Eyecatchers

India Today issue dated July 19, 1999
July 19, 1999

Coming of Age

At least one man in Bollywood knows how to age gracefully. In Vidhu Vinod Chopra's film Kashmir, Sanjay Dutt is playing dad to Hrithik Roshan, son of director Rakesh Roshan. Isn't he worried about his macho image? Not really. This isn't an old-man-with-grey-beard kind of role, but a mature 40-year-old. "Something like Mother India," says Dutt, 39. "I grow from young to old through the film." Unlike most other Hindi film hunks, he's just acting his age.

This King Is Lord

Call him King. Lord Tarsem King. The teacher-turned-politico who moved to the UK from Punjab in 1960 is now the first Sikh member of the House of Lords. King was drawn into politics by his community work with immigrants. During his first election campaign, his name got changed from Kang to King due to a misprint in a party leaflet. He encountered racism in Britain at first, but he says, "Setbacks can get you down or make you more determined." Down or determined: guess what choice he made.

Special Selection
Gauri She's 4 ft 11 inches tall. Not quite a Michael Jordan, but Gauri, 16, resident of the state-run orphanage at Bhopal, is playing basketball in the US right now at the Special Olympics for the mentally challenged. When news came of her selection, the other children in the home pooled in their clothes for her. Before leaving, Gauri told her hostel superintendent: "I'm excited at the thought of going to a distant land, but I'll miss you all." With friends like these, that's natural.

The Big Chief
Rono J Dutta Who said nice guys finish last? Twenty-five years after he left India for the US, Rono J. Dutta has been appointed president of the world's largest airline, United Airlines. He deals with employees "even-handedly and with fairness", says one industry watcher. As for the man himself, he hasn't forgotten ... about his growing-up years in Shillong and Calcutta, or that IIT Kharagpur gave him an "excellent foundation in problem-solving skills". Nice guys don't forget.

Maybelline Mallar
Christy Turlington has company -- right here in India. Sheetal Mallar has been chosen as the new face of Maybelline, a brand of French cosmetics giant L'Oreal that the international supermodel also endorses. "It's a great campaign to work on," says Mallar who began her career on the ramp, was a Femina Look of the Year winner, and has done assignments with the prestigious Elite modelling agency. Now she'll be working for three years as a spokesmodel for Maybelline. Maybe it's her beauty. Maybe it's luck. Maybe it's just Mallar.

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