Postnoon E-Paper for 11 January 2012 by Scribble Media & Entertainment Pvt. Ltd.

CITY WAKES TO COLD SNAP AND OVERCAST SKIES There is a sudden drop in temperature in the City with a low-pressure area forming over the Bay of Bengal. The hazy weather is likely to continue for the next two days, according to the meteorological department. P3

Hyderabad’s first compact afternoon newspaper

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012 HYDERABAD

WWW.POSTNOON.COM

WEATHER: A MIX OF CLOUDY AND CLEAR SKIES; 21°C

32 PAGES

EVIL UNLEASHED Like it or hate it, we just can’t seem to have enough of the occult. We bring you a horror fest!

P15

In a society that believes in myths associated with reptiles, Friends of Snakes has been doing a commendable job of educating the City on serpents P16&17

WHERE WILL THE CHILDREN PLAY? P22

Lindsay Lohan

in talks to play Elizabeth Taylor in new biopic

Katrina Kaif

Astride Rajinikanth’s next? P19

Page Two

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Spirit of Twin Cities

Bank offers dough-to-door service SERVICES Anubha K Singh anubha.k@postnoon.com

hen you need some cash are you shuddering, thinking of the time you have to spend standing in a queue at a bank or searching for an ATM? Well, do not lose sleep as Mobile ATMs are here. Literally meaning bank on wheels, they are regular ATMs that are inside a van. Mobile ATMs have been a hit in remote areas where it is logistically impossible to have counters installed and manned. These ATMs can be found on the outskirts of the City. Andhra Bank has introduced mo bile ATM vans to operate in these neighbourhoods. Aside from

The mobile unit will visit places on notified days and destinations as under: Mobile ATM – 1 – DC543801 Day Route Monday : Boduppal, ESI Colony, Nagole Tuesday : Patancheruvu, CRF foundation, Miyapur, Alwyn Colony, Balanagar Wednesday : Chintal, Qudubullapur, Medchal, Shameerpet Thursday : Gummaddhulla, Narsapur Friday : Kondapur, CRF Foundation, Shamshabad Saturday : Sikh Village, Bapuji Colony, Monda Market, Jeedimetla, Chintal Basti

Mobile ATM – 2 – WC562301 Day Route Monday : Balanagar, Tarnaka, Habsiguda, Uppal X Roads Tuesday : Balanagar, Nagole X Roads, LB Nagar, Sagar Road, BN Reddy Nagar, Sagar Road, BN Reddy Nagar Wednesday : Balanagar, Miyapur, Kondapur, Madhapur, Jubilee Hills Checkpost Thursday : Balanagar,Vimal Talkies, Sanathnagar, Bharatnagar, Moosapet, Kukatpally Friday : Balanagar, Filmnagar, Mehdipatnam X Roads, Attapur, Rajendranagar Saturday : Balanagar, Asifnagara, Langarhouse, Kokapet Mobile ATM – 3 – WC562401 Day Route Monday : Balanagar, Bowenpally, Sikh Village, Tirumalgerry, Alwal, EME Centre Tuesday : Balanagar, Jubliee Bus Station, Safilguda-Neredmet, Dammaiguda Wednesday : Balanagar, Jeedimetla, Dindigal, Kompally Thursday : Balanagar, Secunderabad Court, Rail Nilyam, Malkajigiri, Moulali Friday : Balanagar, Diamond Point, Balamarai, Petbashirabad, Shamirpet Saturday : Balanagar, Sundar Nagar, Balkampet, Khairtabad

the ATM facility, the van is equipped with a customer lobby, which supplies information about the bank’s different

policies and services. Aimed at reaching out to a large section of semi-literate and illiterate customers, the mobile biomet-

ric ATMs will identify the customer based on his/her fingerprints. However, personal ide n ti fication number (PIN) facili-

ty is also available to log in. A voice programmed in the local language guides the customer on how to use the ATM.

Around the city: Your guide to the Twin Cities

Water tales

PIC: N SHIVA KUMAR

Jubilee Hills

When: Ongoing 8pm to 10pm Contact: (040) 23545359

Trayaah An exhibition of paintings by Shrikant W Kohle, HR Devulapalli and PJ Stalin. Each artist brings about a variety of colours, shapes and emotions. Where: Shrishti, Jubilee Hills When: Ongoing, 11am Contact: (040) 2360715

Martini ‘n music Enjoy the winter evenings with grey goose martinis and crooner Kelly dishing out your favourite numbers. Where: Taj Krishna, Banjara Hills When: Every Evening Contact: (040) 66662323

Cognac and Cigar The Seasons Bar opens up again as a Cigar and Cognac lounge with a wide selection of cognac, Rare whiskies, single malts and cigars. Where: Taj Krishna, Banjara Hills When: Ongoing, 7pm Contact: (040) 66662323

Visual art An exhibition cum sale of paintings by

CINEMAS

Enjoy authentic Lahori kababs and pulaos at The Great Kabab Factory. Where: The Great Kebab Factory, Banjara Hills

When: Ongoing Contact: (040) 23302244

Annual art festival The 8th Krishnakriti Annual Art Festival will be held at Kalakriti, Banjara Hills. The festival is on till January 11 2012. Where: Kalakriti, Banjara Hills When: Ongoing, 7pm Contact: (040) 66564466

For eternity Chandana Khan presents her collection of 34 paintings titled Beauty in Eternity. The collection displayed at The state gallery of fine arts explores the unchanging in the changing landscape. Where: State Gallery of Fine Arts,

Different strokes To witness strokes of various kinds head to Gallery Space. It’s an exhibition presenting paintings and drawings by various artists and will be held at Gallery Space from December 24. Where: Gallery Space, Banjara Hills When: Ongoing, 11am to 7pm Contact: (040) 65541836

Lahori food festival

HAVING A BALL

Beyond coffee plays host to a photography exhibition titled water by Prathik Rao and Raghunandan R. Where: Beyond Coffee,

Kavuri Hills

Hari Srinivas. The Exhibition is on display till 30 January 2012. Where: VSL Visual Art Gallery, Plot no 100, AP Text Book Colony, Gun Rock Enclave

When: Ongoing Contact: 9247175135

Numaish A childhood favourite of every Hyderabadi, The All India Industrial Exhibition is on. Where: Exhibition Grounds, Nampally

When: Ongoing

Eat in the dark Have you ever wondered how it feels to eat in the dark? Come and experience this. Pay `499 to enjoy a 4course meal worth `1,000 at Dialogue

in the Dark. Where: Dialogue in the Dark, Inorbit Mall, Hitech City

When: Ongoing, 12.30pm Contact: (040) 6460334

My name is Minnu It is the first solo Art show by actor Kamal Kamaraju on a series of paintings he has done on ‘MINNU’ in 2011. The show will also launch calendars with kamal’s paintings and will be exclusively on sale at the Muse gallery. The proceeds from this show will be donated to CAP Foundation. Where: Marriott hotel & Convention Centre, Tank Bund

When: Ongoing, 6pm Contact: (040) 27522999

When: Ongoing, 11am to 7pm Contact: (040) 32913922

Controlled freedom Catch a preview of Controlled freedom, an exhibition of portrait photography that showcases the works of two photographers with contrasting approaches to capturing people — Sucharitha Rao and Lakshmi Prabhala. Where: Alankritha Art Gallery, Kavuri Hills

When: January 7, 6.30pm Contact: (040) 23113709

Ladies night It’s Wednesday so head to Kismet for ladies. night with special cocktails, drinks and DJ themes just for the ladies. Where: Kismet, Somajiguda When: Every Wednesday, 8pm Contact: (040) 23456789

Big Cinemas, Ameerpet, 30581470; Cinemax, Banjara Hills, 44565555; Cine Planet , Kompally, 61606060; INOX, Banjara Hills, 447677770, Prasads, Tank Bund Rd, 23448888; PVR, Punjagutta, 08800900009; Talkie Town, Miyapur, 40214175; Tivoli, Secunderabad 27844973

Hyper Local

Campaigns, hard news and spirit of Twin Cities

pÉåáçê=ÅçìéäÉ=äçëÉë ÜçãÉI=ÅçìêíÉëó=ji^ CRIME U Srinivas Srinivas.u@postnoon.com

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

City's blowing cold WEATHER Inkeshaf Ahmed ahmed.m@postnoon.com

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Hyper Local

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Campaigns, hard news and spirit of Twin Cities

Space crunch has taken away from children an integral part of the school experience — playgrounds. Postnoon does a reality check

dêçìåÇ=êÉ~äáíóW=

kç=dêçìåÇ Sudeshna Koka

kokasudeshna@postnoon.com

Schools sans playgrounds to lose recognition Postnoon News

HYDERABAD: Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy has warned schools without playgrounds that their recognition will be cancelled. The CM gave away cash incentives to those excelled in national and international sports at a function in Lal Bahadur Stadium. Reddy sounded remorseful when he said that it was unfortunate that the incentives announced by the government were not given to sportspersons for the last four years in the

Helpline GAS BOOKING IVRS NO: HP 9666023456 Indane 9848824365 BSNL Complaints HMWS & SB Complaints

198 155313

POLICE CONTROL ROOM: Hyderabad 27852435 Traffic Control Room 27852482 DCP Traffic 23234065, 23243499F Pollution Control Board 23887500 ELECTRICITY: General Complaints Breakdown Section

155333 23431178 23431179 Street Light 155304 MUNICIPAL CORPORATION:

State. He said he was apologising to the sportspersons on behalf of the government. The government would make games and sports a mandatory part of curriculum in schools. ministers Sailaja Nath, Vatti Vasantha Kumar, and MD of Sports Authority of AP Sashibhushan Kumar, were present.

Commissioner & Spl Officer 23262266 24166666R ENC 23225267 Engineering 23220418 MCH Tankbund 23225397 Emergency MCH Circle I&II 24525842 MCH Circle III 24736912 MCH Circle IV 23326975 MCH Circle V 23326976 MCH Circle VI MCH Complaints 1100 Head Office 23225397 IVRS CUM MANUAL ENQUIRY PHONE NUMBERS (TRAIN & RESERVATION) RAILWAYS Rail Nilayam 27833150 Railway Information 131 Reservations 135 Recorded Information 1345 Enquiry (IVRS) 1331, 1332, 1333

áòÉ=çÑ=íÜÉ=éä~óÖêçìåÇ=ëéÉ~âë=çÑ íÜÉ=ëÅÜççäK=táíÜ=ÅêìåÅÜáåÖ ëé~ÅÉëI=ëÅÜççäë=ãçîÉÇ=íç=~é~êíJ ãÉåíë=~åÇ=ëÜçééáåÖ=ÅçãéäÉñÉë ~åÇ=~åó=ëéçêíáåÖ=~Åíáîáíó=Ñçê=íÜÉ ëÅÜççäÅÜáäÇêÉå=áë=åçï=ÅçåÇìÅíÉÇ=çå êÉåíÉÇ=ÖêçìåÇëI=Ñ~ê=~ï~ó=Ñêçã=íÜÉ ëÅÜççäK=vÉëK=açåÛí=ÄÉ=ëìêéêáëÉÇK mä~óÖêçìåÇë=~êÉ=í~âÉå=çå=êÉåí=íç ÅçåÇìÅí=Ö~ãÉë=~åÇ=ëéçêíëK tÉ=Ü~îÉ=çìê=ëéçêíë=Ç~ó=íçÇ~ó ~åÇ=ïÉ=~êÉ=ÅÉäÉÄê~íáåÖ=áí=áå=dóãâÜ~å~ dêçìåÇëIÒ=ë~óë=kÉÜ~=páåÖÜ=Ñêçã=çåÉ=çÑ=íÜÉ äÉ~ÇáåÖ=ëÅÜççäë=áå=íÜÉ=`áíóK pÅÜççäë=íçÇ~ó=Çç=Ü~îÉ=éÜóëáÅ~ä=íê~áåáåÖ EmqF=áå=íÜÉáê=íáãÉJí~ÄäÉI=Äìí=ïáíÜçìí=~=éä~óJ ÖêçìåÇK=mçëíåççå ÑçìåÇ=íÜ~í=ãçëí=ÅçêéçJ ê~íÉ=ëÅÜççäë=áå=íÜÉ=`áíó=Çç=åçí=Ü~îÉ=~=éä~óJ ÖêçìåÇK=pÅÜççäë=~åÇ=ÅçääÉÖÉë=Ü~îÉ ÄÉÉå=êÉåíáåÖ=ÖêçìåÇë=íç=ÅÉäÉJ Äê~íÉ=ëéçêíë=Ç~ó=~åÇ=í~âÉ=íÜÉáê ecent studies show that the ëíìÇÉåíë=íç=éä~ó=áå=íÜçëÉ prevalence of overweight ÖêçìåÇëK and obesity among children tÉ=Ü~îÉ=éÜóëáÅ~ä=íê~áåáåÖ and adolescents has increased ëìÄàÉÅí=~åÇ=ïÉ=í~âÉ=çìí=íÜÉ=âáÇë significantly in AP during the íç=çìê=Ä~ëÉãÉåí=ïÜáÅÜ=áë=îÉêó past two decades. Less involveÜìÖÉ=~åÇ=Å~å=~ÅÅçããçÇ~íÉ ment in outdoor games/sports, ãçêÉ=íÜ~å=RMM=ëíìÇÉåíëI?=ë~óë household activities and exerpÜ~åíÜá=sáà~ó=çÑ=pêá=`Ü~áí~åó~ cises are the main reasons. qÉÅÜåç=pÅÜççä Doctors recommend a mini^=åÉï=íêÉåÇ=~ÇçéíÉÇ=Äó mum of an hour-long physical ëÅÜççäë=íçÇ~ó=áë=ìëáåÖ=Ä~ëÉãÉåí training each day. “My patients ~ë=~=éä~óÖêçìåÇK=pÅÜççäë=íçÇ~ó tell me that they have only ~êÉ=ÑìåÅíáçåáåÖ=áå=ÄìáäÇáåÖë=ïáíÜ one hour a week for PT and àìëí=ÉåçìÖÜ=ëé~ÅÉ=Ñçê=Åä~ëëêççãëK that too in a closed environqÜÉëÉ=ëÅÜççä=ÄìáäÇáåÖë=~êÉ=äçÅ~íJ ment. No matter how much ÉÇ=áå=ÅêçïÇÉÇ=ä~åÉë=ïáíÜ=åç milk a child drinks, getting ëé~ÅÉ=Ñçê=éä~óÖêçìåÇëK exposed to sunlight is very tÉ=Ü~îÉ=~=ÄáÖ=êççã=ïáíÜ important. The metabolism ã~åó=áåÇççê=Ö~ãÉë=ïÜÉå=ëíìJ rate is better amongst children ÇÉåíë=ëéÉåÇ=íÜÉáê=mq=ÜçìêK=tÉ who play and their oxygen ~äëç=Ü~îÉ=~=ÜìÖÉ=Ä~ëÉãÉåí=ïÜÉêÉ intake is also good. Today ïÉ=í~âÉ=çìê=âáÇë=íç=éä~óIÒ=éêçìÇäó many children suffer from ë~áÇ=fåÇáê~=pêáåáî~ëI=dçïíÜ~ã depression and this is primarily jçÇÉä=pÅÜççäK the reason,” said Dr Kumda kçí=çåäó=Åçêéçê~íÉ=ëÅÜççäë Raghavan. Äìí=ÉîÉå=ÖçîÉêåãÉåí=ëÅÜççäë

