Shahrukh Khan Epitomises The Film World: Shahana Goswami

Shahana Goswami is slowly but surely carving her niche in this industry. The actress who started her career about fours years ago, was commercially recognised in ‘Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd’, playing the role of Boman Irani’s daughter. Those who missed watching her in ‘ HT’ couldn’t miss her in ‘Rock On!!’, which was not only a blockbuster hit but also proved a turning point for this talented actress.

Shahana was soon seen in a host of other films, some which worked wonders at the box office while some others that failed to catch attention. Another movie that got her a lot of critical acclaim was Nandita Das’ ‘Firaaq’. Shahana counts ‘Rock On!!’ and ‘Firaaq’ as the two movies that changed the course of her career.

“These two films helped me win appreciation and respect for my work. It is the most identifying factor for me as an actor.

I just didn’t want to do a lead role for the heck of it; even a small role, which I believe in and which will gain maximum viewership, is important for me,” says the actress.

After a lean phase the actress is now bouncing back to work and how! Shahana just finished shooting for ‘ Break Ke Baad’, a love story, with Imran Khan and Deepika Padukone. She has also completed her shooting for Farhan Akthar’s ‘ Game’, and is yet to complete Shah Rukh Khan Production, ‘ Ra. One’. The actress has played very different roles in all these three films. While she plays the role of a business minded Parsi woman in ‘ BKB’, she plays Shah Rukh Khan’s colleague, a video game designer in ‘ Ra. One’. “‘ BKB’ is turning out to be a great film and it was great fun working with a whole lot of talented young actors.

We had a one and half month outdoor schedule and enjoyed every bit of each other’s company. We would all go out together, not just the cast but the whole unit, so it was like a big family working and partying hard. ‘ Ra. One’ on the other hand was a huge budget film. Working with Shah Rukh, who epitomises the film world is an experience in itself. Working with a whole new cast and a different story was a great experience. Both these movies are two ends of the spectrum and to do them one after the other was truly amazing.” Shahana truly had the time of her life shooting with the King Khan, but also spent a lot of her free time absorbing all that he could give. “ I got the privilege of observing him as an actor and as a producer, keenly making a project that he feels very close to. It was an achievement for me to share time and experience with him. All these years I have watched and admired him on the big screen, but watching him perform live is something different. There is so much to that man, and what we see on screen is just a small glimpse of his personality.” SRK was quite happy with Shahana and remarked that he had quite a lot to learn from the actress. “ He was just sweet and generous enough to say that. It’s just his kindness in terms of a professional and co- worker.

I don’t think I have taught him anything, but it was surely the other way round,” says Miss Goswami.

Shahana got along quite well with her co- actress Kareena Kapoor and is now quite eager to work with Bebo’s cousin, Ranbir Kapoor. “ I think Ranbir is a fantastic entertainer and a fabulous actor. He can really grab anyone’s attention and I would really love to work with him,” she says.

Shahana who has done all kinds of roles, is quite waiting for someone to offer her a comedy flick. “ I would love to do a comedy. When I was a kid I was called ‘nautanki’ because I would make people laugh all the time,” she finishes.

Now, MHADA to redevelop its own buildings

The residents of old MHADA colonies who wish redevelop their old buildings, but fear being cheated by private builders, have a reason to smile as the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority ( MHADA) has plans to take up the redevelopment of MHADA colonies in Mumbai instead of the present arrangement of private builder carrying out redevelopment.

Jairam Palsamkar (29), a resident of SVP Nagar MHADA colony in Andheri ( west) said, " There are many builders who have approached our society for the redevelopment of our society with lucurative offers but we are not sure about trusting any builder because of cases in the past, where tenants have been cheated by private developers." " I would really not mind if I get a lesser area compared to what builders are offering me but the condition is that MHADA should take up the redevelopment process," added Satyavijay Kadu.

There have been many instances in the past where it was noted that in initial stages private builders offer lucrative deals to some of the tenants of MHADA colonies but once they get possession of the land they refuse to give the area promised to the tenants.

