India in New York - October 24, 2014

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VOL. XVIII NO. 18

India in New York A GUIDE TO EVENTS AND ENTERTAINMENT FROM INDIA ABROAD FRIDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2014

Artist-in-residence Hari Kondabolu at New York University ADVERTISEMENT

COURTESY: JONATHAN YUAN, A/P/A INSTITUTE AT NEW YORK UNIVERSITY

India in New York

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INDIA IN NEW YORK is published every Friday by India Abroad Publications, Inc. 42 Broadway, 18th floor, New York, NY 10004.

INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

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Preet Bharara

PARESH GANDHI

GEORGE JOSEPH

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anhattan United States Attorney Preet Bharara, who is inquiring about the brutal treatment of inmates at the New York City prison of Rikers Island, has sought an explanation from the City Department of Corrections on alleged religious discrimination against Gurbhej Singh Sandhu.

Sandhu, an elderly Sikh, was made to remove his turban every time he went to meet his son who is incarcerated there.

He explained to the security officers that the turban is an essential part of the Sikh identity and removing it is humiliating and a denigration of the faith. The security officers said he would be unable to see his son if he did not comply. Singh had no choice but to remove his turban and a security officer examined it by placing it on a table and squeezing it before it was given back to him.

Bharara pulls up Rikers Island over treatment of elderly Sikh man They also allegedly insulted him.

The facility’s policies and procedures exempt religious head coverings.

The US Attorney’s office asserted in its letter that the removal of Singh’s religious headwear potentially violated both Title III of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the DOC dress code policy, according to United Sikhs, which took up the matter with the US Department of Justice.

‘We are very hopeful that these efforts will lead to a just resolution of the case,’ a United Sikhs statement said.

United Sikhs’ legal team initially sent a demand letter to the City’s Department of Corrections seeking an explanation and remedial measures for Sandhu. It also filed a complaint with the Department of Justice Civil Rights Commission, which alerted the US Attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York.

The US Attorney’s office then wrote to

the NYC DOC, seeking an explanation.

In the letter to DOC, staff attorney Manmeet Singh wrote, ‘The Sikh faith mandates the wearing of the turban at all times. Wearing the turban is being Sikh; it is not just an item of clothing, but it is the practice of the faith itself and is an inseparable part of the Sikh identity. A Sikh being forced to remove his turban is degrading, cruel, and an embarrassment. Government agencies recognize the importance of the Sikh turban and make accommodations so that Sikh individuals do not have to remove it. Although safety is an obvious priority for the DOC, the turban does not pose a physical threat, and there are other non-intrusive ways to examine the turban for contraband, such as a metal detector.’

The United Sikhs thanked Bharara and David J Kennedy, chief of the civil rights unit, for taking up the case and writing to Rikers.

Crowley cites Ebola to push for Murthy A CORRESPONDENT

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nited States Representative Joe Crowley (Democrat, Queens), vice chair of the House Democratic Caucus and co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans, has urged the US Senate to confirm Dr Vivek Hallegere Murthy as surgeon general.

President Barack Obama nominated Dr Murthy for the position in November 2013, but the nomination has been blocked by Republicans.

‘It’s absurd that the office of the US Surgeon General has remained vacant for this long — especially now, as our country Vivek Murthy and Joe Crowley is addressing very serious public health issues, including combating the Ebola virus,’ Crowley said in a statement. ‘There is Senate to confirm Dr Murthy.’ no excuse for any delay. Unfortunately, in what’s become a If confirmed, Dr Murthy would be the first Indian American consistent pattern from Republicans, they are exploiting a to serve in the position. real emergency as an opportunity to attack anyone and anyRepublicans oppose him mainly for his support for President thing supported by this President. The health of Americans Obama’s health-care law, and the gun lobby is also against Dr rises above politics, above partisanship. A public health criMurthy for his pro-gun-control stand. sis requires a public health leader, and it is time for the

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INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

Rajiv Joshi, Krishan Sabnani in New Jersey Inventors Hall of Fame

SUMAN GUHA MOZUMDER

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ajiv V Joshi from IBM and Krishan K Sabnani from Bell Labs were last week inducted into the prestigious New Jersey Inventors Hall of Fame.

Joshi was inducted for patented work in the development of integrated circuits, memory and predictive analytics, while Sabnani was honored for lifetime achievements and contributions in global communication networks.

The two were among six scientists inducted into the inventors hall of fame.

The awards were announced at a three-hour ceremony at the W Hotel in Hoboken, New Jersey, where T V Lakshman of Bell Labs and Somenath Mitra of New Jersey Institute of Technology were also honored with Innovators Awards.

While Lakshman won for fundamental innovations in the architecture of Internet Protocol routers and networks, Mitra was honored for his work related to real-time environmental monitoring and use of nanotechnology in energy applications and water treatment.

A total of 27 awards in differ-

T V Lakshman and Somenath Mitra also honored as innovators

Rajiv Joshi

Krishan Sabnani

ent categories, including five innovators awards, five inventor of the year awards, and three graduate student awards, were given at the ceremony that was attended by an estimated 140 people, including students and teachers from NJIT as well Stevens Institute of Technology.

The awardees expressed their joy and gratitude.

Somenath Mitra

T V Lakshman

“It is a tremendous honor to be in the company of stalwarts like Nicola Tesla and Thomas Edison who have been inducted into NJIHoF,” Joshi, a research staff member at T J Watson Research Center, IBM, told India in New York.

Sabnani, a researcher and VP at Bell Labs who has made seminal contributions to the

Internet’s infrastructure and protocol design, expressed similar sentiments.

“Being inducted into the NJIHOF is a great honor,” he said. “It is also a humbling experience for me to get this recognition along with two luminaries who I admire very much — Nikola Tesla and John Pierce.”

New Jersey Governor Chris

Christie sent congratulatory notes to all honor recipients, saying that as the workplace of Thomas Edison and Albert Einstein, the state has a rich history of innovations in scientific and technological advancement and continues to be a driving force today.

‘The New Jersey Inventors Hall of Fame recognizes those in our State who have carried on this tradition and made remarkable strides in improving medicine, agriculture, technology and industry in our world,’ the governor said.

New Jersey ranks fourth nationally in total number of patents issued to its residents. Several NJ Hall of Fame honorees have also received Nobel Prizes.

“The US in general maintained its leadership through innovations and innovators irrespective of their origin made it possible,” Joshi said, alluding to the honor recipients who were from different nationalities and backgrounds.

“Since my arrival in the US in 1977, this great country and Bell Labs provided me with a great home for my research and helped launch me on an outstanding path. This would not have been possible anywhere else and I am very grateful for my experience,” Sabnani said.

Elected officials tell MTA to remove anti-Islam ads GEORGE JOSEPH

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hirty three New York City Council members — including I Daneek Miller, the lone Muslim member of the council — and New York City Public Advocate Letitia James have asked the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to remove anti-Islamic advertisements that have cropped up on subway stations and buses.

The three advertisements have been approved and paid for by the American Freedom Defense Initiative. The ads, paid for by blogger Pamela Geller at a cost of $100,000, are intended as an ‘education campaign’ to warn of the ‘problem with jihad’ and Islamic sharia law, according to reports.

Mayor Bill de Blasio had condemned the advertisements — which equate Muslim-American organizations to foreign terrorists — earlier.

In a letter sent to MTA President Tom Prendergast, the elected officials asked to remove the ads urgently. They said the MTA has the authority to do so. Some legal experts disagreed, citing First Amendment rights.

The elected officials, including every member of the Council’s Progressive Caucus and their co-chairs Antonio Reynoso and Donovan Richards; the chair of the Council’s Jewish Caucus, Mark Levine; and the co-chairs of the Council’s Black, Latino and Asian Caucus, Rosie Mendez

and Andy King; noted in the letter that the ‘ads sow hate, create discord, and promote violence against Muslims and those who appear to be Muslim.’

Citing the MTA’s viewpoint-neutral advertisement policies, they noted that the MTA was well within its legal authority to remove the ads in part, and reject additional advertisements. They also pointed out that transit systems and courts in other states have rejected similar advertisements from the American Freedom Defense Initiative.

With hate crimes up throughout the city, particularly against Muslim and Jewish communities due to overseas turmoil, the officials noted that ‘by approving these ads, the MTA is complicit in allowing the defamation and victimization of the Muslim community’ and that ‘it is the MTA’s responsibility to provide a safe environment for all riders and workers.

Other reports said the MTA has little choice. A 1998 federal appeals court ruled that ad space in the city’s subways and buses count as designated public forums, which means the agency cannot restrict what is written.

A few years ago, the MTA tried to block Geller from posting ads that called enemies of Israel ‘savages.’ The MTA argued that the ads violated its policy against demeaning language. Geller filed a lawsuit, and a judge ultimately ruled in her favor, saying that Geller’s ads were

free speech protected by the First Amendment.

‘If you read the court decision on this, our hands are tied,’ MTA spokesman Adam Lisberg told the Daily News.

‘Hiding behind the veil of the first amendment to spew hate is pure cowardice,’ remarked Council Member Mark Levine, chair of the Jewish Caucus.

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INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

More than 10,000 Indian Americans attended the event.

Garba Time Atul Purohit rocks MetLife Stadium, New Jersey.

Paresh Gandhi takes photo notes Indian Ambassador Dnyaneshwar Mulay does the garba.

Girls match steps with each other.

Atul Purohit, center, during the performance.

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INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

Bharara bats for Modi The Manhattan US Attorney argues for diplomatic immunity for the Indian prime minister, Aziz Haniffa reports

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the implementation of its foreign policy and in n papers filed with the US District the conduct of its international relations, to Court in Manhattan October 19, the recognise Prime Minister Modi’s immunity from office of the United States Attorney for this suit while in office,’ Bharara’s office argued. the Southern District of New York It went on to discuss in detail that ‘this deterPreet Bharara strongly argued in favor mination is controlling and is not subject to of immunity for Indian Prime Mimister judicial review,’ and noted that ‘no court has Narendra Modi in a pending lawsuit against ever subjected a sitting head of government to Modi by an organization based in the United suit once the Executive Branch has determined States. that he or she is immune.’

In papers filed with the court, Bharara’s Bharara acknowledged that ‘the Office of the office stated, ‘Of the interest of the United Legal Adviser of the US Department of State States in the pending lawsuit against Prime has informed the Department of Justice that the Minister Narendra Modi, the sitting head of Embassy of the Republic of India has formally government of the Republic of India, and requested the Government of the United States hereby informs the court that Prime Minister to determine that Prime Minister Modi is Modi is immune from this suit.’ immune from this lawsuit.’

The action by Bharara’s office categorically He added, ‘Office of the Legal Adviser has furknocked down the false contention in some ther informed the Department of Justice that quarters in the Indian media that Bharara was the Department of State recognizes and allows behind the summons to Modi. Justice the immunity of Prime Minister as a sitting Department sources had described the conhead of government from the jurisdiction of the tention as “ridiculous,” and said the Bharara’s United States District Court in this suit.’ office’s action clearly proved that “the opposite Citing precedents, Bharara’s office said the is true.” since it had submitted papers in favor courts had to accept the ‘United States’ suggesof immunity for Modi. tion that a foreign head of State is immune from September 26, a senior White House official suit — even for acts committed prior to assumdeclared that the summons issued against Preet Bharara ing office.’