WATER SUPPLY: Complaint Cell Sewerage Complaint Hyd. Water Supply HOSPITAL: General Hospital, Sec-bad Niloufer Hospital, Red Hills NIMS, Director, Punjagutta Osmania General Hospital Railway Hospital, Lalaguda Apollo, Jubilee Hills Care Hospital, Banjara Hills Care Hospital, Nampally Care Hospitals, Musheerabad Care Hospital, Sec-bad Kamineni Hospital,

LB Nagar 155313 23307328 23313163 27505566 23314095 23390933 24600146 27001134 23607777 30418888 30417777 30419000 30416666

BLOOD BANKS: Blood Bank,Narayaguda Chiranjeevi Blood Bank Blood Bank Mediton Goal Red Cross, Vidyanagar ADRM Blood Bank Mythri Charitable Trust NTR Memorial Trust Care Banjara Hills

39879999 27567892 23559555 23226624 27633087 27035588 27550238 30799999 30418296 30417445

AMBULANCES Apollo 23548888, 23607777 Kamineni 24022222 Medwin 23202902, 23204616 Smile Line Dental Hospital 23747979 Red Cross 27627973 Niloufer Hospital 23314095 Gandhi 23320332

ïÜáÅÜ=Ü~îÉ=ÅçãÉ=ìé=áå=íÜÉ=êÉÅÉåí=é~ëí=~äëç=Çç åçí=Ü~îÉ=éä~óÖêçìåÇëK=píìÇÉåíë=Ñêçã h~å~àáÖìÇ~=ÖçîÉêåãÉåí=ëÅÜççä=~êÉ=çÑíÉå=ÑçìåÇ éä~óáåÖ=çå=íÜÉ=ëíêÉÉí=ä~åÉK==`ÉåíÉå~êó=_~éíáëí ëÅÜççä=äçÅ~íÉÇ=áå=máÅâÉí=ìëÉÇ=íÜÉ=dej`=ÖêçìåÇ Ñçê=íÜÉáê=éÜóëáÅ~ä=íê~áåáåÖ=~ÅíáîáíáÉëK aÉÅ~ÇÉë=~ÖçI=~äãçëí=~ää=ëÅÜççäë=Ü~Ç=íÜÉáê çïå=éä~óÖêçìåÇëK=`ÜáäÇêÉå=ÇìêáåÖ=íÜÉáê=mq=Åä~ëë ~åÇ=áå=íÜÉáê=ÑêÉÉ=íáãÉ=ÅçìäÇ=éä~ó=Ö~ãÉë=~åÇ ÜçåÉ=íÜÉáê=ëâáääë=Äìí=íçÇ~ó=áêçåáÅ~ääó=ëíìÇÉåíë=~êÉ åçí=~ï~êÉ=çÑ=î~êáçìë=ëéçêíëK=tÜÉå=~å=NNJóÉ~êJçäÇ eáã~åëÜì=h=ï~ë=~ëâÉÇ=áÑ=ÜÉ=âåÉï=Üçï=íç=éä~ó à~îÉäáå=íÜêçïI=ÜÉ=ëÜçí=Ä~Åâ=~ëâáåÖ=ïÜ~í=ï~ë=íÜ~íK= píìÇÉåíë=íçÇ~ó=êáÖÜí=Ñêçã=`ä~ëë=sfff=~êÉ=ëç Äìëó=éêÉé~êáåÖ=Ñçê=ffq=Éåíê~åÅÉ=Éñ~ãáå~íáçåë íÜ~í=íÜÉó=Çç=åçí=ÑáåÇ=íáãÉ=Ñçê=ëéçêíëK=f=äáâÉ=íç éä~ó=Äìí=àìëí=ÇçåÛí=ÑáåÇ=íáãÉK=f=~ã=áå=ffq=ëéÉÅá~ä Ä~íÅÜ=~åÇ=ÜÉåÅÉ=f=Ü~îÉ=íç=ïçêâ=Éñíê~=Ü~êÇ=ïáíÜ

EDUCATION ãó=~Å~ÇÉãáÅëIÒ=ë~óë=a~âëÜáí=qI=Ñêçã=pêá `Ü~áí~åó~=qÉÅÜåç=pÅÜççäK bÇìÅ~íáçå=~Åíáîáëíë=ë~ó=íÜ~í=áí=áë=íÜÉ=ÖçîÉêåJ ãÉåí=ïÜáÅÜ=åÉÉÇë=íç=í~âÉ=êÉäççâ=~í=íÜÉáê ãÉíÜçÇ=çÑ=Öê~íáåÖ=éÉêãáëëáçåëK=råíáä=~=ÑÉï óÉ~êë=~ÖçI=ëÅÜççäë=ïáíÜçìí=éä~óÖêçìåÇ=ïÉêÉ=åçí ÄÉáåÖ=ÖáîÉå=éÉêãáëëáçåI=äÉ~îÉ=~äçåÉ=êÉÅçÖåáíáçåK _ìí=Åçêéçê~íÉ=ëÅÜççäë=~êÉ=ãìëÜêççãáåÖ=~åÇ ïÜ~íÛë=Çáë~ééçáåíáåÖ=áë=íÜ~í=íÜÉ=ÖçîÉêåãÉåí=áë ÖáîáåÖ=éÉêãáëëáçåëK=jçëí=çÑ=íÜÉ=Ñ~ãáäáÉë=íçÇ~ó ~êÉ=åìÅäÉ~ê=áå=å~íìêÉ=äáîáåÖ=áå=~é~êíãÉåíëK=qÜÉó ÇçåÛí=Ü~îÉ=~åó=ÉñÉêÅáëÉë=áå=ëÅÜççäë=çê=~í=ÜçãÉK fíÛë=~=îÉêó=ïêçåÖ=ï~ó=çÑ=ìéÄêáåÖáåÖ=íÜÉ=ÅÜáäJ ÇêÉåIÒ=ë~áÇ=aêK=qáï~êá=~å=ÉÇìÅ~íáçå~äáëíK

AIRLINES Airport Director 27903785, 27906001 For Air India Flight Information Toll free (from any network) for IC Flights 18001801407 And for All Flights: 1800227722 Air India has revised its flight timings. For more information call (Toll free) 18001801407, 1800227722 from BSNL/MTNL 04023430334 from other lines and mobile Website; www.airindia.in TOURISM OFFICES AP Tourism, Hyd 23262152/53/54 Sec’bad 27893100 Dept of Tourism 23453110 India Tourism 23261360 AP Tourism information Centre (24x7) 23450444, 23455999 UK Visa Office

VFS India Pvt Ltd Building, 8-2-542/A, Sunil Chamber, Road No. 7 Beside Meridian School, Banjara Hills34. Working hours are from 8 AM to 1 PM And 2 PM to 3PM. MUSEUMS Salar Jung Museum AP State Museum Nizams Museum

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Readers’ views We invite you to write to us comments, suggestions, viewpoint or just about anything to feedback@postnoon.com or #1246, Level 3, Jubilee Casa, Road No 62, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad – 500 033 or even by way of a call on 4067 2222

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Campaigns, hard news and spirit of Twin Cities

Policemen lose assets to thieves

There is a certain brand of thieves in the city who lurk in the dark plundering public property; they steal everything — even sign boards and walkie-talkies of the police department

CRIME D Sree Charan sreecharan@postnoon.com

n the dark of the night, nothing is safe on the streets of the City any longer. Neither its inhabitants, nor public property or not even police equipment. Has Hyderabad turned into Gotham city? A certain brand of thieves in the city plunder public and government property under the cover of darkness. Their booty includes iron barricades, seats of traffic umbrellas, wire from traffic signals, oil in transformers, spotlights from billboards, radium and iron from road signs and even walkie-talkies of policemen. Unlike as identified before, these night marauders are not ragpickers or petty thieves; the involvement of respectable segments in society like those in advertising agencies and political

parties is suspected. Even the City police are helpless, as they do not have enough manpower to keep an eye on every inch of the streets. Their limited resources are being snatched away by nightly thugs, they complain. With frequent thefts of plates of road signage,

seats in traffic umbrellas and other infrastructure, volunteers who had donated these to the city police are having second thoughts. “Ragpickers are still the main culprits but others may also be involved. As we lose our facilties, our men are forced to stand under the sun or without a shelter, and

when wires are stolen, signals don’t function. Loss of barricades leads to mutual suspicion among our cops,” said Additional Commissioner of Police (traffic) CV Anand. Adding to the woes is the competition among the advertising agencies and the campaigns by political parties. “Advertising agencies hire men who during nights remove signage, which carry the insignia of their opponents. Of late, road signage have become advertising boards to some political parties. They are covering the entire signage with their pamphlets ignoring the consequences,” Anand said. More than the monetary loss, it is a matter of public safety. "If a road signage is removed it may lead to an accident, which may also claim lives. Persons who remove signage or tamper with them may themselves meet with an accident at the same spot, as nothing is impossible. So everyone should behave responsibly,” he cautioned.

“Our men are forced to sit on seats made of bricks or stones under traffic umbrellas; signals don’t work, as they steal wire from junctions; and create confusion among our men by stealing | barricades, as policemen doubt counterparts in other stations to have done this.” CV Anand Additional Commissioner of Police (traffic)

In spite of initial jolt CAT results bring joy Online coaching has become very popular with CAT aspirants. Top scorers praise the online work

Hyderabad’s first afternoon newspaper

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CAT RESULTS Sudheshna Koka kokasudheshna@postnoon.com

s the clock struck midnight the eagerly-awaited Common Admission Test (CAT) were out. For the 2,06,000 students this was perhaps the moment that would make or mar their world. For some it was a few months of grueling works, for many others, years of toil. However, their world blurred last night as the jump of lakhs on the website brought it down. The website threw up a sign, “the results are out but heavy traffic, please wait and try after some time. Students and their parents kept up the spirits till 5 AM but the situation did not improve. “I had gone numb with fear and tension. I wanted a release from it but the website remained jammed,” Why can’t they just email the scores?” questions Karthik Arora, one of the aspirants. And, she got through. “What a relief!” she exclaims happily. “Yes, I got the shock of my life,” agrees Raghuveer Nishtala, Hyderabad. Website bungled but when it came I got 92 percentile.I am very happy with the score and most of the credit goes to the

1 Year

` 349/online groups where I did group studies,” said Raghuveer.But, at the end, it seems many were happy. Manish Horordia founder of Genisis mentors said “I am really very happy that one of my students got 99.96 percentile. He was didn’t score well last year but this year he bounced back with a vengeance. He got a mind-boggling percentile of 99.96!”CAT preparations are a hit. Several online groups are now active in doing group studies and discussions. Adithya Sharma, one of the students, thanked Nithin Gupta, who was his mentor online because of whom he got a 99.9 percentile.“I think this is one of the best ways to serve the society,” updates Nithin Gupta, a tutor on Facebook. Students this year have their hopes high as IIT and FMS have started to consider CAT score for admissions.

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Campaigns, hard news and spirit of Twin Cities

Staff crunch woes for police Rising number of accidents in Cyberabad has everyone pointing fingers at the police, but in reality they are severely short-staffed, leading to problems in manning roads and highways

POLICE D Sree Charan sreecharan@postnoon.com

I BIRTHDAY WISHES

'Chiru has sold his soul' Telugu Desam party senior leader and former minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav has ridiculed actor-turned politician K Chiranjeevi for prostrating before the ruling party leaders for the sake of lucrative posts and power. Srinivas Yadav said it was sad to see a respected artiste bending backwards for political benefits. He criticised Chiranjeevi for merging his Praja Rajyam party with the Congress and said that the reason behind this move was only for securing more power. He said that Chiranjeevi, who did not hesitate to lick the shoes of Congress leaders for gaining political posts and power has no moral right to criticize TDP’s leader, actor Nandamuri Balakrishna.

t looks like the State government is waiting for something big to happen before it wakes up. Despite a sharp rise in the number of accidents in the Cyberabad Police Commissionerate, the government is turning a blind eye to conditions that lead to accidents. While there is a decline in the number of accidents in Hyderabad, unfortunately the same is not the case with Cyberabad. In 2011, almost five major accidents occurred on the Outer Ring Road (ORR) in Cyberabad. At least two of them involved children of high-profile people; Ayazuddin, 19, son of cricketer-turned-politician Mohammed Azharuddin and his cousin, Ajmal, 21, died when their sports bike crashed on the Outer Ring Road on September 11. On December 19, Pratik Reddy, son of former minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy and his two friends died in another accident on the Outer Ring Road, near Kollur of Medak district after their car hit a road divider and fell off a bridge when the car driver tried to avoid hitting some sheep that suddenly came onto the road. The Cyberabad police faced severe criticism as they tried to wash their hands off by citing staff crunch and other reasons following major accidents. However, a reality check reveals that they, in fact, are genuinely facing several problems.

Number of accidents in the city Year

Cyberabad Hyderabad

n 2009 n 2010 n 2011

3,254 3,283 3,735

2,990 2,797 2,560

A senior cop in Cyberabad said, "It’s ridiculous that the Cyberabad traffic police with a jurisdiction that spreads across 3,600sqkm has only 450 traffic staff while Hyderabad traffic police with a jurisdiction area of 625sqkm has staff strength of 3,066. That’s not all; Cyberabad has

just 11 police stations while there are 23 traffic police stations in Hyderabad." Moreover, Cyberabad division mans five national highways, five state highways, internal roads, the Outer Ring Road and Ring Road and a DCP is in charge of its traffic department, while an additional commissioner of police (of IG rank) heads the Hyderabad traffic police. “We have one DCP, one ACP and 17 inspectors, while our counterparts have one additional CP, two DCPs, two additional DCPs, seven ACPs and 38 inspectors. We are finding it difficult, given the vast area to monitor with the few traffic personnel at our disposal," he complained.

THE FACES OF HYDERABAD SUJATHA, TUTOR, JUBILEE HILLS PIC: SRINIVAS SETTY

few tiny tots are seen vying for her attention as she solves a geometry problem for the older lot. She is Sujatha madam, who tutors kids of her neighbourhood. She maybe just a tenth-pass but that does not stop her from tutoring kids ranging from nursery grade to the seventh from English-medium schools. All her students do not belong to well-off families as they are mostly children of security guards and maids. Her husband is a daily wage labourer. When one watches her teach the students, the look Aishwarya Yerra of contentment on her face cannot go unnoticed. Ask her A city is defined by which subject she enjoys the people who live teaching the most and she and work in it. Here immediately says it’s Hindi. we take a look at Like many, she hates maths the human threads but does teach it. She’s still a that make up our fun-loving young girl but it urban tapestry comes as a surprise that she’s a strict disciplinarian who doesn't spare the rod. She confesses that she does not want to study further but harbours hopes of being a school teacher one day.

Hyper Local

Campaigns, hard news and spirit of Twin Cities

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

A woman’s travails while travelling by a City bus Osama Salman Salman.o@postnoon.com

“T

here isn’t much to worry about when a woman uses the public bus every day to travel across the city. However, it feels a little ‘unsafe’ when we are travelling at night,” said 40 year old Meher Unnisa, a maid who uses the Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) bus from Khairatabad to Punjagutta daily. This is the general feeling of women travelling by the RTC buses across the city.