Speaking to FPJ, a MHADA official on condition of anonymity said, " During the Mumbai board meeting that was held on Wednesday, the plan to make amendments in the Development Control Regulations ( DCR) so that MHADA can take up redevelopment of our colonies was discussed." When the issue was discussed in the meeting some of the members made suggestions where they said that the present section 33 ( 5) of the DCR needs to be modified.

The MHADA is also going to move a proposal on amendment regarding the same for approval in the Mumbai board meeting that has been scheduled in the first week of September. Once the proposal gets a go- ahead from the board members it would be sent to the housing authority for clearance.

Later the proposal would be forwarded to the state government to clear it in the upcoming winter session of assembly in Nagpur. According to the MHADA official, if this amendment happens the redevelopment of those decrepit MHADA colonies that are not lucrative for developers would be undertaken by the housing authority.

" In this manner, the additional homes that would be constructed will not be sold directly in the open market but would be made available as part of affordable housing by way of lottery process," added the official.

In Mumbai, there are altogether 56 MHADA colonies, wherein 3,701 buildings exist. Out of these, many residents of 406 buildings have approached MHADA to approve their redevelopment. Till date, 114 buildings have already received the ' No Objection Certificate', so that private builders can start redevelopment work. The land bank of MHADA has almost gone dry, which is forcing them to amend or enact certain rules so that a regular process of sale of affordable homes by way of lottery draw can happen.

Immature Sena leaders should contest polls, face people: Pawar

In a scathing attack on the opposition parties and leaders, Union Minister of Agriculture and Civil Supplies Sharad Pawar on Saturday termed the Shiv Sena and MNS agenda as hollow and its leaders as childish.

Those who cannot maintain the unity of their own party and agenda have no business in aspiring to rule the state, he said in a direct reference to the warring cousins Uddhav and Raj. He claimed that friction between Sena and MNS could ruin and hamper the progress of the state.

When his attention was drawn to the remark of some opposition leaders ( read Uddhav) that instead of Dadaji Kondeo, there should be statues of Pawar and Kalmadi, Pawar said that both the Sena and MNS were not politically mature and he did not care for remarks of immature men.

He also advised them to do proper work among the masses and prove themselves in their constituencies instead of invoking divisive tendencies through such speeches.

Hitting back at Shiv Sena, NCP chief Sharad Pawar said its leaders should face the electorate rather than giving hollow orders. " Let them ( Thackerays) contest any elections and face the people, rather than just giving orders," he said addressing an extended working committee meeting of the party in Mumbai.

He was also scathing of the BJP, which, he said had held Parliament to ransom on the issue of pay hike for the MPs.

" There is a proper podium for everything and the Parliament should not be misused and disturbed for such narrow ends," he said. He also advised his own coalition members Home Minister R. R. Patil and Finance Minister Jayant Patil to solve the problems of the state, without trying to involve New Delhi and advised leaders of his party to solve contentious issues by themselves without in fighting.

He also asked what was behind pointing fingers at the civil supplies minister for the precarious financial situation in the country. Why aren't questions being put to the finance minister, he quizzed.

On the proposed airport issue, he said that Mumbai was once the aviation capital of India - a position now claimed by New Delhi. He said the civil aviation authorities should coordinate with the environment ministry on the issue. He said there should be no loss resulting to Maharashtra adding that Mumbai definitely needed a second airport. He also supported the coming up of the lake city at Lavasa, saying he had formed a committee in this regard when he was chief minister and it had visited a lake city project in UK to study its feasibility. He said, not a single hill station had come up in the state after the British left India. He said the lake city could be a big boost to the tourism industry.

SEBI Turns The Heat on Media Private Treaties

Media companies must disclose their share holdings in companies with which they have deals like “ private treaties,” the Securities & Exchange Board of India said on Friday.

The remarks came in a statement titled “ Mandatory disclosures by the media of its stake in corporate sector.” “ Private treaties” are thriving business areas in large media houses, which sign up chosen corporate sector clients for media exposure in return for shares in the companies and seek to cash in on these with share price appreciation over time.

SEBI has been uncomfortable with these arrangements which “ entail a company giving a stake ( shares, warrants, bonds etc.) in return for media coverage through advertisements, news reports, advertorials etc. in the print or electronic media.” SEBI said such arrangements are typically with companies which are listed or which propose to come out with public offerings.

