Shakuntala, Sita, Surpanakha...

Scherazade writes in to tell me her play Retellings is being staged at Mumbai's Prithvi Theatre next week. Unfortunately, I can't leave New Delhi right now but I urge all my Mumbai readers to make a beeline for Prithvi on 3rd and 4th April.

What Retellings is all about
Shakuntala, Sita, Surpanakha. Three women trapped in mythology find their voice. Shakuntala takes on Kalidasa, accusing the master playwright of legitimising her lover's betrayal, even as she celebrates the season of her love. As Lanka erupts in the flames of the Aryan invasion, Sita and Surpanakha find their stories intertwining.

Directed by: Scherazade Kaikobad
Cast: Amrita Puri, Vandita Vasa
Venue: Prithvi Theatre, Mumbai
Date: 3rd, 4th April 2007
Time: 9 pm
Tickets: Rs 50
Duration: An hour
Bookings: 09821163832

And those interested in the playwriting aspect of things can attend a FREE workshop on 'Myth and Structure' conducted by Ram Ganesh Kamathan at 4 pm at the same venue on both days. For registration, call - 09820356150

Just an SMS going around

The BCCI (Board of Control of Cricket for India) has refused Richard Branson's (of Virgin Airlines fame) offer to sponsor the Indian cricket team. Why?

We can't have VIRGIN written on our shirts, when we're getting f****d in every match

More Cricket posts

What is Italy's national language?

The English speak English, the French speak French, the Germans speak German and the Italians...Well, they didn't quite speak Italian till last week.

My Driver's Driving Me Nuts

(translated from the original Hindi+Punjabi)
...inder: Saab ji, this Indian cricket team is no good. Losing to Sri Lanka is ok but losing to Bangladesh - Chee! Chee! Chee!
Me: Hmmmmm (This is going to be a long night)
...inder: All the oldies should be kicked out. They have fallen in love with AC life, tandoori chicken and starring in cola ads
Me: Ya, right
...inder: The minimum cutoff age should be 23
Me: Why?
...inder: At that age you still have some josh. After that you are useless
Me: Really? (Have I lost my josh already?)
...inder: Saab ji, I bet if you ask Ganguly to run to that traffic signal over there, he won't even reach halfway
Me: Hmmmmm (neither will I)
...inder: Same with me - I drive around all day so I am not fit. Players should be recruited from among youngsters who are healthy and those who don't laze around in sofas and chairs
Me: Hmmmmm (is he referring to me?)
...inder: I have thought a lot about what could be done to save Indian cricket and I'll tell you all
Me: @$#*%!

And the YouTube video of 2006 is

'Ok go - Here it goes again' was chosen the best in the Most Creative category

Wanna get married to my wife?

You love your wife. Your wife loves someone else. What do you do? Ask her lover to get married to her. And the three of you live happily together. Impossible, you say. But that's the premise of the first ever feature film to emerge from Arunachal Pradesh.

Ahsan Muzid's film 'Sonam' depicts the practice of polyandry among the Brokpas, yak shepherds who live on the mountain slopes in Tawang. This tradition, based on a custom of the Monpa society, is still being followed in remote areas.

Muzid explores how this complex way of life affects relationships. Sonam, a woman caught between two husbands, is torn between her love for one and her loyalty to the other. She wastes away until she finds ultimate atonement in her own death.

'Sonam', made in the Monpa dialect with English subtitles, has garnered a clutch of awards at various film festivals, most recently at the Mumbai Academy of the Moving Images (MAMI) festival. And righty so. Muzid must be feted for his technical finesse and his ability to eke out emotions from first-time actors.

It must have been a struggle to shoot 'Sonam' in a state where film culture is absent and that too at such high altitudes. Tawang district looks absolutely breathtaking on screen and I wonder if the state government is doing enough to promote it a tourist attraction. Hoping to see other films from the region. Coz there are enough tales waiting to be told.

