Feelings august 2016 by Abid MG

event report

Editorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Note Dear Readers, I recently returned from the USA and although it was my third trip, their work ethic hasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t ceased to amaze me. Things get done there because people really want to do them! Moreover, the systems are in place and there is no need for a jugaad, that ubiquitous Indian way out to achieve essential ends. There is another thing that struck me. Though the population of NY is similar in numbers to Delhi, which is notorious for its pollution, here there is simply more fresh air for every person. One wakes up ready for a new day, not worrying about the prospect of yet another day spent tackling mundane issues. Which brings me to Swachh, a successful cooperative that offers a solution to that most mundane thing â&#x20AC;&#x201C; garbage. While improving the quality of life of those on the lowest rung of the ladder, it is teaching us a thing or two about the waste we generate. In New York, I also had the good fortune of meeting Dr Jatin Shah, a world renowned oncologist. An interesting afternoon with him threw up some precious nuggets of information which we have put together for you. Sometimes, what we are looking for is right under our noses and Sri Lanka, a delightful destination, is just like that - a neighbouring jewel that is usually ignored. No more though, as the team unanimously voted for it to be the cover this time! Meanwhile the much anticipated monsoon has arrived, bringing out the adventurer in some of us... Read on to get inspired and energized,

Atul Shah Editor and Publisher

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august 2016

Vol. 7

Editor / Publisher Atul Shah Director Khyati Shah Executive Director Deepti Dedhia Deputy Editor Nandini Sanan Shankar Senior Associate Editor Abid Mohammed Associate Editor Vijay Rohit Columnists Ali Peter John, Kaajal Oza Vaidya, Sanjay Chhel, Bejan Daruwalla, Megha Chitaliya, Varun Shukla, Veathika Jain, Amit Trivedi, Madhu Rye Thaker, Mehul Suthar, Sneha, Jagruti Fadia Contributors Sundar Sarma, Jagruti Pandya, Linda Das, Ashesh Pandia, Nandita Derashri, Devashish Palker Special Music Columnist Sujata Majumdar

Creative Consultants Photographer

Guru Media Network Harshad Jhatakia / Jayendra Jhatakia / Chetan Mistry

Corporate Office: 102-3-104, Paciﬁ c Plaza, VIP Road, Karelibaug, Vadodara – 390 018. (Gujarat) India Phone: +91 (265) 2489477 Mobile: +91 97129 45133 / 98253 28488 Email: editorial@feelingsmultimedia.com, info@feelingsmultimedia.com Web: www.feelingsmultimedia.com Feelings Multimedia takes no responsibility for unsolicited photographs or material. ALL PHOTOGRAPHS, UNLESS OTHERWISE INDICATED, ARE USED FOR ILLUSTRATIVE PURPOSES ONLY. Printed by Lippi Printing Press for and on behalf of Feelings Multimedia Limited. Printer Address: Lippi House, Piramitar Road, Dandia Bazar, Vadodara - 390 001. Gujarat, India. All rights reserved. Reproducing in any manner without prior written permission prohibited. PUBLISHED FOR THE MONTH OF June - July, 2016.

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Contents AUGUST 2016 58

38 Exclusive Interview

head and neck above the rest

Dr Jatin P Shah, a world renowned, leading name in Head and Neck Cancer surgery, met Atul Shah, CMD and Editor of Feelings Multimedia, recently in New York.

features 12 M onsoon style Mehul Suthar tells you how to match your style with the season.... 32 f lashback Sanjeev Kumar may have died young but that doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t stop us from remembering the wonderful actor on his 70th birth anniversary. Ali Peter John remembers his time spent with Haribhai.

36 M ore beautiful for having been broken Palak Shah writes on celebrities who have dealt with cancer and come out stronger from the ordeal 46 f rom rags to recoginition A cooperative that shatters age old notions about garbage pickers and gives them a new lease of life, Swachh is doing all this and more, finds Ashesh Pandia. 52 ART RE-ENGINEERED Nandini Sanan Shankar visits SITE art space that is producing some stunning work, perhaps the only one of its kind in India.

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56 c yber crime A true story of an internet scam victim. Jagruti Pandya updates and warns about the dark side of the online world. 58 r ainy day adventures As the country welcomes the Monsoon with open arms, Feelings brings you a few seasonal outdoor activities to enjoy with your loved ones. 74 ZUMBA your way to FITNESS Afreen Khan zooms in to look at the phenomenon that has taken over the fitness world across the globe.. 94 N ot a classic, but weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not complaining! Kabali has broken records as it was bound to, for how can any film with Rajnikanth do otherwise? Sundar Sarma tries to be an objective fan as he reviews the movie.

Interviews 22 Nawazuddin Siddiqui Sneha talks to the experimental actor and heart-throb, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, who not just acts but becomes every role he plays.

14 62 passion for Fashion As more and more people choose to blog about their dreams, hopes and passions, Nandita Derashri talks to Urvashi Choudhury about her fashion blog, #LLFS 68 meals on wheels Abid Mohammed in conversation with Ashish Sajnani, a man of ideas whose latest venture is the runaway hit, Bombay Food Truck. 72 Conquering the culinary world Roxanne Bamboat ‘The Tiny Taster’, shares her experiences with Abid Mohammed.

MUSICal Notes 28 naturally talented Sujata Majumdar in a free wheeling chat with the musical genius, Mithoon, for whom music is a call to service rather than a road to stardom.

Immigrant Diary

regulars 14 S HOPPING Monsoon shopping tips. may soon be changing the rules of advertising, thinks Varun Shukla. 78 L EGAL ADVICE Megha Chitaliya writes on when and how to file a PIL or Public Interest Litigation. 80 B ODY AND SOUL Analyzing the placebo effect and what makes it work, by Dr Devashish Palker. 82 S MART MONEY Financial decisions are the best if they are tailor made and not based on general information, advises Amit Trivedi. 90 D REAM HOMES Jagruti Fadia relives her experience of staying at a typical home in Australia.

16 event update Happenings and events around town. 18 B OLLYWOOD NEWS The latest happenings in Tinsel Town. 84 T ravelogue SRI LANKA - A jewel in the Indian ocean makes for a perfect long weekend getaway, discovers Veathika Jain 88 R ECIPES Presenting Roxanne Bamboat’s favourite, quick and easy recipes. 92 C AMPUS TALK Entering college as a fresher can be daunting, says Linda Das as she shares some ideas on how to make the transition easier. 96 F ORTUNE TELLER Your monthly horoscope by Bejan Daruwala.

42 namo gandhi Madhu Rye Thaker in a stirring conversation with the distinguished Natwarlal Mohanlal Gandhi.

98 B OLD WORDS #thetweettalk

columns 20 H UMOUR Sanjay Chhel’s observations of the morning walkers around him and others of that ilk. 64 Kaajal’s Feelings Kaajal Oza Vaidya writes about the ups and downs of the American way of life. 76 T ECH TALK Pokemon Go, the augmented reality game that has taken the world by storm

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letters to the editor

Congratulations Feelings, for doing it yet again - great articles put together in a very attractive way! The magazine is value for money and I didn’t think twice about subscribing to it… Pratibha Sharma, Bangalore

CELEB TALK • LIFESTYLE • FASHION • WOMEN • WELLNESS • TRAVEL `50

JULY 2016

VOL. 6

SOPHIE CHOUDRY

“I am the

ultimate

We are a music-loving family and it is a treat to read Sujata Majumdar’s column every month. Being an established singer herself she brings out the fine nuances of the singers she interviews. Also enjoyed reading about PM Modi’s Mann Ki Baat in the last issue. Keep it up! Vishal Kapuria, NJ

pop diva” GOING OVERBOARD THE HISTORY OF THE CBFC

MUSICAL NOTES INTERVIEW WITH SHAAN

MANN KI BAAT

MAKING WAVES ON RADIO

TRAVEL

LAZING AROUND IN ZANZIBAR

The article ‘Flying for the TECH TALK

FASHION A good listener and part time wordsmith, Varun Shukla prefers coffee over tea. Football and technology are his twin passions. Follow him on Twitter: @wengerarmy

agents, and trade analysts. Even the middle skilled work of a paralegal is under threat – predictive coding algorithms can easily review thousands of documents for relevant information. Bots that can write the news are being experimented with.

THE RISE OF THE MACHINES AI is around the corner but how will it affect your job? Varun Shukla feels there is a more immediate threat to humanity than extinction by robots.

he human spirit of enquiry is a strange beast. We always want to know the why and the how of things. “What If”, we ask? It’s why we fiddle with stuff we have no understanding of. This curiosity has led to some of our greatest triumphs, right from wireless internet to the wheel itself. It hasn’t always worked out. The nuclear bomb was a horrific application of a potentially unlimited energy source. Cyber terrorism was an unintended consequence made possible by networked computers. And yet, we haven’t halted in our tracks. There hasn’t been a mass Luddite revolution to drag us back to the Stone Age. Technology has progressed unabated, almost inevitable. And so it must be with Artificial Intelligence. There are justifiable fears that a sentient race of machines could – to be polite – have an unfavourable view of humans. Even now, when AI is only just beginning to learn how to

And although technology has always created new jobs for the ones it displaced – SEO experts and content creators wouldn’t have existed preinternet – artificial intelligence can improve at an exponential rate due to its self learning ability, and because the basic infrastructure it depends on (computers) has itself seen unprecedented advances since it was first thought of. We’ve gone from massive, room sized machines to wrist computers in only 60 years.

Unless, of course, we change the way we educate. The current ‘system’ was perfected during Victorian times, when the market necessitated a large number of factory workers to do menial, unimaginative tasks. You were put into a compartmentalized, disciplined, structured workplace. We are still training children to be a part of yesterday’s workforce – punishing them for trying to outsmart, out think and outmaneuver decades-old ideas.

Depending on which side of the scientific fence you lie, this is bad/good news. All the major tech players are in this for good, with money to boot. AI research will never stop. It could arrive in 2060 or 3060, but machine self-awareness is an inescapable.

AI is already very good at analyzing and processing information, and predicting patterns in it. That means the end of first-level jobs such as accountants, travel

The jobs that are likely to be left alone (for now) are the ones that require creative thought, empathy, and knowledge. The notion of ‘labour’ as a driver of economy will disappear. Now, that’s a scary thought – there are likely to be a large number of high paying jobs that require original human contribution (music composers or counselors) and few, if any, extremely low paying jobs that the machines are better at anyway. Wealth distribution would become a major issue. The owners/creators of the relevant bots will claim the output, whereas the rest of society’s

What is the point of rote based, repetitive learning when all the information one could need is on easily accessible devices, with technology that can help you make sense of it? The majority of college graduates today are in jobs that can be automated in the next forty years. There needs to be a massive shift in worldwide education policy – aided by governments and institutions – focusing on more innate qualities that are as yet unattainable for machines. This would allow us to build a future where we are relevant. Failing that, the machines would have already won the war. 

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FEATURE

Using the radio to interact with people across the length and breadth of India is a part of the PM’s determination to reach out to the masses through effective and innovative means. Jagruti Pandya brings us the gist from his many broadcasts since he came into power.

t aat

a over Ma ggaagga over MaaannKKi iB g g n Baa ooi in

e begins with a lion like roar, “Mere pyare desh vasiyon…..”, as he addresses 1.33 billion Indians at a go in his “Mann ki baat” through National Radio. Since he has sworn in, the PM, Narendra Modi, has always encouraged the use of social media and stressed on the importance of the digital platform. Setting an example, he has been continuously tweeting and updating the world with the day to day activities being carried out by the Government. He has been using social media platforms to encourage the common man and develop a sense of serving the nation through campaigns like the Swachh Bharat Mission.

The Prime Minister calls for inputs through MyGov,

10 | Feelings

which has emerged as a focal point for creative contribution to other Ministries and Government departments as well. It was through MyGov that the name and logo of the path breaking Jan Dhan Yojana was selected. In fact, the Prime Minister himself felicitated those whose entries were finally selected. On 5th September, 2014 the PM interacted with students across India through technology and answered their questions directly. Often sharing thoughts on Facebook and Twitter, he is a firm believer in the power of social media. Even the President of the United States was part of the January edition of ‘Mann Ki Baat’, which was aired on

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AUGUST 2016

y style statement is about being comfortable and classy, I create my own style because I believe that “style is a way to tell who you are without having to speak”. My favourite attire is Indian wear.

JYOTPRIYA SOOD

tyle is not just about what you wear, it’s about how confident you are in whatever you wear. My style statement is to be confident about being myself. My favorite attire anything loose and airy, be it pajamas or a pair of loose jeans with a crop top. What you eat is what you reflect. I keep myself hydrated, eat lots of vegetables and fruits and avoid junk food. To stay fit, eating right is the best way and a 45 minute workout is good enough for me.

tyle is something in which an individual should live upto his own creation and be comfortable and confident in it, at the same time. I believe in simplicity - A basic blue jeans, white tshirt, sneakers and a pinch of attitude! Being happy is the greatest secret to being constantly charming. I am fitness freak and follow a strict diet, 5 days workout and 2 days cardio, drink lots of water, eat healthy and train hard to keep fit.

WRITE TO US

An estimated 90% of the total Indian population is reachable over the medium. Additionally, various private FM radio stations in the metropolitan cities of India are allowed to broadcast a recording of the show. Doordarshan’s Direct to Home (DTH) service “Freedish” also relays feeds of the 20-minute long episodes, to television and radio channels.

In the 20 addresses (Episodes) of Mann ki Baat broadcast so far, approximately more than 61,000 ideas have been received on the website and 1.43 lakh audios have been received. Each month, some selected calls become a part of the broadcast.

I read Varun Shukla’s article on AI with great interest. The Legal Eagle column on IPR was very informative with relevant examples. The credit goes to Some believe in AAKSHI KHARI the Feelings simplicity, while others M keep up with the trends. But staying hydrated and team for feeling comfortable in what they wear seems to be the publishing such overriding refrain of all those blessed with meaningful good looks. and readable content. MOHAMMED IQBAL Waiting eagerly S for the August issue… Vikas, Dubai

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But for “Mann Ki Baat”, he chose National Radio to reach out to the farthest corners, where no other form of media may exist. ‘Mann ki Baat’, which literally means ‘From the heart’, is an Indian radio program hosted by the Prime Minister in which he addresses the people of the nation on radio, DD National and DD News. It is a unique initiative by him to reach the masses across the country through the Radio, a medium almost forgotten in the cities, except when one may be driving.

The first Mann Ki Baat program was broadcast on the occasion of Vijayadashami on 3 October 2014. The Prime Minister is usually expected to address the nation every month on All India Radio. The show also provides the rare opportunity to connect, suggest and become part of participatory governance through the PM’s radio address.

I remember Sophie Choudry from her VJ days. It is nice to see her in the limelight once again. I have saved the write-up on movies censored by the CBFC in the past, from your July issue. Plan to catch up with those I have missed. India has produced some great cinema and it’s a pity that our moral policing system is so skewed. Ami Mehta, Mumbai

Style Secrets of the Famous!

purchasing power declines due to the paucity of money; it is possible that we would be living in a ‘welfare state’ system, dependent on handouts. It will be the end of the middle class.

talk crudely, or is able to beat one of us at a complicated board game, there are calls for it to be halted – or atleast sufficiently stunted for it not to become self aware.

Even in the short term, the rise of AI poses significant challenges to most of our jobs. Anything where the human contribution isn’t necessary will be under threat. Truth be told, machines have been replacing humans for decades – they are simply more efficient. Artificial Intelligence is different in that it is versatile and adaptable. You wouldn’t need a pilot to fly an unmanned drone, but what of the driverless car?

USA’ by Madhu Thaker was most interesting. Indians are doing well for themselves all over the world. That Shivam Kashiwala is an active soldier in the United States airforce is indeed something for the nation to be proud of. Well done! Prema Arul, Chennai

Do write in and tell us what you think, at editorial@feelingsmultimedia.com Letters should include the writer’s full name, address and phone number. Letters may be edited for clarity and space

monsoon style

HOW TO

SIZZLE IN THE

DRIZZLE As the clouds gather and rain threatens to fall, Mehul Suthar tells you how to match your style with the season...

ou love them or hate them but you can’t ignore them. The rains knocking doors. With pitter-patter raindrops falling on your head, it’s time to pack away those stilettos, leather shoes, transparent tops and pastel-coloured shirts. The monsoons are drenching the city with mucky roads, dirty feet and frizzy hair, leaving people in a dilemma about what to wear. Out come those waterproof sandals, capris and colourful umbrellas. But if you thought that rains are synonymous with dull and boring outfits and accessories, then you are mistaken. All you need to do is jazz up your existing wardrobe by cutting, folding and colouring your outfits. From opting for light fabrics and cropped pants to going for waterproof make-up, that will save you from dampening your style in the rain. Don't let the rainy season affect your desire to be stylish and fabulous.

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Yatin Gandhi – a stylist who have styled for more than 500 shoots which include leading brand campaigns & catalogues also Runway shows saiys “Style is what you do with it - when it comes to style for particular season, one must understand there are different garments for different seasons. For rainy seasons light fabrics are best. With crooks or Gumboots you dont need to buy new garments, just rip apart your old denims and make it fashionable. Dark colours gives great impact.”

Here’s how you can do it: Light fabrics: Go for something lighter and airy. Chiffons and georgettes will be life saviours in the rain. They’ll dry in minutes unlike wearing a pair of heavy denims and spending hours trying to dry it and catching a cold instead.

Waterproof make-up: Go minimal on make-up during the rainy season lest all the humidity melts your eyeliner, leaving you raccoon-eyed. Stick to waterproof eyeliners and mascaras and highlight those brown eyes with peacock-inspired blues and greens as you dance in the rain. Take care of your skin by making some easy homemade packs of honey and cucumber to renew and replenish your dry, dead and haggard skin. Change your hairstyle: Come monsoon and we struggle to keep our hair tamed and smooth. For those with dry hair, monsoon season could be a dreadful time. Simply oil just the roots of the scalp with olive or coconut oil and tie your hair into a chick high ponytail or fishtail braids to look your fashionable best.

Jelly flats and boots: Make monsoon fun with colourful rubber sandals and ballerinas that don’t spoil in the rain. As boots are essential footwear during monsoons, don’t let it cramp your sense of style. Pick a boot that’s both utilitarian and fun. You can now splash around in those puddles with not a care in the world

Cropped pants: Raise hemlines when there are puddles around and embrace the trusty old browns and beiges to hide any splashes. You’ve got an excuse to show off those dainty ankles now, so crop your trousers or fold them up and walk tall.

