Asian City Issue 5

AsianCity BRITAIN’S BEST ASIAN NEWSPAPER

EE www.asiancity.co.uk R F

Issue 5 • August 30 - September 12, 2012

Faran Tahir: The new Asian Kojak

Bollywood or Bust for Vanya Mishra

FULL STORY: PAGE 22 & 23

TURN TO PAGE 16

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

SISTER HAILED A ‘HERO’ FOR SAVING BROTHER

•STARS Deepika and Mary Kom

Something about Mary

INDIAN Olympics bronze medallist, boxer MC Mary Kom, has welcomed a film that Bollywood director Sanjay Leela Bhansali wants to make on her life.

“This film will help bridge the gap between people of the Indian mainland and those from the north-eastern states,” Mary Kom told the BBC. Bhansali, who has been planning the film for a year, described the boxer as an “inspiration to every Indian woman”.

“I am very impressed with the way Mary Kom is leading her life with so much conviction and courage.

We’ll start working on the film very soon. I haven’t decided on who will play her role,” Bhansali told the BBC. Bhansali’s assistant Omung Kumar, who researched Mary Kom’s life and wrote the script, will direct the film.

But will it be possible to screen the movie in the boxer’s home state Manipur, where separatist rebels have imposed a ban on Bollywood films?

“I hope nobody will object to a film if it centres on my life story, my struggles to become a boxer,” Mary Kom said.

COWARDS CAUGHT

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10 year old still in intensive care after hit and run day before Eid THREE men have been arrested by police searching for a hit-and-run driver who mowed down a 10year-old girl and her two-year-old brother.

•INJURED Rayhan Saleem

Sabah Saleem and her brother Rayhan were critically injured when they were hit by the car in the Hyde Park area The driver of a Vauxhall pair were going to the local of Leeds, West Yorkshire.

Police confirmed they have Astra hit Sabah Saleem and shop to buy ingredients for her little brother Rayhan as food in preparation for Eid. arrested three Leeds men, they were crossing a road near But after the accident, the aged 39, 36 and 26, in their house.

It was the driver didn’t stop, only slowed connection with the incident.

Continued on Page 2 Saturday before Eid and the down, and then sped off.

Read this paper online at www.asiancity.co.uk

•HOSPITAL Sabah Saleem Follow us on Twitter @asiancity

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Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

HOUSE FROM HELL

Clean-up Inspector had problems in his own property

HIT AND RUN SIBLINGS FROM PAGE 1

The 36-year-old man has been questioned by detectives on suspicion of dangerous driving, failing to stop after a collision and failing to report a collision.

The 39-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving and the 26year-old was held on suspicion of assisting an offender.

Rayhan who was seriously injured in the hit-and-run crash has been released from hospital.

But Sabah, remains at the Leeds General Infirmary. However, she is no longer being treated in intensive care.

Rayhaan Saleem and his sister were knocked down by a car in Brudenell Road, Hyde Park, during Ramadan, just one day before Eid. The three men who were arrested over the incident have now been released on bail. West Yorkshire Police said they had been able to enhance a CCTV picture to identify the vehicle suspected of being involved in the incident, at about 17:20 BST on 19 August.

The children’s aunt, Saima Rafique, pleaded for the driver of the car to come forward.

Ms Rafique said the children had been knocked down as they returned from a shop with food for the family’s Eid celebrations.

“I really want my princess home,” she said.

“She had just completed her Holy Koran three days ago and was so happy.

“She had a cake ordered especially for her, we were going to celebrate on Eid day. She didn’t get to see her cake.”

A SENIOR policeman who ran a ‘zero tolerance’ crackdown on nightmare tenants owned a house that became notorious for wild parties, drug taking and violence.

down that house will give us our first good nights sleep for several years.

‘He may have been the public face of policing anti social behaviour on his beat but it is an absolute disgrace that he can’t keep his own While Inspector house in order - literally.

‘There were always late Mohammed Razaq, 52, was fighting to evict thugs from a night parties going on there council estate in Bolton, and at one time there was a Greater Manchester, his ten- woman threatening to jump bedroom house five miles from the second floor. They away had descended into had feral dogs roaming around the neighbourhood and chaos.

Neighbours created a attacking other animals.

Insp Razaq - one of Britain’s dossier of 49 incidents in which drunken tenants at the longest serving Asian officers Victorian townhouse had and known as ‘Mo’ - has more thrown bricks at them in the than 33 years experience, street and jumped up and including spells in CID, Tactical Aid, a firearms unit down on cars.

A neighbour said: ‘Closing and on community cohesion projects.

During the 1980s, he helped to police the Toxteth riots, and was part of the team which escorted the Moors Murderer Myra Hindley back to the Saddleworth Moor to locate victims’ bodies.

He was eventually put in charge of policing the Johnson Fold estate in Bolton, where he introduced extra high visibility police patrols and more CCTV surveillance. Groups of youths were regularly stopped and asked to account for what they were doing.

His use of dispersal orders helped cut anti-social behaviour in the area by a third. Insp Razaq was a regular at local area meetings and warned that problem •COPPER RAZAQ Awaiting trail tenants would be thrown out

Manchester City Magistrates’ Court was told of almost 50 incidents involving tenants of the house between July last year and June this year.

They included loud music being played at night, foul language, fights and repeated thefts from neighbours’ houses and the local shop. A dog from the house also mauled a passer-by.

•HOUSE FROM HELL Boarded up of their homes if they repeatedly brought misery to the community.

After one eviction, Insp Razaq, who lives in the Great Lever area of Bolton, said: ‘There has been a lot of antisocial behaviour, alcoholfuelled problems and this house was the focal point.

‘We’re sending out a strong

The case is the first time an Asbo has been served on a property in Greater Manchester rather than an individual.

Insp Razaq said he had been the victim of a ‘witch hunt’ on the evidence of just one witness. He said he and his son had fully complied with everything council officers had asked of them.

Insp Razaq is currently suspended on full pay from his post after being arrested in May 2011 on suspicion of unrelated allegations of corruption and fraud.

He was cleared of any wrongdoing on duty but was charged with six offences of fraud and three offences under the Proceeds of Crime Act message that if people engage relating to insurance and in anti-social behaviour they mortgage fraud. can expect low-levels of It is alleged he exaggerated tolerance from the police. We insurance claims following will do all we can to resolve flood damage at his house and the problem and if that means secured a mortgage at a lower evicting people, then so be it.’ rate by failing to disclose that But Insp Razaq had he was buying to let. problems at his own property, He will ‘strenuously’ deny for which his son Usman all charges and is awaiting holds the landlord licence. trial.

•BANWELL Hotheaded

•RED HOT Chilli peppers

Strawberries? No chillies!

A HUNGRY thief scoffed a super-hot chilli pepper he stole — and collapsed in agony in the street.

Marcus Banwell, 39, grabbed a handful of Scotch Bonnet chillis and stuffed one in his mouth as he fled.

Moments later he was found doubled-up in pain, coughing and vomiting on the pavement.

Cops were called and found a further four peppers, a milkshake and fruit juice stolen from an Asian food shop.

They also recovered a £225 clarinet taken from a nearby music shop tucked into his waistband and wraps of crack cocaine and heroin.

Scotch Bonnets are one of the hottest chillies in the world with a heat rating of 100,000 to 350,000 Scoville units — compared to just 2,500 to 8,500 for a jalapeno.

The thief, of nearby Fishponds, was jailed for 14 weeks after admitting the theft and a string of other offences, including breaching his licence from a previous prison sentence.

Bristol magistrates heard he had serious issues with drugs and alcohol and stole to feed himself rather than for financial gain.

ANSARI UNWRAPPED Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

Saima falls for another Ex-England boss

•DISHONEST Dr Freddy Patel

Dr Patel suspended

A PATHOLOGIST was struck off over his part in the investigation into the death of Ian Tomlinson during the G20 protests.

Dr Freddy Patel was found by a medical tribunal to be misleading, dishonest and liable to bring his profession into disrepute over parts of his handling of the post-mortem examination of Mr Tomlinson’s body.

The pathologist, who is currently suspended, concluded that newspaper seller Mr Tomlinson died from a heart attack, but questions were raised when an American tourist came forward with a film recording of him being hit.

Further medical reports suggested that in fact he died from an injury to his liver that caused internal bleeding and then cardiac arrest.

At the inquest into Mr Tomlinson’s death, Dr Patel’s claim that Mr Tomlinson died of a heart attack was discredited by the jury in favour of the string of experts who said he died of internal bleeding.

Dr Patel now faces a hearing into whether he is fit to practise.

•TESCOS Extra help

Every illegal helps TESCO faces a fine of up to £200,000 after immigration officials found foreign students to be working illegally at one of its warehouses. UK Border Agency officials arrested 20 students of nearly a dozen nationalities at the site in Croydon, South London last month for alleged breaches of their visa terms.

As a result of the probe, Tesco has been issued with a “notification of potential liability”, but the Home Office is deciding on whether to upgrade the document to a full liability notification and impose a fine of up to £10,000 per illegal worker.The supermarket chain needed to provide “evidence that it was carrying out the legally required checks to avoid a fine,” the government department said.

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CITIZEN KHAN The funniest new sitcom on TV? IT’S taken over two years in the making, but finally sees the launch of the first comedy TV series by ex-Asian Network DJ Adil Ray. Citizen Khan has by-passed the digital channels that new comedies are usually debuted on and been fast tracked straight to BBC 1 - so expectations are high!

The six-parter is set in Sparkhill, Birmingham and follows the life of the Khan family - Mr Khan, a loud-mouthed, tight-fisted, self-appointed community leader, his long suffering wife Mrs Khan and their daughters Shazia and Alia.

In episode 1, the family are looking forward to Shazia’s wedding only to discover that her dad forgot to book a venue. So he heads to the local mosque to see if Dave, the manager can help.

Looking forward to sharing his writing and acting skills, Adil said: ‘I’m over the moon that the beeb have given this so much support. It’s testament to the hard work the whole team has put

in. I thank community leaders everywhere for the inspiration.’

Expect belly laughs, memorable one-liners and those awkward moments that you totally recognise but would rather forget...

Citizen Khan is shown on BBC 1, 10.20pm, Monday evenings.

I LIKE ME ON FACEBOOK! HE’S long been a fan of social media, keeps an audio blog, Tumblr account and frequently updates his Twitter account to keep in touch with his fans, and now Amitabh Bachchan has finally given in and joined Facebook too. On his first day he attracted nearly 800,000 likes in the first hour. He was so excited that he replied ‘keep them coming!’

The A’list legend has 3 million followers on Twitter, more than any other Bollywood star and regards his fans as his extended family. The 69-year-old actor has

•ON A HAT TRICK Saima Ansari

FORMER England boss Steve McClaren has allegedly been having an affair with a woman who also had a fling with Sven Goran Eriksson.

Married McClaren, 51, is said to have met Saima Ansari at the same hotel in Manchester where she first met Eriksson - who was also the head coach of England..

According to The Sun, Miss Ansari said McClaren introduced himself to her while she had lunch with a friend at the Lowry Hotel in June.

Incredibly, she was sat at exactly the same table where she first met Eriksson five years earlier.

Before leaving the hotel, McClaren - who had a threemonth affair with a secretary while boss at Middlesbrough in 2006 - exchanged numbers with Miss Ansari.

Later the same day, they arranged to meet for a coffee.

Miss Ansari noticed McClaren was wearing a wedding ring and confronted him about it but he laughed and replied ‘it’s complicated’.

The pair then text each other over the course of the following week.

‘He would just say that he couldn’t stop thinking about my sexy eyes,’ said Miss Ansari. ‘Sometimes the texts would start at 6am and sometimes we’d still be texting at midnight.’

Eventually, they met again in Manchester. “I knew it was lust at first sight, she said. One thing led to another and I stayed the night.”

The news will come as a devastating blow to McClaren’s wife Kathryn following his previous affair.

said he’ll use his Facebook to provide information about his forthcoming releases, videos and exclusive photographs that you won’t see anywhere else. In a video message he told his fans: ‘I am now on Facebook.... Year after year, month after month, day after day, we just keep coming closer to each other. Lovely to have you here and we shall be seeing each other and you will be getting to know more about me and my daily activities through this wonderful medium’. Latest figures show he •HAPPY LOVERS Steve McClaren and Saima Ansari now has over 1 million likes.

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Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

•1998 Surjit Singh Chhokar

Murder case reopened DETECTIVES investigating the murder of Surjit Singh Chhokar 14 years ago staged a reconstruction of the crime scene.

Officers recreated how the street where the Indian waiter was fatally attacked would have looked on the night he was killed on 4 November, 1998.

The move came in an attempt to jog people’s memories about the killing in Wishaw, Lanarkshire, after the case was reopened

by Strathclyde Police earlier this year.

Three local men stood trial for the murder in 1999 and 2000, but criticisms were later made of the way the Crown Office prosecuted the accused in two separate trials, a move that ultimately allowed the men to blame each other for the murder.

MENARRESTEDAFTER BOY RAPED IN STORE

‘Absolutely horrendous’ attack on 14 year old, left devasated TWO men, aged 55 and 41, The boy was then frogmarched have been arrested after a by the men – one white and the teenage boy was raped in a other Asian – outside.

Led by the arm, he was forcibly department store toilet. taken about 50 yards away to the

said: ‘I want to extend a huge thank you for the overwhelming response we had from the public when we released two images of possible suspects earlier this week.

The attack happened when the nearby Debenhams store.

‘As a result of that information, 14-year-old victim visited the As shoppers and staff walked we have made a number of Arndale centre in Manchester city around the four-storey arrests and the investigation is centre on Saturday, June 2. department store, oblivious to the moving forward.

He was using a public toilet in boy’s ordeal, the teenager was ‘Should there be any further the mall when he became aware forced into a lift by the two men. developments we will keep people of two men staring at him. informed.’ A police source earlier Suddenly one of the men Traumatised this week said the attack was approached him and said: ‘Come ‘absolutely horrendous’. with us, do what we say and if The source said: ‘The attack He was taken by the lift you try to run, we’ll get you.’ upstairs, where he was marched on a child in a busy department into a men’s toilet and raped by store on a Saturday afternoon will put fear and dread into the heart the Asian man.

Police have now arrested two of every parent.

‘If teenagers are not safe from men on suspicion of rape.

Two other men who were paedophile predators in the heart arrested yesterday have been of a busy city, then it is extremely worrying.’ bailed pending further inquiries.

Detective Sergeant Liam Boden Superintendent Stuart Ellison, •CCTV Images caught of Greater Manchester Police, said: ‘This young victim has been

absolutely devastated by what happened to him.

After the assault, at 5.45pm, the teenager reported the incident and was taken to a rape crisis centre at St Mary’s Hospital where he was checked by doctors.

A team of officers has been

working with the traumatised victim to build up a picture of what happened and to obtain forensic evidence.

A spokesman for Debenhams said senior staff at the Manchester store were looking into the matter.

NIP TUCK DOC ON BOX CONTROVERSIAL cosmetic surgeon to the stars Dr Aamer Khan is to be featured in a major Sky Living documentary about his multimillion-pound clinic.

The female-skewing BSkyB channel has commissioned Spun Gold TV to go behind the scenes of private surgery the Harley Street Skin Clinic for a 10 x 60-minute series.

Dr Khan – one of Britain’s most high-profile cosmetic doctors – runs the clinic with his wife Lesley Reynolds Khan, but was nearly struck off earlier this year for offering patients cash discounts to undergo treatment.

Khan was found guilty of misconduct, but retained his place on the Registered Medical Practitioners list. He has previously received testimonials from celebrities including Denise Welch and Sam Fox, and appeared on daytime shows such as This Morning.

The documentary, Harley Street, will follow his work and the stories of patients undergoing their chosen procedure, ranging from botox to liposuction. It is understood the series could feature celebrities going under the knife.

•SKY’S THE LIMIT Dr Aamer Khan

•ON THE RUNHussain Chohan

Wanted-Tax Dodgers

•YO JACKIE Sylvester Stallone’s mother Last week Dr Aamer Khan was quoted in the national tabloids for his comments on Sylvester Stallone’s mother, saying: “Her arms and legs look fabulous, after she had almost £70,000 worth of cosmetic surgery.

Dr Khan went on to add “Her skin appears very smooth for her age and her chest is almost flawless, but it’s just such a pity about the face.

“With cosmetic surgery, you try and highlight the eyes – and she’s got lovely eyes – but it’s not them that’s being highlighted, it’s her mouth.

“Her lips are far too big. She has them over-filled and I hope it’s not with silicon, as she’ll be stuck with it.”

Better not mention it to Rocky star Sly, 66. He reckons she looks mavellous.

A MOST-wanted list of 20 alleged tax-dodgers has been issued, who are accused of fleeing the UK while owing the UK Government millions of pounds.

The list includes Hussain Chohan, 44, who was convicted at Birmingham Crown Court for his role in a £200 million fraud, part of which involved importing 2.25 tonnes of tobacco worth £750,000 in duty.

Chohan, believed to be in Dubai, was given 11 years for smuggling and fraud offences and for failing to appear in court.

Zafar Baidar Chisthi, 33, now believed to be in Pakistan, is wanted over another VAT fraud worth £150 million. They are among 20 people whose pictures and details are posted on HMRC’s Flickr page at www.flickr.com/ hmrcgovuk.

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

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THUGS SET FIRE TO CAB A SHEFFIELD cabbie has been left unable to work after his vehicle was set on fire while he was praying at his local mosque.

Mohammed Joydu Miah, aged 40, of Nidd Road East, Darnall, was at morning prayers at the Aaliya Mosque, on Staniforth Road, when his cab went up in flames.

Mr Miah, a married father-of-two, said he had only parked his cab 10 minutes earlier when it was targeted.

He said while police are investigating the arson attack and his insurance company deals with his claim, he is unable to work - leaving him short of money.

Mr Miah said he was upset about the attack and was suspicious about a group of teenage boys who raised the alarm by contacting the mosque.

•WINNERS: Fred and Maureen

•LOSER: Farrakh Nizzar

LOTTO THIEF JAILED A MANCHESTER shop worker has been jailed after fraudulently trying to claim the £1m lottery winnings of an elderly woman.

Farrakh Nizzar, 30, of Woodlands Road, Crumpsall, Greater Manchester, told Maureen Holt, 78, she had won nothing when he scanned her ticket.

He later tried to claim the EuroMillions jackpot himself.

Nizzar, who pleaded guilty, was sentenced at Manchester Minshull Street Court to 30 months in prison.

Passing sentence, Recorder Philip Cattan told Nizzar: “This goes to the heart of public confidence in the National Lottery.

“The courts must demonstrate to you and to others that this type of fraud will be met by significant custody.”

Mrs Holt and her husband Fred, 80, who knew Nizzar by his nickname Lucky, told

him to bin the worthless ticket.

After they left the shop, Nizzar called the lottery hotline and tried to claim the jackpot for himself, saying he had bought the ticket at the Best One store in Watersheddings Street, Oldham, where he worked.

The scam was unravelled when checks were made by lottery operator Camelot which showed the winning ticket was not bought at the store.

It was bought at Tesco Extra in Oldham where Mr Holt had used his Clubcard while paying for the couple’s weekly groceries and Mrs Holt was seen on CCTV footage.

Camelot said in a statement the company has “stringent operations in place to detect fraud and to monitor suspicious activity”.

“The success of The National Lottery is built on player trust

•CRUISE ‘extra spicy chicken’

Tom’s £220 bill was Mission Impossible TOP GUN LEAVES TOP TIP TOM Cruise made a surprise visit to a curry house in an quiet British market town last week.

The Hollywood super star shocked patrons at the Veer Dhara restaurant in St Albans, Hertfordshire, England when he arrived with a group of friends for a low-key meal.

them their meal for free.Darshit added: ‘The bill was £220.85 so they left almost an £80 tip. The star warned staff he was ‘really hungry’ so asked for his starter to be served at the same time as his main course, an ‘extra spicy’ chicken tikka masala, which he washed down with sparkling water.

Tom was filming the sci-fi movie All You Need Is Kill in the area with Emily Blunt.

But the 50-year-old millionaire was The restaurant owner added: ‘They left red-faced when he wasn’t able to said someone special was coming but pay £220 ($350) restaurant bill. did not say who it was. When he came The eatery didn’t accept his in it was a big shock but we just wanted American Express card and he was to be professional. only carrying US dollars.

Tom owns a large property in Darshit Hora, the restaurant Sussex, a home county not far from manager, told the Evening Standard Hertfordshire. newspaper: ‘It was a big shock for us when he walked in. He said we had been recommended to him, but he would not say by whom.

‘At the end of the meal he wanted to pay, but we could not accept American Express. He said his whole group only had dollars, then a lady came forward and paid in £50 notes.’

However, if the group - who left a generous tip - hadn’t been able to stump up the cash, the restaurant owners were more than happy to give •SORRY No Amercian Express

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Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

AsianCity LETTERS www.asiancity.co.uk

COMMENT

BRITAIN’S BEST ASIAN NEWSPAPER

Result!

Congratulations to all our students who got their A level and GCSE results last week. Especially to whizz kid Wajih Ahmed, from Hamshire who’s off to uni at the tender age of 14! Equally impressive was the results of twin sisters Aaniya and Shirin Ahmed from Hornchuch, each got 11 A* grades.

And the parents and teachers also deserve a big congratulations too. After all it was they who helped guide the students to do so well.

Though this year there was a slight fall in the number achieving top grades it will, at least, put an end to the argument that exams are getting easier each year. If anything, the dip in pass rates is because higher numbers of students are taking more difficult subjects like science and maths.

Email: letters@asiancity.co.uk

Loving it or hating every minute of it, this is your platform to express yourself to thousands of fellow Asian City-zens in the same boat as you. Tell us your points of view or simply vent your spleen, don’t hold back... we’re here to share your joy and pain

MENTAL HEATH MATTERS

AS A retired social worker from East London, I was very pleased that Asian City covered the taboo subject of mental illness in last edition’s ‘ISSUES’ page (Asian City Issue 4). Mental illness is a subject that Asian people tend not to talk about or even acknowledge.

There was a time, not that long ago, that mentally ill people in our society were looked down upon and it was even considered shameful if a family had a mentally ill person in the household.

Help was rarely at hand. People with mental health problems were locked away and kept from the general public. I remember a case in which a man developed mental health issues after he lost his job and subsequently his home. He was practically hounded out of his family circle and was forced to leave the city where he lived.

I’m glad to see this topic being covered. It needs to be highlighted. People need to know that help exists and that organisations like the NHS can make a difference.

Name & Address withheld

On a Hat Trick Saima Ansari is having an affair with our old friend Steve McClaren, former England boss.

Nothing strange about that in this day and age.

But, it’s a bit of a coincidence that Saima also had an affair with another ex-England manager, Sven Goran Eriksson. Now we’re not one to gossip, but we understand Fabio Capello and Stuart Pearce have been out clothes shopping recently…

LAST weeks coverage of mental health problems was a real help to me. My husband suffered a mental break down after he lost his younger brother to cancer and we had no idea what to do. The mood swings, the change in appearance, everything about him changed, we were so scared. It was only after our GP sent him to a specialist unit in the NHS that we managed to get help.

Anuj Patel, Harrow

Harry takes the biscuit

PUBLISHER Thufayel Ahmed

As Britain’s best Asian newspaper, it’d be wrong of us not to mention our bebat Prince Harry’s tamsha in Las Vegas. So we have and that was it.

Now where’s my cup of cha and ginger nuts?

Thank you!

Last Sunday saw the hottest day of the year so far, with temperatures reaching 32c. It also saw the London Mela at Gunnersbury Park, West London, celebrating its 10th anniversary with a variety of acts including a live band on the main stage.

And Asian City was in the mix too, handing out copies of Britain’s best Asian newspaper and meeting hundreds of its readers. We’d like to thank the readers for making it a really special day!

GUEST EDITOR Nishath Choudhury

Who cares, Khan?

Mela-dramatic

SO the Taliban want to kill Imran Khan?

Good luck to them. And good luck to Mr Khan too. Why does Mr Khan feel he needs to march in a Taliban area to prove his point? All he wants is media coverage for his political party. If he really wants to protest against US drones, then he should be marching on the US embassies in the UK, USA & Pakistan. That way he’ll probably NOT get shot at and more importantly NOT get any free publicity.

Asif Butt via email

I WAS at the London Mela last week. I usually go to as many melas as I can. But recently I’ve noticed these melas are becoming more and more commercial. In the old days there’d be clowns and lots of other activites and what not that people could go and enjoy with their families.

These days, you get a couple of large stages with too loud music (which only caters for the youth) but very little stuff for the children or elderly.

