Shashi is a name of male/female from India meaning "Moon" in Ancient Sanskrit Language. Shashi can refer to:

People[link]

• Shashi Deshpande, an award-winning Indian novelist
• Shashi Isaac, a football player from Saint Kitts & Nevis
• Shashi Kapoor, an Indian film actor and producer
• Shashi Nambisan, Indian born director of the Center for Transportation Research and Education at Iowa State University
• Shashi Bhushan Sahai, an Indian author and member of the Indian Police Service
• Shashi Shrestha, a Nepalese politician
• Shashi Tharoor, an Indian bureaucrat in the United Nations and author
• Shashi Warrier, an Indian author
• Shashi Naidoo, a South African actress and television anchor

Places[link]

• Shashi District (沙市区), Jingzhou, Hubei, People's Republic of China (PRC)
• Shashi, Liuyang (沙市镇), town in Hunan, PRC

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Shashi Kapoor
Shashi Kapoor
Born	Balbir Raj Prithviraj Kapoor (1938-03-18) 18 March 1938 (age 74) Calcutta, West Bengal, British India
Residence	Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Other names	Balbir Shashi Balbir Raj Shasha (used by his brother, Shammi Kapoor) Shashi Baba
Occupation	Actor, Director, Producer
Years active	1942–1999 (retired)
Spouse	Jennifer Kendal (1958–1984) (died of cancer)
Children	Kunal Kapoor, Sanjana Kapoor, Karan Kapoor
Relatives	Shammi Kapoor (Brother), Raj Kapoor (Brother), Randhir Kapoor (Nephew), Rishi Kapoor (Nephew), Karisma Kapoor (Grand Niece), Kareena Kapoor (Grand Niece), Ranbir Kapoor (Grand Nephew)
Signature

Shashi Kapoor (Hindi: शशि कपूर), born Balbir Raj Prithviraj Kapoor on 18 March 1938 in Calcutta (now Kolkata), is an award-winning Indian film actor and film producer. He has also been film director and assistant director in Hindi Films. He is a member of the Kapoor family, a film dynasty in India's Bollywood cinema. He is the younger brother of Raj Kapoor and Shammi Kapoor, the son of Prithviraj Kapoor, the widower of Jennifer Kendal, and the father of Karan Kapoor, Kunal Kapoor, and Sanjana Kapoor.^[1]

He is remembered for many hit Hindi films like Jab Jab Phool Khile, Kanyadaan, Pyar Ka Mausam, Ek Shriman Ek Shrimati , Haseena Maan Jayegi, Sharmeelee, Aa Gale Lag Jaa, Fakira, Phaansi, Chor Machaye Shor, Mukti, Satyam Shivam Sundaram, Heeralal Pannalal, Junoon, Swayamvar and many such films, including ones he starred in with Pran like Chori Mera Kaam, Phaansi, Shankar Dada, Chakkar Pe Chakkar and with Amitabh Bachchan, such as Deewar, Namak Halaal.

He has also played leading roles in a number of English-speaking Indian films, including the very first Merchant Ivory production The Householder followed by such as Shakespeare-Wallah, Bombay Talkie, Heat and Dust, etc. In 2011, he was honoured with the Padma Bhushan by the Government of India.^[2]

Career[link]

Early Career(1960–1973)[link]

Shashi Kapoor started acting in films as a child in the early 1940s appearing in several mythological films and commercial film like Meena (1944), Tadbir, Bachpan (1945) under the name of Shashiraj. His best known performances as child artist were in Aag (1948) and Awaara (1951) where he played the younger version of the characters played by his older brother Raj Kapoor. Right from the age of four, Shashi had started acting in his plays directed and produced by his dad Prithviraj Kapoor, while travelling with Prithvi Theatres. He was acting in both, the plays, as well as the films, where he had small roles to play. He got opportunity to work as assistant director in the film Post Box 999, debut film of Sunil Dutt and followed by movies like Dulha Dulhan, Shriman Satyawadi, where Raj Kapoor was the lead hero.