Rating: ***

Remarks: The good thing is Muzid doesn't go overboard with melodrama. His story, which has universal appeal, is his strong point. His characters are believable and their emotions true to life.

Sonam
120 mins - 35 mm Cinemascope
Direction/Screenplay - Ahsan Muzid

ALSO READ
Deccan Herald review
The Hindu review

An advisory to Indian cricket fans

India lost. Big deal! It's amazing how every Tom, Dick and Harry (or rather Om, Manik and Hari) is ready to maul the Indian cricket team. Come on, guys - they just had an off day.

Everybody has an off day. Even you Mr Architect, Doctor, Engineer, Peon, Singer, BPO Worker, Driver, Politician. How many times have you screwed up something at work? Does that mean you get fired every time?

It's easy for you to criticise - you there with the potbelly in that comfy armchair waxing eloquent on everything that's wrong with Indian cricket today. Would you have done better out there on that very same pitch? Nah, I didn't think so.

The worst offenders are the ones who keep saying they'll never again watch cricket on the telly. But come the next match, they tiptoe towards the remote control and sink into that cosy sofa and relapse into a harangue against Sehwag, Dravid, Chappell or whoever else is scheduled for the day's battering.

"How dare you Toe Knee," you say. "You don't even watch cricket." Ok, so I don't watch cricket but does being someone who loves cricket give you enough leeway to make sick SMS jokes or even attack poor Dhoni's house?

Why don't you behave the same way when Sania Mirza loses a match or Viswanathan Anand fumbles? Aaaaahh! I keep forgetting you don't care two hoots about anything other than cricket.

You were the ones who pumped up the Indian cricket team before their infamous defeat saying stuff like 'Blue Billion' and 'Hoo Haa India'. And now you are disappointed they lost. So what? People have bad days but they have good days too. Maybe now they will revamp the team and we'll put in a good showing in the next tournament.

Don't tell me you'll never watch cricket after this. I know, for sure, that you are lying.

And for those of you who are serious about this, Crazy Journo explores why politicians are thinking of making kabaddi the national game of India.

More Cricket Posts

The Basics: If a failed 'motivational speaker' dad, a suicidal gay uncle, a stressed mom, a heroin-snorting grandpa and a Nietzsche-loving brother were not enough, little Olive Hoover has a quirk of her own. She wants to win the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant. When Olive gets selected for the finals, the Hoover family pack into their Volkswagen mini-bus for a two-day road trip to California.

What I think: One of the reasons I loved Little Miss Sunshine was that it featured a dysfunctional American family, not the Lived-Happily-Ever-After ones usually depicted in Hollywood cinema. And though the Hoovers go through several distressing events on their way to California, you can only laugh as they deal with one problem after another.

A dark comedy that warms the cockles of one's heart, the film is both funny and touching. The characters are flesh-and-blood human beings and I found myself warming to each of them.

Regrets: Alan Arkin didn't quite deserve an Oscar for his role as Grandpa. Am not finding fault with his acting but then he's barely there for 15 minutes. Am being mean but probably the Academy wanted to honour the veteran actor before he passed away. That said, the film deserves a separate Oscar for Best Ensemble Cast.

Rating: ****

Remarks: Feeling blue? DO NOT MISS IT

Better check your tea

There might be urine in it.

Or vice versa.

Cricket World Cup: Of free beers and prison riots

Free beer! That's what an Australian fan named Tony has won after he grabbed a one-handed catch beyond the boundary when Ricky Ponting hit a giant six during the World Cup thriller against South Africa on Saturday. With that historic six, Ponting became the seventh player to cross the 10,000-run mark in ODIs. It's celebration time also for Tony, an electrician, coz he's won free beer for the rest of the tour.

The crowd might have noticed Tony grabbing the ball but they were oblivious to a prison riot barely 400 metres from the stadium. Apparently, some prisoners escaped into the yard by using furniture in their cell to break down the door. Looks like they really wanted to watch the Aussies in action.

