Lessons from the con con dance

There are some profound lessons to be learnt from choreographer-dancer Sandip Soparrkar who has been dancing the con-con around the media since January this year, telling the press that he and his wife, Jesse Randhawa had been invited to the royal wedding to perform a Bollywood Waltz dance

There are some profound lessons to be learnt from choreographer-dancer Sandip Soparrkar who has been dancing the con-con around the media since January this year, telling the press that he and his wife, Jesse Randhawa had been invited to the royal wedding to perform a Bollywood Waltz dance.

The lessons are for the press, this journalist included. Senior journalists, those whose hair are more salt than pepper now, cannot reiterate enough that one of the tenets of journalism is a healthy dose of skepticism.

Skepticism is not to be confused with cynicism. While the latter is about world-weariness and a general sneer, what the first quality demands is a spirit of inquiry and a lavish dose of doubt, the ability to weigh and sift the truth from the lies.

In an age where deadlines are tighter than clothes worn by Bollywood item girls, competition is crazily intense, different media avenues are all competing to get the big news, there is often not enough time or even an attempt to look at all the angles of a story. To take a little time to corroborate claims. To make that extra effort to cross check ufffd or even question somebody's claims or empty boasts.

Journalism demands what one calls a nose for news. Like a bloodhound's nose starts twitching in excitement, when on a trail, a journalist's nose should smell out a story. Or, a newsperson must develop what is known as invisible antennae that tell you this would make a great piece of news. Like they say in the newsroom, "dimaag mein ghanti bajni chahiye". But, it also demands that innate ability followed up by the effort to check whether something is true or hollow. When somebody makes a claim ufffd start knocking on that invisible piece of wood ufffdsounds hollow? Check it out. Or in other words, act on that adage ufffd when in doubt, check it out or leave it out.

We live in an age where hype is king and dropping names and claims for a dash of fame is routine. When such things are swallowed whole then truth and facts become the first casualty. The fibber gets his shot at stardom (however short-lived) thinking all the time, press ko mamu bana diya.

In Soparrkar's case, it all did not add up. The history of lies (claims of Britney, Madonna and Maradona), the knee injury just days before the 'wedding' and the shoddily worded invite, replete with grammatical and factual errors, all screamed ufffd this needs a careful re-look. Like a top choreographer who did not give her name said, "bahut pehle pakadna chahiye tha" or should have caught this much earlier.

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