Safety measures for a safe bus ride n Carry a pepper spray. This

n n n n

might actually help you avoid an uncalled for situation. Alert the nearest police station when in trouble. Be defensive and alert other women. They will back you up. Avoid using a bus at night when there are only men in it. Call home and update on your location as often as you can.

Postnoon asked women how secure they feel when using this mode of transport and they all echoed the same thing — the bus is safe during the day and as night falls, it can be a scary experience. This apart, they all unanimously agreed that addressing key issues held paramount importance. “There are so many people in the bus including women that I don’t really feel insecure. Nobody is interested in anybody else’s business. Of course, there are instances where goons come and create a havoc or when a purse is stolen and in rare cases molesta-

tion of women, but largely there is nothing much to worry about,” added Meher. “Yes, it is safe, but only during the day. As the hour advances, the kind of people travelling in the bus deteriorates. Chances of anything happening to women, especially young girls increase. But what can’t be ignored is there is uncalled trouble for women. They have to deal with men, which can be quite a task!” said Kausar Bi, a homemaker and a regular passenger from Kukatpally to Punjagutta. On the other hand, Sheela

Ramakrishnan, 47, a homemaker, says that instances of women being pushed around in the bus and being treated as ‘sex objects’ is on the rise. “I have personally seen young girls being ill-treated by men including the bus driver and conductor. This is not acceptable,” she said. Catching a bus every day is a breezy affair for G Kaushalya, a post-graduate student — that is until she steps into a bus. While she also agrees that she hasn’t had to face anything that made her feel insecure, she says that petty things that women have to go through are demoralising. “When I enter a bus, there is no chivalry in men to move over and make space for a woman. Men even seat themselves in seats traditionally reserved for us. When we complain to the bus driver, he says ‘Aap hi bolo unko, who sun lenge’ (You tell them yourself and they will listen to you). There is no co-operation,” said Kaushalya. “As most of the women come from a less-fortunate background, they don’t complain about such instances. My advice to the authorities is to have a home-guard on duty on every route so that women are secure all the time,” suggested Sheela.

Ageing RTC fleet, City struggles to breathe Postnoon News feedback@postnoon.com

f the 3,769 Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) buses plying in the City, nearly 400 have become over-aged as they have each completed a 12lakh-kilometer run. In all, nearly 6,000 RTC buses have done a run of 15-16 lakh kilometres in the State, which include the 400 in Hyderabad. They ought to be scrapped keeping in mind public safety, yet they are in service. Last year, 252 City buses were added in the City’s fleet. There are 2,477 ordinary City buses and a significant number of these are close to reaching their age limit. Environmentalists are shouting hoarse about the level of pollution these old and haggard buses emit. “All of us have personally experienced the obnoxious could of smoke these buses belch out along their path. They damage both man and environment.” said Chaitanya Kumar, a

member of the Indian Youth Climate Network. Chaitanya points out, “Diesel vehicles emit 7.5 times more toxic particulate matter than comparable petrol vehicles. What’s worse, in Hyderabad, levels of nitrogen dioxides is also spiralling up adding to the problem of ozone. Both particulate matter and nitrogen oxides (NOx) dominate diesel exhaust emissions,” he said. The solution to the pollution woes is the introduction of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses into the public transport sector. “We have introduced 300 CNG buses in the State. It’s a continual process and will take time before we phase out old buses,” said Vice-Chairman and Managing Director of APSRTC B Prasada Rao. Currently, there are 55 CNG buses running in Hyderabad. But, APSRTC insists that the public buses follow the permitted pollution standards strictly. “Our buses go through a vigorous check every month at the depot by an electronic machine. If found that they are going

Our buses are well-checked and do not pollute Vijaya Laxmi, Deputy Chief Traffic Manager APSRTC

beyond the permissible limit, it is rectified immediately by changing the injectors, FIP and the likes,” said Deputy Chief Traffic Manager (Schedules) Vijaya Laxmi. “The Hatridge Smoke Units (HSU) level of our buses is 50, whereas the HSU levels that government has prescribed is 60. We are well below that,” adds Vijay Laxmi proudly.

New MLAs on inception jaunt at Vizag U Srinivas srinivas.u@postnoon.com

hile the Opposition is saying that there is no co-ordination between the MLAs and Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy, the CM has thought it fit to organise a picnic for first-time MLAs at Araku. Speaker Nadendla Manohar, a close confidant of the chief minister, is guiding and training all the first-time MLAs. Kiran Kumar Reddy has planned to go to Visakhapatnam to participate in the valedictory session. Against this background, the naxalite-affected Eastern Ghats areas in Visakhapatnam and also the port city have become a virtual fortress with armed policemen completely taking over the area for the last four days. Special police parties with 1,500 armed men were deployed to protect the MLAs at the Minumuluru Coffee plantation. Police informers were threatened by CPI (Maoists) that the legislators must be asked to adopt a resolution against the bauxite mining in the tribal areas. Maoists have put up posters in the area announcing this. Chiranjeevi, who is also a firsttime legislator, is the main attraction in the outing session for the legislators. In fact, Chiranjeevi drew the attention of the entire State when he brushed aside the remarks of Nandamuri Balakrishna against his (Chiranjeevi’s) ‘social justice’ slogan as ‘childish’ and inexperienced. Lok Satha MLA N Jayaprakash Narayan will also participate in the concluding session, says a source. It may be noted that Speaker Nadendla Manohar wanted to run the Assembly online even without a single paper. The legislators were already equipped with laptops and other gadgets to support the e-Assembly. But this is not all in case of any eventuality they are being taken care in such a manner that they would support the Kiran Kumar Government in need. The MLAs are happy with the way they were being treated at Araku. They also shook a leg in a Dhimsa dance with tribal women.

Spotlight

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

PICS: SRINIVAS SETTY

NATURE’S NEW BODYGUARDS

SINGING STARS There is no dearth for places to party in the city on any day of the week. It’s only Tuesday and the party people are already living it up. While Bottles and Chimney at Begumpet hosted Karaoke night, Cuba Libre at GVK hosted its Ladies Night. The energy at both places had to be seen to be believed.

Actor Venkatesh in association with 92.7 BIG FM appointed four Nature Ki Bodyguards on Tuesday. The winners Padmavati, Srilatha, Mahalakshmi and Swathi will be going to different localities in the city to create awareness about using eco-friendly Rangoli this Sankranthi.

DJ Phalgun at B&C

Sudha Singh at B&C

Girls at Cuba Libre

Becky and Ramya at Cuba Libre

Sania and Kanchan at B&C

Pallavi and Sanjani at Cuba Libre

India‑View

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

India unveiled

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HIDDEN MAYA

GET SET TO SOAR

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Volunteers work to launch a giant kite at the International Kite AFP Festival at Sabarmati Riverfront in Ahmedabad.

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A worker prepares to cover the statue of UP Chief Minister and BSP supremo Mayawati at Dalit Prerna Sthal as per the directives of the Election Commission of India, in Noida. PTI

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Around the World

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Beyond Borders

President has run out of ideas, now time: Romney MANCHESTER: Republican White House hopeful Mitt Romney on Tuesday savoured his victory in New Hampshire’s critical nominating primary and vowed to beat President Barack Obama in November. “The president has run out of ideas. Now, he’s running out of excuses,” said the former Massachusetts governor and millionaire venture capitalist, now the clear favourite to take on Obama. “And tonight, we are asking the good people of South Carolina to join the citizens of New Hampshire and make 2012 the year he runs out of time,” Romney said, looking ahead to South Carolina’s January 21 primary. After surviving a furious 11th-hour onslaught from his Republican rivals, who tarred him as a callous corporate

Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney greets supporters in Manchester raider who put people out of work, Romney defiantly trumpeted his business experience as his number-one asset. Obama “wants to put free enterprise on trial. In the last few days, we have seen some

AFP

desperate Republicans join forces with him. This is such a mistake for our party and for our nation,” he declared. “This country already has a leader who divides us with the bitter politics of envy. We must

offer an alternative vision. I stand ready to lead us down a different path, where we are lifted up by our desire to succeed, not dragged down by a resentment of success,” said Romney. With the polls closed, US media projected Romney would win New Hampshire becoming the first Republican candidate who is not an incumbent president to win first in Iowa and then in this northeastern state.Veteran Representative Ron Paul of Texas, a smallgovernment champion whose opposition to overseas military interventions has rankled the party establishment, was expected to come in second. Former US envoy to China Jon Huntsman, who bet his political fortunes on a strong showing here, was on track to come in third. AFP

Pres Bashar al-Assad’s speech condemned

The Falcon sports car on display during the 2012 North American International Auto Show in Detroit

AFP

Automakers take luxury to new high DETROIT: Your arms are full with groceries as you approach your car, and you can’t free anything to open the trunk. What to do? If you drive a 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL, you just swipe your foot underneath the back bumper and, presto, it opens automatically. It’s just one of the new things that you get with the newest cars in the super-luxe range, all on display at the annual North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The SL, for instance, has a windshield cleaning system unlike any other. Instead of spraying a stream of fluid on the windshield, risking splattering the passengers in the convertible, the fluid oozes

from 40 holes in each wiper blade. And several Benz models have its “air scarf” heating from the headrest, in addition to the now de-rigueur seat warmers . Porsche on the other hand has seat cooling. The brand new 911 S Carrera launched this week in Detroit will suck in air through the perforations in the seat and seat back to keep you dry in sweaty weather. Lexus has a 12.3 inch screen in the GS to work with. Plug in your smartphone, and it offers apps with direct links to popular websites.Lexus has positioned a clickable knob on the center armrest. It offers owners a concierge service: you can call a representative and they will look it up for you. It’s free for the first year. IANS

JERUSALEM: A tiny seal with the image of a seven-branch menorah, used to stamp the kosher sign on bread 1,500 years ago, was discovered by Israeli archaeologists. Researchers found the ceramic stamp dating back to the 6th century B.C. in Acre, northern Israel, during the excavations at Horbat Uza, Xinhua reported.Israel The seal belongs to a group of stamps referred to as “bread stamps”.

US drone attack kills four in Pakistan ISLAMABAD: Four people were killed early Wednesday in a US drone attack in northwest Pakistan. Missiles were fired at a house around 2.00 a.m. in the North Waziristan region bordering Afghanistan, Xinhua quoted the Geo TV as saying. This was the first such attack since the cross border NATO air raid last year.

Nicaraguans welcome Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega as he arrives at Augusto Cesar Sandino airport in Managua AFP

Tsunami alert issued by Indonesia

he US and France have condemned a speech by the Syrian leader Bashar alAssad which blamed an “external conspiracy” for the mass uprising against his rule. The US state department said President Assad had thrown “responsibility on everybody but back on himself”. France’s foreign minister said the speech amounted to “denial of reality”. In a rare public address, Mr Assad said international powers were trying to destabilise Syria, and vowed to crush terrorists with an iron fist . In Washington, the state department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said: “Assad manages to blame a foreign conspiracy that is so vast with regard to the situation in Syria that it now includes the Arab League, most of the Syrian opposition, the entire international community. “He throws responsibility on everybody but back on himself and with regard to his own responsibility for the violence in Syria.” She added that the address confirmed “our view that it is time for him to step aside”. Speaking in Paris, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said: “It incites violence and confrontation between the parties. It’s a sort of denial of reality.”

GLOBE AT A GLANCE Archaeologists find ancient bread stamp

JAKARTA: Indonesia on Wednesday

Syrian President Bashar alAssad AFP Attack on monitors Tuesday’ speech was President Assad’s third televised address since protests against his rule began in March, and lasted nearly two hours. “Regional and international sides have tried to destabilise the country,” he said. “Our priority now is to regain the security in which we basked in for decades, and this can only be achieved by hitting the terrorists with an iron fist. A team of 165 monitors from the Arab League has been in Syria since December to monitor implementation of a peace plan that calls for an end to violence, the removal of heavy weapons from cities and the release of political prisoners. In his speech, Mr Assad also said Syria would not “close its doors” to an Arab solution as long as “it respects Syria’s sovereignty”. BBC

morning issued a tsunami warning after an undersea quake measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale rocked the country’s northern Aceh province.The tremor hit the province around 01.30 a.m.People living in the coastal areas of the province have started fleeing to safer areas up to one kilometre away.

Terorrist groups using Facebook TELAVIV: Terrorist groups, blacklisted by the US, are relying on Facebook to urge users to join and support Hezbollah, Hamas and other militant groups. ”Today, about 90 percent of terrorism on the Internet is carried out through the social media. The organisations are able to recruit without geographical limitations,” says a professor at the University of Haifa.

Members of a Thai bomb squad unit inspect the wreckage of a car following a bomb attack AFP

Business

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Matters of saving and spending

Policies hinder realty sector K Prudhvi Raju prudhvi.k@postnoon.com

HYDERABAD: “Government policies for real estate industry are short sighted. It is creating hurdles in giving permissions on account of GO 45 for the last nine months. This order will let earmark 20 per cent of developed land for economically weaker sections and lower income groups category in all housing projects. It is not the responsibility of the developer to provide housing for weaker sections. However, it is the responsibility of the government. Mostly, developers are catering to the middle class segments. Is it fair to impose the burden of providing housing of weaker section on the middle class families? This order will increase the costs minimum up to 20 per cent for all buyers,” said G Yoganand, president of Hyderabad Chapter of Confederation of Real Estate Developers Associations of India (CREDAI). Can a developer part with a club house or a facility in a residential complex, he asked. He said,the real estate sector is already suffering from high input costs and

heavy taxation. This GO will further hinder the development of the industry. The banks are also playing the role of obstructers by offering car loans at lesser interest rate of 8 to 9 per cent on high priority even though it is a depreciating asset. However, for an appreciating asset like real estate, they are offering loans at 11 per cent to the property buyers and 14 per cent - 15 per cent for the developer. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) believes that financing real estate is highly risky. Banks have to keep 1.25 times of the loan amount in bonds as security to the RBI. This gives rise to higher interest rates for the developers. Eventually, these high interest rates are pushing the costs of the property up. “The RBI has to change its perception and has to offer at reasonable interest rates,” says Yoganand. Real estate industry is the face of the nation for attracting foreign investment. It is the second largest employment generator and contributes 35 per cent and 40 per cent of the unit price as revenues to the government. Developing real estate will enable the growth of different industries that are supplying raw materials. New malls and commercial spaces help to bring in new businesses in the city which will create new employment opportunities. They also increase revenues to the government in the form of taxes. It is high time for the government to understand real estate is not solely a revenue generator but also enables revenue generation from different spheres, he concluded.