He made his debut as a leading man in the 1961 Yash Chopra film Dharmputra and went on to appear in 168 films. He was a very popular debonair actor in Bollywood during the 1960s, 1970s and the mid 1980s. Shashi’s initial films like Dharmaputra directed by Yash Chopra and Prem Patra and Benazir both directed by Bimal Roy didn't do well. So he entered into English Movies. He was one of India's first actors to go international.^[3] But actress Nanda, who was already an established star with hits under her kit before Shashi tasted success, signed half a dozen Hindi films with him even when he wasn't doing well as she had faith in him that he could deliver good performances. Although their first film as a pair the critically acclaimed romantic film Char Diwari(1961) did not work, the rest were successful at the box office.^[4] In the 60’s Shashi had slew of solo hero box office romantic hit films opposite Nanda like Mehndi Lagi Mere Haath (1962), Mohabbat Isko Kahete Hain (1965), Jab Jab Phool Khile (1965), Neend Hamari Khwab Tumhare (1966), Raja Saab(1969) and Rootha Na Karo(1970). In the nineties in an interview, Shashi Kapoor declared that Nanda was his favourite heroine and regards as one of his mentors. Simlarly even Nanda declared in an interview that Shashi Kapoor was her favourite hero. But Shashi Kapoor again faced stiff competition from Rajesh Khanna for acquiring romantic roles, due to which he had a weak period from 1969–1974 although he had hits with Sharmila, Rakhee, Asha Parekh and Nanda in this period.^[5]

Peak period (1974–1985)[link]

Shashi Kapoor formed a hit on screen pair with Rakhee, Sharmila Tagore, Zeenat Aman in the late sixties till the mid eighties. Although he has commercial success even opposite heroines like Hema Malini, Parveen Babi, Moushumi Chatterjee and others too, the pair Shashi-Rakhee, Shashi-Sharmila and Shashi-Zeenat was more popular among the audiences. With their first movie together Sharmelee becoming a blockbuster, Rakhee was paired frequently with him and they gave more hit films like Kabhi Kabhie (1976), Baseraa (1981), Zameen Aasmaan (1984) and Pighalta Aasman (1985) and the critically acclaimed Trishna (1978). The pair Sharmila- Shashi gave hits like Waqt (1965), Aamne Samne (1967), Suhana Safar (1970), Aa Gale Lag Jaa (1973),^[6] Paap Aur Punya (1974), Swati (1986) and the critically acclaimed New Delhi Times (1985), which fetched Shashi a National Film Award for Best Actor in 1986.^[7] With Zeenat Aman, he did Chori Mera Kaam (1975), Deewaangee (1976), Satyam Shivam Sundaram, Roti Kapda Aur Makan, Heeralal Pannalal (1978), Kranti (1981), Pakhandi (1984) and Bhavani Junction (1985).

His most popular movies include Pyar Kiye Jaa (1966), Haseena Maan Jayegi (1968) and Ek Shriman Ek Shrimati (1969) both with Babita, Kanyadan, Pyar Ka Mausam (1969) both opposite Asha Parekh, Chor Machaye Shor opposite Mumtaz and Abhinetri (1970), Aap Beati (1976), Apna Khoon, Trishul (1978), Maan Gaye Ustaad (1981), Aandhi Toofan (1985) with Hema Malini, Bezubaan with Reena Roy, Chakkar Pe Chakkar (1976), Kali Ghata, Kalyug (1981), Vijeta (1982), Pyaar Ki Jeet(1987) all with Rekha and Bepanaah (1985) with Rati Agnihotri. Other solo hits include Dil Ne Pukara (1967), Naina (1973), Phaansi (1978), Salaakhen(1975), Fakira (1976), Junoon (1979) and multi-starrer Neeyat (1980).^[8] He also worked with Rajesh Khanna in Prem Kahani.

