eye THE SUNDAY EXPRESS MAGAZINE The Big Fang Theory KOLKATA,LATECITY OCTOBER26,2025 Vampires are reclaiming their place in the mainstream cinema 14+4PAGES,`7.00 ( `12 IN NORTH EAST STATES, `20 IN ANDAMAN) WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM FOUR-PAGE PULLOUT CBC 15502/13/0042/2526 DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PATNA, PUNE, VADODARA TEJASHWI’S GOVT JOB PROMISE NOT FEASIBLE: SAMRAT CHOUDHARY NitishwillremainBiharCM,notwoways aboutit,saysoutgoingBJP DeputyCM U.S.-CHINA BEGIN TRADE TALKS AS TRUMP AIMS TO ‘Nitish represents light, Lalu darkness... SEAL DEAL WITH XI need to remind people of jungle raj’ AFGHAN, PAKISTAN HEAD TO TURKEY FOR P6 SANTOSH SINGH ROUND 2 OF TALKS PATNA, OCTOBER 25 EARLY VOTING BEGINS IN NEW YORK INTHEfirstinstanceofaseniorBJP leader categorically stating that MAYORAL POLLS PAGE 10 EXPRESS NETWORK FORMER PUNJAB DGP: ‘DEALT WITH TERRORISTS, NOT MY SON’S ADDICTION’ ANDHRA ON ALERT AS SEVERE CYCLONE HEADS TOWARDS IT PAGE 4, 8 BiharChiefMinisterNitishKumar will remain CM if the NDA wins the coming Assembly elections, Deputy CM Samrat Choudhary toldTheIndianExpressinaninterview Saturday that “Nitish ji CM hain aur aage bhi bane rahenge (Nitish ji is the CM and will continue to remain the CM)”. Thecommentscameadayafter Prime Minister Narendra Modi,inhisfirstcampaignstopin the state, said the NDA under Nitishwouldclinchthepollsand break electoral records, but did not refer to him as the NDA’s CM candidate. Last week, Union Home Minister Amit Shah touched a raw nerve in Nitish’s party JD(U) when he said the CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 DFS DIDN’T WRITE TO LIC: OFFICIAL INTERVIEW DEPUTY CHIEF MINISTER OF BIHAR DECISION 2025 BIHAR ● DeputyCM:Mylawyer filedaffidavitsaying Iwasaminor...but courtdidnotacceptit’ PAGE 6 Combat squadron strength dwindles, Govt looks at plan to upgrade Su-30MKIs Will increase service life by 20 years AMRITA NAYAK DUTTA NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 25 THE EXPRESS SAMRAT CHOUDHARY MULTIROLE FIGHTER IS MAINSTAY OF IAF Govt job aspirants train for the ‘physical test’ at Gandhi Maidan in Patna. Ankur Yadav/Jansatta Polls takes over Gandhi Maidan, shrinks space for those training for job exams PARVEEN K DOGRA PATNA, OCTOBER 25 IT’S ELECTION time, and from the dais of Patna’s large Gandhi Maidan, Bihar expects to soon hear parties repeat their tall promises of jobs. It’s an irony that rings loudest in the ground surrounding the platform. Every morning, thousands turn up here for “training”, to clearthe“physicaltest”thatisan essential component of a range of government job exams. But now, the only open expanse around for miles is officially barred for public use “in view of elections”. Anoticeissuedbythedistrict administrationsaysallpublicactivities on the ground are barred fromOctober24tillNovember3 for security and administrative reasons, in view of elections. It CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 WITH THE final exit of the MiG21s last month bringing down theIAFfightersquadronstrength to 29 as against the sanctioned 42,there’sapushwithinthegovernment to go ahead with the programme to upgrade the SukhoiSu-30MKIfleet,thebackbone of the IAF, officials aware of the latest discussions have told The Sunday Express. The Su-30MKI upgrade programme, also referred to as the Super Sukhoi programme, is a major midlife upgrade programme which can increase the service life of the multirole fighter by another 20 years. According to officials, the upgradation proposal is currently being examined by the Ministry of Defence and efforts are underway to fast-track its movement to the Cabinet Committee of Security (CCS) for E EXPLAINED THE WORLD ● The worry, the need THE DWINDLING combat strength is a concern given that the IAF has to patrol the skies over the borders with Pakistan and China. Down to 29 squadrons from the sanctioned strength of 42, the IAF is in urgent need of aircraft. The Jaguar and Mirage 2000 fleets will be retired in a phased manner sometime after 2030 and the IAF is still to receive delivery of the Tejas MK1A to fill existing gaps. its approval. “It is currently being examined by the Ministry of Defence. Efforts are on to send it soon to CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 168-RUN PARTNERSHIP POWERS INDIA WIN IN 3RD ODI AGAINST AUSTRALIA Post report claims Rohit and Virat put on a class act to avert Govt set to hike print media ad rates by 26%, Govt directed LIC to whitewash, say goodbye to Australia reform TRP ratings invest $3.9 bn in Adani, SPORT