 |
| Actor
Preity Zinta |
That the top Bollywood actor who's stared in hits like Dil
Chahta Hai, Koi... Mil Gaya and Kal Ho Naa Ho gets much higher
billing than a heavyweight line up of some of South Asia's
most respected commentators including best selling author
Ahmed Rashid, renowned economist Kaushik Basu and leading
sports writer Rohit Brijnath, says a lot.
Zinta will write on a varied range of topics and will not
be restricting herself to topics relating to the film industry
only. She has been quoted in a company release as saying,
"This column is something very interesting and a totally
new experience for me. It is also a good platform to air my
views on a variety of subjects as I am a pretty outspoken
person,"
In her first column which will be available at www.bbcnews.com/southasia
from 2 February, she looks at the changing face of Bollywood
and the films to watch out for in 2004. "It is going
to be an exciting year because our young filmmakers are challenging
the old order. They are instrumental in sculpting Bollywood's
new, changing face," she says. Zinta will be donating
her fee as a columnist for the BBC to a charity she supports
in Punjab.
Said bbcnews.com/southasia editor Bernard Gabony, "She
(Zinta) completes what we think is the most impressive team
of columnists writing on South Asian affairs anywhere on the
Internet."
 |
| Ahmed
Rashid |
BBCnews.com has been repeatedly voted the best news website
in the world. It is run by a large team of journalists in
London and also has a network of correspondents across India.
Along with Zinta the site also boasts of best selling author
Ahmed Rashid. Another writer the BBC has is Kaushik Basu,
who analyses India's prospects in the global economy. Basu
is Marks Professor of International Studies and Professor
of Economics and Director of Program on Comparative Economic
Development at Cornell University in US.
Completing the new BBC line up is Rohit Brijnath, one of
India's best known sports writers who has been covering sport
for 17 years. He has covered the Olympic Games, Asian Games,
World Cup cricket, grand slam tennis events and numerous cricket
tours. Brijnath, who is known for his breezy writing style
and frank views, will be writing on sports and sporting personalities
in the subcontinent.
|