Modi by a New York court on the eve of his Bharara’s office cited precedents where the arrival in the US, for his alleged role in the ADREES LATIF/REUTERS likes of then Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon 2002 communal riots in Gujarat when he was enjoyed such immunity and also determination of then The lawsuit against Modi had been filed under the Alien the state’s chief minister, would have no effect at all British prime minister Margaret Thatcher’s immunity was Tort Claims Act and the Torture Victim Protection Act. because he enjoys full immunity as a visiting head of conclusive in dismissing a suit that alleged British comSeeking compensatory and punitive damages, the 28-page State. plicity in US air strikes against Libya. complaint charged Modi with committing crimes against The official was briefing reporters on background in a ‘In this case, because the Executive Branch has deterhumanity, extra-judicial killings, torture and inflicting teleconference call, and was asked about the summons mined that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as the sitting mental and physical trauma on the victims, mostly from against Modi issued September 25 by the US Federal head of a foreign government, enjoys head of State immuCourt for the Southern District of New York on a civil law- the Muslim community. nity from the jurisdiction of US courts in light of his cur‘The Tort case against Prime Minister Modi is an suit filed by the New York-based American Justice Centre, rent status, Prime Minister Modi is entitled to immunity unequivocal message to human rights abusers everya non-profit human rights organization, along with two from the jurisdiction of this Court over this suit,’ Bharara’s where,’ said John Bradley, director, AJC. ‘Time and survivors of the post-Godhra violence. office said. ‘For the foregoing reasons, the United States place and the trappings of power will not be an impedi“We are aware from press reports of the lawsuit filed respectfully submits to the Court that Prime Minister ment to justice.’ against Prime Minister Modi in the Federal District Court Modi is immune in this action.’

The Alien Tort Claims Act, also known as the Alien Tort of New York,” the official had said. “While we cannot comMary D McLeod, the acting legal adviser at the US State Statute, is a US federal law first adopted in 1789 that gives ment specifically on this lawsuit, I can tell you that as a Department, in her letter to Acting Assistant Attorney the federal courts jurisdiction to hear lawsuits filed by US general legal principle, sitting heads of government enjoy General Joyce R Branda September 30 — the day of residents for acts committed in violation of international immunity from suits in American courts.”

Modi’s summit with Obama — said the Government of law outside the US. Obviously prepared for the question, the official went on India had asked the State Department ‘to take the steps Bharara’s filing with the court provided legal reinforceto say, “Sitting heads of government also enjoy personal necessary to have this action (by the American Justice ment to the assertions by the White House. inviolability while in the United States, which means they Center et al v Modi) against the Prime Minister dismissed The filing said, ‘In support of its interest and determinacannot be personally handed over or delivered papers or on the basis of his immunity from jurisdiction as a sitting tion, the United States sets forth as follows: The United summons to begin the process of a lawsuit. In addition, as foreign head of government.’

States has an interest in this action because Defendant a matter of treaty, heads of delegations to the United She urged the Department of Justice to ‘submit a sugModi is the sitting head of a foreign government, thus Nations General Assembly enjoy immunity while in New gestion of immunity to the district court at the earliest raising the question of Prime Minister Modi’s immunity York to attend UN events.” opportunity.’ from the court’s jurisdiction while in office.’

The court had said Modi had to respond to the sumMcLeod said her letter ‘recognizes the particular imporIt pointed out that ‘the Constitution assigns to the US mons within 21 days after it was served on him. tance attached by the United States to obtaining the President alone the responsibility to represent the nation Modi left for New Delhi September 30 after a five-day prompt dismissal of the proceedings against the Prime in its foreign relations. As an incident of that power, the US visit, which included participating in the UN General Minister in view of the significant foreign policy implicaExecutive Branch has authority to determine the immuniAssembly sessions, an address to the Indian-American tions of such an action.’ ty from suit of sitting heads of government.’ community at Madison Square Garden, a White House The Justice Department’s acquiescence to the State ‘The interest of the United States in this matter arises summit with President Barack Obama, a meeting with the Department’s request through Bharara’s office comes 19 from a determination by the Executive Branch of the Congressional leadership on Capitol Hill in House days after Modi’s departure from the United States, which Government of the United States, in consideration of the Speaker John Boehner’s chambers, and dozens of other was considered a huge success in several quarters. relevant principles of customary international law, and in meetings and events.

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Cover Story

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he night of October 15 New York University saw a packed house in Tishman Aditorium for Hari Kondabolu. A crowd of off-beat youngsters, students, and plenty of desis — none of those categories mutually exclusive — hooted and cheered for almost two hours as Kondabolu did some standup and then had an open conversation with author Jeff Chang about his career, his upbringing, his politics, and more. The evening was presented by NYU’s Asian/Pacific/American Institute, through which Kondabolu is currently doing a year-long Artist in Residence program.

Not surprisingly, the 31-year-old comedian put on a show of his usual sarcasm, sharply delivered anecdotes of personal experience, commentary on race, gender, imperialism, a decent amount of making fun of himself, and more. He did not shy away from tough topics or the risk of offending the audience or others, making lots of white privilege/supremacy/people jabs and at one point mentioning NYU’s reportedly poor treatment of construction workers on the school’s Abu Dhabi campus and how educational institutions are capitalist enterprises. This is why his fans adore him.

‘Hari is the comedy equivalent of a punk rock concert that breaks out a human rights rally,’ comedian W Kamau Bell has said of him. The two worked together when Kondabolu was a writer and correspondent on Bell’s FX series Totally Biased.

Having grown up in an ethnically diverse enclave in Queens with many South Asians, Kondabolu had a lot of jokes about spending his college years in New England — Bowdoin College and Wesleyan University — WASP-y settings rife for stories about being out of place as a person of color. He mentioned spending months searching for a young white woman who he had accidentally hit with his bicycle, a futile process that self-deprecatingly revealed his inability to discern one woman from another; he recounted fearing for his life upon encountering a man with a swastika tattooed on his chest. Other race-related material more overtly rips on whiteness and entitled white behaviour unapologetically, and Kondabolu entertained the audience with some examples of hate mail from a few disgruntled white individuals who have seen him perform.

“I make fun of white people in my act — and for branding purposes,” he said on stage.

He was alluding to his recently-released debut comedy album, Waiting for 2042, the title a direct reference to the year that the Census predicts white Americans will make up 49 percent of the population of the US, finally becoming ‘the minority.’

“I can’t wait!” he grinned.

Hari Kondabolu begins the year-long artist in residence program at New York University.

The

INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

Chaya Babu attends the kickoff event for New York University’s first comedian-in-residence, Hari Kondabolu

IS IN THE HOUSE

COMEDIAN

COURTESY: JONATHAN YUAN, A/P/A INSTITUTE AT NEW YORK UNIVERSITY

Still, he couldn’t help but point out that it’s only a minority if all other groups making up the remaining 51 percent are viewed as exactly the same. He’s not the first one to raise this truth, but it fit neatly into his seamless flow of clever criticisms of broader accepted ways we think of race, a topic he said is ingrained in him to analyze and discuss even in what many might consider inappropriate or unnecessary contexts — a trait that makes his humor raw and refreshing. He ripped on people’s responses to interactions with him as a South Asian man, citing examples from meeting Joe Biden to his performance at Skidmore College, for which the Facebook invitation described the event as an evening of ‘rice, laughs, and curry sauce.’

“And then I had to show up and perform as a human being,” Kondabolu said.

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haron Heijin Lee, assistant professor in NYU’s Department of Social & Cultural Analysis, introduced Kondabolu at the start of the show and recalled her first time seeing a YouTube clip of him performing. “I thought, ‘He’s going to get himself killed,” she said. “And we’re happy to provide him with asylum.”

The crowd laughed.

Lee explained that the A/P/A Institute’s Artists in Residence engage with NYU by bringing their notoriety, creative work, and involvement in the APA community onto NYU’s campus. The night of jokes and conversation was the kickoff event for the Institute’s very first comedian-in-residence.

After over an hour of standup, Hari sat down to talk to Jeff Chang, whose new book Who We Be: The Colorization of America comes out this month.

They talked about issues of visibility and representation of Asian Americans in media and popular culture and how that has changed since both of them were young, ‘model minority’ pressures and standards, and Kondabolu’s own history with family, work, and more. Later, his younger brother Ashok, aka Dapwell of now defunct rap group Das Racist, joined them on stage.

“The goal is to be what you want to be,” Hari said, referencing the expectations to complete certain types of schooling to lead to certain types of careers for many in some parts of the community and then addressing the audience, “But there are so many people who don’t have college educations who are so much smarter than you will ever be. You learn how to read sh*t, great. But, like, think critically?

Some of you.”

Hari ended the night signing albums and posing for photos with fans — I took two free Hari Kondabolu buttons and attached them to the strap of my handbag, a small bespectacled brown curly-haired avatar now staring at the world as I go about my day — many of whom were milling about the auditorium lobby expressing their awe of his honesty and irreverence.

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Cover Story INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

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ari Kondabolu’s audience doesn’t come to listen to raunchy jokes many standups specialize in. His reputation for ‘serious’ jokes precedes him.

His comedy reflects the racism, inequities and absurdity he has witnessed or experienced, often from the perspective of the son of immigrants. His work for marginalized people and labor unions — he was an immigrant rights organizer in Seattle for a couple of years — heightened his awareness of class and race issues.

“The plan had been to get this master’s degree (in human rights from the London School of Economics) to get a human rights framework for the organizing I was doing,” he earlier told India Abroad, the sister publication of India in New York.

Comedy, he says, was “a hobby that started when I was a (17year-old) high school student at Townsend Harris High School in Flushing, Queens, and continued through my time at Bowdoin College and Wesleyan University.”

“When I moved to Seattle to become an immigrant rights organizer in 2005, I continued to perform at night. Seattle had a very strong local scene and it was a place where I developed a clearer comedic voice and a local following. I eventually was discovered by the HBO Comedy Festival (now defunct), and this led to an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live.”

“I’ve always loved the art form of stand-up comedy, but never thought it could lead to a fulltime career. I feel fortunate for those early opportunities, which made me believe I was good enough to pursue this professionally.”

Hari Kondabolu, left, was joined by his younger brother Ashok, aka Dapwell of the now defunct rap group Das Racist, on stage at the event at NYU. Below, a snapshot of the audience.

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Arthur J Pais finds out what makes Hari Kondabolu such a different comedian

The hobby that became a career

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ari says he often meets people who praise him or worry about his career choice, but he does not consider himself adventurous or courageous.

“The real adventurous people are my parents,” he says. “They are the risk takers, who uprooted themselves and started a very different life in America.”

He talks about the “the incredible debt” he and his brother Ashok owe their parents: “Our father worked seven days a week for many years so that Ashok and I could go to good schools. I don’t think my parents ever took a vacation except to go to India, which was more of a family obli-

appreciating the fact that those who mispronounced his name, without meaning to, showed they were trying, and “they did not want to take me for granted.”

PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY: JONATHAN YUAN, A/P/A INSTITUTE AT NEW YORK UNIVERSITY

gation.”

That is one of the reasons Hari stopped doing jokes at his parents’ expense.

He admits he had his share of jokes about their accents early on, “It was alright, I had felt then, to make jokes when the audience was Indian or South Asian.”

