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Govt will not tolerate efforts to disturb communal harmony:PM
New Delhi, Dec 31 (PTI) Amid attacks on churches in Orissa, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said the government will not tolerate any effort to disturb communal harmony or secular fabric of the country.
Singh sought to assure Gladys Staines, whose husband Christian missionary Graham Staines was killed in Orissa, that the government was taking all steps to ensure the restoration of normalcy and to bring about harmony and peace in affected areas.
"I assure you that the Government of India will take necessary steps to safeguard the fundamental rights and liberties of all sections of our society and protect their religious freedoms as enshrined in the Constitution," Singh said in a letter to Gladys Staines.
"Please be assured that we will not tolerate any efforts aimed at disturbing the communal harmony or secular fabric of our country," he said.
Singh said the government will take all necessary steps to protect all citizens irrespective of community or caste in accordance with the law of the land, Prime Minister's Media Advisor Sanjaya Baru said in a statement here.
The Prime Minister said he had spoken to Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and reviewed the situation in the wake of communal violence in Kandhamal district around Christmas. PTI
No proposal to raise Central Govt staff retirement age to 62
New Delhi, Dec 31 (PTI) There is no proposal to raise the retirement age of Central Government employees from 60 to 62.
This was clarified today by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), Ministry of Personnel.
The clarification came in the wake of reports appearing in some sections of the media regarding raising the retirement age of Central Government employees.
"In order to put at rest all such speculations, it is clarified that there is no such proposal before the Governemnt," the DoPT said in a statement. PTI
Centre should discuss sovereignty: ULFA
Guwahati, Dec 31 (PTI) The banned ULFA today charged the Centre with trying to gain political mileage over the peace talks issue and insisted that a written assurance should be given to discuss sovereignty to revive the peace process.
ULFA's self styled Commander-in-Chief Paresh Baruah in an e-mail to the media alleged that the Centre was trying to gain "political mileage" and attempting to finish the outfit in the name of the peace process.
Stating that the ULFA was ready for the peace process to be revived, Baruah said the release of five top jailed ULFA leaders was not the only precondition set by the outfit for talks.
The first precondition was that the issue of sovereignty should be included in the agenda for talks besides the other conditions that the Centre should divulge the whereabouts of "missing" leaders after the Bhutan operation and release other central leaders, he said.
He alleged that its top five leaders in Guwahati jail, whose release had been sought, were languishing "without being involved in any crime". PTI
FM upbeat on economy but has concerns on food front
By V S Chandrasekar
New Delhi, Dec 31 (PTI) Looking back at 2007 with satisfaction, Finance Minister P Chidambaram today predicted a nine per cent growth of the Indian economy in the current fiscal and dismissed fears that a global depression may affect India.
In a review of the country's economic performance during the year coming to a close, he told PTI in an interview that the challenges in the new year were the external financial sector and the food front domestically.
"It has been a good year for the economy despite uncertainty in the external world and some internal difficulties, especially on the food front. The year will return a rate of growth of 9 per cent," Chidambaram said.
In the last four years of the UPA government, the economy has clocked an average 8.6 per cent growth and maintained that a five-year average of 8.6 per cent "is by all means an impressive record".
However, the Finance Minister emphasised that he was not not minimising the challenges ahead.
"The external sector remains uncertain. In fact, the uncertainty may have deepened in the last few months because of unravelling crisis in several segments of the financial sector.
"Domestically on the food front we keep our fingers crossed on rice procurement, wheat production and procurement. If all these turn out to be favourable then I think the pressures will ease. There is no no question of relaxing the vigil on the food front because food is the most important driver of prices in India," he said. PTI
BJP in poll mode; asks EC to review poll stations, voters list
New Delhi, Dec 31 (PTI) Hoping for early polls to the Lok Sabha in 2008, the BJP today asked the Election Commission to undertake a review of polling stations across the country and preparation of voters list.
The main Opposition party also wants the Election Commission to expedite issuing of voter identity cards and a revision of voters list in the first three months of the new year.
