Holi: Salman Khan celebrates with family and friends

/holi-salman-khan-celebrates-with-family-and-friends/eventshow/46483821.cms

01

Salman Khan's Holi celebrations: Salman Khan is known for celebrating all festivals with much pomp and fanfare. Whether it is Diwali, Ganesh Chaturthi or Eid, he brings in the celebrations with his family. So was the case when the big Khan family gathered together to celebrate the festival of colours, Holi. From the youngest member of the Khan family to the eldest, everyone was seen enjoying and playing around with colours and water. Let's take a look at who did what at Salman Khan's grand Holi celebration.

(All photographs have been taken from Arpita Khan's Instagram account). 

Holi: Salman Khan celebrates with family and friends

/holi-salman-khan-celebrates-with-family-and-friends/eventshow/46483822.cms

02

Is Salman biting Sohail Khan's son Yohaan's ear: The most eligible bachelor of Bollywood, Salman Khan has always mentioned in his interviews that even if he doesn't get married, he would definitely want to have kids. We all are aware of his fondness for Arbaaz and Sohail's kids. At the Holi party, Salman was seen enjoying the company of Sohail's son Yohaan. The 49 year old superstar who is always at his mischievous best is seen biting Yohaan's ears in the picture. Take a look...

(All photographs have been taken from Arpita Khan's Instagram account). 

Holi: Salman Khan celebrates with family and friends

/holi-salman-khan-celebrates-with-family-and-friends/eventshow/46483825.cms

03

Salman goes shirtless with all the ladies around: Fans of Salman Khan crave to see the superstar shirtless and even he doesn't miss a chance to take it off. In this picture, Salman is seen posing shirtless with some beautiful ladies. Other celebrities who are seen in the picture are Eli Evram and Salman's Jai Ho co-star Daisy Shah.
(All photographs have been taken from Arpita Khan's Instagram account). 

Holi: Salman Khan celebrates with family and friends

/holi-salman-khan-celebrates-with-family-and-friends/eventshow/46483828.cms

04

Newly-wed Arpita-Aayush's first Holi party: The entire Bollywood got to witness the grand wedding of Salman's sister Arpita with Aayush Sharma at the Falaknuma Palace in Hyderabad last year. The head-over-heels-in-love couple Arpita-Aayush looked great together as they played with colours. Aayush, who apparently wants to pursue a career in Bollywood looked super hot as he followed brother-in-law Salman Khan and went shirtless. This was Arpita and Ayush's first Holi after their wedding.
(All photographs have been taken from Arpita Khan's Instagram account) 

Holi: Salman Khan celebrates with family and friends

/holi-salman-khan-celebrates-with-family-and-friends/eventshow/46483831.cms

05

Preity Zinta at the Holi Party: Though Dabangg 2 director Arbaaz Khan and wife Malaika Arora Khan were not seen at the celebrations, many close friends of the Khan family made it to the Holi Party. Preity Zinta, who shares a great rapport with Salman Khan was spotted at the Holi bash. She was seen posing with Salman's sister Arpita and Atul Agnihotri. The actress sported a bandana and covered her eyes with sun glasses.
(All photographs have been taken from Arpita Khan's Instagram account) 

Holi: Salman Khan celebrates with family and friends

08.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

TOI Social Impact Awards 2015

TNN9 Mar 2015, 0610 hrs IST

The Jury, chaired by Naresh Chandra, ex-Cabinet secretary, governor and ambassador to the US, had the unenviable task of choosing the most deserving from among the 40 finalists shortlisted for their consideration, after multiple rounds of elimination.

TNN9 Mar 2015, 0627 hrs IST

In 1986, when Dr Abhay and Dr Rani Bang decided to adopt Gadchiroli as their home and workplace, the district was infamous for Naxalism, abject poverty, poor infrastructure and abysmal health services.

TNN9 Mar 2015, 0626 hrs IST

Aamir Khan is usually not enthusiastic about awards but TOI's Social Impact Awards proved to be an exception.

TNN9 Mar 2015, 0625 hrs IST

After the intense jury meeting to pick award winners, the panel members got up and were stretching their legs when a TOI editor said: "This was the best jury we've had for the Social Impact Awards."

TNN9 Mar 2015, 0623 hrs IST

Across categories, the NGO section presented some of the toughest challenges to the jury. Livelihood was no different.

TNN9 Mar 2015, 0622 hrs IST

In their effort to pick environment category winners, the jury got into an engaging discussion on some contentious ecological issues.

TNN9 Mar 2015, 0621 hrs IST

Fighting for winds of change, two community-led champions of women's empowerment emerged winners in the Advocacy and Empowerment category.

TNN9 Mar 2015, 0620 hrs IST

While picking the star performers in health, the NGO category proved toughest. All three finalists were found to be doing exemplary work, making the task of selection extremely tough.

TNN9 Mar 2015, 0618 hrs IST

The NGO category needed the least discussion with the jury unanimously voting Barefoot College number one.

TNN9 Mar 2015, 0616 hrs IST

The February 19 jury meet was to select such committed performers in the corporate world, in the government and among NGOs.

Read online replica of your favourite edition of TOI anywhere.

Read online replica of your favourite edition of TOI anywhere.

