nTimes

Reliance Comm loses 20.5 mln mobile customers in July

2012-09-07T10:47:00.000-07:00

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Reliance Communications lost more than 13 percent of its mobile customers in July as it cut off inactive subscribers who have not used their phones for two months, although the firm said the move would have no impact on revenue.

About 95 percent of the mobile phone users in India, the world's second-biggest mobile phone market, are prepaid customers and many have multiple accounts.

For the last year or so, carriers have been cancelling inactive accounts in a clean-up exercise, as focus shifts to increasing revenue rather than flaunting customer base.

Tata Teleservices has reported a decline in customer base several times in the past months after the clean-up began, but the 20.5 million customer cutoff is the first time Reliance Communications reported a fall.

"This is in line with the industry practice and has no impact on customer experience or (the company's) revenues," Reliance Communications said in a statement after the sector regulator released July customer data for the industry on Friday.

Reliance Communications' total mobile subscribers fell to 134.1 million mobile subscribers at the end of July, from 154.6 million in the previous month, pu shing it one spot down to rank No.3 by subscribers.

Sixth-ranked Tata Teleservices also lost 2.4 million customers in July, shrinking its total to 77.8 million. Telenor's India unit, which is set to lose all its operating permits after a court order, saw its customer base declining 1.1 million in July.
Market leader Bharti Airtel gained 1.5 million customers in July to have a total of 188.8 million, while Vodafone's local unit signed up 1.2 million customers in July to boost its total to 154.9 million and became the No.2 carrier by subscribers.

India's total mobile user base fell to 913.5 million at the end of July, 20.6 million lower than June, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India said. About 76 percent of the industry subscribers are "active" customers, it said.

Australia can fall behind Ireland in Twenty20 world rankings

2012-09-07T10:41:00.003-07:00

Sydney, Sep 7 (ANI): Australia will suffer more humiliation and fall behind Ireland in Twenty20 world rankings if they fail to avenge their record first match loss to Pakistan on Saturday.

Only a slender 0.57 of a ratings point separates Australia from Ireland after George Bailey-led side was handed a seven-wicket thrashing by Pakistan with 31 balls to spare, their heaviest loss in terms of balls remaining.
Failure to level the three-game series in Dubai would not only hand Pakistan an unassailable lead, but also result in Australia slipping behind the Irish to 10th on the official ICC table, above only Zimbabwe.

Such a rating would make a mockery of the market forces in the Twenty20 game. While the semi-professional Irish do not have a player on the roster of any Indian Premier League franchise, the 13 Australians in their 15-man World Cup squad commanded more than $US6.4 million in fees at the lucrative 2011-12 auctions.

Many also hold deals in other Twenty20 leagues such as the Big Bash and competitions in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and England.

Bailey said his side can recover from the rout, in which Australia made their second lowest Twenty20 total of 89, and win the World Cup, but they have just two more games against Pakistan and two warm-up matches against England and New Zealand to restore their confidence before their World Cup.

"I'm very disappointed and there's plenty to go away and work on. You don't ever want to be setting those sorts of records. But in terms of the group we've got together and what we're capable of, it certainly hasn't altered my thoughts that we can still be a very good team," Bailey said.

"I still think we can win it. Definitely. Absolutely. I certainly don't think we'd win if we played like we did today."

Bailey said he couldn't pinpoint one reason for the team's batting collapse. (ANI)

कपिल देव ने उन्मुक्त चंद को लगाई फटकार

2012-09-07T10:39:00.000-07:00

पूर्व भारतीय क्रिकेट कप्तान कपिल देव ने युवा क्रिकेटर उन्मुक्त चंद को अभ्यास छोड़कर ‘यूथ समिट’ में हिस्सा लेने के लिए फटकार लगाई. उन्होंने उन्मुक्त को सलाह दी कि उसे अपने खेल पर ध्यान लगान चाहिए. भारत की अंडर 19 विश्व चैम्पियन टीम के कप्तान उन्मुक्त ने क्रिकेट पर बोलने के लिए इंडिया टुडे के यूथ समिट में हिस्सा लिया जबकि उन्हें मैच में हिस्सा लेना था जिसमें सचिन तेंदुलकर को भी खेलना है.
उन्मुक्त भारत ए टीम का हिस्सा हैं जिसे जल्द ही न्यूजीलैंड दौरे पर जाना है. टीम फिलहाल बैंगलोर में अभ्यास शिविर में हिस्सा ले रही है.
कपिल ने उन्मुक्त को कार्यक्रम में देखने के बाद कहा, ‘तुम यहां क्या कर रहे हो. तुम यहां क्यों आए हो.’ कपिल ने उन्मुक्त को सुनने आए लोगों के सामने कहा, ‘अगर मैं उसका कोच या मैनेजर होता तो मैं उसे यहां नहीं आने देता फिर चाहे मुझे लाखों डालर ही क्यों नहीं मिलते. मैं यहां आने के लिए उसको लात मारकर भगा देता.’
कार्यक्रम के प्रस्तोता ने जब मजाकिया लहजे में कहा कि वह भाग्यशाली हैं कि कपिल उनके कोच नहीं हैं तो भारत को 1983 में पहली बार विश्व कप दिलाने वाले इस कप्तान ने कहा कि असल में यह युवा ‘दुर्भाग्यशाली’ है कि वह उनके कोच नहीं हैं.
उन्होंने कहा, ‘मैं उससे अगले तीन साल कड़ी मेहनत कराता जिससे कि वह अगले 20 साल राजा की तरह जीता.’ कपिल और मोहम्मद अजहरूद्दीन दोनों ने उन्मुक्त को सुझाव दिया कि वह विनम्र बना रहे.
अजहर ने कहा, ‘तुम शानदार प्रतिभा के धनी हो. विनम्र बने रहो.’ अजहर ने साथ ही दर्शकों के बीच मौजूद युवाओं से अपील की कि वे गलत संगत में नहीं पड़ें.

Don't create the hype around Yuvraj: Dhoni

2012-09-07T10:31:00.004-07:00

Visakhapatnam, Sep 7 (IANS) Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said it was important that Yuvraj Singh should not burdened with the hype of his return to international cricket, after recovering from cancer, with the first of the two Twenty20 against New Zealand to be played here Saturday.

Dhoni feels it was important to keep things normal for Yuvraj.

"I feel we need to keep as normal as possible. Don't create the hype around him," Dhoni said.

Dhoni was upset with the media scrutiny on Yuvraj's return. The media closely followed Yuvraj's training session at the Dr YSR Reddy ACA-VDCA Stadium.
Dhoni feels the media is putting pressure on Yuvraj, who has now recovered from rare germ cell cancer.
"The whole world is talking about his comeback in a manner as if they are helping him out. In a way, it puts the burden on the individual. It's important to keep it as normal as possible. Not to let him think what has really happened in his life," he said.
Dhoni said Yuraj is a "strong character" and hoped that the flamboyant all-rounder, who was India's hero in the 2011 World Cup, would enjoy his second innings.
"He has fought through it as he is a strong character. As I said, he needs to turn up and just enjoy his cricket. That's what he has done from age-group cricket till now. So he should not think about anything else," Dhoni said.
"The manner in which he joked and fooled around seemed as if he has never ever been away from his teammates. He looked happy and while enjoying a game of soccer, he even showed his predatory instincts by scoring a goal.
"Right now, we had a soccer session, followed by a net session. He looks very joyful," he said.
Dhoni said the wicket could help the bowlers but slowly it would ease out.
"The wicket looks good and that means we will have something for the bowlers. It should come onto the bat nicely. We hope batsmen can play nice strokes."
Dhoni also felt nostalgic and recalled his magnificent 148 against Pakistan way back in 2005 at the same venue.
"I started over here... in the sense my first big innings was here. I've some fond memories," he said.
Dhoni admitted that he missed Yuvraj's company when the cricketer was out of international cricket fighting with cancer.
"We missed him for a long time. He has gone through tough times. But the good thing is he is enjoying it. We missed him for close to a year now. We are hoping that he comes back strong enjoys the game. We just want him to turn up on the field and enjoy the game," he said.