"At least 25 per cent of the polling stations are far off and voters find it difficult to reach. We want the Election Commission to undertake a comprehensive nation-wide review of the location of polling stations," senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said.
Naqvi, alongwith JD(U) leader Sharad Yadav, was talking to reporters after a meeting with the Election Commission.
He said the delegation urged the poll body to launch a large-scale campaign in the first three months of 2008 to review location of polling stations, revise voter rolls and to complete the process of issuing of voter cards.
The leaders also asked the Election Commission to think about setting up mobile polling booths in case it was finding it difficult to relocate existing polling stations, Naqvi said.
The BJP general secretary asked the government to clear confusion on the delimitation exercise immediately.
The saffron party is hoping for an early fall of the Congress-led government because of differences between the UPA and the supporting Left parties on the controversial Indo-US nuclear deal. PTI
Sharif demands resignation of Mush, renews call for natl govt
Lahore, Dec 31 (PTI) Blaming President Pervez Musharraf for running down the country, former Pakistan premier Nawaz Sharif today demanded his resignation and renewed call for the formation of a government of national consensus to ensure free and fair general elections on January eight as scheduled.
Musharraf is the root cause of all problems in Pakistan and the country would be "doomed" if he did not step down, Sharif said.
Sharif, who said his PML-N party had reversed its decision to boycott the upcoming general election as a mark of solidarity for assassinated premier Benazir Bhutto, reiterated that he would not work with Musharraf in any future government.
"Free and fair elections cannot be held under Musharraf," he told a news conference here. "We will contest the elections despite reservations (about rigging)." Asked if he would consider working with Musharraf if the PML-N came to power, Sharif shot back: "This is the man guilty of abrogating and subverting the constitution and the law of land, this is the man guilty of unconstitutionally removing the judiciary from the Supreme Court and the High Court.
"You want me to work with such a man? I think the nation needs to get rid of this man, I think I would be antagonising the people if I were to work with this man." The PML-N, he said, had three demands -- Musharraf should quit, a government of national consensus should be formed and free and fair polls should be held.
Sharif also vowed to work for reinstating the judges of the superior judiciary who were sacked for not endorsing the emergency imposed by Musharraf last month.
Accusing the President of trying to delay the polls, he said the PML-N wants the election to be held on January 8. PTI
Pak poll panel to decide tomorrow on fate of polls
Rezaul H Laskar
Islamabad, Dec 31 (PTI) Pakistan's Election Commission will decide tomorrow whether the general election will be held as scheduled on Jan 8 after assessing the impact of violent protests that rocked the country following the assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto on poll preparations.
An emergency meeting of the poll panel chaired today by Chief Election Commissioner Qazi Muhammad Farooq sought reports from poll officials in the four provinces about the impact of the protests on election arrangements.
The provincial officials were directed to submit their reports by this evening and another meeting of the Election Commission to be held tomorrow will decide whether the parliamentary polls should be held on schedule, officials said.
Political parties are expected to decide their future strategy once the Election Commission announces its decision.
Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party yesterday said it favoured the holding of polls on January 8 while the PML-Q, which backs President Pervez Musharraf, indicated that it wanted a brief postponement.
Reports have suggested that the poll panel might defer the polls till the end of February or the first week of March in view of a 40-day period of mourning announced by the PPP for Bhutto and the Islamic month of Moharram.
In a statement issued on December 29, the Election Commission had said that pre-poll arrangements, including the printing of ballot papers and training of poll personnel, had been "adversely affected" by the protests against Bhutto's assassination. PTI
Maoist ministers take oath in Nepal
Kathmandu, Dec 31 (PTI) Four Maoist ministers in Nepal were sworn in today, ending a political deadlock that began when the former rebels walked out of the interim government on September 18.
Prime Minister Girja Prasad Koirala administered the oath of office and secrecy to the Maoist ministers at Singha Durbar in the capital.
