Hindustan Times Brunch 28 April 2013 by Hindustan Times

WEEKLY MAGAZINE, APRIL 28, 2013 Free with your copy of Hindustan Times

How Amish and his wife Preeti marketed The Shiva Trilogy to make it Indian publishing’s biggest success

indulge

VIR SANGHVI

On eat street in Singapore

SEEMA GOSWAMI

What’s wrong with tears in public?

RAJIV MAKHNI

Wearable technology

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

hindustantimes.com/brunch

by Rachel Lopez

by Shreya Sethuraman

At Home With Amish

LOVE IT

or this week’s cover story, I met Amish Tripathi and his wife Preeti at their Mumbai home. Most writers are odd. They ramble. They grumble about the Net. They don’t get Twitter. Amish and Preeti, however, were oddballs of a different sort. When I posed questions, they all but finished each other’s sentences. When they posed with a Scrabble board for pictures, they actually got competitive. Their fouryear-old, Neel, kept racing from room to room, pretending he was one of 16 species of dinosaur. And after the interview, they thanked me, looked at each other and said: “OK! Done! Tickmarked!” Fans, make of this what you will.

SHOVE IT

Khadi kurtas. Especially those from Ahmedabad ■ All hail Chris Gayle. 100 off 30 balls. WOW! ■ Mango juice. It’s elixir! ■ Hot stone massage. For your sore shoulders... ■ Stuffed toys

■ The scorching heat Mood swings ■ Six-day working week. We need proper weekends ■ Fried food. Aren’t salads way better? ■ Birthday ‘reminders’. Really now!

■

Apples and Oranges

by Amrah Ashraf

Donald Draper v/s Harvey Specter

What is it about Donald Draper (Mad Men) and Harvey Specter (Suits) that women find so irresistible? Is it the power whip they crack ever so often, their best-cut suits, their slick pulled-back hair or their office view, which looks out to heaven? It’s all of that and the fact that they put Greek gods to shame. And well, women love men with a vice! They’re alike in many ways – but who is hotter?

SUIT UP Don is vintage, and everything vintage is precious. His perennially crisp white shirt, retro tie and pocket square are absolutely stunning. But alas, his suits don’t match up to Harvey Specter.

Harvey Specter dresses like a boss. His straight-off-Savile Row look evokes strength, from the three-piece suit to the spread collar and the Windsor knot. Tom Ford, you reckon?

SHE ANSWERS HIS CALLS

Free Advice

by Mignonne Dsouza

Expand your weekend Leave on Friday night Wouldn’t it be nice to wake up on Saturday morning to a lavish breakfast buffet, or even an early morning dip? You can make that happen by leaving for your weekend destination on Friday night rather than the next day. This way, you get to enjoy all of Saturday, and even escape the traffic heading out of town. Leave early on Saturday If you can’t manage to leave on Cover design: MONICA GUPTA; Cover photo: KALPAK PATHAK; Location: EAT AROUND THE CORNER, MUMBAI

He’s had too many secretaries. Peggy was meh. Ida Blankenship was old and comically incompetent. Allison’s good. But she’s nothing like Specter’s Donna. You can’t argue there. Okay, this is where Donald eats the cake and has it too, literally! Some women want to mother the brooding man with a dark past, others fall in love with him. He just beds them all.

Return on Monday morning There’s no reason why you can’t head straight to office directly from a hotel. Since most people would check out by late Sunday afternoon, you’ll end up having the resort largely to yourself.

APRIL 28, 2013

With those looks, he should be in bed more often than Barney Stinson. But he has a run worse than Chandler Bing. Harvey is rarely seen with women. A deliberate choice, or is he bad in bed?

CARRY FORWARD THE LEGACY

Friday evening, consider a VERY early start on Saturday morning. If your kids are still asleep, load them into the car anyway.

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

Donna Paulsen is Harvey’s executive assistant. She is dramatic. She is stunning. She is loyal. She is witty. And more importantly, Harvey can’t do without her. Neither can we.

UNDER THE SHEETS

Well, Don makes smoking look really cool. But kids, don’t be fooled. He might look irresistibly hot with a stick between his lips, but think of all the awesome genes he is killing. Not cool!

Only have two days for a break? Here’s how to make the most of every minute

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

Photos: THINKSTOCK

On The Brunch Radar

Brunch Opinion

Photo: KALPAK PATHAK

Harvey doesn’t smoke. Okay, a doobie once in a while, but never tobacco. The thought of baby Harveys in baby suits with that trademark smirk is just too beautiful a thought to dismiss.

BITE THAT, MAYBE? Don scores here. He’s a grown-up, and we like a man with stubble and trouble.

Sure he’s delicious too, but Harvey is a little too clean and smooth for our liking.

TAKE HOME TO MOMMY Not this guy. Donald Draper isn’t even his real name! Forget mommy, even we don’t approve.

Harvey is no angel either. But he’ll find a way to outsmart even the sharpest mum.