Bright colours: It's time to wear all those bright colours from your wardrobe which you often sideline. Avoid wearing light colours like white and beige because they become transparent. Instead, flaunt bright colours like red, green, blue, indigo, yellow and stand out of the crowd. n

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shopping

MONSOON MADNESS

Luxury A&T London Black Umbrella With Swarovski Crystals, Rs 30,500 www.amazon.in

Keep yourself dry this season

Crocs Boat Shoes Rs 4995

Crocs PVC Shoes Rs 3595

www.amazon.in

Quecha Poncho Rs400 www.www.decathlon.in

Right Place Right Time Cushion Cover. Taffeta silk with digital print. Price on Request www.Kraftly.com

Reny II Boot Rs 3,995

Tretorn womens wings rain boot Rs 10,550

www.shopcrocs.in

www.in.tretorn.com

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Get a fresh look this monsoon. A product with 2 in 1 benefits Nerolac Ready Mix is an enriched putty with self priming properties that cuts down on time, effort and money by reducing one step, Women s 12 inch High Shafted Fashion Durable roughly 25% of time in the surface preparation part of the painting process. Rubber Rain Boots Price on Request Rs 3,995 www.amazon.in

Available at all major retailers

New launches Latest in the market

Menchie’s, America’s premium healthy frozen yoghurt chain recently launched its first outlet in Mumbai, India. Offering over 100 flavours and 25 toppings, Menchie’s is the first self-serving yogurt franchise launched in India. A specialist in frozen yoghurt, their menu includes non-fat, low-carbohydrate, noadded-sugar, gluten-free, vegan and dairy-free options. Available at all major retailers

Jin Jin’s foot scrubs offer blissful indulgence to tired feet! They slough off calluses, replenish moisture, eliminate stress and leave feet odor free naturally. It contains Rosemary extract, Brown sugar, Lavender, Vanilla, Olive, Almond and Jojoba Oils enriched with Vitamin E and is also good for Pain relief, improves texture, antiseptic, antioxidant, detoxes, aphrodisiac Price on Request https://www.facebook.com/jinelle.jinjin/

Nike is out with the much awaited Nike Air Presto which is their latest lifestyle range. The shoe’s signature adaptable upper becomes even more pronounced through the use of Flyknit, which delivers stretch in the collar, ventilation in the toe and tongue, and support in the heel and underneath the toecap. Price on Request Available at all major retailers

Get ready for some sweet and revitalizing surprises as Zespri® Kiwifruit is back in season to add the perfect balance of taste and health to your daily fruit basket. Kiwifruit is one of the world’s most nutritious fruits with a powerful combination of fibre, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals – minus all the calories! Zespri® Green Kiwifruit has six times the nutrition of apples while having twice the nutrition of mangoes and Zespri® SunGold kiwifruit has ten times the nutrition of apples and thrice the Vitamin C content of oranges. Available at all major retailers

Feelings june- july 2016 | 15

event report

Stars come together to ‘change the air’

o drive the message home, Vivek Oberoi, Kalki Koechlin, Vir Das, Swara Bhaskar & Govind Namdev came together in a hard hitting video that makes you question your conduct towards traffic cops. Vivek Oberoi said, “Firstly, I want to congratulate iKarmik & GAIL for the great work that has been done. I think nobody cares about traffic police, ulta sab log unhe gaali dete hai (people abuse them) saying things like are yaar mamu khada hai, abhi chaddhi paise maangega. They have zero respect for them.” “So much pollution goes to their lungs daily, emitted from the vehicles and it probably equals 40-50 packets of cigarettes per day. Can you imagine what he is putting himself through? And just so you can have a little organization on the roads. No respect for them is a very bad attitude for a society to have. So I was very happy that you guys (iKarmik & GAIL) are doing that, and I am always up for anything which is this good.” “The conditions they have to work in are really deplorable. I can bet that none of us can do it for even a day!”, challenged Swara Bhaskar and tweeted– ‘Salute to all those public servants who put their health at risk for our safety’ Vir Das said, “There is a perception issue amongst people today. You feel for the army jawan on the border, but not the traffic cop on the road. They are both putting their lives at risk. Hopefully this video should change that!”

fun times at the launch of Flying Jatt Trailer

he cast and crew of Flying Jatt had a ball of a time at the release of its trailer. While they unveiled the first trailer amidst media in a very dramatic style and amazed everyone with their antics, the high point was when the lead stars, Tiger Shroff, Jacqueline Fernandez, international star Nathan Jones, producer Ekta Kapoor and director Remo D’souza stepped into the mall’s amusement zone – PLANET INFINITI – to enjoy fun rides with school children

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2016

Fashion Extravaganza at the launch of Kids Around

akshi Arora, Director of the brand, recently hosted a gala event at the launch of Kids Around India, Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first premium multi kids brand store at Ambience Mall, Vasant Kunj. The event was full of fun and frolic with little kids walking the ramp wearing apparel from Hugo Boss, Little Marc Jacob, Carrement Beau, Karl Lagerfeld Kids and Billy Bandit. Those who attended the soiree included Shilpa Raina Wahal, Swati Pandya Sood, Parul Grover, Dr Varun Katyal to name a few.

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bollywood news

Anisa is excited for Brahman Naman; the movie will be screened at MAMI

ctress Anisa Butt, who is currently busy shooting for an upcoming web series will be juggling between shoots and different film festivals of her first Indian themed International film ‘Brahman Naman’, opposite Siddharth Mallya. The movie which premièred at the Sundance Film Festival (In Competition in the World Dramatic Section) in January 2016 has already been picked up by Netflix for US distribution. The movie will be screened at the MAMI film Festival too. Talking about the film, Anisa said “It was fun working on Brahman Naman and it is close to my heart. Working with Qaushiq Mukherjee was such an enriching experience, his unique vision compelled me to be part of this one. I’m immensely proud to see that the film has received an amazing response, globally at International Film Festivals”

Anisa started her career on television for Disney India in a show called Ishaan, produced by Red Chillies. She was also a part of films like Ye Jawaani Hai Deewani and Baat Ban Gayi. Anisa recently featured in an ad with Ranbir Kapoor. .

Actress Shraddha Das turned showstopper

he Great Grand Masti actress recently walked down the ramp as the showstopper for the collection launch of ‘Designed by Esme’, launched by her stylist Shefali Deora. The event ‘Runway to Racks’ took place at the Indian School of Design & Innovation, Mumbai. The actress wore a beautiful beige with black and white print dress as she confidently sashayed on the ramp and posed for the cameras. With a middle hair parting, minimal makeup and eye-catching stilettos, Shraddha surely turned heads in this sizzling ensemble.

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august 2016

When Anna Hazare Gifted Tanishaa Mukherji A Neem Tree

anishaa Mukherji will return to the silver screen with her upcoming biopic on Anna Hazare. The actress looked ethereal at the poster launch of her film in beige and maroon ensemble by Natasha J. Tanishaa’s last outing was adventure reality show Khatron Ke Khiladi. She will be seen playing a jaded journalist in the most awaited biopic!

Tanishaa shared a few anecdotes about her time shooting in Anna’s hometown! Looking forward to her upcoming film she said, “There’s an ‘Anna’ in all of us!”

The event saw the presence of Anna Hazare himself who presented a neem sapling to Tanishaa Mukherji who’s an active environmentalist and gave his blessings for her NGO!

Piracy concerns for movie producers

he latest worry, to add to the list, for movie producers is the online leaks that have been seen recently. The online leak of big banner movies like Udta Punjab and Great Grand Masti has the industry looking for ways to curb piracy. Both the movies suffered massive losses due to piracy.

John Abraham and Varun are in the process of obtaining a ‘John Doe’ order (order against anonymous entities) from the Bombay High Court, directing Internet Service Providers (ISPs), telecom operators and other platforms to ensure that any illegal content from ‘Dishoom’ is not made available on their services.

Last week the bigwigs of the industry met to discuss the issue. Mukesh Bhatt, President of the Film and Television Producers Guild of India, said, “This issue should not be treated in isolation as piracy for films, but the sheer impunity and brazenness with which this illegality is being propounded indicates a structured attempt to damage the industry on the whole and should be considered as a serious threat. We require the highest level of probe from the intelligence services of the country and even an intervention by the Prime Minister.” Meanwhile the producers of Dishoom, starring

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moods and masti

Sanjay Chhel is a well known Bollywood film writer and director

Walk the talk - what a joke! Walking should be more fun, says Sanjay Chhel, as he looks around at the increasing multitude of determined and purposeful walkers

professor, as expected, was always busy amidst piles of papers and obviously couldn’t find time for his family or bachhas. Absent-minded or careless is the tag they often carry in society. But our professor sahib was genuinely neck-deep in work and in a state of self-arrest for so long time that he was oblivious to the outside world. One day professor sahib’s wife had had enough and confronted him on his exile, “Which world are you living in Mr. Professor? Do you even know that our daughter has started walking since the last six months?” With a surprised and naïve expression professor replied, “Oh, walking since last six months? She must have really gone far by now?” His wife collapsed with a shock... Walking is definitely a most interesting act. In fact walking is the ‘in thing’ among the exercise maniacs. Undoubtedly it has a fair share of health benefits. But the hype around it is way too much! The social media is full of various marathons in every city where the enthused are running in multicolored tracks with perpetual grins, as if they have conquered death itself! It’s very sad that they feel victorious over mortals like us who can not even walk properly on Mumbai’s roads, forget about running! Agreed that Gandhiji’s secret to a healthy life was

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walking all the way which ultimately marched us to our freedom. But bygones are bygones. Looking around today, I don’t see any direct correlation between walking and being slim or else the plump postman in our area who has been walking since the last 20 years would be a size zero by now. The fisherwoman in the vicinity proudly sways her curves and the sweeper woman doing the forward bend for years now has still not achieved Dippy’s or Bebo’s flat tummy. This proves that walking or physical exercise alone does not give you the right measurements. Genetic makeup and diet too have their roles to play. All talks on media these days revolves around walking and it revolves, rotates or rather rots my mind as I try my best to avoid the talk of a walk! Just like anything in excess isn’t good, so is the talk of the walk. Overhyped and overrated, the thought itself tires me these days. Poor Tagore, by mistake once said “Jodi tor daak shune keu naa ashe tobe ekla cholo re” (if no one comes to accompany when called for, walk alone), but we have taken this message far too seriously and literally. When no one really cares to accompany us on our futile and boring walks, we start chanting ekla cholo re. Indian shashtras say “Charati charato bhag” (the one who walks, their luck walks along). But if that was so, all the

“Walking is indeed a noble thing to do. One must walk for a good 30 minutes, 4-5 times a week. But walking alone does not lead to healthsalvation.” salesmen travelling kilometers on foot should have been millionaires and the ones trading shares in their air-conditioned offices should have been beggars! The funniest are the solo walkers that I see every morning and evening. The poor souls give themselves so much trouble, waking up early morning (or rather dawn, when one-fourth of the Mumbaikars are returning from parties or giving a drunken hi-five to their milkmen). Most of these morning walkers look so low or pulled down that one wonders if they will really live a longer and healthier life. One is unable to decide whether they are half dead or half alive! Some of them plug in music in their ears and at least there is an assurance that the drumbeats in their ears keep their heartbeats intact. Some beauties in their skimpy clothes sway in full swing with the music - such swaying may be helpful to their curves but what about the spectator’s nerves? Haven’t they yet included the atrocities of attractiveness as a punishable offence? Walking is indeed a noble thing to do. One must walk for a good 30 minutes, 4-5 times a week. But walking alone does not lead to health-salvation. Once a child asked a Sufi saint all the possible philosophical questions that could arise in his

small mind. They ranged from what is God, where is he to what is religion, soul and salvation. The saint, just as all his fellow-beings was ‘Adat se majboor’ and gave him vague answers. The child could not follow a word of those abstract, metaphorical answers. Ultimately he asked the saint one final question, “Which is the right way or which path should I walk on?” In response, the saint with his signature smile showed him a picture on the wall, of mountains and a small path between valleys. The path led towards a dense forest. The saint advised the child to go walk on that path. The next question that popped up from the child was, “Where will I reach if I follow this path?” Alas, the saint stood up and told him to wait while he goes and checks where it led to. And that is it! The Sufi saint entered the picture and started walking on that mysterious pathway leading to the mysterious jungle. He vanished in a wink. The child, shocked and amused, is still waiting for the saint to return. It’s exactly the same with walking. If you walk keeping a predetermined destination in mind, you might never reach anywhere. Walk just for fun and you will reach somewhere. Isn’t it the same with life too? If you wish to walk, just go for it and if not, then just like me, give a long talk on the walk... n

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interview

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“I DON’T THINK THERE IS A MORE INSECURE ACTOR THAN ME!” The intense actor with the proverbial ‘golden touch’ Nawazuddin Siddiqui, spoke to Sneha about the importance of family and friends, the creative process and how he still thinks of himself as a ‘struggler’.

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Photographs Vinod Krishnan

awazuddin Siddiqui’s calibre as an actor is slowly but surely becoming a force to reckon with. Starting with side roles, he gradually won hearts and has succeeded in creating his own brand in the industry. His performance in The Mountain Man, Badlapur, Lunchbox and Gangs Of Wasseypur left the audience spellbound. Nawaz has worked with all the three superstar Khans in the industry, something not many can boast of. And he always held his own, whether it was in Taalash with Aamir Khan or in Bajrangi Bhaijaan with Salman Khan. He will soon be seen with Shahrukh Khan in Rahul Dholakia’s Raees. His most recent film, Raman Raghav went to Cannes, where his talent and performance gained him high praise.

In the past four years Raman Raghav is your eighth film to go to the prestigious Cannes Film Festival. How does it feel to be in the limelight? When I went to Cannes for the first time, I was very nervous. But what amazed me at that point was the interest and awareness about films that people have there. Even a taxi driver is so aware! This time when I went to Cannes people actually recognised me and wanted to meet me, so that was a very humbling feeling. You played a famous serial killer in Raman Raghav, someone who actually killed thirty people! How was the experience of working in such a film? This time it was tough. While playing the role I actually realised that anything can be right or wrong. It’s the perception you have and that differs from person to person. The most challenging part was to understand

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interview

the characters psychology, and when I did that I actually realised that from his perspective there was nothing wrong in what he did.The line between right and wrong blurred for him. As an artist it was a complex role for me. You have played so many variant characters in your career so far - how engaging and exhausting is it to be an actor like this? Every role I play on screen, the time I spend in front of the camera, I give away so much of myself. Physically and mentally one is actually drained and then comes that saturation point. For an actor that’s a dangerous thing to face. One reaches a stage where one’s behaviour becomes neutral. One doesn’t laugh or cry. I have also faced that after having played so many layered characters. So what is the solution? I go back to the real world as soon as possible and spend maximum time with my near and dear ones. Family can save you from this because they are real people who know you in and out. It’s within my family that I gather all the positive and emotional connections which I lose while playing extreme characters. From playing a small character, then a side role to becoming the main lead in a commercial Hindi film, how do you see your transformation? I am immensely happy that this transformation happened. I am an actor who is not yet typecast with any particular image. With every film and character I am gaining maturity as an artist. I am glad that I am able to use my potential as an actor. I can play a thief, a beggar, a real life hero like Majhi, a gangster or a psycho killer. Other actors or heroes will not take the risk that I have taken in my career. And then I am grateful to be a part of the film industry, especially now because amazing stuff is happening in the film making world. I have played a character of a notorious killer in Raman Raghav and now I am playing a hero in Sohail Khan’s Ali. I would like to work in a film where I get the critics award, the masses too like it and the producer also gains at the box office!

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interview

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According to you who is responsible for the changing face of movies in India - the film makers or the audience? The credit goes to the Internet. Now anyone can watch a film at home on their personal devices with just a click. You and me can watch an international film sitting at home. With so much exposure, the audience has developed a different taste for good, entertaining movies. You have made ordinary looking people dream of becoming heroes. Do you feel that it’s a responsibility? Let me share an interesting story. When I was shooting for Gangs Of Wasseypur in Varanasi, a few local young boys came on the set and asked for the hero of the film. A unit member pointed towards me and the boy’s instant reaction was terrible. He spat on the floor and said that a film with a hero like me can never do well. But I proved him wrong. Now an ordinary person can dream of becoming a film’s main lead. I have walked on that path, and am elated. But let me also say that nothing comes easy. I struggled for twelve years to reach here. I worked really hard with a lot of dedication for the craft and am still learning, in fact. One should not forget one’s originality, I would say. How is Nawazuddin as a father? How much time do you spend with your kids? My schedule has become very hectic and my daughter misses me a lot. After Raman Raghav I am busy shooting for Kushan Nandy’s Babumashai Bandukbaaz so am back to a grilling schedule. I do take initiative to come up with time where I can accommodate my kids. My daughter is very sensitive. When my character died in Talaash, she was frightened and often screamed in her sleep. I sat with her one day and explained her the difference between films and reality. My wife is understanding too - she knows that she married the wrong person and has to handle me for her whole life now! What are your insecurities in life? I am insecure about whether I will be able to do the role justice or not. I keep wondering about how I will attempt a role. When I did Gangs of Wasseypur I realised that there’s no inborn quality, but one has to develop one’s skills. I had been sitting idle for 12

years but I travelled a lot and observed people. I try to imbibe those observations in the characters I play. In Lunchbox I imitated a friend of mine. When he saw the film he messaged me a “thank you” and when he met me he fought with me! You may see glimpses of some journalist in Bajrangi too. But I don’t think there is a more insecure actor than me! Which actors do you idolize? I was never inspired by any one actor. I like superstars but I don’t idolize them. They have a great body of work behind them. I like Leonard Di Caprio and when I saw Wolf Of Wall Street, I was blown away. His performance was so true to life. It is only now we are trying to imbibe that in our acting. In Bollywood otherwise, we have larger than life characters that don’t exist in real life.

“I would like to work in a film where I get the critics award, the masses too like it and the producer also gains at the box office!” Do you feel lonely now that you have achieved success? There’s no aura around me. When it gets created I may be able to reply to this question. But yes, I have family and a few friends whom I can fall back on, should that happen. Any dream role in your mind or a maybe a biopic? I want to do a biopic on Dada Kondke once in my life time. He was a great actor I don’t have the capacity to be a producer now but if someone approaches me I would be ready to do it on one leg. A few films like Tere Mere Beech Mein, John Mary and Marco have inspired me. How do your parents react when they see you now? Earlier, they used to tell me to take up a job and I used to lie to them, saying I will soon find a job. Now they realise that I am pursuing my dream and they are happy watching my films. But I still believe that I am struggler. n

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musical notes

MITHOON

NATURALLY TALENTED The talented composer, eminent lyricist and soulful singer who has won numerous awards for his compositions, Mithoon, speaks to our special music columnist Sujata Majumdar about his passion. 28 | Feelings August 2016

usical genius Mithoon has many popular numbers to his credit but the one that really shot him to fame was Tum Hi Ho from the film Aashiqui 2. His other mesmerising compositions include Tere Bin, Tose naina lage, Maula mere, Woh Lamhe, Aadat, Baarish, Zaroorat, Humnavaa,Tere Liye, Sanam Re, Ji hazoori.. and the list goes on. The son of famous music arranger Naresh Sharma and nephew of Pyarelal Sharma (of Laxmikant Pyarelal fame), Mithoon’s originality shines through in his music. Tell us something about growing up in a musical family. I started learning music at a very young age. Normally people grow up and decide what they want to do in life, for me however, everything happened mostly by default. Before I grew up I was already working. It was all very smooth. I didn’t even realize when I grew up! It is all because of my dad that I was exposed to music at a very young age. Would you say that it was easier for you to start your career in this field due to your family background? Easy yes, but not in terms of meeting people or connecting. Being Naresh ji’s son it became creatively easier for me. The ease of understanding music and the process of songwriting at a young age - I was in school when I witnessed firsthand some of the best songwriters like Pyarelal ji, Nadeem Shravan ji, Annu Malik ji writing songs, as my dad used to work with them. I attended Subhash Ghai’s music sittings. I wasn’t star struck and it helped me to understand the entire process in the Hindi film industry. That helped me to evolve faster and grasp things much earlier. Then I did my 1st film Zeher as music director when I was 19. Anwar happened when I was 21, so I also saw success at a very young age. For me success meant the acceptance of my music. I did not follow anybody but created my own structure, sound and patterns, also my own way of dividing a song, doing interludes, breaking the templates of mukhda, antra, etc. I did many experiments which came naturally to me. Initially I was skeptical if I would be accepted as a composer or not. Before the release of Anwar I was very nervous and unsure if my semi classical style would be acceptable or not. However, it was very well accepted and that really gave me confidence. One

after another, my compositions from Bas ek pal, Anwar, The Train and Murder 2 became super hits. So there was a constant connect with my listeners which kept on building. After that I just went with the flow...didn’t even realize when I completed a decade. You are today’s music director. What do you think about the auto tune system being frequently used in recordings nowadays? I think it is a bit overrated. To understand the concept of auto tune let’s go back to the manual. Auto tune actually means pitch correction. It is used to correct or slightly touch up things here and there. It is not meant to take a non singer and convert him into a singer. I am a purist. I believe our country has got some fabulous singers and I don’t think our natural talent is so deplorable or so dried up that we have to actually rely on auto tuner to create a voice in pitch. Touch ups are fine wherever required. My songs speak of my ideology. Even if we use pitch correction extensively, it is not that we are fooling the audience as many a time it is very evident to the listeners. I have seen people commenting on social media regarding any voice that has been artificially created... that it somehow doesn’t exude the right emotion. So you see that the nature has its own way of balancing!

