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November 2004
I can't be apologetic about success: Yash Chopra
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Mumbai, Nov 30 : His "Veer-Zaara" has smashed records in India and overseas, but filmmaker Yash Chopra is not so elated about the profits. "I say, forget the profits. One should make films like 'Veer-Zaara' for the love of country and cinema. It's a wholesome film with a message, and I'd love to make films of this nature again and again," Chopra told in an interview. His office in Juhu is a beehive of activity. Son Aditya Chopra is out of town. Yash Chopra and his immensely efficient staff are at work from early morning. "After the premiere, Amitabh Bachchan said some wonderful words to me. He said 'Veer-Zaara' is the noblest film he has seen in his life. When a film is made from the heart, such compliments seem justified. And yet a section of the industry says negative things about "Veer-Zaara". "What can I say about the people who insist on tearing down my films? Even if 'Veer-Zaara' wasn't a success, I'd still be proud of it. It's a good effort. Shouldn't my colleagues applaud the effort? Sometimes I feel critics write the reviews at home and then go and see the film. God has given me success. I can't be apologetic about it." What about the charge that "Veer-Zaara" repeats all the favourite themes images and formulas from his earlier productions? "I insist on making romantic films. And why not? Even as I speak to you thousands of people across the world are saying, 'I love you' to each other. Every love confession is the same. The difference lies in how you say it. I've been making successful romantic films for years. So why go to a different track now? I'm too old and experienced to change just for the heck of it. I've made successful films in other genres, like 'Deewaar', 'Trishul' and 'Ittefaq'. But now I'm comfortable making romantic films. I can't make others happy by making myself unhappy." "'Veer-Zaara' is a gift from a son to his father...Aditya Chopra's gift to Yash Chopra. He's my script and dialogue writer, my co-producer and associate director. No son could ever give a greater gift to his father. "Without Aditya's outstanding script, 'Veer-Zaara' couldn't have been possible. The memorable moments in the script have been created by my son. Like my 'Deewaar', 'Veer-Zaara' couldn't have worked without the script. "At this stage of my career I need to get really excited by an idea before I get down to directing it. I've to fall in love with an idea to embrace it." Chopra had a bad patch in his career in the 1980s, when four of his films - "Silsila", "Mashaal", "Faasle" and "Vijay" - flopped in a row and doomsday prophets wrote him off. He knew he would bounce back. And he did. Since 1989 when the ultra-romantic "Chandni" was released, Chopra has never looked back. "To begin with I was just a director. Then I became a producer-director. I started giving a chance to other directors. When my son made 'Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge', we had a very bad experience with the overseas distributors. "They misbehaved with us by not giving us our due share. We started our overseas business. Today we have our own offices in almost every part of the world. Today both Aditya and I are able to make the films we believe in. Other directors can be brought in to make other kinds of films...We're keen to bring in all styles of directors. "In fact we were supposed to produce a film on Mahatma Gandhi directed by (theatre director) Feroz Khan. But after a few discussions I began to feel uncomfortable with the project. I don't want to do any project that I'm uncomfortable with. It seemed too messy. Feroz and I parted ways amicably. Filmmaking is like lovemaking. One has to enjoy every moment of it." "Our small family of my wife, my elder son, his wife and my younger son...we only talk about films. We can't do anything else." --Indo-Asian News Service
Is Microsoft IE losing out to Firefox?
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Microsoft's Internet Explorer(IE)is facing some stiff competition from Firefox as web analysts have revealed that the proportion of surfers using Microsoft's Internet Explorer (IE) has dropped to below 90 percent. Net traffic monitor, OneStat.com, has reported that the open- source browser Firefox 1.0, released on 9 November by Mozilla which was also responsible for Netscape, seems to be drawing users away from IE. "It seems that people are switching from Microsoft's Internet Explorer to Mozilla's new Firefox browser," Niels Brinkman, co- founder of Amsterdam-based OneStat.com, was quoted by the BBC, as saying. While IE's market share has dropped 5 percent since May to 88.9 percent, Mozilla browsers, including Firefox have grown by 5 percent. The figures suggest that Mozilla browsers,including Firefox 1.0 now have 7.4 percent of the market share as more than five million users have downloaded the free software since its official release. The main reason behind Firefox's increasing popularity is that it is a open-source, which means that people are free to adapt the software's core code to create other innovative features, like add-ons or extensions to the program. Also, it has fewer security holes have also been discovered so far in Firefox than in IE.
India, Russia to hold joint military exercise
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
India and Russia will hold joint military exercises involving their elite paratroopers next year, Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov has said, underscoring Moscow's intention to actively develop relations between armed forces of the two countries. "The Indian paratroopers and Russian airborne troops are cent-per cent compatible and are equipped with same types of planes and weapons," said Ivanov. Ivanov, who will hold talks with his Indian counterpart Pranab Mukherjee and External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh during his stay in Delhi, did not elaborate on the specifics of the joint exercises. Inter services relations Unlike the Soviet-era, when contacts between the armed forces of the two countries were limited to training Indian personnel by Soviet military instructors and visits by the naval ships, Russia intends to actively develop inter-services relations, he said. Senior defence officials from both the countries had on Monday began deliberations in New Delhi to iron out differences on the supply of major weapon systems. Ivanov recalled that the Navies of the two countries had In May 2003 conducted massive joint wargames in the Indian Ocean involving mock hunt for the 'enemy' submarines and use of strategic bombers and cruise missiles.
Parliament's Winter Session begins
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
New Delhi, Nov 30 The Winter Session of Parliament beginning tomorrow is likely to be stormy with main opposition BJP seeking to make an issue out of Kanchi Sankaracharya's arrest, return of JMM Chief Sibu Soren in the Union Cabinet and the decision to move an adjournment motion over the spat between Union Ministers Lalu Prasad and Ram Vilas Paswan. Besides the contentious issues, a heavy legislative agenda awaits Parliament. "We have written to Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee seeking to move an adjournment motion on the issue (of differences within cabinet) on December two as the cabinet has a collective responsibility and this sort of infighting among ministers is against this very concept," Deputy Leader of BJP in Lok Sabha V K Malhotra said. He said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh owes an explanation as to how this kind of infighting is being overlooked and why no steps are being taken to deal with this kind of situation. The Samajwadi Party has also been critical of the tussle between Prasad and Paswan and the "failure" of the Prime Minister to rein in the ministers. The SP, which gives outside support to the UPA Government, has asked the Prime Minister to set his house in order and not to take the party's support for granted. The main opposition's intention to go on the offensive on Sibu Soren issue was signalled soon after Soren was re-inducted into the cabinet and said it would raise the issue in Parliament as the "moral fabric of the government is a complete suspect". Though political parties had assured Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee at a meeting on November 23 that they would ensure smooth functioning of the House, the BJP said it would raise issues "aggressively, offensively and assertively". BJP sources said the party was unlikely to disturb the proceedings but Soren's return and seer Jayendra Saraswati's arrest are issues on which the opposition would like to put the government on the mat. The NDA had vociferously raised the issue of "tainted" ministers in the budget session after an arrest warrant was issued against Soren in a 20-year-old murder case. The proceedings were disrupted for most part of the session and both the Houses had been adjourned prematurely. With about 20 important bills, including the Patents (Amendment) Bill, to be introduced, a heavy legislative agenda awaits the Winter Session that will have 17 sittings. Eleven bills will replace ordinances promulgated during the inter-session period. Finance Minister P Chidambaram had said efforts were on to ensure that maximum bills were passed in the session. With the opposition seeking more time for completion of business, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said if needed the session could be extended.
Seer's statement not admissible in court
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
New Delhi, Nov 29 The Kanchi Shankaracharya's statement to police during interrogation in the Sankararaman murder case "tantamounts to admission" but was "not admissible in court as evidence", Prosecution lawyer K T S Tulsi said today. "I am myself not aware of the details of the confession. But during police interrogation, there was a statement by the Shankaracharya that tantamounts to an admission but is not admissible as evidence in court," Tulsi said in CNBC's `Tonight at 10' show hosted by Karan Thapar. He was responding to a question on whether Jayendra Saraswathi had confessed to his involvement in the murder. Tulsi said by asking for bail even as the prosecution was moving the court for police custody and the investigations were underway, the defence had forced them to "prematurely" disclose certain details in court but maintained that the evidence had been kept out of public domain and they were trying to ensure that it was protected from "excessive media glare". BJP General Secretary and party spokesman Arun Jaitley said "nothing has yet been produced linking him (Shankaracharya) to the evidence" and defended the party's demand for shifting the trial outside Tamil Nadu, saying the environment had been vitiated by the media trial and politicisation of the case by Dravidian parties.
South Africa playing for a draw, Harbhajan
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Kolkata, Nov 29 Slamming the South Africans for "playing for a draw", off-spinner Harbhajan Singh today said India need a first innings total of 500 to go for the kill in the second and final cricket Test here. "The way the South Africans batted show that they are not into the match. Perhaps they wanted to draw the Test," the off spinner, who took the last two wickets of the visitors' innings in the space of three balls in his very first over of the second day, said at the post-match press conference. Though refusing to term the tourists' approach as "negative," the Punjab cricketer said "this is not the kind of cricket one plays for a win. A draw in India will not make you (SA) a big team. They tried to put pressure on us by playing slow, but it won't take them anywhere." Turning to their own game, Harbhajan said "the bowlers have done a good job today by restricting the South African innings to 305. Now the batsnmen have to do their job and get a big score by tea tomorrow so that we have enough runs on the board and can go for a win." Expecting the ball to turn on the fourth and fifth day, he said "it will be tough to bat in the second innings. We want to see how the South Africans play under pressure." The offie, though being critical of the tourists' approach to the game in both the Kanpur Test and at Eden Gardens, however singled out Jaques Kallis for his brilliant display. "Kallis was the main wicket. But he was not supported by the others, who declined to play shots."
India signs pact with ASEAN countries
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Devidas Gupta Vientiane, Nov 30, Heralding a new era in their relations, India and 10 ASEAN countries today signed a historic partnership pact for peace, progress and shared prosperity and pledged to cooperate in fighting international terrorism and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The 'ASEAN-India Partnership for Peace, Progress and Shared Prosperity" agreement inked by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and leaders of ASEAN countries during their 3rd annual summit here outlines a multi-pronged action plan for boosting trade, investment, tourism, culture, sports and people to people contacts. The leaders agreed to intensify efforts to combat international terrorism and other transnational crimes like drug trafficking, arms smuggling, human trafficking, particularly of women and children, sea piracy and money laundering. The powerful ASEAN grouping comprises Laos, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Brunei. India along with China and other key countries are the dialogue partners of the grouping. They agreed to foster closer cooperation in reforming and democratising the UN and institutions under it by making them "more reflective of the contemporary realities." The four-page partnership accord and nine-page action plan envisages their cooperation in multilateral fora particularly the WTO and in addressing common challenges of economic, food, human and energy security.