THE VERDICT Harvey, obviously. You could argue. But we are Harvey loyalists. So Don lovers, hard luck! Drop us a line at: brunchletters@ hindustantimes.com or to 18-20 Kasturba Gandhi Marg, New Delhi 110001

FOR ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES, PLEASE CONTACT Sanchita Tyagi – sanchita.tyagi@hindustantimes.com Siddarth Chopra - siddharth.chopra@hindustantimes.com Karishma Makhija – karishma.makhija@hindustantimes.com Francisco Lobo – francisco.lobo@hindustantimes.com

VA R I E T Y

Photos: SHUTTERSTOCK, THINKSTOCK

Do you obsessively take pictures of everything you eat, or do you think it’s plain rude? by Shreya Sethuraman

OU’RE AT a fancy restaurant and place an order for your favourite dish. While you wait for it to arrive, you ‘check in’ via Facebook. When the dish is eventually placed on your table, you begin taking pictures of it. After getting the ‘perfect’ shot, you share it online, and finally, dig in. However, imagine a scenario where the wait staff prevents you from doing so. It’s happening in some restaurants in New York. So, is this a shock or a big relief? Mumbai-based food and wine writer Antoine Lewis (he carries his iPad to restaurants specifically to take food shots) explains why some restaurants have decided to intervene. “Chefs believe food must be had at the right temperature, and the food they prepare is the representation of their restaurant,” he says. “Besides, an amateur is not really equipped with the skills to take good pictures.” That rule sounds the death knell for food bloggers like Charis Bhagianathan. “I know it can be irri-

prefers asking for permission before she begins. “Be sensitive to others. And never, ever use a flash,” she says. PR executive Shipra Sharma believes the practice makes you tating for others, but I can’t eat if I in the last two years. “People now seem like a wannabe. “We’re at a don’t take photos,” she says. have an opinion and want to express restaurant, not a photography workthemselves,” she explains. shop! Besides, just because you have HOW IT BEGAN a swanky phone doesn’t mean you The reason we now shoot our food VICARIOUS EATING shoot everything,” she says. so much is simple: we can. We’re so Many people believe that if you The social media boom has been used to recording every bit of our share pictures of what you’re eating, a big catalyst. “Apps like Instagram lives – the weekend escape, the you’re sharing your allow people to be sleeping dog, the cute party outfit – dining experience creative with their that it was inevitable we capture our with others. “I think food pictures,” says gastronomic adventures too. it’s one of the best food writer Smartphones have transformed ways to compliment Ghildiyal. even non-food bloggers into people a chef,” says Nishant People usually who record what they eat. “Food Choubey, executive ‘check in’ via blogging started with folks just writsous chef with Dusit Facebook, so that ing about food they enjoyed,” says Devarana, New their friends know Bhagianathan. “Slowly the scope Delhi, a Bird Group where they’re dining. DEEBA RAJPAL, grew to include reviews and ads.” Resort. “We’re only helping Delhi food blogger Today, every other tech-friendly Saurabh Khanijo, the restaurants we’re person blogs about food. The picCEO, Kylin Premier, which serves dining at gain more popularity. Why tures might be tempting, but what Pan Asian cuisine, disagrees. would any chef have a problem?” about the accompanying text? Despite Kylin’s menu asking people wonders Delhi consultant and foodie Mumbai food writer Rushina not to take pictures, it’s difficult to Smita Bhattacharya. Ghildiyal explains why food blogging control them when they’re on a So, will a rule banning has become so popular. “Our phones clicking spree. “Customers are often trigger-happy photographers in now have brilliant cameras. And offended when they’re asked to stop restaurants work in India? “No,” today, restaurants run after blogtaking pictures,” he says. says Lewis. “It’s too new for India, gers,” she says. She adds that food Delhi food blogger where we’re still getting accustomed blogging has seen a significant boom Deeba Rajpal to restaurant etiquette. Banning people from taking pictures will be a foolhardy decision.” Agrees DelhiHOW TO GET THE PLATE TO POSE based pastry chef Kishi Arora. Aspiring food photographers, follow these tips and you’re good to go! “Word of mouth publicity is the best publicity,” he says. tableware. That will only end up as ■ Get a table with the best light. Low shadows, and thus, give you lighting at restaurants means Still, when you’re eating out next something unflattering. you would want to use a flash time, it might be polite to ask fel■ Have a clean background. and in turn, disturb others. low diners for permission before ■ Have the staff place the dish on the ■ Position your your fingers go click click. You table rather than serve it to you. dish in the don’t want anyone to photobomb ■ Don’t take too long, especially if best way your risotto, do you? you’re dining with others. possible.

“Be sensitive to others in the restaurant, and never, ever use a flash ”

■ Avoid unnecessary

APRIL 28, 2013

Courtesy: Antoine Lewis

shreya.sethuraman@hindustantimes.com

C OV E R STO RY

Behind

The Bestseller

A husband who’s more than an author; a wife who’s more than a marketer. How Amish Tripathi and Preeti Vyas changed Indian publishing with The Shiva Trilogy by Rachel Lopez

The worst bit about being married to a successful author?

Photo: KALPAK PATHAK

“Everything I used to nag about has now been legitimised. The time he spends watching battle scenes on TV is now research. Being spaced out is justified as thinking of a plot twist” – Preeti

HE WRITER and columnist Anil Dharker has an astute way of describing Amish Tripathi, author of the Shiva Trilogy (The Immortals of Meluha, The Secret of the Nagas and the recently released The Oath of the Vayuputras). “Amish has a self belief possibly bordering on arrogance,” Dharker says. It’s a compliment. Tripathi, the banker whose manuscript was famously rejected by 20-odd publishers (he also showed a copy to Dharker only to ignore his every suggestion), has become India’s

