India Currents April 2017 Digital Edition

Grad Student Decor 101

By Alakananda Mookerjee

A Music School Turns 50!

By Madina Khan

My Arranged Marriage with Engineering

By Mariappan Jawaharlal

INDIA CURRENTS Celebrating 30 Years of Excellence

Capturing the Heartbeat of Our Community: 1987-2017

By Nirupama Vaidhyanathan

April 2017 •• vol. 31 , no. 1 • indiacurrents.com • $3.95

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 1

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A Thirtieth Birthday Celebration!

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he immigrant experience is a transformative one that binds person with place wherein a hyphenated identity emerges. Like the narrative arc in a novel, there is a personal map in the mind that one can recall at will: the initial days of isolation, and displacement, to acceptance, and a sure sense of self.

It is marked by a story of personal growth and transformation where the unfamiliar becomes familiar; where the fragments of being, though disparate and riddled with contradictions, fuse into a wholeness that starts to make sense within.

Through this period of personal transformation, the shared written word builds a sense of identity.

When words jump from a page and resonate with a sense of clarity in a way that is sometimes startling, meaning is born. When ideas jump from that same page helping coalesce loose strands of thought in one’s mind, meaning is again born. Looking at words and seeing a part of oneself reflected in them is a process that is most magical.

When clarity is achieved on a page, the page is akin to a clear pool that helps the reader stare at his or her own reflection.

Guided by words, the reflection that flutters upward from the page is an authentic one. Authentic words reveal the radiance and the dullness; the worry lines intersecting with the upward smile and show the years lived along with the gaze into the future. Our pages reveal the warts, the pimples and the rosy cheeks of our entire community.

When India Currents was born in 1987, Indian restaurants did not dot the length and breadth of Artesia and El Camino Real. Bollywood shows were not held in sold-out 1000-seat theaters. The Indian Prime Minister did not speak at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

The community was small then, but the desire to connect was palpable and real. In the early years, there was a desire that drove the founders—Vandana Kumar, Arvind Kumar and Ashok Jethanandani— a desire to publicize Indian cultural events.

India Currents started with an 8-page broadsheet and has since grown in size and scope, fueled by the growth of the community over three decades. As a commu-

nity magazine, our pages have chronicled the weaknesses, strengths, and challenges faced by Indian-Americans.

We have always strived hard to be the collective conscience of the community.

Indeed, this is our singular accomplishment. It was just as important to praise the Indian-American work ethic, as it was to censure their apathy. We chronicled the tech revolution while revealing the domestic abuse that happened within our homes. Our pages chronicled the concerns of elderly parents and youngsters caught in the cross-currents of two cultures.

The most powerful words that have graced our pages have always involved our empathy for questions of identity. And, perhaps serendipitously, Kalpana Mohan will be starting a new column this month with the tagline—The Brown View, delving into issues of brownness, a brownness that is being thrust into the spotlight now.

Our proudest accomplishment is not the fact that our readership has grown to over 200, 000, but that we have never

compromised on editorial integrity. We have consistently been recognized for excellence over the years. In fact, most recently, under the helm of Jaya Padmanabhan, India Currents won awards for overall excellence for the past three years in a row.

We have received our share of hate mail just as we have received bouquets, but the quest for truth has always remained at the core. We express editorial opinions, but have never hesitated to carry a viewpoint that is totally contrary to ours. After all, it is this diversity of opinion and thought that have shaped America, and in our own way, we aim to be a microcosm of everything that this great country stands for.

So, as we blow out the birthday candles, we are poised to look inward and onward with you! n

Nirupama Vaidhyanathan, Managing Editor

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April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 3

INDIA CURRENTS April 2017 • vol 31 • no 1

3 | EDITORIAL A Thirtieth Birthday Celebration

By Nirupama Vaidhyanathan

West Coast Edition www.indiacurrents.com

Find us on

PERSPECTIVES

LIFESTYLE

8 | NOW AND THEN Shikhandi

By Jaya Padmanabhan

38 | PROFILE Desi in the World's Hotspots: Anupma Sud

By Shruthi Rao

10 |ANALYSIS A Republican Journey

By Vijay Rajvaidya

40 | RECIPE Indo-Mexican Fusion: Hearty Casserole

By Shanta Nimbark-Sacharoff

20 | PERSPECTIVE My Arranged Marriage with Engineering

By Mariappan Jawaharlal

42 | BOOKS Review of The Clothing of Books

By Raj C. Oza

22 | THE BROWN VIEW Who Exactly Are We?

By Kalpana Mohan 28 | VIEWPOINT Apartment Decor 101: Grad Student Style

By Alakananda Mookerjee

12 | Celebrating 30 Years Capturing the Heartbeat of Our Community 1987-2017

46 | COMMENTARY Made in the Divided States of America

By Shumit DasGupta 52 | HUMOR A Tea Story

By Sandhya Acharya 86 | LAST WORD RIP American Democracy

By Sarita Sarvate

Curated by Nirupama Vaidhyanathan

34 | Films Desi Gone Global Movies Not to Miss on Netflix

By Aniruddh Chawda

80 | HEALTHY LIFE Yoga Antidote to Depression

By Sujata Srinivasan 82 |DEAR DOCTOR Finding a Personal Vision

By Alzak Amlani

DEPARTMENTS

54 | Feature World is Sound A Music School Turns 50!

By Madina Khan

4 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition |April 2017

60 |RELATIONSHIP DIVA Five Tips For Finding That Special Someone

By Jasbina Ahluwalia

6 30 31 32 68

| Letters to the Editor | Ask a Lawyer | Visa Dates | Tax Talk | Cultural Calendar

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INDIA CURRENTS® (ISSN 0896-095X) is published monthly (except Dec/Jan, which is a combined issue) for $19.95 per year by India Currents, 2670 S. White Road, Suite 165, San Jose, CA 95148. Periodicals postage paid at San Jose, CA, and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to INDIA CURRENTS, 2670 S. WHITE ROAD, STE. 165, SAN JOSE, CA 95148 Information provided is accurate as of the date of going to press; India Currents is not responsible for errors or omissions. The opinions expressed in our published works are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinions of India Currents Inc., or its editors. Advertising copy, logos, and artwork are the sole responsibility of individual advertisers, not of India Currents.

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letters to the editor Yoga’s Cultural Appropriation

I am writing this after reading your cover story. (Whitewashing Yoga, India Currents, March 2017).

There is a cultural appropriation going on with yoga, meditation and other Indian practices in America. People benefit without ever mentioning the source.

We see Christian yoga studios and Jewish yoga studios trying to make yogic philosophy compliant with their religion.

You never hear the words “Indian” and “Hindu” on the Dr. Oz show or from hundreds of celebrities who practice transcendental meditation, which cannot be seperated from yoga. Westerners seem to find comfort in using the words “eastern” and “ancient” as if yoga could very well be from Malaysia or the ancient civilization of Babylonia. This is no different from the cultural appropriation of native American culture which is now extinct. On the other hand, Indians in America are just happy to see the popularity of yoga and eager to comply.

Manisha Verma, web

We Want Part Two On Yoga Story

I am writing to say how thrilled I was to see the cover of your recent publication (Whitewashing Yoga, India Currents, March 2017) and then how disappointed I was with most of the content of the article.

Whitewashing is a powerful term and I believe yoga in America is undermined and separated from its spiritual roots today. I thought that this would be addressed in your story, given the focus of India Currents.

Today’s American yoga seems to be all about fitness and stress “let’s do some downward dog, work out with exotic stretches, experience fragrant incense and cool trance music.” To just cover yoga’s growing popularity by mostly discussing “exotic orientalism” and analyzing Devi and Marilyn Monroe in swimming gear; outlining instances of yoga in today’s TV shows and movies in which yoga is featured; is not covering “whitewashing” in the issue at all. It is just laying what’s happening.

6 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition |April 2017

I think a solution for India Currents would be for the publication to consider a Part 2 for this story.

Please interview some hoary old gurus and long-time practioners and teachers.

Let’s look to the spiritual promise of yoga and the great history of this practice!

Jo Ann Driscoll, email

Indian Tech Firms have More to Deal with than H-1B Policy changes

This is written in response to Jaya Padmanabhan’s article. (H-1Bs—The Best and the Brightest? India Currents, March 2017).

There is more than President Trump’s proposed immigration reform that could put barriers to Indian IT being able to corner the market on skilled H-1B visas, which threatens the 75 billion revenue from the United States alone.

The fact is that the traditional outsourcing model will no longer be the reliable bread-and-butter business that it used to be. Instead, the new frontiers of business are in the areas of artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and the Internet of Yhings, and Indian firms are desperately trying to claw their way into these fields.

They also have to wrestle with another dilemma: automation is rapidly eliminating the routine, low-level IT jobs that Indian companies use college graduates for.

This means that firms will have to either let go of thousands of workers, or retrain then to be part of the new wave of IT work that will be up for grabs.

Girish Modi, email

Feel Like an Outsider

Thank you for this wonderfully-written piece! (In Defense of Sudden Outsiders by Samantha Rajaram, March 2017) I too have had many conflicting and mixed emotions over the past few weeks and months about our place in the United States. I had never felt that I was an outsider, even during the times I had worn Indian clothes walking down University Ave! Now, I feel like an outsider no matter what I wear. This feeling will pass—this country is much greater than the few who wish to usurp its ideals and principles. You said it right— we must pay back the privilege of being American citizens by upholding the principles that make this country great!

Sudha Yalamanchi, web

America Has Become a Scary Place

Very well-written piece. (In Defense of Sudden Outsiders by Samantha Rajaram, March 2017). Yes—America has become a scary place for those who went there to live a dream.

Shrimati Ghosh. web

Indians’ Misplaced Trust

This is in response to the online-only story. (Amar, Akbar, Anthony—We are all the same by Nirupama Vaidhyanathan, March 2017).

Those of us who didn’t support his ideas—the hate speeches to ban immigrants of an entire religion, the poorly thought-out plans to control borders, and in the process becoming a global spokesperson for racists, misogynists, bullies, and white nationalists, we condemned him a long time ago.

We are wondering when everyone who voted for him is/was going to “wake the hell up,” as quoted by Madonna. We already understood that every immigrant, citizen, resident, American, who did not fit the cookie cutter description of “white American” would be attacked.

Indians purely voted thinking that they were much too valuable for Trump to clump them in a non-priority category. Indians who voted for Trump assumed that he would be good on his word to protect them, their rights, and provide clearance on visas.

This was all seen during his campaign.

And yet, there are some Indians who are puzzled now.

Mona Ariyana. web

Erratum

The March column by Priya Das, When in Doubt: Be a Hero referred to an apology issued by Bruce Springsteen, which the Observer stated a week later, was actually written by a writer who felt a disconnect with Springsteen: it was a satirical piece.

We have changed the online version of the column to reflect this change. As a print magazine, our deadlines are several weeks ahead of March 1.

The columnist wrote the piece as soon as the purported “apology” hit the wire.

She had mistakenly interpreted the byline to mean that the Observer writer was the interviewer/ scribe, while Springsteen was the one expressing the opinion. We made the correction based on a reader’s keen observation and we welcome it. n

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 7

Now and Then

The Forgotten Tale of Shikhandi

T

By Jaya Padmanabhan

he stories that inhabit the Vedas and epics are “whispers of God” says Devdutt Pattanaik as he opens his book Jaya, a retelling of the Mahabharata. It’s true. These books present a startlingly clear vision of the now from the ancient then. The authors of the stories had a seeing eye that modern scientists would give their eye-teeth for. Pardon the mixed metaphors.

Take the notion of Shikhandi. It is both an idea and a character and has so many reflections in this prism we call the “modern family.” The robustness of Shikhandi as a character is astounding and awe inspiring. As each layer is peeled and his/her place in India’s mythological history is uncovered, Shikhandi’s ambiguities of nature and form become moral, ethical and philosophical data points that have withstood generation upon generation of interpretations.

Last July, I interviewed a young man whom I chanced to see in a production called, “The Box.” He was introduced to the audience as J. Jha from India who was seeking asylum in the United States. Binary gender pronouns came up in our conversation and this remarkably talented individual rejected the “he,” “she” format that is the traditional gender distinguisher. Jha preferred “they,” and “theirs,” so I will respect their wish in this article.

Shikhandi is both an idea and a character.

Shikhandi’s ambiguities of nature and form become moral, ethical and philosophical data points that have withstood generation upon generation of interpretations.

In their interview, which I wrote for the San Francisco Examiner, Jha told me about being confined by the limitations of heterosexual identity and cisgender norms. Growing up in India, Jha said that they had no homosexual or transgender role model.

Jha did not have a single openly gay person among their family or friends that they could relate to. Early on, Jha understood clearly, through reactive and reinforced behavior, that transgender people were personae non gratae. It is only upon leaving India and coming to America that they experienced personal liberation with the freedom to express in gender non-conforming ways.

But how have we come to this place of intolerance where we have blatantly ignored or forgotten the lessons from India’s own wise men?

Shashi Tharoor’s latest book, An Era of Darkness, discusses this very idea. He begins his argument with Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, which allows a punishable verdict on “Whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature.”

Tharoor claims that this order of nature was established by the British. “The irony is that in India there has always been a place for people of different gender identities and sexual orientations.

Indian history and mythology reveal no example of prejudice 8 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition |April 2017

against sexual difference.” Tharoor goes on to remind us of the gender-morphing Shikhandi.

There are many versions of the Shikhandi story, but in every version, there occurs a sexual transformation to the female form, crossing male-female boundaries. It is remarkable that a country that gave us the Shikhandi prototype persecutes avatars of this remarkable character.

Here in America, with the high school bathroom issue, gender became hotly debated across the country. At the time, I heard people remark dismissively, “isn’t there anything better to do than focus on high-school bathrooms? When people don’t have jobs, why should we worry about gender-neutral bathrooms?” It’s true, it’s an outsize idea, and one we are unable to adjust to because of in-bred conventional normalcy. So, we find ways to minimize its significance.

Even when we do try to relate, we fall short. Take the Louis Vuitton advertisement where Jaden Smith, Will Smith’s son, is shown wearing women’s clothes. It was explained as an ad for women’s clothes featuring a man. Young Smith looked comfortable in the clothes he modeled. He wore it with style and attitude.

Yet, it seemed as though he wore women’s clothes because he needed more choices. As Lauren Duca remarked in Teen Vogue, the ad, while looking at the world unconventionally, still “confronted the binary, while participating in it.”

Judith Butler, gender theorist and author of Gender Trouble, argues that gender is not a noun. “Gender is always a doing, though not a doing by a subject,” she says, and clarifies by saying that gender is “a set of repeated acts within a highly rigid regulatory frame.” So, according to Butler, a person assumes the feminine identity by doing feminine things. As a young child, wearing dresses, growing long hair and playing with dolls reinforces the stereotypes needed for inhabiting a particular gender.

Interestingly enough, one of my daughters, from the time she was five till when she turned fourteen, wore her hair short, dressed in shorts and t-shirts, and played Pokemon and Donkey Kong with the boys in her class. Today she is a beautiful young woman, remarkably sure of her femininity. I was cautioned about her gender-bending tendencies by several well-meaning friends when she was growing up. It didn’t bother me then and it doesn’t bother me now. Her femininity was hers to discover. Just like Jha’s. [Though it might be worthwhile to admit here that tomboys are more accepted than boys who emulate girls.]

Modern Shikhandi characters abound in the world. They teach us a valuable lesson about how to navigate edge cases in our society without distorting character or creating noise. To pursue this engineering analogy, if we are able to gracefully and seamlessly transact our boundary conditions, we will have ourselves a robust operating strategy for life. n Jaya Padmanabhan was the editor of India Currents from 2012-16. She is the author of the collection of short stories, Transactions of Belonging.

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 9

analysis

A REPUBLICAN JOURNEY

I

am the one who is ultimately accountable to the American people.

No President should ever be protected from the truth,” President Reagan said. It was August 12, 1987.

I remembered these words spoken by a Republican President, the one whose name is invoked repeatedly by Republicans today, even as they move farther and farther away from his legacy.

I was listening to the President Trump’s response to a German reporter at his press conference: “That was a statement made by a very talented lawyer on Fox, and so you shouldn’t be talking to me, you should be talking to Fox.” As Trevor Noah quipped on The Daily Show, “Don’t ask me, I am not the President. I just work here. Fox News is the President.”

We have traversed thirty years since President Reagan made his statement, but we did so in different directions. Let “time” not be the singular measure of our journey because we all learned and transformed differently. It seems as if the journey has been to move backward for Ronald Reagan’s party.

In 1987, Silicon Valley was making silicon and the Internet was about to be unleashed. India Currents was launched in April 1987. There were few IndianAmericans in the valley and the few that were here were busy working in the hightech industry. The Y2K surge was still in the future.

Republicans were in the White House and they were busy solidifying Reagan’s legacy. The seeds they planted didn’t result in anything President Reagan would have approved of. From the witch-hunting of the Clinton administration to the empowerment of neocons in the Bush administration, the world convulsed under their onslaught. Fake WMDs were used to launch a war that killed our young men and women in uniform, and countless civilians. It caused the ballooning of our debt and destabilizing the Middle East was 10 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition |April 2017

By Vijay Rajvaidya

the ultimate reward. When all of this was happening, the Democrats were nowhere to be seen.

But worse was to come during the Obama administration. The Republican party placed itself ahead of the nation for the first time. Majorities in the Senate and the House were not used to enforce fiscal conservatism or less government. Their sole objective became to “bring down the Presidency of Barack Obama.” They blamed Obama for the bad economy and the ineffective foreign policy.

Democrats, once again, seemed powerless and leaderless in Congress as they faced the Republican majority. They wouldn’t speak up. And for Republicans, the nation didn’t matter, citizens didn’t matter, only the Party mattered. What a decline of American politics!

I felt that the Republican party had hit rock bottom and the Democrats had vaporized: not to be seen again. But what did we know?

I recall a prophecy by the celebrity psychic Jeane Dixon. She prophesied in the 1960s that the Third World War would be fought with America and Russia on the same side and China on the other. In the 1960s this was unthinkable. China was a third world country and there was a Cold War raging between America and the erstwhile USSR. Well, it seems that her prophecy is looking more plausible than initially thought.

If Russian involvement in the American

elections can indeed be proven, Republicans may have colluded with Russians, not to fight China, but to keep Democrats out of the White House! What would President Reagan think of this state of affairs?

If you have read Isaac Asimov’s Foundation series you will recall the character Mule. He is a mentalist who has the ability to reach into the minds of others and “adjust” their emotions. He uses a subtle influence of the subconscious which makes individuals under his influence behave otherwise than they normally would. This gives Mule the capacity to disrupt Hari Seldon’s plan by invalidating the underlying assumption that no single individual could have a measurable effect on galactic socio-historical trends on his own, because the plan relies on the predictability of the actions of very large numbers of people.

To me, the American Constitution represents Hari Seldon’s plan because it sets rules to counter forces which could disrupt the nation. However, we have a President who has successfully understood and convinced the minds of enough citizens to win the White House and govern by his ideas which, to many of us, seem unjust, unfair and regressive in many ways.

We need to stop sinking. We need a leader to free Americans from his trance.

We need to rise and float once again.

I hope that we have hit rock bottom!n Vijay Rajvaidya is the Managing Director of India Currents magazine.

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 11

CELEBRATING

3

Capturing the Heartbeat of Ou

Curated by Nirupam

Publisher’s Note

1987: A new immigrant in a foreign land. Incredible loneliness.

Phone calls to India are $3.50 per minute. Aerograms cost 36c. It takes 28 days to get a reply. Were there others like me? How did they cope?

I scan the local newspapers—no news of anything familiar.

Iran Contra crisis. India, if ever mentioned, was in the “News of the Weird!” Dow Jones at 2372. Was this my new reality?

Mother to twin boys. Satisfaction of creating a family, a home.

