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Good news for footwear enthusiasts in Chennai. The city will host the first Kickers store. Following a 30-year licensing deal with Royer Group of France, Kothari Industrial Corporation Ltd (KICL) is gearing up to set up its maiden Kickers store in Chennai tomorrow. The timing could not have been better for KICL, which has come under a new owner in Rafiq Ahmed and got relisted on the bourses. The opening of the Kickers store in Chennai comes within days of a significant development in the annals of KICL. A Qatar company belonging to the Royal family has just been cleared by the board of KICL to pick up a 10% stake in the Chennai company. Qatar-based F J Global Investment is owned by Falah Jassim J.M.AL-Thani, who is a director of Doha Bank and was also the founder of Qatar Airways. He was also a minister in the Qatar Government. This is a significant boost to KICL under Rafiq Ahmend, who has gone on a mission to revive the KICL and bring the iconic Kothari brand back to yester-year glory. The investment from a company owned by Qatar Royal family is seen positively by industry circles in Tamil Nadu, which is going the extra mile to woo foreign investment into the state. Significantly enough, KICL has also embarked on a consolidation move with the board approving a proposal to buy 30% stake held by Rafiq Ahmed in Phoenix Kothari Footwear Ltd, a joint venture that is setting up a non-leather footwear park in backward Perambalur district of Tamil Nadu. Well, things appear to fall in place for KICL as it seeks to make a strong comeback and regain its past glory.
It was something that the Congress couldn’t stomach easily. Perhaps the party was surprised that the Raj Kapoor family had chosen to interact with PM Modi. A day after the social media and TV channels were awash with PM Modi’s interaction with members of the Kapoor family, a very senior Congress leader ventured to put out a snarky social media post questioning the meeting. For some odd reason he completely chose to ignore the context of the meeting. “We have been asking PM Modi to visit Manipur. But he has instead found time to meet with Kareena Kapoor.” Soon good sense prevailed and he deleted his crude post. Guess he must have realised that his post was outright offensive. The Kapoor family had called on PM Modi on December 10 to invite him to the legendary actor-filmmaker’s Film Festival. The festival is to commemorate Raj Kapoor’s 100th birth anniversary, an iconic figure in Indian cinema who passed away in 1988. Ten Raj Kapoor films are going to be showcased across 40 cities in 135 cinemas .The Kapoor family, including actors Ranbir Kapoor, Riddhima Kapoor Sahni, Neetu Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Alia Bhat and Saif Ali Khan met the PM. “This is a special day for us. We enjoyed the conversation. He spoke to us in a friendly manner. He made all of us feel very comfortable,” said actor Ranbir Kapoor. His cousin actor Kareena Kapoor Khan said that it was her dream to sit next to PM Modi and talk to him. “His energy is so positive and he is truly a global leader.” PM Modi inquired about the third generation of Kapoors — and autographed for Kareena’s children Tim and Jeh. December 14 marks the 100th birth anniversary of Raj Kapoor.
It couldn’t have come at a more inappropriate time than this. The day when the entire national media was riveted on the Parliament debates commemorating 75 years of Constitution of India and newly-elected Wayanad MP Priyanka Vadra Gandhi was making her debut speech in the House. For some odd reason the Telangana Police chose to arrest Telugu star Allu Arjun, protagonist in the Rs 1000-crore plus grosser Pushpa 2: The Rule. He was arrested in connection with the stampede incident at Hyderabad’s Sandhya Theatre, which resulted in the death of a woman. On December 4, a massive crowd gathered at Sandhya Theatre to see Allu Arjun, resulting in a tragic stampede. Revathi, a 39-year-old woman, died due to asphyxiation, and her 8-year-old son was hospitalised. While granting interim bail to Allu Arjun, the Telangana High Court affirmed Arjun’s right to life and liberty, stating that he cannot be deprived of these fundamental rights. While leaders cutting across the political spectrum came out in support of the actor, Telangana BJP leader and Union Minister Bandi Sanjay described the arrest of a National Award-winning actor as having been done to steal the spotlight. “Drama over delivery, diversion over governance — that’s the Telangana Congress government for you!” Arjun’s uncle and Andhra deputy CM Pawan Kalyan rushed to rally support for him. In the meanwhile, it will be interesting to see how Priyanka Vadra herself responds to the ham-handed manner CM Revanth Reddy handled the situation. He had after all managed to divert attention from her debut performance in the Lok Sabha to an avoidable law & order incident in Hyderabad.