BUSINESS PARTNER

Almost everyone who works with Tripathi – his agent, publisher, literary festival organisers, publicists, distributors and retailers – credits the author’s wife Preeti Vyas for being the driving force behind the marketing of the books. Call her a backseat driving force – fastest selling author. Vyas has no official Your Over 1.7 million copies designation, no Excel files of his books have defined post in the were once filled been sold, ringing backstage drama with character bios, up R40 crore and of the Shiva which never made it earning him an Trilogy. But she’s to the book. What’s unprecedented R5 hard to miss. crore advance for Unlike most in them now? his next series. It authors’ family My accounts! – Amish couldn’t have come members or spouses, without self belief and Vyas accompanies almost-arrogance. Tripathi to meetings, records But as Tripathi readily the minutes, ideates alongacknowledges, it also couldn’t have side everyone else, emails come without some very calchecklists and pushes ideas further culated risks and a wife than they’d normally go. At events who headed the marshe’s the one double-checking with keting machinery the staff about seating and eventwithout playing a flow details. “The philosophical formal role in the inputs for the book may have come making of the bestfrom Amish’s family, the marketing sellers. “I think I and event ideas all come from was damn lucky to Preeti,” says Sangram Surve, have advisers who founder of Think Why Not, the had nothing to do agency behind most of the Shiva with publishing,” Trilogy promos. Tripathi admits. Consider the February 26 launch “In any indusfor Vayuputras at Crossword’s flagship Mumbai store in Kemps try, the people Corner. Where most releases are with the freshest humdrum affairs – author reads ideas usually come extract, has obligatory discussion from outside.” with fellow literary type, fields audience questions, signs flyleaves, exits – this one was different. An hour before the 10pm launch, fans

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had already lined up outside, chanting “Har Har Mahadev!” Some were dressed as characters from the series; others sported tattoos featuring artwork from the books. There were bouncers for crowd control, numbered tokens to prevent queue jumping and MCs to entertain everyone. Inside, once you squeezed in, it was even more of a circus. Artists painted Shiva body art for obliging fans. Dancers performed to music especially created for the book. It was Indian publishing’s biggest party. Kajol and Shekhar Kapur were there. But the biggest star was Tripathi himself, giving autographs and thanking people for coming. And it was all the brain-

TEAM OF TWO

The reason Amish and Preeti work so well together is probably because they’ve had such an early headstart. The college sweethearts met in 1990, standing in line for their ID cards at Mumbai’s St Xavier’s College. “She was ahead of me and asked for gum, or was it scissors?” Amish recalls. They married roughly a decade later at age 24.

“The thing I’ve always liked about Amish is that he’s so stable and detached from everything” Preeti says: “Back in college, we worked like crazy to make Amish the chairperson for Malhar [the college festival]. When he was finally elected, I was the one jumping all over the place. He was so calm, it was like nothing had happened.”

“Preeti has taught me to enjoy life a lot more” Amish, on the other hand, was attracted to Preeti’s exuberance. “She fully experiences the joys of life,” he says. “I think I was a slightly boring guy before we met. She taught me to loosen up.”

child of Vyas. And when the time came to proAs a wife and marketer, Vyas has mote Immortals, the first novel from a writer no one had heard of, helped Tripathi at “all the critical Vyas suggested that bookstores points,” says Dharker. Back offer free copies of the opening when he was working on his chapter to customers. The strategy first manuscript, writing in the got readers to return, buy the book back of his car on the way to and make Immortals a bestseller work, the writing-guide method within a week of its release. of creating character sketches More recently, Vyas took over would keep interfering with the trilogy’s success party at the storytelling. It was a five-star hotel. Guests Vyas who suggested drank milky “somrass” her husband abanout of earthen cups, don the template The best part little dumroos at and write as if he about being a every table allowed was recording a successful for a different kind of story unfolding in author? audience applause, a parallel universe Reading is now tax buffet items were instead. deductible! named to reflect charac– Amish ters and locations in the novels, and everyone went home with a souvenir – a scroll bearing the Pashupati seal that features prominently in the books. The only thing missing, as someone cheekily announced over the speakers that evening, was a chillum of hashish.

DEFINING DETAILS

“If Amish had found his calling in any other field, I’d probably have been just a supportive wife,” says Vyas, who owned and ran a children’s bookstore and launched Pantaloon’s

APRIL 28, 2013

books and music retail division before she founded the kids’ publishing house Fun Ok Please. “But as a passionate book lover and someone who’d been part of so many book launches, I knew that I’d better get my act together and put everything I know into Amish’s book. Because this was it!” It, however, isn’t easy. Indian publishing is more used to lobbying for awards, angling for blurbs, and garnering critical favour than harnessing mass appeal. Narcopolis, Jeet Thayil’s debut novel, which was shortlisted for 2012’s Man Booker and Man Asian Literary Prize (2012), was launched without a squeak. Immortals, on the other hand, came with a liveaction YouTube trailer FYI: AMISH featuring Taufiq Qureshi. TALKS PLOT Tripathi pushed the book TWISTS on social networks and WITH HIS followed up with distribuSIBLINGS tors to ensure his book AND INreached every tempted reader. LAWS, BUT By the time The Secret MARKETING of the Nagas was out, the IDEAS ALL author’s fan base had COME FROM grown bigger than anyHIS WIFE, one was equipped to deal PREETI with. Vyas recalls a booksigning event in Pune: “If Immortals had 40 people showing up, Nagas had 400. No one was prepared. Readers crowded around Amish, he was at a glass table… anything could have happened.” Her solution? Plan a detailed event flow, turn it into a bullet-point checklist and send it to every store before Amish visits. It’s worked. Sivaraman Balakrishnan, Crossword’s senior manager of marketing, says he’s interacted with Vyas almost as much as he has with her husband, perhaps more. “I don’t know any other author’s spouse by name.” Anuj Bahri, proprietor of Delhi

C OV E R STO RY

FANTASY BECOMES REALITY Tripathi’s story is the stuff of publishing history – or at the very least, a case study in out-of-thebox marketing for bright-eyed MBAs. Here’s how he did it

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Starting out

Following up

The Immortals of Meluha was released with a print run of just 5,000 copies. To hook readers, Tripathi gave out sample chapters for free, got shops to display posters and uploaded a promo on YouTube. The first book by the new author and small publisher hit the bestseller lists within a week.

