level committee set up to come up with measures to curb mob lynchings in India have been suggested to make changes to the IPC and CrPC to make laws against such incidents stronger.

The suggestions have come from a group headed by the Union Home Minister to make recommendations to the high level committee set up by the government in accordance with the direction from the Supreme Court.

A report in The Indian Express says that group has also suggested making lynchings non-bailable, setting up special courts to fast track the cases and set up a relief fund for the families of victims.

The relief, the group suggested, would come from a Central fund.

The report said that the group will submit the draft report of the measures to the panel — set up by the Ministry of Home Affairs and headed by Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba to check mob lynchings.

The report also said that the group also spoke to the police and other authorities of law and order before making the recommendations.

The government on 23 July had said that it was committed to upholding the rule of law and adopting effective measures to curb such incidents and hence set up the high level committee.

These recommendations come at a time when India has seen several mob lynching incidents related to cow vigilantism.

Rakbar Khan, 28 years old, was beaten to death by a vigilante mob in Alwar in July on suspicions of cow smuggling.

In June, Qasim, a cattle trader, was beaten to death and another man Samiuddinwas severely beaten up by a mob on rumours of cow slaughter.

India has seen several more cases of lynchings in the last four years.

Kerala Floods: Clean-Up Begins Amid Fear Of Disease Outbreak

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Rescuers evacuate people from a flooded area to a safer place in Aluva in Kerala on Saturday.

Reuters

KOCHI/NEW DELHI -- Health authorities prepared defences against the spread of disease in flood-hit Kerala on Monday as water receded and a huge clean-up gathered pace after the worst floods in a century killed more than 200 people.

Incessant rain since 8 August in the state has swelled rivers and triggered landslides. Dozens of people are missing and nearly a million are sheltering in thousands of relief camps, state officials said.

"The biggest challenges immediately ahead are cleaning of the flood-hit houses, rehabilitation, and prevention of water-borne diseases," said Mahesh P., a village-level officer from Rayamangalam, some 45km from Kerala's financial capital of Kochi.

Light to moderate rain was expected across Kerala on Monday, bringing some respite to rescue workers, who have been battling rising waters and mudslides to reach tens of thousands of stranded villagers.

Rainfall in the state during the June-September monsoon season has been more than 40% higher than normal, with torrential rain in the last 10 days forcing authorities to release water from dozens of dangerously full dams, sending surges into rivers that then overflowed their banks.

Anil Vasudevan, who handles disaster management at Kerala's health department, said the state was preparing to battle any outbreak of diseases in the relief camps and preventive medicines were being distributed.

Mahesh said villagers had all pulled together to rescue people and prevent an even bigger disaster.

"The bulk of the credit for the rescue goes to the ordinary citizens. The army, the navy, the local authorities assisted them," Mahesh said.

"The flood has bonded the people like never before, with people sharing whatever they had."

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said there was no shortage of food in the state as traders had stocked up ahead of Onam, the state's biggest festival which falls on 25 August.

The state has cancelled all official celebrations in connection with Onam.

Anthony Bourdain Feature-Length Documentary Being Produced By CNN

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We’ve learned a lot about celebrity chef and travel guide Anthony Bourdain since his suicide in June. But CNN officials tell Vanity Fair there’s “still a hunger to know more about him.”

CNN and “Parts Unknown” production company Zero Point Zero are in the early stages of producing a feature-length documentary about Bourdain. The film they call the “the definitive Bourdain feature documentary” could hit theaters as early as next year. But don’t expect the film to be rushed out.

“We want to make it perfect,” said Amy Entelis, CNN’s executive vice president for talent and content. “We want to make it exquisite for Tony. We want to do him justice.”

Bourdain, 61, hanged himself in his hotel room in Kaysersberg, France, while filming an episode for “Parts Unknown” show. CNN plans to air a final, abbreviated season of the program this fall.

Robots Have The Same Power As Adults To Influence Children

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A new study has found that young children are significantly more likely to be influenced by robots than adults.

The study, carried out by the University of Plymouth, found that while adults will happily question the views of a robot, children will actually agree with their mechanical peers even if the information being given is wrong.

The test required both the adults and the children to look at a screen with four lines on it and then say which ones are the same length.

On their own the children scored 87% in the test, yet when the robots joined in that score dropped down to a measly 75% and of those wrong answers 74% matched those of the robot.

What does this all mean? Well quite simply it’s good and bad news.

“It shows children can perhaps have more of an affinity with robots than adults, which does pose the question: what if robots were to suggest, for example, what products to buy or what to think?” Explains Tony Belpaeme, Professor of robotics at the University of Plymouth.

If the thought of a robot convincing your child to buy something sounds worrying, then the researchers do point out that there are some positives that go hand-in-hand with this news.

For instance the researchers at Plymouth have also been working to explore the positive impacts that robots could have in both health and education settings.

During a four-year study they found that social robots in particular could help children with diabetes accept the nature of their condition. They’re also working on a new type of robot that could help pre-school children with the learning of a second language.

While much of this is still referring to something that hasn’t happened yet, robots are already carrying out a surprising number of jobs for us around the world.

Robots are being used to mow our lawns, clean our carpets, park our cars, help bring us room service and even teach us. Seeing robots in the home is not as far away as we might expect.

