RIP FAROOQUE SI-IEIKI-I

Multi-faceted actor Farooque Sheikh's life came to an abrupt end on Dec 27 in Dubai following a cardiac arrest. He was 65. The talent, who delivered impeccable performances i n films as well as in TV shows and on stage, will be remembered by his co ll eagues and confidantes for his innocent charm, uninter rupted honesty to his craft and his unmatched humility, colleagues and friends in the industry said

He is survived by his wife and two daughters, with whom he was on a vacation in Dubai.

From his big screen debut with the widely acclaimed Garam Hawa in 1973 to films like Shatranj Ke Khilari, Bazaar, Umrao Jaan, Chash me Buddoor and Saath Saath; TV shows like Shrikant, Chamatkar, Ji Mantriji and Jeena lsi Ka Naam Hai; and a longrunning play like Tumhari Amrita - Farooque's body of work was creatively rich.

Born March 25, 1948 in Baroda, Sheikh started as a theatre actor and later went on to exhibit his natural flair for acting in both para ll el and mainstream cinema If he convincingly played a nawab in UmraoJaan, he essayed the role of a common man in ChashmeBuddoorwith equal aplomb.

He featured in just over 50 films, but it was enough for him to make an impact He took the 2010 National Film Award for best supporting actor for the film Lahore.

Furthermore, his finesse at creating a balance between the two worlds continued till the end - he was seen in the box office b l ockbuster Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewanl and the critically acclaimed Club 60 and Us ten Amaya.

His last assignment was Youngistaan, scheduled for release later this year

Although Farooque finished his work on the film a few weeks ago, the film wrapped up production on Dec 28 a day after his death

ProducerVashu Bhagnani offered an unusual tribute He orderedjalebis for the entire unit.

"In October, Farooque saab had personally got us jalebis from this particu l ar shop in Indore and force fed all of us I am not a jalebi guy. But I enjoyed Farooque saab's insistent warmth On the last day of shooting, we celebrated his positive spirit by ordering his favourite jalebis''.

Farooque's last scene for Youngistaan was to include a guest appearance by bigwig Ajay Devgn The late actor shot the scene without his co-star, who could not be available, because he wanted to finish off his commitment without inconveniencing anyone

Money cannot buy me: Aamir Khan

One ofBollywood's favour ite Khans , Aamir, cl aims to earn the "least compared to others': and says he "cannot compromise" with his emotions as "money cannot buy me''.

"Till today, I have not worked for money and that is one of my biggest strengths," says Aamir, who is currently on a ro ll ercoaster thanks to the success of his latest release Dhoom 3

He has experimented with films, roles and genres galore in his over 25-year movie career. From loverboy to teacher to villager and now a villain, he has done it all, but it's vital for Aam ir to connect emotionally with a project before he gives it a thumbs up

"It's not that I don't need money Al l of us need money and, according to me, I earn the least amount of money compared to others and yet I am very happy because I do what my heart says''.

"I never work for money Give me Rs 100 crore for a film and if I don't like it, I will not do it. I cannot compromise with my emotions, and money cannot buy me," added the 48-year- old actor

No wonder this man has al ready become known as one of Bol l ywood's greats

Tom Alter smitten by 'beauty of Urdu'

Thespian Tom Alter says that he learnt Urdu from his American Christian missionary father and read the Holy Bibl e in the l anguage during his chi l dhood days

Alter recited five verses from the Bi b l e in fluent Urdu in front of a huge and surprised audience, which roared in approva l, at the inaugural ofthe All India Urdu Book Fair held as part ofthe 10--day Urdu Festival in Mal egaon Maharashtra recently

"How can Urdu belong to Muslims or any other particular re l igion when it descr ibed God's message w ith such beauty;' Alter said, dismissing wronglyhel d contentions that the Urdu l anguage belongs to the Muslim community.

In fact, the Mussoorie-born Alt er pointed out that Urdu was born, flourished and enriched in the subcontinent in the pre-Independence era

Unfortunatel y, post-Partiti on in 1947, it faced discrimination in India with a section of people wrongly portraying it as a language of Muslims, Alter added "! learnt Urdu from my priest father and there was al ways an Urdu Bible (tran slated) on his table I was mesmerised by the beauty of the Bible in Urdu;' Alter said "Urdu has a special flavour and power which other languages seem to lack,"the Aashiqui actor said amid a huge round of applause

Referring to fears expressed in some quarters that Urdu was on the decline and had no future, Alter said that on the

Aamir Khan

contrary, Urdu doesn't need our h elp to survive He added : "It is we who actua ll y need this language "

During the Urdu Festival, Alter staged his famous 90--minute so lo-p lay on the late Indian scholar and politica l leader Maul ana Abu t Kalam Azad It revolves around the l ife and ideology of the great Muslim persona l ity and portrays h i s clear opposition to the division of India and creation of a separate Pakistan

Incidentally, since it has certain comments critica l to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel - another h i storical stalwart and colleague of Azad - the play written and d irected by Saeed Alam has been banned in Gujarat

Whatever Aamir can do Salman can do better? Well, at least Salman seems to think so!

