Holi Special March 2022 Edition of Desi Australia Magazine

MARCH 2022

“Keeping you connected”

PUBLICATION OF THE YEAR WINNER, 2021 DESI AUSTRALIA

NEWS I HEALTH I COMMUNITY NEWS I FESTIVALS I ENTERTAINMENT I TALENT

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Jason Wood Assistant Minister for Customs, Community Safety and Multicultural Affairs Member for La Trobe

Gladys Liu Member for Chisholm

Alex Hawke Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs Member for Mitchell

Scott Morrison Prime Minister

Melissa McIntosh Member for Lindsay

Josh Frydenberg Treasurer Member for Kooyong

Julian Leeser Member for Berowra

Paul Fletcher Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts Member for Bradfield

Fiona Martin Member for Reid

Authorised by A.Hirst, Liberal Party of Australia, Cnr Blackall and Macquarie Sts, Barton ACT 2600.

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WISHING EVERYONE A

FESTIVAL

Happy Holi from our homes to yours...

May you all have colourful and joyful celebrations.

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From Chris Minns and your State Labor MP’s We wish you and your family a happy Holi!

Prue Car MP

Steve Kamper MP

Member for Londonderry | NSW Labor Deputy Leader, P 9833 1122

Member for Rockdale | Shadow Minister for Multiculturalism, P 9597 1414

Edmond Atalla MP

Lynda Voltz MP

Jo Haylen MP

Guy Zangari MP

Member for Mount Druitt P 9625 6770

Member for Summer Hill P 9572 5900

Member for Auburn P 9737 8822

Member for Fairfield P 9726 9323

Chris Minns MP

NSW Labor Leader | Member for Kogarah P 9587 9684

Julia Finn MP

Hugh McDermott MP

Greg Warren MP

Shaoquett Moselmane MLC

Paul Scully MP

Sophie Cotsis MP

Member for Granville P 9637 1656

Member for Campbelltown P 4625 3344

Member for Wollongong P 4226 5700

Member for Prospect P 9756 4766

Member of the Legislative Council P 9230 2526

Member for Canterbury P 9718 1234

Authorised by Chris Minns, Prue Car, Steve Kamper, Julia Finn, Hugh McDermott, Edmond Atalla, Lynda Voltz, Greg Warren, Shaoquett Moselmane, Jo Haylen, Guy Zangari, Paul Scully, and Sophie Cotsis. Funded using Parliamentary Entitlements.

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WHAT’S INSIDE 14

44

21

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of Colour 08 Women Making Their Mark in Australia #BreakingTheBias

migrant woman has a story, 40 Every are you ready to share yours?

Celebration of Diversity 14 AasAttends Prime Minister Scott Morrison 32nd Annual Ethnic

His Passion 42 Following Jatinder Mahuana

Business Awards

16 12

Colourful & Glittering evening at Premier’s Harmony Dinner

Australia State Elections 26 South 19th March 2022

in the Room’s 49 Haathi Curate Me Art Therapy

India Australia Business 30 2022 & Community Alliance Award Finalists Announced.

50 Manage your energy field

Budget 2022 32 Union Opportunities for Australia

in the 51 Indulge Holi Delecacies

with Rajni-Let’s Be 34 YouGo Mindful Series Celebrating International Women’s

Warne 52 Shane “The King of Spin” gone too soon

Day 2022 – Break the Bias indfully

50-50 38 Zindagi A must Play to watch Download Our App

Sydney Gay and Lesbian 44 44th Mardi Gras Parade

MARCH I 2022

Community Flooded 54 Australian with the Sikh Sewa (Volunteer Services)

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PUBLISHER Desi Media Group (Desi Australia Pty Ltd)

Editor-in-chief Arti Banga

NSW Editor: Harmohan Walia

Sales and Marketing: Dimple Deez

Victoria Editor: Daljeet Bakshi

Queensland Editor: Priya Singh

ACT Editor: Rajni Ghai Malhotra

Western Australia Editor: Ankita Tandon

South Australia Editor: Daljeet Bakshi

Designer

Ravi Mathur

Address: Desi Australia Pty Ltd PO Box 102, Casula, NSW 2170 Email : info@DesiAustralia.com

Mob: 0433121339

Disclaimer: All rights reserved. Do not re-use any content and photo from Desi Australia without the prior written permission from the editor. All the material published in Desi Australia, including articles, features, fillers, advertisements, and all other contents, are published in good faith, and the editor or the Desi Australia magazine cannot be held liable for any errors or omissions. All material is published on the understanding that it is copyright free, and Desi Australia accepts no liability for any subsequent copyright issues. We also cannot accept responsibility for and do not endorse views expressed by the contributors.

Hello Everyone, Welcome to the Multicultural March, an initiative of the NSW State Government which is a symbol of its determination to foster a society where everyone can make a commitment to our community and economy.

The month started with the NSW premier’s Harmony Dinner acknowledging the state’s Multicultural Champions.

This month the South Asian communities will be celebrating Holi.

The festival of colours is a festive day to meet others, play and laugh, forget and forgive, and repair broken relationships.

Like every year, this March we will be celebrating women’s achievement at International Women’s Day # BeakTheBias and we will keep you connected with various celebrations that will take place.

Arti Banga

Editor-in-Chief

reading them all.

If you have stories that would like to reach to the wider community then please feel free to reach out to us.

We wish you a safe, healthy and colourful month of March.

In this edition we have covered the topics of health, talent, women empowerment, entertainment, festivals, celebrations and we hope you enjoy

DesiAustralia.com “Keeping you connected”

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Women’s Day Special

Women of Colour

Making Their Mark in Australia #BreakingTheBias In 2014, Lisa was awarded the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman by the President of India for building friendly Australia-India relations, the highest civilian honour for a person of Indian origin. In 2016, a highlight of her career was representing Australia at the United Nations General Assembly.

By Rekha Rajvanshi

Marked annually on March 8th, International Women’s Day is celebrated globally to recognise the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. Significant activities take place worldwide as women’s groups and organizations come together to raise awareness about women’s equality and lobby for accelerated gender parity. In Australia too, women of Indian origin are contributing contribute to all spheres of life. They are business executives and owners, entrepreneurs, scientists, doctors, lawyers, philanthropists, mayors, nonprofit leaders, and community volunteers. On behalf of DESI Australia, I got an opportunity to speak with eight remarkable women who are passionate about their work and have made a mark in Australia. Let’s meet them today.

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Lisa Singh - Director of the Australia India Institute, Former Australian Senator, First female MP of South Asian descent Lisa Singh is a former Australian Senator and was the first woman of South Asian heritage to be elected to the Australian Parliament. She is the CEO of the Australia India Institute, a leading research and policy think-tank advancing Australia-India relations at the government, business, diaspora and academic levels. This is in addition to being the Deputy Chair of the Australian Government’s Australia-India Council and sitting on the advisory board of the University of Melbourne’s Asialink.

Lisa’s journey, like most women leaders, hasn’t been easy. She says - ‘As the first woman of Indian heritage to be elected to the Australian parliament, I became a role model for other women of Asian backgrounds to aspire to public office or leadership roles. Of course it was challenging being in politics, which was still a predominately male domain but I was inspired by so many amazing women leaders who went before me.’

Lisa is an inspiration to many. Her advice to women is - ‘Try to live up to your own sense of confidence, that allows to grow, learn how to become agile and adaptive, because let’s face it the system is biased, but don’t lose the sense of who you are, of the value of the diversity that you bring because that is your power.’

Melissa Montario - Chief Executive Officer at Community Migrant Resource Centre Melissa Monteiro is the CEO of the Community Migrant Resource Centre, Pro Bono Australia, IMPACT Australia 21 winner and Salvation Army Multicultural Ambassador (2020) has made a significant contribution down under. She is also a published author of ‘The Girl From Mumbai.’ Melissa has been a tireless advocate for women and has created awareness around gender bias, equity and empowering women for the last 7 years. She has

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Women’s Day Special

Sheba Nandkeolyar - Founder CEO MultiConnexions Group, Global VP DE&I, International Advertising Association Sheba Nankeolyar is the CEO of MultiConnexions Group. She recently got elected as the President of International Advertising Association (IAA Australia), the first woman President from an Indian background in 46 years since the Association was set up in Australia.

Sheba is passionate about India and through her various roles, she has been able to facilitate building hundreds of toilets in villages

pioneered the Inspiring Change Women’s Conference successfully bringing hundreds of women together each year to navigate around the issues that effect them in their everyday lives. She has also been focussed on Growing the TOWARDS BELLONGING PROGRAM that builds relationships that focus on SAFETY and WELLBEING of Migrant, refugee and asylum seekers children.

In 2020 Melissa founded the IWE, Indian Women Empower group that is raising awareness on Domestic and Family Vio-

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for women, distributing free hearing aids, clean drinking water through nano tech products supporting financially disadvantaged children to complete their education. These days Sheba is heavily involved in mentoring Next Gen migrant & woman start up founders. She actively mentors women supported by Department of Science, Energy & Resources for the BFF or Boosting Female Founders program.

Like all the other successful women Sheba also had to confront both gender and cultural biases in the workplace.

She overcame the stereotypes about her cultural background in workplaces and in business as she mentions – ‘let your performance speak for itself! And I must share that IT DID!’ ‘As a woman migrant I know the cultural and gender biases exist. I want to help new migrants find their way in the professional & business world.’ Sheba says.

‘My mantra in life is that talent, passion & love for what you do, combined with hard work, kindness, honesty, loyalty, and integrity will take you far. I am deeply religious and have faith in a power beyond oneself which enables you to do more. Believe in yourself and the world will believe in you’ She reveals.

lence. This group is committed to provide domestic violence services and employment pathways to vulnerable women from the Indian Diaspora. It’s aim is to provide support to women in Australia, experiencing domestic violence, relationship issues and employment challenges by offering mentoring programs, seminars, legal and financial guidance, and vocational training workshops. ‘To become a transformational leader who inspires change you need to be able to create an inspiring vision of the future for yourself.’

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Mitu Bhowmick Lange – a film producer, director and founder of the Mind Blowing Films

Mitu Bhowmick Lange is one of the most renowned names contributing to the global outreach of Indian cinema in the past decade. Mitu is the Director & Founder of Mind Blowing Films, and the festival director of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne, and Indian Film Festival, Sydney. Her company Mind Blowing Films is the leading distributor of Indian films in Australia, NZ, Fiji and Papa New Guinea. Mitu also curates films from Australia and New Zealand for the International Film Festival of India (in Goa) and the International Film Festival of Kolkata.

Mitu began her career in Bombay where for six years she directed several documentaries and TV shows including entertainment, news and fashion magazine programs and a daily breakfast show for leading channels including BBC World, Star Plus, Zee TV and Sony TV. In Australia too Mitu has produced and introduced several Indian productions to Australia, Her work has been recognized in Australia.

