"Death is like the loo. You got to go, you got to go!" It could only be a madcap genius like Woody Allen, who could unleash this witticism and take the sting out of something as terrifyingly inevitable as death.
When I got the news this morning from a friend, I was stunned! It was just a few months ago at the Kolkata Book Fair where we met up and had a brief warm chat. He was moderating a very interesting programme on Ray's Women, where he was in conversation with such class acts as Madhabi Mukherjee, Aparna Sen and Sharmila Tagore. Immediately after the programme, he took me aside and whispered wickedly. "Dada, hope you were not too bored with all the inane chatter!"
Witty, smart, clever, charming, articulate, Ritu and I go back to the early nineties when we first met at my sister-in-law, Aparna's (Sen) place at Alipore, Kolkata. I was living and working out of Delhi, so knew nothing about him. I remember him telling me that he was in advertising too - a copywriter - but his heart was into movie making. He had just made a children's film 'Hirer Aangti', but since he was not known and it wasn't well marketed, the film made no waves.
He was scripting his first feature film 'Unishe April' starring Aparna and Debasree Roy in the principal lead roles and could I please pray that it resonates with the audience? He admitted later
07:52 PM, May 30, 2013
New Delhi: In a recent interview given to 'The Variety Studio: Cannes Edition', Bollywood actress Mallika Sherawat expressed her views about Indian society and how she relates to her character in forthcoming film 'Dirty Politics'. During the interview, Mallika says, "I was the first actress in India to kiss on screen and wear a bikini," she says. "Imagine in this 21st century. And instantly, I became a fallen women and...
12:29 PM, May 25, 2013
The controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Act is in place in Manipur for the last 55 years. While the forces claim it is impossible to improve the security situation without it, its frequent abuse has led to the death and disappearance of many youths, it has led to rape of women by security force personnel. While Irom Sharmila's marathon fast has kept the focus on the issue, 55 years is...
05:57 PM, May 23, 2013
Mumbai: She isn't in filmdom for either fame or money, rather Soha Ali Khan wants to do good work and also clarifies that doing a remake of her mother's film is not on her wish-list. Daughter of veteran actress Sharmila Tagore and late cricketer Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, Soha said: "Why would I want to be in my mother's remake film? That would be like suicide for me because I...
06:07 PM, May 19, 2013
Guwahati: The recent Delhi gangrape shook the conscience of the nation, President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday said and underlined the need to ponder and "reset the moral compass" of the society during this difficult time. "Sometimes certain events shake the national conscience. Recently the brutal rape on a young woman in Delhi shook the conscience of the whole nation and it compelled us to sit back and think where we...
09:25 PM, May 13, 2013
'Go Goa Gone' a zombie-comedy film will see Saif Ali Khan in a never before seen avatar. He is also seen mouthing bad words. ...
03:57 PM, May 04, 2013
Mumbai: Actor Saif Ali Khan, who is seen mouthing bad words in his upcoming film 'Go Goa Gone', says, his mother Sharmila Tagore is concerned about it while wife Kareena is supportive. 'Go Goa Gone' a zombie-comedy film will see Saif in a never before seen avatar. He is also seen mouthing bad words. Asked about the reaction of his family to this, Saif says "my mother thinks it is...
09:58 AM, Apr 19, 2013
New Delhi: At a glitzy ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi, President Pranab Mukherjee on Friday honoured the 108 Padma Award winners. This year's winners include DRDO chief Dr Vijay Saraswat, cricketer Rahul Dravid, Olympic medallist boxer Mary Kom, actress Sharmila Tagore and Sridevi. Actor Rajesh Khanna and comedian Jaspal Bhatti were honoured posthumously. Here is the list of awardees: Padma Vibhushan Raghunath Mohapatra, Art S Haider Raza,...
12:07 PM, Apr 05, 2013
Activist Irom Sharmila Chanu, who has been on fast for more than 12 years demanding repeal of the 'draconian' Armed Forces Special Powers Act from Manipur, was re-arrested by state police, officials said on Thursday. ...
02:25 PM, Mar 14, 2013
Kareena Kapoor, who wed Saif Ali Khan last year, says being married is not a crime for an actress. She believes personal and professional aspects of life must not be mixed. ...
07:11 PM, Mar 12, 2013
Spearheading the Indian challenge will be Sharmila Nicollet, the only Indian to have retained her LET card for the second consecutive year, along with veteran Smriti Mehra. ...
05:37 PM, Mar 08, 2013
BJP on Tuesday expressed its disagreement with Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah over repealing of Armed Forces Special Powers Act, saying the state should not speak against this law as it has already passed a similar legislation in its Assembly. ...
07:28 PM, Mar 05, 2013
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday said Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) should be repealed from the places where Army is not required. Omar said the issue of AFSPA is not on the "backburner", and if Irom Sharmila can fast in protest against AFSPA for 12 long years why can't he just speak against it. ...
05:09 PM, Mar 05, 2013
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has strongly come out in support of lifting the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA). Omar, who was speaking in the state Assembly, also praised northeast activist Irom Sharmila's fight for the repeal of AFSPA. ...
04:07 PM, Mar 05, 2013
In a shocking incident, several personnel of the Punjab Police were caught on camera beating up a woman in Taran Taran on Sunday. The woman had reportedly complained of sexual harassment. ...
11:58 PM, Mar 04, 2013
In Tarn Taran, Punjab, a young woman and her father were beaten up mercilessly by policemen after they complained of sexual harassment. ...
09:50 PM, Mar 04, 2013