March 2007 archives

Kongregate rocks!!!

Has anyone tried out Kongregate? I feel it's gonna be the next big craze after You Tube. Check it out.

Glamour girls scramble for piece of India

Did anyone notice that a bevy of international beauties made a beeline for India in recent months. Scarlett Johansson visited slums and schools in Delhi as part of an Oxfam project. Ashley Judd was here espousing women's rights and the fight against AIDS. Elizabeth Hurley chose to get married to hubby Arun all over again in picturesque Jodhpur. Angelina Jolie and beau Brad Pitt flew down to India for filming 'A Mighty Heart'. Now, singer Shakira would be performing in Mumbai. And what of celebrities turning up unannounced like they did some years ago? Remember how Kate Winslet roamed about sans make-up and evaded shutterbugs.

March 2007 archives

How Steffi Graf aced a spectator

And we are not even talking about her tennis. (Link via Kiruba)

Will voters sway the same way sans bribes?

Uttar Pradesh is heading for elections and we are in for yet another round of booth-capturing, politicians using money (to bribe voters), gangsters using muscle (to intimidate voters) and something exclusive to 2007 - Amitabh Bachchan appearing in television ads extolling the virtues of the state (or rather its government).

How would Indians react if political parties stopped bribing voters during elections? Well, the Chinese should show them the way.

March 2007 archives

Dhoni to stay back in Trinidad?

Crazy Journo claims that a miffed Dhoni has decided to make the Caribbean his permanent abode after irate fans went on the rampage at his newly constructed house in Ranchi. Believe at your own risk.

March 2007 archives

Fear and flight

Animated tale of a man who wouldn't give up on his dream

Cricket World Cup: Woolmer dead, Flintoff sacked

It's not been a good day for Cricket. Pakistan cricket coach Bob Woolmer died in hospital a few hours after he was found unconcious in a pool of vomit at his hotel room. Murder? Suicide? Heart attack? It's too early to say but there's no denying that Woolmer was really upset after minnows Ireland ousted Pakistan from the cricket World Cup.

Meanwhile, Andrew Flintoff has been sacked as England's vice-captain after having been apparently rescued from the sea in an inebriated condition one day before playing a World Cup match. Guess he didn't quite care for the World Cup. Details are sketchy in both cases.

But one thing is for certain, March 18 is not a date cricket fans are going to forget in a hurry.

March 2007 archives

Cricket World Cup: Ireland to beat England, Australia

Well, bookmakers are actually offering odds that Ireland will go on to beat England and Australia in the Super Eight stage of the cricket World Cup. Given Ireland's victory over Pakistan and Bangladesh's trouncing of India in the group matches, this no longer seems impossible.

March 2007 archives

The March 2007 Blog Mela

Sakshi Juneja kicked off the nomination process for this Blog Mela. Her vote went to Desi Dabba's post here on how television is a bit thanda this World Cup.

As expected, the cricket World Cup is the flavour this season. Sportolysis reveals why it's India's turn to bring home the trophy this year. There's a Pope involved in it somewhere. And Anand Ramachandran introduces the Underarm Cricket World Cup to be sponsored by Rexona.

But even the World Cup isn't as hot a topic on the Indian blogosphere as Reuters journo Jonathan Allen's coverage of Liz Hurley's nuptials.

Divisha Gupta didn't quite agree with Allen's statement on Indian women and promptly blogged about it. Amit Varma, India's most famous blogger, wrote about it too and so did Sakshi. And here's my take on the issue. Sujay, MadMax and someone called My Utterances also had their say.

Meanwhile, Shilpa Shetty went right ahead and met the Queen. And nearly slipped. Sepia Mutiny's Anna wonders whether the actress was actually wearing a sherwani.

Beware of Einstein's Ides of March, says Atanu Dey. Harsh had to part with his chocolate bar after he made a little girl cry.