Mitu is credited to be the first distributor to have successfully integrated Indian Cinema releases to the mainstream exhibitors. There by streamlining and growing Indian films presence in Australia. Mitu is a passionate advocate of Equality, Equity and Inclusivity especially in Arts and Cinema, She says – ‘the films and arts as the strongest cultural bridges between countries and communities.’

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Women’s Day Special

Shubha Kumar moved to Australia 47 years ago and co-founded the India Club in 2004, a local not-for-profit organisation based in Sydney for Australians and those of Indian origin. Shuba is awarded the Premier’s Multicultural 2022 NRL Stepan Kerkyasharian AO Community Harmony Medal recently.

Shubha Kumar - President of India Club, Recipient of Premier’s Multicultural Community Harmony 2022 Award

Shubha has been instrumental on organizing iconic India Fair at Olympic Park, Diwali celebrations; community projects to untangle fear and myths, to wake up community by educating and promoting integration and inclusivity to uphold cohesion in our multicultural society and to challenge and put a dent

Roanna Gonsalves – An Award Winning Author Roanna Gonsalves is an award-winning author of the acclaimed collection of short fiction The Permanent Resident. Written as part of her PhD at UNSW, Roanna’s 16 short stories brought her into limelight and she is considered as one of the best South Asian writers in Australia.

Roanna is the recipient of the Prime Minister’s Australia Asia Endeavour Award, and is co-founder co-editor of Southern Crossings. Roanna works as a Lecturer in Creative Writing at UNSW, Sydney.

Roanna’s series of radio documentaries, On the tip of a billion tongues, commissioned and broadcast by Earshot, ABC RN, is an acerbic socio-political portrayal

Saba Zaidi Abdi - an Indian actor, director and media personality Saba Zaidi Abdi is the pioneer of South

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Asian media in Australia. In 2000, Saba became the Founding Director and CEO of Vision Asia, the first independent DTH platform – linking South Asian communities in Australia and New Zealand with the Indian subcontinent through television.

After successfully building that business, Saba worked with Fetch TV, where she was a consultant for five years, to launch the first South Asian IPTV service in 2010.

Saba is also actively involved in the Sydney multicultural theatre scene, launching ‘Adakar’, a South Asian community-based theatre and cultural group in 2014.

Saba is a fine actor. She acted in many dramas before she was offered a major role in ABC’s Netflix 15 episode Serial ‘The

MARCH I 2022

when people experience family violence or severe stresses. Her challenges were ‘adjusting to the male work environment, taking workmates to task when they challenged my culture; in community standing firm on my views and decisions focusing on my vision to name a few. ‘ ‘Multiculturalism, inclusivity, Harmony and goodwill is what I stand for with sincerity, perseverance, dedication and dynamism’ she added. Her vision is to construct India Club building –‘ A must visit unique attraction in Sydney, will happen in my lifetime and the ‘How’ I have left for the universe to figure it out to make it happen.’

of contemporary India through its multilingual writers.

Roanna’s screen credits include working as a director, scriptwriter and script consultant for documentary, drama, corporate and commercial projects. She has been teaching, supervising and mentoring emerging prose writers and screenwriters within communities, schools, literary organizations and institutions such as New York University Sydney, UNSW, Western Sydney University, Macquarie University and the Australian Film, Television and Radio School (AFTRS).

Her advice to upcoming writers is ‘Read all you can and write as often as you can.

As with anything, it’s all about practice.’

Unlisted.’ She was also featured in a small role in ABC’s ‘The Letdown 2’ series. We will soon see her in another ABC serial ‘Summer Love.’

Saba has won many National and International Award. Her major contributions are launching first Indian DTH satellite service in Australia ‘Vision Asia’, setting up South Asian channels on Fetch TV IPTV Platform and establishing Adakar Theatre & Cultural Group.

Mantra of Saba’s success is ‘Be sincere and honest about your work, enrich yourself with knowledge and skills required in your profession, Raise your bar and strive for the highest and what finally pays is your hard work and perseverance.’

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Women’s Day Special

Sahera Sumar- Global Sheroes, Coach and Consultant Sahera is a global leadership consultant, peace ambassador, coach, facilitator, speaker and now co-author. She calls herself a global citizen having worked in over 25 countries, including some remote and interesting places. Sahera’s mission is “women leaders for a better world” and so she has spent much of her professional time working with organisations to enhance their inclusive leadership pipeline, as well as working with women empowering them to realize their potential. Sahera is also an executive director for the UN Australian Association (NSW) where she stands for human rights and equity for all.

Having decided to jump off the corporate ladder after working in senior global roles, she took on the greater challenge and adventure of starting her leadership consulting firm and delivering programs in countries where she could have greater impact such as Nigeria, Tanzania, Tajikistan and Uz-

birthday around International Women’s day.

Sahera’s advice to women is - ‘Shape your own path and when you align it to your purpose is when realise your true potential.’

bekistan. Sahera’s latest enterprise is Worldwide SHEroes, a leadership / mentorship platform whose social purpose is to connect women of diversity and disadvantage to global mentors .. so they can have the same leadership and economic opportunities. Worldwide SHEroes will be celebrating it’s first

In this difficult time we women need to come together, pull each other up and support upcoming talents. At Desi Australia we will continue to highlight our high achieving women, who are working hard and have become our role models.

On behalf of Camden Council, I would like to wish you all a very

Happy Holi

FESTIVAL OF COLOURS

May this celebration bring equality, harmony and friendship to our diverse communities.

Councillor Therese Fedeli Mayor of Camden

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Mag Corner

Desi Sheilas Empowered

I

fielded this question to different Desi women from all walks of life in different forums. The responses I received were varied and eye opener.

By Poonam Naik

This year instead of attending social events on International Women’s Day– It made more natural sense to ask our Desi Sheilas as to what empowers them? What is their definition of empowerment?

Shilpa Bhatia, a Property Consultant from Best Value Real Estate Agency in St Mary’s feels working in a male dominated industry makes her feel empowered. It gives her immense satisfaction and a sense of achievement at every house sold by her and at a book of happy clientele.

Santhoshi Machanagari, a working professional from Penrith mentions women empowerment to her means financial independence, ability to make own decisions and positively influence others. Growing up in a conservative society, she elaborates she has seen many women were controlled by men even in financial spheres of life. She strongly believes having financial freedom and the ability to nurture their interests bring the real empowerment among women. She further states that women centric programs nurturing their interests eventually provide equal opportunities in business and corporate world.

Priyanka, another working professional from Penrith believes women empowDownload Our App

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Mag Corner

erment is where women have the confidence in themselves and their abilities.

It also consists of the acceptance of the fact that every individual is blessed with unique qualities, and they are all special in their own way specially women. She believes women should stop comparing themselves to others or measure their achievement on someone else’s scale.

She feels empowered knowing that her competition is with no one else but in every moment uplifting herself.

Saba, an art entrepreneur from Western Sydney talks how motivation and en-

couragement are key stones to empowering any soul. Demotivating a gender in certain situations is not women empowerment. Financial stability achieved through skillsets to thrive and survive is a form of women empowerment.

Women do better when they are in their own circles of trust and evolve along with mentorship. She mentions them as women’s empowering pool.

Workplaces need to be safe, secure, respectful, non-threatening, noncontrolling places to work. Women are not robots and not products, but human beings that don’t need labelling and objectification. For some of these things to happen, environment, old cultural beliefs and norms must change. Things will have to be shaken and stirred to change mind shifts and override current mental blocks. The constant idea of guardianship for women needs to be done away – snowballing from father/ brother to husband. Let’s also do away with unnecessary submissiveness and forceful mannerism and etiquettes of

women being questioned away. Women will have to willingly water towards their own growth and empowerment as well. An important skill to learn in Australia is to learn to drive on roads.

It is not just an important skill to get groceries or drive around the kids to different activities but may drive you out of the worst situation in your life.

So, desi Sheilas, do create opportunities for yourself instead of waiting for others to facilitate roads of empowerment for yourself. Learn to water your true spirits and that is 99% empowerment achieved.

MAYOR LISA LAKE

Cumberland City Council would like to wish all those who are celebrating, a Happy Holi Festival.

COUNCILLOR SUMAN SAHA

Holi is a special time and most joyous festival in the Hindu calendar month of Phalguna, and celebrates divine and eternal love.

May this festival colour your life and bring you joy, wealth, love and celebrations and remove sorrow and sadness from your life.

Best wishes to you and your families.

CUMBERLAND CITY COUNCIL

16 Memorial Avenue, PO Box 42 Merrylands NSW 2160 | www.cumberland.nsw.gov.au Download Our App

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Community News | Melbourne

A Celebration of Diversity a Minister Scott Morrison Atte Annual Ethnic Business A

M

ore than 200 people from many diverse backgrounds, headed by the Prime Minister the Honourable Scott Morrison, along with a number of distinguished guests and dignitaries gathered on Friday 11th of February at the Four Seasons. Hotel in Sydney to celebrate the 32nd anniversary of the Ethnic Business Awards. The Honourable Anthony Albanese MP, Leader of the opposition was also in attendance.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison spoke on the importance of recognising both migrant and Indigenous success stories, saying: “The migrant story of Australia is extraordinary. But what I love about these Download Our App

awards is they don’t just connect the migrant story of Australia, but they connect the Indigenous story of Australia as well.

And these are the things that we celebrate together as one country with cultures that go back over 60,000 years”.

The night was a celebration of Success Against the Odds and featured stories from twelve finalists across three categories. Namely the Indigenous In Business Category, Small Business Category and the Henry Ngai Medium to Large Business Category.

The Henry Ngai Medium to Large Business Category was presented by Leader of the Opposition, The HonourMARCH I 2022

able Anthony Albanese. Mr Albanese stated “our greatest strength as a nation is when we come together. Our greatest strength is our people. Whilst we have great natural assets, it’s the people who either have inhabited this land as part of the oldest continuous civilisation on the planet or those people who have either come here themselves as migrants or are the descendants.”

The winner in this category was Josef Chromy of the JAC Group in Tasmania.

The Small Business Category was presented by The Honourable Alex Hawke, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, www.DesiAustralia.com

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Community News | Melbourne

as Prime ends 32nd Awards

Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs. Minister Hawke said “The prime minister is right, we are the most successful multicultural country in the world. We successfully integrate more people, from more backgrounds than anywhere else in the world.”

