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Last week, as Congress leaders protested against Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s so-called “anti-Ambedkar” remark in Rajya Sabha, Rahul Gandhi joined his party MPs in a blue T-shirt, giving up his trademark white polo T-shirt. His sister Priyanka also twinned with him wearing a blue sari. Clearly the Gandhi siblings opted to go for a very visual protest against Shah’s remarks. The choice of the colour of clothes of the Leader of Opposition (LoP) — usually spotted donning plain white T-shirts raised eyebrows. The colour blue has been associated with Dalit politics since 1942, when Dr BR Ambedkar established the Scheduled Castes Federation to campaign for the rights of the Dalit community. The body adopted a blue flag featuring Ashok Chakra. The flag was later retained by the Republican Party of India (RPI), founded by Ambedkar in 1956. Over time, blue became very closely associated with Dalit identity and activism. Even political parties like the Bahujan Samaj Party and the ASP, which champions Dalit welfare, embraced blue colour in their branding. As the Gandhi siblings lead the protest, it was the choice of colour of their clothes that caught everyone’s attention!
The Winter Session which saw a two-day discussion on the 75th anniversary of the Constitution and introduction of One Nation One Election (ONOE) Bill has come to a close. It brought out sharp divisions over discussions and bills at least in two political parties — the Congress and DMK. In the Congress, if a first term MP Priyanka Vadra was seen opening the discussion on the Constitution in the Lok Sabha, for some reason senior leader and eminent lawyer P Chidambaram did not get an opportunity to have his say about the Constitution in the Rajya Sabha. In the DMK, there was a clear division of views between the DMK parliamentary party leader TR Baalu and deputy leader Kanimozhi. While Baalu endorsed the government’s offer to refer the Bill to the Joint Parliamentary Committee, Kanimozhi seemed completely surprised by his stand and insisted that her party was opposed to the Bill and demanded its withdrawal.”DMK has consistently opposed the entire Bill. We do not accept that there can be ONOE because it is against the Constitution. It is against federal rights and it is against the will of the people. People choose state governments for 5 years, I don’t think you can take that right away from the people and give it to the EC to decide how many years governments can last or not. So, this is completely against the state, against federalism” said Kanimozhi. While her stand reflects TN assembly resolution passed in February against ONOE Bill this year, the media is awash with reports about how her late father Kalaignar M Karunanidhi had highlighted the benefits of simultaneous polls in his autobiography Nenjuku Neethi. Incidentally, Karunanidhi had advanced state polls to 1971 to coincide with LS polls.
The Thursday (Dec 19) visit of BJP and Shiv Sena (Shinde) MLAs to the RSS headquarters in Nagpur has become a hot political topic though there are other reasons, too, for intense politicking. Firstly, the MLAs belonging to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) led by deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar did not join the event. Secondly, those disgruntled due to their non-inclusion in the council of ministers have started expressing their anger openly. Like earlier two occasions, Ajit Pawar and most of his followers distanced themselves from the visit organized by chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. The presence of former CM Eknath Shinde and his MLAs proved to be another highlight. However, the discontent brewing within Mahayuti on other counts is now becoming more vocal. Political heavyweight Chhagan Bhujbal was the first to articulate it. His open criticism of Ajit Pawar surprised many since he had stayed by the side of Pawar all through. Now, there are reports that some of Bhujbal’s supporters want him to join the BJP to end his political wilderness. So far, Bhujbal has maintained that he is with the NCP (Ajit). The other notable leader to become the subject of political speculation is the legislative council’s deputy chairperson Neelam Gorhe. Her detractors, mainly the recent Sena (UBT) entrant Sushama Andhare, have started hinting at Gorhe’s plans to go with the BJP. Gorhe, too, has not reacted to the talk. Ajit’s sudden disappearance for two days from the winter session only added grist to the grapevine. His explanation that he was down with a throat infection is hardly swallowed. More murmurs are expected to be heard once Fadnavis announces the allocation of the portfolios.
The Shiv Sena led by Uddhav Thackeray has started preparing for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) election, expected to take place early next year. This will be the fight for political survival for Thackeray because the Sena has been in power in India’s richest civic body since 1985. Taking stock of the situation, other political parties, too, have begun their planning. The picture this time will be fundamentally different since the BJP has emerged as the largest party in the state after the assembly election. Its estrangement with the Sena (UBT), which split in 2022 owing to Eknath Shinde’s decision to walk out of it, will be a major factor in the coming election in which the Congress will be an insignificant player, given its lacklustre performance in Mumbai and the state as a whole. Equally exasperating is the condition of the state Congress committee as its president Nana Patole is perceived as an ineffective leader by the rank and file. The BMC’s last election saw the Sena winning 84 seats in the 227-member house while the BJP had captured 82. Owing to the alliance ethics, the BJP had made no effort to bag the mayoralty of the financial capital of India. However, the BJP is not prepared to take any chance this time and a decision about its Mumbai president is likely to be taken soon. Sitting chief Ashish Shelar is among the hopefuls though his inclusion in the council of ministers could be a decisive factor in the final choice.
This was to happen one day or the other with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) putting its foot down saying it will not send its national teams to India for any signature event of the ICC, like the World Cups in the two formats in men, women and the juniors. This was the PCB’s riposte to the long-standing BCCI position — citing security concerns — that it will not send its team across the border for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and that it will play only at a neutral venue. For three World Test Championship (WTC) the two nations have taken themselves off the Future Tours Programme (FTP). The cricketers of the two countries may enjoy good relationships when they lock horns in neutral country venues and have fans across the border, but the Indian government has been steadfast in denying permission to the BCCI. The latest communication from the ICC has confirmed that in the 2024-2027 cycle all ICC events given to India and Pakistan, the matches featuring the two countries will be held at a neutral country chosen by the host country; in the Champions Trophy case the PCB is the host. What all this means is the elimination of high security arrangements that India had to do when Pakistan played last year’s World Cup matches in Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai and Kolkata. It took hard bargaining by the PCB with the ICC — with Jay Shah in Chair since December 1, 2024 — for it to agree to a hybrid model in order to ensure that it remains the host in a neutral country venue as well and where India will play and this country is said to be the United Arab Emirates.
The massive success of Pushpa 2, has reignited the debate over screen allocation in West Bengal’s single-screen theatres. While the blockbuster continues to dominate the box office, its stronghold has created challenges for four Bengali films— Khadaan, Shontaan, Chaalchitro, and 5 No. Swapnamoy Lane—which targeted Christmas Day for their releases. The overlap has sparked a heated controversy over securing adequate slots in single-screen theatres, which remain a key audience base for Bengali cinema. Single-screen theatres across Bengal are grappling with the balancing act of accommodating these films while catering to the massive demand for Pushpa 2. Tollywood’s Christmas lineup has been significantly impacted, with producer-actor Dev expressing frustration on social media. He alleged that Khadan’s shows and advance bookings were disrupted due to the overwhelming presence of Pushpa 2. Arijit Dutta, owner of Priya Theatre, reported dividing slots among the films: Khadaan (two shows), Chaalchitro (one), 5 No. Swapnamoy Lane (one), and Pushpa 2 (one). However, veteran actor Mithun Chakraborty’s Shontaan was left out entirely, sparking outrage from its director Raj Chakraborty, who criticized the lack of consistent support for Bengali cinema. A distributor, speaking anonymously, blamed the simultaneous release of multiple Bengali films during the festive season, suggesting a lack of coordination among producers. He pointed to Bollywood’s strategy of staggering releases as a model Tollywood could emulate. Star Theatre owner Joydeep Mukherjee called for better planning within the Bengali film industry to avoid internal competition. Interestingly, allegations have resurfaced about Shontaan‘s producer, pressuring hall owners to prioritize its films. This history has led some distributors to side with independent producers in the current clash.
Sunday’s swearing in of 33 (16:9:8 ratio for BJP, Shiv Sena, NCP respectively) mostly young cabinet ministers in CM Devendra Fadnavis’ 3.0 government was not followed up by expected portfolio allocations even late Thursday (Dec 19). The unrelenting clamour for one specific portfolio by a senior BJP minister-in-waiting (in apparent conflict of interest), aspiration to improve upon earlier performance in power sector by another are in the open awaiting the Maha Chanakya to coolly decide upon. Scribes housed at the state government ‘Suyog’ facility within the Family court premises near Vidhan Bhavan enjoy the Nagpur chill over familial evenings at ‘Sneh Bojans’ hosted by these as-yet ‘Anamika’ ministers. DCM Eknath Shinde’s camp brews hostility from left out veteran MLAs and cherry-picking ministers-in-waiting who threaten boiling point anytime soon. This is unlike the chill that has set upon the near deserted NCP office at Vidhan Bhavan sans activity, notwithstanding the bustling beehive of activity right outside and within the state legislature that is hosting its winter session. It is probably the first time in Maharashtra’s political history for such an ongoing legislature session without specifically assigned ministers manning questions on the floor of the state assembly and council while responding to public interest issues of state. For now, all portfolios rest with CM Fadnavis. NCP veteran Chhagan Bhujbal, Sena’s Tanaji Sawant complain vociferously from out in the cold even as some BJP MLAs rue their bad luck despite winning big in Mumbai city where the richest civic body will face the hustings very soon.