Don't frown and say 'Serves him right'. Children are Evil Incarnate. Ask the Jabberwock, he will tell you why. Falstaff's an expert on handcuffs. Maybe he could help.

And Shweta Baxi Tyagi finds a subtle connection between weeding and Europe's 'foundling wheels'

Weeding out plants is also Alaphia's dilemma - does one really need to cut down trees to save the blackbuck?

Vivek Kumar elaborates on why restricting internet access at IIT Bombay is not a smart thing to do.

And if you are an upcoming blogger, you should probably take Rohit Bhargava's advice and concentrate on making your blog a microbrand.

You never know what music can do for you. The Great Bong reveals how he's become a convert to Channel Bh. Simple pleasures create great memories for AB as well. And Jhansi Ki Rani analyses how her life has changed after marriage.

Where you live does matter. eM has a flashback. And of course, the Blank Noise Project is trying to make sure you can be yourself no matter where you reside.

Lastly, fashion designer Anand Jon may be in trouble for you-know-what, but Sepia Mutiny would have us believe he also 'allegedly' smells bad.

That's all for now. The Blog Mela returns in April - Nominate now Keep watching this space.

March 2007 archives

Blog Mela: The Final Countdown

The votes are in and the deadline has passed. As promised, the Blog Mela will be published in the next 24 hours. Watch this space.

And you thought Hitler was German

If a German political party has its way, long dead Adolf Hitler could be posthumously stripped of his German citizenship - something that the Austrian-born Fuhrer had worked so hard to achieve in 1932.

Cool, huh! Am just thinking of how to strip some Indians of their citizenship. Ummm, how about kicking out Manu Sharma and Moninder Singh Pandher. Wotsay?

Shilpa goes before the Queen

Remember the Audrey Hepburn film My Fair Lady - there's this scene where she's presented to the Queen and everyone is bowled over by her grace. Actress Shilpa Shetty tried to do a Hepburn at Westminster Abbey on the occasion of Commonwealth Day. And almost failed.

While attempting to curtsey before the British monarch, Shilpa nearly slipped because of her high heels. But the Duke of Edinburgh was at hand to warn Shilpa of the danger.

The 31-year-old winner of Celebrity Big Brother was one of five speakers to address the gathering on inter-racial respect and understanding. She spoke on the importance of tolerance and was all praises for the Queen's smile.

Shilpa, clad in a purple ensemble designed by Tarun Tahiliani, said she was happy no police charges had been brought against the other Big Brother housemates.

I just want to say it was a reality show. Too much was made of it

And how she was aware of the different kinds of people everywhere -

As a child growing up in Bombay, I was aware of the vastness of India and of its incredible diversity.

And how the right to live with dignity was most important of all -

In India, in the UK, and the world over we are constantly reminded that we have to cope with difference on a daily basis. It is every human being's inalienable right to live with dignity. Differences must be overcome.

The crowning moment in Shilpa Shetty's life came after she spent nearly a month ensconced in the Big Brother house where she displayed Gandhian virtues in the face of racial abuse and became the most recognised Indian face on the British Isles.

Don't know if she learnt anything else other than the meaning of the word 'punani' in there - after all Jade Goody, Danielle Lloyd and Jo O'Meara did show her how they could fart, snore and giggle at the same time.

FULL COVERAGE (on this blog)
Shilpa Shetty in Big Brother

Much ado about Jonathan Allen

CNN-IBN blogger Divisha Gupta is not too impressed by Reuters reporter Jonathan Allen's coverage of Liz Hurley's nuptials in Jodhpur.

On her blog, Divisha says parts of Allen's article are -

...appalling, mindless bracketing, myopic stereotyping, West-side perspective and the inability to look beyond and rise above the "elephant-sadhu-snake-charmer" state of being!

