I absolutely adore Koel Purie. And so when she finally got Kareena Kapoor on the couch with her on her show, On the Couch with Koel, I was super elated. The interview is a must watch as Bebo talks Saifu, the tatoo, Shahid and being one of the best in India! Check it out.
Showing posts with label Headlines Today. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Headlines Today. Show all posts
On the Couch...
Who would play the lead in a film which was the story of your life?
It would have to be Sushmita Sen. She would understand my sentiments and emotions better than anyone else because I'm not as strong as I seem on the inside.
What is the biggest charade you've come across?
That people aren't fake. For the most part, they are incredibly phony.
What is your biggest charade?
Oh God, that I am incredibly strong. In all honesty, I am hardly that strong. I really am pretty emotional and gooey on the inside. But its always better to play the strong card because no one dare walk all over me now.
In your 20s or 30s?
Oh in my 30's for sure! My 20's was all about learning and making mistakes. My 30's will be about using those learning experiences and putting them to use.
What are your dreams made of?
Sugar and spice; all things naughty and nice! Oh and the impossible! And things I want to achieve...and will!
What are your nightmares made of?
My past. Events and people that haunt me in various ways. Scary!
What is your current state of mind?
In complete shambles.
What do you spend the most amount of money on?
Besides paying bills, I spend too much on food!
Au naturelle or plastic surgery?
A bit of both. Whatever helps you feel confident and happy.
On what occasions do you lie?
I've lied too much in the past. No more for me on any occasion.
Who or what would you like to be reincarnated as?
Wow! One life is enough but otherwise, a dog to a celebrity would be fun.
When do you throw tantrums? And why?
When I see injustice or unfairness. I can't stand it and then I throw a tantrum. I always advocate for the underdog and challenge the status quo. I refuse to be a conformer and watch from the sidelines.
What do you guys think? Rocking answers?
Midway through '09
Who would have guessed we would have come half way through 2009? The year has really flown. While I wished June would have gotten off to a better start, courtesy of work that hasn't been possible, but I am definitely going to be a lot more optimistic. It can never get worst - only better...or at least that's what I keep telling myself. Well lots to talk about and heaps to discuss, lets get on with it shall we?Headlines Today Impact
I'm always raving about how much I love Headlines Today for various reasons but today, I have love and respect for the channel. The channel managed to unravel two highly sensitive and important cases which have leaders have been completely neglected: the Bullet Proof Jackets, which have yet to reach Mumbai police post 26/11 (they were promised this commodity); and the milk scandal. For starters, leaders promised Mumbai cops that they would receive state of the art modern bulletproof vests for the protection. This of course, after 26/11 when the country realized that their own forces were not being protected correctly. The file apparently went "missing." It was only when HT went ahead and questioned the state of the inquiry, did leaders finally probe further. The vests will reach Mumbai Police soon. Amen.
The milk scandal is relatively new - but HT reporters went undercover to expose this racket. It seems that milkman were faking milk by mixing drain water with a whole bunch of deadly liquids which are poisonous. This faulty play was divulged by the HT crew and badda-bing it was all over! Gotta love that channel.
Gandhi x2
The Gandhi's, Rahul and Varun, both took their respective oaths into congress this week. While it was definitely a sight, Varun took his in Hindi and Rahul in English, the highlight was watching the boys bow down and prostrate to their aunts, Priyanka and Sonia when the ceremony was over. Gotta love boys who know that family feud aside, respect reigns high. Rajiv and Sanjay would be proud. Oh, while we're on the note of politics, for the first time in Indian history, a woman was elected as Speaker of the House: Meira Kumar. Although rumors claim she is quite the quiet one, so I'm not sure how that is going to work. We'll just wait and watch. Incidentally, members keep referring to her as "Sir!" It may take some time for them to adjust to calling her "Madam." Ha!
Air France Tragedy
This story was ultra disturbing. An Air France flight travelling from Brazil to France went down in the Atlantic killing 228 people on board. While every life is precious, it was sad to hear about a young boy who was headed back to boarding school. My prayers are with the families at this tragic time.
Racial Beatings in Aussie
I'd always heard of it - Racism in Australia. In fact they are known for referring to Indians as "Curry." Lame. Anyhow, more recently, local Australians have been beating up Indian students causing them to land up in the ICU. Lamer. It's a sad day in the world when modern students feel the need to make foreign students even more foreign. And the local authorities deem it as "the wrong place at the wrong time." Sick. Interestingly, I've come to believe, and agree with my fav Prabhu Chawla, that it is simply because we play better cricket. Talk about a bunch of sore losers. I really hope those imbeciles are caught and HUNG. Disgusting behavior.
June 4th 1989 Memories
The date is actually special to me. It was on this date 20 years ago that my parents hosted a huge gala which was my brother's naming ceremony. It was also on this day that the Tiananmen Square Massacre occurred. Over 100,000 students protested for freedom on this day only to be killed by local officials in tanks: 7,000 people were dead. You would think that the Chinese officials will be sombre and finally admit their fault. Negative. Instead they are trying to hide their wrong doings. The government has banned Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and the likes to prevent any means of protest around the world. And, any reporters within the Tiananmen Square area were blocked off by officials carrying umbrellas. Since they can't stop me, I can go ahead and condemn the attacks and wish that the Chinese government would GROW UP!
India Unsafe?