The events outside Parliament House that led to injuries to two BJP MPs was best summed up by FM Nirmala Sitharaman in her X post. She explained how “During the INDI Alliance’s protest inside Parliament premises today, Rahul Gandhi had forcefully pushed an MP, causing a domino effect that injured 2 BJP MPs –Pratap Sarangi (Balasore, Odisha) and Mukesh Rajput (Farrukhabad, UP)” Both the MPs are now hospitalised as they have sustained head injuries. Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan was surprised that the Congress had so far not even bothered to say sorry. “I was wondering what was the purpose of Kharge-Rahul Gandhi’s presser, if they can’t say sorry. Our Nagaland MP, a tribal woman leader Phangnon Konyak had voiced discomfort that was caused to her by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.” She has written a letter to the RS Chairman. Adding further he said, “We feel Rahul simply does not deserve to be the LoP. When the Opposition is holding a protest, we usually take another gate. What was the need for Rahul Gandhi to wade into the area where BJP MPs were standing? He should simply quit as LoP.” BJP MPs including Anurag Thakur and Bansuri Swaraj filed a complaint against Rahul Gandhi at the Parliament Street Police station in connection with the scuffle between Opposition and NDA MPs. It is learnt that security forces repeatedly requested the Congress MP to use an alternative path, specifically arranged for a peaceful entry into Parliament. However, Rahul Gandhi declined the request. BJP’s Thakur said “The kind of attitude Rahul Gandhi has, he thinks he is above the law.” Responding to the allegations, Rahul said BJP MPs were trying to stop him and were threatening him “
Home Minister Amit Shah whose intervention in discussions on the 75th anniversary of the Constitution sparked off a row and seemed to have majorly united the Opposition. Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge charged him of insulting Dr BR Ambedkar.. He accused his rivals of being “anti-Ambedkar” and “anti-Constitution”, and “spreading lies”. In his concluding remarks in the Rajya Sabha, Shah sarcastically said, “It has become the fashion to say ‘Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar…’ If they (the opposition) took God’s name so many times, they will get a place in heaven.” At a Press Conference, he charged the Congress of distorting his comments in the Rajya Sabha saying the Congress had put out an edited version of his speech. “I come from a party which follows the ideals of Ambedkar,” asserted Shah.” Rebuffing calls for his resignation by Kharge, Shah made it clear that he had no intention of stepping down. “Kharge is asking for my resignation. If that will make him feel happy, then I’ll give it. But the Congress has to sit in the opposition for at least 15 more years. “In an unusual move — perhaps underlining the impact of the Opposition’s attack on this issue — PM Modi and senior ministers rallied behind Shah. “If the Congress and its rotten ecosystem think malicious lies can hide their misdeeds of several years, especially their insult towards Dr Ambedkar, they are gravely mistaken!” said PM Modi. Amidst this, PM Modi and Shah met Rahul Gandhi and Kharge to appoint the next NHRC chief. TMC leader Derek O’Brien has moved a privilege notice against Shah in the Rajya Sabha for his remarks on Dr Ambedkar.
Ravichandran Ashwin was adroit in bowling the carom or knuckle ball or the doosra, but on Wednesday afternoon, Brisbane time, the nonconformist off-spinner of 13 years in the big league of the game deployed the “bombshell” to bring an end to his illustrious career. At the conclusion of the rain-marred third Test at the Gabba, the finger spinner with a few sobriquets, “scientist” being the most used among the media, Ashwin sitting beside his beleaguered captain, Rohit Sharma, matter of fact said: Today (Wednesday, December 18) was his last day as an international cricketer across formats and that he will be seen in action in club cricket, meaning IPL etc. The seasoned campaigner, starting his Test career in November 2011, was capped 106 times, and he missed 25 Tests after his debut; he featured in 61 wins, 47@home and 14 overseas. He read the writing on the wall about him losing the primacy as the No 1 spinner of the team in flannels after Washington Sundar was chosen for the first Test in Perth. Then being dropped to bring in Ravindra Jadeja for the third Test in Brisbane convinced him that his time was up…to hang up his boots. The home series against New Zealand that India lost 3-0 was a bitter pill to swallow for him. His numbers — 765 wickets in the three formats, including 537 wickets in Tests alone speaks of his right to be called a legend. It was a bold, practical call to take a bow while not in the field and that was an unhappy part that Indian cricket could not give one of its icons a fitting farewell. Ashwin has perhaps shown the way for a few more to bid adieu, sooner than later! They are over the hill, indeed.
There is happiness among the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) members with the outcome of its petition to the Supreme Court seeking amendments to six rules of the Justice Lodha Committee rewritten Constitution (Rules & Regulations and Memorandum of Association). It took the BCCI some six years to convince the Apex Court that the structure of the cooling off period was flawed (it did not say so in its petition, but simply proposed a new structure). That Senior Counsel Maninder Singh was named the Amicus Curiae helped matters. The mandatory cooling off period has now been amended twice — in 2018 by the Justice Dr Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud led bench and again on September 14, 2022 by Justices Chandrachud and Hima Kohli. The cooling off period mandated the BCCI and State’s administrators to take a three year break after a first term of three years; it was amended to two consecutive terms of three years at the BCCI and State level or a combined period of three years each at the BCCI and State. Now the cooling off period kicks in after two consecutive terms of three years each at the BCCI and State. The BCCI is okay with the cooling off period, but after six years in a row, at the BCCI and State level, separately! The 70-plus members will have to go though!
Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde, deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and Union minister Narayan Rane are planning to call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to urge him to ensure that the multi-billion dollar Vedanta-Foxconn semiconductor manufacturing project remains in Maharashtra. The heat generated by the Vedanta Group to locate the ambitious project in Gujarat has shaken all political parties in Maharashtra, given its sheer size in terms of investment and employment generation potential. While the opposition Congress, the NCP and the Shiv Sena’s Uddhav faction are blaming the present Shinde-Fadnavis government for the project’s shift, the ruling combine has decided to make efforts afresh to keep the project in the state so that it can counter the sharp criticism effectively. According to government sources, all permissions including land allotment are in place in Maharashtra while suitable land is still being searched. Moreover, the tax rebate offered by Maharashtra is better than Gujarat. Considering Maharashtra’s readiness to launch the project at a short notice, the PM will be requested to use his good offices to persuade the investors to reconsider their decision about the location. While Fadnavis is to return from his Russia visit soon, Rane called on Shinde this morning to discuss the various factors of the matter. The two leaders then contemplated visiting the PM.
Having spent a few months quietly, attending to duties in Chennai and around the state, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister roared back to form in response to Amit Shah’s comment on Hindi being a friend of all languages. “This is India, not Hindia,” Stalin said, reminding the Home Minister that Hindi is not the national language and not even the sole official language of the country. His advice to the HM was to celebrate an “Indian languages Day” and not a national Hindi Day. Shah may need no reminding that his assiduous promotion of Hindi is not going to work in Tamil Nadu, which is a kind of last bastion against the language thanks to its history of anti-Hindi sentiment. In fact, it was the anti-Hindi wave that brought the Dravidian parties to power in 1967 with CN Annadurai, the Tamil writer from Kancheepuram, becoming the first non-Congress CM of the state. Since then, no national party has posed so much as a threat to the Dravidian duopoly in 55 years. Any central agency, including the airport and its security teams, have been at the receiving end of language chauvinism opposing their use of Hindi. Of course, Amit Shah makes the point that unless local languages coexist with Hindi, India cannot run the country in its own languages.
The ruling alliance in Maharashtra between the BJP and the Shiv Sena’s Eknath Shinde faction, will face its first acid test over the Andheri assembly constituency by-election, due to be held after the monsoon. The by-poll is caused due to the death of Shiv Sena’s Ramesh Latke, who was elected twice from this western suburb constituency. He died a few months ago. His wife Rujuta is desirous of contesting. She had called on Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray last week and is reported to have received a positive signal. While chief minister Eknath Shinde is yet to make any statement about the by-election, the BJP is likely to consider the candidature of its erstwhile corporator Murjibhai Patel, who had been trounced by Latke in 2019. At that time, the constituency was allotted to the unified Sena under the BJP-Sena seat sharing pact. Still, Patel had entered the fray as an independent. He was said to have BJP’s tacit blessings. As the petitions of the two Sena factions are embroiled in legal cases, the BJP wishes to claim this prestigious seat. On the other hand, Shinde wants to record his faction’s first grand electoral victory by snatching away the seat from Uddhav. Taking any decision either way is going to prove an acid test for the ruling alliance.
