HOLLYWOOD

• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: Just when we thought no more of the Harry Potter, we were blessed with the movie version of this book by JK Rowling which takes us back into the wizarding world that we all loved. Not only did the movie do well but Newt Scamander instantly became everyone’s favourite. Definitely one of the good things about 2016.
• Brangelina: Causing a lot many hearts to break than it initially intended to, this was definitely the split of the year. Twelve years of love had made them ‘goals’ for believers of true love in the popular culture, but alas. Guess 2016 was a curse for them.
• Leonardo DiCaprio’s Oscar: This one literally broke the internet! A moment that made history and memes hand in hand, Leo’s big Oscar win for The Revenant has made it to the list of the best things of 2016.

 

CELEB DEATHS

• Prince: we were unfortunate enough to lose this talented star in 2016. Prince was definitely the ‘King’ of his flamboyant hybrid of rock, pop and funk music and his sudden death at the age of 57 was one of the bitter news of 2016 for all his fans.
• David Bowie: He is called a “consummate music chameleon” by The Rolling Stone for his immense contribution to the world of art rock. His death in 2016 came as a shock to his fans because few knew that the 69-year-old artist was battling cancer.
• Muhammad Ali: The biggest sports star of the 70s and ‘the Greatest’ Muhammad Ali too passed away in the year 2016. He was 74 years old when he died.
• Alan Rickman: Known for his acting skills on screen and in theatre, beloved ‘Harry Potter’ star was among the saddest celeb deaths of 2016. He was 69 years at the time when he lost his life battling cancer.
• George Michael: The ‘pop superstar’ known for hits like ‘careless whisper’ and the winner two Grammy awards ended his 30-year long career on 25^th December at the age of 53. He came out as gay in 1998 and was an active LGBT rights campaigner and HIV/AIDS fundraiser.
• Carrie Fisher: Famous for role as Princess Leia in the Star Wars movies, was also a writer, producer and humorist. She died at the age of 60 on December 27^th in Los Angeles.

 

MUSIC

• Drake and Rihanna: The on and off fling of Drake and Rihanna continued straight into 2016, but what made it a special year for them was his emotional speech about her at this year’s VMAs (besides the amazing music).
• Beyonce’s Lemonade: Queen Bey is back and with what! Her album after three years has managed to bag nine Grammy nominations and of course, all of our hearts. This album is critically acclaimed to be ‘the Best Album of the Year’.
• Justin Bieber’s Grammy Nomination: Not only did Justin secure his first ever Grammy in the 2016 Grammys, but he also got four nominations for the 2017 one! Here’s wishing him good luck.

 

TV SHOWS AND BOOKS

• Jon Snow: Game of Thrones fans along with the rest of the world know about this particular incident in the most popular TV series out there. Almost everybody thinks this one comes under the “good things about 2016” list.
• Stranger Things: Netflix’s original series Stranger Things has created a storm with its unique storyline and terrific sense of mystery. A show that combines humour and horror, some have even called it the ‘best TV show’ of 2016.
• Glimore Girls revival: Early 2000’s comedy-drama TV series is revived back on Netflix, making it one of the best things of 2016. Fans believe that it is a great way to get the original ending right!
• Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: JK Rowling’s new play about the life after the Harry Potter series was left off made every Potterhead in the world happy about this year. However, not everyone agrees it was a good thing – some say the book was a disappointment.

 

       MISCELLANEOUS

• Mannequin Challenge: The challenge that went viral over the internet! Many celebrities including Hillary Clinton and Adele filmed the challenge with the song “Black Beatles” in the background.
• Harambe’s death: The unfortunate death of a gorilla at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden gave birth to a lot of memes and jokes that ran viral over the Internet for months after.
• Pokemon Go: This one was the app that took over the summer of 2016, bringing back the sweet nostalgia of a 90s’ kid who watched the popular TV series, Pokemon. However its hype died only after a few weeks.

 

  BOLLYWOOD

• Saif and Kareena’s baby: The couples’ newborn created a buzz with the name he was given – Taimur. People started questioning the name since it is also the name of an Asian conqueror.
• Fawad Khan: Hearts were broken and movies were (almost) banned when the attacks on Uri caused nationwide hate for Pakistanis – not just terrorists but also artists.
• Sanjay Dutt: Known in popular circles as ‘Baba’, Dutt was released after 23 years following his conviction by a Special court for involvement in the Mumbai blasts.

Tell us in the comments below what do you think were the best and worst moments of 2016!

Anagha Rakta

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