There’s far too many stalls just selling rubbish and way too many food stalls selling horrible food at stupidly high prices. These stall holders are ripping off the public who have no choice but to buy from them.

The melas are funded by local councils and sponsored by big brand businesses, so why the need to rip off the public?

Gurrinder Kaur, Southall

Murder She Wrote?

THE so-called honeymoon murder case seems to be going on forever. It’s like a real life TV drama that’s unfolding as we go along. At first it was a simple car-jacking case, which happens a lot in South Africa by the way, but now has turned into a murder story with the husband allegedly planning the whole murder. I know it’s sad and we all should be horrified, which we are of course, but I reckon it’s only a matter of time before it’s turned into a Bollywood film. I’d watch it.

S.Patel, Tooting

More news please!

ASIAN CITY is getting better, I’m glad to say. It started off far too Bollywoody for my liking. But, recently you have put in more news snd features to read. It’s ok to have the odd Bollywood story here and there, but as a newspaper we want to read more about real issues and about real life events.

Plus you really should include more educational features for the youth to read.

Careers information is fine, but what about more intellectual fiction.

Alma Haque, Kent

Hometime for Aryan SHAH Rukh Khan’s son Aryan coming to the UK to study is no good thing. You can imagine every time his dad comes to visit him the media is going to go mad. And soon, when Aryan goes out clubbing or shopping, the media will be following him.

He won’t be able to study here or anywhere.

And all his class mates will suffer too.

Asma Ullah, Penge

ART DIRECTOR Virchand Pindoria ENTERTAINMENTS EDITOR Sohail Anjum MARKETING MANAGER Shuhed Miah CONTRIBUTORS Aliyah Ahmed, Azeem Hussain, Shima Shastry, Hannah Ahmed, Momtaz Begum-Hossain, Jaz Kaur, Ariana Jamila Ayesha Ahmed, Avni Pindoria, Poonam Patel, Lisa Sage, Mandy Jandoo, Jerin Rahat, Adam Ahmed, Asya Ahmed, Faizah Faheem, Rafia Rahman, Tanvir Ahmed, Paul Williams, Ibrahim Ahmed, Amanda Harrison, Mike Singh DISTRIBUTION Qalbi Ali: 07947 279 926 Newstrade: Postscriptum Ltd Non-newstrade: Surma Media PRINTED BY Newsfax Ltd ASIAN CITY MEDIA LTD Unit 103, Greatorex Business Centre 8-10 Greatorex Street, London E1 5NF T: 0207 247 3537 E: info@asiancity.co.uk W: www.asiancity.co.uk

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Copyright © 2012 Asian City Media Ltd

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

MISTAKEN IDENTITY - FATHER KILLED

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GANG BEAT MAN TO DEATH Father of three attacked for no reason in street

•VICTIM Evan Mohammed

Facebook racist fined

SERIOZA Lawskoski, 29, may have been mistaken for another man, Nottingham Crown Court heard. Judge John Milmo said the intended victim was not known because the defendants had told “a pack of lies”.

Another brother, Kamran Ahmed, 21, was jailed for eight years after being convicted of conspiring to cause grievous bodily harm.

He had originally been charged with murder but this charge was dismissed during the trial.

The judge told the men: “Your intended victim was •FATHER Serioza Lawskoski The men, who were never made clear because in the dock you all told a pack of convicted after a nine-week trial, were given minimum lies. terms of between 17 and 22 Innocent man years.

Imran Rashid, 29, of Madeley Street, and Raja “There is someone who is Jeelani, 26, of Depot Street, alive and well and living in were given 22-year minimum Normanton who is very terms. fortunate.”

Robuel Islam, 25, of Mr Lawskoski, from Loudon Street, and Rizwan Leacroft Road, Pear Tree, Hospital where he was Ahmed, 23, of Derby, was confronted by the pronounced dead.

The judge said the men Northumberland Street, were gang shortly after leaving a given 18-year minimum terms friend’s house in Cummings had robbed three children of while Ahmed’s brother Street, Normanton, on the their father in what was a Usman, 19, also of evening of 23 April last year. “wholly unprovoked attack Northumberland Street, was He was found lying on someone who posed no told he would serve a unconscious in the street and threat to you”.

The five men found guilty minimum of 17 years in prison. was taken to the Royal Derby of murder were also convicted of conspiring to cause grievous bodily harm against Mr Lawskoski.

Det Supt Andy Stokes, who led the inquiry, said: “The men have shown no remorse for what happened that day and we may never know why the group decided to attack an innocent man.”

In the same trial Rashid and Jeelani were also convicted of conspiring to cause grievous bodily harm against 20-year-old Renato Blackwood, who was assaulted in St Mary’s Wharf Road, Derby, on 1 January •CAGED: Raja Jeelani 2011

•CAGED: Rizwan Ahmed

•JAILED Imran Rashid

•LOCKED UP Kamran Ahmed

A MAN has been fined £100 for posting racist abuse on an internet page set up in memory of a nine-year-old boy who died in a house fire in Kilmarnock.

Andrew Wyper, 26, posted comments on a Facebook campaign dedicated to raising funds for the family of Evan Mohammed.

At Kilmarnock Sheriff Court, he admitted abusive behaviour likely to place others in fear and alarm, aggravated by racial prejudice.

Wyper was cleared of harassing campaign organiser Jane Mulrainey.

The 26-year-old, posted the racially offensive messages at an address in Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire, on 30 January.

The fundraising campaign on Facebook was launched after Evan died in a fire at his home in December last year.

Evan’s mother Sheree McGill escaped from the house then tried to get back in to rescue Evan and her two younger daughters, but was held back by neighbours.

All three children were removed by firefighters and taken to hospital, where Evan died.

Another of Ms McGill’s children was staying at his grandmother’s house at the time of the fire.

•JAILED Robual Islam

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8

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

CHANTELLE BEATS MO! THE girls’ name Chantelle is now beating Mohammed for the most spelling variations thanks to grammatically creative parents, a trawl of official statistics over the past decade reveal.

While there are 14 variations of boys’ name Mohammed, there are now more than 18 ways of writing the forename Chantelle, according to data published by the Office of National Statistics.

While Chantelle, as used by Celebrity Big Brother star Chantelle Houghton, remains the most popular expression, the French name is also being written as Shantelle, Chawntelle and Chantielle, all with the same phonetic result.

Police re-open 1982 murder case TAXI DRIVER WAS STABBED 87 TIMES NOTTINGHAMSHIRE Police have confirmed they are still on the hunt for a murderer in a highprofile case that took place in 1982, yet remains unsolved.

•GURCHAN Killed at aged 33

Gurcharn Singh Landa, a father-ofeight, was stabbed 87 times and found dead in the taxi he drove in Cyprus Road, Mapperley in the early hours of Saturday 14 August 1982.

He was just 33.

The motivation for the crime is thought to be robbery as his takings were missing. 11 suspects have been arrested, more than 2000 statements taken and 13,200 indiviudals have been questiond over the years but, still, no one has been charged.

Det Ch Insp Tony Heydon said: ‘Mr Landa’s death not only devastated a family, but shocked an entire community. Thirty years have

Recalling the day her father was murdered, Mr Landa’s eldest daughter Satnam Kaur, now 41 but who was 11 at the time, said: ‘I remember that day in August 1982 so well. I got up early in the morning and went into my mum and dad’s room to see that dad wasn’t there.

Then two detectives came round and my world came crashing down around me. Thirty years on I’m married with three children and my dad has missed all this.’

Daughter Det Ch Insp Heydon who is leading the enquiry added: ‘Take a A woman who lived on the road moment to cast your mind back. Your phoned the police in the early hours own view may have changed, you of the morning after being woken up may have been told something after by a car braking suddenly. She looked the incident that could help us.’

Anyone with information should out of her window and saw the car rocking violently. Police believe the contact Nottinghamshire Police’s attack on him may have started inside incident room on 0115 8446913 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. the car, but ended on the street. passed, but justice still needs to be done and someone out there could have vital information that would help us to identify the person, or people, responsible for Mr Landa’s murder.’

The last known location of Mr Langda was recorded by the taxi firm he worked for. He is said to have picked up a passenger a mile away from Cyprus Road where his body was found.

FRAMED BY AGENT •WARNING Khalid Mahmood

British Muslim terror warning

•FURIOUS Simon Maher AN ESTATE agent has been jailed after framing an innocent client for speeding in an attempt to escape a driving ban.

Noweed Parvez, 36, was caught by a speed camera doing 45mph in a 30mph zone, but tried to shift the blame by giving police the name and date of birth of his customer, Simon Maher.

Mr Maher, 35, was convicted of speeding without his knowledge despite the photographs showing an Asian man behind the wheel and Parvez’s company logo on the car.

The unwitting father-of-four, 35, only discovered the conviction when a policeman contacted him to say a warrant had been issued for his arrest.

The former school caretaker eventually won his battle to clear his name after the picture of the speeding VW Golf GTI was fully analysed and the driver was proved to be the company boss who had been looking after Mr Maher’s rented property.

It emerged Parvez had nine points on his driving licence and feared a road ban under the totting-up procedure. Mr Maher, from Darwen, Lancashire, suffered sleepless nights and weeks of stress.

Mr Maher told of his ordeal after Parvez, of Colne Road, Burnley, admitted attempting to pervert the course of justice and was jailed for 12 months.

Mr Maher, who drives a Seat Leon, said: ‘He totally abused my trust by using my personal details and I was furious when I found out it was him - I just wanted to go over to the shop and drag him over the counter, but I knew it wouldn’t do me any favours.

KHALID Mahmood, Labour MP for Birmingham Perry Barr has warned that young British Muslims are in danger of being radicalised by the conflict in Syria.

The BBC reported that “dozens” of Britons have travelled from London and the Midlands to join the uprising against President Bashar al Assad - some linking up with militant Islamist groups.

He expressed concern that the situation had the potential to radicalise a new generation of jihadists.

“I am extremely concerned at the moment because I see similar things to what happened at the original stages of the Afghanistan war where we were supporting the mujahideen against the Russians,” he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.

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aSIaN CITY

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

9

FROM BOMBAY TO BRICK LANE, DOWN THESE MEAN STREETS SHIHAB SALIM MUST GO

e: shabbs@asiancity.co.uk

STILL BUD BUDDING AFTER ALL THESE YEARS The only Asian in the village

I’M writing this en route from a holiday in Egypt straight to Shambala festival in the UK (from desert to mud), where I am looking forward to seeing my old nemesis TOAD (The Only Asian Druggie).

He’s there at every festival I go to. Unlike in melas, where everyone expects the revellers to be brown and proud, TOAD doesn’t like seeing other Asians in British festivals. He’s easy to spot. In white trainers whatever the weather, always carrying a groovy satchel and posing under a far-out hat, convinced he’s the only Asian here to sport a white girlfriend. The moment he sees a brown face emerging, he’ll inevitably turn his back and start talking as loudly as possible to his white brethren about how high he plans to get on ketamine and 2CB. In those split seconds you pass him by, his demeanour is set to let you know he’s the type who’s been caning it since his first ever hair dye and that he’s never lowered himself enough to have even heard of the Dhol Foundation, immediately starting to roll a spliff because, in his mind, he’s the only Asian who knows how.

Although it hasn’t failed to cross my mind that TOAD might think exactly the same thing when he walks past me…

Men: Dumb & Dumberer IF THERE were ever any doubt that men feel threatened by educated women, look no further than Iran. It has one of the highest female to male education ratios in the world, and instead of being proud of this fact, has banned women from joining universities. The thinking being: our men are illiterate; let’s balance it out by making more of our women dumb too.

Meanwhile, over here in the UK, the shortlist for the annual Asian Achievers Award has just been announced, with a string of Asian women proving just how far a good education can take them.

Little wonder that all those calling for Sharia law in the UK are never women.

AS SOMEONE writing for a newspaper that’s handed out free, I must say that my first thought when signing up to work here was “oh deary, deary me”. It reminded me of what happened the last time newspapers were handed out free – namely the now defunct London Paper and London Lite: they both hailed the return of the bud bud accent onto our streets.

For some inexplicable reason, seemingly every copy was handed out by men with broad Indian accents, meaning after decades of trying to eradicate the caricature away from our screens and playgrounds, it was back in full force around every corner. When those papers went bust, we breathed a perfectly English sigh of collective relief, and our streets were safe again.

As far as I know, the copies of Asian City that are being handed out to you by brown folk with an East End twang or a thick Brummie

•KHAN FUN Adil Ray Too Pagal Hai accent, and not by the Bangalore exchange student employed by the London Paper and Lite brigade.

But then comes along BBC 1’s new sit-com Citizen Khan, where a fake bearded Adil Ray cranks up the bud bud all the way to 11, and oh bloody hell! It’s open season on nodding heads and mocking the way our elders spoke all over again.

They’re calling Citizen Khan, a show promising to give Asians a voice, albeit one dragged out from Jim Davidson’s locker from the 70s, “the first Asian sit-com ever”. This is blatantly not true. Hardeep Singh Kohli and Nitin Ganatra’s Meet the Magoons a few years ago was genuinely hilarious, and the joke was on the day to day running of an

Unfair & Lovely

REGULAR readers will know of my intense dislike of firearms, but this picture of Deepika Padukone striding a machine gun fills me with a desire to shoot my loaded pistol. I think if the world must have weapons, it should be law that only women are allowed to carry them. Women have been covered up for far too long. It’s time to “bear arms”.

You can shoot me for that “joke”, as long as you’re a beautiful woman, mind…

AFTER Harry Potter and The Hunger Games, things are about to get much darker with the next big teen novel Revealing Eden, set in a dystopian future where solar radiation means the Coals (with dark skin) can survive better than the Pearls (with fair-skinned). Naturally, the ruling darkies are animalistic and evil to the poor whiteys, and the whiteys try to get accepted by covering their skin with dark foundation.

Unsurprisingly, this has caused a huge furore, and as with any book that causes a furore these days, plans are already afoot to turn the series a major motion picture. Are we really going to see a white actor in this day and age blacking up? Oh well, at least the sales of Fair & Lovely will go down…

TOPSY TURVY WORLD SHAH Rukh Khan has had a case filed against him under the Sections of Prevention of Insult to National Honour Act for… holding the Indian flag upside down. I’ll never understand why people get so over-emotional about a flag. It’s just a piece of cloth.

It reminds me of an observation by the late, great comedian Bill Hicks. While on the subject of

Indian restaurant rather than them being stupid foreigners who talk funny. Rewind back to 1986 and we had Tandoori Nights starring Saeed Jaffrey and Rita Wolf, where the joke was on the day to day running of an Indian restaurant rather than them being stupid foreigners who talks funny. Okay, so both those shows were stereotypical in the “Asians love curry” sense, but even so, the central gag was never “I foreign, I stupid, laugh at how silly I talk”.

Let’s not be hypocrites. We all bust a bit of bud bud when we’re around each other. Few of us had any problems with any of the accents used to send up Asian characters on Goodness Gracious Me, we felt a fond affection for Meera Syal’s Ammi in Kumars at No 42, and rolled around in hysterics at Om Puri’s weird and utterly made-up accent in East is East.

But Citizen Khan thrives on the central premise that the protagonist is a stupid foreigner who talks funny.

Bernard Manning must be peeing himself in his grave.

dishonouring a flag, he mused: “I think people are overreacting, oh, just a little bit. ‘Hey buddy, my daddy died for that flag.’ Well, I bought mine. Sorry. You know they sell them at K-Mart for three bucks, you’re in, you’re out, brand new flag, no violence was necessary. ‘Hey buddy, my daddy died in the Korean war for that flag.’ What a coincidence - my flag was made in Korea!”

•FLAGGING IT Just a piece of cloth

•SPICY SPACE India plans to set up shop in Mars

TIKKA MARS-ALA

LAST month, we reported how India was in total darkness and out of its depth thanks to its biggest power-cut and flooding in recent history.

The government said it needed more money to sort out the nation’s electricity and water supplies.

This week, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced India is sending a spacecraft to Mars next year, at a cost of 4.5 billions rupees, that’s 52 million quid to you and me.

I’m not siding with the average Daily Mail reader, frothing at the mouth over the fact that at the moment, the UK is still giving India £280 million in aid every year. The never-unknowingly racist Daily Express announced this week: “We pay for India’s rocket to Mars!”

I checked with DFID (the UK Department for International Development),

who assured me that not a single penny of the British aid was going towards India’s space programme and was instead being “earmarked for specific purposes like tackling child malnutrition, providing malaria bednets and secondary education for Dalit girls”.

Good for the UK, but what to make of the Indian government over this grand old mission?

Yes, we were proud when in 2008, India successfully sent a probe to the moon that detected evidence of water on the lunar surface for the first time.

But until we see evidence of fresh drinking water made available to the half a billion Indian people suffering without it, this announcement only adds to our belief that the nation’s rulers have their heads not just in the clouds, but in outer space…

FOR the past God knows how long I’ve dedicated my career to making stars appear cooler than they are, often tweaking and padding out their quotes to make them sound less selfobsessed and tedious (hey, no one ever sued for being made to look interesting), but the age of Twitter has made all my hard work redundant.

Not only do we get fascinating insights into the contents of their lunch, we are now privy to some seriously toe-curling PDA that wipes out any opportunity to add a bit of good old-fashioned mystery to their relationships. Take this little exchange between Mr and Mrs Shilpa Shetty.

Says Raj Kundra: “I am openly declaring I am having an affair with my stylist and I am not sorry about it!!!!!! Love you @TheShilpaShetty )).”

Responds Shilpa: “@TheRajKundra ha ha ha Verrry funny! Rnt u lucky” This week, Amitabh Bachchan joined Facebook and has already got a million likes. His response?

“Yipee! I am on FaceBook!”

Pass me the P45.

10

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

“I DIDN’T SHOOT HER”

•KILLED Mohammed Yousaf

Killed by speeding car

A MAN who killed a father of five in a high-speed crash has been jailed for eight years.

Paul Pilotille, 30, from Burley, Leeds, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving.

Leeds Crown Court heard how he ploughed into 49-year-old Mohammed Yousaf’s taxi at 55mph on 23 June.

The court heard Pilotille had been driving at speeds of up to 90mph in a 30mph zone before the crash. He was disqualified from driving for 10 years.

XOLILE Mngeni, the alleged hitman, denied any role in the killing of the 28-year-old bride as he appeared in court.

2010, was organised by a foreigner who had previously travelled to the country to commit a similar crime.

The witness, whose identity cannot be disclosed, said he was told Mrs He is accused of shooting Mrs Dewani’s killing was planned by a Dewani in the neck during her “gentleman not from here”. honeymoon in Cape Town. Mrs “He was in South Africa and has Dewani’s British husband, Shrien, done this before,” the witness told the has been accused by the South court.

African authorities of having planned and paid for the killing.

The first witness in the case Admitted hijack claimed yesterday that the murder, in a Cape Town township in November Mr Dewani has been publicly linked to — but never formally accused of — a similar hijacking and murder case in a different area of South Africa in 2007.

He insists that he had no involvement in his wife’s death and says he can prove he has never previously travelled to South Africa, nor been involved in any murder. He is resisting attempts to extradite him for trial.

•DEAD Anni Dewani

The first day of his trial heard from a man who admitted putting Tongo in touch with Mrs Dewani’s killers.

The witness, who has been promised immunity from prosecution in return for evidence, told Cape Town’s High Court that Tongo called him the day before Mrs Dewani’s murder and asked for his help to find a hitman.

He admitted putting Tongo in touch with a man referred to only as “Abongile”. The witness met Tongo on the morning of Mrs Dewani’s murder.

The witness said: “He mentioned to me that there was a lady that somebody wants killed and that this must look like a hijack.”

Mr Dewani is being treated in a secure mental unit. His most recent extradition hearing in London was told he was mentally unfit for trial.

•ACCUSED Xolile Mngeni

Patient robbed •NEWLY WEDS The McAreaveys

MURDER SUSPECT APPEALS CHARGES

THE main suspect linked to the murder of honeymooner Michaela McAreavey was in court for the first time and has asked for his case to be appealed. Mrs McAreavey (27) was on honeymoon in Mauritius in January last year and found dead and strangled in her bathtub by her husband.

Last month two hotel workers were aquitted of her murder. Avinash Treebhoowoon and Sandip Moneea were initially accused of ransacking her room, and murdering her so she didn’t report them. Yet the trial later heard they were ‘beaten into a confession’ and no DNA appeared at the scene.

Dassen Narayen, a former security guard at the Legends Hotel, where she was staying was later arrested, as he was the only person, who’s DNA was at the scene - which he says is because he visited the scene with her husband, after he found her.

Mrs AcAreavey was the daughter of Mickey Harte, an Irish football manager. She was last seen at the poolside restaurant with her husband John and returned to their room to get some biscuits. She was discovered with bruises and abrasions on her neck, which doctors say show she was trying to defend herself against the attacker. They also believe the struggle may have lasted two minutes.

The case continues on October •APPEAL Dassen Naray 12th.

HARNAIK Singh Uppal was a seriously-ill patient recovering on his hospital sickbed, when heartless thief Anthony Charlesworth rummaged though Harnaik’s hospital locker while he was unconscious at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary.

Charlesworth, was jailed after Kirklees magistrates were told how he had previously stolen from another patient. Carole Lawford, prosecuting, said the theft took place on April 25. Ms Lawford said: “All of the people on Ward 17 were very seriously ill. “They were sedated or unconscious, including the complainant.”

Charlesworth, of Lockwood Scar, Newsome, had also been a patient on the ward. He had suffered a seizure and was admitted to the ward.

Ms Lawford said: “The defendant rifled through the complainant’s locker at the side of his bed. He had his wallet in his hand and was caught by a nurse. It was later discovered that Charlesworth had stolen the sick man’s BlackBerry mobile phone.

Magistrates were told that Charlesworth had stolen from a patient in the same hospital in January 2008. The court then gave him a conditional discharge. Charlesworth admitted the offence when he was arrested.

EASTENDERS ACTOR CLEARED OF ATTACK

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

‘TYLER’OVER THE MOON Soap star walks free

•RAPIST Abdul Sajid

Evil sex attack gang jailed

AN EASTENDERS star walked out of court a free man today after he was cleared of an assault that left a clubber with a shattered jaw.

out after Sab Deol poked fun at his t-shirt saying ‘Don’t you wear that t-shirt to work?’

He had been partying with fellow EastEnders cast members Bunmi Mojekwu, who played Mercy Olubunmi, and Shona Tony Discipline, 23, who plays Tyler McGarty, who plays Whitney Dean.

Moon in the BBC show, hit 21-year-old The judge told the jury: ‘I’ve come to the Hayden Deol so hard he needed two conclusion that, bearing in mind the titanium plates fitted in his mouth after an markedly different accounts of these two incident at Merah in London’s Belgravia. young men inside the club, no jury properly Deol said he was punched after he and directed in the legal principles could safely his cousin Sab Deol, also 21, made a joke and properly be sure that the assault, if there about the actor’s clothing, but Discipline indeed was one, was unlawful, in the sense claimed he had acted in self-defence. that it was other than lawful and reasonable Discipline struck Hayden Deol at the self-defence.

Merah nightclub in London’s West End in the early hours of May 21, 2011. He was Acquittal also said to have assaulted Sab Deol.

Prosecutors alleged Discipline had lashed ‘I’m going to ask that you please return unanimous verdicts of not guilty at my direction.’

As the jury returned its verdict Discipline smiled and nodded in the dock before embracing his mum and dad, after he was allowed out of the dock.

What was said made the defendant become angry and he struck out at Sab Deol and his cousin Hayden Deol, punching them.

‘Although Sab Deol suffered little injury, the defendant hit Hayden Deol with such force that he broke his jaw in two places with a single blow.

‘As a result Hayden Deol had to have surgery under general anaesthetic in order to have plates put into his jaw.’

As he walked from the courtroom Discipline said ‘Yes’, but declined to comment further.

Discipline, who joined the soap in June to play Eddie’s youngest son, had not appeared on screen at the time of the attack.

His first appearance was on June 27.

The actor from Belvedere, Kent, was found not guilty of causing grievous bodily harm and common assault.

•PUNCHED Sab Deol

11

•WELL’ARD Tony Discipline with his real life girlfriend Jacqueline

A GANG of three men have been jailed for raping a woman at knife-point and filming their horrific attack on their mobile phones. The ring-leader of the gang was 20–year-old Osman Ali (jailed for eight and a half years). He was assisted by two 18-year-olds: Ammar Zahoor (jailed seven and a half years) and Abdul Sajid (pictured), who was 17 at the time, (jailed for eight years.)