Tum Hi Ho created history! Why did you choose Arijit Singh for the song? Music for me is very non commercial, unplanned, unstructured and without an agenda. That is exactly why I am into music. Apart from music there was no other reason to take Arijit for the song. When Mukesh Bhatt asked me who should be the voice of Ashiqui 2, I instantly said Arijit Singh. I am proud that a singer of his stature sang the song. Have you and your dad ever worked together? Have there been any differences of opinion, as he belongs to the old school? Initially, in the first 2-3 years of my career, he used to supervise my work. He used to be in studio regularly and kept a check on my work by asking me to play to him whatever I was working on. As a father and a mentor he guided me. Many a times there were discussions on the use of a particular kind of reverb or maybe on the concept of a mix where on certain layers I wanted a particular level and he thought they were jarring. Some basic differences

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musical notes

“Marriage is a very sacred institution and I respect it. However, I am single at present and totally focused on my career.”

of perspective did happen which were very interesting and constructive. Over the years he is more convinced about what I do so his visits to the studio have become lesser. He is busy mentoring many youngsters nowadays. I would love to work in collaboration with him. With so many avenues opening up in music, we can surely do something interesting. He is a brilliant music writer and just needs the right creative opportunity. You are very selective in choosing your work. How do you decide? It is a deliberate process and now also an established fact over last 12 years that I do selective work. I know people want me to do more work but I don’t want to do more than 3 films a year. I spend a lot of time on a song. I am a perfectionist and keep experimenting and trying to see how it can be done better. The good thing is that I am now doing non film work also which is very interesting. Your Malaysian Project became quite popular. Any plans to go international again in the near future? The world is so small. I remember I had travelled to USA for IIFA Awards. I could hear Tum hi ho all over America. It had become an anthem. The song was heard even in English bands, German bands and American bands. So the world has come very close and the word ‘international ‘has also changed meaning now because the platform on which music communicates is so global. By the way,

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collaborations are definitely on in the pipeline and I have been interacting with a lot of musicians abroad and sharing work with them over email. It is a matter of time before I announce a collaboration. It has been heard that you have a musical bank with a number of melodious songs. When do you plan to release them? In fact, I am known to be a non banker. I don’t function like a bank. I generally like working on a script. However, because I do relatively less work, I get a lot of ideas of songs which are more than just thoughts. I capture the ideas, write few lines and leave it aside. I tell Syed Qadri Saab to text me few lines. So I do have these ideas captured in sessions. I surely want to share them. I plan to come out soon with my non film endeavors. A majority of my singers have been newcomers and my most successful songs have been with them. It has really worked for me so I am planning to create a platform for new singers, where I can hunt for the right voices and groom them to feature in my songs, taking them to the world. There is a certain energy that works with new singers. They can give me time and I get the best out of them. This year I am creating a model where I can train them and we can produce some great music. Tell us something about your forthcoming films. My forthcoming films are Shivay, Shab and Half Girl-

friend. I have done the full music for the former two. A new side of me will be seen in Shivay. Ajay Devgan is great a director. He gave me ample space to create my own sound. In my first sitting itself I understood that I have to create a totally different sound for Shivay. To capture the colors and essence of the film shot in India as well as Bulgaria I wanted to create right audio color in terms of the film. I did some new musical experiments. Let’s see how the audience and listeners reacts to it. Shab directed by Onir is more in my space. I did my first film with Onir i.e Bas ek pal. He is very tuned to a particular way of how I write songs. He is a man of emotion. That’s again my comfort zone. Shab has a dark emotional side. What fascinates you apart from music? I don’t get much time for anything other than music. I am fond of nature. Nature inspires me.

RAPID FIRE QUESTIONS Y OUR INSPIRATION My dad FAVORITE SONG FROM ANY OTHER COMPOSER Satyam Shivam Sundaram title song. Music by Laxmikant Pyarelal. YOUR FAVORITE SONG COMPOSED BY YOU Tose naina lage FAVORITE PLACE Israel STRENGTH The Holy Bible WEAKNESS None

You are an eligible bachelor. What is your view on marriage? Do you have anyone special? Marriage is a very sacred institution and I respect it. However, I am single at present and totally focused on my career. My listeners are very important to me. I consider them as my extended family and whenever I have someone special in my life they will surely come to know. What is your view on musical reality shows? I feel reality shows are completely for the purpose of entertainment and as entertainment it is perfectly fine. But I don’t consider it as a foundation for new singers. I would advise them to participate and enjoy the phase. After that they must concentrate on vocal practice which is the most vital.

FAVORITE CUISINE Indian food

Are you a religious person? It is completely a perspective - of how one sees it. I don’t believe in the concept of religion. I believe in my value system. I think every person looks up to something...the concept of values comes from your ideals. I look up to Jesus Christ as a hero. This happened in 2009 when I read a lot about him and came to know about his life. Neither do I believe in the concept of religion nor have I converted to Christianity. In terms of character, heroism, dignity, values, patience, virtue, I feel there was nobody on earth like him. So I constantly strive to be like him. What inspires you to compose such wonderful music? Inspiration for me can come from anyone’s life. My friends tell me about their lives, their experiences, careers and their sacrifices. People around me inspire me, and of course nature too…

Any message for new singers? Vocal Technique is a gift. A singer with technique will always have an edge above the others. We, especially have the Hindustani classical system which is a big asset. All singers according to me must have a foundation. Please be natural on the microphone. As natural as possible. The more natural you are, the sooner you will connect to people. Please get rid of artificiality. What is your message for your fans? I see it as a privilege if they have connected with my songs - right from my first film to my most recent one. I do not see myself as a star. I see it as a calling of service and pledge to continue to do that with sincerity. n Sujata Majumdar is a wellknown singer and our special music correspondent

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fEATURE

THAT EVENING WITH SANJEEV KUMAR Whether it was in the classic comedy Angoor or in the legendary film Sholay, Sanjeev Kumar gave a new dimension to every character he played. Ali Peter John remembers time spent with the unique actor on his seventieth birth anniversary

think it was in the early eighties when every second Hindi film was being shot in Hyderabad or in some other locations in Andhra Pradesh. A film called â&#x20AC;&#x153;Takkarâ&#x20AC;? was being shot in which Sanjeev Kumar was playing a very crucial role. We were in Bangalore in a five-star.

strict vegetarian at home gorged on the choicest nonvegetarian delicacies till late in the night and we then shifted to a dhaaba on Linking Road called Jai Jawan Jai Kisaan Dhaaba. It was run by retired fight directors and fighters, who prepared the best tandoori chicken and biryaani which Sanjeev relished.

Sanjeev and me used to spend most of our evenings in Mumbai at a particular Chinese hotel which they said belonged to the mother of Neetu Singh who later married Rishi Kapoor. On a typical evening we met around seven thirty and started drinking. Sanjeev who was a

In Hyderabad he made it a point to continue this Mumbai trend of ours, the only difference being that the venue was his suite in the hotel. We talked about every possible subject as the drinks continued to flow. He was so full of concern when he realized that I was too drunk that he

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walked me to my suite which was just two minutes away. He was invited to the suites of the other stars shooting for the film but preferred to spend his evenings like that, I still don’t know why. Once when he was sufficiently drunk, he suddenly got into a very somber and solemn mood and said, “Main pachaas saal ka hone se pehle mar jaaoonga, mujhe poora yakeen hai. Mere khaandaan mein koi bhi aadmi pachaas ke upar jeenewaala nahi hai. Mera baap pachaas ka tha jab woh mar gayaa aur main bhi aise hi maroonga”. It took me a long time to get him out of that mood but his last words that night were again the same. He was sure that he would die before he was fifty and that he would die a bachelor... Time passed. He had a younger brother called Kishore Jariwala who had failed in his attempts as a music

THERE WILL BE NO OTHER LIKE HIM AMITABH BACHCHAN: I was an admirer of Haribhai long before I aspired to be an actor. He was an actor who did not conform to the image of the typical Hindi film hero. He was perhaps one of the few actors like Balraj Sahni who I have been the greatest fan of. Someone who could take on the challenge of playing a grandfather in one film and a romantic hero in the very next and then switch on to play a deaf and dumb character and then play my father in a film like “Trishul” and also play a Thakur like he did in “Sholay”. I had the privilege of not only working with him but also sharing a very fond relationship. He was like family as Jaya considered him her brother. He could have reached higher levels of excellence as an actor but death snatched him away when he had just started playing more challenging roles. VINOD KHANNA: I never had the privilege of acting with one of the best actors of my time. I would have considered myself lucky even if I had to do a parallel role with him or even played his son like he had with some other actors. But it was my misfortune that I could not work with him. Working with him could perhaps have made me a better actor but that was not to be. GULZAR: I could never think of making a good film without first thinking about Haribhai. He was my source of inspiration right from the first film we did together, “Parichay”. We had a perfect understanding and that is why we could come up with outstanding films like “Koshish”, “Aandhi”, “Mausam”, “Angoor” and “Namkeen”, all of them films which had him

in roles I believe only he could play. I doubt if there will be another actor like him. I personally can’t think of making films without him and that is perhaps one reason why I have given up directing films for good. SHABANA AZMI: Haribhai was the only actor who never took his work seriously and yet came up with some of the greatest performances by an Indian actor. I worked with him in Satyajit Ray’s “Shatranj Ke Khiladi”, “Vishwasghaat” and “Namkeen”. He was so good that he also brought out the best in his co-stars. I will always remember my work with him as some of the best work I have done. JAYA BACHCHAN: If there is one actor who was never given his due during his life time, it was the great Sanjeev Kumar. He was truly one of the most natural actors who could be compared with the best actors anywhere. He was an actor who did Indian cinema proud and I feel extremely privileged as he was more than an elder brother to me. Tying a raakhi round his wrist one Raksha Bandhan genuinely gave me a feeling of security. I was awed by him as an actor and I loved him as a human being. There will never be another brother like him in my life and in Indian cinema. I will always miss him. SHARMILA TAGORE: I worked with almost all the actors of my time and even the best of the earlier times, but Sanjeev Kumar was the only one who kept me on my toes while working with him. He was so very sincere about his work that we, his co-stars did not mind his habit of reporting several hours late for a shoot. We all knew that he could do in one hour what other actors would take an entire day to accomplish.

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FEATURE

two children. There were many actresses like Sulakshana Pandit, Neeta Mehta and Jaishree T who claimed to be in love with him but he soon became a victim to a serious heart ailment. He was treated by the best doctors and then flown to America for further treatment. When he returned, he was a shadow of Sanjeev Kumar, one of the greatest but most underestimated actors of Bollywood.

director and part time actor. He had a weakness for alcohol and beautiful women. He suddenly died when he was forty-nine. Sanjeev had another younger brother, Nakul Jariwala, who lived with his family in Perin Villa on Pali Hill close to where Dilip Kumar, Saira Banu, Rajendra Kumar and Nasir Husain lived. Nakul was married and had two children. His family took care of Sanjeev who had one room to himself in the house. Nakul was co-producing a film called “Do Waqt Ki Roti” starring Sanjeev, Feroz Khan, Reena Roy and Amjad Khan and the film was being directed by Sakpal, a ‘drinking friend’ of Sanjeev. Sakpal was once an assistant to Narinder Bedi who directed films like “Khote Sikkey” (which was seen as the source of inspiration for “Sholay”),“Jawaani Deewani”, “Adaalat” and “Benaam”. The film Nakul was producing faced a number of problems and was not released for several years. Nakul could not take the shock and died of a heart attack when he was just thirtysix years old. Sanjeev took care of Nakul’s young wife and their

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He had to now spend most of his time at home and could not even complete the films he had signed earlier. It was only “Love and God”, a film started by the late K.Asif (the maker of “Mughal-E- Azam”) which he tried to complete but could not and most of the scenes he had left incomplete were shot with duplicates of Sanjeev. He was resting at home one afternoon when he had a guest, the actor Sachin who was a great admirer of his. It was Sachin who called me at three in the afternoon to give me the news that “Hari Bhai is dead”. Sanjeev Kumar had fulfilled his own prophecy. He had died of a massive heart attack at only forty-seven. KEEPING ALIVE HARIBHAI’S MEMORIES Sanjeev Kumar who started his career as a junior artist in the fifties in Hum Hindustani as a police constable with no dialogues, also worked in Gujarati plays of the Indian National Theatre. In his short career span he essayed some of the most difficult characters in every kind of film and won almost every major award for his brilliant performances. An initiative taken by the Surat Municipal Corporation (Haribhai Jethalal Jariwala was born in Surat) that has led to the building of a most well-equipped auditorium which has aptly been named after the legendary actor. The auditorium was inaugurated in February 2014 by the then Chief Minister of Gujarat, Mr. Narendra Modi. Built at a cost of over Rs. 100 crore, It is strategically located and can house 1140 people. With stateof the art facilities, which includes excellent lighting, it houses all the National awards won by Sanjeev Kumar during his life time. n

Special feature

‘More beautiful for having been broken’ Palak Shah writes on how some reputed personalities fought cancer and inspired millions in the process.

ccording to a recent survey by the National Institute of Cancer Prevention And Research, there are around 2.5 million people living with cancer in India. And every year over 7 lakh new cases of cancer are added. Deaths related to cancer account for approximately 5.5 lakhs in India, while worldwide deaths due to cancer are more than 8.2 million a year, according to a WHO study. Dreary but true facts! However, compared to a few decades ago when cancer was considered incurable, there is considerably more awareness as well as advancement in cancer treatment as well as research.

clutches of cancer. In spite of still being under medication, this greyeyed beauty now inspires people with her speeches under the title, “More beautiful for having been broken”. Calling herself a cancer graduate, she is also involved with several cancer awareness programs and fundraising programs in India and Canada. The Fortis healthcare group has even announced an award in her name - Lisa Ray Fortis, Spirit of Life Award for Cancer Conquerors.

Many well known personalities, from the breathtakingly beautiful actress, Lisa Ray to the flamboyant cricketer, Yuvraj Singh and world renowned athlete, Lance Armstrong have been detected with this life threatening disease. They had everything in abundance whether it was fame, success or wealth and it seemed nothing could ever go wrong. When cancer struck, they could have easily broken down and cried, “Why me?” Instead they faced the demon head on and said, “Try me!”.

Another time, the entire nation was in shock when news of the star performer of World-Cup 2011 being detected with lung cancer was made public. Yuvraj Singh, a brilliant sportsman is like an idol for cricket lovers. During his high pitched performance for India’s victory in the World Cup, he was facing a lot of health issues like incessant coughing and breathlessness, but didn’t pay any heed to the symptoms. His doctors actually told him later that he could have died of a heart attack, as his artery was getting squeezed between his lungs and heart because of a tumor! It was after a scan in 2011, that his cancer came to the fore. After treatment for a year, he came out as a winner in 2012. His comeback into mainstream cricket is indeed a miracle and his autobiographical book, “The Test of My Life” has been an inspiration not only for cancer patients but for everyone who has read it. In 2015, he started an organization for cancer awareness and a campaign for fighting cancer at the root level called, YOU WE CAN.

Today, they have emerged stronger as cancer survivors, and become beacons of hope who spread awareness about cancer and support others struggling with the disease. Their experience has changed them as people and also given them a different perspective on life. Lisa Ray, the Indo-Canadian actress, who was a successful model and an upcoming Bollywood actress, was detected with cancer in 2009. It was multiple myeloma which is not considered very easy to deal with. Lisa decided to not only face the fear but also to transform her experience to help motivate others. Almost a year later she was declared free from the

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And the one person from whom Yuvraj Singh and many other people gained motivation to fight cancer is none other than the sports stalwart, Lance Armstrong. A triathlon athlete and champion of bike racing, he was detected with cancer when he was just 25 years old. He was suffering from testicular cancer which had reached an advanced level and spread to his lungs, abdomen and lymph nodes and his survival chances dimmed further when he was also diagnosed with brain tumors. Lance decided to battle all odds and up his 40 percent chances of survival to a full 100 percent. After innumerable rounds of chemotherapy and surgeries, he was declared cancer-free. His cancer awareness foundation, LiveStrong, has been doing a tremendous amount of work in raising awareness and funds for cancer patients. Another Hollywood actress of Indian origin, Namrata Singh Gujral, comes from a family with a history of breast cancer and was therefore always vigilant when it came to the disease. She regularly got her mammograms done but luckily nothing came of them for 7 years. At the age of 32, however, she was detected with breast cancer in its initial stages. Because of the care she took, she became free from the disease sooner than most but could not come to terms with the number of deaths happening due to breast cancer the world over. She read somewhere that every 69 seconds one woman in this world was dying of breast cancer and wanted to do something to change that reality, raise awareness and show that cancer is not the end. To that end, Namrata made a one minute, documentary film which offers inspiration and hope to those dealing with cancer. A quote which she put in her movie has been her inspiration - “Fear is not living in the moment”. She keeps this thought close to her heart and enjoys just being alive! The Nepali actress Manisha Koirala was going through a low phase in her personal as well as professional life when she was detected with ovarian cancer. After two

years of rigorous treatment and changes in diet plan, she came out clean. Instead of blaming bad karma for having been diagnosed with cancer, she feels that cancer helped her in appreciating life more than before. Manisha says she touched death with her illness and has now got a new lease of life. “Every handshake and every sunset is valuable”, she says as she gears up for an NGO which will provide much needed support to cancer patients. It has been observed that when a famous person develops cancer of for that matter any disease, there is an upsurge in its public awareness. Angelina Jolie opted for double mastectomy after she found out that she was carrying a genetic mutation that increased her chances of contracting breast cancer. After her public announcement of the surgery, there was a sudden increase in single as well as double mastectomy cases. In India too, celebrities are coming forward to lend their star power for the cancer cause. Actor and model, Milind Soman has launched Pinkathon, which is India’s biggest women’s marathon. It works towards promoting good health in women and raising consciousness about breast cancer. Actresses like Kalki Kochelin and Deepika Padukone paint their nails with teal colour to promote the cause of ovarian cancer, while Emraan Hashmi, who recently dealt with his son’s cancer, has decided to set up cancer detection centers across Mumbai city. He has also announced the launch a mobile application on cancer awareness and has written about his experiences in a book. Cancer detection and its subsequent treatment are often traumatic; not only for the patient but the family members as well. Early detection can not only reduce agony but significantly improve chances of survival. John Diamon sums up the attitude that is needed to deal with the affliction, for ‘Cancer is a word, not a sentence!’. n

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Special feature

HEAD AND NECK ABOVE THE REST Dr Jatin P Shah, a world renowned, leading name in Head and Neck Cancer surgery, met Atul Shah, CMD and Editor of Feelings Multimedia, recently in New York. We bring you a few excerpts from the chat. Dr. Shah, you specialize in head and neck cancer. How did you happen to choose this specialty? Tell us a little bit about where you received your education and training and what it took to reach where you are now. It is interesting that you ask me this question. I grew up in Baroda as the third child of a high school principal. My father was an educator and paid great emphasis on good education. I went to the Medical College of the MS University in Baroda and following my graduation, pursued general surgical training under the mentorship of the late Dr. Manubhai D. Patel and Dr. Anandlal B. Kothari. I immediately came to the United States thereafter and after having spent a year in surgical research came to the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, to begin my training in cancer surgery and cancer research. I particularly chose to specialize in cancer surgery because my father who was a heavy smoker passed away from lung cancer and I made a commitment that I would get involved in the care and prevention of cancer. Going through various surgical departments I felt head and neck cancer to be most

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challenging because this is the most “visible cancer”. It affects one’s appearance and the ability to speak, communicate, eat, swallow, smell, see, hear and express oneself. Thus, the challenge of treating head and neck cancer is to not only to eradicate cancer but to address all of these functional issues. I joined the full time faculty of the Department of Head and Neck Surgery in 1974. After having gained sufficient experience in clinical surgery and research I was appointed as Chairman of the Department of Head and Neck Surgery. Being at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and having the ability to conduct clinical and laboratory research as well as to provide care to thousands of patients with head and neck cancer gave me a platform for leadership in head and neck surgery. This eventually lead for me to achieve leadership in literally each and every head and neck cancer related organization in the Unites States and at International level. It is said that India is the World Capital for mouth cancer. Why is that so and what can we do to abolish mouth cancer from India?