In some of his successful films from the 1970s and in early 1980s he co-starred alongside Pran which include hits Biradari, Chori Mera Kaam, Phaansi, Shankar Dada, Chakkar Pe Chakkar, Rahu Ketu, Apna Khoon and Maan Gaye Ustaad and with Amitabh Bachchan in nine films of which Deewaar (1975), Kabhi Kabhie (1976), Trishul (1978), Kaala Patthar (1979), Suhaag (1979), Namak Halaal (1982) were commercially successful and Shaan (1980), Do Aur Do Paanch (1980) and Akayla were flops at the box office. Shashi was regularly casted with Sanjeev Kumar too in films like Mukti (1977), Trishul, Muqaddar (1978), Swayamvar(1980), Sawaal (1982), Pakhandi (1984). Shashi Kapoor, being a senior actor and more popular, was paid more than his male co stars like Amitabh Bachchan, Vinod Khanna, Jeetendra, Randhir Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor in those days with exceptions being Pran, Rajesh Khanna and Sanjeev Kumar who were paid higher than Shashi. Although he was in his forties in the late 70’s, being slim and still having charming looks he was casted with his nephews Randhir Kapoor and Rishi Kapoor and with younger heroines like Neetu Singh, Sulakshana Pandit, Bindiya Goswami, Rati Agnihotri and Poonam Dhillon till 1985. After loss of his wife in 1984, Shashi started slowly gaining weight and this resulted him in moving to character roles in films like Alag Alag, Ilzaam (1986), Sindoor (1987). From 1986 onwards, he became very obese and his body was in contrary to his slim and fit image from the early 60’s till 1985.

He was also known internationally for starring in many British and American films, notably Merchant Ivory productions run by Ismail Merchant, such as Householder (1963) , Shakespeare Wallah (1965) (opposite his sister-in-law Felicity Kendal), Bombay Talkie (1970) and Heat and Dust (1982) in which he co-starred with his wife Jennifer Kendal, The Deceivers (1988) and Side Streets (1998). He also starred in other British and American films such as Pretty Polly (A Matter Of Innocence) (1967) opposite Hayley Mills, Siddhartha (1972), and Sammy and Rosie Get Laid (1987).Ismail Merchant also directed Shashi Kapoor in "In Custody" (Muhafiz) (1994).^[9] He was the first Indian actor to work extensively in Hollywood films and British films, at the kick-start of his acting stint in Bollywood, 1960 onwards.

In 1978, he set up his production house, Film Valas, which produced critically acclaimed films such as Junoon (1978), Kalyug (1981), 36 Chowringhee Lane (1981), Vijeta (1982) and Utsav (1984).^[10] In 1991 he produced and directed a fantasy film titled Ajooba which had his frequent co-star Amitabh Bachchan and nephew Rishi Kapoor in the lead but the film was a disaster at the box office.

He regarded Nanda, Pran, Ismail Merchant, Dev Anand, Dharmendra, Sanjeev Kumar as his closest friends from the industry since the beginning of his career and maintained cordial relations with Amitabh, Yash Chopra, MGR, Kishore Kumar, Mohammad Rafi and most of his female and male co stars.

Later Career (1987–1999)[link]

He accepted very few roles as a character actor in films since 1987. He acted with Pierce Brosnan in The Deceivers (1988).^[11] He also won a National (special jury) Award for his performance in Muhafiz (In Custody)(1994). His last and most recent film appearances were in Jinnah (1998), a biographical film of Mohammed Ali Jinnah in which he was the narrator and another Merchant Ivory production titled Side Streets (1998). He has now retired from the film industry and did not appear in any film since. He was seen in the limelight at the "Shashi Kapoor Film Festival" held in Muscat, Oman (September 2007). He has lost a considerable amount of weight and looked healthy. Recently, at the 55th Annual Filmfare Awards, Shashi Kapoor received the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award.[1]

Personal life[link]

Attended Don Bosco High School in Matunga, Bombay. In July 1958, he married the English actress Jennifer Kendal and they acted in a number of films together, most notably in the Merchant Ivory productions. Shashi Kapoor and Jennifer Kendal met in Calcutta in 1956 while working for their respective theatre groups. Shashi Kapoor was both assistant stage manager as well as actor for his father’s theatre group, Prithvi. Geoffery Kendal’s Shakespearana group was also present at the same time in Calcutta and Jennifer was Geoffery’s daughter. After their subsequent meeting, the couple fell in love and after facing initial opposition from Geoffery and support from sister-in-law Geeta Bali, they got married.^[12] He had three children with Kendal; Karan Kapoor, Kunal Kapoor and Sanjana Kapoor. Jennifer and Shashi Kapoor established Prithvi theatre in 5 November 1978 in Mumbai.^[13] Kendal died of cancer in 1984. After his wife’s death, he became de-motivated and started to put on weight. He looked slim and fit in his films till 1985. The English actress Felicity Kendal is his sister-in-law. Shashi Kapoor’s children for a short while became film actors but their Caucasian looks and accented Hindi prevented them from having a successful career in Hindi films. His son Kunal is married to director Ramesh Sippy's daughter and Sanjana to wildlife conservationist Valmik Thapar. Kunal Kapoor then moved onto ad film direction and established his production house Adfilm-Valas which is today extremely successful.^[14] Karan Kapoor became successful in modelling and later he settled down in London and pursued a career in photography. Sanjana Kapoor is in incharge of Prithvi Theater today.^[15]