08.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/46484243.cms

01

According to a report in Mumbai Mirror, after the Censor Board members were reportedly divided on the certification of Anushka Sharma's NH10, the producers took the film to the Revising Committee who watched the film and cleared it with an 'A' certificate. "NH10 has been passed with a few audio cuts and a video cut that does not damage the film at all. They saw it completely in context and even appreciated it. It was a very reassuring revising committee," said Anurag Kashyap, who has co-produced the film with Anushka. NH10 is the story of a woman's revenge, is peppered with expletives and gore. CBFC CEO, Shravan Kimar, points out that the idea is to disseminate information through the process of certification to a cinema loving population about the film's content so it will facilitate the choices they make. "The idea is not to curb the creative freedom of the filmmaker," he maintained.

While the Censor Board was accommodating when it came to the expletives used in NH10, the skin show in Fifty Shades Of Grey was perhaps a tad too much for them... 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/46465043.cms

02

According to a Reuters report, Indian government censors have said they will not allow the big-screen adaptation of erotic novel, Fifty Shades Of Grey to be shown in cinemas. The film that released worldwide on Valentine's Day, wasn't released in India due to censorship issues. The chief executive of the Central Board of Film Certification, Shravan Kumar, declined to say why the panel refused to approve the film adaptation, but said Universal Pictures, the Comcast Corp unit that released the film, could appeal the decision. A Universal Pictures source familiar with the review process has been quoted in the report as saying that the board had objected to some of the film's dialogue, even after the studio made voluntary edits to the film to tone down its sex scenes and removed all nudity.

The film has grossed at least $400 million in global sales. However, for some countries the kinky story line was too much. Malaysia, Indonesia and Kenya have banned Fifty Shades Of Grey from their theatres, largely because of its sexual content.

Rajyavardhan Rathore will revisit film certification criteria, meet Bollywood representatives every three months, and review the Cinematograph Act 1952. Read on to know more... 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/46395670.cms

03

According to a Mumbai Mirror report, Rajyavardhan Rathore will revisit film certification criteria, meet Bollywood representatives every three months, and review the Cinematograph Act 1952. Rajyavardhan, who is the Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, shot down Central Board of Film Cerfication chief Pahlaj Nihalani's order banning use of certain cuss words and expressions in films, the report stated.

The minister reportedly withdrew Nihalani's list, which contained such Hindi words and expressions as haraami, saali and even the city's old name 'Bombay', after film industry delegation met him on February 25, 2015, at his New Delhi office. The Bollywood contingent included producer-director Anurag Kashyap, producers Siddharth Roy Kapur and Mukesh Bhatt, and Uday Singh, CEO of the Indian arm of the Motion Pictures Association of America, read the report. According to Mumbai Mirror's source present at the meeting, Rajyavardhan asked the delegation to just "ignore" Nihalani's list. He agreed with the delegation's view that expletives in a film certified 'adult' need not be beeped out. The issue of smoking supers - ­the mandatory warning that must appear on screen whenever a character lights up, ­was also discussed, the report concluded.

Read further to know what Shah Rukh Khan had to say about banning of cuss words by the CBFC... 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/46377304.cms

04

CBFC's decision to ban around 28 cuss words has become a raging issue in the Hindi film industry and it has been slammed by many in Bollywood. Shah Rukh Khan feels that instead of banning cuss words, the Censor Board should have more categories. "Censor Board is there to see, analyse and understand whether a film has a negative effect on anyone not only in terms of language but also as a bigger picture. Does it incite any kind of differentiation on religion, caste, creed, colour, sex, name or in any wrong sense? A generic rule for everyone will be strange and difficult to follow. I don't understand why one should have a finalised list of cuss words. But I think these are guidelines and they were always there. Though now everyone is suddenly talking about it, it was always there. I think the Censor Board should have a lot more categories in censorship rather than just U, U/A. We should have more clerical and non-clerical guidance. This might solve some problem," said Shah Rukh.

While Shah Rukh has expressed his view on the Censor Board, read on to know the Board's verdict on Anurag Kashyap's film Bombay Velvet...
- Vijaya Tiwari 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/46366525.cms

05

According to a report in Mid-day, Anurag Kashyap has been allowed to retain the word 'Bombay' in the title of his upcoming film, Bombay Velvet. The report stated that as per an internal decision taken by the Censor Board, Anurag has been allowed to retain the title of his film. A source was quoted in the report as saying that apart from the cuss words and other issues, the usage of the word 'Bombay' in films was discussed. The conclusion that was reached upon was that a film should be allowed to use the colonial name if it is set in a period before the 'The Maharashtra Restoration of Name Mumbai for Bombay Act' came into effect, the report concluded.

While the Censor Board has given a nod to Bombay Velvet, read on to know why Shabana Azmi thinks it would be better to adopt the US standards of censorship rather than the one we currently follow... 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/46322866.cms

06

Actress-social activist Shabana Azmi, who had slammed the Central Board of Film Certification's decision to refrain from profanity in films, had appealed to give up the British system of censorship and adopt the American one, whereby the filmmakers are liberal about their own films and censorship. CBFC chairperson Pankaj Nihalani had issued a controversial diktat blacklisting 'offensive' words from Indian films. The decision left many Bollywood celebrities in shock and disagreement and Shabana was one of them.

According to an IANS report, she said, "Censor Board's business is to certify and not censor according to appropriate ages. I think it is very important that we discard the British system, which means you appoint a chief and then you have 30 different people who willingly are chosen according to the political dispensation of the day, which means every five years you expect the morality of your country to change. Instead we should adopt the American system, whereby the filmmakers themselves yield and decide that they don't want a single cut, but they realise that age appropriate behaviour is important. If they have a universal exhibition then they voluntarily give cuts."