To ensure the social welfare schemes reach the intended target group, West Bengal chief West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has rolled out a robust mechanism to ensure the effective implementation of socio-welfare schemes. This initiative aims to hold government officials accountable for supervising these projects and addressing inefficiencies that have marred progress in recent years. The state finance ministry has issued a notification, followed by the establishment of a dedicated help desk at Navanna to oversee information flow from block and sub-division levels. This initiative, aimed at curbing inefficiency and fraud, will require officials to physically visit project sites instead of submitting progress reports from office desks. The app will feature automatic geo-tagging, ensuring accurate location tracking of officials during field visits. During multiple administrative meetings chaired by CM, officials repeatedly failed to provide accurate updates on the status of ongoing schemes. This incomplete information has not only slowed down critical projects but also caused dissatisfaction among citizens. Officials, from BDOs to District Magistrates, must register using their mobile numbers. Reports will require OTP authentication and must include photographs of on-ground work. The app mandates regular updates, such as reporting issues in road construction, cleanliness, drinking water, and electricity services, along with distinguishing between simple and complex problems. The model draws inspiration from private sector practices, where geo-tagging apps track employee performance. The state’s new app is expected to enforce accountability among officials, address bureaucratic delays, and improve public service delivery.
In a move that may have surprised the Opposition BJP, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee appointed Radharamn Das, vice president of ISKCON Kolkata,to a 13-member board of trustees for the upcoming Jagannath Dham project in Digha. The temple, set to be a cultural and religious landmark on the shores of the Bay of Bengal, will be inaugurated on Akshay Tritiya on April 30, 2025. The Jagannath Dham Sanskriti Kendra, spanning 20 acres, is being developed under the supervision of HIDCO, an urban planning body under the state government. With an investment of Rs 250 crore, the project aims to replicate the grandeur of the Puri Jagannath Temple and serve as a significant pilgrimage and tourist attraction. This development comes amid ongoing political friction between Didi and BJP’s Opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari. It may be recalled that Nandigram where the temple is being built was the place where he had defeated Didi in the 2021 Assembly elections. Adhikari who is opposing the project on the ground that using public funds to construct religious structures is unconstitutional. He accused Mamata of attempting to win the Hindu vote bank as her minority appeasement has alienated Hindus. Mamata’s decision to include an ISKCON leader is seen as a strategic move, in light of recent attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh and the arrest of an ISKCON monk. Political analysts believe Didi is sending a message of solidarity to the Hindu community while subtly addressing concerns raised by the BJP over her government’s alleged minority appeasement policies.
Devajit Saikia is the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) representative in the International Cricket Council (ICC) as its Director. Saikia, who is the question that is being asked by those not acquainted with the BCCI’s governance structure, especially after the Justice Lodha Committee’s Reforms in Cricket report was accepted by the Supreme Court in 2016 and its Constitution was rewritten thereafter. The ICC Board is the all-powerful body in its Governance structure, and as a convention, the 12 full members of the ICC nominate its Presidents as Directors. Many stalwarts of the BCCI, like Jagmohan Dalmiya, Sharad Pawar, N Srinivasan and Shashank Manohar were on the ICC Board, and after the 2019 election, post the reforms, former India captain and BCCI President Sourav Ganguly was on the ICC Board. Ganguly was succeeded by the BCCI Secretary Jay Shah with the BCCI President Roger Binny as the alternate director in 2022, the same year when the former Assam Ranji Trophy cricketer and legal practitioner Saikia was elected as Jt. Secretary of the BCCI. People in the know attribute Saikia’s rise on the administration side of the game to his association and rapport with Assam’s BJP chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. Once it was announced that Jay Shah would take charge as Chair (Independent Director) of the ICC from December 1, 2024, quite a handful of names like Arun Singh Dhumal (former BCCI Treasurer and currently chairman, IPL) and Ashish Shelar (BJP President, Mumbai and BCCI Treasurer) emerged as a potential successor to Shah as BCCI Secretary. Saikia, will remain the BCCI Joint Secretary and perform the duties of the Secretary. But his nomination to the ICC Board has surprised many people.
