Hindustantimes Brunch 04 November 2012 by Hindustan Times

WEEKLY MAGAZINE, NOVEMBER 4, 2012 Free with your copy of Hindustan Times

Quarter life crisis A survival kit for those tumultuous 20s

Here come the wrestlers Olympian hopefuls pack a punch

“I want your baby” The craziest thing a fan told Kabir Bedi

indulge

Two coffee experts go sniffing out blends, flavours, aroma, presentation and taste in the hunt for the best cuppa VIR SANGHVI Royal repast

SANJOY NARAYAN A new start

RAJIV MAKHNI

Windows 8 review

SEEMA GOSWAMI Misogynist netas

B R E A K FA S T O F C H A M P I O N S

hindustantimes.com/brunch

BEHIND THE CELEBRITY BODY

NOW ON STANDS,

R100 ONLY!

by Saudamini Jain

Things You Should Have Heard About

Random House. And Penguin. And their merger ■ Young, hot ministers. (By young, we mean the 40-year-olds and the nearly-40-year-olds.) Still, looking so good! ■ Vettel ■ Standing up for ‘dear’ girlfriends ■ Reading in the loo ■

Obsession with Saifeena. Khan, Kapoor, what’s in a (last) name? Who cares? Let’s move on to another couple and get them married ■ “Tujhe pata hai mera baap kaun hai?” ■ Halloween parties. Carving a kaddu now, are we? ■ Cheaper Tabasco substitutes ■ T-shirts with slogans

The step-by-step guide to...

BE A BOND GIRL

...BE JAMES BOND

(this is much harder)

by Manit Moorjani

by Rachel Lopez

Travel to the classiest destinations without paying a penny, often in your personal jet ■ Talk impeccably. Be smooth ■ Have an eye for the right girl ■ Put the villain’s girl on your to-do list ■ Then, leave halfway in bed when duty calls ■ Carry pen bombs ■ Get a car that doubles up as a hovercraft ■ Always tip, so you don’t have to say “vodka martini, shaken not stirred” each and every time ■

Cover Design: PRASHANT CHAUDHARY Cover Photo: THINKSTOCK

■

SHOVE IT

LOVE IT

Have ridiculous names (Pussy Galore, seriously?) ■ Be somewhat exotic ■ Have big lips ■ Have an agenda up your sleeve (or in your cleavage) ■ Seduce Bond ■ Then feel cheated when he outsmarts you (which he will) ■ Die with your makeup still on

■

EDITORIAL: Poonam Saxena (Editor), Aasheesh Sharma, Tavishi Paitandy Rastogi, Rachel Lopez, Mignonne Dsouza, Veenu Singh, Parul Khanna Tewari, Yashica Dutt, Amrah Ashraf, Saudamini Jain, Shreya Sethuraman, Manit Moorjani

NOVEMBER 4, 2012

Brunch Opinion

LONG LIVE CAFFEINE! by Shreya Sethuraman

hey’re perfect spots for blind dates, ideal for informal interviews, and students find them affordable too. With Starbucks, the latest entrant in the Indian coffee market, the madness seems to have reached a new level altogether, with at-least-one-hour-long queues outside the cafés in Mumbai. This craze may die out soon, but coffee will surely not. It continues to remain the most sought-after ‘social drink’, now that people are slowly becoming coffee converts and willing to experiment beyond the typical cappuccino (while scoffing at the vending machine concoctions). In this issue, we’re giving you a caffeine rush!

LETTER OF THE WEEK! On a Diwali high

THIS WEEK’S issue was the perfect hitchhiker’s Diwali guide, timed perfectly to help us plan for the festival of lights. From sartorial styles to home decor, kitchen must-haves to gala parties and recipes for mouth-watering sweet dishes, everything was perfectly showcased. The best part about Diwali is that it doesn’t belong to any particular religion. Thanks and congratulations to the entire Brunch team for the comprehensive Diwali guide! — HENA JABEEN, via email Hena wins a Flipkart voucher worth `2,500. Congrats!

The best letter gets a Flipkart voucher worth R2,500!! The shopping voucher will reach the winner within seven to 10 working days. In case of any delays, please contact chirag.sharma@hindustantimes.com

Amidst interviews, photoshoots, writing and editing, we also scribble our thoughts on things that most matter to each one of us. This week, read Everything Alternative by Amrah Ashraf. It’s the ‘underground’ world of alternative culture. Log on to hindustantimes.com/brunch

DESIGN: Ashutosh Sapru (National Editor, Design), Monica Gupta, Swati Chakrabarti, Rakesh Kumar, Ashish Singh, Suhas Kale

Drop us a line at: brunchletters@hindustantimes.com or to 18-20 Kasturba Gandhi Marg, New Delhi 110001

Photos: THINKSTOCK

They help their celebrity clients (mostly Bollywood stars) bulk up, burn fat and drop a size. Meet Rujuta Diwekar (left), Satyajit Chaurasia, Leena Mogre, Mickey Mehta and Payal Gidwani. These perfect bodies tell us the sins they indulge in.

Have you gotten hold of BrunchQ yet? Bollywood. Bromance. Bangkok. Beauty. And much more. There’s a little something for everyone. Grab a copy now!

MORE ON THE WEB

VA R I E T Y The Game of

Quarter Life Crisis

They say your 20s are the best years of your life. Here’s what they don’t tell you: it’s a dangerous (often depressing) ride. Play, you’ll see

by Saudamini Jain

hindustantimes.com/brunch

HOW TO PLAY: Get a friend (or more), use a matchstick each for tokens and a coin as a dice. Heads: go forward one space, tails: go forward two spaces. The first to reach 30 wins. In this game and in real life. All the best! Illustrations: PRASHANT CHAUDHARY

It’s not really your fault. It’s the age, your friends. But your parents are going to kill you DUI (and underage drinking) (go back one space or Jail? Bail?)

Missed period. “Wait, WHAT? Am I pregnant?” “Wait, WHAT? Did I knock up my girlfriend?” (go back five spaces)

“I turned out Appraisal? like this since You’re too my parents young for a were mean to promotion. me.” Oh just (go back shut up. The one space only thing and to mean to you college) was YOUR

FACE. Think about it

You You got hate yourself a your cougar/the job. older guy. But everyThey think body hates you’re stupid their job (advance two spaces)

Resign on a whim (go back seven spaces). And go get a REAL job

No, it’s not love. Miss a turn. And look for other fish in the sea

Saturday night. You Finwant to stay at home ish. It’s and watch a movie. But over. You’re all the 22-year-old drowning your idiots at work will call sorrows in gallons you ‘old’. So you go of beer. Stop whinout and make a ing, fool! You’ve surfool of yourself. vived your 20s. Life can only get better. Congrats. You’re a winner!

This is serious. This is true love. (advance one space)

“Who am I anyway? What am I doing here? What is my purpose in life” Eat, Pray, Love? You can’t afford it. Just don’t be late to work.

Grey’s Anatomy. It makes you cry

You hate your tattoo. Everybody hates your tattoo. (go First back one space) Got a job salary. that pays, Don’t have albeit a PAN peanuts. card? (go (advance five back three spaces) spaces)

Wait a minute – all my friends actually like what they’re doing. In fact, EVERYONE is doing better than you in every aspect of life. (go back five spaces)

Wedding bells? False alarm. Really happened? Mummy-papa ka aashirvaad and all? Move to 30 (while dealing with another kind of crisis altogether. Your quarterlife is O-V-E-R)

You still can’t drink in Delhi or Mumbai. Wait four years. Who are we Ac sti ne’s kidding? Mind ba ll a p you, it’s c (a k on roble illegal n de d t e sp m: o gis rma the ace go t t o You fac , pi loe) mp listen to lemusic from

You write intellectual essays and colour code your projects. In real life, there’s no real use for you/You dropped out of college and spend all your time wondering what-if/You studied hard. Likely to spend the next 10 years stuck in a cubbyhole

Another Friends birthday, with another breakBenefits work out up. You have a only for Mila Kunis playlist of break-up and Justin Timbersongs now. “If you lake. And ONLY in leave me now, you take the film. He’ll never away a little part of By this love you. She me. Oooooh, baby age, you hates your face please don’t go” should have learnt to hold your alcohol. You haven’t

You don’t know how to dress. You’re too 21 or too 31. Act your age! But how do people your age act?