New Zealand captain Ross Taylor said it was great to see Yuvraj back in action.

"It's great to see him back in action but when we are on-field, it's going to be very competitive. Once we are off the field, we are all friends," he said.

Worth of our ministers

2012-09-07T10:28:00.003-07:00

Going by their declared assets, the PM’s men are getting richer & richer. Here's a look at some of them and their riches.

The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) on Tuesday declared the updated assets and worth of the members of the Union council of ministers as in 2012.

The figures show that our ministers are only getting richer by the year. Leading the richie rich pack whose details were available till Tuesday night, is DMK’s MK Alagiri, the Union minister of chemicals and fertilizers, who is worth over Rs 37 crore along with the assets of his wife, Kanthi. Alagiri owns a Range Rover worth Rs 35 lakh and a Honda City, while his wife owns a BMW worth Rs 75 lakh. The couple, with their assets taken together, have seen their worth jump by almost 17 per cent from 2011.

The most meteoric rise — 76 per cent increase — in worth from last year has, however, been of parliamentary affairs minister Rajeev Shukla along with his wife who heads a news channel. The couple was worth around Rs 16.56 crore last year but the present declaration shows they are now worth nearly Rs 29.25 crore. Shukla’s wife alone is worth Rs 23.34 crore, including the value of shares she holds in her company. Shukla’s own assets have grown from Rs 1.8 crore in 2011 to Rs 5.9 crore in 2012 — that includes Rs 1.7 crore in fixed deposits. Shukla, however, still drives around in a 2003 model Hyundai Ascent, which is the only vehicle the family owns.

Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar, meanwhile, has no vehicle in his or his family’s name, according to his latest declaration, though his total worth along with his wife’s has grown by 33 per cent from last year to over Rs 16 crore. The Pawar couple has parked Rs 2.5 crore in fixed deposits in banks and owns a flat in Dwarka Sector 3 in Delhi, which they claim is worth nearly Rs 1.15 crore.

Finance minister P. Chidambaram and his wife have also seen their worth grow by nearly 26 per cent to nearly ` 30 crore this year.

Chidambaram’s successor in the home ministry, Sushil Kumar Shinde, has emerged as another rich minister with his family’s assets worth Rs 14.18 crore — his favourite investment seems to be in flats. He has one in Pune worth Rs2.14 crore and another in Bandra worth Rs 1.98 crore. But Shinde does not own a car. The only vehicle he mentioned is a 2003- model Mitsubishi Tractor worth Rs 1.89 lakh.

But some big guns from last year have intriguingly not declared their assets so far. Among them are Kamal Nath who was worth Rs 260 crore and Praful Patel who was worth Rs 101 crore in 2011.

Assets of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Pranab Mukherjee have not been declared for 2012 yet.

PM calls parliament logjam a negation of democracy

2012-09-07T10:25:00.001-07:00

REUTERS - India's parliament passed just four bills in a month-long session that ended on Friday, prompting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to question the state of democracy in the Asian power struggling with an economic crisis.

Parliament in the country often dubbed the world's largest democracy had been due to debate 30 bills in the sitting known as the monsoon session.
Sensing a chance to sully the prime minister's image as an honest politician, opposition members obstructed proceedings for two weeks by shouting, punching the air and demanding he resign over a report criticising the way coalfields were allocated.

"We have just ended a wasted session of parliament," Singh told reporters outside parliament as both houses were adjourned again after just a few minutes of work.

"This is a negation of democracy. If this thought process is allowed to gain any momentum, that will be a grave violation of the norms of parliamentary politics as we have understood."
In between the shouting, unruly behaviour and general uproar, members did pass a bill against sexual discrimination, and three others. But it failed to debate the economic crisis or policies that Singh says are vital to shield India from the global slowdown and revive growth.
"Parliament should have discussed these issues - what is our economic strategy to deal with these global tensions, these global developments - but parliament was not allowed to do any of these things," Singh said.
The recess until the last few weeks of the year gives the prime minister some breathing space and the government may decree a rise in fuel prices, a move economists say is needed to keep India's fiscal deficit at a manageable level.

The Lok Sabha was adjourned for more than three-quarters of the session that started on August 8. The Rajya Sabha worked less than a third of the time alloted to it and the session was further tarnished by a shoving match between two MPs over an affirmative action bill favouring lower castes.

OBSTRUCTING PARLIAMENT

In recent years, the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has frequently resorted to obstruction in parliament to denounce government policies and scandals.

"This session is likely to be remembered for the work that was not done," said the chairman of Rajya Sabha, Hamid Ansari, while adjourning the chamber until the winter session.

The Congress party-led government has been on the back foot since a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) tabled in parliament mid-session queried coal mining concessions awarded to power and steel companies without competitive bidding, potentially denying the treasury billions of dollars in revenue.

Singh, 79, won a second term in office in a 2009 election. He has denied his government did anything wrong in what has been dubbed "coalgate" by the media.

The prime minister had already been weakened by previous corruption scandals in his government. The BJP may try to keep up the momentum against the government with protests leading up to state elections later this year.

"In this political game, the economy has been the worst victim," said D.H. Pai Panandiker, head of Delhi think-tank the RPG Foundation.

How to Train Your Creative Mind

2012-09-07T09:52:00.000-07:00

As Louis Pasteur once famously said, "Chance favors only the prepared mind." To be an innovative entrepreneur, you want to foster creativity in your daily life so that your mind is ready when opportunity arises.

"Creative ideas often come from unusual combinations," explains Steven Smith, professor of cognitive psychology at Texas A&M University. "The best solution is not going to be the thing everyone thinks of. It's going to be something unusual."

These unusual combinations, called "remote associations," are related ideas that may seem unrelated at first glance. They are the essence of creative thinking.

To cultivate creativity, you want to increase your chances of stumbling on an unexpected link. Here are four strategies you can use in your everyday life that will train your mind to be more creative in business:

1. Shake up your routine. To expand your creative horizons, surround yourself with a broad range of perspectives and experiences. A diverse workplace is helpful, but it isn’t enough. Outside work, seek variety in what you eat, where you hang out, the types of art you look at, the places you travel, or the books you read.

"Diversity introduces all kinds of new stimuli," Smith says. "It opens you up to a number of new possibilities." You are more likely to find an unusual solution when you have more options at your fingertips.

2. Cast a wide net for feedback. We often discuss important ideas with the same inner circle of colleagues, but in doing that we can miss the obvious answers. "Someone less expert may notice invisible assumptions right away," Smith says. They may help you see a problem or idea in a new light.