The attack took place on February 1st in Rochdale, in Zahoor’s house. The victim, a white teenage student, claims she thought they were her friends and they invited her in to chill with them. When she wanted to leave, she was threatened with a knife and forced to perform sexual acts on two of the men. The third was then invited over to join them.

She has described her attack as a ‘living nightmare,’ though she played a key role in ensuring the victims were arrested.

Detective Constable Dave Read said: ‘This has been a traumatic ordeal for the victim. She thought that she knew the defendants as friends, but they betrayed her trust. The actions of all three men have had an enormous impact on her, but I would like to thank the victim for supporting the police investigation and subsequent prosecution.’

Since the attack took place, Zahoor’s mother and sister have been deported to Pakistan. The three men have been placed on the Sex Offenders register for life.

12

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

Twin success IDENTICAL twins at Chelmsford County High School have received identical results in their GCSE exams.

Aaniya and Shirin Ahmed, 16, from Hornchurch, each received 11 A* grades and are now planning to take A-levels in identical subjects.

The pair were star performers at the school which saw its GCSE pass rate rise to record levels.

The twins told BBC Essex they had to make sacrifices to achieve the grades.

“I remember working really hard, not going out on the weekends, just locking myself in my room and making notes,” said Aaniya.

“The results show the hard work’s paid off. It was a lot of hard work to start with.” The sisters proclaimed.

WHIZZ KIDWAJIH OFF TO UNI Two A*s and an A for clever clogs A 14-YEAR-OLD boy from Hampshire has qualified to study for a degree at the University of Southampton.

Wajih Ahmed, from Chandler’s Ford, achieved the four A-level grades he needed to study economics at the university.

Wajih intends to live at home during his studies and has ambitions to work for a PhD after graduating.

But, come September, 14-yearold child prodigy Wajih Ahmed will make history when he enrols on an Economics degree at the University of Southampton .

While hundreds of students across Hampshire will have had sleepless nights ahead of today’s all important A level results, talented teenager Wajih knows he has already done enough to secure his place at university after bagging A* grades in maths and further maths, as well as an A grade in chemistry, last year.

But no matter what those papers

•A GRADES Wajih Ahmed

years now to start university at 14.

It’s been a lot of hard work, but it’s been worth it.

“There might be some natural talent there, but I study for about two hours a day and I think that a lot of children could achieve what I have if they put their minds to it.”

Wajih, whose hobbies include playing football and Xbox, added: “University is definitely going to be harder, but I have three years to concentrate on one subject now, so that will be good and I’m really looking forward to it.”

Wajih and his younger brother •2009 Wajih Ahmed & Brother will pick up a host of GCSE results from Thornden School, before reveal, it is believed that Wajih, jetting off on a family holiday to from Bere Close, Chandler’s Ford , New York. Wajih first hit the will become the youngest student headlines back in 2009, when aged ever to study at the university – and only 11, he got an A in A-level one of the youngest to enrol at any Further Mathematics (he already university in the UK. had an A for Maths under his belt). And his younger brother Genius Zohaib hit the headlines too when, aged 9, he scored his own A-grade Wajih, who dreams of becoming for Maths A-level in the same an actuary in the finance sector, exam session, becoming the said: “It’s been my plan for a few youngest person ever to do so.

Two charged with murder

•CHARGED Richard Dart

FIVE PEOPLE CHARGED

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THREE men have been charged with preparing for acts of terrorism while a man and a woman have been charged with possessing terrorist documents.

Those charged are: Richard Dart, 29, from Ealing; Imran Mahmood, 21, from Northolt; Jahangir Alom, 26, from Stratford and Ruksana Begum, 22, from Hoxton.

Also charged was Khalid Baqa, 47, from Barking. Four of those charged were arrested earlier in the month during a Metropolitan Police operation, while Mr Baqa was detained on Wednesday 22nd.

Mr Dart, Mr Mahmood and Mr Alom are charged that “between 25 July 2010 and 6 July 2012, with the intention of committing acts of terrorism or assisting another to commit such acts, engaged in conduct in preparation for giving effect to his intention”.

They are alleged to have travelled to Pakistan and elsewhere for “training in terrorism” and to have provided information to others about how to obtain terrorism training in Pakistan and terrorism training.

They have been charged under Section 5 of the Terrorism Act 2006.

Ms Begum has been charged with possession of a document likely to be of use to a terrorist, contrary to section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000.

The allegation is that “on 5 July 2012, without reasonable excuse, Ruksana Begum was in possession of a record of information of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism, namely a micro SD card which contains documents entitled Inspire 8, Winter 2012 Edition, and Shahida and Al-Fidous. Inspire is an online al-Qaeda magazine.

Mr Baqa has been charged with three counts of possession of terrorist material and one count of dissemination of terrorist material.

He is alleged to have been in possession of CDs containing a document entitled 39 Ways to Support and Participate in Jihad, as well as a number of issues of Inspire.

TWO men have been remanded in custody after their first appearance in court charged with the murder of Carole Waugh.

Rakesh Bhayani, 40, and Nicholas Kutner, 47, who have also been charged with fraud offences linked to the disappearance of the 50year-old oil executive, appeared via videolink at Croydon magistrates court.

Bhayani, unemployed, of Wembley, north-west London, is due to appear in court next month on three charges of conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation worth about £280,000 after transactions associated with Waugh’s identity.

Kutner, of no fixed address, was arrested on suspicion of murder and kidnap on 1 August. He faces two charges relating to renting Waugh’s property in Marylebone, central London, and one of unlawfully withdrawing funds from her bank account. He is also facing a fraud charge after being accused of pretending to be the victim’s brother, Chris Waugh, in an attempt to sell her home.

•MURDERED Carole Waugh

•MR QAISER Not again!

Unlucky Irfan burgled twice

A SHOP-OWNER who moved his mobile phone business to Bradford city centre following a terrifying armed robbery at the previous premises has been left distraught after losing thousands of pounds in a break-in.

Police were called to the burglary at XLine Mobiles in Ivegate lat week.

A glass door and glass cabinets inside the shop were smashed and a number of expensive phones were said to have been taken.

Shop owner Irfan Qaiser opened the store in Ivegate less than six months ago.

Mubashir Ahmed, a friend of Mr Qaiser, said: “Because it is a new shop, we are feeling very bad.

“We see the shutter was broken, all the glass was messed up, the phones had gone, and he was very upset.”

Mr Qaiser was a victim of an armed robbery by a masked gang in July last year at his former premises in Lumb Lane, Bradford.

Pictures: Punjab2000.com

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

MELA MADDESS CELEBRATING its 10th anniversary Gunnersbury Park, West London played host to the O2 London Mela with a variety of acts and featuring Jaz Dhami and a live band on the main stage.

Now an established highlight in the capital’s cultural calendar, the London Mela is an artistically led celebration of Asian culture and creativity, inspired

by South Asia and the Diaspora.

1,000s joined in the fun last Sunday (19th August) on the hottest day of 2012 so far, with temperatures reaching 32c!

Asian City was there giving away thousands of copies of Britain’s best Asian newspaper and meeting and greeting its readers! Here are some of the days most memorable images!

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Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

WORLD NEWS

US Ramadan attacks

State funeral Nine seperate attacks on masjids for Minister across America during Holy Month

•LEADER Deshmukh

THE father of Bollywood comedian Ritesh Deshmukh, and former Indian Science and Technology Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, has died aged 67, after a heart attack. He was considered one of the most powerful political figures and was twice the chief Minister of the Maharashtra state and a regional leader of the ruling Congress party.

One of the biggest issues he dealt with was when 30,000 farmers committed suicide because of failing crops while he was chief minister between 1999 and 2003 and 2004 to 2008.

A state funeral took place on Wednesday and was held at his native village in the Latur district. Thousands of people lined the streets to witness his body before it was cremated.

A STRING of violence over Ramadan resulted in nine separate attacks on mosques throughout America in what should have been a peaceful time.

and Iftikhar Ali, the mosque’s president, revealed they were forced to rent a community centre in order to hold Eid celebrations. The cause of the fire is still being investigated though it is understood it was The scale of the ‘attacks’ varied intentional. Last month CCTV from lemons being thrown at caught a man trying to throw a device worshippers, to one mosque in Joplin, into the building that damaged a roof.

Missouri, being completely burnt to Ibrahim Hooper from The Council the ground. In other areas signs were for American-Islamic Relations, said vandalised, offensive pigs legs were the attacks have been unprecedented thrown in the driveway and paintballs in their scale and scope. He went to hurled at buildings. on say that this is the biggest attack Rubble from the remains of the there’s been on Muslims in the Joplin mosque burned for two days country since September 11th and after the Oklahoma City bombing which was originally thought to be the work of Islamic terrorists.

Away from mosques there have been other reported attacks on the Muslim community. A cemetery was desecrated and an Islamic school attacked with a homemade bomb in Chicago.Earlier this month a mosque opened in Tenesse after nearly two years of protests and vandalism of the site.

•ATTACKED Joplin mosque burned

•EID CELEBRATIONS A peacefull time

WORLD’S WORST JOB? IT’S a dirty job but someone’s got to do it - sewer diver Manish Kumar unplugs a drain clad in just his pants. The 35-year-old and others like Devi Lal, 43, get just £3.50 a day and a bottle of bootleg booze to dull their senses in New Delhi, India.

SEVENTY per cent of the men are believed to die on the job.

March to endviolence THOUSANDS of people marched on Tuesday to protest last week’s violence in Azad Maidan, southern Mumbai, where two people died and more than 40 were injured after a rally against the ethnic violence in Assam turned violent.

Nearly 80 people have been killed and 400,000 displaced in fighting between Muslims and India’s Hindu Bodo tribes people in Assam, a northeastern state of India, in recent weeks.

Last week, thousands of Indians from the northeast have left the southern city of Bangalore and other towns, spurred by rumors they would be attacked in retaliation for communal violence in their home state of Assam.

Led by Raj Thackeray, chief of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) party, the crowd gathered at Girgaum Chowpatty before dispersing when Thackeray drove off to Azad Maidan .

•PROREST Violence

More attacks on workers

•DIRTY JOB Manish Kumar

VIOLENCE IN BURMA INTENSIFIES INTENSE fighting is continuing between Buddhists and Muslims in Burma, which has already led to the killings of innocent people over the past few months.

According to the UN, around 90,000 people have been displaced by fighting in the west of Burma and thousands have been killed.

Violence flared in June after reports that three Muslim youths raped and murdered a Buddhist Rakhine woman. It was later revealed one of the men was her exboyfriend, and the other two, friends of his.

Clashes between Buddhists and Muslims have intensified over the past few weeks with the government accused of failing to protect the Rohingya Muslims.

There have also been several reports of rapes and murders by the security forces.

Many people have tried fleeing to neighbouring Bangladesh, but the government are no longer able to accomodate any more. Around 40,000

•MARCH For peace

unregistered Rohingyas are continuing to live in makeshift camps on the country’s beaches.

Brad Adams, the Asian director at Human Rights Watch said: ‘Burmese security forces failed to protect the Arakan (Rakhine) and Rohingya from each other and then unleashed a campaign of violence and mass round-ups against the Rohingya.’

The UN has called for an enquiry into the killings saying that the Rohingya people are one of the most persecuted in the world. Amnesty International believe that the Rohingya Muslims have suffered some of the worst human rights abuses.

INDIAN authorities have cracked down on social networking sites following unrest and an exodus of migrant workers fearing attacks.

The government threatened legal action against the websites if they did not remove “inflammatory” content.

Facebook and Google have removed some material, but only in cases where it broke rules on hate speech and inciting violence.

The government said Twitter’s response had been “extremely poor”.

However, it acknowledged this “may be in part because they don’t have an office in India”.

Authorities claim that threatening messages and pictures - which they allege have mostly originated in Pakistan - have been sent over the web to migrant workers following clashes between tribes in the northeast Indian state of Assam last month.

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

15

WORLD NEWS

Left sleeping on plane

CHILD BURNS THE QUR’AN?

•MOB RULE People gathered outside the locked house of Christian girl

11-year old Christian Pakistani could face the dealth penalty TENSIONS are rising in a small Christian neighbourhood in Pakistan after an 11-year-old girl allegedly set fire to the Qur’an last week.

Mehrabadi on the outskirts on Islamabad has been home to nearly 1000 Christians for over two decades, but yesterday they were forced to flee their homes.

Rifta Masih was arrested on Thursday for brekaing the country’s blasphemy laws after she burnt a copy of the Qu’ran - though it’s still unclear what she burnt, whether it was the complete scriptures or a small book of verses. There are no official witnesses who saw her undertake the burning though several people claim they saw her trying to rid the ‘ashes’, including one girl who raised the alarm and reported her to the local mosque.

The area has been evacuated after

LARGE parts of Sri Lanka are being devastated by a drought which farmers say is the worst they can remember.

Rice paddy fields dependent on irrigation have been severely affected as have the livelihoods of fishermen. The government is discussing compensation measures, but some villagers are blaming officials for poor water management.

mass protests broke out from thousands of angry Muslims calling for her to receive the death sentence.

The Christians who live in the area live in slums and undertake menial jobs like sewer maintenance. It is believed a few have stayed behind but shopkeepers are refusing to serve them or give them clean water.

Pakistan’s blasphemy laws can lead to death, but no one has yet been executed under it. Instead they are more likely to receive long-term prison sentences.

Lynch mobs In 2012 a Christian couple were jailed for 25 years for apparently touching the Qur’an with unwashed hands. In other cases people have been killed, by lynch mobs rather than law. Last year The Minister for Minority Affairs, Shahbaz Bhatti, was killed after calling for the law to be ended.

The girl who is in police custody is thought to have a mental illness, though this has not yet been confirmed.

A local mullah said: ‘We are not upset the Christians have left and we will be pleased if they don’t come back.’ Of those who have left the area, many have said they are too scared to ever return.

A FRENCHWOMAN endured an 18-hour journey from the Pakistani city of Lahore to Paris and back again after sleeping through her plane’s stop in the French capital, officials have said.

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) are investigating how ground crew failed to notice the woman during the plane’s two-hour stopover at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris.

The woman, named as Patrice Christine Ahmed, who is married to a Pakistani, left Lahore at noon last Tuesday to fly to Paris via Milan, but did not wake up to get off the plane, airline spokesman Sultan Hasan said.

HIT BY DEADLY FLOODING

DOZENS of people have died in Pakistan and India’s northern Rajasthan state amid flash floods and landslides caused by heavy monsoon rains, officials said Thursday.

At least 21 deaths are confirmed in Pakistan, said Maj. Iftikhar Ahmed Taj of the National Disaster Management Authority.

Hundreds of homes have been damaged in the flooding, which has hit parts of Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, and Pakistani-controlled Kashmir, he said.

Rescue workers are seeking to deal with a major landslide in the Kashmiri city of Muzaffarabad, according to the disaster agency.

Roads are blocked, some 390 houses have been damaged and an unknown number of people are dead and injured, the agency said. Some families trapped by the landslide have been given emergency food and water supplies.

Elsewhere in Pakistani-controlled

•RESIDENTS Wading through floodwaters Kashmir, seven people were killed in Bagh by a flash flood and a landslide, while more than 100 houses were damaged in Koti, the disaster agency said.

More rainfall is on the way in Pakistani-controlled Kashmir, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, some isolated places in northeast Balochistan, and the country’s capital, Islamabad, according to the agency.

Clean-up also was under way in neighbouring India, where heavy rain in Rajasthan left 20 dead, the Rajasthan state department told CNN. Ten died in the capital, Jaipur, it said.

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Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

Hot in the City YOUR ULTIMATE GUIDE TO ASIAN ENTERTAINMENT

e: sohail@asiancity.co.uk

Miss World contestant’s charitable recognition

QB STUCK! PAKISTANI singer Quratulain Baloch, more commonly known as QB, is currently stuck in The States after losing her travel and visa documents during a concert tour.

She was set to undertake one of many live performances, but has now had to postpone her plans as she mislaid all her travel documents without which she cannot carry on with her performances.

QB gained fame for her performance on Coke Studio when she sang the title song of the hit drama serial, Humsafar.

INDIAN beauty Vanya Mishra was being touted as a probable winner and was expected to bring home the Miss World crown after Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra who last won it for India in 2000.

Although she didn’t make it beyond the top seven, she did however bag two titles of ‘Miss Social Media’ and “Beauty with a Purpose’ out of the 116 participants in this years pageant.

Vanya is a major supporter of the Paragon Charitable Trust, an educational programme in Mumbai that provides affordable schooling for over 2400 children. It does this by training local community members to become teachers to ensure underprileged kids get the attention they deserve.

The category is judged by how contestants showcase this information on their websites and the judges were impressed at how Vanya actively

HOLLY NOT BOLLY!

interacts with her fans by regularly updating her site with photos and videos.

She has over 73,000 active fans and her posts reach nine million people a week, enabling her to spread her charitable messages.

During the competition she also danced to Dil Cheez Kya Hai, from the 1981 version of Bollywood film Umrao Jaan.

Reita Faria was the first Indian to have won the Miss World title in 1966 followed by Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan in 1994, Diana Hayden (1997), Yukta Mookhi (1999) and Priyanka Chopra (2000).

The Miss World pageant is one of the oldest surviving major international beauty pageants.

We are now eagerly waiting to see how long it will be before Vanya Mishra bags her first Bollywood role!

Tweet us @AsianCity and let us know who you would like to see starring opposite Vanya.

Riz does Toronto RIZ Ahmed is amongst the few British stars that are jetting off to the Toronto Film Festival.

He will be representing the UK alongside fellow British stars at the event, which is now in its 37th year.

Riz will be walking the red carpet for Mira Nair’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist.

He will be joining the cream of Hollywood who will be attending the tenday festival, which runs from September 6 to the 16th.

WHILST the majority of Pakistani stars are seen heading over to Bollywood, one diva in particular has decided to head over to Hollywood.

Mahnoor Baloch, who is renown for her drama serials and modeling, has been signed up for the movie Torn and will be playing the role of a mother.

She is set to star alongside Pakistani-American actor Faran Tahir.

Previously named Two Mothers, the film had it’s name changed later to Torn.

Torn is set to release in 2013.

NUDE NERD

HE’S a far cry from the stereotypical hunk, but that’s not stopping British actor Dev Patel stripping off for his next role. He’s agreed to go topless in a sex scene for American show The Newsroom.

The Slumdog Millionaire and Marigold Hotel actor joked about the fact his body will be on show when his co-stars are much ‘hunkier’. He said: ‘Of all the good-looking men on the show, they wanted me to be the one topless in the bed!’

He’s talked openly about how frustrating he finds the lack of roles for Asian actors and says stereotypes are still rife. He admits: ‘When I first arrived in America everyone thought I was from a slum in India. They found it weird that I had an English accent.’ In The Newsroom Dev revealed that when he first read the script, his part was referred to as ‘the Indian guy’ and his nickname was ‘Punjab’, but after speaking to the director, he shaped the role to make it more appropriate. Dev plays a geeky character in a Cable TV newsroom but admits he didn’t feel intelligent enough for the role when it was first offered to him.

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

LITTLE MIX MOVES IN ONE DIRECTION ONE wonders how many female hearts Zayn Malik broke the day he went public with his girlfriend.

Currently dating the Little Mix singer, Perrie Edwards, the lovebirds have taken their relationship to the next level and have moved in together at Zayn’s new £2.2 million house in North London. A photo posted on twitter last week showed the couple celebrating Eid together at the Malik family home.

The star pair became inseparable after Zayn returned from One Direction’s US tour.

The couple, who have been dating on and off since December last year, but only went public in May, decided to take the next step and move in together.

Sri Devi gets wax treatment

REGARDED as one of the greatest and most popular actresses in Bollywood, she is often cited as “the first female Superstar of Indian Cinema”. Not only is she making her comeback movie, English Vinglish, but if rumours are to be believed, then it means that Sri Devi will follow the lead of Aishwariya Rai-Bachchan, Kareena Kapoor and Madhuri Dixit and become the next Bollywood starlet to be immortalised in wax.

Whilst we await an official announcement, sources have revealed that the statue will be unveiled to coincide with the release of English Vinglish.

Tweet us @AsianCity and let us know which Bollywood celebrity you would like to see immortalised in wax.

AN ACE BOUNCER ACE Bhatti, best known for his role in Eastenders as smooth-talking “Dr Evil” GP Yusuf Khan, will take to the stage next month in Bouncers.

Ace will grace the stage at the Alhambra Theatre in Bradford. Bouncers is a comedy about the darker side of city night-life and follows the story of bouncers as they prepare for another night and another crowd.

Bouncers is on from September 12 – 15. For more information visit www.bradford-theatres.co.uk

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RE-DRESSING RIHANNA THE launch of a new TV show is set to change the life of one lucky UK based fashion designer. Styled To Rock on Sky Living follows 12 contestants, as they are set a series of challenges to design outfits for some the biggest pop super stars in the world. The main prize is the opportunity to create a stage outfit for Rihanna.

Each week the designers are mentored by three celebrity judges: Nicola Roberts; Henry Holland and Rihanna’s own personal stylist, Lysa Cooper.

One of the lucky designers to have made it onto the show is 24-year-old Anam Naseer. The Pakistan - born fashion graduate currently runs her own fashion label and describes her styling as ‘elegant tailoring that transforms easily from day to night wear’.

Speaking about the challenges ahead, Anam said: ‘I would class myself as a fighter and one who never

•FROCK STAR Anam Naseer gives up or succumbs to accept failure.’

Anam studied at Liverpool John Moores University and is hoping her classical but quirky style, along with her love for accessories will help her go all the way. Anam admits that although she likes to create smart clothes, she also likes to have fun with her styling.

She enthuses: ‘Clothing has a purpose.

You need to wear it, but you can be artistic at the same time.’

Styled to Rock is on Sky Living, Mondays at 9pm

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Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

BOLLYWOOD

KING OF THE The Lion King of India Ajay Devgn

• SO MY NAME IS KHAN, BUT WHAT ABOUT MY NEW FILM?

No Name for new SRK film THE first teaser of the Shah Rukh Khan, Katrina Kaif and Anushka Sharma film, directed by Yash Chopra, has been released. But, what is surprising is that it has been launched without a title.

An insider revealed, “never before has a film’s trailer been released without its title.

This one insinuates that it just may be called ‘A Yash Chopra Romance’.

The teaser of the film, which marks the comeback of Yash Chopra as director after a gap of eight years, begins with the tagline “A Yash Chopra Romance” and takes the viewers through his iconic journey via

short clippings of his blockbuster films like Waqt, Deewar, Kabhi Kabhie, Silsila, Dil Toh Pagal Hai, and Veer Zara, among others.

The trailer also gives a sneak peek of the grandeur of the new untitled film with shots of Shah Rukh, Katrina and Anushka in London. Shot by Anil Mehta, the film is set in the UK and was extensively filmed in London and other parts of Britain earlier this year.

Yash Raj Films are likely to reveal the title after the final shooting schedule of the film in Kashmir and Ladakh ends.

AJAY Devgn is undeniably one of Hindi cinema’s most lucrative actors, whose consistent stream of superhit film after superhit, affirms his position as the Bollywood Man with the Midas Touch. In a league of his own, Ajay Devgn is hot property in B-town, yet despite his superstar status and unparalleled credentials, he remains one of the most humble artists in the Indian film industry. Asian City speaks exclusively to the ‘Lion King of India’ himself.

‘Bol Bachchan’ has received a phenomenal response worldwide.

You must be delighted.

Yes I am delighted. It’s been an amazing achievement for all of us involved. The film has been received very well by audiences which I think is testament to the fact that they enjoyed the film around the world and are continuing to do so. For me, above and beyond anything else, it’s about entertaining the audiences - the very people who pay their hardearned money to go to the theatre and become immersed by the screen action. Obviously, the Box Office is a reflection of that, but to know that the people who go to see the movies have thoroughly enjoyed the film, is what gives me most satisfaction.

That’s what motivates me most.

I understand ‘Bol Bachchan’ marks a hat trick in terms of a Rohit Shetty-Ajay Devgn offering entering the 100 Crore League, following the previous success of ‘Golmaal’ and ‘Singham’. You obviously make a great team.

Rohit and I share a mutual respect for each other. Not only is he a friend but after having done so many projects together we share a good working relationship . Every project I work on is a labour of love for me and I put my all into each film I sign. Working with Rohit has become second nature. We are completely in sync and I guess that reflects on screen. It’s always a pleasure working with him.

The film also marks a great turning point for Abhishek Bachchan.

Quite rightly so. Abhishek is a talented artist and versatile across genres. I am, as you say, ‘delighted for him’ and for everyone involved in the movie, that it has done so well. He deserves the recognition for his work. He is a dedicated professional and is also a friend to me. He is deservedly in his element right now and it couldn’t be happening to a kinder, sweeter guy.