ROHIT, VIRAT PLAY TO insurer says ‘baseless’ THE GALLERY AS SCG TURNS SEA OF BLUE SRIRAM VEERA MUMBAI, OCTOBER 25 Cong asks: Under whose pressure did officials of Finance and NITI Aayog decide to bail out a private company? EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE MUMBAI, OCTOBER 25 GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS “drafted and pushed through a proposal in May to steer roughly $3.9 billion in investments to Adani’s businesses from the Life Insurance Corporation, or LIC”, Washington Post said in a news reportFriday.Ina“rebuttaltothe article”,LICsaid,“Theallegations levelled by Washington Post that the investment decisions of LIC are influenced by external factors are false, baseless, and far from truth.” The report claimed that two officials familiar with the matter told the Washington Post that, “The investment plan was crafted by officials at DFS (Department of Financial Services) in coordination with LIC and India's main government-funded think tank, Niti Aayog,thedocumentsshow,and approved by the Finance Ministry.” In its statement, LIC said, “No such document or plan as allegedinthearticlehaseverbeen prepared by LIC, which creates a roadmap for infusing funds by LIC into Adani group of companies. The investment decisions are taken by LIC independently as per Board approved policies after detailed due diligence. The Department of Financial Services or any other body does not have any role in such decisions.... These purported statements in the article appear to have been made with the intentions to prejudice the well settled decision-making process of LIC and also to tarnish the CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 TWO SWEET little moments captured a heartwarming evening in Sydney on Saturday s twomodernODImasterssynced together in a jugalbandi to remember. The first came right when Virat Kohli clenched his fist with a smile after getting his first run after two ducks in the previous games. It was a lighthearted gesture, not an angsty relief, that said much about his relaxed state of mind. The second was right at the EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 25 PAGE 13 Rohit Sharma scored an unbeaten 121 and Virat Kohli remained not out at 71 in Sydney on Saturday. PTI end, when Rohit Sharma and Virat warmly hugged each other after their unbeaten 168-run partnership steered India to a 9-wicket win against Australia. It was a dead rubber since the Aussies had won the first two gamesof thethree-matchseries, CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 THE GOVERNMENT is likely to increase print media advertisement rates by 26% after the Model Code of Conduct for the BiharAssemblyelectionsislifted next month, according to a source in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. Government advertisement rates for television will also be revised later, it is learnt. The decision comes at a time when conventional media is undergoing changes, a source said, adding that the government seeks to support the print media particularlytopreventjoblosses. The rates were last hiked in 2019, when a 25% hike was implemented. At that time, the I&B Ministry had said the decision wasbasedonseveralfactors,“including the increase in price of newsprint, processing charges and other factors which go into the computation of advertisement rates”. It had said the rate CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 2 Australian women cricketers ‘stalked, ‘If anything happens, I’m responsible’: Mamata sexually harassed’ in MP, accused held orders tighter security at government hospitals ANAND MOHAN J BHOPAL, OCTOBER 25 TWO CRICKETERS from the Australian women’s team were allegedly stalked and sexually harassed while walking to a cafe from their hotel in Indore on Thursday morning. The incident comes at a time when India is hosting the ICC Women’s World Cup. In a statement, Cricket Australia (CA) said, “CA can confirm two members of the Australian Women’s team were approached and touched inappropriately by a motorcyclist whilewalkingtoacafeinIndore. The matter was reported by team security to police, who are handling the matter.” BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia called it a “very condemnable but stray incident”. “India is known for its hospitality and care. We have zero toleranceforsuchincidents.Weappreciate the State Police (Madhya Pradesh) for their prompt action to nab the culprit. Let the law take its course to punish the culprit. We assure to revisit our safety protocols if CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 ATRI MITRA KOLKATA, OCTOBER 25 IN THE wake of a string of incidentsof sexualassaultatgovernment hospitals and medical colleges in West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturdaydirectedthestatehealth departmentandpolicetotighten security at all the government medicalfacilitiesacrossthestate. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Addressing a high-level meeting convened by Chief Secretary Manoj Pant, at the state secretariat, Nabanna, to review hospital safety measures, thechief minister,whoholdsthe Health Department portfolio, said that she would be responsible for any lapse in the security measures. Themeetingwasattendedby seniorofficialsof thestatehealth department, including health secretary NS Nigam, and DGP Rajeev Kumar, district magistrates,superintendentsof police, chief medicalofficersandothers. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Dead D’Mello brought us to life: The incomparable humourist, humanist PAGE 1 ANCHOR SHUBHRA GUPTA NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 25 IF THERE was one dead body which brought to crackling life two hours and some of the most inspired madness and mayhem, it belonged to Commissioner D’Mello. Thelegionsof fansof Kundan Shah’s 1983 Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, a bitingsatireunparalleledinHindi cinema in the way it melded savageryandhilarity,havemany characterstoadmire.ButD’Mello hasaseparatefanbase:Astherecently deceased corrupt babu, who was happy to be swayed by a few coins and whose corpse was then dragged in a coffin all over the streets of Mumbai, Satish Shah gave the phrase “zinda laash” a new meaning. Shah, who passed away Saturday of kidney failure at 74, was not just one of the finest comedians in Indian cinema; he was a humourist par excellence, whose craft shone in the way he imbued even his most inane roles with surprising depth and warmth. Yes, he could slip over banana peels with ease, but he could,withequalfelicity,giveyou a snapshot appreciation of the character about to do the slipping, and that takes serious skill. Of the countless roles he essayed in a career of around 50 years, the one most people will remember him for was the genial Indravadan “Indu” Sarabhai, who presided over his family and its “sukh-dukh”, with flavourful support from Maya Mazumdar Sarabhai, played by the inimitable Ratna Pathak Shah, in the long-running show, SATISH SHAH 1951-2025 Sarabhai vs Sarabhai. Shah was one of those trained FTII actors who was alwaysinhighdemand,inbothTV and films. Kundan Shah was quick to recognise the quicksilver quality in his batchmate, and thewayhepresentedhiminanother DD classic Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi (1984) is a guaranteed chaser-away-of-theblues:Intheshowfronted by the affable Shafi Inamdar and Swaroop Sampat, Satish Shah appeared in 55 different guises in the 60 plusepisodes,usingsubtleshifts in delivery and expression. Effortless actors like Shah make it easy to forget the effort certified comedians have to put in to create a differential, especiallyinHindicinemawherehumour was, and still is, often confined to crude, loud tracks. He blurred the lines between thestraight-upcomedianandthe character who uses comedic devices to play his part, whether he was playing “Doctor Chacha” in the 1994 Hum Aapke Hain Koun (helping a bashful Salman Khan woo the stunning Madhuri-inthat-purple-sari) with his “shero-shayari”, or a Gulshan Kumarcoded music baron handing out abreaktothestrugglingmusician played by Aamir Khan in Akele Hum Akele Tum (1995), or a college-professor-and-buffoonwho treats the world like his walking spittoon and who Shah Rukh Khan keeps having to dodge in Main Hoon Na (2004). So good was Shah in these kinds of roles, which saw him in supporting roles to the three Khans, or in the ones he kept playing endless variations of the bumbling cop or the hopelessly amorphous ones in the loud comedies of David Dhawan and Rohit Shetty, that one forgot his early substantive parts in the so- cially conscious cinema of Saeed Akhtar Mirza: His characters in Arvind Desai Ki Ajeeb Dastaan (1978) and Albert Pinto Ko Gussa KyonAataHai(1980)hadweight; they were integral to those movies. Whichever way you sliced theentertainmentpie,inbothTV and movies during the ’80s and ’90s, there would be Shah, light on his feet despite his decidedly podgy frame, eyes twinkling in his round face, and that trademarkmoustachequiveringindelightordisgust,dependingupon the demands made on him. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Kolkata