But then he realized how hard it must have been for his parents (and by extension many immigrants like them) to forge ahead

in America, earn the respect of peers, and raise two children despite their accents.

“When you think of the accent, you also think of hard-working people who are stressed out because they have an accent different from that of their colleagues,” he says. “It is a big part of immigrants’ anxiety and I have realized how much of an anxiety it must have caused my parents.”

“These are courageous people,”

he adds. “I learned from them the importance of persistence and resilience.”

From his parents — both head medical labs at two major New York hospitals — he also learned to honor his Indian heritage and his American life.

He might have ignored for a few months people mispronouncing his name or making fun of him calling him ‘Hairy.’ But soon he was correcting them while

ike many, Hari too started out more worried whether people were laughing at his jokes, or not, than if he was affecting the audience in a meaningful way. But that changed fairly early in his career and he decided not to pander to the status quo. Prompted in part by the social and political stabs at people of color following 9/11, he felt his comedy was not timely. That “freaked” him and he set to reinvent himself.

Hari credits his parents with teaching Ashok and him acceptance and tolerance.

He was a kid when he realized that a colleague his mother called a friend was gay: “You know how in school kids can be homophobic. But I learned from my mother to accept people who had a different sexual orientation. By extension, Ashok and I learned early in our lives to embrace people of different backgrounds.”

Reinventing his comedy meant Hari had to convince himself that his comedy was not for everybody and that he might even end up making enemies. It was also not easy to convince gig managers and bookers that there was room for serious comedy, for something different.

Hari says he was inspired to stay on course by people like Margaret Cho, who was on Comedy Central in the early 1990s. She talked about her heritage, issues like racism, jingoism, and other social ills. He felt encouraged to do similar work.

It has stood him in good stead from Senator Rand Paul dragging Make Chai Not War — the State Department comedy diplomacy endeavor that he was part of with fellow Indian-American comedians Rajiv Satyal, and Azhar Usman — into a Senate hearing to garnering him a part on television’s Totally Biased with W Kamau Bell.

Hari has been called an activist-comedian. He does not like the label.

At the end of the day, he says, he is a comedian who wants people to laugh. And if he wanted to be an activist, he would have chosen it as his primary profession.

A version of this story was first published in India Abroad.

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American Desi INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

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t’s a last thing you would imagine… a Patel (the community is known to be vegetarian and avoids alcohol) running a liquor store or a cigar store.

Bhrijal Patel takes it a step further. “My life’s motto is to try something different and this was something that an Indian origin female would not generally opt for,” she smiles.

The Patels – Bhrijal, her brother and their parents – came to the United States in the year 2000.

After working in separate jobs for a few years – Bhrijal worked for the State of New Jersey as computer engineer from 2001 to 2004 – the Patels pooled Bhrijal Patel in their resources to do someher store. thing they believed they would excel in. They decided to start their own business and bought a liquor store in 2005 in New Jersey.

“It was life-changing,” recalls Bhrijal. “Working for someone else can be satisfying, but it cannot take you to the heights that you aspire to accomplish if you are ambitious. The biggest fear is giving up a guaranteed paycheck and the perks that come with a job to start a business that could possibly fail.”

“You can take your pick: Isolation versus indelets because of the language barrier, pendence, emotional stress versus excitewhich has proved to be the biggest obstament and, above all, the personal satisfaccle. But this community has a huge tion of seeing the fruits of your spending potential,” Bhrijal says. labor. In business, you are self-dependent Bhrijal saw a huge capacity for growth. but you also have the opportunity to grow She also felt an inherent affinity for the and multiply your assets.” community. “They are similar to us in many The success of their first venture ways. They help their families back home. inspired Bhrijal to test waters on her own.

They open their hearts and home for family Her father’s friend wanted to sell his cigar and friends who come to America from store. “I didn’t know anything about their native countries. They have strong culcigars, but I bought the store,” says tural roots. They are very hard-working and Bhrijal, recalling that momentous day in have excellent work ethics.”

December 2006.

With the specific goal of building their “Learning the nuances of the business customer base in the Hispanic community, and the tobacco industry simultaneously the Patels introduced groceries, money was a huge challenge. I was also dealing services, cell phone services including with a totally new client base.” So she Cricket and MetroPCS and high-end perintroduced new products and capitalized fumes from Brazil. on the increasing interest in the hookah A year later, they converted a small corand in e-cigarettes. ner of their store, that saw the least footThe Win Place and Smoke store falls, into a meat corner, where a butcher became the top-selling lottery store in Mercer County. served the needs of her customers.

It helped that Bhrijal’s business was Six months later, they introduced baked located in an area popular with one of the goods that catered to their customers’ fastest-growing communities in America tastebuds.

— the Hispanic community.

As the business grew, so did Bhrijal’s “The Central and South American comresponsibilities. “My typical day includes munities require a multitude of services. continually working with vendors to Their needs are not served by regular out- ensure smooth a delivery of products, since

accomplishments.”

Bhrijal is as proud of her achievements as she is to belong to the IndianAmerican community, saying, “We are a force to reckon with. We are the highestincome, best-educated and fastest-growing racial group in the United States. We are an enterprising, integral and valuable part of American growth. We contribute the most towards the growth of small businesses.”

She did miss the community in South Jersey so she formed a group with couple of friends on the social website, Meetup. The group, called the NJ/NY Indian Masti Meetup, became a meeting place for people trying to make new friends or people who have just come from India. It particularly catered towards those who love the outdoors but don’t find their family and friends equally interested.

“We organize trips and events that include skydiving, hiking, white water rafting, skiing, cruises, karaoke nights, overnight and overseas trips ranging from Peru to Costa Rica to Turkey,” she says.

The group now includes over 1,500 members. They have tied up with non-government organizations in India to support Lend-AHand and other groups that support women and children’s education.

“We form groups of volunteers and support local organizations in America. We also mobilize groups and support big Indian events held by other groups like Indian prime ministers visit,” she says.

Bhrijal’s weekends are spent with family and friends. “Summers are devoted to outdoor activities, while winters are devoted to parties. I have a diverse group of friends from different walks of life. I love country music and go round and line dancing.”

Her secret dream, however, is to open a shelter for animals. She would also like to tie up with Indian organizations like Animal Aid Unlimited. “They are doing wonderful work for stray dogs, cows and even donkeys, which (till they started) is unheard of in India,” she says.

Bhrijal also dreams of expanding her business.

“America has welcomed me with open arms. It has provided opportunity, political and religious freedom and a good base for raising children. Women have more rights.

Minority women in business have more opportunities. I did not really face any hardship or hindrance,” she says with pride.

‘Minority women have more opportunities here’ Bhrijal Patel, cigar store owner, explains why she is thrilled to be American.

Text and photographs: Paresh Gandhi 90 percent of products are imported from Brazil, Portugal, Peru and Costa Rica. I also look after the accounting and handle customer grievances.”

Today, her parents are retired and spend their time between America and India.

Her brother, who supports her in all her ventures besides handling his own business, is happily married and has a twoyear-old son.

Bhrijal too has found romance. “I met my husband through a Meetup Bonfire event,” she smiles. “We dated briefly for two months and got married. He is an excellent singer and performs for friends and family. He has his own business as a hotel broker.”

Her business has expanded to include another convenience store that she runs with the help of some partners. She also has a partnership stake in six Papa John’s pizza outlets in north New Jersey and New York.

She credits her success to her family. “I have been strongly and unconditionally supported by my parents and my brother.

I have found solid support in my husband who understands the difficulties and demands of the business and long hours I need to put in. He guides me in my day-today struggles and rejoices in my small

Bollywood

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INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

Shahid Kapoor, who has received unanimous praise for his work in Haider, opens up about his career.

Patcy N tunes in

‘I HAVE MADE MANY WRONG CHOICES IN MY CAREER’ S

hahid Kapoor has earned a lot of praise for his work in one of his toughest roles till date — Haider.

The actor basks in the glory, as he takes questions from the media.

Were you expecting this kind of response for Haider?

Not so much. Haider is a so unique that I don’t think any of us knew how people would respond to it.

We believed in this film and we wanted to make it, but we had no idea what was going to happen. We were quite scared.

I don’t think we would have released Haider on the date we released it, if we did not believe in the project. Haider released with a big film like Bang Bang.

Two days before its release, the response to the trial shows was amazing. We got some amazing reviews.

Once it released in theaters, the response was overwhelming. Haider is not an out-and-out entertainer. It’s very strong and emotional. After watching the film, you will walk out with tears and not with a smile. It’s not the kind of film you see to relax.

Good content will always find an audience. We should not shy away from films that are risky.

Your mother Neelima was all praise for the film. What was the best compliment you got?

Irrfan Khan saw the film and he tweeted about it. He

spoke really well about the film and my performance.

Kay Kay Menon sir called me up and said, ‘I was not sure you would be able to pull off this role, but you did a brilliant job.’

I always ask my father (his) opinion of my films. He said, ‘You got it all right.’ For me, that was the biggest compliment. My father (Pankaj Kapoor) is an amazing actor.

Vishal sir (the film’s director Vishal Bhardwaj) said in an interview that ‘If Shahid had said no to Haider, I wouldn’t have made it.’

I felt very cool about that. It was an unbelievable thing to hear from my director.

My mom was so affected by the film that she did not talk to me for two days. Then one day, when I was promoting the film in Bangalore, I got a long message from her. It was a half-an-hour-long message! She was so happy and proud.

I have honestly never gotten so much appreciation in my career ever.

Your film Kaminey, also directed by Bhardwaj, did well too. Do you work particularly well with him?

I hope there are more directors I work well with otherwise he will be forced only to work with me!

He always takes risks. He is one of the few filmmakers who will cast against popular belief. He tells you, ‘Let’s do something people don’t expect from you.’ There are

very few filmmakers who will take that risk. And whenever Vishal sir and I have taken those chances, it has worked for us.

I hope Haider makes filmmakers say ‘let’s give Shahid what he has never done before.’

What emotions did you experience when playing this character?

I can write a book on that (laughs).

I was really concerned. It was a difficult role. I was constantly worried whether I will be able to pull it off or not.

The cast was Tabu ma’am, Kay Kay sir and Irrfan sir.

This is their space. I had never done a film like this.

Kaminey was a lot more mainstream in terms of character and subject. Haider was more about the character; there are no heroic elements to him.

It was like stripping oneself and being honest to oneself as an actor. That’s why I was constantly worried about whether I had it in me to be able to do it.

Was it traumatic doing those emotional scenes, especially the climax scene?

We shot the climax — especially the last portion where Tabu pulls the trigger — in 15 minutes. We shot everything from there till the end of the film in just 15 minutes because we had no light. We were shooting in Kashmir when it was snowing. If you come to

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f PAGE 9

the same place the next day, it looks totally different because of the fresh snow.

We had created a huge set for the last scene. People were dead and dying, there was blood and the blast... and we just had 15 minutes to finish it. Looking back, I wonder think how we did it in 15 minutes.

Haider was made on a tight budget. We shot it in 54 days, though it’s a film that deserved 80 to 90 days to shoot.

Every day was a different location so we had to finish one complete scene in whatever location we were at.

The focus was on just finishing work. We did not have time to think about how we were performing. We just relied on Vishal sir’s judgment. If he said it was okay, we moved to the next location. Half the time there was no monitor because we were shooting in the snow.

