分类： entertainment

Two decades after the original *The Devil Wears Prada* cemented its place as a global cultural touchstone, the franchise’s most iconic leading duo finally stepped onto Chinese soil for a long-awaited reunion. On April 10, Academy Award-winning acting legends Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway walked the red carpet for the Shanghai premiere of *The Devil Wears Prada 2*, reprising their legendary roles as the sharp-witted editor Miranda Priestly and her former assistant Andrea Sachs for the sequel.

The event marked a special full-circle moment for both stars, who took time during the premiere to express their sincere gratitude to Chinese fans who have supported the franchise over the past 20 years. They thanked local audiences for growing alongside their characters, acknowledging the deep connection fans have built with the story and its leading figures since the first film debuted in 2006. Thousands of fans gathered at the premiere venue to catch a glimpse of the pair, with many sharing their excitement about the on-screen reunion decades in the making. Footage from the red carpet and behind-the-scenes moments is available for viewers to explore to see more of the historic event.

On a crisp Friday in central Tokyo, one of the world’s most influential hard rock acts crossed paths with their most high-profile admirer – Japan’s first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, a decades-long Deep Purple superfan.

The legendary British rock group, currently on a Japanese tour commemorating their historic 1972 live album *Made in Japan* – widely ranked among the greatest live rock records ever cut – met Takaichi at her official office ahead of their Saturday headline set at Tokyo’s iconic Nippon Budokan arena. For 65-year-old Takaichi, the encounter was the fulfillment of a fandom that began when she was a primary school student, when she first picked up the band’s breakthrough 1971 studio album *Machine Head*.

A skilled amateur percussionist herself, Takaichi cut her musical teeth performing with a Deep Purple tribute act as a teenager; she started on keyboards before switching to drums during her university years. In a playful revelation to the band, the conservative leader shared that she still turns to the band’s raw, high-energy sound to blow off steam today: “These days, when I fight with my husband I drum to *Burn* and cast a curse on him,” she told the group, laughing. Greeting founding drummer Ian Paice with a broad smile, Takaichi presented him with a custom pair of hand-signed Japanese-made drumsticks, telling him “You are my god.”

Through an interpreter, Takaichi expressed profound admiration for the band’s enduring five-decade career, noting: “I have the deepest respect for the way you continue to make rock history while embracing new challenges and creating captivating music to this day.” She added that she hoped the band’s cross-country tour would not only thrill Japanese rock fans but also strengthen cultural ties between the United Kingdom and Japan.

Formed in Hertfordshire, England, in 1968, Deep Purple holds a place as one third of the “unholy trinity” of foundational British heavy metal, alongside fellow icons Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. The band is best known for their era-defining hit *Smoke on the Water*, whose iconic guitar riff remains one of the most recognizable in rock history. The group’s current tour marks a homecoming of sorts: it was in Japan that Deep Purple recorded *Made in Japan* over 50 years ago, a record that cemented their global stardom.

Paice, the band’s founding drummer, called the meeting with the prime minister an unexpected delight, describing it as a special “added bonus” to the band’s already anticipated return to Japan. In an Instagram post documenting the meeting, the band highlighted that Takaichi has long been open about her love for hard rock and heavy metal, and has repeatedly named Deep Purple as one of her all-time favorite acts. Takaichi’s history with drumming is well-documented: she was known for carrying multiple sets of drumsticks to performances early on, thanks to her intense playing style that often left sticks broken mid-set.

The lighthearted meeting comes as a rare break for Takaichi, who has navigated a series of pressing political and economic challenges since taking office last October, including strained diplomatic relations with neighboring China, persistent domestic inflation, and a stagnant national economy.

One year after a high-profile controversy derailed one of India’s biggest online comedy careers, 29-year-old creator Samay Raina has stepped back into the public eye with a raw, deeply personal new YouTube stand-up special that has already resonated with fans across the country.

Walking onto stage with his signature tousled hair and rumpled checked shirt, Raina half-smiles at the packed crowd before he even utters a word — and the audience erupts in laughter before his first punchline can land. It is a homecoming 12 months in the making, a moment that once seemed impossible after a single guest remark brought his thriving career to an abrupt halt.

