A couple of weeks after 25 March 1971 when the Pakistani army began their genocide of Bengalis in East Pakistan, the influx of refugees into India put Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in a perilous position. A poor country, we struggled to feed our own people, how could we feed the lakhs - soon to cros...
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No single word defied the last term of Congress rule before 2014 than the word bhrashtachar literally ‘corrupt-behaviour’ (bhrasht-aachar) aka corruption. To define PM Narendra Modi’s rule since 2014, we have to invent a new, similar word – BHAKTACHAR, literally ‘behaviour of devotes’. Bhakt, meani...
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The year was 1909. Kastur Gandhi, the wife of Mohandas Gandhi, was so ill that the doctor fearing that she wouldn't wake up if chloroform was given operated while she was awake (medical science was still raw back then). But after the operation when her condition did not improve too much, the doctor ...
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Every year, around Valentine’s Day, messages start circulating about how it should be a ‘black day’ because that was the day Bhagat Singh was hanged. Not only is it false – Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev were hanged on March 23, 1931 – but this running down of Valentine’s day is something Bhaga...
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She was the celebrity who had come all the way from Paris as jury in the Mumbai Film Festival and as a journalist I was given just 10 minutes by the PR person to interview her. As is customary to make your subject comfortable, I started with general chitchat about her time in Mumbai. What was supp...
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“We should kill all these bastards. That will teach others not to molest women,” roared this female friend during a discussion on the Bangalore New Year’s Eve molestation. ‘Kill all molesters, kill all rapists’ is the battle cry that rings far and wide every time a new heinous case of rape, or mol...
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It was in February this year when discussing cinema with a group of friends, I was the butt of jokes. Discussing the stupendous success of Marathi film Natsamrat, I had claimed that before the decade got over, a Marathi film would make 100 crores at the box office.The logic against it, my friends ...
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Once upon a time, a king who ruled wisely was flabbergasted to find his subjects suddenly turn violent, trying to kill him. Investigation revealed that a jealous neighbouring king had poisoned the river making anyone who drank from it, go raving mad. Since the king had a separate well, he was unaffe...
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In September 1947, Mahatma Gandhi, heady from the success of his four day fast in Calcutta (September 2-5) that stopped riots in the city, wanted to do the same to quell violence in Punjab. He discussed the idea with the then Home Minister - also his comrade most responsible for the success of many...
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In 2008, after interacting with a lot of wannabe filmmakers, I researched and wrote an article on where Indian filmmakers could get funds to develop and turn their ideas into films.Over the years this article has led me to receive 100 odd emails from aspiring filmmakers, most asking for funds, some...
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