State expects deals worth `3.14 lakh crore in Partnership Summit Postnoon News

HYDERABAD: Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), in association with the Government of Andhra Pradesh and Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Government of India, is organizing the 18th edition of ‘Partnership Summit 2012’. The CII’s mega international event is going to be held for two days starting from Thursday at Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC) The government is confident on signing agreements with the key players related to refinery projects in the Petrol, Chemicals, and Petro chemical Investment Region (PCPIR) and health areas. There are business delegations from over 26 countries participating in the Summit with a participation of over 1,500 delegates. The summit would also have one-on-one business interactions with foreign delegates. Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy will have discussions with select business delegations to explore opportunities on their investment in the State. The memorandum of understand

(MoU) for investment of an estimated Rs3.14 lakh crore is expected to be signed. The Vishakhapatnam Steel Plant (Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited) and the State

government will be signing an MoU during the summit. Under the agreement, the Vishakhapatnam Steel Plant will invest Rs 44, 000 crore for the expansion of the plant. Anand Sharma, Minister of Commerce and Industry and Textiles, Government of India, is the chairman of the Partnership Summit. Goh Chok Tong, Emeritus Senior Minister, Singapore, is the guest of honour. The summit will also have more than 10 trade and economic ministers from different countries addressing the delegates. There are plenary sessions on partnerships with United States of America, China and African countries. Summit will also discuss the key drivers of industrial growth and global environment issues. Several interesting sessions on new age innovation partnerships, ‘global economic shocks – perfect storms ahead’, and ‘India and USA promise – partnership for progress’ are lined up in the two-day summit. Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy is hopeful of boosting the business climate in the State and accelerate the activity which suffered major jolts in the last two years due to political instability.

Sensex quiet MUMBAI: The BSE Sensex rose by over 57 points in opening trade on Wednesday, extending Tuesday’s rally on sustained buying after Moody’s upgraded its rating of the country’s shortterm foreign currency bank deposits to investment grade amid hopes of a rate cut by the RBI. In addition, a firming trend on other Asian bourses supported the upside in stock prices here. The 30-share benchmark index, which gained over 350 points in Tuesday’s trade, rose further by 57.28 points, or 0.30 per cent, to 16,222.37 in opening trade on Wednesday. In a similar fashion, the wide-based National Stock Exchange Nifty index moved up by 10.60 points, or 0.22 per cent, to 4,860.15. Consumer durables, banking, auto and metal stocks led the rise, helping the Sensex trade in positive terrain. Brokers said there was a marked improvement in the trading sentiment after the rating of India’s short-term foreign currency bank deposits was upgraded to investment grade by Moody’s.

BSE – 16,167.8552.39, NSE – 4,849.9550.40, Gold 24k(10g)– `27,900, Silver (1kg)–53,000, Dollar $ – `51.79, Pound £ – `80.06

Comment

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Fair, free and forthright

Editorials ATTACK ON RAJAPAKSE

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hen a relative of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse was attacked at a temple by some splinter Tamil chauvinist group with slippers and stones, it was India’s face that bled. The assailants were under the impression that the man was there to perform pujas for the continuity of Rajapakse government. Whatever be the intent, a person’s personal time at a place of worship is sacrosanct and no one has the right to disturb them there. Also, the incident sends negative vibes to the Sri Lankan government when India is trying to improve bilateral ties. What would we feel if Manmohan Singh’s wife is assaulted while visiting a Lankan temple because the PM belongs to the party that had once sent troops there? The MDMK and Nam TamizharIyakkam activists should muse over the philosophy athidi devo bhava (guest is god).

WHY WE LOVE _~áÅÜìåÖ=_Üìíá~

o surprises were expected at Baichung Bhutia’s farewell match against the Bayern Munich — Indians lost 0-4. But it cannot be contested that a better farewell could have been given to India’s torchbearer in International football. In India, it’s not easy being a footballer. But Bhutia tried, succeeded and came this far. One of the flags that were seen at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium at Bhutia’s farewell had the following message on it: THANKS BAYERN, LOVE YOU BHUTIA. Our feelings cannot be better expressed.

Caesar had his Rubicon, it’s time we crossed ours Urban Jetsam Dean Williams

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Women’s page

Add more variety

I liked the women section that you have added in your features page. It’s good to see a page on dedicated to this section and also the All about eve was an interesting read as well. It gives answers to many women who shy away from asking questions. It’s encouraging to see women who have achieved heights in the society and are an inspiration to many. It would be nice if you could add women from different sectors like fashion, films, travel and other such interesting areas as well.

I think that Postnoon makes for an interesting read in the afternoons. I particularly like the inclusion of new opinion columns by young journalists on everything ranging from politics to street food. The features pages are very interesting. But I wonder if you could have dedicated centerspreads on each day of a week to a particular domain like social media, corporate life etc. That would let interested readers like me to know what to look forward to every week.

Latika Kumar Begumpet

Sneha P Himayatnagar

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Naidu frustrated

India must fight back

Chandrababu Naidu’s plan to steal thunder from Jagan Mohan Reddy by taking out a protest rally failed miserably with arrest. Naidu is showing that he is nothing more than a frustrated politicians who wants to keep himself in the news by some gimmick or the other. He doesn’t have the guts to take a stand on the separate statehood issue or the liquor policy but tries his best to gain political mileage out of both. He is definitely not gaining any respect through his tactics Priyanka Singh Secunderabad

The Australian media is throwing its weight behind the national cricket team and is trying to break the morale of the Indian side. Dhoni and his men should not take them seriously and should let their performance at Perth be the reply for their mind games. The team also needs to get its act together or the series will be a repeat of the disastrous England tour. By winning the World Cup India has shown it can perform and they should re-discover that fighting spirit again. Moin PR Nampally

H‑Factor

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Holistic view of mind, body and soul

Ignorance is not bliss Anishaa Kumar anishaa.k@postnoon.com

llergies can make your day to day life quite miserable. It is important to understand your allergy and it’s severity. Apart from food allergies, people can also have allergies due to various other substances.

times also found in food. It can be noticed as green spots on food. The common symptoms of mould allergies include wheezing, stuffy nose,

stuffy nose and itchy eyes. Pollon allergies occur mainly during the flowering seasons. Some of the common precautions suggested include wearing a protective mask, avoid going out when it is windy. A good air purifier at home can also be of assistance.

Dust/Dust mites Dust is everywhere making it very difficult to protect yourself from it. According to Dr Pramati Reddy, Sr Consultant for Internal medicine, Apollo Hospital, Jubilee Hills it is difficult to find an environment free of dust. Those with dust allergies should wear a mask when outdoors or in dusty places. She also adds that it can be a cause for asthma so those with dust allergies should also carry and use nasal sprays.

Mould Mould is basically a fungus that breaks down dead material. It exists in moist dark places. Mould is some-

runny nose, itchy and watery eyes, rash or hives. Some of the common food sources of mould include cheese, mushrooms, food with vinegar, packaged/canned food, neat, fish etc. To control mould allergies you should work towards reducing exposure to moulds and work towards preventing the growth of mould.

Pollen Pollen is the term used to describe a fine or course powder that contains the micro gametophytes of plants that produce the male gametes. Many people suffer from pollen allergies. The symptoms include a sore throat, breathing trouble,

Are you allergic to your phone?

part from the regular known allergies, “modernisation” has its own allergens. n Cell phone allergies- It may occur due to a physical aversion to nickel, but other attacks result from negative reactions to low levels of radiation and microwaves. n IPod allergies- It could be caused by a metal allergy, an allergic reaction to nickel or palladium or other metals in the iPod.

n Exercise allergies-

Some people exhibit symptoms such as a runny nose, congestion, difficulty in breathing or hives when they exercise especially when they engage in strenuous activities. n Computers- It may be due to electromagnetic hypersensitivity, emissions from plastic casings or the triphenyl phosphate used as a flame retardant

Animal allergies Many are under the impression that animal allergies are because of pet fur. The real reason is the proteins in their dander (may contain scales of dried skin and hair, or feathers) and dried saliva and urine. According to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, 15–30% of people with allergies have an allergy to dogs, cats, or other animals. Cats are the most common cause for pet allergies. Symptoms of pet allergies include coughing, itching, shortness of breath, wheezing, itching nose, nasal congestion, runny nose, watery and swollen eyes etc. For those with animal allergies, medications such as antihistamines, nasal sprays, decongestants or certain asthma medications

are available. Apart from these allergies people are allergic from various other substances such as perfumes, alcohol, water, food colouring, medicines, cosmetics . Bee stings and insect bites are also causes of allergies.

Anaphylaxis Anaphylaxis is a life threatening allergic reaction. It can cause various symptoms such as hives, tongue swelling, vomiting, and even shock. The causes of anaphylaxis include medications, Insect stings, Foods, Vaccines, Hormones, Insulin, latex and Animal/human proteins. Those who suffer from such reactions should avoid anything which may cause a reaction. In case of a reaction one can use epinephrine injections, anti-allergic medications and should also cause the doctor immediately as it can be a life-threatening situation mentions Dr Pramati.

Prevention is better than cure According to Dr Aftab Ahmed, Sr Consultant Physician, Apollo Hospital, more than medication, the most important point is once you are aware of an allergy, prevention is more important. “Avoid going in a certain environment or eating a particular kind of food which causes the allergy. In terms of medication post an allergic reaction there are antiallergic medicines and injections. In certain extreme cases steroids are given, he mentions.

Controlling BP crucial for diabetics WASHINGTON: According to a new research, middle-aged adults who have recently been diagnosed with various types of diabetes and hypertension have some time to effect lifestyle changes to control their high blood pressure (BP). If they make such changes within a year, the loss to their life expectancy is said to be only two days. But on the other hand if they wait for another 10 years, it is said to cut down life expectancy by almost five months, according to a new study. High BP is especially damaging for diabetics, raising their risk of stroke, coronary artery disease, kidney failure, vision loss and amputations. “For newly diagnosed patients, the study results mean we have time in order to control their BP,” said study author Neda Laiteerapong who is an instructor of medicine at the University of Chicago. “Most patients would prefer to control their blood pressure through means such as diet and exercise rather than with the help of medications, and it can take months to learn how to change old habits and master new skills. “Our results have indicated that it’s OK to spend around six months to a year, perhaps even longer, to make these difficult lifestyle changes that are necessary to control BP and that will also pay off in the long run.” Both the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the National Institutes of Health recommend a lower BP target for patients with diabetes than for the general public. Two out of three adults with diabetes, however, never reach that goal. Others are delayed by what the authors call “clinical inertia”. Clinical inertia is said to be a disinclination by patients to implement certain lifestyle changes or a reluctance by their doctors to push additional medications. It is has been said that among those who have been prescribed any kind of blood pressure drugs, at least 20 percent of the patients with diabetes do not stick to the treatments given to them. IANS

H‑Factor

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Holistic view of mind, body and soul

Facts about migraines

Do immune cells control their own destiny? SYDNEY: A surprise discovery has shown how some cells may be capable of exercising control over their own destiny. Immunology researchers from Walter and Eliza Hall Institute drew this conclusion after studying B cells, immune system cells that can make antibodies. An antibody, also known as an immunoglobulin, is a large Yshaped protein which identifies and neutralizes invasive bacteria and viruses, the journal Science reports. B cells can have

multiple fates. Some of the more common fates are to die, divide, become an antibody-secreting cell or change what antibody they make. This all happens while the cells are proliferating in the lymph nodes, according to an Eliza Hall statement. The commonly-held view is that a cell's fate is determined by external cues such as the presence of particular hormones or cell signalling molecules. However, Eliza head of immunology, Phil Hodgkin and colleagues Mark Dowling,

Cameron Wellard and Jie Zhou predicted that cell fates are, to a large extent, determined by internal processes. They tested their theory by recreating the conditions required for B cells to develop into different cell types and then filmed the cells, working with John Markham from the National Information and Communications Technology, to develop new technology and image analysis methods. Hodgkin said the cells behaved as though there were

internal machines that governed the cells' fates. “Each of these internal machines is like a little clock or timer for division, death, what type of antibody they make and whether they become antibody secreting cells,” he said. Dowling said: “Each cell will, in some sense, set up a clock that starts ticking for each of the outcomes and whatever clock goes off first is the decision that the cell makes.The cell is trying to do everything but only one fate wins,” he said. IANS

any people are affected by migraines. In many cases it is left ignored. Migraines can play a spoilsport in your day to day life hence it is important to tackle them in the right way. Five of the best ways to deal with a migraine are explained: n Act immediately Whenever you feel as though there is an onset of a migraine it is important to take action immediately. This helps to reduce the severity of a migraine. n Pay attention to your body. A number of products and tips for relief from migraine are available. If something does not work for you it should be stopped immediately. Lie down, darken the room and turn off anything that could make noise. n Cool down Migraines unlike normal headaches see the blood vessels dilate. Hence icing can help. Icing a regular headache can make it worse, but can help a migraine by counteracting the dilating vessels.You can to put an ice pack on the back of my neck, at the base of your skull. You can also cool down with refrigerated wraps (or slightly frozen, damp towels) placed around your head and eyes. Sometimes even a cool, damp cloth over your eyes helps. n Stop the Mental Chatter. Noise adds to a migraine making it worse. It is equally important to stop thinking as it can also aggravate a migraine. Breathe deeply to a count so as to divert the mind from unnecessary thoughts. n Sleep it off It is important to try and get some sleep. It always helps. Source: www.goarticles.com

Herb shows promise in counteracting hangover

Scientists crack protein code of killer parasite

WASHINGTON: A com-

WASHINGTON: Researchers have cracked the protein code of a malaria parasite that killed 655,000 people in 2010.The protein is an enzyme that Plasmodium falciparum - the protozoan that causes the most lethal form of malaria - uses to make cell membrane. The protozoan cannot survive without this enzyme, but even though the enzyme has many lookalikes in other organisms, people do not make it. Together these characteristics make the enzyme an ideal target for new antimalarial drugs. Although5 different species of Plasmodium can cause malar-

pound of an ancient herbal medicine called dihydromyricetin, isolated from the plant Hovenia, counteracts acute alcohol intoxication and consequent hangover, a research team in the US has found. The team from David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, found in an early study with rats that dihydromyricetin blocks the action of alcohol on neurons (brain cells) and also reduces voluntary alcohol consumption, with no major side effects. Specifically, dihydromyricetin inhibited

alcohol’s effect on the brain’s GABAA receptors, specific sites targeted by chemicals from brain cells. Richard W. Olsen, Jing Liang professor and associate professor in molecular and medical pharmacology at David Geffen conducted the study. Alcohol normally enhances the GABAA receptors’ influence in slowing brain cell activity, reducing the ability to communicate and increasing sleepiness common symptoms of drunkenness. Alcohol-use disorders are the most common form of substance abuse, affecting more than 76 million people worldwide IANS

ia, Plasmodium falciparum causes the most severe disease.The protein’s structure might have remained an enigma, had it not been the "unreasonable optimism" of Joseph Jez, associate professor of biology at Washington, which carried his team through a six-year-long obstacle course, full of failures and setbacks. “My lab crystallies proteins so that we can see what they look like in three dimensions, the idea is that if we know a protein's structure, it will be easier to design chemicals that would target the protein's active site and shut it down,” Jez says. IANS

Movies

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Like it or hate it, we just can’t seem to have enough of the occult. The recently-released Devil Inside, despite a lukewarm response from the critics, is ruling the box-offices worldwide. Today, we bring you a horror fest!

UNLEASHED

The Exorcist (1973)

The Amityville Horror (1979)

Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

DIRECTOR: William Friedkin CAST: Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow and Linda Blair irected by William Friedkin, The Exorcist is perhaps one of the most popular movies on exorcism. The story is about a child possessed by a demon, and two priests who are brought to rescue the little girl from the clutches of the demon. One of the biggest money-grossers of all times, the movie still has the kind of following it did when it was released; if anything, the following has only doubled over the years. A filmmaker's delight and a watcher's nightmare, no movie has till date matched the magnitude of the scare element that The Exorcist created, not even its sequels.

