A kick on the rear to last year and hoping for some fun in the new one
>> Arvind Kejriwal, the new hope for Indian politics, must now prove that he can clean up the corridors of power with the long ‘aam’ of the law.
Anti-corruption champion Arvind Kejriwal addressing supporters after taking the oath of office as New Delhi’s chief minister, on December 28, 2013. Pic/AFP
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>> Ballot is the word as today sees the dawn of election year for India. As the curtains go up and netas move up a nautanki notch, let the games begin.
>> Corruption was the buzzword this year with so many people launching their campaigns on the anti-corruption platform. More power to the clean machine.
>> Dhoom 3, after promises and hype, did not live up to its name, for many. Yet, it is now all about the 200-crore club for Bollywood.
Katrina Kaif and Aamir Khan in Dhoom 3, now a part of the 200-crore club
>> Eternal battle between hoteliers and Mumbai police over the partying deadline. The cops said 1.30 am, the High Court made it 5 am. Yeah!
>> Formula One legend Michael Schumacher was battling for his life at the time of going to press, having hit his head on a rock while skiing.
German Formula One champion Michael Schumacher, skiing in 2004 in Northern Italy. Pic/AFP
>> Gay sex between consenting adults continues to be criminalized with the Supreme Court reinstating Section 377, at a time when nations are debating marriage for gays.
>> Housing is still the bane of the common man, with homes everywhere reaching the crore mark. No longer lakhs, only crore’s the score.
>> Infrastructure is the keyword with the monorail and metro eluding the Mumbaikar last year too. This year will it be: oh no, where’s the mono?
Phase one of the Mumbai Monorail project is getting ready between Wadala and Chembur. Pic/Shadab Khan
>> Jail cast its long shadow with Laloo Prasad Yadav, Sanjay Dutt and Tarun Tejpal experiencing the soul-sapping confinement.
>> Khobragade controversy about the Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade and the US, sent Uncle Sam and Desi ties careening downwards.
India’s Deputy Consul General Devyani Khobragade was arrested by law enforcement authorities in New York on visa fraud charges. Pic/AFP
>> Loans in a light-hearted way, with jokes about banks giving loans to buy Dhoom 3 tickets, petrol and onions. Made us laugh and cry.
>> Mahalaxmi racecourse has still to get its lease renewed by the BMC. SoBo’s green lung lease had expired last year in a blaze of publicity. Now, what?
>> Not together any longer. Hrithik Roshan and Sussanne Khan became the latest celebrities to hit Splitsville, after months of denial in a depressingly familiar pattern.
>> Onion prices touched dizzying heights. We even wondered whether we would have to break Fixed Deposits (FDs) to buy onions. Aiga!
>> Petrol continued to pinch the motorist with prices going through the roof (unless of course, you were driving a roofless, vintage car).
>> Quit took on huge dimensions after Sachin Tendulkar hung up his cricket gloves last year. Sach a farewell never hath the cricket world seen.
>> Rupee showed little signs of recovery even though hopes were high after the dishy Raghuram Rajan took over as RBI governor.
>> Shoma Choudhary of Tehelka faced unprecedented flak and fire from people accusing her of a ‘cover up’ in the sexual assault case.
>> Tarun Tejpal of Tehelka went to jail on charges of sexual assault. One of the year’s biggest scandals, it also put harassment at the workplace on the radar.
>> U-turns. Even as you read this, political parties are doing numerous flip-flops on the Adarsh Housing Scam issue. Proving that when it comes to Adarsh, they have very little.
>> Vice rather than wise it was for Sreesanth, Chavan and Chandila, IPL players to get embroiled in cricket’s biggest controversy. Jhapaak jail-ing, jail-ling, gili, gili yaa!
>> Women continue to walk the streets with fear, thanks to the increasing crimes against women. Let’s step up the anti-molestation drive this year too.
>> X-rated seem to be the shenanigans of godmen and gurus who would make the censor board blush. They give others of their ilk a bad name.
>> Yuvraj Singh has been dropped for the upcoming tour of New Zealand, one heard yesterday. Yuvi could not do much against SA, but we’re sure the puttar will be back.
>> Z Class Security, status symbol for bigwigs, needs to be toned down. With Arvind Kejriwal removing the lal batti, we are hopeful that simply everybody does not get ‘Z’.
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