Dr Shah: Unfortunately, lifestyle related habits such consumption of paan, tobacco, gutka, paan parag, masala, mava and similar tobacco related products either consumed by chewing, smoking or using as a snuff leads to the genesis of cancers in the mouth, throat and nasal cavity. This habit is so deeply rooted in the Indian society that small children even at age of 10 - 11 start chewing tobacco and smoking bidi and cigarettes. This has lead to the annual incidence of over 350,000 new head and neck cancers in India each year - a major tragedy. Fortunately, this is also a most preventable cancer, and if these habits are given up or not cultivated in the first place, the risk of developing cancer in the mouth or throat is nearly eliminated. Early diagnosis of this cancer is also very easy which leads to a large number of patients being cured. A simple flashlight is sufficient to look into the mouth and diagnose an early cancer of the gum, tongue, floor of the mouth or the cheek mucosa. Any dentist or a general practitioner should be able to make this diagnosis by visually inspecting these areas with a flashlight. How are these cancers detected and treated, and what is the outcome for these patients? Can they hope for a normal quality of life? Early stage oral cancer is easily curable by simple surgery and leads to excellent quality of life with minimal functional compromise. On the other hand,

advanced stage cancers require major surgery, and multidisciplinary treatment with radiation and chemotherapy in addition to surgery and lead to significant impact on the quality of life, external appearance, physical functions and clearly a much decreased survival rate. Unfortunately the majority of patients in India are diagnosed at an advanced stage, so we need to focus on increasing public awareness to get early and regular screenings done to diagnose very early stage cancer or even premalignant, precancerous areas in the mouth. To increase awareness, we observe the week of July 27 (between July 25 and 30) as the World Head and Neck Cancer Day. On this day, throughout the world, numerous activities about increasing awareness on head and neck cancer, prevention strategies, free screening clinics, continuing education programs for physicians and similar activities are conducted including newspaper publicity, media campaigns and television interviews. July 27 was declared as the World Head and Neck Cancer Day during the 5th World Congress of the International Federation of Head and Neck Oncologic Societies held in New York in July 2014. This declaration was endorsed and supported by President Bill Clinton and actor Michael Douglas both of whom were present during the opening ceremony of the Congress. We urge all concerned with head and neck cancers to engage in and organize relevant activities pertaining to oral cancer prevention, especially during this week. The mother of a young girl was who was recently diagnosed with thyroid cancer is worried that this could be a result of exposure to x-rays to which her daughter was subjected to when she was an infant. Are her worries justified? If so, what can be done about it? It is true that exposure to radiation during childhood is a risk factor for genesis of thyroid cancer. The incidence of thyroid cancer rose dramatically following the atom bomb explosion in Hiroshima and Nagasaki and following the atomic fall out after the Chernobyl accident in Russia. However, diagnostic x-rays required for assessment of lungs via chest x-ray or dental x-rays are not a risk factor. Thus, diagnostic x-rays required for healthcare are not a risk factor. On the other hand, we are seeing a steep rise in the incidence of thyroid cancer worldwide in the past twenty years, and this is largely

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Special feature

due to advanced technological imaging of the thyroid gland with frequent use of ultrasound and also increased awareness on the part of the patient as well as medical practitioners. Fortunately a great majority of thyroid cancers are curable with nearly 100% cure rate. In fact, papillary carcinoma of the thyroid gland, the most common thyroid cancer occurring in young patients is nearly uniformly curable. So you may allay the anxiety of the mother of this young girl. Her daughter may have required surgery but she has an excellent chance of being cured permanently. So in the arena of head and neck cancer, thyroid cancer gives us a ray of hope that if diagnosed early and at a young age, it is a curable cancer. The other side of the coin is that these are very indolent cancers and may not even require treatment. Generally thyroid cancers are less than 1 cm in diameter can be safely kept under surveillance without the need for surgical intervention. How do you select a particular treatment for head and neck cancer whether it is surgery, radiation, chemotherapy or multimodality treatment? Selection of therapy requires significant degree of expertise and experience and depends on each individual patient. In general, early stage cancers can be easily treated and cured by a single modality treatment such as surgery or radiation therapy. For mouth cancer, surgery is the preferred treatment but some cancers in the throat and those of the vocal cord in the early stage can be cured by radiation therapy alone. Unfortunately, advanced cancers are not controlled by a single modality treatment and require multiple treatment strategies including surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy to get ahead of the cancer. In spite of this cure rates in advanced cancer are not very satisfactory. Selection of the treatment also depends not only on the cancer and the stage of the cancer, but on the patient - the patientâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s nutritional status, vocation, age and comorbidities with other medical conditions. Every few months we hear a lot about new drugs coming into the market and about discoveries in genetics of cancer as well as advances in technology. Can you give a brief on what are the frontier discoveries in head and neck cancer treatment?

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Genomic alterations in the cellular structure of the human body are implicated in the genesis of cancer. Significant advances have been made in the discovery of the human genome to identify mutations in many cells which lead to or are associated with a particular cancer. Though we now have the technology to study the entire human genome and also the entire tumor genome to arrive at a consortium of genetic mutations related to each specific cancer, we do not yet know what to do with this information. Such information can be used in assessment of prognosis, selection of treatment and prevention of cancer. This information may also predict the risk of developing a specific cancer. Significant advances have also been made in Immunotherapy with introduction of immunomodulators such as those related to BRAF, MTOR and Kinase inhibitors and other pathways to name a few. However, these drugs have to stand the test of time to enter the mainstream arena for head and neck cancer treatment. Currently these newly introduced drugs are in clinical trials. On the other hand there are significant advances in technology for diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Numerous visual technologies including in vivo imaging and confocal microscopy to identify abnormal cells in situ as well as development of new lasers and robotic technology has allowed access to areas which could not be reached by the human hand in the past. Technology advancement is an exciting area where we will continue to see major strides in the near future. Dr. Shah, you spent your early years in Baroda. Do you have any reflections on Baroda and any advice for young medical students and doctors in training in the city? Baroda was a small stately town when I grew up there. In my subsequent visits I have noted that the city has grown in every which way, in all directions and is bursting beyond its boundaries - with increasing population, projects and homes. Nevertheless, it remains a university town with the MS University being a major educational force offering specialized education and training in numerous fields. We lived in a house in Modikhana, next to Sardar Bhavan and owned that house until very recently. It was the wish of my siblings and myself that â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Sarla Sadanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; the house named after my mother and was built by my Dad, be donated in their memory to the Baroda Medical Association. The

chosen field, make your profession your passion and you will never be in a situation where you will find yourself working hard or working overtime. You will simply be in ecstasy with your passion anytime and all the time. Such a passionate connection with your specialty will bring about new discoveries in science and push the frontiers of medicine in the years ahead.

“Remember there is never a moment where you cannot do anything for any patient. There is always something you can do even when the time comes to think about palliation and end of life care.” house is now being utilized by the BMA, a branch of the Indian Medical Association. Baroda Medical College is a great institution that has expanded by leaps and bounds over the past several decades. My only advice to the medical students and the young physicians in training is that while you are studying various specialties, try and see where your aptitude and interests lie. Have passion for what you do for if you are passionate, excellence will exude. However, if your profession becomes ‘work’, then mediocrity will perpetuate. Dedicate yourself to your

Finally, Dr. Shah, there is a lot being said about faith, prayers and self healing. What are your views on this and what do you resort to when you find yourself in a helpless situation with a sick patient who is dying? Belief in God and the Almighty is an essential component of all human beings in their lifetime. We all resort to the Almighty in times of need and distress, so having faith in your caregivers and your physician, love for your family members and belief in God are likely to create a self healing process during your illness. In addition to this, a positive attitude is an important factor in helping your recovery from an illness and it’s side effects.Personally, I am not an expert in self healing and non medical ways of helping patients, but I am reasonably sure that if such practices are employed in conjunction with modern day medicine, we will have a happy patient, cured of cancer and recovering from the aftermaths of treatment relatively easily. Remember there is never a moment where you cannot do anything for any patient. There is always something you can do even when the time comes to think about palliation and end of life care. Control of pain, maintaining nutrition, providing support to the patient physically, emotionally and socially are important components of a comprehensive cancer treatment program. Just like the quality of life is important, the quality of death is equally important, when the time comes. Support from family and friends is crucial in this multidisciplinary, multifaceted crusade against the horrible disease called head and neck cancer. n (An Attending Surgeon at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, for the past 42 years, Dr Shah is the founder and CEO of the International Federation of Head and Neck Oncologic Societies. Dr Shah has been President of nearly all societies related to his field and has received several honorary degrees and medals. He has authored 13 text books on the subject, which have been translated in different languages.)

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Immigrant Diary

NaMo Gandhi:

Money Man,Poet,

Thespian Madhu Rye Thaker in a stirring conversation with the distinguished Natwarlal Mohanlal Gandhi, who left India only to rise as a glorious star in the American financial firmament. NaMo talks about his love for the Arts and what initially surprised him about Americaâ&#x20AC;Ś

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atwarlal Mohanlal Gandhi is another Gujarati with the initials NaMo who became the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Washington, DC and during his long tenure there, handled its $12 billion budget with enviable élan. This NaMo is also a poet and an actor who played Mohandas Gandhi in an English play about India’s Independence struggle (a lucky break he credits his own bald head for). Like the other Gandhi he is exasperatingly frugal, and an engaging raconteur. Mr. Gandhi – actually Dr. Gandhi, with a PhD and a side of MBA and LLB, has been one of the founding members of the glamorous Gujarati Literary Academy of North America. He is also on Boards of Trustees of Shakespeare Theater Company and of Arena Stage. Besides, he has published four collections of sonnets in Gujarati. During his tenure as CFO, the District’s finances were transformed from a negative balance of 500 million into a positive balance of $1.5 billion, all thanks to his frugality and shrewd planning. In 2007, Gandhi was among the “150 most powerful public officials” ranked by the Washingtonian magazine. Dozens of awards and accolades have been showered on him

since, including the President’s Award from the Greater Washington Society of CPAs in 2000, and Distinguished Service and Meritorious Service Awards from the GAO. Gandhi retired in 2014. During 2014-2016, he was a Distinguished Policy Fellow at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business. He is presently Senior Fellow at Governing Institute and consults with the World Bank in its efforts to create financially sustainable cities around the world. He also sits on the Board of IIPL USA LLC, an infrastructure financing and leasing company. We had a chat with NaMo and his soul mate Panna Naik, over a Thai dinner. When and why did you leave India? Did you know you would eventually settle here? I left India in 1965, never to return because I saw no future for me there. Sure, I came here to settle down. How was your first impression of the USA? What surprised you, what delighted you, what turned you off, if anything? Even before I set foot on this land, I was fascinated by America. What I saw here simply confirmed what I had imagined of America. Still, the surprise was the civility of common people. And, of course, the fabled

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Immigrant Diary

milk and honey that is said to flow on the streets. What turns me off is the small mindedness of some NRIâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s who mentally seem to be still living in India and not assimilating in the American mainstream. Tell us a bit about your early years: your struggles, loneliness, homesickness, any color discrimination, language bar, the food, the culture, the people. I never felt homesick, I was so sick of India! I rarely had to struggle here because of skin color, language, food, culture or local people. Early on there were financial straits, but overall my early experience in the U. S. was a happy one. How did you start out to be a bean counter? How would you describe your professional life? Professionally, I have gone through a circuitous journey here, though far less arduous than what I had experienced in Mumbai. I came here for a doctorate degree. I have taught MBA programs at several universities including at University of Pittsburgh. In 1976, I joined GAO (then the General Accounting Office), a Federal government agency comparable to the Comptroller General of India and worked closely with the U. S. Congress. Then I took

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over as the CFO of Washington DC, and now I divide my time between my job as a consultant with the World Bank and reading, writing and basking in sun. I also travel far and near for fun, with the love of my life Panna Naik, the renowned Gujarati poet. What about marriage, children, grandchildren? Nalini, my wife of forty-seven years passed away in 2009. Fortunately, I found a new love in Panna whose abiding and deep affection for me is now the principal strength in my life. My two children and four of our five grandchildren were born here in the U.S. Any ties with your homeland, India? I try to stay engaged in financing a charitable hospital in my home town in Gujarat. Also, since I dabble in Gujarati literature, especially poetry, I try to stay in touch with the Gujarati literary scene. Do you miss India at all? I miss a few relatives and my close friends. Unfortunately, most of them have passed away. Any regrets when you look back? Many regretsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; coming to America is not one of them!â&#x20AC;&#x201D; but I do not dwell on regrets. My focus is to look ahead, move forward, and make the most of my golden years. What do you love/admire about your adopted country? America gives you a chance to remake your life! This magnificent country and its generous people open their hearts and doors to immigrants like me and allow them pursue and realize their dreams. Only in America can a first generation Asian immigrant become Chief Financial Officer of the nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s capital, Washington, DC. For me, America is still the Promised Land. When did you last visit India? What changes did you notice? From where it was in 1965 when I left it, to 2016 when I

last visited, the country has changed remarkably. From a timid, diffident and hesitant nation, it has morphed into an assertive, even aggressive, behemoth. Indian corporations move triumphantly abroad and do business everywhere, while smart Indians abroad dazzle their host communities. The massive Indian middle class is thriving in prosperity, harvesting the fruits of globalization and improved communication. Regrettably, over half of India is still mired in abysmal poverty. Also, I am particularly impressed with young Indians, especially young women, who are charting their future with great assurance. That was not there when I was growing up in India. If you could change one thing about India, what would it be? Its corrupt politics and maddeningly inept bureaucracy. n

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FEATURE

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From rags to

recognition An organisation that brings dignity to the lives of those who pick up our trash, SWaCH is doing much more than it initially set out to do. Ashesh Pandia writes on the inner workings of this path-breaking cooperative, that also featured in the popular TV show, Satyamev Jayate

arbage. A word that’s more abhorred than adored for obvious reasons. While all of us create garbage on a daily basis, we are averse to its presence around us, whether at home, in the neighbourhood or on the streets. We cover our noses and scrunch up our faces in disgust at the very sight of it. The issue however can only be avoided for so long, and it certainly cannot be ignored.

themselves in the municipal solid waste management hierarchy that improved their working conditions. Thus was formed the Kagad Kach Patra Kashtkari Panchayat (KKPKP), a movement that spearheaded the battle of waste pickers, waste buyers and waste collectors to be recognised as workers.

While every city administration employs staff to collect garbage and take it to the landfills, the crucial role and efforts of the rag pickers at the bottom rung is always overlooked. They are perhaps one of the most marginalised sections of society and therefore never talked about. Forget dignity, they find themselves being treated like ‘garbage’, even as they willingly dirty their hands by scouring through other people’s filth. If not for livelihood, would anyone spend a better part of his/her day, every day, amidst nightmarish working conditions?

What KKPKP said was very simple. Waste pickers need to be treated with dignity and given their due status in the society because they recovered materials for recycling, reduced municipal solid waste handling costs, generated employment downstream, and contributed to public health and environment. They occupy an important place in the waste management and recycling value chain and contribute substantially to the manufacturing economy. Surprised? Take a breath and rethink over what’s aforesaid, and you can’t help but agree that rag pickers indeed need to be taken much more seriously than they have been since time immemorial.

Circa 1993. The waste pickers of Pune, Maharashtra, scripted their exit out of the rubbish heaps and landfills to transform their lives forever. They unionized themselves to define a legitimate workspace for

This argument was well understood by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), which entered into an MOU in 2008 with an offshoot of KKPKP, christened Solid Waste Collection Handling or SWaCH.

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FEATURE

SWaCH: The next step in being self reliant A cooperative of waste pickers, waste buyers and waste collectors, SWaCH is wholly worker-owned and conceived as an autonomous social enterprise. SWaCH Seva Sahakari Sanstha Maryadit, as it is formally known, provides front-end waste management services to Pune city with support from PMC.

A Unique Model SWaCH is an inclusive model that recognises the contribution of ‘invisible’ workers who play a crucial role in keeping the Pune city clean. Different from the PMC model, SWaCH follows a green model of waste collection that is not heavily dependent on fossil fuel or electricity.

Throwing light on the birth of SWaCH, Aparna Sasurla, Director of SWaCH says, “The organisation works on a well-defined model which was tested for two years (2005-2007) before being presented to PMC for support, approval and recognition. It was only after the success of this pilot project which established the workability and the potential of SWaCH beyond doubt, that PMC gave its nod to be integrated into the mainstream solid waste management system (SWM) of the city of Pune.”

Talking about the significance of SWaCH in the SWM system of Pune City, Aparna says, “The importance of SWaCH is multidimensional and affects various people at different levels. To the residents, SWaCH is important because they get a reliable service at a reasonable cost and with accountability. To the waste pickers it is important because it gives them dignity while integrating them into the formal sector along with upgrading their standard of living. To the municipality it is important because the waste is collected in a more systematic manner and segregated at such nominal cost.”

Acceptance by PMC was like winning a long battle for SWaCH. In the crucial early years, the Corporation played a positive and enabling role in promoting SWaCH. It acknowledged that the SWaCH model was indeed a cost-saving, sustainable and environmentally beneficial system which added value to the already existing but faltering solid waste management system of the Corporation. With the passage of time, it became clear that SWaCH had the required ability and dynamism to bring about a fundamental change in the SWM system of Pune.

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Women constitute over 78% of SWaCH membership. While this holds for most age groups, the presence of men is higher in the youngest age group and among the aging. Most SWaCH members used to work as waste pickers or itinerant waste buyers. Housekeeping and cleaning workers constitute another significant group. Two SWaCH workers collect source-segregated waste from 200-300 households, offices, shops and other

establishments using manual pushcarts or motorized vehicles if the terrain is difficult. The waste pickers have the right over recyclables and retain income from the sale of scrap. This ensures maximum recycling and retrieval. Waste pickers separate the waste into wet and dry. Wet, organic and non-recyclable waste is handed over to the PMC. In some cases it is composted on site. Dry waste is sorted into categories like plastic, paper, metal, glass, leather etc. and then further fine sorted. Whatever has a demand in the market is sold.

per household per month, in non-slum areas and in slum areas we charge Rs. 15 per household per month. We insist on user fees because SWaCH waste collectors are not paid by PMC for door to door collection.”

The earnings of SWaCH members are derived from user fees and sale of recyclables. SWaCH members have a relatively more stable income than other waste pickers in India. Their working hours vary from four to six hours including collection and sorting. Most also enjoy a weekly holiday.

As the primary collection system got established and began running in auto-pilot mode, the management of SWaCH decided to foray into allied activities to add more value and dimensions to their core endeavour. Calling it SWaCH+, the organisation began to offer services such as collection of unwanted household goods, collection of e-waste, garden waste, housekeeping and trading in recyclables. Under SWaCH+ the members are trained to handle mechanical composters and do manual composting. Members also work in bio-methanation plants established by PMC on Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) basis.

Trials and Tribulations As with every innovative idea, SWaCH too faces challenges from various quarters. From being slammed for being too transparent a model to being criticised as something that unnecessarily creates a parallel system, SWaCH has to deal with a multitude of problems while still performing its best. “Other challenges notwithstanding, the model being a user-fee based one is often met with resistance from the residents,” says Aparna. “Usually, we charge Rs. 10 to 30

SWaCH+ A range of financial, social and environmental benefits for the PMC, waste pickers, citizens and Pune city as a whole are being achieved by the innovative steps taken by SWaCH.

Under the V-Collect program, SWaCH collects old electronics, furniture, bicycles and kitchen utensils and repairs and re-uses wherever possible, while dismantling and recycling the rest. These events channelize most of these items away from the dumps.

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SWaCH also collects old newspapers from households and uses them to produce ST disposable bags and carry bags. Members are trained in making ST Dispo bags with recycled paper, glue, and thread. An added advantage is that as it looks distinct, it goes into a separate waste stream and waste pickers are saved the indignity of handling soiled sanitary napkins directly. The bags are available at local stores in different areas of Pune.

“Today, when I go to collect my money, the lady there asks me to sit on the sofa. If she is drinking tea, she will order another cup for me.”

Collecting clean, usable clothes and sorting them according to size, gender, age and style is another SWaCH activity. These are sold at nominal prices to waste pickers and other urban poor. Torn fabrics are recycled into cloth products like bags, coasters and dusters. The Green School Programme SWaCH in association with Parisar and CEE, has launched the Green School Programme which aims to widen the horizon of the school going children. The programme entails enhancing the children’s

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perspective on environment, sustainability and related issues as well as guiding schools in setting up and implementing the best practices of solid waste and e-waste management.

Nirmalya Project Over the past 7 years, by diverting huge amounts of waste – both organic and biodegradable, from Pune’s rivers, SWaCH has significantly reduced river pollution and the dumping of nirmalaya (offerings) on ghats. Last year itself, SWaCH diverted 177 tonnes of nirmalaya. This has encouraged responsible citizens of Pune to be more eco-conscious. E-Waste Disposal SWaCH has been authorised by the PMC to collect and channel e-waste according to the rules laid down by the government. SWaCH ensures the collection and correct disposal of e-waste at authorised PMC centres. Last year, over 7 metric tonnes of e-waste was diverted from the grey market and sold in the open market by SWaCH.

