PICTURE SPEAK

"Salebrity", December 20

"By selling brands, celebrities are only doing what they are good at-entertaining the public-and nothing more."

A.K. Singh, Delhi

Ad Mad World

Celebrities sell because ultimately it is all about money and more money, values and people be damned ("Salebrity", December 20). The trend of celebrities endorsing products also becomes insufferable if there is an overdose of such ads. Take Amitabh Bachchan. If he does not check himself, someone may break his wax statue also.

Madhu Singh, Ambala

Notwithstanding their high recall value, the consumer is now mature enough to view celebrity ads as more of a source of entertainment rather than as an inspiration to patronise the products and services being endorsed.

Navneet Dhawan, Delhi

The saleability of the celebrities increases because they are like "ready to cook" curry packs. The customer doesn't need to burn any energy to consume them.

Rajneesh Batra, Delhi

The story highlights the basic truth that the reel people, the ad people and the real people all belong to the same world of "salebrities". All aspire, some prosper while others falter.

George Olivera, Bangalore

No Small Success

Your story shows how entrepreneurial skill has created wealth in small towns ("Happening Hinterland", December 20). The success of Haldiram stands out. Its products are available in small towns even in south India. It can hold a candle to any MNC when it comes to the distribution and visibility of products.

M.M. Gurbaxani, Bangalore

Shaping the Future

The optimism expressed by the foreign investors who attended the 20th annual India Economic Summit in Delhi says a lot about the performance of India in the future ("Vote of Confidence", December 20). But the Government must also remove the procedural hurdles standing in the way of FDI inflows without delay. Infrastructural constraints should be looked into urgently. Investment needs better infrastructure and vice versa. And the gap between promises and final outcome should be bridged.

A. Jacob Sahayam, Thiruvananthapuram

Spin Maestro

Anil Kumble deserves all the accolades he receives and much more ("Master Mind", December 20). An outright professional, he worked his way up to reach this position of equalling and surpassing Kapil Dev's record. While Kapil chugged along like an old steam engine till he finally surpassed Richard Hadlee's record, Kumble broke Kapil's record at a breakneck speed and now looks poised to reach 500 wickets.

Sharada Prasad, Bangalore

Kumble has kept alive the legacy of the great Indian spin. After injury and a lean patch, he bounced back like a wounded tiger to achieve the target with ease. We must come out of the shadow of Bishan Singh Bedi, E.A.S. Prasanna, B.S. Chandrashekhar and S. Venkataraghavan to acknowledge him as the all-time great spin bowler of the country.

Gautam Bhatia, Delhi

Flawed Image

The RSS has ceased to be a nationalist social organisation fighting for the cause of the country ("Sangh Makeover", December 20). For the past few years it has become a rabid militant organisation pursuing communal politics. Therefore, the changes it proposes to make are simply cosmetic. So long as it propagates Hindu militancy it will have few takers, makeover or no makeover.

Siddhartha Raj Guha, Jabalpur

Taking Stock

The share price index has crossed 6400 points and may cross the 6600 mark by the yearend ("The Foreign Hand", December 20). But this does not indicate the general well-being of the masses. The poor still do not get two square meals a day. Money is invested in the secondary market and it is merely an unproductive, speculative investment by big players.

Sudhir K. Bhave, Mumbai

Panic Attack

The story on the Taj reminds me of the panic and hysteria the world created over the supposed premature demise of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, which stands to this day with the tilt it is famed for ("The Leaning Towers of Taj", December 13). Sometimes we get overly cautious in our enthusiasm to protect all things great and beautiful. UNESCO needs to be pragmatic. It should not send alarm bells ringing in a country that is ever ready to get into the hysterical mode at the drop of a hat.

Jinu Mathew, on e-mail

DIVIDED HOPES

Truncated into three parts-J&K, AJK and Aksai Chin-the Kashmiris are simply suffocating to death ("In the Forbidden Zone", December 20). Why not give freedom to the Kashmiris to decide their own fate? Asoke C. Banerjee, Kolkata A day may come when PoK may want to merge with India because of better conditions here. So let the people of J&K and PoK communicate freely. Aniket Singh, Ambala The only solution to the J&K imbroglio lies in recognising the loc as an international boundary. Kumar B. Bhatia, on e-mail

Political Circus

Ram Vilas Paswan and Laloo Prasad Yadav keep raving and ranting at each other at public platforms and then appear to forget their differences when in Parliament ("Bending Backwards", December 13). This shows their credibility and sincerity towards the nation. Such tomfoolery cannot be taken lightly and people should teach them a lesson instead of glorifying them. The role of the media does not end with mere coverage (copious as they are) of such items.

N.K. Mishra, Patna

Plan Ahead

Government indifference and infrastructural bottlenecks in Bangalore have been pushing it majors to explore opportunities in other cities ("No Bang for the Buck", December 13). One should start thinking of infrastructure ahead of the industry's needs rather than make plans after the companies set up shop. Further, the authorities should think about a mass transport system. The need of the hour is dynamism.

G.S. Rao, Kolhapur

Firming the Soil

In the pursuit of rural development, corporate India has succeeded where the government has failed miserably ("Call of the Countryside," December 13,). Should we now say, "Jai nigam (corporate), jai kisan"?

K. Chidanand Kumar, Bangalore

The strength of the Indian economy has always been in its numbers. The recent interest of corporate houses in rural prosperity bears testimony to this fact. Government empowerment of corporate initiatives for rural development would be an opportunity for them to repay what they have always owed to society.

Lt-Colonel (Retd) Kailash Mehta, Mohali

Your story illustrates how business leaders are contributing to society. It is truly an innovative way to harness technology and assist in the development of the rural sector.

M.C. Jacob, on e-mail

Need for Patience

A person is deemed innocent until he is convicted by a court ("The Plot Thickens", December 13). A police case or a prosecutor's report to the press does not make him guilty. Therefore, the Kanchi Shankaracharya too should be given a fair trial before being denounced.

R. Ramakrishnan, Chennai

Ungodly Deeds

Common people are being taken for a ride by confidence tricksters like the Kalki Bhagwan ("Materialistic Spiritualism", December 13). We have so many law-enforcing agencies in the country. They should periodically scrutinise the activities of institutions run by these godmen.

N.C. Padhi, Brahmapur, Orissa

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