“A future in which autonomous social robots are used as aids for education professionals or child therapists is not distant,” explain the researchers.

Ultimately though the researchers believe that like any new technology the key will be in regulating it and making sure that its power isn’t abused. Yes, robots have the ability to influence children, but as long as they’re used for social good e.g. learning and healthcare, they have the potential to do a lot more good than harm.

J.K. Rowling Taunts Trump With A 'Disgusting' Rewrite Of His Latest Twitter Rant

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Author J.K. Rowling took a new swipe at President Donald Trump on Sunday, rewriting his latest angry tweet.

Trump had complained about “fake news” in light of a New York Times report that White House counsel Don McGahn was cooperating with special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. 

But the “Harry Potter” author’s update looks like it came more from a school playground than the Oval Office

The British author has been a steady Trump critic on social media. 

Last month, she took a literary jibe at the president, using a line from Lewis Carroll’s 1871 novel, Through The Looking-Glass, to mock one of his “no collusion” tweets

And earlier this summer, Rowling ― one of the best-selling authors of all time ― laughed off Trump’s claim that he prides himself on his ability to write in a tweet that contained a typo.  

Vinesh Phogat Wins Gold In Asian Games Free Wrestling

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Indian women's wrestling champion Vinesh Phogat has won a gold medal in the ongoing Asian games in 50KG free wrestling, beating her opponent Japan's Yuki Irie.

Indian Express reported that Phogat took lead in the first round scoring 4-0. While Irie added two points, holding her ground, Phogat added two points to her tally.

Phogat beat her Chinese opponen Yanan Sun, to reach the finals. Phogat had suffered a leg injury during her match against Sun during the Olympics in Rio.

The match took place in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Phogat became the first Indian woman win gold in the 50KG free wresting category. She had won a bronze medal in the 48KG category in the last Asian Games in 2014.

This is not Phogat's first gold. She won a gold medal in the 48 KG category in the Commonwealth Games held in Glasgow in 2014. She also won gold in the 50 kg category in Commonwealth games this year, which was held in Gold Coast in Australia.

This is India's second gold medal in this year's Asian Games with Bajrang Punia winning a gold medal defeating Japan's Takatani Daichi in the men's 65kg Freestyle final, on day one of the Asian Games.

Apurvi Chandela and Ravi Kumar won a bronze medal in 10m Air Rifle Mixed Team event on Sunday.

Deepak Kumar won a silver medal in men's 10m air rifle event earlier today.


Kerala Floods: Death Toll Nears 400 Even As Dozens Go Missing

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National Disaster Response Force members from Gujarat distribute food, water and medicines to flood victims  on August 20, 2018 in Alappuzha, Kerala

KOCHI/NEW DELHI -- The death toll in Kerala rose on Monday to nearly 400 after its worst flood in a century, as authorities handed out medicine and disinfectants to ward off disease in thousands of relief camps.

Dozens of people are missing and 1.2 million are sheltering in the camps, state officials said, as water receded and a huge clean-up gathered pace.

"The death toll has risen to 373," an official of the state's disaster management authority told Reuters.

Kerala received rainfall more than 40% greater than normal for the monsoon season, which runs from June to September. Torrential rain in the last 10 days forced officials to release water from dozens of dangerously full dams.

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The Centre classified the floods as a "calamity of severe nature." Kerala has pitched it as a national disaster, which if accepted by the central government, is likely to prompt greater commitments of funds for relief and rebuilding efforts.

But, without a yardstick for such a declaration, it could be an uphill task, state officials involved with disaster management said.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan called the flood one of the worst in India's history, displacing more than half a million people.

J.P. Nadda, the country's health minister, said more than 3,500 medical camps were set up across a region roughly the size of Switzerland, where rains since Aug. 8 have swelled rivers and triggered landslides.

"There is a requirement for 90 different medicines and the first instalment has reached," he added.

"The biggest challenges immediately ahead are cleaning of the flood-hit houses, rehabilitation, and prevention of water-borne diseases," said Mahesh P., a village official in Rayamangalam, about 45 km (28 miles) from Kerala's financial capital of Kochi.

Mahesh oversees four relief camps in his village, which itself escaped flood damage. The camps accommodate people rescued from neighbouring areas, which were among the worst affected.

The villagers had all pulled together to rescue people and prevent an even bigger disaster, Mahesh said.

"The flood has bonded the people like never before, sharing whatever they had."

Chlorine powder to disinfect water and other cleaning material are distributed by the camps Mahesh oversees, along with a basic survival kit consisting of a five-day supply of rice and food, toiletries and clothing.

LONG QUEUES

Light to moderate rain was expected across Kerala on Monday, promising respite to rescue workers, who have battled rising waters and mudslides to reach tens of thousands of stranded villagers.

In one of the worst-hit areas, Chengannur, about 100 km (62 miles) from Kochi, a long queue of women snaked out of a medical camp at the main relief centre.

As a helicopter hovered overhead, doctors checked elderly men and women lying on wooden benches in an engineering college.

"People are being screened for respiratory infections," said a camp doctor, Rajesh Parameshwaran, adding that another infection doctors were targeted was leptospirosis, which can strike people wading through stagnant water.

Those returning home from the camps as the waters recede face a difficult clean-up.

The insides of many homes will have about 60 cm (24 inches) of mud, officials said. Wells, commonly used in Kerala, are contaminated and few places have electricity to pump water.