And here's the excerpt from Allen's story which triggered Divisha's outburst -

Indian women are commonly married off in their teens to a man of their parents' choosing, and are a cause of despair if they are still a spinster at 30... Even the humblest family will save up to make sure their children are paraded regally around the neighbourhood by lantern-bearers and a brass band

Well, I have a few problems with Divisha's rant. For one, she doesn't bother to link the original article so that readers could put the statement in context.

More importantly, isn't the statement true? Aren't most girls in rural India married off before they are 18. Even in cities, most women from low-income groups are mothers at 20. So who are we fooling here?

It's all very well to talk about shining India but does that mean we lose our cool each time someone makes a factually correct statement that may not be music to our ears. We must learn to take the bouquets with the brickbats.

Divisha's blog outburst got a number of reader comments (95 at last count) and as expected, the debate quickly turned into an India vs the United States debate (which is really funny considering Jonathan is British, not American)

On her blog, several "patriotic" Indians took Divisha's side and berated Jonathan Allen for his "biased" views. What do YOU think?

Blog Mela on March 16 - Nominate NOW

Some people may think Blog Melas are a waste of time but for me it's a great way of showcasing the best of what the Indian blogosphere has to offer.

If you come across a nice blog post published in the first 15 days of March 2007, you can nominate it for this month's Blog Mela being hosted here on March 16.

Points to Ponder
- Posts should have been written by Indians or must have an Indian angle
- Please nominate individual posts, not the whole blog
- Feel free to nominate something you have written. Immodesty appreciated.
- Only nominations received before midnight on March 15 will be considered for inclusion
- Meanwhile, I'll also be wading through the Indian blogosphere myself so a good post which fails to get nominated may also be featured in the Blog Mela.

How to Nominate
- Leave a comment on this post OR mail me at toeknee (at) gmail (dot) com

Measures to Net the Internet

So IIT Bombay has decided to curb internet access in its student hostels. What next? A military boot camp to cure Net addicts like the one in Beijing.

Happy Birthday Osama

Yes, al Qaeda supremo Osama bin Laden turns 50 today. Wonder if he's cutting a cake. Or is he too busy plotting his next strike against the US.

Is he alive at all? Well, I did eavesdrop on the following conversation so you can make up your mind.

(Inside a cave on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border)
Henchman: Happy birthday, boss
Laden: Thank you, my dear Ali
Henchman: We have placed an online order for a cake from Wenger's
Laden: Ooh! I love Wenger's chocolate cakes
Henchman: And we have also arranged a belly dance by Mallika Sherawat
Laden: (weeping) You guys are the best any dude could ask for
Henchman: We love you too, boss

Hasn't bin Laden done pretty well for himself. I guess he's the youngest ever to merit the 'Most Wanted Person in the World' title. That's the kind of publicity most Hollywood stars can only dream of. After all, there's no such thing as bad publicity. Right?

ALSO READ
SPOOF - Indian techies rush to Laden's help
SPOOF - Osama says he's "right here waiting for you"

Spam mails do have their uses

And you thought nobody could get this creative

Photoshop Magic in 3 Hours

But you get to watch it in five minutes

For those who think their job sucks

Well, this job sucks more

An Ode to the Delhi Metro

There was a time when relatives from Kerala would troop in at the city railway station, all agog at their first glimpse of Delhi. And the Red Fort, Qutab Minar and Lotus Temple were the usual suspects on their must-see list.
Now, I simply take them for a ride on the Delhi Metro.

This world-class transit system has upped Delhi's prestige and in my opinion has helped it replace financial hub Mumbai as India's hippest city.



A friend tells me that commuters go crazy trying to get a mobile signal on the New York subway and the London Underground. But mobile conversations are loud-and-clear on the Delhi Metro no matter how many metres below the Earth's surface I descend. Amazing, huh?

True, there used to be chaos at busy stations like Rajiv Chowk (Connaught Place) with passengers finding it difficult to disembark due to the sheer numbers waiting outside. But last month, authorities started a queue system with guards to oversee the process. And it has worked really well. Now, it's a pleasure to watch people wait patiently for me to get off first.