DIRECTOR: Stuart Rosenberg CAST: James Brolin, Margot Kidder and Rod Steiger t could have easily passed off as one beautiful happy family story if you saw the first 15 minutes of the movie. The Amityville Horror is inspired by true incidents that supposedly happened to George and Kathy Lutz and Kathy's three children when they moved into a large colonial house in Amityville. Since then, multiple theories have been proposed on the unexplainable happenings, numerous books have been authored, and several sequels made on the Amityville horror. Clearly, The Amityville Horror has gone down in the history of the occult as an unforgettable.

DIRECTOR: Roman Polanski CAST: Mia Farrow, John Cassavetes

his 1968 movie was ace French-Polish filmmaker Roman Polanski’s second English movie. Rosemary's Baby is the second part of the triology of horror movies, the first one being Repulsion and the last The Tenant. Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse move into an apartment in a building with a bad reputation but good neighbours. Strange things start to happen, but when Rosemary falls pregnant under the shadow on something demonic, paranoia over the safety of her unborn child begins controlling her life. Rosemary’s Baby is among the best psychological supernatural thrillers ever made.

Poltergeist (1982)

The Omen (1976)

Director: Tobe Hooper CAST: Craig T Nelson, Jo Beth Williams, Beatrice Straight, Dominique Dunne

DIRECTOR: Tobe Hooper CAST: Gregory Peck, Lee Remick

t was the fourth highest grossing movie of 1976. Its success proves that horror flicks do have a huge market and more so if it caters to the quest for the supernatural. US diplomat Robert Thorn scared that his wife Katherine will not be able to bear the news of her stillborn son, substitutes it with another baby, whose mother died. Little does he know that he has adopted Satan’s son. They name the child Damien. Robert soon realises that their son is not normal and his quest leads to a disturbing revelation — Damien is the Antichrist. Watch this psychological suspense of about an occurrence of earth-shaking importance.

he story of a family whose peaceful life is disturbed by strange and unexplainable incidents happening in their house forms the plot of Poltergeist. Of the three sequels of the film, the first is the most successful. Parapsychologists who come to find answers to the incidents are baffled to know that the disturbances in the house are the works of more than just one ghost. Also, the fact that the house has been built on a cemetery adds to the continuing woes of the family who are victims of random objects including the television, closet, and the backyard tree! Watch it if you believe you can.

MOVIE OF THE WEEK

Contraband (2012)

ue to release this weekend, Mark Wahlberg’ leads the cast of Contraband, an action-thriller about a man trying to stay out of a world he worked hard to leave behind and the family he’ll do anything to protect. Set in New Orleans, the film explores the cutthroat underground world of international smuggling — full of desperate criminals and corrupt officials, high-stakes and big payoffs — where loyalty rarely exists and death is one wrong turn away. Chris Farraday (Wahlberg) long

ago abandoned his life of crime, but after his brother-inlaw, Andy (Caleb Landry Jones), botches a drug deal for his ruthless boss, Tim Briggs (Giovanni Ribisi), Chris is forced back into doing what he does best — running contraband — to settle Andy’s debt. Chris is a legendary smugName: Contraband (2012) gler and quickly assembles a Director: Baltasar Kormakur crew with the help of his best Cast: Mark Wahlberg, friend, Sebastian (Ben Foster), to Giovanni Ribisi head to Panama and return with millions in counterfeit bills...

F‑Folio

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Because you are what you wear

CELEB PICK

They are back and how! Bell bottoms, which were once the quintessential haute couture statements of the ‘70s are now a must-have for the experimental, fashion-loving women of today. Recently sported by Heidi Klum, who perhaps dared to wear the biggest bell bottom ever, the vintage garment shows great promise in 2012 COMPILED BY INDIRA ATLURI

indira.i@postnoon.com

OF BELLES AND BELL BOTTOMS Zoe Zaldana Heidi Klum The host of Project Runway, and the ultimate icon for fashion followers, Heidi was recently seen sporting one of the widest bell bottoms ever. She however, took the trend to the extreme, rocking a mega-flared pair of jeans that seemed straight out of Woodstock. So if you have got the attitude, go for it!

With the right bell bottoms, the right top and the right attitude, if you thought you can be a bell bottom belle, you are wrong. Know your figure before you try wearing one. If you are too busty or too thin, the bell bottoms are surely not for you. Zoe is your example.

Jessica Alba Jessica Alba is most famous for playing the Invisible Woman in Fantastic Four. But it was impossible not to notice Jessica Alba's fantastic flare as she donned an impressive pair of ‘70s-style bell bottoms. Jessica is back to looking her best after a gruelling exercise regimen following the birth of her second daughter Haven in August. She showed off her well-toned figure in an attractive checkered shirt, which was tantalisingly unbuttoned at the top and her tight-fitting flares and fashionable sunglasses just made her look all the more stunning. She sure teamed it right!

Jessica Biel

Vanessa Hudgens Seen sporting velvet orange bell-bottom pants, Vanessa Hudgens sets herself apart from others. She paired it with a leopardprint jacket. Now that’s pushing the boho look too far. What say? The orange shade is not one that every lass can sport. But then if you believe you can get away with it, who's stopping you?

She may not have experimented much with the bell bottoms like Heidi Klum did, but she perfected the look with a black tshirt coupled with a coat. The boots complete the look, making her quite a stunner.

Magic Screen

The glamour behind the glitz

Katrina Kaif in talks for Rajinikanth’s next?

ajinikanth’s films have the crème de la crème in almost every aspect, including the country’s best technicians, biggest stars and the production values so rich that people can’t stop raving about it. After teaming up with Shankar in his previous film Endhiran (Robo), where Aishwarya Rai played Rajinikanth’s love interest, his upcoming film Kochadaiyaan is going to be directed by his daughter, Soundarya Rajinikanth. The latest buzz about this 3D film, is that Soundarya Rajinikanth is in talks with Katrina Kaif to play the lead role opposite Rajinikanth. In the past, the makers were reportedly in talks with Anushka, Vidya Balan and even Asin to play the role. The only catch with casting Katrina Kaif is her busy schedule in Bollywood where she’s currently acting in Salman Khan’s Ek Tha Tiger and in another untitled Shah Rukh Khan film. However, the actress has apparently promised Soundarya Rajinikanth that she’ll allot some dates for the film. She hasn’t signed on the dotted line yet, but if she does, it’ll be the biggest film she has been part of till date.

UTV denies approaching

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

T-TOWN TWEETIES

@shraddhadas43 Playing monopoly with friends!! Been greedy enough to buy so many houses in d game,n lose everything!! Ha haa, fun!

@taapsee Wish I could b there to c my darling @shagunpannu win d group dance comptt in Delhi. N wish u repeat d magic at d national level next. mwwwaaah .

@richyricha Happy 50th Day to Mayakkam Enna, a film that really changed my life. Proud of my team. Thanks @selvaraghavan sir.

@Actor_Siddharth I look forward to meeting and inviting @SalmanRushdie to our free country. His, mine and ours. Jai Hind!

Naga Chaitanya

TV Motion Pictures has denied reports in a section of media that it is in talks with Naga Chaitanya for the Telugu and Tamil remake of Delhi Belly. Earlier this week, there were rumours that UTV had approached Jayam Ravi and Naga Chaitanya for the remake. However, Dhananjayan Govind, Head of UTV South said, “We are certainly remaking Delhi Belly, which received a record 20 Screen Award nominations. But we are yet to approach the artistes. Please do not believe in the rumours on the names of leading artists doing the film Delhi Belly.” Currently, Naga Chaitanya is acting in Deva Katta’s Autonagar Surya and he’ll also be seen in Radha Mohan’s bilingual film Gouravam, which is going to hit the floors later this month.

Love Failure set to release in Feb

iddharth, Amala Paul starrer Love Failure is gearing up for its release in February. The film’s shooting has been wrapped up and currently the post production is going on. Balaji Mohan is making his debut as a director with this bilingual film, which will simultaneously release in Telugu and Tamil. The rom-com is based on a short film, Kadhalil Sodhapuvadu Yeppadi, which was directed by Balaji Mohan a few years ago. Thaman has composed the music and the audio is expected to hit the shelves later this month. Siddharth is co-producing the film, along with Nirav Shah, under the Etaki Entertainment banner, in association with Y Not Studios banner. Leading producer, Dil Raju has bought the distribution rights of the film’s Telugu version.

@LakshmiManchu “Remain humble & grateful for all your accomplishments & know that a force greater than your ego is always at work in your life”- Wayne dyer

@_Hansika Happy birthday to my brother. And Thank u all for wishing him, he has read most of ur tweets n is very touched . Thank u guys . Cheers

@shriyasmiling Finished reading Dhanu Road by Anosh Irani, to all book lovers,do check it out!its a gr8 read! Intriguing and intense. Beautiful love story.

@devakatta The other person's smartness depends on how dumb you are....

Magic Screen

The glamour behind the glitz

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Muazzam Beg may not have received due credit for the story of Rockstar but the director has moved on and is looking forward to the release of his ‘first’ film

You don’t get anything without a fight Taniya Talukdar taniya.t@postnoon.com

hough the Hindi film industry has opened up quite a bit to new filmmakers and 2011 itself saw around 70 directors make their debut, there are still challenges that have to be overcome. Finding producers is the biggest challenge of all and debutant director Muazzam Beg seconds this. “I took one-and-a-half years to find a producer who decided to take a risk after seeing the script,” he says, going on to add, “The challenges that I faced while making my latest movie Sadda Adda are actually a long story. Apart from looking for a producer, we also had a limited budget and we were required to do a lot of pre-production work. We shot in 35 locations and that too within 29 days.” Muazzam’s film Sadda Adda is an autobiography of sorts as the story is based on his experiences in Delhi. “The film is about life on campus where people come from different universities with different professional degrees. Different people come to the metro but their lives truly begin only after their first jobs,” informs Muazzam. The film is about four such characters who share a house in Delhi and who become a family over a period of time. “The tagline of the film says, ‘without a fight you get nothing’ and that’s the same experience I had while making the film,” explains Muazzam. This enthusiastic director had, in fact, decided on the subject a long time ago. He says, “I was living in Delhi, while studying at Jamia Millia Islamia, I shared an apartment with a few other boys and it was then that I decided that when I make a film it would be on this subject.” Tell him that there are no stars in his film whatsoever and Muazzam is quick to retort, “Everybody has to start somewhere. Earlier people used to say that female-oriented films get critical acclaim only and they never become commercial hits but see what The Dirty Picture has done. I have also

made my film with great expectations and it is based on life’s inspirations. People are open to see good films these days and they don’t mind the investments. Players is a great example; it had a great budget but look at its reviews; it hasn’t been able to garner any good ones. The youth is the target audience of my film and though there is risk involved everywhere, there is no guarantee of success either. I made a film from my heart and I am sure it will reach the people’s heart.” While Sadda Adda is based on Muazzam’s observation, the recently released Rockstar was also based on the first-time director’s observations for which he never got due credit. “Rockstar’s plot was mine but Imtiaz Ali never accepted it publicly. At the end of the film when the credits roll there was a mention of my name but they have not given me credit separately. I felt bad and that’s why I went to the media, but now I have buried all that and have decided to move on,” says Muazzam who thinks that the art of storytelling has been lost in the recent times. “India is lost in our times and in Sadda Adda I have tried to revive that lost spirit. We have good sensibility and our films should depict that. All great filmmakers try and reflect the society in their films and that’s what I have tried to do as well. I have made the movie for the audience and not for myself,” he says emphatically. Muazzam has been a writer for the past eight years but he is now looking forward to only direct films. Signing off, he says, “I will not write for anyone else, a film needs nurturing like a baby. Mostly things go wrong in the screenplay, which is the most important part of filmmaking. With different sensibilities of the writer and director, it tends to go wrong and from now onwards, I will avoid that.”

Magic Screen

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

The glamour behind the glitz

Chitrangada Singh’s

new avatars

irst she opted for a glamorous role in Desi Boyz and then she gave a nod to an item number. Actress Chitrangada Singh, otherwise known for serious roles, surprised all and sundry last year and says the response has been encouraging. “I really hope 2012 turns out to be a year full of surprises for me, and surprises spring after one another. I am really happy with the kind of response I received for my work in Desi Boyz. It was really encouraging and I am looking forward to more good work this year,” Chitrangada said. The dusky beauty, who will be seen on an upcoming episode of UTV Stars’ Superstar Santa, made her Bollywood debut in 2003 with Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi, and was subsequently seen in films like Sorry Bhai!, Basra and Yeh Saali Zindagi. Desi Boyz, which also featured Akshay Kumar, John Abraham and Deepika Padukone, was a radically different project for her. Nevertheless, she loved it, and the audience loved her in it too. No wonder she feels her fans will appreciate her item song in Shirish Kunder’s 3D project Joker. “The item song was hard, we rehearsed for it a lot and it has turned out to be fabulous. It is not into-the-face, the music is very catchy and the choreography by Farah (Khan) is very sensuous. It was great fun doing it,” said the 35-yearold. In 2012, she is looking forward to I, Me Aur Main with John, and Sudhir Mishra’s film with Arjun Rampal. IANS

I will never return to politics, says Govinda

B-TOWN TWEETIES

@AnupamPkher Hay House Publishers happily informed me that THE BEST THING ABOUT YOU IS YOU has made to Nelson's Top 250 Titles. Kuch Bhi Ho Sakta Hai.:)

@RGVzoomin Every person of every nation thinks his is the greatest nation cmprd 2 al other nations thereby proving tht patriotism is a stupid self delusion.

@sonakshisinha Shooting Rowdy, lootera, SOS back to back. Bharat Darshan begins in 2 days. badami to dalhousie to hampi to calcutta to chandigarh! whew!

@NeilNMukesh This is my first spa session and it's weird. Way all we got to do for a shoot.

ollywood actor and former MP Govinda, who returned to his acting career after a brief political stint, says politics was never his cup of tea. Speaking at the World Marathi Literary meet at Virar organised by local MLA Kshitij Thakur, the veteran actor said he never understood politics. The people of Vasai were hopeful that he would return to politics after a sabbatical but the popular actor put an end to all the speculations and called it a day. “Politics was never in our blood and in our family. I will never return to it,” he said adding that he would never forget that Virar was his ‘Karmabhoomi’. The 48year-old had joined the Congress and was elected as an MP for the Mumbai North Constituency of Maharashtra, in the Lok Sabha elections in 2004, after defeating Ram Naik of the BJP. In 2009, he took a break from politics to concentrate more on his films. His constituency was succeeded by Sanjay Nirupam. Govinda has appeared in over 120 Hindi films. He became popular worldwide as a Bollywood icon through comedy films such as Shola Aur Shabnam, Aankhen, Coolie No.1, Haseena Maan Jaayegi and Partner. His recent work includes Mani Ratnam’s bilingual project Ravan. PTI

@bipsluvurself My baby sis @melovezombies spent the whole day baking a cake fr me! Yummiest cake, full of love! Love u gudiya!

@SrBachchan

AMITABH

to inaugurate school for special children

mitabh Bachchan will soon inaugurate a school for special children in Nasik. “Another trip is towards Nasik to inaugurate a school for ‘special’ children, one that I had initiated some years ago through a very dedicated friend of mine from the police force,” Amitabh wrote on his blog bigb.bigadda.com. Even after spending four decades in the industry, the 69-year-old actor admits he still finds public appearances scary. “Public appearances are scary and time consuming. Welcomes and speeches of wisdom and care follow, photographs are taken and then the relief when you can get back home,” he said. “In the end, one wonders whether the trip was worth its while. Did the presence enhance the conditions or not. That is of value, nothing else matters...,” he added. IANS

T 619 -When the number of 'honour awards' start exceeding the number of film offers, you know that something is horribly wrong !!