Kochi's airport has suspended operations until Sunday. National carrier Air India on Monday began flying turboprop planes from the city's naval airport to the cities of Bangalore and Coimbatore in neighbouring states.

To assist passengers, India's aviation regulator asked domestic airlines to cap maximum fares to and from Kerala and nearby airports.

Kerala faces no shortage of food, at least. Traders had stocked up before the Hindu harvest festival of Onam on Saturday, the chief minister said.

Kerala has cancelled all official celebrations of what is usually its biggest festive event.

Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the opposition Congress party, urged Modi not to discriminate between states controlled by his Bharatiya Janata Party and those such as Kerala, which it does not rule.

The state, ruled by the communist party, has received just a third of the immediate assistance of 20 billion rupees ($285 million) it sought from the central government.

Families Separated Since Korean War Reunite In North Korea

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Families divided during the Korean War tearfully reunited for the first time on Monday after South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean President Kim Jong Un signed a declaration earlier this year to facilitate such meetings. 

A group of 89 people, mostly elderly, were chosen, CNN reported, to travel from South Korea to North Korea and see relatives many hadn’t even been in contact with since the armistice was signed in 1953. 

One woman, Lee Keum-seom, told CNN that she was seeing her son for the first time since he was 4 years old. They are now 92 and 72 years old, respectively. 

”(My family) in North Korea didn’t live long so I prayed for my son’s health,” she said. “What shall I ask? Oh, I should ask him what his father told him about me. His father must have told him about how we got separated and where our house used to be.”

Yonhap described a tearful scene, as long-lost family members hugged and asked each other rudimentary questions about each other’s lives. Lee, for example, asked her son how many children he had.

The reunification event will go until Wednesday, Yonhap said, giving families a total of 11 hours together by the end. More than 300 South Koreans will also travel north this coming weekend for a second round of reunions. 

Tens of thousands of Koreans have reunited since the early 2000s, but Monday’s meet and greet was the first of its kind since 2015, after which tensions increased between the countries and reunifications were halted. 

South Koreans Jo Hye-do (R), 86, and Jo Do-jae (C), 75, meet their North Korean sister Jo Soon Do (L), 89, during a separated family reunion meeting at the Mount Kumgang resort on the North's southeastern coast on August 20, 2018.

The two Koreas have made efforts to mend ties this year, amid President Donald Trump’s diplomatic push to get the reclusive regime to denuclearize. 

The neighbors have held a series of summits this year, including a historic meeting in May during which Kim stepped over the border into South Korea and embraced Moon.

Trump and Kim also shared a historic handshake during their summit in June and signed a joint agreement committing to denuclearization of the Korean peninsula as well as new U.S.-DPRK relations.

Progress may be stalled though given that American officials confirmed last month that North Korea continues to manufacture new ballistic missiles and produce nuclear fuel.

2018 VMAs: All The Looks You Need To See From The Red Carpet

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Everyone knows award shows are just an excuse for celebrities to get dressed up and show off a variety of looks on the red carpet. The MTV Video Music Awards are no exception. 

The award show, which took place Monday night at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, had everything from stunning gowns to kooky ensembles, which is part of what makes this carpet so fun. 

Cardi B, who is opening the show, shut down Radio City in a custom fuchsia gown from Nicolas Jebran with a thigh-high split. She paired the look with matching heels, a pixie cut and over $4 million worth of Lorraine Schwartz jewelry (including 100-carat emerald earrings and a few 45-carat rings). 

Shawn Mendes set the standard for men walking the red carpet, showing up in a bold blue-and-green blazer and matching blue pants.  

Of course ― given that this is the VMAs ― there were also plenty of wild and wacky outfits on the carpet. 

Check out all the looks below: 