Read on to know what Mahesh Bhatt had to say about CBFC... 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/46243005.cms

07

According to a Mumbai Mirror report, filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt rued that we are living in oppressive times and members of the film fraternity, who once fought this battle along with them, have now become the thought police. "The CBFC is free to do what it wishes, but there is no lock, no gate, no bolt that it can set upon the freedom of our minds. This is a battle which they will never win because this is India, not China or Saudi Arabia," he thundered. Pooja Bhatt insisted while speaking to Mirror, "We must have the audacity to go to the Revising Committee or even the Supreme Court. Most people don't have the grit to take on the system but I do." Ashoke Pandit, a member of the Censor Board and President of Indian Film and TV Directors Association, is planning to approach the Information & Broadcasting Ministry with representatives of producers, directors and technical associations, the report further stated. "I'm a filmmaker myself and I don't agree with these creative restrictions on potraying a character. A sex worker will sound like a professor now?" he said to Mirror.

The Censor Board of Film Certification has often been embroiled in controversies over its decisions. Let's take a look at some such issues that made headlines... 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/45950041.cms

08

According to a Mumbai Mirror report, Pahlaj Nihalani, the new CBFC Chairperson, dismissed accusations of political interference and corruption. Of late, the Censor Board has been dogged by controversies with some producers alleging bias and others getting away with 'objectionable' content. The CBFC has also been under a cloud following corruption charges against its former CEO, Rakesh Kumar. Nihalani said to Mumbai Mirror, that in his career he has never been asked to offer money to an official, and it was only during the last chairperson's tenure that allegations of corruption cropped up. He added saying that those allegations were made up in the interest of a few people. 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/45928712.cms

09

According to a report on Thehindu.com, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister, Arun Jaitley, accused Central Board of Film Certification chairperson, Leela Samson, and its other members for "politicising routine issues." He called the Censor Board members as "rebels without a cause." In his Facebook post, Jaitley wrote, "It is the UPA-appointed Censor Board which has since continued. If there is any corruption, the UPA appointees have themselves to blame… I only wished that the fact of corruption had been communicated even once by the chairperson of the censor board to me. The non-functional chairperson never did so." 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/45908712.cms

10

Following the clearance of Messenger of God featuring Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in lead role, censor board chief Leela Samson reportedly said that she has decided to resign. According to a PTI report, when asked if she was aware of media reports that the nod has been given by FCAT to the film's screening, Samson said, "I hear so. Nothing in writing yet. It is a mockery of Central Board of Film Certification. My resignation is final. Have informed the (I&B) Secretary." When asked why she has decided to quit, she did not specifically refer to the reported clearance to the film, but said the reasons cited are alleged "interference, coercion and corruption of panel members and officers of the organization who are appointed by the ministry." According to a report in Hindustan Times, Leela allegedly accused the information and broadcasting ministry of stifling her functioning by meddling in decisions. The report stated that Leela said there is total interference, be it a small movie or a big movie. She also said that a lot of pressure was put on PK through various fundamentalist organisations and through panel members of the board to cut scenes. 

Censor Board controversies

08.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Blog: The frightening part of India’s daughter

If anything is more vulgar, obscene and crass than the statements mouthed by the rapist in the documentary 'India's daughter' by Leslee Udwin, it is the wisdom on Indian women and Indian culture spouted by the pair of defence lawyers of the rapists and murderers of Nirbhaya. The statements of the rapist are consistent with what one would expect from the most wretched, depraved and warped of minds imaginable – which is what rapists of the Nirbhaya case are. So no surprise there.

The surprise comes from the nauseating and unnerving views on Indian culture and womanhood that the two 'defence lawyers' hold in their muck-filled heads. Below are some samples of thoughts pontificated by the two on Indian woman, with smug face and chilling deliberation.

One of the defence lawyers provides his wisdom thus: "That girl was with some unknown boy who took her on a date. In our society we never allow our girls to come out of the house after 6.30 or 7.30 or 8.30 in the evening with any unknown person."

He goes on to add, "She [the Indian woman] should not be put on the street just like food. The 'lady', on the other hand (sic) you can say the 'girl' or 'woman' are more precious than a diamond … are more precious than a gem… than a diamond. It is up to you how you want to keep that diamond in your hand. If you put on the street , certainly the dog will take it out. You can't stop it…"

The second one is not to be left behind. Says he, "[If a woman has to go out at all] If very important, if very necessary, she should go outside (sic). But she should go with her family members like uncle, father, mother, grandfather, grandmother, etc. etc. So she should not go in night hours (sic) with her boy-friend, of such types (sic)."

He also adds, "A number of criminal cases of murder, robbery and rape are pending against bout 250 MPs, but their cases are not being tried in fast-track courts. Their cases are not being tried on day-to-day hearings. Why? If you want to give a message to the society, against rape, against robbery, against murder, then first you should start with your own neck."

Ah, some VVIP angle even here, except that in the opinion of this worthy, if the VVIPs can walk free after all the rapes and murders to their account, nobody has any business pointing fingers at his client(s).  (But I do agree with this worthy to the extent that the VVIP accused too should be on fast-track when accused of such heinous crimes.)

Going by these statements, these lawyers are in no doubt that Indian woman is chattel after all, even if "a gem or diamond". To me it is not clear if these 'gentlemen' share the same space and time as the majority of us hopefully do or should do.

Can you imagine these worthies ever being hired by a rape victim as her defence lawyers? Or for that matter by anyone in defence of women's rights? We often bemoan the non-functioning lower judiciary in the country. But these two worthies are practising in the country's highest court! One would be interested in knowing what the Supreme Court judges thinks of the lawyers of this variety that pollute their corridors.

