Bappi Lahiri to release Tamil song
Bollywood music director and singer Bappi Lahiri will visit Chennai tomorrow to release a Tamil song he has sung in the upcoming romantic-drama Karuppampatti. “Bollywood music legend Bappi Lahiri is coming to Chennai to release his song,” a source close to the film’s unit said. Lahiri has sung the Disco Naughty Naughty Raja song in the film, which is directed by debutant Prabhu Raja Cholan. This will be the first Tamil song for the 60-year-old.
H&M plans India stores
Reuters/Stockholm
Budget fashion chain Hennes & Mauritz is applying to open stores in India, joining a rush of international retailers looking to expand in Asia’s third-biggest economy on the back of government liberalisation measures.
The Indian government has been pushing through controversial economic reforms which relax rules on store opening by foreign retailers, arguing these measures would help revive the economy, and H&M said it was preparing to apply to start wholly-owned subsidiaries in the country.
Like Swedish furniture maker IKEA, which is waiting for final approval of its own application, H&M hopes to cater to a growing urban middle-class with a strong demand for Western-lifestyle products.
Nagaland minister quits after arms seizure
Nagaland Home Minister Imkong L Imchen has resigned from the ruling Naga People’s Front (NPF) government, a party official said yesterday. The move comes after cash worth more than Rs10mn and weapons were seized from his car on Monday by troopers of Assam Rifles. “I felt imperative to tender my resignation, owning moral responsibility while holding public office, even though I have committed no wrong over the incident under the law,” Imchen said in his resignation letter. On the other hand, the opposition Congress has sought disqualification of Imchen from contesting the assembly election for violating the model code of conduct.
Dhumal demands probe into phone tapping
Former Himachal Pradesh chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal, who has been blamed by the present Congress government for indulging in mass tapping of phones when he was at the helm, yesterday demanded a judicial probe into the issue. “(Chief Minister) Virbhadra Singh has been trying to defame me in public by raising issues that have no relevance,” Dhumal told reporters. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said the government should conduct an inquiry into phone tapping by a sitting judge of the Himachal Pradesh High Court. Virbhadra Singh said on Monday more than 1,000 telephones were tapped during the tenure of the previous BJP government.
Police use the Beatles to educate jaywalkers
Kolkata traffic police are using the Beatles’ iconic Abbey Road album cover to educate jaywalkers to cross streets at zebra crossings. The British band’s 1969 album cover features John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr crossing a north London street at a zebra crossing. Hoardings across the city have been put up with the album cover bearing the caption “If they can, why can’t you?” “The idea behind the campaign is to discourage jaywalking and inculcate the habit of using zebra crossings by pedestrians,” an officer said. Earlier, traffic police had put up hoardings inspired by the Kolaveri Di sung by south Indian film star Dhanush. The hoardings asked motorcyclists to wear helmets and ride safely.