On Saturday night India’s Sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan and his two sons Amaan and Ayaan performed live with musicians from across the world for the Chant4Change peace concert at Washington’s Lincoln Memorial.
The concert made use of music as the healing unifying force in wounded and terror-infested universe.
However the rain gods played truant.
Speaking after the concert Khan Sahib said, “We three . my two sons and I, performed while it was drizzling.We dedicated our concert to world peace and harmony.We paid our humble Tribute to Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi , Rabindranath Tagore and Hazrat Amir Khusrau who created the Qawwaali and Taraanaa singing styles.”
Khan Sahib and his sons began the historical Chant4Change concert with an inspirational number. “The first item was We Shall Overcome Hum Honge Kaamyaab, then we rendered Vaishnav Jana Toh, Ramdhun, Raghupati Raghav Rajaram, Ekla Cholo re and then we sang a Taraanaa. We ended with Bengali Folk Music. We hope the whole world soon realizes the value of peace and harmony. Collectively we must give our younger generations a peaceful and harmonious world.Our family feels very sad when we hear about young soldiers dying in the War , no matter which country.We feel connected with every soul every religion and every song of the world.”
Explaining how music can and unify people across the world, Khan Sahib says, “People of the world have to think about the value of togetherness peace and harmony.Collectively people of India and the world have to create a peaceful and harmonious environment for our children and younger generation.India was one before the Partition.That is why even today it’s Indian Classical music that unifies the two countres and their people. We could only divide the LAND but could not divide the music or Swar… Zameen Ka Batwaaraa hota Aayaa hai aur Ho Gaya Lekin Swar Ka Batwaaraa Naheen Ho Sakta.Unfortunately the political system of countries everywhere is based religion.But in our country it is most complex and complicated. My guru once gave his opinion on politics said every election is a big gamble. How we play our cards .How cards are played if you can manipulate you win or if you are unable you loose the election. Political Parties are not interested in our unity and togetherness.”
Khan Saab wonders at the growth of radicalism in India. “I wonder how a PhD becomes radical or communal.There is a strong message there for our education system . Like Dubai or Singapore I wish in our country too people would be afraid of the law and abide by the rules regulations and discipline .It’s high time the judiciary found some other ways of gathering evidence and not depend only on eyewitnesses. So many cases of the judiciary are still waiting for a verdict and so many verdicts are not acceptable by the people of theworld especially in India.”
Khan Saab worries about the rampancy of terror attacks even in America . “The USA should not encourage people to openly buy weapons especially for the younger generation it is very dangerous not to have licence for the weapons.The greatest mockery is that every political leader talks of peace and harmony at the same time every country is busy producing weapons guns and missiles.The future of the world looks aimless and bleak. The world is heading towards destruction .We need to have some powerful world body or organisation to intervene in the mass killings every day in every country especially in Pakistan .Earlier we thought thw UN or UNO will take care of all the world problems.But today unfortunately even the UN is in trouble…I hope the world soon understand the value of love peace and harmony.”
Khan Saab’s own family is a portrait of peace and secularism
He says proudly, “In our family my wife Subhalakshmijee my sons Amaan and Ayaan , my daughter-in-lawNeema and my grandchildren Abeer and Zohaan we all feel connected with every human being,every Religion and every soul.We strongly believe in a Common God. Only the seven musical notes unite the world.I look forward to more compassion among communities and human beings. I have realised God Almighty Only through music..
He ends with a plea for artistes to be exempted from political agendas, “Art, music and musicians don’t belong to any cult or religion Like flowers,air ,water, color,fire and fragrance we of the artistic fraternity also belong to NO Religion . In our Country every classical musician is Worshipped like Goddess Saraswati.” If we can’t help each other for God sake don’t destroy each other. Think seriously about the future of every

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Pink Director’s Next Featuring Yami As A Crime Reporter To Stream From February 16

Anniruddha Roy Chowdhury whose Pink featuring Amitabh Bachchan and Taapsee Pannu was one of the most important films of 2016, is all set to release his next Hindi film.
Entitled Lost, Anniruddha’s film , based on true events, will see Yami Gautam Dhar(that’s what the actress calls herself after her marriage) as a crime journalist. LOST is an emotional social thriller that represents a higher quest, a search for lost values of empathy and integrity.
Inspired by true events, Lost is a story of a bright young woman crime reporter in her relentless search for the truth behind the sudden disappearance of a young theatre activist.