And yet, nothing familiar to anchor me. Craving the tastes of home.

Craving the sounds of home. Rasmalai? Make it with ricotta cheese. Croon to Lata and Kishore on spooling cassette tapes. Were there others like me? How do I reach them?

India Currents is born. A platform to share events and thoughts that were familiar. No plans, forecasts or ROI. A hunger to share. The desire to explore our hyphenated identities. The challenge of finding resources. The thrill of discovering fellow travelers. The hunger to belong!

2017: Vibrant social life. Facetime Mummy every day. Whatsapp for free. Share life with family across the globe via Facebook. A connected world.

I scan the local newspapers–now featuring Indian-Americans regularly! Read about the global rush to harness the “buying power of the Indian middle-class.” The Dow Jones at 20, 668.

I am a mother-in-law now. I buy rasmalai at Costco. Stream Hindi music on my iPhone.

India Currents celebrates its 30th anniversary. The original quest to explore our hyphenated identities stays strong.

The aspirations of our community have not changed. The hunger remains—the hunger to belong, the hunger to connect!

What started as a community platform remains a labor of love for me. Readers, writers, editors and advertisers—we could not have done it without you. Thanks to all that have been a part of this fabulous journey!

—Vandana Kumar This month’s cover story is a look back on our editorials written over 30 years. Racism, sexism, gay rights, the political scene in America and India, raising children in America—a part of your identity is reflected in these editorials. Our editorials reveal our best and worst selves as a community. Our words are by, of, and for you—our readers.

We stand up and speak on your behalf. An honor indeed!

—Nirupama Vaidhyanathan, Managing Editor 12 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition |April 2017

Editorials, by Arvind Kumar, April 1987

I

t has been a long time since the first Punjabi and and Sikh immigrants came to the west coast of North America to work on its farms and fell its trees for lumber. Almost a century later, Indians in the San Francisco Bay Area form a large and vibrant community. Countless restaurants serve culinary delights of all major cuisines of the subcontinent. There are temples, mosques, and gurudwaras. With a large and growing community like this, there is also great diversity in the number and types of activities for Indians. India Currents is an effort to provide accurate and timely information about such events to the Bay Area Indian community.

Opposing Apartheid, May 1989

Bill Cosby, one of America’s most original comics, also known as the inimitable Dr. Huxtable on television has his principles. When NBC executives suggested that the anti-apartheid poster on the set be taken down—it was too political, they said—Cosby refused. There was no way, he said, that the Huxtable family could have a different viewpoint on South Africa. He was ready to quit, if it came to that. NBC relented.

The poster stayed.

Mild or Not, Prejudice is Still Prejudice, August 1989

There is something else I learned very early in India. My cousins, several shades darker than I, were constantly reminded that they were kala—black, as I was praised for being gora—fair. Light skin was considered superior and attractive, and even children were not spared these attitudes.

Asians Not Wanted, November 1989

Congressman James Scheuer of New York opposes the family reunification provisions in the current immigration law. “If siblings can bring each other and their wives in, we have an endless chain that never stops (sic). There must be some end to this process, otherwise we will turn into a Third World country.” The irony is that Congressman Scheuer represents Queens, a district with a large Indian community.

G

30 YEARS

Our Community: 1987- 2017

pama Vaidhyanathan

Put Up or Speak Up, March 1990

It is part of my job to scan advance listings from radio and television stations. I never cease to be amazed by how few programs there are that concern India. What little there is more often concerns Indian animals-God bless them-than Indian human beings.

When you call your favorite radio or television station, identify your interest in things Indian. If you ask, your local library might be persuaded to carry books on India. To the extent that we belong in this society, we can influence its future direction— simply by speaking up.

The Price of Being Indian, May 1990

Has this ever happened to you? You arrive at the airport to see off a friend or relative to India. You have heavy bags and you figure it will be nice to have the porters check them in. You find that not one porter is willing to help you. The first and only time this happened to me, I was with an elderly relative, who in his thick, hor-rimmed glasses, Nehru jacket, and baggy pants looked quintissentially Indian. I endured the neglect of the porters for almost 15 minutes before giving up and carrying the bags. I felt humiliated, angry, sad.

Fate of the Strays, July 1990

A newcomer to this country is instantly impressed by the order in this society. Buses, trains, and planes run on time. To the Indian, who is accustomed to general chaos, hustle and bustle, such precision and order appears miraculous, almost unnatural.

One of the things that struck me was the absence of strays. Where I come from, stray dogs, cats, cows, bulls roam all over the place, in the streets, in people’s yards, as if the world belongs to them.

Where are the strays in the United States, I wondered. I learned about animal birth control. Spaying and neutering keeps them from multiplying endlessly. I also learned about the Humane Society. It places unwanted pets in homes. Not all pets find homes. Those that can’t be placed are put to sleep. It is done painlessly and quickly, humanely. I have adopted many new things from this culture: speech, dress, customs, ideas. But this is one I struggle with: how can killing ever be humane?

A time for hope, a time to dream, August 1990

These are tumultuous times, indeed. Nelson Mandela s out of prison. The Soviet Union is out of Afghanistan. The Soviet Union is democratizing at a breathtaking pace. The arms race is coolig off. The cold war is over.

Who could have thought, five years ago, that all this would happen so soon? This is a time of great hope, of dreams becoming reality. India and Pakistan are once again playing the game of brinkmanship, teetering ever closer to war. The Punjab problem is far from resolved, and the lid has blown off Kashmir.

Is it naive to dream of enduring peace in the subcontinent?

No, it’s not naive. Rather, there has never been a better time than this to dream these dreams.

One Step Forward-and Another Step Back, September 1990

In the entertainment world, traditional wisdom dictates that Caucasians be cast for all roles, even if they have to wear prosthetic devices and makeup to appear what they are not genetically.

Why? Because it has always been that way. Despite the presence of a large Asian community in Britan, Caucasian actor Jonathan Pryce got the role of a Eurasian in the London musical, “Miss Saigon.”

From the Vatican to Toccoa, October 1990

Dear people of Toccoa, Some professed Christians among you have taken exception to yoga being taught in your Georgia town. You may be influenced by the Pope’s recent announcement that yoga and meditation can lead to “moral deviation” and degenerate into “a cult of the body.”

With all due respect to His Holiness he is dead wrong. Yoga is not a form of religion. It is a form of physical and mental exercise. It does not demand religious conversion.

What This Magazine is All About, December 1990

This magazine is about the growth and development of Indian culture in America. The content is Indian, the magazine is American.

Our reader survey shows that you are listening. About half our readers turned out to be Indian (51%); the other half were non-Indian Indophile (49%). Some people don’t believe it. Like the librarian who refuses to carry India Currents because she says her patrons are not interested. She is convinced that (a) Indians cannot afford to live in her affluent community, and that (b) nonIndians couldn’t care less about India Currents. Persuading such self-appointed guardians of public taste is a constant struggle.

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Female Fetus Abortions, January 1991

Dr. John Stephens has been in the news.

He uses ultrasound technology to tell parents the sex of their unborn baby. What’s troublesome is that he has discovered the Indian community. For several years now, he tried to market his services to Indians.

India Currents even ran his ads for a while, but vigorous protests from readers quickly changed that. Today, neither India Currents nor India West will run his advertising. The good news is that his California practice is not attracting many Indians.

The bad news is that he has discovered Vancouver, British Columbia.

Countering Religious Prejudice, February 1991

In this country today, were someone to speak of Jews as the killers of Christ, there would be an uproar.

In this country today, were someone to publicly say that African Americans are geneticlaly inferior, there would be an uproar.

Yet in this country today, Pat Robertson can go on television and condemn Hinduism as a form of devil worship and get away with it. Robertson makes these pronouncements on his television program, The 700 Club. It is seen nationally by millions.

How should you respond? Avoid him by changing the channel? That won’t stop Pat Robertson.

If Pat Robertson goes on and on about pagans and heathens, it is because we pagans and heathens let him.

A Kinder, Gentler Police, September 1991

The relationship between local police and minority communities has been etched in sharp detail by two recent incidents. The videotaped Rodney King beating incident showed the world in graphic detail the price an African American man paid for a speeding violation in Los Angeles.

In serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer’s case, an Asian American teenager lost his life because Milwaukee polic returned the fleeing youth to his killer. Police believed Dahmer’s story over that of an African American neighbor who reported the incident, or the evidence at hand—a naked and bleeding Asian boy.

After returning the victim to Dahmer, officers joked about needing to be “deloused,” a bigoted remark about lice in Asians.

Satyajit Ray Showed They Can be the 14 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition |April 2017

Same, May 1992

Satyajit Ray died April 23 in a Calcutta hospital, only three weeks after receiving an honorary Oscar for lifetme achievement.

I’m no film expert, but I know an era in Indian cinema has come to an end. The obituary in the Los Angeles Times was factually correct and clinical, but it left me cold. The writer described Ray’s work as “films of Bengali squalor,” and his milieu as the “daily tragedy that is India.” Really.

I suppose no two sets of human eyes see the same film the same way. I thought that Ray’s films were about relationships, about adversity and the triumph of the human spirit.

Journalism Sacred and Profane from American Media, March 1993

Last week, San Jose’s daily newspaper Mercury News, ran some of its best stories about India. Its profiles of India’s high tech industires in Bangalore were well researched and illuminating. This is the kind of information the West needs to know about India.

Waco Wackos: Lessons from the standoff in Texas, April 1993

The Waco drama sheds new light on attitudes towards Asia’s religious music. As part of the FBI’s ongoing psychological assualt on the cult members, sacred Tibetan music was played loudly across the Texas countryside. The idea was to give David Koresh a headache. Is a Tibetan to be pleased or flattered by this? Did the FBI realize that this was religious, sacred music?

The Power of Organizing, May 1993

An Indian-American mother called me today to tell me about her preschool daughter’s sudden change in behavior. The child had become moody, depressed, and was afflicted with a desire to wash herself with soap. It turned out she was having to face taunts in pre-school about being dark-skinned. When the mother brought the problem to the attention of the new director, the response she got was, “But your child is darker isn’t she? Maybe she needs to get used to it.” This young mother is doing something about it. She has asked to speak to the owners of the facility. She is seeking input from other parents who have faced similar problems. She is getting organized. Are you?

The New Indentured laborers, November 1993

In a recession-battered economic climate such as California’s it was bound to happen sooner or later. The newest scapegoats to be blamed for the state’s economic woes are computer programmers from India.

The Humor of Derision, August 1994

They tell us that the new king of late night television is David Letterman. I’m disapoointed. I am no fan of Letterman.

Those of you who are veteran Letterman watchers will have followed the sideshow featuring Sirajul and Mujibur, the Bangaladeshi-Americans whose gift shop is located in the same building as Letterman’s studio.

Letterman sent the two on an all-expenses paid tour of the United States. Choice bits of their videotaped journey were

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played regularly on the Late Show to howls of delight. The comedy came from their accent and their unfamiliarity with American idiom. Letterman and the audience were laughing at them, not with them.

The Verdict was Chilling—as was the Aftermath, June 1992

Defense lawyers in the King trial argued that the police are here to preotect us from people like Rodney King, to keep the suburbs free of undesirables like him. The jury agreed.

When I heard the news on television, like many other people I knew a terrible wrong had been done. I didn’t know how terrible until reports of the rioting started coming in.

It was horrifying. I never thought I would see such scenes in the streets of America, The image that keeps coming back to me is that of the woman juror, her face in the shadows, explaining to Ted Koppel of ABC Nightline why the verdict was just; that King deserved the beating, that the police officers did nothing wrong.

What You Eat is What You Are, March 1998

I am a vegetarian by birth, I have remained one by choice. My sympathies lay entirely with the Indian-American who recently filed a lawsuit against Taco Bell for serving him a beef burrito.

I know how it feels to be the object of sloppy service just because you are different. The person in question is a devout Hindu man who takes seriously the proscription against eating beef. He was assured that what he was being served was a bean burrito. It was only upon biting into it that he learned otherwise.

The case generated attention all right—mostly of the derisive variety. It was the fluff piece for the day. Local news anchors could barely hide their smirks. I can’t imagine the same anchors making fun of the Jewish proscription against mixing beef and dairy. Why?

DesiQ 2000 Conference, July 2000

By the time you read this, the DesiQ 2000 Conference in San Francisco will be over. This was a conference of South Asian gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people organized by Trikone.

Trikone provided a nurturing space for me during my formative years as a gay, Indian man. Through it, I learned that ancient India acknowledged, documented and accepted variations in human sexuality long before other cultures did.

My training in writing, editing and publishing began with the Trikone newsletter in 1986, more than a year prior to India Currents.

Without Trikone, there would have been no India Currents.

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Aftermath of 9/11, October 2001

The footage could have come straight out of a Bruce Willis movie, but it was frighteningly, sickeningly real. The terrorist attacks of September 11 left me shaken and speechless. In the days since, Indian-Americans also had to watch their backs: two Sikh men have been murdered and other Indians subjected to violence and intimidation in retaliatory attacks. Vigilante violence against Indians has occurred after every major international crisis—from the Iran hostage drama to the Gulf War—and I must ask: Why? What did we do?

The Freedom to Dissent, November 2002

Some readers took exception to last month's editorial that criticized George Bush's performance. I admit it. I am not a fan.

What is it, then, about last month's editorial that offends? That it was critical of the President? Or that it came from an immigrant?

Is it that we can tolerate only a certain narrow range of opinions from immigrants? Why are the only acceptable opinions from immigrants gratitude, loyalty, and patriotism? Can't an immigrant dissent? This publication has a long tradition of making space for points of view that differ from published editorials, letters, and articles. If you have a different point of view, stated thoughtfully, you can be sure it will find space in these pages.

Editorial by Ashok Jethanandani Lifestyles of the Rich, September 2003

Twenty years ago, when I immigrated to these shores, I adopted this lifestyle enthusiastically. What was there to not like about it? I had no complaints about central heating, air-conditioning or hot showers. My refrigerator stocked with attractively packaged processed foods; I felt superior about my ability to cook dinner in 30 minutes flat. Efficiency reigned supreme. Before long, I had become another one of the 290 million Americans, who, on average, consume 25 times as much of the world’s resources as the rest of the world. We can't continue our wasteful and excessive habits. Like many concerned Americans, my partner Arvind and I have been evaluating and simplifying our choices. Adopting the American lifestyle was easy; it's the undoing that is a slow, thoughtful, and rewarding process.

Editorial by Sandip Roy-Chowdhury A Sense of Belonging, December 2004-January 2005

My aunt in England always called him, “your Bush.” She protested his foreign policy vociferously on the phone to me as if I had a

direct line to the White House. Within two days of the Bush re-election, she passed away in London. The two events were not related but made for a bleak week in November.

In death, Pishimoni, as I called her, reminded me that we can always create a space to belong to if we really try. When I arrived in the United States, Pishimoni taught me to cook the immigrant way with substitutes. Over transatlantic phone calls, we traded recipes. Do you know, she would tell me, that turnips with shrimp is almost as good as that hard-to-find lau for lau-chingri?

Now my cousin and I pore over a long list of funeral essentials and acceptable substitutes that the priest has emailed. No holy tulsi plant? Not to worry—you can just use basil instead. This is a funeral of substitutes. And that feels okay. Once the substitutes were all about recreating a corner of home. But perhaps at some point, the substitutes have become us, their taste more familiar, more real than the ones they were meant to evoke.

Editorial by Ashok Jethanandani Bring Them Home, December 2005-January 2006

The case for invading Iraq, founded on selective intelligence and repeated bold-faced lies, is unraveling. In the run-up to the war in 2003 President Bush used his bully pulpit to assert that Iraq possessed WMD and posed a grave threat to the United States. No WMD were found in Iraq.

The mood of the public has changed. Cindy Sheehan, the mother of an American solider killed in Iraq, made headlines by setting up a roadside camp en route to the President’s ranch in Crawford, Texas, and demanding a meeting with the President.

The invasion of Iraq was devious, hasty, and misguided, and the occupation has resulted in over 2,000 U.S. casualties and tens of thousands of Iraqis dead. It’s time to withdraw our troops.

Editorial by Arvind Kumar Truth Will Out, September 2006

At a campaign rally, surrounded by a nearly all-white audience, Virginia senator George Allen chose to publicly mock a young Indian-American student, 20 year-old S.R. Sidarth. “This fellow over here with the yellow shirt, macaca or whatever his name is...” Laughter. A few seconds later, he repeated the slur: “Let’s give a welcome to macaca here. Welcome to America and the real world of Virginia” Gleeful applause. Directed at the only non-white person in the audience, his words suggest that only white people can be full Americans.

In today’s America where the President fails to address the nation’s largest African-American organization five years in a row, where the treasonous leaking of a CIA operative’s identity remains unpunished, where instigating and stoking wars remain

acceptable government policy, the small matter of a Republican incumbent’s racist ad-libbing appears par for the course.

Editorials by Ragini Tharoor Srinivasan, December 2007-January 2008 Dear Mr. Srinivasan

I begin to receive messages that start with the assured, “Dear Mr. Srinivasan.” My full name is listed in both our print and online magazines, so anyone who knows to address an email to “Mr. Srinivasan” would have encountered my first name as well.

Is it just unfamiliarity? But, Mr. Srinivasan continues to receive email, even from readers and contributors with patently Indian and South Asian names.

Did anyone ever address an email to Ashok, “Dear Ms. Jethanandani” or “Dear Editor Madam?” Why the assumption that an editor—whether with a known, unknown or entirely unintelligible name —simply by being in a position of some responsilbities must be male?

The Morning After, February 2008

It’s tempting to think that the stereotypical missteps of American youth—drug use, abuse of aclohol, unplanned prfegnancies, unwanted sexual encounters, addictions of various kinds—are the concerns of “other families.” In December 2006, at my alma mater, Duke University, a med student’s life was tragically cut short by what may have amounted to a night of binge drinking.

He had such incredible promise; his accidental death shattered all of our illusions.

The binge lifestyle is real. But we would, all-youth and adults alike—be fools to think that our cultural backgrounds, our family values, and our good intentions somehow grant us immunity to addiction, over-indulgence, accidents and regret.

Editorials by Vidya Pradhan Ritual Sans Religion, November 2009

“But...but...but,” sputtered my son as I yanked the covers off him on a cool morning in October. “You’re not even religious!”

He was protesting my early morning diktat of hair oil massage and bath that used to be the Diwali tradition in my parents’ house.

And he had a point. The lonely idols in the corner of the kitchen, surely installed by a visiting grandmother, gather layers of dust till the autumn of every year, when a sudden surge of religious fervor makes me clean them.

To my surprise, the kids cooperated with the hair massage and bathing ritual with minimal grumbling, no doubt to humor their whimsical mom. The new clothes (from Target) were welcomed, the sweets sampled, and my daughter and I even sang a bhajan in front of the newly clean idols.

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 17

For my American born children, family togetherness may come to be signified by gathering around a roast turkey at Thanksgiving, or sipping mulled cider around a present-laden Christmas tree, but I hope some of the wonder and delight of Diwali that I carry from my childhood gets handed down to them as well.

It’s “In” to be Desi, May 2010

A friend and I recently met for coffee at Starbucks. After a few minutes of conversation, she remarked, “They’re playing Bollywood music!” The sounds were unmistakably desi—not an India-inspired fusion—a fact that should have been jolting—but what surprised

me more was that we had not noticed it right away. India seems to be everywhere these days.

A desi chef on Iron Chef America infuses leeks into her pani puri offering. Bhangra dancers perform at the White House. Americans tuck into cilantro-sprinkled pizza, pausing to sip masala chai.

This is what assimilation is all about, when pieces of your homeland’s culture blend in seamlessly with the ethos of your adopted country. Instead of regretting the loss of purity, I rejoice that our legacy will survive as colorful threads of the omplex tapestry that is America.