@udaychopra Duggu Ya!!! Happy Birthday to my bestest friend @iHrithik ok so I'm being corny but what the hell...have a great one buddy.

@iamsrk Waiting for Godot?? A small part of our animal clan in the zoo called Mannat. Dash & Hulk.

Magic Screen

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

The glamour behind the glitz

LINDSAY LOHAN

indsay Lohan can’t seem to get arrested these days when it comes to big-screen projects (pun intended), a fact which has forced her into the less-than-ideal position of vying for roles in made-for-television movies, the first of which came in the form of the ABC Family original movie Labor Pains in 2009. Now it seems she’s eyeing another small-screen project, this time for the Lifetime Network, that would have her portraying iconic movie star Elizabeth Taylor. Elizabeth & Richard: A Love Story, which was previously announced as part of the revamped network’s 201112 development slate, is a biopic that will focus on the late actress’ tumultuous romance with her frequent co-star Richard Burton, and according to Deadline Lohan is in talks to play Taylor, who passed away last March. More known now for her frequent court appearances and tabloid-ready exploits than anything else, Lohan’s last credit was a minor role in director Robert Rodriguez’s 2010 action film Machete. Though she’s been attached to several projects since, including Gotti: Three Generations (in which she was previously rumoured to be starring as mob wife Victoria Gotti in her younger years) starring John Travolta and the biopic Inferno: A Linda Lovelace Story (in which she was replaced by Malin Akerman for insurance reasons), none have ended up materialising for her. Perhaps this one will actually come to fruition? More to the point, does anyone even care at this point?

in talks to play Elizabeth Taylor in new biopic

Aaron Paul of Breaking Bad is engaged

Directors Guild nominees: Fincher in, Spielberg out

n AMC’s Breaking Bad, Aaron Paul plays troubled drug addict Jesse Pinkman, but in real life, the actor’s life is getting better and better. Paul, 32, just got engaged to his girlfriend Lauren Parsekian, 24, in Paris, according to RumorFix.com. Showing off pictures of her flashy engagement ring to pals, along with a photo of the couple with a “bride + groom” sign Parsekian wrote, “Coming back home today with my fiancé!!! NYE proposal in Paris … Couldn’t be more perfect. I’m so happy and excited.” Parsekian, who calls Paul “the most amazing man on the planet,” is the Co-CEO of Finding Kind Productions, a campaign that “brings awareness and healing to the negative and lasting effects of girlagainst-girl crimes.” Paul most notably dated the 90210 reboot’s Jessica Lowndes in 2010.

he Directors Guild Awards, perhaps the most predictive pre-Oscar prize of the season, has thrown quite a wrench into the Oscar race with its list of five nominees for Best Director of the year. Along with The Artist’s Michel Hazanivicius, Hugo’s Martin Scorsese, The Descendants’ Alexander Payne, and Midnight in Paris’ Woody Allen, the DGA named The Girl

With the Dragon Tattoo’s David Fincher over touted contenders like War Horse’s Steven Spielberg and The Tree of Life’s Terrence Malick. Dragon Tattoo has now been nominated by the Directors, Writers, and Producers Guilds. Could it snag a Best Picture nod on January 24 as well? It’s certainly looking likelier than The Tree of Life, which has now officially been shut out by all four guilds.

Magic Screen

D I S P L A YA

D S RATE ` 150 sq. cm

For Further Details Please Contact Abhinay 9989399972 Nandlal 9951467988 Ravi Chander 8106039919

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Magic Screen

The glamour behind the glitz

KATEE SACKHOFF

to star opposite Vin Diesel in Riddick

hile you probably know her as Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica, Katee Sackhoff will soon have a new sci-fi franchise to add to her repertoire. We previously reported that Sackhoff was being considered for a role opposite Vin Diesel in the upcoming sci-fi flick, Riddick. It now looks as if she’s a lock as Sackhoff is reported to be in final negotiations for the role. She’ll be playing Dahl, a Nordic mercenary tasked with tracking down the titular anti-hero. The third installment of the franchise that started with Pitch Black and staggered with The Chronicles of Riddick was once again written and directed by David Twohy; it also stars Karl Urban reprising his role as Lord Vaako.

Jim Carrey open to a bonus Bruce?

he last time Universal dabbled in the dark sequel arts with regards to Jim Carrey comedy vehicle Bruce Almighty, we got 2007’s floptastic Evan Almighty, which did little to help Steve Carell’s blossoming film career. But since even that critical dud managed to drag in around $175 million worldwide, the studio are hoping to snag Carrey himself in the sequel.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Magic Screen

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

The glamour behind the glitz

John Williams makes me look good, says Spielberg S teven Spielberg has described John Williams as an “amazing talent”. The movie director, who has worked with Williams on films such as Jurassic Park and ET, said that the composer’s musical scores have the power to go “right to your heart” when you listen to them. “John and I have had a 40year relationship, this is our 40th anniversary,” Spielberg told journalists at the UK press conference for War Horse. “We started working together in 1972 on The Sugarland Express. We start our next score in about three months. Johnny scores Lincoln in three months and that will be our... God, we’ve been together a lot. “John is the most important collaborator I’ve ever had in my career. He makes me look good,

he makes my films look better. I get a lot of credit that should be going to John. but I’ve kept the people who have been in my career who I feel are my family.” “I really believe in the family of collaboration and so Johnny is certainly no less or no more important than the entire group, but Johnny does make a contribution that goes right to your heart. A lot of the contributions from my other collaborators are subliminal — you don’t really single them out for credit. “Without them, the films wouldn’t have the impact they have, but John certainly has the most considerable impact because his music immediately bypasses the brain and goes straight to your heart. That’s the way he’s always been... an amazing talent,” he said.

Snoop Dogg busted for drug possession

noop Dogg, caught carrying weed? Rapper and noted marijuana enthusiast Snoop Dogg was arrested on drug charges at a border-patrol checkpoint in Texas over the weekend, the Hudspeth County Sheriff’s Office confirms to TheWrap. The arrest occurred after a drug-sniffing dog detected marijuana on Broadus’ tour bus, after which border-patrol agents found a red prescription bottle containing multiple joints. Agents subsequently found two other containers with marijuana. All told, agents found .130 pounds of pot on Snoop’s bus, according to the sheriff’s department. Snoop, 40, admitted to owning the marijuana, and was arrested by US border patrol agents. Hudspeth County Sheriff Department personnel subsequently arrived on the scene and cited Snoop for possession of drug parapherna-

atalie Portman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Helen Mirren, Clive Owen, Nicole Kidman, Salma Hayek, Antonio Banderas, Melissa McCarthy and Freida Pinto have all been announced as presenters at the 69th Annual Golden Globe Awards, which is scheduled to air this coming Sunday on NBC. The group was announced via the official Twitter account of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), the organisation that chooses the winners and nominees at each year’s ceremony.

lia and released. The rapper reportedly has a prescription for medical marijuana in his native California, but Texas offers no such amenities. This is far from Snoop’s first drug-related arrest — the rapper (born Calvin Broadus) has been popped no fewer than four separate times for carrying weed.

Portman, of course, won the award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture — Drama at last year’s show for her performance in Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan, which also netted her an Oscar. Gyllenhaal and Kidman were also nominated last year, for their performances in Love and Other Drugs and Rabbit Hole, respectively.

Portman and Gyllenhaal among first Golden Globes presenters

Chai Time

KAKURO

How to Play Kakuro Kakuro is a popular game similar to sudoku in some ways. But is also suitably different. The key question: “How do you play Kakuro?”, well here are the rules of kakuro. The answer: The kakuro grid, unlike in sudoku, can be of any size. It has rows and columns, and dark cells like in a crossword. And, just like in a crossword, some of the dark cells will contain numbers. Some cells will contain two numbers. However, in a crossword the numbers reference clues. In a kakuro, the numbers are all you get! They denote the total of the digits in the row or column referenced by the number. Within each collection of cells - called a run - any of the numbers 1 to 9 may be used but, like sudoku, each number may only be used once. Let’s have an example to explain this concept more clearly: In the image above, which shows a section of a kakuro puzzle, you will see the numbers ‘26’ and ‘14’ in the top row. Look at the 14. This means that the total of the three cells underneath must sum to 14. Therefore 9, 4, 1 could be the answer, or perhaps 7, 4, 3 and so on... So, how do you work out the actual combination? Well, this is done through elimination and cross-referencing. For instance, as you work out the answers for other kakuro clues, this will naturally limit the valid combinations, and hence the answer for this particular run. Note the second cell in row two - it contains two numbers, 30 and 11. The 30 refers to the vertical run underneath the number 30 and the 11 refers to the two cells to the right, horizontally, of the number 11.

SCRIBBLING PAD

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Take a shot at the brain game while sipping your cuppa

QUICK CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Narrative story 5 Most frequent, poetically 11 Emulated a trencherman 14 Wife of Osiris 15 Dinero 16 Partner of "games" 17 Formula for a baked English dish? 19 Dr. Leary used it on some trips 20 Was in charge of 21 Reveal, as medical information 23 Around-the-world trip 26 Yes at sea 27 Eucalyptus eater 28 Foreshadow 30 Greater in excellence 31 Match at poker 32 Most likely to seep through cracks 35 Formula for a Thanksgiving dessert? 40 One who might test a parent's patience 41 Teeny mischief maker 43 Ran out, as a subscription 46 Like some furniture 49 "In the doghouse," for one 50 Some rustic parents 52 Warfare opponent 53 Women's sleeveless undergarments 55 Snaky fish 56 He works on a caseby-case basis 57 Formula for a fowl dinner? 62 Rockhound's find 63 Actress Brennan 64 Dry as a desert 65 Vermilion, e.g. 66 Breastbones 67 Salon colorings DOWN 1 "___ the season to be jolly" 2 Burnt-log residue 3 Tell a whopper

4 Liveliness of mind 5 Black cat, to some 6 Word on a gift tag 7 Hot alcoholic drink 8 Spokescow 9 Easily duped people 10 Most heavyset 11 Not submerged 12 Small skirmish 13 Make beloved 18 Love's opposite 22 It has regular drawings 23 Photo ___ (campaign events) 24 Lobster and beluga products 25 Witches' concoction 26 Become a new father, in a way 29 Widely known 30 Bingo relative 33 Orange "Sesame Street" Muppet

34 Express lane count 36 ___ salts (bath additive) 37 Religious recluses 38 Rug feature 39 Islamic leader 42 Be nosy 43 Roman executing sentences 44 Stay attached 45 ___ together (assembled) 47 Opposite of shallow 48 Confess to ease stress 50 Haggard of country music 51 One who inquires

SUDOKU

54 Diamonds or spades, e.g. 55 Sicilian erupter 58 Suffix for "velvet" 59 Attempt 60 Dessert that ties into the puzzle's theme 61 They're needed to see some movies PREVIOUS PUZZLE ANSWER

THOUGHT OF THE DAY History teaches us that men and nations behave wisely once they have exhausted all other alternatives. – Abba Eban

Chai Time STAR POWER

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Your tomorrow today̶Star Power and Tarot

Date 12-1-2012

THIRUVAIKUMAR

As per Hindu panchang

thiruvaikumar@yahoo.co.in 040-27177230 / 9177596118

TAURUS

GEMINI

Your expectations get fulﬁlled. You will plan jobs perfectly and complete in time. Friends and colleagues will extend sup‑ port. Employees need to be cordial with colleagues working under them.

Businessmen will contemplate fresh investments and expand business in other regions too. Your name and fame will gain much importance with busi‑ ness fraternity. Due credit will be given.

Though friends will help you in time, chan‑ ces that their actions might irk you as they make unwanted comments about you. How‑ ever, you need to maintain your cool. Finan‑ cial ﬂow will be steady and satisfactory.

CANCER

LEO

VIRGO

Businessmen will see a boom period; how‑ ever, don't make any fresh investment. Ad‑ opt a slow‑and‑steady approach. You will u‑ se your skills effectively. You will accept su‑ ggestions of elderly and experienced to gain.

Avoid laziness and postponing any work; be active and complete work swiftly. You will come up on your own efforts. Income will look up gradually. Maintain business accounts properly to avoid any trouble.

You will plan the future course of action perfectly. Businessmen will understand n‑ ew techniques and earn good proﬁts. You will be more responsible and remain foc‑ ussed. A commanding ﬁnancial situation.

LIBRA

SCORPIO

SAGITTARIUS

Unexpected fortune likely. Friends who kept away from you will be back in your fold. Avoid getting irritated with friends who might test your patience. Be patient and make them realise your importance.

Your respect and prestige are set to in‑ crease. You will do purposeful wandering. Sound ﬁnancial ﬂow is seen. Extra gains likely through share market deals. Busi‑ nessmen will relax as sluggish period ends.

A happy day. Your creativity will increa‑ se and will act with improved thoughts. You will think independently and invol‑ ve in new efforts with a bold approach. Get work done by patting subordinates.

CAPRICORN

AQUARIUS

PISCES

Your approach will receive accolades. Businessmen will go well with partners, as understanding will be good. Court matters will get delayed. Avoid entrust‑ ing your responsibilities to anyone.

Expected help and support will come by. Businessmen will see a phenome‑ nal growth. Competitors and indirect enemies will become inactive. Good news expected from a distance.

You will find correct solutions for prob‑ lems and resolve them very well. Every‑ one will get attracted to you because of your sweet talk and polite approach. Du‑ ll situation in business will disappear.

SUMAA TEKUR

tarotreadhyd@gmail.com

ARIES

TAURUS

GEMINI

Two of Pentacles – Youʼll need to do the juggling act – that too, with seniors at work watching your every move. Organise your days better. Get a time table in place.

The Hanged Man – Spiritual awareness is key to getting over this moony feeling you experience these days. Centre yourself and do things that you enjoy.

Knight of Wands – Your intellect is put to the test. You need to pass an exam or an important client meeting, which will determine your worth.

CANCER

LEO

VIRGO

Four of Swords – Stability is all impor‑ tant to you at this po‑ int. You want to spend time with people who are predictable and provide comfort.

Knight of Swords – There are clouds of confusion all around you, and youʼre feel‑ ing frustrated being in the middle of it. Donʼt push yourself to do too much too soon.

Ten of Swords – pay attention to your dreams. They hold the key to why you are feeling the way you are. Youʼre rest‑ less and anxious. But it will get better.

LIBRA

SCORPIO

SAGITTARIUS

Three of Swords – Some grief and disap‑ pointment are indicat‑ ed. You feel betrayed by someone very close to you. You need to pick up the pieces and move on now.

Ace of Swords – Youʼre choosing only the extremes and this is not very good. There is a perfectly good middle path and you need to con‑ sider taking it.

Four of Wands – Good luck is on the way. You may be preparing for some travel. You make interesting and useful contacts. Singles will meet someone interesting.

CAPRICORN

AQUARIUS

PISCES

Six of Cups – Child‑ hood memories or m‑ emories from the pa‑ st make you extre‑ mely nostalgic. You feel sensitive about all the friends youʼve lost to silly fights.

