Vajpayee was an extremely rare human being: Amitabh Bachchan
Mumbai, Aug 17: A stalwart, a poet, a writer, an enlightened mind and a compassionate being leaves this world -- that's how megastar Amitabh Bachchan began his tribute to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, whose demise has left the nation mourning.
Vajpayee died on Thursday at AIIMS Hospital in New Delhi after weeks of being hospitalised. He was 93.
"He was an admirer of my father and his works and there were many an occasion when I would be present at their meetings," Amitabh, son of late prolific and celebrated writer Harivansh Rai Bachchan, wrote on his blog.
He said his father knew Vajpayee, who was then a student. Harivansh Rai, he says, was very impressed by Vajpayee's oratory skills, which was his virtue.
"His oratory powers were unmatched and the usage of words exemplary. They were filled with the power of pronunciation. The rendition of the word was enough to give it meaning... One did not need to understand the language, that was his brilliance. Some of his public speeches and ones done in the Houses of Parliament are testimony.
"A poet, a writer, a politician, a Prime Minister... an extremely rare human," Amitabh wrote.
The actor also wrote about the special bond Vajpayee shared with his father.
"Despite his prominence as a leader of eminence, Atalji never hesitated to meet up with my father... Particularly on one occasion when my father was admitted to AIIMS hospital in Delhi, Atalji visited him to ask after his condition. I was there. His compassion and concern was most gracious.
"It was Atalji who agreed to launch and honour the occasion when the ‘stamp' was inaugurated in my father's name. It was in Lucknow."
Big B, 75, also recounted the birthday routine when Vajpayee would ring him on his special day, and he would ring the politician on his birthday.
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SGPC writes to Mann, seeks ban on 'Emergency' in Punjab a day before release
Amritsar, Jan 16 (PTI): The SGPC on Thursday wrote to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, seeking a ban on the release of Kangana Ranaut's movie 'Emergency' saying it "tarnishes" the image of Sikhs and "misrepresents" history.
Actor and BJP MP Ranaut's 'Emergency' is slated to release in cinemas on January 17.
In the letter to Mann, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee chief Harjinder Singh Dhami expressed strong objection to Ranaut's film.
Dhami said that if the film is released in Punjab, it will spark "outrage and anger" in the Sikh community and therefore it is the responsibility of the government to ban its release in the state.
The SGPC, an apex gurdwara body, had earlier also protested the film.
"It has come to our attention that the movie 'Emergency' produced by BJP MP Kangana Ranaut is going to be released on 17th January 2025 in cinemas in different cities of Punjab and the tickets have also started to be booked," its letter to Mann read.
Dhami said the SGPC had also protested the release of the movie in a letter to the Punjab Chief Secretary on November 14 last year.
"But it is sad that the Punjab government has not taken any step till now. If this film is released on January 17, 2025, then it is natural to create outrage and anger in the Sikh world," the current letter read.
Dhami said the SGPC will submit a letter also to all the deputy commissioners in Punjab, seeking a ban on the film in the state.
The SGPC denounced the "character assassination" of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, the Khalistani militant killed in 1984 in a military operation.
"If this film is released in Punjab, we will be forced to strongly oppose it at the state level," Dhami said.
In August last year, the SGPC sent a legal notice to the producers of the 'Emergency' film, alleging that it "misrepresented" the character and history of Sikhs, and asked them to remove the objectionable scenes depicting "anti-Sikh" sentiments.
In the notice, the producers of the film, including Kangana Ranaut, were asked to remove the trailer released on August 14 from all public and social media platforms and tender a written apology to the Sikh community.
The SGPC objected to film writing separate letters to the Minister of Information and Broadcasting and the Central Board of Film Certification.
