An Interview with the Bengali beauty Rituparna Sengupta

1^st March 2014, Lucknow                   

       Light-eyed Bengali beauty, Rituparna Sengupta, a famous Bollywood and a renowned Bengali actress stole the show as she walked down the ramp in an elegant white clad Chikankari saree for Umair Zafar’s premium collection during a fashion show in the city on March first, Saturday. Umair, a Mumbai based fashion designer who originally hails from Lucknow has designed the costumes for Rituparna in her upcoming movie, Tere Aane Se. I managed to steal a small talk session with the critically acclaimed actress. Her friendly attitude made it easier for me to keep the interview going.

Tell us something about your upcoming movie Tere Aane Se.

Ritu: Tere Aane Se is a love story which deals with a span of thirty years and how the lives of the characters change in these thirty years. It is directed by the famous Bengali director Agnidev Chatterjee and stars Purab Kohli and Hiten Tejwani. The costumes designed by Umair for the movie are beautiful and have a traditional touch to it and changes as the movie travels into spheres of decades.

We’ve heard you have some other bollywood projects lined up.

Ritu:  Yes, I do have a few bollywood films lined up this year. There is Kolkata Junction starring some brilliant actors like Naseeruddin Shah, Kay Kay Menon and Jimmy Shergil. Then there is a film by Hasnain Hyderabadwala of The Train fame.  Extraordi-Naari is another movie I am doing. It revolves around a woman who gets hold of ten girls and trains them for the modelling industry and I am the one playing the role of that woman(smiles).

You have been to Lucknow before. Your encounter with the city?

Ritu: What can I say about Lucknow? I have already said enough. Well Lucknow has always been an inspirational experience for me. I’ve done some good films here, like Mai, Meri Patni,…Aur Woh!  Where I play the role of a housewife along with my co-star Rajpal Yadav who plays the role of a librarian and we had shoots in almost every nooks and corners of the city. Whenever I am in the city, it seems as if I have travelled back to time with beautiful monuments all around, getting that Nawabi touch. It is a place full of love, culture, heritage and I love Lucknow.

And the Lakhnawi food and Chikankari?

Ritu: I am a huge fan of Lucknow’s exotic food. I have been here since two days and I could not get a chance to try the yummy kebabs but I have made it a point to eat some before I leave. I simply die over Tundey ke kebabs. And Chikankari always gives a beautiful flavour of elegance (flaunting her white chikan saree). I am disappointed as I could not shop for some tradional chikan clothes this time but they say,  you should always leave something for next time, so I am dropping my shopping plans for this trip so that I can come back again. All I can say is that Lucknow is simply magical.

Rituparna has always delivered brilliant performances be it Bollywood or Tollywood. I wish her all the success for her forthcoming movie Tere Aane Se.

Thrills of Stuntmania

                                                                                  

31^st August, 2013                                                

      Karan Pandey, a 19 year old resident of Delhi, who was riding pillion with a friend amongst a group of 150 bikers, was shot by cops attempting to stop them. This incident caught my eye and I decided to get into the details of this ‘so called’ sport.

Stunt- biking dates back to the days when Maut ka Kua was a part of every circus show. It is a thrill, which gives immediate pleasure to the biker and the adrenaline rush drives him to ecstasy.  For some, stunting is a passion while for others it is a statement of cool quotient and a way of impressing the opposite sex. These stunters are often enamoured by the appeal of the modified bikes that comes with  K and M filters, neon lights, HID lights, wheelie guards which enhances the performance and the looks of the bikes.

      Although stunt-biking is illegal in India, there is a huge craze amongst youngsters for it. “We bikers have no proper tracks or any such areas to practice, therefore we make practical use of the roads either early in the morning or late at night so as to avoid the traffic and the cops”, says Devashish, a member of a local biking group.

Pranav Mishra, a passionate stunter says, “I draw my inspiration from Ghost Ryderz, who are a famous Indian biking group. They perform shows on international level and also act as stuntmen in various add films and Bollywood flicks and this is the reason why I got attracted towards stunting”.

         Some of the popular stunts like stoppie, wheelie, burnout, endo stoppie, 360 skit, dunkie wheelie and many more, require lot of practice and one should perform them only when one has full control over the bike. Proper safety gears like sturdy helmets, gloves, jackets with neck guards, stunting boots and a fully maintained bike with functioning breaks are a must for every stunter. One should never perform these stunts under the influence of alcohol or when intoxicated.

In  pursuit of adventure, these dare devils not only risk their lives, they also get into the habit of betting and are sometimes related to criminal nexus of chain snatching and burglary .

Stunt- biking is a major sport in many countries and Gen Y of India is also seen to be very keen on pursuing it as an adventure sport and also becoming a professional suntman.

                                                                                  End.