The 1994 musical family drama was hugely successful and besides winning audience appreciation it also bagged many awards
Bollywood star Salman Khan and Sooraj Barjatya, who are currently shooting ‘Prem Ratan Dhan Payo’, on Tuesday celebrated 20 years of their hit blockbuster ‘Hum Aapke Hain Koun’ on the set of their upcoming film.
The 1994 musical family drama was hugely successful and besides winning audience appreciation it also won many awards. The film also starred Madhuri Dixit, Anupam Kher, Mohnish Bahl, Renuka Shahane, Reema Lagoo, Alok Nath in prominent roles.
“Salman and Sooraj are shooting for their upcoming film ‘Prem Ratan Dhan Pay’ in ND Studios in Karjat, which is also a family drama. They are celebrating the success of ‘Hum Aapke Hain Koun’ on the sets,” a statement said. Madhuri took to twitter to revive the memories of the film “Wah wah Soorajji, picture kya banayee! Rajshri aur parivaar ko badhai ho badhai #20YearsOfHAHK unforgettable memories (Soorajji what a film you have made. I congratulate Rajshri productions for it,” Madhuri tweeted along with the poster of the film.
Kher, who is also the part of director’s next venture, tweeted, “Happy 20th birthday to one of my most successful and cherished films — ‘Hum Aapke Hain Koun’ Thank you Sooraj for making this classic.”
Both Salman and Sooraj are working together after a gap of 15 years in ‘Prem Ratan Dhan Payo’ after ‘Hum Saath Saath Hain’
’Prem Ratan Dhan Payo’ stars Sonam Kapoor opposite him. The duo had worked earlier in ‘Saawariya’.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Entertainment / PTI / Mumbai – August 05th, 2014
For the first time in its more than 92 years of history, Jamia Millia Islamia (a minority institution) is being run by a woman as vice chancellor Talat Ahmad, a globally renowned geologist, is on leave.
University sources said that Dr (Ms.) Talat Aziz, professor Department of Teacher Training & Non-formal Education in Faculty of Education is the acting VC. It is understood that Professor Ahmad will be away from university for some days. Officially the senior most University professor becomes acting VC in absence of a regular VC.
The development is being termed as historic as never before any woman has been even nominated officiating VC of Jamia that has been at the forefront of women empowerment since its inception in 1920.
Dr (Ms.) Talat Aziz, who did her Higher Secondary from Jamia School in 1967, is not an outsider.
A product of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) from where she completed her M.Sc. (Chemistry) in 1973 and B.Sc.(Hons) in 1970, she has held many administrative posts including, Member Academic Advisory Committee, Academic Staff, College; Member Advisory Committee SCERT, Govt. of Delhi; Member Advisory Committee DIET, Ghuman Hera, Govt. of Delhi; Vice President, Delhi Education Society since1998 and others.
Also, she was Member of Court, Jamia w.e.f. 16th Jan’02 to 15th Dec. 2003. For some time she was director Jamia Senior Secondary School (Girls) Urdu Medium (S.F.).
source: http://www.okhlatimes.com / Okhla Times / Home> JMI> OT Campus Reporter, JMI / August 01st, 2014
Mehedi Hasan of Aligarh has served as tailor to former presidents Sanjeeva Reddy, VV Giri and Fakruddin Ali Ahmed. He is reputed to have stitched 175 sherwanis for former president Zakir Hussain, who donned these in all his 17 years of political life.
Mehedi Hasan’s shop was set up in 1947, the year India became independent. These days, the renowned tailor’s sons Anwar and Akhtar Mehedi carry forward the sartorial legacy.
Vice President Hamid Ansari, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, former prime minister Manmohan Singh, actors Saif Ali Khan and Raj Babbar, RLD chief Ajit Singh and Somnath Chatterjee, formerly of the CPI-M, have all donned Mehedi sherwanis. Rahul Gandhi’s body is easy to design for, the tailors say, while Satpal Maharaj is rather “complex”!
This Eid, the brothers are hard at work. Anwar, an engineer by training, pursued his father’s trade and entered into tailoring as he finds it far more creatively satisfying. “I learnt from my valid (father) the secrets of making a perfect sherwani. The art lies in getting the right cut and fitting and a graceful fall. Tailors in Delhi are also making sherwanis but they cannot get the right fit, all of them are making free-size sherwanis!” Anwar says.
In the month of Ramzan, the sherwani assumes formal importance,
“That is because of iftar parties, which are formal. Sherwanis go with the feel of the get-together, and has a regal look. We can’t wear this and go for work. It is too formal to be worn at the workplace. Even today, I stitch sherwanis for the DIG, DMs commissioners for iftar parties,” Anwar says.
