MiD Day Incites Disgust- Bloggers Vs Yellow Journalism

Update: Director Pavan Kaul speaks on his forthcoming film ‘BHRAM’ touted as being a brilliantly shot, slick, intense thriller/drama scheduled for a March 2008 release

Zee Music, ETC interviews here and here

Update : For BHRAM Theatrical Promo and Song Promos click here..highly recommendedThe role of MSM (main stream media) in generating unhealthy, biased, defiling tactics, has for long now been suspect and under the scanner.. but not strongly, vociferously and unitedly enough. For one, because the average reader never really experienced the ‘achilles heel’ since he was not at the receiving end directly. Secondly, the general ‘monster like’ image of editors and journos with a ‘devil like’ reach of vicious tentacles that held the capacity to rent assunder, did deter those victimised, to turn a Nelsons eye to infamous utterings..gossip and slander, indulged in by bird brained journos.

However, things are changing.. And How!! The new fifth estate, a term I’d like to coin as the “Blogger Media”, has not taken kindly to their influx and machinations. A case in point, Desitrain/Oz had recently invited talented and creative film maker Pavan Kaul, currently making ‘Bhram‘ to write on his blog “Passion For Cinema’.

Its pertinent to note and of special import here that Pavan Kaul already had a blog of his own prior to this, created without much filmi fanfare. Incidentally another writer/director Anurag Kashyap was writing there as well. Mid day carried a mischievous and derogatory article yesterday, which I got to hear about, insinuating that Pavan Kaul was a ‘copy cat’ of Anurag Kashyap..Now that was preposterous and ridiculous. Pavan had been invited by Oz to write there and had taken time off to share some really inspiring stories on the same blog where Anurag was ALSO blogging. And how on earth can blogging be generic with Anurag Kashyap? In fact Shekhar Kapur had been blogging for over a year now..does that make Anurag a copy cat of Shekhar Kapur?

In an almost unprecedented first, an uproar and cry against this article has been raised by bloggers..on the site ‘Passion For cinema’ strongly worded hit back by Oz and linked to other sites as well. Poor journalistic ethics, malicious intent and total illiteracy of Blogging per se, is more than evident in the article. It is also clear that the journalist has not bothered even to read the articles or blogs he is referring to.. as claimed by him. The fact that he has not had the courtesy, decency, integrity, to speak/contact either Oz or Pavan Kaul before he lets off this snide snippet is reflective of the intentions of the story.

Pavan Kaul

What is supicious is also the lack of a by line, any evidence of the author, as had happened when the same tabloid a few days back carried an in-depth article in glowing praise of Anurag Kashyaps blog, on the same site.. no by line included…veiled in anonymity!!

And the icing on the cake is the fact that the paper is cowering under the onslaught of outrage by readers by blocking logins and efforts to comment on this offensive article. A rather crystal clear evidence of their ‘hit and run’ modus operandi.

MidDay and its poor journalistic ethics has been under attack by Preity Zinta..the fiery one who has taken this yellow tabloid to Court over a baseless, accusatory piece of garbage against her. What astounds one is the fact that nothing seems to deter Midday from continuing with its amoral, unethical and shoddy snippets, undertaken purely for considerations other than journalism. What a pathetic exemplification of journos!!..it more than amply suggests how close to failure they are as a journal worth any reckoning..on their way down, they resort to columns like “Hitlist”..hitting at their own credibility fatally.

Pavan Kaul has maintained a dignified silence, in a manner befitting a creative, intelligent, soft spoken, media reclusive film maker, who by his own submission is media shy..plainly evident from the fact that his filmography proves two decades of relationship with Magna publications, and no apparent exploitation to obtain a plug in all these years! Presumably has ventured to speak about his “Experiences and experiments’ for the first time. One can only hope that this does not in any way dissuade him from continuing to write for cinema lovers the world over. After all, few have the talent to express and fewer the inclination or interest. If those who offer to share are snubbed and ridiculed, sensitivity of these makers. which is more than obviously the foremost trait, is under attack..

Shame on Midday.. they are perhaps wincing under the jealousy of a growing popularity of web sites where celebrities choose to open their hearts and soul, rather than speak in the MSM, to whom sincerity is an alien concept. Why woo these jugglers of passions, who sell their souls to the “Devil” over a drinks and dinner and to who being a journalist is another route for lashing and venting out their frustrations and incapabilities. The game is over though.. they have exposed themselves nice and proper.. without a shadow of doubt. Next stop..Toilet paper..You’re right Oz.

Before ‘Sachiniti’ there have been others who have voiced their disgust at this distasteful display of crassy Journalism.

Vivek Kumar

Indian Pad

Planet Bollywwod

Superstarksa

Desicritics

as of now….. and a host of angry agitated, concerned commenters on various posts..universally decrying the trash that is Midday.

Update: Reacting to the slanderous article, which clearly attempted to defame him, without cause or concern, DNA spoke with Pavan Kaul, where he clarified simply and unpretentiously that the invitation he received to blog by was by the owner of the same site where Anurag also blogs… apart from the fact that Pavan had a blog of his own, created without much ado and fanfare, even previous to Anurag wrting his diary. Some irresponsible and mindless reporting there by Midday where they did not take the trouble to even corrroborate their facts.When mentioning the support from bloggers he has most ‘unfilmi-like’ modestly owned up to encouraging support, when in reality the uproar from bloggers has been stupendous.Knowing others from the fraternity of films and their penchant for ‘publicity at any cost’, in a similar situation, they would have taken the opportunity to wallop things out of proportion, exaggerate unashamedly and blown their own trumpet till Kingdom come, whether it had to do with ‘hits’ on the site or ‘comments’.