The four Maoist ministers who rejoined the cabinet yesterday were sworn in but the Minister for Forest and Soil Conservation Matrika Yadav did not take the oath as he was out of the country.
The Prime Minister administered the oath to Krishna Bahadur Mahara as Minister for Information and Communications, Dev Gurung as Minister for Local Development, Hisila Yami as Minister for Physical Planning and Works and Soil Conservation and Pampha Bhusal as the Minister for Women, Children and Social Welfare. Gyanendra Bahadur Karki was also sworn in as cabinet minister.
The Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (CPN-Maoist) and the major parties last week voted for a parliamentary resolution that seeks to abolish the monarchy immediately after April 2008 Constituent Assembly polls.
"Now we will all concentrate on the election," the Prime Minister told mediapersons after the ceremony.
"Our main agenda now will be to make sure elections are held on time," Maoists' deputy leader Baburam Bhattarai said after the function.
The CPN-Maoist had earlier agreed to join the government and vowed to participate in elections after a deal signed between the ruling alliance and the former rebels to declare Nepal a republic through constitutional amendment and to increase the number of seats for proportional voting system for the key assembly polls next year. PTI
Start playing together: Amritraj to Lee-Hesh
Chennai, Dec 31 (PTI) Former Davis Cup captain Vijay Amritraj today suggested that Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes should start playing together to be well prepared before the Beijing Olympics.
"They have been the best in the world at one point of time. They have been there, done that. But yes, you do not want to be rusty when you get there (Olympics). So it will be nice if they play a few tournaments together," he said.
Amritraj feels that India stands a good chance to win a medal in men's doubles.
"With Lee-Hesh (Leander-Mahesh) in doubles...We have a very good chance of a medal there.
"Sania (Mirza), if she get a little break in the draw, you do occasionally need a little bit of luck like that...If she gets a little break in the draw...You can find yourself suddenly in the semi-finals." The former player looked disappointed at Paes and Bhupathi's decision to skip the Chennai Open.
"When you have a major event in the country, every Indian should look at it as an opportunity to represent the country. This is like the Davis Cup. When you play for the country, there is absolutely no substitute," he said.
Amritraj was also pleased at increasing popularity of the game and growing opportunities in the country.
"We have a lot more kids playing the game, more sponsors, more coaches who go abroad. Now there are 52 international tournaments happening in the country, which gives our players more opportunity to play on local surfaces against international players," he said. PTI
Lee warns Indians worse is to follow
Sydney, Dec 31 (PTI) Australian pace spearhead Brett Lee today warned it may get worse for Indian batsmen in the remaining matches of the series with pitches being more helpful for fast bowlers.
After struggling on a subcontinental-type slow and low wicket in Melbourne, the visitors might find the Sydney track more difficult to bat on, Lee said.
"Sydney is going to have a bit more (life) in it, especially for the quicks," Lee told 'Herald Sun'.
"And then we have got Perth...Who knows what might happen over there.
"We were bowling on a pretty benign wicket in Melbourne, very low and slow and that doesn't really suit the quicks. But I thought we did a great job on that wicket. The ball ended up looking like a dog had a good go at it. Up here (in Sydney) should suit fast bowling a lot more." Lee said after the disciplined performance in the first Test, which the hosts won by a whopping margin of 337 runs, they needed to stick to their plans to maintain their stranglehold in the second match.
"We have to stay really focused and keep going through and executing the plans we have been focusing on," he said. More
India hopes Ganguly will be fit for second match
Sydney, Dec 31 (PTI) The Indian team management is hopeful in-form Sourav Ganguly, who is down with fever, will recover in time to play the second Test against Australia starting in Sydney on Wednesday.
Ganguly was one of the few batsmen to make decent contributions in both innings of the first Test, which the Aussies won by the huge margin of 337 runs.
The left-hander made 43 and 40 in the Boxing Day Test and provided some resistance to the rampaging Australian attack.
However, during the second innings, the sweltering heat of Melbourne took its toll on Ganguly, who was attended to by team physio John Gloster.