“ It was felt that such agreements may give rise to conflict of interest and may, therefore, result in dilution of the independence of press. This may consequently compromise the nature, quality and content of the news/ editorials relating to such companies,” SEBI said.

“ Needless to say, biased and motivated dissemination of information, guided by commercial considerations can potentially mislead investors in the securities market. Such journalism would not be in the interest of securities market,” the regulator added.

The strong language against such deals first came in a reference to the Press Council of India, with suggestions that disclosures on these arrangements be made mandatory by the media houses.

The Press Council accepted the suggestions of SEBI at a meeting on February 22 but announced them five months later on August 2. Though the word “ mandatory” has been used by SEBI in its release of today, SEBI’s prescription draws on the power of the Press Council, which has called these “ guidelines” and ended them with the words: “ the above suggestions may be kept in mind by the media.” The three specific suggestions accepted by the Press Council are: media houses must disclose their stakes in companies when reporting or commenting on them; a disclosure of the percentage holding must be made on the web site of the media houses; and other agreements, which may be a potential conflict of interest, should mandatorily be disclosed.

PC loves saffron, Cong chooses to be colour blind

The Congress is mastering the art of doublespeak, until now a preserve of the BJP. The party, extremely wary of a backlash to Home Minister P Chidambram’s loaded ‘ saffron terror’ remarks, was in a tearing hurry on Friday to explain that ‘ terror has no colour’. “ The issue was of terror.

Terror has no colour. Terror is black. Saffron was part of freedom struggle, mythology, and ancient history. It cannot be the prerogative of any political party,” Congress General Secretary Janardhan Dwivedi said, appearing to distance itself from Chidambaram’s remarks.

Others within the party, too, tried to brush aside the controversy. Party spokesperson Manish Tiwari said that there was no need to get bogged down in nomenclature but to look at the substance of the Home Minister’s remarks on the activities of organizations affiliated to right- wing ideology which have been found to be involved in acts of terror.

Earlier, there was a furore in the Rajya Sabha over the remarks with the BJP and Shiv Sena demanding their withdrawal. The two allies accused the government of giving a religious hue to terrorism for political reasons. The BJP even accused Chidambaram of insulting India’s national flag -– the Tricolour – of which saffron is one of the colours.

Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley said Chidambaram was fighting an “ imaginary” battle against saffron terror instead of concentrating on fighting Maoists and tackling the situation in Jammu and Kashmir. BJP leader Rajnath Singh saw in the remarks a “ conspiracy” by the Congress- led UPA government to “ demoralise nationalistic forces”. Averring that the home minister has committed a blunder, Singh said: “ Terror has no caste, creed or religion. Moreover, those believing in Hindutva or Indian culture can never be terrorists.” Addressing a meet of top policemen in Vigyan Bhawan, Chidambaram had said on Thursday, “ There is no let- up in the attempts to radicalise young men and women in India. There has been a recent uncovered phenomenon of saffron terrorism that has been implicated in many bomb blasts in the past. My advice to you is that we must remain ever vigilant and continue to build, at both Central and state level, our capacities in counter- terrorism.” Understandably livid, senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi warned the Home Minister against making such remarks again. Joshi said, “ Such remarks could have dangerous repercussions.” In a discussion in the Lok Sabha on Friday, BJP MP from Gorakhpur ogi Adityanath lashed out at Chidambaram and called him mentally unstable.

“ On the internal security issue, Chidambaram has flopped badly. He is just trying to divert attention. His statement is not only anti- Hindu, but against the nation. Only someone with a psychological problem can think like this.

His mental condition should be checked,” Adityanath said.

Chidambaram has in the past rubbed colleagues within the Congress on the wrong side, too. Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh had lambasted the Home Minister on his approach against the Naxals. The former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister had even called him ‘ intellectually arrogant’ in a write up in a business daily. In a recent interview on a television channel, Singh reiterated his views on Naxalism and claimed he had only voiced the party’s views.

Besides Singh, Chidambaram has several other detractors within the Congress who do not quite agree with his ‘ high handed’ approach.

