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Friday, November 23 2012 | Vol. 31, No. 47

Indo American erican News

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Diwali at BAPS BAPS Diwali Swaminarayan Mandir More than 8000 people attended the first ever Dusshera Mela held at Constellation Field in Sugar Land on November 4.

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November 23, 2012

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COMMUNITY

November 23, 2012

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Diwali Celebration at BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir

STAFFORD: Bright lights, fireworks, colors, and delicacies, what can all these words represent? These are the words that signify one of the most renowned Hindu festivals, Diwali, or the “Festival of Lights”. This festival is celebrated by Hindus all around the world and symbolizes the victory of good over evil and light over darkness. Diwali is the last day of the Hindu calendar and is followed by New Year celebrations.

The Diwali festival was celebrated with great devotion at the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Stafford. The theme of this year’s celebration, “Majestic India”, took everyone through a spectacular musical show using fireworks, laser, large props and festive costumes to showcase a land with an amazing wealth of wisdom, culture, and spirituality.

At the heart of India’s majesty is

its spiritual enlightenment, a jewel that was highlighted through a dramatic play on Alexander the Great / Shahensha-e-alam. This entertaining, educational and enlightening program rediscovered India and celebrated this Diwali - the true essence of India: that there can be unity in diversity, that we are a single human family, capable of living together, loving one another, and achieving great heights.

On November 13, devotees gathered at the Mandir with family and friends to participate in the Chopda Pujan, a special ceremony for business owners to receive blessings for the upcoming New Year. This is traditionally the day when business owners close their existing account books for the year and open new ones in preparation for the upcoming year. Through chanting Vedic hymns and prayers, hundreds of ledgers were blessed during the

BAPS endeavors to produce better citizens of tomorrow who have a high esteem for their roots - their rich Hindu culture. Its 3,300 international centers support these activities of character-building.

BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Diwali Fireworks and Laser Majestic Program.

ceremony.

On November 14, devotees gathered early in the morning to offer their prayers on the first day of the New Year. Devotees graciously greeted each other and spread wishes for a happy and prosperous New Year. All were dressed in traditional attire and shared mutual feelings of excitement and joy. The hall was packed for the first arti, a Hindu ritual of waving lighted wicks before the murti of Bhagwan as an act of spiritual enlightenment, which took place at 7:30 am. Throughout the day, visitors poured in to the hourly services to see the beautifully arranged lights as well as rangolis, unique floor designs made with colored rice and powder.

One of the unique aspects of celebrating the New Year is offering a feast of food items called Annakut, literally meaning “a mountain of food”. The devotees of the Mandir worked tirelessly for many weeks

to prepare this colorful array of vegetarian food items to be offered to Bhagwan. This created a sense of togetherness amongst all who were involved.

Despite residing in India, His Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj continually inspires devotees all over the world to celebrate their Hindu heritage and customs.

These festivals allow for families to meet and celebrate the Hindu festivals and pass on traditions to future generations.

About BAPS: The BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), a worldwide sociospiritual organization in Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations, is dedicated to community service, peace and harmony. Motivated by Hindu principles, BAPS strives to care for the world by caring for societies, families and individuals. Through a number of social and spiritual activities,

About Pramukh Swami Maharaj: His Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj, the fifth spiritual successor of Bhagwan Swaminarayan, has inspired millions of people across the world to lead a Godcentered, morally pure life. As the present leader of BAPS, Pramukh Swami Maharaj travels from village to village, continent to continent, emphasizing the importance of family harmony, community service and spiritual progress. He embodies the essence of Hindu life.

For more information, visit www.baps.org

BAPS New Year’s Annakut 2012

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INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2012 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

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November 23, 2012

A Glowing Skin that Comes from the Expert Mythili’s Touch

BY JAWAHAR MALHOTRA HOUSTON: The large framed picture of canvas is of a smiling young woman, sitting on the floor in a deep blue kuchipuddi outfit, and when asked about it, Mythili laughs embarrassedly.

“That was from a long time ago,” she says with a smile and a longing look. Here, in the lobby of the salon that she has built up from scratch over the past eight years, she is in a white skirt and pink jacket, surrounded by excited staff, family and wellMythili Rao (in pink jacket) with store manager Bindu Mahesh on her left and wishers. the rest of her staff at her store, Mythili’s Bauty Salon and SPA on 6453 WesShe shows off the theimer and Hillcroft at the grand opening of the Spa facilities. latest addition to the Photo: Jawahar Malhotra salon that bears her name, Mythili’s Salon, just east Originally from Hyderabad, India, one place to the other, so I let it go of Hillcroft at 6453 Westheimer – Mythili came to the US in 2000 this year,” she said, “to concenand now SPA - with the three new with her husband Rao Prabhakar, trate on the Westheimer location.” massage and treatment rooms ren- an accountant, and two teenage She feels lucky that she had a menovated to handle customers who kids and worked for six months tor who believed in her and came want these services. The people before going on to finish a Mas- along to help when she needed it. assembled there last Friday night, ters in Computer Information “I wouldn’t have been able to be November 16 had come to help Systems in Washington, DC. The here if it wasn’t for Vijaya Rajan her celebrate the opening with family moved down to Houston (wife of Rajan Radhakrishnan of cake and some Indian snacks. and Mythili worked in a beauty Madras Pavilion) taking me under For Mythili, this latest expansion salon for a year because she knew her wing,” she recalled. of services to the salon is a long it since she used to be in the bouRecently Mythili has taken up awaited dream to focus on total tique and beauty business in India a position with MobileLink as an care for her customers who come before moving to the US. “But Operations Manager, making use to her not just for hair styling, really, In India you always tell of her computer education. But make up, henna, body waxing, and other employees what to do,” she she still spends all her spare time facials but can now get massages explained, “and its different here at the salon, which is run by her and other therapeutic treatments. when you are on your own.” trusted managers, Bindu Mahesh “So many people come here askWhen the time came, she opened and Uma Medi and staff of four ing for me, saying they want up her salon in 2005 and three others. When she’s in the salon, “Mythili’s touch,” she said with years later opened up another on she still takes care of clients and her easy laugh, “and this new ser- the east side on Broadway. “But gives them some of the “Mythili’s vice will add to their satisfaction.” it was a lot of work running from touch” she has become famous for.

COMMUNITY

2012 WISE Prize for Education Awarded to Madhav Chavan

DOHA: CEO and Founder of Pratham, Dr. Madhav Chavan wins the 2012 WISE Prize in Education in Doha earlier this week.

The annual WISE Prize for Education, the first major global prize of its kind, recognizes an individual or a team for an outstanding, world-class contribution to the field. The Laureate receives an award of USD $500,000 and a gold medal.

Dr. Chavan will be generously donating his monetary prize to Pratham.

Accepting the WISE Prize for Education, Dr. Chavan said: “Some 25 years ago I saw that new thinking was needed to improve the lives of the millions of underprivileged in my country.

Many individuals and organizations have contributed to what has been achieved, and I share this tribute with them. WISE is pursuing a similar mission on a global scale, and I applaud its bold vision and inclusive approach. This Prize is a major landmark that reminds me how much more remains to be done.

It is an enormous honor for me

to be recognized by this unique community of innovators, and I hope to perform my duties as a global ambassador for education to the best of my ability.”

About Pratham Pratham is the largest nongovernmental organization providing quality education to underprivileged children of India.

With a budget of less than $14 million, Pratham uses very lowcost and scalable methods and works in collaboration with the government, local communities, parents, teachers and volunteers across the country to educate millions of children every year.

Pratham’s mission is “Every Child in School and Learning Well.”

Pratham USA a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a fourstar rating (the highest possible) from Charity Navigator, accepts tax deductible contributions from U.S. donors to create educational reform throughout India. For more information, visit www. prathamusa.org.

Visit www.indoamerican-news. com to watch a video.

A Dancer’s Artistry is Art, Poetry and Sculpture Entwined and a Feast for the Eyes

BY JAWAHAR MALHOTRA HOUSTON: Another masterful performance graced the Bayou City this Diwali season and while this one didn’t draw in the thousands that had come to the Constellation Field stadium the night before, the artist and the facial expressions, gestures and movements that she unveiled held a thousand significances from a dance form hundreds of years old.

Those who came to see Alarmel Valli dance on Sunday, November 11 at the Zilkha Hall in the Hobby Center downtown witnessed an exquisite performance by one of Bharatnatyam’s premier reigning artistes. She has received many honors, titles and awards, among them the Padma Shri and the Padma Bhushan from the President of India; the Chevalier of Arts & Letters and the Grande Medaille de la Ville de Paris from the French Government; the award of

the Sangeet Natak Akademi; and the Kalaimamani from the Tamilnadu Government.

Valli has also been the subject of several documentaries that delve into her unique skills and style. The Films Division of In-

dia commissioned a film on her for the Indian National Archives, titled Pravahi, directed by Arun Khopkar. Another film was made for the Omnibus series, on BBC 2. She has been featured in dance documentaries by noted Indian

producers like the late G. Aravindan and Prakash Jha; by the BBC (in The Spirit of Asia Series); the Nederlands Broadcasting Company; Arte (France) and Japanese National Television Network. A recent film on Valli, Lasya Kavya,

by Sankalp Meshram, won the National Award for art films and was screened at the Museum of Fine Arts this past Wednesday, November 14, followed by a Q & A session with Valli herself.

Her Houston performance was sponsored by Samskriti with the Asia Society Texas Center, Silambam and Bharathi Kalai Manram as co-sponsors. The next evening, the Consul General of India, Parthaveneni Harish and his wife Nandita hosted a reception for Valli at their Woodway area home, along with a few guests, which included the Board of Samskriti, Sabrina Motley of the Asia Society and Cecil C. Conner, Managing Director Emeritus of the

Houston Ballet. Samskriti’s Executive Director Rathna Kumar, herself a renowned exponent of the Bharatnatyam lauded Valli’s achievements and performance.

Ever graceful in form, Valli, a slender figure, moved with the lightness of a dancer as she entered the roomful of admirers. She spoke softly but lovingly of her talent, describing her dance style as a mix of art, poetry and sculpture but honoring Rathna Pappa (as she is endearingly called) for her achievements and thanking her for organizing the previous evening’s performance. Rathna and Harish was both equally effusive of Valli’s performance and honored by her presence. And on Diwali’s eve, Valli mixed warmly and easily with the guests who were treated to a homemade dinner by Nandita Harish, while her young daughter Amana helped as hostess. ,

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2012 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

COMMUNITY

November 23, 2012

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SOLD OUT?! Aare, Get Your Ticket Right Here! 5 ka 10, 5 ka 10!!!

SUGAR LAND: The recent Zee Diwali Mela was a first in many ways. It wasHouston’s first event to have over 8,000 tickets sold out a week in advance and the tickets were being sold in Black! You heard that right, sold in black - $5 tickets going for $10 and $15 tickets on the lawn going for $25. “On Craig’s List no less,” said Shreya Parekh who waited too long to buy hers.

“There were multiple listings on Craigslist and I had to negotiate. Finally I bought 3 and paid $60” Akash Patel bought his 4 in the back seat of a car behind a desi store. “I had to get them. No one had them” said Akash.

But that showed the draw power of organizer Masala Radio and its host Sunil Thakkar – better known as Sunil T – with Preanka, Rajoo,Sandhya, and the rest of the Crazy Masala Crew.

Masala Radio started the Mela concept with Tara Energy.

“Tara is more than a sponsor. They are partners” says Sunil Thakkar.

“Malik Jamal initiated this concept with our first Hillcroft Mela 7 years ago. The Holi and Diwali Melas are our continuing commitment to promote our culture.”

The Zee Diwali Mela on Saturday, November 10 was also sponsored by Red Oak Hospital, Kohinoor Diamonds, Alings Hakka, Jugal Malani, Keemat Grocers, and over 100 other sponsors. “India House, ICC, HGH and Guj Samaj all joined hands to make this successful” said Sunil Thakkar. “$5 tickets only covered a small part of the cost.” But it was the fabulous 3-level, 60 foot wide stage featuring state of the art lights, sound and hundreds of grandiose performers that captured the audience’s atten-

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tion from the moment they entered. ZeeTV had a live recording booth for families to record their Diwali greetings to be aired on Zee Dil Se. DJ Zee was perched atop the Masala Hummer spinning all the music. Even teens had a secluded party in the back with DJs Geo & Saini. With over 25,000 tiny lights on columns and the booths, and the intelligent

wali pageant. Ek Do Teen Dance presented lovely young girls, aside gorgeous instructors, in a tribute to Bollywood Beauty Queens. Shingari and Shivangani Schools presented an exhilarating display of fusion folk dances. Mahesh Mahbhubani of Naach Houston presented a stunning Sari Sapne Fashion Show of saris and Anarkali’s in colors of Earth, Wind, Fire and Water. The pace

lights on stage by AD Sounds, the event truly was a Festival of Lights. President Obama’s Diwali video greetings earned a thunderous applause from the audience. Momentum BMW displayed their latest cars in the field, and Mike Batches from Mercedes Benz of Sugar Land was on the big screen giving away 10 golden tickets worth $4000 off a new Mercedes Benz. Amazing photos by Aisha Khan of AMA Photography will soon be on masalaradio.com and on facebook/ MasalaRadioHouston.

Sunanda Nair students performed flawlessly during the ICC/India House Miss Di-

quickened with Rice U’s Chowl Bhangra, award-winning UH’s Roaring Raas, and the famous Rhythm India dancers. At the last minute, Arzan Gonda added Diya Dancers to the mesmerizing Fire Dancers sponsored

by Alings Hakka’s Gary Yan, beaming his tapori “Main Diktha Bhale Chini, Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani.”

Hindus of Greater Houston conducted a serene 2000 LED diyas Auspicious Laxmi Maha Arti sung live by Bhoomi Trivedi.

Spectacular Fireworks lit the sky with music from Bombay Dreams and Diwali songs sponsored by Kohinoor Diamond’s Altaf

and Nilofer Ali. During the fireworks people exclaimed, “now I don’t miss Diwali in India.” For Event Director Sandhya Thakkar, who has never experienced Diwali in India, this was the ultimate stamp of success.

Soon followed Sunanda Nair’s amazing Deva Shree Ganesha and the grand finale Naach Houston dancers in glamourous costumes filling every stage corner, complete with LED props and glasses.

Sunil T and the Crazy Masala Crew danced in their own Bollywood style, choreographed

by Priya Chokshi. The evening ended with a riveting Disco Dandia

by Indian Idol Bhoomi Trivedi presented by Red Oak Hospital, the largest Indian-owned hospital in the Woodlands specializing in Cardiovascular and Pain medicine.