Until early 2025, Raina stood at the forefront of India’s fast-growing digital comedy revolution. Unlike most veteran Indian comics who cut their teeth in small underground clubs of Mumbai and Bangalore, Raina was a product of the open internet. A former competitive chess player, he first built an audience during the global pandemic by streaming chess matches online, gradually blending game play with self-deprecating banter, bilingual observational comedy and spontaneous interactions with live chat. His quick, sarcastic wit, which switched seamlessly between Hindi and English, earned him millions of loyal followers in just a few years.

His breakout hit, *India’s Got Latent*, was a scrappy, unapologetic parody of formal television talent competitions that became a cultural phenomenon for young Indian streaming audiences. The format, which featured eccentric contestants and unfiltered roasts from judges and host, rejected the polished, censored comedy of traditional TV for a raw, real-time style that felt revolutionary. The show drew a eclectic roster of guests from across the digital space: fellow stand-ups, chess grandmasters, TikTok and YouTube creators, and podcasters, all pulled into Raina’s loose, improvisational vibe. For millions of young fans, it was comedy that felt like it spoke directly to their generation.

Then everything collapsed overnight. During an episode featuring popular Indian podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia — known to his followers as BeerBiceps — the guest posed an explicit question to a contestant that sparked immediate nationwide outrage. Police filed obscenity complaints against everyone involved in the episode, including Raina, and when Raina’s editor was arrested, the comic made the decision to take the entire *India’s Got Latent* series offline and step away from public life.

For 12 months, Raina largely vanished from social media and stages, stepping out of the spotlight he had worked so hard to build. In Indian comedy circles, his name became a cautionary tale about the volatility of online fame, where a single misstep can erase a career in days.

Now, Raina is back, and he is using the art that got him into trouble to process what happened. Earlier this week, he dropped *Still Alive*, a 90-minute stand-up special critics are already calling his boldest, most personal work to date. The set weaves together sharp self-deprecating humour with quiet reflection, addressing every part of his year-long hiatus: the whiplash of losing the public identity he built online, the vulnerability of being “cancelled” in an era where social media metrics define personal worth, the loneliness of losing connections with former collaborators, and the anxiety that shook him even as he prepared to return to the stage.

Where his old comedy was unapologetically brash and unfiltered, his new material carries a thread of quiet melancholy, honed by a year of navigating legal battles and public backlash. Even so, his timing remains as precise as ever. “I always knew there’d be an FIR against me one day,” he jokes ruefully to the crowd. “I just never thought it would be for saying nothing.”

In one of the special’s most viral moments, Raina opens up about the impact the controversy had on his family, admitting he often struggled to even answer calls from his mother, and that he felt broken by the entire experience. He also confronts the wider reality of modern Indian comedy: the sector has exploded in the last decade, with digital platforms allowing new comics to reach millions of fans across cities and small towns, turning a small urban niche into a massive mainstream industry. But that growth has come with steep new risks: comics operate under far greater scrutiny than ever before, and more creators are facing legal action, police complaints and even arrest over their material, as lines of acceptability are constantly renegotiated in the public square.

Raina nods to this fragile ecosystem in his set, riffing on George Orwell’s famous line that “every joke is a tiny revolution.” Twisting the quote to fit his own experience, he deadpans: “If Orwell had lived in India, he’d probably have said — every revolution is a tiny joke.” The line earned one of the biggest laughs of the night.

Rather than completely reinventing his comedy to avoid controversy, Raina has adjusted his approach, testing the line between his signature spontaneous, unfiltered style and the realities of working in a hyper-scrutinized digital space. It is a balancing act that nearly every young boundary-pushing Indian comedian faces today: how to stay true to a spontaneous voice while performing for an audience that is vast, diverse, and quick to judge.

The controversy that sidelined Raina has not fully disappeared, and the risks of his style of comedy remain real. But if *Still Alive* is any indication, Raina is not chasing a neat public apology or resolution — he is focused on continuing to create. For his fans, the special is not an act of contrition, it is a reassertion of his voice, and his refusal to be sidelined. Closing out the set, he shrugs, mixing defiance with punchline delivery, and says: “I’m still here, and I am going to do whatever I want.”