Awards[link]

Civilian award[link]

• 2011 – Padma Bhushan by the Government of India^[2]

National Film Awards[link]

Winner

• 1986 – National Film Award for Best Actor for New Delhi Times
• 1994 – National Film Award – Special Jury Award / Special Mention (Feature Film) for Muhafiz (1993)
• 1979 – National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi (as producer) for Junoon

Filmfare Awards[link]

Winner

• 2010 – Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award
• Filmfare Best Movie Award – Won
  1980 Junoon
  1982 Kalyug
  
• Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award – Won
  1976 Deewar – Ravi Verma
  

Nominated

• Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award – Nominated
  1977 Kabhi Kabhie – Vijay Khanna
  1983 Namak Halaal – Raja Singh
  

Bengal Film Journalists' Association Awards[link]

• BFJA Award for Best Actor
  1965 Jab Jab Phool Khile^[16] – Raja
  1988 New Delhi Times^[17] – Vikas Pande
  

Other Awards[link]

• 2011 – Mohammed Rafi Award^[18]
• Lifetime Achievement Award

• 2009 – The 7th Pune International Film Festival (PIFF)^[19]
• 2009 – The 11th Mumbai Film Festival (MFF)^[20][21]

Filmography[link]

Actor[link]

Producer[link]

Assistant Director[link]

Director[link]

Works[link]

• Shashi Kapoor presents the Prithviwallahs, by Shashi Kapoor, Deepa Gahlot, Prithvi Theatre (Bombay, India). Roli Books, 2004. ISBN 81-7436-348-3.

Further reading[link]

• The Kapoors: the first family of Indian cinema, by Madhu Jain. Penguin, Viking, 2005. ISBN 0-670-05837-8.

References[link]

• Khalid Mohamed (3 September 2011). "The timeless poster boy of Hindi cinema". Asian Age (India). http://www.asianage.com/columnists/timeless-poster-boy-hindi-cinema-927. 

External links[link]

• Shashi Kapoor with Jennifer, an NDTV Movies image
• Shashi Kapoor at the Internet Movie Database

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Shashi Tharoor
Shashi Tharoor
Member of Parliament - Lok Sabha
Incumbent
Assumed office 2009
Preceded by	Pannyan Raveendran
Constituency	Thiruvananthapuram
Minister of State for External Affairs
In office 28 May 2009 – 18 April 2010
Prime Minister	Manmohan Singh
Preceded by	Anand Sharma
Succeeded by	E. Ahamed
Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations
In office January 2001 – April 2007
President	Kofi Annan
Personal details
Born	(1956-03-09) 9 March 1956 (age 56) London, United Kingdom
Political party	Indian National Congress
Spouse(s)	Tilottama Mukherji (divorced) Christa Giles (divorced) Sunanda Pushkar (2010 - present)
Children	Ishaan, Kanishk
Residence	New Delhi/Trivandrum
Alma mater	St. Stephen's College, Delhi (B.A.) Tufts University (M.A., M.A.L.D., Ph.D.)
Occupation	Writer, Diplomat, Politician
Religion	Hinduism
Website	tharoor.in

Shashi Tharoor (Malayalam: ശശി തരൂര്‍) (born 9 March 1956) is an Indian politician and a Member of Parliament (MP) from the Thiruvananthapuram constituency in Kerala. He previously served as the United Nations Under-Secretary General for Communications and Public Information^{[citation needed]} and as the Minister of State for the Ministry of External Affairs.

He is also an author and columnist.