Nobody can argue in a functioning democracy, that even cretins like the Nirbhaya rapists or Ajmal Kasabs have to be given a chance to defend themselves. One would think "defence" in this particular case would be based more along the lines that these perpetrators of crimes come from severely deprived backgrounds; or that there is no semblance of a caring family; that the shadow of real education has barely reached them ever and their only role models are abusive fathers or local rowdies and rouges. A defence for the perpetrators could at best be made on the premise that these cretins are by-products of our larger society that over the decades has done very little to improve their lot. Along some such lines, a case for sparing death penalty for them could possibly be made (though personally I am all for death sentence in such cases), even as they agreed with death penalty for those hailing from higher socio economic strata, since they clearly had many more options to follow a better path in life; or some such argument.

But for defence lawyers to defend their pathetic clients by putting the blame on the victim stating the place of a woman after 6.30 or 7.30pm is at home and that if she is out, it is perfectly acceptable if she is dog's meat – even if the dog be his client – is difficult to stomach.

If this is the shame the Government feels intensely enough to ban the documentary, one can at least sympathise with its shame, even if one cannot agree to the ban on the documentary. Banning the documentary will only help keep the dirty attitudes that lawyers like this duo harbour in their heads hidden from society at large, while the society has every right to beware of such lawyers; never mind being wary of the rapists. After all against wild animals we anyway try to be careful. But it is the innocent looking domestic dog with an addled head that we have to be more wary about. What is more, the society also has the right to be alerted as to what is happening in the name of education in the country if so-called educated professionals have such attitudes.

What can we say even of the higher judiciary of which lawyers of this kind form an integral part? How safe are women with lawyers like these on the? Should a system supposedly built on the principle of equality of all in its constitution, permit practice of law by the likes of this duo?

And what if some of these worthies make it to the position of judges some day? Nor is this entirely a hypothetical question. A few years ago, I found myself in the company of two High Court judges over a dinner. When I asked what should be the judicial view on the punishment of tiger poachers when tigers were on the verge of extinction, one of the judge looked at me blankly, and asked me a counter question, "So what if tigers become extinct? After all thousands of species have become extinct over the centuries!" He was genuinely unable to fathom what was bothering me. The other enthusiastically nodded his head, as if in full agreement with his brother judge. Imagine a poaching case lands up in the Hon'ble Courts of these Hon'ble Gentlemen!

Bad eggs exist in every profession. But is there no mechanism in our democracy to defend the society at large from such defence lawyers, who may well make it to judges? The documentary brings out clearly that the mind-set of the rapists and that of their defence lawyers (in this case at least) is exactly the same. It is simply the manifestations that are different. One commits a violent crime right now. The other is a slow poison perpetuating vitiated attitudes towards women leading others to commit vile crimes against women with moral justifications!

DISCLAIMER : Views expressed above are the author's own.

08.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Blog: Will we one day ban democracy itself?

Want to eat tenderloin in Maharashtra? Sorry, it's banned.

Never mind that beef is widely eaten by many Indian citizens, particularly those from the Northeast. Like to read Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses to see what the fuss is about? Sorry, it's banned. Living in Gujarat and want to read Great Soul by Joseph Lelyveld? Sorry, it's banned. Want to see the movie Fifty Shades of Grey? Sorry, it's banned. Wanted to see the film Fanaa in Ahmedabad? Sorry, that was also banned in Gujarat. Want to see the play Mee Nathuram Godse Boltoy? Sorry, that was once banned too. Don't want Priya Pillai of Greenpeace to voice views in London? Ban her from travelling. And want to see a documentary on the Nirbhaya rape case that has become a turning point for gender justice in India – India's Daughter – sorry, that's banned from TV telecast.

We ban because we want to protect minorities, we ban because we want to protect women, we ban because we want to protect society from western culture, in fact we ban because we want to protect ourselves from ourselves.

Netas are always eager to ban, it gives them the delusion or illusion of strength. The film Kissa Kursi Ka was banned for making fun of the Emergency, certain periodicals were banned from public libraries by Trinamool Congress, CPM routinely banned material not sympathetic to the party line, Congress encouraged an 'informal' ban on Javier Moro's book The Red Sari, ABVP activists have forced a ban on A K Ramanujan's essay Three Hundred Ramayans, Rohinton Mistry's book has been banned by Shiv Sena, and of course in the list of those holding banners to banning, who can forget Dina Nath Batra and his attack on Wendy Doniger's The Hindus.

The list of cuss words to be banned by the film censor board has been withdrawn but apparently those words are being removed anyway. Anyone can call for a ban, be it a TV channel, a religious group, a feminist group, the ban band includes anyone who can shout loud enough. Ban all conversions! Ban Hindu Muslim marriages! Ban women from wearing jeans or using cellphones! Since the ban bank is growing larger every day we should rename the PM's slogan Make in India as Banned in India. Or maybe we need to tape our mouths with Ban-d-aid to stop forbidden messages from being ban-died about. When it comes to Indian democracy, it's safe to say, uska banned baj gaya.

DISCLAIMER : Views expressed above are the author's own.

08.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Holi: Salman Khan celebrates with family and friends

/holi-salman-khan-celebrates-with-family-and-friends/eventshow/46483821.cms

01

Salman Khan's Holi celebrations: Salman Khan is known for celebrating all festivals with much pomp and fanfare. Whether it is Diwali, Ganesh Chaturthi or Eid, he brings in the celebrations with his family. So was the case when the big Khan family gathered together to celebrate the festival of colours, Holi. From the youngest member of the Khan family to the eldest, everyone was seen enjoying and playing around with colours and water. Let's take a look at who did what at Salman Khan's grand Holi celebration.

