L E T T E R S    T O    T H E    E D I T O R

Unforgettable Pran redefined villainy

A famous Urdu couplet “Bichuda kuch iss kadar se ke rut hee badal gayee, ik shaks sarey shehr ko viraan kar gaya” aptly describes the shocking news of death of Pran. In his illustrious career spanning six decades, he worked in 400 films. He started his career as a photographer and later became an iconic villain of Hindi films. Pran redefined villainy on screen and took it to new heights. Also, he played many character roles (in 80 films) with elan and excelled in them. Off-screen, Pran was soft-spoken and a most affable person. He had a good knowledge of Urdu poetry, “shairi” (couplets) and was a keen sports lover.

Pran was declared “villain of the millennium” by Stardust. Cine-goers will always cherish his rich haul of films and his impeccable style of acting for many years to come. As a special tribute, Doordarshan should telecast some of his hit and memorable films.

J S PURI, Chandigarh

Iconic actor

The passing away of the legendary actor Pran has caused an irreparable loss to the film industry. He will be remembered for his iconic roles as a villain and character roles. He was a great inspiration to many other old and new Bollywood actors playing a villain. He remained an integral part of the industry for about 60 years.

RANJIT K CHANDAN, Balachaur

Memorable hero

The void left by Bollywood actor Pran's death can never be filled. Born in Delhi, he will be missed by the entire Bollywood as well as his fans. His memorable performances in films like Upkaar, Victoria No.203, Zanjeer, Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai, etc will remain etched on his fans' minds. He was paid even more than most heroes of the 70s except Rajesh Khanna. He enthralled cine-goers from 1945 to 2007.

MAHESH KUMAR, New Delhi

Too painful

The death of actor Pran who played Ugranarayan in Madhumati, Raka in Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai, Gajender in Ram Aur Shyam, Dharma in Dharma, Sher Khan in Zanjeer and Mangal Chacha in Upkaar is too painful for words. A stage also came that the success or super success of a movie depended on his inclusion in the film. Thank God, at least the Dada Saheb Phalke Award was conferred on him, though it came too late in his life.

O P GARG, Patiala

Targeting Modi

The other day Finance Minister P Chidambaram called Narendra Modi “divisive”. There is hardly a single leader of the Congress who has not slammed Modi on one pretext or other. It seems that he has become a fearsome person for the Congress leaders. Or, they are getting jittery about his rising popularity among the public, especially Muslim voters and other minority communities. That is why, they find fault in Modi's every word and move. Instead of making derogatory remarks or criticising him day in day out, they should wait till the 2014 general election. And it is the public which will decide whether they like Modi or the Congress.

MULTAN SINGH PARIHAR, Hamirpur

Education in Haryana

The editorial 'Not going by the book' (July 5) has rightly pointed out that the education scenario in Haryana is dismal. The structure of education is like a pyramid, broader at the base, narrower at the top. Unfortunately, in our country, this trend is reverse.

The Haryana Chief Minister never tires of proudly claiming to make the state an education hub. However, the reality is otherwise. To quote Stephen Leacock, good buildings do not make a good school or a good college. Even the opening of several new universities in the state has failed to impart quality education to our students.

Unfortunately, the rot in our education system begins at the elementary level and poor schooling can never lead to sound higher education. Schooling is the feeding system for higher education and teachers are the most fundamental teaching aid. Consequently, the quality, training and motivation level of teachers matter a lot. The fundamental principle of economics is that when the quantity increases, the quality goes down. This is exactly what is happening to our education system.

We have reached a stagnation point and we should look around for alternatives to solve the problem we have been living with.

ANIL BHATIYA, Hisar

Nobbs' ouster

It is good to know that Indian hockey team's chief coach Michael Nobbs has been sacked. It was he who did maximum damage to Indian hockey. When he took over, the performance of the hockey team under the captaincy of Rajpal Singh was praiseworthy. Soon after joining, he sacked outstanding players, including Rajpal Singh, on the pretext of bringing discipline in the team. Under his poor guidance, India finished last in the London Olympics. We hope the new chief coach, Maharaj Krishan Kaushik, will prove to be a great help to the team players.

PRITPAL SINGH, Patiala