Whats in the news now?

One thing I would like to tell the media (Headlines Today) is that SRK’s opinion wouldn’t be the Nations collective opinion. Taking a poll “Should America apologize/Should India respond etc” to the incident (for 100 people, I assume) is not going to give you a collective opinion. I would say that if a nation in this case USA wants to implement their protocol to each and every person who lands in their airport. I guess they should. HT also ran a story about Bob Dylan being detained and the ticker read “Whats with America” I can tell you what’s with them. They are strictly following the guidelines, unlike many here. 9/11 would have happened years back, but they still follow the same security checks. When Mumbai attacks happened the techpark I work with started newer stringent security checks, they used to check the car boot, ask every occupant in the car to display their id card etc. Gradually (after 20 days) the security was lightened, even those with just a ribbon around their neck was allowed to walk in. I guess we should learn something from the Americans. Firstly everyone should be treated equally. No place for VIP treatments. Secondly just because you are a VIP in another country doesnt mean that you won’t have a BOMB with you. Like Osama Bin Laden might be a celebrity in his area, but you can’t give him VIP treatment at Mumbai airport. Okay let me make that simpler, Tom Cruise may be a celebrity in the USA(here as well), but that doesn’t mean that he should not be frisked at the airport. Thirdly, lets accept it, 9/11 happened years back, did another terrorist attack happen in their soil? Is it because of their strict guidelines and the police following it? Well yes. Lets be patient, lets follow the rules of the country that we are in. If you are so bothered, and its not happening to you for the first time, why do you want to go there again and again.

There is one more article I would like to share This is on how the swine flu scare was created among the upper class. Today’s TOI had a front page article on Road Accidents “India Tops World road deaths” 13 die every hour due to accidents. Timely I believe.  Now you have more things to be scared off!!!

Bollywood ‘Inspirations’

We have heard about movie remakes….. now listen to this :

 

haha, sounds familiar?

Now this

haha again.

I have more links like this with me(got as forward), from Bhool Bullaiyya to Jab We Met, all the recent Bollywood Movie songs are inspirations (read COPIED).

A major Indian newspaper steals a blogger’s photograph!!

 

A fellow blogger’s picture was ripped off from her blog and used in a National Newspaper. You can read the complete post at here.

This is not the first time,  another blogger also faced the same issue from a local weekly. 

 

Strange Laws.

 

Does people go to any extent to get that 3 minutes of fame on TV?. Recently  a ‘not so popular’ Godman was arrested for fraud and rape in Kerala. This made another guy in the same profession working on God domain sad as he was not getting his share of airtime. So he went on to get a gun from the attic, called up the press and the cops, paid a woman to scream and staged a drama to get some attention. And he got it. Big time. The video of this guy trying to suicide was all over the news. I am not sure why he did that, most of channels airing the video did not even know this guy’s name and they referred to him as ‘Godman’.  But then it was entertaining.

 

My reason for writing this post is not to discuss on why he did it. He might be awfully insane. But on why he was left off, after wasting tax payers money (which pays off the police force)… police time on him. And on why he was left off on bail after endangering the lives of the people around him ? Strange.

 

This also reminds me of Harbhajan- Sreesanth issue, why was Harbhajan not charged for assault by the police? If I give Sreesanth a tight slap, will I be only banned from ‘watching’ a few IPL matches?

 

Strange..

 

My IPL love

(Drafted this on my way to KTM, didn’t get a chance to post it. Here I go).

 

I am writing a lot about the IPL these days. Not because I am following each and every game (but am loving the hype behind it) but because it’s everywhere. I tune into the news channel and there is a special about IPL. Try changing channels, not even the music channels are ‘IPL’ free,  there is SRK with his video promoting his team.

 

The gossip channels air more of IPL these days than Bollywood, may be because of the close Bollywood association with the IPL.  They got glamour money and fame what more can these channels ask for?

 

This might be my third post that has something to deal with IPL. The funny part is however that all these post has nothing related to the actual game played. May be I was trying to explain in my own way on how the IPL is actually on air. There is less cricket and more of glamour.  So is it killing cricket? No.

 

As some media personality on a news channel explained. 20-20 is not cricket, its entertainment.

 

He is right.

 

Its for people like me who cant stand the entire 50 overs of cricket eating away half a day along with advertisements that run for more than an hour.

Its entertainment.

The cheerleaders (which they wanted to ban, Read here), the babes and less cricket makes it my favorite sport ever.

 

May be the IPL is answer to my prayers, but definitely not for the people who follow hardcore cricket the old fashioned way.

 

Saying all this, no one is paying much attention to the issues and scopes surrounding hockey. Last week there way a Scoop done by Aaj Tak which revealed that Secretary General K Jothikumaran accepting bribes to include a particular player in the Indian Hockey team.

 

Now the entire airtime is been used to cover IPL that Hockey is not even getting its share of airtime to be infamous.

That’s sad.

 

And on my way I heard that Sreesanth was slapped. Well I am not sure whether he deserves it. (But many in Kerala says he does J )But then I am sure that Cricket, once known as the gentleman’s game is no more.

 

Some News 26-Apr

I am off for a week to the land of letters, latex and lakes AKA Kottayam.

Before that let me leave you guys with some interesting news..

