THE TOM ALTER WE DIDN’T KNOW

He was the most different American India has ever seen. Actor Tom Alter, who passed away on 29 September, was an actor but also a cricket fan, teacher and a shayari exponent. He was 67 when he lost the battle against skin cancer.

Here are some facts about him you might not know:

* Born in 1950 in Mussourie, Tom Alter was the son of American missionary parents whose family moved to India from Ohio way back in 1916.

* As a child, Alter would be made to read the Bible in Urdu by his father, a priest. In later years, his love for the language inspired him to play such great Urdu literary figures as Ghalib, Sahir Ludhianvi and Bahadur Shah Zafar on stage.

* He was drawn to Bollywood after seeing Rajesh Khanna in Aradhana. Inspired by Khanna’s crazy stardom, he came to Mumbai to try his luck in acting. “I didn’t know who Rajesh Khanna was before Aradhana. But in just one week I saw that film at least thrice,” Alter had said in an interview.

* He was also an avid cricket fan who did the first ever TV interview of Sachin Tendulkar, and also gave commentary in a one-day match India played in

* He acted in Assamese, Gujarati, Kannada, Kumaoni, Marathi and Malayalam cinema.

* He was the only actor who appeared as two key figures spanning a momentous near-century of the country’s history - portraying both Bahadur Shah Zafar and Lord Mountbatten.

* He made his debut with Ramanand Sagar’s Charas (1976).

* He was also among the handful of actors who played both tyrant colonial officers and figures from India’s freedom struggle. That’s right, he played Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and Mahatma Gandhi.

* His last TV show was Rishton Ka Chakravyuh, and on the big screen, he was last seen in Sargoshiyan. He also shot for a short film The Black Cat, in which he plays acclaimed author Ruskin Bond.

* He also worked with late actor Peter O’Toole and Ben Kingsley.

* He was conferred the Padma Shri, India’s fourth highest civilian honour, in 2008.

ANUSHKA SHARMA: DESIGNER

From acting to producing films, spunky girl Anushka Sharma has now turned designer. She launched her new entrepreneurial venture this month, a clothing line called, what else, “Nush”. “This is something I had been planning for the past one and a half years,” she revealed at the launch, adding with the honesty so typical of her, “I am excited but at the same time, I am extremely nervous.”

Anushka is well-known for her willingness to go out on a limb to get what she wants, whether it is modelling, acting, producing. She likes starting out with a clean slate. Perhaps that’s why her production firm is called Clean Slate Films.

“I’ve always done what I love. I love wearing good cloths, so I present my venture, something very special to me, my own clothing line,” she said.

Salman Khan, Hrithik Roshan and so many other celebrities now have their own fashion labels, that it is almost a rat race to announce your own line.

“I don’t see it is a rat-race as such; I think, the more the merrier!” the gutsy lady said. “It is a great thing that you have fashion available to you, like this. More brands, more designs, more styles, more choice and if I can enable and add value to that, I think that is a great thing.”

Well, if all else fails…

ASHA PAREKH: 75, NICE GIRL

Asha Parekh, who turned 75 on October 2 and doesn’t feel her age at all, is happy to share her birthday with Mahatma Gandhi.

But there is the downside too.

“Every birthday of mine is a dry day. So my friends never get to toast my health and wellbeing with a glass of wine...! Aah, never mind. I am happy to be alive, well, healthy and still not pushed into oblivion, as many of my colleagues are.”

Oblivion is far from Asha’s ambit of activity. In fact, 2017 has been a particularly eventful year for her.

“That’s right. My memoirs The Hit Girl came out. I was apprehensive that it may hurt some. But I was determined to tell the truth. Or else, no point in writing about your life.”

Asha boldly spoke about her relationship with filmmaker Nasir Hussain. Was there any negative impact on Nasir Saab’s family?

“None at all. I didn’t expect there would be. When I was so careful not to hurt his family during our relationship, why would I cause them any hurt now?

Nasir saab’s family has always been close to my heart. They all respect me. In fact, (Nasir Hussain’s nephew) Aamir (Khan) is always very respectful and affectionate.”

On the downside, the year saw her dream project, her hospital for the poor, shut down.

“My hospital will now be turned into a 5-star health facility. That means the facilities will no longer be available to the poor and the underprivileged. That’s why I ran this no-profit hospital, for the poor. Alas, the dream has ended.”

Ever the optimist, though, Asha is thankful for what life has given her. “I am still around and healthy. I was called the ‘hit girl’ because of the success ratio of my films. It was God’s blessings.”

“It’s sad to lose friends at my age, though. Watching them go one by one is a very scary experience. I just wish when I go, I go without pain. And that people will remember me as a nice girl.”

Ranchi Diaries

Could you do the Ranchi accent? Well, here’s how actor Taaha Shah did it. You see, he plays a street food vendor in an upcoming film called Ranchi Diaries, and spent a week there, watching the street banter and listening in closely, to get the dialect and mannerisms right.

As well, to nail the accent, he recorded his dialogues in director Sattwik Mohanty’s voice and heard them over a 100 times to get the accent right.

In his earlier films like Luv Ka The End, Gippi and Baar Baar Dekho, Taaha played urban characters. “My new character Pinku is a small-town rugged boy,” he said. “I am happy to have experimented in this film”.

The actor also revealed he got an amulet from a temple in Ranchi.

“I was at the shops one day and came across a boy who wore an amulet that caught my eye. He told me it was from a temple. I thought it would enhance Pinku’s look, so I went to the temple and got it,” he said.

The film, produced by actor Anupam Kher, is set to release on 13 October.

Another Toilet Premkatha

Filmmaker Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra says the inspiration for his upcoming directorial Mere Pyare Prime Minister comes from Mahatma Gandhi, who was a warrior on sanitation issues.

Mehra spoke recently about the film and the issue of sanitation, which he has been helping to tackle since the last four years via his association with an NGO.

“When it comes to cinema, it is entertainment first as that’s what brings the people in. Purpose has to be built into the cinema, along with the entertainment. My next film Mere Pyare Prime Minister is inspired by Mahatma Gandhi. Shot in Mumbai, our set is called Gandhinagar.” He added, “Few people know that Mahatma Gandhi was a warrior on sanitation issues.”

Mehra has been associated with Yuva Unstoppable NGO, which has been working towards building toilets in slum areas and municipal schools.

Biopic On Jhulan Goswami

Former Indian women’s cricket team captain Jhulan Goswami revealed recently that a biopic will be made on her life. The working title is Chakdah Express, in homage to her hometown Jhulan, 34, will be the first female cricketer on whom a biopic will be