“For The Secret of the Nagas, Amish wanted a trailer in the style of HBO’s Spartacus,” recalls Sangram Surve of ad firm Think Why Not. “The budget wasn’t big, but it was a first for India. We wanted to be part of history.” The film hit multiplexes and won fans.

bookstore Bahrisons (and the agent who backed Immortals when no publisher wanted to sign Tripathi), says that Vyas is a stickler for perfection. “I love it when she says, ‘Just leave it, I’ll do it’,” he says. “And for sure she gets it done just the way she wants it.” Vyas herself is aware of how her uncredited role can be misconstrued. “I don’t come from a place that says ‘I am his wife so you should listen to me’,” she says. “The publisher and bookstore is putting in real money. It is real business for them. They can’t indulge whims. I have to present the logic of my case.” For Indian publishing, which has only recently tapped into the nonliterary genre, it’s been a welcome move. Gautam Padmanaban, CEO of Westland (the publishers for books 2 and 3) sees her as “integral but unobtrusive”.

OUT OF CHARACTER

Balakrishnan calls Tripathi the best example of a new kind of Indian writer – one who believes the author is the CEO of his book – unlike Amitav Ghosh or Vikram Seth, who leave promotion to the publisher. “Ashwin Sanghi, Ravi Subramanian, Chetan Bhagat, Ravinder Singh, Rashmi Bansal and Durjoy Datta know their reader is not a literary reader,” he explains. “They have no problems calling the bookstore and asking us to promote their book.” Bhagat and Tripathi are especially good for business. “They release one book a year, giving us an extra fillip to sell their older books.” Westland and Penguin’s efforts echo the shift in book buying. Both focus on in-store promotion, which bids goodbye to vanilla launches, and don’t pressurise retailers to sell the same book the same way everywhere. “Each book has a catchment area,” Balakrishnan says. “Ravinder’s books do well in Kota, Surat, Baroda and Ahmedabad, not in bigger cities. 2 States sold the best in Ahmedabad. Authors are realising this too.”

Readers line up for the first copies of Vayuputras on February 26 at Crossword, Mumbai Surve says an upcoming Penguin author has already contacted him, saying his publishers have given him a free hand with promotion. Another writer is planning a video and album. But Bahri notes that while most new authors have learnt a lot about promotion, they haven’t learned much about the value of good writing and good editorial support by a literary agency. “They only

8 STEPS TO

A BESTSELLER BELIEVE IN THE STORY You live in a free country where you have a right to be heard. Don’t be afraid of putting it out there – Preeti Vyas DON’T FEAR FAILURE The moment you are afraid of what people, readers, critics think, you’ll be paralysed. You can’t make decisions based on market research – Amish Tripathi

Topping it off

“Amish knew that those who’d bought books 1 and 2 would buy The Oath of the Vayuputras, anyway,” Surve says. “Our brief now was to also increase sales of Book 1 and widen fan base.” Idea 1: Think Why Not started off with a music video to garner publicity on music channels without ad spend. Idea 2: Then they figured they could A one-minute licence the song to a music label and make money and signed a record deal. clip hits multiplexes Idea 3: The record company planned to fill the rest of the CD with their own music. “So we thought, we might as well record content of our own.” And so, what began as a song turned into India’s – possibly the world’s – first original soundtrack for a book. Then, news broke that Karan Johar had bought the movie rights to Immortals. Sales skyrocketed. Westland claims the book sold 3.5 lakh copies in its first week. By the time you read this, sales will have touched 4.5 lakh.

look at us as the ‘dealer’ who will help them get the best monetary deal for their book.”

BEST PRACTICES

It’s perhaps why Tripathi is ahead of the game. Starting off with a small publisher meant there were no set notions of selling to begin with. But he kept at it. Five years later, he remembers store managers by name. Festival organisers know him to be punctual. Retailers see him as approachable. Bahri says he’s equally at ease with listening to ideas as giving them. Vyas says the whole family schooled Tripathi for press interviews for Nagas. “We asked him to explain the message of the

BOUNCE IDEAS OFF FRIENDS AND FAMILY A lot of the plans for the Immortals book came from calling people home and feeding them coffee, dinner and apple pie – Preeti Vyas

WRITING ISN’T EVERYTHING. There are a lot of books out there. Many don’t make it to the reader. Yours has to shout “I’m here! I deserve to be read!” – Sangram Surve APPROACH EVERY PUBLISHER It’s still the best way to get a book out – Preeti Vyas

Remember that in India, the average bestseller is still only 3,000 to 10,000 copies

PREPARE TO DO THE SELLING Publishers don’t have the bandwith or the money to push every book. Figure out what each of your stakeholders’ selfish interest is and add it to your marketing plan – Sangram Surve