Cardi B

Cardi B

Kevin Mazur via Getty Images
Pete Davison and Ariana Grande

Pete Davison and Ariana Grande

Nicholas Hunt via Getty Images
Jennifer Lopez

Jennifer Lopez

Jamie McCarthy via Getty Images
Nicki Minaj

Nicki Minaj

Mike Coppola via Getty Images
Amber Rose

Amber Rose

Jamie McCarthy via Getty Images
Blake Lively

Blake Lively

Jamie McCarthy via Getty Images
Bethany Meyers and Nico Tortorella

Bethany Meyers and Nico Tortorella

Matthew Eisman via Getty Images
Teyana Taylor

Teyana Taylor

Jamie McCarthy via Getty Images
Millie Bobby Brown

Millie Bobby Brown

Kevin Mazur via Getty Images
Dascha Polanco

Dascha Polanco

ANGELA WEISS via Getty Images
Camila Cabello

Camila Cabello

Nicholas Hunt via Getty Images
SZA

SZA

Nicholas Hunt via Getty Images
Iggy Azalea

Iggy Azalea

Nicholas Hunt via Getty Images
Winnie Harlow

Winnie Harlow

Nicholas Hunt via Getty Images
Shay Mitchell

Shay Mitchell

Andrew Kelly / Reuters
Olivia Munn

Olivia Munn

Nicholas Hunt via Getty Images
Shawn Mendes

Shawn Mendes

Kevin Mazur via Getty Images
Tiffany Haddish

Tiffany Haddish

Jamie McCarthy via Getty Images
Chloe X Halle

Chloe X Halle

Nicholas Hunt via Getty Images
Kim Petras

Kim Petras

Jamie McCarthy via Getty Images
Grace VanderWaal

Grace VanderWaal

Matthew Eisman via Getty Images
Chantel Jeffries

Chantel Jeffries

ANGELA WEISS via Getty Images
Tana Mongeau

Tana Mongeau

Mike Coppola via Getty Images
Quavo and Offset of Migos

Quavo and Offset of Migos

Jamie McCarthy via Getty Images
Vinny Guadagnino and Pauly D

Vinny Guadagnino and Pauly D

Nicholas Hunt via Getty Images
Frankie Grande

Frankie Grande

Jamie McCarthy via Getty Images
Christian Combs

Christian Combs

John Shearer via Getty Images
Sophie and Farrah Abraham

Sophie and Farrah Abraham

Jamie McCarthy via Getty Images
G-Eazy

G-Eazy

Nicholas Hunt via Getty Images
Amandla Stenberg

Amandla Stenberg

Nicholas Hunt via Getty Images
Lil Xan and Noah Cyrus

Lil Xan and Noah Cyrus

Mike Coppola via Getty Images
Lilliana Vazquez

Lilliana Vazquez

Nicholas Hunt via Getty Images
Shanina Shaik

Shanina Shaik

Jeff Kravitz via Getty Images
Liam Payne

Liam Payne

Jamie McCarthy via Getty Images
Sophie Kasaei

Sophie Kasaei

Paul Zimmerman via Getty Images
Keegan-Michael Key and Elisa Pugliese

Keegan-Michael Key and Elisa Pugliese

Nicholas Hunt via Getty Images
Nicky Hilton Rothschild

Nicky Hilton Rothschild

Nicholas Hunt via Getty Images
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 20: Heidi Pratt attends the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City Music Hall on August 20, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images for MTV)

Heidi Pratt

NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 20: Heidi Pratt attends the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City Music Hall on August 20, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images for MTV) Mike Coppola via Getty Images
Emery Kelly, Ricky Garcia and Liam Attridge of Forever in Your Mind

Emery Kelly, Ricky Garcia and Liam Attridge of Forever in Your Mind

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Tessa Brooks

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Chanel West Coast

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Gucci Mane and Keyshia Ka'Oir

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Jenni 'JWOWW' Farley

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PRETTYMUCH

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This story has been updated with new information about Cardi B’s look.

Pressured To Withdraw FIR Against Upper Caste Men, Dalits In Meerut Threaten Stir Over Teen's Death

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NEW DELHI, INDIA - MAY 20: A protestor carries a giant cut-out of Dr. BR Ambedkar during a protest by the members of dalit and tribal community against atrocities demanding for justice at Parliament Street, on May 20, 2018 in New Delhi, India. (Photo by Sushil Kumar/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)

A week after 19-year-old Rohit Kumar was killed in clashes between Dalits and Thakurs in Uldepur, Meerut, the Dalits have alleged that the upper caste residents have been pressurizing them to withdraw the FIR against them.

The 19-year-old Dalit boy was allegedly killed because he tried to stop a group of reportedly upper caste men from sexually harassing a girl. Several others were injured in the incident that took place a week ago.

The Indian Express reported that members of the Jatav community met for a Dalit mahapanchayat on Monday, presenting a list of demands and warned of a "mahasabha" on August 30 unless their demands were met by August 29.

The Times of India reported that Kumar's family was also under pressure from BJP leaders to withdraw their FIR.

The newspaper quoted Students' Democratic Front president Sushil Gautam as saying, "Residents of several villages here met to decide the future of our protest. We have a set of demands including arrest of all the accused in the murder of Rohit, withdrawal of cases filed on family members and relatives of the victim party, making two licenced guns available to Rohit's family Rs 50 lakh in compensation to the family and a government job one of its members."

It was reported yesterday that four upper caste accused in the case had been arrested and one was still on the run.

However, the report in The Indian Express says that a "Rajput mahasabha" was held on 14 August to build pressure on the police to file FIRs against the Jatav caste. In fact, an FIR was filed on complaint from the wife of one of the accused in the case accusing the Jatav Community of rioting and sexual assault.

Kashmir Encounter: Releasing Court Martial Details Will Cause Public Outrage, Says Army

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Indian army soldiers patrol a street near a site of a gunbattle between Indian security forces and suspected militants in Khudwani village of South Kashmir's Kulgam district, April 11, 2018. REUTERS/Danish Ismail

NEW DELHI -- The Indian Army is using all available legal means to suppress the public release of documents relating to the trial that found six army personnel guilty of killing three Kashmiri civilians in the Macchil fake encounter, HuffPost India has found.

Releasing the information, the army has argued in a Delhi high court petition exclusively accessed by HuffPost India, served no public interest, was an "unwarranted invasion of the privacy" of the accused, and would result in public outrage that would "prejudicially affect the security, sovereignty and integrity of India", and affect military operations in the state.

In September 2015, the Northern Army Commander had confirmed the life sentence awarded by the Court Martial earlier, paving the way for the convicts to be handed over to jail authorities. Last year, the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) suspended the sentences of five of the six accused (one person was already out on bail by then).The trial has not concluded yet.

The army's refusal to provide information related to the Macchil trial is despite the Central Information Commission (CIC) ruling it was "inappropriate" to do so.