Date #5678. We hate to rain on your parade but this isn’t going Pammi aunanywhere ty’s fat nephew

Mummy and is an ‘IT Professiondaddy’s al’. “Shaadi shakal list of podekh ke nahi karte” tential mates for you has been exhausted. You’re now on Shaadi.com

VA R I E T Y

THE DAANV PECH DUDES Three champions are inspiring young grapplers in Delhi to nurse Olympian dreams by Aasheesh Sharma photos by Raj K Raj

AGAL DOOB Laga! Ghutna daba, tangri bacha!” The voices go from squeaky to high-pitched to jarring as a bunch of boys in loincloths cheers on two sweaty wrestlers locked in a battle of body and limb. The gladiators at north Delhi’s Chhatrasal Stadium are at play. Inspired by the exploits of three of their mates at the London Olympics, the pahalwans at the wrestling nursery appear upbeat and raucous. They take their shirt off for the camera before you can say Ek Tha Tiger. Still, the Khan with those rippling muscles and bare chest doesn’t rule the hearts of the wrestlers-in-the-making. That hon-

SONS OF THE SOIL

Their idea of recreation is mud bouts: trainees at Chhatrasal Stadium our is reserved for another bhai with the initials SK: two-times Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar.

YOUNG MONKS

The 285 wrestling trainees are caught in a whirl of practice and recovery from 5 am till 10 pm.

They are kept away from cellphones, mall crawls and the Web – luxuries most urban teenagers take for granted. Their idea of recreation is mud bouts and oil massages, dragging blocks of wood to level the floor, crushing almonds and watching bouts together. At a time when kids his age would be Googling b-boying and lusting after Rihanna, a pubescent Sansar Olian, 16, from Rohtak district’s

BOYS WHO WOULD BE PAHALWANS Most of the around 300 trainees learning the nuances of daanv pench at Chhatrasal Stadium are from villages in and around Delhi. Akhara rules call for celibacy and a diet without meat, fish or eggs. The bedrock of the lifestyle of the trainees is strict discipline. The gruelling training regime begins before dawn with a sprint. The workouts include weight training, rope-climbing and practising with maces. No mobile phones are allowed in the guru-shishya tradition and instances of corporal punishment are common. Most of the trainees at-

NOVEMBER 4, 2012

tend schools located near the akharas they train in, but dropout rates are high, says veteran wrestler Deepak Anusiya Prasad, who runs an akhara in south Delhi. “At least in governmentmanaged schools, sportsmen get away with average grades and not-soregular attendance.” The ultimate aim, says trainee wrestler Rohtas Singh, who hails from a village near Sonepat, Haryana, is to become a champion wrestler on the global stage. “Even the less successful ones get a job on the basis of sports, not their grades.”

They take their shirt off for the camera before you can say Ek Tha Tiger

Garhi village, brushes aside my query about the attention muscular wrestlers get from girls back home. “Haan unke mann mein bhawna to hoti hai, but we are pahalwans and worship Hanuman,” he says, as his friends break into a collective giggle. And then, inevitably, the ear question pops up: Do coaches actually break in wrestlers’ ear lobes? “That’s a myth naïve journalists perpetuate,” says Satpal. “Many wrestlers’ ears are fine, but most of us have cauliflower ears thanks to repeated friction or trauma, which hampers blood flow to the cartilage,” explains Satpal Singh, founder of the akhara. Neither ear deformities, nor a disappointing debut at the London Olympics can wipe the smile off Amit Kumar Dahiya’s face. The 19year-old son of a milkman from

VA R I E T Y

hindustantimes.com/brunch

Sonepat’s Nahri village can’t get over the rapturous reception Indian fans gave him at London’s Excel Arena. “It was as if we were playing at home,” says Amit, whose tactical knowledge is rated highly by players and coaches alike. “I’ll be better prepared at Rio. Even Sushil bhai didn’t win a medal at his first Olympics,” he reasons. After Sushil and Yogeshwar Dutt, Amit’s qualification for the Olympics injected a new enthusiasm into the boys at Chhatrasal. “Till a few months back, he was like any of these boys climbing ropes and doing push-ups. ‘If Amit can go to the Olympics, so can we’ is the credo at the akhara,” says guru Satpal, the coach whose trio of wards – Sushil, Yogeshwar and Amit – has made India proud.

ROOM WITH A VIEW

PAHALWANS’ NURSERY: THE REAL DEAL Yogeshwar, 29, says he has been dreaming of an Olympic medal since 1996, when he first saw Leander Paes win a bronze at Atlanta. “Till now, it had been a tale of what could have been,” says Dutt. As the tricolour went up in London, even with a swollen face, seeing his name on the winners’ list was a treat for the gutsy grappler’s eyes. Gauging the enormity of the achievement might not be easy for fans watching bouts on TV, says Yogeshwar. “Although we are trained to fight five bouts a day, I didn’t anticipate I’d have three within 45 minutes. I spent those 15

ONE FOR THE ALBUM

From left: Coach Satpal, Yogeshwar Dutt, Sushil Kumar and Amit Kumar minutes visualising my moves and replenishing with energy drinks.” After the victory, are village elders pestering the eligible bachelor to tie the knot? After all, isn’t former roommate Sushil also enjoying marital bliss? “Marriage can wait. Everything comes in good time. And I am never in a hurry,” says Yogeshwar. He could have been talking about his bronze medal. Would Hanuman approve? aasheesh.sharma@hindustantimes.com

TRIO’S TRICKS Favourite moves from the London Olympians, honed at the Chhatrasal akhara Yogeshwar Dutt

Favourite Daanv: Feetle How he does it: Cross the opponent’s feet and lock him in your arms. Then turn him over and over and over

LOSER TO CHAMP

At London, in his third Olympic outing, Yogeshwar finally shed the underachiever tag. Ever since he lost in the quarterfinals at Beijing in the last round, the group of trainees, too, has shared every agonising moment and Olympian ecstasy that the boy from Bhainswal has experienced.

Off the Ring Road near north Delhi’s Model Town neighbourhood, Chhatrasal has gained fame as the akhara where three Olympian wrestlers – two-time medal winner Sushil Kumar, London bronze winner Yogeshwar Dutt and Olympic rookie Amit Kumar Dahiya – learnt their ropes. All three, who represented India at London, were trained by Guru Satpal, the former Asian Games gold medallist. Satpal also happens to be Sushil’s father-in-law. Ever since Sushil became a household name after his Commonwealth Games exploits and the medal at Beijing Olympics, the stadium has been attracting trainees by the hundred.

Sushil Kumar

Favourite Daanv: Irani How he does it: Bend the leg, apply pressure to the opponent’s knees and grip his neck firmly with the free hand

Photo: AP

Beyond the bronzed bodied trainees sweating it out at the outdoor gym, busy climbing ropes and doing push-ups in the sun, are the akhara dormitories. It is here, sprawled in room number four that Sushil, Indian wrestling’s undisputed rock star, first nursed his medal dreams. “Pahalwanji is like bade bhai to all of us,” says Rahul Mann, a silver medallist at the Commonwealth wrestling championships in the 60-kg class. Sushil’s long time roommate Pradeep Kumar says the champion’s rustic charm hasn’t waned one bit over the last 15 years. And now, aspiring wrestlers at Chhatrasal also have London bronze medallist Yogeshwar Dutt to look up to. Has the thought of switching to a meat diet crossed Sushil’s mind? “Come on, bhai sahib! Now that we have three medals from vegetarians (one in Beijing and two at London) where is the need to turn non-veg?” asks Sushil, who lists watching patriotic movies such as Chak De! India on his laptop and listening to Haryanvi Raagini folk tunes as his greatest indulgences.

