What Do You Know?

A rantMuch has been written. More is yet too come. But through this all make a mental note of one thing: people in dung huts should do pi...

A rant

Much has been written. More is yet too come. But through this all make a mental note of one thing: people in dung huts should do pishaab on their walls. My friend Malini Ramani may be many things 8212; from maverick bon vivant to misguided socialite 8212; but she is not, repeat not, a murderer. So all of you in the media who sipped her wine and danced her dance when you craved to get your first by-line, do show some maturity, please! This despicable tragedy is not about whether alcohol was served or whether permits were bought. It8217;s about the endemic sickness that breeds in the cesspool of hypocrisy that is sinking this nation called India, a nation of self-loathing and self-denial. Respectability is not an act. It is a virtue that needs to be won by self-acceptance. So get real. For your own sake, live a life. In the meanwhile, say a prayer for Jessica Lal, a victim: not the first, sadly, not the last.

The twain meet

Sexy Ayub Khan Din, who played the soulful andembittered Sammy in the quintessential 8217;80s British cinema hit Sammy And Rosie Get Laid, is making his Broadway debut this week. However this time round its fame and recognition for him not as an actor but as a playwright. His play, East Is East, is a tragi-comic drama he wrote in 1996 and it debuted in London that year. Recollecting his own childhood, growing up in the 8217;70s in Salford, England, Din bases the central characters on his family members 8211;his English mother, his Pakistani father, and his several mongrel brothers and one sister. The story is one of displacement, identity, colonisation and stagnancy of traditional values. With some brilliant dialogue, a solid structure and an insider8217;s point of view East is East became the toast of London in 1997 winning accolades including the Writers Guild Awards for Best West End Play and Best New Writer. Subsequently, Din was approached by the BBC to write the screenplay which is now a soon-to-be released motion picture scheduled for thefall. Between all this Din was commissioned to write another play titled Last Dance At Dum Dum which is scheduled for its London premiere in July this year. In the early 8217;90s Ayub Khan Din was in Bombay to play the lead Mani Kaul8217;s adaptation of Dostoevsky8217;s The Idiot which starred amongst others Shahrukh Khan and Mita Vasisht and the then darling of the Bombay stage Nikki Vijaykar, later Bedi. The Manhattan Theatre Club, one of New York8217;s most prestigious theatre companies chose this play as part of its current season and brought in noted director Scott Elliot Ecstacy, Goose-Pimples, etc to wring excellent performances from a mainly new cast.

Leading the pack is Bombay8217;s own studmuffin Rahul Khanna who shines bright in his role as Tariq, the roguish rebel. Also in the cast is Ajay Mehta whose dulcet tones and macho presence shows him to be an stage actor of great promise. Both these gentlemen have long acting careers ahead of them. If only more juicy roles get written for thistalent.

Tea for two

Adda queen and high priestess of class Anuradha Tandon is currently in the United States taking in the jazz festival in New Orleans and of course a slew of cultural events in the Big Apple. And almost on her heels, though no coincidence, New York artist Diana K has just announced an adda-like event called quot;High Chaiquot;. Held every third Sunday of the month, this event is to bring home the message of HIV/AIDS to the larger South Asian community. quot;I want to to let my brothers and sisters here know about the huge problem South Asia faces in trying to cope with the impending AIDs crisisquot; says this diva of drum n bass. High Chai is being held at the delightful Tibetian cuisine restaurant called Lhassa in the East Village. DJ Rekha will join ace DJ Khush and Diana K and create an ambience of chill n trill. Planned in the future are appearances by cool n funky artists, musicians, filmmakers and actors. quot;Its an audio-visual samadhi 8212; tabla nbass for the dying race!quot;

Riyad Wadia, avant garde film-maker, is currently at home in New York.