HuffPost India has reached out to the Army's spokesperson and will update this story if he responds.

Granting such immunity from scrutiny to the armed forces, civil liberties activists have long held, has contributed to the cycle of violence and unrest in troubled areas like Kashmir by allowing individual soldiers to act with impunity.

Advocate Anjana Gosain, who is representing the army in the high court, declined to comment on the case. "The case is sub judice, so I cannot comment on it," she said.

The army's refusal to explain how it acts on allegations of human rights abuses by its personnel is significant in the context of an unprecedented Supreme Court petition, filed by 300 serving Army officers, seeking protection from prosecution of armed forces personnel by civilian courts and law enforcement agencies in insurgency-hit areas.

Granting such immunity from scrutiny to the armed forces, civil liberties activists have long held, has contributed to the cycle of violence and unrest in troubled areas like Kashmir by allowing individual soldiers to act with impunity.

"Impunity for human rights violations and lack of access to justice are key human rights challenges in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir," notes a recently published report by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. "Special laws in force in the state, such as the Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Powers Act, 1990 and the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act, 1978 have created structures that obstruct the normal course of law, impede accountability and jeopardise the right to remedy for victims of human rights violations."

A timeline of the army's persistent opposition to the Right to Information (RTI) request seeking details on the Macchil encounter, pieced together by HuffPost India, reveals just how difficult it is to seek justice for the families of those killed in fake encounters by the military, and the lengths to which Indian armed forces are prepared to resist the constitutional authority of the CIC.

Venkatesh Nayak, coordinator of the Access to Information programme of the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI), who filed the RTI, said the grounds for denial of information, "seem to be an afterthought aimed at preventing public access to crucial documents that throw light on the events that resulted in the deaths of three civilians at Macchil".

Indian army soldiers stand guard outside an army camp after suspected militants attacked the camp, in Jammu, February 10, 2018. REUTERS/Mukesh Gupta

MACCHIL ENCOUNTER

In 2014, a Court Martial found Col. Dinesh Pathania, Capt. Upendra Singh, Havaldar Davender, Lance Naik Lakhmi, Lance Naik Arun Kumar and Rifleman Abbas Hussain guilty of killing Shahzad Ahmad Khan, Mohammad Shafi Lone and Riyaz Ahmad Lone in a staged encounter in the Macchil area of Kupwara district in Kashmir.

The three Kashmiri men had been lured to an army camp to ostensibly work as porters, but were passed off as foreign insurgents and killed in return for promotions and honours. One of the men, a subsequent police investigation revealed, was so young that the accused painted a beard on his face to make him look like a militant. The incident, which came to be known as the Macchil encounter, occurred in 2010.

The 'guilty' verdict marked a rare occasion when serving senior military officers were convicted for a staged encounter. However, in 2017, the AFT suspended the sentence and granted bail to five of the six accused.

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

In January 2015, Nayak from the CHRI filed an RTI request for copies of five specific sets of documents:

· The findings of the Court Martial in relation to the conviction of six army personnel for the killings committed at Macchil.

· The charge sheet filed before the Court Martial in relation to the case.

· The sentence awarded to the convicted army personnel by the Court Martial.

· Communication, along with annexures, pertaining to the case.

· A photocopy of proceedings of another Court of Inquiry which apparently enquired into the killings of five persons in Pathribal in the Kashmir valley in 2000.

The Army refused to part with any information, citing exemption from disclosure under Section 8 (1)(h) of the RTI Act, 2005, which pertains to cases that are still under investigation or under prosecution.

"Disclosure of such sensitive information would result in public outrage. Hence keeping in view of public interest and security, it was decided not to implement it."

Further, to Nayak's surprise, the Army noted they could not share information on the Pathribal case as a Court of Inquiry was never held.

In September 2015, Nayak appealed to the CIC, the top adjudicating authority for the RTI. The army court had completed trial and sentenced the accused to a life term in the Macchil case, Nayak noted—hence the case was no longer under investigation, the prosecution process was complete and the Army's grounds for denying the information were unfounded.

The CIC bench of Information Commissioner Divya Prakash Sinha agreed.

"Commission observes from the further submissions of the CPIO that there are no tenable grounds for invoking Section 8(1)(h)," the CIC order dated November 2016 said. "In the absence of any plausible justification for invoking the exemption of Section 8(1)(h), Commission finds it inappropriate on the part of the CPIO to have denied the information."

"CPIO" refers to the Army's Central Public Information Officer.

The CIC also directed the army to respond in 15 days, but it didn't.

So, in February 2017, Nayak wrote to the CIC again. The CIC wrote to the army the same month, asking that its orders be followed.

In May 2017, the army filed a writ petition through an 'urgent application' in the Delhi High Court to set aside the CIC order. In July 2017, the HC stayed the CIC order but has not given a final decision on the army petition yet.

NATIONAL SECURITY

The army has used grounds of national security to deny information that reveals just how the military judges their own officers and soldiers accused of heinous crimes.

"Disclosure of such sensitive information would result in public outrage," the army petition states. "Hence keeping in view of public interest and security, it was decided not to implement it."

Sharing this information, the petition claims, "would prejudicially affect the security, sovereignty and integrity of India, and shall further have national and international ramifications. It further might create unrest in the State of Jammu and Kashmir, affecting the law and order situation, which would in turn affect the National Security".