Photo: AP

Amit Kumar Dahiya

Favourite Daanv: Nikal How he does it: Move behind the opponent through his armpit and then topple him with ease

“I don’t hear as good as I used to, and I ain’t as pretty as I used to be. But I’m still here – I’m the Ram” – Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler NOVEMBER 4, 2012

C OV E R STO RY

Two expert tasters do a coffee run to rate the best cappuccino. So where should your next fix come from?

O WHAT’S brewing on the Indian coffee scene? A few weeks ago, the answer was simple – Starbucks. The entry of the American chain giant (there are three stores in Mumbai, and plans for more next year), brought forth a storm of discussion on whether their coffees were the real deal. That got us thinking: where can you find the best cuppa to satisfy your caffeine fix? So we began a hunt for experts to sniff out the best cappuccino. Our Facebook page and Twitter feed soon got flooded with requests of, “Take me, I drink coffee” and didn’t stop till the time we went to press. Of course, we’re crazy about coffee. It’s one of the few awesome things left to get addicted to, which are not banned/illegal/frowned upon – from homemade filter kaapis to the quietly brewing coffee houses of the Sixties and the shake-shake variety of cold coffee (made famous by the the Nescafé ad that you might remember from the Eighties and early Nineties). But the real storm in the coffee cup (we’re allowed a cliché sometimes!) started in the mid-Nineties, when an outlet called Café Coffee Day (CCD) nudged its way between the expensive five-star hotel coffees and the roadside cup. CCD was quickly followed (in no particular order) by Barista, Mocha, Costa Coffee, Gloria Jean’s, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Bru World Café, and now, finally, Starbucks. Perks like free Internet, impromptu guitar sessions, choco-chip cookies, a reputation as a safe dating zone and a cool after-college hangout suddenly made it okay to pay R80 (or even more) for a cup of coffee. So we sent Sonia Mohindra, who has set up many coffee outlets in India, and Sahil Jatana, who tweets as @The_ CoffeeCoach, to taste cappuccinos across several chains in Delhi and Mumbai. Here’s what they found.

Photos: THINKSTOCK

NOVEMBER 4, 2012

{

}

Sonia Mohindra

Delhi-based beverage specialist Sonia Mohindra runs the hospitality and interior design firm Under One Roof Hotel Consultants. A graduate from the Institute of Hotel Management, Delhi, Mohindra likes coffees that are strong, heavy roasted and done with interesting blends. Seattle’s Best is her favourite place in the world for a cappuccino.

Barista

st the mo s been g’ This ha n ti s while. ting ‘ta interes I've done in a tegral t n in e n m a n h assig me suc r coffee o c e b s e ou e ha we tak ume g coffe Drinkin r routine that sell and cons u e o ted w f h ra g o u ri o part o te h e lt has d ering nted. A for gra ee, the quality d, the food off n off d a c e h v r re e ro o m oth imp . On the industry has overall e bar e ff o c in the antly. signific

An outstanding feature of this coffee was that it was served steaming hot in a pre-warmed mug in less than 2 minutes. The preparation had a strong colour, along with a good-morning-wake up-aroma. The first taste was bold with no bitterness and a rich creamy texture. The milk was well-foamed and consistent, despite ample stirring over seven to nine minutes. Their coffee beans were freshly ground for each cup, and they use a 100 % Arabica blend sourced from Bangalore. What it cost: R79 (small)

Overall rating:

Café Coffee Day

The cappuccino at Café Coffee Day (CCD) is inconsistent and has far more potential than the attention it gets. The cup I got for this review was mildly aromatic, foamed with enough creaminess to pass the first few sips. Unfortunately, here too, I was served a lukewarm concoction which looked better than it tasted. CCD seems to be omnipresent, whether it is highways, campuses or community markets. However, their food offering seems to be worth more than their coffees. What it cost: R90 (regular)

Overall rating:

KNOW YOUR COFFEE

The components which go into making your perfect cup include milk, foam, espresso and cream. The proof, as they say, lies in the sipping

Steamed milk Espresso

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf

It was either a bad hair day or I’ve been partial to drinking iced lattes here. This is one cappuccino cup meant for babies. The trouble started with the white and overly white look. The key to a good cappuccino is the consistency of the foamed milk on the top. This seems to have been overlooked. There was no trace of aroma or flavour. Obviously, there could be no after-taste worth mentioning. In all, a big disappointment. What it cost: R125 (small)

Overall rating:

CAFÉ MOCHA

Overall rating:

This coffee sure surprised me in many ways. Theirs is an in-house blend of Arabica, Peaberry and Robusta beans, which lends it a distinctive aroma unlike other coffee bars. Unfortunately, they too served lukewarm coffee, which did no justice to the blend. The cappuccino arrived with a good creamy top layer. But it settled before two sips were downed. There was an interesting flavour lurking in the background which wasn't highlighted due to the tepid temperature. However, one must compliment them on a mellow after-taste. What it cost: R90 (regular)

Illustration: PRASHANT CHAUDHARY

Overall rating:

Mocha

Whipped cream Steamed milk Chocolate syrup Espresso

Espresso

Whipped cream Espresso

“I think if I were a woman, I’d wear coffee as a perfume” – John Van Druten, English playwright and theatre director NOVEMBER 4, 2012

ESPRESSO

The outlet at DLF Promenade Mall is my favourite non-chain boutique coffee place as the combination of good coffee with a laidback ambience and great service makes the cup warmer and stronger. Though they use the same blend as their sister concern Mocha, the treatment of coffee is much better. It is steaming hot, well-presented with consistent foam on top. The pleasant after-taste is a good way to finish a meal. They also offer some interesting boutique blends such as a Jamaican Blue Mountain and a Kenyan AA – an interesting variation that regular coffee bars have ceased to offer. What it cost: R125 (regular)

Espresso

ESPRESSO MACCHIATO

Smoke House Deli

The most well-roasted coffee. The temperature was warm enough to allow you to linger over the cup for a few moments. The pleasant yet strong flavour came through the frothy milk and lingered on the palate. Their coffee blend is 100 per cent Arabica beans – one with a medium roast – which seems to be the norm with coffee bars. However, this did not qualify as a wakeme-up coffee, neither with aroma nor with taste. What it cost: R95 (small)

Steamed milk

Milk foam

Overall rating:

Costa Coffee

Milk foam

CAFÉ LATTE

The fact that they are pioneers of the coffee business in India is clear in the consistency of the product. The cappuccino is well presented, the texture creamy and wellblended. The aroma and flavour could have been stronger as the after-note on the palate is missing. The coffee was served lukewarm, which meant that halfway through the cup, one was left with a tepid brew. The strange fact was that they now no longer freshly grind their beans but use an Italian-style medium roast non-instant coffee powder. The quality of the presentation is better than the coffee itself. What it cost: R90 (regular)

Gloria Jean’s Coffees

CAPPUCCINO

twitter.com/HTBrunch

C OV E R STO RY

{

}

Sahil Jatana

To explore new ways of brewing, Mumbai-based connoisseur Sahil Jatana dug out an unused coffee machine at home. However, he was yet to come across the perfect coffee powder. So he decided to start taking coffee workshops for a fee. The plan, says Jatana, is to turn www.thecoffeecoach.in into an online store for all your coffee needs.

