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Saturday, October 1, 2011
Vol. 5 No. 40
LOUNGE THE WEEKEND MAGAZINE Silk Smitha on the cover of Cinema Express magazine in March 1984.
BUSINESS LOUNGE WITH LEVI STRAUSS’ SANJAY PUROHIT >Page 9
BUTTERFLY EFFECT Your search ends here. Every perfect blouse on Katrina Kaif, and many more varieties, are in a 43yearold tailoring shop in Delhi >Page 7
SILK ROUTE REPLY TO ALL
N
arendra Modi is positioning himself to be prime minister. What sort of leader will he make? We can tell by understanding him as a man. Look on this piece as his biography. Born 17 September 1950, Modi is 61. His resume says he has a master’s in political science. He speaks a Gujarati purged of Persian words (like Advani’s Hindi, but better crafted). His Hindi is marked by his nasal accent, but is correct. His English is poor and he works on it. Modi is called “NaMo” by his fans... >Page 4
>Pages 1012
THE GOOD LIFE
AAKAR PATEL
UNDERSTANDING NARENDRA MODI
Ekta Kapoor’s forthcoming film ‘The Dirty Picture’ revisits a sequinsandpelvic thrust era of Tamil cinema which was propelled by talent, scheming, hypocrisy and the intense loneliness of women like Silk Smitha
PIECE OF CAKE
SHOBA NARAYAN
WHEN KOLKATA IS A MUSEUM
I
t is 1am, but the Shiv Mandir para (neighbourhood) in Kolkata is hopping. Shorts-clad young men named Deb and Dickie are working alongside about 20 artisans who are erecting what seems to be a gigantic bamboo stage set, but is in fact a homage to Ma Durga. Tall tribal musicians made of bamboo are hoisted upright as five men anchor them to the ground. About eight bamboo musicians stand at the entrance to the pandal, serenading a... >Page 5
PAMELA TIMMS
THE ORGAN GRINDERS A journalist’s book on the organ and blood trade in India unveils grim truths about public health systems >Page 14
REVIVAL OF ‘BALAKA’ AND ‘BANALATA’ They are romantic, but are easy sacrifices for progress. This Durga Puja, two dolledup trams will be on the roads in Kolkata >Page 18
DON’T MISS
in today’s edition of
FINALLY, A SLICE OF THE PIE
I
t’s time for everyone to meet Priyanka. Priyanka is the wonderful young woman who comes to my house every other Friday afternoon to take the pictures for this column. She’s a great photographer and genuinely interested in learning how to bake. She’s also greatly loved by our dog, Spike, who is under the impression that she comes purely to play ball with him. Our baking, clicking and ball-throwing sessions are always a good way to end the working week. >Page 6
PHOTO ESSAY
FORTY AND DONE