Five of Pentacles – There is some form of loss indicated. There is little in your control and you need to accept what has to be and move on. Keep your chin up.

Seven of Swords – So‑ meone is not telling you the whole truth and this is coming in the way of your gro‑ wth. Secrecy and con‑ spiracy are threaten‑ ing peace of mind.

For Better or for Worse Stone soup

SOLUTIONS

Boggle SUN FOG WIND RAIN COLD CLOUD

Number game

Suduko

Scrabble

Ink pen

COMICS

Fred Basset

ARIES

TAROT READ

Vol: 1, No. 179 RNI No: APENG/2011/39337 Published for the proprietors, Scribble Media and Entertainment Pvt Ltd, by V Harshavardhan Reddy, at #1246, Level 3, Jubilee Casa, Road No. 62, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad–500033 and printed by him at Jagati Publications Ltd, Plot No D-75&E-52, APIE Industrial Estate, Balanagar, Ranga Reddy Dist, Hyderabad–500037, Editor: Dean Williams – Responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission of the publisher is prohibited. For feedback, please write to: feedback@postnoon.com and for subscription, please call 040-40672222, Fax: 040-40672211

Chai Time 1400 Naadi Aadajanme 1430 Pavitra 1500 Movie 1800 Sri Shanidevuni Mahimalu 1830 Vasantha Kokila 1900 Chinnari Pelli Kuturu 1930 Anna Chellelu 2000 Missamma 2030 Edureetha 2100 Challenge 2200 CID 2300 Challenge 0700 Silver Screen 0730 Just For Fun 0800 Ayurvedam 0830 Chaganti Nava Vidha Bhakti 0900 Bhale Chancele 1000 Vasantha Kokila

1400 Kannavaari Kalalu 1430 Maavichiguru 1500 Sumangali 1530 Movie 1800 Jai Shri Krishna 1830 Shraavani Subramaniam 1900 Mandhara 1930 Auto Bharthi 2000 No. 23, Mahalakshmi Nivasam 2030 Mogali Rekulu 2100 Aparanji 2130 Devatha 2200 Mamathala Kovela 2230 Anveshana 2300 Gemini Vaarthalu 0800 Gemini Talkies 0830 Movie 1130 Aha Emi Ruchi 1200 Jeevitha Chakram 1230 Maa Inti Aada Paduchu 1300 Chittemmaa 1330 Gorintaku

1400 [V] Vignettes 1430 [V] D3 Dil Dosti Dance 1500 [V] Humse Hai Life 1530 [V] Trailers 1600 [V] Zabardast Hits 1800 [V] Fresh Songs 1830 [V] Humse Hai Life 1900 [V] D3 Dil Dosti Dance 1930 [V] Humse Hai Life 2000 [V] Dare 2 Date 2100 [V] Deadly Dus 2130 [V] Trailers 2155 [V] Fresh Songs 2200 [V] Steal Ur Girlfriend 2300 [V] Humse Hai Life 2330 [V] D3 Dil Dosti Dance 0700 [V] Trailers 0730 [V] Zabardast Hits 0800 [V] Mind Blasting Mornings 1100 [V] Fresh Songs 1200 [V] D3 Dil Dosti Dance

‘[V] D3 Dil Dosti Dance’ at 1900 Hrs on CHANNEL [V]

1300 News Now At1 1330 News Now 1800 6 Pm 1830 Live Report 1900 Primetime 1930 The Game 2000 News Now At 8 2030 Live Report 2100 The Newshour 2200 The Newshour - Plus 2230 E Now 2300 News Now At 11 0800 The Morning News 0900 News Now 1200 Live Report 1230 News Now

‘The Game’ at 1930 Hrs only on TIMES NOW

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Telly sitcoms, news and movie listings

1400 Abhishekam 1430 Aadade Aadharam 1500 Antahpuram 1530 Aakasa Ganga 1600 Prema Mandiram 1630 Jagadeeswari 1700 Wow 1800 Devimahathyam 1830 Puttadi Bomma 1900 Kumkuma Rekha 1930 Manasu Mamata 2000 Chandra Mukhi 2030 Bharyamani 2100 Etv News 2130 Adurs 2245 Movie 0800 Subhamastu 0830 Jeevana Jyothi 0900 Movie 1130 Abhiruchi 1230 Star Mahila

1400 Ardhangi 1430 Movie 1800 Veera Naari Jhansi Laxmi Bhai 1830 Kalavari Kodallu 1900 Chinna Kodalu 1930 Pasupukunkuma 2000 Muddu Bidda 2030 Radha Kalyanam 2100 Kanyadanam 2130 Luckku Kickku 2230 Shree 2300 Bindas 2330 Latest Songs 0800 Gopuram 0830 Bhakti Samacharam 0900 Sri Raghavendra Vybhavam 0930 Ayurveda Jeevana Vignanam 1000 Bindass 1200 Mee Inti Vanta

‘Business Tonight’ at 2100 Hrs only on ET NOW 1400 The F And O Show 1430 Closing Trades 1530 Tomorrow's Trades 1600 Business Day 1730 Markets Tomorrow 1800 Rush Hour 1830 Brand Equity Special 1900 Global Business Report 1930 Business Express 2000 Business First 2030 Markets Tomorrow 2100 Business Tonight 2200 Top 10 At10 2230 Leaders Of Tomorrow 2300 Starting Up 0900 First Trades 1000 Hot Stocks 1100 Buy Now Sell Now - The Stock Game 1130 Buy Now Sell Now 1200 Market Sense 1300 Business Day 1330 Markets Now

‘Swords’ at 2200 Hrs on DISCOVERY CHANNEL 1400 Haunting 1600 Swords 1700 Man Woman Wild 1800 Wild Discovery 1900 Man Woman Wild 2000 Virus Hunters 2100 Man Vs Wild 2200 Swords 2300 Desire & Pleasure Decoded 1000 Virus Hunters 1100 Man Woman Wild 1200 I Should'nt Be Alive 1300 Wild Discovery

1415 CSI - Crime Scene Investigation 1510 Wipeout 2 1605 Flipping Out 1700 The Voice 1800 Reaper 1900 India's Minute To Win It 2000 Sports Crash 2100 Minute To Win It 2200 Wipeout 2 2300 Criss Angel Mindfreak 0830 Infomercial/30 Min 0900 Sky Teleshopping 0930 Criss Angel Mindfreak 0955 Infomercial/5 Min 1000 Criss Angel Mindfreak 1025 Infomercial/5 Min 1030 Flipping Out 1130 Sports Crash 1225 The Voice 1320 Minute To Win It

‘Criss Angel Mindfreak’ at 2300 Hrs on AXN

‘Sawaare Sabke Sapne – Preeto’ at 2030 Hrs on IMAGINE 1400 Haar Jeet 1500 Baba Aisa Varr Dhoondo 1600 Haar Jeet 1630 Dwarkadheesh - Bhagwan Shri Krishn 1700 Dharampatni 1800 Beendh Banuga Ghodi Chadhunga 1830 Baba Aisa Varr Dhoondo 1900 Haar Jeet 1930 Mahima Shani Dev Ki 2000 Dwarkadheesh - Bhagwan Shri Krishn 2030 Sawaare Sabke Sapne – Preeto 2100 Beendh Banuga Ghodi Chadhunga 2130 Dharampatni 2200 Baba Aisa Varr Dhoondo 2230 Haar Jeet

1400 Parichay 1430 Balika Vadhu 1500 Na Bole Tum Na Maine Kuch Kaha 1530 Uttaran 1600 Phulwa 1630 Parichay 1700 Sasural Simar Ka 1730 Na Bole Tum Na Maine Kuch Kaha 1800 Uttaran 1830 Balika Vadhu 1900 Hawan 1930 Sasural Simar Ka 2000 Balika Vadhu 2030 Veer Shivaji 2100 Phulwa 2130 Parichay 2200 Uttaran 2230 Na Bole Tum Na Maine Kuch Kaha 2300 Na Aana Is Des Laado 2330 Balika Vadhu

‘Balika Vadhu’ at 2000 Hrs on COLORS

‘Afsar Bitiya’ at 1900 Hrs on ZEE TV 1400 Hitler Didi 1430 Mrs. Kaushik Ki Paanch Bahuein 1500 Afsar Bitiya 1530 Yahaaan Main Ghar Ghar Kheli 1600 Pavitra Rishta 1630 Dance India Dance 1800 Hitler Didi 1830 Mrs. Kaushik Ki Paanch Bahuein 1900 Afsar Bitiya 1930 Choti Bahu 2 2000 Hitler Didi 2030 Yahaaan Main Ghar Ghar Kheli 2100 Pavitra Rishta 2130 Ram Milaye Jodi 2200 Mrs. Kaushik Ki Paanch Bahuein 2230 Bhagonwali 2300 Afsar Bitiya

1400 Saas Bina Sasuraal 1430 Bade Achhe Lagte Hai 1500 Kuch Toh Log Kahenge 1600 CID 1800 Saas Bina Sasuraal 1830 Bade Achhe Lagte Hai 1900 Crime Patrol - Dastak 2000 Kuch Toh Log Kahenge 2045 Dekha Ek Khwaab 2130 Parvarrish - Kuchh Khatti Kuchh Meethi 2200 Saas Bina Sasuraal 2230 Bade Achhe Lagte Hai 2300 Kuch Toh Log Kahenge 0730 Sky Star Advertising 0900 Adaalat 1100 Crime Patrol - 1 1200 Kuch Toh Log Kahenge 1245 Dekha Ek Khwaab 1330 Parvarrish - Kuchh Khatti Kuchh Meethi

‘Bade Achhe Lagte Hai’ at 2230 Hrs on SONY

‘Diya Aur Bati Hum’ at 2100 Hrs on STAR PLUS 1400 Sapnon Se Bharey Naina 1500 Survivor India - Highlight 1530 Diya Aur Bati Hum 1600 Ek Hazaaron Mein Meri Behnaa Hai 1630 Sasuraal Genda Phool 1700 Saath Nibhaana Saathiya 1730 Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon 1800 Survivor India - Highlight 1830 Ruk Jana Nahin 1900 Saath Nibhaana Saathiya 1930 Sasuraal Genda Phool 2000 Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon 2030 Ek Hazaaron Mein Meri Behnaa Hai 2100 Diya Aur Bati Hum 2130 Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai 2200 Navya 2230 Mann Ki Awaaz… Pratigya 2300 Maryaada ... Lekin Kab Tak?

MOVIES OF THE DAY AND OTHER HIGHLIGHTS

1410 The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford 1710 Swordfish 1905 The Invasion 2100 Lara Croft - Tomb Raider 2300 Lara Croft Tomb Raider - The Cradle Of Life 0830 Good Morning, Miami 0900 Friends 0930 Little Nicky 1110 Cobra 1250 The Matrix Revolutions

1455 Dance Flick 1635 Super Shark 1825 Good Will Hunting 2100 Kull The Conqueror 2305 2 Fast 2 Furious 0855 Legendary 1110 Good Will Hunting 1340 2 Fast 2 Furious

1400 Scrubs 1430 $H*! My Dad Says 1500 In Plain Sight 1600 Parenthood 1700 Scrubs 1730 $H*! My Dad Says 1800 E News 1900 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 2000 Scrubs 2030 America's Funniest Home Videos 2100 In Plain Sight 2200 Parenthood 2300 Scrubs 2330 Keeping Up With The Kardashians 0800 In Plain Sight 0900 Parenthood 1000 Scrubs 1030 America's Funniest Home Videos 1100 In Plain Sight 1200 Parenthood 1330 America's Funniest Home Videos

‘Parenthood’ at 2200 Hrs on ZEE CAFE

Dekha Ek Khwaab

Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai

Storyline - Monia will be seen texting Aakash secretly & Uday will catch her. Uday will snatch her phone and give a warning. Monia will get extremely aggressive & will start abusing Uday.

Storyline - Naitik gets a good business offer? Will the amount he gets after signing the contract be sufficient enough to win back their old house.

‘Dekha Ek Khwaab’ at 2045 Hrs on SONY

‘Supernatural’ at 2100 Hrs on STAR WORLD 1400 Supernatural 1500 Combat Hospital 1600 The Big Bang Theory 1630 The Simpsons 1700 The Shield 1800 Supernatural 1900 Love2 Hate U 2000 Two And A Half Men 2030 The Simpsons 2100 Supernatural 2200 The Shield 2300 The Big Bang Theory 2330 Two And A Half Men 0700 Glee 0800 Las Vegas 0900 Charlie’s Angels 1000 The Shield 1100 Love2 Hate U 1200 Two And A Half Men 1230 The Simpsons 1300 The Big Bang Theory 1330 Friends

‘Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai’ at 2130 Hrs on STAR PLUS

1400 Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah 1430 R. K. Laxman Ki Duniya 1500 Lapataganj 1530 F.I.R. 1600 Chidiya Ghar 1630 Gutur Gu 1700 Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah 1830 R. K. Laxman Ki Duniya 1900 Chidiya Ghar 1930 Lapataganj 2000 Chintu Chinky Aur Ek Badi Si Love Story 2030 Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah 2100 Chidiya Ghar 2130 R. K. Laxman Ki Duniya 2200 Lapataganj 2230 F.I.R. 2300 Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah 2330 Chidiya Ghar 0800 Teleshopping 0830 Religious Programmes 0900 Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah

‘Lapataganj’ at 2200 Hrs on SAB

‘Lara Croft - Tomb Raider’ at 2100 Hrs on WB

‘A Wednesday’ at 1400 Hrs on ZOOM

1400 Junkies 1430 Mythbusters 1530 Discovery Science Classics 1630 Sci Fi Science 1700 One Step Beyond 1730 Futureweapons 1830 Best Of Discovery Science 1930 How Do They Do It? 2030 The Indestructibles 2100 Deconstructed 2130 Food Detectives 2200 Sci Fi Science 2230 Heavy Metal Task Force 2330 Industrial Revelations 1030 Sci Fi Science 1100 One Step Beyond 1130 Mythbusters 1230 Best Of Discovery Science 1330 How Do They Do It?