This year’s winner Here is the story of Dr Ved Berani. When Dr. Ved Berani told his family and friends that he had decided to travel to Australia to complete an MBA at Monash University, they all thought he was crazy. He had ranked first at the University of Bombay in 2000 and was recognized as the most distinguished dental student amongst three dental col-

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leges. Nonetheless, Dr Berani boarded the plane with an unwavering will to win. Landing the graveyard shift at 7 Eleven for $11/hour was a far cry from the comfortable lifestyle he was used to back home – but juggling full time studies with work to make ends meet only strengthened Ved’s resolve to succeed. In 2004, after completing his MBA and dental license certificate Dr. Berani took over a disintegrating business from a retiring dentist and within a short amount of time, transformed it into a revolutionary, technologically innovative, one of a kind dentistry practice. Healthy Smiles Dental Group now employs over 35 full time employees, partners with BUPA-Dental corporation and is set for rapid expansion. was Dr Ved Berani from Healthy Smiles Dental Group in Victoria.

The Indigenous in Business Category was presented by The Honourable Ken Wyatt, Minister for Indigenous Australians.

Minister Wyatt stated: “we have a great future in this nation. Diversity is one of the best things we have. It’s not only amongst multicultural people, in

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Aboriginal society there are 250 different language groups across this geographic nation of ours, and that diversity is seeing people flourish. ” Ray Pratt from DICE in the Northern Territory took out the win in this category. A new award, The Global Harmony Award was presented on the night for the first time. The award was also created by Founder, Chairman and Major Sponsor of the Awards, Mr Joseph Assaf AO. This is a first of its kind and was created to honour outstanding business people who are making extraordinary contributions to not only their local communities but to Australia as a whole and just as importantly, to the rest of the world. This was awarded to the late Henry Ngai of ABC Tissue and was accepted by his son, Sunny Ngai.

“The Global Harmony Award is inspired by Henry Ngai’s philanthropy and vision. It is a recognition of the kind of generosity and social awareness that can be bred by success – and which is such an important component of the bridges that we build to the world”– Joseph Assaf.

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Community News | Sydney

Colourful & Glittering evening at Premier’s Harmony Dinner

H

osted by the Minister for Multiculturalism, Mark Coure in the presence of the Hon. Dominic Perrottet, MP, Premier of New South Wales, the Premier’s Harmony Dinner is a glittering gala to recognise and celebrate the significant

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contributions made by our multicultural leaders.

These awards celebrate and recognise the important role journalists, editors and publishers in text, radio, television and digital media play. They also honour inno-

MARCH I 2022

vative and creative marketing campaigns that inspire social cohesion and community harmony. The NSW Government is the only state in Australia to recognise multicultural communicators with a standalone awards program..Unfortunately due to COVID-19 restrictions, an in-person

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Community News | Sydney

event to announce this year’s winners could not take place.

The outstanding contributions of 16 people and organisations were recognised at this colourful and glittering event.

Among who were Rosa Loria who received the SBS Lifetime Community Service Medal for her work with the Sydney Multicultural Community Services and Shubha Kumar was the winner of the National Rugby League Stepan Kerkyasharian AO Community Harmony Medal.

Attendees were treated to a sit-down meal and a variety of unique performances by Thandi Phoenix and the Matavai Pacific Cultural Arts ensemble in the Grand Ballroom of the International Convention Centre.

and ‘Together We Are One’ were also performed by the NSW Federation of Community Languages Schools Choir.

The NSW Premier, Dominic Perrottet MP; the NSW Minister for Multiculturalism and Seniors, Mark Coure MP; the Chair of the Multicultural NSW Advisory Board, Dr G.K Harinath OAM; and the CEO of Multicultural NSW, Joseph La Posta, all delivered addresses.

The Premier welcomed everyone to the occasion and emphasised the necessity of joining together to recognise the “phenomenal efforts that our multicultural community has done throughout the previous two years [of the pandemic],”

according to his remarks.

Mr Coure, who was attending the Dinner for the first time as Minister for Multiculturalism, congratulated all multicultural leaders for their achievements and thanked them for continuing to make NSW “a fantastic place to live, work and visit.”

At the conclusion of these speeches, the 2021 Premier’s Multicultural Communications Awards Winners were acknowledged in a special video presentation.

These awards celebrate and recognise the important role journalists,

Catalina Florez and Ali Bahnasawy, the night’s emcees, began off the festivities.

Uncle Allan Murray was introduced to the stage for the traditional ‘Welcome to Country,’ which was followed by the Walangari Dance Group for the smoking ritual.

The Australian National Anthem

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Community News | Sydney

editors and publishers in text, radio, television and digital media play. They also honour innovative and creative marketing campaigns that inspire social cohesion and community harmony. The NSW Government is the only state in Australia to recognise multicultural communicators with a stand-alone awards program..Unfortunately due to COVID-19 restrictions, an inperson event to announce this year’s winners could not take place Desi Australia was named the winner of the Publication of the Year award.

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Community News | Sydney

Every migrant woman has a you ready to share you Women are writing their Migration Stories in an innovative new programme “The Tongue Set Free”

K

ey Into Australia Inc., a registered Australian Charity is supporting migrant women’s mental health by inviting them to share their untold stories. This programme entitled “The Tongue Set Free” is supported by Multicultural NSW. It is currently recruiting more volunteers and participants.

Multicultural women around Sydney are finding an unexpected new way to connect: by writing stories together.

Multicultural NSW has given Key Into Australia the chance to provide free workshops to women with migrant backgrounds (first and second generation) who want to write their stories and even get them published!

“Writing a story is a kind of magic,” says Viva Hammer, renowned AutralianAmerican writer and teacher who is leading the workshops. “It can preserve a joyful moment, or rid us of a painful one.” In the writing workshops that have

been held to date by Key Into Australia, women from 15 countries, speaking at least as many languages have written stories together – in English.

“The structure of the workshop is really important,” Viva, the workshop leader says. “You give people tools, they go back in time and find the gems in their memories, the colours and tastes and smells of where they’ve come from.

Then, they can turn the memories into stories.”

Because the KIA writing workshops have been held online, they have attracted women from all parts of Sydney and NSW, and from the entire age span.

Some women migrated to Australia during the lockdown, while others had been there for many years, some Australianborn women whose parents migrated also attended. People who would never have a chance to meet each other are sharing intimate vignettes from their pasts, and shaping the ideas into new packages.

Fledgeling writers at the KIA workshops have been inspired to think of their ordinary experiences as worthy of sharing with the world. After her first workshop, one woman immediately sent a piece for publication - and was accepted! “What a thrill to discover this enormous online world of writing and reading!” Says [Ellie, from Iran] who had her 50 word story published soon after coming to the KIA workshop.

“Writing stories brings out the creative side we don’t often have a chance to explore,” says Maia Saxena, co-founder of KIA, and an immigrant from France who has participated in all the writing

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Community News | Sydney

a story, are urs?

The next writing session is scheduled for 15h March , 6.30pm to 8pm, on Zoom Registration on The Tongue Set Free: Women writing migration stories, Hosted online, Running between February and March 2022 | Humanitix KIA is calling for volunteers who’d like to give back and be trained as workshop instructors to teach creative writing to women in their community. Please find reference to Seek Volunteer Ad below :

workshops, with her 3 month old baby in her arms. “The Tongue Set Free is about releasing untold stories, using your tongue - your voice organ as well as your native tongue. There is something liberating about sharing these stories which we’ve kept hidden from others and sometimes from us. I beleive it supports migrant women’mental health.“ What’s next for this exciting programme? Writing workshops for women in their own languages! “We always wanted this amazing experience to reach women in the language that’s most meaningful for them,” says Novela Corda, an immigrant from India and co-founder of KIA. “After the success of the English

Creative Writing facilitator - in Language other than English, Key Into Australia Inc | SEEK Volunteer If you think you’d like to find out about the English language writing programme, or our training-to-write programme, please contact Key Into Australia :

language programme, we’ve asked Viva to train women who can take this into the rainbow of languages that enrich this diverse city.”

Email contact@keyintoaustralia.com.au Website https://www.keyintoaustralia. com.au Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ KeyIntoAustralia

Wishing you all a Happy Holi from Ku-ring-gai Council

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You can find out more about the services we offer at Council and appe g in the local area at krg.nsw.gov.au what’ss happening Or follow us 818 Pacific Highway Gordon 9424 0000 Download Our App

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Holi “ ” HAPPY

Wishing you and your family a very bright,colourful and joyful Holi!

Hon Steven Marshall MP

Member for Dunstan | Premier of South Australia Authorised by S Marshall, 2, 90-94 The Parade, Norwood SA 5067.

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Advertisement Holi A4 Ad.pdf 1 4/03/2022 3:37:51 PM

A DV E R T I S E M E N T

Hay F E S T I VA L O F C O L O U R S C

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On behalf of the South Australian Labor Party, I would like to wish everyone celebrating Holi a year filled with love, joy, peace and prosperity.

The Festival of Colours is a wonderful opportunity for the broader community to embrace another culture and enhance their understanding of multicultural Australia.

May you enjoy this high spirited festival with great enthusiasm and celebrations.

Peter Malinauskas

Peter with his family Annabel, Jack, Eliza and Sophie

SA Labor Leader

Authorised by Peter Malinauskas, Parliament House, North Terrace, ADELAIDE SA 5000.

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Community News | Adelaide

South Australia State Elections 19th March 2022 Over 1.26 million South Australians are expected to vote in the 2022 State Election.

issued the Writs to Mick Sherry, SA Electoral Commissioner.

Once the election is complete, the Electoral Commissioner returns the Writs the Governor certifying the names of the successful candidates for Legislative Council and the House of Assembly.

By: Daljeet Bakshi

Her Excellency, the Honourable Frances Adamson AC, Governor of South Australia,

Electoral Commissioner Mick Sherry has announced the raft of measures that the Electoral Commission has put in place to ensure that the 2022 State Election is COVID Safe. ICOVID measures will be in place at polling booths on polling day and the procedures that COVID positive South Australian’s can take to vote, including postal voting and the distribution of ballot packs at RAT Collection and PCR Testing centres across the state.

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U

nder South Australian law, the Governor must issue the Writs, which are formal instruments commanding the Electoral Commissioner to conduct elections for the Legislative Council and the House of Assembly.

According to Election Commission of South Australia, over 1.26 million of South Australians are expected to vote in the 2022State Election.

1,266,719 South Australians have enrolled to vote, representing a 5.4% increase in the number of enrolled voters since the 2018 state election when 1,201,775 individuals were registered on the electoral roll. Electoral Commissioner Mick Sherry was extremely pleased with the public’s response to enrol to vote. “We thank the South Australian public for enrolling or updating their enrolment details this state election,” Mr Sherry said.

Voters are also being encouraged to update their mySA GOV app to access the new State Election card, allowing voters access to a unique QR check-in code to save time at the polling booth on Election Day. Early voting centres www.DesiAustralia.com

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Community News | Adelaide

across the state open next Monday, March 7 and will operate until Friday, March 18, the day before the 2022 State Election, to allow eligible voters the opportunity to vote safely and early.