(All photographs have been taken from Arpita Khan's Instagram account). 

Holi: Salman Khan celebrates with family and friends

/holi-salman-khan-celebrates-with-family-and-friends/eventshow/46483822.cms

02

Is Salman biting Sohail Khan's son Yohaan's ear: The most eligible bachelor of Bollywood, Salman Khan has always mentioned in his interviews that even if he doesn't get married, he would definitely want to have kids. We all are aware of his fondness for Arbaaz and Sohail's kids. At the Holi party, Salman was seen enjoying the company of Sohail's son Yohaan. The 49 year old superstar who is always at his mischievous best is seen biting Yohaan's ears in the picture. Take a look...

(All photographs have been taken from Arpita Khan's Instagram account). 

Holi: Salman Khan celebrates with family and friends

/holi-salman-khan-celebrates-with-family-and-friends/eventshow/46483825.cms

03

Salman goes shirtless with all the ladies around: Fans of Salman Khan crave to see the superstar shirtless and even he doesn't miss a chance to take it off. In this picture, Salman is seen posing shirtless with some beautiful ladies. Other celebrities who are seen in the picture are Eli Evram and Salman's Jai Ho co-star Daisy Shah.
(All photographs have been taken from Arpita Khan's Instagram account). 

Holi: Salman Khan celebrates with family and friends

/holi-salman-khan-celebrates-with-family-and-friends/eventshow/46483828.cms

04

Newly-wed Arpita-Aayush's first Holi party: The entire Bollywood got to witness the grand wedding of Salman's sister Arpita with Aayush Sharma at the Falaknuma Palace in Hyderabad last year. The head-over-heels-in-love couple Arpita-Aayush looked great together as they played with colours. Aayush, who apparently wants to pursue a career in Bollywood looked super hot as he followed brother-in-law Salman Khan and went shirtless. This was Arpita and Ayush's first Holi after their wedding.
(All photographs have been taken from Arpita Khan's Instagram account) 

Holi: Salman Khan celebrates with family and friends

/holi-salman-khan-celebrates-with-family-and-friends/eventshow/46483831.cms

05

Preity Zinta at the Holi Party: Though Dabangg 2 director Arbaaz Khan and wife Malaika Arora Khan were not seen at the celebrations, many close friends of the Khan family made it to the Holi Party. Preity Zinta, who shares a great rapport with Salman Khan was spotted at the Holi bash. She was seen posing with Salman's sister Arpita and Atul Agnihotri. The actress sported a bandana and covered her eyes with sun glasses.
(All photographs have been taken from Arpita Khan's Instagram account) 

Holi: Salman Khan celebrates with family and friends

08.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/46484243.cms

01

According to a report in Mumbai Mirror, after the Censor Board members were reportedly divided on the certification of Anushka Sharma's NH10, the producers took the film to the Revising Committee who watched the film and cleared it with an 'A' certificate. "NH10 has been passed with a few audio cuts and a video cut that does not damage the film at all. They saw it completely in context and even appreciated it. It was a very reassuring revising committee," said Anurag Kashyap, who has co-produced the film with Anushka. NH10 is the story of a woman's revenge, is peppered with expletives and gore. CBFC CEO, Shravan Kimar, points out that the idea is to disseminate information through the process of certification to a cinema loving population about the film's content so it will facilitate the choices they make. "The idea is not to curb the creative freedom of the filmmaker," he maintained.

While the Censor Board was accommodating when it came to the expletives used in NH10, the skin show in Fifty Shades Of Grey was perhaps a tad too much for them... 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/46465043.cms

02

According to a Reuters report, Indian government censors have said they will not allow the big-screen adaptation of erotic novel, Fifty Shades Of Grey to be shown in cinemas. The film that released worldwide on Valentine's Day, wasn't released in India due to censorship issues. The chief executive of the Central Board of Film Certification, Shravan Kumar, declined to say why the panel refused to approve the film adaptation, but said Universal Pictures, the Comcast Corp unit that released the film, could appeal the decision. A Universal Pictures source familiar with the review process has been quoted in the report as saying that the board had objected to some of the film's dialogue, even after the studio made voluntary edits to the film to tone down its sex scenes and removed all nudity.

The film has grossed at least $400 million in global sales. However, for some countries the kinky story line was too much. Malaysia, Indonesia and Kenya have banned Fifty Shades Of Grey from their theatres, largely because of its sexual content.

Rajyavardhan Rathore will revisit film certification criteria, meet Bollywood representatives every three months, and review the Cinematograph Act 1952. Read on to know more... 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/46395670.cms

03

According to a Mumbai Mirror report, Rajyavardhan Rathore will revisit film certification criteria, meet Bollywood representatives every three months, and review the Cinematograph Act 1952. Rajyavardhan, who is the Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, shot down Central Board of Film Cerfication chief Pahlaj Nihalani's order banning use of certain cuss words and expressions in films, the report stated.