Find intelligent people with little knowledge of your business and talk through whatever you're working on now. You may be surprised by the solutions they help you discover.

3. Let go of rigid rules. Like the queen in Alice in Wonderland who thinks of impossible things for half an hour each day, you want to train your mind to be more open. Practice letting your mind wander and come up with as many ideas as you can, however absurd they may seem. You can even be silly or funny. "Humor helps loosen up your constraints," Smith explains.

Relaxing your standards while you generate ideas increases your openness and boosts creativity. "If you think of 99 stupid, impossible ideas and one that works, then that was time well spent,"

4. Observe the world around you. "When you get wrapped up in your own head, creative ideas can slide under your nose," Smith says. The most creative people are always on the lookout for interesting things, even if they don't apply to whatever they're working on now, he adds.

Keep a notebook or a computer folder full of interesting ideas, articles, images, or even passing thoughts. They will likely come in handy at a moment you least expect.

Gutka: India's biggest killer

2012-09-06T22:13:00.002-07:00

Obama unites hope with realism in pitch for re-election

2012-09-06T22:08:00.002-07:00

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Reuters) - President Barack Obama asked Americans on Thursday for patience in rebuilding the weak economy as he appealed for a new term in office and defiantly rejected Republican Mitt Romney's proposals to restore growth.

In accepting the presidential nomination at the Democratic National Convention, Obama gave a more down-to-earth follow-up to his 2008 "hope and change" message.

"America, I never said this journey would be easy, and I won't promise that now," he said. "Yes our path is harder -- but it leads to a better place."

Locked in a close fight with Romney, Obama faces the challenge of recapturing the magic of his historic campaign of four years ago and generating enthusiasm among voters who are weary of economic hardship and persistent high unemployment.

His nationally televised address was his best opportunity yet in this campaign to connect with millions of Americans.
Obama argued that the actions he has taken like the auto bailout are paying off and dismissed proposals by Romney to create jobs.

Casting Romney as uncaring of ordinary Americans, he accused the Republican of just wanting to reward the wealthy with tax cuts, deregulate big banks and let energy companies write a policy for more oil drilling.

Romney has vowed to cut taxes for Americans by 20 percent, including the wealthy, and eliminate some popular income tax deductions to help make up the loss in tax revenues. He would sharply ramp up oil production and trade with the aim of creating 12 million jobs over four years.
MILLIONAIRES' TAX CUTS, MEDICARE
"I refuse to ask middle class families to give up their deductions for owning a home or raising their kids just to pay for another millionaire's tax cut," said Obama.
And taking a shot at Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan's plan to overhaul the Medicare health insurance plan for seniors, Obama added: "I will never turn Medicare into a voucher. No American should ever have to spend their golden years at the mercy of insurance companies."
Obama told Americans they face two starkly different paths in choosing between him and Romney in the November 6 election. He said his way may be hard but will bring economic renewal if given more time.
"The truth is, it will take more than a few years for us to solve challenges that have built up over decades," Obama said.
On foreign affairs, Obama dismissed Romney and Ryan as "new to foreign policy" and criticized a comment that Romney made that Russia is America's biggest geopolitical foe. He also tweaked Romney for criticizing London's handling of the Olympic Games when the Republican visited them in July.
"You don't call Russia our number one enemy -- and not al Qaeda -- unless you're still stuck in a Cold War time warp," Obama said. "You might not be ready for diplomacy with Beijing if you can't visit the Olympics without insulting our closest ally."

Obama likened his struggle to that of Depression-era President Franklin D. Roosevelt in calling for "shared responsibility" and bold experimentation in bringing the U.S. economy further out of the worst recession since the Great Depression.

Under pressure to show he can generate strong job growth, Obama set a goal of creating 1 million new manufacturing jobs by 2016. Obama would cut the growth of college tuition in half over the next 10 years.
In an attempt to rebut Romney's charge that Obama is too partial to big government, Obama urged Democrats to "remember that not every problem can be remedied with another government program or dictate from Washington."
(Additional reporting by John Whitesides, Colleen Jenkins, Susan Heavey, Eric Johnson, Sam Jacobs and Sam Youngman; Editing by Alistair Bell and Alden Bentley)

Leaked Pics: New Nokia Lumia handsets

2012-09-03T09:33:00.003-07:00

Pictures showing the new Nokia Windows Phone 8 mobile handsets have reportedly been leaked on Twitter.
Nokia Lumia 920. Image Courtesy

Pictures, apparently showing the new Nokia Lumia 920 and 820 handsets, were released on Twitter on an account called @evleaks.

The pictures show the handsets, which look similar to Nokia's earlier Lumia models, in a range of colours, including yellow and red.
Nokia Lumia 820. Image Courtesy:@evleaks

According to the paper, the larger of the two, the Lumia 920, has a 4.5-inch display and the smaller Lumia 820 has a 4.3-inch display but comes in more colours.

Nokia and Microsoft are holding a joint event in New York on Wednesday, at which they are expected to announce the new Windows Phone 8 handsets.

iPhone 5 mockup spotted at IFA 2012

2012-09-03T09:20:00.000-07:00

The iPhone 5 has materialized at the IFA trade show in Berlin. In mockup form, at least.
The tech-news site GSMIsrael was apparently the first to report on the iPhone 5 mockup, which it claims to have seen courtesy of the CEO of a major cover and case manufacturer. Like just about all the iPhone 5 rumors floating around out there, the mockup is taller than existing iPhones, has a headphone jack on the bottom edge of the phone and features a two-toned backplate.
GSMIsrael didn't identify the case maker that presumably produced the mockup. (Here's a Google-translated version of the Israeli report.) According to The Verge, mass production of cases designed to fit this particular mockup is underway, and could be shipping to retailers within a week.
By the way, 9to5Mac has a good roundup of iPhone 5 mockups, fakes and hoaxes.

Bollywood Upcoming Movies 2012

2012-09-03T09:15:00.001-07:00

Bollywood Movie Release Date

	Movie : Raaz 3
	Cast : Bipasha Basu Emraan Hashmi Esha Gupta Mohan Kapoor Yusuf Hussain
	Music : Jeet Ganguly Rashid Khan
	Director : Vikram Bhatt

	Movie : Chal Pichchur Banate Hain
	Cast : Aarif Shaikh Bhavna Ruparel Rahil Tandon
	Music : Gaurav Dagaonkar
	Director : Pritish Chakraborty

	Movie : Riwayat
	Cast : Achint Kaur Aditya Lakhia Gauri Kulkarni Khalid Siddiqui Mangal Kenkre Milind Joshi Narendra Jha Rajendra Gupta Salil Ankola Samapika Debnath Saurabh Dubey Sayaji Shinde
	Music : Sushil Lalji
	Director : Vijay Patkar

14 September 2012

	Movie : Jeena Hai Toh Thok Daal
	Cast : Hazel Crowney Manish Vatsalya Rahul Kumar Ravi Kissen Yashpal Sharma
	Music : Siddhant Madhav
	Director : Manish Vatsalya

	Movie : Barfi!
	Cast : Ileana D'cruz Priyanka Chopra Ranbir Kapoor
	Music : Pritam Chakraborty
	Director : Anurag Basu