The vans would be stuck because there was so much snow on the road. Sometimes the generator couldn’t reach the location.

The cameraman did an amazing job — he shot half the film without external lights because it was impossible to get lights to many of the locations.

Two scenes that were brilliant were the ones where you wear the noose and act crazy, and the Bismil song.

We shot the Bismil song in trying conditions. The temperature was -15 and -17ºC (-59 and -63ºF). While dancing, after every two steps, everybody had to sit down. The air is so thin and we were not used to dancing in that kind of weather.

We were all wearing five layers of clothing and it was difficult to move with that weight.

The song was the most important part of the film. I have done many songs in my career but I have not done a song where emotion is driving the song. It reminded me of the song from Karz that everybody remembers.

By the time we shot Bismil, we were all into the film completely. I was fully in Haider mode. The anger was all coming from inside. I felt like Kay Kay actually killed my father and I had to take revenge. I was actually feeling those emotions!

I was the most nervous doing the crazy scene. It was a monologue of six pages!

I was staying at the Taj Vivanta. There was a bath tub in the middle of the huge bathroom. Every night after the shoot, I would sit in the empty bath tub and read that monologue for one hour.

I did that for a week. I couldn’t change a single word of the monologue, because it was specific.

We shot the scene on the last day of shooting in Kashmir because I had to go bald for the scene.

A week before, Vishal sir told me, ‘I have never given any actor a monologue ever, not even your dad (Pankaj Kapur), or Irrfan, or Naseer (Naseeruddin Shah), or Omji (Om Puri). Nobody has got a six-page monologue from me, so you better do a good job’.

The night before the shoot, Vishal sir, who stayed in the room opposite mine, told me, ‘You know na that you are Pankaj Kapur’s son; you know what we are doing tomorrow, na? Good night.’

I was under a lot of pressure.

You are good when you are working with directors like Bhardwaj or Imtiaz Ali (Jab We Met). Do you think they tap your potential better?

No actor can be better than the director or the script.

That is something actors take time to understand.

Being a star is a different journey and I am not talking about that.

But as an actor, you can’t rise above the script, above the filmmaker’s vision of the character. So the aim is to work with the best and to work with people who will bring out the best in you.

The filmmaker is the captain of the ship, but the entire team is important.

‘I HAVE MADE MANY WRONG CHOICES IN MY CAREER’ I don’t think Haider would have been possible without the camera work of Pankaj Kumar, or the background score Vishal sir created, or the kind of cast that we had.

Much has been written about your chemistry with Tabu…

You are not asking me about my chemistry with Shraddha (Kapoor, costar)?

How did you see Tabu as your mother in the film?

First of all, she refused to play my mother in the film.

Vishal sir took a long time to convince her. I didn’t looked at her in awe; it was just like I am Haider and she was my Mauje (mother).

With people like Tabu ma’am, it is a learning experience.

You stand in the frame with them, you observe them and how they do their scenes... When you are shooting, it is just about action and reaction. When there is a brilliant actor in front of you, it brings out the best in you.

Bang Bang was panned by the critics, but it earned a lot, while Haider was praised by the critics but it did not earn as much…

Really, you think like that?

There are two very distinct films being made right now.

One category is films like Haider made for Rs 25, 35 crore (Rs 250 to 350 million or $4.08 to $5.71 million), so the release size of such films is much smaller as the audience for such films is limited.

The other kind of film needs to make huge money because it needs to recover its cost.

A film like Queen was made for Rs 17 to 18 crore (Rs 170 to 180 million or $2.77 to 2.39 million) and it did business of more than Rs 60 crore (Rs 600 million or 9.79 million). It is considered a blockbuster because it

COURTESY: TWITTER.COM//ALIAA08

Shahid Kapoor with Alia Bhatt in the upcoming Shaandaar.

made three times the profit from its investment. Barfi, Kahaani and Haider fall in this category.

The business brought in by Haider should be considered against the size of its release. It was released in 1,000 to 1,200 screens. In comparison, my film R...Rajumkar was released in about 3,000 screens.

Films made on big budgets of Rs 100 (Rs 1 billion or $16.32 million) to 140 crore (Rs 1.4 billion or $22.85 million) need to be released in 3,000 to 4,000 screens so that they recover their cost.

I am happy that Bang Bang has done well, but I think Haider has done way more at the box office than we expected. Eventually, Haider will make as much money as R... Rajkumar.

You have been in the film industry for over 10 years now.

Any regrets regarding your career?

Lots. I have made many wrong choices.

I never talk about them. But there are many films which I saw later and thought, what was I doing in this film?

Tell us about your next film, Shaandaar.

It is exciting to work with Vikas Bahl. I loved his last film, Queen.

This is the first time I am working with my father. My father plays Alia Bhatt’s father in the film. My sister Sanah plays Alia’s sister. The film will release next year.

Karan (Johar) and I have been planning to work together for the last eight years and he is producing this film.

My friend Madhu Mantena of Phantom Film is also producer of the film.

Bollywood

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INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

A snapshot from the sangeet

Dia Mirza tweeted a picture with her husband-to-be Sahil Sangha at their mehendi ceremony.

A

COURTESY: TWITTER.COM/DEESPEAK

return to films after five years (post Wake Up Sid and Love Aaj Kal in 2009), is not the only comeback on Rahul Khanna’s mind these days.

The actor, who will be seen in Fireflies, is reportedly ‘in the US and busy sorting out his future projects,’ reports Hindustan Times.

He told the newspaper, ‘Unfortunately, I am in Los Angeles at present. I’m in negotiations for the second season of a television show, The Americans.’ He had played an ISI agent in the show’s first season.

A scene from The Americans

The couple, who dated for five years, got married in Delhi October 18.

COURTESY: PRADEEP BANDEKAR

The rookie on the sets

The stars of Happy New Year.

Front row from left, Vivaan Shah, Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone.

Back row from left, Sonu Sood, Boman Irani and Abhishek Bachchan.

V

Rahul’s return

COURTESY: ADIL HASAN

ivaan Shah, who made quite an impression in 7 Khoon Maaf, will be seen in Farah Khan’s multistarrer Happy New Year. And the 24-year-old is understandably nervous before the October 24 release of the film, which also stars Shah Rukh Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Deepika Padukone and Boman Irani in significant roles.

“Yeah, I’m nervous, but I’m also looking forward to Happy New Year’s release,” he tells India in New York. “It’s been an absolute honour to be a part of it. I got to learn so much from Shah Rukh Khan, Farah Khan (the director), and everybody else on the sets.”

The film, he says, has changed his life: “It has

already changed my life spiritually, emotionally, and also work-wise. It’s taught me the craft that is acting.”

Vivaan credits SRK with being his teacher on the sets. “I had the theoretical knowledge of things,’ he says, ‘but I learnt the application by watching Shah Rukh Khan. He’s the greatest craftsmen you’ll ever see at work. He is absolutely devoted to every aspect of filmmaking.”

As the son of veteran actors Naseeruddin Shah and Ratna Pathak Shah, Vivaan agrees that he has “a lot to live up to,” but says it doesn’t bog him down: “In fact, it’s something that charges me up to do better.”

— Prasanna D Zore

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Bollywood INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

Anil Kapoor, the proud father, speaks to Subhash K Jha after the success of Khoobsurat

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nil Kapoor is basking in the reaction to Khoobsurat, which was produced by his daughter Rhea and starred his other daughter Sonam.

He talks to India in New York about this phase of his life as an actor, producer and father.

When do you start shooting for the next season of your TV serial 24?

In December, after I finish the last schedule of my film Welcome Back in October. I’ll take a month’s break and then start shooting for 24.

Are you happy with the way things are progressing for your children?

I couldn’t ask for more.

My son (Harshvardhan) has started shooting for his film. My daughter Sonam has been accepted in a big way. My other daughter Rhea has established herself as a good producer.

Khoobsurat (produced by Rhea, starring Sonam) has made me a very proud father. When I saw the first cut, I knew it was going to work.

You’re now planning another film with Disney?

Yes. It’s actually a film that we were supposed to do with Disney before Khoobsurat — a remake of Mark Waters’ Freaky Friday. It’s a fantastic mother-daughter subject, which we would have done earlier, but we could not get the right casting.

You mean Madhuri Dixit-Nene had turned down the mother’s role?

Many actresses didn’t want to do the role. I couldn’t believe it when so many actresses I approached did not see the thought and vision behind the subject.

The time was not right for a subject like that. Now is the time for Freaky Friday. It’s a role-reversal motherdaughter film.

Except for your wife, your entire fam- Anil Kapoor with daughters Sonam, left, and Rhea, right. ily is in the movie business.

What was the reaction to the film from within the Before me and my brother Boney, our father industry? (producer Surinder Kapoor) spent his entire life in the Everyone, including Rekha and Farhan Akhtar, loved movie business. Now my children and Boney’s son are part the film. of the film industry.

Vidya Balan was ecstatic about it. She told me she was It’s a great feeling. Sonam is an established actress, who has proved that she can carry a film on her shoulders. Rhea looking for faults, but couldn’t find any. She spoke to me for 20 minutes about the film. I asked her jokingly if she made Khoobsurat on a basic budget. The scale on which was praising the film because her husband was its proRhea and director Shashanka Ghosh have made the film ducer. But she is not the kind (of person)to praise somemakes it look much larger than the budget suggests. I am thing unnecessarily. very proud of Khoobsurat. I have not received so much Have you allowed your acting career to take a backseat for praise in my entire career.

the sake of your children’s careers?

This has been the case for the past 10 years. For a decade now they’ve been my first priority. I see them as the future of the film industry.

For 30 years, I did nothing but work.

The entire focus of my attention was I, me and myself. I have shifted my attention to my children.

During the past one year, the only time we saw you on screen was in the television series 24.

I have always been picky about my assignments. Right now, I’m doing only two films, Anees Bazmi’s Welcome Back and Zoya Akhtar’s Dil Dhadkane Do. Anees, because I’ve done many films with him, and Zoya for just the opposite reason — I’ve never worked with her.

I have lots of things to say about Zoya which I’ll do so when the release approaches.

Why the secrecy?

It’s always preferable to keep a film’s publicity as low-key as possible.

We didn’t release a single picture of Fawad Khan while we shot for Khoobsurat.

When I was producing Gandhi My Father, I kept the publicity as subdued as possible. It always helps when you open up your project’s USPs close to the time of the release.

Sanjay Leela Bhansali did that with Saawariya. When I went to meet Christopher Nolan for Inception, he didn’t reveal anything about the plot.

Any international film on the anvil?

I’ve had two or three tempting offers, but I had to pass them up because of Zoya’s film. Now I’ve let it be known to my agent that I will be available for one international project. But it has to be better and bigger than the three international films I’ve done so far.

Ram Lakhan is being remade. Do you approve?

Why should I approve or disapprove? It’s behind me. I read somewhere that I was miffed about the remake. I have no opinion on it. What is being done with it is of no concern to me. Whether it is Woh 7 Din, Eeeshwar, Mr India or any of my acclaimed films, I never look back.

Who do you think should play your role in Ram Lakhan? Your nephew Arjun Kapoor?

Why only Arjun? It can be any of the young energetic actors. Ram Lakhan was not a difficult film to do. Anyone can do it.