Childhood and education[link]

Shashi Tharoor was born in London to Lily and Chandran Tharoor, both Malayalis, hailing from the state of Kerala^{[citation needed]}. Tharoor studied at Montfort School in Yercaud and Campion School in Mumbai^{[citation needed]}. He attended high school at St. Xavier’s Collegiate School in Kolkata and obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in history from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi.^[1]

He went on to win a scholarship to study at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and earned three degrees in three years - a Ph.D. and two master's degrees at the age of 22, Tharoor is the youngest person in the history of the Fletcher School to be awarded a doctorate.^[2] His doctoral thesis, "Reasons of State", was a required reading in courses on Indian foreign-policy making.^[3][4] In 2000, Tharoor was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters degree^{[citation needed]} by the University of Puget Sound and in 2008 he received an honorary doctorate degree by the University of Bucharest^{[citation needed]}.

Diplomatic career[link]

Beginning[link]

Shashi Tharoor's career in the United Nations began in 1978 as a staff member of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva. From 1981 to 1984 he headed the UNHCR office in Singapore during the boat people crisis. In 1989 he was appointed as the Special Assistant to the Under-Secretary-General for Special Political Affairs, the unit that later became the Peacekeeping Operations in New York. Until 1996, he led the team responsible for peacekeeping operations in the former Yugoslavia.^[5]

Under-Secretary-General at the UN[link]

In 1996 Tharoor was appointed Director of Communications and Special Projects and as Executive Assistant to the Secretary-General Kofi Annan. In January 2001, he was appointed as the Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information, and as the head of Department of Public Information (UNDPI). In this capacity, he was responsible for the communication strategy, enhancing the image and effectiveness of the UN. In 2003, the Secretary-General appointed him to the additional responsibility of United Nations Coordinator for Multilingualism.^[5] During his tenure at the UNDPI, Tharoor reformed his department and undertook a number of initiatives, ranging from organizing and conducting the first-ever UN seminar on anti-Semitism,^[6] the first-ever UN seminar on Islamophobia^[7] and launching an annual list of "Ten Under-Reported Stories the World Ought to Know About".^[8]

On 9 February 2007, Tharoor resigned from the post of UN Under-Secretary-General and left the UN effective 1 April 2007.^[9]

Campaign for Secretary-General: 2007[link]

Wikinews has related news: Shashi Tharoor gives four-point plan to reform UN

2007 Secretary-General candidates[10]
	Name	Position
	Ban Ki-moon	South Korean foreign minister
	Shashi Tharoor	Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations for public information; from India
	Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga	President of Latvia
	Ashraf Ghani	Chancellor of Kabul University, Afghanistan
	Surakiart Sathirathai	Deputy prime minister of Thailand
	Prince Zeid bin Ra'ad	Jordan's ambassador to the United Nations
	Jayantha Dhanapala	Former Under-Secretary-General for disarmament; from Sri Lanka

Wikinews has related news: Shashi Tharoor withdrawing candidacy

In 2006, Tharoor was nominated by the Government of India for the post of UN Secretary General.^[11][12][13] Tharoor came a close second (behind Ban Ki-moon) in each of the four straw polls conducted by the UN Security Council^[14][15][16] and won the online poll conducted by the BBC News website.^[17] After the fourth poll, Ban emerged as the only candidate with the support of all five permanent members, each of whom has the power to veto candidates. Of the seven contenders for the post, Tharoor remained the only other to enjoy a majority in the Security Council. One Permanent Member (later revealed to be the US under the Bush Administration) opposed and China abstained from voting. After the vote, Tharoor withdrew his candidacy expressing his confidence for Ban to win.^[18]

Had he been elected, the then 50 year old Shashi Tharoor would have been the second-youngest Secretary-General to be appointed to the post. The first being Dag Hammarskjöld who was appointed at the age of 46 years.^[19][20]

Post-UN career[link]

In February 2007, amidst rampant speculation about his post-UN future, it was presciently reported in the Indian press that Tharoor might be inducted into council of ministers of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as Minister of State for External Affairs.^[21] In the same month, it was reported in an American gossip blog that Tharoor was a finalist for the position of dean of the USC Annenberg School for Communication in Los Angeles, though he withdrew his name from consideration at the final stage.^[22] Instead, Dr. Tharoor—in addition to a variety of other activities in his private life— became chairman of Dubai-based Afras Ventures, which established the Afras Academy for Business Communication (AABC) in Trivandrum, Kerala, India. He also spoke widely around the globe about India and Kerala, the state where he spent increasing amounts of time before moving for good in October 2008.^[23]

Political Career in India[link]

Shashi Tharoor at a march parade with NSUI President Hibi Eden and other Congress workers in Ernakulam, Kerala.