Photo: SATTISH BATE

Costa Coffee

Costa has never been big on presentation; they don’t do latte art and use stencils for decoration. The UK-based chain has 100 cafés in India. They are celebrating it with a stencilled ‘100’ on your coffee as an art. Over the past year, I’ve noticed the quality of their brew has gone down; the flavours and taste are missing sometimes, like in the current case. Partially self-serviced. What it cost: R118 (medium)

Overall rating:

Bru World Café

A newer entrant, perhaps has one of the best cappuccinos. However, it is only present in Mumbai as of now. The service at the Andheri outlet is good. They do have variations in cappuccinos and a good range of international-origin coffees. What it cost: R99 (regular)

Overall rating: so te test, o a tas n was a great d to d ante d tow lways w s aroun nce of I have a ifferent café erie p x d e ll g. I was to going he overa y excitin of them unity. T ng was prett e rt m o o p s p o e. nd sti cino ta cafés a , a fun exercis cappuc ted by a few ll a in ll A in . o s p e p s disa urpri prung s really s

Photos: THINKSTOCK

Café Madras

Mumbai’s favourite joint for a filter coffee and a hot south Indian meal. It churns out idlis and dosas by the 100s every hour. I have had better filter coffees, but if you want to go out and have one in Mumbai, this is one of the places. The taste and flavours are nothing extraordinary; they could do better. What it cost: R25 for a cup

Overall rating:

Barista

hindustantimes.com/brunch

Café Coffee Day

The indigenous coffee chain started the trend of cafés in India way back in 1998. The price point is their biggest USP. They are the cheapest coffee chain in the country, though not the best. The quality of CCD coffees fluctuates every hour, depending on how much crowd there is. In this review, the taste and flavours were average but the presentation better than many. There is self-service for snacks at select outlets. The coffee, however, is served at your table. What it cost: R73 (regular)

Overall rating:

Di Bella

An Australian chain making its foray into the Indian market, it already has 5 outlets in Mumbai. The highest novelty factor about the boutique café is presentation. The coffee mug has a warmer underneath that keeps your coffee warm for longer. The taste and the flavour were the best amongst all. Partially self-serviced. What it cost: R113 (large)

Overall rating:

Starbucks

When you enter this Starbucks outlet, you are transported to any outlet abroad, almost. But, then reality strikes, it is apna desi version with Murg Tikka Panini. Who would have thought it? The taste and flavours are much subdued than its cousins abroad. It’s new to India and people are queuing up. I went to a Goregaon outlet at a time when there was no queue to enter, but there was no place to sit, so my coffee and quick bite were had standing. Continuing the tradition of Starbucks worldwide, the local barista, too, couldn’t get my name right and I become ‘Shahiu’! Presentation wasn’t something Starbucks would be proud of: no latte art, and a mug without a saucer for a cappuccino. What it cost: R130 (tall)

Overall rating:

I am asked to pay 146 bucks for a cappuccino! I am told it will be served at my table. When the coffee arrives, it’s in a latte mug, I feel something is wrong. I ask for my bill and when I see it, it’s a ‘posh Irish coffee’, how posh is that! And when I was placing my order, I was asked if I wanted regular or strong, and I said strong.

Then I saw my bill and I’d been charged for an extra shot of espresso! By far the worst coffee I have had. The service is pathetic. No order confirmation, no handing me the bill after I’ve paid so that I can check before I leave the counter. A coffee lover’s worst nightmare. What it cost: R146 (large)

Overall rating:

Gloria Jean’s Coffees

There is nothing great about this café. The coffee is average and so is the ambience at the Bandra outlet. What it cost: R112 (large)

Overall rating:

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf

I walk in, order a cappuccino, and wait. And wait. And keep waiting. After 5 minutes, I go to the counter to check what happened to my cappuccino, and I am told that their espresso machine is not working and will take 20 minutes. I walk out.

Overall rating: – brunchletters@hindustantimes.com

MORE ON THE WEB

For complete ratings , log on to

hindustantimes. com/brunch

“Television is not real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs” – Bill Gates NOVEMBER 4, 2012

PROMOTION

indulge

Photos: THINKSTOCK

Vir Sanghvi

THE GREAT INDIAN MELTING POT

Kings have very little influence on how we eat. But yes, some palaces did have the most amazing food

NOT COOKED UP

French chef Vatel’s tale was made into a film starring that famous French foodie fatso Gerard Depardieu

rude food

Courtesy: DINING WITH THE MAHARAJAS, ROLI BOOKS

It is hard to think of Indian food without potatoes, tomatoes and so many other ingredients that were unknown to us only a few centuries ago; (Left) One of Dining With The Maharajas’ great coups is to get Dr Karan Singh (top, left) to talk about royal food

TALES FROM THE ROYAL KITCHEN

LL FOODIES know the story of François Vatel. He was a chef during the reign of French King Louis XIV and prided himself on his banquets. But on one occasion when nothing was going right with the preparations for the dinner, Vatel began to get increasingly distraught. When somebody told him that the fish would not be delivered, he got so agitated that he committed suicide, so ashamed was he of having failed his king. (The ironic sting in the tale is that Vatel was wrong. The fish was delivered on time. But when they came to tell him that, Vatel was already dead.) I don’t know about you but I’ve always found this a slightly strange story. Perhaps suicide over failed banquet planning was the done thing in 1671, but I’ve long thought that Vatel must have been a bit of a lunatic, or at the very least, neurotic and highly strung. Otherwise, why on earth would you kill yourself only because your fish supplier was unreliable? (If that was the rule in India where suppliers are notoriously erratic, then all our chefs would have killed themselves by now.) But French people think that this is a great story, one that demonstrates Vatel’s commitment to his craft and in 2000, the tale was even made into a film starring that famous French foodie fatso Gerard Depardieu. And many chefs in other countries continue to venerate Vatel and

reject my conclusion that he must have been a manic depressive or a nutcase. Some of this, I suspect, has to do with the fact that Vatel was cooking for a king. There’s something about food and kings. Somehow we imagine that royal banquets are special, that kings eat so much better than us and that royal cuisine has changed the way in which ordinary people eat. Some, if not most, of this is nonsense, especially when it comes to Indian food. Though so much is made of the influence of the Mughals and the Nizams, very few of these claims can be sustained. A few years ago, I was in Hyderabad shooting a TV show and was being shown around by a local culinary expert who assured me that Hyderabad’s cuisine was the food of the Mughals which had been enriched by the Nizam’s links with the Shahs of Persia, the Sultans of Turkey, etc. This is rubbish. Yes, Mughal generals took North Indian food to the Deccan. But what we know as Hyderabadi cuisine grew out of the interaction between North Indian food and the local traditions of today’s Andhra, Telangana and Marathwada. The Shah of Persia was not consulted. So it is with the dishes that are claimed for the Mughal court. Yes, maida, pulao and samosas did come to India from the Middle East. But the Emperor Babur did not carry them in his saddlebag. There were contacts between India and the Middle East dating back to many centuries before the Mughals got here and these dishes travelled with the traders. By far the greatest influence on Indian food, however, came from Europeans. Much of what we know as Indian cuisine depends on ingredients discovered in the New World by the Europeans and then brought to India. It is hard to think of Indian food without potatoes, chillies, tomatoes, corn (as in makki ki roti) and so many other ingredients that were unknown to us only a few centuries ago. Even these ingredients did not come to India as the food of kings. Rather, they were brought by traders and many were later planted by European residents for their own use. When the likes of Sir Thomas Roe dined with the Mughal emperor it was not to hand over food parcels from the royal court but to establish British contacts. Why then is the cuisine of Indian royalty of any consequence? Well, largely for the opposite reason: because it did not necessarily influence the food that ordinary people ate. Royal cuisines remained largely confined to the palaces, the recipes were handed down through the generations by hereditary cooks and now, as much of India’s

There’s something about food and kings. Somehow we imagine that kings eat so much better than us

