Talk of the Town

What is in a name? ``Everything including money and fame,'' seems to have become the latest mantra of our Bollywood stars. The ordinary-looking Tushar Kapoor -- son of former cinestar Jeetendra -- became Tusshar Kapoor with the addition of an ``s'' to his name and his debut film ``Mujhe Kuch Kehna Hai'' became a hit.

Kareena Kapoor, the charismatic sister of the equally charming Karishma Kapoor, added an ``i'' to her first name and became Kareeina. The result is far too obvious -- she is the only saving grace of films like ``Yaadein'' and ``Asoka'' besides, of course, ``Mujhe Kuch Kehna Hai''. Needless to say, she has left her sister far behind.

What is surprising is that even the so-called rationalists and thinkers among the Bollywood gang seem to be falling prey to this name-changing spree. Perhaps, it requires the honesty of a young man like Karan Johar to admit the influence of stars. While he has not changed his name yet, his forthcoming film ``Kabhi Kushi, Kabhie Gham'' has an extra ``i'' in the second Kabhi. ``It was on the advice of a numerologer friend that I decided to add an i to the second Kabhi,'' he says.

The latest in this series of name-changers is Suneil Shetty, whose ``Ehsaas'' is slated to be released later this week. Sunil Shetty was his earlier name but the Sunil has now become Suneil. In all such name changes, what happens is that the birth number starts coinciding with the destiny number bringing name, fame and luck. ``My wife believes in it and so I do not have much choice anyway,'' says Suneil.

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Here is yet another Delhi girl to watch out for. For those who might wonder in days to come about the Alice in Mira Nair's marriage `wonderland' ``Monsoon Wedding'', here is the necessary dope.

Tilotama Shome is the simple but impressive girl who provides the much needed innocence to the film as the family maid Alice. A student of Literature at Lady Shri Ram College, Shome's first stint with acting began when she started performing in college plays. As luck would have it, she was noticed for her acting and offered a role in the crime series ``Bhanwar''.

And then came the big break when she was noticed by one of Nair's assistants and later approached by her camp for the role. She may have been new, but working with the big stars of Bollywood was definitely not intimidating for this Delhi youngster. ``I was initially a little intimated by the thought, but after I met Naseeruddin Shah and the others all my fears were thrown out of the window,'' remarks Tilotama.

As for choosing between theatre and films, Tilotama believes that the medium hardly matters as acting remains her first love. But then acting will have to still take a backseat as of now. ``I am not planning to sign any new films as my exams are approaching. Right now, studies are the priority,'' says Tilotama, while adding that she would continue to do films as long as the script and director are good.

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The Transparency International and Centre of Media Studies survey on the effectiveness of citizen's charters in curbing corruption in the Capital has stated categorically that any effort to combat corruption should be aimed at bringing about an attitudinal change among persons within the system.

The Central Vigilance Commissioner, Mr. N. Vittal, could not agree less. But such matters seem to be beyond him too. In a brief speech peppered with sarcastic one-liners, he criticised the inflexibility built into the system. At one point, while confessing that he may be sounding cynical, he said the rot had set in so deep that it was becoming extremely difficult to induce any changes in the system.

One of the points he paid much attention to in this regard was the haloed impression of ``the senior'' in Indian bureaucracy. Counting himself among the few bureaucrats who would throw their lot with those who were honest and dynamic, Mr. Vittal said many of these qualities could be found in younger officers. Yet, he added, few in the system wanted to recognise this.

Giving examples of how this concept of seniority has eroded one department after another, Mr. Vittal, in a rare moment of helplessness, said: ``What can one do in a system like ours where seniority is like maternity, a fact; and merit is like paternity, always questionable.''

(By K.Kannan, Lakshmi Balakrishnan and Pranab Dhal Samanta)

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