We’re extremely excited about

Hash tagged by Stalker!

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WE ARE pretty sure that most Bollywood hunks have crazy fans that will write them letters, send pictures and postcards.

However one fan has become so besotted with actor Emraan Hashmi, that she has made it her mission to follow him wherever he goes.

Emraan has always been popular with the ladies, however one has decided to turn her crazy obsession into stalking and is present at his public appearances and even his film sets.

It has become apparent that his stalker has been following him for three years now. A source close to the actor revealed “Emraan is very popular with females and quite used to the attention”. The most recent incident was when Emraan was making a guest appearance at a Dahi Handi event in Mumbai.

Although the actor was due to turn up in the evening, the stalker turned up at the venue at eight in the morning.

The stalker was recently spotted at a surburban multiplex posing as a journalist so she could meet Emraan whilst he was out promoting his upcoming film. The extent some crazy obsessed fans go to, eh?

your forthcoming release, ‘Son of Sardaar’ – the major release for Diwali. Tell us more about that.

We’re currently wrapping filming and I am excited about this film. It marks another production for Ajay Devgn Films, and in terms of my role, I can genuinely say that audiences are in for a treat. It is a big Diwali release, so that means lots of drama, lots of action, lots of comedy, amour, an abundance of spectacular song-and-dance sequences and more. It is an allrounder in terms of something for everyone, in hearty measures to mark the festive season. You will not be disappointed I hear you were in London post the release of ‘Bol Bachchan’ Yes, I was in the UK following the theatrical release, taking a vacation with my family after an extremely intensive promotional tour leading up to ‘Bol Bachchan’s’ release. The UK is among our favourite holiday destinations as a family, so it was good to be back there.

What, in particular, do you like about the UK? So many aspects. The amazing architecture, the beautiful countryside, the diversity of cultures and cuisines, the shopping, the royal

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

BOLLY JUNGLE

BOLLYWOOD

in Britain to promote new roaring film parks, the friendly people... You never want for things to do and see which makes it perfect. Sadly the weather wasn’t so great, but we had the most relaxing time, as always.

Is family time important to you?

Extremely. My family is my priority above all else. They motivate me to work hard, to do well and inspire me to do the best that I can.

Whenever I’m not working, I am spending time with my family. They are my soul and spirit, and spending time with them is the best form of relaxation and therapy for me after a long day’s work.

We understand you took time out on holiday to launch the ‘Son of Sardaar’ trailer.

Indeed. I personally launched it online and interacted with my fans on Twitter. The initial reaction was remarkable. I feel blessed to have such an amazing and dedicated following. It humbles me to feel their affection. The response to the trailer was fantastic and there are a lot of people eager to witness the next teaser and instalment.

What were your thoughts on the blackout situation in India?

I feel very passionately about the environment and the issue of climate change. India continues to cement its status as a world superpower and with that comes heightened responsibility. Not to say that other nations should not also follow suit – this is a global issue and we each need to become accountable. I’m a big advocate of solar energy, for example. Half of the energy supply at my home and farm is solar driven and I invested in Gujarat’s first, state-of-the-art solar park. Our aim is to roll this model out across further states over time. We need to do everything we can to ensure sustainability of the planet and environment, we need to become as self-sufficient as a nation as possible, and do whatever it takes to reduce our carbon footprint before it’s too late.

THE Oberoi household have all the reason to be celebrating with the news that Vivek Oberoi is all set to become a father. His wife Priyanka who is currently two months pregnant is expected to give birth around February/March 2013. Shilpa Shetty’s husband Raj Kundra tweeted his wishes to the happy couple: “Congratulating my dear friend @vivek_oberoi and his wife Priyanka on the good news and welcoming them to parenthood soon!” Things are definitely looking up for Vivek Oberoi with films like Kismat Love Paisa Dilli, Jayantibhai Ki Love Story, Krissh 3, Zilla Ghaziabad and Grand Masti all to release.

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Saif’s daughter to act?

THERE have been numerous reports that Saif Ali Khan’s daughter Sara is set to make her debut in Bollywood under Yash Raj Films.

However Amrita Singh has dispelled all the rumours circulating about Sara and has stated that she’s the one making her comeback film titled Aurangzeb with Yash Raj and not her •LIKE MOTHER LIKE DAUGHTER daughter.

It was when Sara appeared on the cover of leading lifestyle magazine HELLO India that the offers started pouring in. Amrita stated at the time “after seeing the magazine cover page, Sara has got many offers. Five eminent filmmakers have approached us and said that they wanted Sara to play the leading lady in their films.”

“She is just 16. Sara is good at academics. She even plans to go for further studies to Yale University. So we need to give her some time. Won’t it be premature to take a call now?” stated Amrita “And if Sara plans to join the glamour world, it will only be after four years and not anytime soon.”

Sara Ali Khan is Saif Ali Khan’s daughter from his first marriage to Amrita Singh. His second marriage to star Kareena Kapoor is set to take place in October.

BACK TO BASICS PREITY COLD IN PARIS

HAVING shot in one of the most romantic cities in the world, not to mention amongst the coldest, Preity Zinta’s Ishkq in Paris faced a stumbling block as they had to shoot during the harsh European winter.

If that wasn’t all, a scene of the film atop the Eiffel Tower had to be shot on a day that recorded the lowest temperature that Europe has seen in the past 65 years. Lead star Preity Zinta had to brave the cold in designer couture minis without any kind of winter wear and could not reschedule it, given that the location is one of the most expensive places to shoot at.

Confirms director Prem Raj, “We shot in Paris, which saw the coldest winter in 65 years. Apart from the fact that we withstood the weather and successfully shot there, we also managed to get permission to shoot at the Eiffel Tower and other iconic locations that very few manage to.”

THE reason why Madhuri Dixit-Nene returned back to the Mumbai from the US was so that her children could get to know their Indian roots she has revealed to a tabloid newspaper.

Taking a break from her busy schedule, the family visited the Taj Mahal and her ancestral home. “Konkan is a beautiful area. My kids were fascinated to see buffaloes … it’s important that they know their roots as it’s a part of who we are,” she stated.

Dr Nene seems to have adapted to the limelight pretty well, “we both know that our life is pretty much more beyond this glamour and limelight, so we behave accordingly. We are professionals for each other. I entertain people and he saves lives.”

Madhuri will be shooting her comeback film Gulab Gang which goes on the floor in October and as the movie is all about women’s power, the filmmakers hope to get it ready in time for release on International Women’s Day

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Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

MUSIC MUSIC CITY IR WITH SAM

X-Factor kicks off

•FAAKHIR polically correct

Who let the dogs out?

PAKISTANI singer and music composer, Faakhir has decided to make a statement with his new single titled Kuttay (Dogs).

“This song is not aimed at anyone in particular but reflects my mood towards the criminals of our country!” states Faakhir.

“The list of “evil” people who inspired me to write and produce this song remains classified.”

It’s notably understandable with a country rife with corruption and where people flout the law to no end. It’s up to you to form your own opinion as to who the criminals of the country are whilst you enjoy the track.

JUMPING KASH FLASH NEW SONG BY CANADIAN DUO THE BILZ & KASHIF THE last time we were jumping up and down to a song titled Jump Around was way back in 1992 with House of Pain. Fast forward to 2012 and we are now jumping up and down again to a song titled Jump, but this time it’s by Canadian duo The Bilz & Kashif.

The duo, made up of Vicious and Master-D and Kashif hooked up with new producers and lyricists to help carve their new album and that’s when they landed a demo track from Island producer, Riddim Souljah. “He sent me a skeleton track, and I was totally vibing to it. So I told him to come in for a meeting and he made me hear more and I knew the boys

would be excited about this new sound” says Vicious. That led them to a studio session turning “Jump” into a Soca meets house anthem instantly.

It seems this song already has everyone jumping up and down in the Netherlands after it’s entered the Holland charts right above Beyonce, Trey Songz and David Guetta on the #1 Urban station Fun-X.

GREETINGS all my Music City-zens, welcome to another healthy helping of the latest and greatest Asian music news.

Football season has kicked off! And whilst I’m rooting for my team Man United for the major trophies, there’s an interesting link to Asian music with the start of the new football season. Rumour has it that Bhangra icon Jazzy B and hotshot producer Dr Zeus will be teaming up on a football charity single, to push for more British Asians to get into the game professionally. The track will be backed by professional football and anti-racism bodies, as well as Premier League clubs.

X-Factor season has also kicked off and there rumours that British Asian songstress Jaya has auditioned for this year’s show! You may remember Jaya, previously signed to Universal records, released her debut single ‘DJ Do It Again’ in 2010. The news has caused a stir in the mainstream press, given that Jaya was signed to the same label and toured with X-Factor judge Tulisa from N-Dubz. Jaya also recorded with superstar rapper Tinie Tempah, who is rumoured to be a guest judge on this year’s show. It will be interesting to see how her audition pans out and if she makes it through to all the important live finals later this year.

There will be some big music releases over the next few weeks and it looks as though it’s collaborations season as some of the UK’s most recognised artists are teaming up for their new tracks. Hunterz is back and I can now reveal his brand new single is called ‘Aja Mahiya’ and is produced by none other than Rishi Rich! I’ve had a copy of the track for a few weeks now and absolutely love it. It will be out by the end of August so make sure you check it out. Jay Status has had a great year and he continues it with the release of ‘Mukhada’ with DJ Sanj. Jay Status is signed to Canadian DJ and producer Sanj and the two have combined to great effect again on this new track. I’ve recently seen Jaz Dhami take the stage by storm with a headline set at London Mela and can safely say that his new single ‘High Heels’ is going to be a monster hit. It features international star Yo Yo Honey Singh, who is the artist of the moment in India and the collaboration with Jaz Dhami is sure to be a huge success.

• Until next time, keep checking my twitter for the latest Music news - @samirsamir

Back on the Dhol HE HAS performed with his Dhol at the Queens Jubilee whilst touring with the UK Dhol Academy and has performed at various gigs and Melas around the UK. He has travelled to International locations and played alongside some of the biggest names in the Bhangra industry such as Manak-E, Lehmber Hussainpuri, Imran Khan to name a few.

DREAM B3ATS has set aside his Dhol for now and has taken to producing and released his debut single, Nachna Pao ft. Major Chanalia. This is sure to get your shoulders moving up and down.

Working along with his mentor Heavy Sahota to further develop his production skills, we will be expecting more from this young producer and an album is imminent in the pipeline.

•X FACTOR Jaya

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

21

MUSIC

RED BARAAT IN TOWN

QAWWALI BEATS

IT SEEMS most musicians are venturing down the Qawwali route. After success with his previous singles Chittyan, Party and Nakreh Valiyeh, Deen Janjua is back with a brand new single called Ali Ali. “Qawwali to date is still today a form of music that is so pure and innocent, that I found myself inititally hesitant to undertake” said Janjua, “It pays homage to the lives of those who lived to worship and please God alone. This song is my humble tribute to all those individuals who in this day and age place peace, unity and love above all.”

Deen is currently working towards his debut album with Ji-Madz, which is set to release early next year.

Gin & Rees release single

THEY have been creating music behind the scenes for many years, but now the producing duo Gin and Rees have released their debut single ‘Sanu The Changa’.

The track features the vocals of India based singer Aslam Ali whose voice closely resembles the mighty Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.

“The hairs literally stood up on the back of my neck. I could not believe that anyone could have a voice that even came close to my hero. But, Aslam is incredible and I knew that we had to work with him.” Said Rees.

Gin and Rees are also the duo behind the Bhangra dance troupe who performed at London 2012’s Olympics closing ceremony.

ACCLAIMED Brooklyn - based Bhangra Funk and Dhol ‘n’ Brass band Red Baraat are to embark on their debut UK tour in September 2012.

The 8-day tour is part of the London 2012 Festival, the spectacular 12-week nationwide celebration bringing together leading artists from across the world with the very best from the UK. The tour takes place between September 1st and 10th, kicking off at the Fusion Asia Festival in Bracknell on September 1st and taking in London, Bracknell, Edinburgh, Manchester, Leicester, Birmingham and Bristol. Red Baraat will also be performing at Bestival, Isle of Wight on September 8th.

The UK tour will also coincide with the UK release of Red Baraat’s first studio album, Chaal Baby, on Jaro Records, distributed by Harmonia Mundi on August 27th 2012. The album was voted as a top world and jazz album of the year when it was previously released in the US. In just two years, the pioneering New Yorkers have made a name for themselves as one of the best live bands in the world, creating a sound that is uniquely their own, fusing the infectious North Indian rhythms of bhangra with funk, jazz, Latin and the

go-go sound of Washington DC. Their astonishing live performances have caused a stir across the US where the band is just as likely to be found playing the basements and warehouses of NY as they are prestigious venues such as New York’s Lincoln Centre, Chicago World Music Festival, Montreal Jazz Festival and, most recently, the White House.

The nine-piece band features dhol drums, percussion, a sousaphone and a five-piece horn section. The band is led by acclaimed dhol drummer Sunny

Jain, who has received many awards in the US for his groundbreaking fusion of Indian music with world and jazz.

He also made his Hollywood debut playing dhol in the film ‘Accidental Husband’, starring Uma Thurman, Colin Firth and Isabella Rossellini.

Red Baraat’s UK tour is promoted

by Asian Arts Agency, a dynamic arts development agency that develops, promotes and supports international, contemporary and traditional South Asian arts across the UK. • www.asianartsagency.co.uk/redbaraat

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Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

FEATURE

FROM DESERT TO Faran Tahir reveals to Sohail Anjum what it felt like being Captain of a Federation Starship and getting beaten up by Iron Man FARAN Tahir is not a household name yet, but has guest starred in the most populist television shows like Dallas, Warehouse 13, Blued Bloods, Charmed, Lost, to name a few as well as playing the evil, sadistic Raza in Iron Man and the heroic Captain Robau in J.J Abram’s reboot of Star Trek in a brief but momentous role.

When did you first fall in love with acting?

My love affair with acting started when I was a little kid. I would often secretly stand in front of the mirror and act out scenes.

You have done film, television and theatre. What has given you the greatest satisfaction?

I get equal satisfaction from all three.

There are stories that need the

intimacy of live theatre to have the emotional impact. Then there are other stories that require the expansive canvas of the film screen and the sensitive eye of the camera to give the audience a window into characters and story. And sometimes, the freedom television affords to create a story and character over many hours can be priceless. I always say that a painter can paint in oil or water-colour or do a pencil sketch. It all depends on what story he or she is trying to tell. It is the same idea for me. It just needs to be interesting and challenging.

always liked Star Trek. I grew up on Star Trek. It was awesome. I have always been a big fan of the original series with William Shatner and the Next Generation and respect the philosophy and its message of hope it portrays.

Has the biggest challenge always been to get good roles?

Indeed. The quest to find good roles is true for all actors.

Did you ever in your wildest dreams think you would become captain of a Starship?

A kid can dream, right? Sometimes even your wildest dreams can come true and the first time I walked on the set and the set of the ship I was like, “wow, I’m captain of a federation ship.”

How did you feel when you landed a role in Star Trek?

I felt like a 10-year old boy. I have

What was the whole experience of working in the film like?

You start off with complete awe but very quickly realize that you have a job to do and you’d better not screw it up. It was challenging and I wanted to show competence, dignity and strength in a short amount of time.

Did you keep any souvenirs from the shoot?

No but the director, J.J. Abrams, later gave me a model of my ship as a memento. It even yelled ‘RED ALERT, RED ALERT’ in my voice if you pushed a button.

Have you ever attended any Star Trek conventions?

Not yet. Because of my work schedule it has never worked out with my time commitments, but would love to if the situation arose.

FILMOGRAPHY MOVIES

The Tomb (2013) Elysium (2013) Star Trek (2009) Iron Man (2008) Charlie Wilson’s War (2007) ABCD (1999)

TV SERIES

Dallas (2012) Warehouse 13 (2011-2012) Burn Notice (2012) Supernatural (2011) Blue Bloods (2011) NCIS: Los Angeles (2010) Grey’s Anatomy (2009) Chuck (2008) Lost(2008) Cold Case (2007) Sleeper Cell (2006) Justice (2006) Monk (2006) Charmed (2006) 24 (2003-2005) JAG (2003) The West Wing (2002-2003) NYPD Blue (2001) Alias (2001) The Pretender (1999) Law & Order (1993) Midnight Caller (1989)

How did the role of Iron Man come about?

It wasn’t easy! It involved a lot of readings with the casting director, the director and Robert Downey Jr. It also involved meetings with all the producers, a process which took almost three weeks.

What was your favourite scene in Iron Man? I would most probably say, when I first encounter Tony Stark in the cave. I play an evil sadistic character of Raza, where it involves me, or should I say Raza, putting a piece of burning coal in someone’s mouth, that’s fun right?!

How did it feel getting beaten up by

Iron Man? Legendary. Growing up reading Marvel comics, never in my life did I imagine that one day I would actually be getting beaten by Iron Man on the big screen.

So you were a fan or Marvel comics?

I have always been a fan of Marvel comics. I have a collection of over 200 of them.

You have worked with many of Hollywood’s A-list. Who has been your favourite to work with?

It would be unfair to just name one or two names. All the actors I have worked with have all been great. I admire their professionalism and their talent.

Which other roles have you enjoyed doing?

I have tried to enjoy every role. I think that is the only way you can do justice to your characters. This is not to say that I couldn’t have done better at times but in the moment I gave it my all.

What according to you makes for a good performance?

A performance that evolves. A performance that keeps the audience guessing and a performance that is fluid.

What advice would you give to young Asian actors?

Never give up on your dreams and work hard to achieve them.

Complacency is death. When you find failure, be brave, and when you find success, show humility.

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

DALLAS Which roles would you love to play in the future?

Any role that is challenging and multilayered. Anything that I am able to sink my teeth into. I have never worried about how big or small the role is, as long as the role is able to speak to me.

What else can we look forward to seeing you in?

I have some interesting stuff coming out in the next year. ELYSIUM, a scifi thriller with Matt Damon and Jodie Foster directed by the director of DISTRICT 9. JINN, a supernatural thriller. TORN, a drama about two families dealing with the untimely death of their teenage sons in a shopping mall explosion. THE TOMB, a prison break action movie with Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Plus recurring roles on DALLAS and WAREHOUSE 13.

Can you ever see yourself doing a Bollywood or Lollywood film?

Absolutely, if it is a good script and the logistics work out then I would be delighted to appear in a Bollywood or Lollywood project.

What about doing a project in the UK? Make me an offer. Again, it will come down to a good script and logistics.

Who has been the most interesting person you have met in your acting career?

Hmmm. I don’t think I can answer that. I love connecting with all kinds of people.

Is it now easier for Asian actors in Hollywood or do you still get offered stereotypical roles?

There will always be stereotypical roles but I think that things are slowly changing. Hollywood is a tough place and not for everyone. Egos can be fragile and the business is tough.

People with glass chins won’t survive.

You need to be able to take a few punches and still be able to get back up.

Tell us something people don’t know about you?

I can flip my tongue completely over.

Does that count?

What would be doing if you weren’t an actor?

Interesting question. I would love to be an architect. It’s a great balance between creativity and science.

Finally, why do you love being an actor?

It gives me an opportunity to step into other people’s shoes for a bit. It’s a great study in human nature and behaviour.

• Faran Tahir can be seen currently in Warehouse 13 and as “Smiling Frank” in the new 10-part series of Dallas to be shown on Channel 5 in September.

“Never give up on your dreams and work hard to achieve them”

23

FEATURE

24

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

SURVIVAL

THE BOOK OF LOVE

HOW TO BLOW A GUY’S COVER AND READ HIM STRAIGHT AWAY IMAGINE you’re in a bookshop.

What are you here to buy? The novel with the fancy cover, the bestseller or one recommended by the critics? Are you after something trashy to last you a few short days or a new author with a body of work that will have you engrossed for years to come? Are you going to buy a classic because you feel like you should or a bit of fluff that others will turn their noses up at?

Is it a serious hardback or a flimsy paperback you want to take away with you? Or are you just going to go for pot luck?

Dating can be a lot like that. The first time you browse through a man’s appearance, you might not be able to judge him by the cover alone, but you can certainly get a good idea about him once you’ve taken in the blurb and read between his opening lines…

FICTION There’s little point trying to look for the real story in someone who has just caught your eye. Men, just like books, are all about getting to know the finer details over time. And because he’ll want to make as good an impression, not to mention the promise of adventure and a bit of magic, there’s bound to be an element of fiction. The trick is to find one that’s realistic enough to pursue and engrossing enough for you to want to turn the page.

ACTION The cover :: This type only comes in hardback. Whether he is decked out in combats and a body warmer without breaking into a sweat in the height of summer, or clad head to toe in black Armani like the Milk Tray Man, you’ll have no doubt in your mind – here’s a man that will get rid of the spider in your bathtub with his bare hands.

Opening lines :: ‘My heart did a bungee jump over Lake Tahoe when I saw you.’

Skim read :: He will open doors, pull out chairs and even order for you, because you are a damsel and he has come to save you from all forms of distress. If the waiter fails to pour your glass of wine first, the Action Man will make sure he never makes that mistake again.

The blurb :: Because he’s done so much in his life, with many more rivers to cross, you’ll be on the edge of your seat trying to keep up. Full of passion and nervous energy, it’s a wonder he’s made the time to sit and talk to you.

The review :: While you can rely on him to come up with exciting propositions every time you say ‘I don’t mind what we do’, after a while his thirst to do something wild gets a bit grating.

His bravado means you can expect embarrassing scenes in public and his need to protect you will start seeming like possessiveness.

CRIME The cover :: With his head darting permanently left to right and a penchant for the wacky baccy, Mr Crime looks dressed for a junglist massive rave in 1992 and just got back. His dress sense belies the spanking new BMW M5 parked outside.

Opening lines :: ‘Did you come here alone?’

Skim read :: Trying to glean any information about him will be met with deep suspicion, but once he realises you didn’t do it, he’ll let you in on the truth about who killed Diana to how aliens are making AIDS in Area 51.

The blurb :: He knows, because he’s been there. You learn to open your mind to possibilities when you contemplate the universe in police cells.

The review :: Mr Crime is able to engage you with his thinking outside of the box. However, his paranoia will rub off on you and you’ll soon be wondering if your sister put a pink sock in the white wash on purpose. And don’t spend too much time with his crew, lest you begin to have the career ambitions of a crack whore.

MYSTERY The cover :: Because his appearance is designed to intrigue, he keeps his colours plain. The sun part of sunglasses has little to do with why he wears them, and just as you begin to think he is a moody sod, he’ll flash you a beaming smile that will blind you.

Opening lines :: ‘Are you thinking what I’m thinking?’

Skim read :: Every time you think you’ve clocked on to the plot, he’ll provide a twist that will send you in the other direction. Every story he tells ends abruptly, but on a cliffhanger.

The blurb :: Romance, adventure, suspense, thriller, tragedy… there’s a little bit of everything in this one. But what is it really all about? Who knows?

He knows. Who cares? You care.

The review :: Men rarely come this engrossing. You will feel quite the detective for ‘working him out’ and even privileged when he shares something personal with you, but alas, Mystery Man is only interesting when you don’t know much about him. And his habit of putting up a facade begins to seem like a show of being much more than he actually is. The final word of this story is likely to be a disappointed: oh…

POETRY The cover :: A star-crossed lover complete with foppish hair a quivery lip that’ll pull at your heartstrings faster than the Andrex puppy. Sitting on his own, sipping on Starbucks Mocha, he’ll be staring intently at a battered copy of the 100 best poems of all time. His eyes are glazed, not because he’s on drugs, but because he is moved.

Opening lines :: ‘For it was not into my ear you whispered, but into my heart.’

Skim read :: There just seems to be so much to explore here. Here’s a deep thought, ooh there’s quirky, now that’s clever, and wow! That’s pretty observant.

And bless, this one looks so sweet.

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

25

SURVIVAL perfection and is always the centre of attention. You’ll spot him with his army of adoring fans (his stooges, PA and personal lint remover), forever muttering to himself because he’s giving an interview to Vanity Fair in his head.

Opening lines :: ‘The pleasure is all mine.’

Skim read :: There appears to be three central characters in this story: me, myself and I. Most books tend to make room for the reader, but here, your input seems superfluous. Just pay attention, turn the page and agree it deserves some sort of a nomination.

The blurb :: If you’re looking for a secure man who knows exactly where he stands, look no further. Any problem you have, he has an anecdote to make you realise you’re not alone. He’ll spend hours discussing where he hopes to see himself and his dreams for the future.

