Amitabh Bachchan

THIS refers to the interview of Amitabh Bachchan by Ashwini Bhatnagar.

The interview was successful in bringing out Amitabh’s entire personality as well as the secrets behind his success.

Amitabh came across as a committed actor, a devoted son, loving husband, and a caring and concerned father. He expects nothing in particular from life and is not after success. This is, perhaps, the secret of his success. That he is humble is quite evident from his conduct on KBC. He makes contestant comfortable and they feel at ease in his company.

His life is a perfect example of putting into practice the principles of happy life, that is commitment, hardwork and patience.

B.M. PURI
Solan

I agree with Amitabh that acting is a profession of observation. The same is the case with writers and painters. Like an actor, a writer observes characters and brings them alive through words. This is not a deliberate attempt on the part of a creative person but comes naturally. As Amitabh says, we never know whether an actor’s reactions are real or whether he is merely acting. So when actor-turned politicians make promises to their voters, we do not know whether to take them seriously or not.

ONKAR CHOPRA
Ludhiana

The mega-interview of the mega star was gripping and interesting. It held one’s attention from the beginning to the end. The interviewer has done well to recount anecdotes from the actor’s life which have not been brought out in earlier interviews.

G.K. SHARMA
Dubai

In the article ‘An Astral encounter’ (June 30), Khushwant Singh describe Vedantic astrology as unscientific hocus-pocus. However, the importance of Vendantic astrology, which has been in practice since times immemorial, cannot be overlooked. Good astrologers are rarely found and many only take advantage of people’s superstitious beliefs. But it is not proper to blame Vedantic astrology for this.

So some astrologers are able to tell the past and present events accurately but their calculations for the future are mere guess work.

NIRMAL SINGH
Patiala

To call astrology a science is inaccurate as only whose principles and theories that can be proved empirically can be considered sciences. So it will not be justified to include astrology in the realm of science.

JASPAL SINGH
Yamunanagar

This refers to Khushwant Singh’s write-up "Footloose with Ghalib" (June 23).

Ghalib was not only a peerless poet, but also a vigorous literary critic, a distinguished writer and a lively conversationalist.

He prided himself so much on his Persian poetry that he never praised the verses of any other Indian poet except those of Amir Khusrau. It is, however, his Urdu poetry, which has immortalised him. He not only gave a new direction to Urdu ghazal, but also expanded its limits.

He had a keen sense of self-respect and dignity. He spurned the post of a Persian teacher in the Delhi College, as the secretary of the British government did not come forward to receive him on the day of interview.

Ghalib was plain-spoken. On being asked by Colonel Browne about his religion, he frankly called himself a half-Muslim on the ground that he took wine and avoided pork. In fact, he was a free thinker and did not strictly adhere to religious discipline. Yet he was held in high esteem by Islamic scholars.

He said that his verses would have wide-spread fame after his death. There is no doubt that lovers of poetry read and hear his verses with keen relish even after about 130 years of his death.

BHAGWAN SINGH
Qadian