Oh yes! I had an exclusive invite to the AGENDA AAJTAK EVENT this year. I was already drooling over the awesome guest list which comprised of the best lot in the country. On the voting day in Delhi, with slightly less traffic I reached the venue well in time. Le Meridien, New Delhi is the chosen place for the two day event. Securing my delegate badge as soon as I could I made my way to the round table meant for bloggers. It was well placed definitely with a great view to the stage. (Wish it was right in front.. newys we can never be satisfied)
This one is supposed to be a very closed event and I could really see only the elite fraternity and the familiar faces from the India Today and Aaj Tak family dressed to the best in formals. The other thing that struck me was the large rich stage. It was indeed massive, well built quite in sync with the event’s theme.. Hindi Jagat ka Mahamanch. I could sense it was a happening platform and a great day was in store for me… yeah it turned out to be too… catch on the peppy news!!!
At 12 the event began on a soulful note of Vande Matram from a young singing talent Akash Sharma. And then walked in the next guest. Yes, Sonu Nigam, my favorite singer for the largest span of time and honestly his great voice can never make me fall for anyone else. He talked really humble and honest about his childhood and his singing passion. He entertained the audience by singing some of his popular songs and he mimicked for us too. Must say a versatile person he is and someone with great vocal chords.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh and BJP leader Nitin Gadkari were invited over on the stage to discuss and debate over the present political scenario. The session was entertaining and it was called Kisme Kitna Hai Dum. Both the leaders talked maturely and soberly over several issues of the country. However difference of opinion was quite evident from certain arguments but they also agreed to oneness when needed. Nitin Gadkari emphasized on the need for mutual dialogues among major parties and Jairam Ji gave a pickup line too, 2014 elections should not be seen as a Fashion Show….
After the lavish luncheon, it was time to hear the guest from our neighboring country, Pakistan. She went on to take over the center stage smartly. Hina Rabbani Khar, a parliamentarian for 12 years sounded very sensible and intelligent person. She was sharp and really quick with her answers and she definitely knew when to disagree with the anchor. She actually gave a positive message for strengthening the relations between the countries and reiterated the fact that the animosity should not be tagged along in future. The need of the hour is to get over it and drive a change together. I personally liked the session though the things said by her were not easily done. I also appreciate and agree with what she said lets get over with the Indo Pak relations bashing.
The CM of J n K , Mr. Omar Abdullah was good to hear to but he was not very effective in keeping the audience engaged. His views on Article 370 and LOC, LC issues, relationship with NDA and Atal Bihari Vajpayee were clear. In my view Mission Kashmir should not have been the theme of this session but something more creative. The backstage looked beautiful with snowy Kashmir.
Rajnath Singh Ji was next guest. He was seated on a charpai on the stage to give an affect of Raj dilayenge Rajnath ji. He sounded confident and optimistic about the ongoing election and their results. He really talked sensible and showed complete confidence in Narendra Modi. I felt connected with his views at some points. And he also talked about the change and agendas that his party would come up with once in power. I definitely concur with the most important in my view bridging the gap between the rich and the poor…
We have known Sunil Grover through Kapil’s show Comedy Nights with Kapil and also his character on radio Sud. Gutthi.. Agenda.. Agenda.. Guththi was hilarious but not impressive. It was good to hear the actor accept the fact that he is not a comedian but a person who just lives characters that he has seen around him for years, his relatives, the girls of his college and others. However, he failed to create the charm that he usually does on the show.
I wished the session on Dharma and Dhanda to pass as Baba Ramdev , Muni Chidanand Ji, Swami Sarvanand Ji were in heated discussion over spirituality. I really have my own beliefs simple and quite suttle. However, there was lot of aggression among them which I detested. I remember some bits where Ramdev Ji was quick to say he has not a penny to his name..
Post snacking and short break, the crowd had a treat to wait and watch for. Mr. Aamir Khan was next one to win our hearts with his easy going style. He is indeed a sensible, sophisticated man and I like his thoughtful answers. He talked about his early days, films, his wife, son and lovely things, passion for film making and being a good man. When he said, he doesn’t compete, it sounded honest. He talked about Dhoom 3 and Peekay. Aamir was appreciative of Salman Khan but refrained from saying anything about Shahrukh Khan though they had come together in the plane. I quite enjoyed the session.
There came a melodious time in the high rushes session when Mr. Talat Aziz, Pankaj Udaas and Ghulam Ali ji took the focus and enthralled the audience with great ghazal tunes. I have never been a ghazal fan but I quite loved the session.
And then came the reason for the sleepless night day before, Mr. Shahrukh Khan. His keynote address was awesome. I have been his ardent fan for last twenty years n more and it was indeed a great day to see him live, talk, smile, dance, mimick and do all the fun. I just couldn’t believe he was there actually. What a quirky and witty person he is? He has perfect timing and handles his personality magnificently. I loved his quirky one liners and the absolute confidence in him when he said he loves the limelight and he has done much to be successful. His mantras of success were those where rest had no space in his dictionary. The performance and dances were amazing…he brought smile to our faces… there was a spark in the room…and the best came when he made me supremely happy, he handled my question and looked at me, answered me and accepted me as his fan with love…. so I actually interacted with him… I am in awe…am I dreaming… till I sleep well...
I thoroughly enjoyed the day. Catch you all tomorrow….
Related articles
- Agenda AajTak- Hindi Jagat Ka Mahamanch- Day 2 (manjulikapramod.com)
