Smoking Ban or just a smoke?

Friends, Roman, Countrymen - Lend me (our I&B Minister) thy ear...... none will henceforth smoke in any movies.

WOW - That is sleek and such a simple solution. Now my kid will watch Hindi Movies, see that no one smokes in the movies (What if he watches older or firangi movies - Mr. Minister please help) and it will suddenly dawn on him / her that "I should never smoke"

It was only the other day that my neighbor's son, started smoking after watching Ajay Devgan in Company, or Amitabh B in Kalia. Phew - now comes the relief. No more such stories. Thank GOD.

Minister sir - surely your solution will go a long way in helping us souls get rid of the vice. But, sir I have a few doubts and probably you can help.

1. What happens to older movies? Do we remake or edit them?
2. What happens to biographical movies?
3. Have you sent the memo to Mr. Steven Spielberg?
4. What happens to Foreign films? not only the Hollywood ones
5. Does this apply to documentaries?
6. What if I am shooting for my Film (under the new rules) on the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Mumbai and some guy in the background (not a paid extra) is smoking?
7. What all types of smoking are banned? Cigarettes, Bidis, Pot, Chillam etc etc?
8. Is smoking banned in the "Theater world"? I mean the Dramas and plays?
9. That reminds me - Can I smoke in the movie theater?
10. What happens if you / your government loses the next election and your successor does not share the same optimism?
11. And the perennial question - When are you coming up with the ban on depicting the following in the movies as well

• Rapes
• Violence
• Corruption
• Skin Fest
• Dowry
• Alcohol
• other vices - I have not included "sex" in here but you are free to do so

You must have started believing that I am a chain smoker by now. But actually I detest smoking as much as you do. Especially the Passive smoking. I would be glad if we can get rid of this vice and wipe the world clean of this vice.

Unfortunately however, I do not share the same Utopian world like yours where banning smoking from the Films will actually even make a small dent to the industry.

I will stand right next to you, if you decide to ban smoking completely.

- an avid non smoker

Imrana - The Fiasco

I can never imagine what the poor lady Imrana (http://www.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=49169) must be going through.

She is married (not Happily for sure now), has five kids and now is raped by her father in law. Well, you would puke at the thought, feel sad for the lady, call on the police and wait until the father in law is imprisoned. Not a simple task, but you would expect it to happen.

Well, you are in for a surprise. The expected won't happen, because the lady in question is governed by some clerics who want her to marry the Rapist (her father in law).

We are in a democracy with a Secular constitution where Justice prevails. Aren't we?

Rajiv Gandhi - Are you in heaven or in hell? Do you read this blog? Are you happy that you allowed the shariat to rule?

Times of India - What are you up to?

The Times of India and its realted news papers (economic times etc) have decided to become entertainment websites than remaining a new paper which tells us about news.

What is this new Heads and tales section which gives "news" about Vaginal Tests http://people.indiatimes.com/xfiles/1142753.cms

I am appalled - anyone else?

Pataudi? Tiger on the Run

Mr. Pataudi is on the run. I am sure he wished that he was actually a real tiger than a fake one.... because then the govt would have tried to save him (Operation Tiger) and allow unlimited hunting than actually hunting him down.

Had he been a real tiger, he would have got the honor of getting a sighting of the Prime Minister and so many NGOs may have cared about him. Currently the same NGOs are raging a scathing attack on the humble one eyed youngest captain.

Come on - what is his mistake - he was hunting -- no one told him that Tiger was a nick name given to him and not his profession. This is unfair. After all he is a Nawab, Shikar to unka shauk hai...

And you all let Salman kill a black buck, drive over a few people, break Aishwarya's heart, increase Vivek's phone bill (not in any particular sequence) and he never has any issues. In fact you all flog to his hopeless unlucky movies.

Come on Tiger is a Nawab -- He will hunt!!

Stung by Sting Operations?

It is reported that a young journalist from Mid Day tried to seduce Maharashtra Deputy CM RR Patil in a sting operation. The Dep CM smelt a rat once the reporter posing as a bar dancer started getting close.

I think the Journalism and the competition between the tabloids has hit an all time low where dailies have to resort to such cheap thrills in order to create news and report it.

The media (not all of it) wants to sell news and if it does not find anything interesting they will create one. I call it the CNNism and the Indian media is catching fast.

The Times Of India, one of the most respected and widely circulated newspaper has also started using its website for such cheap thrills and increase the viewership.

Tehelka started it (with good intentions or bad) and now it has become a weapon / license to do whatever the media pleases. I hope this stops....

The Tsunami Match - Indian Score card

The spinner Duo from India step up to the plate and deliver some goods. That is good news for Indians.

Overall I think the match did not become as interesting as it could have been given the fact that 22 of the best were on display.

VVS - please keep on the good work and start converting those good starts into something substantial. I have not seen anyone as complacent as you are. But then I have not seen your class anywhere else either.

Dravid gets to keep even after the invention of Dhoni :-)

Ganguly scores 14

Ganguly finally faced the international music in the Tsunami relief match and scored a meagre 14 runs. But then that does not mean that our captain has lost his sublime touch as well.

As much as his failure in this match to score a big one does not indicate his loss of form for the season, his century for the county game does not ensure otherwise

Basically friends, a swallow does not make spring

Do not go gaga over Ganguly

What is this fuss over Ganguly scoring a hundred in the county league?

It was a county game after all and he was not facing the balling of any international standards. Have our standards fallen so low that we now will shower praises whenever our Indian captain scores against a county team.

Granted that the situation in which he and his team scored the runs were not normal. He was losing partners and he was not in the best of his form. From that point of view he might have got over the ghosts that he was battling. But nothing more.

I love Ganguly's batting when he is on a song and I for one would love to see him get back in the groove. But till then give him his space and let us not start going gaga over this.

Advaniji - Stop it now

Advaniji - Thanks for hogging the limelight for the past one week. We really owe it to you. You know what, we did not have anything interesting to read for a long time and you just made our day.

First of all - it was YOU who was speaking - You were talking on Secularism - and that too about Jinnah - it had to be an interesting hearing.

Let me be clear - I have no oppostion (pun intended) to your veiws about Jinnah. I am sure a person as well read as you are, will not make a blunder. So I beleive you. But the bigger point is that why now?

I understand you wanted to say something nice on this "sadbhavna yatra" but then you could have spared us of all this fiasco by just saying that Musharraf is great etc etc...

You have dug out the old "bhoots" with a view on the booths.

I liked your strategy, but then what was the point in bowing down finally.