DesiReflections

As a young aspirant journalist, cartoons of R K Laxman facinated me like anything. In fact I learned from his cartoons that how we can put straight facts without offending some one . That was the reason as a boy in small town Moradabad, I used to buy Times of India instead of Hindustan Times though at that time TOI was not serving any news masala as weekly Blitz or Current. The first thing in my morning paper, I search for the Laxman's strip. There were few exceptional days when his cartoon was missing, I feel something important missing in my paper. When I visited Mumbai for the first time, meeting with Laxman was a part of my itinerary ! When I met him,I was expecting a very towering and stylish personality but honestly I could not believe that such a simple man can be so witty and creative work. First time, I stayed with him for half an hour or so, in the meantime, he received a number of calls, few of them were from very powerful, heavy weight politicians, he attended w...

Well known film producer Pahlaj Nihlani has been appointed by BJP government. Other new members are also either  RSS activists or right leaning gentlemen or women. The notification came after resignation of Leela Samson and her team of the Board as a protest. The Board felt slighted by the Film Certification Appelate Tribunal that overturned the Censor Board's decision to deny a cretic ate to 'MSG : The Messenger of God' made and starred by Gurmeet Ram Raheem Singh Insan chief  of Dera  Sacha Sauda. Keep in mind GRR Singh and his Dera has openly supported BJP in Haryana Assembly election despite unpleasantness of its national ally Akali Dal. Pahlaj Nihlani is no doubt a reasonably good film maker but also known to be a part of team who run Narendra Modi's election campaign. Present Government was unhappy that Leela Samson was a political appointee just because her close proximity with Priyanka Gandhi, people also say that at one particular time she used to be dance teac...

I attended CNNC IBN Real Award function in the year 2008, precisely seven and half years back in Hotel Hyat and there I met a Ladakhi youth Sonum Wangchuk , who came to collect Real Hero Award from Ladakh, far remote corner of country, for his outstanding work in the area of educating the local youth in a very innovative manner.  Only a year after, I saw Raj Kumar Hirani's 3 Idiots, in which the story revolve around a character Rancho aka Ranchod Das aka Phunsuk Wangdu, Amir Khan played that character. There is a lot of similarity in the real life Sonam and Phunsuk who fought the existing education system and try to find out some innovative alternate to it. Lot of people says that the inspiration of the character Phunsuk came from Sonum with whom Amir Khan and his team 3 Idiots met much before the film's shooting began, at the Real Heros event. There were many similarities in the hero of the film and Sonum, but the movie did not credit to him in any way. Born in Uley Topko near...