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Munnabhai, MBBS, going to US for higher studies
The hot news on the wires today is that Mira Nair is going to direct the Hollywood remake of Munnabhai, MBBS, with Chris Tucker playing Sunjay Dutt's role. It's going to be …
MIDWEEK MASALA: The tiger and the elephant
The tiger woke up one morning and roared: "Who is the most powerful of all jungle animals?" The monkey whispered, "You are, without a doubt." Then the tiger confronted a …
CHURUMURI POLL: Should Sonia be disqualified?
President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam's decision last night to return the Office of Profit Bill to Parliament for reconsideration of the criteria and the retrospective clause poses a huge dilemma for …
TOP SECRET: Who was that great tenant?
Who was the chief minister—now in the thick of resolving the reservation imbroglio—who built a house on a plot allotted to him as an MLA by the legislators' housing society …
Can we really trust our government any longer?
Among the better debates on the reservation issue on television have been the ones that Karan Thapar has been having with pro- and anti-quota students. Last night, on 'India Tonight' (CNBC-TV18, …
MAST READ: Mauni Baba predicts defeat for Nero
There's a cute story in today's Telegraph, Calcutta, on Arjun Singh's godman, Mauni Baba. The 75-year-old guruji, a former trader, yesterday blessed the anti-quota activists, telling them "jeet aapki hogi" (victory will …
BREAKING NEWS: Kalam returns ‘Profit’ Bill
The President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam has returned the office of profit bill that the UPA government had hurriedly passed after an NDA walkout recently. Kalam has apparently raised two key objections. …
Why was A.P.J. Abdul Kalam silent for so long?
During the last 20 days, when the reservation issue has gripped the nation, a couple of things have been plainly obvious. One, none of our politicians and parties, ruling or …
CHURUMURI POLL: Have the docs won the war?
The notice issued by the Supreme Court to the Centre yesterday asking it to explain the rationale behind its classification of a mass of citizens as OBCs, and the President …
We don’t smile because we don’t brush our teeth
BBC South Asia correspondent Nick Bryant has moved to Sydney after a three-year stint. In his farewell piece Bryant bites into the key difference between American and South Asian journalists: "In Washington, …
Is the end of India’s Green Revolution good news?
Last month, a boat called 'Furnace Australia' arrived in Madras. It was carrying half-a-million tonnes of wheat from Australia to augment dwindling reserves. Three million tonnes more will arrive in …
Yes, we knew the PM’s hands were tied. But…
E.R. RAMACHANDRAN writes: The news that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has had to get both his wrists operated at short intervals has created a sort of panic unseen in recent years. …
EYES PAISE: blindness no longer comes cheap
For an upcoming film called Zamanat, Amitabh Bachchan, who plays the role of a blind lawyer in it, is reported to have bought a pair of Italian sunglasses worth Rs 2.7 …
There’s another Rahul around. It’s not a Gandhi.
Pramod Mahajan's son Rahul Mahajan today attended the BJP national executive in New Delhi. Maybe it was a nice signal to the family that the party had not forgotten the deceased leader. …
Globalisation is protectionism by another name
In news just coming in, Vijay Mallya's United Breweries has pulled out of its bid for the French champagne maker Taittinger following objections from the French labour unions and a bigger …
CONTEST: The winner is Rohit K.G. of Dubai
The winner of the first Churumuri anagram contest is Rohit K.G. of Dubai, UAE. Congratulations to him. Shashi Tharoor's Bookless in Baghdad will soon be on its way to him. The …
CHURUMURI POLL: A licence fee for your TV?
In a last-ditch effort to save the fattened cows of socialism, Doordarshan and All India Radio, Prasar Bharati Corporation has proposed a return to the licence fee raj. The plan is …
East or West, may the best Indians win
Rahul Dravid & Co have been comprehensively thumped in the one-day series by Brian Lara & Co. Here are five brand-new excuses the Bhaiyyas in Blue might like to trot out …
The greatest philosopher of our times is on TV
To speak truthfully and insightfully today, you must have a sense of the absurdity of human life and endeavour. And by that yardstick, Homer Simpson, the cartoon character in The Simpsons, …
If God does exist, why did He allow the tsunami?
Pope Benedict XVI, on a visit to the Auschwitz concentration camp yesterday, asked God a simple question: why did he remain silent during the "unprecedented mass crimes" of the Holocaust? "In a …
BUM BUM DIGA DIGA: In Mandya, bottom’s up
SUNAAD RAGHURAM writes: The largesse of the rain gods above. Bountiful harvest, joyous faces, mirth, laughter, prosperity and happiness. Farmers would do anything to have the good times rolling. In …
Birth of a Salesman: Your neta is now a brand
Dharmendra is selling auto finance to truckers on behalf of Sriram Transport Finance Company. Hema Malini is endorsing Kent water purifiers when not asking us to pick up loans from Bank of …
CHURUMURI POLL: Tigers at home, lambs abroad?
India's 1-3 defeat in the one-day series against West Indies, with the last match still to be played, has predictably led to the prophets of doom leaping into hyperbole. Navjot Singh …
Why Sankeshwar wants to sell Vijaya Karnataka
PALINI R. SWAMY writes from Bangalore: The formal announcement has still not been made. The actual price has still not be revealed. The modalities of the sale have still not …
The (very) strange case of Karadahalli Krishnappa
SUNAAD RAGHURAM writes: It was in the early 1980s. Doordarshan was slowly making its existence known to the whole of India. The television set was the talking point in many …