The minister reportedly withdrew Nihalani's list, which contained such Hindi words and expressions as haraami, saali and even the city's old name 'Bombay', after film industry delegation met him on February 25, 2015, at his New Delhi office. The Bollywood contingent included producer-director Anurag Kashyap, producers Siddharth Roy Kapur and Mukesh Bhatt, and Uday Singh, CEO of the Indian arm of the Motion Pictures Association of America, read the report. According to Mumbai Mirror's source present at the meeting, Rajyavardhan asked the delegation to just "ignore" Nihalani's list. He agreed with the delegation's view that expletives in a film certified 'adult' need not be beeped out. The issue of smoking supers - ­the mandatory warning that must appear on screen whenever a character lights up, ­was also discussed, the report concluded.

Read further to know what Shah Rukh Khan had to say about banning of cuss words by the CBFC... 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/46377304.cms

04

CBFC's decision to ban around 28 cuss words has become a raging issue in the Hindi film industry and it has been slammed by many in Bollywood. Shah Rukh Khan feels that instead of banning cuss words, the Censor Board should have more categories. "Censor Board is there to see, analyse and understand whether a film has a negative effect on anyone not only in terms of language but also as a bigger picture. Does it incite any kind of differentiation on religion, caste, creed, colour, sex, name or in any wrong sense? A generic rule for everyone will be strange and difficult to follow. I don't understand why one should have a finalised list of cuss words. But I think these are guidelines and they were always there. Though now everyone is suddenly talking about it, it was always there. I think the Censor Board should have a lot more categories in censorship rather than just U, U/A. We should have more clerical and non-clerical guidance. This might solve some problem," said Shah Rukh.

While Shah Rukh has expressed his view on the Censor Board, read on to know the Board's verdict on Anurag Kashyap's film Bombay Velvet...
- Vijaya Tiwari 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/46366525.cms

05

According to a report in Mid-day, Anurag Kashyap has been allowed to retain the word 'Bombay' in the title of his upcoming film, Bombay Velvet. The report stated that as per an internal decision taken by the Censor Board, Anurag has been allowed to retain the title of his film. A source was quoted in the report as saying that apart from the cuss words and other issues, the usage of the word 'Bombay' in films was discussed. The conclusion that was reached upon was that a film should be allowed to use the colonial name if it is set in a period before the 'The Maharashtra Restoration of Name Mumbai for Bombay Act' came into effect, the report concluded.

While the Censor Board has given a nod to Bombay Velvet, read on to know why Shabana Azmi thinks it would be better to adopt the US standards of censorship rather than the one we currently follow... 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/46322866.cms

06

Actress-social activist Shabana Azmi, who had slammed the Central Board of Film Certification's decision to refrain from profanity in films, had appealed to give up the British system of censorship and adopt the American one, whereby the filmmakers are liberal about their own films and censorship. CBFC chairperson Pankaj Nihalani had issued a controversial diktat blacklisting 'offensive' words from Indian films. The decision left many Bollywood celebrities in shock and disagreement and Shabana was one of them.

According to an IANS report, she said, "Censor Board's business is to certify and not censor according to appropriate ages. I think it is very important that we discard the British system, which means you appoint a chief and then you have 30 different people who willingly are chosen according to the political dispensation of the day, which means every five years you expect the morality of your country to change. Instead we should adopt the American system, whereby the filmmakers themselves yield and decide that they don't want a single cut, but they realise that age appropriate behaviour is important. If they have a universal exhibition then they voluntarily give cuts."

Read on to know what Mahesh Bhatt had to say about CBFC... 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/46243005.cms

07

According to a Mumbai Mirror report, filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt rued that we are living in oppressive times and members of the film fraternity, who once fought this battle along with them, have now become the thought police. "The CBFC is free to do what it wishes, but there is no lock, no gate, no bolt that it can set upon the freedom of our minds. This is a battle which they will never win because this is India, not China or Saudi Arabia," he thundered. Pooja Bhatt insisted while speaking to Mirror, "We must have the audacity to go to the Revising Committee or even the Supreme Court. Most people don't have the grit to take on the system but I do." Ashoke Pandit, a member of the Censor Board and President of Indian Film and TV Directors Association, is planning to approach the Information & Broadcasting Ministry with representatives of producers, directors and technical associations, the report further stated. "I'm a filmmaker myself and I don't agree with these creative restrictions on potraying a character. A sex worker will sound like a professor now?" he said to Mirror.

The Censor Board of Film Certification has often been embroiled in controversies over its decisions. Let's take a look at some such issues that made headlines... 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/45950041.cms

08

According to a Mumbai Mirror report, Pahlaj Nihalani, the new CBFC Chairperson, dismissed accusations of political interference and corruption. Of late, the Censor Board has been dogged by controversies with some producers alleging bias and others getting away with 'objectionable' content. The CBFC has also been under a cloud following corruption charges against its former CEO, Rakesh Kumar. Nihalani said to Mumbai Mirror, that in his career he has never been asked to offer money to an official, and it was only during the last chairperson's tenure that allegations of corruption cropped up. He added saying that those allegations were made up in the interest of a few people. 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/45928712.cms

09

According to a report on Thehindu.com, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister, Arun Jaitley, accused Central Board of Film Certification chairperson, Leela Samson, and its other members for "politicising routine issues." He called the Censor Board members as "rebels without a cause." In his Facebook post, Jaitley wrote, "It is the UPA-appointed Censor Board which has since continued. If there is any corruption, the UPA appointees have themselves to blame… I only wished that the fact of corruption had been communicated even once by the chairperson of the censor board to me. The non-functional chairperson never did so." 