Veteran leader Sharad Pawar has once again monopolised the centre stage following reports that a top leader of his party has held talks with a prominent BJP Union minister in Delhi. The political grapevine is buzzing with different versions since the meeting is believed to have occurred at industrialist Gautam Adani’s Delhi residence. In fact, Pawar started hitting the headlines on Thursday (Dec 12) morning as the news that his nephew Ajit Pawar and a couple of other NCP (Ajit) leaders had reached the patriarch’s residence. Ajit later said that being a family member, he had greeted his uncle on his birthday and nothing unusual should be read in the visit. Ajit was accompanied by Praful Patel and Sunil Tatkare, both very close to Sharad Pawar till the recent split in the NCP. The name of Adani added grist to the gossip since the industrialist had visited Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis just a couple of days ago in Mumbai. The Adani group continues to BE target of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Shiv Sena party chief Uddhav Thackeray. In the past too, Adani has been meeting Pawar off and on. The presence of Fadnavis in Delhi on Thursday proved to be another trigger to speculate that the political scene of Maharashtra was likely to undergo another overhaul. Pawar’s hot and cold relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi has always remained an intrigue. Hence, his followers are unable to predict which way he can turn.
The Raj Kapoor family has finally come out together to celebrate the centenary year — 1924-2024 — of the showman of the film industry. Forty two year old Ranbir Kapoor who has been in the film industry for nearly two decades has taken the lead along with his cousin Kunal Kapoor to celebrate Raj Kapoor through his cinema. But was it too late to celebrate RK? Is the newer generation enthusiastic to watch his films? Ranbir Kapoor said, like his wife Alia, the young generation needs to know about the cinema of Raj Kapoor and one hopes he is successful through his stardom and initiative to keep RK’s legacy alive. But, is the film industry or the government really care about saving our heritage or culture, considering the government is calling the film industry as soft power? The hard truth is: why are our studios and banners not surviving be it Filmalaya Studio, Kamalistan Studio and Raj Kamal Studio which has limited work space. Raj Kapoor’s RK Studio, a famous landmark in Chembur along with his bungalow has been sold to Godrej Properties for constructing residential properties. It may be recalled that RK Studio was working on the rentals till the fire destroyed the entire heritage. Luckily film lovers are lucky his films were in the safe custody of NFAI. It is learnt that Ranbir Kapoor who is already a producer wants to turn director. So will he revive the RK Banner? As a part of the centenary celebration the entire RK clan met the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and conspicuous by his absence was Randhir Kapoor as he was not keeping well. In the end one only hopes that Ranbir Kapoor carries the great showman’s legacy forward.
This maverick and marauding scam tainted politician was once the acolyte of Lok Nayak Jayprakash Narayan. Former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad Yadav has burnt many bridges in his meteoric rise in politics. A stormy petrel, indicted for five scams, served jail term and is now out on a bail. He is once again in the news for his below-the-belt remark against his bete noire, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar who recently announced a Mahila Samvad Yatra to interact directly with women and evaluate the impact of his government’s programme targeted for women. When the media quizzed the RJD supremo Lalu about Nitish Kumar’s Mahila Yatra and his goal of winning all 225 seats in the forthcoming Assembly elections, the unstoppable motor mouth said, “Pahle unko aankh sekhne do” (let them get an eyeful of the women). Lalu is famous for double entendres and pithy talk. This chintzy, low end hit at both Nitish’s party and the women electorate set off a storm. Bihar deputy CM Vijay Kumar Sinha said, “It seems Lalu Prasad has lost his ability to comprehend, doesn’t know what he is saying “. JDU MP from Munger, Rajiv Ranjan Singh said, “Lalu is master of buffoonery”. Public discourse is an amalgam of many such talents. But certainly hitting below the belt and indulging in such loose talk shows the lack of grace and polish.
Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray’s plans to attend the Winter Session of the Maharashtra legislature beginning from December 16 at Nagpur will prove to be a game changer, his followers feel. Thackeray’s continued distance from the state legislative council proceedings over the past year are discussed by his party members in hushed tones since the aggressive direction needed to corner the BJP-led three-party government somehow lacks as far as his Sena is concerned. Council’s leader of the Opposition Ambadas Danve (of the Sena UBT) lacks the image and articulation which are vital for any LoP to humble the ruling side. Now that the new government led by Devendra Fadnavis has decided to appoint former CM Eknath Shinde as leader of the upper house, Danve’s limitations will be felt more vividly. Thackeray’s intermittent presence in the council ever since he resigned as chief minister in 2022 has been noted more due to his statements outside the house. He has hardly made any worthwhile speech on the floor. Therefore, his plans to remain present for the Winter Session have revived the hopes of his followers, who wish to witness his attacks against the BJP and the Sena led by Shinde. It is being recalled that Thackeray did not attend the recent three-day session of the legislature in Mumbai, held after the assembly elections. According to present indications, Thackeray will reach Nagpur well in time for the week-long session, which will be a stormy affair, focussing on settling political scores.