APRIL 28, 2013

Facebook contests engage fans

Three trailers hit the internet

WHAT SHIVA DID NEXT

Nagas became a bestseller on pre-orders alone

– Sivaraman Balakrishnan

IF IT DOESN’T WORK, IT’S COOL, MAN Everyone gets three out of 10 decisions wrong. But if you’re wrong more often than you’re right, you have a capability issue. You probably should be in another industry – Amish Tripathi

book and he went into this long philosophical lecture. We all shouted: “No! That’s the wrong answer! That’s not the message!” And Tripathi calmly acquiesced. Surve’s colleagues have told him that Tripathi at a book signing looks like a “mayor on a campaign”. And he’s still busy. Every fortnight Tripathi mails bookstores new statistics for his books – how much was sold, where, how fast and what new initiatives have been planned. “No author I know does this; it’s certainly not an industry standard,” says Padmanabhan. To retailers, it’s an immensely helpful tool. “It keeps you abreast with best practices and shows you if you’re selling as well as you should,” Balakrishnan says. A few weeks after the launch of Vayuputras, Tripathi and Vyas threw a small party for the photographer, cinematographer, PR and advertising people and the promotions team. “They’d made individual trophies for all of us,” Surve says. “Preeti did a mini Oscar-style ceremony, with nominees and all, and gave each one their award as a thank you. We were all so touched.” rachel.lopez@hindustantimes.com

SHIVA, ON THE RECORD

For an EXCLUSIVE video featuring Amish and Preeti, visit hindustantimes. com/brunch

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TEARS IN HEAVEN Y

NOT PROPAH

Earlier, you were given permission to grieve as publicly as you saw fit; as loudly as you wanted to. Now, tears at funerals are seen as bad taste

OMG! HOW COULD HE?

The Internet went into instant meltdown and a brouhaha erupted when George Osborne, British Chancellor of the Exchequer, let one solitary tear escape down his cheek at the funeral of Margaret Thatcher

spectator

Photo: THINKSTOCK

Since when did we start deriding people for crying at funerals?

Seema

Goswami OU COULDN’T possibly have missed the brouhaha that erupted when George Osborne, British Chancellor of the Exchequer, MOURNING OFFICIALLY let one solitary tear escape down his cheek at the Rudaalis or professional mourners became the subject funeral of Margaret Thatcher. of an eponymous movie that earned lead actress The Internet went into instant meltdown. Some Dimple Kapadia a national award derided him for this show of ‘weakness’ (you know how ‘real’ men ‘never’ cry, right?). Others dismissed who should by rights have been the one to mourn his tearing up as a cynical ploy to show just how us. But no matter how life pans out, bereavement good a Thatcherite he was (after all, what was he is something that all of us will have to bear, weeping about, given that he had met the Iron Lady sooner or later. on less than a dozen occasions?). There were those As the saying goes, grief is the price you pay who agreed that yes, the tears were not genuine, for love. but put them down to the Tory leader trying to But what is the acceptable face of grief when you create a more ‘caring’ image for himself (rememlose someone you loved, or even just admired from ber, this was a man who was booed at such a feelafar? And has it changed over the years? good event as the London Olympics). Amidst all the In India, at least, I would have to say yes. Growing jokes, jabs and jeering, there were only a few who up in a traditional joint family, as a child I was said what I was feeling: what is the world coming witness to the spectacular outpouring of grief that to if you can’t even cry at a funeral? everyone indulged in when there was a death in the Full disclosure here: I am one of the blubbers of extended clan. There was weeping; there was the world. And yes, I cry at funerals. It doesn’t realwailing; on some occasions, there was even some ly matter how well I have known the deceased, or beating of breasts. It was loud, it was disturbing, it how many times I have met them. There is somewas even melodramatic at times. But everything thing about funerals that brings out the tears – well said and done, it was undoubtedly cleansing. mine, at any rate. Sometimes it is a particular bhaAfter such an outburst of grief, you felt that you jan being sung as part of the service; sometimes a had really mourned someone. There was no buttiny detail that evokes memories of funeral past (of those I was partoning up of your feelings. There was no concession made to sparticularly close to); sometimes it is the thought of how I would feel ing the feelings of others. There was no embarrassment about letcoping with a loss like this one; and sometimes it is just the sight of ting it all hang out. In a sense, you were given permission to grieve close family members of the deceased trying to pull themselves as publicly as you saw fit; as loudly as you wanted to. And nobody together even though they are clearly falling apart. judged you or condemned you as an incontinent so-and-so. At a time like this, sympathy segues seamlessly into empathy, In the old days, certain Indian states like Rajasthan even had and you can’t help but cry for the universal sorrow that is bereaveprofessional mourners, called rudaalis (the subject of an eponyment. This is not something any of us can escape. At some time mous movie that earned lead actress Dimple Kapadia a national or another, we will have to mourn our grandparents, award). These were lower-caste women hired to mourn bid farewell to our parents, experience the loss of a (as loudly as possible) in an explosive public display of sibling, see a close friend succumb to illness. If we grief. This worked at two levels. One, to express the are very lucky, we will never know the gut-wrenchsorrow that the family may have been shy of exhibiting sorrow of losing someone of the next generation, ing in public and two, to goad them into have a proper cry. Because sometimes there really is no better catharsis than tears. But that was then. Now, tears at funerals are seen as bad taste. It is considered somewhat repellent to make a public exhibition of your grief. If you must cry, then cry in private. You must not shed tears in public in case you make other people uncomfortable. So, chin up please (and make sure it’s not quivering). And let’s see what the British so delightfully describe as a ‘stiff upper lip’. Well, I don’t know about you, but I am tired of being told that a display of emotions or the appearance of tears at a funeral (or anywhere else, for that matter) is something to be ashamed of. That we must present a stoic façade at all times, or stand condemned – as George Osborne was – of everything ranging from emotional incontinence to hypocritical cynicism. Honestly, it’s enough to make a grown man – or woman – cry.