Which among your films was the toughest to do?

Nayak. The director Shankar made me run around on bus tops and in the slush almost without clothes. And the thought of a common man becoming the chief minister for a day is vivid to this day.

You are so passionate about your work. Don’t you ever feel like slowing down?

No, never. I like to be searching for new challenges all the time. That’s what makes life worth living.

‘For a decade now my kids have been my first priority’

Bollywood INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

Bollywood turned up en masse in support of the 16th Mumbai Film Festival, which concluded October 21. From left, actors Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, Ranbir Kapoor, Akshay Kumar and filmmaker Kiran Rao.

ALL THAT GLITTERS

A PEEK INTO THE WEEK’S GLITZIEST TINSEL TOWN EVENTS

From left, actress Kalki Koechlin, filmmaker Anurag Kashyap, filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj, actresses Priety Zinta and Huma Qureshi

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India in New York October 24, 2014

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MassMutual Honors Diwali and Business Tradition of Chopda Pujan

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No-Cost Seminars Help Business Owners Secure Their Futures and Protect the Next Generation.

Almost three million Asian Indians in the United States are preparing to celebrate Diwali, the festival of lights, on Oct. 23. For the more than 300,000 Asian-Indian owned firms* in the U.S., the holiday takes on an added dimension, as the celebration marks the beginning of a new business year. To help business owners prepare for the New Year ahead, Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual) is offering a series of free, no-obligation business seminars in five cities across the country this Diwali.

In a special Diwali ritual for businesses known as Chopda Pujan, new account books are opened and blessed. Business owners use this time to reflect on the past year while looking ahead to new opportunities for prosperity and wealth. It is said the goddess of wealth, known as Lakshmi, visits the homes of devotees on this day, and lamps light the way to welcome her.

A MassMutual study** found that although 77 percent of Asian Indian business owners believe financial planning for their business is very important, only 43 percent are concerned about who will run their businesses if they or another owner leaves, becomes disabled or dies; only 46 percent have a formal retirement plan.

“Entrepreneurial businesses are vital to our growing economic recovery, so it is concerning that so many business owners seem to be sacrificing their own and their family’s financial

L to R Nimesh Trivedi, Lalit Jallan, Adam Segal and Vikesh Amin

future,” says Nimesh Trivedi, Asian-Indian Market lead at MassMutual. “With help, business owners can look past the seemingly overwhelming day-to-day demands of running their businesses and establish and meet their longterm financial goals.”

To help Asian Indian business owners open their new books this Diwali and plan for a prosperous new year, MassMutual is offering a series of free video-based seminars featuring stories shared by real business owners. The vignettes explore critical business planning topics, such as passing ownership on from one generation to the next, preparing for the unexpected, the death of an owner, retaining key employees, and proper estate and retirement planning.

Seminars addressing these topics critical to

Asian Indian business owners will be presented in the following cities across the country this Diwali: • Houston, Oct. 14 • Atlanta: Oct. 18 • San Jose, Calif.: Oct. 24 • Edison, N.J.: Oct. 29 • Chicago: Nov. 6 For more information on the multi-city business owner seminar tour, contact Nimesh Trivedi, 413.744.1244. To garner more information on how to plan the financial futures of your business and family, do visit massmutual.com/asianindian.

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15

India in New York October 24, 2014

Om Sham Sanaischaraya Namaha:

Sri Saneeswara Temple of New York 95-30 225th Street Queens Village NY 11429 Ph: 718 740 9400 Email: temple.navagraha@gmail.com Every SATURDAY: 8.00 am Sri Saneeswara Japam, Homam, Poornahuti & Arti 10.00 am Sri Saneeswara Abhisheka Aaradhana & Aarthi 11.00 am onwards: Sri Saneeswara Parikara Pooja

Shri Saneeswara Temple NY, the only temple in the world outside India dedicated to Lord Saneeswara is performing special Pooja & Homas for Shani peyarchi (Lord Saturn’s transition of the Planetary Position)

2014 Shani Peyarchi (Lord Saturn’s Transition) Sunday Nov 2nd 2014 According to Thirukanidha panchangam, on this date the Saturn transit from Thula to Vrishchika rasi.

Tuesday, Dec 16th 2014 According to Vakya Panchangam, on this date the Saturn transit from Thula to Vrishchika rasi Shani Graha or Saturn planet plays a key role in reflecting the personality of a person. It signifies the mental and emotional abilities to live a happy life. The transition of Saturn planet from one rashi to other may lead to several complications that cannot be resolved quickly. The shani graha shanthi homam at the time of transition provides methods for those who want to recover from the so called malefic effects of Saturn by addressing exact needs.

Shani Peyarchi Puja/Homam (Havan) & Abhishekam to Shaneeswara will be held at Sri Shaneeswara Temple NY, on November 2, 2014, and December 16, 2014 The Saneeswara Parihara Shanti would be held from 09 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Both Days, We requested you to participate in the Puja/homam & Abhishekam , to receive the blessings Saneeswara Graha. Participating in this event will result in improving your financial status, concentration, memory power and obtain peace in family The Sani Peyarchi yagnam would be particularly required for those in the rashis (Moon Signs) Mesham (Aries), Simham (Leo), Thulam(Libra), Vrichikam (Scorpio), and Dhanu (Sagittarius), and for those undergoing Sani dasha and Sani bukthi.

You can participate in the yagam or you can sponsor the event and give your family details we will do the Puja, Havan & Abhishekam behalf of you and send you the Prasadam,

Program Details: 09:00am - Ganapathi Puja,Punyahavachanam,Sankalpam,Kalasha Sthapanam & Upachara Puja 10:00am - Navagraha & Shri Saneeshwara Gayatri & Moola Mantra Japam & Homam 12:00 noon - Poornahuthi, Uthara Puja,Kalasha Yatra & Saneeshwara Mula Murthi Abhishekam 01:00pm - Vishesha Puja, Archana & Arati followed by Prasadam

Shri Saneeswara Parihara Shanthi Homam: $201.00 • Shri Saneeswara Abhishekam: $101.00 Shri Shani Preethi Pooja: $75.00 • Shri Shani Preeti Archana: $25.00

All Pooja and Havans are conducted by Shri Bhramashri Kasiram Ramakrishna Deekshithar Ji / Shri Balasubramaniam Iyer Ji For all sponsorship, consultation & Donations - Pl contact Temple office: 718 740 9400 Please make all checks & Donations payable to Shri Navagraha Devasthanam of North America, Inc. All Donations are Tax Deductible.

Aseem in Mumbai

16

INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

MAMI Magic in Mumbai

I

arrived last week in Mumbai in time for the launch of the Mumbai Film Festival, better known by the acronym MAMI, which stands for the Mumbai Academy of Moving Images.

The eight-day celebration of films from around the world started October 14 at the Chandan cinema in Juhu, perhaps the only large single-screen theater in Mumbai’s suburbs.

There was a lot of glamor on the red carpet — big Bollywood names like Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika Padukone, Aishwarya Rai, and filmmakers Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Anurag Kashyap.

The festival was inaugurated by filmmaker Shyam Benegal; Kalki Koechlin was the emcee of the evening. Speaker after speaker brought up the issue that the festival almost never happened this year.

When the news leaked that the festival organizers were planning to shut down the event due to lack of funds, many concerned Mumbaikars — film lovers, journalists and Bollywood personalities — turned up to contribute to the festival’s coffers.

Journalist Anupama Chopra pulled out her

Rolodex, contacted many Bollywood stars, and asked them to contribute money. And so the festival’s posters thanks names like Aamir Khan, Karan Johar and Raj Kumar Hirani for saving a Mumbai institution.

Starting next day the screenings were held at two multiplexes in Andheri, northwest Mumbai – the Cineplex at the Infinity Mall and the PVR at Citi Mall. Long lines — the true nature of all film festivals — were seen for the popular films, many celebrated at North American and European film festivals.

The festival had streamlined the booking system by making everyone go online and reserve seats and yet there were many more people who wanted to see films like Boyhood, Mommy and the French hit Party Girl. So when people who had been standing in line for over an hour could not get into the theaters, there was shoving and raising of voices.

In most cases people sat in the aisles of theaters which is completely against fire department codes. In New York that would never happen. But in Mumbai no one seemed concerned about it.

Shyam Benegal and his wife at MAMI.

The film festival paid tribute to French actress Catherine Deneuve, left, who joined Indian actress Deepika Padukone, center, in a conversation, moderated

by Anupama Chopra.

I

n its 16th year, the MFF is generating attention abroad. This year’s festival paid tribute to legendary French actress Catherine Deneuve who was present at the opening night ceremony.

Two days later she was in a conversation with Deepika Padukone, moderated by Anupama Chopra.

Devenue also showed up for the opening event of Rendezvous with

French Cinema.

And then there were the parties — one hosted by Uni France and the French consulate at Mumbai’s The Club. And later another one organized by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association at the Kino Cottage in Versova.

The next day, Rentrak — the USbased company that tracks box office numbers — held a party at

Rustomjee Elements, a party space next to a big apartment complex that is coming up in Andheri West.

There were fewer celebrity sightings at these parties. Most of the people attending were journalists, young scriptwriters, first-time filmmakers and a handful of good looking people hoping to get noticed by a casting agent or a film producer.

I

n between films one had to scramble to eat quick lunches. One afternoon lunch was Dahi Puri and Kulfi with Falooda at the Infiniti Mall. I picked up the items at the Kailash Parbat counter. Another day I had Chola Bhatura at the Kailash Parbat restaurant across from the Infinity Mall.

Then I went with three journalists, including one visiting from Delhi, to Goa Portuguesa, a Maharashtrian plus Goan eatery with a lot of emphasis on seafood.

But the most delicious meal of all was the Marwari style thali with seven different vegetables, Puris, Rotis, Dhokla and ending with Gulab Jamun. I know Mumbai has other restaurants that serve similar vegetarian thalis. But this one at the restaurant called Panchvati Gaurav was definitely one of the best.

A Marwari style thali in Mumbai.

17

India in New York October 24, 2014

IMMIGRATION NEWS EBOLA AND INADMISSIBILITY – PART I

By Cyrus D. Mehta* and David A. Isaacson** The United States has started Ebola screenings at 5 major airports. Will these screenings really be effective, or are they being implemented by the administration to demonstrate that it is doing something to assuage public fears? The administration has also been criticized by Republican leaders who are pushing to restrict, if not completely block off, air travel from West Africa. The tragic death of Thomas Duncan in Dallas from Ebola who had flown into the United States from Liberia has further exacerbated these fears.

While the airport screenings would apply to all travelers from affected West African countries, including U.S. citizens, non-citizens would certainly be more vulnerable. The fears stemming from the Ebola epidemic are redolent of an earlier time when immigrants who travelled to the shores of the United States were processed at Ellis Island and excluded for a host of diseases, notably including the eye infection trachoma. A Marine General recently warned about hordes of Ebola infected immigrants running for the U.S. border, stoking similar fears today. Anti-immigrant groups are using Ebola, along with ISIS, to further their argument that immigrants are dangerous to the United States, and several Republican politicians including former Massachusetts Senator and current New Hampshire Senate candidate Scott Brown, North Carolina Senate candidate Thom Tillis, and Senator Rand Paul, have cited Ebola to support increased border security along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Pursuant to section 212(a)(1)(A)(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), aliens who are determined to have a communicable disease of public health significance are ineligible to receive visas and ineligible to be admitted in the United States. By regulation, under 42 CFR 34.2, the term “communicable disease of public health significance” includes “quarantinable communicable diseases as listed in a Presidential Executive Order,” a list which has included Ebola and other viral hemorrhagic fevers since President George W. Bush issued Executive Order 13295 in 2003. Under the authority of INA section 232, 8 U.S.C. 1222, aliens arriving in the United States may be subjected to detention and physical and mental examination to determine whether they are afflicted with a condition that would render them inadmissible, such as Ebola.