Russia warns India of stopping military cooperation
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Vinay Shukla Moscow, Nov 30 Ahead of President Vladimir Putin's visit, Russia today said it was not going to move further in sharing sophisticated military technologies with India until New Delhi signs an agreement on the protection of Intellectial Property Rights. "In our military-technical cooperation we have come to a stage when, without signing of the agreement on the protection of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), we cannot look ahead," Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov said here ahead of his trip to New Delhi to prepare the ground work for Putin's three-day visit. During his stay in New Delhi, Ivanov will co-chair the fourth session of the Indo-Russian inter-governmental commission on military co-operation along with his Indian counterpart Pranab Mukherjee to finalise defence agenda for talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Putin on December 3. Ivanov, who is a close confidant and personal friend of Putin and is seen by many as his possible successor, underscored that the absence of IPR protection agreement has become an "obstacle" in the development of defence co-operation involving the cutting-edge technologies. "It has become something of an obstacle if we think of future, we can fulfil our previous obligations without this, but we cannot move ahead in high technology cooperation," Ivanov said. He noted that Russia had submitted the draft of the agreement to India two years ago, but the Indian side has not even given its suggestions or proposals on it. "We will not give away such high technology without signing IPR agreement, for free. India is a priority and strategic partner of Russia. It was also a strategic partner of Soviet Union, which used to give many things for free, but things have changed. Russia is a different country and there is a need for taking cognizance of this reality," Ivanov said. He also expressed Russia's displeasure over the way New Delhi is treating its strategic partner on the issue of WTO accession and recognition of Russia as a market economy, a step already taken by the European Union, China and the US. Ivanov said Indo-Russian defence co-operation is moving ahead in accordance with the long-term military technical programme till year 2010. However, like BrahMos cruise missile project, which was not part of this programme, some new projects are in the pipeline for 2005 and in the coming years. "I cannot share with you at this juncture, what are these projects. At proper time you will come to know," Ivanov said when asked about these projects. He indicated that space could become a major, thrust area of military co-operation. "I would rather say the civilian and military cooperation involving space would become a thrust area of bilateral interaction," Ivanov told correspondents from India here. He said Moscow was not afraid of competition in the Indian arms bazaar from the growing number of new players including the United States. When asked to comment on reports about India's plans to assess the US Patriot ABM system, Ivanov said Russia has already demonstrated its S-300 system to Indian experts at several occasions. He expressed doubt whether Patriot missiles could be amalgamated into the integrated air defence system modelled by Russia for India. "To do this we have to get access to the source codes of Patriot missiles, which the US will not give. We also will not give our source codes if India goes ahead with the American system of control," Ivanov said.
DoT rules out cancelling Reliance's ILD
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
New Delhi, Nov 30 Department of Telecom today ruled out cancellation of ILD licence of Reliance Infocomm and said the proposal to impose Rs 150 crore penalty for violation of licence was "good enough for now." "DoT has given a showcause notice for a penalty of Rs 150 crore and is waiting for their response," Communications Minister Dayanidhi Maran told reporters here. Asked whether DoT had considered cancelling Reliance's ILD licence for its violation by routing international calls as local ones, Maran said "DoT is of the view that cancelling of licence will cause huge suffering... They have about 8 lakh subscribers. I think DoT has taken all these things into consideration and feels penalty is good enough for now." He also ruled out any need for a CBI inquiry into the matter involving Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd and Reliance Infocomm where the latter has been accused of routing incoming international calls as local ones and thereby denying payment of Access Deficit Charge at the rate of Rs 4.25 a minute to telecom PSUs. "There is no need for such (CBI) inquiry. There is a loss to the two PSUs (BSNL and MTNL). They filed a case in the court and it should be resolved," he added.
Rupee climbs to nearly 7-month high
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Mumbai, Nov 30 The rupee climbed to a nearly seven month high against the US currency early today at Rs 44.7550/7650 per dollar, driven up by sustained robust foreign capital and trade inflows with sentiments upbeat for further gains. Despite relatively firm global oil prices of USD 49.79 a barrel, the rupee strengthened by yet another 5 paise from yesterday's close of 44.80/82 after opening at a distinctly firm note at 44.75/76 per dollar. Strong trade and foreign portfolio investment inflows on the back of a lingering weak dollar overseas drove the rupee to a new multi-month high even as the outlook for the currency remains distinctly positive for further gains, dealers said. However, fears of central bank intervention will contain sharp rupee gains, they added. The Reserve Bank of India has stoutly defended the 45-dollar mark for most of the past three weeks. With foreign funds continuing to pump money into the Indian stocks market, forex dealers expect the rupee to appreciate further. The rupee spurted by 23 paise on Monday, propelled by bunched-up weekened dollar supplies from trade and foreign fund inflows amidst a sliding dollar overseas. In cross currency trade, the Euro was quoted at Rs 59.39/41, Pound Sterling at Rs 84.60/62 and the Japanese Yen (100) at Rs 43.38/40.
surface-to-air-missile Akash test-fired
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Balasore, Nov 30 'Akash', the indigenously built surface-to-air-missile was test-fired for the second time in four days, from the integrated test range (ITR) at Chandipur-on-sea, about 15 km from here today. The multi-target missile was fired from a mobile launcher at about 11.57 AM, DRDO sources said. The missile was last test-fired from the ITR on November 26.
Amitabh
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Amitabh Bachchan's cameo of Shah Rukh Khan's jovial and robust Punjabi uncle in "Veer-Zaara" has come in for much praise, and even the superstar is surprised. The role of the Punjabi patriarch, with Hema Malini as his wife, actually resulted just as a "gesture of friendship" to Yash Chopra, Amitabh told in an interview. He clarified that "Ranveer" and "Family" were both on, though right now they were concentrating on completing the latter. Amitabh denied that he has similar roles in "Family" and "Sarkar", stressing that the two characters are "totally different". Q: Your small role in "Veer-Zaara" is a big hit. A: I'm frankly very surprised. I did it just as a gesture of friendship for Yashji. I happened to be in Chandigarh shooting for Anil Sharma's "Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan Saathiyon" when Yashji came down to shoot the Punjabi portion of "Veer-Zaara". I had the time to do it. So I did. I don't know why... but so many people have complimented me for it. I've actually begun to believe I add some value to "Veer-Zaara". Dangerous, no? Q: Not dangerous but realistic. Where does that astonishing energy in the dancing come from? A: It's known as competition. It's hanging on to a tinka (twig) to be part of the tree. But if dancing brings me such compliments I better do more of it. Q: What prompted you to ask Raj Kumar Santoshi to make "Family" instead of "Ranveer" for your company? A: Hold it! This is no substitute plan. "Ranveer" is still on. We'll make it with Abhishek and me as soon as Rajji readies the script. Right now we're into "Family" which is being jointly produced by my company AB Corp Ltd and Keshu Ramsay. We're holding part equity. The story involves Keshu Ramsay's son Aryaman, Akshay Kumar and me. It's the story of the two families and the circumstances that bring them into conflict. Q: People say you're playing similar characters in "Family" and Ram Gopal Varma's "Sarkar"? A: That's totally incorrect. My characters in the two films are totally different. In "Family" I'm playing a gangster. We've already shot three days. The shooting is on full swing. In "Sarkar" I play the head of a very powerful middleclass family. Even the conjecture that "Sarkar" is "The Godfather" is wrong. Ramu took the basic idea of "The Godfather" and created his own story. Perhaps the ambience and aura are similar. Q: Do you have a leading lady in "Family"? A: Oh yes. And she has to play a very prominent part. My wife in the film plays a very prominent role. She's part of the conflict. We're still looking for someone. Any ideas? --Indo-Asian News Service
Indian TV finally getting its due
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Many eyebrows were raised when at the Indian Telly Awards its founder-member publicly proclaimed that TV stars were far bigger than Bollywood icons. Anil Wanwari, who was behind last week's event, said: "I certainly didn't mean to be disparaging about Bollywood and its icons. I mean, let's face it. No one on television can have the clout of Shah Rukh Khan or Aishwarya Rai. "Therefore, when I started my introductory speech with an off-the-cuff joke about stars being present at the function, I was only making a point about how dependent television has become on cinema. "As a medium, I have the highest regard for cinema. Television will always look towards cinema for sustenance. At the same time I firmly believe television needs to develop its own image and identity. That's what we believe." The growing importance of the home viewing medium is emphasised by the fact that apart from the Indian Telly Awards there are several others awards that honour only the television medium. STAR Plus' STAR Parivar Awards honours the artistes and serials on STAR channel. Sony Entertainment too has lately introduced awards restricted to excellence on its own channel. "But our awards cut across the board, honouring artistes and technicians from the entire spectrum of the medium," says Wanwari. This year the Indian Telly Awards gave the lifetime achievement award to Ramanand Sagar, a sort of founding father of Indian television whose serialisation of the Hindu epic Ramayana opened up the possibilities of home viewing on Indian television. "It's imperative to establish a historical perspective for Indian television," says Wanwari. The growing importance of television is proven not only by the number of awards restricted to television but also the number of actors who are going straight for the small medium without setting their eyes on Bollywood. Next month, a new magazine devoted to television-related happenings, called Tele Primetime, is being launched from Mumbai. --Indo-Asian News Service
Mobile gaming takes off in India
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Analysts say India's young population is driving the demand Gaming on the move is one of the fastest-growing activities among the tech-savvy in India, says a report. The Indian mobile gaming market is expected to generate about $26m (£13.8m) by the end of 2004, according to market analysts In-Stat/MDR. In October, mobile phone users grew by 1.4 million to 44.9 million, overtaking the number of landlines, said the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India. Analysts say cheap rates and a huge youth market is driving the market. India has a large population of under-25s, and many in urban areas are fast adopting mobiles as must-have gadgets. The growth of this market sector has attracted publishers, developers, animators, musicians, and content providers Clint Wheelock, In-Stat/MDR India's mobile gaming market will bring in about $336m (£178m) by 2009, according to the report. Mobile gaming is expected to explode globally over the next few years. Analysts predict that 220 million people will be playing games on phones by 2009, generating billions for mobile companies. Leapfrog technology Services other than just voice calls which are offered by mobile operators in India have, as a result of the huge rise in subscribers, grown significantly and rapidly. "The growth of this market sector has attracted publishers, developers, animators, musicians, and content providers, and is also stimulating the development of innovative business models," said Clint Wheelock, director of In-Stat/MDR's wireless research group. Mobile phone game The gaming on the move craze is attracting software companies "Mobile gaming is not just about fun; it also represents one key element of a rich mobile entertainment experience for consumers, and a lucrative market opportunity for industry players." Currently, India has six big games developers and four mobile operators that offer games to their subscribers, said the report. According to In-Stat/MDR, it is tipped to make up one of the most important markets in the next wave of mobile multimedia growth. Leapfrog technology In January 2003, there were only 10 million mobile subscribers in India. Many choose mobiles in rural areas in order to bypass poorer telecoms infrastructure. Despite this, the penetration rate is still much lower that other countries. Less than 20% of India's total population own a mobile in India, compared to well over 50% in most European countries. The trend echoes the uptake of mobiles in many developing economies, which continues to grow as people opt to leapfrog slower and more expensive state-run fixed-line operators.
Mukesh not exploring legal options
Sunday, November 28, 2004
'Mukesh not exploring legal options'[ FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2004 06:43:50 PM ] NEW DELHI: The positions in the tussle for control of Reliance group hardened on Friday with Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani rejecting his younger brother and Vice Chairman Anil Ambani's objections to the redefining of their respective powers, thereby increasing the chances of courtroom battle. The board of directors of Reliance Industries (RIL), the flagship company of the group, "has not accepted" Anil's challenge to superior powers given to the elder brother at the Board's meeting of July 17, an RIL spokesperson told from Mumbai. On the other hand, RIL Board has vested full authority in Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani, the spokesperson said, adding, Mukesh was not exploring legal options. However, sources close to both the camps indicate that legal consultations were on and the Department of Company Affairs and market regulator SEBI may be approached next week on issues relating to Reliance Group. They also did not rule out the possibility of one or both sides moving courts.
Rahul Bajaj steps in for truce
Sunday, November 28, 2004
PTI NEW DELHI: Noted industrialist Rahul Bajaj has joined the list of Ambani family's friends making efforts to bring peace between the two brothers, Mukesh and Anil, who are engaged in a fight for the control of Rs 90,000 crore Reliance empire. Bajaj met Mukesh Ambani on Thursday in Mumbai, but refused to comment on what his advice was to the elder brother. "Nobody wants dirty linen to be washed in public... I will not comment on what I talked to him (Mukesh)," Bajaj told over phone when asked if he had advised that there should not be public fight. Bajaj said he had met Mukesh and six other industrialists on Thursday in connection with the meeting of the Prime Minister's advisor council which is slated for December 4. Earlier, some political personalisits and religious leaders had called Kokila Ben, the widow of Dhirubhai Ambani, to step in and calm her two sons. The fight between the two brothers had become public last week when Mukesh Ambani admitted to a TV channel that there were some "ownership issues" in the Reliance group but these were in private domain.