Thinking Different, November 2011

I am not a fan of the Mac and I don’t own any Iproducts, but there was a lump in my throat when I learnt of Steve Jobs’ passing. No account can shatter the turtle-necked mystique of a man who demanded audiences with presidents, but went trickor-treating in his neighborhood like any other dad, who once roamed India as a hippie but later went on to wage tense battles with corporate competitors. He believed he would die young, and therefore wanted to accomplish a lot quickly so he could, “leave a mark on Silicon Valley history.”

You did, Steve, you most certainly did.

18 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

Editorials by Jaya Padmanabhan “Sweet are the Uses of Adversity,” November 2012

Chinese-Indian-American-Berkeley resident Yin Marsh in her memoir Doing Time With Nehru, relates how she and her family were “carted off like common criminals” in India during the IndiaChina war when ethnic Chinese were herded and dispatched to an internment campt to Rajasthan, while her neighbors looked on through their windows.

Each one of us has personal experiences of being excluded or alienated. It is that feeling of being a mere observer in the events that shape our own lives. It gives wings to the sense of inferiority that lies latent in us. I admire the tenacity we have to overcome our various mistreatments. It

was Ernest Hemingway who once said that, “the world breaks everyone, and afterwards, some are strong at the broken places.” We are the “some.”

The Shadows of Twelve Million, February 2013

There are 12 million shadows in America.

They live, eat and work in this immigrant nation.

They, like me, came to the United States in search of prosperity.

They, unlike me, stay in the shadows, remain unaccounted for, and live with the constant fear of deportation.

What should we do with the 12 million currently living among us?

The only ethical solution lies in providing a quicker pathway to legalization. With the legitimization of 12 million, there will be an infusion of tax revenue into our much-needed coffers; we will not be burdened with the cost of education, and our doctors and hospitals will get compensated for the care they give.

Isn’t it better to have people in our society grateful for what they’ve been given rather than resentful for what they’ve been denied?

How Jay-Z Trumped Modi, June 2014

Let’s wrap our heads around this. India conducted the largest elections—814,500,000 people had a ballot. Voter turnout hit a stunning 66.38%—More than 500 million people voted! The new

Vandana Kumar, Ashok Jethanandani, Arvind Kumar in 1988

Ragini Tharoor Srinivasan, Vandana Kumar in 2008

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s tweet “India has won! Acche din aanewale hain!” (Good days ahead!) was re-tweeted 70,556 times (as of May 27) setting a record as the nation’s most re-tweeted post. Narendra Modi is the sixth most followed world leader on Twitter.

These are electrifying numbers and reflect an evolving India, which the western media is still trying to understand. This was ridiculously apparent on the evening of May 15, when India’s election results were rapidly streaming in. At about the same time, CNN was playing and replaying the video of Jay-Z being assaulted in an elevator by his sister-in-law Solange; ABC had the Wheel of Fortune contestant Sili Pese solving “Heavenly Body,” and PBS’s NewsHour pontificated on the unsure situation in Greece and France. No mention of India’s elections on any television channel, except on Comedy Central, where the Daily Show’s Jason Jones put out a hilarious spoof on what the minority looks like in India.

Are You One of Those? March 2015

Late one snowy evening, three girls and three boys were sitting in a New York dorm room casually conversing over insomnia cookies. All was cozy till the boys began to share what parts of the female anatomy they preferred. One of the girls warned that the conversation had begun to make her uncomfortable. To which, one of the boys asked, “Oh, are you one of those?”

On discussing the incident later with the girls, two of whom are my daughters, I gathered their indignation at the boys’ remarks. They felt that the boys had trampled over gender boundaries by fetishizing women’s bodies and then compounded their miscalculations by slapping a “pseudo-alienating” label on them.

It is more than likely that the boys did not mean what they said maliciously, but merely to provoke a reaction. This situation gave rise to many questions. How do young men and women experience gender? How much has changed since the advent of women’s rights?

The New York interaction concluded that evening when one of the girls remarked: “Shouldn’t everyone be one of those?”

Nicely put! Let’s say it now and say it again, without the noise of anger: Yes, we are one of those.

Editorial by Nirupama Vaidhyanathan Vote! November 2016

The malaise of apathy is the worst of sins. Indian-Americans are now among the most successful immigrant communities in America. It is important to recognize that this was built on meri-

Vandana Kumar, Geetika Pathania Jain, Jaya Padmanabhan 2016

tocracy, a meritocracy made possible by generations of Americans who battled discrimination of every form. If your child can now attend the school of your choice, if you proudly wear your religious symbol on your person, and express your opinions freely, all without fear of discrimination, it is not because of pure happenstance. It is because of the tireless efforts of millions of Americans who chose to express their views on what this country should be—through the power of the ballot box.

The right to vote is both a duty and a privilege, and is especially so in this election which I am dubbing the –ism election.

Racism and sexism have been in full display. Even Mr. and Mrs. India would have heard about the video this election cycle—the one where Trump bragged about making unwanted sexual advances. Before the video surfaced, India Currents had planned the November cover to feature photos of Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, with a headline “Vote!” After the video, the intense outrage we felt prompted an editorial decision to carry only Hillary Clinton’s image on the cover. For the first time in thirty years, we are endosring a presidential nominee—Hillary Clinton to be the next President.

A Disease of the Mind It is an ordinary grocery store. A woman is placing grocery bags in her car in the parking lot. Her husband hasn’t yet emerged from the store. A young white man walks by with the friendly greeting, “F**ing Indian. Why don’t you go back where you came from?”

Incidents like this are not altogether uncommon, and they leave us shaken, humiliated, angry, but we rarely feel like telling anyone else.

Some of us will find fault with that woman. Did she have to wear a sari to the store? Doesn’t she know better than to be in the parking lot alone? Where was her husband? Perhaps it is said out of concern for her, but why blame the victim? The real problem lies elsewhere That is there are still people in this world who can despise you and look down upon you simply because of who you are, where you were born, and what color your skin is. They suffer from a disease.

It is called racism.

Relevant Then, Relevant Now

This editorial was not written by me in 2017. It was written

by Arvind Kumar in 1988. These incidents are still happening, and the words still ring true today in Silicon Valley.

Have things not changed? n `—Nirupama Vaidhyanathan, Managing Editor April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 19

perspective

My Arranged Marriage with Engineering

By Mariappan Jawaharlal

R

ecently at an outreach meeting, a high school student asked me, “When did you know that you wanted to be an engineer?”

I wanted to say, “Since I was young, I always wanted to know how things worked, and I enjoyed building things.”

But that would have been a lie. In fact, I am not sure if I would have chosen engineering had I had other choices. Well, I had three: to become a doctor, an engineer, or a failure. These were the only choices every Indian student faced when I was growing up.

Becoming a doctor was out of the question because I was unable to stand the sight of blood. Failure didn’t sound like a good option. So all that was left for me to do was to become an engineer—not because I was passionate about it, but because it was my only choice. It was truly an arranged marriage, the old-school Indian way.

I grew up in Chennai, formerly known as Madras. My parents never forced me to do anything; they let me make my own choices. None of my older siblings chose engineering or medicine, so definitely there was no pressure that I felt from family members. An invisible but constant social pressure to “fit in” guided my choice.

Many arranged marriages are successful and one reason may be that the bride and groom’s expectations about each other are very low at first. Since they don’t know each other yet, they are probably prepared for things to not be completely rosy. Also, couples in an arranged marriage focus less on personal joy and more on creating stability, compatibility, financial security, and children. What is often overlooked is that couples do fall in love within arranged marriages as the partners get to know each other better.

This is exactly what happened to me.

While I was not overly excited about studying engineering, I worked hard just to make it work. I compromised some of my interests. In school, the study of lit20 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

erature, history, and geography fascinated me. These subjects took a backseat in my mind when I started college. I redirected all my energies towards studying engineering. I soon started seeing the desired results for my hard work, and I was always at the top of my class. But, deep inside, I would often wonder if engineering was really for me.

I had a great teacher who taught us Russian literature. She was the best teacher I ever had. In her soft but deeply engaging voice, she would talk about great poets and writers as if she had known them.

She had such a mesmerizing effect on me that I couldn’t wait to read the works of Pushkin, Lermontov and Dostoevsky. I would spend an inordinate amount of time reading books unrelated to engineering to the point where I even considered switching majors. But, there was another force at play which boiled down to my inner drive to excel in academics.

In college I felt inspired by some teachers and frustrated by others. When I felt inspired, I spent a lot of time on those subjects and absorbed as much as I could.

But when I was exasperated with a course, I spent even more time on it and focused my energies on getting the job done. As I made my way through various courses, inspiring and exasperating, I found myself developing a better understanding and appreciation of the field of engineering.

It dawned on me that engineers were responsible for everything we have and use today—homes, furniture, clothing, cars, and televisions even down to the food we eat. Without engineering, we would be back in the Stone Age; engineers made all of this happen.

Suddenly, I felt part of an exclusive club and the title of “engineer” made me proud. Since I initially had low expectations, even small positive changes in my attitude toward engineering had an oversized impact on my overall attitude towards the field. What was once a chore I didn’t want to be part of became a pleas-

ant activity I looked forward to engaging in. I don’t know when it happened, but somewhere along the way I fell in love with engineering. Today I have no regrets about the only choice I had to make. And I am still able to pursue many things I always wanted to do, albeit later in life.

Today, the world is a very different place compared to the time I was at school. Many Indian parents, especially those who live in America are providing many opportunities to their children and letting them choose career paths that were once unimaginable for my generation.

One important truth that many young people don’t realize is that even if you do get into the field of your interest, you are invariably going to encounter difficulties, uncertainties, and self-doubt. And your overall happiness with your choice is going to be determined by how you face these obstacles along the way.

I often see students not wanting to explore anything other than what they think they are interested in. To them I would say, “Don’t roost in the pigeonhole of narrow interests.” Some students tell me they hate a subject, or activity, or even a professor, because of certain preconceived notions. To them, I’d say, “don’t be bogged down by a hurdle on your way. Expect more hurdles. There is great satisfaction in overcoming obstacles, and in the end you become a better “you.” Whether it is choosing a college, a major, or even a profession, there is a lot to explore outside your comfort zone.

P.S. I am not writing this essay to promote arranged marriage. My marriage was not arranged. n A shorter version of this article appeared in Huffington Post.

Dr. Mariappan Jawaharlal is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. He has received awards for being an outstanding educator who uses innovative and engaging teaching pedagogy.

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April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 21

The Brown View

A

Who Exactly Are We?

By Kalpana Mohan

lmost overnight, despite the bubble wrap of privilege and the relative affluence of our lives, our brown skin has begun to chafe and blister under the alternate American sun. Across the San Francisco Bay Area, several Indian-Americans heard words that were never quite strung together this way before: “Go back to where you came from!”

In the exclusive vale of Saratoga downtown where capitalism gets a thumbs-up, a man showed my Indian-American friend the middle finger of his racism as she waited at a traffic light. IndianAmericans have been hurt by this expression of hatred around the country even as the current government’s imposition of H1-B restrictions has directly affected their career prospects. As the discussions heat up over the shooting of several Indian men in this nation, one question hovers among those of us quivering behind the brown veils of our skin: Why us?

Hello, aren’t we the Model Minority? We are a productive, taxpaying people. We cloned our workaholic selves for these United States. We slaved in doctor’s offices, hotel front desks, gas stations and research labs. We built tech companies. We plowed money back into the country of our adoption. Our children were exemplary in school and in the work force. What had we, as members of this honorable Indian-American community, done to anyone other than, maybe, say “vine” instead of “wine”, wear black western pumps under our saris, test okras by breaking their ends or infest the parking lot of a strip mall with the aroma of samosas?

Surely, we’d done nothing wrong?

The truth was we’d done nothing much either. We wore blinders. We went to work every day and returned home to drink masala chai with friends and family. We stayed in our dead-bolted, double-paned indoors, away from the heat of political fracas, often telling our children to continue plodding, as we did, towards professions that offered safe havens. “Don’t become a teacher. No money in it,” we said. “Public policy?” we asked. “Why on earth would you want to be close to politics and policy?”

In a recent column on why Indian-American children excelled at contests that rewarded memorization, the writer observed that the reasons why the last ten consecutive champions at the Scripps Spelling Bee were of Indian origin were obvious. IndianAmericans prized education and most parents had advanced degrees. Furthermore, Indians relied upon family and social units to enhance skills and built social networks to train their children for success.

Yes, we participated in the success of the nation, but only so long as it suited us. Mostly, we’ve hovered over the politics of the nation with the indifference of the tricoteuses, the ladies who gossiped and knitted as Marie Antoinette’s blood spattered from the guillotine. We watched television. We rolled out our rotis.

An Indian-American friend who works with the International Rescue Committee—which helps people rebuild their lives—told me that watching the sufferings of refugees has made her realize how much our community conducts life within its own hermeti22 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

cally sealed package, disconnected from the gritty realities of both local and international tragedies.

While we spoke the language of diversity outside the confines of our homes, we spoke another tongue altogether within. To our children, we spoke of values—“our” values, not quite those of the country we’d adopted, and of always making the right choice that made Indian-Americans proud of one another. We did not have conversations about the importance of civic engagement with the larger community. While our passports were blue, we couldn’t admit, even to ourselves, that our blood still bled brown—that we were Indians first, and Americans second.

We forgot, however, that our children were quite the opposite: they were Americans first, global citizens second, and Indians third. A recent event in the family highlighted, painfully, the split between my generation and the next; it reinforced a point my children bring up about how most Indian-Americans live out small lives inside a bubble several decades after making a life in America.

Following the engagement of my nephew to an IndianAmerican girl, a friend had commented thus on Facebook: “I’m so happy to see this kid choosing to marry an Indian-American.”

My Indian-American friend had added another line, a pet peeve for many of us: “I wish my kid would do the same, keep to our traditions, that is.”

That did not go over well with my nephew who, like my children, sees himself as an American first. I felt that his retort spoke for all Indians born on American soil. “As one of the parties involved in this engagement, I could not disagree more,” he wrote. “I don’t want to be held as an example of the “traditional way.” The young man explained that he and his fiancée had been introduced by a friend at a movie event. Over the next many months, they realized that they shared a lot of values and interests. He stressed that, for him, racial purity was unimportant.

“I didn’t seek her out because she was Indian. I see absolutely nothing wrong with Indians marrying people with different backgrounds. What is important is people finding others that make them happy.”

Upon reading his words, I realized that if our natural emotional response was to always look at the closest identity markers—like language, caste, faith or place of origin in India—IndianAmericans had failed to become an organic part of this nation. As the fastest growing immigrant group in the last decade—Asian Indians are about 2.8 million people in the United States—we had a moral and civic duty to engage with other communities and to give back as much as we had received. At a time when brownness is under the microscope, we need to step out of the community, not huddle within its confines. Then, perhaps, we would belong. n Kalpana Mohan writes from California’s Silicon Valley. http://kalpanamohan.com

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viewpoint

Apartment Décor 101: Grad Student Style

By Alakananda Mookerjee

W

hen I washed up in South Dakota—home to Mount Rushmore—I felt as though I’d washed up on Mars, alone. I had to live like a modern day Robinson Crusoe not knowing whether I’d be a permanent resident or a serious sojourner. So it made sense for me not to collect too many effects, for when it was time to move, the more their number, the more money I’d spend in transportation.

I embraced minimalism. The class of minimalism in science-fiction movies, set in gloriously tech-driven futures is dreadfully expensive. But there are more ways than a red Knoll chair ($4,000) or a Herman Miller workstation ($1,500) or a litter of technological baubles to make an elegant, clean and spartan pod of a home.

As a singleton living in a one-bedroom apartment, where there’s a cap on floor area and cash, I bought a few essential objects, so I could live a green, economically prudent lifestyle that was not powered by Wi-Fi and electricity. I could always wardrive around campus for Wi-Fi, but chances of a steady connectivity 24/7 were as fat as Ally McBeal. Most of the stuff I bought harkened back to the age of the vinyl and earlier.

Lodge’s Iron Skillet. When one lives solo, one needn’t have a constellation of cookware. Owning Lodge’s iron skillet - a versatile receptacle that one can both cook in—sauté, sear, bake, or roast and eat out of is essential. Sear a slab of steak in it, pop it into the oven, and use it for serving.

After the meal, wash it with hot water and a soft cloth, coat it with a layer of oil, and replace it on the rack. Cost: $20 Really Useful Boxes. The “Really Useful Boxes” are truly “useful” in keeping one’s abode organized. I got six big red and blue boxes, stacked and alternating a red with a blue, and set it up in one corner of the living room, creating the effect of a 28 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

geometric cairn. I stowed away my quilts and comforters in those. For squirrelling away all manner of odds and ends, I got a dozen tiny ones in candy colors: red, blue, pink, lime, aqua, green, and purple. They took good care of everything from paper clips, measuring tape, loose change and IDs. Cost: They can set one back between $2 and $15.

Valet Stand. When you don’t have a treadmill, you have a problem. You can’t prop your clothes anywhere. Ta-da! In comes the valet stand: a piece of furniture popular in the Victorian yesteryear for men, when sartorial choices were far more formal than today. Placed in the dressing room or the hallway, it was where gentlemen would hang their apparel and accoutrement: tailcoat, trouser, pocket watch, pince-nez, and bowler hat. In the 21st century, I found it to be the perfect companion for arranging clothes to be worn the next day or for placing those garments that had been worn, but weren’t soiled enough to be laundered. Cost: $35 Cheval Mirror. A kind of looking glass that can be tilted, a cheval mirror isn’t a space saver as is a quotidian mirror that can be affixed to the closet door. But it spares one sweat. As I couldn’t hire a handyman, I got a portable silver oval that I could just set down anywhere, without hassle. Cost: $50 Étagère. A piece of furniture with cascading shelves, placed, typically, in the parlor, for displaying object d’art, all of which one wants, but doesn’t need. But, how about books? I filled the étagère with as many volumes as would fit. After all, “what is a bookshelf other than a treasure chest for the curious mind?” Besides, when you had to spend your leisure hours without even a radio, reading was the best form of entertainment. Cost: $25 Escritoire. For those with an intellectual bent, a writing desk is a precious possession, for you may want to pen

thoughts in a Moleskin notebook. Without the Internet, there’s no opportunity to e-mail, WhatsApp, Facebook, or Twitter. The only way to stay in touch then is through letters, handwritten or typewritten. Cost: $40 Futon. Hardy as one is, it’s still immensely difficult to sleep on a pallet of newspapers. A sleeping bag is a notch better, but it still won’t keep one off the hard floor. For lumbar care, you’d need something sturdier and softer. A bed is cumbersome to lug around. With a futon on the other hand, the draw is that with the purchase of one, one also gets a bed—free.

A sofa by day, a bed by night, it offers a terrific return on investment. Cost: $150.

Clock. One needs one of these to keep track of the passing of time. Cost: $10 or less.

Toas-Tite. Before we knew about the panini press, there was the Toas-Tite. This throwback is an efficient device for making grilled sandwiches. On the days that I was either too fatigued to cook or not in the mood, I’d fix myself a sandwich. Lightly grease the clamshell-like aluminum forms, place a slice of bread in each, add a filling, close the device, and place it on a burner or over a campfire. Voila! You have a hot, melty sandwich. Cost: $30 Mocha Pot. This is a clever contraption—invented in Italy in 1933 for brewing coffee on the stovetop. The smallest pot of the series produces one demitasse of rich, velvety espresso. Cost: $14 Rubbermaid: Rubbermaid is today’s Tupperware (developed in 1946.) These airtight, plastic tubs are fabulous for storing food. Cost: A 40-piece set will come to less than $10.

Candles. For a cozy fug, burn a cluster of scented candles. Cost: $10 or less. n Alakananda Mookerjee is a New York-based writer who loves science fiction.

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ask a lawyer

Divorce Litigation: Why Date of Separation Matters

D

ate of separation appears on the first page of the petition for dissolution of the marriage. Asserting the right date plays a big role from a legal point of view, since it helps establish the length of a marriage. This, in turn, determines several important rights.

