The newsmakers of 2011

The article was first published on www.burrp.com

http://know.burrp.com/loose-ends/the-newsmakers-of-2011/32713

Year 2011 was eventful with lots of scams, controversies and news courtesy a lot of newsmakers – some we liked but most we hated. Here's the list of the most talked about people of this year.

Kapil Sibal:

He saw, he spoke, he got hash-tagged. #IdiotKapilSibal became the talk of Twitter when he demanded the pre-screening of content on Facebook, Twitter and Google. The brouhaha was over an objectionable image of Congress president Sonia Gandhi on a Facebook page. We won’t say much on it but here are some tweets from angry social media enthusiasts:

SatanBhagat Satan Bhagat

If the UPA is a tube of Pond's white facewash, Kapil Sibal is the self-appointed activated carbon.

PritishNandy Pritish Nandy

If we had a Hyde Park, Kapil Sibal will want to censor the speakers there.

kafila Kafila

Say #IdiotKapilSibal before he prevents Twitter from letting you say it

hankypanty Sorabh Pant

"I love Sonia Gandhi. She is awesome. She is God. And never wrong about anything, ever." (This msg is approved by Kapil Sibal's cyber cell.)

bangdu soumik sen

What was Kapil Sibal doing surfing for offensive pictures of Sonia Gandhi? #LonelyMan

stupidusmaximus Ashish Shakya

Maybe Kapil Sibal will back off if we agree to rename the internet as 'Shrimati Sonia Gandhi Antarrashtriya Computer Mayajaal'.

NigelBritto Nigel Britto

I think on December 5 every year from now on, Google will have a middle-finger doodle in tribute to #IdiotKapilSibal's stupidity.

maps4aid maps4aid

Kapil Sibal has become the standard on which all other future idiots will be measured ~ #idiotkapilsibal #FreedomOfSpeech

Anna Hazare:

The 74-year old social activist went on a fast to get the Jan Lokpal Bill in action. The nation joined him instantly. Protests were made, debates happened and thousands of FB pages were created to support the cause. As the fast continued, the janta kept getting furious. But even after a cat-mouse chase between the government and Hazare, umpteen fasts, talk shows on news channel, rallies and Baba Ramdev fiascos, the future of the Anti Corruption Bill is still dark.

Sharad Pawar/Harvinder Singh:

‘Thappad se darr nahi lagta saab, sardar se lagta hai.’ The famous dialogue from Dabangg made rounds of Twitter when Union Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar got one on his ‘kaan ke neeche’. Harvinder Singh became a national hero for doing a deed that every Indian had been dreaming of doing. With a record of slapping two ministers in a row (Sukhram and Sharad Pawar) we wonder who’s next on this serial slapper’s hit list. Kapil Sibal, maybe?

Julian Assange:

The Australian publisher, journalist and “internet activist” founded the website Wikileaks in 2006. The site did not do much harm to India till he leaked the information on Indian accounts in the Swiss banks. Our politicians (read Congress) shivered in their air-conditioned chambers and almost had their foot in mouth by making statements that backfired. With Assange kicking their butts, Hazare sitting on their heads and Harvinder Singh slapping their faces, all we can say is, ‘ye to hona hi tha!’

Indian Cricket Team:

They broke the 28-year long curse by winning the World Cup and dedicated it to master-blaster Sachin Tendulkar. Since then the team always stayed in the news whether it was for Rahul Dravid’s retirement or Sachin’s 100^th hundred which he still couldn’t make.

Baby B:

Can a baby become a celebrity even before its birth? Sure, if the surname is Bachchan. There were chants of Baby B in the air as soon as Aishwarya Rai Bachchan became pregnant. We heard congratulatory messages in almost every episode of KBC and somehow dada Bachchan looked more excited than papa Bachchan.

Media went berserk zeroing on the gender of the child and the date of birth. The so called auspicious 11.11.11 came and went and while the whole nation was undergoing labour pains Aishwarya experienced none. Finally a girl was born on 16 Nov and soon the name changed to Beti B. Twitter handle @BaybeeBachchan a.k.a Ghar Ki Lakshmi cracked PJs till the whole news died a natural death. Social media was relieved of Beti B hash-tags and so were we.