Utter chaos for tickets marks Taj's first night viewing
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Press Trust of India, Agra It was an ordeal for tourists on Saturday to secure tickets for the first night viewing of the Taj Mahal after two decades, with people being made to wait for hours. The disarray at the ticket counter opened at the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) office in Agra was evident with the process getting hampered by frequent power cuts and computer shutdowns. There was also a last minute rush on Saturday night for securing tickets to see the monument of love. As per the Supreme Court guidelines, the ticketing procedure had to be completely computerised and the deadline for issuing tickets had been set at 24 hours before the night viewing starts. Pooja Desai from Mumbai, who had come with her husband to see the monument of love by night, said she had to wait the entire day for the tickets for Sunday's night viewing. Despite the apex court's guideline to issue tickets in advance, several tickets were made fitting in people into Saturday night's schedule, pushing the number of tourists visiting the monument close to the maximum allowed number of 400. According to the ASI office, 158 tickets were made on Friday for Saturday night, of which eight were foreigners and 18 children. An ASI official on condition of anonymity claimed that with the rush for tickets, close to 400 people would view the Taj on Saturday night. The arrangement is for 400 people to be taken in eight batches of 50 each to view the Taj between 8.30 and 12.30 hours.
Distraught Anil seeks divine intervention
Sunday, November 28, 2004
PTI TIRUPATI: Anil Ambani, Vice-chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries, on Saturday visited the Lord Venkateswara temple here and prayed for peace and tranquility in the Ambani family. Anil, who is in tussle with elder brother Mukesh on the ownership issue of the Rs 90,000 crore Reliance group, paid obeisance at the temple accompanied by wife Tina and two sons early on Saturday morning. "I have prayed for peace, tranquility and courage for the entire family," Anil said, coming out of the temple. "I have prayed for preserving and enhancing the legacy of my late father Shri Dhirubhai Ambani," the younger of the Ambani brothers said. Anil, who had earlier challenged superior powers to Mukesh, Chairman and Managing Director of RIL, approved at a Board meeting on July 27, however, declined to take any other questions on the ongoing row within the family.
Amar Singh requests Kokilaben to intervene
Sunday, November 28, 2004
PTI NEW DELHI: Amid a raging battle for the control of Reliance Group between two brothers, Anil and Mukesh Ambani, Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh said on Saturday that he would request Kokilaben, the widow of late Dhirubhai Ambani, to intervene and resolve the issue. "Reliance is not an ordinary institution.When Reliance falls the entire stock market takes a beating," Singh told reporters. He, however, said he was aware of any problem between the two brothers. "I cannot believe that there is any problem between them. I feel this is more in the media as Anil never mentioned to me of he having any problem with his elder brother Mukesh," Singh, who is believed to be close to Anil, said, adding that the empire of Dhirubhai has to be looked after by the second generation. "Kokilaben is like my mother and I will request her to intervene and resolve the matter," he said.
Special 'Veer Zaara' screening for Pakis
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Chandigarh : "Veer Zaara", a cross-border love story starring Shah Rukh Khan and Preity Zinta, will be specially screened for over 300 Pakistanis when they visit Punjab early next month. The film will be shown at Phool cinema hall in Patiala city when the Pakistani guests go there for the World Punjabi Conference and the Indo-Pakistan Punjab Games. The conference is from Dec 1 to 3 while the Games will take place during Dec 8-13. The film - directed by leading Bollywood filmmaker Yash Chopra and extensively shot in Punjab - is about an Indian Air Force officer and his love for a Pakistani girl. Shah Rukh, Preity and Rani Mukherjee, who plays a lawyer who reunites the two lovers in the film, would be specially flown to Patiala for the event, Chopra said here. Chopra agreed for the special screening at the request of the Punjab government that is hosting both the India-Pakistan events. The Punjab government has given tax exemption for screening of "Veer Zaara" in the state. --Indo-Asian News Service
Love triumphs over erotica
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Mumbai: A classical treatment of love has triumphed over erotica this Diwali season, with "Veer Zaara" and "Mughal-e-Azam" doing brisk business. Says Bihar's prominent exhibitor Roshan Singh, "The spectacular opening of 'Veer Zaara' was only to be expected. But no one thought the film would get such an unprecedented opening. "There's a stampede to see the film even after the big Diwali-Eid weekend is over. Hats off to the Yash Chopra-Shah Rukh Khan combination." The twosome had earlier given such maddeningly big hits like "Darr", "Dil To Pagal Hai" and "Mohabbatein" - directed by Yash Chopra's son Aditya. "Veer Zaara" is expected to outstrip all the earlier Chopra-Shah Rukh films barring "Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge", again directed by Aditya. Why is a section of the film industry bad-mouthing "Veer Zaara" in spite of its unqualified success? Yash Chopra smiles and shrugs of the simulated scepticism of a section of the trade. "I can't pretend my film isn't successful when it is, can I? I guess our uninterrupted success does bother a lot of people," he says. The open-hearted acceptance of a film completely free of sleaze and sex, replete with an innocence and purity that seemed to have seeped out of romantic films, shows that Indian audiences react from their hearts. The simultaneous success of "Veer Zaara" and "Mughal-e-Azam" is also acutely indicative of what the audience wants. And it isn't erotica. Though the two other Diwali releases "Aitraaz" and "Naach" were both sophisticated in their packaging of erotica and featured upmarket stars, they found minimal acceptance from the audience. While many critics think "Naach" to be Ram Gopal Varma's best work to date, and Priyanka Chopra in "Aitraaz" has found a new level in her career, the rather abrupt rejection of the two films suggests that some media commentators are totally disconnected from reality. Even if they think "Naach" is the finest film of the Diwali foursome, moviegoers don't agree. So what are the lessons to be learnt from the Diwali bonanza? That the audience isn't keen on a 'different' kind of entertainment. Both "Aitraaz" and "Naach" offered a novel kind of movie experience. But were rejected by the audience. On the other hand they embraced the comfort of the familiar with both arms. In fact the experiment with colour-reinvented class in "Mughal-e-Azam" has been so successful that many filmmakers with black-and-white classics on their hands feel they're sitting on goldmines. --Indo-Asian News Service
Bhansali
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Mumbai, Nov 18 : If you thought "Black" was a small film with a depressing theme, you are wrong. So says director Sanjay Leela Bhansali. "Contrary to the title, 'Black' isn't depressing at all. It's an uplifting tale on the triumph of the human spirit," Bhansali, the award-winning director of "Devdas", told in an interview. He also promised that the performances of Amitabh Bachchan and Rani Mukherjee in the soon-to-be released film would be remembered for a long time. Excerpts: Q: Black takes you completely away from "Devdas". A: It's a conscious process of rejuvenation as a filmmaker. I had to reinvent myself as a creative person. For example, my cameraperson in "Black" is Ravi Chandran. I had to work extensively with all my actors before shooting started. With Amitji I had to get over my awe of him before I could get to a comfort level. I had to learn to take him into confidence rather than look up to him. Because neither he nor I had done anything like "Black" earlier. Fortunately he's one of finest human beings I know, so communication was easy. Q: Do you think "Black" has the potential to create the same impact as "Devdas"? A: Creation is about being fully alive. The whole nation has a heart. If a film has a heart it will reach out to everyone. Contrary to the title, "Black" isn't depressing at all. It's an uplifting tale on the triumph of the human spirit. Incidentally, black is my favourite colour and it's got a universal resonance. I think it's a powerful, striking colour, which describes the film's sensitivities. Let me add that "Black" isn't a small project that I've squeezed into my schedule. Certainly not! How can any film with Amitabh Bachchan be small? It's going to be a very important film in my oeuvre. And Amitji's and Rani's performances will be remembered for a very, very long time. Q: The film gives Bachchan a completely new persona and impetus. A: I'm grateful to Amitji for accommodating my film into his busy schedule. It's fascinating to know that even today filmmakers are devising projects with him in mind. I think that makes him the greatest star-actor of our country. I've been his diehard fan from childhood. Ever since I started making movies it was my dream to work with him. Even my first film, "Khamoshi", was written for Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan. But at that point of time he had taken a break from acting and I felt with a baritone like his, he'd never come back with a role that required him to be mute. For the fear of rejection I never approached him. But let me tell you, during "Khamoshi" I had already started to plan "Black". Q: "Black" is ready for release. How does it feel? A: Like delivering another baby (laughs). I'm relieved, ecstatic and tense as it goes into the world. Initially it was very tough making a film without songs. I can't survive without songs. I listen to Lataji at least four to five hours a day. For me a film without songs was inconceivable before "Black". But I wanted the challenge of attracting the audience without my habitual leitmotif. The presence of India's greatest star-actor Amitabh Bachchan helped me immensely. I've realised there's no actor like him in Indian cinema. I've three idols - Lata Mangeshkar, Birju Maharaj and Amitabh Bachchan. And I'm proud to say I've worked with two of them. Q: Isn't Rani outstanding in "Black"? A: Yes, I signed her for both "Black" and "Bajirao Mastani". She's a fabulous actress. It was wonderful to put her on screen with Amitji. "Black" offers her a range that actresses only dream about. Rani and I are very good friends. That helped in getting a quality of performance out of her that I cannot describe in words. It's arguably the best performance I've got from an actor, after Amitji. Q: And what about Aishwarya Rai? A: What about her? Of course, we've met socially, and we're very close friends. Q: "Black" departs from "Devdas" almost diametrically. A: It was a spontaneous decision. After "Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam" and "Devdas" I could've easily planned another film in the romantic genre. But I felt like moving away. My audience wants me to move on. "Black" is a subject I've lived with for six years. I just had to make it. Though "Black" has no songs it's treated musically. The lyricism is inherent in the scenes, which look like song sequences. A song isn't the only way to interpret the lyricism. I didn't miss songs in "Black". They would've been a hindrance to the narrative. --Indo-Asian News Service
Pamela glad she grabbed her 'inner slut'
Sunday, November 28, 2004
London: Baywatch bombshell Pamela Anderson has revealed that she does not regret any of her past sexual encounters and has urged women to follow her example by claiming their "inner slut" According to Femalefirst, the blonde babe is glad that she had the guts to give in to the dirty side of her personality. "I think everybody's a slut and they should admit it. I was sexual from a very early age but I've kind of learned over the years to have more fun with it," the actress was quoted as saying. "At the time I didn't see anything wrong with the Playboy stuff but now I can look back on a lot of things I've done in my career and my life and go, yes I am a little bit of a slut," she added. ANI
Agnivesh flays PM, BJP
Sunday, November 28, 2004
New Delhi, Nov. 28. : Accusing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and senior BJP leaders of seeking "special treatment" for the incarcerated Kanchi Sankaracharya, Arya Samaj leader Swami Agnivesh on Saturday said that law should treat everyone equally and called for a national debate on "criminalisation of religion". "It is unfortunate that senior BJP leaders like Atal Bihari Vajpayee and L K Advani are saying that Jayendra Saraswati's arrest is an insult to Hinduism and demanding enactment of a law to guard religious leaders against prosecution," Agnivesh, president of the World Council of Arya Samaj, told reporters here. "Even the Prime Minister has written a letter asking the Jayalalithaa Government to take extreme care and consideration in the probe against a person of the Sankaracharya's 'eminence'. This shows even he believes that Saraswati should get special treatment," he said. Agnivesh said the Sankaracharya episode gave an opportunity to examine the issue of alleged criminalisation of religion.
