Avijit Ghosh & Jamal Ayub | TNN (THE TIMES OF INDIA; August 12, 2020)

New Delhi/Indore: He wrote stirring couplets that even politicians quoted in Parliament. And his poems of ardour and abandon made him a major crowd puller. Rahat Indori, one of the most-quoted Urdu poets of his generation, who also frequently collaborated with producer-director Vidhu Vinod Chopra, passed away following a string of heart attacks in Indore on Tuesday. He was 70.

“After the first attack, he seemed to be stabilising. But two more attacks followed,” Dr Vinod Bhandari, director, Sri Aurobindo Institute of Medical Sciences told TOI. A social media regular with over 860k followers on Twitter, the poet had tweeted on Tuesday that he was Coronavirus positive. In his last tweet, he requested people not to call him, saying he would update his status. He was also a diabetic and had cardiac issues. His death was widely mourned.

Indori’s association with Hindi cinema was fruitful but not memorable. He wrote lyrics in over 20 films and worked with Vidhu Vinod Chopra for Kareeb (1998), Mission Kashmir (2000) and Munnabhai MBBS (2003). Bumbro bumbro was one of his biggest hits.

The son of a textile mill employee, Indori was a PhD in Urdu literature. He taught at Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya for many years. He was married to fellow poet Anjum Rehbar. “He was a poet of mushairas, whose work was much loved by audience but he never lowered his standard please them,” says poet Hasan Kamal. 

Rajeev Bhadoriya, inspector from Heera Nagar police station in Indore, shares that the actress penned a suicide note about how her shattered dreams had broken her confidence, forcing her to take this extreme step
Saptaparna Biswas (BOMBAY TIMES; May 27, 2020)

Days after the news of TV actor Manmeet Grewal’s suicide due to financial crisis, the Hindi television industry has suffered yet another shock with the suicide of actress Preksha Mehta.

Preksha, who did small roles in shows like Crime Patrol, Laal Ishq and Meri Durga, committed suicide late on Monday night at her residence in Indore. According to family members, with whom she was staying currently, she was upset about not finding work during the Coronavirus lockdown. Speaking to us, Preksha’s cousin, who stays near her house in Indore, said, “She was a vibrant girl since childhood, but lately, she had become quiet. On Monday night, the family was playing cards, but Preksha was sitting alone on the steps of the house. My chachi (Preksha’s mother) even asked her if she was okay, but she said she was fine. Around 10 pm, Preksha went to her room upstairs and posted the message on her Instagram. The next morning, when chachi went to wake her up for yoga, she found her room locked and called others to help open the door. Once inside, they found Preksha hanging from the ceiling fan.”

Reportedly, Preksha was the first one from her family to pursue a career in the entertainment industry. “She worked hard and realised her dreams all by herself. So, her self-expectations were really high,” added her cousin.

Rajeev Bhadoriya, inspector from Heera Nagar police station in Indore, shares, “A one-page suicide note was found in Preksha’s room, wherein she wrote about how she tried hard to stay positive through these times, but couldn’t. The note said, ‘Mere toote huye sapno ne mere confidence ka dam tod diya hai, main mare huye sapnon ke saath nahi jee sakti. Iss negativity ke saath rehna mushkil hai. Pichle ek saal se maine bohot koshish ki. Ab mein thak gayi hoon’. She had been very depressed about not getting work.”

Onkar Kulkarni (BOMBAY TIMES; April 1, 2020)

Early yesterday, Salman Khan dedicated a post to his nephew, Abdullah Khan, on social media. The message, which read, “Will always love you…” was in loving memory of the 38-year-old, who had died in Mumbai on Monday.

Talking about Abdullah’s demise, Salman’s manager Jordy Patel told BT, “He died of heart failure following severe lung infection.” While there were rumours that Abdullah had died of Coronavirus, Jordy clarified that Abdullah had “tested negative” for it.

Like Salman, Abdullah, too, was a fitness enthusiast and was extremely close to the Bharat actor and his family. According to reports, Abdullah, who ran a business in Mumbai, was admitted to a private hospital in Andheri a couple of days ago, after he complained about feeling uneasy. On Salman's suggestion, they later shifted him to a hospital near the former’s Bandra home.

The actor is extremely upset that he won’t be able to attend Abdullah’s funeral. “Salman is at his farmhouse in Panvel and because of the nationwide lockdown, he won’t be able to travel. The funeral will be held in Indore, which is Abdullah’s hometown. Salman will visit the family later,” informed Jordy.

Meanwhile, Salim Khan told BT, “Abdullah mere nephew ka beta tha. I am glad that in the times of a lockdown also, all the paperwork went smoothly. Abdullah was staying in Mumbai, and was very close to all of us.”

The singer says he doesn’t want to be the reason for any mass gathering during the outbreak
Saptaparna Biswas (BOMBAY TIMES; March 13, 2020)

With over a lakh Covid-19 cases across the world and the World Health Organization (WHO) recently declaring the Coronavirus outbreak a pandemic, many events are being cancelled across the world. Recently, an event where musicians Amaan and Ayaan Ali Bangash were to perform, was cancelled, and now, singer KK has informed us that he won’t be performing live until the situation is under control.

Speaking to us, KK said, “I don’t want to be the reason for any kind of mass gathering in any city. The situation is serious, and we are already running out of masks and sanitisers. I would not want to add any more problems to the situation.”

The singer was in Indore for a college event. When asked why he chose to perform there, he said, “It was a college event and I know how hard the kids had worked to make it successful. So, I agreed to come. Otherwise, I have cancelled and postponed every live concert of mine till the end of March. And I might continue the same till April if the situation persists. I want to avoid travelling and want to ensure that others don’t travel to attend shows either.”

When Swanand Kirkire finally got admission in the National School of Drama, he was overwhelmed with the fact that he was going to study in an institute that produced legends
Navneet Vyasan (HINDUSTAN TIMES; January 23, 2020)

Born to a family of classical singers, lyricist Swanand Kirkire has tried his hands at almost everything. From writing dialogues to acting and playback singing, his long list of accolades stands testimony to the talent he possesses. “Both my father and mother were classical musicians, but they were not professionals. Back then, it was not easy to become a professional musician. But it was a passion for them,” he says, adding, “But my uncle used to do theatre, and I used to go with him for rehearsals. That’s when I realised that I really liked theatre.”

And this fascination for the stage, in fact, encouraged the National Award winner to apply for the National School of Drama (NSD). “It was a game-changer, and a little difficult for me,” he adds.

Kirkire adds that he got in at his second attempt. “I failed the first exam and it was an eye-opener for me. I was overwhelmed with the fact that I was appearing for an examination for an institute which has produced legends such as Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri and Shabana Azmi,” he says.

“But after I got in, I was exposed to the world. Coming from Indore (Madhya Pradesh) to Delhi, which is the cultural centre, I got exposed to a lot of things. Delhi has all the embassies, where you get to see films of different languages, theatre in different languages, etc. Then I started working for a group called Act One. This group’s alumni include Manoj Bajpayee, Shoojit Sircar and Piyush Mishra and that was really inspiring,” he adds.

Till date, Kirkire has won two national awards, first being in 2006 for the song Bande Me Tha Dum, from Lage Raho Munna Bhai, and second being for Behti Hawa Sa Tha Who from 3 Idiots (2009).