 

• A recent study has reveled that how much a mother eats at the time of conception may influence whether she gives birth to a boy or a girl. You can read the report here. If anyone can read and understand the study please drop in your comments. Is this study based on numbers and statistics? If 10% of all accidents are due to drunken driving, does that mean that there is 90% chance of an accident if you are NOT DRUNK? Also studies have proven that 62.765% of all statistics are wrong. lol
• I am going to stop watching IPL. Why? They got plans to ban cheerleaders. OH ! now you guys know why I was hooked to IPL on Friday ! (Trust me I don’t know who won that day). Some say its degrading cricket (the bookies, the money and the hype is not) I have a few suggestions.
  • Let them air the cheerleaders after IPL is over. May be a different show altogether.
  • Or I have another opinion. Let the cheerleaders be on Sony channel while Set MAX air IPL with ‘No distractions’. . So that people ‘who don’t like cricket’ or whose ‘patience run out watching cricket’ can watch Sony. (hey that sounds like someone I know. J )
  • Here is the international take on this issue. The Australian. (Read on how Kamasutra and Khajuraho temples are mentioned. I am still wondering where the moral police were when a couple at Bangalore was harassed and when couples were roughed up at Valentines day!

 

Update : Cheer leaders wont be banned.  J

 

About Ban.

Ban seems to be the favorite word among the politicians. They would just love to ban books, ban people, ban smoking on screen, ban cartoons, ban cheerleaders,ban cola, ban blogs, ban movies, ban songs and ban anything that comes in their way.

 

Now I guess its time to Ban Bans.

Today.

 Yesterday night I was just surfing the channels, while in many the reality shows were running, in one there was Rakhi Sawant yelling. I turned up the volume to hear what she was saying. There was this news scrolling on the screen.

Rakhi’s item number dropped from Krazzy 4.  

“Its publicity gimmick” I commented.

Wife “ What?”

Me “Well these guys, they will shoot it, then drop it, and then all the crazy news guys will roam around the actors, producers, directors and  the viewers analyzing the situation. All for publicity”

Wife “oh”

Me “I think they should not be given all this publicity…………………..they don’t deserve it………..” I went on and on and on for 10 mins while Rakhi was screaming on screen.

That’s when the scrolling changed to RAKHI FOOLED !!!!!! 

Wife “hahaha….” And went on and on and on…

Me “….”  

Today morning the Bangalore Times (the gossip section of TOI) had this STOP PRESS news.            

Saif and Kareena got HITCHED !

I read the entire article. And the last line read this Turn to page 3 for exclusive pictures And I turned only to see this APRIL FOOL !! 

I wonder how I fell for it two times in a row. Years back its used to be friends or colleagues who make a fool out of us (some don’t do it for fun J) now it’s the media. Well I think they are making a fool out of us the entire year!

PS : Read the post title as “Today is Fool’s day”

80 Shut Downs in 18 Months

Cross posted at mutiny.

80 shutdowns in 18 months, on an average 4 every month. This figure is haunting as this is after the courts have banned bandh and ‘forceful hartals’. While the political parties have given assurances that the hartals will be peaceful and there wouldn’t be any ‘forceful’ closure of shops or disruptions in traffic, it’s seldom followed.

Kerala witnessed yet another hartal yesterday with all major institutions, offices closed down. There were stray incidents caught on camera where the activists forced shopkeepers to close down and abused people who took their vehicles on the road. In one incident a cab with foreign tourists were stopped and the driver was manhandled. The terror in the tourists’ eyes was clearly visible. No wonder these warnings are part of standard country specific documents in foreign government sites.As the two parties try their hand at blaming each other, the people are left tormented. While students enjoy their holiday, there are thousands of travelers left with no other choice but to ruin their day at bus stations.I see no end to this unless the politicians themselves come with a new form of protest and give people the ‘choice’ to take part if they want to.

Who wants to be a Comic Book Hero?

There is a new (to me tho) TV show that I watched yesterday evening. I was tired from work and decided to watch something other than FRIENDS( I been sitting and watching FRIENDS DVD collection for one week now. NON STOP). I needed a break ! 

So tuning into Star World I got into some real fancy world. The show was titled Who wants to be a Super Hero?. And there was oversized, slim, thin, fit, people in fancy Superhero costumes. They looked more like ‘In circus’ to me. Well its not just the costumes and the funny dialogues that they kept ‘delivering’ that kept me glued to the channel, but also the ‘tasks’ they were asked to perform to prove themselves as a superhero….

  

One of the tasks included helping an old lady who was locked out of the house, the ‘Super Heroes’ has to find their way through the back door of the house and unlock the front door for the old lady. Seems pretty simple, not when you see two ferocious dogs in the backyard !!!

  

Well they put all the safety dress to go forward with the task. But then it was real scary ( I am scared of dogs or rather I hate them . Chandler Bing hate dogs too. ( I guess I am watching too much FRIENDS now).

  

But the way some of them finally managed to get to the door after being pulled down, bitten (they have protective coats of course but it was helping them so little to stand up and walk to the door).

  

Then the anchor (who only appears in a TV, like the Charlie in Charlies Angels, Yeah the difference would be that he is only on the phone/radio) gives them new costumes, eliminates one at each round and blah blah………..all that is part of a reality show.

  

The show is like a cartoon and to make ‘your’ or rather the contestants fantasies being a super hero come true. I call this show stupid. I guess people are running out of ideas to start reality shows

  

But if you really want Super Heroes like “Monkey Woman”, “Fat Momma”, “Major Victory” to save the world you should watch the show.

  

Official Web Site http://www.nashentertainment.com/television/superhero2/

Wikipedia Says this show was first aired in 2006, it has survived for two seasons now.

  

Schedule : Star World Tuesdays 2300

 Read this on American Inventor

Another Post Featured in Bangalore Mirror.

Another post featured in today’s edition of Bangalore Mirror !