NOVEMBER 4, 2012

hindustantimes.com/brunch

Courtesy: DINING WITH THE MAHARAJAS, ROLI BOOKS

royalty fades into history, many of those recipes and traditions are in danger of being lost. Two books have sought to preserve the food of the maharajas and nawabs. The first by Richard and Sally Holkar came out many decades ago but it marked the first serious attempt to document Indian royal cuisine. The second, a cookbook by the Maharaja of Sailana, is regarded by many as one of the best Indian cookbooks ever published. The Maharaja of Sailana was not only an accomplished chef but he also gathered recipes from other states and adapted them to his own style. The Sailana family has kept up the tradition and the current maharaja (about whom I have written before) is a self-effacing and modest man who is determined to keep the food of his forefathers alive. Now, there is a third book. Dining with the Maharajas, published this month by Roli Books, is a lavish, superbly-produced, coffee-table book that not only records some of the best recipes, but also goes beyond the dishes to look at the palaces and the dining tradition. Written with style and detail by Neha Prasada, it has the added advantage of wonderful photos by Ashima Narain. The format is to focus on cuisines of the old princely states, to record their culinary heritage, to reprint their recipes, to talk to current members of the families and to try and recapture what the dining experience must have been like in the heyday of the Indian princes. Fortunately the book goes beyond the Rajasthan-only focus of most such ventures and includes the North (Kashmir), the South (Mysore, about which I have previously read very little) and Hyderabad (or Esra Jah’s Falaknuma-centred Hyderabad, at any rate), the East (Tripura, which must be a first for a book of this nature) and central India (Sailana, of course). The author and photographer have been offered the kind of access that the rest of us can only dream of (where else would you see photos of Captain Amarinder Singh cooking?) and have wisely chosen to concentrate on the articulate and decent maharajas (Karan Singh, Amarinder, Bapji Jodhpur etc.) ignoring the pompous old bores (though one or two do get in). The anecdotes and stories are revealing. When Motilal Nehru was sent to Allahabad jail by the British, Mohammed Amir Ahmad Khan of the Mahmudabad princely family sent him biryani with a bottle of champagne to keep him going during his imprisonment. When the Maharaja of Patiala travelled to London, he took a whole floor of the Savoy for his courtiers and his wives (mainly for his wives, I would imagine) and ate a 24-egg omelette for breakfast. The Savoy, grateful for his custom, changed the wallpaper on his floor to pink because he liked the colour. The Tripura chapter is especially revealing because relatively

TAKING THE LEGACY FORWARD

The Sailana family has kept up the tradition and the current Maharaja Vikram Singh is determined to keep the food of his forefathers alive

Courtesy: DINING WITH THE MAHARAJAS, ROLI BOOKS

WRITTEN IN STYLE

The great strength of Neha Prasada (top) and Ashima Narain’s book (right) is that it captures a slice of an India that is already vanishing

PRIVILEGED INVITATION

The author and photographer of Dining With The Maharajas were offered the kind of access the rest of us can only dream of. Where else would you see photos of Captain Amarinder Singh (above, right) cooking? little is known about the house. Four types of cuisine (Bengali, North Indian, European and local Tripuri) were cooked for dinner every night and the pastry chef was a genius but only when he was drunk. So each time a special dessert was called for, they would send a bottle to the kitchen to put him in the mood. One of the book’s great coups is to get Dr Karan Singh, who has spent his life playing down his royal ancestry (he is one of the few 21-gun-salute maharajas who has always protested when people call him “Your Highness”) to talk about royal food. Though Karan Singh is no foodie himself (“My books are the food of my soul”), he talks fondly about his father who would go off to France only to eat oysters at Prunier’s or duck at the Tour D’Argent. Karan Singh’s daughter-in-law, Chitrangada, has learnt the recipes preserved in the hard-written diaries of Maharaja Hari Singh (Karan Singh’s famously fun-loving father) and today is proficient in three different cuisines: Dogri, Kashmiri and Nepali (her mother-in-law was a Nepali Rana; so is her mother, Gwalior’s Madhvi Raje, herself a superb cook). There are enough states left over for a second book (Gwalior? Baroda? Indore? etc.) So I hope there will be one. If no historical record is kept by this generation then it might be too late because I’m not sure that all the recipes will survive into the next generation. So no, kings have very little influence on how we eat. Nor is there much point in worshipping the likes of Vatel. But yes, some palaces did have the most amazing food. And in India, at least, those culinary traditions will probably die out. The great strength of Neha Prasada and Ashima Narain’s book is that it captures a slice of an India that is already vanishing, and that it does so with beauty and style. NOVEMBER 4, 2012

BEST SELLER

This book by the maharaja of Sailana is regarded by many as one of the best Indian cookbooks ever published

Photo: CC/SNOWPEA & BOKCHOI

NOT OUR OWN

Yes, maida, pulao and samosas (top) did come to India from the Middle East

indulge

Photos: THINKSTOCK

Seema Goswami

BIZARRE THEORY

Eating chowmein or pizzas creates hormonal imbalances that make men’s animal instincts veer out of control, says a Khap panchayat leader

What I have learnt about rape from political leaders across the world

OBSCURANTIST NETAS

Photo: GETTY IMAGES

Photo: REUTERS

From top: US Congressman Todd Akin, UK Justice Secretary Kenneth Clarke and former Haryana chief minister OP Chautala

spectator

CRIME AS PUNISHMENT

ister of the state, who weighed in to say that crimes such as rape did not occur in the good old days (he went all the way back to the Mughal era to mine his example) when girls were married off as minors. Around 90 per cent of rapes occur when women go along willingly with their rapists. When what starts off as consensual sex goes wrong, these women start crying rape (the naughty trouble makers!). Source: Dharambir Goyat, Congress party spokesperson, Haryana. Eating fast food like chowmein (or presumably Maggi noodles) causes rape. The consumption of this kind of food – burgers and pizzas, for example – creates a hormonal imbalance in men, makes their animal instincts veer out of control, and their increased sexual desire manifests itself as rape. Source: Jitender Chhatar, Khap Panchayat leader, Haryana. If you go to a nightclub, drink too much and talk to men who are strangers, then you really shouldn’t complain when you are raped. Honestly, what were you doing there in the first place? Source: Madan Mitra, minister in the Mamata Banerjee government of West Bengal (a view never repudiated by the woman chief minister herself, who later categorised the rape cases in her state as a ‘criminal conspiracy’.) If you get raped, and the rape is ‘legitimate’ (as in you are not making this stuff up to make yourself sound more interesting) then the body has a way to ‘shut itself down’ and you will not get pregnant. (All those women who do get pregnant after being raped? Whose bodies didn’t ‘shut down’? Well, we know what to think about them, don’t we?) Source: Todd Akin, US Congressman who is running for the Senate as a Republican candidate. If you do get pregnant as a consequence of being raped (you dirty slag, you!) then abortion is not an option. Because even if it is conceived in an act of rape, a child is still a ‘gift from God’. Yes, this is what God himself intended. Source: Richard Mourdock, US Senate candidate. Some rapes are more serious than others. In the case of an 18 year-old man having sex with an underage girl, or in cases of date rape, the crime is less serious than other rapes and deserves a lesser punishment. Source: Kenneth Clarke, Justice Secretary, United Kingdom. Yes, this is what political leaders across the world – not just in backward, obscurantist Haryana but in such developed, enlightened countries as the USA and the UK – believe about rape. Honestly, what can you do but laugh? Because if you didn’t laugh, you would have to cry: at the ignorance; the insensitivity; and the sheer stupidity of it all.