'Kaal's' unique music track
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Mumbai, Nov 18 : The music of Karan Johar's "Kaal" has generated a good deal of curiosity in the market. Speculation has it that out of the six tracks that have been planned, only two will actually be seen in the adventurous thriller. The rest will be shot as music videos as part of the pre-release promotional strategy for the film, reports Bollywood Trade. "That's not entirely true, though two of the songs will be definitely seen in the film, one of them being the background track and the second being the background theme song," says music director Salim of the Salim-Sulaiman pair for whom "Kaal" is a major breakthrough in the big league of reckoned filmmakers. According to Salim, each of the songs in the album will have a different concept with a couple of songs being re-mixes of famous English numbers, for which the rights have been acquired, and two other songs being Punjabi tracks. "The idea is the brainchild of Karan Johar and director Soham Shah, who decided to have a different concept for each song," says Salim. -*- Tinnu Anand's date problems for 'Mumbai Express' Actor Tinnu Anand has cited date problems as the reason for opting out of Kamal Haasan's ambitious project, "Mumbai Express", which is to commence shooting here Nov 22. Anand, who was to play the role of an insurance agent in the Tamil-Hindi bilingual, was eagerly looking forward to working with Haasan and director Singeetham Sreenivasa Rao after he had last worked with them in the critically acclaimed 'Pushpak'. "But I could not give them the dates that they wanted," he said. As of now, Haasan has confirmed Mahesh Manjrekar, Om Puri and Saurabh Shukla for the Hindi version, in which he will be playing the central character. The latter will also write the dialogues of the Hindi version. -*- 'Mughal-e-Azam' for a social cause The son of Mumbai distributor Dinesh Gandhi discovered an apt way to celebrate Diwali. Bunty teamed up with his management friends from H.R. College to organise a special show of "Mughal-e-Azam" for senior citizens at Eros theatre. Nine of the college students decided to make it part of their project. They invited senior citizens from prominent Old Age Homes like Missionaries of Charity, Byculla, Salvation Army, Byculla, King George's Memorial, & J.J. Dharamshala, Bombay Central, to watch the special show of the film. "We thought what better way to celebrate Diwali than to brighten up and add colour to the lives of many to whom society owes the most," says Bunty. The special screening was held at Eros Nov 12 and the 120 senior citizens who enjoyed the event were escorted in special buses organised by students. "It was a pleasure to see the faces of those old people light up with happiness and joy," says Dinesh Gandhi, who personally looked into the arrangements for the show and ensured that it was a success. --Indo-Asian News Service
Kumble closing in on Indian record
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Kolkata, India: Anil Kumble is within striking distance of Kapil Dev's Indian record of 434 Test wickets - and the electric atmosphere of the Eden Gardens could be where he gets past the mark. Leg-spinner Kumble is just four short of the legendary all-rounder's record, which looks likely to tumble in the second Test against South Africa given his recent form. | No rivalry with Kumble: Harbhajan | The 34-year-old has taken eight five-wicket hauls in his last 11 Tests, quashing any thoughts that he may be past his prime. Kapil himself has backed Kumble to go on to take 500 Test wickets, stretching his international career past the next World Cup in the West Indies in 2007. "He should get past the 500-mark by the next World Cup," Kapil said at an awards function here. "I would be happy to see Kumble break my record very soon and wish him all the best." Kumble has set a similar aim for himself. "Getting to 500 is a realistic target," said Kumble. "It's been a long journey but one has to set goals and work towards them." Kumble, a veteran of 89 Tests, has a whopping 28 five-wicket hauls in Tests and also 321 wickets in 259 one-dayers in 15 years of international cricket. But the reluctant superstar, who has managed to keep a low profile even in cricket-mad India, said the most important thing was winning the series. "It is important to get wickets but what is more important is that the team does well," said Kumble of the series decider here, which follows last week's drawn first Test. The Test in Kanpur was one of the rare occasions when India has failed to win despite a five-wicket haul from Kumble, one of two only bowlers in Test history to take all 10 wickets in an innings. Kumble, from the southern state of Karnataka, has taken five wickets in 24 of the 26 Tests that India have won with him in the team. He has also exploded the myth that he misfires away from home by taking 24 wickets in India's 2003-2004 tour of Australia, which ended 1-1, and then playing a lead role in his team's first Test win on Pakistani soil. | South Africa target rare series double | Kumble allowed himself a dig at critics who say he does not the spin the ball enough during last week's Test, when he was the only bowler from either side to take five wickets on a batsman's pitch. "Sometimes you don't get wickets when you turn the ball but get them when you don't turn," he said. Kumble will also be desperate to beat Kapil's record at Eden Gardens rather than during next month's series in Bangladesh, who have never won a Test.
Class 8 girl gives birth, tries to kill baby
Sunday, November 28, 2004
PTI DHARAMSALA: A class VIII student gave birth to a baby girl in the toilet of a hospital here and then tried to kill her but was caught by a hospital employee, police said. The 18-year-old unmarried girl studying in class VIII was caught by Rajendra Prasad medical college hospital sweeper Rekha Devi, district police superintendent S Z H Zaidi said. The newborn has been saved and a case registered against the girl while efforts were on to identify the child's father, Zaidi said. The girl who complained of stomach-ache had come to the hospital with her mother, hospital sources said.
Congress spent Rs 125 crore in Lok Sabha polls: EC
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Congress spent a whopping Rs 125 crore in the just-concluded Lok Sabha elections to counter the "feel good" campaign of the BJP-led NDA and emerge successful in the polls. In political wilderness at the Centre for eight long years, the Congress left nothing to chance in the 'do or die' battle of the ballot and spent several times more than other national parties, excluding the BJP. The CPI(M) incurred an expenditure of over Rs 8.26 crore, followed by Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) over Rs four crore, the Sharad Pawar-led NCP spent a frugal Rs 31 lakh, CPI 28 lakhs. The BJP, which was the party heading the ruling alliance at that time, has so far not filed its election expenditure statement to the Election Commission and has been asked to submit them by November 30, the last opportunity to do so. According to the expenditure statement given by the national parties to the Commission, a major chunk of nearly Rs 49 crore was spent by Congress on publicity including all types of printed materials, use of electronic media, advertisements in newspapers and on cut-outs, hoardings and banners. As against this, the travel expenses by trains or through cars amounted to a mere Rs 34 lakhs. The party, which contested some 400-odd seats, the least in recent memory, spent nearly Rs 60 crore on its candidates. An interesting feature is that the statement of expenditure submitted by Congress and NCP related only to the General Elections, while that of CPI(M), CPI and BSP contained the expenses incurred in the assembly polls of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Orissa and Sikkim as well.
CRPF jawan kills seven colleagues, commits suicide
Sunday, November 28, 2004
PTI SRINAGAR: A CRPF jawan shot dead seven of his colleagues and injured two others before killing himself at a camp in Baramulla district of Jammu and Kashmir in the wee hours of the day, official sources said. The sources said, a yet to be identified jawan opened indiscriminate fire on his colleagues at the 152 CRPF Battalion camp in Baramulla town, killing seven of them on the spot. The jawan later killed himself, they said. The injured are being treated at a Srinagar hospital, the sources said. The reason behind the jawan's extreme step was yet to be known, they said. CRPF officials are tight-lipped about the incident and were expected to make a statement later in the day.
Ambani brothers attend same function
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Mumbai: Reliance Industries Ltd Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani and Vice-Chairman and Managing Director Anil Ambani, who are locked in an ownership tussle, on Saturday attended an awards function, but avoided the waiting media. Mukesh, the elder brother, came early for the function hosted at a five-star hotel in South Mumbai and headed straight to where Union Finance Minister P Chidambarm was to give away the Economic Times awards. Anil accompanied by his wife Tina came later.
Salman Khan exempted from appearance in hit and run case
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Mumbai, Nov 23 : A local court exempted actor Salman Khan from appearing before it today in the hit-and-run case and deferred till December 20 the trial in the case, in which Khan is facing the charge of killing one person and injuring four. The Bandra court exempted Salman from appearing for the day today as the actor pleaded that he was busy shooting for a film in Chennai. Salman's lawyer Dipesh Mehta told that case papers have not been transferred from sessions court to the trial court and they were expecting this formality to be completed before December 20. Salman is charged with killing one person and injuring four, on September 28, 2002, by ramming his vehicle into a shop in suburban Bandra. Police alleged that he was under the influence of liquor at the time of mishap, a charge denied by the actor. Principal Sessions Judge R R Vachha, hearing Maharashtra government's plea, on June nine, had transferred the case from the court of Magistrate S Y Sishode to the court of Additional Chief Magistrate J B Pankhe. The state had challenged a lower court order allowing magistrate Sishode to conduct Salman's trial. The state had urged that Bandra Magistrate S Y Sishode was not competent to conduct the trial as he had earlier recorded statements of three witnesses. Read Latest Headlines from Bollywood India
Actor John Abraham injured during shooting of film `Kaal' :
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Dehra Dun, Nov 23 : Bollywood star John Abraham received minor injuries during shooting of a film near famous Jim Corbett National Park in Ram Nagar area of Uttaranchal's Kumaon region. John received minor injuries after he fell down during a shot of 'Kaal' film yesterday, Deputy Superintendent of Police Yogendra Singh Rawat said. "There are no serious injuries but doctors have advised John to take some rest," he said. Sohem Shah directed 'Kaal' is being shot in Corbett Park and adjoining areas for the past one month. Other stars include Ajay Devgun, Lara Dutta and Vivek Oberoi.
Dev Anand, Prem Chopra honoured with Bollywood Awards
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Atlantic City (United States), Nov 21 : It was no ordinary event for the stars of yesteryears - Dev Anand, Prem Chopra and Vyjayantimala and their likes - were presented with Bollywood Awards at a glittering function here. The stars relived their heydays as young artists danced to the tunes of once popular numbers enacted by them several decades ago and mimicked their acting styles. Among those honoured with 'Legend of Indian Cinema' Awards last night here was evergreen Dev Anand who gave his own recipe for keeping young in old age in his acceptance address. He got a prolonged standing ovation as he stepped on the stage to accept the award from the audience which included youngsters who would have heard about him only from their parents. Dev Anand, who gave the longest acceptance speech, spoke about the movies he is still making and how he searches for new ideas and said that keeps him young. Boy chasing girl round trees is important for a movie but then there is also something beyond that, said the 81-year old Dev Anand. The audience sang "happy birthday" to him when informed that his birthday was on September 26. Jeetendra, who looked much younger for his age, and Feroz Khan and Fareed Khan, who could not make it because of visa problem, too were on the honour roll. Vijayantimala, Padmani, Moushumi Chatterjee and Zeenat Aman, who dominated the sliver screen and set new trends, were among the heroines of yesteryears who got the award.
I won't follow Ash's footsteps, -Sush
Sunday, November 28, 2004
I won't follow Ash's footsteps, says Sush : Bollywood New Delhi, Nov 19 : Former Miss Universe and Bollywood actress Sushmita Sen, who was recently named as the brand ambassador of TAG Heuer watches, says she is not so inclined towards taking up international projects like her contemporary beauty queen Ashwarya Rai, besides other artists. According to her, she is not so hungry for international publicity. "I am just not hungry enough. I am very content with developing many facets of life. I guess I am just not one tracked. I have different facets and I like to go into them and that makes it harder to go and focus on just one thing. So it will be boring. You (media) won't like it. When I won Miss Universe, which was owned by the Paramount Communications in the US and Square Garden, I came from the heart of Hollywood and that time I gave very horrendous interviews. I said I don't want to be an actress, I won't run around the trees," said Sen. Talking about crossover films, Sen said one should crossover as long as one has a very strong bridge. "You should have your grounding in the home country first and rest of the world would wake up to you. Definitely you do cross over, as long as you have a strong bridge to cross over," added Sen. She further said that she is currently doing an untitled film, a take off from the Hollywood film "I am Sam" , which would lead the film industry into another arena. 29 year-old Sen, is fresh from the success of "Main Hoon Na", where she starred opposite King Khan, as a sexy lecturer. She has now joined superstar Shah Rukh Khan in the list of international celebrities, which include Marion Jones, Tiger Woods, David Coulthard and Ines Sastre. In India, Tag Heuer has been present for the past two years, selling in 18 cities through 40 stores. Sushmita Sen first came to international prominence in 1994 when she won the Miss Universe competition--the first Indian women to ever do so. Since starring alongside fellow TAG Heuer ambassador Shah Rukh Khan in the hit Bollywood film "Main Hoon Na", Sushmita has remained a fixture at the top of the India box-office, winning several awards. Sophisticated and glamorous, strong-minded and gifted, she has become one of the country's best-known film personalities. She entered films with "Dastak" which bombed at the box office, but she earned praise for her role depicting poise and style.