Two decades after the cultural phenomenon that was *The Devil Wears Prada* first hit cinemas, Hollywood icons Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway have made a much-anticipated appearance in Shanghai to drum up excitement for their upcoming sequel, holding a star-studded promotional gala at Taikoo Li Qiantan on Friday.

The red carpet event marked a landmark reunion for the beloved on-screen duo, who drew cheers from hundreds of waiting fans with their fashion-forward looks that highlighted emerging Chinese creative talent. Hathaway stepped out in an elegant layered gown crafted by Chinese designer Susan Wang, while 76-year-old Streep paired her tailored blue Saint Laurent ensemble with a delicate floral brooch from renowned Chinese jewelry artist Cindy Chao.

For Hathaway, the warm reception from Chinese fans moved her to tears as she took the stage. The actress, who first won over global audiences more than two decades ago in *The Princess Diaries*, greeted the crowd in Mandarin and opened up about the long-standing support she has received from Chinese moviegoers throughout her career. “China and Chinese fans have given me so much support. You have embraced me. You have supported my films … I just want to say how much it means to me, to be here sharing tonight with you,” she told the assembled audience.

Earlier that same day, during an exclusive roundtable interview at Shanghai’s Peninsula Hotel, Streep opened up about what it meant to return to one of her most iconic roles: the sharp, intimidating fashion magazine editor Miranda Priestly, a character loosely inspired by *Vogue* editor-in-chief Anna Wintour.

The Oscar-winning actress admitted that even in her most imaginative moments, she never expected to step back into Miranda’s shoes two decades after the original film’s release. “I never in my wildest dreams imagined that we would do a sequel 20 years later at this age,” she told China Daily. Streep added that she particularly appreciated the creative choice to align the character’s age with her own. “I like that Miranda is 76 years old. I like that very much, because I am 76 and I like to see that woman on the screen,” she explained.

Streep also shared an unexpected update on her off-screen relationship with the real-life inspiration for her character: the pair have grown from casual acquaintances to close friends over the past 20 years, and even recently collaborated on a *Vogue* cover shoot together.

The 2006 original *The Devil Wears Prada*, adapted from Lauren Weisberger’s bestselling 2003 novel, was a massive global box office success that earned two Academy Award nominations and remains a cultural touchstone for fashion and film fans around the world. The upcoming sequel recontextualizes the franchise for a dramatically changed media landscape, exploring fresh themes of fashion, industry power dynamics, and personal autonomy in the modern digital age.

In a notable release schedule shift, *The Devil Wears Prada 2* will hold its global premiere in China on April 30, two weeks ahead of its North American theatrical launch. The film will be available to audiences across China in multiple premium formats including 2D, CINITY, IMAX, Dolby Cinema, and China Giant Screen.

Fifteen years ago, if anyone had predicted that I would one day spend my vacations exploring China, I would have labeled them completely out of touch. Shaped by years of one-sided external narratives, my mind had already settled on a rigid, unflattering stereotype: a place of endless overwork, smog-choked skies, and a culture so disconnected from my own experience that it would be impossible to understand. I was trapped, not by any external force, but by the limiting prejudices I had chosen to carry.

In the heart of Harbin, Heilongjiang province, a one-of-a-kind frozen treat is turning heads and drawing long lines of hungry visitors to the city’s iconic Chinese-Baroque Historic and Cultural Block. A local ice cream artisan has turned a simple scoop of ice cream into a stunning work of edible art, topping each serving with delicate hand-piped lilac flowers made from colored bean paste.

Shop owner Liu Yue has perfected the intricate craft of shaping floral decorations directly on top of cold ice cream. Working with a traditional piping bag, Liu carefully squeezes the tinted bean paste one petal at a time, building each four or five-petal lilac bloom from scratch. She then arranges the finished flower clusters to create a full, lush display that transforms a basic frozen dessert into a shareable, photo-worthy creation. The lilac, which is the official city flower of Harbin, adds a local cultural touch that resonates with both lifelong residents and first-time tourists exploring the historic district.

Since the signature dessert launched, it has quickly become a viral favorite, prompting crowds of visitors to stop by the shop to sample the treat and capture photos of its intricate design. What started as a small local confectionery creation has turned into a must-have attraction for anyone exploring Harbin’s popular historic cultural neighborhood, blending traditional handcrafting skills with modern dessert trends.