On the road to Success In its eight years of existence, SWaCH has touched lives and livelihoods of its workers in ways unimaginable for them earlier. They have become self-reliant, economically more stable and have created a platform that promises to secure a better future for the next generation. Compared to their incomes as free-roaming waste pickers, the earnings of SWaCH members have increased manifold since the launch of the initiative. Depending on the locality from where the collection is done, their income ranges from Rs. 1,500 per month to Rs. 15,000 per month. This has brought stability into their lives, something that was previously unknown. They can now also save for a rainy day. Such has been the faith of the SWaCH workers that their well-educated children too have joined the organisation to serve the noble cause. In a community which traditionally had little access to education and decent work, it is a matter of pride to see their children become the face of SWaCH’s future. Moreover, by branching out into waste related activities many waste pickers are upgrading their work standards, and actually creating upward mobility in an occupation which was once considered lowest of the low. The SWaCH initiative has come to represent the biggest effort to integrate waste pickers in India. The hitherto ‘faceless and nuisance-causing people’ are now those

who interact with fellow residents on an equal footing. Surekha Gaekwad is a high school graduate and team leader of eight waste pickers. She and her team has diversified into housekeeping and composting. Sharing her story Surekha says, “Five years ago, I spent my day at garbage bins. I ended up dirty and stinking by evening. I was looked at with apathy and disgust. But now I have earned people’s respect. Today, when I go to collect my money, the lady there asks me to sit on the sofa. If she is drinking tea, she will order another cup for me.” Mangal, another SWaCH member expresses her happiness in these words. “The residents in the area who used to frown at me, now call me by my name and greet me too. A resident gave me a second hand bicycle. I ride to work on the bicycle. Today I am literate and am the treasurer of a credit co-operative.” The twinkle in her eyes and the broad smile speak another thousand words which, though unheard, do not go unheeded. In the 2014 series of Satyamev Jayte, Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan invited SWaCH to share their story and experiences, giving the organisation a national platform. The efforts and endeavours of SWaCh are slowly and steadily gaining recognition as more and more people become aware of its impact on the lives of over 3000 waste pickers who form the Cooperative. The future is indeed bright and with support from the authorities, educated civilians and good samaritans, SWaCH will surely accomplish what it set out to achieve – taking waste pickers from rags to recognition. n

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made in india

ART RE-ENGINEERED Nandini Sanan Shankar visits SITE art space, a unique art venture that borrows from the very industrial chaos it exists in, coalescing it with a progressive urban ethic to create art in metal, commissioned or otherwise. 52 | Feelings

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adodara is a city full of artists, so it only seems natural for a place like SITE art space to exist. Yet, it looks like a place that could only exist inside an scientific mind, not an artist’s. In fact, a walk behind the scenes reveals a vibe that’s more Mad Max than Shantiniketan. And that too, in a good way. Originally a workshop for creative experiments on various materials, SITE art space has retained the same ethic , complete with workers wielding electric cutting and welding machines on its premises, while successfully evolving into an eclectic art gallery, a creative design solutions provider to artists, architects and students, and an art-in-metal movement all its own. According to Manish Maheshwari, whose brainchild it is, “We entertain all sorts of weird requests. Artists come here with an idea in their heads, architects with just a drawing on paper and we help them turn it into reality.” Every step in this sprawling 20,000 sq ft. area is a discovery in design – from the building’s structure to the stuff inside - comfortable swings made of thin copper strips hand woven with leather, a smooth sofa made of shiny steel, a walking stick called ‘Lip Stick’ that pouts at you, an innovative fence made of rusted iron birds or a stunning chandelier made with a dry vine. The last is a commissioned piece that will soon leave the premises, just like most of the other architectural installations. Manish believes his extraordinary ability to work with metal is ‘God’s gift’, for he hasn’t repeated anything in the last 18 years. “Most of our commissioned work is housed around the world, which

includes the Georges Pompidou Centre in Paris, Maker Maxity in Mumbai, the Kalaghoda festival, Mumbai, The Park Hotel in Hyderabad and a private museum in Vienna. We have also worked for corporate giants such as ONGC , FAG , Alstom, Kumar Mangalam Birla, Bomabardier and ABB India,” says Manish, who is a qualified electronic engineer with a strong inclination towards understanding design with a problem-solving attitude. He studied to become an engineer according to his family’s wishes but ended up following his heart, and hasn’t looked back ever since the day he designed his first tabletop unicycle souvenir. Given that most of the art installations are huge in size, difficult to transport and are mid to long-term projects, Manish started using his creative skills on smaller objects – a quirky and eccentric product line took shape in the form of home-décor and accessories. Inspired from objects used every day, the products are re-imagined in different materials and forms. The latest art experiment at SITE art space is the 6th century Japanese art of Origami, redefined. Instead of folding paper to create shapes, workers are cutting and folding thin sheets of metal with it being called “Orialloy” or “alloyart”. The brass and copper sheets that are folded into the desired form before an artificial oxidation process further enhances the visual appeal by adding texture and colour changes. This Ori-alloy collection is designed keeping in mind the growing sensitivity towards nature, be it loss of habitat or lives or extinction of animal species. The forms chosen are native to India and showcase the glory of Indian wildlife, so there are peacocks, elephants, monkeys, birds and several other animal designs. The hardworking team consists largely of semi skilled locals, with

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little or no prior experience of metal fabrication. They are trained slowly and steadily, over a period of time but according to Piyush Maheshwari, who is the critical and analytical thinker at SITE art space, “It is a challenge to keep the labour involved in the work, but one learns how to deal with such hiccups along the way.” Forever pushing the boundaries when it comes to working with materials, it sometimes takes Manish months to come up with a design solution. Every piece that is made at SITE art space has a story behind it, from Zizo restaurant in Delhi who wanted a realistic ‘donkey’ installed at their restaurant, to the Dalmias who wanted a complicated bridge on their property or the tree trunk made of 3000 stainless steel triangular pieces in mirror finish, currently installed at Kumar Mangalam Birla’s house. “The difficult part is convincing our clients on how we

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will achieve what they have presented to us as a drawing or an idea,” says Manish, who always runs a test before making something new. Apart from manufacturing customized art, SITE art space provides a learning experience for design students and artists who visit from all over the country to study the ‘material experiments’ conducted here. Manish proudly displays a smooth metal cone which looks unusual even to my untrained eye, as it has absolutely no trace of a welding joint anywhere! This and other metal objects such as a small Charminar and Taj Mahal catch the eye at the small but artistically laid out library cum learning centre at the facility. A haven for anyone with an artistic temperament, at SITE art space with its gallery, workshop , curio store and art café, anything seems possible, even if it’s only a wisp of an idea in your head. There’s a good chance it might end up being immortalized in metal. n

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fEATURE

FROM SPAM TO SCAM

THE CHANGING FACE OF ONLINE FRAUD Jagruti Pandya dives deep into the murky world of online scamming and cybercrime

“I

| am an England based marine engineer with a great business plan for India. While exploring different profiles looking for a partner, I found yours the most suitable and trustworthy. Well, well, dearo (yes, that’s what they say here instead of “dear”), I am coming soon to Navi Mumbai with all my plans in hand and will visit you shortly.” At first, it sounds like a business tycoon conversing with someone in order to expand his business. But this is how the net is cast to fool people who are genuinely scouring the web for work or business. Prerna Jani* was recently caught in just such a net of deceit. Enticed by a Mr. Phillips Smith from the UK, she got in touch with him on Facebook and other social networking websites and after several initially formal conversations they switched to chatting on Whatsapp. “In the beginning, it seemed all right,” says Prerna from Vadodara, Gujarat. “Phillips won my trust by sharing various proofs such as his UK phone number and pictures of his office and business dealings in India. He confessed to being a widower, having lost his wife and also introduced his daughter to me. He said he wished to expand his business in India and would be visiting

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on 23rd May 2016. He then talked about how he was looking for land and people in India, which was how he chanced on my profile and now wanted me to lead his Indian operations. In fact, he also showed me his arrival dates and flight schedule from Heathrow to Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi.” On the morning of 23rd May, Prerna’s phone flashed an Indian number with Phillip’s voice on the other end. “He greeted me and said he was really eager to meet and discuss the plan. He added that he won’t be going to Navi Mumbai first but would land straight at Vadodara. He called again after half an hour from the same number but seemed very hassled. He said that his luggage had been detained along with all his credit/debit cards and currency. He needed a favour from me, he added and then handed over the phone to a certain Pooja Sharma from the Customs department. She spoke in Hindi and told me that 45,000 INR would have to be deposited in so and so account in order to free Mr. Philip’s luggage. She also assured me that Mr Phillips would immediately return the money as soon as he met me.” “I knew then in my gut that something was wrong,” says Prerna, “but this Pooja and Phillips were rushing and talking to me alternately over the phone, again and again. I had no choice but to give in, so I rushed to SBI

and somehow convinced the bank to allow me to deposit 45,000 INR, exceeding my 25,000 INR a day limit. But as soon as the cash was deposited, I realized that he had blocked me on every platform, as I was unable to contact him through FB or Whatsapp. Moreover, no numbers showed up in the name of Pooja from Customs. I knew then that I had been conned.” After this incident, Prerna investigated online and found that the scammer was also registered as ‘Michael Toovakka Phillips Smith’ on many other websites like match.com and male-scammers.com, under several similar names and pictures. This particular scam is called the business scam while many others such as romance scams and military scams are being perpetrated from Nigeria, Ghana and UK. They use a system where they can divert calls from any part of the world. This is just a single example but many such Prernas have been robbed ever since the cyber world has come to figure prominently in our lives. Scammers post profiles, using stolen photographs of attractive people, asking for others to contact them. This is often known as cat fishing. Fraudsters post profiles on dating websites, social media, classified sites and even on forums to lure new victims. Once the prey is zeroed-in upon, they use use private means of communication, such as providing an e-mail address. Typically, the scammer acts as if he’s fallen for the victim thus targeting the victim emotionally, building up to the plan of asking for money. Letters are exchanged until the scammer feels they have groomed the victim enough to ask for money. These might be requests for gas money, bus and airplane tickets to visit the victim, medical expenses, education expenses etc. There is usually the promise that the fictitious character will one day join the victim in the victim’s country. Later, the innocent person is made to feel deeply guilty if he/she declines the request for money. The scam usually ends when the victim realizes they are being scammed or stops sending money. Victims can be highly traumatized by this and are often very embarrassed and ashamed when they realize they have become a victim of a scam.

Common Cybercrime phrases and terms Unauthorized Access and Hacking, Web Hijacking, Pornography, Cyber Stalking, Denial of service Attack, Virus attacks, Software Piracy, Salami attacks, Phishing, Sale of illegal articles, Online gambling, Email spoofing, Cyber Defamation, Forgery,Theft of information contained in electronic form, Email bombing, Internet time, Theft of and physically damaging a computer, Breach of online privacy, Data diddling, E-commerce/ Investment Frauds, Cyber Terrorism, Cash the cheque system, Re-shippers, Nigerian version, East European version, Chinese version, Call tag scam, Business opportunity/”Work-at-Home”, Website scams, Click fraud, International modem dialling, Phishing, Pharming, Auction and retail schemes online, Stock market manipulation schemes, Pump-and-dump scheme, Short-selling or “scalping” schemes, Internet investment scams.

Cybercrime which is committed in different forms is increasing at an alarming rate worldwide, and India features prominently in the list. The term ‘Cybercrime’ generally covers phishing, credit card frauds, bank robbery, illegal downloading, industrial espionage, child pornography, kidnapping children via chat rooms, scams, cyber terrorism, creation and/or distribution of viruses, spam and so on. Regarding the crimes related to the Internet in India, the Information Technology Act, 2000 was enacted with the prime objective to create an enabling environment for commercial use of IT. The IT Act specifies which activities have been made punishable. The Indian Penal Code, 1860 has also been amended to take cybercrimes into its purview. Complaints can be registered at the cybercrime cells which are in present in almost every city. Though, it pays to remember that convictions for any version of cybercrime are extremely tough to enforce and very rare, given the modest tech resources at our disposal in India. Perhaps it is exactly this that makes it virtually impossible to stop these crimes from being committed and innocent people from falling prey to them. The only way to protect oneself is to use one’s common sense, activate and update one’s email spam filters, supervise our kids’ Internet habits, and remember that if anything online sounds too good to be true, it almost definitely is. n *name changed to protect privacy

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feature

RAINY DAY

ADVENTURES Some like to snuggle in bed on a cloudy day but for those who enjoy splashing in the puddles, we bring a list of outdoor activities that make for memorable monsoon experiences . 58 | Feelings

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he rains in India mark the end a long, hot and dry spell of summer, and the beginning of everything lush green and fresh. Come monsoon and most people think of hot tea, snacks, a cozy bed and books. At the same time there are some adventure enthusiasts who wait for monsoon to get their adrenalin kick. Kerala Kerala is where the monsoon begins its long journey across the country. In a land already famous for its greenery and backwaters, monsoon is when the landscape comes alive. Clouds descend on the mountains and scenic waterfalls emerge from nowhere. One can easily spend hours soaking in the beauty of the gorgeous waterfalls or go trekking and cycling on the hills. The backwaters of Kerala are ideal for boating and kayaking.

after the hustle and bustle of summer tourists. The wildlife sanctuaries now become the best places to visit, instead of the beaches. For those who love nature trails, the Mollem National Park and Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary with its dense forest, located in South Goa are perfect getaways. Take a walk to the12th century Lord Shiva Tambdi Surla temple located in the northern part of Mollem. In its opposite direction, on the Mandovi river is India’s famous Dudhsagar Falls. In monsoons the waterfall is in its prime, with water gushing down from the mountains with such force that the onlookers are rendered speechless. It’s also a perfect place for an adventurous trek.

To reach the spectacular Meenmutty falls in Wayanad district, one needs to hike a couple of kilometres. Athirappilly is another scenic waterfall where one can spot wildlife including the elusive great hornbill. For the culture vultures, there is the 10 day harvest festival, Onam, with its energetic snake boat races, costumed parades and traditional feasts, which is celebrated between August and September. Goa Goa, synonymous with crowded beaches and mega parties, is quite a contrast in monsoon. Since it rains heavily and non-stop, most commercial activities and are put on hold and life suddenly comes to a standstill

Sao-Jao, one of the biggest, most widely celebrated feasts in the state, is another event to look forward in the monsoons. The celebrations are traditionally marked with a fertility feast, in the name of Saint John the Baptist, followed by merry-making all day long. “People who are looking for adventure come to Goa during the monsoon as it has some of the best to offer from waterfalls and trekking to wildlife safaris, we have it all.” says Savio D’Souza who has been organising adventure treks for 5 years now. Maharashtra Maharashtra, with its hill stations, forts, lakes, beaches, flora fauna and wildlife, offers a variety of thrills for

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feature

adventure seekers. Destinations such as Matheran, Mahabaleshwar, Panchgani, Arnala and Lonavala are popular for treks and nature trails. A little less well known but also close to the Mumbai, on the old Goa Highway is Kolad - a quaint little place with a serene lake surrounded by hillocks and bursting with waterfalls in the monsoon. The Kundalika river flows through Kolad and is an exciting place for river rafting activities. There are many lakes and waterfalls where one can enjoy a swim, go waterfall rappelling or even set up camp. Bhandardara is another quiet little village nestled in the Sahyadri Hills in the Western Ghats. Pravara River, Arthur Lake, Randha falls and the Bhandardara dam are its main attractions. It is perfect for boating, swimming, trekking and camping under the stars. Maharashtra has more than 30 forts. From Salher Fort that stands at a height of 5,141 feet and is the toughest to trek to, to the Mandangad Fort that stands at 880 feet above sea level and is the easiest or for first time trekkers, you can pick and choose. Other forts like Salher, Kalsu Bai, Sinhagad, Lohagad, Rajmachi, also make for an excellent trekking trip. Shivram Bhandari, a leading tour operator in Maharashtra says â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have very specific requirements from monsoon travellers. They know what adventures they seek, unlike families that usually come to us year round. Monsoon also offers adventures that are not available in other seasons. We organise visits to old temples, nature trails, mountain hikes, bird watching and camping in the open, under the stars.â&#x20AC;?

Rajasthan Although most areas in the state are hot throughout the year, Mount Abu is an oasis in Rajasthan. Standing at 1120 feet it receives an average of around 80-180cms of rains during monsoons, the highest in Rajasthan. One can enjoy the fresh waterfalls, trekking through the forest, a wildlife safari and a visit to the Dilwara temple.

Uttarakhand Uttarakhand, the hub of water adventure sports, offers a wide range of adventure activities for everyone - River rafting on the Ganges, boating, kayaking, trekking, rock climbing, biking, rappelling, bungy jumping and jungle or riverside camping. There are many spots that offer river rafting and canoeing experiences and it ranges from beginner to professional competitions. While rafting at Rishikesh is considered the toughest many places such as Kosi, Barkot, Damta, Yamuna Bridge are much safer and easier. Or just plan a visit to Rishikesh to see the Ganges in full spate and walk across the Ram Jhoola and Laxman Jhoola (suspension bridges), visit the Swarg ashram,

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Parmarth Niketan, Neer gaddu waterfall, Neelkanth Temple and Triveni ghat. Corbett National Park, snuggled in the lap of Himalayas in Nainital district of Uttarakhand, is a paradise for wildlife enthusiasts, bird watchers and nature lovers. Special monsoon jeep and elephant safaris are available. For nature enthusiasts, the Valley of Flowers is a must-visit in the monsoons. An awe inspiring sight of thousands of flowers in full bloom welcomes you. A challenging hike of 15 km is one of the few ways to get there, so carry appropriate gear. Keep your eyes peeled for the snow leopard and Asiatic black bear, among other animals. Dense fog and rain makes it one of the most picturesque places to visit in monsoon.

Cherrapunji, Meghalaya Cherrapunji in Meghalaya receives the highest rainfall throughout the year and is considered to be one of the wettest places on earth. The best way to explore the rich and verdant surroundings of Cherrapunji is to go for a hike. Take a walk on the double decker, living root bridge, which is built using a technique perfected over hundreds of years, whereby living roots of trees have been converted into bridges. Or witness the stunning Nohkalikai falls, Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tallest plunge waterfall at 340 metres. n

SAFETY TIPS by Kaustubh Upadhye, Co-Founder of Junglelore.net We organise many adventure outings and monsoon is the most dangerous season, especially if you plan to go into the water. The most common mistake people make on a trek is to wear shoes made for dry, rocky mountain treks. For trekking in the monsoon, shoes with rubber soles which have a good grip are a must. When planning a trip, ask relevant questions regarding the equipment required from your tour operator. Or ask for a scanned copy of the equipment log. Most small time operators do not bother to maintain it, putting everyone at risk. Ask about emergency procedures. Find out if they have ambulances at the spot, or a doctor, or at least a certified person who will be present at the venue. Before you go rafting find out about the raft capacity. When there is rush, operators may fill in more than the number allowed on the raft, just to make extra money. Check up on the life jackets too. Find out about the costs, as most operators use substandard equipment to cut costs, putting customers at risk. Be extra careful on treks. Girls should keep their hair tied up while rafting or rappelling. Wear clothes that will dry fast and carry an emergency kit. If you plan to camp overnight then carry mosquito repellent and torches/solar lamps.

SAFETY TIPS by Dr. Tejas Upasani, Orthopedic Surgeon, Upasani Hospital, Mulund No doubt, the idea of trekking in the monsoon is exciting, but the hilly areas also become very slippery and unpredictable. Compared to other seasons, injuries caused by trekking double during monsoons. Always wear proper footwear while trekking. Choose trekking shoes that are half-size bigger than your regular shoe size, to allow space for swelling caused while trekking and also to hold heavier trekking socks. Trekking with an experienced group is safer and advisable. These groups usually have medical personnel travelling with them. First aid is very important and antiseptic cream and pain reliever spray should be in bag. After any injury, the RICE (Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation) treatment should be given to injured individual as soon as possible to promote healing and flexibility. Monsoon brings out all kinds of bugs and insects that can damage your skin and cause health problems. It is very important to cover yourself from head to toe, and carry anti-bug lotion. With these precautionary steps, trekking can be a more fun experience.