HERE ISN’T a day that goes by in India when you open a newspaper and don’t see a news item (or four) about rape. There’s the Dalit girl who is gangraped by upper-caste men in her Haryana village. There is the Mumbai professional who is raped by an acquaintance because she dared say no. There is the Bangalore student who is dragged away from a parked car and raped by a group of men who believe that because she is making out with one man she must be ‘up for it’ with them as well. There’s the girl who set herself on fire because she couldn’t live with the stigma of being a rape victim. And then, there’s the father who kills himself when he is shown video clips of his daughter being molested by a group of men. Given the staggering number of rape stories that emerge from India every day, there really isn’t much more than we can learn about this crime, is there? We know that it is not so much about sex as it is about power. We know that such is the aura of shame that surrounds the crime that the victim ends up feeling much more at fault than the perpetrator. And we know that society plays into that feeling of guilt by effectively telling the woman that, in one way or the other, she asked for it. But that doesn’t stop political leaders across the world from giving us the benefit of their wisdom on the subject of rape. And here, in no particular order of importance is what I have learnt about rape from these worthies. Marrying late causes rape. Young men and women have sexual desires; so as soon as they reach puberty, they should be married off so that they do not ‘stray’. In other words, the best way of ensuring that rape does not occur is by making sure that girls and boys are married off as minors. Because, as we know, married women never get raped, and married men only ever have sex – consensual or forced – with their wives. Source: Sube Singh, Khap Panchayat leader in Haryana. This view was later endorsed by Om Prakash Chautala, a former chief minNOVEMBER 4, 2012

We know that rape is not so much about sex as it is about power

seema_ht@rediffmail.com. Follow Seema on Twitter at twitter.com/seemagoswami

indulge

hindustantimes.com/brunch

A POST iPOD PLAYLIST

With all my music gone, here is a fresh start by raiding other people’s playlists, revisiting old CDs stashed away, and consulting podcast reviews!

EXCLAMATION OUTCRY!

(Above) Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend! has the same ambient, spaced-out sound you expect from the band Godspeed You! Black Emperor (below)

THE JUKEBOX

Sanjoy Narayan

download central

COUPLE OF weeks ago, within days of each other, two of my iPods breathed their last. The 160 GB Classic (circa 2009) gave up the ghost first. It simply lost all of the 120 GB or so of music that it had on it. And then, my alltime favourite, the eight-year-old 40 GB went kaput. On both of these I’d stashed away loads of songs, many of which were un-backed up; there were carefully (at least that’s what I think!) curated playlists: clustered according to genres, live recordings, year of recording, favourites, and so on. And then poof! All gone. The pain of losing all of those categorised digital files has many aspects and this is something I’m still dealing with, but the worst thing about the demise of those two iPods is how cumbersome accessing music on the go has become. My phone and a late-model Nano offer some solutions to the portability problem but it’s not the same as having things organised for easy access. I’ve put off getting myself another iPod and I’m trying to make do in a couple of other ways. One such is to raid other people’s playlists. Last week, I snagged the new album from the exclamation mark-loving Canadian band, Godspeed You! Black Emperor – Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend! – from my daughter’s playlist. I’d heard this so-called post-rock band’s first album, F#A# , and another, Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven, but nothing much else. Godspeed You! make largely instrumental music and are often characterised as a chamber pop band. That, I think, is an unfair categorisation. Their music is almost always elaborate with their typically long tracks (it’s not uncommon for a track to be 15 minutes or longer) beginning deceptively softly and then building up into a crescendo. GY!BE are more of a collective than a band and date back to 1994, the same year that the person I snagged their new album from dates back to. The exclamation mark in the band’s name has changed position over the years (it was at the end of their name and now it’s in the middle) but their music hasn’t, even after a sort of break-up for a number of years. Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend! comes a decade after their previous album, Yanqui U.X.O., came out, and it has the same ambient, spaced-out sound. It’s a very versatile album as I found – you can play it softly in the background at work and yet not affect whatever else you might be working on; you can blast it on the headphones and trip on it very satisfactorily; and it also works as an accompaniment on a commute if you’re in the car. GY!BE don’t get talked about much as they don’t do too much self-publicity but that doesn’t stop their albums from getting rave reviews in some quarters. Their new album has been Photo: PRESTOR

NOVEMBER 4, 2012

eople Get Ready is a Brooklynbased band that combines music and performance – indierock and dance. They’re a dancetroupe-cum-band that is very unconventional and their live shows are supposed to be spectacular. Moreover, they got funding through Kickstarter, the funding platform for creative ventures. On the musician-friendly Bandcamp website, you can buy their eponymous album for a price you can name. Worth checking them out.

FRUITY PUNK, WARTS & ALL

Turbo Fruits’ 2009 album, Echo Kid (left), is a punchy take on southern rock. Die-hard fans of the jam band moe. like to call themselves moe.rons (below)

rated at 9.3 (out of 10) by Pitchfork, which has also affixed a ‘Best New Music’ tag to the review. The other band that found itself on my playlist last week was Turbo Fruits, a southern band from the US, which is nice and muscular and classically punk. Their songs, unlike GY!BE, can’t be played as ambient music. You can’t really be doing something such as work while listening to Turbo Fruits. They have lyrics, they have swagger and they have a generous addition of southern spice to their garage-y punk music. I got pointed to Turbo Fruits by a podcast review of this year’s CMJ Music Festival, a marathon music fest where tons of bands descend on New York City annually to play massive numbers of shows. Turbo Fruits was one of them and the podcast played a track off their latest album, Butter. I couldn’t get Butter, so I went and got another of their albums, 2009’s Echo Kid. Punchy and unpretentious, their music is a very contemporary take on southern rock. My recco: play them very loud. The third album on my post-iPod playlist last week was a relatively ancient one and the source for this was my long-neglected CD shelves. Faced with the unpleasant task of scouring the backup hard drives looking for what else I could play, I opted instead for doing a random pick out of my stash of CDs from years past. I got moe., a jam band from New York state’s Buffalo area. It was the first volume of the band’s Warts and All series, which is made up of all live recordings. It’s a three-CD album that is nearly a dozen years old and has some of the band’s earliest songs. moe., like most other jam bands, are best heard live and Warts And All: Volume 1 is a very lively but long listen, replete with the band’s trademark improvisation. If you’re not into jam bands, you may not be over fond of the moe. sound or the long noodling and meandering nature of their songs, but there’s a version of a Ramones’ song that they do on the album (I Wanna Be Sedated) that you may like even if you’re not a moe.-head. In reality, die-hard fans of moe. don’t call themselves that. They like to call themselves moe.rons. More reason for some people to be put off by the band. To give feedback, stream or download the music mentioned in this column, go to http://blogs.hindustantimes.com/download-central, follow argus48 on Twitter

indulge

THE MICROSOFT GAMBLE

Is Windows 8 for you? I would say an unequivocal yes! This is an OS that you need to try out for sure

SMOOTH OPERATOR

The verdict on Windows 8: It’s slicker, faster and overall you feel good after you’ve given it a twirl. It’s also much cheaper – with better security

DEVICE DEVISE

The Lenovo Yoga (above); the Toshiba-Win RT-clamshell (left)

Rajiv Makhni

THE DEVICES

HEADLINE 1

Windows 8 demand outpaces Windows 7: Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer (Windows 7 is the best-selling version of Windows so far, selling more than 675 million OS licences) HEADLINE 2

Little demand for Microsoft’s Windows 8, says poll (52 per cent hadn’t heard of it, 61 per cent had little interest in buying a new Win 8 device and only 35 per cent believe it’ll be an improvement) Yes, both headlines are about the same product and yes, both contradict each other massively. And in the World of Technology, that is just another normal day at work. This is centre stage and ground zero in what is going to turn out to be the greatest gamble the world of technology has ever seen. Microsoft Windows 8 is as big a deal as Bill Gates and the first time he introduced Windows to the world. Very rarely does a company completely reboot its biggest cash cow from the ground up. This is one of them!

THE QUESTIONS ON WIN 8

So what is Windows 8 all about it? Why is Microsoft spending a billion dollars to make sure you hear about it? What’s so new about it? What’s all this hoopla about radical new devices that run Windows 8? Why is everyone so excited about the touch capabilities? Is it better than Win 7 or even XP? And of course, the big one, should you be rushing out and buying it? Lots of questions, very less space to answer them. So let’s get down to it.

