Tidbits of the 15th edition of TATA IPL 2022

Today is the 19th March and on 26th March, the Indian Premier League IPL will enter the 15th year. There will be two new teams to make up the total of 10 teams. They will compete in the Indian Premier League. This is a professional Twenty20 cricket league established in 2007 by the Board of Control for Cricket in India BCCI. TATA will be the main sponsor and the venue of the opening match will be the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The date will be 26th March 2022. Mumbai Indians have won the title five times in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020. Chennai Super Kings have taken the trophy four times in 2010, 2011, 2018, and 2021. Obviously, there is a tough competition between these two teams. This time all eyes will be on the two newcomers Lucknow Super Giants and Gujarat Titans. Their captains are KL Rahul (c/wk) and Hardik Pandya. Both have played in IPL earlier and their fans would love to see them do something outstanding for their teams.

Over the years, the format of IPL has remained the same with teams having their share of foreign players. They are well versed in the art of T20 cricket and many of them have become indispensable to their teams. The conceit of cheerleaders had brought an additional attraction to the game in the initial stages but at present, there are no cheerleaders.... KEEP READING FOR MORE ON IPL2022


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Moody’s ideas to revamp the media (satire)

The news shown on the national media appears to be bland and lacks the verve and zing of private channels and Moody was determined to set that right. Therefore, during one of his brief sessions at home, he summoned his I & B Minister.
‘Why should private TV channels have all the fun?’ he asked Jet Lee.
‘They have the money power,’ Jet Lee replied.
‘Let us clear the anomaly, let us give the employees a raise.’
‘Actually, they work on a shoestring budget,’ Jet Lee wrung his hands. ‘We have to increase that also.’
‘I don’t think that should pose any problem,’ Moody said. ‘We have generated plenty of funds through different means.’
‘That is OK – but, private channels enjoy much more freedom to work. They can experiment and they can induct talent and discard the deadwood.’
‘I think we should form a committee – who do you think should be in the committee?’
‘Well – we must have representations from women. Hence Ranee-ji and Sue-ji would be automatic choices.’
‘Yes – they have plenty of ideas.’
‘And, then we can have Baba Someday who can give ideas on alternative medicines. Hash Budden can also contribute his knowledge while Vicky Singh can look after the effects of global turmoil that needs to be analyzed in the proper perspective.’
‘Well – that would be a start for the audio visual medium. What about the broadcasting media? How can we make it more exciting? I want to make it more appealing to the masses. But. I am told that the people listen to only film songs. They have no time for anything serious.’
‘No Sir,’ Jet Lee hastened to assure him. ‘We have made listening to the radio compulsory, at least once a month.’ ‘That is good. Let us improve the frequency. Let us wean people away from the world of make believe and promote the culture and traditions that we are proud of.’

‘Yes – we must do that. The masses are addicted to alien cultures and values. That must change.’
Suddenly the phone rang. Moody picked up the receiver and the muscles on his face softened.
‘Have you heard the news?’ he asked Jet Lee.
‘Which news?’
‘Cricket is good for health and wealth.’
‘Health I understand but, how about wealth?’
‘Don’t you know - all our cricketers are crorepatis.’
‘I know,’ Jet Lee sighed. ‘It’s a wonderful diversion.' Then murmured under his breath - 'if I knew earlier, I could have gone in for cricket.'
‘Then arrange some more matches – if necessary, have a new format.’
‘But the IPL season has yet to take off.’
‘Forget IPL - let us explore new areas. Let us contact the Eskimos – they can come up with a new look team.’ ‘And, pitch them against teams from the deserts. That will make beautiful contrasts.’
‘And, give exclusive rights to the national media for telecast and broadcast. That will create a new platform for us to spread our messages.’ (to be continued …)

(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)


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Skin show in Indian movies and TV

Indians are still conservative and hypocrites to the core, whether we like it or not. While most of the TV serials show the leading ladies dressed to kill in dresses that reveals very little of their bodies, the accompanying ads show the girls in all their glory posing for deodorants, undergarments, hair removers, mobile phones and what not.
In order to control the urge of growing up girls from showing off too much skin and cleavage, colleges introduce strict dress codes and, in some cities, there sprout up moral policing brigades who try to ensure that the image of Indians are not sullied.

Skin show in English movies come naturally to the actresses because they do not feel embarrassed to shed their clothes in front of the production team consisting of the photographer, the director and host of other persons who have to be in attendance so that the sequence is filmed properly in the first shot itself. Getting intimate is a part of the script and they do not hesitate to do it, whether it be passionate love scenes and kisses or scenes in the bed itself and not just in the bedroom.
However, the same cannot be said about Indian movies. Here censorship is strict and skin show is taboo as such but there have been some enterprising directors who have managed to circumvent the barriers. Of course, they did not dare to go the whole hog – instead they have experimented and are still experimenting to see how far is far enough.
Gone are the days when the hero and heroine would come close and hold hands around the trunk of a tree which acted as the separator. Or – their lips would keep getting closer and closer for a kiss when a bird would suddenly fly away disturbing the concentration. Or - when a pair of birds are shown playing with each other’s beaks as a symbolic gesture of a kiss.
However, things are gradually changing and the Indian heroines are becoming bold as is the audience. The heroines do not hesitate to show off their assets. They do it not only via photo shoots but by donning dresses that reveal more than they hide. Thanks to the reach of the internet and being exposed to western cultures, everyone has shed their inhibitions. Group dances in which the heroine takes part with scantily clad dancers does not raise eyebrows any longer. Probably it is the influence of IPL cheer girls who had taken the Indian scene by storm as well as the ads of some TV commercials that had hordes of the scantily clad girls.(to be continued …)
(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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