Even as Congress President Sonia Gandhi went out of the way to be on the right side of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin — not bothering about protocol while agreeing to catch up with the DMK leader in his party office in Parliament House– and also attending the inauguration of the DMK office in Delhi, a miffed Rahul Gandhi chose to stay away. It is being said Rahul was upset over the manner in which Stalin had focused on his meeting with Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, visiting a Government school and taking a lot of interest in AAP’s model of schools. Stalin’s tango with Kejriwal, particularly on the back of the Congress’ defeat in Punjab to the AAP was perceived as a hostile step by Rahul. However, Sonia went the extra mile to be nice to Stalin with the hope of clinching two Rajya Sabha seats for Congress from Tamil Nadu come June. For his part, Stalin has been cold to Congress and, did not drop in at 10, Janpath as he usually does. It is quite another matter that he asked Sonia to inaugurate the Murosali Maran library in the DMK party office. For the first time, Stalin decided to visit all top Central ministers, to pursue matters of his state.
No wonder, football — the game once played and advertised by the likes of the greats Pele and Maradona and these days by Christiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi to provide plenty of entertainment and thrill– is called the “Beautiful Game” on the planet. And no wonder that over 800,000 tickets were sold online for the FIFA World Cup to be held in Doha, Qatar in November-December. As the FIFA chief, the Swiss-Italian Gianni Infantino said before the draw recently, the World Cup at Doha would be unique because all eight venues will be within a 50 km distance. Football crazy fans living in Qatar, USA, England, Mexico and the UAE have picked up the majority of the 800,000 tickets. The second online sale of tickets (after the draw) opened on April 5. India’s football fans have been match specific and have bought tickets because Doha is only three and a half hours by plane. For the first time FIFA’s premier competition is going to be held in the Arab world and Qatar has spent billions of dollars to make it the most memorable event. The football World Cup will follow the ICC Men’s World Twenty20 to be held in October-November in Australia and these two events are going to keep the sports fans across the World glued to the small screens at home. Football though will win the fan following hands down.
Major tennis tours like ATP, WTA and ITF are allowing Russian and Belarussian tennis players to compete without flags or anthems. But Wimbledon, one of four Grand Slams being a private event, is seriously considering a ban on stars like world No 2 Daniil Medvedev and world No 5 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus on the grounds that their victory could boost the Vladimir Putin regime. The legal implications are being considered seriously in the wake of recent images of war crimes on Ukraine’s streets showing up as evidence of the brutal war Russia is waging. The All England Lawn Tennis Club may receive legal advice that private clubs have more freedom to allow or ban players and they would not be subject to the same discrimination laws as the tours. What is the point the tennis fan may be wondering as Russian athletes are so far free to participate in global events as individuals but the UK might wish to take the economic sanctions and sporting bans further because of the war in Ukraine. Wimbledon might find a way out by asking the likes of Medvedev to sign an anti-Putin form and that they are not receiving any money from Putin or Russia or Belarus. Medvedev, like Novak Djokovic, is a resident of Monaco who could now miss two months of tennis due to hernia.
Shahid Kapoor, at a recent press conference, expressed envy towards Mrunal Thakur, one of few actresses who were busy shooting during the Covid lockdown. The Jersey heroine is again one of few TV actors who transitioned seamlessly to the big screen. Her first movie Love Sonia was an international film. The 29-year-old actress, who made her television debut in 2012, worked in eight TV serials and was called insane for quitting the highly popular Kumkum Bhagya. She has since emerged among the top leading ladies of Bollywood with films like Toofan, Super 30 and Dhamaka. Mrunal is not singularly successful though and TV stars like Sakshi Tanwar, Vidya Balan, Prachi Desai and Yami Gautam also migrated to the Big screen as did Shah Rukh Khan. So, what makes Mrunal different? Industry watchers say it was her timing of entering the film world when the industry was undergoing a churn and stories took precedence over stars. She was launched through a Marathi movie in 2014 and entered Bollywood in 2018 managing to emote and impress the audience even with her small roles. She almost made it to Bahubali and would have been part of Aamir Khan’s Dangal if her TV show had not come in the way. One thing is for sure, nothing’s gonna stop this Marathi mulgi going the dhak dhak girl way.