For a moment it seemed the ruling CPI-M in Kerala was more worried than the BJP by the Congress’s Bharat Jodo’s prolonged tour of Kerala. First the party’s official twitter handle came with a meme against Rahul Gandhi dubbing the yatra more as a Seat Jodo yatra. The Marxists felt it was odd that the Congress leader was going to spend “18 days in Kerala but only two days in Uttar Pradesh”. It also noted that this was a strange way to “fight the BJP-RSS.” However, within a day the party changed its line at least locally. CPI-M Kerala secretary MV Govindan said his party was not against the ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ but will respond to any unfair criticism or unsavoury remarks against it. That is our stand”. Like senior CPI-M leader Thomas Issac took on Jairam Ramesh for his ‘Mundu Modi’ remark which was an apparent jibe at Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan and asked why the yatra is avoiding Gujarat and UP. Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala pointed out that the CPI-M was forced to change its line because of the overwhelming public response to Bharat Jodo Yatra. “The public response to Rahulji’s yatra in Kerala has been very positive and encouraging. This is what forced the CPI(M) to change its approach”. The yatra brought a sense of unity and purpose to the Congress in Kerala.
A squat factory building looks incongruous on the drive up the hill road from Kochi to the holiday town of Munnar. It is Eastern Spices, a company that Kerala entrepreneur ME Meeran set up half a century ago to make and market a range of condiments. His son Navas Meeran, now Chairman of the renamed Group Meeran, has just launched a new product, tea bags in three flavours under the brand Eastea. “For over a century, the packaged tea business has remained more or less static even as lifestyles and consumption patterns have changed,” says Navas Meeran. “We plan to introduce a range of packaged tea offerings in the upmarket segment including flavoured tea and teas that cater to the wellness segment, as well as a cold brew.” The new products in ginger and cardamom flavours alongside green tea and a black Assam blend, will be followed by others across different segments. Indian consumers’ online exposure has made it easier to introduce new tea offerings, unlike in the past when innovations in the consumer market in the West would take years to be introduced in the Indian market. What Meerans describe as a strategy to shake up the traditional packaged tea segment looks set to ginger up the tea market in India and the Gulf where the Group’s spices are sold. Group Meeran also markets Jackfruit365, a dietary supplement to help control diabetes.
In a major setback to senior BJP leader and former MP Dr Subramanian Swamy, the Delhi High Court asked him to vacate his government residence which was allotted to him in January 2016. Swamy was allotted the bungalow even before he was nominated to the Rajya Sabha in April 2016. The Court ordered the BJP leader to hand over the possession of his government bungalow to the estate officer within six weeks. Notably, Dr Swamy was allotted a bungalow in Delhi by the Central government for five years in January 2016 after he cited threat perception towards him. As the BJP leader’s Rajya Sabha tenure also came to an end in April 2022, he approached the Delhi HC where he sought re-allotment of the bungalow in view of the continued security threat to him. However, the Centre opposed his plea arguing that the bungalow is required to house other ministers and MPs. Swamy had merged his Janata Party with BJP ahead of the 2014 general elections. It is said former BJP president Nitin Gadkari had a role in getting him back into the BJP. The RSS had backed the idea of having Swamy on its side for his sustained campaign on pro-Hindu issues such as preserving Ram Setu. For some reason, he has become a trenchant critic of the Modi government’s policy initiatives.
As Gujarat already has a policy on semiconductor industry, the Vedanta-Foxconn combine decided to invest Rs 154,000 crore to set up a massive industrial plant in Gujarat rather than in Maharashtra as it has no such policy. However, the conglomerate’s decision has led to a free for all with every political party blaming its opponent for the loss of the huge investment and employment opportunity. There is a growing feeling in certain quarters in Maharashtra that major projects which could come to the state are going to other states due to political shenanigans. The allegation gained credence when projects like the International Finance Centre proposed in Mumbai was shifted to Gujarat, followed by the National Marine Police Academy, originally planned in Dahanu to Dwarka. Already, an atmosphere of deep suspicion is seen in the political arena of Maharashtra. Incidents like Ajit Pawar’s leaving the NCP national council meet twice without making a speech provide impetus to the rumour mongering. Members of the legislature and municipal corporations change loyalties overnight, adding to the political bitterness. The Vedanta-Foxconn episode has provided a new twist as the previous and present rulers perceive this as a golden opportunity to humble each other. The crux of the matter, that of making a policy, is overlooked in the political slugfest. The slow pace of decision-making in Maharashtra has been highlighted once again, it is felt.
Does the Indian audience have reservations when real life couples are paired on screen? Take for example Brahmastra which got a big opening but on the screen chemistry between Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt does not seem to work. Their romance seems forced as the general feeling among the audience. Interestingly, married couples have not clicked on the silver screen. It happened with Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu. After their marriage they worked together in Gopi. This movie did well, maybe it was an initial curiosity. But, it was followed by spate of flops like Bairaag Sagina, Duniya. Post that producers did not take the chance of pairing them together. Dharmendra-Hema Malini were a hit pair before the marriage but after marriage they stopped working together. In the case of Big B and Jaya it seems slightly different. Before marriage both worked together in Zanjeer, Abhimaan, Ek Nazar, Bansi Birju. After marriage it was in Silsila, Chupke Chupke, Milli, Sholay but not as the main cast. Then they stopped working together. Rishi Kapoor-Neetu Singh were a hit pair but after marrying Rishi she stopped working. Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor worked in Tashan where the romance began. After marriage they came together for Agent Vinod and Kurbaan, both bombed, post that they have decided not to work together.
Thrissur based Dhanlaxmi Bank has always been in the news for the wrong reasons — labour/union strife, mis-management and hostile takeovers. The Delhi-based diversified group, Dhanvarsha Group, has made an Rs 300 crore unsolicited bid. The group has offered Rs 11.85 per share as against the market price of Rs 12.45. The bank is not new to takeover bids. ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Axis Bank and HDFC Bank have all eyed Dhanlaxmi Bank but seem to have faltered at the altar. The first hostile bid was made during its public issue in 1996. Ind Global and the Concept group, both involved in the public issue, intended to acquire controlling stake of the bank. This failed once the media got wind of their interest. To tied-over its problems, the then promoter, R Kalyanaraman (Goodnight Mohan) brought in the Bangalore-based Raja Mohan Rao, who owned JT Mobile. Rao also entered through the back door when the bank’s 2002 public issue bombed. Rao then picked up 37 % stake for Rs 20 crore thereby making him the single largest shareholder ever. By then the RBI changed the rules of the game. No private entity could hold more than 40% in a bank and the voting right for each individual/company was restricted to 10% only. The bank, started in 1927, has Kerala’s two top businessmen, Yusuf Ali (4.9 %) and Ravi Pillai (4.4%) as shareholders.
DMk’s grand old man and Tamil Nadu’s water resources minister Durai Murugan had an embarrassing moment in his own constituency Katpadi, Vellore. At the government-run girl’s high school, the 84-year old Murugan was the chief guest to give away bicycles free to local girls when within a span of one hour there were two power cuts. The minister was powerless and speechless. With no light in sight, he walked out in a huff. Immediately, two assistant engineers of TANGEDCO were shunted out to an obscure gulag presumably to show that the TNEB means business. When the minister landed at the next venue, the organisers ensured there were generators to ensure the programme went off smoothly. Incidentally, the problems faced by the minister are what Tamil Nadu voters are facing for months together now. Ever since the new government headed by MK Stalin came to power the state has been witnessing frequent power cuts. So much so, most high rises that are proliferating at a profligate pace have generators as part of the deal. Along with frequent power cuts the Chennaites also face bad roads. Practically every road in the city has been dug up. What Tamil Nadu voters are expecting from the government is basic necessities like power, water, navigable roads etc. Is this too much to ask?
Is the DMK government in Tamil Nadu planning to get into the low cost airline business? When many governments world over including private enterprises have pulled out of this business, this plan is hotly debated as kamikaze. How did this idea take wings? Apparently, TRB Raja, chief of DMK’s IT Wing tweeted that an airline named after the Dravidian Icon, Periyar (EV Ramaswamy Naicker) would soar high. He punned on the name Periyar and came up with Peri Air (not to be confused with global brand Perrier bottled water). Chief Minister MK Stalin, anchored in intense Dravidian ideology, is rumoured to have latched onto the airline enterprise with gusto. Raja buttressed his idea with a hard core business plan. As expected, the BJP and other parties are coming down heavily on this yet to be ratified venture as TN’s debt burden is a staggering Rs 650,000 crore. There is talk about cousin Marans encouragement. It may be recalled that Marans had sold their majority stake in SpiceJet to Ajay Singh. DMK may have inhouse expertise in Maran but headwinds or tailwinds running an airline is a risky business. Stalin’s government should focus on education, healthcare, unemployment and infrastructure issues not get into airline business.
While Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Bharat Jodo’ yatra is just taking off, the BJP has appointed campaign chiefs and co-chiefs in 15 states, with leaders from Maharashtra being entrusted with major responsibilities. According to an official announcement from the BJP headquarters, former Union minister Prakash Javadekar will be in-charge for Kerala. The state that has been on the BJP radar for many years. An accomplished organization veteran, Javadekar will face a formidable challenge, it is felt. BJP general secretary Vinod Tawde will begin mobilizing support in Bihar, the state that was under a coalition of the JD(U) and BJP till recently. Known for his strategy skills, Tawde will be assisted by party MP Harish Dwivedi. Former minister Pankaja Munde has been appointed co-chief for Madhya Pradesh, a state under prolonged BJP rule with a brief interruption. Another senior BJP leader, Vijaya Rahatkar, is made co-chief for Rajasthan. She was chairperson of the women’s commission in Maharashtra. Javadekar was regarded highly by the media as an ace spokesman when the BJP was out of power. A find of Pramod Mahajan, he has handled various portfolios at the Centre. Javadekar was dropped in the latest cabinet reshuffle. He has maintained a stoic silence since. Pankaja had been expressing her dissatisfaction time and again. The new responsibility is expected to keep her busy and away from Maharashtra.
While all of India is understandably going ga-ga over another desi rising to the top of a global company, the people of Pune have particular reason to celebrate: Laxman Narasimhan, the new CEO designate of the U.S. headquartered Starbucks Corporation is an old Puneri. Narasimhan, now based in London, will join Starbucks on October 1, 2022 after relocating to the Seattle area and will work closely with Howard Schultz, interim CEO, before assuming the CEO role and joining the Board of the world’s largest chain of coffeehouses and roastery reserves on April 1, 2023. The first outsider to be tapped to lead the company, he was born in the city of the Peshwas, where he finished his studies and graduated from the COEP (College of Engineering Pune). Twitteratis are asking whether Narasimhan’s ascension will bring a new culture into Starbucks: the midday break. “Starbucks ek te char band rahil” is the most commonly tweeted quip, reflecting the Pune tradition of all shops being closed from 1 pm to 4 pm. Legend has it that the staff of a leading saree shop have asked customers to leave in the middle of making large purchases for weddings. “Come back at 4,” they were told. The rumour got so persistent that another user tweeted that Starbucks had clarified that this would not happen at their stores in the city.
If in Dubai the cricketing faithful must visit Shyam Bhatia”s Cricket Museum. Dubai along with the Emirates of Abu Dhabi and Sharjah is becoming a favourite neutral venue for tournaments like the ICC Men’s World Twenty 20 held here last year and the recent DP World Asia Cup Twenty20 tournament. But the Emirate is also famous for the cricket museum that Bhatia, now 80, has put in place in his Villa. Bhatia’s family relocated to Ajmer in Rajasthan after partition, and it did not take much time for the young Bhatia to develop interest in the game. He played for Rajasthan and Saurashtra. He was transferred to Dubai by the New India Assurance Company in 1965, but he set up his own business in 1979 in building materials. He could not be far away from the thick of action in cricket though and he chose to found a magnificent Cricket Museum that many of the top cricketers have appreciated, including the legendary Sunil Gavaskar. Bhatia has an affinity for Test cricket and all his memorabilia collection and own creative ideas reflect this facet in his museum in Jumeirah. He met Gavaskar in 1971 when he was having dinner with Salim Durani and Ajit Wadekar at the Taj, Mumbai and since then they have been thick friends.
With the public issue of one of the oldest private sector banks in the country oversubscribed, Tamilnad Mercantile Bank (TMB) is set for an historic moment on September 15 as its shares get listed. TMB is, perhaps, among the last of the community-led private banks in the country to get listed. Indeed, TMB has come a long way since the quarrelling Nadar community members sold over 65% stake to the Ruias of the Essar Group in mid-90s. In the face of a strident RBI, the Ruias were forced to palm off TMB shares to serial entrepreneur C Sivasankaran in exchange of cellular licence for the Delhi circle. But Sivasankaran had to face hostility from the Nadar community and had to give in because it became a political issue with warring parties jostled among themselves to woo Nadar community, which is a crucial component of electoral politics in Tamil Nadu. Nearly 33% were bought back by the community members after a deal brokered by the then deputy prime minister LK Advani. After several twists and turns the TMB is on the cusp of making history. That could herald a new beginning for the over century-year-old private sector bank. Even post the public issue, the Nadar community will have controlling stake in the bank – though a distributed manner among members.
Time was when industry wage settlements were watched with quite an expectation from stakeholders across the canvass. Much water has flowed under the bridge since then. The economic context may have transformed significantly post the liberalisation. But this industry has been a role model in putting in place a consensual wage ecosystem. The cement industry has seen eight such settlements in the past. A little trip down memory lane will reveal how N Srinivasan, MD & Vice-Chairman of The India Cements Ltd, has been a fulcrum in hammering out an amicable wage accord. The industry is due for a fresh wage arrangement following the expiry of the accord in April this year. Indeed, the talks were held for two days some time ago in Chennai. But the discussions remained inconclusive. This time around, the unions – six in all – are insisting that the issue of temporary workers be resolved first before deliberating on a fresh wage pact. Only 18% of the workforce in the cement industry is permanent employees. The rest are temporary workers. Given this, the unions are worried over this increasing trend in the industry. Similar pay for similar jobs is what the unions are demanding now irrespective of the permanent or temporary tag attached to a workman. Rising cost pressures and demand instability are giving a new dimension to the IR (industrial relation) scene in the cement industry, it appears.
Frosty ties between the Telangana Governor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan and Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) government led by K Chandrasekhar Rao came to the fore with the Governor bitterly recalling how she was not allowed to hoist flag on the 75th Independence Day and earlier at the Republic Day. “The state will write history about how a woman Governor was discriminated against… Even now wherever I go protocol isn’t followed,” she said at a public function on completing three years in office. KCR’s daughter and TRS MLC K Kavitha charged the governor of turning her office into a “political stage” to “defame” the Telangana government adding that “BJP-driven smear campaigns” would not cut any ice with the people. Initially, KCR had kept the Governor in good humour and maintained a good relationship with the Centre. This equation turned adversarial after BJP’s steady gains in Telangana post 2019. Kavitha lost her Nizamabad Lok Sabha seat to the BJP. A year later in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) polls, the BJP emerged as the second-largest player on a turf where it was considered a negligible force. Out of 150-seats, BJP won 48, TRS 55 and AIMIM 44. With just 17 Lok Sabha seats, KCR knows Telangana may not count for much. That’s perhaps why he decided to team up with Nitish Kumar to raise opposition bulwark against the BJP.
For the first time ever, streaming usage has claimed the largest share of Television viewing in the U.S. According to Gauge, Nielsen’s monthly total TV and streaming snapshot, streaming notched up 34.8 % of total TV viewing while cable and broadcast came in at 34.4% and 21.6% respectively. Streaming usage increased 3.2 % in July compared to June 2022. Time spent streaming in July averaged nearly 191 billion minutes per week and each of the five measurement weeks in July 2022 now account for five of the six highest volume streaming weeks on record. Streaming majors, Prime Video, Netflix HULU and YouTube each captured record-high shares again in July after doing so in June. Netflix got the largest share of overall TV viewing with 8 % boosted by the nearly 18 billion viewing minutes of Strange Times alone. Both Cable and Broadcast are losing out for want of new content. Both have lost mainly their sports viewers which has moved to streaming with the major OTT players lapping the digital rights. The same trend is repeating in India and the proof of that is aggressive bidding for sports properties by broadcast and cable players. Reliance Viacom18 walked away with the digital rights for the next four years of IPL paying Rs 237.58 billion. Disney Star paid Rs 235.75 billion for broadcast rights. Clearly, the future is streaming.
A Congress post featuring a burning pair of Khaki shorts in an apparent dig at the RSS, triggered a war of words in the backdrop of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra. In its tweet, Congress wrote “To free the country from shackles of hate and undo the damage done by BJP-RSS. Step-by-step, we will reach our goal.” The image of the burning Khaki shorts was captioned: “145 days more to go.” The tweet did not name the RSS though it clearly pointed at the organisation’s trademark Khaki shorts. Incidentally, the RSS had given up its Khaki shorts for trousers in 2016. The Congress tweet evoked strong BJP and RSS reactions. While the BJP demanded that the tweet be taken down as it was a signal to violence against its workers in Kerala where they were subjected to violence. “They want to connect people to hatred. They’ve harboured hatred for us for a long time now. Their father and grandfather tried to stop the RSS but the RSS did not stop and kept growing as we continued to get support from people,” said Dr Manmohan Vaidya, an RSS leader. Bangalore South MP Tejasvi Surya said the tweet was typical of the Congress “ecosystem of violence”. BJP spokesperson Dr Sambit Patra described Rahul’s Bharat Jodo Yatra as Bharat Todo aur Aag Lago Yatra.
