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April 13, 1997 |
Stardust and star dirt
Remember Asha Sachdev, the actress who sizzled on the screen and onto film-world glossies long before the Mamta Kulkarnis came on the scene? Well, she may not have been a superstar but she did dare to do what even superstars would not dream of doing: haul Bollywood's gossip Stardust to court.
She may have cashed in by doing some revealing roles in film, but she would not take it lying down if anyone dubbed her a 'bitch'. Not even the mighty Stardust.
Soon after the glossy designated her so, Asha filed a case. That was 14 years ago. And she has been biding her time,despite being virtually eclipsed by the bare-all babes of recent years.
The final word is not yet. Still Asha' could well be a precedent-setting case since she has pursued it for 14 years.
Lock, stock and barrel
It had been a prize perch. A massive 2,500 sq. feet of prime floorspace in Jeejeebhoy Towers, the showpiece of Mumbai's stock broker community.
The architect firm which designed the sky-scraper had been allotted an office to supervise the final touches. That part of the contract was over more than two decades ago but the architect firm had other designs.
They stayed put and used the allotted space as their own office. neither cajoling nor legal notices could make them budge. True, some financial institutions which financed the building project had also ensconced themselves in the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) headquarters, but then that was part of the loan deal. The architect firm, on the other hand was expected to vacate the premises immediately after the work was done. The face-off continued with every president of the BSE making the eviction of the encroacher one of his priorities. No go. Their one-year term would be through by the time a fresh exchange of correspondence took place.
M.G. Damani,who took over as chief last year, had a pleasant surprise in store for his brethren. He got the unwelcome tenant out in a jiffy.
It is said her merely wrote a letter to the architect firm. This time there was no tedious exchange of letters. The tenant vacated the place quietly and quickly. Wonder what the contents of the letter were? Knowing the awesome, battle-ready reputation of Damani the letter must have carried a missile of sorts!
Musical message
A message from the department of family welfare? The first sane reaction would be a dismal, "Oh, no, not again!" The next would be to switch off the radio. Wrong.
Now one tunes in as the formerly dour department parades it homilies on what is good for the family, the lactating mother and the girl-child. It also sings the benefits of a planned family and the joys of adopting a child. And listen one must.
For, the messages are neatly woven into a texture so pulsating filmi music-the Hindi film's Hit Parade on the FM band. Another attraction: the melodious voice of the presenter. No glib talk this. Rather it all sounds so straight-from-the heart that even the hackneyed messages on family planning- the advice to parents not to marry off their daughters before they are 18-sound genuine.
The pep-talk too is music to the ears: after a song eulogising a gori(fairskinned lass), the presenter gently reminds those with dark skins that beauty is only skin deep. "Real beauty is all int he mind," she intones. Like in those who adopt children perhaps.
The cutting edge
An NRI who is an international banker based in the US was in town the other day. He called on a schoolmate, a well-known name on the stock exchange. After catching up on their friends and families, talk veered towards business.
"Where does your bank invest?" queried the broker. "In secure businesses that get us seven to 10 per cent returns," the banker replied. The broker decided that the returns were measly. He invited the baker to invest in the Indian market through him. When told that his bank would not risk investments in vague areas, the broker said, "You convince the management. I'll get enough and more returns for both the bank and yourself."
The underlying message was : you get the funds and I'll make the money to pay you a 'cut'. And both could live happily eve after. The banker, appalled by his friend's suggestion, politely turned down the offer.
B. KRISHNAKUMAR
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