No need for RTI. There was a GoI press release about this which mentions the
total contract value with ARR.
http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=64676
There's more work (lyrics by Mehboob, video with Bharat Bala...) than just
composing the song. ARR is performing at the opening ceremony as well. We do
not
know the full extent of his involvement. But c'mon! Given all his charity work
would you think that he would overcharge for something like this?
The media is on a witch-hunt right now so it's convenient for them to publish
whatever they want. Don't fan the flames. It's amazing how much of the
criticism
about the Games has now been focused solely on the music.
A few weeks ago when a journalist angrily questioned the delay with releasing
the song, I defended her right to ask the question. At that time it seemed that
the press was asking hard questions because it mattered and not because of TRP
ratings. Now I see it's a facade since they're all after masala stuff to sell.
The IBNLive hack-job masquerading as an article doesn't even have an author
mentioned. Every Tom, Dick and Hariharan who blogs or tweets, gets quoted in
articles as if they're music buffs with expert opinions.
Don't make this an issue despite how ugly it looks. Ignore it. Be civil and
diplomatic if you're correcting friends who've been misled by the articles. The
media will stop when there isn't enough interest in it.
And for the devious side in you...
When people have already formed a misguided opinion it's hard to make them
change if you point facts directly. Use satire to make them think about how
ludicrous it is. We already know about the awesome conclusion by IBNLive that
the film score to Fire was a flop because it was not easily available in India
and could be obtained only by mail order from Germany. Extending that thought
here are some tweet-lines:
* IBNLive says Mughal-e-Azam is a flop because it is not available in
Sanskrit
dubbing.
* V.K. Malhotra doesn't like Australia's 2006 Commonwealth Games song
either-
"Their song is slower than Rahman's. They should have used Shakira".
* V.K Malhotra also does not like coconut chutney. Rediff reports that
Kerala
is angry when he asked for mint chutney instead.
* TimesOfIndia research shows that Waka Waka is more popular than Jana
Gana
Mana based on downloads. Please participate in the poll for changing the
national anthem.
* Calcutta Telegraph breaking news-- Sports minister Shanawaz Hussain
wants
Rabindranath Tagore grand-daughter to update national anthem since "it is too
slow. There is not enough Shakira in it".
* Indian media secures top prize in transparency and integrity awards
U2CanBJournoWorld 2010. Congratulate them! Only one country participated since
the others refused to pay the entry fee to host nation, India.
________________________________
From: ravi <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
Sent: Fri, September 3, 2010 12:59:04 PM
Subject: [arr] Should the RTI be approached?
Its now like every cat & dog is speaking about the 5Crore. should / can the RTI
be approached to know the real facts?
Media doesn't seem to be impressed with the celebrities who are praising and
are
rather more interested in using even a single negative quote as the headline.
There was a news paper which quoted as its fans saying the negative feedback on
FB pages. Damn I wish FB / Twitter must sue the Indian News agency for using
their wide viewable medium as the source of News.