"This issue (Macchil encounter) or any other issue related to... sentiments of people, there should always be transparency in these matters. Unless the documents are related to the security of the nation and are classified, there is no harm if they release it," Nasir Sogami, who was Jammu and Kashmir's minister of state (home), from 2011-12, told HuffPost India.

Google Doodle Honours Urdu Writer Ismat Chughtai On her 107th Birth Anniversary

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Google India has marked Urdu writer Ismat Chughtai on her 107th birth anniversary with a doodle on their home page.

The iconic feminist writer was born in Badaun, Uttar Pradesh, on 21 August 1915. She started writing in the 1930s about subjects such as female sexuality and femininity that were considered taboo during her time.

She also wrote about class conflict. Her writing was progressive and pertains to issues that women face even today.

Some of her famous writings include Til, Gainda and Lihaaf. In fact, Lihaaf was considered "obscene" during the time that it was written and got her summoned to the Lahore court in 1944.

She was, however, exonerated in the case.

Chughtai later moved on to writing for films in Bollywood. She made her debut in 1948 with Latif's film Ziddi, which was based on a short story written by her.

She also won a Filmfare Award for best story in 1975 for the critically acclaimed film Garm Hava.

She was awarded the Padma Shri in 1976.

Can The Modi Govt Declare The Kerala Floods 'National Disaster' And Will It Matter?

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A woman cries as she holds her son after they were evacuated from a flooded area in Aluva in the southern state of Kerala, India, August 18, 2018. REUTERS/Sivaram V

A rising chorus of voices on social media has been demanding that the Centre declare the Kerala floods a 'national disaster'. Led by Rahul Gandhi, various Twitter users have demanded that the government at the Centre declare the massive floods — which have claimed at least 357 lives and caused damage of Rs 19,000 crore — be called a 'national disaster', assuming that would make a difference to the allocation of funds and resources for relief to the state.

Chief Minister of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan had said, "Our demand is also the same. But the Centre is pointing out certain technical difficulties to make such an announcement."

On Monday, the Centre declared the Kerala floods a 'calamity of severe nature'. According to The Indian Express, declaring the Kerala floods a calamity of severe nature would mean the following:

— A calamity relief fund (CRF) will be set up and the Centre and state will bear the expenses at a 3:1 ratio.

— The state and the Centre will also consider concession in repayment of loans and could also extend fresh loans under flexible terms.

CAN THE FLOODS BE CALLED "NATIONAL DISASTER"?

According to a report on The Indian Express, there is no legal or executive provision to declare a 'natural calamity' as a national disaster.

The report added that the 2001 Gujarat earthquake, and the 1999 super cyclone in Odisha, were declared "a calamity of unprecedented severity" and treated as such by the government at the Centre. More than 13,000 people were killed in the Gujarat earthquake and the Odisha cyclone left at least 10,000 people dead.

Later, the flash floods in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, which took the life of at least 4,094 people as per government records, were also not declared as a 'national disaster'.

The Disaster Management Act, 2005 puts down elaborate instructions about how the state and Centre should act and coordinate when a part of the country is faced with a severe natural calamity, but it says nothing about nomenclature of these calamities depending on the degree and extent of damage.

The Indian Expressreports that in 2001, the national committee on disaster management had tried to discuss the parameters by which a tragedy can be declared a 'national disaster', but nothing concrete came out of the meeting.

HOW ARE CALAMITIES CLASSIFIED IN INDIA?

The government has declared the Kerala floods to be a 'L3 level' disaster as specified by the national disaster management guidelines. In 1999, a committee headed by JC Pant recommended a series of guidelines on disaster management, including the formation of a ministry. However, these recommendations were not immediately implemented. Two years later, after the devastating Gujarat earthquake in 2001, the National Disaster Management Authority was formed under the Ministry of Home Affairs and it embraced several of the Pant committee's suggestions. L3 is the kind of disaster that demands the engagement of the state and centre and highest priority and maximum capacity.

"L1, L2, L3 levels of each type of disaster have to be predetermined, to lay out procedures to trigger off the Basic Initial Response Management Steps (BIRMS) without formal orders from any where. Sub-groups of ministries and departments which have been assigned responsibility of different sub-groups of disasters and so constituted at the national and state levels, have to address 3 this exercise at the earliest. L1 denotes a disaster which can be handled effectively at the district level. Normally L2 level of disasters of the district will be the L1 level at the state hqs; and L3 level of the district will be the L2 level of the state hqs; L3 level of the state hqs would normally be the L1 level at the centre. L0 level is designated as the preparatory level prior to L1. In disasters such as the Bhuj or J&K earthquakes or the Orissa super cyclone or the recent Tsunami L1, L2, L3 would perhaps be triggered off simultaneously," the Pant committee report said.

WILL DECLARING KERALA FLOODS 'NATIONAL CALAMITY' HELP?

According to this article on The Week, naming the calamity won't make any difference on paper. However, once the waters have receded and Kerala takes stock of the overall damage, the Centre is responsible for helping the state out wherever it falls short of funds.

Speaking to The Week, central government officials pointed out that if the Centre were to declare the floods a 'national disaster', it can release funds under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) which is 100% borne by the Centre. The Centre has allocated Rs. 500 crore from the same fund for Kerala. The section of the disaster management act which talks about the national disaster response fund specifies that the amount to be disbursed solely depends on the Centre's appropriation of the situation.