Throughout the night, there were long lines at the food court, flanked

by Madras Pavilion, Udipi Café, W’kana Café, KurryWalah, Chole Bature Factory, Swagat Vada Pao, Fadi’s Falafel, Alpahar Chaat, Natura Ice Cream, and Baloch Faloodas. Every food vendor was sold out, some as early at 9pm. Rajen of Madras Pavilion said “This is the best booth I have ever done in my 15 years in Houston.”

Sunil T. said “Its not me. It’s us. We did this together. And the Gods helped us. Jai Ho!” Sugar Land City Council member Harish Jajoo said “I have received high complements from the City Manager and other elected officials of the City on the successful execution of the Diwali Mela and an invitation to come back next year.”

We asked Sandhya Thakkar if she would be resting for a while now, she replied saying “Rest? lol NO. We are busy working on the grand Houston Holi 2013. Halo re Halo!”.

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COMMUNITY

November 23, 2012

A Victory Celebration for Democrats and Progressives Alike

BY JAWAHAR MALHOTRA HOUSTON: It was billed as The Victory Celebration of President Obama but was more precisely a call to all Asians and minorities – and especially IndoAmericans – to get out in larger numbers to vote and not just write checks for campaigns. This past Sunday evening, November 18, a crowd of about a hundred like minded desis came together at the Southwest Hilton to an event to hear from some people who were deeply involved in the recent elections from the Democratic Party’s perspective.

The process for that it took to win the elections was spelt out by Lane Lewis, the Harris County Chair of the Democratic Party and it all boiled down to painstaking calling again and again to remind people to vote, especially in the case of mail-in votes, which many seniors prefer to use. “Of the 100,000 voters 65 and older, this time the Democrats had 25,000 returned ballots versus 27,000 for Republicans,” explained Lewis “as opposed to zero in 2008 and 2010.” Lewis said this was enormously expensive to do and required 12 field organizers, 1,000 volunteers, 36,000 doors to knock on and 890,000 phone calls!

The event was sponsored by four community minded activists – Roopa Gir, Jagat Kamdar, G.V. Krishnan and Rashmi Desai – who came up with the idea for the Progressive Indian Americans which would include Democrats, Independents and progressive Republicans to discuss ideas and plans for the future of the country.

The four spent their own money to rent the hall, get the appetiz-

From left: Garnet Coleman, James Cargas, R. K. Sandill and Lane Lewis Photos: Jawahar Malhotra

Roopa Gir

Lakshmi Parmeswaran

ers from Udippi restaurant and drinks; and made the calls and sent emails to put the event together over a four-day period.

Harris County District 127 Judge Ravi “R.K.” Sandill emceed the event which featured a panel of three which included Lewis, State Rep. Garnet Coleman (D) and James Cargas who ran unsuccessfully against John Culberson for US Congress 7th District. Sandill himself squeaked by with a narrow re-election victory over his opponent Russell Lloyd in this election. He spoke about his experience and said that though Indians might contribute financially, the electoral rolls showed that only 1,300 of them

were regular or High Propensity voters, a number that startled most in the room.

Coleman has served the 147th District since 1991 and was more vocal about his distaste for those who worked against his values, including Bob McNair, the owner of the Texans football team, because while he sought out the support of politicians on both side of the divide for subsidies to build the Reliant stadium, when it came down to redistricting, McNair worked to change the boundaries that hurt Democrats and the disadvantaged people within those districts.

“Our values are that people count,” Coleman said speaking

Jagat Kamdar

James Cargas

mostly about the Affordable Care Act of 2010 and how it might proceed in Texas when the Governor Rick Perry has openly expressed his opposition to implementing it and the health exchanges it requires to be set up. With over $150 billion at stake over the next ten years, Coleman sees that, after the Obama victory, Perry and his conservative Republicans may be offering some wiggle room to maneuver passage of some sorts.

“In this election, for once, people using hatred and bigotry got beat resoundingly,” Coleman proclaimed.

Houston lawyer Cargas lost in his bid to unseat Culberson who raised $789,962 to Cargas’ $73,094. Cargas explained how he kept in the Democratic Party line and tried to keep on track with his message and not let the opponent take credit for things that weren’t his. He emphasized foreign policy, immigration, the environment, women’s rights (this elicited the evening’s strongest applause) and healthcare. He agreed with Lewis that the timeline for making Texas a swing state needed to be ac-

celerated from the projected 2024 elections date.

Towards the end of the panelists presentations, a local activist, Lakshmi Parmeswaran who was the co-founder of the South Asian women’s help organization Daya, spoke about how she became involved with the electioneering process after 911 and especially after she felt that President George W. Bush was leading the country down the wrong path.

She shared her experiences as a phonebank volunteer, including a responder who thought that she had a funny English accent and another who thought that Obama had finally outsourced volunteer work to India!

Roopa Gir closed out the evening with a plea for more people to help and volunteer their time and effort for the nascent PIA and move more people to register and vote. A brief Q&A session lasted with several asking Lewis to explain how South Asians could become far more involved, contribute more significantly and also to explain the Precinct Chair selection process.

Sreepadam Celebrates Its 9th Anniversary With “Samanvaya” HOUSTON: On November 17, a full-capacity audience at the Stafford Civic Center celebrated the 9th anniversary of Sreepadam School of Arts with “Samanvaya – The Harmony of Hindustan.” The proceeds of the charitable program benefitted the Jayaram Cancer Foundation - an Indian-based non-profit organization that provides medical care for impoverished cancer patients.

The acclaimed film & dance artist - Divya Unni - led over 170 students from Sreepadam School of Arts in beautifully-colored groups representing India’s rivers. Using music, dance, and digital visual media, “Samanvaya” explored India’s culture, and allowed the audience to travel through the different states of India. The dance items focused on the unique attributes of 14 regions, including: Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Velankanni, Taj Mahal, Karnataka, Varanasi, Rajasthan, Bengal, Gujarat, Punjab, Maharashtra, and Kashmir. The dances gave tribute to the richness

of India’s cultural diversity, with a versatile range of Indian dance styles including classical, folk, and contemporary.

The opening invocation item appropriately offered tribute to the divine by presenting numerous classical dance art-forms including Bharatanatyam, Mohiniyatttam, Kuchipudi, Kathak, Odissi, and

Manipuri. In “Kerala,” highlighting the Mohiniyattam style, the artists depicted the beautiful swaying coconut trees of Kerala, the region’s farming cultural roots, and the religious celebrations - including the famous boat races. “Tamil Nadu” provided a devotional item to the Mother Goddess – or Amman, with the artists presenting the

Karagattam folk style using decorated flower pots, sacred leaves, and lamps. “Andhra Pradesh” featured “Jagad Ananda,” the famous composition from Saint Thyagaraja’s “Pancharatna Kritis.” Presenting the elegant Kuchipudi style, the item astounded the audience with 18 performers performing fast-paced footwork on the edges

of a circular brass tray, with brass water pots delicately balanced on their heads. In “Gujarat,” the dancers played skillfully with the dandiya – showcasing this very playful, energetic, and colorful folk dance. In the Shiva Thandavam style, “Varanasi” described the origins of the flowing Ganga

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CONTINUED ON PAGE

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November 23, 2012

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November 23, 2012

COMMUNITY

Deepavali Sparkles at Chinmaya Prabha

Photo: Nilesh Shah

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BY PADMASHREE RAO HOUSTON: Deepavali, the most significant of Hindu festivals, was celebrated with social, cultural and religious luster at Chinmaya Prabha on November 11, 2012. Sparkling lamps reflected the smiling faces of more than 600 families who came together to greet each other with love, and pray for universal good.

The families arrived at Chinmaya Prabha with eager anticipation, wearing their festival best and carrying their decorated puja plates, lamps and flowers. In the Chinmaya puja tradition, they sat in neatly laid out rows, and prepared to pray as devotional bhajans signaled a musical beginning to the sacred day.

The festive air of Deepavali came more alive when the devotees gazed at an elegantly set stage. The idols of the Lord Mahavishnu and Mahalakshmi were the center of attraction, decorated with beautiful flower garlands and awaiting a traditional Shodashopachara puja. The pratima of Pujya Gurudev Swami Chinmayananda in the foyer of Chinmaya Prabha wore a shining smile as the many lamps lit at his feet brightened the spirit of all who entered. The deities at Saumyakashi Shivalaya added more blessings to the pure sacredness of the atmosphere.

In his Deepavali message to the Chinmaya Houston family, Acharya Shree Gaurangbhai Nanavaty said that Deepavali is a time to increase the true assets in our life. Human endeavor is generally focused on maximizing physical assets and minimizing liabilities. He said: “Physical assets like our material possessions and the body’s well-being are important. However, the well-being of the mind and intellect are equally important

assets to be carefully nurtured, since they will ensure true, long-lasting happiness.

With the new beginning of each Deepavali, we must work on our faults which are liabilities to our spiritual evolution. And, we need to gain the wealth of virtues which are assets to our spiritual integrity. We need to take time to forgive the shortcomings in both others as well as ourselves.” He also indicated that the true flame of Deepavali shines in a heart that is rich in love and understanding.

After the Acharya’s address, the Deepavali puja began with invocation to Lord Ganesha. The priest of Saumyakasi Sivalaya, Shri Ganeshji, led the puja that included the Lakshmi Ashtottara puja and the Vishnu Sahasranama chanting. The hall resounded with the voices of all devotees who offered their prayers with an earnest faith.

Deepavali at Chinmaya Prabha is also a special occasion to be grateful to the Guru, the spiritual teacher who removes the darkness of ignorance from our lives. Since it is the Guru who lights the lamp of eternal wisdom in our hearts, the Gurudakshina ceremony is a cherished tradition of gratitude expressed at Chinmaya Prabha. With that spirit, each family had the opportunity to share a special moment of thanksgiving with the Acharyas Shree Gaurangbhai and Shreemati Darshanaben Nanavaty after the Deepavali puja.

The Deepavali celebration filled the hearts of all families who attended, thanks to the shining efforts of a whole army of volunteers who worked to make every aspect of the day stand in the devotees’ memories.

For more information, visit www.chinmayahouston.org or contact Bharati Sutaria at 281-933-0233.

Announcement INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2012 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

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wali party, with a little help from Girija’s husband, Anant.

They didn’t stop there. The pool itself was adorned with rose petals and a floating rangoli thali, while entering guests were asked to light a candle and set it adrift on the pool surface. A red carpet lined a walk up the concrete driveway, with lit tea candles on each side, and at the end of the walk Meena Patel and the two event chairs welcomed them, while photographer Michael Ramos waited to take a picture of the couples between two decorated figurines of Ganesh and Lakshmi. At the front of the house, a rangoli pattern with rose petals and diyas festooned the porch.

The occasion was Club 24’s annual Diwali party, this time held at the home of members Aku and

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Meena Patel of Karat 22 Jewelers on Hillcroft. Club 24, a nonprofit organization that has been active since 2006, holds events four times a year for raising funds and then distributing it to deserving causes in the greater Houston area. It held its Gala at the house of another Memorial Area resident and member, Dr. Jay K. and Viji Raman earlier in the year to distribute funds.

But in the Fall, the mood was definitely one to be thankful for, as Club 24 President Sangeeta Pasrija said in her short speech before guests, including many mainstream, who stood in the shimmering garden setting. The event chairs, Dr. Aparna Kamat and Madhavi Kavadi stood beside Pasrija and Rachna as they all spoke in turn to thank the guests for their participation throughout the year and especially at the evening’s party. Kamat explained the essence of Diwali for the non-Indians in the audience which also was the perfect setting for the children – many young adults themselves of members to tag along, a first for

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the Club. Adding to the Patel’s joy was their first grand daughter, 18 months-old Ishwari who was by her grandmother’s side.

Pasrija welcomed the kids in her short speech, and also went on to appreciate the Valentine’s Day program that Kiran Gupta and Alpa Shah had arranged and the magnanimous garden gala that the Ramans had hosted. Through these efforts, Pasrija noted, Club 24 had raised $70,000 for charities. She also lauded the work of Nat Murthy and Sushma Bhan in carrying out an elegant Outreach affair at the Asia Society Texas Center.

The Patel family came forward to light a ceremonial wick lamp to invoke the blessings of the Gods on the joyous occasion of Diwali.

After a sumptuous buffet thali dinner and a string of deserts, gigantic sparklers were passed out to the guests to light and twirl. Just as the guests were leaving, they were given large goodie bags with mithai from the BAPS Swami Narayan Temple, a temple guide brochure, a calendar and a book of poems blessed by Pramukh Swami himself, who is the guiding force for the Patel family.

The food was catered by Bhojan Restaurant.

Hillcroft Ave

With a Painter’s Palette and a Jeweler’s Eye, this Diwali Party Twinkled

BY JAWAHAR MALHOTRA HOUSTON: Although the weather had turned decidedly colder over the past few days and the nights come in faster after Halloween, the mixture was perfect for the setting that Rachna and Girija Patel wanted to create. With strings of yellow lights wrapping the palm trees and tall glass cylinders, filled with colored water and floating lit wax candles, encircling the backlit swimming pool, the two sisters-in-law managed to turn Rachna’s parent’s Memorial area home into a resort for a swank Di-

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10 November 23, 2012

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An Unlikely Friendship, Forged by the Will to Survive

BY JAWAHAR MALHOTRA HOUSTON: In perhaps one of the most riveting scenes in the movie, the young boy Pi Patel peeks under the tarpaulin that covers one end of the lifeboat and a huge Bengal tiger jumps out of him and snarls, his paw out stretched to claw him as Pi instinctively jumps back.

And throughout the movie The Life of Pi, which opens in theatres on November 20, there is a sense of foreboding that something awful is about to happen to the two creatures – a boy and a tiger – stuck in a lifeboat in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. The movie is the film adaptation of the 2002 best selling book written by Yann Martel, which won him the Man Booker Prize for Fiction (about $50,000) awarded each year for the best original full-length novel, written in the English language, by a citizen of the 54 members of the Commonwealth of Nations, Ireland, or Zimbabwe.

The movie is faithful to the book in telling the story of a young 16-year old boy who is shipwrecked and then castaway on a lifeboat with a zebra, hyena, orangutan and a Bengal tiger and drifts for three years on the Pacific Ocean with the tiger until he runs aground in Mexico. Much as the book is a compelling read, the movie in engrossing in its portrayal of an unusual tale with visually exciting cinematography and stunning CGI effects that leave the characterizations in the movie Avatar looking almost cartoon like.