Censor Board controversies

/censor-board-controversies/eventshow/45908712.cms

10

Following the clearance of Messenger of God featuring Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in lead role, censor board chief Leela Samson reportedly said that she has decided to resign. According to a PTI report, when asked if she was aware of media reports that the nod has been given by FCAT to the film's screening, Samson said, "I hear so. Nothing in writing yet. It is a mockery of Central Board of Film Certification. My resignation is final. Have informed the (I&B) Secretary." When asked why she has decided to quit, she did not specifically refer to the reported clearance to the film, but said the reasons cited are alleged "interference, coercion and corruption of panel members and officers of the organization who are appointed by the ministry." According to a report in Hindustan Times, Leela allegedly accused the information and broadcasting ministry of stifling her functioning by meddling in decisions. The report stated that Leela said there is total interference, be it a small movie or a big movie. She also said that a lot of pressure was put on PK through various fundamentalist organisations and through panel members of the board to cut scenes. 

Censor Board controversies

08.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Vineet Jain's Holi Party '15

Payal Rohatgi and Sangram Singh with Vineet Jain, MD Times Group, during Vineet Jain's Holi Party 2015, at Sun N Sand Hotel, Juhu, in Mumbai. (BCCL/ Tejas Kudtarkar) (BCCL)

See more of : Vineet Jain Holi party 2015, Vineet Jain Holi party, Vineet Jain, Sangram Singh, Payal Rohatgi

08.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Hottest Holi moments of Bollywood

/hottest-holi-moments-of-bollywood/eventshow/32164676.cms

01

As the nation celebrates the festival of colours Holi, we bring to you the hottest Holi moments from Bollywood. The sizzling and hot stars of Bollywood have not only given us some unforgettable moments to cherish through songs, but have also rocked many Holi parties with their sex appeal in real life.

Poonam Pandey's Holi in bikini: From spilling bhang all over her bosom to endorsing a quirky campaign – Chaddi for Chaddi Buddy (which was about gifting colourful undergarments to your best buddies online) during Holi, this pataka girl Poonam Pandey surely knows all the ways to be in news. Well, we are sure only Poonam Pandey can come up with such an innovative and colourful idea to celebrate Holi. 

Hottest Holi moments of Bollywood

/hottest-holi-moments-of-bollywood/eventshow/32164840.cms

02

Deepika Padukone and Ranveer's hot lip-lock in Ram Leela: Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone's Ram Leela is replete with passionate love-making scenes between the alleged real life lovers. However, no one can deny that their lip-lock in the Holi song 'Lahoo muh lag gaya' is the best. Both the actors have set the screen on fire with their sizzling lip-locks and have also given another scorching Holi moment. Ranveer, who seemed to be smitten by Deepika was quoted saying before the film's release, "I hope that there will be no objection to Deepika and my kiss in Ram Leela because it's a beautiful kiss. I hope they don't cut the duration because it's a long kiss. It's the best kiss you'll ever see in a Hindi movie." 

Hottest Holi moments of Bollywood

/hottest-holi-moments-of-bollywood/eventshow/32164828.cms

03

Sherlyn Chopra's Playboy cover page: Sherlyn is certainly controversy's favourite child, and whatever she does, becomes news. The first Indian actress to be featured on the cover of an adult magazine Playboy, Sherlyn has been seen celebrating the festival many a times. However, the sultry actress caught everyone's attention when she decided to feature nude on the cover of Playboy magazine. Sherlyn Chopra covered her entire body with gulaal and posed nude for the magazine's cover. 

Hottest Holi moments of Bollywood

/hottest-holi-moments-of-bollywood/eventshow/32164814.cms

04

Rozlyn Khan's beach Holi: Model and actress Rozlyn Khan, best remembered as Savita Bhabhi, had been staying away from news and media after her look-alike's sex racket case was out. But she returned with a bang for her fans. The actress came up with a unique way to celebrate the festival of colours. The starlet loves to play Holi, but she thinks that it should be played in a healthy way. Rozlyn Khan celebrates Holi in an eco-friendly manner with dry colours. She asserts that she is concerned about the environment, that is why she is playing Holi in sea water. 

Hottest Holi moments of Bollywood

/hottest-holi-moments-of-bollywood/eventshow/32165009.cms

05

Akshay Kumar-Priyanka Chopra's naughty Holi: Holi has been the most celebrated festival of Bollywood. It is incomplete without mentioning the famous Bollywood songs and Holi moments. The Holi songs of Bollywood have become an inseparable part of the festival of colours. Akshay Kumar and Priyanka Chopra's song 'Do me a favour let's play Holi' from the film Waqt is among the most popular songs of Holi. 

Hottest Holi moments of Bollywood

/hottest-holi-moments-of-bollywood/eventshow/32164830.cms

06

Veena Malik's first Holi: Pakistani actress Veena Malik enjoyed her first Holi in Mumbai few years ago. The bombshell Veena was caught on camera while playing Holi with friends Aanand Balraj and Kishore Bhanushali on the sets of her film Daal Mein Kuch Kaala Hai. Veena looked hot in a white spaghetti top and green pants. 

Hottest Holi moments of Bollywood

/hottest-holi-moments-of-bollywood/eventshow/32164933.cms

07

Sofia Hayat: Sofia Hayat is another bombshell who is known for her bold moves. From celebrating her birthday in a two-piece bikini to her infamous fights inside the Bigg Boss 7 house, Sofia has done it all. However, the sensuous actress stunned everyone with her bold avatar at a Holi Party in Mumbai where she even had a wardrobe malfunction, but nothing stopped her from enjoying the festival of colours. Sofia was seen flaunting her curves in skimpy clothes and dipped herself in a pool full of mud. 

