making waves: The Animal Planet show on wildebeestsreligiously: Esha Deol

n Move over Angelina Jolie, Esha Deol?s got a tattoo now. After the likes of Raveena Tandon, Sanjay Dutt and Urmila Matondkar, it?s now the turn of the Dhoom macha le girl to sport inscriptions on her body. What?s more, the actress has got two tattoos on her two sides of the shoulder.

But Esha hasn?t bent it like Beckham. She hasn?t got her beau?s name tattooed on her body. Rather it is the Gayatri mantra, which she has been chanting ever since she can remember, that finds glory on her right shoulder. As far as the left goes, it is the Om sign that Esha?s got marked on her.

On the film front, the actress has just signed Ram Gopal Varma?s Darling to be produced by T-Series. The film, that boasts of music by Himesh Reshammiya, has Esha opposite her Pyare Mohan co-star Fardeen Khan.

n Every year, one of nature?s most incredible and mysterious phenomena plays out in East Africa ? the great wildebeest migration. From the vast open plains of the Serengeti to the champagne-coloured hills of Kenya?s Masai Mara, over 1.4 million wildebeest and 200,000 zebras and gazelles undertake a dramatic journey, which has been occurring for more than a million years now.

Animal Planet uses cutting edge technology to show this natural wonder. The thrilling event is presented as a wildlife reality show, following the million-plus participants as they run the frantic 800-km Great Savannah Race. The three-part series premieres on July 17 , 18 and 19 July at 8 pm.

Why do the animals carry out this yearly migration? Is it the wind that guides them? Or a sixth sense which leads them in search of rain-ripened grass? And who will survive the journey, and cross the finish line first? The journey for the answers begins in Tanzania, where veterinarian Patrick Garcia and scientists Anja Brinch Jensen and Sophie Grange get together. Their first goal is to fit 10 animals with collars so they can be tracked throughout the epic journey via satellite. The collars, equipped with miniature Global Positioning System monitors, satellite transmitters and a VHF radio system, allows the participants to be located within a radius of one meter.

The long trek is fraught with danger; more than 250,000 animals die along the way from sheer exhaustion, and the migration is relentlessly tracked by Africa?s great predators. Most dramatic of all is the moment when the migration arrives at the crocodile-infested Mara River, which must be crossed in order to reach the rich grazing. As the bravest take the initial plunge into the swirling currents, thousands follow ? many to inevitable death.

The series follows the daily trials and tribulations of the 10 main characters. Who amongst them will win? The young male bursting with energy; the old, yet experienced, veteran; or the female and her newborn calf?

n For a greater exposure to contemporary Italian films, Roopkala Kendro and the Consulate General of Italy have been screening retrospectives of select Italian films on a monthly basis at Nandan since April this year.

The package for this month contains four films, to be screened from July 17-20. Renzo Martinelli?s Vajont will be shown on Day One to be followed by Sergio Rubini?s La?Amore Ritorna on July 18. Gillo Pontecorvo?s Orgo is on July 19, while Ferzan Ozpetek?s La Finestra di Fronte is slated for the concluding day. The August package will start off with Giuseppe Tornatore?s Nuovo Cinema Paradiso on August 28 followed by Pupi Avati?s Il Cuore Altrove on August 29 and Vittorio De Sica?s Il Giardino dei Finzi Contini on August 30. The August schedule ends with Gabriele Salvatores?s Io non ho Paura. The screenings are held in Nandan II at 3 pm and 6 pm on a first-come-first-served basis.

Also, to mark the birth centenary of Roberto Rossellini and Luchino Visconti, the Italian consulate will hold a retrospective of their films from end-July in Gorky Sadan. ?Our idea is to emphasise the works of not only great directors like Pasolini, Fellini and Bertolucci but also showcase new filmmakers like Gabriele Salvatores,? said consul-general of Italy Agostino Pinna.