Spousal support

Marriage entitles one to spousal support on what is loosely defined as “permanent basis.” Any marriage which is over ten years old is presumed to be a long term marriage. The length of permanent spousal support is based on at least 14 different factors ranging from health, the education levels of the parties to the discretion of the court. To illustrate the point, having been married for four years one might collect spousal support for two years because it is a short-term marriage. However, someone married for 11 years might collect spou-

30 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

By Madan Ahluwalia sal support for 11 years or even longer depending upon the circumstances of the parties.

Property Rights

Any asset or debt acquired during the marriage, except a gift or inheritance, is considered to be community property or community debt. Establishing the date of separation makes a difference in how assets are distributed and debts are divided.

Effective 2017, the date of separation is defined as “the date that a complete and final break in the marital relationship has occurred,” and it has to be evidenced by both the communication and conduct of the parties. The biggest change with current law is that it has placed a condition of “expression” or “communicating the intent” plus conduct on the part of the parties. In other words, silent treatment and inconsistent conduct with separation

won’t work anymore. Previously, the parties could live under the same roof, sleep in separate rooms, but show up at social events together and later claim to have separated a long time ago. However, under current law, since they appear at social events together and did not verbally or in writing communicate intention to separate, alleging the date when they started sleeping separately won’t work.

In the context of property rights as discussed above, if the husband declares his intention to separate and starts sleeping in a separate bedroom or moves out even though a divorce has not been filed, and if he wins $5 million in a lottery, the jackpot would be considered his separate property. n Madan Ahluwalia, Esq. practices Family and Immigration Law in San Jose since 1995. He can be reached at (408) 416-3149.

visa dates Important Note: U.S. travelers seeking visas to India will now need to obtain them through Cox & Kings Global Services Pvt. Ltd. Call 1-866-978-0055, email enquiriesusa@ckgs.com or visit www.in.ckgs.us for more information.

T

April 2017

his column carries final action dates and other transitional information as taken from the U.S. State Depart­ment’s Visa Bulletin. The information below is from the Visa Bulletin for April 2017.

In the tables below, the listing of a date for any class indicates that the class is oversubscribed. “Current” means that numbers are available for all qualified applicants.

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tax talk

B

Tax Strategies for Homeowners

By Khorshed Alam

e aware that tax consequences are associated with home ownership.

When purchasing a home, you may pay a portion of the mortgage interest in advance. This loan origination fee, or “points,” is a percentage of the total amount borrowed. If points are paid for a principal residence, you generally can deduct the full amount in the year paid, even if the points were paid by the seller.

One of the greatest tax benefits of home ownership kicks in during the early years, when most of your payments go toward tax-deductible interest.

IRA Withdrawals

The tax law allows penalty-free IRA withdrawals, up to a lifetime limit of $10,000 for the purchase of a first home.

Withdrawals from Roth IRAs for qualify-

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ing first-home expenses can be both penalty-and tax-free (Roth should be atleast five years old).

Refinancing What happens if you refinance? If you pay points, the general rule requires that you prorate deductions over the life of the loan. But if some of the refinance proceeds go toward home improvements, you may be able to take a current deduction for the portion of the points related to those improvements.

Improvements

If you take out a loan to make substantial improvements to your principal residence, and the loan is secured by that property, the interest is generally deductible. Remodeling often increases the value of your property.

Other home improvement costs generally are not deductible, but if you upgrade your home for medical reasons—say, to add a wheelchair ramp or stair lift — you

may be able to deduct a portion of the cost as a medical expense.

Home Office

The home office deduction can be another tax break. If you use part of your home regularly and exclusively as a principal place of business, you may be able to deduct costs associated with that part.

Home Sale

When you sell a home that you have used as your principal residence for at least two of the five years before the sale, you can generally exclude from taxation up to $250,000 of profit if you’re single and up to $500,000 if you’re married filing jointly. Profits in excess of those amounts are subject to regular capital gains rates and rules. n Khorshed Alam is a practicing CPA and business valuation analyst. He is the President and CEO of Alam Accountancy Corporation. Check out http://alamcpatax.com or

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 33

films

Desi Gone Global Movies Not to Miss on Netflix

S

iince its founding in 1997, Bay Area’s Netflix has come a long way.

From pioneering the DVD-by-mail model, the fast-growing company expanded into streaming on demand. With a global presence, the firm now has 94 million global subscribers, which include 49 million subscriptions in the U.S. The only places Netflix is not available is mainland China, North Korea, Syria and Crimea. While the pie-in-the sky goal of finger-tip entertainment on demand—virtually being able to watch any movie at any time— is still on the horizon, Netflix, along with competitors Amazon, Hulu and other streaming services, are rushing towards that future. Even though Netflix’s online content at times appears alarmingly heavy with Netflix-produced entries, the company is a force to reckon with. In Netflix’s expanding offerings from India, here are some noteworthy movies worth catching up to. Full disclosure: During Netflix’s infancy, I freelanced to write online movie reviews.

By Aniruddh Chawda his family back home. It’s when the letters stop mysteriously that things get a little haywire. Featuring Suraj Sharma (Life of Pi), as the youth who sets out in search of his America-bound older brother (Prateek Babbar), there is also a great best-friend role, played by Tony Revolori (The Grand Budapest Hotel). Set in the 1980s, the concise story-telling taps everything from Indira Gandhi’s funeral and the Challenger explosion to the Indian villagers’ hilariously spot-on takes on American cultural touchstones such as Halloween and Thanksgiving.

whore rep like a lapel pin and Lehar Khan as the teen-age bride of Lajjo’s teen-age son, Parched quenches on so many levels.

Sairat (2016, 174 mins., Marathi with English sub-titles)

Parched (2015, 118 mins., Hindi with English sub-titles)

Umrika (2015, 96 mins., Hindi with English sub-titles)

A rare Indian entry to premier at the Sundance Film Festival, Prashant Nair’s critically acclaimed dark comedy Umrika is an astute and surprisingly insightful virtual mirror of how some non-Americans, in this case impressionable villagers in a remote Indian hamlet, view America.

Nair’s movie takes cues from a series of letters—veritable postcards—written by a villager who has gone to America to 34 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

Directed by Leena Yadav and produced

by Ajay Devgan, Parched is a jolting, nonsqueamish and beautifully bittersweet calibration of the lives of four women in a rustic, ethnically vibrant and often harsh Rajasthan setting. Oppressed, victimized and mostly written off as no-good bystanders against the stone wall of male hegemony in their neo-feudal universe, the women struggle—often by a mere thread—to keep their humanity intact. The brilliant and bawdy script—an amalgam of western Hindi and Gujarati—empowers budding, even behind-closed-doors, exploration of both their sexuality and contemplation of the possible demise of their victimhood.

Lead by Tannishtha Chatterjee, who spearheads as Lajjo, a young struggling widow, Radhika Apte as Lajjo’s friend with an abusive husband, Surveen Chawla as their friend who wears her firebrand village

Noted Marathi filmmaker Nagraj Manjule’s Sairat (loosely meaning “wild”) became a runaway hit and the all-time highest grossing Marathi language movie.

Nearly three hours long yet never boring, it starts out harmlessly by serving up a college romance between Prashant/ Parshya (Akash Thosar), he from the fish-monger family, and Archana/Archi (Tinku Rajguru), she from the uppercrust landed gentry. Unable to bridge the gaping socio-economic divide between their backgrounds, Parshya and Archi elope, incurring the wrath of Archi’s politically-connected father (Suresh Vishwakarma). Told mostly as a romance and action adventure of their lives on the run, this could easily be a run of the mill re-dressing of the Raj Kapoor hit Bobby (1973). By going just one step further,

however, Sairat becomes a solemn reflection of sweeping themes from contemporary rural Indian sociology that includes the clash between Old India and New India. Karan Johar has already acquired rights for the Hindi remake.

1,000 Rupee Note: Ek Hazarchi Note (2014, 89 mins., Marathi with English sub-titles)

In Srihari Sathe’s 1,000 Rupee Note nothing much appears to be happening and yet there is so much going on. An elderly single woman, whose name is Parvati (Usha Nayak) who goes by Budhi (“old”) in her Maharastra village, lives by herself, is impoverished and makes ends meet by scrubbing floors. Budhi’s daily joy is making a steaming cup of chai, which she invites her benevolent

neighbor Sudama (Sandeep Pathak) to share. At a political rally, Budhi unwittingly ends up in a line where the politician is handing out money to the attendees—an outright bribe just outside the reach of rolling cameras—and walks away with several 1,000 rupee notes.

Perplexed and also excited by the unexpected windfall, and with her kindly neighbor Sudama in tow, Budhi goes on a shopping spree. Sathe’s staging of village street scenes often bring to mind Shyam Benegal’s agrarian dramas from the 1970s.

For Budhi, the life lesson that follows is a poignant morality tale outlined simply and with lasting impression.

focus of a city wide figurative man-hunt. Both the good guys—Naseedurin Shah’s cranky reclusive billionaire with a fortune to bequeath —and bad guys—thieves and murderers—are after Amal when fate leads to his being named the beneficiary of the reclusive billionaire’s vast fortune. Similar in feel to Peter Sellers in Being There, Amal triumphs as a monument to those humans whose humanity screams silently simply because they always speak the truth. With Seema Biswas in support, Mehta’s movie has retained its ability to draw the viewer into the one-track life of the rickshaw driver. The poorest of men can indeed live the richest of lives. n

Amal (2007, 103 mins., Hindi and Eng-

EQ: A

lish with English sub-titles) Indian-Canadian filmmaker Richie Mehta’s well-received film debut was a superb reflection on the heart and soul of Amal (Rupinder Nagra), a Delhi rickshaw driver, who unknowingly becomes the

Globe trekker, aesthete, photographer, ski bum, film buff, and commentator, Aniruddh Chawda writes from Milwaukee.

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 35

36 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

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profile

A Desi Who Makes a Difference in the World’s Hotspots: Anupma Sud

N

early every day, news of humanitarian crises from all over the world hits our news feeds. These unending stories of loss make us not only plumb into despair, but we also feel that we cannot make any difference to the human cost of these tragedies. Meeting Anupma Sud gives us hope to learn that behind the scenes, there are thousands of civilian humanitarian aid workers—tireless, unassuming people for whom their work is more of a calling than just a job, each working silently and ceaselessly for those affected.

Anupma Sud gave up an established career in high tech to plunge into the world of humanitarian activism. She grew up in Jalandhar, Punjab and got her Master’s degree in Environmental Engineering at the University of Toledo. She then joined Oracle and worked there from 1998 to 2011. For four years after that, she was an independent consultant, after which she entered the field of humanitarian work full-time.

She recently returned from a threeweek visit to Iraq, and was busy packing her bags to relocate to northern Nigeria, but she took some time out to speak about her life and work, and shared ideas about what all of us can do even without making drastic changes to our lifestyles.

Right from Anupma’s childhood the seeds of activism were sown. “My family has always helped others,” she says. Her mother, a professor of languages, was a believer in women’s education and often sponsored books for her students. Even as a child, Anupma dreamed of working with the United Nations. Her sisters are active volunteers and her young nephew is one of the founders of Shoe Cyclists (http:// shoecyclist.org/), an organization that helps provide shoes to the homeless. At Oracle, she was an active volunteer for companysponsored volunteer drives and was also involved with Narika, an organization dedicated to helping Indian-American women fight domestic violence.

For many years, she volunteered part-

38 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

By Shruthi Rao

Anupma Sud with her Iraqi students

time or did so during sabbaticals from work. “But then,” she says, “I reached a point where I didn’t want to go through life regretting what I had not done. Frequently, we are held back by the fear of the unknown. But it is a wonderful thing, not knowing what the future holds for us. We have to embrace it.” And this sentiment explains her switch to the humanitarian world.

Her graduate work at LSE deepened her knowledge in humanitarian and development studies. Her dissertation was related to Sexual and Gender-Based Violence, and her research took her to Rwanda for two weeks, where she conducted interviews with youth born out of wartime rape during the Rwandan genocide of 1994.

In Iraq, Anupma worked with Re:Coded, a program funded by the United Nations, New York University and Spark in Iraq. It is a program that trains refugees and displaced citizens in coding to provide them access to careers in technology. With experience in both corporate and humanitarian fields, she assessed the program and recommended strategies to improve it. “Re:Coded was set up by humanitarians,” says Anupama. “But corporates don’t have bleeding hearts. Why would they hire these students unless they can prove that they can not only code, but be independent contractors?” Based on her recommendation, Re:Coded now assigns tech mentors and English tutors to

guide them.

Her experience in Iraq was illuminating and fulfilling in many ways. Re:Coded provides hope to the community, and she was impressed by the students who were brilliant and motivated. Given the daily turmoil, the fact that they showed up to study was inspiring. Some commuted two hours each way on the buses arranged for them from refugee camps. One of them had a sick wife and a daughter and yet he attended regularly.

Anupma went on a picnic with the students and the food they brought with them “was unbelievable; here were people who had lost everything, but they shared what little they had with the kind of hospitality that was ten-fold of Indian hospitality!” she says. Soon after our interview, Anupma relocated to Nigeria, as a part of e-Help Africa, where she plans to help set up emergency response programs for cholera and malarial outbreaks in refugee camps.

Traveling to Iraq, Rwanda, Kenya, Bangladesh, Istanbul and now Nigeria has taught her to say with conviction, “We are all more similar than we are different. We all need food, a family, a structure—these are the basics of life.”

But travelling to places that don’t fall under the heading of “safe” and “touristfriendly,” how does she stay safe? “All the advice comes out of love, and I welcome it because it makes me think,” she says. “I do know that there is an element of danger.

But I am not a crazy adventurer, and I take travel advisories seriously.” The most difficult thing she has done was not traveling to war-prone regions.

In December of 2016, she graduated from the London School of Economics (LSE) with a Masters degree in International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies. “It was challenging to go back to school after 15 years!” she says. “It was hard to get back to studying, and not easy at all to be a 42-year-old surrounded by smart 25-year-olds!”

And that leads her to give some parting advice for readers. “Chase your dreams, no matter what your age,” says Anupma. She acknowledges the amazing support system in her life the “angels in my life” as she calls them—her sisters and their families her adopted family back in Jalandhar, and her compassionate friends in London.

But not all of us can make such changes to our lives even if we want to. What else can we do, especially at a time when the world is becoming divisive and an air of fear hangs in the air?

“Look out for the community,” she says. “Get involved in grassroots work.

Living in fear is not the answer, and complacence is definitely not the need of the hour. Speak up for what you believe in, and use peaceful means of protest—take the cue of Gandhi—and more importantly, do not normalize discriminatory policies and attitudes. Once it is normalized, it takes hundreds of years to break those attitudes as history has shown us.”n Other organizations where one can help Re:Coded: A program in Iraq which trains refugees and displaced persons to learn coding to secure jobs in high tech.

She also pointed out some other ways to get involved. We in the United Stares can volunteer, but they do need regularity and commitment.

Refugee Transitions: needs volunteers At Home Humanitarian: needs volunteers IRC: needs volunteers Cafe1951: Berkeley coffee shop that supports refugee employment; support establishment by having a coffee!

TechSoup: for tech donations Shruthi Rao loves books, desserts, trees, and long walks. She enjoys stories in all forms, especially if they contain insights into what motivates fellow humans. www.shruthi-rao.com

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recipes

Indo-Mexican Fusion: Hearty Casserole

By Shanta Nimbark-Sacharoff

W

hen we don’t go to India, my husband and I go to Mexico for vacations. Like in India, the weather is always warm and sunny, the people are friendly to travelers, and the food is vegetarian-friendly and delicious!

We often book a hotel room with a kitchenette so we can experiment with recipes using local ingredients. Similar to Indian vegetable bazaars, food markets are bustling in Mexican towns, full of discriminating shoppers vying for the best quality produce. Herbs and spices are easy to find, and often sold in bulk so that one can inspect them for freshness. After trying some local entrees in restaurants, we copied the dishes in our kitchenette and created some interesting recipes. Here are two examples that combine the flavors of Mexico and India, two of the best cuisines in the world! These two dishes are ideal for a potluck dinner or a picnic basket.

Chilaquiles

Chilaquiles is one of the many recipes in Mexican cuisine that makes use of stale tortillas. The dish can take many forms, from a soup with tortillas floating on top to a hearty casserole like this one. The casserole can be made with a tomato or tomatillo sauce. In addition to traditional tortilla chips, ingredients can be added to create a substantial entrée.

Ingredients 2 cups of cooked rice and quinoa pilaf (recipe below) 4 cups Mexican Salsa Roja (recipe below) 1 dozen corn tortillas (dry, stale tortillas are best) 2 tablespoons canola, corn, safflower or olive oil, plus extra tablespoons as needed 2 cups shredded Monterey jack cheese, queso fresco (Mexican fresh cheese), or a melt-able vegan substitute Chopped cilantro for garnishing

Basmati Rice and Quinoa Pilaf

Rice and quinoa are nourishing and easy to digest. Indian Basmati rice has a

40 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

ed and finely chopped 3 Tablespoons chopped cilantro 3 to 4 Tablespoons water 2 Tablespoons corn or safflower oil ½ cup onion, finely chopped Salt to taste

Illustrations by Serena Sacharoff

unique fragrance that has been attributed to its native soil. Quinoa, an ancient Incan grain, is very nutritious, high in protein and low in carbohydrates.

Like Basmati rice, quinoa cooks in 10-12 minutes, making the combination a perfect marriage of two grains.

Ingredients 2 cups hot water boiled with ½ teaspoon salt ½ cup white basmati rice and ½ cup white quinoa, rinsed and drained 1 teaspoon oil ¼ cup chopped almonds or cashew pieces ½ teaspoon cumin seeds Method Bring the water and salt to a boil. Heat the oil in a skillet and stir fry the nuts for 2-3 minutes. Add the cumin seeds and sauté for one minute. Add the grains and stir-fry for 3 minutes, but don’t allow them to brown. Add the grain mixture to boiling water. Allow the water to return to a boil, reduce the heat and cook covered for 10-12 minutes. Turn off the heat but keep the grains covered. After 10 minutes, use in the casserole recipe as described below.

Yield: approximately five cups of pilaf.

Mexican Tomato Salsa Roja

Ingredients 2 pounds fresh red tomatoes 2 fresh jalapeno or serrano peppers, seed-

Method Boil the tomatoes in a water until their skins split. Transfer to a bowl of cold water to cool. Peel and cut them into chunks. Blend the tomatoes and other ingredients (except the onion) in a food processor. Heat the oil in a skillet and sauté the chopped onion for 2 minutes. Add the blended tomatoes and salt. Stir and cook for 10 minutes. This salsa can be refrigerated for up to a week.

Yield: approximately 6 cups of sauce.

Avocado Chutney

Guacamole always seemed to resemble the Indian chutney. So I wanted to create a recipe for avocado chutney that would taste distinctly different. The inclusion of ginger with the traditional herbs cilantro, scallion and fresh hot chilies used in a Mexican guacamole recipe did the trick.

Here is my avocado chutney with an Indian twist. Enjoy!

Ingredients 2 soft, ripe avocados 2 to 3 tablespoons green onion (scallion), including some greens, finely minced 3 tablespoons cilantro 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, finely grated 1 serrano or jalapeno pepper, deseeded and finely minced Juice of 1 lime or lemon Salt to taste Method Peel the avocados and remove the pits, reserving one pit. Place the chopped onion, cilantro, ginger and pepper in the jar of a food processor. Process them for a minute. Then add avocado, lime or lemon juice and salt and process the contents for a minute or two until pureed. Transfer to a

serving bowl and place the pit in the center to keep the guacamole from discoloring.

In Mexico, traditionally a grinding stone called Molcajete and a pestle is used to mash the avocado and the herbs together into a puree. But you can use a food processor to puree the avocado chutney easily.