Hottest Holi moments of Bollywood

08.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Blog: The frightening part of India’s daughter

If anything is more vulgar, obscene and crass than the statements mouthed by the rapist in the documentary 'India's daughter' by Leslee Udwin, it is the wisdom on Indian women and Indian culture spouted by the pair of defence lawyers of the rapists and murderers of Nirbhaya. The statements of the rapist are consistent with what one would expect from the most wretched, depraved and warped of minds imaginable – which is what rapists of the Nirbhaya case are. So no surprise there.

The surprise comes from the nauseating and unnerving views on Indian culture and womanhood that the two 'defence lawyers' hold in their muck-filled heads. Below are some samples of thoughts pontificated by the two on Indian woman, with smug face and chilling deliberation.

One of the defence lawyers provides his wisdom thus: "That girl was with some unknown boy who took her on a date. In our society we never allow our girls to come out of the house after 6.30 or 7.30 or 8.30 in the evening with any unknown person."

He goes on to add, "She [the Indian woman] should not be put on the street just like food. The 'lady', on the other hand (sic) you can say the 'girl' or 'woman' are more precious than a diamond … are more precious than a gem… than a diamond. It is up to you how you want to keep that diamond in your hand. If you put on the street , certainly the dog will take it out. You can't stop it…"

The second one is not to be left behind. Says he, "[If a woman has to go out at all] If very important, if very necessary, she should go outside (sic). But she should go with her family members like uncle, father, mother, grandfather, grandmother, etc. etc. So she should not go in night hours (sic) with her boy-friend, of such types (sic)."

He also adds, "A number of criminal cases of murder, robbery and rape are pending against bout 250 MPs, but their cases are not being tried in fast-track courts. Their cases are not being tried on day-to-day hearings. Why? If you want to give a message to the society, against rape, against robbery, against murder, then first you should start with your own neck."

Ah, some VVIP angle even here, except that in the opinion of this worthy, if the VVIPs can walk free after all the rapes and murders to their account, nobody has any business pointing fingers at his client(s).  (But I do agree with this worthy to the extent that the VVIP accused too should be on fast-track when accused of such heinous crimes.)

Going by these statements, these lawyers are in no doubt that Indian woman is chattel after all, even if "a gem or diamond". To me it is not clear if these 'gentlemen' share the same space and time as the majority of us hopefully do or should do.

Can you imagine these worthies ever being hired by a rape victim as her defence lawyers? Or for that matter by anyone in defence of women's rights? We often bemoan the non-functioning lower judiciary in the country. But these two worthies are practising in the country's highest court! One would be interested in knowing what the Supreme Court judges thinks of the lawyers of this variety that pollute their corridors.

Nobody can argue in a functioning democracy, that even cretins like the Nirbhaya rapists or Ajmal Kasabs have to be given a chance to defend themselves. One would think "defence" in this particular case would be based more along the lines that these perpetrators of crimes come from severely deprived backgrounds; or that there is no semblance of a caring family; that the shadow of real education has barely reached them ever and their only role models are abusive fathers or local rowdies and rouges. A defence for the perpetrators could at best be made on the premise that these cretins are by-products of our larger society that over the decades has done very little to improve their lot. Along some such lines, a case for sparing death penalty for them could possibly be made (though personally I am all for death sentence in such cases), even as they agreed with death penalty for those hailing from higher socio economic strata, since they clearly had many more options to follow a better path in life; or some such argument.

But for defence lawyers to defend their pathetic clients by putting the blame on the victim stating the place of a woman after 6.30 or 7.30pm is at home and that if she is out, it is perfectly acceptable if she is dog's meat – even if the dog be his client – is difficult to stomach.

If this is the shame the Government feels intensely enough to ban the documentary, one can at least sympathise with its shame, even if one cannot agree to the ban on the documentary. Banning the documentary will only help keep the dirty attitudes that lawyers like this duo harbour in their heads hidden from society at large, while the society has every right to beware of such lawyers; never mind being wary of the rapists. After all against wild animals we anyway try to be careful. But it is the innocent looking domestic dog with an addled head that we have to be more wary about. What is more, the society also has the right to be alerted as to what is happening in the name of education in the country if so-called educated professionals have such attitudes.

What can we say even of the higher judiciary of which lawyers of this kind form an integral part? How safe are women with lawyers like these on the? Should a system supposedly built on the principle of equality of all in its constitution, permit practice of law by the likes of this duo?

And what if some of these worthies make it to the position of judges some day? Nor is this entirely a hypothetical question. A few years ago, I found myself in the company of two High Court judges over a dinner. When I asked what should be the judicial view on the punishment of tiger poachers when tigers were on the verge of extinction, one of the judge looked at me blankly, and asked me a counter question, "So what if tigers become extinct? After all thousands of species have become extinct over the centuries!" He was genuinely unable to fathom what was bothering me. The other enthusiastically nodded his head, as if in full agreement with his brother judge. Imagine a poaching case lands up in the Hon'ble Courts of these Hon'ble Gentlemen!

Bad eggs exist in every profession. But is there no mechanism in our democracy to defend the society at large from such defence lawyers, who may well make it to judges? The documentary brings out clearly that the mind-set of the rapists and that of their defence lawyers (in this case at least) is exactly the same. It is simply the manifestations that are different. One commits a violent crime right now. The other is a slow poison perpetuating vitiated attitudes towards women leading others to commit vile crimes against women with moral justifications!

DISCLAIMER : Views expressed above are the author's own.

08.20 | 0 komentar | Read More