Nausheen hopes people will like her in 'Kaalchakra'
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Bollywood Mumbai, Nov 19 : Television actress Nausheen Ali Sardar, playing a character with "grey shades" in the supernatural thriller "Kaalchakra" that begins telecast Friday, says she is looking forward to see how her fans will react to her new role. Known best for her lead role in the tele-serial "Kkusum", Nausheen will act as daughter, wife and mother in "Kaalchakra". The serial is a remake of a Mexican soap "La Opala". The currently popular serial, "Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahin", is also a remake of Columbian soap "Yo Soy Betty La Fea". The actress, who has been missing from the small screen for some time, has shed the extra kilos she had put on and is back to her trim self. She is often seen with her friend, actor Vikas Kalantri. Both have been seeing each other for a long time now. Nausheen is excited about her role in "Kaalchakra". "It's really a challenging role because I am playing the mother of twins. So there is plenty of scope for me to perform as all three characters are different entities." "Since, this is the first time that I am going to play a character with grey shades, I am really excited and looking forward to see how my fans will react!" Nausheen left "Kkusum" when the serial took a 20-year leap and she was made to act as mother to an 18-year-old daughter. In "Kaalchakra", Nausheen dons the motherly role for a short span before the twins take centre stage in the serial. The spirited actress has also featured in a Pakistani serial "Ana" with Humayun Saayeed, which will be aired simultaneously in India and Pakistan. "The serial is ready now and about to be released in Pakistan. Humayun Saeed from Pakistan, who has produced this serial and even acted opposite me, is a great human being. He has done a wonderful job by combining the talents from India and Pakistan," Nausheen added. Asked what made her leave "Kkusum", which was so popular, Nausheen smiled and said: "An actor should always try to change his or her image all the time. I couldn't relate to playing mother to an 18-year-old girl. 'Ana' and 'Kaalchakra' have both offered me a lot in terms of performance for an actress. And I guess, I am like all other human beings who want to excel in life!" While Nausheen has showcased her talent enough through ads (modelling from the age of 16), music videos (remember the "Pehle to kabhi kabhi" Altaf Raja video) and serials, what she's looking forward to is some "great films". "I think filmmakers are wary about casting me because they wonder if I have the time at all since I'm busy with TV. Since 'Kaalchakra' is a weekly show, I have time on hand, so yes, I want to do films." --Indo-Asian News Service
Rahman concert to open International Film Festival
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Bollywood, Nov 19 : To present Indian cinema's colour and vibrancy to a global audience, this year's International Film Festival of India (IFFI) will open in Goa with an A. R. Rahman concert. Rahman will perform songs from director Subhash Ghai's forthcoming release, "Kisna - The Warrior Poet", which stars Vivek Oberoi and danseuse Isha Sharvani in her maiden role. Sharvani is set to charm audiences with a live rope dance performed at the Dinanath Mangeshkar Hall, the film festival's official venue. The opening ceremony will be telecast live on Doordarshan. The festival's opening film is Mira Nair's "Vanity Fair". Nair is expected to attend, although it is not known if any of her star cast will be there. A. P. Parigi, co-ordinator of the project, who also hopes to organise free concerts on Goa's famed beaches during the festival week, told : "From the moment visitors arrive in Goa to the time they leave, they will have a lifetime's experience." Ghai is thrilled that his film's music, to be released globally by Sony in December, is being presented to an international audience. National award winners A. R. Rahman and Ismail Darbar have composed the film's music and Javed Akhtar has penned the songs. --Indo-Asian News Service
Walt Disney, Star Group in distribution pact
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Mumbai, Nov 25 : Walt Disney Television International Asia Pacific (WDTVI-AP) has signed a multi-year deal with Star Group for distribution of its Disney Channel and Toon Disney Channel in India. Both the channels would be launched on December 17, 2004, Star said in a release here today. With 30 million cable and satellite TV audience under the age of 14 in urban India alone, the launch of the channels would not only have a major impact on the way the Disney brand is enjoyed in India but also in the development of the Indian pay television business, Walt Disney Television International (India) and The Walt Disney Company (India) Pvt Ltd Managing Director Rajat Jain said.
Vaada
Saturday, November 27, 2004
By IndiaFM News Bureau After Tere Naam, director Satish Kaushik returns with another love drama. And this time he joins hands with Vashu Bhagnani who had earlier scored a big hit with their last film together - Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai. Character Sketch Arjun Rampal as Rahul He cannot see but can sense. His brilliant mind can foresee the terrible results of a man's manic fixation Amisha Patel as Puja She can see as well as sense. But she is helpless and vulnerable. She can do nothing to stop the forces of demented love. Zayed Khan as Karan He is so blinded by love that even his astute intelligence cannot see what havoc a man's possessiveness can cause. Storyline Rahul (Arjun Rampal) and Puja (Amisha Patel) are newly married and completely devoted to each other. One day they meet with a terrible accident and Rahul loses his eyesight. On a business trip abroad, Rahul meets a friend Karan (Zayed Khan). Impressed by his dynamism and business acumen, Rahul asks him to join his business. They return to India and Puja is stunned to see her husband with her old friend Karan. Rahul's love for Puja's is blind and unquestioning. Karan's love for Puja is obsessive and uncontrollable. Puja is trapped between a blind husband and a sighted lover. Rahul can sense Karan's obsession. Karan can see Rahul's possessiveness. Now begins a deadly cat and mouse game between the two. Rahul can see a web of deceit tightening around him. Karan can see a devious trap being laid for him. Will one of them succeed or will both fail? Release date The film will release in December 2004
I am happy and relieved, says Ganguly after lifting of ban
Saturday, November 27, 2004
Mumbai, Nov 26 The two-Test ban on Indian captain Sourav Ganguly was today lifted by the International Cricket Council. ICC Chief Executive Officer Malcolm Speed informed the Indian Cricket Board of the decision to lift the ban on Ganguly. "We have received a communication to this effect from Speed. Ganguly is free to play now," Board Secretary S K Nair told here today. Ganguly was slapped a two-Test suspension by ICC Match Referee Clive Lloyd for India's slow over rate in the Platinum Jubilee one-dayer against Pakistan in Kolkata on November 13. Ganguly appealed against the decision citing frequent changing of the ball, the heavy due and injury to Pakistan batsman Salman Butt as the reasons for the delay. The ICC appointed New Zealand lawyer Tim Castle as the Appeals Commissioner to hear the Indian captain's appeal. Ganguly was allowed to play the first Test against South Africa in Kanpur last week pending the hearing which was done via a teleconference yesterday. Ganguly expressed his happiness at the lifting of the two-match ban on him by the ICC and said now he can go into the second Test against South Africa with 'fresh mind'. "I am happy and relieved," Ganguly told newspersons as he emerged out of the gym of a five-star hotel after a workout. Ganguly said he was quite tense waiting for the outcome of his appeal to the ICC Appeals Commissioner and, "now I will go into the second Test from Sunday with fresh mind".
Soren to return to cabinet, get Coal, TRS chief to get Labour
Saturday, November 27, 2004
New Delhi, Nov 26 JMM President Sibu Soren would be reinducted into the Cabinet in a minor expansion and reshuffle of the Union Council of Ministers in which TRS chief Chandrashekar Rao will get Labour and Employment portfolio. Soren, who had to quit the cabinet as Coal Minister in the wake of an arrest warrant in a 20-year-old massacre case, will get back the old portfolio. He is now on bail. Labour Minister Seeshram OLa, who yields the portfolio to Rao, will be in charge of the Mines ministry, official sources said late tonight. Rao is at present a cabinet minister without portfolio.
Reliance dispute: Rahul Bajaj meets Mukesh; efforts on for peace
Saturday, November 27, 2004
New Delhi, Nov 26 Noted industrialist Rahul Bajaj has joined the list of Ambani family's friends making efforts to bring peace between the two brothers, Mukesh and Anil, who are engaged in a fight for the control of Rs 90,000 crore Reliance empire. Bajaj met Mukesh Ambani yesterday in Mumbai, but refused to comment on what his advice was to the elder brother. "No body wants dirty linen to be washed in public... I will not comment on what I talked to him (Mukesh)," Bajaj told over phone when asked if he had advised that there should not be public fight. Bajaj said he had met Mukesh and six other industrialists yesterday in connection with the meeting of the Prime Minister's advisor council which is slated for December 4. Earlier, some political personalisits and religious leaders had called Kokila Ben, the widow of Dhirubhai Ambani, to step in and calm her two sons. The fight between the two brothers had become public last week when Mukesh Ambani admitted to a TV channel that there were some "ownership issues" in the Reliance group but these were in private domain.
Telecom Department imposes Rs 1.5 bn penalty on Reliance
Saturday, November 27, 2004
New Delhi, Nov 26 Department of Telecom today imposed a penalty of Rs 1.5 bn on Reliance Infocomm for violating licence conditions by routing international calls as local ones. The Department has given Reliance seven days to respond to the notice as to why this penalty should not be imposed. When contacted, top officials of Reliance confirmed the receipt of the notice and said the company would seek extension of the time period. This is besides the payment of about Rs 100 crore made by Reliance to Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) against a claim of over Rs 255 crore for avoiding payment of Access Deficit Charge (ADC) of Rs 4.25 per minute on incoming international calls. Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) has also claimed Rs 309 crore under the same clause. DoT took the decision to impose the penalty after seeking legal opinion from the Law Ministry. Even as Reliance had submitted its reply to DoT's first show cause notice on October 20, the Department, after internal examination of the reply and legal consultation, took the decision to impose the penalty. Meanwhile, Reliance had approached the Delhi High Court seeking to restrain BSNL from disconnecting the Points of Interconnection till the final outcome of the controversy of routing of calls. Though the Delhi High Court had agreed to Reliance's demand, BSNL challenged Delhi High Court's order and filed a Special Leave Petition in the Supreme Court saying the High Court does not have the jurisdiction to entertain such case as per the TRAI Act. The case is slated to be heard on December 3. As per the licensing conditions, DoT can slap upto Rs 50 crore penalty for each circle for the first offence and even take the action of cancelling the licence in case the operator continues to violate them. DoT, however, is of the opinion that there was no loss to the exchequer. Finanacial losses have been caused only to BSNL and MTNL in terms of non-payment of Access Deficit Charge (ADC) to the tune of Rs 4.25 per minute on incoming international calls.
Four ultras killed in Srinagar
Saturday, November 27, 2004
Srinagar, Nov 27 Four militants were killed when Jammu and Kashmir police repulsed an attack on a patrol party in the capital this morning. A group of militants opened fire on a police patrol at Nishat here. The personnel retaliated killing four ultras on the spot, police said, adding the slain militants are yet to be identified. In other incidents, militants chopped off the hands of one Mohd Sultan in Tral Area in Pulwama district, 30 km from here and shot at and injured one Bashir Ahmed Mir in Anantnag district in South Kashmir, police said.
Kamal Hassan is the Mumbai Xpress
Friday, November 26, 2004
South superstar and talent-house Kamal Hassan will be back on the Bollywood screen next year. Hassan's last Hindi film was Abhay in 2001 after which he reigned high on the Southern arena with films like Anbe Sivam, Virumaandi and the recent Vasoolraja MBBS. Now he has teamed up with director Singeetham Srinivasa Rao (with whom he had earlier given entertainers like Pushpak and Appu Raja) and the duo are working together on the Hindi-Tamil bilingual titled Mumbai Xpress. Manisha Koirala is paired opposite Kamal Hassan in the film. (Earlier Hassan has Tabu in mind for the role). The film also stars Om Puri, Vijay Raaz, Dinesh Lamba and Kannada film star Ramesh Arvind. Bharat Shah is presenting the venture that has dialogues by Sourabh Shukla and music by Illayaraja. The shooting for the film has already commenced from November 22 on different locations in Mumbai with a start-to-finish schedule. The film is slated for an April 2005 release.