THE OS ITSELF

This is the even bigger deal. Windows 8 has spurred some fantastic innovation into hardware makers. It’s like each of them got a serious jolt of creativity and are now out-gunning and out-thinking each other. Due to the unique mix of touch, apps, live tiles, desktop, gestures and traditional computing, almost every Win 8 device has some new trick up its sleeve. There are transformers, hybrids, convertibles, screens that swivel, keyboards that slide, desktops that lie down flat and become computing tables, tablets that can become ultrabooks, covers that are full-fledged keyboards – it’s a riot of form factors out there. Add to that better battery life, better screen displays, instant on, fast reboot and a whole lot more. Face it! For the last 10 years, computing has looked boring and nauseatingly insipid. Windows 8 may just change all that dramatically. However, it’s somewhat restrictive. You have to boot into live tiles, you don’t have a start button (this, more than anything else, has people staring at the screen wondering what do next), after the first 30 minutes you do have some OS fatigue setting in as it has too much going on, it’s like mastering two OSes cobbled into one, it’s also trying to pander to too many form factors with one OS (tablet, hybrid, notebook, desktop). And as you spend more time with it, you realise that there is a learning curve to go to the next level. Keyboard combinations are new, windows can’t be resized everywhere, not all the major apps you needs are in yet, you get booted to Win 7 if something isn’t compatible, the aero look isn’t as refined, the move from the live tiles area to the desktop isn’t seamless, some of the apps don’t have the full functionality of their desktop versions (Internet Explorer for example) and at times there is a wastage of screen space. Also, the difference between Windows 8 (the full-fledged version) and Windows RT (mainly for tablets and low power consumption devices) is still quite confusing. Time to get down to brass tacks. Is Windows 8 for you? I would say an unequivocal yes! This is an OS that you need to try out for sure. This is Microsoft shedding its fuddy-duddy cloak and getting in some true slickness. It’s the realisation that they were becoming redundant in a world where smartphone and tablets users were rejecting its traditional Windows approach. No, it’s not perfect and no, they haven’t got everything right. But strangely and rather uniquely, for a major reboot, they’ve got most things right. Give it a twirl and tell me if you believe the greatest gamble in the world of technology has worked out or not!

There are tablets that can now become ultrabooks

It’s very nice-looking, it’s a breath of fresh air, design cues and nice touches abound all over, and there’s overall smartness everywhere. Your Windows 8 device comes on instantly, the lock screen itself has a huge amount of live info on it (email, news, social stuff), passwords can be pictures and gestures, once logged in, you go straight into the live tiles area (apps and services constantly updating in a very neat and colourful way), even your desktop is an app window,

A NEW SPIN ON COMPUTING

gestures work very well, each corner and side of the screen is smart and has functionality, the touch part works well and is very intuitive, the learning curve is minimal and getting started is easy. It’s slicker, faster and overall you feel good after you’ve given it a twirl. It’s also much cheaper – with better security.

techilicious

Due to the unique mix of touch, apps, live tiles, desktop, gestures and traditional computing, almost every Win 8 device has some new trick up its sleeve NOVEMBER 4, 2012

Rajiv Makhni is managing editor, Technology, NDTV, and the anchor of Gadget Guru, CellGuru and Newsnet 3. Follow Rajiv on Twitter at twitter.com /RajivMakhni

T R AV E L

Feeling French In Canada Go back in time and explore the birth of French America in historical Quebec City by Kinjal Dagli-Shah

HE TRUE beauty of Quebec City lies in the fact that it must be felt more than seen. History and culture can be found in many European cities, but it is in this North American city that the two combine with a sense of joie de vivre that has to be experienced to be understood. A pair of walking shoes, a taste or wine and a willingness to take in our centuries of history and architecture are all that is required to bask in what is known as the cradle of French civilisation in North America. Old Quebec, the historic neighbourhood of Quebec City, is easy to navigate through. Despite the higher cost of accommodation, this part of the city is ideal. This is a great opportunity to be surrounded by fortifications dating back to the 17th century and to live in what has been declared as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

WHAT TO SEE

Old Quebec can be easily covered on foot, if you are ready to climb up and down its cobblestone slopes. For the faint-hearted, there are buggy rides to take you on a guided tour of the fortifications for Canadian dollar 80 (approx R4,300) for a few hours. There is also an electric bus, Ecolobus, at just a dollar a ride. Whether on hooves, feet or wheels, there are some must-sees in Quebec City: ST LAWRENCE RIVER AND CHATEAU FRONTENAC: The

mighty St Lawrence River, on the cape of which the grand Hotel Chateau Frontenac sits, is a lifeline for the Quebec province. It is one of the longest rivers in the world and a walk along the Dufferin Terrace is a must. This comes alive with bands and joggers during the summers. It owes its name to Lord Dufferin, a former governor who fought against the demolition

Photo: SKARG AT EN.WIKIPEDIA

GROUND ZERO

The British and French armies once clashed at Battlefields Park

of the fortifications that give the city its character. The Chateau Frontenac is probably Canada’s most photographed building. Built in seven stages from 1892-1893, it evokes the romanticism of the 14th and 15th century architectural heritage of historic towns along the Loire River in France. PLACE ROYALE: This is the birthplace of French America. It was here that the first permanent settlement was founded by Samuel de Champlain in 1608. It used to be the hub of commerce, and is now abuzz with old-style restaurants and boutique shops selling blown glassware and animal furs. One can climb down the many steps from Chateau Frontenac to this site or take the cable car for CAD2 (approx R100) a ride. NOTRE-DAME OF QUEBEC: The first Catholic parish and cathedral in Canada, this is a five-minute walk from the Chateau Frontenac. Built in 1647, this church was ravaged twice by fire through the centuries. PLAINS OF ABRAHAM OR BATTLEFIELDS PARK: Only North

America can convert its war zones into parks. Once the site of clashes between the British and French armies, Battlefields Park was created in 1908. The more than 103 hectares of gardens are one of the largest urban parks in the world. CITADELLE OF QUEBEC: Located on Cap Diamant (Cape Diamond), the star-shaped Citadelle constitutes the eastern side of Quebec’s fortifications. Its construction began in 1820 and lasted more than 30 years. Take a guided WALKING ON SUNSHINE

The Dufferin Terrace comes alive with bands and joggers during the summer

NOVEMBER 4, 2012

BIRTHPLACE OF FRENCH AMERICA

A visit to Place Royale in Lower Town is like travelling back in time tour for CAD10 (R540). If you’re here at noon, you will hear a cannon being shot across the nearby plains. While inside, don’t forget to take a free tour of the Residence of the Governor General at the Citadelle. MUSEUM OF CIVILIZATION: A popular museum in Quebec City. There are at least 10 exhibitions to view, and guided tours in English. Admission is CAD14 (approx R740). MONTMORENCY FALLS: Take an entire day to travel 12 km northeast of Quebec City to enjoy these impressive falls. Their claim to fame is the fact that they are 98 feet higher than Niagara Falls, although considerably lesser in volume. The falls are at the mouth of the Montmorency river, where it drops over the

WATER, WATER, EVERYWHERE

Montmorency Falls (above) are 98 feet higher than the Niagara Falls cliff into the St Lawrence River. A suspension bridge over the crest of the falls is ideal to walk on for a spectacular view. Some 487 steps have also been built to view the falls from different angles. An aerial tram carries passengers between the foot and top of the falls for CAD10.