More than his scores, Ganguly's form must have encouraged the Indian think-tank which would be looking to bounce back after the debacle in Melbourne.
The visiting team is hopeful Ganguly would recover from his illness in time.
"He should be fit in time for the second Test," M V Sridhar, the assistant manager of the touring party, said.
Ganguly has been in good nick since his return to Test cricket a year ago. His form peaked during the home series against Pakistan when the Bengal batsman scored two centuries in the last two matches, including his maiden double hundred in Bangalore. PTI
India should open with Dravid, Sehwag: Steve Waugh
Sydney, Dec 31 (PTI) Rahul Dravid's poor show in Melbourne notwithstanding, India should open with the right-hander and send Virender Sehwag as his partner in the second Test, suggested former Australia captain Steve Waugh.
Waugh said Dravid should not be written off after just two failures and he would prove a perfect foil for Sehwag who could play his natural aggressive game.
"I would keep Dravid as an opener but I would bring in Sehwag to open the batting with him. If Sehwag comes in and plays his shots, his natural way will take pressure off Dravid who can work his way back into a bit of form," said Waugh.
"Every player is entitled to struggle once or twice in his career. He probably hasn't timed his poor form well but I certainly wouldn't write him off," he reasoned.
An admirer of the former India skipper, Waugh said he was baffled to see him relinquish captaincy after the UK tour.
"I was quite surprised when he did so because I knew he really valued and cherished that role. There may be one or two issues going on behind the scenes that people don't know about.
"I think he needs to just enjoy his cricket. He didn't really look like he enjoyed it. He has to take in the attitude that he doesn't have anything to prove to anyone. He has done everything you could possibly do in cricket, just go in with a clean slate and enjoy yourself," he said. PTI
Sensex gains 47 pc, total m-cap doubles in 2007
Mumbai, Dec 31 (PTI) Stock market touched stratospheric heights in 2007 as investors remained bullish on the rapidly expanding Indian economy and corporate earnings, pushing the Sensex 47 per cent in its sixth successive year of gains and doubling the value of all companies listed on the bourses.
Record foreign inflows in the wake of a turmoil in some developed markets, coupled with the buoyant Indian economy and moderate inflation drove a sharp rally across the market, barring select auto and software scrips. Market capitalisation of all listed companies zoomed to almost Rs 71,70,000 crore from around Rs 35,00,000 crore at the beginning of this year.
The benchmark index, Sensex, gained 47.1 per cent or 6,500 points during the year to end at 20,286.99 points today. The Sensex ended at 20,286.99, a gain of 80.04 points or 0.40 per cent over Friday's close. National Stock Exchange Nifty advanced by 58.90 points or 0.97 per cent to 6,138.60 points.
During the year, Information Technology sector, once the darling of investors, was the only one to see its index declining during the year as these companies battled the rise of rupee against the dollar.
Automobile index also remained flat as people deferred purchased of cars and bikes after interest rates hardened. On the contrary, metals, engineering and energy stocks were the biggest gainers with their indices more than doubling in 2007.
Real estate, banks and public sector scrips also saw a surge in the range of 60-80 per cent, while modest gains were witnessed in FMCG, pharma and health care companies. PTI
Gold rallies to all-time high in 2007
Mumbai, Dec 31 (PTI) Gold continued to glitter on the bullion during 2007 and touched the all-time high of Rs 10,715 per 10 gram towards the end of the year.
Standard gold (99.5 purity) rose by Rs 1,545 per 10 gram to Rs 10,715 against the last year-end's level of Rs 9,170, showing a rise of 16.85 per cent.
Pure gold (99.9 purity) also spurted by Rs 1,550 per 10 gram to Rs 10,765 from Rs 9,215 previously, disclosing a gain of 16.82 per cent.
Silver, on the other hand, has been more or less steady on uneven demand and supply transactions. Silver (.999 fineness) eased by Rs 80 per kilo to Rs 19,455 from Rs 19,535 last year.
