We asked colleagues, present and past, to reflect on a man who has made such a difference to their lives and careers. Here it is then, a rich collection of memories that offer enchanting glimpses of the enigmatic Ajit Balakrishnan.
'This obsession with 'one' is not good for a country like India.'
Four French judges earlier in the day began questioning the passengers detained by the French authorities at Vatry airport, 150 km east of Paris, since Thursday over suspected "human trafficking".
'Sent off to interview him in the late 1970s I met him in a cafe in New Delhi's Regal Building called The Parlour. With impromptu send-ups of Laurence Olivier, Sybil Thorndike and the rich, gravelly tones of a well-known All India Radio Hindi newsreader called Devki Nandan Pandey, he soon had the whole restaurant listening in.'
He presented the first-ever National Creators' Awards at the Bharat Mandapam in the national capital.
A select 12 matches will also be broadcast in Malayalam via Asianet Plus.
President Pranab Mukherjee will deliver his maiden address to the nation on Tuesday on the eve of 66th Independence Day.
'Was the episode edited later? How many times did the shooting happen for this episode and how it happened?'
'With butterflies in our stomachs, but confident of our mission, we took off for Jaffna on the morning of 24 July 1987.' IAF Veteran Air Commodore Nitin Sathe recalls a conversation with Air Vice Marshal Harpal Singh Ahluwalia (retd), then a wing commander and mission leader for the clandestine operation.
One could be anywhere -- huddled around a transistor radio at home in the evenings, walking past a neighbour's house, or waiting at a bus stop and Lata Mangeshkar's voice would reach us. Aseem Chhabra pays rich tribute to The Legend.
'The world needs Gandhi now more than any other time in history.'
Mohammad Rafi had a powerful range that could accommodate anything from the sublime O duniya ke rakhwale for Bharat Bhushan in Baiju Bawra to the eccentric Badan pe sitare lapete huye for Shammi Kapoor in Prince.
Aseem Chhabra lists his favorite 2023 films -- a healthy blend of Bollywood, Hindi indies and some of the best work that is being done in Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and Bengali cinema.
'It is important to understand that the disability is not in the person.' 'The problem lies in societal attitude and the discriminatory treatment given to disabled people in our country.'
The Samjhauta Express carrying some 150 passengers left Lahore railway station for India, Radio Pakistan reported.
'The tank battle was fought at ranges of 300-700 metres.' 'It was a rare example of the complete destruction of a squadron by another squadron.'
Jubilee's irresistible celebration of cinema and all its good, bad, ugly ways lives up to its title, applauds Sukanya Verma.
From jaadugars to Jane Austen, OTT offerings this week are as eclectic as it gets, says Sukanya Verma.
Bollywood has quite a few actors known for their magical awaaz.
'See, nobody asked "Michael Jackson arrey, aap aaj kal toh filmon mein nahi gaate ho".' 'The problem is in India, a lot of undue importance is given to film singing.'
'Even after Awaara Hoon and Mera Joota Hai Japani, between 1946 to 1963, there were plenty of upheavals in his career. My parents had moved into two rooms of a chawl, with an attached bathroom, by then, but life was hard, and often there was no food at home.'
Jawahar Sircar says his earnest request to ministry was to help strengthen public institutions.
The Congress and a host of its leaders on Wednesday changed their social media display pictures to an image of India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru holding the national flag.
'His speech at the bhoomi puja will stand out for a long time in the memory of those who listened to it for touching the pinnacle of excellence and brilliance in both style and content,' declares B S Raghavan, the distinguished civil servant.
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, eminent personalities, politicians described Lata Mangeshkar as the "nightingale of the subcontinent"
'I don't want my life to be a rat race. I want it to be an adventure.
As new OTT release Bawaal tackles the lives of a terribly unhappy couple, and Satyaprem Ki Katha about a young wife with a tragic secret is a box-office success, here's pick of ten (out of a considerable number) of relatively recent films about troubled marriages.
For podcasters -- those who create podcasts -- the medium's appeal also owes to the fact that its content remains unregulated. Uncomfortable conversations, taboo subjects, stigmatised issues, are all encouraged.
Iconic leaders like Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru were among her fans.
Pakistan's electronic media regulator has suspended the licence of US-based Nickelodeon channel for airing cartoons dubbed in Hindi, days after it decided to enforce a complete ban on Indian TV and radio contents amid Indo-Pak tensions.
Legendary Bengali semi-classical singer Sandhya Mukherjee, who had worked with leading music directors such as S D Burman, Naushad and Salil Chaudhury died on Tuesday evening following a massive cardiac arrest, leaving behind millions of mourning fans of all ages across borders.
During the lunch or tea breaks, Maharajji, Manikda, Amjad Khan and I often sat together as Maharajji sang old compositions or recited some bols. Amjad Khan had a great music sense and sang very well.
About 18 months after its entry in India, a Spotify listener spent an average of 97 minutes on the app, almost ten times more than any other streaming music brand.
'I'm 79 + now, and I've been doing all this since my late 20s.' 'Sometimes the ideological war extends to the home as well.' 'Many nights I couldn't sleep when someone close to me uttered the smallest insult.' 'It would cause me a lot of pain. But one has to be honest to oneself.'
Flautist, singer and composer Rasika Shekar talks about her interesting musical journey.
Harivansh Rai died on January 18, 2003, at the age of 96.
Reliance Broadcast is building a curious network of English and regional channels.
In what is amongst the first focused fund in the space, India Media Entertainment Fund (IMEF) is raising Rs 500 crore, which will provide both equity as well as instruments like non-convertible debentures (NCD) to companies in the content, distribution platform and services areas. The private equity fund has appointed a high-profile advisory body which includes ad guru Prahlad Kakkar, managing director of Red Chillies Entertainment and cricket team KKR Sports, actress and entrepreneur Raadhika Sarathkumar, who has starred in Malayalam, Hindi and Kannada films and runs Radaan Mediaworks. It also includes Ramnath Pradeep, former chairman and managing director of Corporation Bank, and Rajesh Gupta, senior partner of law firm SNG Partners.
'Of the 202 debates, 79 were around attacking Pakistan and 66 attacking the Opposition and Nehru.' 'The PMC Bank scam where thousands of depositors lost their savings got just one,' points out Vanita Kohli-Khandekar.
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