	Movie : Qayamat Hi Qayamat
	Cast : Arun Bakshi Ester Noronha Gracy Singh Mushtaq Khan Prakash Sagar Prem Chopra Puneet Issar Ranjeet Upasna Singh Zakir Hussain
	Music : Aanchal Talesra Manoj Tikariya Suraj Kanodia
	Director : Vicky Ranawat

	Movie : The Lost Tape
	Cast : Ankuar Panchal Esha Rajee Monali Sehgal Nishantt Tanwar Shaurya Singh

	Director : Rakshit Dahiya

21 September 2012

	Movie : Heroine
	Cast : Arjun Rampal Kanika Dhillon Kareena Kapoor Randeep Hooda Shahana Goswami
	Music : Salim Merchant Sulaiman Merchant
	Director : Madhur Bhandarkar

	Movie : Cigarette Ki Tarah
	Cast : Bhoop Yaduvanshi Madhurima Tuli Prashant Narayanan Sudesh Berry Uvika Chaudhary
	Music : Ankur Mishra Kavita Seth Sudeep Banerjee Viraj Sawant
	Director : Harjeet Virk

28 September 2012

	Movie : OMG Oh My God!
	Cast : Akshay Kumar Mithun Chakraborty Paresh Rawal Salman Khan
	Music : Himesh Reshammiya
	Director : Umesh Shukla

	Movie : Kamaal Dhamaal Malamaal
	Cast : Asrani Nana Patekar Om Puri Paresh Rawal Shakti Kapoor Shreyas Talpade
	Music : Sajid Ali Wajid Ali
	Director : Priyadarshan

	Movie : Cover Story-The Ultimate Interview
	Cast : Jackie Shroff Sheena S Nayyer
	Music : Monty Sharma Shamir Tandon
	Director : Laurens C. Postma

	Movie : Deewana Main Deewana
	Cast : Govinda Johny Lever Kader Khan Nazir Khan Prem Chopra Priyanka Chopra Shakti Kapoor
	Music : Bappa Lahiri Bappi Lahiri
	Director : K.c. Bokadia

05 October 2012

	Movie : Jayanta Bhai Ki Luv Story
	Cast : Neha Sharma Vivek Oberoi
	Music : Jigar Sachin
	Director : Vinnil Markan

	Movie : Ishkq In Paris
	Cast : Isabelle Adjani Preity Zinta Rhehan
	Music : Pritam Chakraborty
	Director : Prem Soni

	Movie : English Vinglish
	Cast : Adil Hussain Mehdi Nebbou Priya Anand Sridevi
	Music : Amit Trivedi
	Director : Gauri Shinde

	Movie : Kismet Love Paisa Dilli
	Cast : Anshuman Jha Mallika Sherawat Vivek Oberoi

	Director : Sanjay Khanduri

12 October 2012

	Movie : Chittagong
	Cast : Alexx Oneil Anurag Arora Barry John Dibyendu Bhattacharya Jaideep Ahlawat Manoj Bajpayee Nawazuddin Siddiqui Raj Kumar Yadav Saheb Bhattacharya Vega Tamotia Vishal Vijay Kumar
	Music : Ehsaan Noorani Loy Mendonca Shankar Mahadevan
	Director : Bedabrata Pain

	Movie : Bhoot Returns
	Cast : Alayana Sharma J. D. Chakravorty Madhu Shalini Manisha Koirala

	Director : Ram Gopal Varma Vikram Bhatt

	Movie : Ata Pata Laapata
	Cast : Ashutosh Rana Asrani Dara Singh Govind Namdev Kiran Rathod Manoj Joshi Mukesh Tiwari Rajpal Yadav Razzak Khan Satyadev Dube Sharat Saxena Vijay Raaz Vikram Gokhale Virendra Saxena Yashpal Sharma Zakir Hussain
	Music : Amod Bhatt Sujeet Chaubey Sukhwinder
	Director : Rajpal Yadav

	Movie : Rabba Main Kya Karoon
	Cast : Akash Sagar Anuradha Patel Arshad Warsi Himani Shivpuri Paresh Rawal Raj Babbar Riya Sen Shakti Kapoor Tinu Anand
	Music : Salim Merchant Sulaiman Merchant
	Director : Amrit Sagar

	Movie : Life's Good
	Cast : Ananya Vij Ankita Shrivastava Jackie Shroff Mohan Kapoor Nakul Sahdev Rajit Kapoor Saanand Verma Sania Anklesaria Sunita Sen Gupta
	Music : Abhishek Ray
	Director : Anant Mahadevan

18 October 2012

	Movie : Beehad - The Ravines
	Cast : Anamika Pandey Anil Sharma Anjali Rana Deepa Singh Jitender Naruka Maan Singh Deep Mangal Singh Piyush Sahane Rajesh Tiwari Shweta Singh Sudesh Paul Sunil Sawara
	Music : Arif Khan Ramesh Mishra Ravindra Jain
	Director : Krishna Mishra

19 October 2012

	Movie : Janleva 555
	Cast : Abrar Zahoor Akash Hora Anant Joshi Anant Nag Babli Dutta Cliff Janke Kalpana Pandit Lalitha Rajagopal Mann Hora Ranjeet Jha Shona Chabra Silver Malani Vaseem Vishaal Mehta Willy Manchanda
	Music : Dev Chauhan
	Director : Sandeep Malani

	Movie : Delhi Safari
	Cast : Ayesha Takia Azmi Boman Irani Govinda Suniel Shetty Urmila Matondkar

	Director : Nikhil Advani

	Movie : Student Of The Year
	Cast : Alia Bhatt Kayoze Irani Rishi Kapoor Ronit Roy Sanjay Dutt Siddharth Malhotra Varun Dhawan

	Director : Karan Johar

24 October 2012

	Movie : Aiyya
	Cast : Prithviraj Rani Mukerji
	Music : Amit Trivedi
	Director : Sachin Kundalkar

	Movie : Chakravyuh
	Cast : Abhay Deol Arjun Rampal Esha Gupta Manoj Bajpayee
	Music : Salim Merchant Sulaiman Merchant
	Director : Prakash Jha

	Movie : Ajab Gazabb Love
	Cast : Arjun Rampal Darshan Jariwala Jackky Bhagnani Kirron Kher Nidhi Subbaiah

	Director : Sanjay Gadhvi

26 October 2012

	Movie : Rush
	Cast : Aditya Pancholi Dunay Nortje Dune Kossatz Emraan Hashmi Genna Cloud Neha Dhupia Sagarika Ghatge
	Music : Pritam Chakraborty
	Director : Shamin Desai

02 November 2012

	Movie : 1920 - Evil Returns
	Cast : Aftab Shivdasani Tia Bajpai Vidya Malavade
	Music : Chirantan Bhatt
	Director : Bhushan Patel

	Movie : Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana
	Cast : Huma Qureshi Kunal Kapoor

	Director : Sameer Sharma

13 November 2012

	Movie : Yash Chopra's Untitled
	Cast : Anushka Sharma Katrina Kaif Shah Rukh Khan
	Music : A. R. Rahman
	Director : Yash Chopra

	Movie : Son Of Sardaar
	Cast : Ajay Devgan Arjan Bajwa Juhi Chawla Mukul Dev Sanjay Dutt Sonakshi Sinha Vindu Dara Singh
	Music : Himesh Reshammiya Sajid Ali Wajid Ali
	Director : Ashwani Dhir