Analysts said the precious metal rose on account of a slew of factors such as geopolitical turmoil, weakness in dollar against world's major currencies and high crude prices.
Gold prices rallied to an all-time high of Rs 10,715 per 10 gram on December 28, following a sharp rise in global markets.
Housing data, which weakened the dollar, supported gold futures in New York on December 28 as oil prices rose and participants entered into fresh long positions, market watchers said.
February gold settled at USD 842.70 an ounce on the Comex division of New York market.
Assassination of former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto made the geo-political situation tense, giving another reason for rise in rates. Gold is considered a safe bet during the times of crises, said a market analyst.
The situation in Pakistan led to safe-haven buying in gold and boosted the metal prices, he added. PTI
Uncertainty looms large over 7 SEZs cleared for Goa
New Delhi, Dec 31 (PTI) As uncertainty looms large over the fate of SEZs in Goa, the Centre will have to go by the advice of the state where large-scale political opposition has built up against these tax free zones, an official said.
Seven special economic zones in Goa, including those by Rahejas and Meditab Specialities, face uncertainty despite being cleared by the Centre due to agitation in the tourism and mineral state.
"The Board of Approval in the Commerce Ministry will have to take a view after hearing from the state," the official said.
While the state would announce the final decision on SEZs after the New Year celebrations, the task force headed by Chief Minister Digambar Kamat has already recommended scrapping of the SEZs in Goa. The task force termed SEZs as detrimental to the overall interest of the state.
Goa is facing anti-SEZ movement initiated by the BJP and later joined by the Congress, NCP and the Catholic Church.
The official said it would be wrong to compare the Goa agitation with protests in Nandigram. "Goa has limited land and the issue is specific to the state," he said.
The Centre has granted formal approval to seven SEZs, of which three have been notified. The SEZs in the state include a 123 hectare pharma zone by Meditab Specialities, 105 hectare service SEZ by K Raheja Corporation and a 48 hectare biotech zone by Inox Mercantile. PTI
Dalal Street sees fastest Sensex rally since 2003
Mumbai, Dec 31 (PTI) The stock market recorded its second-fastest rally in five years as its benchmark Sensex ended the year today with a gain of 47.1 per cent in 2007.
In absolute terms, surge of 6,500 points in 2007 is the highest ever in the over two decades of history of Sensex. But when it comes to percentage gain, the highest was recorded in 2003, when the barometer index rose by 73 per cent.
The Sensex stood at 13,786.91 points at the end of 2006 and closed the year 2007 at 20,286.99 points today. It crossed seven thousand-point milestones -- from 14,000 to 20,000 marks -- during the year, which is the maximum for a year.
The surge of 47.1 per cent in 2007 is higher than 46.7 per cent gain in 2006, when the Sensex had gained 4,388 points. Prior to that, the Sensex had risen 42.3 per cent in 2005 and 13.1 per cent in 2004. In absolute terms, the Sensex had surged by about 2,800 points and 765 points in 2005 and 2004 respectively. In 2003, when the Sensex soared by 73 per cent, it had gained just 2,461 points in absolute terms.
Earlier in 2002, the Sensex had risen just 3.5 per cent, while it had seen losses of 18 per cent and 21 per cent in 2001 and 2000 respectively.
The market capitalisation of all listed companies rose by more than Rs 35,00,000 crore to settle at Rs 71,69,983.31 crore at the end of 2007. The 30 blue-chip companies in the Sensex saw their market value soaring to Rs 28,61,341 crore at the end of the year. PTI
Leading record cos lose suit against Chinese search engine
Beijing, Dec 31 (PTI) A group of seven top international record companies have lost their lawsuit against one of China's leading Internet search engine, for alleged illegal downloading and sharing of their music.
The companies, including EMI, Sony BMG, Warner Music and Universal Music, had demanded from Baidu.Com, compensation of USD 226,000, suspension of its download service and a public apology.
The companies had accused Baidu.Com of engaging in illegal downloading and playing 137 pieces of music owned by them without their permission.