MNS Conundrum Continues As Raj Thackeray Finds New Political Guru In Nitin Gadkari, Post Pawar Phase
It’s Ghar Wapsi for Maharashtra Navnirman Sena Chief Raj Thackeray, who has thrown his weight behind the BJP hereon. This completes the full circle that began when Nitin Gadkari assumed office as the national BJP president years ago, and Raj paid him a visit in Mumbai. Thackeray had Gadkari over for dinner at his Shivaji Park home a day after his militant Hindutva rally at Shivaji Park in Dadar on April 2 where he was introduced as ‘Tiger Raj Thackeray’. The turnout was impressive, as was his fiery one-hour long speech attacking Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray. Raj Thackeray’s proximity to Gadkari goes back a long way. Circa 2005, Raj announced his own party plans and formed MNS the next year with an avowed anti-north-Indian stance, ironically with financial backers from Uttar Pradesh’s minority segment. Thackeray is now trying to occupy the perceived political space of Hindutva-Marathi voters that Shiv Sena always counts on. This also marks Raj’s volte-face, taking on the BJP after spending 10 days in Gujarat under then CM Narendra Modi’s hospitality, followed up with an-anti-BJP stance before the 2019 general elections, apparently at Pawar’s behest. BJP leader Ashish Shelar played a key role in Raj’s current political disposition, alongside Devendra Fadnavis, who has the final say on Maharashtra. BJP seeks to project Gadkari as the tallest Maharashtra leader to replace Pawar.
A private-public partnership saw a plant come up at Thoothukudi in Tamil Nadu to produce ammonia and urea. In the 50 odd years of its existence, Southern Petrochemicals Industries Corporation (SPIC) has had a chequered history even as the A C Muthiah-piloted group became ambitious. Big investments in PFY and PTA (Spic Petro) and in a new fertilizer facility in Dubai saw money going down the sink. Things turned for the better post 2010 with a changeover at the helm. Now, Muthiah’s son Ashwin, who heads the company, has gone all out to ramp up capacity of ammonia and urea to almost global scales. To improve margins, it moved from naphtha to natural gas for its feedstock. For fund infusion, Ashwin roped in AM International of Singapore besides talking to lenders for debt restructuring. Result: Thoothukudi-based SPIC has turned around with its topline and bottom-line looking healthy. Unfortunately, another well run plant in Thoothukudi Sterlite Industries, part of the Vedanta Group had to shut shop over environmental issues. For the nine months ended December 2021, SPIC has turned in heart-warming results with a PAT of Rs 132 crore on the back of a topline of Rs 1,600 crore, both representing a big leap from the previous corresponding period. While things are certainly looking up for SPIC, the road ahead still sports many signs of caution!
In a significant move, Nepal’s Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba arrived in New Delhi on April 1, 2022, and among his first engagements was a visit to the BJP headquarters where he met BJP president J P Nadda. It was Deuba’s first visit to India after becoming PM in July 2021. What is of particular interest is that Deuba, as a Nepali Congress leader heading a five-party left-wing coalition, would choose to visit the BJP office. It seems like a throwback to the times when a visit to the Communist Party of China headquarters in Beijing was considered a de rigueur. However, party sources said, PM Narendra Modi has always been keen that the party headquarters should be able to receive global leaders. The significance of the Nepali leader visiting the BJP office is also that increasingly, India’s neighbours have begun to see the value of building bridges with New Delhi rather than going anywhere near Beijing, after the recent economic collapse of Sri Lanka that has sent alarm bells ringing in South East Asia. To Deuba’s credit it must be said he withstood the pressure of signing up any pact with China on its Belt and Road Initiative. He also made clear to China that he does not want any projects with strings attached.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s standing in the BJP is vastly enhanced, especially after he managed to win both the Rajya Sabha seats from the state for the NDA alliance, dealing a blow to attempts by Congress-led opposition parties to corner one seat. Home Minister Amit Shah was immensely happy with Sarma’s strategy to clinch the twin wins. It is significant that the Congress came a cropper despite tying up with AIUDF. Apparently five of Badruddin Ajmal MLAs cross-voted for the BJP while one Congress MLA cast an invalid vote. The Congress suspended Siddique Ahmed, its MLA from Karimganj South, from primary membership of the party for writing ‘one’ instead of ‘1’ on his ballot paper as per voting protocol. While Sarma ensured a smooth win for BJP’s Pabitra Margherita and coalition partner United Peoples Party Liberal (UPPL) candidate Rwngwra Narzary, the Congress camp was in tatters. In fact, because of the setback in Assam, Congress President Sonia Gandhi went into overdrive last week to ensure at least two Rajya Sabha seats from Tamil Nadu. She is also in touch with Sharad Pawar for two seats from Maharashtra. Sources said the Congress is looking to get one seat from Jharkhand notwithstanding the political upheaval there. Following this round of biennial elections, the BJP has notched up a tally of 101 seats in Rajya Sabha.