Check it out. The US Embassy has deemed India "Unsafe." HA! Unsafer? We are safer than a million other countries. P. Chidabaram of course, the rockstar, went ahead and said they would tell the US to take down the advisory. Whatever America.
And lastly, I finally launched Roshni Magazine: http://www.roshnimagazine.com
So far, the feedback has been awesome. Check it out!!
Photo Credit: June Flowers
"I Change, India Changes"
The India Today Conclave took place last week and while I was completely intrigued (and burning green with envy, that I couldn't witness it live) by most of the guest speakers, which included the likes of The Dalai Lama, Pervez Musharaff, Shah Rukh Khan, Karan Johar and my favorite Headlines Today reporters (gotta love that Rahul Kanwal), I was even more excited to watch the Youth Forum Session. Gold medalist Abhinav Bindra, Priyanka Chopra, Farhan Akhtar, young industrialist Prashant Ruia and Youth Congress leader Jitin Prasad all formed a panel which spoke about how the youth of India needs to wake up if India has to progress ahead and ultimately change. I was inspired, encouraged, motivated and ready to roll. Each of the youth icons spoke words of wisdom that I honestly, wish it was compulsory for adolescent India to watch it.
Bindra, who was treated to a standing ovation, was overwhelmed with the love he has received from winning India's first gold medal. But he then went ahead and expressed how one medal was not enough, "Would China be satisfied with one gold medal? Would USA or Britain have been happy ?" Food for thought. He then went on to say that while cricket is a loved game, it is unfortunately, not recognized on an international level. Additionally, he spoke of how politics needed to be separated from sports as each was not interconnected. India has the talent but it lacks the motivation and vision to look ahead. With great hope in his eyes for sport in India, he signed off by stating, "Change is inevitable. If you do not make changes for the better, it will be for the worse." Bulls eye.
Next in line was Priyanka Chopra and Farhan Akhtar who both hail from the entertainment industry but had completely different ideas towards change and the youth. Chopra spoke about how she watched Rang De Basanti and walked out of the cinema ready to change India, "I felt it running through my bloodstream. It lasted me 5 days. I’ll be honest. I forgot the sensation I felt at that time." Ditto. Farhan on the other hand went on to say that there were too many restrictions in modern day film making. The censor board was clearly making it hard as "Young filmmakers do not get enough independence to make a film," vis-a-vis Black Friday, Paanch and Jodha Akbar. Being a youth icon to millions in India, he dressed the part and spoke like a true rock star, "Youth has nothing to do with age. It's the way you think, your ideas, your outlook on life that makes you young or old." Rock On!
Prasad was bombarded with a bunch of questions later on but ultimately spoke of how the youth must reach out and make differences. They cannot rely on the name game, i.e. you do not have to be Gandhi to change India. You have to be yourself. Jai Ho! Ruia was literally outstanding. He refused to see the bad in India, and decided to look at the good and best which makes India, "We are the world’s fifth largest economy...a sovereign country and the largest democracy in the world...But look at it another way, our neighbourhood is consumed with terrorism, the recent events in Pakistan, the war going on in Sri Lanka, the recent mutiny in Bangladesh." Finally some sugar, if you ask me. It doesn't matter who changes India, it needs to happen, he summarized. Whether it's the youth or the elderly, they need to change it. Gotcha.
They spoke. I listened. But did the youth get it?
The forum's byline was, "Can The Young Drive Change?" I'm not sure why it was phrased rhetorical question to be honest. I would like to rephrase it, "The Young CAN and WILL Drive Change." Perhaps it's because I am blinded to the bad in India or maybe because I am such a patriot; either way I refuse to believe that India has a "self-obsessed' youth, as was repeated stated. That said, I also think the youth need more space to express what they want and more guidelines from the government on the constitutional ways they can get involved. They have no idea how to step up to the plate. Corrupt government officials shoo them away claiming that they are too young. But the fact of the matter is those very officials are nothing but a group of uneducated shrewd money eaters who are simply looking out for their own pockets and not the country. They do not care for India's tomorrow, they care about today and now.
There is a single problem. The youth are content with the manner in which India and its wretched system works. For example, they know if they get caught for speeding, they can whip out a hundred rupee note, hand it to the officer and zoom off. It is merely a matter of content convenience. Why on earth would they change anything about it? Now, if that officer, who is likely to be senior to them in age, would tell them to stuff the bribe back in their pockets, pull the car aside, pull out their license and registration and write them up, the youth would finally realize they cannot find shortcuts. Ideally, lock the fool up! A night in a cell will teach him and his counterparts a lesson or two. So it cannot begin with the youth alone, it must start at the top. This is essential to ensuring India's youth changes and feels the need to change.
Maybe it is the seniors of our country, who have allowed it to become what it should show more restraint when it comes to making the youth feel incapable and useless. It is under their administration that there is a dreaded system which cannot be broken. And now, they expect the youth to break the "trend." However, they have no faith in the youth which may explain why they youth have literally rolled their eyes and given them a "whatever" attitude.
All they have to do is provide a way for the youth, show some encouragement and watch how the youngster stand up, speak out and CHANGE. The youth change society, and this is a known fact.
Change has to come and it will. How and when, I don't know. How will I make a change, when will I do it, what will I do? No idea. But I don't think I will die not making a change, even small. "If I change, India Changes." And change, it will. 'Nuff said.
Photo Credit: India Today Conclave 2009
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