23 November 2012

	Movie : Ammaa Ki Boli
	Cast : Farrukh Jaffer Govind Namdeo Himani Shivpuri Hrishita Bhatt Ishteyak Khan Priyal Patil Sangeeta Tiwari Sanjay Mishra Sheela Sharma Shekhar Singh Zakir Hussain
	Music : Manoj Santoshi
	Director : Narayan Chauhan

30 November 2012

	Movie : Talaash
	Cast : Aamir Khan Kareena Kapoor Om Prakash Raj Kumar Yadav Rani Mukerji Shernaz Patel Subrat Dutta
	Music : Ram Sampath
	Director : Reema Kagti

07 December 2012

	Movie : Maut
	Cast : Amita Nangia Anjali Singh Arohi Singh Aryeman Ramsay Ganesh Yadav Himani Shivpuri Krishika Gupta Krishna Bhatt Kushi Gadhvi Laxmi Shukla Namrata Singh Polmi Majumdar Rakesh Bedi Saira Khan Sheetal Jhala Yashpal Sharma Zakir Hussain
	Music : Shehzaad
	Director : Hanif Shaikh

	Movie : Khiladi 786
	Cast : Akshay Kumar Asin Thottumkal Himesh Reshammiya Ileana D'cruz Paresh Rawal
	Music : Himesh Reshammiya
	Director : Ashish R. Mohan

	Movie : Chashme Buddoor
	Cast : Ali Zafar Divyendu Sharma Juhi Chawla Rishi Kapoor Siddharth Sonu Nigam Tapasee
	Music : Sajid Wajid
	Director : David Dhawan

12 December 2012

	Movie : Pune 52
	Cast : Girish Kulkarni Sai Tamhankar Sonali Kulkarni
	Music : Hyun-jung Shim
	Director : Nikhil Mahajan

21 December 2012

	Movie : Dabangg 2
	Cast : Arbaaz Khan Deepak Dobriyal Nikitin Dheer Prakash Raj Salman Khan Sonakshi Sinha Sonu Sood Vinod Khanna
	Music : Sajid Wajid
	Director : Arbaaz Khan

	Movie : Dhoom 3
	Cast : Aamir Khan Abhishek Bachchan Anuranjan Kumar Katrina Kaif Preity Zinta Uday Chopra
	Music : Pritam Chakraborty
	Director : Vijay Krishna Acharya

11 January 2013

	Movie : Rangrezz
	Cast : Jackky Bhagnani Priya Anand

	Director : Priyadarshan

	Movie : Kai Po Che
	Cast : Amit Sadh Raj Kumar Yadav Sushant Singh Rajput
	Music : Amit Trivedi Javed Akhtar
	Director : Abhishek Kapoor

	Movie : Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola
	Cast : Anushka Sharma Imran Khan Pankaj Kapoor Shabana Azmi
	Music : Vishal Bhardwaj
	Director : Vishal Bhardwaj

	Movie : Inkaar
	Cast : Arjun Rampal Chitrangda Singh Gaurav Dwivedi Sandeep Sanchdev

	Director : Sudhir Mishra

25 January 2013

	Movie : Race 2
	Cast : Ameesha Patel Anil Kapoor Chitrangda Singh Deepika Padukone Jacqueline Fernandez John Abraham Saif Ali Khan Sanjay Dutt
	Music : Pritam Chakraborty
	Director : Abbas Burmawalla Mustan Burmawalla

08 February 2013

	Movie : Special Chabbis
	Cast : Akshay Kumar Anupam Kher Bajpayee Jimmy Sheirgill Kajal Aggarwal Manoj

	Director : Neeraj Pandey

08 March 2013

	Movie : Gulab Gang
	Cast : Madhuri Dixit Mahi Gill Raveena Tandon Shahana Goswami Shilpa Shukla Tabu

	Director : Soumik Sen

29 March 2013

	Movie : Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani
	Cast : Aditya Roy Kapur Deepika Padukone Kalki Koechlin Ranbir Kapoor
	Music : Pritam Chakraborty
	Director : Ayan Mukerji

	Movie : Lootera
	Cast : Ranveer Singh Sonakshi Sinha Vikrant Massey

	Director : Vikramaditya Motwane

	Movie : Himmatwala
	Cast : Ajay Devgn Prakash Raj Rishi Kapoor Tamannaah Bhatia

	Director : Sajid Khan

Ajay Devgn to meet Sikh community over 'SoS'

2012-09-03T09:06:00.002-07:00

The 43-year-old actor would be coming down to Amritsar with his friend, Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt, to meet SGPC (Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee) officials, Sikh lawyers and members of All India Sikh Student Federation (AISSF).

The film would be screened during the meeting in Amritsar.

On August 27, Karnail Singh, President of All India Sikh Student Federation (AISSF), in a letter to Jathedar Akal Takht Giani Gurbachan Singh had requested stern action against Ajay for blasphemous remarks against the community as shown in the film's trailer.

It was alleged that the official trailer, released on YouTube, shows the character of a Sikh in a bad light and contains demeaning dialogues like "If Sikhs were not there then who would have invented abuses..." and "Without Sardaars, on whom would have jokes been made".

Lead actor Ajay is shown as a turban wearing Sardar with the tattoo of Hindu Lord Shiva on his chest, which has also been termed as anti-Sikh.

Punjab and Haryana High Court Advocate Navkiran Singh in this regard had issued a legal notice to the makers of the film on August 16 asking them to delete the objectionable parts within 7 days of receipt of the legal notice. However, the producer and actor Ajay did not respond to the notice.

The film is directed by Ashwini Dhir and stars Sonakshi Sinha, Sanjay Dutt and Juhi Chawla.

Ajay had even issued a statement few days back that the film 'Son of Sardaar' does not hurt anybody's sentiments and that he has a lot of respect for the community and culture.

"At no point anybody will find any element of disrespect. The protagonist of the film is a Sardaar, so the film will showcase a very positive projection of the community. One could just wait for the release and then come up with their comments and opinion," Ajay had said.

Priyanka juggling between Barfi and her music

2012-09-03T08:58:00.001-07:00

One is Anuraj Basu's Barfi where she plays the character of Jhilmil starring opposite Ranbir Kapoor. And the other is the launch of her first single, 'In My City'. Apparently In My City is going to be the National Football League's (NFL) theme song, an event which will have a colossal opening in US. Managing the two is a task, but Priyanka is putting all her energies into it.

"She is handling Barfi's movie promotion and the launch of her music simultaneously in spite of her tight schedules", says a close friend of hers. "Priyanka Chopra is promoting Barfi during the day with Ranbir, going to reality shows, launches, city tours and so on".

"Whereas, on the other hand, after pack up she starts with her music promotions, which requires long hours and working double shifts. But PC is going out of her way to make it a huge success".

Priyanka Chopra is ready with her first single. Internationally singles get launched first and over a period of time an artiste launches their album. Priyanka Chopra's debut single "In My City,' features Will.i.am and is produced by Red One (Lady Gaga) and Brian Kennedy.

Single will be the music bed for the intro to Thursday Night Kickoff of NFL. NFL kicks off on September 13 with a video featuring Priyanka and this song. The release of the full song and accompanying video for 'In My City' are expected later this year.