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interview

A PASSION

FOR FASHION An engineer by profession and a lifestyle blogger by choice, Urvashi Choudhury discloses her fashion indulgences and style mantras in an exclusive chat with Nandita Derashri. What made you start a fashion blog? To say that I have a passion for fashion and style is an understatement. Over the years, I always seemed to be the go to person for a lot of my friends when it came to fash-

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ion advice and helping people also comes naturally to me, so blogging is almost an extension of that, but on a larger scale and with a bigger audience. Also, I feel that thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hardly any emphasis on appropriate work wear in India

and given that there are very few bloggers who dedicatedly cater to the working women segment, I thought why not start something on my own. So was born #LLFS You have a day job too, so how do you balance blogging with it? How much time do you spend blogging every day? Like they say, if you love something, you will find time for it, no matter what! Be it spending time with people in your life or taking out time to cook for your loved ones. My blog for me is my little baby and I totally feel it’s about balancing it all. On an average I spend about an hour or so on my blog, daily, which includes creating content for the blog, replying to mails/comments etc. Sneaking in couple of minutes during the office lunch break also helps at times! How many posts do you publish on an average in a week? I totally strive towards quality content for my blog and hence stick to a say one to two blog posts in a week. What do you enjoy more - corporate life or blogging? Like I mentioned earlier, I have multiple extensions of my life and I love all of them equally. But there’s a flip side to everything and both corporate life as well as blogging come with its own set of responsibilties. When one gets tough, I find solace in the other half. What are your goals as a fashion blogger? Is there lots of competition? When I started this blog, the only aim was to document my style diary and help others with their fashion issues along the way. Creating an honest rapport with my viewers has always been and will continue to be my goal. I really don’t think there’s any competition though, as I genuinely believe that each fashion blogger has their own unique style which the viewers relate to and that’s what counts. Is there money to be made in blogging? With blogging finally beginning to buzz in India, I am sure there’s money to be made in this profession but it’s not easy to sustain the same if you aren’t honest with your viewers. After all, one’s connection with their viewers matters the most. Since I have a full time job which

pays me handsomely my intention never has been to earn money through my blog. Maybe that’s why the views I express through my blog are genuinely my own and not framed in any way. Which are your favourite fashion blogs? I have many blogs that I really like - 5 Inch and Up, Wendy’s LookBook and Gary Pepper Girl to name a few. And your favourite fashion icons? Anybody and everybody who has a good dress sense is my fashion icon. It doesn’t take a lot of effort to wear designer clothes but the talent is to look well put-together on a daily basis. You walk down the streets of Bangkok, Paris and Gangtok and you shall find all my fashion icons there. Your one tip for a ‘bad hair day’ A Top Knot Bun! Your one fashion indulgence that you can’t resist Blazers, Blazers & More Blazers – of all colours and shapes. You just throw it on any damn outfit and you are assured to look Effortlessly CHIC! What is the first step towards being fashionable (for beginners)? The first key to being fashionable is to be comfortable in what you wear. If you aren’t comfortable in stilettos, just don’t wear it. I have seen girls wearing sky high heels and unable to walk in those – so NOT Fashionable! I have also seen girls wearing flats and still look so chic in it. When you open your cupboard, do you ever feel like ‘you have nothing to wear’? Haha, at times, yes! It’s a global issue, I guess. But over a period of time, I have managed to understand what really looks good on me. So, in times of ambiguity I just pick up that style and I am sorted. How do you connect with your viewers apart from your blog? With social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat, connecting with everyone has become so much faster and lots of fun too. In fact, I have recently started my own YouTube Channel and thoroughly love every bit of that too! n

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eventtalk Tech Kaajal’s report Feelings

Kaajal Oza Vaidya is a prolific writer and a popular youth icon, well-known for her honest and forthright views. She has a huge fan following, especially on the social media

America:

The Agony and the Ecstasy USA is a land which draws extreme reactions. In spite of the ground realities, the fabled lure of the ‘American dream’ remains strong as ever, writes Kaajal Oza Vaidya

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PLACE: CHICAGO,

Time: 12:30 AM (midnight) A seventeen year old son of a Gujarati Patel family cries out to his mother saying, “Mom, we have a guest at our place.” The hard working, accomplished mother goes to the son’s room and sees a 21 year old girl there. She has encountered this particular girl earlier at a relative’s marriage. She tries to recall her name, but fails. She asks the girl her name, but the girl refuses to answer… When the girl’s parents are called, the girl’s mother, without any shame or hesitation warns the boy’s mother, “I need to take her to the doctor. She needs a checkup. How do I know what would have happened at this late hour?” The Patel family which owns two Subways and three Dunkin’ Donuts are facing such an incident for the first time. The mother of the boy is clever. She understands the actual reason behind the warning. She replies to the girl’s mother with immense calmness, “You are free to do anything that you want. I won’t let this alliance happen…” This is a true incident that happened last year in America!

PLACE: NEW JERSEY,

Middlesex Country An 18 year old, Ravi Dharun, is convicted. Tylor Clementi, his roommate who stays with him in hostel, jumped to his death from the George Washington Bridge. The reason behind it was his homosexual relationship which was recorded and circulated amongst his other friends by Ravi. The price of intruding his privacy was paid for by Ravi’s own career and life. Ravi was sentenced to 30 days in jail, 300 hours of community service and a $10,000 fine…

PLACE: SAN FRANCISCO, Time: 10:30 PM

A 28 year old Gujarati man goes to the police station. He has tears in his eyes. He is shivering from the cold. He wants to lodge a complaint against his wife - that she has pushed him out of their house. Along with mental and physical

torture, his wife has threatened to kill him. The police visits his place. He is allowed to enter, though rather forcefully, but is unwilling to stay at his own house. An African boyfriend of his wife visits them daily. A certain Chhagam Patel’s daughter who is an engineering graduate, pushes out her legally wedded husband and spends the night with her African boyfriend in their bedroom. Her parents are incapable of saying anything to her. The boy from India who has married and shifted here is unable to face the situation. The police succeeds in dropping him off at his house but the boy commits suicide the same night. His parents staying in India lose their son to the ‘American dream’.

PLACE: NEWARK AIRPORT, Time: 11:30 AM

An Air India’s flight lands. A young couple from Ahmedabad along with their six year old daughter stand in the immigration queue, holding their B1, B2 visas and passport. They are asked various questions when they reach the counter. Then they are taken to the detention room. They are interrogated for the whole day. At last the husband is sent to the detention camp. The wife and the daughter are now all alone in a foreign country… This is America. A very different kind of life is led here. This country has innumerable facilities, a different lifestyle, wide and green lands, beautiful houses! It’s a beautiful charming country where malls are bursting with things. A lot is sold in the name of ‘deals’. There is no place left in the closets to put things. There is a restlessness in this country for which no one has a solution. Here, a person’s life is of value, but to maintain that value is the responsibility of the person himself. Here, relationships with emotional attachments gradually wear out. This is a country in which even the guests are not endured after a few days! Everyone who comes must take up some work for themselves. Here, even one’s own brother could become a “burden”… On the other hand, America is backward when it comes to public transport, unlike Europe or

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Kaajal’s Feelings

England. If one doesn’t drive or have a car to cover the long distances, then it is difficult to step out of the house. As an outsider, even if you go with an international license to America, there are rules for hiring a car. Debit cards are not accepted, a car can be hired only on a credit card. A day’s insurance costs $40. If you get a ticket or your car is damaged, the money from the credit card is deducted without asking! What is more interesting is that something which is purchased in one state can be returned in any other state. Very little effort is made to see if the returned product is used or not. If there is a bill and tag on it, then it is easily accepted in any of the chain stores. No wonder then that you could chance upon a product which is sold at a high rate in the main store, at half price or even lower in an Outlet, Payless or Bargain store. New York may be staying awake the entire night but the restaurants elsewhere shut by 10 pm. Dinner time is 6:30 pm. The parking rates in New York City could be equal to your monthly salary! Here, Streets and Avenues cross each other and the ticket of a Broadway show can be found at an unbelievable rate at the last minute. The country’s economy may be down, but that doesn’t stop people from shopping in the malls at midnight! The things that you keep in the driveway of the house are picked up by whoever wants them, it is not considered a theft. On the other hand when there is a theft, it is a possibility that not even a teaspoon is left behind! New York beyond the 95th Avenue is scary...amidst the flashing lights of Manhattan and Times Square there is a glimpse of madness, where all of America is a prey to major or minor depression. Drinking

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alcohol in the evening is not a fashion here, but housewives cooking while sipping a glass of wine are common. There are houses here with attics and basements, conjoined twin houses, and apartments. And in those houses there are Gujarati and Punjabi housewives who prepare rotis, khaman-dhoklas and puranpolis. There are others who suffer from the Shopping Syndrome. Once the children go to college at the age of eighteen, they invariably drift apart from their parents, who are now left alone in their six bedroom house, clueless about what to talk to each other... This is a country of paradoxes. There are eternally opposing elements and subjects breathing the same air here. A lot of people have walked all the way from Mexico, and entered illegally on their fake passports or visas. If caught, they are stuck for months at the detention camps. There are times when their families don’t even get their news. Those who have come to America after spending hundreds of thousands of rupees and bargaining with the agents, end up working like slaves for $8 per hour or even lesser at a Subway, Dunkin Donuts or a gas station. After working like dogs, 22 hours a day and after paying back the loan, they finally start earning money, but their hair is already turning grey. Being unable to return is a punishment a lot of people bear... Even after such realities, U.S.A remains a tempting word and Visa, a frightening one! Meanwhile, people who are sitting on the footpath in front of the U.S consulate, and those who are waiting in queue, giving their fingerprints continue being accepted or rejected! n

interview

Ashish Sajnani, the food entrepreneur is on a roll. He talks to Abid Mohammed about how he plans to take food to every street in Mumbai.

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Meals on

wheels! H

e launched Please Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t Tell (speakeasy in Lower Parel), The Roll Company (TRC), The Pan Shop (TPS), Le CafĂŠ (European fresh dining in Chembur) and the uber-stylish Eat Thai (modernthai specialty restaurant in Bandra). Ashish Sajnani, the man who is slowly redefining how we eat our food, talks about food, business and his latest venture called Bombay Food Truck.

A bit about yourself I have a Hospitality Diploma from Hosta School of Hotel and Tourism, Leysin, Switzerland and considerable hospitality experience in various eateries in Switzerland. A brief internship in Taj, Dubai and 16 months in Gallops, Mumbai, led me to start my own café, restaurant and a lounge in Chembur. When and how did the food truck idea come to you? The fact that Bombay doesn’t have a food truck was a huge inspiration and so was the movie, Chef. While studying abroad we ate a lot at food trucks and always wondered why can’t we have them back home. What were the challenges that you had to face? We are still trying to figure out licenses and the correct way forward so that more people are encouraged to follow suit. The biggest issue is that there is no clear legislation - hence there is no specific regulation system or guidelines for anyone dealing with a food truck in Mumbai. The investments differ for a food truck vs a standalone/chain restaurant of course, and both have their own merits. And how did you overcome them? (Smiles) We deal with them all - with patience and a big fat smile.

How long did it take from ideation to execution? Between 6 to 8 months When are things you have to think of while catering food from a truck? It is quicker and faster and more challenging in the sense that you need to innovate with the times and changing demands of customers. The preferences change from location to location! Also, service has to be swift and peppy, as that is what patrons expect from us. One must also use as much local produce as possible, depending on the location you are travelling to!

“The biggest issue is that there is no clear legislation - hence there is no specific regulation system or guidelines for anyone dealing with a food truck in Mumbai.”

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interview

WHAT IS THE ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN YOUR BUSINESS?

What kind of menu do you We needed enough plug points to have? attach cooking devices and most BFT will be offering Gourmet importantly, work on an adequate sandwiches, burgers, hot dogs exhaust system since it is essential to It’s as important as the food and will be constantly innovating cooking. itself! We use social media its menu. We think the audience to communicate where we is ready and everybody is How do you decide on a travel to, what we are going eagerly awaiting for us to go location? to serve and of course, for live with innovations which Due to lack of legislation we collaborations and customer we will also crowd source. travel to private locations and requests and feedback! To Served with much quirk, corporate parks! You can find know when it reaches near Bombay’s biggest food truck us almost always at One BKC you, follow BFT on:is filled with lots of flavour, in Mumbai. Besides these, BFT n www.bombayfoodtruck.com humour and a sprinkle of has also travelled across India n facebook.com/ style. BFT breaks away from to festivals, concerts and private bombayfoodtruck the monotony of boring, parties! In fact, The Bombay n twitter/foodtruckbombay roadside eats by boasting Food Truck is available n instagram/foodtruckbombay of a menu that has travelled for events, festivals, brand across the globe and is worth activations and maybe even a licking clean. Combining big fat Indian wedding or two. old school Bombay nostalgia We also curate our own food with inspiration from the truck festivals (we have curated famed food trucks of New the first one in Mumbai and York, Bombay Food Truck (#BFT) will be serving up owing to its huge success, plan to take it national). a global fare of salads, mains, hot dogs, sandwiches, fries and the likes. BFT changes its menu every month How do you deal with local authorities / parking to bring forth new culinary experiments from the #BFT issues? kitchen lab as it tours the city with popular chefs (and Currently, BFT operates from private parks and travels secret ones) to bring you a food journey like none to events. other. What does one need to start their food truck? Tell us about the truck itself. How did you A good knowledge base of local cuisine and produce choose a particular model and customise it? and a strong backbone to withstand any adversity. The truck is by Force. We spent over 3 months to find our vendor and 6 months at work to get it made Can you share some memorable experiences? as per international specifications for such a truck Starting a food truck was something I had dreamt of does not exist in this city! We had to make it more for a very long time . My most memorable experience ‘food friendly’ - as we heat and assemble food on the was co-curating the Food Truck Square - Mumbai’s truck, all our equipment on the truck is electrical and first food truck festival. We were sold out in the first induction based. One can grill, fry etc. on the truck and 5 hours and had to run our central kitchen overtime to most of the ingredients are pre-prepped in the kitchen. meet the demand! n

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interview

Conquering the culinary

world

Roxanne Bamboat loves food so much that she left her full time production job to become a food taster. This pint sized ball of energy, nicknamed ‘The Tiny Taster’, shares her experiences with Abid Mohammed.

oxanne Bamboat is a petite, Mumbai based, food and travel writer who is obsessed with reading, movies, travel and of course, food! A freelance producer, she’s able to spend most of her time sampling the city’s culinary offerings and reviewing them. More often known as The Tiny Taster, she’s decided to take the world by storm - one plate at a time! Roxanne has won an award for the Best Culinary Travel Blog 2014 by popular vote as well as Jury of her peers. She’s hosted many food based events including the UpperCrust Food & Wine Show which she’s done for 2 years in a row. She’s the co- curator of the Food Section at the Kalaghoda Arts Festival, which is a massive festival in Mumbai. The Food section of this nine day extravaganza is created, curated and hosted by her. A

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familiar name among chefs and stalwarts from the food industry, she also hosts other events and works closely with well-known brands and hotels. What is the Tiny Taster all about? I’m a food and travel writer and my website is called The Tiny Taster. It is basically full of my food and travel experiences. I also enjoy cooking and include recipes on my website. What did you do before you became an ‘official’ food taster and how did it all come about? I use to work in Ad Film Production as an assistant director and sometimes assistant producer for advertisements. The production aspect meaning the actual shooting and editing. As for the tasting bit, I’ve been eating and forming opinions about food in my head

my entire life. It’s just that I decided to put it on paper much later. Only in 2012 did I start putting my thoughts onto a word document. Then I ‘published’ the blog and people found it interesting enough to starting asking for more of my opinions and suggestions. Tell us a bit more about your blog. It is entirely based on my experience and insights. I don’t hire other writers or commission guest pieces. I don’t write about things I haven’t experienced personally. The blog has everything from restaurant and hotel reviews, things to do or explore in various cities and recipes to various other culinary and travel articles. What are the skills required to become a food taster? Well, I’m not formally trained but I would say you have to really enjoy food to begin with. Fussy eaters can’t apply for this job! Also you need to at least try ‘everything’ so you understand textures and flavours. You need to really taste what you’re eating to be able to identify flavours and most importantly you need to be honest.

“There are food bloggers and food journalists all over but very few do justice to their craft. It is almost trendy right now to say “Oh! I write about food.”

Do you also have to watch your weight? Laughs. It is a CONSTANT struggle and yes, I absolutely have to or I’ll bloat up.

Do you also love to cook? It’s so funny because I started out hating it, saying it wasn’t for me and even named my website ‘taster’ and not chef or gourmand or anything. It’s only a few years ago that I really took to cooking and I find it therapeutic now. I cook every single day! I absolutely love it and am always enrolling myself in cooking classes when I travel to explore new recipes.

What do you eat when you are not tasting anything new? Mostly home cooked food but my favourite cuisine is Chinese or Southeast Asian. Give me a good bowl of noodles or fried rice and I’m happy. I’m also extremely fond of dim sums and can eat them all day long.

How serious is food tasting in India? Plenty do it but it’s not serious. There are food bloggers and food journalists all over but very few do justice to their craft. It is almost trendy right now to say “ Oh! I write about food”, but I suppose the trash can easily be separated from the good stuff.

Please share some of your memorable experiences with our readers I’ve had tons of fabulous meals and am constantly looking for new ones. The most memorable was a meal at a Michelin star restaurant called Belcanto in Lisbon, Portugal. It was just stunning.

What are your future plans? Future plans include a lot of more travelling and eating (smiles). I would like to expand the website to a larger platform but let’s see how that goes. Lots of exciting projects and collaborations in the pipeline so I guess you’ll have to follow The Tiny Taster closely and wait and watch. n

Who have you passed on your skills to? No one really. I work on my own but I would like to expand eventually.

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fitness

ZUMBA

your way to

FITNESS

Afreen Khan zooms in to look at the phenomenon that has taken over the fitness world across the globe.

umba is one of the few fitness styles that has quickly grown to become one of the most popular group exercise forms on the planet. Approximately 15 million people take weekly Zumba classes in over 200,000 locations across 180 countries! This global success, however, had a humble start. According to their website, in the mid-1990s, Alberto forgot to take his tape of aerobics music for the regular fitness class that he used to teach. On not finding any alternative he went to his car to fetch some tapes that he listened to regularly. They were mostly those of salsa and merengue music and he improvised his class using this non traditional aerobics music. Surprise, surprise...he realised the students responded better to this new music and so he continued with it, on his way to newfound success. He soon moved to Miami and partnered with a company to start marketing his new discovery. It worked and how! Zumba took over US and became ‘the’ trend. Everyone was working out with this new fitness form. Fitness videos and Zumba shows followed as it spread across the globe. Typically a Zumba classes is about an hour long and is taught by instructors specially licensed by Zumba Fitness, LLC. The exercises include music with fast as

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well as slow rhythms, usually localised according to the country. The music comes from any of the following dance styles: Cumbia, Salsa, Merengue, Mambo, Flamenco, Chachacha, Reggaeton, Soca, Samba, Hip Hop and Tango. The classes are designed to keep the movements simple and fun so that everyone can take part in them. Some programs are designed specifically for the elderly and children. Because Zumba offers different options, proponents of the Zumba program claim that it is safe for all ages, meaning that anyone can participate in this form of aerobic exercise. At least some of the classes are specifically aimed at elderly people, to help them build strength, improve motion and posture, and socialise. Most people enjoy the workouts as they see it more as a party than an exercise regimen. Although Zumba had already come to India, Sucheta Pal, a ZES (Zumba Education Specialist) is largely responsible for it achieving the kind of fame it has in the country, in the past seven years. With Zumba she beat her own work related stress, found a new career, trained thousands of instructors in the latest fitness fad and continues to help people feel what she calls ‘electrifying joy’, through her passion.

An interview with the foremost Zumba trainer in India throws light on the nuances of the dance fitness program. Afreen Khan in a chat with Sucheta Pal, India’s foremost Zumba trainer and proponent How popular is Zumba in India? We started four years ago and today we have more than 3000 instructors teaching all over India from small towns in Jammu and Indore to big cities. Just recently we organised an event in Chandigarh that saw an attendance of more than 500 people. So it’s hugely popular. Also it helps that we have a show on Zoom Tv that’s adding to our popularity. Zumba is set to grow more and more When did you first find out about Zumba? I got introduced to Zumba in 2009. I am an Engineer and a dance professional and was in the US then. Zumba was just introduced and was quite a rage when I came across it (laughs). At first I thought it’s some sort of an African dance, then I got to know more. I joined and taught in the US for 3 years before coming down to India.

“I am so proud that I am taking Indian music and culture to these 185 countries, where they train on our music”

How is Zumba different from other fitness styles? Zumba is more dance based. It has its own identity just like Yoga and meditation. We even took it to a nightclub to get the attention of the youth and it was fun. It’s like an hour of non-stop party without the alcohol and you burn 800 calories too! What are the benefits of Zumba? Well, let me tell you the story of my mother –in-law. She suffered from arthritis and at one point found it difficult to get up or walk without support. We started training together and I am very proud to say that at our last event, she rocked. So apart from burning calories Zumba is like a lifestyle change. Also if we talk about socio-economic benefits of Zumba then let’s take into account the thousands of jobs opportunities that have been created for more than 3000 instructors in India. Is Zumba for someone like me who can’t dance? Zumba is inspired by dance. The only thing you need is a sense of rhythm and music. Movements are taught by us in such a way that anyone can learn. We like to keep it simple in the beginning then then move upwards. We don’t expect people to be perfect. We want normal people. How important is the music in Zumba? Music is the key. We have Pitbull, Shakira, and Shaggy among others who are producing music for us. We had a live performance by these artists at our convention that saw trainers from across 185 countries. I am so proud that I am taking Indian music and culture to these 185 countries, where they train on our music. Just like we dance on Latin music or African beats, they are doing Zumba on Indian Garba, Bhangra or Bollywood music... that is quite a trend now. Any message for someone who has not yet tried Zumba? If you want to feel electrifying joy, then I think Zumba gives you that. 60 minutes of pure meditation where you burn calories as well. It like a happy drug! n

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tech talk

A good listener and part time wordsmith, Varun Shukla prefers coffee over tea. Football and technology are his twin passions. Follow him on Twitter: @wengerarmy

Gotta buy ‘em all: Is Pokemon Go the trailblazer for a new kind of

advertising?