This Eid, orders have been pouring in from across the country. The Mehedis are catering to demand for sherwanis from Mumbai, Pune, Madras, Odisha and Jammu & Kashmir. Orders from the USA, UK, UAE and Australia are also received, the Mehedis say.
“There is slight change in the demand. Youngsters want modern elements in the sherwani, so we give them open collars. But the demand for the traditional style is higher,” Anwar Mehedi says.
Visitors to the shop can see the register, which has letters from the secretaries of presidents praising him or his father for their sherwanis.
The Mehedis prefer working with silk wool, polywool and terrawool – these fabrics give a nice fitting, they say.
“The art lies in the details, and in observing the body type – shoulders, back, chest and arms, and the grace of the fall. Everything needs to be taken care of.” Anwar Mehedi said, adding, “Fat people think it won’t look nice on them, but the sherwanis gives their bodies shape because they are made to fit the body frame.”
As for women, he says: “I have made some five sherwanis for women, and sent them to the USA. But then, which woman will spend between Rs5,000 and Rs15,000 on a garment that is not-too-embellished or fancy?”
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Agra / by Eram Agha / July 29th, 2014
Renowned filmmaker Muzaffar Ali. / File photo: Shiv Kumar Pushpakar / The Hindu
Noted filmmaker Muzaffar Ali, who had directed the Bollywood classic “Umrao Jaan”, has been selected for Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavana Award for his outstanding contribution towards the promotion of communal harmony, peace and goodwill.
It carries a citation and cash award of Rs 5 lakh.
The decision to honour the 69-year-old film maker, social worker and sufi poet was taken at a meeting of the Advisory Committee of the Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavana Award yesterday.
Born in Lucknow, Ali also directed over one-and-a-half dozen movies including “Gaman” and “Khizan”. He was awarded Padma Shri in 2005.
This will be the 22nd edition of the Sadbhavana award, which will be presented at a special ceremony at Jawahar Bhavan on August 20, the birthday of late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi has been presenting the award ever since it was constituted.
It was instituted to commemorate the contribution made by him to promote peace, communal harmony and fight against violence.
Recipients of the award include Mother Teresa, K.R. Narayanan, Ustad Bismillah Khan, Lata Mangeshkar, Sunil Dutt, Dilip Kumar, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan and Maulana Wahiduddin Khan.
Others who got it were Jagan Nath Kaul, Mohd Yunus, Hiteswar Saikia and Subhadra Joshi (jointly), Kapila Vatsyayan, Teesta Setalvad and Harsh Mander (jointly), S N Subbarao, Swami Agnivesh and Madari Moideen (jointly), Nirmala Deshpande, Hem Dutta, N Radhakrishnan, Gautam Bhai, SPIC MACAY and D R Mehta.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> CinemaPlus / PTI / New Delhi – August 01st, 2014
Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav during the prize distribution ceremony of Urdu Academy at Chief Minister House in Lucknow on Monday (Photo: PTI)
Lucknow:
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav today said that Urdu has always connected hearts and when the language is used, it reflects love and affection. Speaking on the occasion of a book prize distribution ceremony of Uttar Pradesh Urdu Academy at his official residence, Yadav said a message of love and brotherhood would reach the society through this event.
Emphasising on importance of languages for the mutual understanding among masses, the Chief Minister said Hindi and Urdu were being used to take the society forward. He said it was the intention of the SP government that both the languages get promoted and compete with English. Referring to the efforts made by the SP government to promote Indian languages, he said the government has started felicitating Hindi, Urdu and Sanskrit scholars.
source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Nation> Politics / Press Trust of India / August 05th, 2014
Jazeera along with her children protesting in front of the Secretariat in Thiruvananthapuram. Photo: Kaavya Pradeep Kumar / The Hindu
Jazeera is on a silent campaign, in defence of the Neerozhukkumchal beach in Kannur
The so-called sand mafia of a little taluk in Kannur rues the day Jazeera returned home. Dismissed as an insignificant voice of protest against the rampant exploitation of a stretch of shoreline near Pazhayangadi town, this woman has soon come to be known as a force to be reckoned with. All the way from the northern district of Kannur, she has brought her silent campaign to the State capital, as she sits in front of the Secretariat with her three children — protesting without loud sloganeering or politically coloured flags or leaflets.
Entering the fifth day, Jazeera’s protest has thus far been eclipsed by a far more populous Left protest.
Now that they have left, the presence of this family has become more conspicuous, leading the Chief Minister to meet them briefly on Monday afternoon on the issue of sand-mining in her hometown. For Jazeera, the cause is intensely personal, as the Neerozhukkumchal beach is the canvas all her childhood memories are painted upon.