All my pals know I dig the Metro experience and lose no opportunity to wax eloquent about it. So this blog post won't come as a surprise. I just hope more Delhiites and visitors from abroad try this world-class experience. And get hooked.

I won't say it's all hunky-dory though. Authorities should consider stepping up security. I entered the Pragati Maidan station early one morning last week and there was no security guard there.


Some baggage-laden men got in behind me and entered the train. The memories of the horrific Mumbai train blasts were still fresh in my mind. What if their suitcases contained explosives? Well, things now seem to be moving on the security front as this newspaper report says.

As for the photos, I clicked them with my mobile camera during my 7 am journeys to office. That's why the compartments look so empty. Don't try this yourself coz you need special permission to take photographs/videos inside the Metro stations and trains.

Wanna know more? Click here for their official site.

View my Delhi Metro montage

Afterwards...

It's hard to believe Afterwards has been written by a woman. Simply because it's written from the point of view of a man. And because Jaishree Misra has captured so well the nuances of what a man goes through during the loss of a loved one.

Misra's third novel is set in Delhi, Kerala and London and explores the many facets of love, tradition and sorrow.

In conversation with Jaishree Misra
Afterwards: The Hindu review
Buy the book

How Xena faced her attackers

My Blank Noise Project Action Hero is a former colleague. Let's call her Xena coz she chooses to remain anonymous.

On her way back home from work last month, journalist Xena was walking down a deserted street in central Delhi when two men tried to grab her. It took her a few seconds to react to the sudden assault and then Xena fought for her life.

She bit, she screamed, she elbowed, she kicked and sure enough - the two men left her and ran away. She hadn't even seen their faces in the dark.

Knowing there was little she could do about the incident, Xena enrolled for a martial arts programme the next morning.

It's only been a couple of days since she began the course but now Xena is confident she can handle any attacker (and kick him where it really hurts).

There had been a pepper spray in Xena's handbag but the sudden attack had rendered it useless as she had no time to take it out. Does that mean picking up karate skills is the only way to combat street sexual harassment?

This Women's Day, do visit the Blank Noise Project blog for a cross-cultural chain of shared experiences on sexual harassment.

India outsources to the U.S.

The Indian government plans to outsource processing of visas from its embassy in Washington to a U.S.-based company. Don't believe me? Read full story here

FIFA exaggerated World Cup viewership figures

Remember how I lashed out at a Times of India editorial last year that claimed 32 billion people watched the 2006 football World Cup. Did aliens watch the World Cup too?

Well, an investigation by UK's The Independent has revealed that FIFA massively exaggerated TV viewership figures in some cases, and simply guessed in others. Read full story here

ALSO READ
TOI July 11, 2006 editorial

Nirula's back in Connaught Place

Hot Chocolate Fudge lovers - Rejoice. Icecream and fast-food joint Nirula's, synonymous with childhood pleasures for many a Delhiite, made a triumphant return to Connaught Place just a few weeks after it shut shop in the city's centre.

The new Nirula's outlet is in K-block - a mere hundred metres from PVR Plaza and visible from the Outer Circle. And believe it or not - they got Bollywood actress Amrita Arora to inaugurate it yesterday.

The popular hangout sports a new look after Navis Capital Partners and Samir Kuckreja acquired the Nirula's group of companies this year. But things may not have improved for the better.

Nirula's signature Hot Chocolate Fudge Sundae is now priced at a steep Rs 98 (up from Rs 50 some years ago) and fares much worse in taste and quantity than a decade earlier. Youth-centric themes adorn the wall and Bollywood tunes rule the joint. But a leaking roof played spoilsport - leaving patrons sitting quite close to a big blue bucket just below the trouble spot.