The one thing that Rahul Gandhi is unlikely to suffer from on his long walk is lack of fitness. He has serious claims to being the fittest politician among the lot who are prominent on the national scene. Apart from being a Black Belt in karate, Rahul is also credited with deep sea diving feats that might surprise the U.S. Marines who pride themselves on their fitness and endurance feats. Rahul is credited with being able to free-dive to depths that the fittest Marines would not find easy to match. So, Rahul’s endurance will probably not be on test so much in the course of his planned 3,570-km walk in about 150 days. The first complaint to be registered as the Bharat Jodo Yatra began was from his security detail who found it difficult to keep pace with his strong gait. It wasn’t so much the speed as the difficulty faced in being able to track any threats from different directions as Rahul raced on his feet on the first day. His feedback team seems to have done a good job as the problem was taken back to the former Congress President who immediately course-corrected by walking much slower from Day 2.
This month end New York-based Michelin Star celebrity Chef “Amritsar ka puttar” Vikas Khanna will visit his mother in Punjab and join his co-producer, business partner and friend Jitendra Mishra, President-Elect of CIFEJ (International Centre of Films for Children & Young People, UNESCO ) to restart shooting their film that has already been approved by the NFDC. This movie earlier titled The Home of the Rain Catcher produced by Mishra, Vikas’ mother Bindu Khanna and Poonam Kaul under the banner House of Omkar was on the list of 14 projects selected for the Co-Production Market Film Bazaar in 2019 by NFDC. But, the project had to be put on hold due to Covid-19 pandemic. Now, with fear of Covid-19 behind us, it’s business as usual. So, both Vikas and Jitendra are busy finalising the cast and script for the movie. Both friends came together for The Last Colour starring Neena Gupta. It was Vikas Khanna’s directorial debut while Mishra was the producer.The film which is streaming on Amazon Video made it to the final list of Oscar 2020 Eligibility for Best Film. In all, the two friends have produced one feature film, one feature documentary, three short films. Mishra’s company Cinema 4Good has produced, distributed and promoted more than 110 films.
Independent MP Navneet Rana now finds herself at the receiving end as the families of police personnel in Amaravati, Maharashtra, have demanded action against her in connection with Rana’s behaviour in a local police station over an alleged Love Jihad case. The anger against Rana turned into a barrage as the girl concerned in the so-called Love Jihad matter told the police that she was not abducted, but had gone away herself. The girl has charged that Rana has defamed her by making various statements about her absence from Amaravati. Spouses of the police personnel in Amaravati have said action must be initiated against Rana since she stormed into the police station, accompanied by a BJP functionary, argued with the police officials and generally created ruckus for over 20 minutes. “This behaviour of Rana amounts to creating obstructions in performing lawful duty by a public servant,” a policeman’s wife said. The tables turned against Rana as soon as the girl was traced and explained to the police that she had gone away on her own accord and that none had forced her. Rana has been in the news ever since she challenged then Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, daring to arrest her over reciting Hanuman Chalisa outside his residence, Matoshri. Her arrest had created a wave of protest against him.
The 8th All-India Convention of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) will be held in New Delhi on Sunday (Sep 11) with the BJP as the main target. Party founder-president Sharad Pawar is expected to give a call for opposition unity, whose one-point agenda will be to dethrone Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Pawar has been meeting top opposition leaders in a bid to convince them to keep aside their regional priorities and join forces to contain the BJP’s campaign to win more states, especially West Bengal and Telangana. Similarly, the Gujarat assembly election next year will also figure in Pawar’s plans. The developments in Maharashtra in recent times have pushed the Congress and the NCP in a corner since the Shiv Sena faction under Uddhav Thackeray has kept its cards close to its chest about any possible tie-up for the coming civic elections. In turn, the Congress and the Uddhav faction are wary of the NCP since their own MLAs have complained that during the Maha Vikas Aghadi tripartite regime, the NCP grabbed the largest share of government funding, depriving the two partners of developmental expenditure. Besides external issues, the Congress is shaken by its internal dissensions. As the NCP has only token presence in parliament, Pawar is trying to bring it back in the national mainstream. He will spell out his plan of action on Sunday, his supporters say.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi created a flutter on Day Two of his Bharat Jodo Yatra when he suggested that he could possibly return as Congress party president. At the same time, he added, “I have decided what I have to do. There is no confusion”. Suggesting that everyone must wait till September 30 when nominations open for president’s post, Rahul said the matter of him becoming party president will be clearer when elections happen. What added to the buzz was the news of the party general secretary Mukul Wasnik being relieved of his Madhya Pradesh responsibilities. His was one of the names doing rounds for the party’s president post. Meanwhile, Rahul was responding to questions from local media in Pulliyakuruchi in Tamil Nadu that wanted to know why he was not accepting party responsibility but instead had embarked on a yatra to unite India. Fobbing off more prying questions, the Congress leader offered to even learn Tamil. He made it clear that he was only participating in the padyatra. “I am not leading this padyatra. You like to focus on me, that is a different issue.” Meanwhile, the BJP and Congress slugged it out in the social media over the high priced Burberry T-shirt that Rahul wore during the yatra launch. The Congress was also trolled for 60 luxury containers that were being used as transport vehicles for Bharat Jodo.
All is not well with the West Bengal BJP unit ever since Trinamool Congress came to power with a thumping majority for the third term. The divide in the state saffron unit was clear since Balurghat MP Sukanta Majumder became the state president replacing Dilip Ghosh. Ghosh, a diehard RSS man, was the state president between 2015 and 2020 and under him BJP won 18 Lok Sabha seats. Recently, Ghosh criticized the CBI stating that it has “done some setting in Bengal”, putting the BJP leadership in a spot. His criticism can be attributed to the RSS’s cold war with the BJP. This is reflected as a direct attack on PM Narendra Modi. Moreover, it is not the first time Ghosh has defied the gag order from the central leadership. Earlier in June, in an email communique, the former Bengal president was asked to refrain from making comments against his party colleagues. Even the party president JP Nadda spoke to him on this issue. However, repeated defiance by Ghosh makes a section in the BJP believe that he enjoys sanction from “powerful authorities”. It is learnt that RSS has a game plan to add around 700 more shakhas to its existing network of 1,900 shakhas in West Bengal by 2024. This syncs well with Ghosh’s defiance.
The Twenty20 World Cup is upon the strong contenders, challengers and the no-hopers, and all are getting ready for the big bash in Australia. India, was the winner of the inaugural event in South Africa in 2007 under the first time captaincy of Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Thereafter India lost to Sri Lanka in the 2014 final and to the West Indies in the 2016 semi-final. In the last year’s competition in the UAE India was given knock out blows by Pakistan and New Zealand. India will always be regarded as a strong contender because of the talent it showcases in major ICC events. But it needs to troubleshoot specific areas of the game in order to get its act going for Australia. The Asia Cup Twenty20 has exposed weaknesses. The issues on the face of it surrounds team selection. If Dinesh Karthik is considered a finisher, he should have been fielded in all matches to get him game time. He did not play against Hong Kong, and Pakistan/ Sri Lanka in the Super 4 stage. Sharma said that the team was able to get some answers from players – on their ability to execute roles — in the last few months. Virat Kohli had a good run, closing out with a first international Twenty20 century. But there are question marks against the team that is considered a strong contender.
Mumbai Bomb Blasts case accused Yakub Memon has generated a furore in Maharashtra politics seven years after he was hanged as the ruling and opposition parties have indulged in a blame game over the beautification of the 1993 blasts convict’s grave in south Mumbai. Police and civic authorities removed the marble slabs and decorative lighting as soon as the news was flashed, but not before the political storm had started sweeping the state. The revelation that terrorist Yakub’s grave in Bada Kabrastan at Marine Lines in Mumbai was beautified with white marble and decorated with LED lights dismayed the state. Within minutes, the ruling BJP came down heavily against the Shiv Sena led by Uddhav Thackeray. BJP leaders lamented that the Uddhav government could go to this extent in its appeasement bid. Even as the onslaught continued, Congress and NCP leaders accused the BJP of diverting the public attention from the burning issues of the day. Opposition leader Ajit Pawar said, “Numerous farmers are facing hardships throughout the state, but the BJP is engaged in a political blame game, ignoring their plight completely.” Expectedly, a thorough enquiry has been ordered to find out how the beautification was permitted and took place. Yakub’s brother, Tiger Memon, is among the main accused led by Dawood Ibrahim, absconding since 1993.