She is an autorickshaw driver, a profession she has struggled to be part of, in a conservative society. She does not let herself to be affected by such taboos and continued working until after her marriage in 2004, when she moved to Kottayam with her husband.
She has found the new district far more accepting. It was only one and a half years ago, when she returned home during the final month of her third pregnancy, did she see to her shock the daylight robbery of a natural landscape.
Countless visits to the Kannur collectorate and police stations have proved futile.
And for the past one and a half years, her silent protest has involved a sit-in, along with her daughters Rizwana, Shifana and her son Mohammed. The two girls, aged 12 and 10, know everything about the case and have flanked their mother every step. Her husband, Abdul Salaam, is a teacher at a madrasa in Kochi.
While he has not been a visible part of Jazeera’s protest, his support, despite pressure various quarters, has been a huge boon for her.
She is clear about her objective despite the obstacles strewn before her in terms of muscle and money power. Even the police, she says, have pleaded with her to give up. “Their greed is despicable. In broad daylight they commit this heinous crime of emptying our lands, oblivious to the fact that there are so many creatures that depend on it. The sudden depth of water is dangerous as well,” she says.
She is glad to have met the Chief Minister personally and she said he assured her that he would ensure that the vehicles carting away the sand would be immediately dealt with.
She will leave once she obtains something in print promising a complete halt of the activities.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National> Kerala / by Kaavya Pradeep Kumar / Thiruvananthapuram – August 08th, 2013
Sakina khatun with the bronze medal she won at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. / The Hindu
Her success is all down to her hard work: coach
Life has not been kind to Sakina Khatun, who won a bronze medal at the Commonwealth Games on Saturday.
In Glasgow’s Clyde Auditorium, the 25-year-old Bangalore-based para-athlete lifted a weight of 88.2 kg to finish third in the women’s powerlifting event (Lightweight Group A). It was a success that came after prolonged hardship.
“My parents cried when I broke the news to them on the phone,” she told The Hindu from Glasgow.
Her coach and mentor Farman Basha, who also competed at the Games, faltered in his event on account of an injury, but his delight was enormous. “She has been through a lot. So I’m very happy for her,” he said.
Sakina hails from Basirhat in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district. Her mother is a farm labourer while her father, ailing with a serious back condition, is unable to work. “He can’t even walk,” Sakina said. “We don’t have the money for his treatment.”
Afflicted with polio at a young age, she took up swimming on her doctor’s suggestion, learning in ponds in her village before a teacher in school noticed she had an aptitude for it. “Despite steady success at the national level, I was ignored for the 2010 Commonwealth Games team. It left me disheartened and I quit the sport,” she said.
Sakina switched over to powerlifting on the advice of one of her swimming coaches, and in 2010 was directed to Basha. “She wanted to come over to Bangalore to be trained by me,” he said. “She had no money and I couldn’t afford to spend a rupee on her.”
But Sakina found a benefactor in Dilip Majumdar, a businessman who volunteered to support her training. “I’m a girl and my parents were against my leaving home,” she recalled. “But my sponsor managed to convince them.”
“At first, she could only lift around 25 kg,” recalled Basha. “But gradually she improved. Her success is all down to her hard work.”
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Citis> Bangalore / by Shreedutta Chidananda / Bangalore – August 04th, 2014
Mr. Mohammed Zaheeruddin resident of Bandapally, Kortla reached Siasat office and thanked Mr. Zahed Ali Khan Siasat editor.
On the occasion he told that he is greatly obliged to Siasat daily, because due to the encouragement of Mr. Amer Ali Khan news editor his nephew Shaikh Junaid passed SSC with 553 marks from Naunehal School Urdu Medium, Kortla.
He has topped the Urdu medium schools of the state.
He was presented Abid Ali Khan gold medal by Siasat editor Mr. Zahed Ali Khan and is now pursuing B.Tech from Muffakham Jah College Hyderabad with the cooperation of Siasat. He passed B.Tech 2nd year exam with 88 pc marks.
Siasat editor Mr. Zahed Ali Khan, news editor Mr. Amer Ali Khan congratulated him for his excellent performance.
source: http://www.siasat.com / The Daily Siasat / Home> Hyderabad / Sunday – August 03rd, 2014
Kabir created hairpieces for many major stars, including Amitabh Bachchan in the 1988 action film Shahenshah / Photo: S Kabir / Siraj Sheikh
SURENDRA’S NATURAL HAIR STUDIO isn’t easy to find. But for the wigged wooden heads marking the entrance, this workshop in a grimy alley off Mumbai’s SV Road looks just like any other. Inside, however, it becomes clear that the studio belongs to one of Hindi cinema’s most sought-after wig makers, Surendra Salvi. The foyer walls are lined with photos of Salvi with actors—everyone from Salman Khan to Prem Chopra—sporting his toupees, beards and moustaches.
