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	July 03, 2000

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India Today issue dated July 03, 2000 Granny on the Go
Calcutta just had a spunky visitor. Jennifer Murray, grandmother of two, dropped in as part of a round-the-world-in-86-days trip. At 60, she's already featured in The Guinness Book of Records as the only woman to circumnavigate the globe with a co-pilot. That was in 1997. This time she's going solo in a chopper. A record as the only woman to do so is Jennifer Murray on the horizon, but she also hopes to raise $1 million (Rs 4.4 crore) for a children's charity as she covers 40,000 km through 33 countries. Says Murray who was "anxious to see Calcutta" because her parents lived there briefly before World War I: "I'm enjoying myself and also making a statement for the elderly woman." Trip along, girl.

Fair? Unfair?
She's Done a good job of promoting Indian art abroad. A pity then that when Vanity Fair threw the spotlight on Amrita Zhaveri, it was in passing references over a controversy not involving her. In an article on anti-trust violations by Christie's and Sotheby's, also involving ex-Christie's chief Christopher Davidge, the international mag says "the 54-year-old retiring chief executive had an extra bonus -- Amrita Zhaveri, a 29-year-old expert from Christie's 20th Century Art Department, who went off with her former boss to India"; and "the happy chappie is living comfortably with his federal amnesty, his handsome financial settlement, and Amrita Zhaveri." A pity.

Double Speak
Think about it. While Kundan Shah rakes in raves for his "woman-oriented" film Kya Kehna! in which Preity Zinta has a baby out of wedlock, in his Hum To Mohabbat Karega, Karisma Kapoor is a journalist who smooches her source for a story. Can we ever get past the stereotype of working women using sex as a weapon? Says Shah: "I'm not downgrading women. I'm all for a career woman who's trying to get ahead in a man's world. Anyway, the HTMK kiss is done comically. Karisma's character is an extension of Bhakti Bharve in Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron; she placed Naseer's head on her breast to get him to do a job." Oh dear! He's made it worse.

Right on Top
Mamta Kulkarni's on top of every situation. Having bombed in Hindi and Malayalam films with equal ease, and done so-so in Telugu, the buxom bombshell has shifted focus. Her usually itsy garments just got bitsier for the role of a devadasi in Chennai-based cinematographer Ashok Kumar's multi-lingual love story Khajuraho. Kumar, the cameraperson for Shankar's Jeans, is also known for the occasional directorial venture glorifying the female form. This one, he insists, is not a "sex film". "Depends on how you look at it. There's a lot of divinity in those sculptures. And Mamta suited the role best." Sure.

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