Yield: approximately 1 cup chutney

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Preparing the casserole

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread a teaspoon of oil in a frying pan and lightly fry the tortillas one at a time on both sides to soften them. Add more oil as needed, but just enough to moisten the pan. Do not allow the tortillas to become too oily or too crispy. Remove and place on paper towels to drain excess oil. Cut the tortillas into 1½-inch-wide strips and set aside.

Lightly oil the bottom of a 9x14 inch casserole dish. Layer the ingredients as follows: Line the bottom of the casserole with a cup of Mexican Salsa Roja. Cover the sauce with a layer of tortilla strips. Next, sprinkle a cup of cheese on top of the tortilla strips.

Then, layer 1½ cups of rice and quinoa pilaf, spreading evenly. Repeat the process, layering salsa, tortilla strips, cheese, and rice and quinoa mixture. Lastly sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top and cover the casserole with the rest of the salsa, making sure to cover the dry corners.

Cover the casserole and bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Uncover and bake for a few more minutes until the top is golden brown. Cool for a few minutes, cut into squares, and garnish with fresh cilantro leaves. Serve with avocado chutney. n Makes 6 to 8 servings Variations: (1) Chilaquiles with Beans or tofu: Add a layer of 2 cups of cooked black beans, or tofu.

(2) Chilaquiles with Salsa Verde: Prepare a green salsa using the recipe provided below but substituting cooked, husked tomatillos in place of tomatoes. Assemble as described above.

Shanta Nimbark Sacharoff, author of Flavors of India: Vegetarian Indian Cuisine is coowner of Other Avenues Food Cooperative in San Francisco. Serena Sacharoff is a chef, an illustrator and an art student..

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books

Do Judge A Book By Its Cover

By Rajesh C. Oza

Jhumpa Lahiri. The Clothing of Books. Vintage Books, 2017, 72 pages.

I

n India, you are sure to encounter students in uniforms on their way to school—youngsters wearing pressed white, grey, or blue cottons, sometimes set off by a solid or striped tie, almost always tucked in and ready for a day of learning. In the afternoon, one might see somewhat “more educated” children returning home in clothes resembling the jacket of a well-read book—crumpled, fingered, often untucked, with tie—if not yet removed— most likely askew.

Surely, you’ve heard the old adage, “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” In a slender (and elegantly clothed) package, Jhumpa Lahiri inverts the adage. While preferring the jacketless “naked book,” she acknowledges the power of the cover: “As soon as the book puts on a jacket, the book acquires a new personality. It says something even before being read, just as clothes say something about us before we speak.”

The first chapter of The Clothing of Books explores, “the charm of the uniform.”

Having grown up in America, Jhumpa would visit ancestral Kolkata on vacations and be fascinated by her cousins’ school uniforms; she found the uniforms “splendid” partly because as an immigrant child she felt herself “rendered … an other” by her own clothing. She “dreamt of sameness, even invisibility.” And when young Jhumpa would yield to her mother’s implorations to wear Indian clothing, she felt like a “different person, a foreigner.”

As a published author, Jhumpa “discovered that another part of [her] had to be dressed and presented to the world. But what is wrapped around [her] words— [her] book covers–—is not of [her] choosing.” The remaining chapters of the book explore Lahiri’s ambivalent relationship with the jackets that cover the books she has read and written. The book forcefully argues that we are affected—one-way or another—by the art that graces book jack42 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

ets, by the clothes our books wear. Because of the personal nature of this precis, one has the pleasure of getting inside of the author as reader, writer, and designer.

Jhumpa the reader began her journey with books in public libraries.

In America, these books were largely stripped of their covers, a pragmatic solution to the expensive protection of jackets with plastic. So the young Jhumpa did not judge her books by their jackets; she experienced her early books as all content, no cover. Her library books “gave nothing away in advance. To understand them, you had to read them.” She compares today’s reader —herself included—to a tourist who first reads a guidebook before traveling. Part of the mystery is lost before having arrived, before having read. Part of the joy of discovery is mediated by a kind of middleman: the guidebook in the case of travel; and the book jacket in the case of reading.

Jhumpa writes that “the part of [her] that regards book jackets with suspicion seeks to rediscover [the] experience” of reading jacketless (“naked”) books in the library.

Given that her works have been published in several countries, Jhumpa the writer estimates that there are close to 100 different covers associated with her many books. She aspires for a professional sibling relationship with the designers of her book jackets. Like Vanessa Bell who created the covers for the books of her sister, Virginia Woolf, Jhumpa’s ideal designer would channel Lahiri’s words into the covers of the books, thus creating (in the words of Henry James) an “optical echo.” Alas, she has never spoken with the designers of her book jackets. And, thus, “there always exists … a disconnect, a disequilibrium.” Lahiri’s reactions to her book jackets range wildly: laughter, tears, depression, confusion, and fury. The dream of artistic collaboration between writer and designer cedes to Jhumpa’s loss of aesthetic con-

trol and the publishers using the cover as a marketing tool. Indeed, at her initial public readings, Lahiri would read from bound galleys of her books; but over time, when she was “forced to use a copy of the actual book, [she] would remove the jacket,” a tacit admission that the “dressed book no longer belong[ed]” to the author.

As a designer (or at least as a critic of design), Jhumpa is at her gleeful best in a book that is full of much bibliophilic joy.

She writes about the pleasure of seeing uniform Italian editorial series; finding their “simplicity and seriousness admirable,” Jhumpa remarks that “they seduce [her], just as [her] cousins’ school uniforms did.” The Italian books suggest to Jhumpa a “joyful exuberance,” reminding her of a “party made up of distinct individuals who enjoy each other’s company.” They recall for me my own experience of Indian schoolchildren; while there is order in their uniforms, simple observation looks past the surface homogeneity to see Jhumpa’s “joyful exuberance.” Perhaps because The Clothing of Books was inspired by a talk Jhumpa gave while living in Italy, she is less enthusiastic about the “musty” American editorial series (Modern Library and Library of America), which this reader enthusiastically endorses, as “must” reading material.

Jhumpa opens her final chapter by briefly dismissing the rise of a new medium that is not conducive to book jackets (“I don’t read e-books”) and gently introduces the reader to Richard Baker, a painter of classic book covers: “Each one of Baker’s paintings is the portrait of a book, but they tell us much more. They recount the passion of reading… They narrate the literary education of a generation. They preserve on canvas a world, a culture that is declining…. the strong ties of affection, almost a fusion, between reader and book.”

Jhumpa’s own art of expression certainly encourages a similar passion of reading. n For newly married Anu and Maneesh who are like a jacket that is a perfect fit for a book, a book that is meant to be read throughout a life of love.

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INDIA CURRENTS GRAPHICS (408) 324-0488

Date: Saturday, May 21, 2017 Time: 4pm

Venue -- Smithwick Theater (Foothill college campus) 12345 El Monte Road Los Altos Hills CA 94022 (Parking Fees $3)

44 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

Tickets go on sale from April 19th Tickets - $60 (donor) $30, $25 , $18 (all reserved seating) http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2901939

Contact info Shakalpi Pe Shweta Kotw Nishreen Ka Sunita Verm Monel Akerk

information : i Pendurkar--(408) 348-8276 Kotwal -- (408) 431-6588 n Kachwala- (650) 450-1993 Verma --(510) 396-2919 kerkar--(510) 449-2087

Varnacitrita, "painted with colors," is the first half of the production choreographed to highlight different colors. The second half of the show presents Chahat, incorporating Ghazals, thumri, Khayal, and Italian opera. It features the dancers of our production unit accompanied by a soprano singer from Germany. Choreography of more than 200 students by Smt. Anuradha Nag.

Taposhi Roy

Opera Singer, Germany

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Music Composer, India

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April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 45

commentary

Made in the Divided States of America

By Shumit DasGupta

T

here is a woman holding a cardboard, hand-lettered sign outside of the little artisan produce mart in Glen Park, near the geographic center of San Francisco, where I live. She has it right now, as I type this.

“Please help. Husband deported. I have three kids.”

She—the woman with the sign, has been there for at least a week.

I was in high school during the first Gulf War, in Smalltown, Michigan. Yellow ribbons went up, “These colors don’t run” T-shirts were donned, American flags were smeared onto every blank windowpane and surface, and some of the more creative ethnic slurs were coined and hurled at the very few of us with dusky skin.

I’m half-Indian, born and raised in the Midwest, someone who could employ one hand to count the number of times I’ve visited the motherland.

Still, as a kid, I was accustomed to representing it. I was one of ...well you could count us on one hand at our school.

We were few. I dealt with it, got into fights, got into college, and left as soon as I could, imagining that I had left that hell

46 | INDIA CURRENTS |West Coast Edition |April 2017

We are raising the first generation of kids who might not speak the mother tongue because their ABCD parents have aged into parenthood.

We were born in Michigan, Louisiana, Utah, and California. We are here to stay. We have a Bollywood radio station, for Krishna’s sake! there, where it belonged.

Years later, after the towers came down, I was on my way to my first job, teaching at an all-black inner city school. I stopped at the gas station—it was smeared with American flags.

“Dear God, not this again!” I thought to myself. At first glance, the guy manning the counter looked black. He had dark skin, a doo-rag wrapped around his head, with a baseball cap perched on top in a gangsta lean, a common sight in the predominantly black southside of Chicago.

When I got closer, though, I noticed his wispy sideburns—this guy was a Sikh. The elaborate headgear was meant to disguise his turban. He was frightened, and for

good reason—the citizenry of Chicago was burning down mosques, mistaking anything dark with Osama bin Ladin’s extremism.

At the school where I taught, a couple of kids took to yelling “ Osama bin laden!” when they saw me before running away, although to be honest, I didn’t feel particularly threatened or offended by it. I think they were just curious and testing the waters, now that there was another minority that, for once—however temporarily—ranked below black people.

I really hate to be here again, as many of us do. I want to bury my head in the sand, but I have a kid. She may be a quarter Indian—and certainly not visibly so, as she has her mom’s chestnut hair and stunning blue-green eyes—but she is quite aware of her heritage, down to the Bengali, although she confuses it sometimes, like when we listen to 92.3, The Bay Area’s Bollywood station, and she asks: “Bolly? Like Bengali?” So, not exactly the same thing, but close. She’s aware.

And to my point—this is not the same situation, especially in the IndianAmerican community. Like many others, I entertained fantasies about Canadian citizenship—I certainly helped in a modest way in crashing their immigration website on the night of the election—but things are different. We aren’t the slightly confused, recently off-the-boat crew of almost exclusively third-preference visa’ed doctors and engineers who all claim—lacking proper birth certificates—that their collec

NRITHYOLLASA DANCE ACADEMY presents

Bharatanatyam Arangetram

Krithi Pai of

Disciple of Guru Indumathy Ganesh, Artistic Director

Sunday, April 9, 2017 at 4:00 PM Dougherty Valley Performing Arts Center 10550 Albion Road, San Ramon, CA 94582

Choreography & Nattuvangam: Nattuvangam: Vocal: Mridangam: Violin:

Indumathy Ganesh Vidya Iyer Asha Ramesh N. Narayan Shanthi Narayan

For more information contact: Shanthi & Ekanatha Pai: (510) 793-4191

Admission is Free. Please RSVP number of guests to krithiarangetram17@gmail.com

www.nldance.com tive birthday is January first, because that makes the paperwork easier.

We have figured out what a lawn is, and how to mow it (make the kids do it) and while hamburgers are technically are a sin for many of us, turkey burgers are actually pretty good. We have mobbed the tech industry, we teach in public schools, we have novelists, comedians and musicians that are uniquely American.

If my daughter is any indication, we might have the first Indian-American pro hula-hooper(she really is that good) even though that’s not a thing—yet. We are raising the first generation of kids who might not speak the mother tongue, because their ABCD parents—yes, our clever Gen X acronym designed to define us as distinct from the adults—has aged into parenthood.

We were born in Michigan, Louisiana, Utah and California. We are here to stay.

We have a damn Bollywood radio station, for Krishna’s sake.

Which begs the question—what are we going to do with this hot mess? It’s easy to want to remain uninvolved, to detach to

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the insular desi-land, to consider this the Americans’ problem, maybe look into our cousin’s offer of a desk job in Hyderabad with a life-style lined with servants. But we don’t have that luxury any more—our kids, and our kids’ kids only know this country; going back is simply not an option for most of us. The fruit from the first orchard has dropped, and the seedlings have rooted into this soil.

So—what do we do? Things are different now. A commercial on our Bollywood station assures me that the South Asiancommunity is the “fastest growing, most affluent demographic in the Bay Area” and while this sounds a touch immodest to my liberal-American-NPR-junkie ears, it is also true. Make no mistake, if you simply extracted every desi from Silicon Valley simultaneously, it would fall apart.

California, as a state, is the eighth biggest economy in the world—in tech, media and agriculture, providing one-third of the nation’s produce. Let’s also be quite sure that the Trump administration will make no discernible difference between Mexican, Indian, Arab, Black, Jewish, LBGT,

(510) 623-8230 or anything else—it doesn’t see when it looks in the mirror. We are the next to go, whether or not that is uncomfortable to realize.

I can’t afford that, my daughter and wife can’t afford that, our children can’t afford that, and the woman out in front of the fancy produce store can’t afford that.

What are we going to do?

I’m not sure myself. If I may tap my very personal cultural hallmarks (Star Wars) I’m going to resist. Get involved with the rebellion. Do what I can. I’m going to stop typing now, head home, make a curried turkey burger for the kid, and later see if anyone agrees with me. But on the way out, I’m gonna hand that woman a few dollars, because I’m lucky, she isn’t, and if I may be Indo-Californian on this one, “Karma’s a b***h!” It’s not much to start with—but it’s a start. n Shumit DasGupta is a science education professional, bicyclist and musician who writes oped pieces and children’s books. Some of them make it on radio stations and magazines that you have actually heard of.

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 47

48 | INDIA CURRENTS |West Coast Edition |April 2017

NRITHYOLLASA DANCE ACADEMY presents

Bharatanatyam Arangetram

Sauntharya Manikandan of

Disciple of Guru Indumathy Ganesh, Artistic Director

Sunday, April 30, 2017 at 4:00 PM Jackson Theater, Ohlone College 43600 Mission Blvd, Fremont, CA 94539

Choreography & Nattuvangam: Indumathy Ganesh Nattuvangam: Akshaya Ganesh Vocal: Asha Ramesh Mridangam: Aditya Ganesh Violin: Vikram Ragukumar For more information contact:

Parvathi & Mani: (510) 744-9695 Admission is Free. Please RSVP number of guests to spmaniusa2010@gmail.com

www.nldance.com

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April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 49

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INDIA CURRENTS Celebrating 30 Years of Excellence

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 51

humor

A

first time immigrant has a lot to learn. The practical things are easy; understanding cultural differences is the real challenge.

I grew up in India where sharing a cup of tea is a much revered tradition. When you visit someone, your host is not just offering you a hot beverage; he is offering you his time and attention, letting you know that you are welcome.

Making chai is a holy ritual for me.

Every morning I pound the ginger and cardamom and add it to boiling water. I add the tea leaves and watch the concoction bubble and rumble. Then I add the milk and let it simmer for a few minutes.

The aroma of tea fills the kitchen and makes its way through the olfactory route to my nervous system, finally waking the residues of my sleepy body.

This was my sentiment around tea when I came to America. If I invited some-

52 | INDIA CURRENTS |West Coast Edition |April 2017

A Tea Story

By Sandhya Acharya

one over for tea or coffee this was the envelope I would have folded my invitation in. What I didn’t know was that an invitation for tea or coffee could be inferred to be much more. This knowledge I gained through Hollywood, Google searches and one real-life incident.

While interning in a new city, my mentor invited me over for dinner. When I arrived, in walked another guest. It was an Indian man who worked with me; I will call him Young Man. Young Man looked equally surprised. It was a match-making ambush arranged by my gracious host. I don’t remember much of our conversation at dinner. I was more worried if I was using the right fork for salad. Afterwards, Young Man gallantly offered to drop me home. After a long uneventful drive we finally reached my apartment. I stepped out and thanked him. Remembering my manners, “Would you like to come up for

some tea or coffee?” I said.

Young Man looked at me mouth agape.

Shock and confusion clouded his face. He gulped fearfully, bid an urgent goodbye and drove away like the wind. Days later, all of this started to make sense. I was watching a movie that had a similar invitation by girl to boy, but with very different outcomes. This was followed by some frantic Google searches and the final realization of my folly. I turned red and was very glad that by then, Young Man was working in a building far away from mine.

Understanding that Indian cultural norms don’t translate to American soil can sometimes challenge immigrants, especially so when an invitation to tea is just an invitation to tea.n Sandhya Acharya, a Bay Area based writer is a mother to two young boys, a dancer and running enthusiast. www.sandhyaacharya. com

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 53

feature

The World is Sound

Celebrating 50 Years of The Ali Akbar College of Music Madina Khan

I

magine being raised as a child with the narrow, cluttered stretches of a dark backstage as your playground; bright lights and waves of booming applause tick as steady as a metronome through my memories. I had two homes: the home where I ate my cereal each morning and the one where I sat in a crowd of crosslegged students, singing the songs of my family history each night. Aunts, uncles, cousins—my family tree was littered with hundreds of mismatched musicians, coming together in mutual love, passion, and devotion. I was a princess in a kingdom of artists and teachers—and my father was the quiet, steady king.

For as long as civilizations have walked this earth, there have existed places of worship. Holy places, some would say. Quiet spaces where one could reflect—connect to the world, to the energy surrounding them that hums under the surface of their skin without explanation. Temples, churches, mosques, forests, schools—institutions unto themselves; places of learning, of exploration, and of peace. Fifty years ago, one such institution was founded in the Bay Area: The Ali Akbar College of Music.

My father, the late Ali Akbar Khan, always told us that music was his religion. For a lifetime, I watched as students flocked to the school he founded—a house, that second home; not just for me but for all of us. Children whose parents brought them out of their own love for the classical music of India; twenty-somethings from small Midwest towns who bought a vinyl for a dollar and fell in love; adults who had been there since the beginning, in the 60s, brimming with stories of the days when they lived in communes and practiced together from sunrise to sunset. For 50 years, the Ali Akbar College of Music has existed to educate.

My father left India to bring the teachings of his father, the great Acharya Baba Allauddin Khan, to the West in 1965 in Berkeley, California. His father had told him to spread the music as far and wide as 54 | INDIA CURRENTS |West Coast Edition |April 2017

he could. In 50 years, his accomplishments of that dream have been endlessly vast— but there is a much quieter, softer success that I find to be the drumming heartbeat that has kept both this incredible school and tradition going.

At the Ali Akbar College of Music, you will find a family. For 50 years, we have housed more family members than one could ever hope to know in a lifetime.

A community of like-minded, passionate individuals from every walk of life, every age, every culture, every background— united in excitement and energy about one of the oldest traditions of music in the world, tracing back thousands of years.

His body may not sit before them any longer, but his legacy is tucked into every corner of that building. His wife, my beautiful mother, is still at the helm; my two older brothers are both teachers and employees. Current and former students form the Board of Directors, organize events, and volunteer endless amounts of energy and care. To this day—eight years after my father’s passing in 2009—still the future generations migrate to this place of worship, of refuge.

I am, perhaps, not the right person to

tell this story. At 25 years old, the magic of this school, this ingrained culture built by hopefuls and dreamers and the endlessly driven, is only understood fully by a lifetime of stories. The students who, by day, would practice as if their own breath were a conditional of each note, each melody, each vibrating rhythm they created—these same students would leave the second home of our college to seek sanctuary in our family house at night.

For hours I would lounge and play among them as they spoke with my father about life, the past, the measureless depth of this music they loved. All day they sat before him in classes, and yet at night they still came to sit and gain a different kind of connection and education. This is the foundation upon which this school stands, upon which my entire life was built: there is no nine-to-five for this type of love; the music brings people together in a way that is limitless.