After Floods In Kodagu, Bengaluru May Be Next, Says Expert

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A file photo of people in Bengaluru wading through knee-deep water after continuous rains in July 2016.

Even as Karnataka's Kodagu district is coping with floods that have killed 12 people, the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC) has said that the city of Bengaluru may face the same fate in September, even though a deficit monsoon has been predicted.

The New Indian Express quoted KSNDMC director Srinivas Reddy as saying, "This year, in the monsoon period (June to August), Bengaluru Urban district has a 30% deficit in rainfall. This is similar to the situation last year. While rains in the next two months might not be as heavy as last year, it doesn't mean that the city is safe."

The report said that while pressure over the Bay of Bengal could bring storms to the city and the Centre had informed the administration of the issue, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has just begun to remove encroachments that may cause floods.

Flash floods had inundated large parts of Bengaluru last year.

The Times of India had reported last year that storm water drains across the city had been encroached upon, with the BBMP being the largest culprit.

Meanwhile, mismanagement of water from the Cauvery dam is being reported as the reason behind the floods in Kodagu.

Himanshu Thakkar, coordinator of South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers And People, told The Times of India on Monday, "Cauvery reservoirs started getting saturated as early as May end and mid-June, a rare phenomenon. Ideally, the authorities should have started releasing water from dam in June itself, but they didn't do it as they wanted to conserve water for difficult days. But unexpected excess rain in the later part of July and August threw their plans out of of gear. With water being released in huge quantities at once, there were floods downstream."

Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy conducted an aerial survey of Kodagu on Tuesday.

The News Minute reported him as saying that 845 houses , 123 km of roads, 58 bridges, 278 government buildings and 3,800 electric poles had been damaged.

Saurabh Chaudhary Shoots Asian Games Gold On Senior Debut At 16

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India's Saurabh Chaudhary celebrates after winning the men's 10m air pistol shooting final during the 2018 Asian Games in Palembang on August 21, 2018. (Photo by Mohd RASFAN / AFP)        (Photo credit should read MOHD RASFAN/AFP/Getty Images)

PALEMBANG -- Saurabh Chaudhary, all of 16, on Tuesday became only the fifth Indian shooter to claim a gold in the Asian Games, beating a field of multiple world and Olympic champions in the 10m air pistol finals, here.

Chaudhary, competing in his first senior event, showed maturity and calmness beyond his age to snatch the lead from 2010 World Champion Tomoyuki Matsuda on the penultimate shot in the 24-shot final.

Another Indian making his international debut, 29-year-old Abhishek Verma, shot 219.3 to secure bronze.

Chaudhary, son of a farmer based in Kalina village in Meerut, aggregated 240.7. 42-year-old Matsuda, from Japan, misfired on the 23rd shot, an 8.9, to settle for silver. He scored 239.7.

Chaudhary also set a Games record with his sensational effort. His last two shots were a 10.2 and 10.4, giving him the decisive lead. The Japanese's last two shots were an 8.9 and 10.3.

Expectations were high from Chaudhary as he had broken the world record on the way to winning a gold in the Junior World Cup in Germany a couple of months ago.

But not many thought that he would emulate the golden feat achieved by the likes of Jaspal Rana, Randhir Singh, Jitu Rai and Ronjan Sodhi at such a young age.

"I did not feel any pressure," said Chaudhary, who picked up the sport only three years ago, when asked about his rivals including Matsuda.

He did not show any sign of nerves even in the qualification held earlier in the day, bossing it with a 586. Jongoh was second in the qualification while Verma finished sixth.

Chaudhary, a student of class XI, will be off to the World Championships after the Games.

He learnt the tricks of the trade at Amit Sheoran's academy at Benoli near Baghpat, 53km from Meerut. Whenever he is home, he helps his father in the farming business.

"I like farming. We don't get much time off from training but whenever I do, I go back to my village and help my father," said Chaudhary.

Like Chaudhary, Rohtak-based Verma also picked up the sport three years ago.

The 29-year-old lawyer-cum-shooter did begin well but saved his best for the last to win bronze.

"I was nervous in the beginning seeing a field like that. But then I composed myself. It is my first international event and I have won a medal. It feels great of course," Verma, who hails from Rohtak, told PTI.

In the fifth series, he shot a couple of 10.7s to get himself into medal contention. He consolidated from there, producing a solid finish.

He and another teen sensation Manu Bhaker had disappointed in the mixed team event, failing to qualify for the final.

"The fact that Manu and I failed to qualify in mixed team, we were not disappointed. We learnt a lot from that failure," Verma said about that missed opportunity.

Jennifer Lopez Shuts Down The 2018 MTV VMAs With Vanguard Award Performance

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Jennifer Lopez received the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award at the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards on Monday night and proved just why she deserved the honor in the first place.

The stunning 49-year-old actress, singer and dancer brought down the house with a show-stopping performance that covered her greatest hits, including mashups of “Waiting for Tonight,” “On the Floor,” Dance Again,” “Ain’t Your Mama,” “Love Don’t Cost A Thing,” “Get Right,” “Jenny From The Block,” and “Dinero.” Ja Rule even stopped by for “I’m Real” and “Ain’t It Funny.”