INDIA FRETS AND FUMES

The UPA Government on Friday shot off a strongly worded protest note to Beijing after it refused permission to one of its top commanders, Lt Gen B S Jaswal, to visit China because he comes from “ sensitive” Jammu and Kashmir.

The visit by a General- rank officer to China was agreed upon between the two countries in January during the Annual Defence Dialogue. However, at that time it was not decided as to who would be going.

In the worsening diplomatic row, India has also put on hold defence exchanges with China; however, New Delhi stopped short of snapping defence ties with its neighbour.

Retaliating against the Chinese action, the government also refused permission to two Chinese defence personnel who were slated to attend a course in the National Defence College here.

The MEA also summoned Chinese Ambassador to India Zhang ang to the External Affairs Ministry, where he was handed over four protest demarches. A demarche is a diplomatic way of protesting and conveying the government’s displeasure.

To make sure there was no ambiguity, ang was bluntly told that China’s decision to block northern area commander Lt.

General B S Jaswal’s visit to China despite his nomination by the Defence Ministry was the reason behind the Indian Army canceling a goodwill visit to Beijing. In Beijing, Colonel Jaishankar, the defence attache, too lodged an official protest with the Chinese defence ministry. Lt. Gen. Jaswal, General Officer Commanding- in- Chief of northern area, was to visit China this month as part of the regular highlevel military exchanges, but he could not make it as his visa application was stuck in the Chinese embassy here. Only when inquiries were made at the top level that Beijing said the army commander was “ not welcome” since he “ controlled” Jammu and Kashmir that Beijing considers as disputed.

While Defence Minister Antony played down the incident as not good enough for snapping defence ties, telling reporters in Hyderabad that “ short- term problems would not affect India’s overall approach towards China,” Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur, however, claimed in Delhi that “ the defence minister has taken a strong view” of the matter.

The Army is also up in arms but it is waiting for the government’s guidance on whether protocol for the border meetings should be continued. The army has been told that its anger has been conveyed to the Chinese government.

The Bhartiya Janata Party also slammed China. Its spokesman Prakash Javdekar said: “ This is the worst kind of insult inflicted upon India.

We strongly condemn the Chinese attitude and stand. The Ministry of External Affairs and the Government of India must immediately convey our displeasure.” He added that China has always fomented trouble in Arunachal Pradesh and they have now begun fishing in troubled waters in Kashmir. “ This is helping Pakistan.” Congress spokesperson Manish Tiwari said: “ The relationship has to be premised on mutual self- respect and sensibilities.” He said the External Affairs Ministry would react appropriately.

Jet Passengers 'Land' With Fractures

It was a harrowing experience at the city airport on Friday evening for the passengers of Jet Airways Mumbai- Chennai flight 9W- 2302.

A fire alarm in the cockpit led to emergency evacuation of the aircraft while it was still on the taxiway. The pilot ordered that the passengers be deplaned, using emergency services. Next instant all hell broke loose.

There was a sudden surge of passengers towards the exit and a mad scramble to slide down the chutes to safety.

In the near panic situation with the crew not able to control the situation, some passengers were forced to jump off the aircraft onto the tarmac and injured themselves. Thirty of them have reportedly sustained bruises and some of them have suffered multiple fractures. According to wire agency reports, about 153 passengers were on board.

Fifteen persons were taken to Nanavati hospital in ambulances for further treatment after receiving first aid at the airport. There was utter confusion on board and some passengers even concluded that the chutes were not functioning.

When contacted, a Jet spokesperson, however, denied the malfunction report saying, “ it is not correct”. Manish Kalghatgi, spokesperson of Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL), said, “ Jet Airways flight 9W- 2302 bound for Chennai from Mumbai airport reported a fire in one of the engines while on the taxiway. Airport emergency services responded to the call. However, there was no visible fire.

However, once a fire alarm has been sounded, it is of utmost importance to abandon the aircraft immediately. The captain, therefore, ordered the deployment of chutes for emergency evacuation of passengers. All the passengers were evacuated.” ‘‘ Safety of our guests is of paramount importance to us,” was all the Jet spokesperson said in a statement. A full emergency was earlier declared at the Mumbai Airport and Fire Tenders rushed immediately to the spot.