In the final ruling yesterday, the People's High Court of Beijing said Baidu's service does not constitute an infringement, official Xinhua news agency said.
Beijing's First Intermediate Court had ruled in November last that Baidu's service, which provides web links to the music, does not constitute an infringement as all the music is downloaded from web servers of third parties.
The companies had appealed against the ruling in the higher court.
Baidu argued that the MP3 search engine it provided was the same as other search engines providing links to web pages, news and pictures.
Baidu said it searched all music file formats through the Internet, such as ".Mp3" or ".Wav", making no distinction between copyrighted and pirated songs. PTI
Lucky charms, still popular
Ashwini Kumar Shrivastava New Delhi, Dec 31 (PTI) Does wearing yellow-color shirt bring 'good luck' to you? Or a day without food wins you a job? If you are among those who feels that wearing, keeping, following or even seeing something gets 'good luck' or in a way 'heals you' then you probably suffer from a psychological phenomenon called magical healing - fast gripping gen-next, say expert. But then you are not alone.
No matter how modern and advanced we become, some taboos still define our ways of living. And, magical healing is among one of those, they say.
"I would really experience bad events, if I start the day without worshiping. Offering prayers to god has been a part of my daily schedule for years now," says Yashdeep Rai Saxena, executive with HDFC bank, who spends 30-45 minutes a day performing 'puja'.
"My daughter always wears blue-colour dress which she feels lucky and avoid wearing red-colour outfits fearing that she would have to listen bad news," says Monika Lalchandani.
"I couldn't stand nor justify her belief. She has been told-off by her bosses, friends and colleagues many times for always being in blue," she adds.
There are many such instances in day-to-day life where people, mostly youngsters are taking up such acts. The form of superstitions transcend borders, castes and age-groups.
"Some would wear a particular thing, follow rituals or do something in peculiar to get the expected. It is nothing but a sort of 'psychological dependence'", says Dr Roma Kumar, senior consultant clinical psychologist with Sir Ganga Ram hospital. PTI
New year eve- hotels, pubs may face music
Anurag Sharma
New Delhi, Dec 30 (PTI) Planning to attend a new year evebash? Make sure that the organisers have paid the mandatory license fee to play music - the show otherwise may not really take off.
Recently acting on the appeal of The Phonographic Performance Ltd (PPL), an apex-licensing arm of Indian MusicIndustry (IMI), Delhi and Kolkata High Court have servedi njunctions to many well known hotels and pubs of New Delhi,Kolkata, Patna and Bhubaneshwar.
"Court order would help us in minimising the losses we are facing every year due to the non-payment of license fee by hotels, pubs in the country. Usually we don't act as a spoilsport, but with the help of Police we can stop a party forplaying music without paying a special event license fee,"says Vipul Pradhan, CEO, PPL.
PPL had issued a legal notice last week to all hotels andpubs that have not paid up the requisite license fee to playmusic at their year-end bashes.
"Action will be taken against them if in case they fail to pay up even after court's order. The list of hotels that have been issued injunctions in the Capital include someprominent names like Ministry of Sound, Piano Bar, Q'ba,Mocha, Yo China, RPM, Barcode, Waves lounge and bar, Splash among many others," says Pradhan.
According to IMI reports, pubs and hotels rake in huge profits every year but are unwilling to pay the nominal tariffof Rs 40,000 onwards (which varies depending on the number ofhours for which music is played) to PPL and thus flout thenorms and eating into the royalties of performers and artists. PTI
Rebels fail in Saurashtra
Parag Dave
Ahmedabad, Dec 30 (PTI) The startling aspect of the Narendra Modi led BJP's win in Gujarat was failure of party rebels to make any impact in Saurashtra and Kutch in the Assembly Elections of 2007.
The Saurashtra and Kutch region, the home ground of BJP rebel leaders like Keshubhai Patel and Suresh Mehta, the party not only retained its seats but increased its tally. BJP won 43 seats out of 58 assembly seats here and increased its tally by four seats in comparison to 2002.