Looking back now, I realize the true weight of the time in which the AACM was founded. 50 years ago, 1967—the “Summer of Love” in San Francisco. It was the golden age, the years my generation drools over: Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles,

Pink Floyd, The Rolling Stones, The Doors, Jefferson Airplane. Carlos Santana and The Grateful Dead, from just down the road, were greatly influenced by our school’s presence and practice. When the college was founded, the world was alight with that feeling—the beginning of something, a free-form approach to living in melody, in sound. It wasn’t a practice as much as it was a lifestyle. And my father came to America in the heat of that lifestyle, with not much more than his sarode (his 25-stringed, fret-less, acoustic instrument) and a lifetime of devotion on his back. In that hippy renaissance, an Indian man with a dream of teaching purely traditional, classical music was fortunately greeted with an open mind. What has always astonished me, and will continue to do so year after year, is that his dream—and his father’s before him—has sustained throughout it all.

It has been 50 years since that beautiful era. Too many of those musicians are no longer with us, including my father.

But it is the history, the sense of community and energy, that can truly never die.

Indian classical music is an art form that has been sustained by some of the greatest musicians of all time—and while it is ongoing, with the help of passionate and dedicated individuals the world over, it is also a practice that is rooted in lifelong and

consistent study.

Wherever you come from, whatever it is that you believe in, there is a frequency in the world that we all have felt: a hum in the wind or in the cars on your street; in the heart beneath your rib cage and in the static of lights; in the rainfall and the murmurs of your own mind. The world is sound.

In 50 years of our school, this is the lesson I hold to my chest as I fall asleep at night—this is why we come together in worship, in community, in family, in love. My father has given us all a second home to harness that sound and build our passions around it; to grow in our convictions as well as in our daydreams.

The kingdom I was raised in belongs to us all, and I promise you it is a world worth losing yourself in. n Madina Khan is the youngest child of Mary and Ali Akbar Khan. She studied fine art painting at University of the Arts London and is now living in the Bay Area.

www.vrindavanacademy.com

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Venue: San Ramon Performing Arts Center, 10550 Albion Road, San Ramon, CA 94582 April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 55

56 | INDIA CURRENTS |West Coast Edition |April 2017

dance . music

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April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 57

relationship diva

Five Tips for Finding That Special Someone

By Jasbina Ahluwalia

Y

women, and being too tentative can be just as fatal to your chances as overdoing it. Do you really want to get to know her?

Then show it!

ou like your job, finances are good, the social life’s pretty fun—now you’re looking to meet that special lady. Maybe you’ve already had a bad experience, or you are looking for tips before you dive into the dating pool. Either way, try to avoid these five common mistakes.

3. Not Being Yourself

It’s been said that “success leaves clues,” and there is value in observing guys who seem comfortable with women.

That said, avoid falling into the trap of “playing a role” when meeting someone new, whether it’s your initial approach or your first few dates. What’s the point of that? You’ll have to show her your true self eventually–you can’t hide “you” forever!

And if you feel you have to, that’s a deeper issue. Best to be your true self right out of the gate.

1. Too Aggressive

While being confident is one thing, being pushy is quite another. Don’t go all “alpha” on her right out of the gate. Begin your interactions in a polite and respectful manner. Be a gentleman. Humor is always good (tasteful and non-political, preferably). Read her reactions and gauge how you should proceed.

2. Not Aggressive Enough

4. Trying Too Hard

OK, I’m not trying to mess with you by contradicting the first item on this list.

Rather, it’s helpful to realize that there’s an ideal middle ground when approaching

Yes, there is such a thing. If you aren’t getting a response after making a solid effort and putting your best foot forward,

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INDIA CURRENTS GRAPHIC (408) 324-0488

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it’s time to politely move on. If you’re getting a cold vibe, give her some space and go back to hanging out with your buddies.

5. Not Being In the Moment

If you’re too much “up in your head,” plotting, scheming and gauging how you might get her to like you, you’re missing the moment. The present moment is all we ever have, and it’s your best chance to connect with her on an authentic level.

Meeting that special someone is possible for you. Use these five tips to avoid getting shot down, and you’ll be well on your way to finding her. n Jasbina Ahluwalia has pioneered an approach to matchmaking, which blends the best of the East and the West. She is the FounderPresident of Intersections Match by Jasbina, the only premier dating coaching firm for Indian singles in the US, Canada and the UK. Jasbina@Intersectionsmatch.com

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Sang Le April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 59

ADVERTISE IN

INDIA CURRENTS Celebrating 30 Years of Excellence

Kalapeetham Foundation Established in 1990

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NRITYODAYA KATHAK ACADEMY CALL: (408) 324-0488 | (714) 523-8788 Email: ads@indiacurrents.com www.indiacurrents.com Write: 2670 S White Rd., Suite 165, San Jose, CA 95148 Deadline: 20th of every month 60 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

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Founder/Director

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INDIA CURRENTS Celebrating 30 Years of Excellence

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ACADEMY OF KATHAK DANCE Classes offered at La Habra Heights, Whittier, Cerritos, Yorba Linda ( Classes can potentially be offered in your area - inquiries welcome)

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Paulomi Pandit Recipient of Post Diploma from

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626-590-5547 April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 61

Sitaful Fruit Trees Now Available

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64 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

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GLORIOUS SECOND COMING OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST J

esus Christ is coming back again to this world as "the King of Kings & the Lord of Lords" to judge Nations with HIS righteousness, to be with HIS people who have accepted Christ into their hearts & lived/living a life acceptable to Christ, having their names written in "the Book of Life" & to live with them forever. For the Lord Jesus Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we, who are alive and remain, shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet, caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.

No one knows the day & hour when Jesus Christ will come back, not even the angels of heaven, but only the Father God in heaven.

The day of Christ coming also called as "the Day of the Lord" will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Nevertheless we, according to HIS promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

Jesus Christ coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

Jesus said, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but MY words will by no means pass away”

What will happen to people who are left behind during Christ Second coming?

Who will not be with Christ forever?

For people whose names are written in "the Book of Life" it will be a glorious day & for others it will be a day of destruction. The Lord will consume with the breath of HIS mouth and destroy with the brightness of HIS coming.

What will be the signs before Second coming of Christ & of the end age?

After coming of Christ, Satan will be bound for 1000 years. Saints of God will rule with Christ during these 1000 years. There will be no death and everyone will live happy with joy & peace, since the Prince of Peace will rule them. After 1000 years of Christ reign, satan will be released to see the reign of Christ with righteousness. Satan will go around nations deceiving people one more time and gather few folks to fight against HIS saints. God will send fire and devour them. Satan will be sent to hell forever.

Flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. Only people whose sins are cleansed by the Blood of Christ, lived/living righteous life before Christ & have their names written in "the Book of Life" will inherit the Kingdom of God or to be with HIM forever. The Bible says in 1Cor 6:9-10, Gal 5:19-21, Rom 1:29-32, Rev 21:8, Rev 14:9-11 that the unrighteous people will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

Many will be deceived during last days saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ therefore do not go after them. But when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be troubled; for such things must happen, but the end will not come immediately. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be great earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven. All these are the beginning of sorrows. Many will be persecuted, beaten, killed, offended, betrayed and hated for Christ sake even by parents, brothers, relatives, friends and children. But not a hair of your head shall be lost. By your patience possess your souls. Many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the entire world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

The Great Tribulation

1000 years of Christ reign

The Great White Throne Judgment

After casting Satan into the Lake of fire (hell), Christ will judge the dead & the Nations with HIS Righteousness. If anyone’s name is not found in “the Book of Life”, then they will be cast into the Lake of fire. Whomsoever name is found in “the Book of Life” will have eternal life with Christ in New Heaven, New Earth & New Jerusalem. There is no death, no sorrow, no crying & no pain.

Now how can I redeem this Gift of Salvation in my life, so I can be with Christ forever?

All we have to do is to believe Jesus, accept HIM into your heart, ask HIM to cleanse your sins by HIS precious blood & live a life acceptable to Christ every day from now on. (Repeat this simple prayer - Prayer means talking to God in your heart)

But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, and then know that its desolation is near. Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place where it ought not, then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Jesus predicts the destruction of Temple of God to his disciples saying, “The days will come in which not one stone shall be left upon another that shall not be thrown down”. For in those days there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of creation of this world. And unless the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh would be saved.

Lord Jesus, Thank you for coming into this world for me and my sins. I truly accept you just as I am. Come into my heart; cleanse me and my sins with your precious Blood. Be in my heart forever and help me to live and lead a Holy life like you. I also invite YOU & Your Holy Spirit to come into my heart and give me the Joy, Peace, Happiness, Deliverance from sins, bondages and sickness forever. Thank you for giving me the assurance of being with me forever. In Jesus name I pray Amen.

Immediately after the tribulation of those days, there will be signs like the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see

If you have truly meant this prayer, then you have accepted Jesus Christ into your heart & your name will be written in “the Book of Life”. HE will be with you forever. HE will not leave you nor forsake you. If you need prayers or would like to know more about Jesus, then you can visit nearby Christian churches who believes in Trinity (The Father God, Lord Jesus Christ & The Holy Spirit) or email us at : info@christforworld.org

66 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

A real fun filled unforgettable summer for all children where they will be truly inspired by real India!

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Highlights: Interactivity, creativity and inspired learning l New content every year keeps each theme fresh! l Designed for curious and active children l Hindi Language and Indian Culture in the best manner

Weekly Themes Amazing India, I Love India, Incredible India, Celebrate India

Hindi Mornings (9:30 am – 12:00 pm) l Learn and practice Hindi at any level; beg./int./adv. l Focus on spoken Hindi with reading and writing l No prior knowledge of Hindi required for beginners

Indian Culture Afternoons (1 pm – 4 pm) l Hands-on structured learning with excitement l High energy engagement and discovery style l Each week has unique theme, content and activities Dates : June 5 – August 11 Hours : 9:30 am – 4:00 pm

(Dropoff Starts at 9:15am, Pickup is till 4:15 pm)

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* Fun Learning * Interactive * Creative * Central Sites * Professional Staff * Discounts for Multiple Week Enrollment * High school students can apply for volunteer counselor positions! College Students are invited to apply for paid positions!

Enroll Online: www.JanoIndia.org (650) 493-1566 | janoindia@eduhindi.com Thank you for bringing India alive for my 5 year old and help my 12 year old get an outlet for his thirst for knowledge about India and all things Indian and all in a fun, entertaining environment. Thank you for showing my kids MY INDIA ! - Vasudha Jano India camp is a wonderful opportunity for children to learn about their Indian culture and heritage. The teachers are wonderful and make learning about India fun. We will definitely have our kids attend camps in future years. Many heartfelt thanks! - Rahul Offered by US Hindi Foundation (USHF), an educational non-profit with 501c(3). Scholarships available to qualified applicants.

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 67

events APRIL

California’s Best Guide to Indian Events Edited by: Mona Shah List your event for FREE!

MAY issue deadline: Thursday, April 20 To list your event in the Calendar, go to www.indiacurrents.com and click on Create Event

Check us out on

special dates Ramanavami Mahavir Jayanti

April 5 April 9

Good Friday

April 14

Baisakhi

April 14

Hanuman Jayanti

April 11

Tamil New Year

April 14

Easter

April 16

Buddha Purnima

May 10

Mother’s Day

May 14

CULTURAL CALENDER April

1 Saturday

Shiva Shakti. This student recital will

depict the varied manifestations of Shiva and his consort Shakti through Abhinaya’s traditional repertoire of the past years. Organized by Abhinaya Dance Company. Mexican Heritage Theater, 1700 Alum Rock Ave, San Jose. https://abhinaya. org (408) 871-5959.

Carnatic Music Concert with TM Krishna. Organized by South India Fine 68 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

Dance India. Four Visions featuring four classical dance styles of India’s treasured legacy is seldom presented side by side. With artists: Rahul Acharya (odissi), Vijayalakshmi (mohiniyattam), California Gharana with Leela Dance Collective (kathak) and Shakti Dance Company (bharatanatyam).

April 15, 7 p.m.

Arts. Carrington Hall, Redwood City. www. southindiafinearts.org/ 2017443479.

Vikesh Kapoor in Concert. Raised in rural Pennsylvania, Kapoor has centered his music on the struggles for a good life

endured by the working class. Organized

by Stanford Live. Bing Concert Hall Studio 327 Lasuen St., Stanford. http://live.stanford.edu/calendar/april-2017/vikesh-kapoor.

(650) 724-2464.

events

California’s Best Guide to Indian Events kalpana-a-film-by-uday. (866) 955-6040.

SoundWaves: The Passion of Noor Inayat Khan. The play chronicles the

complex life of Noor alias Nora alias Madeleine. Trained by Britain as an Allied Special Operations Executive and sent into occupied France, Noor, a Muslim Indian living in Paris, became the first female radio operator during the Second World War. Organized by Enacte Arts.

Ends April 9. DeAnza Visual and Performing Arts Center, Cupertino. http://enacte.org/ production/soundwaves/.

April

Enacte Arts presents SoundWaves: The Passion of Noor Inayat Khan, April 7-9

April

2 Sunday

Relational Rasa: An Interactive Musical Inquiry into Integral Consciousness. Musician and performer

Sandeep Prakash will outline and demonstrate the Indian aesthetic concept of rasa - the essential sentiment embedded in a work of art or music that evokes a corresponding emotion in the reader, listener or viewer. 11:00 a.m. -12:15 p.m. Cultural Integration Fellowship 2650 Fulton St., San Francisco. www.CulturalIntegrationFellowship.org. (415) 668-1559.

April

7 Friday

The Darkened Mirror. Indian artist

Vibha Galhotra is one of five international artists featured in the exhibition The Darkened Mirror: Global Perspectives on Water. The subject of her poetic video Manthan is India’s Yamuna River. San Jose

Museum of Art, 110 S Market St., San Jose. www.sjmusart.org. (408) 271-6840.

Kalpana—A Film by Uday Shankar.

The sole film of celebrated Indian dancer Uday Shankar (older brother of sitar virtuoso Ravi Shankar), Kalpana is a vibrant dance-drama that revolves around a young dancer’s dream of forming his own dance academy. Originally filmed in 1948, the film was restored in 2008 by Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Project in association with the family of Uday Shankar and the National Film Archives of India.

The film features choreography designed specifically for the camera, fusing elements of Indian modernism with the cinema. This is the first time the restored version of this landmark film will be screened in California and provides a rare opportunity to view one of the classics of world cinema. Organized by Green Music Center. Green Music Center, Sonoma State University 1801 E. Cotati Ave., Rohnert Park. http://gmc.sonoma.edu/event/3267926-

8 Saturday

Citizenship Day. Assistance at no cost to legal permanent residents with their applications for U.S. citizenship. A resource fair will offer insightful information about legal services, other immigration benefits, English as a Second Language (ESL) classes, adult education, applying for CalFresh and other types of food assistance, applying for health care insurance, and useful information to raise awareness about scams targeting immigrants. Organized by Santa Clara County Citizenship Collaborative. 8:30 a.m. -2:00 p.m. San Jose City College, 2100 Moorpark Ave., San Jose. Rebekah Children Services

Bharatanatyam arangetram of Krithi Pai, April 9

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 69

events

California’s Best Guide to Indian Events April

13 Thursday

Sacred Singing: A Baul Performance with Parvathy Baul. Baul is a

folk singer, musician and storyteller from Bengal. Organized by The Subir and Malini Chowdhury Center for Bangladesh Studies at UC Berkeley. 6:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. Sibley Auditorium Bechtel Engineering Center, UC Berkeley. http://events.berkeley. edu/index.php/calendar/sn/csas.html?event_ ID=106038. (510) 642-3608.

Hindustani World Music Concert.

The Evolution of Song and Dance in Hindi Cinema., April 8

290 IOOF Ave., Gilroy. www.immigrantinfo. org, www.e-immigrate.us. (408) 444-9975.

72811636063362/?type=3&theater. (510) 378-7298.

The Evolution of Song and Dance in Hindi Cinema. The symposium

Son of the Wind—Kathak Dance Performance. The drama brings to life

features internationally renowned scholars who will discuss the historical role that song and dance has played, and continues to play, in the cinema now known as Bollywood. Taking place throughout the day, this conference allows patrons and lovers of Indian music and dance to learn more about these art forms. The conference will also include Q&A sessions with scholars and the general public. Sonoma State University, 1801 E. Cotati Ave., Rohnert Park. http://gmc.sonoma.edu/event/3285855the-evolution-of-song-and-dance. (707) 664-3178.

the Ramayana’s hidden hero. Hanuman, the son of the mighty wind god, through his mischievous ingenuity and indomitable vigor, proves to be an integral force in the rescue of the kidnapped princess Sita and the defeat of the arrogant King Ravan. Told through dramatic storytelling, powerful movement, and exquisite costume design and lighting, this production exposes the contemporary relevance of a timeless story. Weill Hall, Sonoma State University, 1801 E Cotati Ave., Rohnert Park. http://gmc.sonoma.edu/event/3189887leela-dance.

April

9 Sunday

Bharatanatyam Arangetram of Krithi Pai. Student of Indumathy

Contemporary World Music from India. Featuring them Musical legacy of

L Subramaniam and Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam, Bindu Subramaniam and Ambi Subramanian. Violin based Bollywood Songs by Andaaz Singers and SubraMania. Organized by India Community Center and Andaaz Creations.

India Community Center, 525 Los Coches St, Milpitas. https://www.facebook.com/andaazband/photos/gm.378461189205288/14 70 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

Ganesh, Artistic Director of Nrithyollasa Dance Academy. Accompanied by musicians Indumathy Ganesh (choreography and nattuvangam), Vidya Iyer (nattuvangam), Asha Ramesh (vocal), N. Narayan (mridangam), and Shanthi Narayan (violin). Organized by Nrithyollasa Dance Academy. Doherty Valley Performing Arts Center, 10550 Albion Road, San Ramon. www.nldance.com. (510) 793-4191.

Featuring Pallavi Mehta (violin) and Nikhil Pandya (tabla). Organized by Chabot College Department of Chabot College Department of Music. Music Recital Hall, Bldg. 1200, Room 1224, 25555 Hesperian Blvd., Hayward. http://www. chabotcollege.edu/music.

April

14 Friday

Singing Religious Poetry in North India. Five scholars and two artists ex-

plore poetry, music, society, performance.

Concert by Padmashri Prahlad Singh Tipanya, renowned Kabir singer, with accompanying musicians. Organized by Sachi. 7:30 p.m. Stanford University, Dinkelspiel Auditorium, 450 Serra Mall, Stanford. http://events.stanford.edu/events/675/67573/

April

15 Saturday

U.S. Memory Tournament. Stu-

dents, professionals, memory amateurs, and memory record holders from all over the country will come together in San Jose for a fun and educational experience that includes brain-training workshops & friendly competition. There will be five events in the game, prizes, and the winner will be ranked internationally.

Organized by Farrow Memory & BrainHackers.com. 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. eBay Main Street 2025 E Hamilton Ave., San Jose. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/us-memory-tournament-ebay-main-street-tickets32069473659?inf_contact_key=3828f2908 08f66b2570df7d39739ba0914da2c539e521

events

California’s Best Guide to Indian Events

b6f094b54289885cd56 (866) 949-6868.

Singing Religious Poetry in North India. Symposium: Chair and Commen-

tator Anna Schultz. Panelists: Kirin Narayan, Sukanya Chakrabarti, Vivek Virani, Linda Hess. Organized by Sachi. 3 p.m.

Stanford University, Campbell Recital Hall, Braun Music Building 450 Serra Mall, Stanford. http://events.stanford.edu/events.

