08-10-2005, 11:52 PM
Priyanka's world, now on gloss <!--emo&
--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/rolleyes.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='rolleyes.gif' /><!--endemo-->
(Teesta's Commie Combo rag has competiton <!--emo&:lol:--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='laugh.gif' /><!--endemo--> )
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->IANS
[ MONDAY, AUGUST 08, 2005 04:17:03 PM ]
NEW DELHI: Congress president Sonia Gandhi's daughter Priyanka may be fighting shy of active politics but her name has launched a magazine that calls itself a movement against communal forces.
Welcome to "The World of Priyanka" - an intimate and candid look at the younger of the two Gandhi siblings. The Hindi magazine is devoted only to her life and times and calls her a symbol of secularism and communal peace.
The little-known monthly, published by Abhilash Awasthi, who appears to be an unabashed fan, has already celebrated its first anniversary and plans to launch subscriptions soon.
Editor Awasthi launched the magazine in Mumbai on the eve of Priyanka's birthday last year.
"We needed a symbol of secularism to wage a fight against the forces of communalism," said Awasthi from Mumbai. "The production is a bit costly for us but we cannot put a price to our movement."
At the same time, he insists that he is not a Congress member - only a concerned journalist. Produced by a slim staff of 16 with "bureaus" and stringers all over the country, the magazine is apparently sold in select stalls in cities like New Delhi, Mumbai, Lucknow, Patna and Gurgaon, for Rs 45 a piece.
Awasthi explains in an editorial why he picked the name - the Nehru-Gandhi family is the only one in the world in which one prime minister played on the lap of another.
This great family sacrificed so much for democracy and secularism. Priyanka is the youngest member of this family. The moment she steps into active politics matching steps with her mother and brother Rahul, she will destroy all communal forces."
Each month's cover has so far featured either Sonia, Rahul or Priyanka. The glossy gush-fest has page after page of photographs of the family in various events or at home and a liberal sprinkling of Congress leaders either praising the family or being praised.
It has published interesting facts. For instance, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly share, besides cricket, an admiration for Priyanka.
And that Priyanka has always thought that her grandmother and late prime minister Indira Gandhi loved her brother Rahul more. When it completed a year of publication in January, the magazine went into raptures over the mother-of-two who indeed bears an uncanny resemblance to her grandmother.
Candid shots of the brother-sister as babies, teenagers and young adults, many taken by their late father, prime minister Rajiv Gandhi (who was a photography enthusiast) also catch the eye as one riffles through reams of sycophantic prattle.
"We collected photographs from sources all over the country," said Awasthi proudly. In one of the articles, Congress MP Rajiv Shukla reveals one of his first impressions of the teenaged Priyanka being very politically aware.
Shukla says that in 1990 Rajiv Gandhi called him to ask whether Devi Lal had resigned as deputy prime minister, news that had not even got to journalists till then. When Shukla confirmed it and asked Rajiv Gandhi how he found out, the latter said Priyanka had learnt it from a friend.
"I asked Rajiv whether Priyanka was interested in politics," Shukla remembers. "He told me 'Yes, Priyanka is very interested in politics'." Are those words prophetic? Priyanka has kept everyone guessing whether she will follow her brother into active politics, but those seeking clues, keep reading "The World of Priyanka". <!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/rolleyes.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='rolleyes.gif' /><!--endemo--> (Teesta's Commie Combo rag has competiton <!--emo&:lol:--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='laugh.gif' /><!--endemo--> )
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->IANS
[ MONDAY, AUGUST 08, 2005 04:17:03 PM ]
NEW DELHI: Congress president Sonia Gandhi's daughter Priyanka may be fighting shy of active politics but her name has launched a magazine that calls itself a movement against communal forces.
Welcome to "The World of Priyanka" - an intimate and candid look at the younger of the two Gandhi siblings. The Hindi magazine is devoted only to her life and times and calls her a symbol of secularism and communal peace.
The little-known monthly, published by Abhilash Awasthi, who appears to be an unabashed fan, has already celebrated its first anniversary and plans to launch subscriptions soon.
Editor Awasthi launched the magazine in Mumbai on the eve of Priyanka's birthday last year.
"We needed a symbol of secularism to wage a fight against the forces of communalism," said Awasthi from Mumbai. "The production is a bit costly for us but we cannot put a price to our movement."
At the same time, he insists that he is not a Congress member - only a concerned journalist. Produced by a slim staff of 16 with "bureaus" and stringers all over the country, the magazine is apparently sold in select stalls in cities like New Delhi, Mumbai, Lucknow, Patna and Gurgaon, for Rs 45 a piece.
Awasthi explains in an editorial why he picked the name - the Nehru-Gandhi family is the only one in the world in which one prime minister played on the lap of another.
This great family sacrificed so much for democracy and secularism. Priyanka is the youngest member of this family. The moment she steps into active politics matching steps with her mother and brother Rahul, she will destroy all communal forces."
Each month's cover has so far featured either Sonia, Rahul or Priyanka. The glossy gush-fest has page after page of photographs of the family in various events or at home and a liberal sprinkling of Congress leaders either praising the family or being praised.
It has published interesting facts. For instance, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly share, besides cricket, an admiration for Priyanka.
And that Priyanka has always thought that her grandmother and late prime minister Indira Gandhi loved her brother Rahul more. When it completed a year of publication in January, the magazine went into raptures over the mother-of-two who indeed bears an uncanny resemblance to her grandmother.
Candid shots of the brother-sister as babies, teenagers and young adults, many taken by their late father, prime minister Rajiv Gandhi (who was a photography enthusiast) also catch the eye as one riffles through reams of sycophantic prattle.
"We collected photographs from sources all over the country," said Awasthi proudly. In one of the articles, Congress MP Rajiv Shukla reveals one of his first impressions of the teenaged Priyanka being very politically aware.
Shukla says that in 1990 Rajiv Gandhi called him to ask whether Devi Lal had resigned as deputy prime minister, news that had not even got to journalists till then. When Shukla confirmed it and asked Rajiv Gandhi how he found out, the latter said Priyanka had learnt it from a friend.
"I asked Rajiv whether Priyanka was interested in politics," Shukla remembers. "He told me 'Yes, Priyanka is very interested in politics'." Are those words prophetic? Priyanka has kept everyone guessing whether she will follow her brother into active politics, but those seeking clues, keep reading "The World of Priyanka". <!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->