Left with no Choice
In a belated recognition of sweeping developments both at home and abroad, the CPI(M) grudgingly admits changes in its programme and distances itself from past ideological tenets

Killing The Goose
A strike at India's biggest carmaker punctures its plans to retain primacy and retrieve the ground lost to competitors in recent times

Fifth Column
by Tavleen Singh
Ghosts of Perception

Right Angle
by Swapan Dasgupta
Trident of Belligerence

On Cloud Nine

Angling for Power

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Going Steady: Lest We Forget

Eyecatchers

Men of Letters
The boxing gloves are off. filmmakers Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Shyam Benegal and Mrinal Sen have shot off letters to Prasar Bharti CEO R.R. Shah and colleagues to protest the decision to shunt National-Award-winning films out of DD1 to regional channels. "Foreign channels show our films with subtitles, so why can't our national channel?" fumes Gopalakrishnan. Shah shoots back: "Subtitled films mean a dip in viewers. The regional channels are available almost all over India, so where's the question of losing a national viewership?" Those boxing gloves ... they're still off.

True Story
It's like a hindi film. Actor Neelam Kothari and beau Rishi Sethia — son of London-based industrialist Nirmal Sethia — got married in Bangkok earlier this month, despite his family's protests. No comments from the couple because, as the bride's mom Parveen Kothari says, "Rishi is very publicity shy and he wants to avoid the media." Hey, we just wish them well.

Company D
Aditya Chopra and Karan Johar have company. Actor Rakhee and director Gulzar's daughter Meghna Gulzar is busy with her tentatively titled directorial debut, Filhal. Cast: Tabu, Sushmita Sen. Lyrics: dad. "I'll share more details a few months before it's out (next August)," she says. Sometimes silence is the best publicity.

Baby Talk
It's confirmed. We've got it straight from the proud papa. Heard the news that Juhi Chawla is expecting a baby? We called her businessman hubby Jai Mehta to congratulate him. "Thank you," he replied, happily confirming the news but refusing further comment. Remember the pretty 17-year-old who wore the Miss India crown in 1984? Gosh, she's a big girl now!

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Paintings for Perspiration
"Affordable art — Celebration of Life" was a unique showcasing of art goading fitness junkies.
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Looking Glass

Calcutta: Music

Delhi: Restaurant

Delhi: Play

INDIA TODAY Deputy Editor Swapan Dasgupta voices the despair of a community that Jyoti Basu forcibly converted into a diaspora in his 23 years of zero-contribution rule. Day Dreams.

With the NBA waging an out-of-court battle, the real test for the Gujarat Government lies in completing the task of rehabilitating all those displaced. It's daunting but not insurmountable, writes INDIA TODAY Special Correspondent Uday Mahurkar in Despatches.