8th Annual Birthday Tribute to Maestro Ali Akbar Khan. Featuring:

5 p.m. Debashish Bhattacharya (slide guitar), Swapan Chaudhuri (tabla) 6:30 p.m. Charlotte Moraga and The Chitresh Das Youth Company (kathak dance). 7:30 p.m. Rita Sahai (vocal), Rachel Unterseher (viola), Kamaljit Kalsi (harmonium), Vikram Shrowty (slide guitrar), Nikhil Pandya (tabla). 8:30 p.m. Alam Khan (sarode), Swapan Chaudhuri (tabla), Manik Khan (sarode). Organized by Ali Akbar College of Music. 5:00 p.m. -10:00 p.m.

Cowell Theater, Fort Mason Herbst Pavillion, 2 Marina Blvd., San Francisco. www.aacm. org.(415) 345-7575.

April

16 Sunday

An Evening in Memory of Late Jagjit Singh. The voice of Jagjit Singh will be remembered through the songs and ghazals in the voice of Jatinder Sharma. Organized by Ek Shaam Jagjit Singh Ke Naam. 7:00 p.m. -10:00 p.m. Newark Pavilion, 6430 Thornton Ave., Newark. https://www.facebook.com/ events/662067210666820/.

April

22 Saturday

Care For Children Walkathon 2017. 5K/10K run supports the com-

plete education of 51,061 children studying in 425 schools spread across the poorest and most underserved sections of India. Activities for children, food, live music, and yoga in the park. Organized

by Care for Children. Baylands Park, 999 E Caribbean Dr., Sunnyvale. http://tiny.cc/

Bharatanatyam arangetram of Sauntharya Manikandan, April 30

cfcwalk2educate. (650) 318-1565.

Hindustani Music Concert. Featuring Deepali Ghate (vocal), accompanied

by Rajvinder Singh (tabla). Followed by violin virtuoso Sharatchandra Srivatsava.

3:00 p.m.-5:30 p.m. ICC Milpitas, 525 Los Coches St., Milpitas. www.indiacc.org. (408) 934-1130.

Hindustani Music Concert. Featuring Nachiketa Yakkundi (vocal) accompanied by Anand Karve (harmonium) and Ravi Gutala (tabla). Followed by Prasad Bhandarkar on Flute. Organized by India community Center. 3:00 p.m.-6:30 p.m.

ICC 525 Los Coches St., Milpitas. www. indiacc.org. (408) 394-0554.

Book Launch by Kanishk Tharoor.

He discusses his new story collection,

Swimmer Among the Stars, with Aaron Bady. Green Apple Books, 1231 9th Avenue, San Francisco. http://www.greenapplebooks. com/event/9th-ave-kanishk-tharoor-andaaron-bady.

April

23 Sunday

Hyderabad Brothers Raghavachari and Seshachari in Concert. Orga-

nized by South India Fine Arts. Santa Clara Convention Center, 5001 Great America Pkwy., Santa Clara. www.southindiafinearts.org. (201) 744-3479.

April

28 Friday

Hindustani Classical Music Concert by Gauri Pathare. A tribute

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 71

events

California’s Best Guide to Indian Events Organized by Nrithyollasa Dance Academy. Jackson Theater, Ohlone College, 43600 Mission Blvd., Fremont. www.nldance.com.

(510) 744-9695.

Prahlad Singh Tipanya and Kabir Ensemble. Tipanya and his team sing

the poetry of Kabir, the great iconoclastic mystic of North India, in the vigorous and joyful folk style of Madhya Pradesh’s Malwa region. Organized by UC Santa Cruz. 7:30 p.m.-9:00 p.m. UC Santa Cruz Recital Hall, 402 McHenry Rd., Santa Cruz. http://arts.ucsc.edu/news_events/indian-music-concert-series. (831) 459-4731.

May Hindustani music concert by violin virtuoso Sharatchandra Srivatsava, April 22

concert for her guru Pt. Jitendra Abhishekion, accompanied by Vivek Datar (harmonium) and Satish Tare (tabla). Organized by Swar Sudha. 21690 Rainbow Court, Cupertino. http://www.swarsudha. org. (408) 461-8390.

April

29 Saturday

Vadhya Sangamam. Prasanna Rajan (flute), Guhan Venkataraman (veena), Priyanka Chary (veena), Sahana Srnivasan (violin), accompanied by Vignesh Venkataraman (mridangam), and Amit Ranganathan (mridangam). Organized by SR Fine Arts. 2:00 p.m. -4:30 p.m. Community Of Infinite Spirit, 1540 Hicks Ave., San Jose. www.srfinearts.info. (408) 569-0860.

Thyagaraja Ramayanam with S. Sowmya and Team. An ensemble

performance with concert and narrative to commemorate the 250th birthday of Saint Thyagaraja, a member of the trinity of Carnatic music. Singer Sowmya accompanied by Brinda Manickavasagam, Ashwath Narayanan, Vidya Kalyanaraman, and Chandrasekara Sarma. Organized by South India Fine Arts. CET Soto Theater, 701 Vine St., San Jose. southindiafinearts.

72 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

org. (201) 744-3479.

April

30 Sunday

Hindustani Classical Music and Ghazal Concert by Somesh Kumar.

Organized by ICC and Artforum. 3:306:00 p.m. India Community Center. 525 Los Coches Street, Milpitas. http://www.indiacc. org/ClassicalGhazalConcert. (425) 7361770.

Mohiniattam and Bharatanatyam Performance. Mohiniattam by Neena

Prasad, accompanied by live Orchestra from India. Bharatanatyam by Kavya Murlidharan. Organized by Yuva Bharati.

Mission City Center for Performing Arts.

3250 Monroe St., Santa Clara. www.yuvabharati.org. (650) 565-8859.

Bharatanatyam Arangetram of Sauntharya Manikandan. Student

of Indumathy Ganesh, Artistic Director of Nrithyollasa Dance Academy.

Accompanied by musicians Indumathy Ganesh (choreography and nattuvangam), Akshaya Ganesh (nattuvangam), Asha Ramesh (vocal), Aditya Ganesh (mridangam), and Vikram Ragukumar (violin).

5 Friday

Sikh Foundation’s 50th Anniversary. Golden Gala-Pride and Promise.

7:30 p.m.-5:00 p.m. Asian Art Museum San Francisco, 200 Larkin St, San Francisco.

(650) 494-7454.

Monsoon Wedding—A Stage Musical. The perfect storm that starts brewing

when family members from around the world descend on Delhi for a nonstop four-day celebration of an arranged marriage between a modern upper middleclass Indian family’s only daughter and an American guy she’s never met. But the bride is having an affair, her father’s financial troubles deepen, and dark family secrets surface. The forecast calls for drama, love, hope, laughs and a whole lot of rain. 8:00 p.m. -5:00 p.m. Berkeley Repertory Theatre, 2025 Addison St., Berkeley. www.berkeleyrep.org. (510) 647-2949.

May

6 Saturday

Remembering Mukesh: Nitin Mukesh Live in Concert Mehfill Style. Organized by Bay Area Fuzion

Events. India Community Center, 525 Los Coches St., Milpitas. https://www.facebook. com/events/115304315646006. (408) 5799426.

Sari: The Magic of the Unstitched Garment. Presentation and Sari demon-

events stration workshop by Rta Kapur Chishti.

A viewing of textiles and conversation with the scholar follows. Organized by Sachi and Sohara. 2-4 p.m. Los Altos at 13155 La Cresta Drive, Los Altos Hills. info@sachi.org.

Shakti Unveiled—Reclaiming the Goddess. A bharatanatyam solo that

seeks to reclaim the heritage of the all encompassing Goddess as a role model for the modern day woman. Organized by Rasika Kumar. 3:30 p.m.- 5:00 p.m. Cubberley Theater, 4000 Middlefield Rd., Palo Alto. (408) 871-5959.

Jugalbandhi with Shashank Subramanyam and Purbayan Chatterjee.

Flute prodigy Shashank Subramanyam pairs Carnatic music with sitar maestro Purbayan Chatterjee who plays in the Hindustani tradition. Organized by South India Fine Arts. CET Soto Theater, 701 Vine St., San Jose. www.southindiafinearts. org. (201) 744-3479.

May

7 Sunday

Rabindranath Tagore Jayanti Celebration. A musical tribute to Rabin-

dranath Tagore, voice of India’s spiritual heritage, by Bay Area Gitanjali artistes.

Songs, shlokas and bhajans written by Tagore will be featured. Singers are Sonali Bhattacharya, Aditya Das, Oli Das, and Shyamoshree Gupta Diamond. Anoop Bhattacharjya accompanies on tabla.

Organized by Cultural Integration Fellowship. 11:00 a.m. -12:30 p.m. Cultural Integration Fellowship, 2650 Fulton St., San Francisco. www.Culturalintegration Fellowship.or. (415) 669-1559.

May

12 Friday

Kumar Sanu and Alka Yagnik Live in Concert. Organized by Bay

Area Fuzion Events. 8:30 p.m. Sacramento Memorial Auditorium, 1515 J Street, Sacramento. https://www.facebook.com/ events/1865029260446594/.

California’s Best Guide to Indian Events Anoushka Shankars Home—A Southern California Sitar Concert celebrating CULTURAL CALENDER Special 97th Birthday of Bharat Ratna Pt.

April

2 Sunday

Appreciating Tyagaraja’s Music—A Workshop. Featuring Pappu Venugopala Rao, Trichy Sankaran, Hyderabad Brothers, and Lalgudi Krishnan. 3-5:00 p.m.

David and Dorothea Garfield Theatre 4126 Executive Drive, La Jolla.

Ragaspirit OC 2017—Festival of Indian Music. Featured musicians in-

clude Shahid Parvez Khan (sitar), Abhijit Banerjee (tabla), Kala Ramnath (violin), Anuradha Sridhar (violin) and Shriram Bhramanandam (mridangam). Organized

by Ektaa Center. 4-10:00 p.m. Crystal Cove Auditorium UCI Student Ctr, 311 W. Peltason Dr. Irvine. www.ektaacenter.org, (949) 300-8912.

S. Ramanathan Centenary Concert.

Featruing Sangeetha Kalamani Geetha Bennett (veena), Sangeetha Acharya TSR Krishnan’s tribute to S.Ramanathan. Accompanied by Raamkumar Balamurthi (mridangam) and Karthick Venkataraman (kanjira). Organized by Indian Fine Arts Academy. 6:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m. David and Dorothea Garfield Theatre 4126 Executive Drive, La Jolla. https://www.indianfineartsacademy.org.

Thyagaraja Bhakti Margam. A vocal

concert by Vijayalakshmi Subramaniam. ccompanied by Kamalakiran Vinjamuri (violin), Erode Nagaraj (mridangam) and Karthick Venkataraman (kanjira).

Organized by Indian Fine Arts Academy.

7:30 p.m. -9:30 p.m. David and Dorothea Garfield Theatre 4126 Executive Drive, La Jolla. https://www.indianfineartsacademy.org.

Jyan Laxmi Tyan Narayan-A Play.

Organized by Tisha Entertainment Inc. William Bristol Auditorium 16600 Civic Center Drive, Bell Flower. (562) 416-9817.

April

3 Monday

Ravi Shankar. Accompanied by: Ojas Adhiya (tabla), Pirashanna Thevarajah (mridangam), Ravichandra Kulur (flute), Sanjeev Shankar (shehnai) and Kenji Ota (tanpura). Organized by Indian Fine Arts Academy. David and Dorothea Garfield Theatre 4126 Executive Drive, La Jolla. https://www.indianfineartsacademy.org.

April

4 Tuesday

Endaro Mahanubhavulu—A Special Carnatic and Hindustani Music and Dance Presentation. Students and disciples of C.M.Venkatachalam, Suman Nayak, Aler Krishnan, Rohini Herur, Jonathan Bosco, and Divya Devaguptapu. Accompanied by Prabhu Sriram and Raamkumar Balamurthi (mridangam), Amshu Murthy and Agastya (flute), Cleveland Balu (kanjira).

Organized by Indian Fine Arts Academy.

David and Dorothea Garfield Theatre 4126 Executive Drive, La Jolla. https://www.indianfineartsacademy.org.

April

5 Wednesday

Venu Gaana Mridanga Lahari— Musical Aura of Saint Thyagaraja.

A Special Carnatic vocal, instrumental, and percussion presentation by students and disciples of Revathi Subramanian, Raamkumar Balamurthi, Amshu Murthy, and Radhakrishnan Ramachandran. Accompanied by Raamkumar Balamurthi (mridangam), Radhakrishnan Ramachandran (flute) and Cleveland Balu (kanjira).

Organized by Indian Fine Arts Academy.

David and Dorothea Garfield Theatre 4126 Executive Drive, La Jolla. https://www.indianfineartsacademy.org/.

April

6 Thursday

Alapanas and Abhangs. A special Carnatic and Hindustani vocal presentation

by Padma Shri Aruna Sairam, accompa

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 73

events nied by BV Raghavendra Rao (violin), Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan (mridangam) and N.Guruprasad (ghatam). Organized

by Indian Fine Arts Academy. David and Dorothea Garfield Theatre 4126 Executive Drive, La Jolla. https://www.indianfineartsacademy.org.

April

8 Saturday

Matru Devo Bhava—A Carnatic Jugalbandhi by Sangita Kalanidhi M.Chandrasekaran and G.Bharathi. Accompanied by Man-

nargudi Easwaran (mridangam) and H.Sivaramakrishnan (ghatam). Organized

by Indian Fine Arts Academy. 7:45 p.m.

David and Dorothea Garfield Theater, 4126 Executive Drive, La Jolla. https://www. indianfineartsacademy.org.

April

9 Sunday

Ganga Kaveri Sangam. Gayathri Venkataraghavan and Arati Ankalikar in a Carnatic and Hindustani jugalbandhi vocal concert. Accompanied by VVS Murari (violin), NC Bharadwaj (mridangam), and Arup Chattopadhyay (tabla).

Organized by Indian Fine Arts Academy.

David and Dorothea Garfield Theater, 4126 Executive Drive, La Jolla. https://www.indianfineartsacademy.org.

Classical Moods—A Carnatic Vocal Concert. Featuring Sangeetha Kalanidhi

Sanjay Subrahmanyan accompanied by Nagai Muralidharan (violin) and Mannargudi Easwaran (mridangam). Organized by Indian Fine Arts Academy 7:00 p.m. David and Dorothea Garfield Theater, 4126 Executive Drive, La Jolla. https://www. indianfineartsacademy.org.

32nd Annual Santa Barbara Kite Festival. Kite tail chasing, kite fighting

and sport flying along with hundreds of kites flying high in the sky. Bring your own kite or purchase a new one at the festival. 11-5:00 p.m. Santa Barbara City College’s West Campus, 973 Cliff Dr., Santa 74 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

California’s Best Guide to Indian Events Barbara. www.sbkitefest.net.

April

14 Friday

A Musical Evening of Bollywood and Tollywood Hits. Featruing Bhav-

petition. Categories are: Film solo

dance, duet dance, group film dance and group folk dance. Organized by Tisha Entertainment and Kola Tisha Entertainment and Kola Hotel Group. Jordan High School Auditorium 6500 Atlantic Ave., Long Beach. (562) 860-1135.

na Chawla and Rram Tasildar. Organized

by Little Dhaka. Asian Banquets 18159 Pioneer Blvd., Artesia.

April

A Musical Evening of Bollywood and Tollywood Hits. Featruing Bhav-

Smaranam: An Odissi Dance Presentation. Organized by Odissi Dance

na Chawla and Rram Tasildar. Organized

by Little Dhaka. Asian Banquets 18159 Pioneer Blvd., Artesia.

April

15 Saturday

Raas Garba and Film Dance Competition. Categories are: Film solo

dance, duet dance, group film dance and group folk dance. Organized by Tisha Entertainment and Kola Tisha Entertainment and Kola Hotel Group. Jordan High School Auditorium 6500 Atlantic Ave., Long Beach. (562) 860-1135.

Legends Bollywood Dance Championship. Watch the nine best Bolly-

wood dance teams in the United States battle to become legends. Organized by Desi Dance Network, Inc. Segerstrom Center for the Arts, 600 Town Center Dr., Costa Mesa. legends.desidancenetwork.org, (510) 491-3793.

Dance India! Four Visions. From the subtlest movements to the most sweeping gestures, a sublime evening of 4 dance expressions of India that illumines extraordinary artists. Vijayalakshmi (mohiniyattam), Rahul Acharya (odissi-California gharana). The Leela Dance Collective: kathak (Rina Mehta, Rachna Nivas, Shefali Jain) and bharatanatyam by Shakti Dance Company. Organized by Aratani World Series. 7-9 p.m. Aratani Theatre, 244 S San Pedro St., Los Angeles. http:// www.festivalofsacredmufestivalofsacredmusic. org, (213) 680-3700.

Raas Garba and Film Dance Com-

16 Sunday

Circle. 3-5 p.m. Bristol Civic Center Auditorium, 1660 Civic Center Drive, Bellflower. www.odissidancecircle.com, (714) 521-5655.

April

21 Friday

Taj Express—The Bollywood Musical Revue. Capturing the vibrant, ex-

pressive spirit of the world of Bollywood movies, a fusion of film, dance, and music, it takes audiences on a live cinematic journey through modern Indian culture and society. Organized by Quintessence Productions. Segerstrom Center for the Arts 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. https:// www.scfta.org/events/detail.aspx?id=14542.

Taj Express—The Bollywood Musical Revue. Capturing the vibrant, ex-

pressive spirit of the world of Bollywood movies, a fusion of film, dance, and music, it takes audiences on a live cinematic journey through modern Indian culture and society. Organized by Quintessence Productions. Segerstrom Center for the Arts, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. https:// www.scfta.org/events/detail.aspx?id=14542.

April

29 Saturday

Black Tie Event. Live music with Di-

pali and Vishal, The Army of Two. Dinner and fashion show. Organized by Hasth Foundation. 6 p.m. Arcadia Community Center, 365 Campus Drive, Arcadia. (626) 226-8088.

© Copyright 2017 India Currents. All rights reserved. Reproduction for commercial use strictly prohibited.

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 75

recommends

The Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles

By Dipti Gogna Pandey

T

his spring Los Angeles will be home to quality cinema from India. And like spring, it will bring the colors of India—its culture and languages, its people, their struggles and celebrations, to the fore. With an eclectic mix of features, documentaries and shorts, the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) is a five day festival offering groundbreaking films, galas, performances, and networking opportunities.

Celebrating its 15th year, IFFLA promises to be special, showcasing a mix of works by established directors and emerging filmmakers. Mike Dougherty, Director of Programming, IFFLA, elaborates, “In a country of more than a billion people with 22 official languages, you’re sure to find a rich variety of work from a broad spectrum of artists.”

The works are spread over nine languages, and include films by masters like Adoor Gopalakrishnan Once Again in Malayalam and Suman Mukhopadhyay’s Incomplete in Bengali. Celebrated director Vikramaditya Motwane’s dramatic thriller Trapped, the directorial debut of actress Konkona Sen Sharma’s A Death in the Gunj, Ananya Kasaravalli’s The Chronicles of Hari, a film about a renowned theater actor’s struggle with gender identity and Padmakumar Narasimhamurthy’s A Billion Colour Story.

An Insignificant Man, directed by Khushboo Ranka and Vinay Shukla.

76 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

The Cinema Travellers directed by Shirley Abraham and Amit Madheshiya

Opening Night features Alankrita Shrivastava’s film Lipstick Under My Burkha, (see review in this issue of India Currents) a tale of four women, seeking a small slice of freedom from their repressive surroundings. Bold and irreverent, the film has been garnering awards in the festival circuit, but has been banned by the Indian censor board. Excited about her film opening the festival, Alankrita says, “IFFLA is a prestigious film festival, and it’s quite an honor to screen my film there.”

The Festival closes with the Los Angeles premiere of Hotel Salvation, the debut feature of Shubhashish Bhutiani, whose 2013 short film Kush was shortlisted for the Live Action Short Film Oscar.