Salvi ushered me into a workshop where five uniformed employees created mesh bases for new wigs, and wove hairpieces and hair extensions. Almost all of Salvi’s wigs are made of natural hair, but he uses various amounts of synthetic material for those on tight budgets. “Natural hair is expensive,” he explained. Even-length, pre-sorted hair can cost up to Rs 70,000 per kilogram.
Salvi, a Mumbai native, told me he always wanted to be part of the film industry, though it took some time to break into the business. “First I did clerical work,” he said, “then I fitted car lamps for an auto company. Then I worked in a talcum powder factory. Then I had enough.” In the early 1980s, he started assisting the makeup duo of brothers Anil and Pradeep Pemgirikar by making wigs and beards for extras and body doubles. Over the following decades, he made it big on his own. His hairpieces have been used by Boman Irani in 3 Idiots, Shahrukh Khan in Ra.One, Akshay Kumar in Action Replayy, and many other superstars. When I visited two months ago, Salvi was fashioning wigs for director Anurag Kashyap’s upcoming Bombay Velvet. He also does work for regional films, television commercials, and individual clients.
Pradeep Pemgirikar, Salvi’s mentor, oversaw makeup, wigs and prosthetics for the films of director Manmohan Desai in the 1980s. He now runs Mod Wig Centre from his humble three-room house in Dadar, taking whatever work he gets from the Marathi and south Indian film industries. Pemgirikar, who said his best work was on the 1992 film Khuda Gawah, rued changing trends in the movie business. “Everyone wants a natural look now,” he said, “but in those days, every third character in a Manmohan Desai film had a wig.”
If the 1980s and 1990s had the Pemgirikars, the 1960s and 1970s—when bouffants, pompadours and beehives were all the rage—had S Kabir and Victor Pereira. Kabir came to Mumbai from Kolkata in the 1950s to assist his older brother S Amin, who was then already a makeup man and wig maker of repute. Kabir worked with almost all the leading men of the time, his son Siraj told me, and made wigs for such classics as China Town, Mirza Ghalib, Aandhi, Padosan, Sholay, Shahenshah and Kalicharan. But his most illustrious client was Pran, whose memorable get-ups from Upkar and Zanjeer to Amar Akbar Anthony and Don cemented his reputation as one of Hindi cinema’s greatest character actors.
Kabir passed away in 1994. Siraj is keen to keep his father’s legacy alive, and, with his brother Farooque, now runs the wig studio S Kabir & Sons, established by Kabir in the late 1950s, in Andheri East. “Wig making is an art, but it never gets the respect it deserves,” he said. “Even personal drivers and spot boys who serve chai to actors get mentioned in film credits. We often don’t.” An online search showed S Kabir credited for his work on only three movies, though Siraj claimed he actually worked on between seven and eight hundred films. Siraj also lamented the end of the era when prevailing fashions meant greater demand and profits, and more time to craft great wigs. He remembered being called on to make a hairpiece for Amitabh Bachchan several years ago. “They wanted it in three days,” he scoffed. “Is three days enough time to make a wig?” Sorting hair bought from wholesalers is a gruelling process, and the average wig requires at least five to seven days of work.
Victor Pereira, S Kabir’s contemporary, now lives in Mangalore, near his home town of Moodabidri. Although no longer associated with the film industry, he was happy to talk about his glory days over the phone. Having learned his trade in Mumbai from S Amin, Kabir’s brother, Pereira got his break on the 1969 film The Killers, starring Dara Singh and Helen. Although the film was a dud, he went on to craft all of Helen’s wigs from then on, putting his stamp on her looks in song videos such as ‘Piya tu ab toh aaja’ and ‘Mehbooba mehbooba,’ and films such as The Train and Don. Victor also worked, among others, with Hema Malini, Vyjayanthimala, Sharmila Tagore, Mala Sinha and Rekha. His most challenging project, he said, was director Kamal Amrohi’s 1983 release Razia Sultan. “Kamal Amrohi was such a stickler. Woh ek ek baal dekhte the (He used to check each strand of hair). He told me, ‘Hema Malini rani hai (Hema Malini is a queen). I want the best. Nothing else will do.’”
source: http://www.caravanmagazine.in / The Caravan / Home> Reporting & Essays / The Lede / by Roshini Nair / July 01st, 2014