“Early voting centres will operate during the 2 weeks prior to Election Day for eligible voters,” Mr Sherry said. South Australians who are COVID-positive or a close contact required isolating or quarantine can apply to vote by post. Between Thursday, March 17 and election day on Saturday, March 19, electors who are COVID positive or a close contact required to isolate or quarantine or have COVID symptoms will be eligible to pick up a voting pack at a selected PCR or RAT collection sites across the state.

As the election battle is drawn and deciding day is not far, South Australia is full on with election campaigning by registered parties and independent candidates. The major election battle is between Liberal Party of Australia (SA) and Australian Labor Party (SA). This election battle has already drawn rigorous election campaigning by both parties and it’s full on in election

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colours, street corner meetings, social media campaigns, and street poles full of candidates Corf lute signs. Health and wealth are key election issues this time. Liberal Party has launched aggressive campaign with lot of new policies and plans in relation to Health, Infrastructure, and special boost for SA space centre program & cyber security, Jobs. The labor Party has launched the campaign focus on the health, particularly Ambulance ramping, increasing SA Health force.

The other major issues of election fight are privatisation of rail network. Greens are focussing on better public services and environment issues.

South Australia’s experienced Parliamentarians & Political big guns , Steven Marshall ( Liberal ) & Peter Malinauskas ( Labor) have launched guerrilla advertising campaigning in election war . Steven Marshall MP (leader of liberal party SA) is seeking re election from DUNSTAN; Peter Malinauskas MP (SA Labor leader) is seeking re election from CROYDON.

candidates who are contesting for the House of Assembly include Sarika Sharma (Liberal from Kaurna) , Saru Rana (Liberal for Playford) , Hemant Dave (Liberal for Playford).

And the candidates who are contesting for the Legislative Council are Amrik Singh Thandi (Sikh leader , social activist working towards various social community initiatives , businessman , ) Independent & MJ Thandi ( Independent ), Yesha Joshi (the youngest woman of Indian heritage to contest in the State Parliament’s Legislative Council ) – Greens , Deepa Mathew ( Family First ).

Liberal Party of South Australia has also plans if re-elected , major boost for the direct flights to many countries from Adelaide and in particular to India to boost trade and tourism , opening of SA trade office in India enabling

In last SA elections, few candidates of Indian heritage tried their luck in the election battle, and this year too they are in election fray. Those

MARCH I 2022

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Community News | Adelaide

businesses in South Australia to explore import and export opportunities . Australian Labor party has launched multicultural policy and if re-elected boost to multicultural deliverables including ethnic media grant, funding for ethnic s schools.

it’s not smooth sailing and it seems other parties and independents may play important role in the formation of the next government in South Australia.

Be COVID Safe; Follow the guidelines on polling day. Desi Australia Team extends best wishes to the candidates in the election. ( source data : ECSA )

South Australia elections battle has really tough battleground this year as plenty of core issues and the new policies and promises being made by the ruling and opposition party, voters are watching it carefully this year as the state is still recovering from Covid impacts on the lives, businesses . Surely, in some electorates

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Community News | Adelaide

Register of political parties Registered political party Australian Labor Party (South Australian Branch) Liberal Party of Australia (SA Division) National Party of Australia (SA) Inc Australian Greens SA Animal Justice Party SA-BEST Incorporated Advance SA Child Protection Party Pauline Hanson’s One Nation Australian Family Party Family First Party Inc SA Party – Stop Overdevelopment & Corruption Real Change SA Legalise Cannabis South Australia Party Liberal Democratic Party

Date of registration 17/10/1985 17/10/1985 17/10/1985 13/02/1996 24/11/2016 04/07/2017 07/11/2017 12/12/2017 16/09/2021 11/11/2021 13/01/2022 20/01/2022 20/01/2022 27/01/2022 27/01/2022

Abbreviation of party name Australian Labor Party Liberal Party The Nationals The Greens SA-BEST CPP Aust Family Party Family First SA Party LCSA Party Liberal Democrats less government more freedom

For legislative council Grouped candidates (endorsed by a registered political party) Group A A B B B C C D D D E E E E E E F F F G G H H I I I J J K K K K K K L L M M N N

Surname HOL McMAHON JOHANSON SHERRY RICHARDS PALLARAS TONKIN DARLEY GUST CHENG LENSINK HOOD CENTOFANTI CURRAN BOURNE STOCK KENYON MATHEW BOWYER MICHIE DUXBURY ADAMS GREEN SIMMS JOSHI WYRA DAY JARMAN MAHER NGO MARTIN HUNTER WORTLEY SPENCER MARKOS ABAK GAME COUCH PFEIFFER NEWMAN

Given name James Peter Gary Lisa Emmalene Stephen Tony John Paula Linda Michelle Dennis Nicola Laura Kathleen Tania Tom Deepa Craig Elise Jack George Damon Tyler Robert Yesha Malwina Bob Sue Kyam Tung Reggie Ian Russell Meagan Ian Keyvan Sarah Bob Louise Tracey

Affiliation or group Liberal Democrats less government more freedom Liberal Democrats less government more freedom The Nationals The Nationals The Nationals Real Change SA Real Change SA Advance SA Advance SA Advance SA Liberal Party Liberal Party Liberal Party Liberal Party Liberal Party Liberal Party Family First Family First Family First SA Party - Stop Overdevelopment & Corruption SA Party - Stop Overdevelopment & Corruption Legalise Cannabis South Australia Party Legalise Cannabis South Australia Party The Greens The Greens The Greens Aust Family Party Aust Family Party Australian Labor Party Australian Labor Party Australian Labor Party Australian Labor Party Australian Labor Party Australian Labor Party SA-BEST SA-BEST Pauline Hanson’s One Nation Pauline Hanson’s One Nation Animal Justice Party Animal Justice Party

Sitting member

*

* * *

*

* * * *

Independent grouped candidates (not endorsed by a registered political party) ROCHE DAVIES THANDI THANDI VALENTINE HARVEY SHEARING HASLAM DIGANCE DIGANCE

Kieran Deborah Amrik Singh MJ Belinda Steven Colin Carol Annabel Greg

Independent Prioritise Health Independent Prioritise Health Independent Truth Accountability Responsibility Independent Truth Accountability Responsibility Independent Belinda Valentine Team Independent Belinda Valentine Team Independent Defend Local Business Independent Defend Local Business Independent Annabel Digance Independent Annabel Digance

( Source data : ECSA )

O O P P Q Q R R S S

Independent ungrouped candidate (not endorsed by a registered political party) T

PHILP

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Graham

Independent Environment Heritage History

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Community News | Sydney

2022 India Australia Business & Community Alliance Award Finalists Announced.

T

he India Australia Business & Community Alliance (IABCA), now in its 9th Year, is the largest platform that strengthens the India Australia relationship while contributing to its development.

The 2022 IABCA Award finalists were commended for their valuable contributions to the India-Australia relationship through fields of science, research, technology, business, innovation, trade, and community service.

After yet another highly contested year, IABCA unveiled finalists for the 9th annual IABCA Awards across a diverse range of sectors, including new categories such as Excellence in Partnerships and Trade & Investment.

With over 200 capable entrants across the eleven award categories from India and Australia, the IABCA Jury shortlisted 93 finalists.

To view the 2022 IABCA finalists, visit : www.iabca.com. au/2022finalists

Year on year the IABCA panel is increasingly impressed by the quality of applications for the award categories, with the Australia India Impact Award positioned as a highly contested category. 2022 finalists were deliberated by an independent IABCA Jury.

We at Desi Australia are thrilled to be the Global Finalist for 2022 IABCA Micro Business of the Year.

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The 2022 IABCA Showcase will kick off on Friday 29 April 2022 at The Star Events Centre, Sydney.

The IABCA Showcase will once again comprise of a sell-out IABCA Global Leaders Forum and the IABCA Awards Ceremony, where winners for the above categories will be honoured internationally. visit: www.iabca.com.au to read more about the 2022 IABCA Showcase and secure your complimentary tickets now.

IABCA congratulates all award finalists for their accomplishments and wish them the best of luck as they progress to the annual IABCA Awards Ceremony.

MARCH I 2022

IABCA also extends their appreciation to the State Government Partner Investment NSW, Federal Government Partner, Austrade, Education Partner Deakin University and sponsors AFL, HomeWorld Group of Companies, Incredible India and Tata Consultancy. Services without whose support this platform would not be possible.

IABCA has four major initiatives associated with it.

• IABCA Virtual Roundtable - Online • IABCA Global Leaders Forum - NSW • IABCA Parliamentary Roundtable ACT • IABCA Awards Ceremony - NSW Across nine years of operation, IABCA has achieved international recognition as a tool for cultural diplomacy, bilateral trade enhancement, and as a platform for stimulating new business investment between the two nations by recognising the success of our people-to-people links.

To find out more about IABCA, visit: www.iabca.com.au

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Community News | Sydney

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Mag Corner

Union Budget 2022 Opportunities for Australia

T

he Australia India Business Council Ltd NSW Chapter along with the CGI Sydney hosted the highly impact-

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ful session on #indiabudget2022 with a focus on great insights, in-depth analysis, and opportunities for government and businesses to leverage bilateral trade and

MARCH I 2022

investment pathways.

This in-person event saw an amazing participation from some of the leading industry and government partners.

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Mag Corner

The bilateral engagement perspectives were shared by CG Manish Gupta with a call to convert intent into action, with additional insights on driving bilateral business engagement and outcomes, shared by AIBC NSW President Malik Irfan (MAICD), The Hon. Lisa Singh, the State Bank of India CEO Ganesh Radhakrishnan, Sujoy Bose, CEO of National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) and Tim Regan, AIBC NSW Treasurer.

The audience also witnessed a fantastic panel discussion moderated by Sangeeta Venkatesan, AIBC NSW Vice President, with speakers Matt Wade from The Sydney Morning Herald, Richard Yetsenga ANZ Chief Economist, Vikram Singh from Tata Consultancy Services, Brad Creighton from AMP Capital Salvatore Babones and Natasha Jha Bhaskar .

AIBC acknowledged the Indian budget snapshot provided by Vikas Vasal and their corporate member Grant Thornton LLP (US) Raj Deepan Dharav Gandhi Jim Varghese, AM Sanushka Seomangal Amit Dev Mehta Ravneet

Pawha Michael Carter Sheba Nandkeolyar Dipen Rughani GAICD Thushara Liyanarachchi Con Livissianis Narasimhan Viswanathan Anand Singh MBA, GAICD Satyarth Mishra . They also

acknowledged Javed Khan and his team for the amazing hospitality and thanked all the Corporate, Indigenous businesses and start-ups who engaged with them at this event.