After successfully hosting four consecutive seasons of reality show Bigg Boss, Boll ywood superstar Sa lman Khan will come on the sma ll screen next year as the host of a new show based on social causes and says it will be differ ent from Satyamev Jayate.

In 2012, his contemporary Aamir Khan launched the 14- episode ta l k show Satyamev Jayate, which highli ghted issues like fema le foeti ci de, evils of dowry and malpractices in medicine.

"We are working on something which is different;' Sal man said recently "It i s not along the lines of Satyamev Jayate We will have a lot more entertainment in it But it w il also change a lot of things. We will rock next year ''.

Of course Salman is a known expert on ce rtain social issues, in parti cular (ahem), domestic violence, drink driv i ng and hunting of endange red animals.

Current ly, Salman is gearing up for the release of Jai Ho! an action film set for a Jan 24 rel ease

Got your hands on Dabboo Ratnani 's 2014 calendar yet?

Ace photographer Dabboo Ratnan i 's collector's item each year, was launched in Mumbai early in the new year.

The calendar features candid and interesting shots of personalities such as Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh, Arjun Rampal, Priyanka Chopra, Salman Khan, Vidya Balan and Bipasha

Shah Rukh said of his pie in the collection, "This is the first time Dabboo has taken a picture of a man (me) in satin sheets. I was very tired as I came straight from work. So, Dabboo said 'It wil l be easy for you, just lie down, relax and I will take a picture of you"'.

Alia Bhatt features with a cat, and Sonakshi Sinha takes you by surprise in her punk avatar.

This is the 15th year ofRatnani's celebrity calendar. Others who feature this year include Parineeti Chopra, Akshay Kumar, Hrithik Roshan, Ajay Devgn, Kajol and Katrina Kaif.

Farhan was outstanding : Prasoon, Shabana react to Naseer's 'fake' comment

Reacting to Naseeruddin Shah 's criticism of Farhan Akhtar's performance in Bhaag Milk ha Bhaag (8MB) calling it "fake'; actress Shabana Azmi and Prasoon Joshi, writer of the film, said the veteran actor is entitled to his opinion but they feel that Farhan was outstanding in the biopic. Shabana, who is Farhan's stepmother, has worked extensively with Naseer in some of the most influential films of Indian cinema such as Masoom

She said: "Farhan was outstanding in Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. His performance gave me goosebumps He has raised the bar for what actors should demand from them while portraying real-life characters Naseer is entitled to his opinion. But most Indians don't agree

WI-IO WORE IT BETTER?

with him''.

While the film's director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra and Farhan desisted from comment, Prasoon was forthright in expressing his feel ings on the issue. He said: "I respect Naseer saab and he's entitled to his opinion. But I don't agree with his opinion on 8M8. I've written the film. It has inspired and connected with people all across the world. It was not meant to be a documentary or a niche film:'

8MB chronicled the life of former athlete Mi l kha Singh and viewers enjoyed watching well-trained Farhan as the Flying Sikh on the big screen so much that it reaped gold at the box office and crossed the Rs.100 crore mark.

Commenting on Naseer's opinion that Farhan doesn't resemble Milkha, Prasoon said: "In my opinion, Farhan has done a great job in terms of the character that I wrote. I had deliberately incorporated tones of fact and fiction. He has shone in his interpretation of the character. There are no false notes at all in his performance:'

Pavan Malhotra, who plays Milkha's coach in the film, also stands by the film "You can't please everyone. I was and I am very happy to be part of BMB," he said

When cross -checked, Naseer admitted he was not impressed by 8MB

"But the makers are convinced they've made a masterpiece Look, spare me, will you? No one involved w ith that film gives a damn about my opinion. And I am not really keen to hurt their feelings:' However, director Ajay Bahl said he didn't like the film, but appreciates Farhan's acting.

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Bahl said: "I didn't like Bhaag Milkha Bhaag at al l. I found the film too long. The script went all over the place and the direction was over- indulgent. However, I thi n k Farhan did a splendid job of recreating Milkha Singh's persona. The film just didn't match his performance:'