Looks like both BJP and Congress have not been able to stomach this achievement of the Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. On September 4, Patnaik was conferred the Lifetime Achievement award by the Delhi-based Capital Foundation in recognition of his distinctive and outstanding leadership. The award was presented by former Chief Justice of India NV Ramana in New Delhi. On his return, a crowd of 50,000 people thronged at Bhubaneswar airport to receive Patnaik and accompany him all the way to his residence, blowing conch shells, choking the lanes and bylanes. So instead of congratulating him both the parties started firing salvos using social media platforms. BJP called upon the Odisha Governor Prof Ganesh Lal to highlight the state’s law and order problems. BJP said “Women and children are not safe in Odisha.” Odisha Congress said “The award is an ordinary one. CM Naveen is doing a drama. People in 2024 will give a befitting reply.” Reacting to BJP and Congress outbursts, BJD MP Sasmit Patra said “I will not politicise the matter. This award has been rightfully won by CM Naveen Patnaik giving the state 25 years of hard work”. Odisha State Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Pramilla Mallick dismissed it as “BJP’s stunt. They are just trying to prove their presence by doing such politics”.
Of late, RN Ravi, the TN Governor is busy taking a crash course in spoken Tamil. He is now being tutored intensely to deliver speeches in Tamil. Why? Apparently, the Modi government is peeved that none of the people-friendly schemes that are initiated by the Centre have been conveyed effectively to the TN voters by the local BJP leaders. Recall the effort finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman put in while in Telangana about the PDS subsidies and how she ticked off the Collector in chaste Telugu. Similarly, home minister Amit Shah and other senior BJP leaders are intensely involved in spreading the pro people programmes of the Centre in the non-BJP states. TN Governor to his credit gives a decent discourse on “Sanathana Dharma“, a talent run-of-the -mill governors don’t possess. Once he masters colloquial Tamil he will perhaps use various fora to expound the generosity of the Centre to TN people. In that publicised meeting in the Raj Bhavan with superstar Rajinikanth, the Governor spoke in moving terms about his liking and admiration for the people of TN, in stark contrast to the prickly apprehension of the Tamilians about the imposition of Hindi. His tutors are sure going the whole hog to make him fluent in Tamil. Looks like BJP wants to take no chance in the run-up to 2024 Lok Sabha poll as its avowed mission is: “Telangana first, TN next”.
A day ahead of unveiling its Central Vista project, the Modi Government shed one more colonial baggage by renaming Rajpath as Kartavya Path. Known as Kingsway in honour of King George V, the arterial road connecting Rashtrapathi Bhavan and India Gate was built in 1911. The name change was formalized at a special session of the New Delhi Municipal Council on September 7 and it came a day ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurating the entire stretch that has been renovated under the ambitious Central Vista redevelopment project. The renaming is in keeping with PM’s Independence Day speech this year when he called for abolishing symbols that reflect the colonial mindset. In this renaming there is also a message to the ruling class “that the era of rulers and subjects is over”. Modi has been working on changing the landscape of Lutyens’ Delhi ever since his first 2014 mandate. In 2015, Aurangzeb Road was renamed APJ Abdul Kalam Road. In 2017, Dalhousie Road was renamed Dara Shikoh Road. Also, Teen Murti Chowk was changed to Teen Murti Haifa Chowk in 2018. The revamped Central Vista Avenue along the Rajpath will have state-wise food stalls, red granite walkways with greenery all around, vending zones, parking lots and round-the-clock security. The moot point is with the kartavya path will Modi change rules of engagement with the Lutyens?
This is an unusual story of an Indian promoter selling his company to a MNC and buying back the same company from another MNC. In 1997, on the eve of ABS Industries’ Silver Jubilee, promoter Rakesh Agrawal sold his stake to Bayer AG which rechristened it as Bayer ABS Ltd. Now, in 2022, on the eve of the same company’s Golden Jubilee, Agrawal has bought back the same company now known as INEOS Styrolution India Limited (ISIL), controlled by a MNC — INEOS Styrolution — by paying Rs 645 crore for 61.19% stake. The parent company INEOS Styrolution, a global leader in styrenics, recently announced that it had entered into an agreement for the sale of its entire shareholding in ISIL to Shiva Performance Materials (SPM) – part of the Vadodara-based Shiva Group. Incidentally, the promoter-chairman of Shiva Group is Rakesh Agrawal. But, what’s surprising is MNC selling its stake to the original promoter at less than one-third the peak price? How did MNC agree for a price of Rs 600 for a stock which was quoting above that price for the last 20 months? Since the current market price of the stock is hovering above Rs 900, no retail investor is expected to tender their shares. Hence, the open offer has become meaningless. Clearly, this below-the-market-price transaction has hit the small investor’s hard and the deal warrants market regulators’ attention. By arrangement with https://investlive.net/.
Cuttputtli’s release on OTT was actually a face saving for Akshay Kumar who has had series of flops like Laxxmi, Bell Bottom, Bachchan Pandey, Samrat Prithviraj Chauhan and Raksha Bandhan. Each of those films that bombed had a budget of around Rs 100 crore. Personally, it was no loss for Akshay as he charges fees and not percentage of profits as is the practice with some big stars. Trade experts feel that seasoned producer Vashu Bhagnani’s decision to release Cuttputtli on OTT was indeed a smart move. So is OTT a safe platform? Not really. Even Akshay, at the announcement of Cuttputtli‘s OTT streaming, said that this platform too needs audience approval. And he was bang on. There is a mixed reaction to the film on the OTT platform although the decision to go straight to OTT is economically safe for the makers. According to trade circles, the loser in this streaming deal of Akshay film is the OTT because a sub-standard film has been sold to them with makers and actors insulating themselves. Akshay Kumar has six to seven films in the pipeline and hopes he has realized that Ab thukpatti ka kaam nahi chalega. Trade experts have been saying that the 55-year old actor needs to carefully choose his subject and get into the skin of his character.
If Amethi constituency was the focus of BJP’s 2019 Lok Sabha election campaign, the spotlight for the next LS election will be Baramati, the traditional stronghold of Sharad Pawar and family. “We will wrest Baramati from the Pawar clan,” declared Maharashtra BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule after visiting the prestigious constituency in Pune district. He said Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has been entrusted with the responsibility and she will start touring the area soon to devise strategy to trounce sitting MP Supriya Sule, lone child of Pawar. Bawankule landed in Baramati immediately after Union home minister Amit Shah had addressed top BJP leaders in Mumbai on September 4 on how to plan for the coming elections in Mumbai and Maharashtra. Supriya will have to face a situation similar to what Rahul Gandhi had to encounter in Amethi. While Rahul lost very badly to Smriti Irani, taking on Supriya will be a formidable challenge for the BJP as the constituency has remained loyal to the Pawar family for decades. Pawar’s nephew Ajit has been elected to the legislative assembly from Baramati. The BJP’s strategy is to confine Pawar to Baramati so that he would hardly find time to campaign elsewhere in the state. Bawankule said, “We will win 200 out of 288 assembly seats and 45 out of 48 LS seats in 2024 in the state.”
The Indianisation of Rahul Gandhi begins on Wednesday (Sep 7). The real test for him as he takes up a padayatra in the fashion of many in India, from Mahatma Gandhi downwards, is whether he can sustain a 150-day walk covering 3,570 kms. The padayatra is his biggest attempt to revive a sinking party as he hits the ground that he has rarely done as a politician more prone to taking foreign breaks periodically. He is to begin this campaign with a visit to his father’s memorial in Sriperumbudur on September 7 morning and then to the starting point of the padayatra where Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin will give him a national flag to carry on his march. The walk is loaded with symbolism and if Rahul is serious enough in walking from one end of India to the other, he stands some chance of washing off the image of a person born with a silver spoon in a political dynasty. While he is still inclined not to worry about who becomes the Congress President, he will assume the mantle of campaign leader for the 2024 elections. If he can simply double the Congress 2019 tally of 52, he would be giving his party and the combined opposition half a chance to down the BJP. But first, he would have to be seen walking like an Indian on home soil.