The deployment of Tamil Nadu police for the DMK event in Delhi to manage security instead of Delhi police came at a cost for the influential Lok Sabha woman MP from South Chennai Thamizhachi Thangapandian. According to party sources, her very expensive phone was stolen at the event. Though it is not clear how exactly she lost it, a police complaint is yet to be filed. Her younger brother, Thangam Thennarsu is a minister in Stalin’s Government. Tamil news media is miffed with the State Police who let the thief get away while screening the media at the venue and even acting tough with them. Meanwhile, Chief Minister MK Stalin seems to have taken Delhi by storm. Parts of East Delhi were splashed with posters of him and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal together, applauding his visit to the Government school. A fitness freak, Stalin was found doing his brisk early morning workout at Nehru Park close to Tamil Nadu Bhawan in Chanakyapuri. Even at that hour people queued up to ask him for a selfie. Meanwhile, even as DMK MP Tiruchi Shiva showered encomiums on TMC MP Mahua Maitra calling her a “tigress”, Stalin avoided any reference to the TMC leader who lost the Goa polls. Instead, he preferred to mention Arambagh TMC MP among his guests in his tweet.
Since winning the panchayat and urban body elections, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has been pulling out all the stops to kickstart Tata Steel’s Rs 5,000 crore Subarnarekha deep-sea all-weather port in Balasore district. He hopes to complete the project before the 2024 general election and, is moving quickly on the land acquisition front; with nearly 146 acres of land almost acquired. The state has already provided 700 acres of land for port construction near the Chaumukh seashore, Baliapal. However, for the construction of a new rail line from Amarda Road to the port at Chaumukh and widening of existing roads and creating new ones, it needs to acquire another 300 acres. According to Sudarshan Chakravarti, Collector & District Magistrate, Balasore “Of the 300 acres requirement of land 154 acres has already been acquired with the balance to be acquired soon.” Land acquisition may not be a problem as the government is paying a good compensation — three times more than the registered value. Tata’s project will have the first mover advantage over Adani Group which is setting up a green field port at Tajpur in West Bengal which is literally next door. When both ports become operational East India will emerge as the new regional maritime hub.
TRENDS & VIEWS
Editor’s Note: Big Punch In Small Pack
It is the Third Anniversary of Short Post and as a news media startup launched during the Covid-19 pandemic it certainly feels better than good to find ourselves where we are today. Here, I must cite the unstinted support of our seasoned contributors, all senior editors in the country, who brought a great degree of maturity and sagacity to the Short Post newsroom. But for them, our tagline “Authentic Gossip”, an Oxymoron, would not have matured viably. Our user numbers may be small but our stories have created the desired impact among people who matter — decision makers and influencers. We offer a big punch in a small pack and Short Post with its 225-word stories has been punching above its weight category. Having posted close to 3,000 stories in the last 36 months, Short Post, I feel, is an idea whose time has come.
And this is vindicated by our two marquee advertisers – IDFC FIRST Bank and ICICI Lombard. Both believed in our story and have supported us from Day one. A big thank you to both.
If you look at the media landscape – print, TV and digital — it is a mixed bag. There are job losses as some outfits have closed down while a lucky few were bailed out by large corporate houses. Yes, there is a lot of action in the digital space. However, the entry of corporate houses has raised the question of independence of news media outfits. Sadly, there are just a handful of independent media outfits in the country that are highly respected for their neutrality. At Short Post, our credo is not to take sides, prejudge issues or be biased but, informing readers of behind-the-scenes happenings. In essence, Short Post strives to be a neutral editorial platform — neither anti-establishment nor pro-establishment.
As I said last year, disruptions in the media world are moving at a fast and furious pace. Technology is playing a very big role in how content is generated and consumed. But, we are neither alarmed nor perturbed as it is all a part of the evolution process. What gives us comfort is that AI is unable to create original gossipy content. And that is the news arena where we have achieved a distinction.