Lost
Says Aniruddha “The shoot of LOST has been an incredible journey. I have been eager for the release of our hard-worked venture. The film is a realistic highlight of media in a social context and I am sure that it will give the audience a compelling watch. I am curious about its release and see the responses it shall get. I hope they will welcome it with open hearts.”
Yami Gautam Dhar who plays the lead of the crime reporter says, “I can’t be happier and more proud of the film’s selection for the opening night at CSAFF. I feel like its one that the people will connect to and will be the one that you cannot miss, especially in the current age and time. I have loved playing this role because it was such a special experience, it allowed me to explore so many layers of emotions as an actor and the entire team has worked really hard on it. I genuinely cannot wait for the film’s release, especially to see the reactions of the audience to it.”
The crime investigation drama boasts a stellar cast. Along with Yami, the film will feature Pankaj Kapur, Rahul Khanna, and an ensemble of younger talent, including Neil Bhoopalam, Pia Bajpai, and Tushar Pandey, in pivotal roles.
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Jamuna Had A Love-Hate Relationship With Bollywood

Veteran Telugu actress Jamuna who passed away on Friday, shared an uneasy relationship with the Hindi film industry.She did eleven Hindi films including the iconic Milan in 1967 where Jamuna agreed to play the second lead, or the supporting role if you will, to Nutan.
Jamuna as Gauri was the Other Woman who craved for the hero Sunil Dutt’s attention whereas he had eyes and devotion only for Nutan. In later years Aruna Irani played a similar role in Caravan.
In Milan Jamuna was not keen to do a supporting role. Producer L V Prasad tempted her with three chartbusting songs. Besides, Jamuna had played the same role in Mooga Manasulu, the Telugu original of Milan. But it was the songs composed by Laxmikant-Pyarelal which convinced Jamuna to take up the second lead in Milan.
While Nutan had no solo songs in Milan, she did have the chartbuster duet Sawan ka mahina . Jamuna on the other hand, had two splendid Lata Mangeshkar solos: Tohey saawariya naahin khabariya and the magnificent Ghazal Aaj dil pe koi zor chalta nahin.Not only these, Jamuna also had a hit duet with Mukesh based on her character Gauri: Bol Gauri bol tera kaun piya.
But then, fate intervened. After the film released one of Jamuna’s solos, the poignant and memorable Aaj dil pe koi zor chalta nahin was snipped out of the film.
Here is what happened: the Ghazal , one of Lataji’s all-time greats, was very much a part of Milan when it released on 17 March 1967. But then it was seen to hamper the flow of the film and edited out. The beautiful song occurred right after intermission. Producer Prasad, a shrewd filmmaker, got to know that audiences prolonged their loo breaks as there was a song after the break. Hence the sacrifice of a seriously sonorous melody.
Jamuna hardly did Hindi films after Milan. Her last Bollywood appearance was in Raj Kumar Kohli’s Raj Tilak where she was lost in a multistarrer as the royal queen.
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Karan Johar Moves Alia Song From Switzerland To Kashmir

The romantic duet in Karan Johar’s Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahaani which was to be shot in Switzerland and which was delayed due to the film’s leading lady Alia Bhatt’s motherhood, is now being relocated to Kashmir.
Purely out of the love for new mom Alia.
Says a source in the know, “Karan loves Alia like his own daughter. He would do anything for her. He postponed the release of Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani as the love duet could not be shot before Alia’s maternity leave. Karan had decided to shoot the song in Switzerland after Alia’s maternity love. But now he has relocated the song to Kashmir as Alia doesn’t want to leave her baby girl behind for long stretches.”
And as Karan Johar argued, snow is snow. How does it matter whether it is Switzerland or Kashmir?
This song would be Karan Johar’s tribute to his idol Yash Chopra. Alia would be dressed in chiffon sarees while Ranveer, for a change, would be seen in formals.
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Bobby says it is not conscious career decision to play negative characters but a conscious decision to play interesting characters. “ I don’t look at characters as positive or negative.When I watch films there is always one character that stays with you. I want to play that character.”
Prakash Jha’s Ashram proved a gamechanger for Bobby. He admits finding challenging roles is tough. “I am trying. I am doing Sandeep Vanga’s Animal with Ranbir Kapoor , Parineeti Chopra. Then I am doing the family film Apne 2 which I am very excited about.”
In an earlier interview with this writer Bobby spoke about his long absence from screen before Prakash Jha’s Ashram. “My fans would ask why I wasn’t being seen on the screen.And I couldn’t tell them it was because I wasn’t getting good roles. But my fans stood by me. They gave me the strength to keep looking for the right roles. Thankfully I found the roles I liked. My new films have given me some new fans. I am thankful I am still here. Yeah , I am in a good space right now.”
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