As Rahul Gandhi embarks on his ambitious 3,570 km Bharat Jodo Yatra by foot from Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu on September 7, the Congress touted it as a campaign to connect the party with people. AICC media in charge Jairam Ramesh described it as “a mass mobilisation campaign”. Unveiling theme song of the yatra of “Ek tera kadam, ek mera kadam, mil jaye, jud jaye, apna watan” Jairam admitted that the Congress had never attempted such a yatra though there have been smaller yatras by Congress leaders. He referred to Digvijaya Singh’s 3,000 km Narmada yatra as a “spiritual yatra, not a political yatra”. Incidentally, it was Digivijay who was incharge of putting together the Bharat Jodo Yatra. Jairam pointed out that Rahul’s yatra was the first political yatra in Indian political history.”Chandra Shekharji did a Bharat Jodo Yatra in 1983, but it was an individual yatra, this is the first time a political party has launched such a massive Bharat Yatra on foot. There will be 118 people accompanying Rahul completing this entire length”. Though the yatra is to last for 150 days, Rahul will be available for campaign in poll-bound states. 27% of the 118 volunteers are women, age-wise those selected to walk the entire 3,570 km stretch across 12 states are mostly in their late 30s. Rahul and AICC spokesperson Pawan Khera are in their early 50s.
The arrival of Virat Kohli for the customary press conference after the loss against Pakistan in the Super 4 match of the Asia Cup Twenty20 created a terrific buzz. India had sent its vice-captain KL Rahul, Captain Rohit Sharma before the first match against Pakistan, and thereafter Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ravindra Jadeja and Head Coach Rahul Dravid on two match days and one before the last Sunday’s (Sep 4) match against the arch rival Pakistan. But Kohli was seen as sort of a maverick, especially when he was at the helm of Indian cricket until last October with Ravi Shastri as Head Coach. That view may not have changed yet after Rohit Sharma was made captain. Kohli was business like responding to questions from the Indian and Pakistani media. But his answer to a question that only Mahendra Singh Dhoni touched base and sympathized with him when a lot more had his mobile number (in the months he had ceased to be India captain and not getting the big scores and generally going through a rough patch) has made his own well-wishers wonder if the former India captain was grousing about some cricketers not calling him up during his difficult times. Some of them who have played with him are: Virendra Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Ishant Sharma, Yuvraj Singh and the legend Sachin Tendulkar.
The EdTech industry which was booming during the Covid-19 pandemic as parents and students preferred online classes, is now battling for its very own survival. Some are laying off employees, opening offline centres, offering discounts and restructuring their businesses. Byju’s has laid off 500 employees and Vedanta 425. Unacademy has stopped offering complimentary snacks and meals across offices. The economic slowdown is also leading to funding problems. Byju’s which announced raising $ 800 million in March 2022, is yet to receive $ 250 million from two of its investors. Abu Dhabi’s Sovereign Wealth Fund and Qatar Investment Authority are willing to invest but at 40-50% discount. A PwC India report says that funding for EdTech companies has declined 50% in the second quarter of 2022. The funding is now phase-based which is target and revenue driven. The downhill run started once kids started going to school and parents not renewing EdTech services. This has prompted Byju’s, Unacademy, Vendantu, Physicswallah, Eruditus, Lead etc to open offline tuition centres to attract students. The problem was that the industry focused only on growth and not stability, says an industry expert. The EdTech companies have now realised that 360 degree attention is required. The sector needs to communicate clearly so as to ensure students are not misled. More transparency and clarity are required on courses and cost factors.
The country’s fastest growing business house of the day, Ahmedabad-based Adani Group, is reportedly entering into the cement business by acquiring two major companies of the Indian cement industry from world’s second largest cement producer, Holcim of Switzerland. The deal is worth more than Rs 50,181 crore. Strangely, none of the India-based Adani Group companies is involved in the acquisition process. Interestingly, the net worth of the so called acquirer of the two large Indian cement conglomerates at the end of fiscal 2022 was less than Rs 20 lakh! To acquire Ambuja Cements Ltd (ACL) and ACC Ltd (ACCL), Adanis have adopted a complex route. The main face of the group, Gautam Adani, does not come into the picture. The takeover process is executed via elder sibling, Vinod Adani, a citizen of Cyprus, a resident of Dubai and Singapore and a director of dozens of companies & trusts spread across many tax havens like Mauritius and British Virgin Islands (BVI). The acquirer of ACL/ACCL is the Mauritius-registered Endeavour Trade and Investment Ltd which is 100% owned by another Mauritius-based company, Xcent Trade and Investment Ltd, which is again 100% owned by Acropolis Trade and Investment Ltd which too is a Mauritius incorporated company. Acropolis Trade is held 100% by Adani Global Investment DMCC, a UAE incorporated company. Adani Global is held 100% by AR Global Holding Ltd, a BVI incorporated company. AR Global is held 100% by another BVI incorporated company Amulya Resources Holding Ltd which is held 100% by Amulya Resources Family Trust, a BVI incorporated trust. By arrangement with https://investlive.net/.
“Punish Uddhav Thackeray for his betrayal by winning at least 150 seats in the coming BMC election,” Union home minister Amit Shah has exhorted BJP workers during his two-day visit to the financial capital. He has assured all the support to Mumbai BJP from the party headquarters for capturing the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. Shah told BJP workers on Monday that Uddhav had betrayed the BJP twice. In 2014, the Shiv Sena broke the alliance for a frivolous reason. In 2019, Uddhav joined hands with the Congress and the NCP. “This treachery can’t be tolerated. Teach him a lesson he will never forget. Oust the Uddhav Sena from the BMC and reestablish the Hindutva imprint in Mumbai,“ Shah said. Taking Uddhav to task for the rampant corruption in the BMC, Shah said it was time to make a change. To bring it about, every worker, office bearer, corporator, MLA and MP will have to take to the streets and mobilise the public opinion, Shah declared. The BMC has 227 electoral wards, which were earlier restructured by the Uddhav government in a bid to increase their number to 236 and to make them easier for the then ruling coalition. However, chief minister Eknath Shinde’s government has restored the earlier status. The BJP’s strategy planning will accommodate the Shinde faction, too, according to party insiders.
Contrary to media reports about Amitabh Bachchan predicting that Ranbir Kapoor-Alia Bhatt starrer Brahmastra would bomb at the box office those close to the project have maintained it is otherwise. It is learnt that the senior actor gave his suggestions and director Ayan Mukerji took Big B’s feedback seriously and reshot a few scenes. Reportedly, advance collections in Jaipur, Indore, and Patna circuits have been good. According to insiders, Bachchan is one of those actors who prefers to be on the set even if his shot is not happening at that particular time. In the case of younger lots they are ensconced in their vanity van and enter the set only when “their shot is ready”. Big B, while waiting on the set, is known to give constructive suggestions and at times even gives cues to his co-stars if he is not in the frame. Aryan cleared the air while on an informal chat with the media that Amitji would be the first person to take his position during the shot and hang around the camera giving cues. It may be recalled that Amitabh had differences with Farhan Akhtar and Tinnu Anand while working for their films which was eventually sorted out. One of the reasons for stories doing rounds about the failure of Brahmastra could be Amitabh’s absence from its promotion.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s address at the “Halla Bol rally” against price rise on September 4 turned out to be a damp squib. Partymen found the speech tad boring as it dwelled more on Rahul’s insecurities. Like his troubles with the ED over doubtful transactions in the National Herald case involving Rs 5,000 crore scam. Instead of focusing on issues of people, Rahul talked about how he had been grilled by the ED for 55 hours. The big takeaway from the rally was that for the first time differences between Rahul and his sister Priyanka came out in the open. It was unimaginable that Priyanka skipped the rally, though some of her cut-outs were spotted at the venue. Amidst speculations whether Priyanka had returned to Delhi or not, there was a buzz how the sulking sibling had decided to finally speak her mind. It is being said in the midst of ongoing party polls, Priyanka who is in-charge of UP is keen to take over as Congress President. Both Rahul and Sonia want Priyanka to keep away. They are backing Ashok Gehlot as Congress President. Priyanka is being backed by leaders from south states that will go to assembly polls. Some of her backers like Acharya Pramod Kishan have openly batted for Priyanka as the only Congress leader who is capable of taking on PM Modi in 2024.
An eternal optimist, BJP never gives up. Odisha is the state they have been trying to make inroads for quite some time now. But to no avail because of Biju Janata Dal supremo Naveen Patnaik’s strong performance. Recently, the home minister Amit Shah visited Odisha and proclaimed to win 2024 Assembly elections in Odisha even though BJP has been decimated continuously by BJD in panchayat, corporations and assembly elections. But, they don’t give up. They keep rejigging their strategy in the hope it will rule Odisha one day. Recently, BJP recast its party leadership by appointing Sunil Bansal as its key election strategist for Odisha hoping he would replicate UP magic. It also appointed controversial firebrand BJP MLA Jayanarayan Mishra as leader of opposition (LoP) in the Assembly. Jayanarayan considers himself as BJP’s “hanuman” who is determined to lead BJP into power by exposing BJD’s misdeeds. When asked how they were hoping to defeat the BJD supremo who won election five times, a confident four-time MLA Jayanarayan says “Naveen’s style is bound to fail someday.” Political observers say, BJP is daydreaming to form the government in Odisha in 2024 given the fact Naveen babu has proved his mettle of having transformed the state and personally he is not corrupt. So why would people of Odisha vote against him? Makes sense!