NIGHTLIFE

SHOPPING

An array of antiques, blown glass, wooden sculptures, furs and jewellery beckon. You can also buy maple products, chocolates, cheese, wines and fine liqueurs. Quebec City boasts of five of the largest shopping centres in North America. And if you’re in North America, can shopping be far behind! brunchletters@hindustantimes.com

NOVEMBER 4, 2012

VISA: Indians need a visa. Visit www.vfs-canada.co.in FLIGHTS: There are no direct flights to Quebec from India. Fly to Toronto and book a domestic flight on Air Canada or Porter Airlines ROAD: From Toronto rent a car to drive down to Quebec City. The distance: 795 km BUS: Chinese-operated bus tours ply from Toronto to Quebec City but they cover Montreal and Ottawa on the way WEATHER: The best time to visit is between May and September, but winter fans can visit between October and April too ■ Carry a good pair of walking shoes and a light sweater if you’re travelling between June and September ■ Be prepared to survive on pizzas if you’re vegetarian ■ One Canadian dollar (CAD) equals R54 approximately ■ The Winter Carnival takes place in February. Temperatures range between -10 and -25 degrees Photos: THINKSTOCK

Tourists this year got treated to the famous acrobats of Cirque du Soleil. In a rare instance, they performed for free. While Quebec City does have pubs and dance clubs, its cultural nightlife surpasses the modern kind. Here’s where you should head to: IMAGE MILLS: This open-air spectacle takes place at the old port on some weeknights. Using grain elevators as projection screens, this hour-long visual extravaganza combines music, laser, animation and movies to put together a fete that is unique and unforgettable, for free. PARLIAMENT HILL: The architecture of the Parliament Building is best viewed when it is lit up at night. Across the building stands the Tourny Fountain, gifted to the City of Quebec on its 400th anniversary by a family-owned local retail store.

CHECK LIST

WELLNESS

hindustantimes.com/brunch Photo: THINKSTOCK

MIND BODY SOUL

THE SOLUTION

SHIKHA SHARMA

Festive Fit

HERE ARE festivities all around and everyone is getting into party mode. That involves tons of socialising, drinking and eating. But there are ways to balance things out. Just chalk out a plan and follow it night after night of partying. The first thing you need to do is count calories. Remember to give your body all essential nutrients.

RIGHT PROPORTION

The key aspect of eating right is satiety. Make a diet plan that makes you feel full while lowering your calorie intake. Most diets leave you feeling hungry all the time. Just eat low-calorie food that is rich in fibre to feel full for a longer period of time. Opt for: ■ White oats upma or dalia with bottle gourd, tomatoes, onions and beans. ■ Baked vegetables such as capsicum, cabbage, onions and mushrooms. ■ Whole wheat bread, oat bread or whole wheat pasta. ■ Kala chana chaat and green moong dal sprout chaat. ■ Roasted murmura and chana chaat with cucumber, tomatoes and onions.

REBOOT YOUR BODY

Eat fresh fruit and drink chamomile tea to detoxify your body

DON’T MIX THESE

There are some foods that should not be combined: SUGAR AND ALCOHOL Combining sugar with alcohol leads to digestive problems because they are both calorie dense. Also, avoid combining fruit juice with alcohol as it increases acidity. FRIED FOOD AND ALCOHOL Alcohol is high in calories, and when consumed with fried food is plain unhealthy. It leads to weight gain and hyperacidity. FRUITS AND OTHER KINDS OF FOOD Sugar in fruits is absorbed faster than the sugars in food, which need more processing time and are tougher to break down. MELONS WITH ANYTHING Never combine melon with any food – fruits, veg-

etables, meat or starch. Melons are basically made of water and get digested immediately. Other fruits like banana take more than an hour to digest. If you combine the two, the melon would rot in your body before it is digested.

STOP BINGING

Binging is characterised by periods of overeating. You may diet for a long time but if you binge after that, you will gain weight. That is what happens during festivals.

BREAK BINGE EATING ■ Eat three meals a day.

■ Eat when hungry. Stop when full. ■ Eat any food you want but in

controlled portions. ■ Learn to manage stress. ■ Rate your hunger (both physical hunger and psychological hunger).

If you have already binged, start a detox plan. This plan will get rid of the excessive bloating, support the liver and cleanse your intestine. Here’s what you should eat: ■ Oats porridge. ■ Drink milk with Isabgol to regulate your bowel movement. ■ Muesli and yogurt. ■ Stir-fried vegetables (with low salt). ■ Fresh fruit. ■ Drink green and chamomile tea. ■ Take triphala, amla or aloe vera juice.

HYDRATE YOURSELF

A person should consume approximately two to three litres of fluid every day. Water plays an important role in almost every body function, including: ■ Temperature regulation. ■ Transportation of oxygen and nutrients through the blood. ■ Aids in elimination of waste. ■ Gives cells their shape and stability.

MELON CRAZY

Don’t mix melons with other food items

ask@drshikha.com

Photos: MCT

PERSONAL AGENDA

hindustantimes.com/brunch

Actor

Kabir Bedi BIRTHDAY HOMETOWN January 16 (Capricorn)

PLACE

SCHOOL/COLLEGE

Delhi. But now I live in the OF BIRTH Delhi Public School and Sherwood, city once known as Bombay India Nainital/St Stephen’s, Delhi

HIGH POINT OF YOUR LIFE

LOW POINT OF YOUR LIFE

FIRST BREAK CURRENTLY DOING

Becoming film Sandokan, which made me a Death of my son, Siddharth, chief of Lintas star in Europe; being knight- 25, after he graduated from Advertising at Carnegie Mellon University the age of 23 ed by the Italian Republic If you could trade your sexy voice for someone else’s, who would it be? I adore The Chipmunks. You’re the desi Bond. Name your favourite Bond film and the two women you would woo. Casino Royale, for sure. And I would woo Priyanka Chopra and Chitrangada Singh. One film/TV show you regret doing? I don’t want to remind anyone of that stuff. The play/role you’d want to enact on Broadway? Salieri in Amadeus, or Shah Jahan in John Murrell’s Taj, which I performed at the Luminato Festival last year in Toronto. If you were the editor of Playboy, who would you put on the cover? The pill. It revolutionised sex. Men should worship it. If looks could kill, who would be your first victim? I don’t believe in murder. The most alluring vamp on screen? Vamps no longer exist. Stars have taken their roles. The biggest risk you’ve ever taken? Leaving a good corporate job in advertising to become an actor. You’re the PM of our country for a day. What would your first step be? Order a national referendum

YOUR FAVOURITE COMIC BOOK HERO?

Now, Batman. When I was young, The Phantom

Acting, writing, presenting and activism

for adopting a Presidential system of governance. A close second – a strong Lok Pal Bill. A rumour you would like to start? Aliens have landed in India. However, some people already believe it. A fictional character you wish you were? Not many. Maybe Howard Roark in Ayn Rand’s Fountainhead... A book that puts you to sleep? If a book could do that, I would stop reading it. If someone was to make a TV show based on your life, who would you cast as Kabir Bedi? We’re not at the casting stage yet! Food items you can’t live without? Fried eggs, marmalade on buttered toast and a cup of tea. Sounds like perfection, doesn’t it?! The perfect pick-up line in your opinion? There’s nothing called a perfect pick-up line. Men always have to face the risk of rejection. The craziest thing a fan has said to you? Once, a fan in Madrid shouted, “I want your baby!” A piece of advice you wish someone gave you 10 years ago. Invest in property. Though prices looked surreal even then. What would you like to be remembered for? Having made the world a better place in some way. — Interviewed by Shreya Sethuraman

NOVEMBER 4, 2012

my movies

A MOVIE YOU WOULD WATCH WHEN YOU’RE FEELING LOW...

The British Carry On series

WHEN YOU’RE IN HIGH SPIRITS...

James Bond movies. After all, I played the villain Gobinda in Octopussy A MOVIE YOU CAN GO BACK TO?

Gandhi and Dr Zhivago

Photo: AJAY AGGARWAL

FIRST MOVIE YOU SAW ON THE BIG SCREEN

I watched Insaniyat when I was seven. And Zippy the Chimp that made me laugh a lot