A desi dream: Settle Down Under
Thursday, November 25, 2004
SYDNEY: Buoyed by the Australian government's encouragement to skilled professionals to settle Down Under, the number of Indians immigrating to this country has tripled in the last 10 years. According to the figures released by the Australian Immigration Department, the largest group of immigrants settling in Victoria state has mentioned India as their 'country of origin'. Overall, India is ranked a close fourth behind China as provider of the largest number of immigrants to Australia. Britain tops the list, with 19,214 of its denizens moving to sunnier Australia. New Zealand contributed 14,418 immigrants to its cross-Tasman Sea neighbour. The number of Chinese immigrants (excluding Hong Kong) in the year 2003-04 reads as 8,784 while India comes fourth with 8,135. The highest number of Indian immigrants, 3,639, are believed to have settled in New South Wales while 3,236 of their compatriots preferred Victoria over the other Australian states. The fact that most of the Indians name English as their first language gives them an advantage over the migrants arriving from non-English backgrounds such as China and South America. In fact the number of immigrants from English-speaking countries such as Britain, South Africa and India has burgeoned from 37 percent eight years ago to more than 50 per cent. Last year's Australian immigrant intake stood at 110,000. Proficiency in English gets extra points for Australian skilled visa applicants. Besides being fluent in the Queen's language, most Indians settling in Australia are also believed to be degree-holders. This gives them a head start over the applicants from other countries. Another significant fact making it to the headlines is about the migrant intake from Britain and Ireland. For the first time in the last eight years of the conservative government of John Howard, the migrants from the Mother Country have outstripped Southeast Asians. The Howard government has been gradually reducing the number of applicants seeking to join their relatives in Australia. But this policy has not affected the spouse category that is still uncapped. The applicants in the humanitarian or refugee category are also being discouraged to consider Australia as one of the possible destinations. Thanks to the gigantic number of job opportunities provided by Australia's largest city Sydney, the state of New South Wales continues to attract the maximum number of migrants to its shores. The number may have fallen slightly due to New South Wales' efforts to discourage the new settlers to cope with the surging population, but it is still far ahead of Victoria.
Gold prices decline on lack of support
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
New Delhi, Nov 22 Gold prices declined on the bullion market here today on lack of buying support and settled lower by Rs 15 at Rs 6640 per ten gram. Traders refrained from buying following a bandh call given by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad to protest the arrest of Kanchi Shankaracharya. Trading activity was thin as yellow metal prices moved in a narrow range around 444.46 dollar an ounce from the last close of 447 dollars in international markets. However, silver was better on fresh buying by industrial units and inched up. Silver ready gained Rs.50 at Rs.11,800 per kilo and weekly-based delivery by Rs.15 at Rs.11,550 per kilo. Silver coins continued to be asked at previous levels of Rs.15,100 for buying and Rs.15,300 for selling of 100 pieces. Standard gold and ornaments were lower by Rs.15 each at Rs.6640 and Rs.6490 per kilo. Sovereign was asked at last levels at Rs.5350 per piece of eight gram.
Cellphone makers all set to woo children with new gaming
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Arvinder Kaur New Delhi, Nov 22 Cellphones and children - most parents would call it a dangerous combination but more and more cellphone companies and operators are wooing kids with new interactive games, cartoons, quiz and word wizard - all of it packed in a single gizmo. While these companies say the plethora of information will open up a whole new world of "learning with fun", telecom experts say it is the trend worldwide to target specific groups like women, children and elderly and the same is happening here also. "Children are a hugely growing interest group, they being inherently internet savvy can make their interaction with the mobile phone more meaningful and the new line of games and learning tools provide an edutainment platform," says Mahesh Prasad, Head, Applications & Solutions Group, Reliance Infocomm. Thus, you have the Whiz Kid, which sharpens kid's skills in mathematics, wildlife, current affairs, Word Wizard to boost vocabulary, Fact Monster, a treasure trove of information, and Games Garage, all available on a single mobile, he says. "The trend worldwide is to woo specific target groups, say women, children, elderly and come out with applications meant for them. The same is happening here," says T V Ramachandran, Director General, Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI).
Market bounces back on Ambani's clarifications
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Mumbai, Nov 22 Clarification by RIL Chairman Mukesh Ambani on "ownership issues" helped market bounce back after it crashed by 84 points within minutes of the resumption of trading today over speculation that Ambani family was preparing to tackle those issues. The market, which remained in approximately 60-40 points minus territory till 12 noon, later recovered sharply after Ambani clarified that all ownership issues pertaining to Reliance had been settled by his father and that his remarks on "ownership issues" were torn out of context. After dipping to the day's low of 5877.97, a fall of 84 points in the first ten minutes of trading, the BSE Benchmark 30-share Index later recovered gradually and ended the day at 5963.80 as against last Friday's close of 5961.71, a minor gain of 2.09 points or 0.04 per cent. Foreign Institutional investors (FIIs), which commands a stake of about 27 per cent in RIL, were believed to have made heavy purchases at the day's lower price levels. Initially, the market had witnessed a panic reaction by investors following reports as well speculation about the differences over "ownership issues" in the Reliance group. RIL, which opened steady at Rs 527.00 and later dropped to the low of Rs 509.20 before closing the day at Rs 532.80 as against previous close of Rs 527.15. Blue chip counters including SBI, ONGC, Tata Power, Tata Steel, L&T, BHEL, Ranbaxy, HDFC, GACL and ACC scored handsome gains on fresh buying support. However, Infosys Technologies, Tata Motors, ICICI Bank, HPCL, REL, HLL, Grasim, Cipla and Satyam Computer suffered a marked setback.
Ownership issue: difference in the Ambanis appear to continue
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Mumbai, Nov 22 Notwithstanding a statement by Mukesh Ambani to clear the air, differences between him and his younger brother Anil Ambani in the Reliance Industries Group appear to continue, well informed sources said. They said there were differences over Mukesh going ahead with a statement. Mukesh's attempt to get a joint statement issued was thwarted by some in the family who did not not favour such a course, the sources said. No one in the Reliance Group was willing to speak on record on the issue of alleged differences. Whike Mukesh is Chairman and Managing Director of the Rs 80,000 crore RIL, Anil is Vice Chairman and Managing Director. When contacted Reliance spokesperson Amit Khanna told that Mukesh issued the statement as Reliance Group Chairman. "Mukesh Ambani was made successor by the late Dhirubhai Ambani and from that moment he is committed to realising Dhirubhai's dream," he said. Khanna said the controversy would be resolved to the satisfaction of shareholders and others concerned in the next few weeks.
Kumble on top in Test bowling ratings list
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
New Delhi, Nov 22 India's veteran leg spinner Anil Kumble has leapfrogged to the top of the World Test bowling after his impressive performance in the recently concluded series at home against Australia. Kumble, with 199 points, pipped England's Steve Harmison (190) and world's highest wickettaker Shane Warne (151) of Australia in the Samsung cricket ratings released by ESPN-Star Sports here today. But none-too-impressive form with the bat meant only one Indian figured in the top ten -- opener Virender Sehwag (127) placed at fourth. The top three batting honours belonged to Brian Lara (138), Sanath Jayasuriya (130) and Kumar Sangakkara (129). In Test team ratings, Australia were leading with 80 points followed by England (69) and South Africa (51). India were sixth with 45 points to their credit. In ODIs, Andrew Symonds was the top batsman while Sri Lanka's Chaminda Vaas was the top bowler. Australia were leading the ODI team charts as well with 81 points while India were languishing at the seventh place.
Rampaging Indians spoil South African strategy
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Kanpur, Nov 22 South African coach Ray Jennings today said his team would have to think of a different strategy to contain the rampaging Indian batsmen in the first cricket Test here today. "It's been a superb batting display. They really put the pressure on us by batting so well. They played attacking shots which unsettled our bowling," he said after the third day's play. The two Indian openers put on a record opening stand to take India to 185 for no loss in reply to South Africa's first innings total of 510 for nine declared. "We did not bowl very well, we could not put the ball in the right areas. We have to think about a bowling strategy overnight," Jennings said. Asked whether the South Africans had delayed their declaration a little bit, the coach said, "we just wanted a little bit of guarantee, so we batted for some time in the morning. A score of 500 is good". On whether his batsmen had batted too slowly on this track, Jennings said "the pace of the innings was a little bit on the slower side. We lack a bit of experience of playing in such conditions. The players are young and it takes time to adjust to these conditions. "May be we could have forced the pace of scoring a little bit in the last session yesterday. But I am happy with the batting. The Indians have a lot of experienced batsmen and they could play the way they did today."
Paswan seeks clarification from BJP on Jayalalithaa
Friday, November 19, 2004
New Delhi, Nov 19 (UNI) Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) president Ramvilas Paswan today asked the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) to clarify whether or not the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalitha A-led-AIADMK was a partner of the NDA. Criticising the BJP for saying that the Tamil Nadu Government had ordered Shankaracharya's arrest at the behest of the UPA government at the Centre, Mr Paswan said, "as far as I know the AIADMK is still a constituent of the NDA." Addressing newsmen here, Mr Paswan said the BJP should also make its stand clear on the charges it had levelled against the Tamil Nadu Government in connection with Shankaracharya's arrest and asked as to why the BJP was shy of condemning Jayalalithaa and demanding action against her. Charging the BJP with politicising Shankaracharya's arrest and inciting communal passion, he said, ''nobody should be allowed to either influence or interfere in the Court proceedings.'' To a query, he said when the state Government claimed that it had strong evidence against Shankaracharya the concerned parties should wait for the Court's orders instead of disturbing public peace. "I believe the state Government would not have taken any such action had it not been having ample evidences to establish its stand," said Mr Paswan.
India-China boundary talks enter second day
Friday, November 19, 2004
Beijing, Nov 19 India and China opened the second day of negotiations here today to find an early and "mutually acceptable" boundary settlement that would impart a new impetus to bilateral ties. "The talks are continuing," a senior official told while declining to comment on the nature of talks which commenced here yesterday between National Security Adviser J N Dixit and Chinese Executive Vice-Foreign Minister Dai Bingguo. As part of the talks, Dixit is expected to call on Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao today. Wen is slated to visit India early next year. Apart from Dixit, the Indian delegation comprised India's Ambassador to China Nalin Surie and other senior officials from the Ministry of External Affairs and the PMO. This is the second time that both the countries are meeting after the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government assumed power in May. Dai earlier had two meetings with Dixit's predecessor Brajesh Mishra. India and China appointed Special Representatives in 2003 to explore from the political perspective of the overall bilateral relationship, the framework of a boundary settlement. The decision to appoint Special Representatives was taken during former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's visit to Beijing in June last year after dozens of meetings between officials of the two countries could not make much headway.
Ganguly warns his teammates to guard against complacency
Friday, November 19, 2004
M R Mishra Kanpur, Nov 19 Indian captain Sourav Ganguly today warned his teammates not to take the inexperienced South Africans lightly as they go into the first cricket Test, saying the visitors had come here with a lot of motivation. Ganguly said the South Africans have always been a quality side and it would be a great mistake to underestimate them simply because they lacked experience. "South Africa have always been a good side. This team may not be as experienced as the earlier ones, but they are here with a lot of motivation. They have talent and we just cannot take them lightly," Ganguly told reporters after unveiling the 'Videocon Cup', the trophy that would be given to the winner of the two-match series. The Indian captain also said it was time the team got into the winning habit and made amends for the disappointing loss to Australia in the recent series at home. "Every series is important for us. The loss against Australia was disapppoiting. We are keen to win this series, but we have to try and play good cricket to be able to do that," Ganguly said. The Indian skipper conceded that the top order batsmen have not shown the desired form in recent matches and it was important for them to get among the runs soon.