The NFL is a very significant platform that will give her the opportunity to reach out to millions of people in the most important music market in the world. It's the biggest sporting event.

भ्रष्टाचार के खिलाफ गिरफ्तारी के लिए तैयार : केजरीवाल

2012-09-03T08:53:00.000-07:00

भ्रष्टाचार के खिलाफ गिरफ्तारी के लिए तैयार : केजरीवाल

नई दिल्ली: सामाजिक कार्यकर्ता अरविंद केजरीवाल ने इंडिया अगेंस्ट करप्शन (आईएसी) के कार्यकर्ताओं को प्रताड़ित किए जाने के खिलाफ अपनी आवाज बुलंद करते हुए सोमवार को कहा कि यदि सरकार भ्रष्टाचार के खिलाफ विरोध प्रदर्शन को कानून तोड़ना मानती है तो वह इसके लिए सजा भुगतने को तैयार हैं। केजरीवाल ने कहा कि ऐसा वह भविष्य में भी करते रहेंगे।

केजरीवाल ने कहा कि आईएसी ने प्रधानमंत्री मनमोहन सिंह और दिल्ली पुलिस को एक पत्र लिखा है। पत्र में प्रधानमंत्री मनमोहन सिंह, कांग्रेस अध्यक्ष सोनिया गांधी और भाजपा अध्यक्ष नितिन गडकरी के आवासों के बाहर 26 अगस्त को विरोध प्रदर्शन में शामिल हुए कार्यकर्ताओं को प्रताड़ित किए जाने पर सख्त आपत्ति जताई गई है।

संसद मार्ग पुलिस थाने के बाहर जमा हुए समर्थकों को पत्र पढ़कर सुनाते हुए केजरीवाल ने कहा, 'हम सजा भुगतने के लिए तैयार हैं, लेकिन हमारे समर्थकों को प्रताड़ित न किया जाए। पुलिस हमारे समर्थकों को प्रताड़ित कर रही है। हमने पुलिस से कहा कि हमें गिरफ्तार करें और हमारे कार्यकर्ताओं को परेशान न करें। हम जिम्मेदार हैं। हम आरोप स्वीकार करेंगे और हम सजा का सामना करने के लिए तैयार हैं।'

केजरीवाल ने कहा, 'हमने कहा है कि 26 अगस्त को हमने जो किया वह देश के लिए था। यदि सरकार के लिए यह अपराध है, तो हम सजा भुगतने के लिए तैयार हैं। हम भविष्य में भी ऐसा करते रहेंगे। यदि आपकी समझ से भ्रष्टाचार के खिलाफ लड़ाई कानून तोड़ना है, तो हमने कानून तोड़ा है और हम इस कानून को तोड़ते रहेंगे।'

केजरीवाल ने कहा, 'हमने प्रधानमंत्री मनमोहन सिंह को आज सोमवार एक पत्र भेजा है। हमने पुलिस से कहा है कि इसे हमारा इकबालिया बयान माना जाए। हमने पुलिस से यह भी कहा कि हम किसी दंडाधिकारी के समक्ष अपना बयान दर्ज कराना चाहते हैं। उन्होंने कहा कि वे वापस हमसे सम्पर्क करेंगे।'

पत्र में सामाजिक कार्यकर्ताओं ने कहा है कि वे स्वीकार करते हैं कि उन्होंने उस दिन लागू निषेधाज्ञा का उल्लंघन किया है और भ्रष्टाचार के खिलाफ लड़ाई में वे लगातार ऐसा करते रहेंगे। पत्र में कहा गया है, 'हम पर दंगा करने और दंगा भड़काने का आरोप लगाया गया है।

न्यायाधीश नहीं तय कर सकते गरीबी रेखा: सुप्रीम कोर्ट

2012-09-03T08:50:00.001-07:00

सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने एक महत्वपूर्ण आदेश में कहा कि गरीबी रेखा तय करना योजना आयोग जैसे विशेषज्ञ निकाय का काम है और न्यायपालिका देश की आर्थिक नीतियां नहीं तय कर सकती. न्यायालय का यह आदेश इस बात का संकेत है कि न्यायपालिका को आगे बढ़कर कार्यपालिका और सराकार के कार्यक्षेत्र में दखल नहीं देना चाहिए.

न्यायालय ने पिछले सप्ताह एक मामले की सुनवाई के दौरान कहा था कि यह कार्य विशेषज्ञ निकायों पर छोड़ दिया जाना चाहिए. गरीबी रेखा की समीक्षा करना बहुत कठिन है. हम आर्थिक नीति तय नहीं कर सकते.

न्यायमूर्ति टी.एस. ठाकुर और न्यायमूर्ति फकीर मोहम्मद इब्राहिम कलिफुल्ला की खंडपीठ ने यह बात तब कही जब पीपुल्स यूनियन फॉर सिविल लिबर्टीज (पीयूसीएल) की ओर से पेश वरिष्ठ वकील कोलिन गोंसाल्विस ने न्यायालय का ध्यान गरीबी रेखा के निर्धारण का आधार काफी कम यानी 32 रुपये प्रतिदिन की आय माने जाने की ओर आकृष्ट किया. यह एक ऐसा मुद्दा है जो देश में विचारणीय बहस की मांग करता है.

गोंसाल्विस ने दलील दी कि सरकार अपनी जवाबदेही से भाग नहीं सकती, खासकर समाज के कमजोर वर्ग के संदर्भ में. वहीं न्यायालय ने कहा कि याचिकाकर्ता को ऐसे सुझाव देने चाहिए जिन पर सरकार के कामकाज में दखल दिए बगैर अमल किया जा सके. गोंसाल्विस की दलील पर असहमति जताते हुए न्यायमूर्ति ठाकुर ने कहा कि संविधान में यह कहां लिखा है कि खाद्य सामग्री पर रियायत दी जानी चाहिए? उन्होंने कहा कि गरीबी रेखा काल्पनिक है. इसकी प्रासंगिकता केवल रियायत देने के संदर्भ में है.

इसके विपरीत, न्यायमूर्ति भंडारी और न्यायमूर्ति दीपक वर्मा की खंडपीठ ने कुछ दिन पूर्व सरकार को कठघरे में खड़ा किया था और उसे गरीबी रेखा से नीचे के मानदंड में संशोधन करते हुए शहरी इलाकों के लिए न्यूनतम आय 32 रुपये प्रतिदिन तथा ग्रामीण इलाकों के लिए 26 रुपये प्रतिदिन तय करने को विवश किया था. यहां तक कि इसी खंडपीठ ने बाद में योजना आयोग से सवाल किया था कि उसने किस आधार पर शहरी इलाकों के लिए 32 रुपये और ग्रामीण इलाकों के लिए 26 रुपये प्रतिदिन की आय पर गरीबी रेखा तय कर दी.

उल्लेखनीय है कि प्रधान न्यायाधीश एस.एच. कपाड़िया ने भी स्वतंत्रता दिवस के मौके पर एक कार्यक्रम के दौरान और फिर बाद में न्यायाधीशों से कहा था कि वे सरकार एवं विधायिका के अधिकार क्षेत्र में दखल देने से पूर्व अच्छी तरह सोच-विचार लें.