The Congress party in Maharashtra seems caught in a trap of its own making as the party’s two former chief ministers and seven MLAs are under fire for different reasons, all certain to weaken the party further. The ‘coincidental’ meeting between former CM Ashok Chavan and Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis a couple of days ago has caused acute embarrassment in the Congress camp. Chavan was missing at the time of Eknath Shinde government’s trial of strength on the floor of the legislative assembly. His absence at some other critical junctures is now remembered. Another Congress veteran, Prithviraj Chavan, has been facing flak since he called on Ghulam Nabi Azad after the latter left the Grand Old Party. A member of the G-23 Group, Prithviraj had advised the party leadership to pay attention to the issues raised by Azad. Following this, demands are being made to initiate disciplinary action against him. The unrest within the state Congress unit has resurfaced since the seven party MLAs who cross-voted during the recent legislative council election have been identified. It was owing to their breach of party diktat that the BJP was able to win one more seat in the upper house beyond its quota. The MLAs could take a drastic step fearing party reprisals, some leaders have warned.
She has the potential of becoming the next Tabu of Bollywood. Thirty-six year old Huma Qureshi who has been winning hearts for her performance in Maharani 2 has been choosy about her roles ever since she entered Bollywood in 2012. Reportedly, during the shoot for a Samsung mobile commercial, producer-director Anurag Kashyap noticed her acting ability and signed her for Gangs of Wasseypur. Her performance got noticed, earning her several nominations and films. She is not the conventional kind of actress who tried to sing and dance but chose cinema that suited her career. Her boldness to do things that is required for the role made her Huma Qureshi. She got appreciated in the role in Badlapur opposite Nawazuddin Siddiqui. Maharani in a way has become a game changer for this Delhi born and educated actress. She recently told India Today that “Maharani has unlocked a part of me that is unafraid and I want to explore more “. Of course like all Bollywood stars she too has had her share of controversy when her name was linked with Salman Khan’s youngest brother Sohail. Currently, Huma Qureshi has two projects Double XXL directed by her friend Mudassar Aziz which deals with body shaming. She plays a girl from Meerut. She will be also seen playing the role of Tarla Dalal, well known food writer, in a web series.
The world of internet dating comes a long way. News, improved systems, plus the advent of AI will transform the way in which people https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/platonic meet. Getting to know a potential partner will be a more personalized, online experience.
In 2023, it will be easier than ever before to meet and talk to a potential partner. Online dating applications will use artificial intelligence (AI) to supply customised answers and to determine fake single profiles.
The latest dating apps happen to be investing in voice capabilities and video conversation features. More singles will be turning to technology to lower the tension of going out with.
A study by Lovehoney found that 40% of singles employed sex toys more often during the outbreak. This demonstrates the elevating awareness of self-pleasuring options.
It also shows that individuals have an improved comprehension of toxic masculinity. Three away of four males said they have a better understanding of the term.
A further online dating trend in 2023 is the fact people are looking for a little amazing advantages. The survey identified that 34% of you would be ready to try a non-alcoholic date. Despite the living costs economic crisis, more than half of the surveyed continue to would be willing to take a trip out of town for a primary date.
Dating in 2023 is often more about currently being yourself with out inhibitions. One of the better things about online dating sites is that this allows you to meet and measure the possible passé before you truly meet.
Some of the new dating trends in 2023 are not every that not the same as those in 2018. Amongst the most notable are a target in work/life equilibrium, dating outside of your muscular body, georgian women and the advent of AJE and virtual reality.
Union home minister Amit Shah’s much awaited Mumbai visit will be marked with his directions to the BJP machinery on how to fight the coming election to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), likely to take place later this year. After arriving in Mumbai on Sunday night (Sep 4), Shah will begin his itinerary Monday morning (Sep 5) with darshan of Lalbaugcha Raja, his longtime practice but interrupted due to Covid for two years. Shah will also take darshan of the Lord at the residences of deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, chief minister Eknath Shinde and Mumbai BJP president Ashish Shelar. During the day, he will be confabulating with his party leaders about the strategy to be adopted for the crucial election. The principal object of the BJP is to dethrone the Shiv Sena under Uddhav Thackeray, which has been in power in the BMC since 1985. The Shinde-Fadnavis duo is tightening the screws against Uddhav by trying to isolate his faction. So far, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray has responded enthusiastically to the saffron overtures. Raj is expected to go an extra mile to form an electoral arrangement with the duo to minimize the chances of the Uddhav faction. The Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party don’t have any strong presence in the BMC. Accordingly, they are yet to open their cards.
There have been more twists and turns than in an India-Pakistan cricket match in the legal battle for the AIADMK party control. Now, after a division bench of the Madras High Court gave its verdict, Edappadi K Palaniswami is restored as the (interim) General Secretary of the party. The legality of the July 11 meeting that EPS had convened and in which he became the party supremo has been restored. There are still many “overs” to be played in this match as the matter is certain to go to the Supreme Court. But, given the speed at which the top court disposes of cases, it can be safely assumed that EPS will be heading the party for a while from here. The division-bench shot down most of the assumptions in a single judge order that had taken the status quo to before the first meeting held on June 23 in which the question of who will head the party if its cadre wishes to have a single leader surfaced. EPS had proved that he had the majority of the party behind him then. The idea of a unified party with EPS, OPS, V Sasikala and her nephew TTV Dhinakaran, appears even more unattainable now after the one-man commission to probe Jayalalithaa’s death recommended that Sasikala be investigated for her role in the time that treatment was being given to the former CM in the Apollo Hospital.
Suryakumar Yadav, aka by his popular moniker “SKY’’ is gaining reputation as a crack Twenty20 batsman. With every bright knock in the course of his 25 appearances for India since he made his debut against England at Ahmedabad in March 2021, the Mumbai right-hander has turned out to be a disruptor of rivals’ attacks and scored at rattling pace. He is the highest run getter for India in the shortest form of the game ever since he sported the men in blues colours for the first time. His swashbuckling 68 off 28 balls with half a dozen 4s and 6s each against Hong Kong in the Asia Cup Twenty20 match at the Dubai International Stadium evoked commendation from one of the greatest competitors in cricket and former India captain, Virat Kohli, who saw Yadav from close quarters lash four 6s of fast bowler Arshad Haroon in the last over of the India innings against Hong Kong. Yadav’s grand knock against an Associate Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) took him past Rohit Sharma’s 747 runs (figures after Yadav’s debut). Yadav has made 758 runs off 427 balls at a scoring rate of 10.65 with one century and six half centuries. With his brilliant knocks, Yadav appears to have made the number 4 spot his own for the World Twenty20 in Australia.
The tag of Slumbai for India’s financial capital seems difficult to shrug off as slums continue to occupy over 8000 acres of the city. While responding to questions raised at the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly recently, deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis informed that 8333 acres of Mumbai was occupied by slums. This included 3620 acres of private land, 2140 acres of state government’s land, 856 acres of land belonging to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), 272 acres of land belonging to the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) and about 673 acres of Union government land. With the BJP, back in the saddle in Maharashtra, Fadnavis has promised to help get Centre’s clearances to rehabilitate the slum dwellers. About 48.35% of Mumbaikars continue to live in slums occupying 24% of the total Mumbai’s habitable area of 34,000 acres, according to the Slum Redevelopment Authority, which was set up in 1995 and tasked with making Mumbai slum-free. Far from wiping slums off Mumbai, the SRA scheme led to the slummification of Mumbai thanks to its builder-centric approach of bundling and warehousing people into 25-30 storied, highly congested buildings (6500 people per hectare in 1300 tenements) without proper amenities like open space, light, air and privacy say claim urban planners like PK Das.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar has every intention of uniting the non-BJP opposition though he is not prepared to become India’s Prime Minister. Pawar told the media that given his age, he was not ready to accept any governmental position now. “Morarji Desai became PM at the age of 82. I don’t want to emulate his example,” Pawar said in reply to questions. However, he asserted that he would continue to highlight people’s grievances, in the state and at the Centre. Pawar launched a broadside against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He charged that Modi had not fulfilled any of his promises. In such a situation, it was necessary that all forces opposed to the BJP should come together to present a united front for the coming elections. “My effort will remain in this direction,” the 82-year-old said. Pawar has been combing Maharashtra in a bid to mobilise public opinion against the change of power ever since the Maha Vikas Aghadi formed under his stewardship collapsed due to the rebellion of present chief minister Eknath Shinde. As a first step, his effort is to make all three MVA partners contest the coming civic elections in the state jointly. So far, the response of the Congress and the Shiv Sena under Uddhav Thackeray has remained tepid. But Pawar is going ahead with his efforts.
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.