Chetan Bhagat:

For those who missed Rakhi Sawant this year, don’t be upset. We have Chetan Bhagat who made it in the news for reasons other than his books. Be it a literary event or a television show, CBag was everywhere. @PollyesterParo trashed him on TV for his ghastly English and typos and his alter ego @SatanBhagat took his case on Twitter almost every day. Whether it is for his books or his ‘I am so funny’ act, we definitely Luv2HateHim!

Dhanush:

Better known as Rajnikant’s son-in-law, Dhanush took a leap of success with his song ‘Kolaveri Di’ written and sung by him and composed by Anirudh Ravichander. The catchy tune and Tanglish (English with a Tamil accent) lyrics made the video an instant hit. Youtube gave the video a Gold Award for getting the maximum number of views. The song reached its highest point and got played on BBC Radio. From Hitler getting furious with its success in a meme video to Sonu Nigam’s son singing its milk version, the song grew on everyone and trended on Twitter for almost a week. ‘Lovvu’ it or ‘hate-u’ it, you can’t ignore it.

Shahrukh Khan:

He made Ra.One and then he was everywhere. Attending reality shows, launching Youtube channels, creating games and promoting almost all the products you can use in a day. ‘Chammak challo’ was played on TV/radio till it started looping in our heads. After watching the movie we think that all the marketing gimmicks combined would have made for a better watch.

Delhi:

The capital made sure that it stayed in the news for reasons not so pleasant. The Delhi boy got thrashed by a Mallu girl in an open letter. Metallica’s opening concert in India went for a toss due to management issues and the Delhi crowd went berserk. Delhiites were mocked by the Bangaloreans who attended the concert in their city, repeatedly. Mumbaikars did the same when Delhi’s attempt for a flash mob failed miserably. What do we tell the residents of a 100-year old city? Grow up!

Gaddafi:

After more than 30 years of dictatorship, Libya finally broke into a civil war. While Gaddafi’s assets were seized he remained at large. On the October 20, he was captured in Sirte and killed putting an end to the chaos. But not before we found photographs of his “darling” Condoleezza Rice.

Hina Rabbani Khar:

Pakistan’s pretty foreign minister who visited India recently became the talk of town. She made a style statement with her Birkin bags and Roberto Cavalli shades and put many Indian ministers to shame with her grace and vibrancy. It’s time that our old and slow politicians take cue and step down.

Vidya Balan:

From a coy girl next door in Parineeta to a scheming and sexy woman in Ishqiya, Vidya Balan came a long way. She went a step further by deciding to play the sultry south siren Silk Smitha who was well known for her flabby body and wild sex appeal. Vidya gained weight for her role in ‘The Dirty Picture’ and proved that size (zero or 10) doesn’t really matter as long as you have the acting abilities to go with it.

Steve Jobs:

On August 26, 2011 the mastermind behind the best looking computers in the world retired as the CEO of Apple Computers. The news became a trending topic with jokes like ‘iPod, iPhone, iPad…iQuit’ doing the rounds. The ailing Steve Jobs handed over the reins of the company to Tim Cook. As the world and Apple fanboys were recovering from it, there came another blow with Jobs passing away on October 5.

Kanimozhi:

M Karunanidhi’s (Tamil Nadus chief minister) daughter made her way to the Tihar jail for her said involvement in the 2G scam with *ahem* special friend A. Raja. She appealed for bail citing the reasons that she was a woman. Well madam Kanimozhi, after seeing the outcomes of your womanly powers we don’t find the reason good enough.

Kiki:

We watched a graceful and white Simi in ‘Rendezvous with Simi Garewal’ few years ago. She came back this year with ‘Simi Selects India’s Most Wanted’ botoxed, graceless and less white. Her alter ego Kiki embarrassed Ranbir Kapoor and made Abhay Deol uncomfortable. With the first season already over, we hope she thinks better of it and doesn’t come back with her most haunted…err…wanted list.

 And while the rest of them made news, Arnab Goswami made sure that he highlighted them: loud and clear!