PM को चुप रहने का अधिकार नहीं: भाजपा

2012-09-03T08:45:00.000-07:00

PM को चुप रहने का अधिकार नहीं: भाजपा

कोयला ब्लॉक आवंटन के मुद्दे पर प्रधानमंत्री मनमोहन सिंह पर हमला जारी रखते हुए भारतीय जनता पार्टी ने सोमवार को कहा कि सरकार के मुखिया को चुप्पी बरते रहने का अधिकार नहीं है.
राज्यसभा में विपक्ष के नेता अरुण जेटली ने कहा कि कोयला आवंटन में हुए घोटाले पर सरकार ने कोई प्रतिक्रिया नहीं दी है. प्रधानमंत्री ने अपनी चुप्पी का हवाला दिया है. अदालत में आरोपी को चुप रहने का अधिकार है लेकिन एक प्रधानमंत्री ऐसा नहीं कर सकता.
जेटली ने कहा कि वह उस पद पर हैं जो सबसे अधिक जवाबदेह है. जवाबदेही और चुप्पी एक साथ नहीं चल सकते. जेटली ने यह भी कहा कि भाजपा ने प्रधानमंत्री के इस्तीफे की मांग छोड़ी नहीं है.
ज्ञात हो कि प्रधानमंत्री ने पिछले दिनों कहा था कि हजारों जवाबों से बेहतर उनकी खामोशी है. प्रधानमंत्री ने कहा था कि हजारों जवाबों से अच्छी है मेरी खामोशी, न जाने कितने सवालों की आबरू रखी.

मुंबई में भारी बारिश, कई इलाकों में भरा पानी

2012-09-03T08:42:00.000-07:00

मुंबई में भारी बारिश, कई इलाकों में भरा पानी

महाराष्ट्र की राजधानी मुंबई में सोमवार को भारी बारिश के कारण रेल एवं सड़क यातायात बाधित हो गया. मध्य एवं पश्चिम रेलवे की रेल सेवाएं देरी से चल रही हैं.
बारिश के कारण कई निचले इलाकों में पानी भर गया है. निगम के अधिकारियों ने लोगों से संयम बरतने की अपील की है.
मौसम विभाग के अधिकारियों ने बताया कि अगले 24 घंटों के दौरान मुंबई से सटे ठाणे के अलावा रायगढ़ में भारी बारिश की संभावना है. इसके अलावा दक्षिणी कोंकड़ एवं विदर्भ के क्षेत्रों में अगले 24 घंटे के दौरान बारिश होने का अनुमान है.

The Coal Scam

2012-09-03T08:37:00.001-07:00

Inter-ministerial group reviews coal block allocations

The government has already issued de-allocation notices to these 58 blocks - 33 alloted to government firms and 25 to private entities - for failure to start production within the stipulated time-frame.
These included firms like Tata Power, Hindalco, Grasim Industries, ArcelorMittal, GVK Power, MMTC and others. According to the coal ministry, of the total 195 coal blocks allocated to both public and private firms over a decade, only 30 mines have begun production.
Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal ruled out cancellation of any coal block allocation untill the IMG, submits its report.
"We have constituted the IMG, which is reviewing 58 coal blocks. It has been asked to submit its report in a time-bound manner and latest by Sep 15. After that we will decide," Jaiswal told reporters here.
He had ealier said coal blocks could be cancelled if found that allocations had been made in a wrongfully or these failed to start production in the stipulated time frame.

Finance Minister P. Chidambaram also Monday rejected the opposition demand for cancelling allocations of 142 coal blocks.
'The demand for cancellation of all 142 coal blocks allocated after 2004 is not founded on sound logic ... It (cancellation) cannot be done through dictat or arbitrary orders,' Chidambaram told media persons here.
He said the Prime Minister's Office had indicated that the government should have a final set of recommendations from IMG as early as possible.
The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has in a recent report tabled in parliament said that the government lost a whopping Rs.186,000 crore ($33.67 billion) on account of allocation of 57 mines to private parties without auction.

Understanding India's coal scam

2012-09-03T08:34:00.000-07:00

For the arbitrary distribution of coal blocks, a wide swathe of the political and business class is responsible

The report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) on coal block allotment to private parties amounts to a very damaging accusation of financial irregularity.
In this photo: Finance Minister P. Chidambaram (centre), Coal Minister Shriprakash Jaiswal (left) and Law Minister Salman Khurshid, attend a press conference in New Delhi, Friday, August 24, 2012. The conference was held three days after angry opposition lawmakers shouted and crowded aisles in the parliament, demanding the prime minister's resignation after an audit found the government lost huge sums of money by selling coal fields without competitive bidding.

The life Yuvraj has got back

2012-09-03T08:02:00.000-07:00

‘I wouldn’t have survived a fourth cycle... I would’ve died’, says the cancer survivor.

“More strong mentally, much more positive, more religious....” That, in his own words, is the Yuvraj Singh of today.

The smile is back. As is the hair on the 30-year-old’s pate, which had fallen off during the three cycles of chemotherapy in the US.

Having successfully fought against a rather rare form of germ cell cancer, Yuvraj is focused on two things: making his India comeback (which should be in Vizag on September 8) and spreading awareness through YouWeCan, set up by the foundation which bears his name.

After over six hours of sweating it out at the National Cricket Academy here, Yuvraj spent around 20 minutes in the pool at the luxurious ITC Gardenia. The day’s training complete, he spoke to The Telegraph over tea and sandwiches.

“I’ve got my life back; this is a fresh innings.... Earlier, I’d only pray in temples; now it has become a daily ritual... thanks to my Guruji, who has given me some prayers to recite, and my mother (Shabnam)....

“It’s not that I pray for very long, about 10-12 minutes.... But, yeah, I’ve definitely become more religious....

“I’d always been the positive type, but my illness has made me much more positive. As I’ve told you, I’ve got my life back....

“Of course, I’m more strong mentally as well. For three-four months, I had to fight it out both physically and mentally.... I managed to do so.”

Yuvraj is off medication but will need quarterly check-ups. The next is due in September.

“For now, I won’t have to travel back to Indianapolis.... The scans are going to be done in India and emailed to Dr Lawrence Einhorn there. I haven’t been given a formal list of dos and don’ts, but I’ve become regular with my eating and try to sleep early,” Yuvraj said as a fellow guest at the deluxe property congratulated him on his recovery.

Briefly turning emotional, Yuvraj remarked that he “wouldn’t” have survived had a fourth cycle of chemotherapy been necessary.

“Chemotherapy is painful.... My body had gone by the time the third cycle came and I had to be admitted to hospital (Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Centre) for the final five days.... There were times when I was on a wheelchair and I wouldn’t have survived a fourth cycle.... I would surely have died....”

For a minute or so, neither of us spoke.

Yuvraj then reached for his cup of tea and continued: “I consider myself blessed.... God has been kind; I’ve got such a wonderful mother, so many well-wishers.... Now, I want to spread awareness, do my bit for others....

“If I can fight cancer, so can you.... YouWeCan is for that and our first centre should open (in Gurgaon) in December.... The stigma attached to cancer has to go away.... Early detection holds the key and I’m a living example.”

Yuvraj acknowledged that confirmation of cancer came after tests in London, with Dr Peter Harper being brutally frank about his condition.