Interestingly, however, under INA 232(b) and 42 CFR 34.8, an applicant for admission who was suspected of having Ebola and found inadmissible on that basis, who disputed the finding, could appeal to a board of medical officers. Presumably, even if one has been quarantined after showing signs of being infected but has recovered, he or she ought to be admitted into the United States. And since INA §212(a)(1) is not among the grounds which can be a basis for expedited removal under INA §235, 8 U.S.C. §1225, this would presumably all take place, even for a nonimmigrant, in the context of regular removal proceedings before an Immigration Judge, unless DHS felt it could argue with a straight face that the nonimmigrant also fell under INA §212(a)(6)(C) or §212(a)(7) and was thus amenable to expedited removal. The nonimmigrant might, for example, be said to have lied to a consular officer or DHS officer about their illness and thus become inadmissible under INA §212(a)(6)(C)(i).

A Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR), on the other hand, at least if returning from a trip of less than 180 days and not having committed any crimes or taken any other actions which would otherwise cause them to be treated as an applicant for admission, would not be regarding as seeking admission to the United States, pursuant to INA section 101(a)(13)(C), 8 U.S.C. §1101(13)(C). That is, the LPR would be considered rather as if he or she had never left the United States at all, because under section 101(a)(13)(C), becoming medically inadmissible under section 212(a)(1) doesn’t cause an LPR to be regarded as seeking admission in the way that certain criminal conduct does. So the LPR would be allowed in, if perhaps under quarantine, not necessarily because he or she were admissible but because admissibility is irrelevant for someone who is not an applicant for admission. There does not appear to be any provision in INA section 237, regarding deportability, which would relate to those who become afflicted with contagious diseases after already having been admitted. (to be continued) * Cyrus D. Mehta, a graduate of Cambridge University and Columbia Law School, is the Managing Member of Cyrus D. Mehta & Associates, PLLC in New York City. He is the current Chair of AILA’s Ethics Committee and former Chair of AILA’s Pro Bono Committee. He is also the former Chair of the Board of Trustees of the American Immigration Council (2004–06) and Chair of the Committee on Immigration and Nationality Law (2000–03) of the New York City Bar Association. He is a frequent speaker and writer on various immigration-related issues, including on administrative remedies and ethics, and is also an adjunct associate professor of Law at Brooklyn Law School, where he teaches a course entitled “Immigration and Work.” Mr. Mehta received the AILA 2011 Michael Maggio Memorial Award for his outstanding efforts in providing pro bono representation in the immigration field. ** David A. Isaacson is an Associate at Cyrus D. Mehta & Associates, P.L.L.C., where he practices primarily in the area of immigration and nationality law. David’s practice includes asylum cases, other removal proceedings such as those based on criminal convictions or denied applications for adjustment of status, and federal appellate litigation, as well as a variety of family-based and employment-based applications for both nonimmigrant visas and permanent residence. David also assists clients in citizenship matters and late legalization matters. He is a graduate of Yale Law School, where he served as a Senior Editor of the Yale Law Journal. Following law school, David clerked for the Honorable Leonard B. Sand of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and then worked in the Litigation Department at the law firm of Davis Polk & Wardwell, where he devoted a significant amount of time to pro bono immigration matters. David is the author of Correcting Anomalies in the United States Law of Citizenship by Descent, 47 Ariz.

L. Rev. 313 (2005), reprinted in 26 Immigr. & Nat'lity L. Rev. 515 (2006). He is admitted to practice in New York and New Jersey, in the Courts of Appeals for the Second and Third Circuits, and in the U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York and the District of New Jersey, and is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

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18

INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

No political party can challenge the BJP’s might Had Dr Ram Manohar Lohia been alive, he would surely have congratulated Narendra Modi and his team, says Ashutosh

A

puritanical politics, not believing in opportunistic alliances or political adjustments for securing power.

But he was a changed man in the 1960s, especially after the third general election when it dawned on him that it was impossible for any single political party to replace the Congress party which had gained more seats in the 1962 election.

Dr Lohia concluded that all the political parties sitting in the Opposition had to come together, form a common platform on the basis of a common minimum program and fight a common enemy. The man who declared the Jan Sangh dead now changed his opinion.

In Socialist leader and Lohaite Madhu Limaye’s words, ‘Lohia wanted to create a new party in which he would integrate the partial revolutionary fervor of the Communists and the vigor of the Jan

HITESH HARISINGHANI

day after the results of the Maharashtra and Haryana assembly elections, it is interesting to read what Dr Ram Manohar Lohia, one of modern India’s most novel political thinkers, said about the Jan Sangh, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s earlier avatar.

After the 1957 general election, Dr Lohia, who was famous for his sharp tongue, had a very bleak opinion about Hindu political forces. He felt the Jan Sangh along with the Hindu Mahasabha and the Ram Rajya Parishad were dying. ‘I need not say anything about the Jan Sangh. Its strength in the dissolved Lok Sabha was three,’ Dr Lohia said. ‘It has increased to four in the new Lok Sabha. The results don’t show any future for the party.’

The Jan Sangh, that was dying and had no future according to Dr Lohia, belied

Musicians play instruments outside a Bharatiya Janata Party office in Mumbai, October 19. all expectations and scored a fantastic victory in the 2014 parliamentary election. The BJP has continued its spectacular performance in Maharashtra and Haryana. These are states where the BJP was never the main player.

In Maharashtra it played second fiddle to the Shiv Sena for 25 years and in Haryana it was considered a fringe player even a few months ago.

Now, in both states, the BJP will have its own chief minister. Had Dr Lohia been alive, he would surely have congratulated Narendra Modi and his team.

Dr Lohia had his political mood swings.

In the 1950s he was a firm believer of

Sangh’s nationalism.’

Dr Lohia’s dream of creating a new party integrating all and sundry did not materialize in his lifetime, but his idea of nonCongressism gained momentum. The seeds of this idea were sown in 1963 when an informal understanding was worked out for the by-elections in four seats.

In his book, Birth of Non-Congressism, Limaye says, ‘The Swatantra Party’s Minoo Masani was to fight from Rajkot; Acharya (J B) Kripalani, Lohia and Deen Dayal Upadhayay were to contest Amroha, Farrukhabad, and Jaunpur respectively. The informal agreement led to joint electioneering. Since the idea was

to prevent division of opposition votes, opposition differences were put in cold storage, and fire was concentrated solely on the Congress.’

A few of his comrades were angry with Dr Lohia and felt betrayed by his shortterm political ‘opportunism,’ but it had shown a way and helped Jayaprakash Narayan dislodge the invincible Congress and Indira Gandhi in 1977 when major political parties merged their identities and formed the Janata Party.

Today, an almost similar situation is emerging on the political horizon, but with a different color. In the pre-1977 era the Congress was too big for one political party to defeat.

The Congress party’s presence was so overpowering that the Indian political system was known as the Congress party system which meant one big all India party and the rest being smaller ones occupying different but very limited geographical spaces including the Jan Sangh which later became the BJP. The 2014 general election has unmistakably shown that the BJP has captured the space once occupied by the Congress party. No one political party can challenge the BJP’s might.

The Congress party, the political colossus, has collapsed and is fighting for survival with its lowest-ever election tallies.

Other parties are region specific and carry no weight in comparison to the BJP outside their geographical boundaries.

This situation does not augur well for democracy. Let us not forget that it was lack of a powerful and concrete opposition which converted Indira Gandhi into a virtual dictator in her own party and outside leading to the imposition of the Emergency.

A strong government is indeed vital, but in a democracy an equally strong opposition is required; a weak opposition is very dangerous for democracy.

Does it mean it is now time to remember Dr Lohia and once again create a replica of non-Congressism?

Since the center is now occupied by the BJP, it could be termed ‘non-BJPism.’

One can argue that it is too early to predict the Congress party’s doom. One electoral loss does not mean the death of the Congress party. In doing so we could be committing the same mistake that Dr Lohia made in 1957 when he pronounced the death of the Jan Sangh.

But a careful look indicates that the Congress party has not only lost the cen-

tral space, it has also conceded ground to the BJP in states which were once its strongholds.

In the north and in the east, the Congress party has been virtually non-existent for more than ten years, and in some places for more than 20 years. And there is no sign of it gaining any ground in the near future. The Congress party, therefore, cannot be relied upon to pose any potent opposition to the BJP. Instead of waiting for its revival, the Congress should initiate a common understanding with smaller parties and arrive at a common agreement. Contesting elections together can be a distant dream, but it can immediately start coordination on the floor of Parliament. This agreement can be enlarged into an institutional framework as understanding evolves over a period of time.

Unfortunately, the Congress party has been in government for too long to come to terms with its role as an opposition party. Its situational political reflexes are dull. If the Congress party has to reinvent itself, then it should make the first move to prove that it is ready to play the role of a responsible opposition party and make the BJP’s victory worthwhile for a vibrant democracy like ours.

Ashutosh is a former Indian journalist.

India in New York October 24, 2014

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Food

20

INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

Sweets with a twist

This Diwali, satisfy your sweet tooth with these simple yet different recipes

Coconut Banana Malpua INGREDIENTS 2 small bananas, mashed ¼ cup fresh coconut, grated 300 ml milk, thickened (500 ml milk reduced to 300 ml) ½ tbsp fennel seeds, crushed ½ cup refined flour or maida ¼ cup semolina or suji ½ tsp camphor powder or kapoor powder Oil for deep frying For the sugar syrup: 1 cup water 1 cup sugar 2-3 whole green cardamoms ½ tsp camphor powder METHOD In a mixing bowl take all ingredients for the batter and mix well so that there are no lumps.

Allow it to rest for 2 hours.

In a pan make the sugar syrup of one thread consistency with the sugar syrup ingredients.

In a frying pan, heat oil for deep frying on medium flame. Pour a ladleful of the rested batter to form a 2.5-inch diameter small Malpua. Fry on medium heat. Let it cook on one side and then flip it over and cook the other side. Drain the Malpuas when brown in color on both sides. Immediately immerse it in the sugar syrup and leave for around 30 seconds. Remove and serve garnished with pistachios or almonds.

— Priyanaka Mukherjee

Gulab Halwa INGREDIENTS 750 gm carrot, grated 1 medium-sized beetroot, grated 1 tbsp clarified butter or ghee 400 gm condensed milk ¼ cup cashews or kajus ¼ cup raisins or kishmish 2 tbsp rose petal jam or gulkand For the garnish: 1 tbsp ghee

Pistachio flakes Silver varq METHOD Take a tablespoon of ghee in a large non stick pan and heat it.

Once it melts, add grated carrot and beetroot to it. Saute it for about 2-3 minutes.

