Legendary radio broadcaster Ameen Sayani dies at 91
Mumbai (PTI): Famous radio personality Ameen Sayani, the iconic voice behind 'Binaca Geetmala', has died at the age of 91, his son Rajil Sayani said on Wednesday.
Sayani suffered a heart attack on Tuesday night and was taken to a hospital in South Mumbai but could not be saved.
"He passed away last night of heart attack at H N Reliance hospital. He was rushed to the hospital last evening around 6:00pm after he complained of chest pain. They tried to revive him but he passed away around 7:00pm," Rajil told PTI.
Rajil said last rites will be held tomorrow and that the family will be issuing a statement soon.
Sayani, whose introduction Namaste behno aur bhaiyon, main aapka dost Ameen Sayani bol raha hoon' on Radio Ceylon still evokes strong nostalgia amongst listeners, was born in Mumbai in a multilingual family on December 21, 1932.
He had a creative flair since childhood and started writing for his mother's fortnightly journal 'Rehbar' when he was just 13, which was also the age when he became a proficient broadcaster in English and started participating in children's programmes on the English service of All India Radio Bombay.
Sayani, however, was rejected when he auditioned to present in Hindustani because of a slight tinge of Gujarati accent in his voice.
When the then Minister for Information and Broadcasting, B V Keskar banned Hindi songs from AIR, Radio Ceylon started to become popular, which was then broadcasts from Colombo, started to boom.
Sayani got a chance to host 'Binaca Geetmala' on Radio Ceylon in December 1952 and never looked back.
A first of its kind show, the show ran from 1952 to 1994 to massive popularity for 42 long years.
With variations in its name, it continued to woo listeners in the early 2000s too.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Kerala HC declines interim stay on screening of ''L2: Empuraan''
Kochi (PTI): The Kerala High Court on Tuesday declined to issue any interim order putting on hold the screening of Malayalam film 'L2: Empuraan' starring superstar Mohanlal.
Justice C S Dias ordered to issue notice to the Centre and the Censor Board seeking their stand on the plea by Thrissur-native V V Vijeesh who has claimed that continuing to show the movie poses a risk of inciting communal violence and disturbing public order.
It listed the matter for hearing after the vacation.
The court also questioned whether the petition was filed in publicity interest by the petitioner.
During the brief hearing of the matter, the court also asked what was the problem when the Censor Board had certified the film for public viewing.
It also expressed doubts about the petitioner's intention behind filing the plea.
It also pointed out that no case was filed anywhere against the movie.
The state government said that no case has been lodged against the film in Kerala.
Meanwhile, Antony Perumbavoor, one of the producers of the film, earlier in the day announced that the movie has undergone cuts to remove scenes of little over two minutes.
He said the decision to carry out the edit was a joint one of all the producers and actors, including Mohanlal and Prithviraj Sukumaran, and it was not out of fear of anyone.
The movie has faced intense criticism from the Sangh Parivar with regard to some portions of the film.
'L2: Empuraan', the second part of the 'Lucifer' movie, a trilogy planned by the Prithviraj-Mohanlal team, has become a topic of hot debate over its critique of right-wing politics and the covert mention of the Gujarat riots.
On March 27, the day of the movie's release, the Sangh Parivar vehemently criticised the film on social media, while the Congress and Left platforms celebrated the film for portraying the right-wing politics as "villainous".