Rupee weakens further against USD
Friday, November 19, 2004
Mumbai, Nov 19 Rupee weakened further against the US currency early today due to renewed dollar demand from corporates and importers amidst a mild dollar rally overseas even as trade remained quiet and directionless at the Interbank Foreign Exchange market. The domestic unit was quoted at Rs 45.1550/1650 in late morning deals, sharply lower from the overnight finish of Rs 45.08/09 per dollar. The Rupee opened on a hesitant note at Rs 45.08/11 per dollar. Dollar demand from corporates and importers on the back of a mild dollar rally overseas exerted fresh pressure on the Rupee but there is adequate dollar supplies to absorb the limited buying, a forex dealer said. However, sentiments remains positive for the Rupee due to rising trade and foreign capital investment inflows with cooling global oil prices also helping the outlook, he added. New York sweet crude oil for December delivery was quoted at USD 46.21 a barrel in early Asian trade. The Rupee declined by four paise yesterday after the Central Bank intervened to buy dollars in order to arrest the steep rise after it touched new 5-1/4-mth peaks at 44.96/98 per dollar. In cross currency trade, the Euro was quoted at Rs 58.45/48, Pound Sterling at Rs 83.50/52 and the Japanese Yen (100) Rs 43.29/31.
Reliance group scrips move down
Friday, November 19, 2004
New Delhi, Nov 19 Trend-setter Reliance Industries witnessed a fresh spell of selling on the bourses across the board after group's Chairman Mukesh Ambani admitted to differences with his brother Anil over "ownership issues". The shares of all the group companies listed on the Bombay and National Stock Exchanges tumbled on panic selling by brokers and general investors, which drove the leading indices downward to some extent. Parent stocks of Reliance Industries which carries a heavy weight on the indices, after moving in the range of Rs 545.50 and Rs 523.26, ended at Rs 527.15 or nearly 3.37 per cent down. Another index-linked heavyweight share of Reliance Energy lost Rs 7.75 or 1.23 per cent at Rs 620.70 after moving between Rs 628 and Rs 615. The group's subsidiary company in finance business, Reliance Capital, recorded a loss of Rs 1.20 at Rs 137.70. Reliance Industrial Infrastructure was also weak and declined by Rs 4.45 at Rs 71.70. Indian Petrochemicals Ltd (IPCL) stocks too remained under selling pressure throughout the session and slipped by Rs 4.40 at Rs 184.30, though it commenced the day marginally higher at Rs 189.60. Stock brokers said selling pressure came only from retail investors but major players, including foreign funds, were unfazed by the devleopments. Reliance is India's largest private company with an annual turnover of about Rs 80,000 crore and has presence in various sectors including oil refinery, petrochemicals, power and telecommunication.
Insurgents oppose PM's Manipur visit, security on maximum alert
Friday, November 19, 2004
Imphal, Nov 19 Security in the state has been put on maximum alert as separatist Revolutionary People's Front called a '24-Hour Curfew' from midnight tonight to protest against Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Manipur tomorrow. Official sources said para-military forces and Special Protection Group (SPG) personnel were deployed at places where the Prime Minister is scheduled to visit. They said the Prime Minister is expected to attend a special convocation of Manipur University, lay foundation stone for construction of a Capital complex at Chingmeirong, near here, and attend a public function during which the Centre would hand over historic Kangla Fort in the heart of the city to Manipur Government. Meanwhile, the RPF, political wing of the banned People's Liberation Army (PLA), in a statement said it had called for a '24-Hour curfew' from midnight tonight to protest against Singh's visit and against the merger of Manipur with the union in October 1949. It claimed the Prime Minister's visit was nothing but to oversee the army deployment in Manipur. On the other hand, Apunba Lup, the group of organisations agitating for lifting the Armed Force Special Powers Act from Manipur, demanded that the Act be withdrawn latest by today. In a statement, the Lup said if the Act was not lifted by today, they would intensify its agitation and its representatives may not hold talks with the Prime Minister during his two-day visit to Manipur beginning tomorrow.
Census work on to identify foreigners:Govt
Friday, November 19, 2004
Sonepat, Nov 19 The centre is undertaking a census work for identifying foreigners, especially the Bangladeshi nationals to curb infiltration, Union Minister of State for Home Manikrao H Govind said today. The centre, in an effort to check infiltration has already identified about 30 lakh foreigners and collected their data in the first phase of the survey, he told reporters here adding the exercise is expected to cost around Rs 10,000 crore. Identification cards will be issued to them to check further infiltration and to help the government keep a track on the foreigners, he said. He said the identity cards would contain the details about the individual, including the place of residence, educational qualification, date of birth and family background.
India says it is not clear about Musharraf's Kashmir proposal
Friday, November 19, 2004
New Delhi, Nov 19 India today sought to downplay President Pervez Musharraf's remarks on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's statements during his trip to Jammu and Kashmir and also said it was not clear about the Pakistani leader's latest proposal on solving the Kashmir problem. When asked by reporters here about Musharraf's reaction to the Prime Minister's statements in Kashmir in which he has said that India is not showing flexibility but sending negative vibes, External Affairs Minister Natwar Singh refused to comment. "Our position has been made clear by our Prime Minister in Kashmir," was all that Singh said. During his two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir that ended yesterday, Prime Minister Singh had asserted that India will not accept redrawing of borders or a "second partition" of the country on the basis of religion. Musharraf reacted to the statement, saying Pakistan was "not encouraged" by the vibes coming from India and accused New Delhi of not showing flexibility. On Musharraf's recent formulation on a solution to the Kashmir problem, Singh said, "All that we know about the proposal is what President Pervez Musharraf said at an Iftar party. There is no formal communication from the Pakistan side about what he had in mind." "Their Prime Minister is arriving here on the 23rd (November 23). Let's see what he brings," he said.
'Veer-Zaara' takes an unassailable lead!
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Critics and fancy reviews don’t make movies succeed at the box-office, otherwise 'Meenaxi', 'Chameli', Satta', 'Yuva' and many others would have been blockbusters. On the flip side, bad mouthing by so called trade experts or deliberately written bad reviews cannot stop a movie from succeeding. It's the paying audience who decide the fate of a movie. ‘Murder’ and more recently ’Mujhse Shaadi Karogi’ demonstrated this. Among the four Diwali releases, 'Veer-Zaara', which released with about 450 to 500 prints in India and nearly 700 prints worldwide, has emerged as the clear winner and is on its way to grand success from Muzaffarpur in the East to Mumbai in the West and from Chandigarh in the North to Chennai in the South. The next best, 'Aitraaz', which has been released with about 375-425 prints in India is picking up by the day and the court scenes involving Kareena in the second half, draw loud applauses. Still, the gap between 'Aitraaz' and 'Veer-Zaara'is quite pronounced. From Saturday onwards and especially Sunday, the collections have really picked up and are expected to increase even more today (Monday), due to Eid. 'Mughal-E-Azam' is a milestone movie; a tutorial on filmmaking and to put it into the hit and flop category is blasphemy. Still it was always expected to appeal to certain sections and with a limited 100 to 125 print release, that’s what it has done. Ram Gopal Varma's 'Naach' was never expected to achieve anything, as it was too abstract. Given the competition, its chances were reduced further and as a result the movie is not even a flop, it’s a washout. Even a good review by Khalid Mohammed, a person who directed two box-office duds, 'Fiza' and 'Tehzeeb', did not help 'Naach'. For the confirmation of what we have just said above, please wait for Saturday when the collections will be out and the truth will be there in black and white for everyone to see.
Manisha & Kamal Hasan: Back together!
Thursday, November 18, 2004
The lovely Ms. Koirala, who has pretty much been out of circulation lately - because of her course in filmmaking that kept her in New York city for a couple of months - is back in town and riding high...over the moon, in fact! Apart from being back on the social circuit and catching up with old buddies in Mumbai, there are more reunions happening in her life. Her professional life, that is. Manya has been signing up with old co-stars - one old favourite, at least. She excitedly told us, I am really looking forward to something....and that’s working with Kamal Hasan again. I am doing his next film, which will be directed by Singeetam Srinivasrao , who directed the silent film, Pushpak . The film will be made in Hindi, too, and it's going on the floors before the year end. This will be my fourth film with Kamal and it feels great working with old co-stars again! We’re glad Manisha is back in action. And we must say, there are some who don’t need to trumpet a comeback – ‘silent’ success speaks louder. Right, Manya?
Shahrukh’s concert in S.Africa
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Shahrukh Khan and troupe will perform two shows in South Africa at Durban and Sun City. Titled as Temptations 2004, the first concert will happen on November 27 at the Kingsmead Stadium (Durban) while the second will eventuate on the next day at Sun City. Other popular Bollywood celebrities at the concert include Rani Mukherjee, Preity Zinta, Saif Ali Khan, Zayed Khan and Malaika Arora.
Aitraaz
Thursday, November 18, 2004
AitraazAfter watching the first-day-first-show of Aitraaz, I don't know how this film will fare pitted against three big Diwali releases, Mughal-e-Azam, Veer-Zaara and Naach. I'm sure, however, that if released at a different time, this film would be a superhit, and I say this based not on my verdict, but on the incredible audience response to the film: oh, the public was clapping and whistling throughout the film's second half! Aitraaz is the story of Raj Malhotra (Akshay Kumar), happily married to Priya, (Kareena) a non-practicing lawyer. Raj is an engineer in a firm chaired by Ranjit Roy (Amrish Puri), and his young wife Sonia (Priyanka) is among the board of directors. Sonia also happens to be Raj's ex-girlfriend. Seeing Raj after five years, Sonia is again drawn towards him, in a purely lustful manner. Failing to get that, she accuses him of rape and asks her husband to remove Raj from the office. Raj, based on his innocence, decides to sue Sonia for sexual harassment. When nobody is ready to trust him, his wife predictably puts on lawyer-garb to fight his case. The movie starts lightly, and gathers pace towards the end. There are no extraordinary performances, but everyone seems adequate. As said, the audience reaction is tremendous: during the trial, any sentence in favour of Akshay leads invariably to wild applause, and any slur towards Priyanka makes the people whistle and hoot, justifying her performance in her first ever negative role. Kareena has nothing much to do until the last few scenes, and she does a decent job. A few dialogues sound extremely cliched, especially in the court scene when Anu kapoor starts with "Do kisam ke insaan hote hai - ek aadmi aur doosri aurat", but importantly, they too find favour with the audience. The music of the movie is good especially the songs Gela gela, Tala tum tala tum and Aankhen bandh karke. Yeh dil tumpe is choreographed well, as well as Gela gela, attractive by virtue of uniqueness. Aitraaz is not a romantic film, but should run well because it has something different from the standard fare on offer right now.