Then add the condensed milk into it.

Turn the flame to medium and keep stirring the mixture at regular intervals. After 10-15 minutes of cook-

ing, add kajus and kishmish. Cook the mixture till the carrot and beetroot is cooked and the condensed milk is absorbed.

Once the mixture is thickened, mix gulkand in the Halwa. Turn off the flame and add a tablespoon of ghee to give it a nice aroma.

Garnish it with pistachio flakes or nuts of your choice. Serve hot or cold.

— Amarendra Mulye

Paan Shots INGREDIENTS 600 ml milk 400 ml vanilla ice cream 4 tbsp rose petal jam or gulkand 5-6 Calcutta paan METHOD Blend all the ingredients and serve chilled in shot glasses garnished with finely chopped paan and rose petal.

— Jagruti Shah

PAGE 21 g

Food

21

INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

Sweets with a twist f PAGE 20

Caramelized Pineapple Phirni INGREDIENTS 1 l full cream milk ½ cup rice 1 cup sugar 1 cup pineapple, finely chopped 1 tsp cardamom powder or elaichi powder ¼ tsp nutmeg powder or jaiphal powder 1 tbsp almond flakes 1 tbsp clarified butter or ghee METHOD Wash rice and keep it aside for half an hour.

Meanwhile, prepare caramel syrup. For this, take sugar and a teaspoon of water in a pan and put it on flame; let it caramelize. Be careful while caramelizing.

Keep half a cup of milk aside and boil the remaining milk.

Drain the rice and grind it as fine paste using the cold milk.

Add the grounded rice paste to the milk and stir it continuously until it turns bit thick.

Meanwhile, heat the ghee and keep aside tablespoon of pineapple chunks and roast the remaining pineapple chunks until they turn golden brown.

Grind these roasted pineapple chunks into a thick paste. Add this pineapple paste and caramelized sugar to the cooking rice mixture. Stir it.

Add the cardamom powder, nutmeg powder to the cooking phirni and put off the flame.

Decorate with the pineapple chunks and almond flakes. Pour some more caramelized sugar on top.

— Sarina Kansal

Zucchini Coconut Dumplings INGREDIENTS 2 medium size zucchini, peeled and grated ½ cup castor sugar ¼ cup clarified butter or ghee ½ tsp cardamom powder 1 cup coconut crumbs Handful of almonds for the garnish

Beetroot Coconut Barfi INGREDIENTS 1 cup chickpea flour besan ½ cup beetroot, grated ½ cup coconut, shredded 1½ cup melted clarified butter or ghee 2½ cup sugar 1 cup milk 1 tsp green cardamom powder METHOD Grease a square plate with ghee and keep it aside. Saute grated beetroot for

few minutes in a pan till it’s cooked and you get a fresh aroma. Add all ingredients in a heavy bottom pan and mix it well to ensure there are no lumps. Heat the pan and stir continuously for few minutes on low flame. When it starts to bubble and you see ghee leaving the sides, add cardamom powder. When it thickens, transfer the content into the greased plate and leave it for a few minutes.

When it is still warm cut it into square pieces. After it cools down, store it in an airtight container.

— Priya Shiva

METHOD Heat a pan and add ghee in it. Add grated zucchinis and roast them for around 15 minutes on medium flame.

It might take a little time as the water released from courgettes needs to be soaked completely. Keep stirring till the courgettes becomes soft and mushy and water is soaked. Turn of the burner and let it cool.

Once cool, add sugar, cardamom powder, coconut crumbs and mix well. Take a small portion of the mixture and shape them in balls. Coat these balls in coconut crumbs and garnish them with crushed almonds.

— Shipra Dudeja

22

The Week That Was INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

Manohar Lal Khattar to benew Haryana chief minister First-time Bharatiya Janata Party legislator and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh activist Manohar Lal Khatta was October 21 selected as the leader of state legislature party in Haryana. He will be the new chief minister.

Khattar won the Karnal seat with a big margin of more than 63,000 votes in the October 15 assembly elections.

Nepalese Army officials rescue trekkers who were trapped in the avalanche.

Hyderabad kid becomes police commissioner Hyderabad Police Commissioner Mahender Reddy fulfilled the wish of a 10-year-old terminally ill boy, Sadiq, by making him the chief of police for a day last week. The wish was fulfilled with the efforts of the nonprofit Make A Wish Foundation.

Homes, cars, jewelry as Diwali bonus Surat-based diamond firm Hari Krishna Exports gave Rs 400,000 ($6,666) each to 1,268 employees, including cleaning staff, to buy cars, flats and jewelry as Diwali bonus. This novel reward cost the company Rs 50 crore or $8.15 million.

Life sentence for five in 2010 Delhi gang-rape case Five men, convicted for the 2010 Dhaula Kuan Delhi gang-rape of a call center executive, were sentenced to life imprisonment by a Delhi court October 20. The court called the criminals ‘psychopaths’ who should be kept away from the society as long as possible.

Chhattisgarh: Maoists kill a jawan

Naxal guerrillas in Chhattisgarh’s insurgency-hit Sukma district killed Constable Shivkumar Sidar, who was unwell and was going for treatment to Dornpal from Temelwada in a bus.t He was abducted by a group of Maoists and was killed, the police told the Press Trust of India.

EC holds discussions with parties in J&K on poll timing The Election Commission last week discussed with political parties in Jammu and Kashmir the timing of the forthcoming state assembly elections. While the National Conference said the time was not conducive - in view of large scale destruction caused by the floods last month ruling coalition partner Congress party and the opposition parties supported holding elections before the end of this year, as per schedule.

Government to e-auction coal mines

The Indian government October 20 recommended the promulgation of an ordinance to acquire the land of 214 coal blocks mines, along with the plants built on it, whose allocations were quashed by the Supreme Court last month.

It also approved a plan for e-auctioning the coal blocks for private companies, and allotting mines directly to state and central Public Sector Units.

Modi first Indian PM to address Aussie parliament Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be the first Indian prime minister to address the gallery of Australian member of parliamentarians and leaders at a special joint sitting of the federal parliament after he attends the G20 leaders’ summit in Brisbane next month. There are speculations that he would be delivering his historic address in Hindi.

PHOTOGRAPH: NEPAL ARMY

Cyclone Hudhud death toll mounts to 43

The death toll on account of cyclone Hudhud, which hit the coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha October 12, rose to 43 last week. While Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu assured that power supply would be back in the affected districts by October 25, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced Rs 1,000 crore (Rs 10 billion/$164 million) as interim relief.

Meanwhile, At least 4 Indian hikers were killed in Nepal by unseasonal blizzards and avalanches triggered by the trail of cyclone Hudhud, October 15. A total of 40 people were killed and about 85 reported missing in the popular trek route around the Annapurna region.

Hyderabad boy sodomized before being set ablaze: Report The case of a Hyderabad kid who died after being set ablaze in Hyderabad’s military area took a new turn with a fact-finding team terming it as a case of sexual assault and murder. The team’s reports said two Indian Army troopers called the boy inside the garrison area, and later set him ablaze. Earlier, the boy’s parents had alleged that army personnel were involved. The army had denied the allegations.

Meanwhile, A 65-year-old woman, allegedly set ablaze for not voting for a particular candidate in Yeola assembly constituency in Maharashtra’s Nashik district in the October 15 elections, died in hospital.

Supreme Court grants bail to Jayalalithaa All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief J Jayalalithaa was granted bail by the Supreme Court October 17.

Jayalalithaa was imprisoned in a Bangalore jail for almost two weeks after she was convicted in a disproportionate assets case and sentenced to four years in jail September 29. She was denied bail by the Karnataka high

court, October 7.

Jayalalithaa on Sunday assured party workers that she would come out of the present case as she had successfully faced many challenges.

Andhra Pradesh: 11 killed in firecracker factory blaze Eleven people were killed and seven others seriously injured in an explosion at a fire cracker manufacturing unit at Vakatippa village in coastal East Godavari district, October 20.

Smriti Irani distributes saris in Amethi India’s Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani October 20 distributed more than15,000 saris among woman from the Amethi Lok Sabha constituency as a Diwali gift.

PAGE 23

g

The Week That Was

23

INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

f PAGE 22

DRDO plans to make India missile import free The Defense Research and Development Organization plans to make India ‘missile import free’ by 2022, it has told the Prime Minister’s Office.

‘Our target is to make India missile-import free by 2022. This means we need not import any missile in terms of air-to-ground, surfaceto-air or the air-to-air missiles,’ said Avinash Chander, director-general, DRDO.

Meerut woman: BJP man bribed family to concoct ‘love jihad’ charges A young woman from Meerut, who in August claimed she was abducted, gang-raped and forcefully converted to Islam, told the police October 12 she had eloped with the accused.

The girl alleged that her family had forced her to cook up a story about the incident after being influenced by a Bharatiya Janata Party activist, who offered her family Rs 25,000 ($416).

The father of the girl told The Hindu she could marry the Muslim boy if she wished to.

BJP leaders had cited the girl’s case as evidence of ‘love jihad’, a ‘conspiracy’ to ‘lure’ Hindu women.

Lighting it up DANISH SIDDIQUI /REUTERS

A vendor hangs a lantern for sale at a Diwali market in Mumbai, October 20. Diwali will be celebrated across India, October 23.

Bangalore: Students from North-East attacked in hate crime Three students from the North-East were allegedly beaten up in Bangalore October 15 for not speaking Kannada.

The attack took place at an eatery where three locals thrashed the students. The attackers were arrested later.

Meanwhile, Two young men from the North-East were asked to vacate their rented apartment and beaten up by eight goons in Gurgaon, October 16. The same day, a 24-year-old woman from Mizoram was found in a pool of blood at her rented home in south Delhi.

Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju October 18 said the government will soon implement recommendations of Bezbaruah committee formed to look into the issue.

He also said an exclusive helpline would be set up of for North-East people living in Gurgaon.

Can’t disclose names of people with black money: Government The Indian government October 17 told the Supreme Court it could not make public the names of people with black money stashed away abroad as it would violate the double taxation avoidance agreement with the countries concerned. Lawyer Ram Jethmalani, the petitioner in the case, alleged that it was an attempt by the Narendra Modi government to shield those who stashed black money abroad.

However, Modi reportedly told his union council of ministers October 20 that the government would disclose some names of those under probe for allegedly stashing black money abroad, to the Supreme Court when it reconvenes after the Diwali break. Modi announced on Twitter he would celebrate Diwali in Kashmir with flood-hit people.

Sukhoi jet crashes near Pune

An Indian Air Force Sukhoi fighter jet used for training crashed near Pune, October 14. Both the pilots escaped unhurt, and there were no casualties or damage to property on the ground either.

Warning of ‘multi-city, multiple attack’ on India National Security Guard Director-General J N Choudhury October 16 warned of multi-city attacks on India as global terror outfits like ISIS and Al Qaeda could join hands. He called the 2008 Mumbai carnage a ‘curtain-raiser.’

International airports have Ebola detecting equipment The Indian government last week told the Bombay high court that all international airports in India were provided with thermal image scanners to detect the presence of the Ebola virus among passengers coming from African countries.

ISRO launches another satellite for desi GPS India successfully launched IRNSS 1C on board ISRO’s PSLV C26 rocket from the spaceport in Sriharikota, October 16, moving a step closer to setting up the country’s navigation system on par with the US Global Positioning System.

