Is this the news that people really read?

Every time I open Samachar.com I am amazed at the headlines that they choose to display as their front line stories. Either it is about Bollywood actors or some bizarre thing that has happened in a remote part of the country that is just there to create sensationalism. I mean sure even I like my healthy dose of Bollywood gossip and these strange happenings need to be covered - but the headlines? Sify in particular just comes up with the weirdest things. Today's Sify headlines include - "Brit Blokes are the biggest bedroom liars" (sorry?), "Liquor fed chickens sell like hotcakes" (riiiight!), "Wanted: Urine donors for NASA's space lavatory" (HUH?).

But apparently I shouldn't blame the website. Guess what the most clicked-on story of the day from Samachar Top25 is? "Amrita Rao left red faced as her choli slips off"!!!!

I am in shock. Why would someone even write a story like that? Sure she is a Bollywood actress and they know that being part of the news (whether good or bad) comes with the package. But she is still a girl. What would have compelled a journalist to write something as embarrassing as that. I feel sorry for her. And apparently it is the most 'popular' article of today too. Disgusting!

The All Blacks are people too!

Why is it being made into such a big deal that two of the All Blacks have decided not to play a test because they want to be with their respective wives while they are giving birth? I’ve been listening to people on the radio talk about them being irresponsible and not taking their job seriously. But isn’t that the point – I know that they represent the country and everyone is proud of them – but to them being an All Black is also a job. What gives us the right to tell them they are not allowed to take time off from that job to honour personal commitments? Just because he plays for our country does not mean he can’t have a life of his own right?

Yesterday I heard a radio talk show host talking about how this is all just another part of the PC-driven world where men are psychologically forced to do this. Excuse me? Noone says a man must be present during the birth of his child – but what is this crap about it being PC. What if the man wants to be a part of it? What if he wants to be with his partner during that time? To me I think these men are setting great examples, and I quite admire them. By putting their wife and the birth of their child ahead of everything else. And to show that it does not make you less of a man to be with your wife when she is giving birth to your child. So who are we to judge him wrong?

Yay! Its over!!

Praise the Lord! What am I talking about? The circus that the media has named 'wedding of the year' (or was it century?). In the last two weeks I have heard or read every detail about the abhishek and aishwarya (or abhiwarya as people suddenly seem to call them...must we copy everything from hollywood??) wedding. And I dont even care! Everytime I open an indian newspaper online I see headlines like 'Mehendi ordered from Rajasthan for Aishwarya' (Are you freaking kidding me??! Do people REALLY want to know that?) and every time I turn on an indian news channel I see scrolling headlines on the bottom of the screen.

The last three days in particular, there has been running commentary on NDTV. It just got so bad that I decided not to watch the news at all! There were news people actually stationed outside each of the Bachhans' residences and Aishwarya's apartment talking about who had just gone in and what was going on at that time. I dont think that even the world cup final, even if the indian team had made it there, would have warranted so many constant updates.

They're getting married, and I wish them all the best, but do I really need to know so much about it? And do the public actually want to know about it or is it just media created hype? I cant imagine that there are sane people out there with jobs and lives who care about which temple Abhishek and Aishwarya are visiting next and which laddoo shop that they ordered their wedding sweets from!! I refuse to believe it.

One thing I do wonder about is whether these so-called journalists who are posted there actually WANT to be there?

Anyway, though there was a lot of nonsense regarding the wedding on the news, the funniest thing that NDTV had was bullet point list of those invited...and a bullet point list of those NOT invited!! I'm not joking! The newsreader in her most serious voice goes 'Invited: X, Y, Z...'. 'Not Invited: A, B, C...'!!! It was like she was reading some sort of a hitlist!!!