Wishing you and your family a joyful and colourful Holi Customer Service Centre 1 Pope Street, Ryde (within Top Ryde City shopping centre) P: 9952 8222 E: cityofryde@ryde.nsw.gov.au

Clr Jordan Lane

/CityofRyde

C I T Y O F R Y D E M AYO R

www.ryde.nsw.gov.au

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Yoga

YouGo with Rajni-Let’s Be Mindful Series

Celebrating International Women’s Day 2022 – Break the Bias mindfully

Happy Women’s Day to all you lovely ladies. The theme for Women’s Day 2022 is Break the Bias where together, we work towards a gender equal world.

A world free of bias, stereotypes and discrimination. A world that’s diverse, equitable, and inclusive. A world where difference is valued and celebrated.

affirmations that are effective in nurturing yourselves and keeping yourselves more centred and focused.

By: Rajni Ghai Malhotra

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o walk this path with sure steady footsteps, let us begin from a point of balance. Let us empower ourselves and nourish ourselves physically, emotionally and mentally to tread gracefully, mindfully and with a sense of ownership over the moment.

I share a few handy mindfulness tips and

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MARCH I 2022

With regular practice of mindful breathing and yoga- asanas, you work on your inner strength that gives you stability, this stability gives you confidence which in turn develops the determination to stand for what you believe in.

Begin the day mindfully Affirmation: I am happy healthy and at peace.

I greet this day with confidence and ease.

I radiate positivity. I will help forge positive visibility for myself and other women.

Start your day on a high with a few minutes of www.DesiAustralia.com

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Yoga

peaceful checking-in with yourself. Your breath is your tool to navigate the day smoothly. Make sure to spend a few minutes in mindful breathing, inhaling and exhaling in a slow rhythm. This is a good time to strengthen yourself with positive affirmations to give direction to your day.

A good yoga pose to practice in the mornings is Vrksasana or Tree pose that helps calm the mind and bring balance in body and mind.

Break for brisk check-in Affirmation: I am well, strong and empowered. I have a voice. I have the choice to change, to seek change and to make change happen.

As often as you can in the day, pause for a minute, take a few deep breaths and check in with yourself. Fill these minute-pauses of mindful breathing. If you aren’t able to set aside dedicated time to practice mindfulness, challenge yourself to practice the pause at any time of the day that you can. While driving to work, watching television, cooking, waiting in line for your coffee – anytime is a good time to pause, focus on your breath and check in with yourself, remind yourself that you are well and that each

day, every day you are working towards a bigger collective.

Break the bias Affirmation: I will. I can. End of Story.

Being Bold Affirmation: I make self-care a priority. I confidently speak my mind without hesitation.

It is time to be clear and bold about your priorities. Your wellbeing and mental health are a priority. Making time to check-in with yourself, be it at work, or at home should be your prerogative. An effective yoga pose to strengthen your resolve and stay committed to your cause is Tadasana or Mountain pose.

Standing firm, erect and immovable with a calm steady breath helps feel grounded and liberated at the same time.

With regular practice of mindful breathing and yoga- asanas, you work on your inner strength that gives you stability, this stability gives you confidence which in turn develops the determination to stand for what you believe in.

There YouGo! You’ve just chosen to challenge yourself and walk firmly on the path of self-care and wellbeing. May your journey be steady and rewarding.

Yours mindfully, Rajni Follow Rajni on Facebook @YogaWithRajni

YouGo Yoga with Rajni

Yoga & Mindfulness workshops for adults and kids Experience the benefits of yoga and mindfulness through the following workshops: ✓ Beginner’s yoga ✓ Mindful breathing and meditation ✓ Yoga-in-isolation and de-stressing techniques ✓ Yoga-Zing with Rajni: Fun filled, creativity infused workshops for women and children

Rajni Ghai Malhotra | Founder, YouGo Yoga | 0424 434 031 | www.facebook.com/YogaWithRajni *All workshops now delivered in a physically distant, socially connected manner.

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Mag Corner

H

By Krutik D Patel

ow are you? Seems like a normal question. Our answer to this question seems like such a small thing. But we must answer this question at least 10 times a day— and perhaps as many as 25 times. So it’s not a small thing at all.

When someone asks you, How are you?

What do you say? Your answer is usually no more than a few words. Yet, that short response tells a lot about you, your mood, and your attitude. The responses to How are you? can be classified into three categories: negative, mediocre and positive. Let’s see each category with one example each.

Negative Responses The negative replies to How are you?

Include phrases such as: “Terrible.”

“I am tired.”

“Bad.” “It’s not my day.”

“Thank God its Friday.”

“Don’t ask.”

When people take the “Thank God its Friday” approach to life, I feel sad for them.

Just think of what they’re saying. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday are bad days every week. For these people, 4 days of the week are lousy! They spend the fifth day Friday thinking they are going to have next two days off! Get drunk and do nothing for some people. Is this a way to live your life?

Can you see how these negative phrases can poison your attitude… and turn off other people?

Mediocre Responses People in the mediocre group are a step up from the negative one —but they still have plenty of room for improvement. Here are some of the things they say: “I’m fine.”

“I’m okay.”

“Not too bad.” (People use this one most of the time) “I’m good.”

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“Not too bad”, pause yourself for a minute and ask do you really want to spend a lot of time with someone who thinks that life is “not too bad”? When we use words like these, we diminish our energy. Can you imagine someone saying “not too bad” with enthusiasm with an upright posture. These people sound like they haven’t slept in two days.

Positive Responses Then there’s the positive approach. These are the enthusiastic people who say: “Terrific.”

“Fantastic.”

“Great.”

“Excellent.”

“Super.”

“I’m on top of the world.”

Those who use positive words like these have a bounce in their steps and life. Be honest. How did you feel as you read the positive list? I don’t know about you but I feel energised and excited as I review the list.

Why not go back and re-read the negative and mediocre list. Say them out loud. How do you feel? Not great, for sure!

What if I don’t feel Terrific?

You might ask, what if I don’t feel Terrific?. I don’t want you to lie to your friends, co-workers and family by telling them everything is fantastic when it isn’t.

MARCH I 2022

Assume for a moment, that Ruby feels tired. When someone at work asks her How are you? She wants to be perfectly honest so she says, I’m tired. Here’s what will happen.

Ruby will reinforce the belief that she’s tired. She’ll feel even more fatigued. She will have an unproductive day at work.

Now, lets go back to the person who asked Ruby the question. That person also feels worse. After all, when someone tells you how tired she is, do you feel uplifted? No way. Just hearing the word “tired” and you might start yawning. So, Ruby has brought herself down and her co-worker too.

Ruby goes home after her tiring day and she’s exhausted. So, she plops into her favourite couch and opens the newspaper to look at the winning lottery numbers. As she pulls out her own ticket, she discovers that she’s holding the winning ticket. She just won $10million.

What do you think she will do? Remember, she’s very tired.You and I both know Ruby will be so excited. She might even pinch herself to make sure it is not a dream.

She’d run to pick up the phone to call her family and friends. She’d be a big bundle of energy.

But wait a second. A minute ago, this woman was exhausted.Now, she’s got so much energy. What happened in that one minute to change someone from being www.DesiAustralia.com

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Mag Corner

exhausted to wildly exuberant? Did she got a vaccine of happiness?

No. Her transformation was entirely mental!

Her fatigue was real, but it wasn’t as much as physical as mental. So, was Ruby really telling the truth when she said she was tired? It has very little to do with the truth. It’s a matter of choice. It’s matter of what Ruby chose to focus on? She could concentrate on feeling tired. That was one option. On the other hand, she could think about all the blessings in her life and feel very fortunate and energized. When we tell ourselves we’re tired, we feel tired. When we tell ourselves that we’re terrific, we feel energised. We become what we think about.

So, whenever your co-worker, friend or a cashier asks you How are you? Respond back saying “I’m fantastic” with a big smile on your face and sparkle in your eyes. It doesn’t matter whether or not you feel completely terrific or not. We want to be positive, so we act positively. At first, you’ll feel a little uncomfortable saying these words at the beginning, don’t worry stick to it and eventually you’ll grow into it.

You’ll quickly notice that you feel better and positive results will come your way.

So, let me ask you again.

How are you?

Anne Stanley MP FEDERAL MEMBER FOR WERRIWA

HAPPY HOLI! Wishing you and your family a bright and joyful Holi.

May this festival of colours bring you peace, prosperity, happiness and good health.

Shop 7, 441 Hoxton Park Rd, Hinchinbrook 2168 (02) 8783 0977 anne.stanley.mp@aph.gov.au www.annestanley.com.au Authorised by A.Stanley MP, ALP NSW, Hinchinbrook

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Entertainment

Zindagi 50

A must Play to watch

By Poonam Naik

M

arch is a wonderful time to watch a local theatrical production. Indian Women Empower - IWE and the Community Migrant Resource Centre - CMRC bring to you Zindagi 5050, an entertaining play to be performed on 24th and 25th March 2022 at the Riverside Theatres, Parramatta. Set against the backdrop of a wedding, Zindagi 5050, traverses startling revelations, buried over the years, to create shock waves that make you laugh at the absurdity of the unfolding situations, yet take stock of your own life, and recognize that often what seems simple, clear and small, is just the tip of an iceberg that you had no idea about.

Through the twists and turns, the highs and lows, past wounds, and present blows, will this family sink into the morass of painful memories? Or will hope return?

To survive is not the same as to heal.

That needs trust, sharing, acceptance and humour. Hard to find, critical to survive.

Zindagi 50-50 invites you to laugh through the serious affair. Created by Crescendo Theatre and Films, the play has a stellar cast and production crew. Everyone deDownload Our App

serves a healthy relationship. Love should always be safe. Becoming a victim is not MARCH I 2022

a choice, becoming a survivor is. All proceeds go towards funding the projects. www.DesiAustralia.com

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Entertainment

0-50 The direction and the cast are all local. The director is extremely versatile and talented, Jyotsna Sharma, a theatre professional with more than 17 years of experience performing all over the world.

She had worked with some of the biggest names in Indian theatre and film, such as Mita Vashist, Aamir Raza Husain, Sohaila Kapur, Dolly Ahluwalia Tewari and in Sydney has acted in multiple projects, directed 3 major productions, and runs her own acting academy. She has won many awards and felicitations in Australia and India. With Zindagi 50-50, Jyotsna has collaborated with playwright, Smita Bharti and a stellar cast to bring

to Sydney an entertaining and thoughtprovoking play about families and secrets and revelations.

Poornima Menon is a Sydney based theatre artist, a student of Crescendo Theatre and Films, who has acted in a short film. She believes in “living and loving life to the fullest and what better way to do it than through theatre”. I have also acted in a short film called ‘Maasi’.