In March 2009, Shashi Tharoor contested the Indian General Elections in 2009 as Congress Party candidate from Thiruvananthapuram (Lok Sabha constituency) in Kerala. His opponents included P. Ramachandran Nair of the Communist Party of India (CPI), Neelalohitadasan Nadar of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), M.P. Gangadharan of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and P. K. Krishna Das of Bharathiya Janata Party (BJP).^[24] Despite being criticized as an "elite outsider" he went on to win defeating his nearest CPI rival P. Ramachandran Nair by a margin of approximately 100,000 votes. Subsequently Shashi Tharoor was selected as Minister of State in the Council of Ministers of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. On 28 May 2009 he was sworn in as the Indian Minister of State for External Affairs.

Tharoor become the first Indian celebrity to get 100,000 followers on Twitter.^[25] However, some of his tweets (or twitter posts) proved controversial and were quoted by the press and opposition parties to criticize his work. On 18 April 2010 Tharoor resigned from his post as Minister of State for External Affairs on instructions from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh,^[26] following allegations that he had misused his office to get shares in the IPL cricket franchise of Cochin. Tharoor denied the charges and in his resignation speech called for a full inquiry. On 2 May 2010, he was nominated to be a member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee for External Affairs by Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar.^[27]

Literary career[link]

Shashi Tharoor delivering a lecture at Université d'été du MEDEF, 2007

Tharoor has written numerous books in English^{[citation needed]}.

Tharoor has been a columnist in each of India's three best-known English-language newspapers^{[citation needed]}, most recently for The Hindu newspaper (2001–2008) and in a weekly column, “Shashi on Sunday,” in the Times of India (January 2007 – December 2008). Following his resignation as Minister of State for External Affairs, he began a fortnightly column on foreign policy issues in the "Deccan Chronicle". Previously he was a columnist for the Gentleman^{[citation needed]} magazine and the Indian Express newspaper, as well as a frequent contributor to Newsweek International and the International Herald Tribune. His Op-Eds and book reviews have appeared in the Washington Post^{[citation needed]}, the New York Times^{[citation needed]} and the Los Angeles Times^{[citation needed]}, amongst other papers^{[citation needed]}. His monthly column, "India Reawakening", distributed by Project Syndicate, appears in some 80 newspapers around the world^{[citation needed]}.

Tharoor began writing at the age of six^{[citation needed]} and his first published story appeared in the “Bharat Jyoti”, the Sunday edition of "The Free Press Journal", in Mumbai at age 10^{[citation needed]}. His World War II adventure novel Operation Bellows, inspired by the Biggles books, was serialized in the Junior Statesman starting a week before his 11th birthday^{[citation needed]}. Each of his books has been a best-seller in India^{[citation needed]}. The Great Indian Novel is currently in its 28th edition in India and his newest volume.^[when?] The Elephant, the Tiger and the Cellphone has undergone seven hardback re-printings there^{[citation needed]}.

Tharoor has lectured widely on India^{[citation needed]}, and is often quoted for his observations^{[citation needed]}, including, "India is not, as people keep calling it, an underdeveloped country, but rather, in the context of its history and cultural heritage, a highly developed one in an advanced state of decay."^[28] He has also coined a memorable comparison of India's "thali" to the American "melting pot": "If America is a melting pot, then to me India is a thali - a selection of sumptuous dishes in different bowls. Each tastes different, and does not necessarily mix with the next, but they belong together on the same plate, and they complement each other in making the meal a satisfying repast.".^[29] (Other quotes in Wikiquote.)

Personal life[link]

A theatre buff and successful actor^{[citation needed]} in his school days, he played Antony to Mira Nair’s Cleopatra in a 1974 production of Antony and Cleopatra.^[30] At St. Stephen’s in the early 1970s he founded the Quiz Club, which is still in existence; he also revived the Wodehouse Society, which is no longer in existence. Upon election as President of the College Union^{[citation needed]} he relinquished the Secretaryship of the History Society as well as the editorship of the campus humour magazine “Kooler Talk.” He was invited by St. Stephen’s College to deliver the college’s 125th Anniversary Jubilee Lecture in 2005^{[citation needed]}.