That was in late December last year and in early 2012. For Yuvraj, it seems ages ago.

As reported in these columns, Yuvraj’s story of courage is being put together in the form of a book, expected to hit the stands in December.

The staff at the academy have, by the way, been bowled over by Yuvraj’s determination.

“Yuvi’s amazing.... Gym, running, nets, high catches, ground fielding... the guy’s doing everything,” one of the astonished seniors told this reporter.

Player of the Tournament in the 2011 World Cup, Yuvraj is himself “tense and excited” at being mere weeks away from again playing for India.

“Look, I don’t know what will happen.... Don’t know how I’m going to fare, but I’m just happy.... I couldn’t even think of again playing when cancer was diagnosed.... Yet, here I am talking to you....”

Yuvraj needn’t worry. Irrespective of the runs he scores on his comeback, the world already sees him as a winner.

India seal tricky chase to win series 2-0

2012-09-03T07:59:00.002-07:00

Kohli, Dhoni save the day

India's old failings surfaced momentarily, but were quelled in time as they pulled off their fifth-highest Test match pursuit to beat New Zealand by five wickets here, on Monday. Set a target of 261, the home side suffered from a clutch of quick dismissals, twice over, and were tottering on 166-5 before Virat Kohli (51*) and skipper MS Dhoni (48*) sealed things with a timely, unbeaten 96-run stand.

The 2-0 series win was hard achieved, especially after New Zealand had removed the cream of the batting order following following a racy start by the Indian openers. Virender Sehwag (38) and Gautam Gambhir (34) started with a rollicking 77-run stand and after their dismissals, Cheteshwar Pujara (48) and Sachin Tendulkar (27) tided over a testing period before lunch to steady the boat with a partnership of 69 runs.

A few overs after the early tea break - necessitated by a drizzle - both Tendulkar and Pujara were dismissed, and Suresh Raina's horrendous departure meant that India were half the side down, still 95 adrift. But Kohli and Dhoni saved the day with their purposeful association, garnering a much-needed series win ahead of a long home season.

Kohli, who scored his second Test century in the first essay, interspersed his circumspection with some gorgeous cover drives off the Kiwi seamers. As the target approached, Kohli went ballistic, creaming three boundaries off Tim Southee to bring up his fifty. Dhoni was, well, his customary practical self, shovelling for runs when they didn't come in any other way. With five needed, Dhoni ended things the way everybody's come to expect of him - with a six bludgeoned off Jeetan Patel.

Kohli (103 & 51*) was named Man of the Match, while R. Ashwin (18 wickets) was declared Man of the Series.

Sehwag-Gambhir come good
India had cleaned up New Zealand for the addition of just 17 runs - a lead of 261 - in the morning and began hastily through Sehwag, who put faith again in his innate instinct to attack, and Gambhir. Trent Boult and Tim Southee shared the new ball, and India stole a boundary in each of the first eight overs. Gambhir started the rampage and even outscored Sehwag 32 to 15. The southpaw had struggled with his footwork of late, but was particular severe on Boult in his first spell.

He launched assertively into half-volleys and dropped back to slash marginally short ones. A brace of boundaries off Bracewell gave Gambhir-Sehwag their first 50 partnership in 12 innings. Then Sehwag took over. He smacked three fours in a Bracewell over, including a spanking straight drive, and when Jeetan Patel came on with his off-spin, thwacked a six over long-off.

Another four off Patel - a vicious slash past point - was to be Sehwag's last hurrah. On the next ball, he charged wildly down the wicket, missed the line, and was bowled for 38, leaving India at 77-1, requiring 184 more to win.

Sehwag's dismissal subdued Gambhir. The Delhi opener was on 33 off 38 balls when he lost his partner, After that, he added just one in 20 balls, as Boult returned for a markedly improved second spell. Gambhir had played chancily at the ball shaping away, and it was one such Boult delivery that finally consumed him following a wild slash - caught by Ross Taylor at first slip.

The Kiwis tightened things in the last half-hour of the first session, conceding just 11 in the last 8 overs. Pujara and Tendulkar endured a testing session to the break. Boult had bowled Tendulkar in the first Test and this time too posed serious questions to the master, who survived a close leg-before call minutes before lunch. From the other end, Bracewell beat Pujara's outside edge, and India went into the break at 88 for two, needing 173 more for a win.

Pujara consolidates
Pujara's preferred method of tackling the short ball was gloriously displayed immediately after resumption. Boult and Bracewell were either banging it in short or lobbing juicy half-volleys, and Pujara was adept at handling both. He took a brace of fours each off Boult and Bracewell- hooking, pulling, slashing - and reducing the target to under 150.

First innings hero Tim Southee was introduced shortly. He didn't give too many, nor did he threaten. Tendulkar got going with a four pushed through cover off Bracewell, his first boundary, and paddled Patel from outside off to the fine leg fence. On the next ball, Patel had the maestro squared up at the crease, as the ball fell harmlessly in the vacant silly point region.

Tendulkar then turned back the clock with successive boundaries punched through the off-side off Southee, and later in the same over - when more width was provided - Pujara followed suit through cover. The target had been rapidly pulled back to 114 when a drizzle comes down, the Pujara-Tendulkar pair having added 64 to wrest back the initiative.

Kiwis strike, Sachin bowled again
New Zealand hit back with three key wickets in the final session, after the rain delay. In the second over since resumption, Tendulkar gained a streaky four between slip and gully off Southee, but the bowler struck on the next ball, scrambling the seam, getting one to shape in, and flattening the great man's middle stump after grazing the pad.

This was Tendulkar's third bowled dismissal in as many innings this series and, with scores of 19, 17 and 27, outcries for his superannuation are sure to rise again. Six runs later, Pujara fell to Patel and some stunning catching by Daniel Flynn, who ran hastily back from short-leg and held on to the ball through a dive.

Before a salvage act could be put in place, Suresh Raina, having played 10 balls for no score, was the fifth man out when he was bowled attempting a horrible hoick against Patel. Half the side gone, and 95 to win, and the perfect men for the job - Kohli and skipper MS Dhoni - out in the middle.

Kohli got off the mark off the 16th ball he faced, with a boundary off Boult, and was composed throughout the duration of his stay, despite Southee trying his best to get into the batsman's hair. Dhoni played and missed, and then missed some more, before finally driving Boult through cover for his first boundary and top-edging Patel all the way for six over long leg. The two increased their pace frenetically as the target approached and eventually took India home.

NZ cleaned up
Earlier, New Zealand resumed on a lead of 244 and added 17 to it before the last wicket fell. India had to wait five overs for success, and it came in the form of a questionable decision.

Patel, who had struck spirited boundaries off Zaheer and Umesh to take the lead north of 250, was adjuded caught behind off the left-arm paceman when there appeared to be a sizeable gap between bat and ball. But umpire Ian Gould apparently thought otherwise and raised his finger after some serious thought.

Meanwhile, wicketkeeper-batsman Kruger van Wyk, who had been struck on the arm by Umesh Yadav on Sunday, was ruled out of the match. Brendon McCullum kept wicket in his stead, while BJ Watling replaced van Wyk in the field. India were thus set a target of 261, which was chased down and recorded as the highest successful chase in Tests in Bangalore.

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2012-09-01T00:02:00.001-07:00

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