Naach
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Antara in 'Naach'The question: Can Ram Gopal Varma, like with Urmila, catapult Antara Mali to superstardom? From Main Madhuri Dixit Banna Chahti Hoon to now main Urmila Matondkar banna chahti hoon in Naach, Antara is always playing someone wanting to be someone else. In Naach, it's unfortunate that we only get a glimpse of what Antara is really all about. She constantly reminds you of Urmila in Rangeela. It is sad to see such huge potential being wasted. Little wonder, then, that in spite of her sultry looks, fabulous physique and more than average acting skills, she has not a single hit to her name. Ironically, unlike the real Antara, her character Reva strives to be unique. Naach, reminiscent of Rangeela, is a story about love, principles and aspirations. Abhi (Abhishek Bachchan) is an aspiring actor and Reva, a wannabe choreographer. Hungry for success, Abhi is ready to accept the film industry as it is, while Reva is uncompromising and wants to break the rules with her unique choreography style. They fall in love but soon engage in a battle of principles. By the interval they drift apart, riven by individual ideologies. Post-interval the story drags a bit, and eventually Abhi realizes his mistake and wants Reva back in his life. All is well that ends well... yes, the Rangeela type fairy tale is reproduced. However, if Rangeela was a light-hearted, fun-filled romance, Naach is intense, slow paced and more 'mature'. A string of intense moments stand out. Although the plot is not so khaas, Ram Gopal Varma's direction maintains a quality standard. The pace is slow and carefully set. Pregnant pauses and unsaid dialogues form a good break away from the typically 'loud' Bollywood style. The attention to detail is enchanting: people getting in and out of a bus, the conductor ringing the bell, and two strangers having a dialogue -- all captured in one scene. The stylistic element in static shots versus the fashion-photo-shoot look in dance sequences is a great blend. Ramu's penchant for realism continues. After underworld mafia stories like Satya and Company, his style lingers in this love story. However, in Naach we see realism stylised, with clean Mumbai roads, ethnically decorated plush apartments, tinseled garments, hundreds of extras slithering on lavish dance sets, and the traditional luxury of breaking into song! What I find fascinating about Ramu's films are his female characters. They are unconventional, bold and strong protagonists. Whether the cigarette-smoking Manish Koirala in Company, the small-town filmi Antara in Main Madhuri Dixt Banna Chahti Hoon, the avenging Urmila in Ek Hasina Thi, and now Antara as an ambitious, uncompromising and strong-willed choreographer in Naach. Unlike Subhash Ghai's heroines, who continue to reiterate traditional values, resort to emotional sentimentalism, and reinforce the subservient Sati Savitri-like Indian woman, Ram Gopal Varma's heroines at least 'appear' to break rules, have premarital sex, rent a house, take up a job, and defiantly flaunt their assets. NaachOverall, the look and feel of the film is 'New Age'. The blend of Antra's yogic postures with Western dance; queer make-up; ghetto pub culture; the unkempt, Rasta hair; carefully crafted body piercing and tattoos; along with intricate body painting are just a few examples you shouldn't miss. If Manish Malhotra started the trend of psychedelic colours and dressed Urmila Matondkar in flamboyant short dresses resembling petticoats, Gavin Miguel has a curious asymmetrical unrealistic style. If you want to follow Miguel's trend then drop an earring, lose a pair of socks, wear striped stockings and don't forget to add feathers and horns on your head! For a movie titled Naach, you expect the music to be rocking, but Naach has nothing musically exciting to offer. None of the eight tracks make you wanna dance. Amar Mohile and Shailendra Swapnil have tried hard to recreate Rangeela's peppiness and there is an overall Rehman hangover. NaachThe 'unrehearsed-performance' style by Abhishek and Antara works well. Abhishek is picking up ever since Yuva and Dhoom, but Baby B needs to lose some baby fat. In stark contrast with Antra's taut body, Abhishek looks flabbier. Antara's long-drawn silences and just the slight amount of emotional display works well for her character. But nothing to beat her dance performance! She masters the extremely difficult dance steps. Now only if you can be original, Antara… Another interesting feature is the film's ability to mock itself. Bollywood filmmakers are getting introspective as they make films about the industry. After touching upon it in Rangeela, and lampooning it in Naach, several yet to be released films, including The Film, Page-3 and Film Star will grapple with this self-reflexive theme. Naach mocks Farah Khan, pokes fun at Subhash Ghai and laughs at the song and dance in Hindi films. The trend to expose Bollywood and demystify its glam world makes the audience laugh in Naach, but lacks the fresh quirkiness of Rangeela. You are bound to compare Naach with Rangeela. Antara's Urmila-like poses and overall look, the music that reminds you of Rehman's Rangeela re and even the happy ending story line. But can Ram Gopal Varma recreate the magic of Rangeela and make Antara an overnight superstar? Will the same formula work twice? I don't think so. The film might draw curious crowds initially and definitely Ramu's fans including the Factory boys. I give the attempt three and half stars, and it's your call whether or not to watch it.
Shah Rukh: Box office badshah!
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Shah Rukh Khan has done it yet again! Badshah Khan has truly proved to be the king of the box office: his new film, Veer-Zaara, had a great Diwali opening. Of the other three Diwali releases, the recreated Mughal-e-Azam and Aitraaz fared decently. But Ram Gopal Varma's Naach took a beating, with its collections dipping to as low as 20 per cent in some centres. Note: Films are ranked according to their release dates.
Bhansali digs AB, Blacks-out Ash
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Quite contrary to its name, Black is nothing close to the dark and depressing side of life. "It's an uplifting tale on the triumph of the human spirit," says director Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Black takes you completely away from Devdas. It's a conscious process of rejuvenation as a filmmaker. I had to reinvent myself as a creative person. For example, my cameraperson in Black is Ravi Chandran. I had to work extensively with all my actors before shooting started. With Amitji I had to get over my awe of him before I could get to a comfort level. I had to learn to take him into confidence rather than look up to him. Because neither he nor I had done anything like Black earlier. Fortunately he's one of finest human beings I know, so communication was easy. Do you think Black has the potential to create the same impact as Devdas ? Creation is about being fully alive. The whole nation has a heart. If a film has a heart it will reach out to everyone. Contrary to the title, Black isn't depressing at all. It's an uplifting tale on the triumph of the human spirit. Incidentally, black is my favourite colour and it's got a universal resonance. I think it's a powerful, striking colour, which describes the film's sensitivities. Let me add that Black isn't a small project that I've squeezed into my schedule. Certainly not! How can any film with Amitabh Bachchan be small? It's going to be a very important film in my oeuvre. And Amitji's and Rani's performances will be remembered for a very, very long time. The film gives Bachchan a completely new persona and impetus. I'm grateful to Amitji for accommodating my film into his busy schedule. It's fascinating to know that even today filmmakers are devising projects with him in mind. I think that makes him the greatest star-actor of our country. I've been his diehard fan from childhood. Ever since I started making movies it was my dream to work with him. Even my first film, Khamoshi , was written for Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan. But at that point of time he had taken a break from acting and I felt with a baritone like his, he'd never come back with a role that required him to be mute. For the fear of rejection I never approached him. But let me tell you, during Khamoshi I had already started to plan Black. Black is ready for release. How does it feel? Like delivering another baby (laughs). I'm relieved, ecstatic and tense as it goes into the world. Initially it was very tough making a film without songs. I can't survive without songs. I listen to Lataji at least four to five hours a day. For me a film without songs was inconceivable before Black. But I wanted the challenge of attracting the audience without my habitual leitmotif. The presence of India's greatest star-actor Amitabh Bachchan helped me immensely. I've realised there's no actor like him in Indian cinema. I've three idols - Lata Mangeshkar, Birju Maharaj and Amitabh Bachchan. And I'm proud to say I've worked with two of them. Isn't Rani outstanding in Black ? Yes, I signed her for both Black and Bajirao Mastani . She's a fabulous actress. It was wonderful to put her on screen with Amitji. Black offers her a range that actresses only dream about. Rani and I are very good friends. That helped in getting a quality of performance out of her that I cannot describe in words. It's arguably the best performance I've got from an actor, after Amitji. And what about Aishwarya Rai? What about her? Of course, we've met socially, and we're very close friends. Black departs from Devdas almost diametrically. It was a spontaneous decision. After Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam and Devdas I could've easily planned another film in the romantic genre. But I felt like moving away. My audience wants me to move on. Black is a subject I've lived with for six years. I just had to make it. Though Black has no songs it's treated musically. The lyricism is inherent in the scenes, which look like song sequences. A song isn't the only way to interpret the lyricism. I didn't miss songs in Black . They would've been a hindrance to the narrative.
Shahrukh's 'Mannat' is jinxed
Thursday, November 18, 2004
It's Shahrukh Khan's dream house. But it seems a problematic property, the latest problem to join the list is Rs.500,000 (over $10,000) robbery, and his friends superstitiously point fingers at his posh bungalow, 'Mannat'. "It's that house that he has built for himself," whispers a very close and concerned friend about the house located in Bandra Bandstand from where jewellery and cash were stolen on Tuesday. "Ever since he built his dream house, Shahrukh's life has turned into a nightmare. There's no joy even in the unparalleled success that has become his birthright." "Every happiness is clouded with sorrow. If friends tell him the house is unlucky, Shahrukh gets very, very upset. So we all keep mum hoping and praying that the ill luck vanishes. "Mannat has proven to be anything but the heaven that Shahrukh had thought it would be." Shahrukh's best friend Karan Johar though refuses to be pessimistic even after the robbery: "It's a minor problem being blown out of proportion." The bad news at home comes even as Shahrukh continues to see tremendous success. He has had two releases so far this year - Main Hoon Na and now Veer-Zaara. The first was a massive hit. The second is all set to become an all-time blockbuster. In the past five years, Shah Rukh has had no failures except his two home productions Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani and Asoka, and Shashilal Nair's One 2 Ka 4. He personally likes all three films immensely, and so do his fans. Shahrukh doesn't like hearing anything against his dreamhouse But pain has qualified his steps to superstardom. He lost his father when he was very young. And just when he turned an overnight celluloid star with Deewana he lost his beloved mother also. Health hazards have also plagued him. Just on the eve of the release of Veer-Zaara, during a holiday with his family, he injured his foot rather badly. "Nothing about me can be not serious," Shahrukh quipped with his characteristic chuckle. A back problem persists and a painful and complicated neck surgery hasn't really solved the problem.
China, India hold boundary negotiations
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Anil K Joseph Beijing, Nov 18 India and China today held talks here under the fourth round of boundary negotiations to find an early and mutually acceptable solution to the vexed border issue. The first day of the talks at the level of Special Representatives between National Security Advisor J N Dixit and Chinese Executive Vice-Foreign Minister Dai Bingguo was concluded but there was no official word on the parleys. The Chinese media also remained mum on the talks. The in-camera parleys, being held at the leafy Diaoyutai State Guest House, will go on for at least two days, official sources said. Dixit would also call on Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, who is likely to visit India early next year. Apart from Dixit, the Indian dalegation comprised India's Ambassador to China, Nalin Surie, and other senior officials from the Ministry of External Affairs and the PMO. Earlier, on his arrival, Dixit was warmly welcomed by his host, Dai, and the two heads of delegations exchanged pleasantries. Both Dixit and Dai said they were very glad to meet each other again after their initial meeting in New Delhi last July for the third round of talks. Ahead of the meeting, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said the two sides will discuss the "guiding principles" to resolve the boundary issue.
Ganguly free to play first Test; appeal hearing adjourned
Thursday, November 18, 2004
New Delhi, Nov 18 Captain Sourav Ganguly was free to play the first Test against South Africa beginning in Kanpur on Saturday after the ICC Appeals Commission today adjourned the hearing on his appeal against a two-match ban. The decision on Ganguly's appeal was deferred after Tim Castle, the Appeals Commissioner appointed to ajudicate on the case, decided to hold a scheduled teleconference with the Indian captain after the match, ICC spokesperson Brenden McClement told from London. "The Appeals Commissioner Tim Castle wanted to have a teleconference with Ganguly and was originally scheduled to speak to him on the morning of the match. "But Castle thought it was not appropriate to hold the conference on the day of the match and so decided to defer it," McClements said. MORE KK ASK 11182044 DEL
A big knock is due: Rahul Dravid to S Africa
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Kanpur, Nov 18 Rahul Dravid sounded a warning to the South Africans today when he said his poor run of scores was over and a big knock was due from him. "I have been practising hard in the nets. Hopefully once I get a start I can play a long innings. A big one is due now," the Indian vice-captain said ahead of the first cricket Test starting here on Saturday. Dravid, who was adjudged the Player of the Year 2003, averaged 27.83 with the bat in the recent Test series against Australia, with just 167 runs in seven innings. He said South Africa would be no push over even though they were an inexperienced bunch. "It does not matter if South Africa are not experienced," Dravid said. "They have a quality side, we can't take them lightly. They will be hungry to do well. They have that intensity so let's see how it goes."
Rupee hits new high against USD
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Mumbai, Nov 18 The rupee once again breached the 45 dollar barrier and climbed to a new 5-1/4-month high of 44.97/98 per dollar early today, driven up by robust trade and foreign capital investment inflows. In moderately active trade at the Interbank Foreign exchange market here this morning, the rupee gained seven paise from yesterday's close of Rs 45.04/05 per dollar with sentiments upbeat for more gains, dealers said. A lingering weak dollar against major global currencies also aided the sharp rupee rise, they added. The rupee opened distinctly firm at Rs 44.98/99 per dollar. Sentiments remained positive for the rupee due to sustained rising foreign fund inflows and export proceeds, bankers said. Foreign direct investment inflows to India increased by 67.6 per cent year-on-year to USD 2.38 billion in the first six months of the current fiscal ended September 30. The rupee scaled a 5-1/4-month closing high of Rs |
