The Shiney Ahuja case has completely shocked me cos I never expected him out of all the stars to do so. I never got time to watch the channels as I was busy with my own work but when my mom told me about this I was completely taken aback. The guy has just started off and is pretty much talented.. then what made him do so in the absence of his infant is quite horrifying. It's so sad to see such cases where one is completely helpless . The whole thing of the fashion world and Filmdom being corrupted is only being proven right day by day. The respect for the industry falls so low and it's very hard to just ignore it.

About child labour regarding the child artists who are acting in Balika Vadhu, etc. should not be made a big deal about. I mean if the children are comfortable with it ,it's a good way to boost themselves at such a young age besides serials like Balika Vadhu impart a lot of knowledge one has to know. It may not change things immediately but if an effort is being made , it definitely does not become a waste. Also the child artists are doing a commendable job. So talented! and I wonder where they find the time to juggle up their homework’s with their shooting schedules. The children are the light of the serial. Without them the title itself is so meaningless. I hope they are not removed on the basis of 'child labour'.

The other day I was listening to Page 3 expert Simi speak on Sheetal Mafatlal case. What Simi said about the case was that the treatment given was totally unfair. Something like things worth more than 2 crores are not allowed to be carried. She gave this very interesting example of one who is probably carrying a gown or an Armani worth 3 crore aboard, he would have to be detained for paying the extra duty! kaise baat ka batangad bana gaya is a definite look out in this case and I won't comment much as I really haven't dug into the details but of what I heard from Simi I did feel that Sheetal was definitely being targeted for another purpose altogether.

Sakhi - Amrita TV

Almost two weeks back right after my Ghazal concert I received a call from Mrs. Bindu asking me if I would like to be a part of her show 'Sakhi' which is telecasted in Amrita TV. Apparently the show was stopped for a period of time and they are planning to revive the show back on charts on public demands! I was pretty surprised cos I didn't know what I really have to share with the audience as such. I mean I have absolutely nothing to brag about!! But I very politely obliged to her request and the interview was scheduled for 30th morning. I woke up at around seven and got dressed waiting for their cab which was supposed to reach at my house by nine. And..Eventually I ended up there at 9:30. Usually dad accompanies me to all my shoots and stuff but since he's just back from his nose surgery two days back I took mom along. After reaching there we were asked to be seated inside, I think a waiting room or something like that. I was rehearsing my lines *giggle*... as in... How I should thank the channel at the end of the show and I should refer to the interviewer as 'chechi'. I was signalled to the makeup room where I got to meet Bindu mam, the producer of Sakhi and the interviewer Mrs. Geeta. Instead of introducing myself I was worried about the lines I had rehearsed and made up. Cos in that I referred to the interviewer as chechi and now I need to make a correction by calling her aunty. Daaaam! All calculations gone hay wire!!! Geeta aunty was big time pissed about her hair cos she had spoiled it by straightening it and apparently a lot of her fans had criticised her for it and warned that they would stop watching the show if she continued with that look. A happy day at work for the hair stylist I guess!

Once we were on the sets I just loosened out and Geeta aunty was asking me to tell something about myself to her cos she had absolutely no clue about me ! Interesting... cos that's exactly what I wondered when Bindu mam had given me a call two weeks earlier. The interview commenced and I totally went blank about those silly lines I had rehearsed. As usual I was in for a toss!.. But Geeta aunty made me feel really comfortable and I just went on blabbering on camera!! She made me sing 2 keerthanams, a ghazal, a devotional song, gopike nin viral, snehithane , mayya mayya and An empty street (Westlife)!!! It was sooo much fun and when it came to an end she was totally surprised cos she had never in her wildest dreams also thought that she would actually cross the time limit for a episode...Aaah..So is the magic of me :) :) Wotever....Will post about the telecast dates and hopefully will get a copy of my episode... Ciao!

Slumdog Millionaire

The first movie I have ever downloaded....simply beautiful.