Sometimes there really is no better catharsis than tears

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WEAR YOUR TECH From socks that tell you they need to be washed to jeans that have a keyboard, wearable tech seems like magic

ny sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic’. Arthur C Clarke wrote that in his essay, Hazards of Prophecy and even though he wrote it in 1962, he got it bang on. Every few years, along comes a technology that truly transforms lives, makes our jaws drop at the potential and makes us yearn to strap it on and start our magical journey. Wearable tech is the latest technology magic that has taken the world by storm. Unfortunately every ‘Next Big Thing’ also spawns some ‘Next Big Horrible Idea’ devices too. Here’s my list of top wearable tech products that are emerging. How many of these are incredible innovations and how many should be thrown in the super clunker basket?

TOP WEARABLE TECH PRODUCTS Solar Coterie – Solar Powered Bikini: Yes, you read that right. It’s a bikini retrofitted with photovoltaic waterproof solar film strips sewn together in series with conductive thread. The cells terminate in a 5-volt regulator and you can charge your phone or portable music player through an attached USB connection. There’s also a male swimsuit version coming that apparently has more ‘surface’ area. Go figure! ALL CHARGED UP

Charge your phone or portable music player with the help of this solar bikini MORE ON THE WEB

For previous columns by Rajiv Makhni, log on to hindustantimes.com/ brunch. Follow Rajiv on Twitter at twitter.com/ RajivMakhni

Misfit Shine sensors alert you about your activity progress

Rajiv Makhni

Amiigo – Fitness Bracelet: Most activity trackers give you an estimate of your physical activity all day by tracking movement. Unfortunately that’s not very accurate as they can’t track the energy burnt during lifting weights or a SNAP IT ON spin cycling session. That’s where the Amiigo: Fitness Bracelet Amiigo comes in. It can track the exer- can track the energy you cise type, reps, sets, duration, speed and burn during exercise intensity while built-in sensors can mon- sessions itor real-time heart rate, blood oxygen levels, skin temperature, sweat, overall activity level and calories burned. Misfit Shine: This is the next generation of clip-on physical trackers. This is a tiny, waterproof, all-metal activity tracker that you can sync with your smartphone just by placing it on your phone screen.

Future Fashion now by Cute Circuit: Singers Katy Perry, Nicole Scherzinger and Safura have all worn them and if you think these are some tacky dresses with some ghastly LED lights inside them flashing on and off – then you’re going to be very pleasantly surprised (check cutecircuit.com/videos). For instance the K Dress is a hand-pleated silk chiffon and silk taffeta dress, with thousands of super miniature LED lights embedded in the fabric that sparkle in patterns and colours that you can set with a snap-in controller. You plug the dress into a USB port to charge up for an entire night. APRIL 28, 2013

It has built-in sensors that can track cycling, swimming, running and walking, plus it keeps you on track all day with an array of light, that shines through microholes laser-drilled into the metal shell and alerts you about your activity progress.

techilicious

Beauty and the Geek Jeans: Is that a keyboard on your pants or are you just happy to see me! These jeans go where no jeans have gone before. They have a keyboard, a speaker and mouse built right in and can connect to GEEKY JEANS your computer th- These all-in-one jeans rough Bluetooth. My can be paired with your only real issue is actu- computer via Bluetooth ally typing on that keyboard as that’s the kind of ‘space’ I don’t want to drum my fingers on all day! Orange Power Wellies: Our bodies generate an infinite amount of energy, and there’s nobody tapping it. Well, now your shoes can. These Wellies have a power-generating sole that converts heat from your feet into an electrical current. As you move about all day, the ‘welectricity’ you generate gets stored and all you have to do is plug in your phone into the power output at the BOOT UP top of the boot and it’s good Convert to go. Walking around all day heat from can give you about an hour or your feet into electri- two of a boost – and if you cal current want more, then it’s recommended that you get onto the with these dance floor. But don’t blame Wellies me if you look like a total prat dancing in those oversized boots!

BLACKSOCKS – the world’s smartest socks: Mankind is made for greater things than sorting socks; that’s the claim of this manufacturer and I’d tend to agree. Each pair of socks comes with a RFID (radio-frequency identification) chip built-in that talks to an app on your phone. This tells you which socks belong together, how often you’ve washed your socks, how old they are now, if they’ve lost colour and aren’t jet black anymore and even helps you order new ones and alerts you when they’ve been dispatched. Overkill, anyone? There are many others, like the Pebble watch, the Basis Band or the LUMOback – but those I’ve already covered earlier. Yes, some are horrible ideas and some are FIND A PAIR radically mouth-watering. But then that’s Know if you’ve paired how all magic is, isn’t it? Some leave you your socks right with spellbound at the sheer wizardry of it all and BLACKSOCKS some leave you disappointed by the silliness of it all. Which of the above is magical and which is super clunky? Time for you to pronounce a verdict by joining me on Twitter. Rajiv Makhni is managing editor, Technology, NDTV, and the anchor of Gadget Guru, Cell Guru and Newsnet 3