The hype might die out, but Niantic’s augmented reality game might offer advertisers a new way to engage with consumers, and provide a filip to AR apps in general, says Varun Shukla

n the two weeks since its launch, Pokemon Go has been all the internet can seem to talk about. It now has more daily active users than Twitter, and accounts for more of a users’ time than even Facebook’s blue-tendriled ubiquity. Its players use the app for 43 minutes a day — that’s more than Whatsapp, Instagram or Snapchat.

treasure hunt in human history underway, it won’t be long before advertisements start to compete with Pokemon for your attention. Indeed, Niantic is looking for such opportunities. CEO John Hanke has said that advertisers will be charged on a “cost per visit” basis, similar to the “cost per click” used in Google’s search advertising — or sponsors, in other words.

No one can seem to explain how the augmented reality game — in which players go about real world locations catching fictional monsters — became such a hit. Perhaps Niantic, the developer, hit the nostalgic jackpot, and all everyone really wants to do is catch ‘em all. It could be the real-world, almost instantaneous conversations it enables, (“Hey, there’s a Pidgeotto by the door, good luck”) or its for-everyone aesthetic. With what feels like the largest organized

One such deal is already in place with McDonald’s in Japan, where the app is expected to launch this Thursday. McDonalds Japan will pay Niantic to have 3,000 of its outlets become designated ‘gyms’, where players battle each other. McDonald’s benefits from the increased footfall; inevitably players would decide to buy a burger or two as they battle in-game. Pokemon Go presents a unique opportunity for smart ad-men. The advent of geo-targeting

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and geo-fencing mean that it is now possible for advertisers to serve you with more relevant ads, specific to the location you are in, down to individual buildings. When tagged with descriptive keywords, such as ‘tech lover’ or ‘football fan’, this becomes a treasure trove of real-world data that drives targeted campaigns.

2012 experimented with the idea of augmented reality adverts while promoting designer Karl Lagerfeld’s new collection. They created special AR shopfronts in Paris, New York, and London called ‘Window Shops’ where an ordinary storefront was transformed when users viewed it through the Net-a-Porter mobile app.

Seeing how Pokemon Go emphasizes movement, — to evolve your Pokemon, you have to walk anywhere between two to ten kilometers, while catching them and restocking on supplies also requires physically moving to locations - there is a massive amount of location-specific data that ad companies would want access to.

Shoppers who used the app saw videos of the catwalk, product information, 360-degree product models, and were given the ability to purchase the products. This ‘native’ approach to advertising — one where the ads blend with the experience to compliment it, would work best for Pokemon Go, even if it may not survive for too long itself.

However, advertisements that are usually pop ups, banners or full screen horrors aren’t conducive to great in-app experiences, especially when the experience depends on the seamless layering of virtual information on the actual world around you. If Go’s creators want to keep and grow their user base, more non-intrusive methods of advertising must be found.

There are already server issues due to the volume, and the game-play is too simple for it to sustain long-term interest. It isn’t even a proper AR application as true AR would demand much more information relay.

Online luxury fashion retailer Net-a-Porter in

It has opened up conversations around AR though, and through the locational advertising model given future AR applications a possible revenue stream. n

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Tech talk legal eagle

Megha Chitaliya is A.G.P., Gujarat High Court and a renowned social activist

Public Interest Litigation: An influential armor There are myriad cases where public interest is affected to a great extent. Megha Chitaliya provides an insight on how the Indian constitution helps and encourages public participation through PIL, to maintain law and order.

IL is a right given to any socially conscious member of society or a public spirited non-government organization to espouse a public cause by seeking judicial interference for redress of public injury. Under article 32 of the Indian Constitution, the Supreme Court has the power to entertain public interest litigation. Similarly, under article 226, the High Court can issue directions for the enforcement of any of the constitutional rights in the larger interest of the public. Public interest litigation or PIL is a proceeding in which an individual or group seeks relief in the interest of the general public and not for its own purpose. It is generally concerned with enhancing the quality of lives people lead and the freedom they enjoy. PIL also works through ‘epistolary jurisdiction’, which includes letters written to a court or to an individual judge, or suo motu action taken by the court on the basis of newspaper reports. Moreover, it is not necessary that the petitioner himself must have suffered some injury or personal grievances, to be able to litigate. Incidences of child labor where children at a tender age are found doing odd jobs to augment the meager family income are a common sight. Such children are entitled to the right of education conferred under article 21 of Constitution of

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India. In case of Satya Pal Anand Versus State of Gujarat, a PIL was filed with an objective to note an increase in the percentage of literacy at the grass root level. The Gujarat High Court held that it is the fundamental right of a child below 14 years of age to obtain education at the State’s expenses and directed that an attempt should be made to ensure that every child from 6 to 14 gets the benefit of education. To this end, rules have been formulated to make primary education compulsory for every child. Even appropriate advertisements and proper publicity for spreading awareness among people may be given. In one important case Supreme Court held that prisoners should get benefit of free legal aid and fast hearing. In the case of Budhadev Karmaskar Versus State of West Bengal, a sex worker was brutally murdered and the appeal filed by the accused was dismissed and converted into suo motu by the Supreme Court. According to article 21 of the constitution, sex workers are also entitled to live a life of dignity. The Supreme Court has directed the state government to not only provide rehabilitation to sex workers and sexually assaulted women but also create schemes of other employment and entrepreneurship options available to them to reintegrate them into society. The schemes

should mention in detail about who will give the technical/vocational training and in what manner they can be rehabilitated and settled by offering them employment. For instance, if the training is for sewing garments, then an arrangement should also be made to provide a market for such garments, otherwise they will remain unsold and unused, defeating the whole purpose. Lakshmi Kant Pandey v. Union of India (1984) 2 SCC 244 was a matter concerning inter-country adoption and to prevent malpractices and trafficking of children under the guise of adoption. The Court has laid down certain detailed principles to be followed in such adoption cases, as there was an absence of statutory provisions with respect to inter-country adoptions. In Vishaka and Ors. v. State of Rajasthan & Ors. (1997) 6 SCC 241, considering the absence of enacted law to provide for effective enforcement of basic rights of gender equality and guarantee against sexual harassment and abuse, particularly at the workplace, the Court has laid down guidelines to be observed at all work places or institutions until legislation is enacted for the purpose. In D.K. Basu v. State of W.B. (1997) 1 SCC 416, the Court issued preventive directions for police personnel while arresting or detaining any person, considering the fact that custodial violence, torture, rape, death in police custody/lock-up infringes Article 21 as well as basic human rights. Accident cases require fast care and rescue which is largely possible through the support of bystanders. As per the WHO India Recommendations, 50% of the victims die in the first 15 minutes due to serious cardiovascular or nervous system injuries and the rest can be saved by providing basic life support during the Golden Hour i.e. first hour of

accident. Right to life is enshrined under Article 21 which includes right to safety of persons while travelling on the road. Immediate medical assistance is a necessary corollary and can be ensured to an extent by providing adequate legal protection and prevention of harassment to good Samaritans. Hence in case of Save life Foundation Versus Union Of India a petition has been filed under Article 32 of the Constitution of India for the development of a supportive legal framework to protect Samaritans i.e. bystanders and passersby who render the help to the victims of road accidents. The Supreme Court has directed that a Samaritan should not be questioned against their will and their participation in legal activities regarding the issue should be made voluntary. A good Samaritan should be allowed to leave the hospital immediately after furnishing his address and he shall not be liable for any civil and criminal liability. A person or entity filing the petition must prove to the satisfaction of the court that the petition is being filed for the public interest and not as a frivolous litigation for pecuniary gain, as in the petition filed in the Gujarat High Court seeking the closure of asbestos units, stating that the material was harmful to humans. The petition was dismissed stating that it was filed at the behest of Freiburg Industrial group which wanted to promote their own products as asbestos substitute! Public interest litigation is a powerful safeguard and has provided immense social benefits to resolve the problems of the oppressed citizen. The acceptance PILs in the form of even letters and telegrams to the courts reduces the cost of such litigation. The implementation of the directions at periodic intervals is also ensured, enabling the vindication of rights in practice, and not just in words. n

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Body and Soul Dr Devashish Palkar is currently training at Shree Krishna Hospital and Research centre, Karamsad, Gujarat. Passionate about writing and storytelling, he believes that, “Treating a patient is just a more professional and sophisticated form of storytelling!”

IS FAITH THE ULTIMATE PLACEBO? Just having faith in the system and the healing process can speed up your recovery manifold, says Dr Devashish Palkar, adding weight to the already proven Placebo effect

he medical fraternity is divided when it comes to matters regarding faith. When confronted with scenarios which border thinly on the demarcation between life and death, some medical practitioners stick unflinchingly to faith - to that governing supernatural force that drives the winds and rotates the earth while others turn into disbelieving rationalists and a few become outright atheists - trying to find the very essence behind the functioning of human life and its subsequent decadence leading to death. They prefer to be in the safe boundary of reason rather than leave such complicated questions to a figment of someone’s imagination. There is one area in ‘reasonable’ medicine though, where faith plays an important role - the placebo effect! A placebo is a non medicated substance that has no therapeutic property but provides psychological benefit to a patient when prescribed as a medication. Studies on this effect have shown a remarkable improvement in patients, particularly in conditions involving pain management, gastric ulcers and irritable bowel syndrome. In all these cases they were prescribed just placebos in the guise of a medication. The patient consumes a

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placebo thinking it to be a drug, thereby tricking his brain to believe that it is a medicine - and it helps in relieving the patient’s symptoms without causing any measurable physiological effects on the body. The American Cancer society in an article calls it the expectation effect. This means that the person taking the placebo may experience some effect according to his preconceived knowledge of what he or she expects to happen. If a person expects to feel better, that may happen. The placebo does not cause any of these effects directly. Instead, the person’s belief in or experience of the placebo helps change the symptoms, or changes the way the person perceives the symptoms. Some people can experience the placebo effect even without a prescription, they may just feel better by visiting the doctor or doing something else they believe will help. This type of placebo effect seems most related to the degree of confidence and faith the patient has in the doctor or drug. The placebo effect underlies the two most

The whole idea is that a patient’s faith should not be lost. valuable lessons in the field of medicine- firstly that a human body has a natural ability to heal itself to a great extent, something which is highlighted even in the ancient Indian system of Ayurveda and secondly, how having faith even in a non-pharmacological substance can go a long way in affecting the prognosis. In theory it is often presumed that the patient always has faith in the consultant and the medication prescribed by him, but in practice a truly compliant patient is a rarity. Thanks to Google, patients are becoming smarter and now have information at their fingertips, but as they say, ‘Half knowledge can be dangerous’, to which some doctors would spontaneously add, ‘...and at times, annoying!’ Requests are often made by patients for an X ray or a sonography or other investigative procedures which the consulting physician might find totally irrelevant. But if he doesn’t pay heed to the patient’s demands, then the chances are high that he might get himself labeled as a ‘bad’ doctor. So, many a times unnecessary investigations are conducted only

for the patient’s satisfaction and to ensure that he doesn’t lose faith in the doctor. In rural set ups as I have discovered during my rotation, it is a common practice to at least prescribe multi vitamin tablets when patient comes with a condition which has no anatomical or physiological relation with the body but rather is purely psychogenic in nature. This is just to assure the patient that the doctor is no fool and can prescribe medications! The whole idea is that a patient’s faith should not be lost. Which brings us to the ideal doctor-patient equation. Treating the patient is important but ensuring that he has faith in the system and that he doesn’t become a doubter on his journey back home from the hospital, is perhaps more important because it ushers in a more fruitful doctor-patient relationship, which ultimately leads to faster recovery from illness. So, Google all you want but please have faith on the medical man and his drugs! Perhaps, faith is truly the ultimate placebo! n

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Smart money Amit Trivedi has more than two decades of professional experience in capital markets and runs a training academy for investment advisors. He has written for several mainstream publications and recently authored a book titled “Riding the Roller Coaster – Lessons from Financial Market Cycles We Repeatedly Forget”. You can follow him on Twitter: @KarmayogKnowleg

ANCIENT WISDOM, MODERN APPLICATIONS Just like each one’s duties differ according to one’s stand in life, so should one’s financial investments. General advice is no good, says Amit Trivedi

he Bhagvad Geeta, besides being a sacred text, is also known as the manual of life. There are lessons in it that can be applied to many practical areas of life, even finance! Most of its commentaries start with establishing the context – in this case I am referring to the first and the last shlokas of the book, reproduced below:

The first shloka of the first chapter starts with the word , and the last shloka of the last chapter ends with the word The Bhagvad Geeta, though recited by Lord Krishna in the battlefield of Kurukshetra as a sermon to his friend and disciple Arjuna, is about , or ‘my duties’. Thus, the commentators insist that the lessons you draw from Geeta could be different from the

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lessons someone else draws from it, as each one’s personal ‘dharma’ could be very different from the other’s. The above paragraph is as applicable to personal finance as to any other area in life. The subject of personal finance – or managing one’s own money or the family’s money, cannot be the same for two individuals or for two families. Please remember it is always your ‘personal’ finances. Personal first, finances later. It is important to understand and remember this for many a time people seek general advice from various sources. For instance: ● In an investor awareness program, after my lecture was over, someone asked me to share the details of my personal portfolio. He further added that he would simply replicate it and then he need not do anything else. ● One usually reads various newspapers and websites, in which the readers ask an expert’s opinion about certain stocks or debentures or mutual fund schemes or insurance products. ● We also hear many experts talking about general trends in the market or offering their opinions about certain products, as if these are applicable to all the viewers of the television channel

Do these questions or opinions serve any purpose at all? Do they help the individual investor or an individual family in planning their finances? Many times the situations highlighted and the question discussed seem logical. Why shouldn’t one know where the expert invests his own money and simply replicate the portfolio? Or why shouldn’t one follow the experts giving their advice on television channels, websites and newspapers? Aren’t they experts? Well, this is exactly where the first paragraph of this article should be re-read. Managing your finances ”. To reiterate is always about following “ it here: “Personal finance is first ‘personal’ and then ‘finance’.” This still does not clarify why investment portfolios should be different for different people. Well, the answer lies in the following question “Why do we invest?” We invest our money in order to achieve some financial goals. These financial goals depend on certain events that occur in our life and that require a large amount of money. The funding of these goals can be done through investments, which depend on one’s income and expenses. While doing so one has to consider

current investments as well as any loans that may be outstanding. As is now obvious different people may be in different financial situations. Someone with two children would need to fund the kids’ education whereas a childless couple does not have to set aside any amount for that purpose. Someone living in Mumbai may have a higher cost of living compared to someone in a small town. A commerce graduate may start working in his/ her early twenties, whereas a super-specialist doctor may continue to study till the age of thirty. A person in a job may have to retire as per the company’s policy, whereas a self-employed person or a business owner may continue to work till much later. Considering these differences, it is not the best idea to work according to generalizations. What we need is not general advice or even the best products, but a tailor-made plan that is suitable for our situation. So go ahead, and plan your finances, but in sync with your own unique situation. Take professional help to first understand and analyze where you stand and then take an informed leap! n

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august 2016

| 83

travel

An exotic weekend getaway with world- famous beaches and forests and amazing food is right next door. What more could you ask for, says Veathika Jain, as she packs her bags once again.

ost in our dreams of traveling to faraway lands, most of us with itchy travel feet often ignore our equally or perhaps more alluring neighbouring destinations.

A beautiful, tropical island is just a short flight away from India and makes for a perfect long-weekend getaway. For those of you who havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t guessed, I am talking about Sri Lanka and because it is nearby, even

a long weekend is good enough to start exploring this wonderful patch of land formerly known as Ceylon. With its varied landscapes, thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s plenty to do here, whether you are a seaside vacationer, wildlife enthusiast, city lover or a history geek! For the last category, there are no less than eight UNESCO heritage sites to visit, including the sacred city of Kandy, Sinharaja Forest Reserve and the Golden temple of Dambulla. Though there are several itineraries one can plan, here is one based on what we did in the four days that we were there:

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Day 1: Land at Colombo Airport and head straight to Kandy, the second largest city after Colombo which was also the capital of the ancient kings. It is about three to four hours drive and en route you can take a break to visit a unique orphanage - the Pinnawala elephant orphanage. Feed cute baby elephants and also watch them bathe and getting trained. Once you arrive at Kandy and check in to your hotel, you can relax for the rest of the day depending on what time you reach, or go for a cultural show followed by dinner in the evening.

Day 2: Your first stop should be the Temple of Tooth Relic of Buddha. It is mainly because of the Temple that Kandy is a World Heritage Site. This is one of the most sacred places in the world for Buddhists to worship, who form about 70 percent of Sri Lankaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s population, according to a 2011 census.

Later, one can head to the gem museum for a quick stop. Though the display which ranges from jewellery to ivory is nothing to talk about, the building is embedded with some moonstones. You can also visit a batik-making factory to see the process first-hand. Batik is practiced as an art in many countries including Indonesia, India, Malaysia and Nigeria. Sri Lanka has its own traditional designs and you can either buy some fabric or buy a sarong, like I did. Post lunch, drive down any of these two beach destinations on the west coast - Bentota or Negombo. Bentota is about four and a half hours away while Negombo is closer with a driving time of three hours. Whichever you choose, both are stunning and have a wide range of resorts to choose from. Day 3: Be a beach bum today or engage in some water activities and spa treatments. If you chose Bentota then you could also go for Dolphin and Whale watching or river rafting. There are some historic and cultural tours to choose from as well. If you are in Negombo then you have Angurukaramulla Temple, the Dutch Fort, Abhayasekararama Temple and St Maryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s church to visit. We had narrowed down on Bentota and our stay at the Taj property made the whole beach experience superb. Day 4: Soon after breakfast, drive to Colombo. From

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Travel

Eating in Sri Lanka Sri Lankan cuisine is quite rich with some unique dishes to taste and try. Try the Kottu or Kuttu roti – a popular street food, which is basically paratha stir-fried with spices and vegetables or meat options. Another favourite dish is the Hopper. It’s like an appam, served with various curries. Hoppers are usually plain but you can ask for the egg version. Sri Lankan curries range from shrimp and cuttlefish to eggplant and chicken. For the vegetarians too there is a multitude of options available in the cuisine.

Bentota the drive will be about two hours, while from Negombo it’ll take you less than an hour. Colombo being the capital is vibrant and has loads of restaurants and shopping. A trip to Odel – the huge department store is a must. You can shop for clothes, the unparalleled Ceylon tea, souvenirs and knick knacks, even make-up, if you like. Clothes shopping here is a good idea as most of them are made in the same factories as some famous international brands such as Banana Republic and Gap. Another beautiful boutique shop is Barefoot which has tablecloths, napkins and linen in hand-woven fabrics. The store also has a bookshop and a café. You should definitely fit in one meal at the café here. Four days had gone by just like that for us and we had yet to touch upon the wild side of this island nation that is also one of the top five biodiversity hotspots in the world. Luckily for us, we have no choice but to return for the rainforests and wildlife sanctuaries. For now though, we go back dreaming of what we have experienced - delightfully warm, azure seas and pristine white beaches. n

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Travel tips Hiring a car and a driver is a good idea as it’s reasonably priced with the driver becoming a local guide by default and helping you make the right choices, especially when it comes to eating out. The journey to anywhere usually takes an extra hour from what the driver or tour companies will say, so keeping an extra hour’s buffer when you plan is wise. Kandy has some spice gardens so it’s the ideal place to pick up vanilla beans, sandalwood, nutmeg and mace - some of the best spices to buy. Be a bit cautious however while buying beauty products like soaps, lotions and creams and check the ingredients to see if they are all natural as they claim.

recipes

Roxanne Bamboat shares her favourite recipes

Homemade Granola Snack Time – Healthy and Simple Homemade Granola Recipe One of my favorite snacks is granola. I enjoy it at breakfast in a parfait with some yogurt or in the evening as a granola bar or even just something to munch on through the day. The recipe is really simple and the best part is you can customize it whichever way you like. I must admit I’ve bought plenty of granola from various shops and brands but now I prefer to make it at home because I get to control the sugar I add to my recipe. This one has no added sugar, just the regular ingredients but I’ve completely skipped the half or one full cup of brown sugar that most ask for. To me it tastes just as good! I’ve also skimped out on the amount of oil the regular recipes have but like I said, customizing is key, so while this is my healthy version, feel free to make it the way you like it.

