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Darsheel Safary and Aamir Khan in ‘Taare Zameen Par’

After the accolades and awards that came from within the film fraternity and from the audiences at large for his portrayal of a dyslexic child in the much talked about “Taare Zameen Par”, it was time for young Darsheel Safary to impress President Pratibha Patil with his performance over the weekend.

At a special screening of the film at Rashtrapati Bhavan, the President was moved by the heart-rending performance of Darsheel, who earlier took home the critics’ award for best male performer at the Filmfare film awards ceremony.

Ms. Patil, who caught the blockbuster on the recently installed digital cinema system at the Rashtrapati Bhavan auditorium, was all praise for the performance and the theme of the film.

Actor-director Aamir Khan, who was also present on the occasion, was praised for bringing into focus a subject that needs more attention and thought. The President was pleased with the filmmaker’s decision to take up a cause that concerns children. The state-of-the-art auditorium has been fitted with a digital cinema system that will offer the First Citizen a chance to catch up with the latest films. The system, which costs Rs.6.78 lakh, allows movies to be beamed directly to theatres and to the homes of a privileged few.

Smriti Kak Ramachandran

Doctors on a mission

Espousing the cause of a world free of nuclear weapons and violence, a group of medical students from different countries such as Germany, Sweden, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Ukraine, Mongolia, Nigeria, Bangladesh, Nepal and of course India are taking out a peace march from Wagah on the India-Pakistan border.

Seventy-one students from different affiliates of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War began the march on Sunday. The Pakistani students were expected to join the group on Monday.

Led by Ankita Chaudhary, the national student representative of Indian Doctors for Peace and Development, the group visited Jallianwala Bagh and paid homage to the martyrs.

On Monday, they had a meeting at the Government Medical College, Amritsar, where they told people that medical students all over the world were concerned at the huge expenditure on arms race which was threatening the lives of people.

Addressing the doctors and the public at Jalandhar, the group spoke of the importance of nuclear disarmament, putting an end to the arms race and resolution of conflicts through mutual dialogue.

On Tuesday, the group will interact with people in Ludhiana, Ambala and Panipat.

The peace activists are scheduled to arrive in Delhi on Wednesday, where they will be received by, among others, veteran Gandhian Nirmala Deshpande, Indian Doctors for Peace and Development general secretary Arun Mitra and Communist Party of India secretary Amarjeet Kaur.

Parul Sharma

Three cheers

If Prince Singhal of the Community against Drunken Driving has his way, then Delhi might get a brand new law on drunken driving.

This social activist, who has been spearheading a campaign to curb the growth of drunken driving through legislative action, had recently called on Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and submitted to her a petition on the grim situation created on the Capital’s roads by drunken drivers and recommendations to address this pertinent issue.

“I have been assured by the Chief Minister that she would personally look into the matter. Delhi might get a new legislation on drunken driving in the days to come,” he says.

The crusader says the new law could include various aspects such as raising penalty, immediate arrest, vehicle impoundment, licence suspension and other measures to ensure that Delhi roads are safe.

Madhur Tankha

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