And you’re invited. Perfect if you’re the kind who’s not sure where she’s heading.

The review :: Me, me, me, me, me.

Frankly, who cares? Talking about ourselves is our job, dammit! It’s one thing getting to know a guy, quite another to be told who he is. With Mr Autobiography, there’s no space for your review, simply your appreciation will do.

The blurb :: Here’s a man prepared to show you real, unrivalled teenage love!

He’ll text you his original works, make you daisy chains and exclaim your perfection. It’s what all girls want! Isn’t it?

The review :: There will be times when Poet Boy will be feeling creatively challenged, making him withdraw back into his shell. His angst will start to rub off on you and, when you keep calling to see if the dear soul is alright, the same guy that made you feel you were soulmates will now make you feel stalkerish and fat.

ROMANCE The cover :: Ah, the one you’ve been waiting for. Like any Mills and Boon cover, Mr Romance comes across as the uber male, proud chest thrust forward with a legion of giggling girlies all hoping they’ll be the princess that he whisks away. He’ll say the right things at the right time – he and Poet Boy are set apart only by their experience.

Opening lines :: ‘You’re beautiful.

You’re beautiful. It’s true.’

Skim read :: Every box seems to be ticked. He pays you compliments, is generous with his gifts, attentive, sensitive but not too girlie, and has what it takes to turn a normal evening sat with a takeaway in front of the telly into a candle-lit dinner date under the moon of love.

The blurb :: Stop dreaming about your knight in shining armour and say hel-lo.

Here’s The One, who will hold you hair back while you barf after one too many, entertain your pillow talks with suggestions of names for your first-born, and cook you breakfast in bed. He’s exciting, he’s dashing, he’s always happy.

But he’s only that way because you’re in the world.

The review :: No grown man gives unconditional love like this without knowing what he’s getting out of it. He’s

known for his party trick. You know, the one where he unclasps your bra whilst he texts his wife? Mr Romance has been around the block a few times – it’s where he draws his greatest inspirations from. Be prepared for insecurity and jealousy the moment you spot him being equally lovely to someone else…

DRAMA The cover :: Mr Drama’s sense tends to be rather handsome and dresses to reflect his mood. If he’s happy, he’ll even wear yellow. You’ll be drawn to his exuberance, sense of individuality and often outrageous antics.

Opening lines :: ‘There’s more to life than this. Allow me show you.’

Skim read :: There doesn’t appear to be a dull moment. He shares many qualities of the Action Man, without the need to risk hospitalisation by scaling Mount Everest. But that’s not to say he won’t view a trip to Tesco as any less of an event.

The blurb :: It’s time to stop taking things for granted. The difference between a gritty kitchen sink drama and a soap opera is that, in the latter, there’s always something interesting. Everything you say should mean something, with implications that affect not just yours, but everyone else’s lives.

The review :: Drama Man has a little habit of, well, being dramatic. Mood swings, tantrums and cries of betrayal is always waiting backstage, ready to burst out through the curtains any time after the third cocktail makes its appearance.

He’s used to sharing the stage, so he won’t be satisfied unless you join in, creating a scene when you’d rather be in the background shaking your head in despair.

SCI-FI/ FANTASY The cover :: The Matrix style overcoat suggests cool, but the Star Trek t-shirt underneath it screams: I am a nerd. He

looks intelligent enough, but those retro glasses shield eyes that have been left saddened by the realisation that he is misplaced in this universe.

Opening lines :: ‘You’re out of this world. May I ask which planet?’

Skim read :: It all looks fantastic, and a little bit fantastical, but hey – it beats being with someone who moans about the daily grinds of work one day. What can be more alluring than someone promising to take you away from all of this?

The blurb :: What you see is not what you get. He has what it takes to convince you that you’re not really a lowly paid worker in a call centre, but the Queen of the fairies. Once you become the one who finally understands him, you will realise he is not a geek, but a Greek god.

The review :: While it can only excite you to think there’s more to him than what you can see, eventually, you’ll clock on that he is not only living in a fantasy world, he’s lying. He may well have written a computer package designed to track terrorists, but no, the CIA aren’t considering paying him a million dollars for it.

THE MANUAL The cover :: Dressed in no-nonsense, fad-free fashion, he looks exactly how he appears – honest, reliable and trustworthy. Those who misread him as ‘stuffy’ have too much modern tittle tattle in them, but don’t worry, he knows how to educate and show you the right path.

Opening lines :: ‘Listen carefully.’

Skim read :: Here’s information on everything you feel you should know about – culture, religion, place in life. It reads like a How To Be A Proper Asian Girl, and let’s face it, you need to know.

No one will marry you otherwise.

The blurb :: So you’ve lived your life the way you wanted to so far... that’s okay, you were, young, unwise and ignorant. The Manual Man is here to save your soul. You don’t seriously

think you’re going on a date dressed like that? And don’t talk with your mouth full – in fact, don’t talk at all.

Nod. The review :: While he may be your parents’ wet dream, Manual Man’s habit of doing everything by the book – and insisting you do exactly the same – will leave you wondering: are you taking the mick? You started seeing him because you wanted order in your life – not to take orders. Soon, it’ll be evident these rules are his rules. Avoid, unless you grew up in a village where it’s not unusual for women to marry goats.

HISTORY The cover :: Vintage clothing is so happening, especially those little gems you can find at Oxfam. Mr History is easily identified as the chap with the deeply etched furrow lines and distinct old spice aroma. He is the antithesis of the immature little boys you have been dating all your life.

Opening lines :: ‘Once upon a time…’

Skim read :: It all seems equally fascinating and heavy going, but you feel like you should learn to come to grips with the bits that look too complex – the way you sometimes have the urge to read up all about the Spanish Civil War one of these days, just to broaden your mind, like.

The blurb :: Other than a wealth of knowledge, you’ll have dinner, a quick boogie at his local ballroom venue, a swift half whilst you’re there and taxi fare home. All for under a tenner. Not to mention you’ll be quids in when the old pension kicks in.

The review :: Mr History is able to trace his lineage back to the Ottoman Empire. Which is an elaborate way of admitting: ‘I’m not comfortable with being just Asian, but look, I have Persian blood flowing through me.’

People who justify their present existence through their past can be tiring after a while. You’ll soon stop giving a damn about what happened before and start craving for something that relates to the world you live in now.

NON-FICTION This is the type of man you go for when you’re in the mood for something a little bit more serious. In other words, qualities that will please your mum.

You’ve had your wild fun and pulp action and are ready to settle down, maybe even learn a thing to do. But as any avid bookreader will tell you, serious or factual non-fiction doesn’t mean it has to be as dull as Rohinton Mistry on smack…

AUTOBIOGRAPHY The cover :: Immaculate hair, tailored suit, manicured nails. Mr Autobiography is preened to within an inch of

Because men want to offer you adventure and magic, there’s bound to be an element of fiction in what he says. Find one you get engrossed in

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26

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

BLOGGED ON TECH CITY N WITH EM KWA

Improved iPhone?

IT’S UNOFFICIALLY confirmed: Sept. 12 - the day Apple is expected to debut its sixthgeneration smartphone, unofficially dubbed the “iPhone 5”. Apple’s iPhone line drives roughly 46 percent of the company’s business, according to its most recent earnings report and according to Forbes (August, 2012) the “iPhone” brand is worth more than Microsoft!

So what can we expect to be different with this new iPhone?

More or less, we know what the iPhone 5 looks like, thanks to batches of images released by insiders within Apple’s supply chains and repair shops. We expect the iPhone to feature a bigger, thinner front plate that stretches the screen just beyond four inches to achieve a 16:9 resolution ratio to watch 1080p HD videos in a widescreen format. According to the prototypes and images, Apple has also reportedly expanded and redesigned its speaker grills, migrated the FaceTime camera to be directly above the earpiece, moved the earphone jack from the top right corner of the phone to the bottom left corner, and introduced a new camera opening on the backside of the phone between the camera lens and the LED flash.

Finally, we believe Apple has fixed its iPhone 5 with a unibody metal back instead of an all-glass facade, which could potentially improve call reception, and has also included the iPhone with a new, smaller dock connector, which could be as small as 9 pins.

Other features may include: Crack-Proof Glass: Everyone who’s ever had a rough Friday night would certainly love this patent.

Granted on Nov. 15, Apple’s patent for crackresistant glass uses the same alumino silicate glass solution used in the iPhone 4 and 4S, but chemically treats it with potassium and sodium ions to achieve greater compression thresholds on the surface and edges of the glass, making it less susceptible to cracks.

NFC (including the iWallet, and iTunes Gifting): Near-field communication is nothing new. In fact, many current smartphones have the chip built-in so owners can use mobile payments solutions such as Google Pay. Apple has held off on implementing NFC technology into its iPhone, but a slew of recently granted patents seem to suggest that will change with the sixth-generation model. Two of the major features said to use NFC rather heavily are the iWallet, and iTunes “Gifting.”

As stated previously these are simply ‘educated rumours’ based on the many leaks we come across from our contacts worldwide. Whatever the case there is little doubt the new iPhone will be highly anticipated then ever. Will you be getting one? Let me know on twitter @emkwan • Connect with EM KWAN now via Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn

Name: Alizey & Saanieh Mirza Name of Blog: Pintsized Fashionista Blog link: www.pintsized fashionista.com How long have you been blogging?

Just over a year How did the idea of blogging come about?

I’ve been into fashion from a really young age. Before I started, a lot of people told me it would be a good idea for me to start a blog where I’d post photos of my daily outfits online - so I did! I never actually thought it would turn out to be as successful as it is today.

What is your blog about?

At the moment, it’s mainly based on fashion however there are some beauty tutorials, restaurant, hotel and spa reviews and interviews with celebrities (such as the cast members of Made in Chelsea). I will be re-launching the blog with my twin sister in October 2012 where we will then broaden the lifestyle section as well as introduce an online e-commerce shop linked to the blog where we will sell our brand’s leggings as well as a few other select designers.

How many hours a week do you spend blogging?

Blogging for me consists of taking photos, attending events and meetings, finding new boutiques to promote as well as physically posting on the blog. It takes up a lot of my time, but I enjoy it thoroughly as it keeps me occupied.

How often do you update your blog?

PintsizedFashionista is updated up to twice a day. As my twin and I both blog together, we make sure the blog is updated daily.

What is your greatest accomplishment in Blogging?

There are thousands of fashion bloggers all over the world, therefore becoming known in the Middle East and being featured in nearly every weekly issue of Grazia in the UAE has been such an accomplishment. Blogging allows

TWIN BLOGGERS

Our regular spotlight on a blog to log onto

me to express myself through the way I dress. As the blog has grown and the number of readers has increased and through all the events I attended, Harpers Bazaar Arabia put me on their Best Dressed List for 2012 which was a vast accomplishment as I was the youngest to ever be in that annual issue. I also won Grazia Middle East’s ‘Most Stylish Reader 2012’ award and got put into Time Out Dubai’s ‘Top 20 Most Stylish People in Dubai’ issue.

What has been your greatest challenge?

In the fashion industry, there is a lot of competition. Everyone has their own individual style and expresses it in their own way. For me, the greatest challenge would have to be taking risks in what I wear. There are days when I don’t feel like dressing up for an event, therefore I just stay in my sweatpants, pair them with some

Louboutin heels and a Chanel Double Flap bag and go. I don’t believe wearing head-to- toe designer is necessary for being stylish.

How many people read your blog?

We just hit 1 million hits!

Do you get upset if you don’t get any feedback on your blogs?

We’ve got to the point where we always get comments and feedback, whether it’s positive or negative.

We take all comments into consideration unless they’re not constructive criticism.

Do you have a personal favourite blog / or blogger?

I read a couple of blogs on a regular basis: The Blonde Salad is probably my favorite. I met Chiara (the blogger) in Dubai earlier this year and she was lovely. I also read Sincerely Jules, Fashion Toast, Viva Luxury and occasionally The Man Repeller.

What do you do that is considered unconventional in the blogging world?

There are no limits to blogging, however the one thing that is probably frowned upon the most is stealing other blogs’ content or photos from another blog without crediting it. It’s as bad as plagiarism.

Why do some people start a blog and then give up after a while?

I would imagine its because they don’t have the passion or interest about what they’re blogging about.

Who is your biggest influence?

There are quite a few public figures I look up to when it comes to fashion. The Olsen twins influence my style a lot as they’re casual, laid-back and grungy, as well as Olivia Palermo. I believe off-duty models have amazing style as well as the general street style in fashion capitals such as Paris and New York. I met Anna Dello Russo last year, which left me absolutely starstruck as she is a legendary fashion icon and is known as the ultimate Queen of Fashion. She definitely influences the way I look at fashion and my perception of it as she’s so different and isn’t afraid to express herself.

What advice would you like to share with fellow bloggers?

Nothing beats keeping your blog as personal as possible. People are always intrigued to know about your personal style (and personal life to an extent) If someone was interested in blogging, what few things would you suggest?

Definitely be passionate about what you base your blog on. If you’re not passionate about fashion, don’t blog about it. When you don’t have a strong interest in something, you’ll get bored easily.

On the shelf THE GREAT INDIAN PHONE BOOK: How the Mass Mobile Changes Business, Politics and Daily Life ROBIN JEFFERY / ASSA DORON £24.99 The cheap mobile phone is arguably the most significant personal communications device in history. In India, where caste hierarchy has reinforced power for generations, the disruptive potential of the mobile phone is even more striking than elsewhere.

In 2001, India had 35 million phones, only four million of them mobiles. Ten years later, it had more than 800 million phone subscribers; more than 95 per cent were mobile phones. In politics, organisations with cadres of true believers exploited a resource infinitely more effective than telegrams, postcards and the printing press for carrying messages to workers, followers and voters.

The authors focus on three groups - controllers: the bureaucrats, politicians and capitalists who wrestle over control of radio frequency; servants: the marketers, agents, businesses and households. The book looks at the mobile phone - from the contests of great capitalists and governments to control radio frequency spectrum to the ways ordinary people build the troublesome, addictive device into their daily lives.

PAKISTAN: A New History IAN TALBOT £24.99 If Pakistan is to preserve all that is good about its country - the generosity and hospitality of its people, the dynamism of its youth - it must face the deterioration of its social and political institutions. Sidestepping easy headlines to identify Pakistan’s true dangers, this volume revisits the major turning points and trends of Pakistani history over the past six decades.

While Ian Talbot’s study centres on Pakistan’s many failures - the collapse of stable governance, the drop in positive political and economic development, and, most of all, the unrealised goal of securing a separate Muslim state - his book unequivocally affirms the country’s potential for a positive reawakening. While he acknowledges grave crises still lie ahead for Pakistan, Talbot’s sensitive historical approach makes it clear that favourable opportunities still remain for Pakistan, in which the state has a chance to reclaim its priorities and institutions and reestablish political and economic sustainability.

THE IMPOSSIBLE INDIAN FAISAL DEVJI £16.99 This book is about the Mahatma as a political thinker, one who recognised how the quotidian reality of modern life could be radicalised to produce the most extraordinary effects. In this sense he belongs with Lenin, Hitler and Mao as one of the great revolutionary figures of our times, though his politics was directed along paths other than state-building.

Focusing on his unsentimental engagement with the hard facts of imperial domination, fascism and civil war, The Impossible Indian places Gandhi at the centre of modern history, exploring the new political reality he claimed to have discovered. This was a politics the Mahatma mobilised in practices that required as much sacrifice, and even death, as those propagated by his revolutionary peers.

Faisal Devji’s book reveals Gandhi as the hard-hitting political thinker he was, someone willing to countenance violence to achieve his objectives, and challenges the idealistic portrayals of the Mahatma that prevail even today.

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

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Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

WEDDINGS

MAKING YOUR MANDAP It isn’t just Hindu ceremonies that allow you to have the heavens above them PERHAPS it’s because the mandap carries such religious significance that many weddings don’t treat it with the kind of glamour seen on display throughout the rest of the ceremony.

In many cases, a simple arch adorned with the most basic array of decorations seems appropriate; in fact, some think too much fuss might even detract from its spiritual connotations: that of an auspicious canopy symbolising the universe, set on four pillars representing the sacred scriptures of Vedas.

To see it this way is not only redundant, but also goes against the Hindu scriptures that decree that flowers and religious symbols be used to represent beauty and joy. And there’s no beauty in something that looks cheap, plain and simple!

The average mandap is the standard four-pillar wooden staged structure, but it’s the way it is crafted and decorated – using ornate pillars, flowers, backdrops, drapes, lighting, ornate sculptures and motifs – that will make yours stand out from the rest.

And because more couples, be they Hindu, Muslim or Christian, are opting to have a mandap as the ultimate centrepiece for the Big Day, the choice out there is truly phenomenal.

SETTING THE SCENE

Selecting a mandap is not just about picking one that catches your eye in a picture. You need to see the mandap almost like an enchanted palace at the end of a fairytale walkway. The whole set-up should leave your guests mesmerised from the moment they enter your chosen venue. The welcoming arch doesn’t have to start at the mandap itself, but can be placed at the entrance, essentially turning your whole venue into one giant mandap. Your mandap provider can give you an option of an entrance gate that just frames the mandap or an entire foyer display; depending on the venue layout and how it compliments the mandap you have chosen.

The major difference between an English wedding and an Asian one is that, because we skip the church part, the bride doesn’t get to walk up the aisle – but she can when she steps onto the walkway leading to the mandap. And what better excuse to roll out the red carpet? By covering the aisle with red and white rose petals, and lining it with majestic ornaments and statues, all glowing with lights and candles, the whole effect can transport even the most average venue into the realms of fairytale fantasies.

for your occasion means you can’t simply hire the biggest or most expensive and expect it to fit in with the proceedings. You need to take things such as the height, colour and feel of the venue into consideration – you don’t want your beautiful mandap to end up looking out of place or, worse still, not fitting! When selecting your mandap, always remember that it should complement the surroundings rather than work against it.’

For instance, if you’re thinking of putting your mandap on stage – is that WHAT MANDAP? Mandaps come in all sorts of shapes, stage big enough to accommodate it? colour, carving and décor. You can have Remember, you need space on either anything from a standard four-pillared side of the mandap for the photographer single-domed structure to the giant and videographer to roam freely – not to eight-pillared triple-domed mandap, but mention making room for things such as be mindful that it doesn’t overshadow head table, speeches and the the rest of the proceedings. Size entertainment. definitely matters, but it’s not the case that bigger is necessarily better. Bipin IN FULL COLOUR Patel, the director of Gayatri Mandaps, Mandaps usually come in the traditional points out: ‘Selecting the right mandap colours of red, white, gold and silver –

but with the industry becoming more adventurous by the day – you can stretch the palette to pick almost any colour that suits the décor and detail on your outfit. But while it’s important to pick a colour that doesn’t clash with the surroundings, the mandap really comes to life by having the right decorations, lighting and backdrop.

WHAT’S IN A MANDAP?

Other than the necessary items such as the agni pot, bajot, chori and so on, one of the most striking features lies in the use of statues. Because mandaps are no longer exclusively for Hindu weddings, the range of statues you can have has broadened from the traditional religious ones of Ganesh and Krishna, and can be carved from wood, metal, fibre or even solid bronze! If you prefer to shop around for your own ornamental decorations, you can do so, as long as you are clear on the theme and get your mandap provider’s approval.

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

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WEDDINGS Picking the flowers are all to do with matching the budget, season and style.

Satya Norris, from Tulsi Flowers, points out: ‘Carnations, roses and white lilies are always in demand. Just make sure the flowers are fresh because one little wilt can let your whole mandap down, particularly in the case where flowers make up the canopy, or when the pillars are hollowed out and filled with flowers.

The backdrops and drapes you use are vital for making your mandap stand out, so look for richer materials like silk, organza and russet to prevent any of them from looking shabby or flimsy.

Also, the designs of backdrops have moved away from elaborate depictions from religious scriptures – which can look garish because they tend to be multi-coloured – and instead have gone for the more classier minimalist approach; the night sky and crystals are amongst the most popular, because they are easier to light up and to create an ethereal, magical atmosphere.

The move away from the strictly religious theme has also allowed for other innovations in terms of styling – with Oriental and Bollywood being amongst the most wanted. As Satya Norris says: ‘When selecting your ideal mandap, the best tool at your disposal is your imagination.’

Also, when choosing chairs and pedestals – make sure they match the rest of the mandap. If your service provider only has gold chairs, but you know they will clash with the orange theme, go elsewhere for them.

Whatever you hire or buy, make sure you have the complete picture in mind beforehand.

TAKE IT OUTSIDE

You can bypass the strict fire regulations by holding the ceremony outside the venue. And what better backdrop for your mandap than nature itself? The bride and groom walk up the vibrant red carpet laid over the soft green grass, with the blue sky above them, surrounded by guests happy to be in the sun and plenty of room to breathe – it’s hard to picture a happier setting for your big moment.

But this being Britain, you need to take extra precautions. Because rain

can appear at any moment, it is advisable to incorporate a marquee as part of a grand summer wedding, enabling you and your guests to retreat to, without losing the moment or feeling of the great outdoors altogether.

Also avoid using hollowed-out pillars or light artefacts as the wind might knock them over. Try to arrange for someone from your mandap service to be present in the case of an outdoor wedding to deal with any unexpected mishaps.

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Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

BEAUTY

MOISTURISING FACTS

Luscious locks AS LOVELY as it is to treat yourself to a pamper session at the hairdressers, it’s not always possible to get to one. Sometimes you just need a quick boost at home, a wish that’s just been answered by hair care experts Wella.

Their new Professional range offers a choice of intensive care masks, suitable for all types of hair. Whether you’re in need of colour saturation salvation or hydrating help, the entire System Professional Care and Style range is personally designed to adapt to whatever your hair troubles may be.

What makes them extra special, is that they contains a special SP Polishing technology; a blend of special oils and care ingredients that work together in perfect harmony, smoothing the hair surface for perfect light reflection and ultimate shine. Each mask transforms weak and dull hair into tangible tresses, helping to repair the damage done on a daily basis.

Look out for following products: Balance Scalp Mask – a soothing intensive treatment to relieve itchy scalps.

Clear Scalp Mask – perfect if you suffer from dandruff Colour Save Mask – for long lasting colour, wash after wash Shine Define – promotes healthy looking hair Volumize – transform limp locks with body and bounce Simply apply to towel dried hair, leave for five minutes and wash out.

The results are instant and they last for days, just like a salon treatment.

System Professional Intensive Care Masks (£20.89) are available to purchase from salons nationwide. To find your nearest visit.

• www.wellaprofessional.co.uk

The truths and myths of skincare

by HANNAH AHMED

ALL SKIN types whether oily or dry will suffer from dehydration, but the symptoms do change according to the weather.

If you have dry skin, you may notice tightness, light and uneven scaling around the cheekbones. If you have oily skin, you may spot noticeable flaking concentrated around your nose and the cheeks.

To help guide you through choosing your very own personal routine, I have set straight some of the most common myths about moisturising.

All types of skin need moisturising? TRUE All types of skins types are prone to dryness, so you need to tailor your hydration treatment accordingly. If you have parched skin, then use lotions with thick creamy textures, enriched with nutrients and if you have mixed or oily skin, then choose lighter gel-like creams with mattifying properties.

When you reach 30, you should trade in your lotions for anti-wrinkle creams. FALSE No matter what your age, your skin will always require moisturising. Your skins needs constantly change over the years. Factors such as aging and the environment play a part in which lotion you would need to choose. Work out what your skin wants and then choose accordingly. There are a wide range of specialised products available nowadays that it’s easier than ever to treat your skin effectively.

Hydration can’t prevent your skin from looking aged. FALSE Besides water being the fountain of youth, the better moisturised your skin, the longer those wrinkles will take to form. Applying moisturiser on a daily basis is the best-kept secret to keeping your skin looking young longer.

If you have oily skin or acne, you shouldn’t use moisturisers because it’ll only add to the problem.

FALSE Many people will often mistake the slight sheen for hydration in oily skin. But, the level of shine only reveals how much oil is sitting on the surface, but is not a true indicator of how hydrated the skin is.

Moisturisers for oily skin are only designed to mattify the surface shine and reduce the amount of grease the skin produces. Be sure to opt for a good cream to obtain the benefits. If you don’t take proper care of oily skin, it can become sensitive and easily aggravated.

LIFE AND SOLE OF HEALTHY FEET IF YOUR feet are a little rough around the edges, then they probably need lots of pampering.

Beautiful, soft feet are not a given for most people, especially if you have toughened the skin because of barefoot summers. Whether you have calluses or simply dry or rough skin, you may want to take steps to improve the softness of your skin. The good news is that softening your feet is not only possible, but also enjoyable.