He has been an elected Fellow of the New York Institute for the Humanities^{[citation needed]} and a member of the Advisory Board of the Indo-American Arts Council and also served on the Board of Directors of Breakthrough^{[citation needed]}, an international human rights organization, the Board of Overseers of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, the Board of Trustees of the Aspen Institute, and as an International Adviser to the International Committee of the Red Cross. He also supported various educational causes, including as Patron of the Modern High School in Dubai^{[citation needed]}.

At the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy in 1976, he founded and was the first chair of the editorial board of the Fletcher Forum of International Affairs, a journal examining issues in international relations.^[31]

Later he was married to Christa, a Canadian working at the United Nations.^[32] After their divorce, Tharoor married Sunanda Pushkar in at his ancestral home in Elavanchery village in Kerala's Palakkad district on 22 August 2010.^[33]

Controversies[link]

• In September 2009, Tharoor and S M Krishna were accused of staying in luxurious 5-star hotels.^[34] Tharoor defended himself, saying that it was because of the delay in his official residence being ready and he only spent from his own pocket for the accommodation.^[35] Later on Pranab Mukherjee's request^[36] Tharoor and Krishna moved out of the hotels.^[37]

• A controversy erupted when Tharoor, responding to the question as to whether he would travel in "Cattle Class", replied that he would do so. This remark on Twitter (@ShashiTharoor), equated the travelling public to cattle and also taunted his party, the Indian National Congress over their austerity drive.^[38] It was also reported that Congress may take action against him.^[39][40] However, this was subsequently resolved when Tharoor met his party leadership and offered them an apology/explanation.

• Another controversy erupted on Gandhi Jayanti when he said people should be working rather than staying at home taking a holiday, thereby paying real homage to Mahatma Gandhi.^[41]

• Tharoor was in the news again for publicly criticizing the new visa guidelines adopted by the Indian Government in the wake of the gaps exposed by the arrest of 26/11 terror suspects, David Headley and Tahawwur Rana. For this he was criticized for breaking ranks with the official position of the Government. He later met External Affairs Minister, SM Krishna and explained his position on the issue. The rules were subsequently partly modified.^[42]

• In January 2010, Tharoor criticized Gandhi and Nehru for their vision on Indian foreign policy by the Indian media. This angered his party, the Indian National Congress. In the wake of this controversy, he held a press conference describing the report as "inaccurate" and "tendentious"."^[43]

• In February 2010 when accompanying^[44] the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on a three-day visit to Saudi Arabia, he said "We feel that Saudi Arabia has a long and close relationship with Pakistan, that makes Saudi Arabia even more a valuable interlocutor for us. When we tell them about our experience, Saudi Arabia listens as somebody who is not in any way an enemy of Pakistan, but a friend of Pakistan and, therefore, will listen with sympathy and concern to a matter of this nature". He was asked whether India expected Saudi Arabia, given their close ties with Islamabad, to help address the terror threat from Pakistan.^[45] The remark about Saudi Arabia being a "valuable interlocutor" raised a strong reaction within the Indian political circle.^[46] The Pakistani press even went on to report that he had proposed that Saudi Arabia play a mediator's role in improving India's relationship with Pakistan.^[47] In response, Tharoor tweeted saying, "An interlocutor is someone you speak to. If I speak to you, you are my interlocutor. I mentioned the Saudis as our interlocutors, i.e. the people we are here to speak to".^[45]

• In February 2010, a website called "Keralawatch" published an investigative report which alleged that Tharoor used incomplete records to enrol his name in the voter's list in Thiruvananthapuram constituency.^[48]

