Media Reports

Time for updates on the media channels - TV shows, movies, newspapers and other bric-a-brac.

The latest episode of Roadies was crass. The money task was eating a variety of Rajasthani delicacies and holding in your potty after ingesting julaab ki goliya and multiple glasses of water. The immunity task was balancing matkas/matkis on your head and walking a given distance under different challenging conditions.

Paulami (the stupid retard who's the eldest on the show - she's 28!!) was chosen as the most undeserving Roadie, and she did a mighty good job on this task; Bobby (the Delhi babe with the bouncy mane) who was similarly tagged couldn’t do even one round properly (blame the shabbily tied pagdi). The one who finally got kicked out in the vote-out was altogether a different person – Nauman. Reason – his friendship with Tamanna. Politics, politics everywhere. Check their website for more!

On the movie front, Dev D. has received horrible reviews all over. No surprises there. Abhay Deol needs to vent his acting talent in better realms. I was wondering whether to watch Marley and Me, and She's Just Not That Into You. Courtesy Jennifer Aniston, but not too sure. Maybe I should wait until Billu Barber (or just "Billu" as supposedly some community revolted against the term Barber being used in the title).

I read in the papers “What’s Your Rashee” stars Harman opposite Piggy Chops, and the latter plays 12 characters in the movie (one belonging to each sun sign). In fact, after Harman’s Victory faced a shameful defeat at the box office, he was actually going to be thrown out of the film. But, he’s still there...

Rashee... That a nice name, na? One of my friends has named her daughter Rashi; I suspect it’s coz her beau is Ravi and she’s named Sheetal. (It’s my mum’s hobby to reverse unusual names – and in this case, it becomes “Sheera”; that’s a common sweet in Hindu households!)

This friend incidentally belongs to Hyderabad (a city which is going to be mentioned twice more in this post), and the city that invited me thrice in the same year more than 8 years ago. My dad’s cousins stay there, and theirs used to be a huge joint family. (English tip – “used to” indicates something in the past, which doesn’t exist anymore; in this case, the family is now divided. Pity pity.)

So, well I met this girl on the train on my way to Pune, and we became friends. We have never met after that single time, but God knows how we’ve managed to keep in touch despite that. We never forget each other’s birthdays and (her) anniversary, and even if we speak after ages, the warmth is still genuine and massive. Serendipity...

The other 2 things about Hyd – as I told you last time, there are weddings there which I’m going to miss. And the other - I read in the Mirror that a Hyderabad engineer was murdered in the US, and nobody knows the reason why or how. Is this the plight of any citizen there, or only coz he was an Indian? Food for thought.

The Pune Mirror has also reported its usual bizarre stuff – about a woman who loves her 38KKK size bust and Mel B (aka Scary Spice)’s insatiable sex drive. (As if the silly sexpert column wasn’t titillating enough!)

And of course, the page 3 hodgepodge : how Aamir and Akki are avoiding and talking crap about King Khan (the Badshah SRK). Hey, have you heard that Aamir’s 3 Idiots, that is based on Five Point Someone, will release sometime around Christmas next year? He cites the reason for this decision - his last two films (TZP and Ghajini) that released the same time did miraculously well. How superstitious!

(Amir, your movies will do well no matter when you release them, coz you’re a talented actor, and your stories are always unusual and interesting. Another credulous story is that Rani Mukherjee is leaving her bungalow, coz she thinks it’s unlucky for her...)

As if that silliness wasn’t enough, there’s the “Trendspotting” space in the newspaper. Here, the nuttiest of people wear their stupidest attire that is ridiculously overpriced, and are labeled “chic”!! Hee hee... Pagal-panti ki hadd hai yaar!!

What’s sure not funny is that India is now being touted as a destination for “slum tourism”. Hell, folks! Why can’t you see our development and strengths? See our monuments, see our education and business locations. Why do you choose to ignore all that and focus on our poverty and filthiness instead? The Danny Boyle movie is only the manifestation of what most westerners think about our country. Let there be a worldwide awareness campaign on how our “third-world” nation is budding. Indians of the world, unite!!

Indian women are now uniting for an entirely different, but very appropriate cause - the Pink Chaddi Campaign. To express horror at the Mangalore pub incident, this is the brainchild of a very brave lady. (Heaven protect her.) She has urged people from all over to send pink underwear (new, used, old, tattered, any) to the Shri Ram Sena folks - the selfproclaimed religion-protectors and morality-diffusers. (I hear they are thinking of gifting sarees to those that send them their unusual parcels.) This mud-slinging match is no concern for the goondas, but I am anxious for the participating ladies. May the lingerie team win!

Let’s end this post on a good note(s) :
1. Potter creator J K Rowling has been included in the French legion of honor.
2. The Forbes rich list now has a new entrant – Mr. Sunil Mittal (though my God-sasur Lakshmi slid a few positions). The Ambanis have climbed the ladder, despite their losses due to the recession. Cheerio!
3. Zakir Hussain has won the Grammy, and Bhimsen Joshi the Bharat Ratna.

Wish you luck, too!
Princess