Award winning director Ang Lee said that this movie, which took over four years to produce, was his biggest challenge as the production involved 2,000 people scattered over India, Taiwan, Canada and the US, a

Suraj Sharma stars as Pi Patel in The 20th Century Fox’s Life of Pi.

fact that is prominently mentioned, as well as the number of jobs the movie produced, in the film credits that scroll at the end of the movie. The filming of all the ocean scenes went on for months in Taiwan on a huge wave-churning water tank built for the production, the largest of its kind in the world.

Lee also shot in Pondicherry, the former French colony in east India where the book is set and where Pi’s family owns a zoo.

Taiwan-born Lee became known for some low-budget art films like Eat Drink Man Woman (1995) and Sense and Sensibility (1995) but built his reputation with the movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) about traditional Chinese wuxia (martial arts and chivalry). He later directed Hulk in 2003 which grossed $245 million and in 2005 Brokeback Mountain which won him the Oscar for Best Director, a first for an Asian and a non-white person.

The scenes of pastoral life in Pondicherry are especially poignant for Indians from the Old Country as they resound with deep colors and articulate the senses of the moments that shape Pi’s life and his first love, in India. In one scene, Pi is shown experimenting with all religions, alternatively becoming a Catholic and then a Muslim, much to the amusement of his disciplinarian father (played sternly by Adil Hussain) who snickers at the dinner table “Pi, you just have two more religions to go and then you can be on perpetual holiday!” Or when his parents decide to move to Canada (his mother is

played by the beautiful Indian actress Tabu), Pi adamantly asks why they must sail to Canada when “Columbus came looking for India?”

The theme of spirituality pervades the movie as a scene in which the vegetarian Pi has to kill a large fish for nourishment and then cries out to the sky “Thank you Vishnu for coming to me in the form of this fish.”

In another scene, he looks up and the stormy skies and shouts “God, I surrender myself to you, do what you want.” Suraj Sharma does an outstanding job in his first acting role, especially as he was accidentally chosen by Lee from an audition call that Suraj attended with his cousin. The tiger is the center of the film and the live scenes with him “acting” are completely undistinguishable from the CGI ones. Apart from the story itself, this new technology of realistic CGI effects is the main story of the film and the ability of master director Ang Lee to overcome huge logistic and technical obstacles to make Life of Pi will certainly become the subject of a movie itself.

Life of Pi is directed by Ang Lee and stars Irfan Khan, Suraj Sharma, Gerard Depardieu, Rafe Spall, Tabu, Adil Hussain, Shravanthi Sainath, Andrea Di Stefano, Ayush Tandon, Gautum Belur, Vibish Sivakumar and Ayan Khan.

Samskriti Presents its 7th Conference: Manifestations of Shiva HOUSTON: Samskriti has done itself proud by organizing not just performances by internationally recognized artists and ensembles, but also arts conferences that inform and educate the community at large - the first International dance conference in North America, Indian Dance in the Diaspora: Traditions & Innovations (2001), The First International Conference on Kuchipudi (2003), Lesser Known Indian Painting Traditions (2008), Miracle on the Mountain: Paintings of the Ajanta Caves (2009), Tanjore: Confluence of Cultures (2010), Indian Dance in a Global Context (2011), and now Manifestations of Shiva.

On December 1, 2012, Samskriti brings to Houston yet another outstanding arts conference featuring five world renowned scholars, four from the US and one from India - academic advisor for the conference, Dr. Indira Viswanathan Peterson - David B. Truman Professor of Asian Studies, Mount Holyoke College, Dr. Vidya Dehejia - Barbara Stoler Miller Professor of Indian Art, Columbia University, Dr. Gardner Harris - Visiting Assistant Professor, Department of Religion, Bucknell University, Dr. Padma Kaimal, Professor - Art & Art History Department, Colgate University, and Dr. R. Nagaswamy - former Director of Archeology, Govt. of Tamil Nadu & former Vice Chancellor, Kanchipuram University.

The 10 AM to 5 PM conference, presented in collaboration with the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, will cover many aspects

of Shiva-Nataraja, Lord of the Dance and Creator-Destroyer, as seen in sculpture, poetry, song and dance. Besides presentations and papers by the eminent scholars, this conference very appropriately includes a dance demonstration by Rathna Kumar, Artistic Director, Samskriti, in the Nidhika & Pershant Mehta Indian Art Gallery at MFAH, which houses a beautiful bronze of the Cosmic Dancer.

The conference, which will take place in the Brown Auditorium of the Museum of Fine Arts, will be inaugurated by the Consul General of India, the Hon. Harish Parvathaneni, and specially commissioned art works pertaining to the theme of the conference by local visual artists, will be unveiled by Nandita Harish.

The conference will culminate with homage to the Eternal Dancer in a special dance performance of SHIVOHAM, choreographed by Rathna Kumar and performed by the Anjali Dance Company, which will be presented at 7 pm at the Kaplan Theater, Jewish Community Center.

Tickets are priced at $35 for the conference dance performance, lunch and post conference reception at the Museum premises. For those wishing to attend the dance performance only - $50 (donors) & $10(general admission).

To buy tickets online and for more information, visit www.sulekha.com or www. samskritihouston.org, or call Rathna at 832 -275-9656 or Vatsa at 979-240-9496 or Thara at 281-565- 9483.

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2012 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

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November 23, 2012

Sreepadam Celebrates Its 9th Anniversary

CONTINUED FROM PAGE

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from the matted locks of Shiva.

Before a beautiful backdrop of the “vision in white marble”, the “Taj Mahal” item presented a couple dance depicting Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan’s love for his wife Mumtaz Mahal. “Maharashtra” depicted the traditions and rituals during Ganesha Chathurthi – including a processional where a life-sized Ganesha was brought to the stage. Presenting the most important Christian pilgrimage site in India, “Velankanni” described the miraculous origins of the basilica devoted to the compassion of Mother Mary. “Kashmir” described the splendor of the region, with nearly 40 children under the age of seven praying for its beauty to remain forever.

The event concluded with a vibrant finale that incorporated a variety of famous patriotic songs.

With each performer displaying India’s flag, the medley skillfully incorporated over 170 students in beautiful costumes and complex formations. With styles of classical, folk, semi-classical, and contemporary choreography, “Samanvaya” paid tribute to the richness and diversity of Indian dance, while serving as a means to bring awareness for the need of national harmony. Very fittingly, the program not only met Sreepadam’s mission for its students to find connections to their cultural roots,

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The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi

In Champaran, “ Face-to-Face with God, Ahimsa, Truth”

The story thus far….Gandhi permitted a lower caste family to reside at the ashram that he established at Ahmedabad. He met with much opposition. He also amazed and angered the British officers, upper-class Indians, and friends gathered at a foundation stone laying ceremony at Banaras University by speaking out against usage of the English language on the university premises that he deemed “sacred”.

The annual meeting of the Congress was held in December 1916 in Lucknow. The Congress was divided as there were the moderates and there were the extremists, but at Lucknow the Congress met without tension between the two wings. The President, Ambika Charan Mazumdar, spoke in terms of Swaraj, which previous leaders had demanded. A resolution was passed appealing to His Majesty’s Government and demanding that a definite step should be taken towards Indian self-government by granting the reforms contained in a referendum prepared by the AllIndia Congress Committee and adopted by the All-India Muslim League.

In Lucknow the Congress and the Muslim League came to an agreement. This was later known as the Lucknow Pact. For the sake of the unity of India the Congress conceded many points demanded by the Muslims. For two years Gandhi had traveled extensively in India and had talked at different places.

He now wanted to start some work connected with labor. His interest first centered on the problem of indentured labor, the system under which poor, ignorant laborers were enticed away from India to work in the British colonies. He disapproved of this system in South Africa, fought it there, and he wanted to see it abolished. The Viceroy, Lord Hardinge, announced that His Majesty’s Government had agreed to abolish the system in due course. Gandhi, however, wanted a definite date before which the system would go.

Gandhi started a great agitation on this issue. He went to Bombay and consulted all the Indian leaders there. They fixed May 31, 1917 as the last date for the abolition of indentured labor. He then went around the country to get support for this view. Meetings were held in important places. Everywhere there was a great response. Even Gandhi admitted that he had not expected so much public support.

As a result of the agitation, the Government announced that the system of indentured labor would be stopped before July 31,1917.

Then Gandhi had heard about an obnoxious system of agricultural labor prevailing in the Champaran district of Bihar, where the cultiva-

tors were forced by Europeans to grow indigo, a blue dye. This imposed on them great discomfort.

They could not grow the food they needed, nor did they receive adequate payment for the indigo.

Gandhi was told of this by an agriculturist from Bihar, Rajkumar Shukla. He requested Gandhi to go to the place and see the state of affairs there. Gandhi was then attending the Congress meeting at Lucknow and he did not have time to go there. Rajkumar Shukla followed him about, begging him to come and help the hapless villagers in Champaran. Gandhi at last promised to visit the place after he had visited Calcutta.

Gandhi went to Champaran with Rajkumar in early 1917. On his arrival the District Magistrate served him with a notice saying that he was not to remain in the district of Champaran but must leave the place by the first available train.

Gandhi disobeyed the order. He The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi is brought to you courtesy Mahatma Gandhi Library. www.gandhilibrary.org was summoned to appear before the court. The magistrate said that if Gandhi left immediately the charges would be dropped.

“This cannot be,” said Gandhi.

“I came here to render humanitarian and national service. I shall make Champaran my home and work for the suffering people,” added Gandhi.

A large crowd of peasants gathered outside the court shouting slogans. The magistrate and the police looked nervous.

Then Gandhi said, “I shall help you and calm these people if you let me speak to them.”

Gandhi appeared before the crowd and said, “You must show your faith in me and in my work by remaining quiet. The magistrate had the right to arrest me, because I disobeyed his order. If I am sent to jail, you must accept that as just.

We must work peacefully. Any violent act will harm our cause.”

The crowd dispersed peacefully.

The police stared at Gandhi in admiration as he went inside the court.

Gandhi wrote about the incident later.

“That day in Champaran was an unforgettable event in my life ..... It is no exaggeration, but the literal truth, to say that in this meeting with the peasants, I was face to face with God, ahimsa and truth.”

The Government withdrew the case against Gandhi and allowed him to remain in the district. Gandhi stayed and studied the grievances of the peasants. He visited many villages. He cross-examined about 8,000 cultivators and recorded their statements. In this way he arrived at an exact understanding of their plight and the causes.

He came to the conclusion that the ignorance of the cultivators was one of the main reasons why the European planters could exploit them. Gandhi set up voluntary organizations to improve the economic and educational conditions of the people. They opened schools and taught the people how to improve sanitation.

The Government recognized Gandhi’s strength and devotion to just causes. They themselves then set up a committee to enquire into the grievances of the cultivators. They invited Gandhi to serve on that committee, and he agreed.

The result was that within a few months the Champaran Agrarian Bill was passed. It gave great relief to the cultivators and land tenants. Gandhi could not stay longer in Bihar. There were calls from other places. Labor unrest was brewing in Ahmedabad and Gandhi was requested to help settle the dispute.

Gandhi hurried back to Ahmedabad. Before taking up the labor dispute Gandhi wanted to move his ashram. The Satyagraha Ashram was in a village near Ahmedabad, but the surrounding was not clean and plague had broken out. It had spread there from Ahmedabad.

A rich merchant of Ahmedabad, wanted to buy alternative land for the ashram. Gandhi went about with him looking for land and they chose a place on the bank of the Sabarmati river, near the Sabarmati Central Jail. The land was purchased and the famous Sabarmati Ashram was established.

In Ahmedabad there were many textile mills. Prices had gone up and the mill workers were demanding higher wages. The mill owners would not agree. Gandhi sympathized with the workers and took up their cause. He launched a struggle and resorted to peaceful resistance. The workers proudly followed Gandhi and pledged their full support to him. They paraded the streets with large banners, and said they would not go back to work until a settlement had been reached.

— To be Continued

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2012 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

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November 23, 2012

Grand Celebrations of Govardhan Puja and Diwali at ISKCON

HOUSTON: ISKCON, Hare Krishna Dham witnessed spectacular celebrations of Diwali and Govardhan Puja on the 13th and 14th of November with weekend festivities on Sunday, the 18th.

Govardhan Puja was even more special this year with Hon. Consul General of India P. Harish and his wife Nandita gracing the occasion.

Festivities for Diwali began as guests started streaming in for the occasion by the hundreds. The temple premises looked festive and lively with splendid floral decorations, pillars lit up with ethereal blue lighting, glittering crystal curtains forming a backdrop for the deities of Gaura Nitai, Sri Sri Radha Nilamadhava and Giriraj Govardhan, adorned in the finest copper and pink colored outfits.

The program embarked on the perfect note with ecstatic kirtan by the Jiv Jago Kirtan Group. An

Bharatnatyam performance by Sunday School Students.

Hon. Consul General P. Harish performing aarti (Go-Puja) to Cows.

insightful talk given by His Grace Radha Krishna Das on the significance of the day with past times of the Lord from the Ramayan and Srimad Bhagavatam, set in a divine atmosphere for the evening. Devotees eagerly waiting in a tightly packed temple room were not disappointed when the curtains finally opened for a breathtaking darshan of the deities in a candle-lit altar. The candlelight aarti followed alongside a roaring kirtan, immersing everyone present in bliss. A scrumptious vegetarian feast perfectly completed the ensemble for the evening.

The following day saw quite a congregation for the morning 4:30am aarti to ring in the festivities for Govardhan Puja. The high-

light of the evening program was the much awaited abhishek of the Giriraj Govardhan deity with various choice items accompanied by melodious kirtan and bhajans.

The chief guest for the evening, Hon. Consul General P. Harish expressed his good fortune to be present at the occasion and while his speech was short, his humility touched everyone present when he said “The only thing worse than coming between a hungry belly and food is to come between a hungry soul and the Lord”.

The darshan of the deities on this day was very unique since innumerable food items were offered at the altar and the delicacies were then distributed out as prasadam for everyone to savor.

To add to the excitement, this year two very special visitors

13

Sri Sri Radha Nila Madhava with Anna Koot on Govardhan Puja Day.

came in for the event from the Dallas gosala. “Lailtha” and “Tungavidya”, both 9 month old cows endeared themselves to children and adults alike.

Go-puja was also conducted to mark the auspiciousness of the day. Delicious feasting drew the evening to a close, albeit reluctantly with no one wanting to end the revelry.

