Justice Markandey Katju's criticism of front-page coverage for actor Dev Anand's death is unfair. Dev Anand was not just an ordinary actor. He was one of the pillars of Bollywood and Indian cinema. Development includes the field of arts.
B.V. Durga Prasad,
Chennai
The letters on Dev Anand over the past week in The Hindu were a revelation of sorts, since most of them were written by people from south India (non-Hindi speaking States). This proves the pan-Indian popularity of the actor. Dev Anand was not just a romantic icon. Few realise that many great names of Indian cinema such as Guru Dutt, Raj Khosla, Waheeda Rahman, Shekhar Kapoor, S.D. Burman, Jaidev, Sahir Ludhianvi and Majrooh Sultanpuri owed their success to the initial patronage of Dev Anand.
Kishore Kumar's first song Marne ki duayen kya maangoon, jeene ki tamanna kaun kare (Ziddi) was filmed on Dev Anand.
Anil Joshi,
Nainital
It is true that the country is beset with problems like farmers' suicides, soaring prices and snowballing unemployment. But it does not mean people should shun entertainment and wear a gloomy look. Life is an endless journey which takes in its stride pleasure and pain.
P.V. Ramana Rao,
Guntur
I, as a reader, like to see news such as Dev Anand's death on the front page. I do not agree that newspapers should have very little news on entertainment and more news on social problems.
Satish Srinivasan,
Bangalore