8th Wonder

of the world is A.R.Rahman. No doubt!! Not cos he is nominated for Oscars and Golden Globes but cos he has the time to go receive them. National award was a very natural assumption .. and so is Oscars which comes right after his current achievement. Thanks to Boyle for making this movie and for choosing Rahman. A proud moment for Rahmaniacs, India. He is truly the 8th wonder of the world!

Kanavupol

I am quite impressed with this new album I got hear the other day. Maybe in May or something. Why am I blogging about this now?? Because the Music Director of Kanavupol has started blogging! He has started his audio blog giving an introduction about his album and work experience. I know this post isn't a commemoration but it sure is a promotion tag. It's quite occult and has a latitude of the best singers the industry has ever produced. Manjari, Jassie Gift, Karthik, Anitha, Vidhu Prathap, etc are some who have lent their voices to this mystic work. Do give it an ear and I promise you that it's a true entertainer. Check Kanavupol here at http://www.kanavupol.blogspot.com/

You can contact Mr. Sajan at saajarishi@gmail.com

Thanks guys and keep yourselves tuned :)

Buddha's footage by News X

Me, mom and Nish were lunching at Buddhas after some hardcore shopping. We go there only for the Tofu which is seldom found in Indo-Chino cuisine. I think they are found in B'lore but it's white in colour. This is the first Chinese outlet which I have seen that is Vegetarian. It serves food that is full of greens but surprisingly tastes like chicken. More like the soya chunks. We usually start of with the juices and Tofu and then onto the main course. Actually the Tofu we order is a 'chef's speciality' in the menu. Whilst all the hogging we noticed a little hustle bustle outside the restaurant. There were cameras being fixed with a short and stout man checking the mic. There were couple of others who were busy taking snaps from different angles .By then we had gone onto the deserts and I ordered a Mango mousse cake and sis ordered a Date pancake. When I savoured my first bite of the desert I realised that the cake was decorated with ice cream and not cream icing. Since I have stopped ice creams due to personal reasons, I exchanged my desert with my sis and continued with our business.

Meanwhile the media people entered the restaurant and was doing some kind of an enquiry with the main guy there. After which we were asked if we could lend a few words about this place. As we agreed ,cameras were focussed and sis was asked to do the talking first. Later I was asked and I told that I luuuuuuv the food out here and it's a good way of letting the Vegetarians know what Non-veg is like.BTW me a non-veg :) Then mom was asked on the usual cooking stuff and that she is the best person to judge such things where she is the master. This was covered by News X which is a 24/7 news channel. It's subordinate channels are 9X (for music) and some other for sports. It should be telecasted tomorrow by 3 p.m. or so. The news is available in ACV too. So do check out. I don't exactly know what's it all about but it should be a part of the entertainment plus wherein they do a small footage on the food outlets here. The channel is actually from Calcutta. So hopefully I shall be seen on the 'idiot box' for a different reason tomorrow..at Humpty dumpty THREE. Ciaaaaaaaaaaaaao

Kal Aaj aur Kal and the Bhojpuri Concert

Feeling hot hot hot !!!.. yups.. in a desert and during summer and an open air show definately makes me feel hot. The moment I stepped out of the car I started sweating. My very first show in Muscat, held by the Bhojpuri Wing of the Indian Social Club. This is the club that nurtured me all the way to sing confidently, which I'm still not. I don't know why am I so nervous all the time. I get the butterflies and it keeps flying and dies probably when I am out of stage heaving a sigh of relief. And today was a pretty hectic day. I was asked to report for rehearsals at 2 pm and much to my surprise the rythm pad player had apparently fallen sick and was on antibiotics and hence the rehearsals were cancelled off. So I landed up in a nail biting situation as I had not rehearsed the complete song with him and had to verbally and numerically do it through the phone. Numerically cos I was literally counting the number of bars as he was playing it on his laptop on the other end of the line. Thanks to mobiles!! Unsatisfied ,I decided I would not keep thinking about it too much and probably risk it live on stage. So then headed to a family friend's place and then lunch. Hogged like a pig and was hoping that it would digest by my show time. As soon as lunch was over ,Dad had to meet someone officially so I and mom felt like we were sitting in a furnace despite the a/c in the car. So much for the summer in the desert!! Got back home ,plugged myself to the world of Kumbakaran.