The extended celebration on Sunday evening had a traditional bharatnatyam performance by very talented young devotees, accompanied by a dramatized narration of the Govardhan Lila by His Grace Vatsal Prabhu that had the audience asking for more.

Bharatnatyam performance by Sunday School Students

The evening culminated with a parikrama of the Anna Koot or Mountain of Food, made from umpteen vegetarian offerings.

Cupcakes, cookies, laddoos, barfis, halwa, sweet rice and more were all laid out enticingly. As most confessed, this was a visual treat as much as it was a feast for the tongue!

As an added bonus, on these very auspicious days devotees had the opportunity to offer hand held ghee lamps lovingly to the Lord as part of the observance of Damodar vrata in this special month of Kartik. All in all, this festival of lights and Govardhan Puja at Houston ISKCON brought to the community a very enjoyable spiritual extravaganza.

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2012 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

14 November 23, 2012

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Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s Appearance to Celebrate St. Luke’s Episcopal Health Charities 15th Anniversary Draws Sell-Out

www.indoamerican-news.com

Read us online at

HOUSTON - The 15th Anniversary Crystal Celebration of the St. Luke’s Episcopal Health Charities, Thursday, Nov. 15, at the Hilton Americas – Houston, generated nearly $800,000. The Charities, which is an integral component of the St. Luke’s Episcopal Health System, makes a difference in the lives of the most vulnerable populations throughout the Episcopal Diocese of Texas by providing support and knowledge to organizations and empowering communities. To commemorate this milestone, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, multiple Emmy®-award winning chief medical correspondent for CNN, served as the keynote speaker to a sell-out crowd of more than 800.

“Over the past 15 years, The Charities has touched the lives of an estimated 15 million people and has invested $88 million in grants to nonprofit community health service programs such as the Houston Food Bank, Refugee Services of Texas and Healthcare for the Homeless Houston to name just a few,” said Patricia Gail Bray, PhD, executive director of St. Luke’s Episcopal Health Charities. “This direct contribution coupled with 15 years of research and community capacity-building services is valued at $990 million in community benefit.”

This event marked the annual recognition of an individual from a nonprofit organization in the mis-

From left: Bishop Andy Doyle, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Dr. Patricia Gail Bray and Flo McGee

sion field of the diocese who demonstrates outstanding leadership and collaboration in advancing community health for the underserved. This year The Community Health Leadership Award winner is Dr. Aijaz Ali Khowaja, founding CEO of the Ibn Sina Foundation. The Ibn Sina Foundation was created in 2001 to provide high-quality and affordable medical and dental services to the underserved, indigent and low-income residents of Houston. Its clinics have provided comprehensive services to more than 300,000 individuals since its inception, and this year will help more than 70,000.

St. Luke’s Episcopal Health Charities is the largest non-profit, non-operating public charity dedicated solely to health and well-being. Aligning with St. Luke’s mission to provide care “to all of God’s children,” The Charities’ particular mission is to improve the health of the most vulnerable and underserved. Whether it is food for the hungry, health and dental care for children in pain, or job training for a single parent, The Charities lends its considerable support to non-profit organizations dedicated to community service and with proven track records of success.

Gupta, a practicing neurosur-

Indo American News

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, chief medical correspondent for CNN.

geon, was chosen as the keynote speaker because of his health policy experience on disaster recovery, healthcare reform, fitness, military medicine, HIV/AIDS, and other areas that reflect many of the initiatives the St. Luke’s Episcopal Health Charities supports. Having reported on Sri Lanki’s tsunami, Hurricane Katrina, the earthquake in Haiti, the flooding in Pakistan and most recently Hurricane Sandy, he understands the importance of a public charity that supports the body, mind and spirit of those in need.

For more information, visit www.slehc.org.

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Congralution on the 543rd Guru Nanak Dev Ji's Birthday from Galhotra Family Harjit, Seema, Ravi, Rupi, Balraj and Kulpreet The Provider Lord listened to the cries, Guru Nanak descended into this world.

Washing His feet and praising God, he got his Sikhs to drink the ambrosial nectar.

In this Dark Age, he showed all gods to be just one.

The four feet of Dharma, the four castes were converted into one.

Equality of the King and beggar, he spread the custom of being humble.

Reversed is the game of the beloved; the egotist high heads bowed to the feet.

Baba Nanak rescued this Dark Age; read ‘satnam’ and recited the mantar.

Guru Nanak came to redeem this Dark Age of Kaljug. Bhai Gurdas - Vaar 1 pauri 23

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16 November 23, 2012

COMMUNITY

Alok Utsav - An Evening of Exquisite Odissi Dance Recitals

BY SANCHALI BASU HOUSTON: The Kalaangan school of Odissi dance led by its inimitable teacher Supradipta Datta held its annual function on Saturday, November 17 at the Sugar Land Auditorium. The evening started off with a sumptuous array of delectable snacks including samosas, aloor chop, chumchum and jalebis. The entire atmosphere was one of tremendous excitement, nervousness, anticipation and joy for all the students, parents, guests and well-wishers and one could feel the contagious hum.

This was the third year that Alok Utsav was being celebrated and this year’s celebration, like past ones, was dedicated to all Gurus.

Datta commenced the proceedings by paying tribute to her guru Aloka Kanungo and mentioned how much of an inspiration she was in her life. The mike was then turned over to the emcee for the evening Swati Chakrabarti. She led us through the rest of the evening very capably.

Since the style of Odissi dance originated in Orissa, and since it is the time of Diwali it was only befitting that the invocation dance was based on two short prayers.

The first, Jaya Jagannath (Jaya Jaya Deva Hare), an ode to Lord Jagannath also carried a message of spreading the light. This dance was performed by 6 dancers some of whom were 6 or younger. It was very well accepted and com-

mended by the audience looking at the very young age of this group of dancers.

The second prayer was Namo Ganesha, a tribute to Lord Ganesha, the remover of all evils again performed by 3 of Datta’s very young students. The third piece was a Mangalacharan, an invocatory composition dedicated to Gurus, seeking blessings for an auspicious beginning. The fourth dance was Bottu, a pure dance featuring the two basic stances of Odissi, the Chouka and the Tribhangi. The next dance Basant Pallavi, a composition combining an abhinaya section describing Lord Krishna enjoying the season of spring followed by a pure dance piece based on Raag Basant was again impeccably performed by two very well-trained young dancers. The

evening went on to include another Ganesh Vandana, Nachanti Rangae Srihari, Mukhari Pallavi, Srita Kamala (an Ashtapadi) and Hamsadhwani Pallavi danced by different groups of dancers at various seniority levels. Each dance was more complex than the previous one as the level of skills involved became more difficult and more polished. The guru Datta joined five of her students in dancing the beautifully choreographed Hansadhwani Pallavi and it was executed flawlessly.

The highlight of the evening was the performance by the guest artist Upali Nanda. Nanda hails from a different gharana of Odissi dance, being the disciple of Guru Mayadhar Raut. She brought her distinct flavor of Odissi to life when she joined Datta in performing the

very lively abhinaya, “Kahin Gale Murali Phunka”. The dance is a conversation between two gopinis about the handsome Krishna and his mischievous escapades. The last dance of the evening very appropriately was the Moksha Mangalam. It is the spiritual culmination where the dancers attempt to attain the ultimate goal of life – the reintegration of the soul with the Absolute.

The entire evening was a pleasure to be a part of and all and one enjoyed. It was well attended and everyone took pride to be included. Several of Datta’s students came up on stage to thank her, pay their respects to her and inform all as to how big an influence she has had on their lives not just as a dance teacher but also as a mentor and a guide. Durba Rath also

thanked her on behalf of the parents and mentioned how inspiring she has been to her 3 daughters.

Datta concluded the evening with a vote of thanks to all students, parents, participants, friends, volunteers, donors, well-wishers and the audience.

Sanchali Basu is a student of Kalaangan School of Odissi Dance.

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2012 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

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17

18

EDITORIAL

November 23, 2012

Bigger and Better

Having flourished in Texas for several decades, it is interesting to note that the South Asian communities here have caught on to the desire to live large. Now our Diwali Melas, Ram Leelas and Independence Day celebrations are bigger and better than ever.

It is now necessary to hold some of our community’s events at the Skeeters stadium in Sugar Land. In DFW, some of the Diwali melas have been held in the Texas stadium. Why not? Let’s live like the Texans.

Pramod Kulkarni

Hope and Change

Obama’s visit to Myanmar vindicates India’s belief that Myanmar needs time to sort out its political challenges Two winters ago, US President Barack Obama, in his address to Parliament, could not resist scolding Delhi for its constructive engagement with Myanmar’s military rulers. An India that seeks a permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council, he said, cannot stay silent on the suppression of democracy in Myanmar.

On Monday, Obama became the first serving US president to visit Myanmar. Obama’s pace of engagement has drawn criticism in the US and beyond. Many feel that he should not reward the military rulers before they sort out all issues of international concern — including the accommodation of ethnic minorities and suspected nuclear ties with North Korea.

Obama insists that his brief but historic visit to Myanmar is not about endorsing the generals but about encouraging them to walk more purposefully down the path of democratisation.

Obama argues that the US must extend a hand to those nations seeking to move in the right political direction, even if the reforms are not complete. That Myanmar has changed beyond anyone’s expectations in the last two years has made it easier for Obama to push ahead. His new enthusiasm for Myanmar, however, is not without geopolitical calculation. Much like Delhi’s embrace of Myanmar two decades ago, Washington’s current logic is driven by the imperative of balancing Beijing in Asia. America’s new interest is part of its “pivot” to Asia and includes plans to build military ties with Naypyidaw.

Whatever Obama’s motivations, his Myanmar sojourn should be welcome in Delhi. For all its desire to counter Beijing’s growing influence, India never had the resources to compete with China’s expansive presence there. Obama’s visit will help Myanmar end its prolonged isolation, reduce its dependence on China, and reclaim its independent voice inAsian affairs.Above all, Obama’s visit vindicates India’s conviction that large and diverse countries need time and space to sort out multiple political challenges at home. The direction and speed of Myanmar’s reforms can’t be managed through “calibrated” sanctions. Myanmar is unlikely to become a perfect democracy any time soon. But Obama’s political support can only increase the likelihood of positive change in Myanmar and a better regional balance.

Times of India

The King is Dead

BY VIR SANGHVI One measure of Bal Thackeray’s political significance was his sheer longevity. Even though his career straddled four decades, his influence still shows no signs of ebbing.

Consider this: when Thackeray first sprang to prominence, Lal Bahadur Shastri had just died, K Kamaraj ran the Congress party and Maharashtra was controlled by SK Patil and VP Naik. Though many of these politicians are long-forgotten, Thackeray continued to be the uncrowned king of Mumbai (he changed the city’s name from Bombay) till the very end.

Thackeray was a political cartoonist, most famously with the Free Press Journal. He founded the Shiv Sena as an organisation to advance the interests of Maharashtrians who felt neglected in the capital of their own state. His early sponsor was the Congress chief minister VP Naik who wanted the Shiv Sena to counter the communist trade unions that were taking over in Bombay’s industrial belt. Naik and other Congress bosses also used the Sena to attack the campaign of VK Krishna Menon, who was opposing the Congress in North Bombay in the 1967 general elections.

For Thackeray, the battle against Menon was both ideological (Menon was left-leaning) and ethnic: the Sena launched a campaign against all Malayalis, claiming they had stolen jobs from Maharashtrians. When Menon lost, Thackeray used this triumph to broaden his attack on all nonMaharashtrians. Shiv Sainiks beat up Tamilian shoe-shine boys and threatened Gujarati-owned shops and businesses.

By the mid-seventies, the Shiv Sena was a fact of life in Bombay. It organised riots, gheraos and bandhs with chilling and violent efficiency.

As its influence grew, the Congress turned against it. In 1975-76, during the Emergency, Thackeray’s press was shut down and many Sainiks were arrested. But when the Emergency was lifted, Thackeray blamed his mistreatment on the then chief minister SB Chavan and continued to venerate Indira Gandhi, even organising a bandh when the Janata

At a personal level, Thackeray was unfailingly charming, warm and loyal. But at a political level, he ran the Shiv Sena like some creative enterprise, altering the storyline to suit the mood of the day. To his credit, his creativity rarely failed him and his enterprise flourished. government arrested her.

The BJP-loving, Muslim-hating avatar of the Sena was a product of the mid-eighties. By then, Thackeray had forgiven Gujaratis and other prosperous “outsiders” and decided that Muslim-baiting offered greater political dividends. Through his friendship with Pramod Mahajan, he linked up with the BJP, and in 1992-93, Shiv Sena workers took an active part in communal riots.

Thackeray was so proud of his role in those massacres that when Mani Ratnam’s Bombay was released, his primary objection to the film was that a character patterned on Thackeray expressed regret. (“Why should I regret?” he thundered).

He was right about the political wisdom of the strategy and the Sena-BJP alliance took office in Maharashtra following the riots. Concerned that he should not be seen as just another politician, Thackeray refused to head the government, appointed a nominee as CM, and declared he would run the show by “remote control”.

What accounted for Thackeray’s longevity? It was a mixture of mas-

sive personal charisma, astuteness and a sense of timing. But it was also that he had no real core beliefs: his two idols were Walt Disney (also a cartoonist) and Adolf Hitler (whom he liked to think of as a painter). At a personal level, Thackeray was unfailingly charming, warm and loyal.

But at a political level, he ran the Shiv Sena like some creative enterprise, altering the storyline to suit the mood of the day. To his credit, his creativity rarely failed him and his enterprise flourished, outlasting its original mentors by decades and re-shaping the character of the city of its birth, changing cosmopolitan Bombay into a more Marathi-centric Mumbai. HT

Reader Feedback

Its important to note that Congress created Shiv Sena against the trade unions. The trade unions was the communist bastion, who were actually fighting for the workers.

Most of the workers were Marathis, Congress saw this and created Shiv Sena to destroy the trade unions, after the Mills were destroyed and people’s livelihoods ended. They now wanted the clerk jobs in government offices At that time South Indians were more educated than the Marathis and naturally since they were well versed with the stenographer/typist & English skills, most low level clerks were South Indians.

So instead of Merit,Thackeray used violence, threat and physical harm to intimidate the South Indians and by force pressurised the South Indians to move out. (Most moved to Gulf countries, Bangalore, Delhi and Hyderabad).

Then the only other people who were creating jobs in the city was the Marwaris, Gujaratis Udupi Hoteliers and Parsis. Thackeray and his Shiv Sena goons started attacking the Gujaratis and Udupi businesses.