Shikha Arora is a self-confessed drama queen, exploring theatre and its art in its every form. She has played the lead in a recent production and has performed in many plays over the years. I recently acted in short film Aftermath which touched many hearts. I have acted in other short films too. I also played a lead role in one of her short plays, Men are from Venus and Women are from Mars.

Akanksha Srivastava’s passion lies in theatre and performances. Some of the highlights of my journey so far have been playing an important character in ensemble production ‘In Farce’ by Alexandra

Davies which won people’s choice at Short+Sweet Sydney. I also played one if the leads in ‘Shaadi ka laddoo’ directed

by Vipul Vyas.

Taufeeq Ahmed Sheikh made his acting debut at the age of 9, then continued to pursue his passion by acting, writing, and directing plays. Radio, theatre, and films surround Taufeeq’s life, and he has performed in many successful productions in India and Australia, including works by Shakespeare, Broadway hits and Indian and Australian playwrights. Taufeeq has produced, directed, and mentored local and global projects and is a weekly radio presenter on Kehte Sunte on 89.3 2GLF FM. Ashutosh Jain is an actor, singer and music director who has acted in many web series and short films. He is an allround performer and is passionate about his craft. A runner up in a music reality show in India, he has learnt music from a very young age.

Don’t forget to book your tickets for this entertaining production!

Wishing you a Happy Holi On behalf of the City of Parramatta, I would like to extend my best wishes to everyone celebrating Holi festival.

May your life be filled with the vibrant colours of love, happiness and joy. I look forward to welcoming you to our City to celebrate this special occasion with your family and friends, exploring all that Parramatta has to offer.

Cr Donna Davis Lord Mayor City of Parramatta 126 Church Street, Parramatta | PO Box 32, Parramatta NSW 2124 P 02 9806 5050 E council@cityofparramatta.nsw.gov.au

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Festivals

Photo credit- Balz I click

AAYEE RE HOLI A

By: Sheetal Puri

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Holi a festival filled with hues The emergence of Holi festival is believed to be before the Christ. Historians also count on that the Holi was celebrated by all Aryans but more so in the eastern part of India. Although the festival is mostly celebrated in India and Nepal, it has also spread to other parts of Asia and the western world through migration from the Indian subcontinent. Holi festival is popular around the world. You can participate in this celebration in cities like New York, Sao Paulo, Hong Kong, Barcelona, Sydney, Vancouver and many others in the world.

its fair part of legendary significance. It reminds us of the divine and eternal love of Lord Krishna and Radha. Lord Krishna is associated with play of colours as he applied colour on his beloved Radha and other Gopis. Gradually, the play was vogued with the people and became a tradition. Therefore, Holi festival demands love and respect in the relationships.

Holi is celebrated by almost all religions in India with lots of pomp and show due to its phenomenal fun and anarchic atmosphere. It is celebrated on the Purnima of Hindu Lunar calendar in the month of Phalgun. Holi is celebrated most of the time in the end of February or early March. It foreshadows the arrival of spring season and celebrates the end of winter season. This year the festival of Holi is commencing on 18th MARCH, 2022. Looking into the present scenario let the colours of Holi spread the message of peace and happiness this year and for the coming years.

It also reminds us one of the most remarked mythology characters Narashima, Prahlad, Hiranyakashyapa and demoness Holika.

Hiranyakashyapa wanted everyone to worship only him and not to his brother Lord Vishnu.

Unfortunately, his son Prahlad became an ardent devotee of Narashima(half man and half lion). Hiranyakashyapa commanded his sister, Holika to enter a blazing fire with Prahlad in her lap. Holika had a boon that she could enter fire without harming herself. However, she was not aware that the boon worked only if she enters alone in the fire. As the result, she paid a price for her minacious desires, while Prahlad was saved by the grace of the God for his extreme devotion. The festival, therefore, celebrates the victory of good over evil and also the triumph of devotion.

Mythological significance Holi is not just a fiesta of colours and a feast of sweets. Holi like all other festivals also has

Holi Hai….

The predominantly stimulating part is how this festival is celebrated. One day prior to

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Festivals

AAYEE Holi festival, people meet in open areas and gather around the Holika bonfire to welcome spring season.

The other morning, people meet in the streets and throw powdered colours at each other. As the ‘battle of colours’ wrap up, everyone gets indulged in intoxicating drinks and mouth-watering delicacies. The people together dance to the rhythm of musical instruments like dhol, drums and loud music. In the later evening, people get dressed up to visit their friends and relatives and exchange sweets with each other.

Holi Colours Holi gives the appearance of the rainbow on the Earth instead of its formation high in the sky. Let’s join hand in hand on this Holi and bring peace from the white colour; gather power from the red colour; enhance knowledge from the yellow colour; boost growth and development from the green colour; motivate ourselves to achieve success from the orange colour and spread love everywhere from the pink colour.

Holi in Australia Being a multicultural society, we are bound to celebrate Holi. Here, many of these festivals are funded by local councils as well as state governments.

Not only do people participate in the throwing of colours but there are also various food stalls and dance performance to keep everyone entertained throughout the day.

people and connect with your friends.

Make sure you take photos and don’t be afraid to loosen up and enjoy the moment.

Holi is such a beautiful tradition Indians

have and it’s absolutely amazing to see that it celebrated all around the world with many countries and regions including their own little twist. So how are you celebrating Holi this year?

The great thing about living in a multicultural society is that all celebrations are inclusive regardless of race meaning anyone can come along and celebrate such a wonderful tradition.

Tips on going to Holi Festivals Here are a few tips to enjoy Holi to its fullest.

Wear white clothing! This has to be the most important tip. Wearing white clothing is part of the tradition and allows the colours to be shown more vividly.

Wear comfortable shoes. The only reason is that you’re most likely going to be jumping around and dancing, so you want to make sure your feet are okay so you don’t miss out on the fun.

Have fun. Holi festivals are a great way to meet new

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41

Talent

Following His Passion Jatinder Mahuana

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orn to a Punjabi Teacher’s House in a small Village,Jatinder Mahuana had a passion for listening and singing Punjabi songs since a very young age. He used to listen & sing songs of Punjabi legends Gurdas Mann & Kuldeep Manak on his uncle;s tape recorder all the time. He was also a big fan of the Lyricists Hardev Dilgir (Dev Tharike Wala),Surjit Patar and Shiv Kumar Batalvi in his younger days and would read their poetry all the time.

He completed his B.Tech in Chemical Engineering from SBCCET Ferozepur and then proceeded on to do M.B.A. from UTS Sydney Australia in 2005 and settled there after completing his studies. In his college days he would often be seen scribbling poetry, songs and

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MARCH I 2022

would be heard singing along in hostels, corridors and small or large gatherings of friends. After coming to Australia he had a thought of pursuing his dream of becoming a singer after getting through the initial struggles of a foreign country and getting settled. However as time would have it that small delay became a large one and he never actively inquired or tried to pursue it. He would still write some meaningful and beautiful lyrics in his free time and then just put it aside thinking the world had outgrown from nice write-ups and songs.

In 2020 he posted a poem on the plight of International Students in Australia because of the lockdown which touched a lot of hearts in Australia and around the world. Gurpreet Brar

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Talent

in June 2021. That song has just been released and is expected to touch a lot of hearts in and around the world. While speaking to Dave Sidhu,Jatinder said he always believed that that he could write well and sing well, but didn’t not realize that people would still like it very much as they did in the olden days. He also said that he uses old ancient words in the write ups deliberately hoping that those words are not lost in time and the coming generation remembers them.

He is as humble and down to earth as a human being can be and wishes that his mother tongue Punjabi continues to thrive in the coming generations. Being a son of a farmer he has a passion for supporting the cause of Indian farmers protesting in Delhi since November 2020 and he has written 49 write ups on Farmers Protest (Kisaan Andolan) in India. He has also made 4 videos on those write ups gathering up all the famous social media stars from Australia. When asked if anyone else has written as many songs/write ups on Farmers Protest, he politely replied that he doesn’t think so however he wishes in all humility and sincerity that he is wrong and there are other writers who have written more on this matter. a model/MC from Sydney read that poem and was really touched by it. She contacted Jatinder and asked him to do a video of that poem. Jatinder politely declined because of shyness and asked Gurpreet to do one instead. Gurpreet

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asked for a few fresh write-ups and finally made a video on the poem Vaisakhi in April 2020,which was instantly liked and appreciated by all in Sydney and around the world. From that point on Jatinder and Gurpreet collaborated to present the poetry in a visual form as a story line rather than just a write up.

They engaged a local D.O.P./Videographer Manbir Sidhu to shoot the poems in a professional manner. This unique approach came out as a huge success and the their visual poetry became really popular on social media. After releasing about 15 videos on social media and being liked by thousands of viewers, Jatinder Mahuana decided to take the next step towards singing which his passion was all along. He contacted music composers RD & Guni from Skullbeats and recorded his first song

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Mahuana released his first song ‘Desad or Alive on his own YouTube channel on 11th August 2021, following which he released his second song Rusvayia in Nov 21. He has just released his new song “Not Six Feet” which was received very warmly and is being liked & appreciated by audience’s around the world. Mahuana is planning to record his new songs “JW” & “Posthumous” soon and release them later in the year. His visualized poetry projects are ongoing with Gurpreet Brar and they hope to continue making videos on different subjects.

“I sincerely hope to make a difference in Punjabi Music World by writing and singing meaningful and inspiring songs so that our coming generations can stay connected to their roots” said Jatinder.

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43

Community News | Sydney

44th Sydney Gay and Lesbian MARDI GRAS Parade

By Kunal Mairchandani

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embers of the LGBTIQ+ community danced, pranced and dazzled their way through the Sydney Cricket Ground on Saturday night to celebrate the 44th Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade.

The colourful queer pride parade, which had been an annual fixture on Oxford Street for the past four decades, had to relocate to the SCG in 2021 due to COVID restrictions.

Moreover, the limits on seating capacity, mask requirements and ban on dancing meant that last year’s celebrations were more muted than usual.

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Community News | Sydney

All changed last Saturday night. After a week of non-stop downpour, the weather gods listened and gave the community a pleasantly clear evening to show off their colours of pride. The stadium was at capacity, with 43,000 screaming, cheering spectators. Over 6,000 marchers from nearly 170 floats truly made it a night to remember.

The theme for this year’s parade was

“United We Shine”, which expresses solidarity in an increasingly divided world. The event started with a moving Acknowledgement of Country, a tribute to the 78ers (who were at the first Oxford Street march in 1978 when it was a protest against police brutality), and a one-minute silence for the civilians affected by the conflict in Ukraine.