Pamper your feet by regularly soaking, exfoliating, and moisturising them to reveal the softness underneath.

with two or three drops of lavender essential oil, this will not only help boost circulation but will also help soothe tired feet and soften the skin.

For a more intense foot soak, add one and a half cup of oat flour and one and a half cup of powdered milk. Mix these well and then leave your feet to soak for at least 15 minutes. Ensure to exfoliate after soaking. The long soak will also make it easier to scrub away any rough, callused skin.

as the heels and balls of the feet.

This will help to remove the top layers of dead skin, making way for smoother, new skin underneath.

You can use a botanical-rich foot scrub to help nourish the skin whilst exfoliating.

Moisturise The final step for softer feet is to moisturise. Treat the feet with a foot lotion or body butter that contains potent ingredients such as shea butter, cocoa butter, or nut oils.

Cooling botanicals such as Exfoliate peppermint, rosemary, and Exfoliating the feet can be a lavender will also feel great and luxurious experience providing you refreshing to the skin. Always use Foot Soaks take the time to do it thoroughly to moisturising cream or lotion on your An excellent way to get soft feet is to remove dead skin cells from the feet after a foot-bath or foot scrub soak them in warm to hot water. feet. Use a Loofah or pumice stone and anytime you get out of the Add some bath additives into the to scrub away hardened layers of shower or bath. You will not see water for a greater softening and skin. Rub in a circular motion with instant results overnight, but your nourishing experience. By adding mild to moderate pressure and skin will become softer over time one and a half cups of Epsom salts focus on the tougher areas, such after lots of pampering.

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

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Pictures: Ziad Altaf

BEAUTY

Blood and sweat Gaga

MODEL WATCH:: FAREEDA BEGUM How did you get into modelling?

As a young child being brought up in a strict upbringing it was very difficult to pursue my dreams and passion. However, I modelled in college where I participated in photo-shoots; giving me the exposure to professional photographers and talent scouts.

This exposure gave me a great adrenaline rush and gave me the drive to continue in this field. But because of my strict upbringing I was fearful of the repercussions my actions would bring. Being approached by modelling scouts gave me the courage to detach myself from the family in order to pursue my dream.

What struggles did you initially go through to become a model?

My initial struggles in becoming a model, was the fact that I am quite petite. Some modelling agencies that I have worked with have been great. They tend to work with all shapes and sizes. And then there are other modelling agencies which are quite restricted in their guidelines.

Modelling highlights? This is definitely something I enjoy doing, something that I know I am good at. Socialising is a big part of modelling as well, getting to know people from the industry and forming new friendships.

Another highlight would be the funny mishaps that some, including me have experienced, such as my tights ripping up in the middle of the shoot, getting my clothes pinned up with hair clips at times and not forgetting tripping up on set after you’re ready!

Looking forward to seeing my work, after a long days shoot is always a highlight in itself.

to become skinny has caused an outrage in the industry and amongst young females wanting to be as skinny to be beautiful, resulting in illnesses and sometimes death. This had to change. Now you tend to see up and coming models with different physiques and are rising to the top.

How do you keep fit? I try to eat healthy, regular circuit training and cardio. But sometimes I like to have a cheeky treat day at least once a week.

You seem to prefer the smiling look… It depends on what I am shooting for. For example if it’s a more commercial look, then it may involve smiling or if it’s high fashion then a more edgy look maybe required. Either way I like working with different expressions hence making me more versatile. I believe an image can have a lot of meaning.

How image-conscious are you?

I’m fairly image conscious. I like to somewhat be a perfectionist so working towards an image is important. Confidence shows when u feel good about yourself.

Model stereotypes that frustrate you the most? That’s easy! People think that models are ditzy! It’s quite funny actually, because a lot of creativity goes into a picture.

You need to know what you are Dream modeling job? Working doing. with big designers who will not have issues working with petite Is there pressure to be a size zero models. in the industry? There has been a pressure to be a size zero. With all My wardrobe essentials? My the top models being extremely perfume, little black dress, night skinny and lengths they have taken gown, pair of jeans and lipstick.

Lady Gaga has finally joined the celebrity fragrance bandwagon with the launch of her first ever scent, Lady Gaga Fame. The Grammy Award-winning artist is never short of controversy, when as early as last year reports were circulating that Lady Gaga wanted the perfume to smell of blood and semen. However the rumours were soon changed to the perfume having the same molecular structure as the bodily fluids.

Lady Gaga Fame has been made in collaboration with her own The Haus Laboratories Paris and fragrance company Coty who also notably make perfumes with Beyonce, The Beckhams and Kylie.

According to Gaga, ‘my perfume was designed for women, but a lot of my gay friends wear it’.

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Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

BEAUTY

SMOOTH OPERATOR Looking to get rid of those unwanted hairs?

by ANJANA GOSAI

IT’S TIME consuming, costly and hurts like hell, yet most of us are obsessed with removing our excess hair. If you’re happy with your body hair, lucky you! But statistics prove that not many of us are. The UK’s hair removal market is worth a staggering £280 million a year and is still growing.

Each year women are becoming increasingly concerned with removing as much hair as possible, as often as possible and we are on a constant search for newer methods of doing so.

Today, a flash of hair has become a complete no-no and we’re constantly thinking – what else or where else we shave, wax or thread. Us Asian women seem to have the worst luck. Our hair’s darker, making it more visible and we also have more of it than non-Asian women. According to Sujata Jolly, a depilation pioneer: ‘Asian women are hairier due to our genetic predisposition (tendency to inherit the hair growth patterns of our parents).’ Sujata also adds that Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) is another cause of excessive hair growth. One in five females suffers from PCOS and amongst other symptoms sufferers tend to inherit male patterns of hair growth. Shenaz Shariff of the Face & Body Clinic in Harley Street stresses: ‘Women in general are becoming hairier because food today is all full of hormones, for example, chickens are fed hormones to plump them up and this when eventually ingested by humans will affect the hormone levels in their bodies and hormones have a great influence on hair growth. Also lifestyles are more stressful which in turn accelerates hormone production.’

We’ve come to a stage where as much as we would like to go ‘natural’, psychologically the thought of it feels completely unnatural and the desire to be hair-free is far stronger. So which option should you go for? Bleaching, sugaring, waxing, shaving, epilating, tweezing, threading, laser or light treatment – the choice is wide. Here’s our guide to making your life that much easier…

WAXING involves a warm wax being

applied in the direction of the hair growth. A paper or cloth strip is gently pressed over the wax and then quickly removed, pulling out the hair from the root. A soothing after wax lotion will keep the skin clean and soothed.

Where: For best results visit a salon. If you’re brave enough, you could try experimenting with home waxing kits.

Best for: Waxing can be used to remove hair on almost all areas of the body and face. If you suffer from sensitive skin – try to steer away from waxing the face.

Lasting results: Requires regular maintenance, every 4-5 weeks is ideal.

Pain factor: It feels like Sellotape being pulled off the skin very quickly. Each individual’s pain threshold will vary.

Expert tip: Angela Taffinder Beauty Therapist at The Emporium Treatment Clinic says: ‘Hair must be approximately half a centimetre in length when you go for your treatment.

For best results ensure the skin is regularly exfoliated and apply a perfume free body moisturiser in between treatments, this will lift surface dead skin and prevent ingrown hairs.

Some clients suffer from ingrown hairs especially in the bikini area, as they often think that they cannot exfoliate in this area, but you can, just be gentle and consistent.’

SHAVING is the fastest, easiest and least expensive way to remove body hair.

Although women claim that the regrowth after If you are experiencing an shaving looks and feels thicker, experts abnormal growth of hair or if the claim that because hair is very thick, consult your hair develops deep inside the follicles, physician to determine the underlying shaving does not causes before you embark on a alter its size or colour. However, removal regimen and don’t worry, if since you cut hair the hair growth isn’t caused by perpendicular to the hormonal abnormalities, you skin when shaving, the shape of the tip is have a number of different altered, giving you a options for removal. feeling of coarse stubble.

If the hair is allowed to grow back, it will return to its previous silky state. For the cleanest shave, always shave in the opposite direction of hair growth. Use shaving products such as gel, mousse or This happens because these areas have lotion, their added moisturisers help lots of oil glands that are attached to hydrate the hair follicles and reduce nerve endings and are easily irritated.

It’s a good idea to shave at night to help dryness. reduce redness. Jojoba oil works in Where: At home. preventing ingrown hairs as it is near to Best for: Legs and underarms.

Pain factor: Zero. Apart from the the skin’s natural sebum therefore allows the hair to work its way up the occasional minor accident, it’s painless.

Growth factor: The downside is that follicle. Using an antiseptic cream to hair grows back quickly, so the bare calm the skin after shaving also helps.’ feeling that shaving provides is only temporary. Shaving cuts only the hair THREADING involves using a cotton above the surface of the skin, so you thread manipulated within the fingers need to shave regularly to maintain a of both hands to pull out unwanted hairs. smooth surface.

Expert tip: Angela Taffinder says: Where: in salon or at home.

‘Shaving certain areas such as the legs Best for: Shaping the brows and and especially the bikini line can cause treating small areas such as the upper ingrown hairs and unsightly red bumps. lip, chin and sides of the face.

BEAUTY TIP

Pain factor: The first time can be extremely painful, but once you get used to it you’ll become immune.

Growth factor: Treated areas stay hairfree for up to three weeks.

PLUCKING is whereby a tweezer is

used to shape and remove stray hairs from the brow area.

Where: at home or a professional shape at a salon.

Best for: shaping the eyebrows, it is not recommended to pluck any other areas of the face or body.

Pain factor: Relatively pain free Growth factor: It takes around a week to ten days for hairs to start reappearing.

Expert tip: Eyebrow queen Shavata

recommends: ‘Always tweeze from underneath the brow removing one hair at a time.’

DEPILATORS are creams and lotions

that contain chemicals to dissolve the hair at the base of the follicle. They are ideal for widespread areas such as the legs, but can cause irritation when used on the face. Depilatory creams are a relatively inexpensive option, but can be messy and smelly.

Where: at home.

Best for: legs, arms, underarms, bikini area and facial hair (with specifically targeted products only).

Pain factor: None.

Growth factor: On average, results will last for one to two weeks.

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

find electrolysis extremely painful especially on areas where the skin is thin.

Growth factor: An (almost) permanent hair reduction method. Multiple treatments are required. Experts recommend one treatment a week for duration of 2 -4 months. Course treatment time varies on individual hair density and hormone levels.

Expert tip: Pamie Dhanoa of KD Electrolysis points out: ‘Finding a reputable practitioner is key, because electrolysis performed incorrectly can cause scarring.’ Before you begin treatment, ask for referrals from former clients, and make sure that a new needle is used for each session.

LASER/ INPENSE PULSE LIGHT

(IPL) involves a combination of different light wavelengths being pulsed through a gentle beam of light that passes through the skin to destroy the hair follicle. Once the follicle is destroyed, it usually stops producing hair. Lasers can treat multiple hair follicles simultaneously, unlike electrolysis, which only removes one hair at a time.

Where: At salons and clinics only.

Best for: Hair removal for external areas of the face and body including face, armpits, bikini areas, back, legs, arms and chest.

Pain factor: Can be uncomfortable with a slight stinging sensation.

Growth factor: Dr Patrick Bowler, author of The Nervous Girl’s Guide to Nip & Tuck, says: ‘The hair grows in cycles and these are known as anagen (growing), catagen (resting) and telagen (falling out). In order for the treatment to be effective the hairs must be in the anagen stage. At the time of treatment some of the hairs are wiped off, however it can take up to two weeks for all the treated hairs to fall out.

Generally all areas will require at least 6 to 10 treatments at 4 to 6 weekly intervals for the face, underarm and bikini areas and 6 to 8 weeks for legs and backs, but this may vary from patient to patient. In between treatment, waxing or plucking is not allowed.’

Expert tip: A thorough consultation prior to treatment is essential. Laser rays can penetrate deeply, so avoid treatment around the eyes – on the brow area and in between the eyes.

These is areas are better treated by tweezing, waxing or electrolysis.

Cost: Expect to pay £60 - £250 per session plus consultation fee.

SOUND HAIR REMOVAL weakens

Expert tip: A patch test is essential to make sure your skin is not sensitive to the product. Avoid use of body lotions or sunscreens for at least a couple of hours after use to prevent irritation.

BLEACHING is used to lighten the

hair in areas where it is otherwise problematic to remove. Bleach can be used successfully on the face and body and is excellent if you have visible hair on your torso. Bleaching usually lightens dark hair to a shade of blonde and when it catches the sun, it can look particularly unnatural.

Where: At home or in salon.

Best for: Facial hair.

Pain factor: Pain-free, unless you have sensitive skin or make the mistake of

leaving it on for longer than the instructed time.

Growth factor: You’ll need to re-bleach every 2 to 4 weeks.

Expert tips: To avoid irritation – carry out a patch test before use and always follow instructions.

SUGARING

is a method that originated some 2,000-years ago in the Middle East. A paste made primarily of sugar is warmed and applied to the surface of the skin. The sugaring paste is then removed taking the hair with it.

Where: At home or in a salon.

Best for: All over the body.

Pain factor: Sugaring is similar to waxing but some find it less painful as unlike waxing, the paste sticks to the

hair rather than the skin.

Growth factor: lasts between four and six weeks depending on the level of growth.

ELECTROLYSIS is a method whereby electrical impulses are directed into hair follicles where they shock the hair’s root and inhibit growth. After treatment an antiseptic lotion is applied to the area.

Where: Salon only.

Best for: treating small areas at a time such as brows, chin, upper lip and nipples.

Pain factor: You won’t feel discomfort when the needle enters into the hair follicle but you will feel the short couple of seconds of heat that is passed. Some

hair growth by sending thousands of sound waves into the hair shaft. Unlike electrolysis it can be used on any part of the body and unlike laser, it works on all skin types and hair colour.

Where: In salons Best for: Treating all areas of the face and body.

Pain factor: Inventors of Epil-Pro claim that the treatment is truly non-invasive and virtually pain free. It’s also safe for those with sensitive skin causing no irritation or skin damage due to the fact that the technique generates no heat or chemical reaction.

Growth factor: Epil-Pro requires a course of treatments, over which the hair becomes progressively weaker until the re-growth ceases almost completely. Re-growth is considerably reduced almost permanently after a course of suggested treatments.

Expert tip: Founder Sujata Jolly says: ‘This treatment is ideal for diabetics due to its safety factor and noninvasiveness.’

Cost: Prices start from £20 and vary depending on area to be treated.

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BEAUTY Beauty and the bees IN AN everevolving world of lotions and potions it’s always good to know you’re buying something that doesn’t just benefit yourself.

Beauty brand Burt’s Bees are known for creating luxurious honey scented bath and body products that make you feel pampered while caring for the environment.

And this summer they’ve teamed up with designer Richard Weston to create a limited edition version of their best-selling 24 Hour Milk & Honey Body Lotion. The silky smooth texture and scrumptious smell of the nourishing lotion makes it one you’ll want to wear every day. It also contains natural skin-softening ingredients like milk, honey, shea butter, vitamin E and moisturising sunflower, olive, coconut and grape seed oils.

Taking inspiration from the humble bumble bee and wild meadow flowers, Richard has created unique packaging for the lotion that promotes the Wild For Bees campaign.

For every edition of the special lotion purchased, £1 will be donated to The British Beekeeper’s Association important ‘Adopt A Beehive Scheme.’

The are virtually no wild bees left in the UK and the scheme aims to raise awareness and educate people about how the precious honey bee can be saved.

• Burts Bees 24 Hour Milk & Honey Body Lotion is priced £9.99 and is available from Debenhams and other leading retailers.

Line of precision IT’S FINALLY happened, the chance to have elegant, alluring eyeliner, without the need for a steady hand.

Glam Republic have come up with the perfect solution; stick-on eyeliner appliques which will stay in place no matter much you rub your eye lids, and there’s no need to master how to use a pencil, or liquid brush.

Hooray! Whether you want to transform into a vintage Bollywood vixen, create the perfect feline flick or aim to capture the glamour of Cleopatra, the appliques come in a variety of shapes and styles. Opt for thick, thin or medium, and take your pick from super matte velvet or a hint of sparkle. Each pair comes with an adhesive for extra hold and they can be re-used making them costeffective. Looking gorgeous has never been so easy.

• Glam Republic Eyeliner Appliques are available from Superdrug £4.99 single pack and £8.99 for a duo.

34

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

HEALTH

BLEEDING DISORDERS

Heavy periods aren’t just a nuisance, Hail berry they could be life threatening THIS is the season where fruit isn’t ripened by force, so cram as many berries into your diet as possible.

Apart from the obvious healthy snacking benefits (note ladies: this does not apply if you smother them in cream), recent studies reveal berries – strawberries in particular – come up trumps in the cancerfighting stakes because they help to kill malign cells.

Even if this doesn’t apply to you, they still contain so many phytochemicals and antioxidants that they are excellent for boosting the heart and immune system.

But no cheating! Only fresh berries will do – strawberry flavoured milkshakes and muffins simply don’t count.

Packing a munch

IN THE past, it was hardly shocking that most health regimes were abandoned halfway, seeing as health snacks had the taste and texture of a damp piece of cardboard. But nowadays there’s no need to stray, especially seeing as a lot of research is going into making snacks nutritious, not just fatfree. Nairns Oatcakes are perfect to nibble on because they are wheat-free and have no additives or hydrogenated fat. More green tea, vicar?

• www.nairns-oatcakes.com

Pukka up

SUMMER trends come and go but the one that’s constant every season is flawless, dewy skin. Unless you’ve been religiously drinking your 8 pints of water and avoiding booze like the plague, you’ll need an extra boost to your diet.

Pukka Herbs have launched a Aloe Vera Juice, £20.99 (1 litre) which contains the juice of hand selected leaves grown and harvested in pristine conditions. Only the inner leaf gel is used with none of the bitter outer rind, so you’re guaranteed a nutrient-rich, fresh tasting juice. Cold processed and unfiltered, this is aloe vera juice at its natural best.

• www.pukkaherbs.com

AS FAR as undetectable illnesses go, you wouldn’t think that bleeding disorders would be one of them. Of course there are symptoms and warning signs, but most sufferers tend to put it down to heavy periods rather than pursuing the matter further.

And it’s not that we’re more susceptible to haemophilia (bleeding disorders) than other women, but when it comes to comparing figures, out of an average of 12,000 British Asian women sufferers, only 200 are currently diagnosed. There’s no single reason why the figures are so shocking but recent case studies indicate that, when it comes to periods and matters of the body, we’re more reticent talking about it. It’s either something we feel we shouldn’t bother our GP with or can’t seek help closer to home, by asking our mothers about whether heavy periods run in the family.

Nonetheless, something needs to change because these staggeringly low figures have prompted a national campaign by The Haemophilia Society to raise awareness about the condition and to urge Asian women not to feel embarrassed by it.

One of the primary symptoms of a bleeding disorder is heavy or prolonged periods. So if you have had to plan your

life around your periods and it restricts your activities or worse still you have flooded through your clothes or frequently have to change sanitary protection, then you may be suffering from Von Willebrand’s disease or (VWD) and although you probably won’t die from an undiagnosed bleeding disorder, the stress and impact it can have on your life can be immense.

Unfortunately, bleeding disorders such as VWD in women are relatively unknown amongst the medical profession, so if you do seek help a bleeding disorder will often not be considered. In fact, it takes on average 16 years for a woman to be diagnosed with a bleeding disorder once they have sought help for their symptoms.

Many women complaining of heavy periods will be referred to a gynaecology clinic and studies suggest that up to 60 percent of women referred to these clinics for heavy periods will end up having a hysterectomy and often the possibility of having a bleeding disorder will never even have been explored.

What is VWD? VWD is a bleeding disorder in which a vital protein to clot the blood is either lacking or not working properly. This means that it takes longer for blood to clot and for bleeding episodes to stop. It affects both men and women, but the symptoms have a greater impact on women due to periods and childbirth. Because bleeding disorders like VWD are mainly inherited conditions, several members of the same family may be affected. Certain symptoms, such as heavy menstrual bleeding, can therefore seem normal within a family and may need investigating.

Symptoms of VWD If you have one or more of the following symptoms you may have an undiagnosed bleeding disorder: • heavy and prolonged periods • frequent or heavy nosebleeds • bruise easily or have prolonged bleeding from small cuts • have experience of heavy or prolonged bleeding after having a tooth removed, surgery or giving birth • have a family member with heavy periods or any of these symptoms

the Haemophilia Society found that only 21 percent of women from ethnic backgrounds had talked to their mum, female friends or family members about their periods.

In fact, nearly a quarter of all those surveyed amongst ethnic groups refused to answer questions surrounding their Compared to the 39 percent of non-Asians periods so it appears that the taboo nature who have had any of the above symptoms, of the subject extends further than talking to family members and friends. It’s time to break the taboo.

Anna Hinchliffe-Wood from The Haemophilia Society revealed: ‘A bleeding disorder isn’t just about heavy periods. If Rukshana Javaid reveals the hardship of raising her two daughters, you have one or more of the symptoms 10 and 4, both affected by Von Willebrand’s disease (VWD) listed then obtaining a diagnosis is vital for My daughter with type 1 VWD has so far not displayed any symptoms, but my other your safety and quality of life. Von daughter Ayeesha with type 3 was born bleeding, and was constantly bruised and Willebrand’s disease can result in very ill. When she began teething, her gums bled heavily, she suffered from vaginal prolonged bleeding after childbirth, bleeding and was vomiting blood. When she began crawling, if she banged herself surgery or an accident, obtaining a she would be covered in large bruises. The reassured me that these symptoms diagnosis before any of these events means were not abnormal and told me I was neurotic and even offered me Prozac! that appropriate care can be provided to After a proper diagnosis of my daughters, it transpired my husband carries the manage the condition, preventing a great gene for VWD and my own levels of Von Willebrand factor are borderline, although deal of discomfort and danger.’

I have no symptoms of the disease. And because no other relatives have any symptoms, we were unaware that this ran in our family.

So have I got a bleeding disorder?

My eldest daughter now receives factor VIII infusions through her port-a-cath • If you suspect you may have a bleeding three times per week. She also takes iron tablets, gargles with tranexamic acid and disorder then it is important to visit your has cream to help with her nosebleeds. She has had her nose cauterised to lessen GP to discuss your symptoms and request nosebleeds and has to wear surgical shoes due to the damage that bleeds in her a blood test for Von Willebrand factor ankle joints have done. She also suffers from asthma and neutropenia. We haven’t levels and activity. Of course other causes had a proper night’s sleep – but imagine how hard it is for my poor little girl… of heavy periods should not be ruled out

COPING WITH THE CONDITION

even if you do turn out to have VWD and you should always be referred to a gynaecologist to establish that there are no other causes.

• While there is no cure for VWD many women find relief from their symptoms through relatively easy to administer treatments.

• Some women find that the contraceptive pill effectively manages their heavy periods, while others decide to use treatments such as the Mirena coil. For general bleeding symptoms including heavy periods, nosebleeds and bleeding after surgery Desmopressin or DDAVP can be used. This is a synthetic hormone which causes the body to release more von Willebrand factor and can be administered by intravenous infusion or nasal spray.

Another common treatment is something called Tranexamic acid which can be taken in tablet or liquid form during your period.

• Von Willebrand’s disease is an inherited condition and it is therefore important that other family members are tested if a diagnosis is received.

• If you would like to know more about bleeding disorders in women you can visit www.womenbleedtoo.org.uk for further information.

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

CLASSIFIED

Email: sales@asiancity.co.uk

LOOKING FOR HAIR MODELS FOR BRIDAL HAIRSTYLES

35

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Whatever the size of your business, reach out to the Asian Community by placing your advertisement here.

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36

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

FUN CITY

THE BOULEVARD GITA

by Sandeep Sood

HOROSCOPES ARIES

March 21 - April 20

A discovery on a personal level that could require a change in direction or philosophy to get you where you need to go. Taking a controversial position on a subject just for the sake of argument could cause a lot of unnecessary conflict this week. There are better uses for your time and mental energies. All adventures begin with a plan, and more importantly the realization that everything begins with an idea.

TAURUS

April 21 - May 21

How you project yourself in public is very important at this time; however care must be taken not to let your drive to succeed cloud your judgment on personal relationships. This week is about understanding what “beauty in the eye of the beholder” truly means.

Matters of the heart need to be balanced against the value of material things. Recognizing this can make things more relaxed.

GEMINI

May 22 - June 21

While you need the lift that friends offer, it is important that you maintain your emotional independence since you have to make your own choices on how to move forward. Balancing time spent with friends and time spent on career matters is going to be a challenge this week. Dreams are potent this week. Keep track of yours and you may discover that they can come true.