• Lalit Modi published the shareholders details of Kochi-IPL team's franchise owners, Rendezvous Sports World (RSW) group in his Twitter account^[49] and also mentioned that he was asked by an influential Union Minister not to get into details of Sunanda Pushkar, who was given a sweat equity of approximately 4.5 per cent of total equity (estimated by the media to be worth Rs 70 crore) in Kochi IPL team.^[50][51] In an official statement,^[52] Tharoor denied having made any financial gains from the sale or having pressured Modi in any way. He further accused Modi of trying to delay and discredit the new owners so that the franchise can be re-awarded elsewhere. RSW protested Modi's breach of confidentiality agreement. Sunanda Pushkar also issued a statement denying being a proxy for Tharoor.^[53] Later amidst demands for his resignation from the Union Cabinet by the opposition parties,^[54][55] Sunanda Pushkar gave up the sweat equity offered to her by RSW.^[56] But tht Income Tax department stated that she will have to pay income tax on her sweat equity in Rendezvous Sports World even after having given it up and non payment will lead to her arrest.[1] Allegations that this was pay back for denying a request to not issue a visa to a South African model close to Lalit Modi have surfaced, and so have death threats to Shashi Tharoor by the Mumbai underworld.^[57] Under severe push from Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee combine, the Congress core committee decided to ask for Tharoor's resignation.[2].18 April 2010 Shashi Tharoor resigned from the post of Minister of State in MEA after calling for a full inquiry into the matter.

Honors, Awards and International Recognition[link]

• 1976 - Wins the Rajika Kripalani Young Journalist Award for the Best Indian Journalist under 30.^[58]
• 1990 – Wins the Federation of Indian Publishers' Hindustan Times Literary Award for the Best Book of the Year for The Great Indian Novel.^{[citation needed]}
• 1991 – His book The Great Indian Novel wins the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for the Best Book of the Year in the Eurasian Region.^[58]
• 1998 – Awarded the Excelsior Award for excellence in literature by the Association of Indians in America (AIA)^{[citation needed]} and the Network of Indian Professionals (NetIP).^[58]
• 2000 – Conferred the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters in International Affairs by the University of Puget Sound^[58]
• 1998 – Named Global Leader of Tomorrow by the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland^{[citation needed]}

• 2004 – Awarded the prestigious Pravasi Bharatiya Samman, India’s highest honour for non-resident Indians. But did not accept it at the time owing to UN rules prohibiting acceptance of governmental honours.^{[citation needed]}
• 2007 – Went on to accept the award after having resigned from the position of Under Secretary General at the UN.^[59]
• 2008 – Conferred a Doctorate Honoris Causa by the University of Bucharest, Romania.^{[citation needed]}
• 2009 – Awarded the Zakir Hussain Memorial "Pride of India" Award.^{[citation needed]}
• 2009 – Awarded GQ's Inspiration of the Year Award at its Man of the Year Awards.^{[citation needed]}
• 2009 – Presented with the Hakim Khan Sur Award for National Integration by the Maharana of Udaipur.^{[citation needed]}
• 2010 – Awarded the Sarva Deshiya Prathibha award by the Pazhassiraja Charitable Trust, Kozhikode.^[60]
• March 2010 – Awarded "New Age Politician of the Year" Award by NDTV at its Indian of the Year awards.^{[citation needed]}
• 2010 – Awarded the Fifth IILM Distinguished Global Thinker Award in New Delhi^[61]
• 2010 – Awarded Digital person of the year at the first ever Indian Digital Media Awards (IDMA) for popularising the digital medium in India^[62]

Bibliography[link]

Fiction[link]

• The Great Indian Novel (1989)^[63]
• The Five Dollar Smile and Other Stories (1990)^[64]
• Show Business (1992)^[65]
• Riot (2001)^[66]

Non-fiction[link]

• Reasons of State (1982)^[67]
• India: From Midnight to the Millennium (1997)^[68]
• Nehru: The Invention of India (2003)^[69]
• Bookless in Baghdad (2005)^[70]
• The Elephant, the Tiger, and the Cell Phone: Reflections on India - The Emerging 21st-Century Power (2007)^[71]
• Shadows Across the Playing Field: Sixty Years of India-Pakistan Cricket (2009)(along with Shaharyar Khan)^[72]

Illustrated books[link]

• Kerala: God’s own country (2002) (along with artist M.F. Husain)^[73]
• L'Inde (French) and India (English) (2008) (along with photographer Ferrante Ferranti)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Shashi Tharoor

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Shashi Tharoor

• Official website
• Shashi Tharoor at United Nations
• Shashi Tharoor collected news and commentary at The New York Times
• Shashi Tharoor collected news and commentary at The Times of India
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Shashi Tharoor at the Internet Movie Database
• Works by Shashi Tharoor on Open Library at the Internet Archive
• Works by or about Shashi Tharoor in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• Shashi Tharoor at the Notable Names Database