Representing the colourful subcontinent of South Asia was Trikone Australia, the country’s largest South Asian LGBT group. They truly made the Subcontinent proud with their bright, colourful capes billowing in the wind and their beaming smiles lighting up the whole stadium.

happy

Holi FESTIVAL OF COLOURS Wishing you and your family a happy and colourful Holi! www.liverpool.nsw.gov.au Download Our App

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Mayor Ned Mannoun

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Community News | Sydney

Sri Om Care’s

Photo Credit: Harmohan Walie

Assisted Living Centre Opens

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ri Om Care is not for profit, Registered Charity organisation serving the community for over 15 years. It is an accredited Home Care Service Provider serving South Asian and multicultural communities with In-home Care and Disability Care.

them live their life.

Assisted living is a residence for older people or people with disabilities who require help with some of the routines of

daily living as well as access to medical care when needed. ...

In terms of the level of care provided, assisted living is a step below a nursing home

Sri om’s New care model “PRATIKSHA” was recently opened and is a traditional & beautiful home, on suburban streets in Box Hill, where 6 to 10 residents will live together. This is a positive alternative to Traditional aged care, where they connect the care needs to tailored Care solutions while still providing the privacy and luxurious lifestyle our seniors deserve.

This is the stage where elders are less mobile, physical conditions deteriorate and are not able to support themselves. Their next kith and kin or careers at home are not able to provide continuous care, or help Download Our App

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Community News | Sydney

or skilled nursing facility and provide the below services: 4 24/7 Monitored Care Services 4 24/7 Assistance with Daily needs 4 Nursing and Medium Level care 4 Culture Specific Care and Food 4 Post-Operative Specialist Care 4 Respite Care / Short Stay 4 Structured Activities 4 Be Understood in a more Culture Context At Sri Om, the elders progress from medium to high care under culture specific food and qualified care they deserve. This makes the transition smoother and easily adaptable.

Sri Om has been providing Several Care services to the Indian and multicultural communities including: Day Respite programs Sri Om has structured group activities conducted in a centre-based setting with the primary aim of decreasing social isolation and contributing to social inclusion. Our

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centres are located close to home in major suburbs.

people well and living in their own homes for as long as possible.

Home Care Packages Sri Om delivers high-quality care in a person-cantered culturally responsive framework. Our focus is on keeping older

If you require any further information please visit www.sriomcare.org.au or

MARCH I 2022

info@sriomcare.org.au or 1300 908 681.

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47

Health

Healthy and Positive Ageing: In Australia, there are over 1,500 new cases of dementia diagnosed each week and did you know that more than 40% of dementia can be prevented.

By Ms Anju Mathur

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n Australia there is limited awareness of not just for dementia but also for prevention of dementia in our culturally and linguistically diverse communities (CALD). Factors such as increasing physical activity, incorporating healthy lifestyle changes into day-to-day life, maintaining a healthy diet and social connectedness – are important factors towards prevention of dementia.

same time each day.

1. Exercise regularly Doing physical exercise offers protective benefits for mental health, besides assisting with weight management and physical health. Get 30 minutes of moderate exercise 3 times a week. Exercise could include: Walking, gardening, swimming, cycling; jogging or any physical activity of your choice/health conditions.

4. Build social connections and positive relationships Being socially active and building social connections gives us a sense of belonging and purpose. There are various ways to connect socially - plan a weekly outing with a friend, become part of a wider community and engage through volunteer work.

2. Enjoy a healthy and balanced diet Eat a balanced and varied diet that includes: • breads and cereals, mostly wholegrain • nuts and seeds • beans and lentils • fruits • lean meats, including fish • vegetables.

5. Make time for yourself to relax Make time for yourself. Do things that matters to you and things to relax your mind. Meditation, deep breathing, mindfulness can help us better manage emotions and calm our nerves.

Also include in your diet Omega-3 found in fish and Omega-6 fatty acids found in seeds and nuts that have also been proven to boost brain power and reduces mood swings.

3. Get enough quality sleep Good quality sleep is vital for good health. Get 7 to 8 hours of sleep each night. A regular sleep cycle is created by going to bed and waking up around the Download Our App

Did you know this about Dementia?

• Dementia is not a single disease of the brain. It is the term used to describe the symptoms of a number of illnesses that affect the brain and a person’s ability to perform everyday tasks.

• The most common form of dementia is Alzheimer’s disease.

• There are over 100 kinds of dementia.

• Dementia is progressive, irreversible and permanent.

• Dementia is not normal part of Ageing.

• Early symptoms of dementia include MARCH I 2022

progressive and frequent memory loss, confusion, changes in personality and behaviour changes.

• It is important to get early diagnosis of dementia, if you are concerned about yourself or someone you care please consult your Gp. • It is important got family/carers to get early support, plan for the future and get support for people living with dementia • Medications might help with the symptoms of dementia, but there is no cure for dementia.

• Having a healthy and positive lifestyle can reduce the risk of getting dementia.

Remember you are never too young to start thinking about a sensible ageing well plan and making sensible lifestyle choices to stay healthy and positive to reduce the risk of developing dementia. www.DesiAustralia.com

48

Mag Corner

Haathi in the Room’s Curate Me Art Therapy

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aathi in the Room in collaboration with Mindkshetra recently held the ‘Curate Me’ Art therapy project.

The project was designed to encourage young South Asians to tune into their mental wellbeing through art therapy. Fifteen participants aged between 18 and 30 years attended four virtual workshops during October 2021.

The sessions were facilitated by experienced art therapist and the Founder of Mindkshetra, Rupa Parthasarathy. In each of the sessions, participants were encouraged to open and express their thoughts and feelings through painting self-portraits. Each participant painted one self-portrait and wrote a short explanation of their painting. The idea was to use art to improve mental and emotional well-being.

The workshops were a unique mental health promotion initiative, designed to raise awareness and combat stigma around the condition and address issues specific to young people. There is a growing need for mental health awareness advocacy amongst young people. It is estimated that one in seven young people aged between 15 and 25 years old experience a mental health condition in any given year. Suicide is also the leading cause of death amongst people aged below 30.

The project shone a spotlight on the importance of mental wellbeing for young people.

The project concluded with a face-to-face Art Exhibition, held at Curry Lovers Epping on Saturday 5 March 2022. The Exhibition provided an

opportunity for participants to meet for the first time in person, view each other’s art works and hear about the project all over afternoon tea. The event begun with an icebreaker activity where attendees all stood in a circle and participated in a motion memory exercise. This was followed by an exhibition session, where each of the participants presented their self portraits to the group.

The event concluded with a networking session where all attendees chatted over an afternoon tea.

The Forum was well attended, and the Haathi in the Room team received exceedingly positive feedback from attendees.

Haathi in the Room team members are: Vidhisha Khetwani, Nitasha Bhatia, Monica Das and Sue Advani.

For more information, please visit Haathi in the Room website, Facebook, and Instagram page at: • Facebook – www.facebook.com/haathiintheroom • Instagram – www.instragram.com/haathiintheroom • Website – www.haathiintheroom.com.au Rupa Parthasarathy is the founder of Mindkshetra. To find out more about Mindkshetra, please visit https://www.mindkshetra.com

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49

That’s life

Manage your energy field

By Sanjivani Kalsi

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nergy management is actually one of the best ways to spending your energy more wisely and help to cut your cord from all the negativity that is not good for your higher self !!!

When we learn to manage our energy, we create healthier choices, activities and action.

You will see the change and healthier outcome .

Always find your personal breathing space, come up for air.

Breathe Breathe beautiful soul. The breath is the vital bridge between your body and soul.

Take a time to a few deep, conscious breaths and allow life-giving energy and vitality to enter your body. By doing so, your body, mind, and soul will have a chance to pause and gain some inner clarity, calmness, and direction. Make your breathing a part of your everyday awareness.

Everything in moderation Moderation is the key to balance in all aspects of life.

Detoxing is not always about your diet. It can be your thoughts, your surroundings, your unhealthy relationship and your addiction too.

Be In Gratitude Appreciate what you have and value it. Try counting your positives and be grateful for all the good things and people in your life. Treat failure as an opportunity to learn a new and better lesson from life, and that’s the trick to manufacture optimism and be in an eternal state of gratitude.

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Love Who You Are No change starts outside of yourself. Change starts first from within. Loving ourselves isn’t a one time event. It’s an endless, ongoing process.

Bringing hope and inspiration !

Ignite the strengthen the spirit within your family, your friends and your workmates.

Uplift everyone by igniting that spark that is within their soul. Walk in with a smile, do a kind little gesture, complement them, be a bit silly and run around with full of love and care.

Advice: Give your soul a personal vacation.

A break from lack of interest, a break from routine and promise to yourself a motivation and wonderful day start.

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As your light become stronger and clearer, you will find clarity and purpose .

Our seven major chakras. Red is the first.

Your root chakra. Orange 2 or sacral. 3 is yellow your solar plexus. 4 is green your heart. 5 is turquoise your throat. 6 is indigo.

Your third eye, and white is the 7th chakra your crown chakra.

4Activate 4Cleanse 4Ground 4Shield.

Have you aligned yourself lately?

Enlightened Soul tarot reading and Reiki SANJIVANI KALSI www.DesiAustralia.com

50

Recipe

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Indulge in the Holi Delecacies

oli 2022 is almost here which means it’s about time you got your plans in check. Along with enjoying the day in its most colourful spirit, Holi is also about indulging in mouth-watering delicacies which everyone waits for all year through.

Whether it is sweet and crisp gujiyas or spicy chaklis, nothing comes straight from the heart like Holi sweets which are made at home.

Today we are sharing the Gujiya receipe with you.Gujiyas are sweet dumpling, they are made using Maida or flour and it is filled with a delightful khoya and dry fruit. This sweet dumpling is very popular in states such as Uttar Pradhesh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradhesh.

Leave to rest for at least half an hour Prepare the filling • Saute the khoya over medium heat till it looks slightly fried • Take off the heat and when it cools, mix in the sugar, almonds and cardamom • Shape the filling into oval about 21 cm length and 1 cm thickness • You should try to make the balls using the dough and roll out into 1 cm or 1/8 in thick rounds • Take a round and wet the edges using the water and then place a piece of filling over one half • Then the next step would be, fold the other half over and press the edges together to seal.

• You can either cut off the edge using a fancy cutter or you can make a design by Download Our App

Photo credit- Pinterest

Ingredients For the dough • 2 cups of maida flour or refined flour •1 cup clarified butter • Water (to mix) For Filling • 1 cup Khova • 1 cup sugar • 1 tsp green cardamom, powdered • 1 tsp sugar • 1 tsp green cardamom, powdered • 1 tbsp almonds, finely chopped • Ghee ( for deep frying) For the syrup • 1 cup sugar • 1 cup water To prepare the dough Rub ¼ cup ghee into flour and then knead into a stiff dough with water

pinching or twisting all along the sealed edges.