Other cities in India like Delhi, Bangalore, Cochin and Hyderbad are moving fast ahead in infrastructure, cleanliness, industry friendliness and quality of life; our city is being damaged further by this rural mentality -- Raj, Mum-

Indo American News FOUNDER: DR. K.L. SINDWANI PUBLISHER: JAWAHAR MALHOTRA EDITOR: PRAMOD KULKARNI MANAGING EDITOR: MANASI GOKHALE ADVERTISING & ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGER: VANSHIKA VIPIN CORRESPONDENTS HOUSTON: MANU SHAH, CHETNA SAMAL CHICAGO: NAND KAPOOR, INDIA: RAJ KANWAR ®All rights reserved. No material herein or portions thereof may be published without the written consent of the publisher. The deadline for advertising and articles is 5 pm on Monday of each week. Please include self-addressed, stamped envelope for return of all unsolicited material. Published at 7457 Harwin Drive, Suite 262, Houston, Texas 77036. Tel: 713-789-NEWS or 6397 Fax: 713-789-6399, email: indoamericannews@yahoo.com, website: indoamerican-news.com

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2012 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

COMMUNITY

November 23, 2012

19

FIS Signs MOU with Houston Community College System

HOUSTON: An official Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed by Krishna Vavilala, Chairman of Foundation for India Studies (FIS) and Mary S. Spangler, Chancellor of Houston Community College System (HCCS) to collaborate in the Indo-American Oral History project. The Chancellor was represented by Dr. Zachary Hodges, President of HCC-North West.

The purpose of the MOU was to affirm the creation of a partnership and working relationship between FIS and HCCS to produce oral histories of the first generation Indian immigrants living in the greater metropolitan area of city of Houston, Texas.

Under the terms of the agreement, HCC will serve as an advisor to FIS on video recording technology and ensure that recorded interviews meet appropriate standards of quality.

Schedule permitting, HCC will also make available to FIS their North West College studios for filming the interviews by their student interns under the direction of Ty Welborn, Dept. Chair for Audio Recording and Film making, supervised by the Asst.

Chair, Richard Boyd. The filmed interviews will then be sent to Houston Public Library (HPL) for editing and archiving, under a similar MOU FIS had signed last year with HPL. The MOU was signed in the backdrop of colorful Diwali festival decorations which were artistically arranged by HCC staff under the supervision of Dr. Ritu Raju, Professor of English and Asst. Chair of Technical Communications and Rima Adil, HCC Communications Outreach Coordinator. A sumptuous Partnership luncheon was provided by courtesy of HCC. The signing of MOU with HCC marks another significant mile stone in the history of FIS who has initiated the Indo-American Oral History

From left: Ty Welborn, Dept. Chair for HCC Audio Recording and Film making; Richard Morales, FIS Advisory Board; Parul Fernandes, Vice-Chair, FIS; Judith Hiott, Chief of Houston Public Library Network; Surender Talwar,FIS Director; Meera Kapur,FIS Director, Dr. Zachary Hodges, President, HCC-North West; Neeta Sane,HCC Board of Trustees; Consul General Parvathaneni Harish, Krishna Vavilala, FIS Chairman; Ellen Goldberg, FIS Advisory Board; Roalnd Lemonious; Dr. Raj Bhalla, FIS Director and Vatsa Kumar, FIS Secretary.

FIS Directors who were present at the event, but were missed in these HCC photos: Dr. Nik Nikam, Dr. Rajender Aparasu, Manisha Mehta and FIS General Counsel ,Bashist Sharma.

Project.

In his speech, while thanking HCC for the partnership, FIS Chairman Krishna Vavilala suggested that HCC should also consider introducing courses in India Studies for better understanding of the Indian culture by the main street community. Dr. Zachary Hodges was receptive to the idea and asked for information on other community colleges in the country that have programs in India studies.

Parul Fernandes, Vice Chair of FIS assisted Hon. Consul General, Parvathaneni Harish who presented FIS Certificates of Appreciation to Ty Welborn who accepted the Certificates on behalf of his students and interns: Torrance Atkinson, Kevin Bui, Daniel Vargas and Omar Agha, who helped in filming the interviews on June 15 at the FIS event in India House in which former Mayor Bill

White and his wife, Laura White were the guests of honor.

Krishna Vavilala stated at the signing ceremony that fifteen interviews are done so far and with this new partnership with HCC, the interviews will be expedited to achieve the set goal of one hundred by the end of 2013.

He also stated that FIS is looking for donations and volunteers to help the project since in his words; this is after all a project of the community, by the community and for the community, paraphrasing the famous words of Abraham Lincoln. The event concluded with Vote of Thanks by FIS Secretary, Vatsa Kumar.

For further information on volunteering opportunities and scheduling an appointment for an interview, call Krishna Vavilalaat 713-795-5169 or email to: kvavilala1@gmail.com.

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Third YLDP Session with Francene Young

HOUSTON: On November 10, the Youth Leadership Development Program’s Class of 2013 had the opportunity to meet with and learn from Francene Young, Shell Oil Company’s Vice President of Talent and Diversity & Inclusiveness. Young explained the significance of accepting people different than ourselves to gain competitive edge in today’s business environment. She showed how diversity and inclusiveness fosters creativity and innovation at our workplace.

Today when we view at person at first glance we tend to draw conclusions and make false judgments. Our range of perception is constricted as it is when we view an iceberg, for example. What we see above the waterline is a small portion of the whole.

The tip of the iceberg is composed of characteristics like gender and physical appearance, things that we make quick generalizations off of. They are the minute details that compose person and lie at the surface. Often we forget to look deeper into the water and beneath the top layer to what truly makes up a person such as their skills, life experiences and values.

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As a result, we prevent the nurturing of relationships. Many times we overlook the importance of building bonds with our coworkers, and we give off micro-inequities or negative vibes such as adverse facial expressions and body language. This results to our co-workers feeling insecure and unaccepted by their company, therefore they don’t perform their best. We forget that relationships in the workplace define the strength of a company. A positive work environment is needed and leads to increased customer satisfaction, productivity, profitability, and decreased turnover.

Today we live in an increasingly

globalized world where every corner is linked. In order to appeal to the variety of customers out there businesses must become aware of the diversity, drawing from it in a workforce and with inclusion value those who are different from us, respect their views, and encourage mutual cooperation that has the ability to produce outstanding results by creating an environment where everyone can showcase their best self and represent the community as the exchange of ideas fosters growth.

YLDP students Ruchika Bengani, Setu Shah, Soumya Shekhar, Rishabh Dhar, Sharath Bhat contributed to this article.

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65

COMMUNITY 20

November 23, 2012

6 Recital Program by Vagdevi School of Indian Music th

HOUSTON: Vagdevi school of Indian Music conducted its 6th recital program on November 17 from 3-5pm at Sienna Plantation, Missouri City. The students of Vagdevi Music School had put in their best efforts to make the recital a success.

All of them participated with a great enthusiasm and passion towards their performances. The event started with an introduction about the recital by the host of the event Sonali Pakala and cordial welcome by the music instructor Raja Rajeswari Kalaga.

The teacher and students together started the recital with the prayer Shuklambaradharam.

ThestudentsAdithriBaditala,Divya Ambatipudi,Ashrita Duvvuri, Nitya Pakala, Niharika Pakala, Kavya Vaidyanathan, Kartik Vaidyanathan, Sanjay Sugumar, Amit Chivukula, Divya Aloori, Kartika Krishnan, Rachana Penmethsa, Kavya Pem-

methsaVenkat Disika, chitra Shankar, Sonali Pakala, Anya Kamalapuri and others recited varnams in two kalas(speeds), Tyagaraja kritis, Deekshitar kritis, melodious annamayya kirtanas and Bhajans, and filled the evening with an enormous joy.Vaishnavi Pali from Chicago and And Deekshita Devanand from Boston logged on skype and sang online.

All the students were awarded a participation certificate in the name of the School.

The music teacher and the founder of Vagdevi Music School Raja Rajeswari Kalaga performed Saraswati Namostute in Saraswathi Ragam and Palinchu Kamakshi in Madhamavathi ragam. At the end of the program, Kalaga announced about the music competitions and a music program named “Saradaga Padukundam’’ as the future events of the Vagdevi Music School.

COMMUNITY

UH Chancellor Dr. Renu Khator: International Executive of the Year 2012

Dr. Khator with Indo American Chamber of Greater Houston members and GHP Officials.

HOUSTON: Dr. Renu Khator, Chancellor of the University of Houston System and President of the University of Houston, was honored as the Greater Houston Partnership’s 2012 International Executive of the Year on November 15 at Hyatt Regency, Houston. Robert W. Harvey, President and CEO, welcomed the gathering. Umesh Verma, President and CEO of Blue Lance company and GHP Board member introduced Dr. Renu Khator. In her acceptance speech, Dr. Khator said that 50 % of students drop out in Texas which can not be accepted.

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COMMUNITY

November 23, 2012

Diwali Celebrations at Arya Samaj

21

DAV Sanskriti School children show the Diwali spirit by singing “Diwaali pukaarati” song under the gudance of Smriti Shrivastava. The song was composed by Acharya Pravin Ji of Arya Samaj.

BY NANDITA SHARMA HOUSTON: Diwali, the festival of lights is the most important festival for all Hindus, celebrated all over India. If there was a national festival for Hindus, undoubtedly it would be Diwali. There have been many beautiful Diwali celebrations in Houston, but this one was extra special because it was done by the children of the community.

Children who are the future torch bearers of Hindu community, the generation which hopefully will not be known by the acronym ABCD, but rather as people who personify the Indian culture and values, the ones who have a better understanding of its beauty and some of its more traditional aspects, like respect for elders.

The program at the Arya Samaj auditorium started sharp at 5:30 pm with Acharya Surya Nanda ji conducting the beautiful havan and leading the entire congregation through it, explaining the significance of different mantras. Consul General P. Harish and his family joined Dev Mahajan and Ashutosh Garg’s family to be the yajmaan for the Havan.

Acharya ji started off by explaining how significant the day was, extremely auspicious being Mahaveer Jain’s birthday, he shared a beautiful story of Swami Dayanand Saraswathi leaving his earthly body on this day. Swami ji was the founder of Arya Samaj and personally took on the crusade of pointing out and correcting the ills that had crept into the Hindu religion. His enemies had crushed glass, mixed it with poison and gave it to him. He suffered a lot of pain yet left his body on Diwali knowing that his mission had been accomplished to a certain degree and now there was enough momentum for others to continue taking up the unfinished cause.

He then, gave a beautiful discourse

Arya Samaj Trustee Dev Mahajan presents “Aum” to Bharat’s Consul General Harish Parvathaneni as a token of well wishes for Diwali.

on the meaning of Diwali, which is celebrated on the Amavasya (new moon) in the month of Kartik (Indian calendar), which traditionally signifies the harvesting at the end of the fall season. He explained that you light the diya (earthen lamp) only when there is darkness around you, to illuminate the surroundings so that you can see the path or way. He applied it so beautifully in a deeper context by saying that one needs to be the light in the lives of those who lack the light in their lives. He explained that you don’t light a lamp in broad daylight, in the same way your effort and large-heartedness needs to be directed toward those who need help in the true sense of the term. I liked his talk so much, that I am going to make an effort to listen to the pravachan, whenever opportunities arise.

The program started with all the DAVMS children being seated beautifully on stage holding diyas and they sang a beautiful bhajan taught

by Acharya Praveen and Ms. Smrithi. The children were all dressed in traditional attire looking splendid.

The cameras and phones flashed nonstop and I am sure the children basked in all the media like attention they were getting. The Arya Sa-

maj auditorium is simply beautiful, I don’t know of any school which boasts of its students having access to such a beautiful stage for all their functions.

The consul general touched every heart in the room when he started speaking eloquently in Hindi and then shifting to English thus ensuring that everyone was able to understand and appreciate what he was saying. The remark which stood out most in my mind was when he said the Arya Samaj School in Delhi does not have the variety of activities that our children are exposed to here in America. He also reminded us how fortunate and blessed we are to have such platforms as the Arya Samaj available in Houston to educate our children and ourselves.

Dev Mahajan took the opportunity to apprise everybody of the Sunday school, electives, singing, dancing, the orphanage in Pondicherry, the reading program during the summer where the children read to raise funds for those who are in need of the light coming into their lives. Through the Sunday satsang & pravachan, the activities the children do on a regular basis week after week to learn about their national language Hindi and

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cultural heritage, and Wednesday evening classes on Gita and Sanskrit, as well as free Yoga and pranayama classes on Sunday mornings – Arya Samaj is an exceedingly rich fertile ground available for children and adults alike. All we need to do is place ourselves in it, soaking in the surroundings and conditions that are optimum for spiritual development, and growth will naturally start germinating from within.

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22

INDIA

November 23, 2012

Dance of Death in Vidarbha

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BY PAVAN DAHAT A phone call informing him about the twin suicides of his father and older brother changed 23-year-old Sunil Wagh’s life forever. On September 28, his father Shivaji, 55, and brother Baliram, 28, hung themselves, Shivaji at his farm and Baliram at his home in Pokhari village in Buldhana district.

Twelve farmers have committed suicide in this village since over a decade and three in the last six months.

When Sunil reached home, he found all the villagers gathered there.

With the burden of running his household creeping on him, Sunil consoled his mother and 18-year-old sister Pallavi. His brother Baliram had locked the house from inside before hanging himself.

“I didn’t know what to do,” says Sunil. His uncle, Dagdu Wagh says, “Shivaji had sold one acre from his five acres last year to get money for Pallavi’s admission in a CBSE pattern school in Buldhana”.

In the rest of the five acres he was cultivating soyabean but was not able to get any profit. Sometimes even the input cost couldn’t be recovered.”

“My father never had a dispute with anyone in the village. He was an introvert but never showed his frustration to us,” says Pallavi, who studies in Class 12 in a school in Buldhana and aims to be a doctor.

“On the day of his suicide he looked at me, smiling for some time before leaving home,” says Shivaji’s wife, Shobha. Shivaji had hung himself from the ceiling of a shed in his farm.

Baliram had suffered a handicap in one hand but he used to assist his father in his farm work. “Baliram did say some times that he felt bad about his inability to contribute to the family income but my father never let him feel that way,” says Sunil.

The Wagh family has a history of suicide. Shivaji Wagh’s younger brother Pralhad committed suicide in 2000. After three years, another brother Narayan Wagh killed himself.

Sunil’s cousin Kailas Wagh hanged himself in March this year just a day before his marriage.