CANCER

June 22 - July 22

Keeping your deeper feelings inside may be necessary in the short term but care must be taken not to allow these emotions to fester. This is a great time for some internal reflection. Flashes of intuitive insight on the relationship front seem to provide some explanation for some of the things which have been going on lately. Rather than dwelling on the past own it, release it, and look to the future.

LEO

July 23 – August 23

Make the most of the potential which reveals itself towards the end of the week-particularly in career matters-and you could find that solution to the inner dissatisfaction that has been gnawing at you. The feeling that you need to act, even if you aren’t certain exactly how or what direction to go, is strong this week. Keep your focus and remember that you aren’t “ten feet tall and bulletproof”.

VIRGO

August 24 - September 22

Important and issues concerning money and possessions (obtaining or maintaining them) has been in recent weeks, some event or encounter early on will bring about a lot of introspection about your self-worth. This week will bring about a reevaluation of how you feel about the material world. This is timely in your process and can help resolve some deep-seeded inner conflicts that you’ve wrestled with.

LIBRA

September 23 - October 23

Take care not to come off as being “too slick” or insincere as you try to make your ideas known. How you adapt to criticism, particularly late in the week, could have a long-term impact on your goals. Balancing enthusiasm with realism, particularly in work/school matters is going to be important this week. A family member may offer a perspective on things that you hadn’t considered but should going forward.

SCORPIO

October 24 - November 22

Try to balance instinctive responses with a more thought out approach and a small crisis late in the week could simply dissolve. Trying to micro-manage everything and everyone around you, particularly family members, could make this week more of a challenge then it needs to be. What is required is to reconcile your emotions with the reality that change is required in order to make progress.

SAGITTARIUS

November 23 - December 21

There is a sense of “all or nothing” about this situation. A powerful emotional and physical attraction comes to the surface early in the week that results in an intense encounter leaving you both wondering what exactly just happened and where it could lead. The key is to fight the urge to manipulate matters: let the future be the future and enjoy the journey getting there!

TO TWEET. TO WHO?

NAME THE STAR Can you tell who it is yet?

Find out the answer on Twitter @asiancity Last weeks’s star: Aamir Khan

Rahul Khanna@R_Khanna Observing a moment of silence for all the friendships I’ve lost violently over the issue of, “Where shall we go for dinner?”

Shah Rukh Khan@iamsrk The one good thing about my tan is that finally my teeth look whiter. At least my dentist will be happy...

Ayesha Takia Azmi@Ayeshatakia If u want to avoid criticism, Do nothing,Say nothing and Be nothing!

Abhishek Bachchan@juniorbachchan Night shoots are the worst, unless…..

You’re riding 1 of the beasts that @udaychopra and I are riding down the streets of Chicago.#dhoom3 Pathaan@Pathaan Crikey....Foxes going at it hard in SW LDN !!!

Jaya@JayaWorld 21 years in a room to himself with a workout area and laptop for killing 71 people?!!! They might as well just book him a holiday kmt Jaya@JayaWorld My bed is soooo mash up that I wake up everyone morning feeling like someone’s been punching my back!

Raghav@raghavworldwide Sorry I been AWOL on twitter guys..

I’ve been doping and cycling around France while framing lance Armstrong. #fb Pooja Shah Official@Poojashah08 Gotto dye my hair back to its natural colour. Bye bye red hair. I loved you but you weren’t right for work and castings. Another time :( bye

CAPRICORN

December 22 - January 20

By setting realistic and practical timelines and goals, you can find a way to move yourself to a better situation. Frustrations with work/school leave you feeling unfulfilled and dissatisfied with things in general this week. Internalizing these feelings can actually cause some physical issues as well. The solution is to make a realistic assessment of not only of where you are but where you want to be.

AQUARIUS

January 21 – February 18

See people the way they really are rather than through the prism of illusion to find those you can truly count on. Making promises that you can’t keep could come back to haunt you this week. What is called for is self-honesty and realizing that partnerships (of all kinds) are a twoway street and that sharing responsibilities and decision making actually can strengthen these relationships.

PISCES

February 19 - March 20

You find yourself becoming bored with the status quo and wanting a change for some excitement. This week promises to be a bit of an emotional roller-coaster particularly in the relationship area. Confusing love with friendship (and vice versa) could also lead to some upsets throughout this time. Remember that “exciting” doesn’t always have a positive connation, particularly in romantic matters.

ask Neelam

Will I lose him over arguments?

Dear Neelam,

RECENTLY, my boyfriend and I have started to argue about things that start out as minor disagreements but end up snow-balling into full on arguments. How can I make it stop? I really love this guy but am afraid our relationship might not survive.

Neelam says..

With any new relationship there comes a point where, past the initial flush of romance, you begin to see your partner in a different light. The need to impress or agree to everything this wonderful person suggests isn’t as important as establishing common ground and testing the boundaries. And this is where disagreements will arise. You both have to understand that it isn’t about who’s wrong or right but that your feelings are communicated effectively and that you’re sensitive to each other’s needs. You love this man, maybe it’s a little soon for doomsday comments?

Dear Neelam,

I’VE BEEN divorced for over a year and I’ve just met a great man, the first since my ex. I’ve been seeing him for a month and I’m so happy! I really want to introduce him to my 12-year old daughter but is it too soon?

Neelam says..

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

37

GOT SOMETHING ON YOUR MIND? SHARE IT, HALVE IT, LET NEELAM SORT IT e: neelam@asiancity.co.uk

Our friend is hitting his wife

Dear Neelam,

A GOOD friend of mine has confided that her partner of six years has been beating her for the last two. I was shocked as her partner is a part of our circle of friends and although I want to respect her wishes not to say anything, I feel I’ve been compromised. It’s not a question of loyalties, my sympathies are with my friend, but how do I keep cool in a social situation? How do I stop myself from knocking his block off?

Neelam says..

Your friend obviously trusts you enough to feel that you wouldn’t respond with a knee jerk reaction. Right now, she needs you to be strong for her and support her in a way she sees fit.

She obviously has her reasons, otherwise she’d have left him already.

If you were to go against her wishes by confronting this man, you’d lose the trust this girl has in you and, more importantly, might stop dead any plan of action she has.

The fact that she’s finally spoken up after such a long time suggests she’s getting ready to put an end to it and the only way this can happen is if she feels in control.

Your role is to help her find that strength. Does she know what her next step will be? What does she need you to do?

While you’re stewing, speak with a domestic violence organisation to find out how you can support her.

Contact Careline (Counselling services) 020 8514 1177 or log onto www.womensaid.org.uk And don’t worry about him.

He’ll get what’s coming.

Meanwhile, be strong, be there and bide your time.

It is far too soon to introduce him as your boyfriend. As much as you hope it will last with your new partner, neither of you know whether your relationship will be long term. Your daughter is still dealing with her father not being around and she won’t like the idea of him being replaced so soon.

Even if she likes your man, you do not want to risk her getting close to another father figure RESEARCHERS AT AN only to be ‘abandoned’ again.

AMERICAN UNIVERSITY Take it slow. If FOUND THAT PEOPLE WERE you’re still going TWICE AS LIKELY TO FIND A strong in six months or so, DATE THROUGH FRIENDS AND introduce your FAMILY THAN TRAWLING BARS partner in the same way you would a AND CLUBS. THEY ALSO friend. Don’t be FOUND THAT FAMILY overly affectionate INTRODUCTIONS WERE with him in her presence. Allow your MORE LIKELY TO daughter time to get to LAST. know and like him as a person, rather than a substitute for her father.

LOVE FACT

OVER THE HILL IS SO FAR AWAY Dear Neelam,

one find love is a good one. After all, if you set her up with someone, are you positive he’d be to her taste? I doubt there was malice behind her intentions, but I wonder why she feels you’d settle for someone who doesn’t have his own teeth! Is there an air of fed-up desperation around you to make her think so? I suggest you forgive your friend and go out and have some fun with her – then point out exactly the In my book, any friend kind of guy that does do it that tries to help another for you!

RELATIONSHIPS with my new friend have strained since she set me up on a blind date. I’m 35, divorced, and didn’t mind that he was in his forties with two kids.

But on the night he turned out to be 50 (but looked 60!) I am so annoyed with my friend that I haven’t returned any of her calls. Should I forgive her?

Neelam says..

TIME FOR THE LAST LAP DANCE

Dear Neelam,

WHEN we first started dating, I thought it was sort of funny that my man enjoyed going to strip clubs once in a while. He was always straight up about it and it’s a tradition with his friends that dates back years. Now that we’re engaged, I suddenly find the whole thing quite unacceptable.

We both insist the other doesn’t change – but how can I broach the subject without sounding like I’m doing just that?

Neelam says..

While it’s sweet that you both love each other just the way you are, to enter a marriage without expecting things to change is plain naive.

Couples need to grow together.

What suited you when you started

dating isn’t necessarily going to be acceptable in a more committed relationship. Aren’t you going to have to change your ways when, for instance, you get pregnant? I think you’re mistaking compromise for sacrifice, the latter meaning you’re giving up a part of your life, while the former means you’re adapting to your new life. If that seems unacceptable, why are you even bothering taking it to the next level?

Marriage is a bold statement and it’s not unreasonable to say you feel different about things you once thought were fine – like overtly flirting, staying out late and going to strip clubs! Tell him you won’t feel like the loved married woman he promised you’d feel like when he asked you to marry him if he carries on, but hey, he can always go for his life on his stag night…

38

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

STOCKISTS Can’t get hold of the latest ASIAN CITY, no problem, just visit one of our regular stockists listed below: And for those really hard to reach areas, Asian City is on sale at newsagents and mainstream news-vendors such as Tesco, WHSmith, Sainsburys & Asda for a small cover price of 70p.

East London: New Generation 64 Green St, London E7 8JG T: 0208 470 9418 Music Hunters 133B Green St, London E7 8JF T: 0208 586 2304 E: musichunters@hotmail.co.uk Neelam Hair & Beauty 159-161 Green St, London E7 8JE T: 0208 552 8008 Krishna Gift House 208 Green St, London E7 8LE T: 0208 552 6716 Puja Silk House 258 Green St, London E7 8LF T: 0208 552 6358

RDC London 181 Ilford Lane Ilford IG1 2RT T: 0208 514 8206 E: info@rdc-online.com Seasons Asian Designer Wear 196 Ilford Lane Ilford IG1 2LG T: 0208 553 3999 E: seasonsadw@gmail.com Balo Basha 9 Osborn St London E1 6TD T: 07865 053 716 Geet Ghor Plus 24 Osborn St London E1 6TD T: 07958 176443 Sanam Music Centre 266 Bethnal Green Rd E2 0AG T: 0208 552 8008

Quality Foods 47-61 South Road, Southall UB1 1SQ T: 0208 917 9188

West London: Popat Stores Ltd 138-158 Ealing Road Wembley HA0 4PY Tel: 020 8903 6397 Jalaram Pan House 782 Harrow Road, Sudbury HA0 3EL Tel: 020 8904 3228 Shayona 168 Pinner Rd Harrow HA1 4JP T: 020 8427 5650 Amma Food 561 High Road Wembley HA0 2DW Tel: 020 8902 7022

Anand Pan Centre Green St London E7 8LL T: 0208 472 4425

Krishna Pan Centre 606a High Road, Wembley HA0 2AF Tel: 020 8900 0499 Paul & Co 588 High Road, Wembley HA0 2AF Tel: 020 8902 8192

Eastern Styles 302 Green St, London E7 8LF T: 0208 257 8825

Haroons Halal Meat 179 Ilford Lane IG1 2RT T: 0208 553 54528

South London

Suraj Sweet Mart 44a Ealing Road, Wembley HA0 4TL Tel: 020 8900 1991

Partap Fashion Fabrics 277B Green St, London E7 8LE T: 0208 472 9979

Anand Pan Centre 102 Upper Tooting Rd SW17 T: 0208 762 7576

Digital Music 8 Stephens Parade, Green Street E7 T : 07957 126 976

S.S. Designers 277 Green Street, London E7 8LJ T: 0208 472 9141 Pan Parlour 337 Green Lane, Ilford IG3 8BD T: 0208 597 8328 Quality Foods 118 Ilford Lane, Ilford IG1 2LE T: 0208 514 8888 Anand Pan Centre 116 Ilford Lane, Ilford IG1 2LE T: 0208 514 3800 Imaani London 93 Ilford Lane Ilford IG1 2RJ T: 0208 478 8558 E: info@imaanilondon.com Sangham Video & Fireworks 410 Hoe Street, Walthamstow, London E17 9AA T: 0208 521 4792 Mega Blast 131 Ilford Lane Ilford IG4 5ND T: 07956 931 014

Style 2000 155A Upper Tooting Rd SW17 T: 0208 672 1115 W: studiostyle2000.co.uk JR’s High Class Butchers 163 Upper Tooting Rd SW17 7TJ T: 0208 682 3949 SD Off Licence 167 Upper Tooting Rd SW17 7TJ Yogi Travels Ltd 886 London Rd CR7 7PB T: 0208 665 6080 E: yogitravel@hotmail.co.uk Temptation 451 London Rd SW16 4AQ T: 0208 679 4900 E: saimajan49@hotmail.com Santosh 832 London Road Croydon CR7 7PA T: 0208 683 2447 Tooting Video Centre 71-73 Upper Tooting Rd SW17 T: 0208 682 8818

Want to become a stockist and do Britain a huge favour? Good on you!

Just call 020 7247 3537 or email your business details to: stockists@asiancity.co.uk You’ll be listed on this stockist page – free publicity – It’s a no brainer!

Videorama Pan Centre 8 Kenton Park Parade HA3 8DQ T: 0208 907 0116 E: videoramapan@hotmail.com Meera Paan House 22 Queensbury Station Parade HA3 5NR T: 0208 952 0412 E: meera_paan_house@hotmail Tip Top Entertainment 152 Pinner Rd, Middx HA1 4JJ T: 0208 427 4777 Royal Collection 105A The Broadway UB1 1LN T: 0208 571 5554 E: info@royalmusic.co.uk A-Z Muzik Unit 3, 7 The Broadway UB1 T: 0208 843 2358 E: atozmuzik@gmail.com

Parampara 79 The Broadway, UB1 1LA T: 0208 571 4697 E: parampara.xd@gmail.com Milan Video 75 Station Rd Harrow HA2 7SW T: 0208 861 4971 Indian Music4U 718 Kenton Rd Middx HA3 9QX T: 0208 204 5000 E: indianmusic4U.co.uk Shivan Pan & Sweet Mart 443 Kenton Rd HA3 0X T: 0208 206 2225 Prabu Pan Shop 5/8 Dominion Parade HA1 2TR E: yunushmir@yahoo.co.in Sonas Haute Couture 48 Ealing Rd Middx HA0 4TQ T: 0208 795 1100 E: sona@sonacouture.com Panachand Pan House 238 Ealing Rd Middx HA0 4QL T: 0208 902 9962 Shree Krishna Vada Pav 63 Station Rd Harrow HA1 2TY T: 0208 863 4185 Nargis Collection 96 The Broadway UB1 1QF T: 0208 571 2378 E: nargiscollection@hotmail.co.uk New Fashion House 88 The Broadway UB1 1QF T: 0208 843 0969 E: newfashionhouse@gmail.com

Muzik Zone 105A Ealing Rd Middx HA0 4BP T: 0208 795 1265 Prabu Paan Shop 129 Ealing Rd Middx HA0 4BP T: 07402 682586 New Fashion House 2-4 King St Southall UB2 4DA T: 0208 574 4133

North London: Anand Pan Centre 542 Kingsbury Rd NW9 9HH T: 0208 204 4440 Rams Pan 201 Kenton Road Harrow HA3 0HD Tel: 07947 621 221 Gayatri Sweet Mart 467 Kingsbury Road, NW9 9DY Tel: 020 8206 1677 Equatoria Travel 8 Queensbury Station Parade, Edgware HA8 5NP Tel: 020 8381 2535 Satyam Foods 23-25 Queensbury Station Parade, Edgware HA8 5NR Tel: 020 8952 3947

Midlands: Midlands Representative: Ziggi Studio 223 Ladypool Rd Birmingham B12 8LG T: 07814 429 428 E: ziggi@asiancity.co.uk

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Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

39

RECIPES SCALLOPS IN A SAFFRON SAUCE

STAR ANISE CHOCOLATE MOUSSE STAR Anise adds an exotic note to this exceptionally light version of a classic chocolate mousse.

Ingredients: Serves six • 4 egg yolks • 30 g/1 oz caster sugar • 200 g/7 oz finest quality dark chocolate • 60 g/2 oz butter • 11/2 tsp star anise powder • 6 egg whites • 15 g/ 1/2 oz white chocolate • 1 tbsp double cream

MORSEL CODE Light bites designed to melt in the mouth Recipes by LA PORTE DES INDES www.laportedesindes.com • 1 pinch saffron strands AS Hors D’Oeuvres go, it doesn’t get more upper class than this. A creamy curry and saffron sauce perfectly complements the firm flesh and clean taste of fresh scallops.

Instantly transforming the simplest of dinner parties into an elegant affair, the twin luxuries of butter and saffron work in tandem to create a sophisticated, mouthwatering dish.

Ingredients: Serves four • 8 king-sized scallops • 1 pinch of salt • 1 1/2 tsp curry powder • 30g/1 oz butter • 2 garlic cloves peeled and chopped • Half a medium sized Spanish onion, chopped • 5 – 6 curry leaves • 1 pinch ground white pepper

• 250 ml/9 fl oz double creams • 1 tbsp vegetable oil • Fried curry leaves, to garnish Preparation: Season the scallops with salt and half a teaspoon of curry powder and set aside.

Heat the butter in a pan. Put in the chopped garlic and sweat over a low heat until it is golden brown.

Add the chopped onion and fry

until it is translucent. Add the curry leaves, remaining curry powder, pepper and saffron. Stir for 1 minute, then add the cream and continue to stir gently until the mixture begins to thicken.

Add salt to taste. In another thickbottomed pan, heat the oil and sear the scallops for about 30 seconds on each side, or longer according to taste. Place them on the sauce and serve hot, garnished with the fried curry leaves.

Preparation: Whip the egg yolks and half the sugar together in a mixing bowl until it holds a ribbon when you lift some on the beaters and trail it back to the bulk of the mixture.

Melt the dark chocolate and half the butter in a bain marie (double boiler) to make a smooth emulsion. Add the star anise powder and fold into the yolk mixture.

In another bowl whip the egg whites, adding the remaining sugar when the whites are still floppy but just beginning to form soft peaks, then continue beating until the mixture holds stiff peaks. Set aside 2 tbsp of the whites mixture and fold the dark chocolate mixture very gently into the rest, being careful to retain as much air as possible.

Melt the white chocolate with the remainder of the butter, add the cream and fold into the remaining 2 tbsp of egg whites. Divide the dark chocolate mousse between 6 ramekins or glasses.

Top with white chocolate mousse, working it into a star design if you wish.

PARSEE STEAMED FISH CHEF Mehernosh Mody learned this classic Parsee wedding dish from his mother. Lemon sole replaces traditional pomfret and marries beautifully with the mint and coconut-rich mixture enclosed in banana leaf parcels.

Ingredients: Serves four • 1 good-sized lemon sole, cut into 4 fillets • 1 tsp salt • 1 tsp pepper • Juice of half a lemon • Half a bunch fresh coriander • 2 – 3 sprigs of mint • 1 green chilli, roughly chopped • Half a tsp cumin seeds

• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped • 2 tbsp freshly grated coconut • 1 banana leaf Preparation: Season the fillets with salt and pepper rubbed in with a little of the lemon juice and set aside.

Make a chutney by pounding or processing to a fine paste the coriander, mint, green chilli, cumin seeds and garlic.

Add the grated coconut, the rest of the lemon juice and salt to taste.

Cut the banana leaf into four sheets large enough to fold into parcels around the fish.

Spread the coconut mixture over the fillets, fold them to form 4 sandwiches, place them

on banana leaf sheets and fold the banana sheets over the fillets to form parcels. (An alternative method would be to wrap the fish in kitchen parchment paper.) Steam the parcels until the fish is cooked, about 5 to 7 minutes.

• To make the chutney for authentic Parsee fish, there is no substitute for fresh coconut. Chop the coconut in two with a cleaver and remove the flesh by sliding a sharp knife between it and the hard shell.Then grate it with a regular grater. This may seem like a great deal of trouble to take to prepare one dish, but you can make a larger quantity of chutney and keep the remainder in freezer for up to one month.

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Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

TRAVEL FORGET everything you know about India. The poverty, the relatives, the dodgy food and instead, see the side that spiritually reawakened westerners harp on about and the eastern mystics wax lyrical about. And there’s nowhere on earth that inspires more spirit and poetry than the Himalayas.

With clear blue lakes reflecting the snow-capped mountains, surrounded by fruit-filled orchards and tea plants, the Himalayas is one of nature’s most mesmerising showcases. Although its magnetic charm attracts outdoor sports enthusiasts and rock climbers, lovers in search of tranquility and relaxation come here to find little need for modern equipment to scale the Everest – the feeling of love the region inspires in them takes lovers much, much higher…

But there’s more to the Himalayas than its fabulous mountain range. With an array of ancient temples, solitary Buddhist monasteries and ritualistic spas promising to knead every ounce of stress from your body and soul, it’s hardly surprising this is India’s spiritual hub.

Immersed in sparkling fresh air, miles of endless dazzling landscape and an atmosphere so relaxed, it’s impossible not to find yourself in the mood for a bit of light enlightenment!

Relatively cooler than the rest of India, the Himalayas have long since been revered as a sanctuary from the heat with a cool, pleasant climate.

Temperatures range from 30 degrees to two degrees and the best time to visit is from April to June – perfect for spring and summer holidays. The perfect blend of temperature and charm is what makes the Himalayas a must-see for British Asians wanting a taste a slice of the magical homeland away from the stress of the west and the sorrows of the east.

And the most beautiful of them all is Himachal Pradesh. A captivating region of the Indian Himalayas, it is often referred to as the ‘magical showcase of nature’s splendour’, ideal for the travelers to travel, enjoy and relax.

Abundant green grassland and wide valleys set against imposing snow-clad mountains; crystal clear lakes, flowing rivers and spurting streams; fruit laden groves and soft terraces of corn and tea are characteristics of Himachal Pradesh.

Quite unlike any other place on earth, the area not only boasts its own beauty, but its charm spreads all across its neighbours and beyond, meaning you’ll have to go far, far away before it starts to lose any of its unique identity. Places in

PEAK PRACTICE Feel on top of the world in Himachal Pradesh

plantations offering a beautiful view of the Himalayan snows.

No one would blame you if you’re exhausted after all the travelling around, so take in some of the sights within the town. Quench your cultural thirst at the Kangra Art Museum located south of Lower Dharamsala tourist office. Its heyday was in the 17th century, but it still has miniature paintings from the Kangra School of Art, and displays delicately embroidered Kangra costumes, along with wood carvings and tribal jewellery. The Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, housed in the Central Administration compound at the southern end of McLeod Ganj, has one of the world’s most comprehensive collections of original Tibetan manuscripts, including ancient texts and books on Tibet, a heap of information on Indian culture, and a treasure trove of old photographs.

Rishikesh

and around the region, such as Shimla, Dharamsala, Kullu and Mussoori all share a wonderful old colonial charm because they were developed by the British Raj. But what unites the planes stretching beyond the foothills of the mountains is not man-made but is said to be designed by the heavens above, decreeing every day here is a beautiful day blessed with perfect weather.

The states Himachal Pradesh and Uttaranchal border the Indian Himalayas – both offer romantic settings for lovers and adventure for the thrill seekers, with a huge selection of festivals, trekking and more aweinspiring landscapes and rivers than your eyes can take in. In parts, the landscape dramatically varies between wild forests and verdant valleys, and barren sweeps of rugged rock and desert.

Closed off to tourists for many years, much of the Himalayas and its culture has been secretly guarded – places such as Kinnaur, Spiti and Lahaul were considered to be mysterious lands where Gods and Demons lived – Spiti in particular has the largest and oldest monasteries dotted amongst meditation caves.

This majestic land offers the most challenging mountain trails, for the adventurer; large wildlife reserves brimming with exotic birds, animals, flowers and herbs for the naturalist; exquisite temples, tiny villages, breathtaking architecture still pristinely preserved and the tribal lifestyles for the culture enthusiasts; a place for any couple to experience the beauty of silence and the glory of nature.