T R AV E L

CHICAGO,CHICAGO,

I Will Show You Around

Go to Chicago for the stunning skyline, the deep-dish pizza, the electric blues. But more importantly, for the stories

by Saudamini Jain

HO GOES to Chicago anyway? When you travel halfway across the world, you pay your respects to Times Square, soak in the Californian sun, gamble in Vegas and monkey around in Disneyland. But Chicago? You go there for the stunning skyline, the magnificent lakefront. You go there for pizza that melts in your mouth and to sway your hips to electric blues. But more importantly, you visit Chicago for the stories. This is the land of Al Capone, the most notorious mobster during the 1920s Prohibition era. It’s also the hometown of Hugh Hefner. It was here, in 1953, that Hefner produced the first issue of Playboy magazine. And right here in 1960, he opened the first Playboy Club – where Playboy Bunnies would serve

food and alcohol to exclusive keyholders. When Hefner left for Los Angeles in the ’70s, he closed it down. Now, the original Playboy Mansion just sits there quietly, in the posh Gold Coast neighbourhood.

A trip to Chicago is incomplete till you visit at least one blues club. We recommend Blue Chicago (left). Also say hello to Sue (below), the T-Rex skeleton at the Field Museum of Natural History

3 days in Chicago IF I HAD A BOAT...

An Architecture River Cruise is the best way to fully appreciate Chicago is known is that the fire did start in that little barn and that it spread through the city. It roared and flared for two days, destroying most of the city, while Chicagoans scurried to the shores of Lake Michigan. Rebuilding started almost immediately. Laws were passed for buildings to be fireproof. The debris was dumped into Lake Michigan as landfill, it’s what the spectacular Millennium Park is built on. Charming, right? All the photos on Flickr can’t prepare you for the marvel that is this gigantic public park (it covers more than 24 acres) on Chicago’s lakefront. It hosts some

APRIL 28, 2013

Photo: CC/DALLAS KRENTZEL

I was in Chicago for three perfect days. And if you plan it right, you can actually see a lot! We flew on Qatar Airways’ maiden flight to Chicago and on landing, were greeted with a water salute at O’Hare airport. It was like the plane was being baptised. On Day One, we visited Millennium Park and the Art Institute of Chicago (set aside at least an hour for its fabulous Museum Shop). The Field Museum of Natural History is also a venue of some cultural events, and that’s where the party was that night. The highlights: champagne right next to Sue, a T-Rex skeleton, and Jennifer Hudson, who performed at the party! On Day Two, we squeezed in a tour of the city in a lorry and an architecture boat cruise. In the evening, we had cocktails at Signature Room at the 95th, on the 95th floor of the John Hancock building and blues at Blue Chicago, a long, dark club with gorgeous music. Day Three was saved for shopping on State Street and pizza at Lou Malnati’s – Chicago’s oldest pizza place. The Chicago deep-dish pizza is not a pan pizza. This one has a thick crust only at the edges, the rest of the pizza is thin crust filled with cheese, sauce and toppings. A slice is a meal.

Photo: THINKSTOCK

FOR YOUR LEISURE ONLY

Photo: CITY OF CHICAGO

A ROARIN’ FIRE

The name ‘Chicago’ is derived from the Native American word Shikaakwa, which means wild onions (which grew along the Chicago River). The Americans incorporated it as a city only in 1837. Railroads were constructed, factories were built. By 1870, it was one of the largest cities in America. But the story of Chicago, really, begins with the Great Chicago Fire. In 1871, Mrs Catherine O’Leary and her husband Patrick lived in a little cottage in Chicago. According to the most popular version of the story, Mrs O’Leary was milking a cow in her barn when it kicked over a lantern which started the fire. Mrs O’Leary swore she was in bed when it happened and many different versions surfaced. The real cause remains an unsolved mystery. What

Photo: CC/SETH ANDERSON

T R AV E L

pinterest.com/htbrunch

Photo: CESAR RUSS PHOTOGRAPHY

PARK YOURSELF HERE

Photos on Flickr can’t prepare you for Millennium Park. Anish Kapoor’s Cloud Gate (above) and Jaume Plensa’s Crown Fountain (left) are marvellous

GETTING THERE

Photo: CC/WILDCAT DUNNY

Visa: Applying for an American visa is a piece of cake. And usually, they’ll give you one that lasts a decade. Visit: newdelhi.usembassy.gov. Currency: One American dollar is about R56. Getting there: There are flights to Chicago from several Indian cities. Getting around: You can utilise the fantastic train network. If you’re in downtown Chicago, just walk it. If you can afford it, take a cab. Tip: You can’t not tip in the US.

permanent installations on display is Fragments of Chicago’s Past – a collection of architectural objects, most from old buildings of Chicago. The building, which houses the museum was built for the Columbian Exposition of 1893. It’s where Swami Vivekananda gave his famous Chicago speech introducing Hinduism to the world (the videos on YouTube, as it turns out, are fake). More interestingly, the exposition was also where the first Ferris Wheel, designed and constructed by George Washington Gale Ferris Jr, was displayed.