Dattu Tekade, neighbour of the Wagh family says, “Kailas was not

Parents of Vishal Jadhav, who committed suicide in September.

Photo: Pavan Dahat

Pokhari village in Maharashtra’s Buldhana district continues to reel under a spate of farmer suicides.

From 1998 till now, nothing seems to have changed able to fulfil his family’s basic needs with whatever he was getting from his three acres.”

After Kailas Wagh’s suicide, the Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghtana (SSS) and the then Tehsildar of Buldhana Rural, Suresh Bagale had adopted this village.

Twenty days before Shivaji and Baliram ended their lives, Vishal Bhagwan Jadhav, a 24-year-old Dalit farmer in Pokhari, consumed pesticide in his field. Father of two-yearold Salony, Vishal Wagh had sold one acre of his six acres to buy a Mahindra tractor. “Vishal was under a lot of pressure because he was getting constant reminders from Mahindra Company for defaulting on instalments and the dealer had also confiscated his tractor trolley,” says Vishal’s father Bhagwan Jadhav.

“Vishal was popular but a few days before his death he used to curse himself for deciding to stay in the village and making farming as his livelihood,” says Dagadu Wagh. “But

he never showed his frustration to me or his wife,” says Vishal’s mother Kantabai.

Pokhari witnessed a farmer’s suicide for the first time in 1998 when Baban Sitaram Ekade killed himself.

Since 1998, apart from five suicides in the Wagh family, Bharat Deosingh Ekade, Sanjay Kisan Ekade (cousin of Deputy Sarpanch Pandurang Ekade), Vikram Anandrao Pawar, Kisan Ganpat Ekade, Sanjay Tulasiram Ekade, apart from Vishal Jadhav, have killed themselves.

According to Deputy Sarpanch Pandhurang Ekade, out of 12 suicides, 10 farmers were below the age of 40 years and none of them had any addictions. “Fifteen farmers attempted suicide in all these years but we were able to save them in time,” he adds. When asked about the reason of these suicides, Gajanan Amadabadkar, a leader of the SSS, says, “It’s simple. The farmers have not been able to recover the production cost of what they are cultivating.

Most of the farmers of Pokhari cultivate soyabean. Still you can see such high number of suicides. Conditions would have been worse had they been growing Bt cotton.”

Ravikant Tupkar, president of the Youth wing of the SSS, says, “We did adopt the village but there have been more suicides after that. It’s a cycle of suicide and we will now focus on the young men from Pokhari. It’s a long process. We have to tell them that suicide is not the solution.”

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Jab Tak Hai Jaan: The Yash Chopra SRK Chemistry Mesmorizes , Again!

Cast:Shah Rukh Khan, Katrina Kaif, Anushka Sharma Director: Yash Chopra BYANANYA BHATTACHARYA (Zeenews) Tiding over the logical incongruity of an ageing superstar playing a twentysomething lover boy who matches steps with a vivacious actress half his age might take some doing. But once you manage to get that mental holdup out the way, Jab Tak Hai Jaan, Yash Chopra’s last film, is a perfectly fitting finale to an eventful life and career.

The screenplay by Aditya Chopra and Devika Bhagat is by no means flawless but, for the most part, Jab Tak Hai Jaan is watchable, if somewhat emotionally manipulative.

Beautifully shot in easy-on-theeye parts of London and Ladakh, the film, in the best traditions of a Yash Chopra romance, sees the world primarily through a triedand-tested “love is life” aperture.

The view that it provides is generally likable, if not always completely persuasive.

The mushy moments at the heart of the love story might feel a tad pulpy at times. ButJab Tak Hai Jaan leaves a soothing afterglow.

You have seen it all before, notably in Dil To Pagal Hai and Veer-Zaara. Yet, Jab Tak Hai Jaan exudes a surprising degree of freshness. It stems from the quirky new-age twists that the screenplay throws into the mix.

One half of the film is a variation on the legend of Mirabai – the heroine, a prim and propah

London girl, is caught between her unshakable faith in Jesus Christ (who she believes will never let her down) and her temporal love for a charming street musician who sweeps her off her feet and tempts her to “cross the line”.

A substantial part of the second half presents another face of Eve in the form of a gutsy Delhi girl who is proud to belong to the “instant make

out, instant break-up” generation.

The feel-good romantic ménage a trois plays out in two divergent settings ten years apart. The plot twists are simple and often rather facile, especially when the film hurtles towards its rather predictable denouement.

That apart, Jab Tak Hai Jaan resorts to oldschool tropes like road accidents, a head injury, a protracted case of retrograde amnesia and a neurologist who recommends some playacting

to help the victim regain normalcy.

But when it comes to emotional layering, which was always Yash Chopra’s forte as a storyteller, the director is in complete control.

The film has enough simple moments of tenderness to offset the several not-so convincing heavy-handed twists.

The opening sequence – set in present-day Leh – introduces the audience to Major SamarAnand of the Indian army’s bomb disposal squad at work at work. He knows no fear.

He defuses IEDs without donning a bomb suit. He is known as “the man who cannot die”.

Through the pages of his diary, the film cuts to London and goes back in time.

Samar Anand is a struggling Indian immigrant. He makes a living by strumming a guitar and singing folksy Punjabi numbers at tourist spots and doing odd jobs as a snow-cleaner outside a church, a sales boy in a fish market and a waiter in a restaurant.

He falls in love with Meera Thapar (Katrina Kaif), daughter of a wealthy NRI businessman (Anupam Kher). Circumstances contrive to keep them apart although they develop the deepest feelings for each other.

A heartbroken Samar leaves for India and joins the army. In Kashmir valley, the musicianturned-soldier meets another pretty girl Akira Rai (Anushka Sharma), an aspiring documentary filmmaker on an assignment to record the

bomb expert and his team at work.

But the London lass still haunts Samar and he is caught between the woman who inspired his music and the bubbly young girl who livens up things around the brooding loner.

Akira confesses to being “totally, completely, madly” in love with Samar, but the latter spurns her advances.

Though the focus of Jab Tak Hai Jaan is on the male protagonist, the two women in his life aren’t mere mannequins. They are full-on Yash Chopra heroines, blessed with both grace and intelligence, besides the ability to speak their minds and hold on to their beliefs.

Therefore, despite the lovey-dovey nothingness that drives the plot, Jab Tak Hai Jaan has more substance than most romantic films that come out of Bollywood.

Shahrukh oozes charm and chutzpah and ensures the character remains in the realms of believability.

Katrina plays the grounded Meera with assurance.

In the moments when she is egged on by Samar to let her hair down – especially in the sequence with the underground dancers – the actress lets herself go and makes an impression.

But it is to Anushka Sharma that Jab Tak Hai Jaan really belongs. Turning in an infectiously energetic performance, she breathes life into the somewhat flaccid second half.

Surprisingly, one aspect of Jab Tak Hai Jaan that isn’t quite up to scratch is the musical score. The AR Rahman-Gulzar combo that never fails to yield a cracker isn’t quite in its elements here.

The love ditties sound nice while they play on the screen, but they do not stay with you after the hurlyburly is done.

Watch Jab Tak Hai Jaan not just for the obvious sentimental reason but for the fact that it shows, for one last time, what Bollywood will miss now that the undisputed master of romantic sagas is no more.

Son of Sardar : Comical Saga of Vendetta

BY ANUPAMA CHOPRA (HT) In 1923, Buster Keaton directed a delightful comedy titled Our Hospitality, about a multi-generational family feud. The last descendent of one family returns to his native village after many years. The rival family wants to kill him but they have a rule about not

ning gags, interspersed with action sequences, instantly forgettable songs and nonsensical dialogue. The idea, I think, is to be entertained without straining your brain. I’m all for it, as long as there is significant entertainment.

There was none here.

Son of Sardaar is exhausting, painfully loud

harming houseguests, so as long as he is in their house, he’s safe.

Now, 89 years later, the story arrives in Bollywood via Telugu cinema (SS Rajamouli first made it here, as Maryada Ramanna). In the hands of director and co-writer Ashwni Dhir, it has become one of those high-decibel, low-IQ masala movies that hit the screen every few months.

These aren’t so much films as series of run-

and way too long, with too few laughs.

Ajay Devgn as the buffoonish and burly Jassi has some moments of genuine comedy, but Sanjay Dutt, playing the ferocious Billu Paaji, is just large and lumbering. The one bright spot here is Juhi Chawla as Billu Paaji’s mooh-boli biwi - she sparkles in every scene she has.

Son of Sardaar made me miss Rohit Shetty, the reigning king of this type of cinema. That says it all.

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Pregnant Indian Woman’s Death in Ireland Sparks Outrage LONDON (Zee News) : Shellshocked and distressed Praveen Halappanavar, whose wife died in Ireland after doctors allegedly refused to perform an abortion stating “this is a Catholic country”, said his wife would have been alive today if a termination had been given.

Savita Halappanavar, a 31-year-old Indian woman, died from blood poisoning. Notably, abortion is illegal in the Republic of Ireland.

Irish authorities have launched a probe into the death of Savita, a dentist, who was 17 weeks pregnant and suffered a miscarriage and septicaemia at University Hospital Galway last month, The Irish Times reported on Wednesday.

Her husband, Praveen Halappanavar, an engineer at Boston Scientific in Galway, said that she asked several times over a three-day period that the pregnancy be terminated.

“Savita was really in agony. She was very upset, but she accepted she was losing the baby,” he told The Irish Times in a telephone interview from Belgaum, southwest India. “When the consultant came on the ward rounds on Monday morning, Savita asked if they could not save the baby, could they induce to end the pregnancy? The consultant said: ‘As long as there is a foetal heartbeat, we can’t do anything.’

“Again on Tuesday morning ... the consultant said it was the law, that this is a Catholic country. Savita said: ‘I am neither Irish nor Catholic’but they said there was nothing they could do,” Praveen Halappanavar said.

He said his wife vomited repeatedly and collapsed in a restroom that night, but doctors wouldn’t terminate the foetus because its heart was still beating.

The foetus died the following day and its remains were surgically removed. Within hours, Savita was placed under sedation in intensive care with blood poisoning and he was never able to speak with her again, her husband said. By Saturday, her heart, kidneys and liver had stopped working. She was pronounced dead early Sunday, October 28.

An autopsy carried out two days later found she died of septicaemia “documented ante-mortem” and E.Coli ESBL. “We begged them for a D&C but yet she was just left there... It makes no sense. I have lost her now what can I do? I am helpless,” Praveen was quoted as saying by The Sun. A hospital spokesperson confirmed the Health Service Executive had begun an investigation while the hospital had also initiated an internal investigation.

Savita’s death has sparked the debate over legalising abortion in Ireland. Savita mother A Mahadevi told a news agency that in order to save a yet-to-be-born child, “they killed my 31-year-old daughter”.

Ireland’s Prime Minister Enda Kenny said he was awaiting findings from three investigations into the

Savita Halappanavar, 31, died of septicaemia a week after being found to be miscarrying while at a Galway hospital.

Photo: The Irish Times

Savita’s husband demands ‘full public inquiry’ into her death death of Savita, who was 17 weeks pregnant. Her case highlighted the legal limbo in which pregnant women facing severe health problems can find themselves in predominantly Catholic Ireland.

Ireland’s Constitution officially bans abortion, but a 1992 Supreme Court ruling found the procedure should be legalised for situations when the woman’s life is at risk from continuing the pregnancy. Five governments since have refused to pass a law resolving the confusion, leaving Irish hospitals reluctant to terminate pregnancies except in the most obviously life-threatening circumstances.

The vast bulk of Irish women want-

ing abortions, an estimated 4,000 per year, simply travel next door to England, where abortion has been legal on demand since 1967. But that option is difficult, if not impossible, for women in failing health.

The couple had settled in 2008 in Galway, where Praveen Halappanavar works as an engineer at the medical devices manufacturer Boston Scientific. His wife was qualified as a dentist but had taken time off for her pregnancy. Her parents in India had just visited them in Galway and left the day before her hospitalisation.

Praveen Halappanavar said he took his wife’s remains back to India for a Hindu funeral and cremation on November 03. News of the circumstances that led to her death emerged on Tuesday in Galway after the Indian community cancelled the city’s annual Diwali festival. Savita Halappanavar had been one of the festival’s main organisers.

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Ikea’s Consumer Challenge in India

BY SHUCHI BANSAL (Mint) If news reports are to be believed, this week the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) is likely to clear Swedish furniture maker Ikea’s application to invest €1.5 billion (over Rs.10,000 crore) in opening stores in India. Ikea, the popular chain selling furniture and all things needed to set up a home, is entering the country through the 100% foreign direct investment route allowed in single-brand retail.

Over the years, the privately held furniture chain present in several countries in Europe, North America, the Asia Pacific, West Asia and the Caribbean has consumed a lot of ink and newsprint in the Indian media rife with speculation on its plans. FT.com recently said that the retailer is keen to become the “world’s biggest furniture retailer by increasing the number of stores by 50% by the end of the decade and almost doubling its sales and customer numbers.” Back in India, news on the multinational company’s recruitment activities, vendor negotiations and CSR (corporate social responsibility) initiatives supporting United Nations Development Pro-

Brand may need to tweak its ways for Indian market

gramme projects is trickling in.

Yet, those familiar with the Ikea systems say that the much-awaited brand may need to tweak its ways for this market. For a start, even the shopping experience at the do-it-yourself furniture store is one of its kind.

There is little human assistance and it is arrows and glow signs all around that help you navigate the byzantine multi-storey shopping arena. The good news is that you can touch, feel and explore the furniture and related accessories required for every room, nook or corner of the house.

How this format will match up

to the genuflection that the Indian consumers expect from shop assistants remains to be seen. At the end of your shopping spree that entails pushing pushcarts through long corridors, you are left alone to package your own stuff and carry it to the car.

There is wrapping paper, tape and a pair of scissors to pack your delicate glassware, for instance. The flat-pack furniture, fortunately, comes in cardboard boxes. Indians are used to their large shopping bags being reached to their cars by helpful shop assistants.

Even the furniture makers home deliver beds, book cases and sofas.

The other worry is the lack of self-regulation or sense of discipline among Indian consumers, especially those who go shopping with little children. The scale of the shopping space, in case Ikea plans to replicate its model in India, could be a quiet consumer’s worst nightmare come true with rowdy children jumping over display furniture and running across corridors. Recall any one of your painful train journeys, flights or theatre experiences to get the drift.

Hope the retailer will ensure a safe and peaceful shopping experience for its customers with the help of support staff who will enforce order.

