It is not hard to decide who is the biggest newsmaker of them all in Kerala. Entrepreneur Kochouseph Chittilapally seems to have a knack for hitting the headlines often. It is no wonder then that he emerged tops in a poll conducted by Manorama’s TV channel.

What makes him different is that he speaks his mind, without thinking about whether it conforms with the popular or acceptable view. Look at the solution he offered for Mullaperiyar; he made some experts go into whether the existing dam can be strengthened. He says all you need for this is Rs 55 crore and he has already contributed 10 per cent of the required amount.

What is not clear is how sound is the expertise he received. Though the newspapers and channels gave Chittilapally his due, the political class simply ignored his proposal. But what is the harm in exploring its success? For one, it will ensure ‘safety for Kerala and water for TN’. Secondly, all indications are that Kerala has not been all that successful in driving home its point about the dangers posed by the dam either before the Supreme Court or in other forums.

Another person to corner space in the dailies as well as the visual media and not for all the right reasons is actor-turned-minister Ganesh Kumar who is at loggerheads with his father Balakrishna Pillai. Ganesh’s differences with Pillai have been an open secret but finally the father got his party to strip his own son of his party post.

Ganesh said he was ready to give up his ministership rather than succumb to pressure from the party in administrative matters. He also referred to the possible consequences of yielding to such pressures. He was obviously referring to another father-son duo, the late Karunakaran and his son K. Muraleedharan.

Is it a case of Perunthachan complex? Is Pillai getting jealous of his son enjoying the power and glamour of ministership while not obeying his dictates? Or is it that Pillai doesn’t want to be another Karunakaran by trying to support his son at the cost of alienating his party leaders and losing whatever is left of his support base?

One star who came down to terra firma adjusting his busy shooting schedule was Mohanlal. While most of the cricketers who play in the Celebrity Cricket League love the game deeply, it is also a way of connecting with the audience who made them stars in the first place. Mohanlal not only took part vigorously in the practice sessions but also interacted with people belonging to all sections of the society and his pictures were splashed in the media.

The School Youth Festival has begun with much fanfare. The media will compete with each other to bring the colour and spirit of competitions. As usual, there will be also controversies, a taste of which we got during the Ernakulam district youth festival. But actually, has the youth festivals lost some of their sheen to the music and dance reality shows on TV?

Thiruvananthapuram had its first fashion week but not much was written about it in the media. In fact, the flower show in Kochi got more coverage.

This article, however, will be incomplete if we don’t talk about one rare individual who had the entire State government pleading with him to help install the metro rail project in Kochi. E. Sreedharan had threatened to distance himself from the project if the Delhi Metro Corporation was not given the responsibility of implementing the project while the State government wanted him at the helm but was not keen on his Delhi team.

After allegations and counter allegations, the government decided to give the job to the Delhi Metro Corporation. The opposition also has refrained from playing spoilsport but the last has not been heard yet. Sreedharan says it will take three years to complete the project. Whether the ruling party and opposition can speak and act in unison will decide the fate of the project. By all indications, if there is no cooperation, and if dirty games are played, Sreedharan will go his way and Metro will remain a distant dream.

Last but not the least, a criminal case has been filed against V.S. Achuthanandan. If punished, he can be sentenced up to seven years in prison. The charge is that he showed favouritism to a relative. There are also charges that he favoured his son while he was in power.

It is not the first time that a politician is facing corruption and criminal charges but the question is, does it smack of vendetta? Is it Tamil Nadu style tit for tat? Remember how Jayalalitha’s house was raided by Karunanidhi and a public display was made of her jewellery and shoes and when she came to power, how she ordered a midnight raid on Karunanidhi’s house? How the old man was dragged to the police station in his night clothes?