Ingredients

3 cups of rolling oats – ( instant oats are an absolute NO ) 50 grams chopped almonds 50 grams chopped walnuts 50 grams chopped pistaschio 50 grams dried cranberries ( you can choose the unsweetened ones if you like) 50 grams raisins 1 teaspoon of cinnamon 2 teaspoons of flaxseed (I added them because I had them, you can skip it ) 2 cups of honey

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2 cups of oil (I only added about a spoon of it though so go with what you like ) 1 cup sugar (As I mentioned I skipped this entirely but if you want it sweet go ahead ) These are what I used but you can add figs, apricots, sunflower seeds, any combination you like.

Directions

 I n a bowl add all the dry ingredients and to it add the oil and honey and mix well.  Add the chopped nuts (not the berries and raisins yet ), mix well and spread it out on a baking tray. Spread them well so there are no clumps and they cook evenly.  Preheat your oven for 10 mins at 250 degrees Celsius and bake for 25 – 30 mins. Every ten minutes take them out and mix them up so that all the bits bake evenly and nothing burns. If you do feel it starting to burn, lower the temperature. Just keep an eye on it throughout.  In the last ten minutes you can add some of the berries or do it in the end if you don’t want the berries to cook completely. Once it’s baked, take it out and add the berries and raisins and mix it all up well. Keep in mind that as it starts to cool the granola will form chunks, so if you don’t want it all chunky, just keep mixing it and breaking it up.  Once it’s cool just transfer it into an airtight jar and your healthy, perfect little snack is ready! I ate this with some Greek Yogurt ( hung curd ) and it was simply delicious! Not to mention guilt free. Next I’m going to make a breakfast parfait with it.

Cauliflower Fried Rice Ingredients

1 whole cauliflower ( try to pick a large one ) 1 chopped red bell pepper 1 packet of baby corn 1 packet of mushrooms 3 spring onions 1 tablespoon of soy sauce 6-7 pods of chopped garlic Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

 C ut off all the leaves and the stem of the cauliflower and chop it up into smaller pieces. Wash thoroughly.  Add the cauliflower bits in batches into your food processor or a dry grinder. Blitz till they become crumbly. Do not add any water at all to the cauliflower (this is a dry grind) or else it will be a disaster.  Once you have the cauliflower in this fine crumbly rice or couscous like texture, leave it aside and chop all the other vegetables.  Heat some oil in a pan or wok and add the cauliflower so you can cook/roast it for about 5-7 minutes. Keep stirring. The cauliflower won’t take very long to cook.  Add the chopped garlic and let it cook a bit, then add the spring onions - the whites and some of the

greens and mix it all together.  To this add the peppers and baby corn. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper to season and only then mix all the ingredients and cauliflower together.  Add the mushrooms and again season them with salt and pepper before they cook. Once they start to release their water, mix it into the other ingredients. The reason we season the ingredients separately first is because we don’t add salt to the cauliflower, as eventually we will add soy sauce which has plenty of salt. The vegetables will not catch the flavour however, so we need to season them slightly beforehand.  Mix everything together and lastly add the soy sauce. There is no need to add extra salt but if after tasting you feel the need, please go right ahead.  Lastly, garnish with the leftover spring onions, serve hot and enjoy!

Feelings august 2016 | 89

home decor

AT HOME IN

AUSTRALIA

While on a visit down under, Jagruti Fadia discovers whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unique about Australian houses and how even a small space can be made into a comfort zone

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n a recent holiday in Australia, I had the chance to stay in a typical Australian house. Modern apartments in the city here are comparable to the luxury apartments in Mumbai. A traditional Australian house however, feels more like a holiday home or a farm house. It is not multistoried and a basement like in American houses is a big no-no. Generally, it does not even have fence, though most recently built houses now do have fencing. The common features are a lawn and car park in the front and a backyard with fruit trees, a kitchen garden and plants or some extra storage. Also noticeable are two huge garbage bins kept in front of the houses with different

colored lids to distinguish rubbish and recyclables. In a suburb all the houses look similar in an area if not same, and after every few houses there will always be a big public park, play area, play ground, a library and a small shopping mall or convenience store. Look around and it is pleasantly green as far as your eyes can see. I was staying in one such house in Melbourne. Small and beautiful, this house is 28 years old and looks as if it is made of bricks but is not. The houses here are built on wooden frames and weather board, unlike Indian brick and cement houses. They generally have two entry doors, one behind the other main entry in the front. The former is a light door of metal net with an auto closing system and opens outside. The other main door opens into the house.

seemed no less than any in a five star hotel. Neatly arranged towels, a clock, plants and other show pieces brightened up this otherwise utilitarian area. I could imagine the warm lights placed on the ceiling in the center coming to the rescue while one dressed up after a shower on freezing cold days. The sparkling white bath tub looked as if no one has ever used it. A long window above the bath tub added light and a touch of the outdoors.

This house also had two living rooms, which is again a common feature. One had a six-seater dining table and the other had an open kitchen. The small kitchen had a C shaped platform and was fully equipped with all the gadgets one can possibly need - a cooking range, microwave oven, electric kettle, refrigerator and a dishwasher. Because the houses are always closed, a chimney above the cook top is a must. On one side of the counter top two high raised stools were perfect for eating breakfast or a quick meal. The television was placed in the living area in such a way that the chef could easily catch the Master Chef show while she/he cooked!

What caught the eye in the living room were the special seats for the cats and and an aquarium like glass box for another pet - a python! Only one person lives in this house, with two cats and a snake!

Tall and wide glass doors led from the living room to the back yard, which was also used as an outdoor party/ barbecue area. With a green garden on one side, there was a huge, heavy wooden dining table and chairs along with a barbecue next to it. A little further was an outdoor Jacuzzi and some gym equipment (the Australian love for the outdoors is well known!). Big trees and pots of small flowering plants added to the beauty of the backyard garden. Australians are animal lovers and their houses must have a special place for pets. This garden too had a play area for the ownerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s cats. Moving inside, the spacious master bedroom had an elegantly decorated bathroom with grand sliding doors and

The windows in all rooms were covered with two blinds, one overlapping the other. The light one is rolled down during the day and the other dark one in the night. Melbourne has extreme weather conditions, so this house had both a central air conditioning system as well as a heating system. The other two bedrooms were located on the back side to allow total privacy. One was equipped with a single bed and the other with a queen size bed. Though the size of the rooms was small, it more than made up for everything with the luxuries within. All Australian houses are carpeted wall to wall except the kitchen area which in this case had floor tiles matching with the house decor. Bedrooms here do not have wardrobes like in India, but closets in the walls. Everything from the beds and the pillows on them, the side tables, lamps, chests, mirrors and curios were so tastefully arranged that the ownerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s artistic temperament shone through. The house looked like it had come out of a big cake box in the fairy tale that happened to be my wonderful vacation! n

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campus talk

How To Make

e f i Out Of L e g e l l Co The Most

The beginning of college life is full of expectations and apprehensions at the same time. Linda Das has some helpful tips for those about to cross the threshold...

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t’s that time of the year when youngsters are busy packing their bags to head back to college. For many, it would be their first time in college. Moving out of their comfort zone to a new location, with new people around can be pretty exciting and nerve wracking at the same time. Noel, who will be a first year computer science student at NIT Surat says that he is really excited to take this new road. He says he is all charged up to experience campus life. "Apart from studies and assignments, I'm going to take advantage of the sports and gymnasium facilities available on my campus. That is something I'm looking forward to. I am eager to see how this new journey will be." Dharini Somani who has got admission in BHU- IIT for Electrical Engineering had a big family get together just before she left. Having spent two years in Kota she says, “Though I am used to staying away from home now, I’m wondering about who my roommates will be, and whether we will connect with each other." If you are a fresher too, or even if you are going back to college after a break, here are some ways in which you can prepare yourself:

A home away from home

If you think about it in a nutshell, college is pretty much like a home where any student has to spend at least three years, if not more. In a new environment it is quite possible that you might feel homesick. One of the best ways to battle this feeling is by recreating your home. Achieving this is not as hard as it seems! You can decorate or arrange your hostel room to match your bedroom at your parents’ house. If that seems like a lot of work, the simple trick is to use photographs. Take some of your favorite photographs along with you. You can keep them in your purse or bag, or frame some and put them on the walls of your room. This way you will always feel near to your family and friends back home. Pooja, who is pursuing B.Com at MSU Vadodara says, "I always keep a picture of my mom with me. It is like a lucky charm and has helped me through some tough times."

Explore your campus

If you are headed to a university, then there is not a question of getting bored. You have the entire campus to explore! Apart from your own faculty, you can go

around the campus and find out what other courses your university offers. Maybe you will find your true calling when you start exploring! Apart from studies, you can also take walks, hang out with friends, complete assignments and make new friends on the campus. Noel says, “I have heard that NIT Surat’s campus is one of the most well maintained campuses among NITs. Therefore, exploring my campus would be my leisure activity there.” Your campus life is what's going to make your college years memorable, so make sure you make the most out of it!

Experimentation makes the difference

This is the phase of life where you should be open to try out new things. Say ‘Yes’ more than ‘No’. You never know when your eureka moment might strike! It might be on an ordinary day when you choose to do something out of the ordinary! Go on adventure trips, hang out with different groups of students, keep exploring your available resources and you might land somewhere you never even imagined!

Your campus life is what's going to make your college years memorable, so make sure you make the most out of it. Keep a journal

This might sound like a tedious job, but if you get into the habit of writing even a few lines daily, it can become one of the most interesting things to do! Recording the highlights of your college years and campus life is the best ways to store your memories forever. Another positive is that writing has been proved to be cathartic. Writing about a hard day, especially when you are feeling low will help you get over it faster. Before you know it the diary will become a timeless keepsake, something your children might marvel over some day! n

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Kabali review

Not a classic, but we’re not complaining! Sundar Sarma, a loyal Rajni fan, took a morning off to catch the first day, first show of Kabali, a most eagerly anticipated comeback film of the Tamil megastar

"Magizhchi"(we are thrilled)! The superstar was back and how! It was as if he was referring to all of us gaping at our respective laptop screens when he roared, "Naan vandhutenu sollu; thirumbi vandhuten!" (Tell them I’ve come…I’ve come back)

But then out of nowhere, on May day earlier this year, he announced his presence, rising like a proverbial phoenix from the ashes as he thundered "Kabali Da!" It was just a teaser of his film but it had enough for all of us to go

The anticipation of the movie aside, just the teaser was a source of unprecedented joy, exhilaration and even celebration that one would normally associate with having seen a full length Rajnikanth movie. This, and a couple of false alarms in terms of release dates meant that anticipation had now turned into a kind of excitement that could only be experienced - not

t had been 506 days since his last release. Forgettable, as it did not have even one powerful punchline, let alone any of legendary ones usually associated with him that could serve as a constant reminder of his presence in our lives. As if that was not enough, news of various mystery illnesses kept doing the rounds keeping us worried and unsure about what will become of our Thalaivar (leader)!!

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explained. The excitement to live three hours of our lives with vintage Thalaivaa! Why else would shows be announced for as early as 4:00 am on the release date and why else would offices declare holidays anticipating low productivity at work. And why else would I queue up with hundred others outside an obscure cinema hall in Vadodara to catch the first show at a time when office goers were trying to bite into the last bit of their toast before heading to work. The Rajni Fest did not disappoint. Just like the teaser promised, Kabali is a celebration of the phenomenon called Rajnikant. An ode to the way he walks, talks and fights. A symphony punctuated with his legendary swagger, irrepressible panache and indomitable presence. And all of this brought to the fore through a simple, linear plot with no parallel song and dance, romance or comedy tracks which have the capacity to make the otherwise simple Tamil movies overbearing. The story and screenplay though, could have been tighter and could have been played out better in the 152 minutes that they had to say it. Shot almost entirely in Malaysia, the story revolves around one good man, Kabali, who gets his hands dirty in the big bad world of crime with the sole intent of helping his marginalized bretheren in an oppressive country. Inspired by another noble gangster, he takes on

not only local gangsters but even those from his own community who have joined the oppressors in the lure of money and power. As is customary in Rajni movies, good has to win over evil. The film, shot extensively in Malaysia with bits in India (in some parts also set up to look like Bangkok), is slick in its visuals. There are some parts however where one feels the editor may have dozed off. The music is contemporary and just what is needed when Rajni is on screen. The legend of Kabali will owe a lot to Neruppu Da and Ulagam Oruvanuka. Some of the soothing background music used during extremely violent and distrubing sequences was also very innovative. Rajnikanth as Kabali was superb. Sincere as always, his visibily older looks have had no impact on his presence. He still manages to create the same kind of intensity as he did in the past and stands tall through the movie except for the dub which made his voice sound muffled at times. Radhika Apte was a standout in terms of her performance apart from looking as good as she did. Dhansika also did well in the strong author backed role that she was given alongside Radhika. The bad guys, including the Taiwanese actor Winston Chao, were good too for most part of all that they did. While the support cast was used well, one felt for Nasser who was clearly wasted in that blink and a miss appearance. All in all, while it has a lot of vintage value for a Rajni fan, this movie is no classic. For a normal movie goer, this may just be an average fare with some bits of their money's worth thrown in, but for those who have invested in the Rajni phenomenon, this will count for a little more. Though left wanting as a Rajni classic, Kabaali for now has strongly reinforced Thalaivar's presence with this sudden and impactful action. It is not without reason that one of lines in the movie's song goes "Kabaali, idhukku paer thaan thalaivar adhiradhi." n

Feelings August 2016 | 95

fortune teller

Bejan Daruwalla is a well- known Astrologer and Author

HOROSCOPE August - 2016

Bejan Daruwalla, Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most popular astrologer, reveals what the stars have in store for you. Aries (21st March to 20th April) This month, your fortunes could keep fluctuating. In the first few days, you may be filled with guilt for neglecting your household. Thankfully, this feeling shall stop you bothering you, as days pass, helping you be your enthusiastic and energetic self. You will now be confident, fired by new ideas. In the latter part of the month, progressive forces get activated. Promotions and financial gains may be in the pipeline. But, at no cost, ignore your vital bonds. Taurus (21st April to 21st May) Things may be slow, as the month begins. Use this time for revision, reevaluation and planning. Ganesha warns you against making any major financial commitments. After the 13th will be a great time to start the execution of some proposed plans. No short cuts, though! Post 23rd, events that happen may have a long-term

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impact on your life. Be careful and polite, especially in your relationships. Guard against viral infections. Gemini (22nd May to 21st June) Challenges that donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t break you make you stronger. Believe in this, and keep striving. Relationships need care. There may be stresses and strains, but remember the same may be the case for your spouse/ beloved. So act maturely. You may feel like ending a relationship. Think twice! At work, keep a low profile, and devote extra time to home affairs. Business partnership issues may bother you. Do not start anything new. Watch your words. Cancer (22nd June to 22nd July) Work to enhance your ability to connect with people. You are a recluse, given to stay in your self-created boundaries. This may put off some

important people, this month. Also, be careful of what you say to others, as you run the risk of going against your sensitive self, in a social gathering. Love may cause heart-ache. Try keeping harmony on the marital front. Take care of your baggage, if travelling longdistance, this month. Leo (23rd July to 22nd Aug) The month begins on a high note, but things dwindle soon. Keep your cool, at all costs. Handle monetary matters with care and maturity. You may be prone to speaking without thinking. Take care. Second fortnight brings better times for work matters, but family tiffs may keep you upset. Give time to sort these out. Refrain from making any financial commitment now. Save, save, save! Situations can spiral out of control due to changing emotions as the month draws to a close. Virgo (23rd Aug to 22nd Sep) Your personal life takes the

centre-stage, and quite possibly, in not a good way. Be careful and tactful. Try and not hurt someone whom you value. You will have to very patient, in dealing with this person/ party, who may be creating trouble for you. However, keeping grudges will make matters worse – for you. Focus on saving money. Home issues may not let you focus on work. It’s just a matter of time – once a resolution is reached at home, you can turn back your attention to work. Libra (23rd Sept to 22nd Oct) Expenses zoom, and so should your efforts at maintaining your money better. Major expenditure at home may upset your budgets, though. Don’t begrudge the same for too long.You may intentionally immerse yourself in work to ward off a host of negative vibes. Your relationships deserve much more, including your love and care. Work whole-heartedly to enhance the level of comfort and mutual bonding in all your relations. In fact, check your own personal expenses. Scorpio (23rd Oct to 22nd Nov) Be careful, while making any financial transactions. Don’t take any risks, and certainly avoid being aggressive or forceful. Relationships may come

to the forefront. Do not lean on any one person! Starting a new relationship at this time may be dicey – be careful. Remain tactful – and refrain from being sarcastic. Overall, a month of mixed bag: some phases appear good, while others may be ordinary. Sagittarius (23rd Nov to 21st Dec) Union of Saturn and Mars in your Sign shall push you to achieve desired results. Well, just don’t end up being too forceful, brazen or intensely grim. Watch your attitude in relationships. Take important decisions, only after careful deliberation. There may be a boost in your career prospects, but don’t neglect your family affairs. Second fortnight will be a good time to set in motion stalled plans. Overspending on luxuries may cause a loss, around month-end. Capricorn (22nd Dec to 20th Jan) Time to balance your personal and professional lives. There may be an increase in expenses in the first fortnight. Remain prepared. Family and relationships will need your attention. Do not begrudge that. 9th will be a good day for financial dealings. But, don’t go against your nature. Plan your finances with a longterm view. Do not neglect old and chronic health issues. Watch your words, as you run a risk of coming

across as too blunt. Aquarius (21st Jan to 18th Feb)

When the going gets tough, the tough get going! Believe in this, and trundle on. You need to draw from your inner reserves to stride ahead. Close relationships may develop some differences now, and it will now be to act maturely and stably, till this challenging phase passes. You will be feeling negative, but consciously, try to shun this and think positively. Manage your finances carefully. Avoid being too blunt in your speech, especially towards month-end. Pisces (19th Feb to 20th March) You may be keen to learn a few skills in the coming days. However, some problem or the other persists. Don’t let the slow pace of things demotivate you. Soon, Mars will come to your rescue, helping you gain from the momentum on the professional front. Over the last 10 days, you may face troubles in relationship front. Don’t be too assertive, as your words may be misunderstood then. Health needs care. Listen to other people’s fair advice. n

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bold WORDs

#thetweettalk Celebrities express their thoughts on twitter

Kabir Bedi @iKabirBedi #IncredibleIndia is where a tea seller becomes Prime Minster, a tribal girl World Boxing Champion, a bus conductor a SuperStar. #Kabali Anupama Chopra @anupamachopra Reading about companies declaring a holiday tom for #Kabali. So #Rajinikanth truly doesn’t need a festival. He creates his own. Madhur Bhandarkar @imbhandarkar On my way to watch 1st day 1st show of #Kabali at Aurora Theatre,Matunga & excited be a part of @Rajnikanth #mania KRK @kamaalrkhan What a great film #Kabali! Full of emotions n patriotism. It’s going to be sure shot blockbuster all over south India. Salute to Rajnikant. Abhishek Singhvi @DrAMSinghvi Rajnikanth proves again that he is India’s megastar with Kabali. Was torrent founder getting caught at eve of Rajni release a coincidence?

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Sorabh Pant @ hankypanty Dancing. Dholaks. Worship. Painted Planes. Endless queues. Holidays. Partying. More worship. #Kabali is officially India’s biggest festival.

Chetan Bhagat @chetan_bhagat Tamils are 5% of India’s population. Yet, at Rs44cr net, a Tamil movie has highest first day collections of any Indian film, ever! #Kabali

Rohan @mojorojo Not one reference to Kabali in Trump’s speech. His loss is going to be one for the record books.

Ajay Devgn @ajaydevgn One more story to add to the legend - Kabali collections! Hats off @superstarrajini

Rama Lakshmi @RamaNewDelhi Most dialogues inaudible at #Kabali. Crowd whistled, screamed, jumped nonstop. ‘It’s about the experience,not movie” Hema Malini @dreamgirlhema So nice to hear abt the gt success of Kabali.It cudnt have happend to a nicer human being! I’ve known him personally for quite a few yrs now