MUMBAI
Vishal Bhardwaj, currently shooting Haider in Kashmir, is planning to make a full length film on the conjugal relationship of the lead actress of his Saat Khoon Maaf and the Kashmiri poet who played one of her seven husbands. Priyanka Chopra and Irfan Khan played these roles and the scene was quite hit for the man was a bestial brute. Khan who is playing a role in Haider has revealed the plans of the scene becoming a full length film. Saat Khoon Maaf is black comedy by Ruskin Bond. It is centred around femme fatale Susanna Anna-Marie Johannes, an Anglo-Indian woman who murders her seven husbands in a quest for love.
URI
India and Pakistan have continuously disagreed over the ways and means that must guide the cross-LoC trade. Now Chief Minister Omar Abdullah suggested why not permit a third country banking! The blind barter has been the only CBM of any consequence on Kashmir between the two countries but it is facing its own problems. From 625 traders in 2008, the number is reduced to 13. Omar visited Slamabad last weekend. India had suggested formal banking and Pakistan rejected it. J&K had earlier suggested its own system involving the twin currencies of the two neighbours but it is still stuck up somewhere. Is Omar’s suggestion a possibility given the ‘imports’ of (P) Rs 1620 crore and ‘exports’ worth Rs 994 crore, so far.
MAISUMA
JKLF is angry because its leader Yasin Malik was denied accommodation by a Delhi hotel around midnight. Malik had booked two rooms in a Nizamuddin Hotel through Prof Abdul Rehman Geelani, for his wife and daughter. Initially he was asked to wait and once in, he was asked to vacate because his wife is a Pakistani. The family was on the road till late hours along with their 18 month old daughter.
SRINAGAR
Yusuf Taing, the official biographer of Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, renewed an old controversy this December 5 saying Sheikh was actually born of January 29, 1903 and not December 5, 1905. Apart from admitting that Sheikh’s elder brother was against Taing’s efforts to “make Sheikh Abdullah a prophet”, Taing has also accepted he was unaware that school records had recorded his date of birth as March 5, 1905. When was Sheikh born has remained an official controversy but why did Taing rake it up this year. Till he retired as Deputy Chairman Legislative Council last summer, Taing was serving the government. Once out, he was literally forced to leave his official residence. Had that episode anything with the revelations and his estranged son joining separatist politics?
DELHI
It is always the fair gender that has helped Dr Farooq Abdullah to land in controversy. On his way to the parliament, Dr Abdullah said: “I’m scared to talk to a woman these days. I don’t even want to keep a female secretary. Who knows, I might end up in jail because of a complaint.” As the TV anchors launched a campaign over his ‘sexist’ remarks, Omer was read on twitter: “I’m sure the attempt wasn’t to trivialise important issue of women’s security so I hope dad apologises for the misplaced attempt at humour.” Once out of the Lok Sabha Dr Abdullah said: “It not only means everybody else is afraid. Even when you have to see a lady in the office, now you have to have another man standing there, so that one may not say that something has been done.” Media said he was apologetic. But nobody heard him saying about money and votes at the grave of his father!
ALIGARH
A Kashmiri girl currently pursuing LLM in the AMU has accused her teacher specializing in ‘women and law’ of sexual harassment. The teacher Prof Shabir who has faced a similar complaint earlier in his career has been placed under suspension after the compliant was moved to Professor Iqbal Ali Khan who heads the Law’s faculty. Even a police case has been registered against him. Now a senior professor heading the women cell is investigating the case. Shabir who is retiring next summer was placed under suspension almost eight years back for a similar complaint then made by a US student.
GULMARG
In hospitality sector there is lot of tension as the State Pollution Control Board (PCB) has sealed 250 hotels for defaulting on setting up Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs). It is follow up to the high court directions. Right now there are 140 hotels in Srinagar, 20 at Gulmarg and 90 at Pahalgam which are sealed. The hoteliers have now started a campaign having three ingredients: that the case must be heard early and not in February; that the continued sealing would hamper the conduct of winter sports this season and finally why are they being singled out when there are hundreds of hotels without such amenities in Jammu. But officials think the winter sports would not be impacted because Kashmir has 15000 room capacity.