1400 Movie - A Wednesday 1730 Star Bonanza 1800 Letz Go! 1900 Planet Bollywood News 1930 Link'd 2000 Zabar 10 2030 My Playlist 2130 Link'd 2200 B - Tonite 2230 Style Strip 2300 Bollywood Bonanza 0700 Fresh Mornings 0800 Red Carpet 0805 Fresh Mornings 1100 Zoom Box 1200 Garma Garam 1300 Planet Bollywood News 1330 Zabar 10

‘Food Detectives’ at 2130 Hrs on DISCOVERY SCIENCE

‘Survivor’ at 2100 Hrs on BIG CBS PRIME 1430 Jerry Springer 1530 Aspire 1600 Survivor 1700 Bellator 1800 Galileo Extreme 1900 Defenders 2000 Entertainment Tonight 2030 Galileo Extreme 2100 Survivor 2200 Jerry Springer 2300 Defenders 0700 Big Wheels 0730 Aspire 0800 Galileo Extreme 0900 Survivor 1000 Bellator 1100 Jerry Springer 1200 Aspire 1230 Entertainment Tonight 1300 Galileo Extreme 1330 Defenders

Playing Field

Olympic stars descend on Kenyan hamlet

ITEN: It’s a far cry from the hightech gymnasiums athletes are used to in Europe or America, but this sleepy Kenyan farming village has become an unlikely global training hotspot for Olympic champions. Perched on the dramatic cliff edge of the great Rift Valley at 2,400 metres (7,870 feet) above sea level, this remote village draws top athletes including world and Olympic champions for high altitude performance training. With the London Olympics later this year, athletes are training hard to get an edge over their rivals at the games. “Iten is a great location, due to the altitude and the environ-

ment,” said Lornah Kiplagat, a Kenyan-born Dutch runner who won the world half-marathon in Udine, Italy in 2007, but who now runs a specialised hotel for athletes in Iten. Recent athletes to have trained at Iten include the British Olympic team, led by the women’s world marathon record holder Paula Radcliffe and the double European 5,000m and 10,000m champion, Mo Farah. Every dawn the village comes alive with the pounding feet of dozens of runners, as they train along the winding mud tracks through the quiet countryside, dodging the chickens and goats that share the route. AFP

Step up Punk

LAS VEGAS: Unbeaten US star Floyd Mayweather threw down another provocative gauntlet to boxing rival Manny Pacquiao on Tuesday, daring the Filipino icon to “Step Up Punk” in a posting on his Twitter webpage. Mayweather hopes to entice Pacquiao into accepting his challenge to meet May 5 in Las Vegas in a mega-fight showdown between the world’s top pound-for-pound fighters, one that boxing fans have wanted to see for years. “Manny Pacquiao I’m calling you out let’s fight May 5th and give the world what they want to see,” Mayweather posted on Twitter.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

The games people play

The move comes as Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum is visiting Pacquiao in the Philippines to discuss who the Asian superstar should fight next and Mayweather awaits the June 1 start of a 90-day jail sentence on domestic violence charges. Arum originally said that Mayweather was not among possible next foes for “PacMan”, listing Mexico’s Juan Manuel Marquez, Puerto Rican southpaw and Americans Tim Bradley and Lamont Peterson as candidates. But that was assuming Mayweather was going to serve his sentence starting last week.

AL-ATTIYAH OUT OF RACE IQUIQUE: Cyril Despres regained the upper hand in his ding dong Dakar Rally battle with motorcycle rival Marc Coma here on Tuesday as defending car champion Nasser Al-Attiyah was forced out of the race on the ninth stage. The 31-year-old Qatari had to give up the ghost when his temperamental Hummer suffered more mechanical problems American Robby Gordon in another Hummer won the stage to slice more time off overall leader Stephane Peterhansel’s advantage. Three-time bike champion Despres, riding a KTM, responded to 2011 winner Coma’s win on Monday when taking the 556km stage from Antofogasta which finished with a dramatic descent down an 800 metre high dune. Despres, who timed 5hr 04min 33sec with Spaniard Coma coming in 3min 54sec behind, replaced the Spaniard at the top of the overall rankings - both were later penalised 15 minutes by race stewards in those standings for changing their engines during the stage. Despres holds a lead of 2min 28sec and the 37-year-old Frenchman said that he had emerged from his terrible day on Monday in a positive frame of mind. “After a difficult day yesterday

when you start to doubt, I had to get back to winning ways,” said Despres. “We came into this looking at a battle for seconds or minutes. It’s very competitive. “Like any top level sportsman, if you don’t like confrontation or squeezing the last ounces of strength out of yourself, then you’re not ready for a fight. But, as for me, I’m up for it.” Coma too was revelling in the engrossing tussle and even more motivated to win as he was bitter about his fellow KTM rider having

Al-Attiyah had to give up when his temperamental Hummer suffered mechanical problems had his deficit from Monday’s stage halved by the stewards. “We’re coming to the crunch part of the rally. Cyril is a major rival and we do battle over every single kilometre. But I think it’s interesting, it’s sport,” said the Spaniard. Gordon, 43, had been highlighted by Peterhansel as the dangerman after Monday’s stage and the American didn’t do anything to dissuade him from that point of view as he further ate into the French Dakar legend’s lead. Gordon, whose best finish was third in the 2009 edition, timed 4hr 35min 21sec, a min 38sec faster than 46-year-old Peterhansel while Monday’s stage winner Spanish driver Nani Roma was third 8min 37sec adrift.

Playing Field

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

The games people play

Only a brave punter would bet against one of the ‘Big Four’ lifting the Australian Open men’s title, but picking a winner from the women’s draw is a hazardous task

WHO’ LL IT BE? PUNTERS PONDER HONG KONG: Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer — the top three in the men’s rankings — have an enviable haul of 30 grand slams between them in a golden period for the men’s game. Just behind them lurks the hungry Andy Murray. In sharp contrast, the top three female players have a combined total of just one slam and last year there were four different champions in tennis’s blue riband events, as the women’s game waits for its next big thing. And acknowledged superstars Kim Clijsters and Serena Williams, both ranked outside the top 10 but sharing 17 major titles, are nursing recent injuries that could take the edge off their title challenges. Belgium’s Clijsters, currently ranked 12th, is defending champion at the year’s opening grand slam, after beating Li Na in the 2011 Melbourne final, before the Chinese player went one step further at the French Open. Second seed Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic won on grass at Wimbledon and Australia’s Samantha Stosur took the US Open title, upsetting home favourite Serena Williams in the September 11 final in New York.

Australian Open The name missing from the 2011 list of winners is top seed Caroline Wozniacki, still yet to win her first grand slam, whose world number one ranking is under imminent threat from rising star Kvitova. The two rivals have already clashed this year, with the Czech player winning in three sets at last week’s mixed-teams Hopman Cup in Perth, which does not carry ranking points. “It was a good match for us. It was good preparation,” said Kvitova, the breakout player of 2011 with six titles including Wimbledon and the WTA Championships, plus Fed Cup glory with the Czech Republic. Wozniacki, who reached the semi-finals in Melbourne last year, has been at pains to play down their rivalry, stressing her close friendship with

the blonde Kvitova. “Petra is a great girl. I like her a lot. She’s one of my good friends,” Wozniacki said. “I’m sure we’ll play against each other and we’ll both do well in the years to come,” she added. The Dane, buoyed by her relationship with golf superstar Rory McIlroy, will be anxious to seal her maiden grand slam and silence critics who say she cannot be considered the world’s best player without winning a major. Third seed Victoria Azarenka of Belarus has never been beyond the quarter-finals in Melbourne but reached the Wimbledon semifinals last year. By contrast, fourth seed Maria Sharapova has grand slam pedigree, with three major titles — the last in Melbourne in 2008 — but the Russian is again battling injury as she struggles to shake off a left ankle problem.

Andrea out due to injury Tsonga falls to Jurgen SYDNEY: World number 10 Andrea Petkovic pulled out of the Australian Open with a stress fracture in her back on Wednesday, becoming the second leading women’s withdrawal from the year’s opening grand slam. The exciting German joined seven-time grand slam champion Venus Williams, who has an autoimmune disease, on the sidelines, while Kim Clijsters and Serena Williams are among the other top players who are also battling injuries.

Petkovic said the stress fracture in her lower back came to light in a scan after her straight-sets loss to Poland’s Agnieszka Radwanska in the second round of the Sydney International on Tuesday. “I’ve been having some back problems for the last three or four months,” she said in a WTA statement. AFP

MELBOURNE: Austrian Jurgen Melzer beat Frenchman JoWilfried Tsonga 6-4, 6-3 in demanding conditions at the Kooyong Classic Australian Open warm-up event on Wednesday. Tsonga, ranked sixth in the world, came into the eight-man exhibition tournament on a high after beating compatriot Gael Monfils to win in Doha at the weekend but admitted he had not yet adjusted to the time difference. Wind was a constant factor on court in a match delayed for

more than an hour as storms passed through the city.

Playing Field

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

The games people play

No repeat of spot-fixing: Pak

Pakistan’s cricketer Umar Akmal (left) stretches with teammate Abdul Rehman during a practice session at the ICC Global Cricket Academy in Dubai Sports City on Tuesday

“T

he PCB (Pakistan Cricket Board) has introduced a code of conduct and an anti-corruption code and all these guys (the players) have been told,” Cheema said on Tuesday ahead of the team’s first training in Dubai. “We are following those codes in letter and spirit. So with those rules and regulations in place, I think the chances (of corruption) will be no more there. I’m abso-

lutely clear and confident.” The 2010 series in the United Kingdom was completely overshadowed by allegations against Pakistan captain Salman Butt and team-mates Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir. The trio were convicted in a court in London in November of conspiracy to cheat and conspiracy to accept corrupt payments and jailed. During the trial, the names of two players in the current Pakistan squad, fast bowler

India may seek tighter security PERTH: Hassled by crowd behaviour during the second Test in Sydney last week, the Indian team management is planning to demand higher security around the boundary rope for the remainder of the series. According to a report in the ‘Sydney Morning Herald’, Indian team managers are expected to approach Cricket Australia officials to tighten security around the boundary rope for the last two Tests of the Border-Gavaskar series. “Upset about remarks made by crowd members to players in the Indian team during the second Test in Sydney last week, officials want extra security to monitor crowd behaviour at the WACA Ground, where the third Test starts on Friday,” the paper reported. Indian middle-order batsman

Virat Kohli had displayed his middle finger to the spectators at the SCG, claiming that his mother and sister were verbally abused. “Agree cricketers don’t have to retaliate. What when the crowd says the worst things about your mother and sister? The worst I’ve heard,” Kohli had tweeted. Fast bowler Ishant Sharma also found himself in the middle of a controversy when he flipped a finger after being taunted during the Indian team’s day out at a gokarting track on Monday night. The controversies related to Kohli and Sharma are the latest in a series of incidents that happened between the two countries. In 2008, the Indian team had threatened to quit the tour after off-spinner Harbhajan Singh was charged with calling Australian player Andrew Symonds a “monkey” during the Sydney Test.

Wahab Riaz and batsman Umar Akmal, were spoken of by the prosecution as being under the influence of Mazhar Majeed, the players’ agent who arranged the fixes with the convicted trio. However, Cheema defended their presence in the United Arab Emirates. “Let me tell you that natural justice is that unless someone is proven guilty, one must not be penalised for that,” he said. “There were no charges as

such so that is what it is. As far as I am aware, nothing special has been pointed out by the ICC or elsewhere against these guys. Mere speculations do not work. As far as the PCB is concerned, there are no allegations received.” Captain Misbah-ul-Haq, who took charge of the team following the scandal, said they were focused solely on the three Tests, four one-dayers and three Twenty20s rather than looking back to the dark chapter for Pakistan and world cricket. “That is in the past and we don’t want to get into that; it is not our area of concern,” Misbah said. “Our area of concern is to play good cricket, fair cricket and that is what we can do. We are doing that for the last year and a half; our performances show that. “The way we have behaved on the ground and conducted ourselves, that is the true example we are setting and we are proving we are doing it in a good way.” Misbah said his squad had no injury concerns and confirmed spinner Saeed Ajmal, who took 18 wickets in the three-match series against Sri Lanka in the UAE in October and November, had developed a new mystery delivery. “He has been practising it for the past two to three months and now he is bowling it very well, so let us see how the England batsmen tackle that,” he said. When asked to describe Ajmal’s new delivery, Misbah added: “That’s the secret. You will see he can bowl a ‘teesra’.”

‘Aamer can be picked’

KARACHI: Pakistan cricket chief Zaka Ashraf Tuesday said paceman Mohammad Aamer can be considered for national selection after he has served the ban handed to him in a 2010 spot-fixing case. The 19-year-old is serving a six-month jail term in England over a spot-fixing scandal. The case was related to charges of deliberate no-balls during the Lord’s Test against England in 2010. Pakistan’s former Test captain Salman Butt was handed a 30month jail term, Mohammad Asif 12 months and their agent Mazhar Majeed 32 months. In a separate case the International Cricket Council also banned them over violation of the code of conduct, Butt for 10 years (five years suspended), Asif for seven (two years suspended) and Aamer for five years. Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ashraf said all three players had stained the image of the country. “PCB cannot side with anyone who has done wrong and because of them the name of the country was stained,” Ashraf said at a press club function in Karachi. “It was very unfortunate what happened and every Pakistani fan was hurt.” “Whenever Aamer is cleared by the ICC and serves his punishment, we think he needs intense counselling and then we will take guidance from the ICC about him on whether there was any hitch on his playing.” Ashraf said after counselling Aamer’s fitness would also be ascertained. “Selectors can decide about him and as far as his talent is concerned there is no doubt he has that. But we will also have to judge his fitness,” said Ashraf who took over in October last year. Aamer was considered a hot property at international level, having taken 51 wickets in 14 Tests. He helped Pakistan to their first win over Australia in 15 years by taking seven wickets at Leeds in 2010. A match before the scandalhit Lord’s Test, Aamer took five wickets to help Pakistan win the Oval Test.

Playing Field

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

The games people play

Real set up Barca date

Real Madrid's French forward Karim Benzema celebrates after scoring during the Spanish Cup football match Malaga CF vs Real Madrid.

MALAGA: Holders Real Madrid beat Malaga 1-0 in the Spanish Cup on Tuesday as Karim Benzema took them through to a near certain, mouthwatering quarter-final clash with Barcelona. Real Madrid already had a one-goal advantage after their 3-2 win in the Bernabeu and inform French international Benzema sealed their return leg victory with a well-taken 71st minute shot that was badly fumbled by keeper Willy Caballero. Barring an unthinkable collapse, Barcelona and their three-time Ballon d'Or-winning Argentinian superstar Lionel Messi will move in to the quarter-finals Thursday when they play a return leg in Osasuna with a 4-0 advantage in hand. That would set up Madrid-Barcelona matches on January 18 and 25, an El Clasico duel pitting two of the world's best clubs and biggest rivals against each other. This time, there's an extra twist to the match-up. Real Madrid lead Barcelona by five points at the top of the Liga after the Catalans were held to a 1-1 draw by city rivals Espanyol on Sunday. But Jose Mourinho's men will still want to wipe out the memory of their humiliating 3-1 league defeat at home by Barcelona on December 10. Heavily bank-rolled Malaga, who were taken over by billionaire Qatari Sheikh Abdullah Al Thani in 2010, looked dangerous up to the last minute at home in the Roselada.

Henry ups Arsenalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hopes LONDON: Thierry Henry tried to play down expectations after marking his Arsenal comeback with the winning goal in the Gunners' FA Cup victory over Leeds. The 34-year-old France World Cup-winner, Arsenal's record goalscorer, came off the bench to slot home the only goal of the game with a typically composed finish to seal a 1-0 third round success in front of

his adoring fans at the Emirates Stadium here on Monday.

Henry, who left Arsenal for Barcelona in 2007, has returned to north London on a short-term loan deal from New York Red Bulls with Major League Soccer now in its close season. And there remains the possibility he could feature in the derby against arch-rivals Tottenham, currently third in the Premier League table and six points in front of Arsenal, at the Emirates on February 26.

Hughes takes helm at QPR LONDON: Mark Hughes returned to management at Queens Park Rangers on Tuesday, with the task of keeping the London club in the Premier League. The former Manchester City and Fulham manager has joined QPR on a 2 Â˝-year contract, two days after Neil Warnock was fired with the team just a point and a place above the relegation zone. "It's a great feeling to be back in football," Hughes said in a statement. "I'm fully aware of the challenge in the short and long term and I am genuinely excited about the ambition of the owners. ... Now the immediate priority is to consolidate our place in the (league)."