AN THE BIG BAD M

STANDING TALL

By the end of the 19th century and well into the next, Chicago kept growing rapidly. With Lake Michigan on one side, and the Chicago River on the other, the city had to grow verti-

AGES Photo: GETTY IM

of the city’s most interesting events and works of art. Anish Kapoor’s Cloud Gate, a massive steel structure shaped like a bean, is like a kaleidoscope made of mirrors. It can fascinate you for hours. And because every park must have a water body, you have Crown Fountain. This is the coolest part. Inspired by gargoyles, it has two 50-feet-high towers facing each other, which display digital videos – clips of 1,000 different Chicagoans that play successively. Each face is up there for 15 minutes; you’ll see a face, it will pucker up and, in the summer, will sprout out water. Right next door is the Art Institute of Chicago, the oldest and largest art museum in America. It has the best Impressionist collection outside of Paris. One of the

e to Al Capone Chicago was hom gangsters a and Prohibition-er

cally. The first skyscraper was born right here. And many followed. There are two ways of fully appreciating the beauty of the city. And there’s no reason why you shouldn’t do both. The first is simpler: the view from the John Hancock Observatory, 1,000 feet up (the John Hancock Building was once the tallest in the world). The second is the architecture river cruise. A tried and tested one is on Chicago’s First Lady. This lovely yacht is warm and comfortable, complete with a bar. But the idea is to climb to the upper deck with the tour guide (who will know everything there is to know about the city). You’ll hear interesting stories about the buildings you can see all around the river: The Trump Towers, the Wrigley Building, the Chicago Tribune tower, Village Tower (formerly the Sears Tower), Navy Pier… and you will smell chocolate! Turns out, it’s wafting from the Blommer Chocolate Factory nearby. A visit to Chicago isn’t complete till you say hello to Sue, the largest and most complete Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton in the world. The 67-million-year-old dinosaur inhabits the Field Museum of Natural History. The only part that’s disconcerting is how there are no signs of Al Capone. Chicago is almost embarrassed about its gangland past. The city that loves its tales has downplayed its most thrilling one. The Lexington Hotel, which served as Al Capone’s headquarters, is gone – it never really escaped its reputation. And unless somebody points it out, you will skip the site of the St Valentine’s Day Massacre (in

BUILDING BLOCKS

The building of the Art Institute of Chicago (above) was built for the Columbian Exposition of 1893 where the first Ferris Wheel was displayed (below) Photo: CE WATERMAN (PUBLIC DOMAIN PHOTOGRAPH)

1929, seven mobsters were gunned down in one of America’s bloodiest power struggles between two rival criminal gangs, the Italian one led by Al Capone and the Irish one by George ‘Bugs’ Moran). There is a specific mob tour for those interested – The Untouchables, but it’s one of the few. Mark Twain once said of the Windy City – It is hopeless for the occasional visitor to try to keep up with Chicago – she outgrows his prophecies faster than he can make them. She is always a novelty; for she is never the Chicago you saw when you passed through the last time. It’s probably also because you cannot see the city all at once. There will be newer things to do on the next trip, and the one after that. And there will be stories, served with a drink, or more.

In 1960, Hugh Hefner opened the first Playboy Club in Chicago

saudamini.jain@hindustantimes.com

The writer’s trip was sponsored by Qatar Airways

WELLNESS

MIND BODY SOUL SHIKHA SHARMA

JUNK THE MYTH

Counting calories will only lead you up the wrong path

E HEAR of calories from health professionals. We read calories on nutritional labels and we talk about calories all day when we are trying to lose weight. But is the calorie an authentic measure of food or biological energy? It may shock you, but the answer is a resounding ‘No’. Most people, after reading this, might take a step back and think, ‘Are all those books and food labels wrong? Is the information about calorie charts irrelevant?’ To answer these questions, it is important to understand what a calorie means and how its usage came into being.

device known as the ‘bomb calorie meter’ was deployed to measure the change in temperature in a food item after it had combusted. In a similar manner, the calorie chart for all foods was created. The nutritional calorie was called a kilo calorie or kilojoules. In this process, the biggest scientific fact was forgotten – food is not burned inside the body and metabolism is not like combustion (burning). Metabolism is an entirely different process. The reason that this calorie counting has to be given up is because in the context of an obesity epidemic, it only leads to further confusion and keeps us away from a genuine understanding of how food impacts our body.

We need to understand how food impacts our body

STARTING POINT

The origin of the term ‘calorie’ is still debated, but some authors have attributed the term to French physicist and chemist, Nicolas Clement, who spoke about it while lecturing on heat engines in Paris around 1819. At this time, the term ‘calorie’ was used for thermal energy. Around 1894, JH Raymond used the term Kcal, borrowed from physics, to describe energy needs in human physiology. While the term was borrowed, its scientific basis was ignored. In the original context, calorie meant the energy required to raise the temperature of water by 1 degree. To add to the confusion, a CALORIE DILEMMA Counting calories is not going to solve weight issues

A CONFUSING LOT

Counting calories will only lead people on the wrong path and might cause nutritional imbalances. For example, if we measure the calories in a spoon of sugar, it comes to just 15 calories. This means 10tsp of sugar will come to just 150 calories. All of us know how fat we will become if we consume 10tsp of sugar every day, even though 150 calories is a small number. Again, the calories in a large bowl of moong dal is approximately 150 calories. But we know that in life, one bowlful of moong dal doesn’t lead to weight gain, whereas 10tsp of sugar certainly does. So, what is the way forward? To fight the obesity epidemic, one must look at alternative and authentic parameters like the impact of foods after digestion. One must also conduct further studies on the metabolism of food in the body. Till a better measure is discovered, it is time we junked the calorie concept and look at just the health component of food. ask@drshikha.com Photos: SHUTTERSTOCK