IFFLA offers a platter of award-winning and topical documentary films including Machines, winner of the World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Excellence in Cinematography at Sundance, and the U.S. premiere of An Insignificant Man, directed by Khushboo Ranka and Vinay Shukla. The film centers on the polarizing political figure Arvind Kejriwal and gives a stirring behind-the-

scenes look at his creation of the political outfit Aam Aadmi Party.

The Cinema Travellers directed by Shirley Abraham and Amit Madheshiya which won L’Œil d’or Special Mention: Le Prix du documentaire at the Cannes Film Festival, makes its way to the LA audiences. “It is a great honor for the film to have found a home at IFFLA—its spirited show-people are truly bringing the best of Indian cinema to L.A.,” adds Abraham.

IFFLA brings a special evening with legendary tabla maestro Zakir Hussain, joined by Zane Dalal, Associate Music Director of the Symphony Orchestra of India. The event will begin with a screening of the documentary An Indian Accent, directed by Sumantra Ghosal, which chronicles Hussain and Dalal’s collaboration on Hussain’s original concerto piece Peshkar.

“The prestige that Vikram Motwane, Zakir Hussain, Zane Dalal and John Nein represent will no doubt contribute to an unforgettable 15th anniversary for our festival,” concludes Dougherty.

April 5-9. www.indianfilmfestival.org.

film review

Lipstick Under My Burkha

By Dipti Gogna Pandey

Director: Alankrita Shrivastava Cast: Konkona Sen Sharma, Ratna Pathak Shah, Aahana Kumra, Plabita Borthakur

H

eartfelt and made with much gusto, Lipstick Under My Burkha amuses, shocks and even makes you cry. Director Alankrita Shrivastava surprises us in this tale of four women, separated by individual contexts but joined by a common will to be free. These women, trapped in their circumstances, go beyond convention, in rebellious but secret stealth measures. The characters are complex and multi-dimensional, flawed and funny, with shades spread over the whole spectrum-just as real people are. The voice of buaji (Ratna Pathak Shah), relayed as her reading of an erotic novel, connects the film beautifully. It gives multiple layers to the visuals, and meanings beyond what one can see.

Lying on a waxing table, a mother of three looks distraught. Her beautician and she have been discussing her husband.

“He doesn’t touch you with love down there, does he?” The woman, looks away, trying to hold tears. “Why do you ask, when you know?” You feel a lump rising in your throat. In another scene, the beautician records her sex act with her boyfriend, just after getting engaged to another man.

But she is also a woman in love. A 55-year old woman secretly has phone sex with a

much younger swimming instructor, and he has no clue about her identity. Scenes like these and many more make Lipstick Under My Burkha tick and make the characters real. The actors give superlative performances, with a rare slipping of accent.

It takes a break from run-of-the-mill Bollywood romances, and speaks from the heart, in this case that of a woman. A film that unlike Bollywood films refuses to objectify women, and gives them real heart and soul. Women have dreams, women have desires, women have sexual desires, and seek control, at least of their bodies.

In an old residential building owned by buaji that houses all the central characters, Konkona Sen Sharma plays Shirin, a young mother of three and a secret saleswoman.

She shines in the role of a repressed yet defiant wife, raising many a questions about independence, self-reliance, and respect for women.

Rehana (Plabita Borthakur), a young college girl, dreams of becoming a singer, struggling against her ultra-conservative upbringing. She attempts to blend in with the other college goers, even if it requires stealing, smoking or late night partying.

This story seems to have a flawed sense of modernity, and in that sense falls short of the expectations and bars that the others set. It seems to propound conformity over exploration and adherence over questioning.

Leela (Aahana Kumra), a young beautician with a sizzling sex life with her boyfriend, is being forced into an arranged marriage. She is desperate to make money and struggles to start her own business.

She is open and unabashed, even to the extent of cheating on her fiancé.

Buaji, addicted to erotic fiction, and widowed for far too long, craves to explore her sexuality. Her fascination threatens to spill into real life. At the age of 55, she seeks intimacy, which in case of a man would never even be question. But here, it is set to ruffle a few feathers.

The attempts of these women, at stealing this small slice of freedom results in comedy, and often in tragedy. The key strength of this plot is that these women don’t judge each other, taking their lives with a pinch of salt as they continue forward with indefatigable spirits.

The cinematography of the film adds to its realistic, raw feel. The editing helps seamlessly navigate through multiple narratives. The songs and music elevate the film. The pace in the middle part slackens a bit, but the engagement is high and we tide over it.

Refused a censor certificate for being “too lady oriented” and cited for “sexual scenes, abusive words and audio pornography,” the film has been blazing a remarkable streak on the festival circuit. Under that burkha lies a lipstick, and a heart. n

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 77

78 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

Om Sri Mathre Namaha

Wednesday April 5th: At 5.00 PM, Shiva Abhisheka Aarati and Manthra Pushpa.

At 6.00 PM, Sri Rama Navami, Sri Sita Rama Kalyanam aarati and manthra pushpa.

vratha. All are welcome to participate with family.

Sri Rudra Abhisheka aarati and manthra pushpa.

Friday April 14th: Tamil New Year (Hevilambi), Baisakhi.

Temple opens 9.00 AM. Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatam.

Continued with Sri Bhuwaneswari / Sri Lalitha Devi abhisheka. Continued with Sri Lalitha sahasra nama chanting. Tamil New Year-Noothana Hevilambi Nama Samvathsaram, Special Panchanga pooja, Panchanga patana / Sravana aarati and manthra pushpa.

Thursday April 27th: At 6.30 PM, Kritika Vratha, Sri Valli Deva Sena sametha, Sri Subramanya Abhisheka aarati and manthra pushpa.

Saturday April 8th: At 4.00 PM, Sri Venkateswara Abhisheka, continued with Sri Vishnu sahasra nama chanting, Sani Pradosham, Sani Traiyodasi, Shiva Sri Continuous archana evening at 4.00 PM, Sri Sankata Hara Chathurthi, Sri Rudra Abhisheka aarati and manthra Lakshmi Ganapathi Homa / Sri pushpa.

Lakshmi Ganapathi Abhisheka aarati th and manthra pushpa.

Sunday April 9 : Pangnuni Utthram.

Monday April 10 : At 5.00 PM Shiva Abhisheka aarati and manthra pushpa.

At 10.00 PM, Sukh Karta and Dukh Hartha aarathi and Jai Jagadeesha Hare aarati for Balaji Ekantha Seva.

Temple closes.

At 6.00 PM, Pournami Vratha, Sri Sathya Narayana Swamy pooja /

Monday April 24th: At 6.00 PM, Soma Pradosham, Shiva

th

Saturday April 29th: At 4.00 PM, Sri Venkateswara Abhisheka, continued with Sri Vishnu sahasra nama chanting, Sri Akshaya Tritiyai special pooja to Sri Bhuwaneswari aarati and manthra pushpa.

Sunday April 30th: At 4.00 PM, Sri Lakshmi Ganapathi Abhisheka, Sri Valli Deva Sena sametha, Sri Subramanya Abhisheka, Sri Shiva Abhisheka, Sri Adi Shankara Jayanthi Shodasopachara, pooja aarati and manthra pushpa.

Monday May 1st: At 7.00 PM, Sri Ramnuja Jayanthi 1000th Year Shodasopachara pooja aarati and manthra pushpa.

Please Make A Note:: Temple Address:: 32 Rancho Drive, San Jose CA 95111 Temple Timings: Week Days Morning 10.00 Am To 12 Noon, Evening At 6.00 pm To 8.00 pm Week Ends And Holidays 10.00 am To 8.00 pm FOR BHAJAN'S RELIGIOUS DISCOURSES, MUSIC AND DANCE PERFORMANCES, PRIVATE POOJAS PLEASE CONTACT TEMPLE FOR FURTHER DETAILS MANGALANI BHAVANTHU,SUBHAM BHUYATH,LOKA SAMASTHA SUKINO BHAVANTHU, LOVE ALL SERVE ALL LOVE IS ALL

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GANESH SHASTHRY

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(408) 245-5443 / Cell: (925) 209-7637 E-mail: srikalahatheeswara@yahoo.com

Home:

April 2017 | West Coast Edition | www.indiacurrents.com | 79

INDIA CURRENTS GRAPHICS (408) 324-0488

Sunday April 2nd: At 8.30 PM, Sukla Sashti vratham, Sri Valli Deva Sena sametha, Sri Subramanya sahasra nama archana.

healthy life

Yoga Antidote to Depression Effective alternate or supplement to anti-depressants

M

y dad’s yoga practice was as dependable as mangoes in Chennai’s summer and Carnatic music concerts in December. I don’t think he missed a single day of sirasasana and sarvangasana—perfectly aligned head and shoulder stands, followed by pranayama (regulated breathing). Dad was my first yoga teacher and we began when I was 7 or 8 years old; he’d carefully support me as I tried to find my balance in the sarvangasana pose. A busy stockbroker with his own firm, and a patron of several nonprofits, his yoga practice afforded him the only time during the day to invest in his health. Dad’s love of yoga began with two problems in his teenage years—he was not as tall as he would have liked to be, and he had acne! Believing that inverted poses which stimulate blood circulation could help, he began taking lessons from the legendary Tirumalai Krishnamacharya, teacher of B.K.S. Iyengar, credited with bringing yoga to the West. Soon after beginning yoga, his acne disappeared and he’d grown taller! Voila! He was sold on yoga and stuck with it for life.

Every time I see a new study on the benefits of yoga, I think about my dad.

I imagine him nodding and saying, “But of course-I knew that already!” A recent study, Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder with Iyengar Yoga and Coherent Breathing by the Boston University Medical Center, published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, shows that asana and pranayama can help reduce symptoms of major depressive disorders (MDD) such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), panic disorder and social anxiety in people who practice yoga at least twice a week.

Thirty participants were introduced to 12 weeks of Iyengar yoga for 90-minute sessions twice or three times per week, in addition to home practice. Classes consisted of approximately

80 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

Sujata Srinivasan

John Schumacher holds the eka pada bakasana pose.

60 minutes of asanas as well as deep relaxation, (shavasana—the corpse pose), and ujjayi breathing (slow the respiratory rate).

The findings show yoga-based interventions are an effective alternative or supplement to anti-depressants. Both the groups (twice and three times a week) experienced a significant reduction in their depressive symptoms.

“This study supports the use of a yoga and coherent breathing intervention in people who are not on antidepressants and in those who have been on a stable dose of antidepressants and have not achieved a resolution of their symptoms,” says Dr. Chris Streeter, associate professor of psychiatry and neurology at Boston University, in an interview with the Boston University School of Medicine.

Streeter said intervention through yoga could help avoid side effects from drugs and drug interactions. “While most pharmacologic treatment for depression targets monoamine systems, such as serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine, this intervention targets the parasympathetic and gamma aminobutyric acid system and provides a new avenue for treatment,” he said.

I asked my friend Dr. Jayapriya Krishnaswamy, a physician in Hartford, Conn., what she thought of the study. She said that while exercise in general has shown to increase endorphins, there is an enormous

focus on relaxation and recovery poses in yoga. “The mind is calmed by pranayama, and shavasana increases overall awareness,” she said. “This can help reduce depression.”

B.K.S. Iyengar explains in his book Light on Life: “It is through the alignment of my body that I discovered the alignment of my mind, self, and intelligence.”

John Schumacher, a certified advanced Iyengar yoga teacher and founder of Unity Woods Yoga Center in Bethesda, Maryland, was inspired to travel to India and learn from B.K.S. Iyengar after reading Light on Yoga.

“Depression and stress are physical and mental ailments, but they are also energetic disorders,” he said. “Energy is very low in depressed people, except in the case of anxious depression where the person’s energy is uncontrolled and undirected.

The depressed patient should practice in such a way as to bring the energy to a stable and strong level. This often involves supported and active back bending poses, standing poses, and inversions. Stress requires a somewhat different approach, often employing supported poses and quieting breaths to calm the irritated mind and chaotic energy of the practitioner.

Alignment and breath are vital aspects of treating depression and stress.”

Another of B.K.S. Iyengar’s students, Brooke Myers, teaches at the Iyengar Institute of Greater New York. Once, she said, she assisted B.K.S. Iyengar as he taught a depressed man at his institute in India.

“From that experience, my own, and that of many other students, I feel yoga is marvelous for treating depression,” she said. n Sujata Srinivasan is an award-winning Connecticut-based journalist whose work has appeared extensively in NPR’s Connecticut regional station WNPR, Forbes India, and Connecticut Business Magazine. Her datadriven reporting on healthcare is carried by nearly a dozen state newspapers and the NPR regional station.

Email: balushastri87@gmail.com

ö XI m;;F;e n;m;/ All kinds of Hindu traditional Pujas and homas Ganapathi, Navagraha, Vasthu, Ayushya Homas, Marriages, Seemantham, Nama-karnam, Upanayanam, Sathyanarayana Puja, Lakshmi Puja, Durga Sapthasathi Yanthra Puja. Hiranya Sradha and last rites. American born children’s horoscopes.

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INDIA CURRENTS Celebrating 30 Years of Excellence

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dear doctor

Finding A Personal Vision

By Alzak Amlani

Q

I notice that my behavior is a reaction or in response to others’ needs or responsibilities that I feel I have to fulfill. So I become very task-oriented and do not feel excited about projects or future possibilities.

I often have creative ideas but do not seem to get anything going. I feel I have no vision for myself and then end up feeling resentful when others ask me to join them in projects or events.

I am just beginning to understand this about myself. But how do I extricate myself from my responsibilities and do something creative or find a personal vision?

A

You seem to be quite clear about your current patterns and struggles. I am curious about how you got these insights into your issues. Some of us are dutiful types of people. We feel an obligation to complete tasks, respond to people and sustain things in life. This can give us a kind of satisfaction, but at certain stages

82 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

in life it can also feel burdensome, or devoid of purpose. Because this happens slowly over time, most people do not even notice when it is occurring. They wake up one day depressed, angry or without any direction. Your awareness is a good sign.

What are some of the creative ideas that you are dreaming up? Value them by taking a moment to feel the inspiration and energy they bring. That’s the first step.

This will start to feed you and vitalize you.

Our modern world can get very automated and focused on tasks and outer needs. Turning inward is indeed going upstream and requires strong intention and scheduling. If you are a person that works well alone, then set up a little time each week to creating. It could even be an hour a week or fifteen minutes every other day. Other people do well by joining groups or taking a class to get support and instruction. They are well worth it and a

great way to make new friends. You cannot extricate yourself from your responsibilities and don’t even need to. If done with balance, they can help ground us.

Most people have ideas about their lives or the world that can be visionary.

However, they discount these ideas or just get caught in the daily grind of life.

How about getting a little notebook and calling it your “Vision Journal”? You can jot down these ideas, draw little images that come regarding what you really care about, and cut and paste items that are meaningful to you. Over time you will notice that certain themes arise and this will begin to guide you. n Alzak Amlani, Ph.D., is a counseling psychologist of Indian descent in the Bay Area. 650-325-8393. Visit www.wholenesstherapy.com

/ indiacurrents @ indiacurrents

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the last word

RIP American Democracy!

I

By Sarita Sarvate

n 1953, the United States and the United Kingdom overthrew the democratically elected Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh, installing in his place the monarchy of Reza Pahlavi. The reason? Mosaddegh was about to nationalize Iran’s oil, depriving British Petroleum of its control.

In 1954, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) toppled the democratically elected Guatemalan President Jacobo Arbenz, a champion of minimum wage, and agrarian reform in favor of the military dictatorship of Carlos Castillo Armas, who continued the United Fruit Company’s exploitation of Guatemalan labor. The country is only now recovering from decades of civil war.

Since 1958, the United States supported a series of Pakistani dictatorships instead of India’s “non-aligned” democracy.

In 1973, the United States overthrew the democratically elected Chilean President Salvador Allende, a supporter of national healthcare and free milk for children, and installed the dictator Augusto Pinochet, who committed horrific atrocities, leading to the “disappearing” of 300, 000 people.

In 2016, the Russian government meddled in America’s election, installing a narcissistic, racist, xenophobic, and totalitarian billionaire who would do the bidding of whoever stroked his ego, enhanced his power, and enriched his coffers.

The chickens are coming home to roost, at last.

There is poetic justice in the loss of the world’s so-called beacon of democracy, even if one wonders whether to laugh or cry about it. What is startling is that America’s newly minted dictator might well be using the CIA’s handbook to take control of the state: first, curb the press and the judiciary; second, brainwash the citizenry by chanting lies and falsehoods; and ultimately, instill the fear of God into everyone.

It’s a conspiracy theory you say? Let’s examine the facts.

As early as the spring of 2016, the CBI (Central Intelligence Agency), the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation), and the National Security Agency (NSA) knew that the Russian government was involved in interfering with the American election. WikiLeaks and its chief Julian Assange were hacking into Hillary Clinton and the Democratic National Committee’s emails to sway public opinion against them. At the same time, Trump was giving speeches extolling Putin and promising cooperation with Russia. And Trump’s advisors were meeting with Russian intelligence officials, even talking to Gucifer 2.0, the famous Russian hacker.

You connect the dots.

There remain a few loose links. The FBI’s actions remain murky. Why did the FBI director James Comey release information about Hillary’s use of a private email server while withholding what he knew about Trump’s collusion with Russia? Was it because Comey and his staff were Republicans who hated Hillary?

Used to playing with fire, did they not realize that Trump was playing them? Did they not fully understand the moral bankruptcy of “conservatives” like Paul Ryan and his Congressional gang who would be prepared to sell the country’s infrastructure, health86 | INDIA CURRENTS | West Coast Edition | April 2017

care, and climate to the highest bidder? Did the FBI become wary of Trump only when he started attacking them?

The other loose link is Edward Snowden, who has been living in an apartment in Moscow since June 2013. Allegedly, he works in the field of computers there. Bleeding heart liberals like Laura Poitras, Glenn Greenwald, Michael Moore, Oliver Stone, and Arundhati Roy have put him on a pedestal. Even a stalwart like Daniel Ellsberg has applauded Snowden’s revelations regarding the American government’s surveillance of its citizens.

But think for a moment. Snowden is a computer hacker who is currently employed in a job no one knows anything about. The person who was instrumental in obtaining asylum for Snowden was none other than Julian Assange. The very same Julian Assange who not only helped Trump win the election but who is now working with the Russians to disarm Trump’s opponents by releasing a trove of CIA surveillance methods the very week that Washington was abuzz with talk of an investigation into Trump’s collusion with Russia.

You still think it’s a conspiracy theory?

Before you use the label “conspiracy theory,” you should also know that the CIA created this expression in 1967 to discredit anyone who questioned the official narrative. And before you think I am going off the deep end, note that the hypothesis that Snowden is working for the Russians is not mine; a recent book

by Jay Epstein asserts that Snowden was and continues to be a Russian spy.

Of course journalists from outlets like The Guardian have harshly criticized the book, at least in part because it makes them look like fools for molding Snowden into a modern-day hero.

What bothers me, however, is their refusal to question Snowden’s motives.

The liberals’ embrace of Snowden is yet another proof of their arrogance and naiveté, I believe. Not to mention their impotence in preventing the takeover of the American government by a totalitarian, profit-mongering junta.

The truth is, the Obama administration was well aware of the Russian plot, so much so that Secretary of State John Kerry urged Obama to open a special investigation prior to the election. The New Yorker asserts as much, spelling the magazine’s name in Russian above a picture of Putin on its March 6, 2017 cover.

Alas, true to his cautious and contemplative nature, Obama resisted Kerry’s recommendation, believing it would appear a partisan move.

So our democracy died on November 8, 2016. What’s worse, we can’t find a doctor who will perform an autopsy, let alone revive the corpse.

RIP American Democracy! n Sarita Sarvate (www.saritasarvate.com) has published commentaries for New America Media, KQED FM, San Jose Mercury News, the Oakland Tribune, and many nationwide publications.

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