Gunning for fresh talent in Chandigarh

GUESS what the mystery man in the yellow suit is doing? He was recently on the streets of Chandigarh — gunning for fresh talent. He had one whale of a time in the city where he visited favourite haunts of the young people looking everywhere for that right face, right expression and, most importantly, the right chatter.

So, will a Chandigarh guy or a gal be the next MTV VJ? All that you get for an answer is a mysterious smile. But the stunning Malaika who tagged along with him is totally bowled over by the City Beautiful. It’s another matter that the young guys in Chandigarh were instantly stumped by the Chhaniyya chhaniyya girl!

Stories for summer

With summer vacations round the corner it’s again time for children on DD television, specially on Doordarshan would soon be airina a host of children-oriented serials, many of them are without much imagination and poor production values.

But the one serial which is bound to stand out is Ek Aur Kahani which brings to young viewers some fascinating short stories week after week. Directed by Syed Zakir, each episode will have a different story to tell. In some stories children will be taken to outer space, while in others they will be told the history of Chambal and the dreaded dacoits who have emerged from this region.

Most of the shooting has been done in Mukteshwar near Nainital with a cast which includes Macmohan, Aadil Khan and Aruna Bali, besides others. An interesting serial which acquaints children with various aspects of Indian culture through gripping stories.

Kiron in Badiuli

Life’s surely a stage for Kiron Kher. After a successful stint as a talk show hostess on the small screen, the lady will be gracing the silver screen once again with a dramatic role in Rituparno Ghosh’s new Bengali Film Badiuli.

The story has been scripted by Ritu himself. Badiuli, meaning landlady in Bengali, is a study of the lonely life of a single women staying in a magnificent house near Calcutta. A film crew hires out her house for shooting and persuades the lady to do a small role. That changes her life forever.

More of the same stuff

For years the national network has had a penchant for long running mushy soaps which get so wound up that in the end they tend to become tedious and uninspiring.

Sanskar appears to be a serial in that category. It is the story (Yawn) of relationships, feelings and emotions of people living together in a joint family. It is about coping with each other and making an effort at team work in the household.

It’s about a father-in-law who gets his widowed daughter-in-law married. The story of a platonic relationship between a sister-in-law and her brother-in-law. In short it is a mish-mash of everything which tear-jerking films are all about.

What message Sanskar hopes to give its viewers is unclear. But what is clear is that it would have a tough time competing with a plethora of similar serials on various other channels.

Voices from beyond

From little green men to E.T. aliens have long captured. If not the planet then at least the popular imagination. But what do we really know about extraterrestrial life? Alien Invasion Week on Discovery Channel takes extra-terrestrials in for a landing with a week of science and speculation from May 9 to 15.

The programmes will ask pertinent questions like: Are we alone in the universe? Can we make first contact or have aliens beaten us to the punch? If we did make contact, how would we communicate? Are there real-life flying saucers? How do we know what — or whom — to trust? And how would extra-terrestrial life affect us here on earth?

Each programme offers an unique perspective on the subject. Astronauts, astronomers, scientists, soldiers, UFO-logists and ordinary earthlings make the case for life beyond our atmosphere. "Abductees" describe late-nights kidnappings by aliens who conduct strange experiments in spacecrafts labs and psychologists attempt to find alternate explanations.

From scientific discussions to the far-out imaginings of feature film special effects creators. This special week of programming gives viewers an excellent glimpse of aliens from all angles.

Fearless voice silenced

From Majorca to Malaysia, Cuba to California, Jill Dando led her team of regular presenters around the globe. She was one of the BBCs most popular, versatile and most widely-travelled presenters. She presented the global programme Holiday and was also the celebrated hostess of Crimewatch the monthly series of BBCwhich spawned a number of clones including Suhaib Ilyasi’s India’s Most Wanted

Such was the committment of Dando to bring criminals to book that she often risked her life stalking dangerous killers.

But on April 25, the goons finally got to her and the 37-year-old Jill Dando was shot dead in broad daylight in one of the most sensational murders in England in recent years.

In view of the tragic murder of Jill, one off BBC’s best known faces, the withdrawal of security to Suhaib Ilyasi is fraught with dangers and his protests seem more than justified.

— Mukesh Khosla