Dharamsala

Living deity, the Dalai Lama chose to set up home here, so you can be assured to find peace of mind here – you only have

Dubbed ‘land of the Gods’, it’s no wonder poets and mystics have been seeking divine inspiration at Rishikesh for thousands of years. Meat and alcohol are strictly forbidden – the air of sanctimony isn’t just for show, the natives breathe and believe it. The sound of flowing water, sweet-smelling air and faint tinkle of bell chimes drew even the Beatles in - during the 1960’s they sat at the feet of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Rishikesh represents the Gateway to the Himalayas in the TehriGarhwal region of Uttar Pradesh, appealing to the senses as the river Ganga flows unabated through the to look at the peaceful and easygoing Himalayan foothills. Spirituality makes expressions on everyone’s face as they its presence known with temples dotting float on by. Set in a thick forest with the the riverside, loincloth-clad pilgrims stunning Himalayan peaks in the pitching camp and the Triveni Ghat distance, this small town has the Dalai which bears witness to worshippers Lama’s influence stamped upon it – the giving Aarti (blessings). upper part of the town, known as McLeod Ganj is sometimes called Little Things to do Lhasa in reference to the Tibetan capital, Amongst other Ayurvedic spas, the teeming with ethnic markets selling famous Ananda spa lies 20 kilometres woven Tibetan carpets, silverware, craft from Rishikesh, receiving a fair number sellers, restaurants and guesthouses. In of visitors clamouring to satiate their and around the town, monks stroll to frazzled minds. But after you’ve and from various monasteries, paying pampered yourself with rose-petal visits to the local in a flurry of vibrant massages, you may want to sample some prayer flags. of the adrenalin-packed sports Rishikesh has to offer. Whatever personality type Things to do you are – whether you want to relax Even though it is a small town you have indoors or go out, the Himalayas offer a wealth of activities spread out – all the best mountain views and lakes and you have to do is choose. East of at the same time offer so many chances McLeod Ganj is the peaceful village of for adventure and excitement.

Bhagsunath, famous for the Bhagsunath Delve into untamed wilderness and Temple, a quiet temple that lies beside commune with nature on another level. several pools where devout Hindus and Watch the flight of spotted eagles and monks congregate to bathe. When revel in the gathering of waterfowl you’ve had enough of contemplative bobbing along the Ramganga and reflection, visit the Mountaineering Ganges; hire a trekking guru to guide Institute to organise treks and rock- you to the Valley of Flowers; hike up to climbing to get your adrenalin pumping. Gangotri, the source of the Ganges or Pay a visit to the Bhagsu waterfall explore the river in a kayak, skimming behind the temple, and drown your riverbeds as you explore your own path. senses in its glittering 30 ft cascade from an open-air café nearby. Picturesque little Dehradun Palampur lies 40 kilometres from People usually pass Dehradun on their Dharamsala, offering a visual feast, way to ‘Queen of the Hills’ Mussoorie surrounded by old British Raj-style tea and will no doubt be refreshed by the

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

41

TRAVEL

DEVONSHIRE DREAMS

Paloma Minter recommends you head to the South West Coast

temperate climate pervading the city.

Beautiful resthouses with intricate architecture and gorgeous interiors welcome the weary travellers who want to recharge their batteries before setting off on another adventure. Nestling in a thick wooded valley, it used to be a residential resort which probably explains the attention to creature comforts. Whisk your hubby off to any one of the city’s famous picnic spots; the Robbers Cave comes highly recommended as a natural spot where water suddenly disappears from sight and goes underground only to reappear after a few yards in the form of a stream.

It is also well linked by rail and road with Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta, Lucknow and Varanasi. Activities in Dehradun include: Malsi Deer Park: This can get a tad overcrowded with tourists, but even that doesn’t detract from its beauty, nuzzling at the foot hills of the Shivalik range.

Malsi Deer Park is a mini-zoological park enveloped by natural surroundings.

Sahastradhara: Literally meaning the ‘thousand fold spring’ it offers a breathtaking view of the Baldi river and the caves. The water contains limestone so, over the centuries, it has formed a projecting ledge and cave – from the roof of which falls a perpetual shower.

Do indulge yourself in a bath in the sulphur spring – its water is said to cure skin infections and possess other medicinal properties.

truly magnificent ecosystem nestled in the lush heart of the Shivalik range valley.

Mussoorie

A veritable lovers paradise – with swooping waterfalls, shimmering lakes and fragrant orchards.

Gun Hill: Enjoy a thrilling Ropeway ride to the second highest peak of Mussoorie while experiencing a Tibetan Temple: Situated on Rajpur beautiful panoramic view of the ranges namely Road near the Sai Darbar Temple is a Himalayan huge and colourful temple of Lord Bunderpunch, Srikantha, Pithwara and Gangotri and a bird’s-eye view of Buddha.

Mussoorie town and Doon Valley.

Bhagirathi Resort: A short drive from Kempty Fall: Bathe at the foot of the Dehradun, the resort seduces tourists biggest and prettiest waterfall in the with its tranquil swimming pool, region located in a beautiful valley smooth water slides and glimmering surrounded by high mountains. fountains. Against the backdrop of the mountain ranges, the resort is an ideal Childer’s Lodge: The highest peak of Mussoorie near Lal Tibba is about 5km tourist spot. from the Tourist Office and one can go Rajaji National Park: Be one with on horseback or on foot. nature at the Rajaji National Park – a

Getting there

Himachal Pradesh doesn’t have an international airport but connects with Delhi and Chandigarh with regular flights by Indian Airlines. The three airports of the state are Bhuntar, Gaggal, and Jubbarhatti.

The Indian Himalayas like to retain their sense of seclusion and peaceful ambience, so public transportation is fairly limited and wholly dependent on the weather. Only a few places in Himachal Pradesh are connected by trains, as the construction of new lines are very difficult in the rugged, high altitude regions. The longest railway line is from Pathankot in Punjab to Jogindernagar in Himachal Pradesh.

Some of the roads are closed during the winter and monsoon seasons due to the heavy snowfall and landslides that occur in this region regularly.

• For further information contact Himarchal Tourism on tourismmin-hp@nic.in or log onto www.himachaltourism.gov.in

SOMETIMES you just need to put city life behind you for a few days and head to the country. Fresh air, a slower pace of life, long walks along the coast and great food are just what you need to re-charge the batteries.The stunning patchwork field scenery of Devon came-a-calling recently and I headed to the county to check out exactly what it has to offer. It’s just three hours from London to Totnes by train and then a short bus ride to the pretty village of Torcross – you can drive but I think you miss so much concentrating on a map or the dreaded sat nav!

4 AT THE BEACH Looking for the ultimate chilled seaside experience, I booked 4 At The Beach, a gorgeous two-bedroom apartment, and yes, you guessed it, it’s right on the beach. Open the window and you can smell the sea. You’re also just 30 seconds from feeling the pebbles between your toes – perfect. The spacious apartment boasts an open plan living area with views towards the beach and out to sea. Stylish furnishings include an ‘L’ shaped 4seater sofa bed, comfy arm chair, flat screen TV with Freeview, DVD/CD player and Wi-Fi internet access.

There are two double bedrooms, one which is en-suite, as well as a shower room, and a full-equipped kitchen, complete with dining table that seats four. You can also access a patio making it a great spot for BBQs, though with the beach so near, you’ll probably want to cook out there!

The peaceful village of Torcross offers a relaxing holiday destination, while still having plenty in the local area to keep you entertained. The local shop is extremely well-stocked but if you feel like eating out, there are a number of pubs and cafes to choose from serving fantastic local seafood. A delicious fish and chip dinner at the Start Bay Inn is a must.

4 At the Beach sleeps 4-6 and can be booked from £369 per week. Short breaks of three nights or longer can be booked starting from £265.

• www.bluechipholidays.net DART MARINA SPA The naval town of Dartmouth is just 20 minutes away and is a great day out destination. The Dart Marina Hotel & Spa is ideal for sitting outside with a glass of wine while you watch the boats sail in.

It’s also home to the fabulous Devon Health spa, where you can soothe your body, mind and soul in the dual treatments room. If you’re going way for the weekend with your partner, The

Romantic Soul Package - £92 per person - includes fruit tea on arrival, an Exotic Lime and Ginger Salt Glow and a Deep Tissue Massage. Or treat yourself to the Recharge and Renew Spa Day – a favourite package for all over rejuvenation. At £107 per person it includes fruit tea on arrival, an Aroma-Spa Body Wrap and Deep Tissue Back Massage.

There are also plenty of treatments with guys in mind, including facials, massages, manicures, and even waxing, ouch! All of the day spa packages have been specifically designed to cater for your pamper needs and include full use of the spa facilities including swimming pool, fitness suite, spa pool and steam room.

• www.dartmarina.com/devon-health-spa SOUTH SANDS HOTEL It would be impossible to find a prettier Devon village than Salcombe and a more idyllic spot to enjoy than the contemporary boutique South Sands Hotel on South Sands bay. Designed in classic New England style, the hotel has 22 beautifully appointed bedrooms, five opulent beach suites and a beachside restaurant and terrace that offer stunning views of the estuary.

Set in a dramatically nautical location, with small boats literally passing your bedroom window, it’s one of the most relaxing places I have ever stayed in the world. If you’re feeling energetic, take the 35-minute walk over the cliffs and around the local coves into the heart of Salcombe, with its bijou boutiques, pubs and restaurants.

Sailing and water sports are, of course, extremely popular in the warmer months but the shooting and walking trails are also some of the most well-known in the South of England. The restaurant is open seven days a week, with an inspired menu from local celebrity chef, Mitch Tonks, which makes the most of the South West’s fabulous fresh produce, particularly seafood.

• www.southsands.com

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Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

CAREERS

How to be an apprentice CONTRARY to popular belief, – that is, the one propagated by Sir Alan Sugar – apprenticeships are not about poncing around trying to flog cars/lightbulbs/ tickets with a £100,000 pot of gold at the end of it.

Rather they are educational courses which have a heavy emphasis on vocational learning, for those know which job they are going into.

• Apprenticeships are for those who want hands-on experience in their chosen line of work. As such you’ll receive a wage like a proper employee and at the end of it, you’ll receive a qualification and be able to start working straight away.

• Currently, the two apprenticeship qualifications are the NVQ, Levels 2 and 3, which are for preuniversity students. If you are slightly older, you can apply to do the Foundation and Advanced Modern Apprenticeships (MAPPs) • Talk to someone who’s done an apprenticeship and find out whether it was a waste of time or whether they felt it enhanced their prospects of getting work.

• Don’t view it as a school course. Instead, think of it as a proper job, which of course it is, because you are being assessed at all times.

Also, after you leave, chances are you’ll have to ask your old work place for a reference.

• You should prepare for this like any other job interview and find out as much as possible about the employer and/or training scheme. You should be able to show you’ve thought about it seriously and it will help if you can convince them what you think you can bring to the job.

KEEPING IT IN THE COMPANY It’s one thing loving your job, quite another falling for a colleague…

A FEW seasonal drinks and suddenly, Rahul from the accounts department suddenly looks good enough to eat.

What with most Asian women professionals spending an increasing number of hours within office walls, there’s simply no time to look for a man in the conventional way.

Having your fella working away in the other room seems like an easy way to keep business and pleasure within easy reach of each other – what could possibly go wrong?

The honest answer: a lot. The main problem is that while it seems like a good idea at the time, if things don’t work out, there will be hell to pay. But, if you really can’t control those animal urges, then

CAREER ADVICE Q

I am actively looking for a new job at the moment and I have been told that, while my CV is very professional, my covering letter needs more work. Any advice?

there’s a few things you should bear in mind.

• Before things get serious between the two of you, make sure that your company’s policy allows inter-office romance. Some companies frown upon it because it can lead to distraction when workers become lovers. Worse still, on the off chance that one of you gets promoted over the other, it can cause friction which, in turn, affects work productivity. Picture having to discipline him for taking too many fag breaks or him admonishing you for too many girlie chats!

• It’s only natural to want to gush about your new-found romance to your colleagues, but it doesn’t matter how forward-thinking your company is – office politics exist in every workplace. Keep it as

the same letter to different employers. Tailormake it to the job you are applying for because that shows you’ve paid attention to the job spec. If it helps, make a list of all the requirements they Your covering letter is as ask for in the application and important as your CV make sure you address each one since it is the first thing in the covering letter, highlighting your prospective employers will all the relevant skills, qualification read. The trick is to keep it as and experience you can bring to concise and minimal as possible the company. Don’t reel off and whatever you do, don’t send places you’ve worked at or

A

discreet as possible because when the two of you inevitably have a fight, the whispers will spread like wildfire. You’d better hope he’s not a blabbermouth – the last thing you want is for your colleagues to find out your intimate secrets.

• If you work for a large conglomerate and you’re dating someone from a different department, you might not have to deal with the awkward aftermath if things go wrong. The danger arises when you work in a small company or are part of the same team because if things don’t work out, it can be horrendous, particularly if things end badly. And because there’s no way of distancing yourselves from each other, the storm of resentment and heartache can make for a very unpleasant working environment. This is when your boss will

random jobs you’ve done because your CV explains all that, but highlight the personal qualities you need to mention, such as team building, organisational and communication skills. And, if the job asks for a lot of experience, briefly mention your career achievements and ensure this is relevant with your potential role.

In particular concentrate on highlighting all transferable skills you have and how you would be able to utilise these in the post you are applying for.

www.futuretraining4jobs.com

sit up and take notice.

• The darker side of office romance manifests itself in the form of a harassment case. If you go out with a real stinker, can you guarantee that he won’t make a complaint to HR and claim you were making inappropriate advances? The best way to protect yourself against this is to ensure your company policy does allow office relationships; at least then you’ll have the backing of a HR representative.

• Avoid accusations of favouritism by downplaying your relationship in front of other people. That doesn’t mean you need to be an ice princess, but do try and avoid smooching him in full view of your colleagues.

• Oh, and try to avoid getting intimate with your boss. Especially if he’s married…

Q

I’ve just started a new role as manager of a large department. I have to make a good impression with my team. What do you suggest?

A

Your team will expect you to make the first effort to get to know them, so be open and friendly in your approach.

Arrange to have regular informal meetings for creativity purposes and when you see someone doing good work, vocalise your opinions. Show them you want to help make things better, rather than crack the whip for the sake of it. Take an interest in their development thus adding a personal touch to your management style.

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

PARALYMPIC DREAM Pakistan’s Mudassar Baig-Inspiring a nation •ENGLAND U19 Netan Sansara

Netan off to Denmark

HE’S one of the UK’s most successful Asian football players and now Netan Sansara, 22 is taking one of the biggest steps in his career so far, joining Danish team FC Vestsjaelland on a one-year transfer.

The Walsall defender shot to fame in the game as a teenager when he signed his first professional contract aged just 17, before joining England’s Under 18 and 19 squads.

Sansara has also played for Scotland and Cyprus and he’s hoping the move to Denmark will further his experience in the sport at an international level.

He will be the first British Asian to ever play in Danish football. Over the last couple of years, he has turned down several offers to join European teams, waiting for the right deal to come along.

•BANGLADESH Girl power

Bangladesh face India THE Bangladesh women’s football team will face holders India in the opening match of the second SAFF Women’s Championship in Colombo on Sept 7.

The draw for the competition, which was held in the Sri Lankan capital last Monday, puts Bangladesh, in Group A along with Sri Lanka and Bhutan. The other group comprises Nepal, Pakistan, Maldives and Afghanistan.

Bangladesh’s next group fixtures are against Bhutan and Sri Lanka on Sept 9 and 11 respectively.

The top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals on Sept 14.

All matches including the final on Sept 16 take place at Longden Place in Colombo.

The Bangladesh team fly to Colombo on Sept 5.

PAKISTANI polio survivor Mudassar Baig dreams of winning a medal at the London Paralympics, hoping to inspire a nation troubled by corruption, Taliban violence and lost sporting glory.

“It’s a dream come true for me and I want to be a role model—not only for disabled people in my country but also for the able-bodied who lose courage,” said Baig, whose right leg was left shorter than his left by polio in childhood.

The 33-year-old post office clerk who thought life was over when he couldn’t run as fast as the other boys growing up, is one of four athletes representing Pakistan at the London Paralympics from Aug 29 to Sept 9.

He will compete in the 200 and 400m, hoping to replicate the success of Pakistan’s first paralympian, long jumper Haidar Ali, who won silver in Beijing in 2008.

“I always wanted to run like the other boys but my disability hindered that. I made a promise to myself that one day I will run and win,” he said, “and that day will come during the London Paralympics.”

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SPORT

World beaters FROM PAGE 44

•SUPPORT British High Commissioner and Mudassar Baig last year Ali heads the Pakistani contingent. Aneela Beg will compete in women’s 100m and shot-put, and Mohammad Naeem in the 800 and 1,500m.

Baig won silver in the 400m at the Asian Games in Dohar in 2006, but London will be his first Olympics as a competitor. He represented Pakistan in Beijing as an official after not being selected to compete—a disappointment he doesn’t want to discuss.

He declined to be drawn on the Taliban’s recent ban on polio vaccinations in parts of Pakistan’s northwestern tribal belt, jeopardizing the health of 240,000 children. But bizarrely, he says what changed his life was watching an obscure film as a teenager about a man who overcame adversity to help his nation win a war. “It taught me a lesson that I should fight and pave a way to becoming a role model for my country’s youth,” said Baig.

His first international chance

came in the 2006 Asian Games.

“That silver medal made me realize that nothing is impossible in life,” said Baig. “Haider’s success in the last Paralympics was a further motivation and now I want to win my own medal,” said Baig.

In cricket-mad Pakistan, Baig feels put out that other sports don’t get the same attention despite a series of spot-fixing scandals that have brought shame on some of Pakistan’s most gifted cricketers. “It is disappointing that cricket gets all the media attention in our country,” he said. “Cricket brought a bad name for our country so we must win in other sports to bring about a change.”

Other than winning a medal, Baig would love an autograph from Jamaica’s sprint king Usain Bolt, who made history by retaining his Olympic titles in the 100 and 200m.

“Bolt is an inspiration for the athletes of the world,” said Baig. “I hope I get a chance to meet him in London.”

WE HAVE TO IMPROVE

AFTER their abysmal performance at the Olympic Games earlier this month India’s hockey team have vowed to improve and make a major come back; a task they feel will be possible if they are given the chance to compete against better teams.

Sandeep Singh said the squad who had been improving over the last six months, must play good international teams in order to get experience. Although he was the ‘star’ of the team, Singh acknowledges that coming 12th is a repeat performance they don’t want. He said: ‘I feel very sorry for the Indian Hockey fans. They were expecting a good show from us but we could not live up to the expectations.’

He admitted the team will only improve if they can build their confidence by playing major teams. He said: ‘We must play against top teams like Australia, Germany, Holland on a regular basis which is lacking so far. It will help us to overcome our weaknesses.’

Singh also said it’s vital the team get to know each other better, by playing as a unit, to make them stronger. He explains: ‘We have immensely talented players in the current team. But they are a young team and have only played for a year.

Give us four years and we can come back

bigger and better for the Rio Olympics in 2014.’

He went on to say they’ll begin their training next year in preparation. The team undertook intensive video analysis in the six months prior to the games to study opponents strengths and weaknesses. The team also spent several weeks preparing in France and Spain.

Some critics feared the blue astro turf would be difficult for the team, however Singh confirmed this wasn’t a problem.

Asked about where the team failed he admitted there were several areas such as better coordination and scoring. He said: ‘In 2001, 02 and 03 our forward line had Gagan Ajit, Prabhjot, Deepak who were playing together since junior days. We need something like that which will only come through experience.’

Virat Kohli led their teams to titles in 2000 and 2008. Courtesy an unbeaten 111 (130 balls, 7x4s, 6x6s) by Unmukt, and his unbroken partnership of 130 runs with wicket-keeper Smit Patel, India reached a competitive target of 226 with 14 balls to spare on a pitch that assisted bounce.

Pacer Sandeep Sharma was the other hero for India with a four-wicket haul. Unmukt completed his century with a six over extra cover off Alex Gregory but the celebrations were muted.

The skipper knew that the job was only half done.

By the time the sun set on Sunday, Bharat Chand Thakur was a tired man. Since the middle of the day, he had been entertaining a seemingly endless queue of relatives, friends and wellwishers, who had come to congratulate him on the success of his son Unmukt for captaining India to the under-19 World Cup title.

His neighbours at the Medha Apartments joined in the celebrations during the day, dancing to the beat of dhols. “This is the happiest day of my life. Unmukt has achieved something great; it’s almost like his team has won an Olympic gold medal.

It was a total team effort and has brought happiness and glory to the entire nation,” Thakur told MAIL TODAY. Thakur watched his son’s innings in its entirety - an unbeaten 111 in the biggest pressure game of his life so far.

‘It was the first time I saw a full innings by him; it was a brilliant effort because he used every ounce of his brain. It was great to see the way he played and managed the other players, taking care of the overs and switching around his bowlers during Australia’s innings,’ he said.

At all-rounder Baba Aparajith’s home in Chennai too, there were celebrations. Aparajith’s mother Revathy and twin brother Indrajith were over the moon. ‘I was very nervous when the first wicket went down early in the chase, but Aparajith came in and steadied the ship. Seeing his partnership with Unmukt calmed me down and made me really confident of victory,” Revathy, also a doctor, told MAIL TODAY over phone.

Once Smit, who hit an effective 62 not out (84 balls, 4x4s), slog-swept off-spinner Ashton Turner to deep mid-wicket boundary for a four, members of the team and a number of Indian supporters rushed onto the ground to celebrate.

Though India lost four wickets in the chase, it never looked like an uphill task for the Indians, who were subdued in the middle overs but accelerated towards the end to achieve to the target with ease.

44

Asian City August 30 - September 12, 2012

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BOOST FOR BOWLING THE Pakistan Cricket Board may have finally found the bowling coach they’ve been searching to join the new coach line-up. Former fast bowler for the country Shoaib Akhtar who retired last year after a 14-year career, is up for the challenge. Speaking about the opportunity, Shoaib said: ‘It’s an honour to serve the country and it can be done by helping the upcoming bowlers. It will give me a chance to pay back what the country has given me.’

•RAVICHANDRAN The destroyer

Ashwin sends Kiwis spinning

NEW Zealand again had no answer to India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin as they collapsed to defeat by an innings and 115 runs in the first Test in Hyderabad.

Ashwin finished with match figures of 12-85 - the best by an Indian against New Zealand - as the tourists were all out for 164 in their second innings on the fourth evening.

That completed a miserable Test for the Black Caps’ batsmen, who had been asked to follow-on the previous day after being skittled for 159 first time around.

Ashwin was the chief destroyer on both occasions, hauls of 6-31 and 6-54 ensuring India take a 1-0 lead into the concluding Test of the two-match series in Bangalore.

New Zealand were due to resume on 41-1 in their second innings, needing another 238 to make India bat again.

Brendon McCullum and Kane Williamson were able to extend their second-wicket stand through to lunch.

But India seamer Umesh Yadav (1-32) ended the partnership at 72 shortly after the break, winning an lbw verdict from umpire Steve Davis against McCullum (42), who was unhappy as he felt he had got an inside edge onto his pad.

From 98-2, New Zealand lost regular wickets as Ashwin, just as he had done in the first innings, proved altogether too much.

Williamson brought his his halfcentury from 161 balls - the only New Zealander to pass 50 in the match.

Ashwin completed his maiden 10wicket match haul with the scalp of Kruger van Wyk (13), lbw reverse sweeping, and polished things off in his next over by removing Trent Boult and Chris Martin, both for ducks.

Akhtar holds the record for being the fastest bowler in history in international cricket though suffered from several career lows including injury and involvement in a drug scandal. He was sent home during the Test match series in Australia in 2005 for alleged ‘poor attitude’, in 2006 he testing positive to a banned substance, in 2007 he was banned for fighting with Pakistan team mate and in 2008 he received a five year ban for publicly criticising the Pakistan

Cricket Board.

They will need to see beyond these ‘crimes’ if they are to take him on for the job. Already appointed to the team are head coach Dav Whatmore and fielding coach Julien fountain.

Aktar believes the team have suffered from a lack of fast bowlers since his departure and also said experts like Imran Khan should get involved with trying to spot new talent to take Pakistan’s cricket to the next level.

ON TOP DOWN UNDER Indian players celebrate their victory over Australia in the 2012 ICC U19 Cricket World Cup final CAPTAIN Unmukt Chand led from the front with a magnificent hundred as India under- 19 lifted the World Cup title after beating defending champions Australia by six wickets in the final at Townsville, Australia, on Sunday.

•YOUNG GUNS We are the champions!

This was India’s third under-19 World Cup triumph, after Mohammad Kaif and

TURN TO PAGE 43

•CAPTAIN Unmukt Chand