Last but not the least the furniture itself may need to be re-worked to suit Indian tastes. Ikea creates clean, functional designs. Although Indians are used to heavy teakwood furniture with intricate design, retail experts claim that that may be changing.

What hasn’t changed still, however, are the cleaning habits of Indian households.

Unlike in Europe where houses are vacuum-cleaned once a week, obsessive Indian households move, shift and even lift furniture daily to

sweep and mop their floors. Clearly Ikea needs sturdy furniture that can withstand such daily onslaught.

B Narayanaswamy, consumer insight expert and a consultant with Ipsos Research, agrees that Indians like being served and find sales staff in stores abroad a bit stiff. But he says that there may be pent-up demand for a brand like Ikea. Besides, consumer behaviour at a branded store versus an unbranded retail store may not be hugely different. And that behaviour is improving.

The former chief executive of an apparel retail chain that sells a clutch of foreign brands does not agree that Indians make for badly behaved consumers. Shoppers at the modern retail outlets show that people now enjoy doing their own thing and are not looking to be served. “I have seen consumers with old money in Bangalore push their own carts in malls. Besides, isn’t the Delhi Metro proof that we are better behaved as consumers?

The Indian consumer has evolved.

We are ready for all kinds of brands and formats,” he concludes.

Shuchi Bansal is marketing and media editor with Mint.

India Ready to Sign FTA in Services, Investment with ASEAN: PM

BY SANDEEP DIKSHIT (The Hindu) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh responded to the urging of Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) by promising to finalise the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in services and investment before leaders from this 10-nation bloc arrive in Delhi next month for a summit with India.

On Sunday, Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong and President of Philippines Benigno Aquino during meetings with Dr. Singh were the most recent to press for an early conclusion of a comprehensive FTA.

India had signed the FTA in goods in 2009 and has since been negotiating its extension into the services and investment sectors. “India is prepared to conclude the agreement on trade in services and investment promotion before the commemorative summit in Delhi in December. This will be a strong signal of our deepening economic engagement, and will allow for rapid expansion in trade and investment flows in both directions,” Dr. Singh said in his opening remarks at the one-hour India-ASEAN summit here on Monday. During his response statement later, he felt a comprehen-

sive FTA would be the “springboard” for rapid expansion in economic relations with ASEAN. With the US backing the initiative, Dr. Singh said the India-MyanmarThailand highway would be operational by 2016 thus opening North East India to South East Asia. He also spoke about another alternative route through central or north Myanmar to connect Guwahati to Hanoi. US and Japan at their recently held second trilateral meeting with India had supported this initiative and the issue would be discussed at their next meeting in depth to be held

in Washington. “The route will be through virgin territory. With the big boys [Japan and the US] backing it, we would like to give the proposal a try,” said Government sources.

The Prime Minister pointed out that the importance of surface and sea connectivity with the east was being highlighted by the India-ASEAN car rally that will cover eight ASEAN countries over a route length of 8,000 kms and the sailing expedition by the naval ship Sudarshini which set off from Kochi.

Dr. Singh also mentioned other India-ASEAN initiatives that tend to

get eclipsed by more attractive initiatives. These include the upcoming business fair in Delhi, a past meeting between the heads of space agencies in Bengaluru and a meeting of ASEAN economic ministers in Guwahati next month. The Prime Minister’s assurance of across-the-board FTA with ASEAN by mid-December was welcomed by the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) which pointed out that the two were among the biggest beneficiaries of the shift in global economic equations and should jointly leverage their large markets and development endeavors.

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November 23, 2012

Bal Thackeray: A Leader Who Brought Ethnic Politics to Mumbai Melting Pot

BY MEENA MENON (The Hindu) Bal Thackeray, the man who could bring Mumbai and the entire State of Maharashtra to a standstill by a single command and whose ethnic and communal rhetoric added a strain of perpetual menace to an already fraught metropolis, died on Saturday, November 17. He was 86.

Never one to mince his words, he once famously described himself as the “remote control” of the first Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party government in Maharashtra in 1995. Two months ago, as the illness to which he eventually succumbed spread, he told Saamna somewhat mirthfully that he didn’t have the remote control for age in his hands.

Ever since Thackeray founded the Shiv Sena, or ‘Army of Shivaji,’ in June 19, 1966, it has set the tone for politics in the State. With his brand of rather vicious humour and fondness for mimicry, he forged a bond with his followers, speaking to people in a language they could understand.

Exhorted by his father Prabodhankar Thackeray, young Bal formed the Sena as a social organisation. Its aim: to take care of the Marathi manoos, who were ostensibly slighted in their own State by the steady stream of migrants who flocked to the prosperous region.

Sons of the soil The secret of his early rise lay in the Sena’s trade unions, which befriended employers and destroyed a oncestrong labour movement in Mumbai.

So successful was the Thackeray package that the Sena’s aggressive brand of regional politics has been adopted by the fledgling Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) in toto.

Many progressive stalwarts from the State including Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, Mahatma Phule and Savitri Phule and Shahu Maharaj had led pioneering struggles for social equality and justice. The Shiv Sena reduced all that to simple demands for regional prominence and a preference given to sons of the soil.

It is a politics that has sustained itself over the years in Mumbai, nourished by issues of increasing migration, poor civic amenities and lack of jobs for local people. With its avowed distance from class and caste politics, despite most of its leaders belonging to the upper castes, the Sena drew its strength from Marathi migrants from the Konkan, who formed the party’s base.

The pipe-smoking, beer-loving self-styled Hindu hriday samrat (‘emperor of Hindu hearts’) was born on January 23, 1926 in Pune into a Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu (CKP) family. Later, young Thackeray’s keen interest and skill in drawing got him a job briefly at the Free Press Journal, where he worked with the likes of R.K. Laxman. In 1960, he quit and started a weekly, Marmik, even before the Sena was formed. This he did with his brother, Srikant, father of Raj Thackeray. Marmik is still published. His column, ‘Vacha ani Thand Basa’ (read and keep quiet), became a hit, and he later changed the title to

Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray. File Photo: Vivek Bendre

Vacha ani Utha (read and rise).

The Maharashtra State was carved out of the Bombay Presidency, and after a bitter struggle Bombay city was included in it. That was the first major battle which reflected the asmita, or pride, of Marathi-speaking people. Prabodhankar played a major role and his writings in the fortnightly Prabodhan, which earned him his nickname, were widely read. It was he who suggested the name Shiv Sena for his son’s new organisation.

The elder Thackeray, who was a socialist and opposed the caste system, was anti-Communist. He passed on the trait to his son. The Sena’s launch was not ostentatious.

Bal Thackeray broke a coconut and spoke on the occasion, before a few people. It was a simple start to what would become a dreaded outfit in later years. The stated rationale of the party was to ensure justice to the Marathi people, who were feeling sidelined by the large Gujarati and South Indian population in the city.

While Raj Thackeray today vents his ire against North Indians, it was the migrants from the South that annoyed the Shiv Sena. South Indian and Udupi hotels became the first targets of hatred, and the new Shiv Sainiks, were a ready force to tackle the next enemy.

Use of violence Thackeray was known more as a cartoonist and writer than as a politician in the initial stages. He was an admirer of Adolf Hitler, whom he referred to in one interview as an artist. After the formation of the party, its first violent initiation led to the Army being called out in 1969 during prolonged riots over the MaharashtraKarnataka border dispute. From then on, there was no looking back. The border dispute continues to fester, and the Sena has vigorously backed the right of the Marathi-speaking areas in Karnataka to be merged with Maharashtra. Though Thackeray hated politics and famously referred to it as a “ringworm infection,” the Sena had willy-nilly become a political party.

Studies at that time showed how Marathi-speaking people were not getting jobs due to migrants, and there was a genuine grouse which the Sena readily took up. But jobs for locals also meant the Sena targeting labour unions from the Left, and breaking them. The murder of Krishna Desai, a

Communist Party leader in Parel, sent a chill of terror through the city and the party succeeded in setting up Sena unions everywhere, often supported by employers who were only too glad to have someone on their side.

Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Ashok Dhawale, in an article in the April-June 2002 issue of The Marxist, wrote: “In December 1967, the CPI headquarters of Mumbai at Dalvi Building in Parel, which is situated in the very midst of the textile area, was savagely attacked by SS hoodlums and almost destroyed. Organised attempts were made to break up Communist public meetings and several leaders and activists of both the CPI and the CPI(M) were physically assaulted.

The climax was reached on June 6, 1970, when armed goondas of the SS murdered the sitting MLA of the CPI, Krishna Desai. Krishna Desai was a popular and militant mass leader in the textile belt and had been elected municipal corporator four times before he was elected to the state assembly in 1967. This was the first major political assassination in Mumbai since Independence, and it sent shock waves through the city and State. The leadership of the entire opposition along with thousands of incensed workers, marched in Krishna Desai’s funeral procession. Opposition leaders directly accused the Shiv Sena and the Congress State government in general, and Bal Thackeray and Vasantrao Naik in particular, of being hand in glove in the perpetration of this heinous crime.”

Cultural policing Apart from taking up the cause of Marathi-speaking youth, the Sena constituted itself as a self-appointed culture police later in its history and targeted Valentine’s Day celebrations, Pakistani artists and writers, among others. However, in a muchpublicised event, pop icon Michael Jackson did a concert to raise funds for the Shiv Udyog Sena in 1996 and visited the Thackeray residence. He even used the toilet there — much to the family’s delight.

Given the Sena’s political clout and muscle, Bal Thackeray found that Bollywood was not exempt from his charms or uses. He afforded protection, friendship and support to individuals and groups when needed and there was hardly any film per-

sonality, big or small, who did not pay obeisance to him at his residence at crucial moments in their career.

One exception was the Communist actor A.K. Hangal. In 1999, Thackeray’s bonhomie with Dilip Kumar ended when he asked the legendary actor to return Pakistan’s highest civilian award, the Nishan e Imtiaz, following the Kargil war, and Kumar refused. Congress MP Sunil Dutt had to approach Thackeray to get Sainiks to back off from disrupting the screenings of his son Sanjay’s film Khalnayak. Thackeray softened his stand and Sanjay, then accused under the provisions of the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) in relation to the March 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts, managed to get bail in the Supreme Court after 16 months in jail.

Tacit Congress help The growth of the Sena could not have been possible without the tacit support of the Congress, its ally for some years. Chief Ministers Vasantrao Naik and Vasantdada Patil allowed the Sena to run amok to derive political advantage. Both had good relations with the Sena and used it as a tool to scotch the growth of the trade union movement in the city. The Sena’s Sthaniya Lokadhikar Samiti was formed in 1972 to generate jobs.

The trade union wing, the Bharatiya Kamgar Sena, was a rival to the unions in public sector undertakings and banks, and in the service industry.

Its main plank was to fight for jobs for the local people. The Sena established a network of shakhas in the city on the lines of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

Later, Thackeray supported the Emergency and Indira Gandhi and her son Sanjay in a bid to ensure that he would not be jailed. His support for the Congress continued at various times, with the party breaking ranks with the National Democratic Alliance and backing Pratibha Patil for President. In 2012, Pranab Mukherjee visited Thackeray to seek his support — which was given with alacrity.

Married with three sons, Thackeray mourned his eldest, Bindumadhav, in a car crash in 1996. His wife Meenatai passed away in 1995. His son Jaidev remained estranged from him.

Thackeray endeared himself to his millions of supporters. They looked up to him as a messiah. Here was a man who articulated their deepest frustrations, who protected them against “outsiders,” and whose army was willing to take to the streets for them. There was an emotional bonding between him and the crowds, who loudly appreciated his broadsides full of innuendo, and his mimicking of popular politicians. People looked forward to his annual Dussehra rallies at Shivaji Park. When in 2008, ill-health prevented him from holding forth in his usual style, the large crowd held its breath as Thackeray rambled on his favourite topics, prompted occasionally by his son Uddhav and Manohar Joshi.

Communal politics Thackeray’s Hindutva politics be-

gan at the Durgadi temple/mosque dispute in the late 1960s. It was manifested in the communal riots of Bhiwandi, Jalgaon and Mahad in 1970. The Justice Madan Commission blamed the Sena and other saffron outfits for the riots. The victory of Ramesh Prabhoo in the Vile Parle byelection in 1987 on a Hindutva plank, was a first for the party. It was a political line that would lead to Thackeray being debarred from voting for six years, but he continued to defend it saying it was in his blood.

Hindutva would take the Sena to victory in the 1995 Assembly polls for the first time, a feat it has not managed to repeat. Flush with its triumph after the post-Babri Masjid demolition communal riots, Bal Thackeray and his party even rejected the grave findings of the Justice Srikrishna Commission inquiry report into the communal carnage in Mumbai in December 1992 and January 1993.

Using Saamna, a daily it launched in 1990, the Sena unleashed mayhem in the city for two months and nearly a thousand people lost their lives.

Thackeray said in a TV interview that he was not a riot master, and added that he had only defended Hindus.

Though acquitted in one matter, the eight or nine cases against Thackeray and his newspaper for inflammatory writings were not pursued. Not by the Sena-BJP regime which he controlled by remote control. Nor indeed by the Congress-NCP government which followed.

Uncertain legacy In a party which never had internal elections and in which only one man’s word was law, things were bound to deteriorate. Thackeray now leaves behind a crisis-ridden outfit that will find it difficult to replace his larger-than-life persona. His reticent son Uddhav, the heir, is cast in a very different mould. He is not authoritarian though he cleverly led the Sena to victory in the Mumbai civic polls for the fourth time in 2012. The worst blow to Thackeray perhaps was the departure of his nephew Raj in 2006, and his success in dividing the Marathi vote in the 15th Lok Sabha elections in Mumbai and Thane, helping the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party win. Before the 2012 polls to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, Thackeray in a TV interview wished for his son and nephew to be re-united. On July 16, 2012, Uddhav, who went for a test to Lilavati Hospital, had an unexpected visitor in Raj, who was summoned by his uncle. In a further show of camaraderie, Raj drove his cousin back home and visited him again after an angioplasty was performed a few days later. There was much debate, fed by the media, on the possible re-unification of the two Senas. Just before his death, Thackeray orchestrated a reunion in the family, even if it was not a political one. And that must have given him some solace. He leaves behind a time-tested formula for electoral gains in Mumbai and the State, but one his nephew Raj and the MNS may profit from even more than his own party.

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COMMUNITY

November 23, 2012

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Sri Lanka’s “People’s Dynasty” - Help or Harm for Growth?

