Mathures Paul

Renowned stand-up comic Russell Peters visits Kolkata, where his mother and brother were born. He speaks to Mathures Paul about his early career, the elections in America and future projects In North America a growing number of stand-up comics of Indian origin are becoming famous, a popular name among them is Russell Peters, who started performing in Toronto in 1989. These days he lives in Las Vegas and Los Angeles, where the environment is ‘just right’ for stand-up comics. After a long break Peters returned to India, which he doesn’t, like many celebrities of Indian origin, loosely calls his ‘hometown’. His show in Kolkata perhaps was just another show for him but his stay here surely was special to him. His father was born in Mumbai and mother in Kolkata. His elder brother, Clayton, was also born in Kolkata, making his stay a memorable one. In fact, when The Statesman caught up with him, he had a few minutes to spare before rushing off to meet his uncles. “I have never seen stand-up ...

A few years ago Iranian courts passed the death sentence for Nazanin Fatehi for killing a person who tried to rape her. Singer, activist and Miss World Canada Nazanin Afshin-Jam took up her cause and gathered enough support from the international community to exonerate her namesake of murder charges. She tells Mathures Paul about her plans to compose songs on Aung San Suu Kyi, Mahatma Gandhi and the Dalits in India They were on the march then In 1978 They filled our minds with hate They deceived the nation In the name of religion And soon it was too late When the soldiers came We were on the run Our lives forever changed That was no solution Regressive revolution Together we must stand Someday We will find a way Someday The darkness fades away ~ Someday (The Revolution Song) The President of Iran will have to get past the Ahmadinejad Wall of Shame, a visual display and demonstration across the United Nations Headquarters before entering the opening of the General Assembly. The three-ho...