But time's always a villain and soon I had to wake up and apply war paint and get dressed and all those usual things. Another bad habit of mine is when I don't get my full sleep I lose my temper on every single thing. And poor mom has to bear them all...wish I could become a better person someday.. i.e. if I am devoid of full sleep :) At the venue (the bhojpuri show) ,caught up with some other singers performing and I was again full of laughter and excitement just when the bug bit me and I could soon feel the butterflies. Ignoring them as I have no choice ,I gave my best. Since I was the first performer for the evening I was given a little gap until the next. But realised that by nine I had to reach the other show for the evening. It was taxing and I knew I have to keep my energy levels up. Unable to manipulate the schedule I couldn't sing any more songs and had to leave for the green room to change my costume. I felt bad cos I had planned to sing barso re and couldn't. After freshning up and doing the bye- byes I was on my way to Kal aaj aur kal .

The entrance was grand and the hall was booming with voices ,felt good to perform here after a whole year. I was frantically running around cos I thought I was a little late but with God's grace I had reached well before my turn. I was singing Mayya Mayya and Yeh Ishq Hai. I had a dancer along with me for Mayya Mayya who looked awesome in her Arabic costume. It was fun singing both the songs except that I had few mic problems intially. Met with a couple of old friends who said I have become 'longer' and talkative! Usually after these shows ,all the participants dine together and celebrate over the success. But today I could not, firstly because I was almost half dead and secondly cos I have early morning classes. So couldn't Jashn Mana-fy this time :(While I was going back home my cousin brother who has become my 'official' photographer was commenting that I had my eyes closed most of the time. I am always involved into whatever I do , especially when it comes to singing. And it doesn't apparently give 'shobha' when I close my eyes while singing a number like Yeh Ishq Hai . It's visible in my pics taken during the show, where in most of them I have my eyes closed. That's probably one singing 'manner' I may not be able to change! The pressure of giving your best, to capture the audience's hearts is one of the greatest quality a singer can get. And to be appreciated dil se, is the most priceless award an artist can receive .Speaking of awards during the Bhojpuri show I was gifted a memento by the Indian Ambassador, A. Wadhwa. After murmuring a thank you I expected a welcome or least a smile. But much to my arousement this gentleman was posing happily for his photograph and before I could leave he whispered "wait! the cameras!!". Ofcourse that did bring a smile on my face but to think of what celebs and famous personalities go through when they face the media. That is something I hate about fame. Just no privacy.okkkkk...enough of bakwas ..time to put my exhausted brain and voice to sleep. With another show coming up looks like I'll have to live with 4 hours sleep for another week. But the next show is something I am looking forward to... will soon post on it.

Couldn't take any scenic pics as yet but the concert pics are available HERE.

Ve-forgot-land?

It all started at the dining where all of us were recollecting those wonderfull family trip memories. The discussion commenced with me sharing the Veega Land experience with all of them present there. And then the next obvious discussion was where was the next picnic destination to be planned. I've been to Essel World just once when I was really young..and the agony that clawed me cos of inadmissable to most of the biggie rides made me want to go there once more. So while I was persuading my mum about going to Essel World again...my aunty happened to ask which one is the best amusement park in India. According to my knowledge I said that Veega Land is the best in the South and Essel World in the North. Then suddenly recollecting my geography, I made a correction saying that the latter is in the South.. so that makes it the best in India and the former, second. Then started the hot arguements among me and my aunties. The debate was whether Maharastra forms the Northern or the southern part of India. But I felt I had learnt something like the state being a part of South India though it is mistook by a lot of people of it being a Northern part cos of the Bollywood and so on. I would want to know if Maharastra forms the Southern part or the Northern part of India. I felt it would be wiser if I got genuine comments than googling it.