BY FRANK JACK DANIEL (Reuters) - From foreign hotel towers sprouting on Colombo’s seafront to the new motorbikes and mobile phones buzzing in war-ravaged Jaffna, at first glance, Sri Lanka seems to be living up to its claim as Asia’s latest frontier market.

But private businesses are not investing enough, threatening the boom that has swept the island since the end of a long ethnic conflict, while President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his family are tightening their grip on the economy and institutions with what critics see as an unusually personalised system of government.

The global economy may be in poor shape, but with 17 percent growth since the war ended in 2009 and an eye-popping 200 percent rise in the stock market, investors should be flocking to Sri Lanka’s palm-fringed shores.

Instead, even home-grown businesses are shy.

The government reported $1 billion of foreign direct investment (FDI) last year, a record, but even officials accept that is not enough. More worrying, because it raises questions about the reliability of official data, the United Nations put FDI at just $300 million last year, its lowest level since 2005.

There are several possible explanations, but critics say that by making Sri Lanka something of a personal fiefdom and dragging his feet on reconciliation between the ethnic minority Tamil-dominated north and the majority Sinhalese Buddhist population, Rajapaksa shoulders some of the blame.

The president and his brothers control ministries and departments accounting for about 70 percent of the budget, including finance and defence. His elder son is an elected legislator and his eldest brother is the speaker of parliament, where the president holds a more-than twothirds majority.

“A handful of people seems to have captured both political authority and the economy,” said Harsha de Silva, spokesman on economic affairs for the main opposition United National Party.

“Almost four years after the end of the war, we are yet to see any established investors setting up businesses, apart for some big hotel chains.”

One Rajapaksa brother, Economic Affairs Minister Basil Rajapaksa, justified the system, telling Reuters that politics was a family affair everywhere from the United States to India and pointing out that he and his relatives were elected parliamentarians.

“It is a dynasty, but by people’s choice, a people’s dynasty,” he said in an interview, and suggested that more, rather than less, concentration of decision-making would help investment in a country where multiple permits slow start-ups.

“In other countries who are successful, they were successful because immediately one person he takes the decisions. In Sri Lanka, the main problem is that that is not there, more decisions have to be centralised.”

Opponents say the extensive control of commerce by the president and his family is at the root of the country’s problems.

“Half of all the ministries which are engaged in businesses are controlled

by Rajapaksa family under his ruling.

That is the main problem we are facing today,” said Sunil Handunnetti, an opposition parliamentarian with the Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, which used to support the president.

INDIANS AND CHINESE Whatever the rights or wrongs of the argument, the investment shortfall is a problem for President Rajapaksa, whose goal of 8 percent annual economic growth largely rests on foreign inflows in the form of debt from multilateral lenders and friends like China. Economists say this is not sustainable in the long run.

The president’s model of rapid infrastructure development has helped Sri Lanka bounce back more successfully than most post-war countries, but economists and businesses are wary. With Sri Lanka tipped as the top destination of 2013 by the Lonely Planet travel publisher and visitors up 30 percent last year, global hotel brands are lining up. But few are investing heavily, preferring to tie up with local players, some of which have links with the government.

Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal said negative reports about human rights violations during and after the war had a chilling affect on foreign direct investment, particularly from the West. The United Nations has urged the government to

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A woman rides her bicycle on a road in Jaffna September 10, 2012.Credit: Reuters/Dinuka Liyanawatte

investigate reports of serious abuses during the war. “Asian investors understand Asia better, as far as the ground situation is concerned, so you can see, the Indian investors are here, the Chinese investors are here,” he said. But de Silva said old problems worried people looking to do business.

“Investors will come only when they see stability. The stability will come with genuine peace. There is no cohesiveness. There is no position of the government for the devolution of power,” de Silva said. The Pathfinder Foundation economic think-tank warns that Sri Lanka is showing signs of “opportunistic state capitalism”, with the government cherry-picking opportunities and creating confusion about the roles of the private and public sectors.

Luxman Siriwardena, Pathfinder’s executive director, says Sri Lanka’s investment rate of 30 percent of gross domestic product leaves a shortfall of about $3 billion needed to attain the government’s target of 8 percent growth. “There is also need for greater clarity regarding the respective roles of the private and state sectors, including the military, in economic activity,” he said.

“NOT CONFIDENT” Jaffna, in the north where Tamils dominate, was once the second city and a major industrial hub. It is just emerging from isolation as an epicentre of the war that began in 1983.

Up to 40,000 civilians may have been killed in the government’s remorseless final offensive, according to the United Nations.

Public works and an appetite for consumer goods fuelled by remittances from exiles have spurred

growth in a town of bombed out buildings, but businesses are gloomy about the future.

The seaside city was virtually cut off from the rest of the country during the war that pitted largely Hindu Tamils against mostly Buddhist Sinhalese. It could take months for people in the area to get permission from the army to travel south.

Now, buses run daily and two domestic airlines fly there with small prop aircraft.

The most successful is Helitours, which flies passengers for half the price of its rival, Expo Air. Helitours is able to do so because it is part of the air force and has lower overheads.

Helitours also flies tourists to a golf course at an armed forces resort in another former war zone in the east - part of a network of military businesses that extends from private security and farming to catering and whale-watching. Some Jaffna residents complain the military controls too much land seized in the war. Others warn that government foot-dragging on local elections and easing ethnic tension has deterred both locals and wealthy overseas Tamils from investing.

Young Tamil businessman V. Kandappa came back from Britain at the end of the war to set up a business in his parent’s bomb-damaged home - a rare returned exile. He builds homes for members of the diaspora who dream of coming back. Almost half the population left Jaffna during the war.

“The private sector is still not confident about what is going to happen on the ethnic front, people are scared to invest their money in the north and eastern provinces,” Kandappa said.

FAMILY TIES

Back in Colombo, a striking feature of the Sri Lankan model is how heavily it depends on the president, his family and aides, who have ties to businesses such as hotels and aviation.

Take the Hyatt Regency, a 43floor tower being built by developer Sinolanka Hotels and Spa (Pvt) Ltd. Sinolanka is partly owned by the state insurance company, which is the main funder of the project. The insurer and Sinolanka are both headed by senior presidential aide Gamini Senerath.

The land was expropriated last year by Basil Rajapaksa’s ministry from a developer that ran out of cash.

The land belongs to the Urban Development Authority which comes under the Defence Ministry, where the top civil servant is another brother, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who runs the military.

Or the airlines. The government runs two more commercial carriers along with the air force’s Helitours. One is loss-maker Mihin Lanka, named after the president. Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the head of the air force helped set up Mihin five years ago as a budget airline. National carrier Sri Lankan Airlines is also fully state owned, since partner Emirates was bought out following an argument over seats for the president. The airline in now run by Rajapaksa’s brother-in-law and last year lost $147 million because of high fuel costs and low ticket prices, the central bank said.

Officially, government investment only accounts for 6 percent of total investment, but economists and diplomats privately say the number is higher because projects such as Mihin or the Hyatt get counted as private investment.

Basil Rajapaksa said the rapid development of power, telecoms and road networks since the war ended prove the success of the so-called Mahinda’s Vision model. He said the government’s role was partly to break private monopolies.

“In some sectors that are important to the people, the government has a responsibility to regulate, and if by regulating we can’t control, we have to break the monopoly.”

Editing by John Chalmers and Robert Birsel

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SPORTS

November 23, 2012

India Crushes England to Take 1-0 Series Lead

BY DAVID HOPPS AHMEDABAD (ESPNCricinfo): India 521 for 8 dec (Pujara 206*, Sehwag 117, Swann 5-144) and 80 for 1 (Pujara 41*) beat England 191 (Ojha 5-45) and 406 (Cook 176, Prior 91, Ojha 4-120) by nine wickets India went 1-0 up in the Test series with three to play when they rolled over England on the final day at Motera, taking the last five wickets by lunch to leave themselves needing only 77 for victory and then gambolling to victory with almost indecent haste in less than 16 overs. India can congratulate themselves on engineering a perfect victory; England must embrace change.

India had to labour long and hard to bowl out England a second time, spending ten-and-a-quarter hours in the field, but when they batted again, it was a breeze as Virender Sehwag and Cheteshwar Pujara unveiled a succession of unrestrained attacking shots that made a mockery of England’s painstaking attempts to save the Test.

Sehwag, a batsman who knows no fear, and who clearly could not care less whether he added a bit of red ink to a formidable Test record, was caught on the boundary trying to hit Graeme Swann for six, but Pujara, whose sterling double hundred in the first innings had been the cornerstone of India’s victory, sallied on. He looks to be a formidable young player.

One sublime piece of footwork

by Pujara, as he advanced to drive Swann through extra cover, was better than anything produced by England in the Test, a reminder that as staunchly as Cook and Prior resisted, they will need a more enlightened approach in the field and in their selection to force their way back into the series in the final three Tests.

On another still, blue morning in Ahmedabad, Pragyan Ojha claimed the key wickets of Cook and Prior as he found more turn than India’s spinners had managed on the previous day. Ojha took 4 for 120, to finish with 9 for 165 in the match.

Cook had organised epic resistance after England had followed

Choteshwar Pujara set the stage for India’s win with a double century.

on, 330 behind, but India’s resolve was reborn after a night’s rest and when he was seventh out, beaten by sharp turn and low bounce, the game immediately looked up.

Matt Prior and Cook had joined forces in a sixth-wicket stand which had given England a 10-run lead overnight and stirred tentative hopes among their supporters that they might save the game.

But they added only 16 runs to their overnight score before Prior was out in the 10th over of the morning, pushing too early at a nondescript delivery from Ojha that presumably held on to the surface and offering a simple return catch. They had put on 157 runs in 61 overs.

Cook’s innings spanned more than nine hours, one of the greatest rearguard innings ever produced by an England captain, but while it had led England from a sense of despair after their firstinnings collapse it looked unlikely to spare them from defeat as, four overs after Prior, he too fell.

Broad’s batting has become a liability, the belief that he offers extra depth to England’s lower order resting on a reputation no longer backed up by statistics. He provided a second return catch of the morning, a wooden push at Umesh Yadav off the leading edge.

India’s anxiety to force victory in a game they had dominated from the outset was evident. As

Broad shadow-practised the shot and patted down some damage to the pitch, Ojha, his passions overflowing, sensed that he was trying to damage the surface for England’s bowlers and gave him a send-off intense enough for the umpires to intervene to calm things down.

Prior had taken guard outside his crease to nullify the roughest areas and Swann took that to further extremes, standing a good yard beyond the line. India, apparently, were not impressed by the tactic, suspecting foul play and an attempt to make the surface disintegrate.

At eight down, with more than two sessions remaining, England’s cause required not just blocking, but something extraordinary.

Swann’s ambitions were clear when he slog-swept Ojha for six, but a switch hit against R Ashwin had a more calamitous outcome as the ball was too full and his middle stump was flattened. Ashwin, who had taken his first wicket in his 43rd over, on a slow turner that had brought him little sustenance, must have been grateful.

Tim Bresnan, who was lectured

by Aleem Dar, the umpire, for running on the pitch, followed in the next over, pushing a driveable ball from Zaheer Khan to short extra.

India were almost home.

David Hopps is the UK editor of ESPNcricinfo

SL Sweeps Kiwis by 10 Wickets GALLE (ESPNCriickinfo) Sri Lanka 247 (Mahela Jayawardene 91, Mathews 79, Southee 4-46) and 93 for 0 (Karunaratne 60*, Paranavitana 31*) beat New Zealand 221 (McCullum 68, Flynn 53, Herath 5-65) and 118 (Flynn 20, Herath 6-43) by 10 wickets A day that began on even terms finished being one-sided. New Zealand’s fast-bowling stocks may be promising but their batting continued to be a serious worry and it let them down again, on a day when they had the rare chance of pressing ahead and aiming for a win. They slumped to a fifth straight Test defeat in conditions far less lethal than their scoreline suggested. The batsmen were largely victims of their own approach and lack of confidence against spin on a slow and low pitch.

Rangana Herath was again the wrecker-in-chief, continuing his incredible run in Galle, and finished with 11 wickets in the match.

Both his hauls of ten wickets or more in a Test have come in Galle, where he’s picked up 46 in eight games at 20.30, including five of his 12 five-fors. His achievement wasn’t a surprise, certainly not against an opposition whose performances against spin have been woeful in the recent past. In their last five Tests, all of them defeats, they’ve lost 62 wickets out of 100 to spin. Only one of those games went into the fifth day.

Sri Lanka were disciplined and cut down drastically on the bad deliveries they had delivered on the opening day when Brendon McCullum and Daniel Flynn had managed to find some release after the loss of early wickets. There was hardly any swing or movement for the seamers, and the ball never carried to slip, though the spinners found a fair amount of turn. The overall result of their tight lines and variations in pace and length was a stagnating runflow and an eventual collapse.

At a time when New Zealand would have been aiming to begin solidly and lay a platform for a challenging lead, they were hit by a Nuwan Kulasekara double-strike.

Martin Guptill was dismissed in a

manner similar to the first innings, when he played down the wrong line, only this time he was bowled.

Kane Williamson was a touch unfortunate to be caught down the leg side, when he tried to glide one down to fine leg and New Zealand were reduced to 46 for 3.

James Franklin had spent some time on the pitch before the start of play, standing on the crease and scanning the areas he could score off. He appeared to come out with a plan, as he stepped out to Herath, often to try working him on to the leg side. That prompted Mahela Jayawardene to employ two midwickets for him, but Franklin was undeterred. It did not pay, as he was beaten in flight to be stumped, albeit unconvincingly, by Prasanna Jayawardene - he failed to collect but the ball ricocheted off his chest and dislodged the bails.

An early burst from the seamers was New Zealand’s only hope somewhat dented from the outset

by Tim Southee’s absence due to a niggle - but a presumably nervous Sri Lanka opening partnership, on a pair, ensured the chase was smooth. Tharanga Paranavitana had just one half-century in his previous 11 innings and would have been under pressure. He was subdued to begin with but eventually got going, using his feet well against Jeetan Patel to launch him for six, before smashing Bracewell over point towards the close.

He stayed through to the end of the chase.

Paranavitana could face competition for that opening slot from the debutant Dimuth Karunaratne, who did his own prospects no harm with an attractive half-century. He was edgy at the start but looked strong on the back foot, punching boundaries through midwicket and extra cover and even pulling in the direction of square leg. He also cashed in on some freebies on leg stump and eased to a maiden fifty.

The day was a fulfilling one for Sri Lanka, and the hope of a closely-fought game raised by New Zealand proved deceptive in the end.

Siddhartha Talya is a senior subeditor at ESPNcricinfo

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