On the other hand, the service and ambience is commendable. The staff, in their newly-designed uniforms, are helpful and efficient as usual. I remember one guy in particular, grinning from ear to ear as he handed out a particularly complex order of single-scoop icecreams to my pals. Seems it may just be the start of another successful innings for Nirula's.

BLOG INTERVIEW - Mahesh Dattani

Meet Mahesh Dattani. India's first playwright in English to be awarded the Sahitya Akademi award, this Bangalore-lover made his mark in filmdom with Mango Souffle and the Oscar-nominated Morning Raga.

Toe Knee Unplugged caught up with the 48-year-old dancer, actor, writer and filmmaker just as he was leaving for Dubai to present his latest play Double Deal.

The play - billed as an innocent encounter between strangers that turns out to be a roller-coaster ride of deceit and betrayal - struck a positive chord with audiences with the actors getting a standing ovation at its Mumbai premiere. Audience response has been quite good, eh?

"Private shows have also done very well. The Dubai shows are sold out in advance, so I guess we are doing okay".

Double Deal, an adaptation of Richard Stockwell's thriller Killing Time, stars the unusual combination of Sandhya Mridul and Mahesh Manjrekar. But why Sandhya and Manjrekar?

"When I read Stockwell's original, I was struck by the fact that it was written for star actors. Now where do I get charismatic star actors like Lana Turner and John Garfield? Enter Mahesh Manjrekar and Sandhya Mridul. Their onstage chemistry is what makes it work to a large extent."

Point taken. But why do you change genres so quickly - after all, your last play Mad About Money was a comedy.

"Well, I like trying out different things and I enjoyed working on both. At the heart of it, I like a good piece of drama."

Yes and we love your plays too, Mahesh. But why are you turning your back on films? You haven't done anything since Morning Raga.

"I am working on a film project once my theatre commitments are done with. I took a break from films after Morning Raga as I was desperate to get back to theatre."

For the record, I caught the film (A story of three lives. Struck by tragedy. United by destiny. Redefined by music) at Delhi's IHC and watched from the sidelines as enthralled spectators showered praise on Dattani at an interactive session following the screening. But one still feels the Shabana Azmi-starrer didn't quite get the attention it deserved. Wotsay?

"The film was received very well and Shabana's performance has been universally acclaimed. One wishes it had better distribution, but then maybe the film was limited in its appeal. It was never made as a commercial venture to begin with so I am happy at the response it has received."

Other Exclusive Interviews on this blog
Filmmaker Ruchi Narain

The world's most attractive woman is...

...apparently a 98-year-old widow in Mexico.

Maria de Jesus Flores is being relentlessly pursued by a man 50 years her junior.

In a legal complaint, Flores said the man tried to kiss her and threatened to kill her if she didn't let him move in. Read full story here.

Have you caught Fever 104 FM yet?

Ya, I know I keep raving about Delhi's 95 FM but another radio channel has been increasingly tugging at my eardrums in recent weeks - Fever 104 FM.

First-time listeners to this four-month-old channel should tune in to Fever Top 20 (Monday - Friday at 8 pm) for starters and then move on to My Request Dot Com and Fever 40 to complete the musical meal.

And why? Well, it may be raining radio channels in Delhi but only these two seem to have caught the pulse of the city's youth. Peppy music, not-so-pesky RJs and fewer ads - that's the magic recipe for conjuring up some loyal listeners. And the guys at Hit 95 and Fever 104 have got it covered.

ALSO READ
Aren't you addicted to Hit 95 FM yet?

You still think your job sucks?

The Devil Wears Prada (the book not the movie) is the best possible gift for all those (including me) who spend their time devising the safest way to kill their bosses and colleagues and escape a prison term at the same time.

Poor Andrea Sachs. The things she had to put up with. I now realise my office is heaven and my boss is a saint. In comparison.

Author Lauren Weisberger now has another member in her ever-growing fan club. Me.

Remarks: A must-read when you have the office blues
Rating: ****

Buy the Book