Lopez got everyone in the audience on their feet, while boyfriend Alex Rodriguez had a meme-able moment when he was essentially rendered speechless by his girlfriend’s moves. 

Lopez slayed her performance at the 2018 MTV VMAs.The artist descended from the ceiling as she started the performance in a long cape before kicking it off to reveal a gold bodysuit. The triple threat is the first Latina artist to receive the prestigious award.

After the performance, Lopez returned to the stage ― and a standing ovation ― to accept the award. She was visibly emotional while accepting it. 

“It has been an incredible journey of dreaming my wildest dreams and then, kinda watching them come true,” she said, laughing, as the audience cheered her on. 

“Music, acting, performing — this career has always been an obsession for me. When people have said, ‘You’re doing too much, you can only do one thing,’ I was always a person who was like, ‘Why not?’ I kind of had to forge my own path and rules,” Lopez said. 

She also gave a sweet shout-out to her twins, Max and Emme, saying, “It was through that unconditional love that my career and life became higher in every way, and I stand here better than ever. So thank you Max and Emme.” 

Last but not least, Lopez thanked her boyfriend, Alex Rodriguez, for being everything she was looking for. 

“You’re like my twin soul. We’re like mirror images of each other,” the singer said. “My life is sweeter and better with you in it because you make me realize that every day the sky is not the limit — the universe is infinite, and so is what we can accomplish together with love and trust and understanding.”

She added, “There’s so much more to do — to experience — and there is no one I’d rather do it with.” 

The artist thanked her fans, family and boyfriend, Alex Rodriguez.

The award, which was first introduced in 1984 and later renamed for Jackson in 1991, has been given to artists like David Bowie, Madonna, The Rolling Stones, Justin Timberlake, Beyoncé, Kanye West, Rihanna and, of course, Michael Jackson in the past. Lopez is the first Latina artist to receive it. 

On “The Tonight Show” last Friday, Lopez said she felt bashful about receiving the honor. 

“It is amazing, honestly. Growing up on MTV and watching all my idols get this award. ... To be the recipient this year, I can’t even believe it. I’m so excited,”  Lopez said.

When MTV first announced her name on Facebook Live in July, the singer was overcome with emotion. 

“I was watching all the way back from Tina Turner, Bruce Springsteen and Madonna and Janet [Jackson] and Michael [Jackson], all of them,” Lopez told the Facebook audience. “They were my inspirations to get into the music business, to do what I did.”

She added, “Their videos inspired me to do the videos I did. Now, to be 20 years in and here and winning this award, it’s just mind-blowing.”

In addition to the milestone award, Lopez was also nominated for two VMAs for her song “Dinero,” which features Cardi B and DJ Khaled. 

WATCH: Anushka Sharma Couldn't Take Her Eyes Off Virat Kohli As He Hit His 23rd Century

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Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma's PDA often gives people on the Internet #RelationshipGoals.

But after yesterday's test match against England, when Virat Kohli hit his 23rd century, Sharma's expression was a spontaneous outburst of pure love.

After hitting the century, Kohli blew a kiss to Sharma, who, standing proudly on the stands of Trent Bridge stadium in England's Nottingham, appeared to be beaming.

The couple, who first met while filming an ad together, got married in Italy in December, 2017.

Watch the adorable video here:

Also see on HuffPost:

Chris Watts Formally Charged With Killing Pregnant Wife, 2 Daughters

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The husband of a pregnant woman who was reported missing last week along with their two young daughters has been charged with their murders, officials announced Monday.

The Weld County District Attorney’s Office filed nine charges on Monday against 33-year-old Chris Watts of Frederick, Colorado, including five first-degree murder charges, three charges for tampering with deceased bodies and one charge for unlawful termination of a pregnancy in the first degree.

In an arrest affidavit also released Monday, police say Watts told them he “went into a rage” and strangled his wife, Shannan, to death after he saw footage on their baby monitor of her strangling their daughter Celeste, 3, and of their other daughter Bella, 4, “sprawled out on her bed and blue.”

Despite Shanann Watts’ positive posts on Facebook about her husband, friends and family told local media that the couple had recently appeared to have a strained marriage. Police also wrote in the affidavit that Chris Watts was having an affair with a co-worker, which a few friends suggested his wife had suspected.

Watts claims that he and his wife had an “emotional” conversation shortly before the strangling and that he told her he wanted to initiate a separation after she returned home around 2 a.m. from a business trip on Aug. 13.

When asked by a reporter whether the officials will seek the death penalty for Watts, District Attorney Michael Rourke said it was “way too early to have that conversation.” 

Watts initially told police and local media that he had no idea where his family members were after his wife and two daughters were reported missing on Aug. 13. 

“My kids are my life. Those smiles light up my life,” he told local news station ABC 7 the day after their disappearance. “I just want them to come back. If they’re not safe right now, that’s what’s tearing me apart. Because if they are safe, they’re coming back. But if they’re not, this has got to stop. Like, somebody has to come forward.”

On Aug. 15, police arrested Watts. His children’s bodies were found submerged in oil tanks, while his wife’s body was recovered from a shallow grave nearby, according to court documents obtained by CBS News.

This story has been updated with information from the arrest affidavit.

Need help? In the U.S., call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) for the National Domestic Violence Hotline.

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