IRNSS 1C is the third of the series of seven satellites ISRO plans to launch to put in place what is called the

Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System.

Meanwhile, India October 17 successfully test-fired its indigenously developed subsonic long-range cruise missile Nirbhay at Chandipur, Odisha.

Bihar: Dalit boy burnt alive by upper caste man A 15-year-old Mahadalit boy Sai Ram was allegedly burnt to death in Bihar’s Rohtas district by an upper caste man, Arvind Singh, because the boy’s goat grazed at the latter’s paddy crop.

Road rage: Senior police officer attacked in Delhi Assistant Commissioner of Police Amit Singh was assaulted by unknown men in south Delhi, October 16, when he tried to intervene in a road rage incident.

Man arrested for anti-Mamata Facebook remark A young man was arrested in West Bengal’s Malda district for making a derogatory remark against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Facebook.

Maharashtra spent $833,333 for Diwali at Times Square The Maharashtra spent about $833,333 on the Diwali at Times Square event September 20, The Indian Express reported last week.

24

Sports INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

India seethes at Windies withdrawal

‘I

BCCI ends bilateral ties with WICB, to initiate legal proceedings for players pulling out of India tour

T

he Board of Control for Cricket in India October 21 suspended all bilateral ties with West Indies in response to the touring West Indian players pulling out of the series with India over a payment dispute with the West Indies Cricket Board.

The Indian board will also initiate legal proceedings against the WICB. The decision came after the BCCI’s all-powerful working committee met in Hyderabad to decide on whether to impose a freeze on future West Indies tours and claim damages.

October 18, the BCCI had categorically stated the series had been called off.

There was uncertainty over the series since the arrival of the West Indies team.

Though the aggrieved Caribbean players were persuaded to take the field for the fourth one day international at Dharamsala, they had conveyed their decision to call off the remaining part of tour to the BCCI.

They were adamant to withdraw their services as they were unhappy with the new contracts, offered to them after landing in India.

As per the new contracts, agreed between the WICB and the players association, the cricketers reportedly suffered a 75 percent cut in their salaries.

The BCCI issued a statement announcing the end of the series and said it had roped in Sri Lanka for a five-match ODI series from November 1 to 14.

‘The BCCI would like to clarify that despite all its efforts, Micromax Cup India vs West Indies ODI series has been curtailed because of the ongoing issue between WICB and its players, and the withdrawal of the WI team from the ongoing tour of India,’ Sanjay Patel, secretary, BCCI said.

‘We have suffered huge losses due to the decision of the West Indies to pull out of the tour. We are going to claim all the damages and pursue the matter with International Cricket Council.’

V

Virat Kohli celebrates his century against West Indies in the fourth one-dayer at Dharamsala.

BCCI

Kohli’s ton seals curtailed series

irat Kohli struck a majestic 127 as India fashioned a 59-run win over the West Indies in Dharamsala October 17, effectively sealing the curtailed ODI series 2-1.

Kohli reassured that he is back in form and struck a sublime knock off 114 balls to push India to 330 for six after the West Indies put them in to bat on a wicket expected to favor the bowlers.

Opener Ajinkya Rahane(68) and Suresh Raina (71) were the other big contributors to the formidable score, reached also with the help of loose bowling and sloppy fielding from the West Indies.

The West Indies, who made their mind of going back home and were somehow convinced to play at least Friday’s game, found it tough to give their best. Their negative body language expectedly affected their overall game, culminating with their unsuccessful chase that ended at 271 all out in 48.1 overs.

A rare positive for them on the day was Marlon Samuels (112 off 106), who raced to his seventh ODI hundred and second in three matches.

have never seen such a thing in my life, it’s unprecedented.

It’s also unfortunate because the West Indies should have played on, they just can’t go back and call off the tour just because of payment dispute.’

— Sourav Ganguly, former Indian captain

(West Indies players) had made their decision last night ‘(October T hey 17). BCCI got to know

about it in the morning. BCCI tried their level best to convince them but they were adamant not to play due to their internal pay dispute with the board.’

— Anurag Thakur, joint secretary, BCCI

would like to apologize for West Indies team aborting the ‘I India tour. It is a mistake on the

part of players to have left the tour in between.’

— Clive Lloyd, former West Indies skipper; chair, selection committee will be fine in West Indies when we get proper ‘administration.

A llcricket We have the talent,

we just need proper administration.’

— Michael Holding, former West Indies fast bowler

‘T

his is an ideal opportunity for some of the bowlers who have been around to grab their chance by performing against a top team like India. These players have been in the system for some time and thrown into the deep end we can see how they cope with the pressures.’

— Sanath Jayasuriya, former Sri Lanka skipper; chair, selection committee ur six weeks of pure fitness work ends abruptly. Have a ‘O week to do a months’ requirement

of skills work before India.

Planning ahead anyone?’

— Kumar Sangakara, batsman, Sri Lanka

25

Sports INDIA IN NEW YORK OCTOBER 24, 2014

with his 15th minute strike. Jakub slotted home a second goal in injury time to seal the game for Kolkata.

Kolkata was reduced to 10 men in the 82nd minute after Borja Fernandez got a second yellow card, forcing him to leave the field.

Balwant Singh, centre, of Chennaiyin FC celebrates after scoring.

Controversial penalty helps NorthEast settle for a draw with Goa

N

COURTESY: ISL/FACEBOOK

orthEast United FC capitalized on a debatable penalty decision as they held FC Goa to a 1-1 draw in a high intensity Hero Indian Super League match, October 19.

Playing their third match at home on the trot in the space of seven days, NorthEast United conceded a goal in the 17th minute after their goalkeeper T P Rehenesh made a blunder but they got the equalizer in the 36th minute through a penalty kick conversion at the Indira Gandhi Stadium.

Balwant Singh, the first Indian goal scorer in ISL

Dynamos share honors with FC Pune City

D

elhi Dynamos paid the price for their profligacy even as Alessandro del Piero’s presence failed to break the deadlock in their barren draw against FC Pune City, October 14.

‘King Alex’ did not start, much to the disappointment of the 30,000-odd turnout at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Delhi, but the Italian and Juventus legend was introduced in the 37th minute amid cheers.

Atletico de Kolkata ease past NorthEast

A

tletico de Kolkata lived up to their reputation as they outplayed hosts NorthEast United FC 2-0 to notch up their second consecutive win, October 16.

Fikru put league leaders Kolkata ahead

An ecstatic Singh said, ‘It is an absolute honor to become the first Indian scorer in the ISL. You always have to work hard to get into the team because there are so many quality foreigners. I think my hard work paid off.’

C

zech midfielder Pavel Elias struck a stunner to help Delhi Dynamos halt Atletico de Kolkata’s two-match winning run as both teams settled for a point each after a thrilling 1-1 draw in their Hero Indian Super League match in Kolkata, October 19.

Barcelona’s youth system product, Jofre Mateu, gave the home franchise a 49th-

Mumbai City FC thrash Pune with Andre Moritz’s hat-trick

B

razilian Andre Moritz dazzled the home crowd with a hat-trick of goals to power Mumbai City FC to a stunning 5-0 victory over state rivals FC Pune City in a Hero Indian Super League fixture, October 18.

Mumbai totally dominated the match with their attacking style of play with excellent wing to wing passing to notch up their first victory in the Andre Moritz tournament, and the biggest yet by margin, after losing their opening game, which kick-started the league, 0-3 in Kolkata.

Mumbai FC had dealt a massive blow as skipper Syed Rahim Nabi was ruled out for up to three weeks due to an ankle injury sustained during the team’s opening match against Atletico de Kolkata.

S

Koke takes NorthEast United past Kerala Blasters

panish striker Sergio Contreras Pardo’s firsthalf strike gave NorthEast United FC a 1-0 victory over the Sachin Tendulkar co-owned Kerala Blasters FC in the ISL in Guwahati, October 13.

The former Marseille player, popularly known as Koke, struck at the stroke of halftime with a snap angular right-footer from the top of the box, sending the ball past former England custodian David James’s far right.

REBA KUMAR BORAH

C

hennaiyin FC’s Balwant Singh became the first Indian scorer in the ISL against Goa FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium in Margao, October 15.

He scored the first goal of his team’s 2-1 victory over the hosts.

Elias stunner helps Delhi hold Kolkata to a draw

minute lead, but Dynamos brilliantly bounced back through Elias in the 73rd minute to give the visiting side its first point.

NorthEast United players rush to congratulate Koke, second from left, after he scored against Kerala Blasters in Guwahati, October 13.

26

India in New York October 24, 2014

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Sameer Ahuja helms Sports Museum of America May 16, 2008

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PH GEORGE JOSE áå kÉï vçêâ

aka Singh Rana Wrestler Dalip with India’s The Great Khali Patil at President Pratibha May 6 Rashtrapati Bhavan,

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Letters to the Editor ................................A4 ......A44 People.... .............. .............. ................

Immigration ..................A38 ....

A32 Business........ ..M1 Community ............

Magazine... ..................A46 ........A37 Sports 41 Events Pages: 56+12=68

forMichael Bloomberg York Mayor of America When New into the Sports Museum dream transform mally inaugurated Ahuja saw a May 7, Sameer multivibrant reality. first and only interactive, proved an The nation's museum experience before its media all-sports people lining the street from across the street instant hit, with entrance, just get in. The building to 26, Broadway Liberty ferry, Company, the Statue of Standard Oil housed the had earlier D Rockefeller. the street, so he on founded by John spent all night be the first visitor "One person could museum," to enter the Ahuja, the Delhi-born Chief the museum's and its Operating Officer Philip with co-founder Schwalb, said. cele"The museum sports. all brates sports, millions of There are sports. fans for various houses The museum is no them all. There anythis place like Ahuja where," a proud lives said. The museum he gives up to the billing more than Sameer Ahuja it: It houses movies and 20 original variAZIZ HANIFFA 1,100 photos, experience 600 artifacts, Visitors get to through áå t~ëÜáåÖíçåI a` within 19 galleries.related memorabilia, end up and and week showous sports, Security last presentations, histories of memof Homeland detailed interactive multimedia six foreign-born The Department studying the soldier, one of ceremony spending hours events. cased an India-born at a special naturalization out big-ticket sportsis unmissable: Tourists coming States. bers of the military, to Lady in the US of the United The museum after paying obeisance for new citizens Sandeep Singh, 23, a soldier Team, by 24-foot phoColor Guard of Battery Park Ludhiana-born in their tracks athInfantry Continentalto serve his adopted Liberty are stopped legend Babe Ruth, stories the desire Army's 3rd US names from "followed his tographs of baseball said he had terrorist attacks of 9/11." and other iconic 21 countries lete Jesse Owens sport. nation after the 26 men and women from feet museum Allegiance by annals of American He was among 100,000 squareexhibits range the Oath of the of and Immigration The interior sports fan; seminal who were administered report US Citizenship the Sandeep Singh Mall.

King's school is manna for director of the icon Billie Jean celebrating historic Scharfen, acting in the ceremony at the Nationaltaken place on these from tennis had Jonathan 'Jock' memorabilia of the DHS, such an event part of varicard through Page A8 US history that museums; the event was Service, an appendage third time in Recognition Week.

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India in New York October 24, 2014