ANWAR IN CYBERSPACE

No one can deny the value of technological advancements. The country’s ace satirist Anwar Maqsood has come out with a show on YouTube titled Anwarnama whose two episodes have already been aired.

In the show Anwar M reads letters sent to him from the heavens by eminent Urdu poets, something he’s been doing on stage for quite a few years, in which they complain, with a touch of humour, about how Pakistani society has fared in recent times. To be honest, one feels that the show needs a bit of extra oomph — perhaps having another actor accompanying Anwar sahib might do the trick. Just a suggestion.

THE OTHER MEN AND PUTIN

Boy oh boy! Pamela Anderson is one unusual woman ... in a special way. She has been married four times (to Tommy Lee, Kid Rock and twice to Rick Salomon) and is still open to the idea of tying the nuptial knot. This she said in an interview that she gave to that staunch non-Fox News Trump-supporting journalist Piers Morgan on ITV.

Since she also enjoys a good relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Piers M asked her about how things were between her and the Russian leader. She replied, “I have a great relationship with Russia. He [Putin] wanted me to come to his inauguration and give him flowers.” Hmmm … Time to remake the movie From Russia With Love?

2640

Don’t tell me if you’re one of them, because I want to be one of them! In fact, who wouldn’t want to be one of them?

In case, you’re getting confused, well, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have invited 2640 commoners into the grounds of Windsor Castle on May 19 from where they, the commoners, can see the bride and groom’s arrival at St. George’s Chapel and leave the venue after the ceremony. Apparently, they’ve done this to ‘democratise’ the wedding. Well, to be honest, compared to the royal family, the bride-to-be is a commoner of sorts.

Therefore make it 2641.

PHASING OUT

This is a trifle strange. TV and film actress Aisha Khan has bid farewell to the media industry. She announced that on her social media page saying, “I’m bowing out with immense satisfaction and a lot of pride to move on to the next phase of my life.”

This is strange because Aisha K is a beautiful and talented artist who is young enough to play the female lead in TV plays and movies for many a year to come. The mysterious bit of her message is ‘next phase’. Is it the phase where she will become part of someone else’s new phase in life? Perhaps yes, perhaps no. Whatever the case may be, we wish her a happy … next phase.

NOT IN THE SAME CLASS

Modesty is the word that comes to mind. Wait, perhaps, he’s being cheeky. Ranveer Singh has been showered with a lot of accolades of late for his performance as a manic Alauddin Khilji in the film Padmavat. He is suddenly being compared to the all-time great actors of Bollywood.

But the actor has responded by saying that people shouldn’t be talking about him like that because, right now, he still doesn’t belong in Shah Rukh Khan’s class. Still, Ranveer S? So, you’re hoping you will! Dream on.

RGV ON SRIDEVI

Now that’s quick. Filmmaker Ram Gopal Verma intends to make a documentary on the life and work of the first female superstar of the Indian film industry Sridevi who died in Dubai on Feb 24.

The director has often expressed his deep affection for the actress on Twitter and it was reported that when he heard the news of her death, it left him terribly crestfallen. I think it’s a good idea because Ram GV is a fine director, though it would be quite a change from his latest short doc about a European porn actress. I hope he doesn’t feature the post-death antics of Indian televsion in his doc, such as a reporter jumping into a bathtub to reenact her death. People can even trivialise death.

Published in Dawn, ICON, March 11th, 2018