• You can make the gujiyas in this way, you can heat ghee in a kadahi, to check if the ghee is hot enough put a piece of dough in it. if it comes up at once, add as many gujiyas as fit in comfortably.

• Turn them over and you can lower the MARCH I 2022

heat to medium. Fry till golden brown on all sides, lift out and leave to drain on absorbent paper.

• Make sugar syrup using water and sugar together, till one thread consistency is achieved.

First published on Hans India. www.DesiAustralia.com

51

Tribute

Shane Warne

“The King of Spin” gone too soon Shane Warne, a former Australian bowler, died of a suspected heart attack on 4th March.

The news of his demise has shocked the entire cricketing globe. Shane Warne will receive a state funeral after his grieving family accepted government offer.

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ricket fans across the globe are grief stuck over Shane Warne’s demise and express their disbelief and shock.

field as well.” Virat Kohli said in a video posted by BCCI. From British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to Hollywood actor Russell Crowe and Hugh Jackman, tributes came in for the enigmatic spinner.

His teammates continued to remember the cherishable moments they shared with him.

Former spinner Harbhajan Singh tweeted, “No, I can’t believe Shane Warne is no more in this world. Tribute to my hero. Don’t want to believe it.

Totally shattered.”

India batter Virat Kohli, playing his landmark 100th Test in Mohali, recalled Warne’s flamboyant persona and the passion he exuded.

“I stand here with disbelief and shock because I got to know him off the field as well, the persona and charisma he brought to every conversation from that I could understand what he brought on the

Shocked, stunned & miserable…

Will miss you Warnie. There was never a dull moment with you around, on or off the field. Will always treasure our on field duels & off field banter.

You always had a special place for India & Indians had a special place for you. Gone too young! Wrote Sachin Tendulkar on Twitter.

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“Hard to put this into words. I first met him when I was 15 at the Academy. He gave me my nickname. We were teammates for more than a decade, riding all the highs and lows together.” Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting wrote on his Twitter page.

“I thought nothing could ever happen to him, He lived more in his life than most people would live in 20,” McGrath wrote.

“He has had a turbulent life but a very full life . . . you just felt, I certa inly did, he would go on forever,” another former Australia skipper Mark Taylor said.

The great Brian Lara and Vivian Richards were in disbelief, like many others, after the loss of the “Greatest Sportsman of All Time.”

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Tribute

bar, golf club & friendship group .. his energy & positivity was beyond anyone I have ever known .. he was loyal beyond loyal.

“Everyone wanted to be around him but ultimately he was just a normal guy who could do incredible things,” Vaughan wrote on Instagram.

“Heartbroken And speechless at the moment. I literally don’t know how to sum up this situation. My friend is gone!! We have lost one of the Greatest Sportsmen of all time!! My condolences goes out to his family. RIP Warnie!! You will be missed,” Lara said.

“Unbelievable. I am shocked to the core. This can’t be true... Rest In Peace, @ShaneWarne. There are no words to describe what I feel right now. A huge loss for cricket,” Richards wrote on Twitter.

Indian actor Preity Zinta, who is also an IPL team owner, recalled her interactions with the legend during the league.

“So sad to hear that Shane Warne is no more. He was a magician on the field & such a charismatic & flamboyant personality off the field.I learnt so much about cricket from him every time I met him during the IPL & laughed a lot. He was an inspiration to so many all over the world,” Bollywood actor and Punjab Kings coowner Preity Zinta wrote.

Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and current British PM Boris Johnson also paid rich tributes to the legend.

An iconic name in international cricket, Warne, since making his debut in 1992, played 145 Tests for Australia, picking up 708 wickets with his eye-catching legspin. In his 194 ODI appearances, Warne snared 293 scalps.

“Larger than life. A living legend.

Far too young. Both cricket and the country so much poorer for his passing.

May you Rest In Peace Warnie. The country mourns his passing,” Rudd wrote.

“I’ve lost a great friend on and off the playing field. “One of the best” my thoughts are with Jackson Summer & Brooke ... RIP Warnster, “ England great Ian Botham on Twitter.

“Totally shocked and saddened to hear about Shane Warne - a cricketing genius and one of the nicest guys you could meet, who also did a lot to help disadvantaged kids into sport,” Johnson said.

Warne passed away on a day when Australian cricket was already in mourning after the death of wicket-keeping legend Rodney Marsh.

“Shane was the greatest ever cricketer but more than that his character lit up every dressing room, comm box,

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Star opener David Warner wrote, “Two legends of our game have left us too soon.

I’m lost for words, and this is extremely sad. My thoughts and prayers go out to

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the Marsh and Warne family. I just can not believe it. #rip, you will both be missed.”

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53

Australia News

Australian Community Floode Sikh Sewa (Volunteer Ser

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s many of us know how Sikh organisation (non for profit) have been on the front line across Australia to support for bushfire victims, regular community support, food drives for vulnerable, covid 19 relief work and now helping the flood victims of NSW/QLD Sikh Volunteers Australia (Melbourne),

Sikh community members drove for 34 hrs from Melbourne to the flood-affected areas.

They had locked in an industrial kitchen at the Sikh temple in Woolgoolga to prepare freshly cooked vegetarian meals in giant pots for the flood victims and also support with essentials teams at relief centres. Based on the community response it was realised that the Service is much required in Lismore area.

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“Volunteering is part of Sikh culture. It gives us a higher purpose and meaning.

It doesn’t matter if I don’t sleep for a few days, the feeling I get from helping others is pure peace and calmness.” Jaswinder Singh from Sikh Volunteers Australia (SYA) told the ABC Turbans 4 Australia (Sydney) have deliv-

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Australia News

ed with the rvices) ered 2 trucks of bottled water, brand new clothing, groceries, fresh produce, bread and personal care items. They are also delivering average of 600 meals a day at Northern Rugby Leagues in Goonellabah.

They have planned to take supplies into town twice a week from Sydney and they are also took deliveries to other smaller town.

T4A specially appreciated SYA is doing a commendable job. Amar Singh of T4A is requesting if anyone wants to donate items in bulk 1 pallet of water or long life milk please get in touch. Donations can be made on our website or PayPal. T4A account details listed on poster.

Australian Sikh support (Melbourne/Adelaide), Senior coordinators of the organisation from Melbourne and Adelaide flew to the affected areas for setting up the base for carrying out relief work to help with the fresh cooked vegetarian meals and other clean up assistance for the flood victims and support teams. According to Daljeet Singh Bakshi , Coordinator SA , On learning about the need of effected community the Australian Sikh Support initiated a joint

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Australia News

relief assistance work with generous support of management of Gurudwara Sahib, Nerang , Gold Coast.

The Joint initiative has started with kitchen facilities and volunteers of Gurudwara and Australian Sikh Support Volunteers of Gurughar are preparing meals for the affected areas in Mullumbimby, Murwillumbah, Chinderah , Tumbulgam, relief centres and it’s continuing .

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Australia News

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57

Movie Review

BADHAAI DO

By Kunal Mirchandani

T

here’s good reason to be a little nervous whenever Bollywood comes out with a “groundbreaking” new film about LGBT issues. Sure, we may have come a long way from the absurd caricatures of Dostana (it’s hard to believe, I know, but not all us gay men are effeminate and vulgar and keen to rub our butts in your faces). But even recent, earnest attempts at showing same-sex romance onscreen (Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga, Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan) have been relatively bland and forgettable. own separate lives.

So it’s a great relief that Badhaai Do, the latest Indian film to come out from the emerging “comedy tackling social issues” subgenre, manages to be a solid step in the right direction. It is, by far, the best queer representation I’ve seen in a mainstream Bollywood movie.

Shardul (Rajkummar Rao) is a closeted gay cop in Dehradun who spends his days deflecting pressures to get married from his overbearing, extended family. The cognitive dissonance required for Shardul to reconcile being both the victim and the persecutor isn’t entirely lost on him. He is someone intrinsically at odds with himself – at one point, he expresses wonder that as a gay man, he is terrified by cops despite being one himself.

Through a cleverly-written catfishing plot point, Shardul meets Sumi (Bhumi Pednekar), a feisty PE teacher who’s also hiding her homosexuality from her family. As a single lesbian in her early thirties, she is aware of the limitations that Indian society can impose on her. But she’s also definitely more self-assured than Shardul, and is unafraid to speak her mind – especially to people whose opinions she cares nothing about. To appease both their families’ demands, Shardul proposes that they enter a marriage of convenience (“lavender marriage”) to remove any social stigma while continuing to live their Download Our App

What follows next is a series of chaotic setpieces, as Shardul and Sumi realise that keeping up the charade isn’t as easy as they thought. It doesn’t help that Sumi’s new girlfriend Rimjhim (Chum Darang) has moved into their apartment, resulting in several near-misses that begin stacking up like a house of cards.

Rajkummar Rao brings lovable buffoonery to his performance, and it may be one of the best works of his already prolific career. His prominent moustache and bulging biceps hide a soft vulnerability that occasionally cracks the surface, and it’s both mesmerising and heartbreaking to watch. He’s a little boy pretending to be a big man, and is naive enough to believe he can get away with the con. Bhumi Pednekar also brings a raw emotionality to Sumi’s character, exhibiting a range of emotions that run the gamut from love to rage and resignation in the face of impending defeat. She isn’t someone who wants to actively change minds or fight for queer rights or win legal battles. Her desires are simply to raise a child with someone she loves, even if it means moving to a country where she can legally do that.

Ultimately, I admired the film’s nuance with which it allows its main characters to be flawed, messy and “human” like MARCH I 2022

the rest of us. Shardul’s homosexuality doesn’t automatically make him more evolved. His ingrained misogyny gets deployed in full force during an unexpected visit from a neighbour, where he switches into a “typical Indian man” mode, ordering his wife around in front of his guests.

The film doesn’t provide easy, cathartic resolutions to its characters’ dilemmas, either. They don’t take a grandiose walk towards the horizon of freedom but make small, hesitant strides. Coming out for them isn’t one big showy gesture but a series of daily negotiations. The same goes for the family members around this duo, who don’t suddenly “see the truth” and inexplicably repent their ways at the culmination of a preachy sermon. And as a queer person myself, I can admit that it’s thoroughly refreshing to see our community depicted onscreen in a manner that doesn’t feel wishful or patronising.

Badhaai Do is expected to be released on Netflix at some time this month. If you haven’t seen it yet, I highly recommend checking it out.

Kunal Mirchandani is the chairperson of Trikone Australia, a social support group for people of South Asian descent living in Australia. They celebrated their participation in this year’s Mardi Gras Parade with a spectacular float titled “Supernova: An Explosion of Colour”. www.DesiAustralia.com

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