Out of the four regions of the state Saurashtra and Kutch once again proved to be a deciding factor in BJP's march to victory.
Of the three BJP rebels fighting on Congress ticket in Amreli district, only one Bauku Unghad managed to win from Babra constituency. The three (Unghad, Bechar Bhadani and Balu Tanti) are considered to be close to Keshubhai Patel.
The two rebel BJP MLAs of Kutch, Narendrasinh Jadeja and Gopal Bhuva considered to be close to Suresh Mehta, who had crossed over to the Congress and fought election on that party's ticket were defeated by BJP candidates.
The claim of the BJP rebels that the entire Leuva Patel (one of the two sub-castes of Patels) community will tag along with them and vote for the Congress has proved wrong with the results.
"We have not done any analysis of why we failed to make any impact in the election," rebel BJP leader Gordhan Zadafia, who had formed Sardar Patel Utkarsh Samiti to campaign against Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi said. PTI
Showbiz sans fizz!
Shambhu Sahu
Film: Showbiz Director: Raju Khan Cast: Tushar Jalota, Mrinalini Sharma, Sushant Singh, Sourabh Shukla, Gulshan Grover and others.
The film's tag line might say 'the dark side of fame', but somehow director Raju Khan ends up showing the dark side of journalism. The film explores the dark side of media houses who want breaking news and high TRPs at the cost of anything which could be, as in the film, a rising star's career or even in his life.
Rohan Arya (debutant Tushar Jalota) becomes a star after winning a singing talent hunt contest, which is backed by a big TV channel. Soon, he is exposed to the stardom ka biggest side effect - paparazzi. A reporter (Sushant Singh), who aspires to be CEO of a big media house, makes his life hell by 'creating' sensational and juicy news about his affairs and his character. Just to keep a family secret he avoids media, but fails and losses trust of his girlfriend and mentor Shikha (Mrinalini Sharma), the creative head of the channel. What follows is a typical revenge drama.
The film attempts at commenting on the downfall of media ethics among journalists. And it is not long before that the judiciary and senior newsmen debated over the relevance of sting operations.
So the film deals with an important issue but fails miserably. The screenplay lacks intensity, which is further marred by some heartless performances by the cast. Though lead pair still needs to take off as far acting is concerned, potential actors Sourabh Shukla, Gulshan Grover and Delnaaz Paul have been wasted in the film.
The characters in this story, which is a take on today's real life, are surreal. You have a recently crowned singing sensation who hardly enjoys his stardom. Instead talks of moral business and media practices. Then, you have the channel's creative-head projected as almost a grim sati-savitri who, first doesn't want to fall in love, but later cries for a talent hunt winner. You have a reporter who constantly abuses his profession and manages to do a sting on his own boss besides ruining the budding star's Career. Then you have a helpless ACP who rather functions as a peace activist.
Moreover, you have rain and thunderstorm to lift some scenes. But the ancient formula of film making falls flat.
Despite being from media-savvy Mahesh Bhatt's camp, media's power is depicted in unrealistic manner to create a realistic villain from our very own surroundings.
Raju Khan - who began his career as an independent choreographer with the film Ashiqui and did many popular films later - couldn't even contribute a good enjoyable dance (item) number to his film.
Film has music composed by Lalit Pandit (of Jatin-Lalit fame) but there aren't many enjoyable tunes except 'Meri Falak Ka'. It's a soul-less and poorly made film. PTI
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Sensex: 20286.99, +80.04
The sensex closed at 20286.99, up 80.04
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1 U.S. $ = 39.415 INR
1 Japanese Yen = 0.3518 INR
1 British Pound = 79.078 INR
1 Canadian $ = 40.176 INR
1 Singapore $ = 27.377 INR
1 UAE Dirham = 10.732 INR
1 Saudi Arabian Riyal = 10.567 INR
1 Euro = 58.007 INR
1 Qatar Rial = 10.831 INR
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