Saathee Charlotte February 2014 by Shukla Entertainment

February 2014

St. Martinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Island, Bangladesh

In this issue: Aam Aadmi Party Smithsonian Explores Indian-American History

Hello Readers! Beyond Bollywood: The Smithsonian explores the history of Indian Americans. pg. 08. Just how corrupt is Afghanistan? A reporter's notebook. pg. 14. Here comes the Aam Aadmi Party. Can they affect India's upcoming elections? pg. 30. Collecting prescription data means big money for pharmaceutical companies. See the story on pg. 40. The H1B visa season is approching. Read about it in the immigration column on pg. 48. Read our new column “Subcontinental Divide” on pg. 70. Catch up on what all the local and regional community organizations are up to as well as their upcoming events in our Community Organizations section on pg. 90. The ever popular Pop’s puzzles and jokes are on pg. 116. Find your astrological predictions for the month in the AstroScope on pg. 120. Get daily updates about our community as well as news and videos at our website: Saathee.com.

In This Issue

Quote: "It is not the creation of wealth that is wrong, but the love of money for its own sake.” - Margaret Thatcher

February 2014 – Issue # 190 Editor: Samir Shukla (saatheemag@hotmail.com) Publisher: Divakar Shukla (rakavid@aol.com) Ad Design / Layout: Nageshwar “Nate” Andrews Executive Assistant: Suzie Tanis Contributors: Kirit Shukla, Judith L. Bergman, Gail Z. Martin, Smitha Prasad, Dr. Maha Gingrich, Ron Virmani MD, Anjana Agarwal, Anita Kulkarni, Dipika Kohli, Balaji Prasad, Sumeet Shah, Krutika Chheda, Chetan Deshmukh, Lakshmi Challa, Ahsen Jillani, Neal Patel and Jalendu Vaidya.

Beyond Bollywood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 08 How Corrupt is Afghanistan? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 14 Upcoming Movie Releases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 18 Film Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 20 Sangeet and Evergreen Film Lyrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 24 Indian Classical Music . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 26 Aam Aadmi Party . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 30 The Chai Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 36 Big Data, Big Pharma, Big Money . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 40 Behind the Congressional Curtain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 42 Children’s Corner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 44 Mastering Meaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 46 Immigration Matters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 48 Dances of India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 50 It Takes a Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 52 Thinking About Thinking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 54 Business Matters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 58 Test Your India Knowledge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 60 Tax Matters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 62 Marketing Turnaround . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 68 Subcontinental Divide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 70 Healthwise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 74 Nutrition for Life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 76 Edit Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 78 News Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 82 Community Focus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 86 Community Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 90 Pop’s Puzzles and Jokes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 116 Festivals and Holidays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 118 Puzzle Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 118 AstroScope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 120 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 122 Index of Advertisers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .pg. 124 Saathee.com

A features magazine for the South Asian Community of the Carolinas

Opinions expressed herein are those of the writers and advertisers and not necessarily of the publisher or editor. Please contact us prior to submitting articles or photographs. Saathee is published monthly. Deadlines for advertisement, submissions and events information is 15th of the month. For a free subscription, visit Saathee.com and click the “about” button. Mission: Our goal is to be a valuable source of information for the South Asian community and to be a vital advertising tool for businesses.

- Founded 1998 -

Saathee Magazine P.O. Box 11468 Charlotte, NC 28220 (704) 527-7570 - (704) 527-7590 (Fax:) saatheemag@hotmail.com

Saathee.com Cover: St. Martin’s Island, Bangladesh

St. Martin's Island is a small island in the northeastern part of the Bay of Bengal, about 9 km south of the tip of the Cox's Bazar-Teknaf peninsula, and forming the southernmost part of Bangladesh.

photo: dreamstime.com

Saathee (USPS 021-116) (ISSN: 1543-8147) is published monthly by Shukla Entertainment Inc., 655 Pressley Rd., Ste G, Charlotte, NC 28217. Periodicals postage paid at Charlotte, NC and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Saathee, P.O. Box 11468, Charlotte, NC 28220-1468. February 2014

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beyond

stations, visitors will experience the Indian American story and explore the many dynamic roles Indian Americans have played in shaping America. “Beyond Bollywood” is the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center’s largest exhibition and will be on display on the second floor of the National Museum of Natural History for at least one year. It will then travel around the country to libraries, museums, universities and community centers as a part of the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service beginning May 2015 for five years. The exhibition has been funded in large part by donations from philanthropists and corporations from across the country. For more information on the Smithsonian’s Asian Pacific American Center, visit http://apa.si.edu/.

BOLLYWOOD

SmithSonian ExplorES thE hiStory of indian amEricanS In a first-of-its-kind exhibition at the Smithsonian, the Asian Pacific American Center will open “Beyond Bollywood: Indian Americans Shape the Nation,” detailing the history of Indian Americans and their contributions to the United States from the 1700s to the present. The 5,000-squarefoot exhibition will open at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC on Feb. 27, 2014. “The vibrant life, culture and history of immigrants from India and Indian Americans is the story of America,” said Konrad Ng, worker with beets: director of the Smithsonian Asian Photo courtesy of the California Pacific American Center. “This State University, Chico, Meriam wonderful exhibition deepens our Library Special Collections understanding of the American experience as lived by the Asian Pacific American communities who have journeyed from being exotic outsiders to being the faces and voices of the future. We are excited to present an exhibition that we hope will excite and inspire generations.” The exhibition features Indian Americans’ migration experiences, working lives, political struggles and cultural and religious contributions. Highlighted artifacts include a dress worn by First Lady Michelle Obama designed by Indian American Naeem Khan; the 1985 National Spelling Bee trophy awarded to the first Indian American winner, Balu Natarajan; and Mohini Bhardwaj’s 2004 Olympic Silver Medal for gymnastics. Public programs include performances featuring Indian American art, comedy, cuisine, dance, film, television, literature and music. The Center will also offer online education curriculum and an opportunity for individuals to share their family stories through a digital portal. Approximately 17 million people in the United States are of Asian and Pacific Islander descent, and the number is expected to climb to 41 million by 2050. One in every 100 Americans has a family connection photo courtesy Prithvi Sharma to India. Indian immigrants helped build the nation’s railroads, worked in lumber mills, toiled on farms and established prosperous trading routes that are still in use today. Through a vibrant collection of photographs, artifacts, art and interactive learning Saathee.com

Preston Merchant is a photographer who has been documenting Indian-Americans for over a decade. His photographs will be published in the upcoming book Indiaworld. Merchant’s photos will also be displayed at Beyond Bollywood. Here Merchant describes his work. Indiaworld: Images of the Global Indian Diaspora By Preston Merchant

Indiaworld began in 2002 in New York. At that point, I had made four trips to India and had only recently taken up photography. I was interested in the Indian communities in New York and was learning that they are not all from India but

come from Britain, Kenya, the Caribbean, and other places. I started photographing in the Guyanese community in Queens, descendants of Indians who first came to Guyana in 1838 as indentured laborers to work on sugar plantations in the British 8

February 2014

The 2010 census revealed that Indian Americans are the colony. Guyanese started emigrating to New York in large numbers starting in the 1990s, fleeing crime and weak economy. wealthiest, best educated demographic group in the United Today, they are a prosperous and vibrant community in States. The Smithsonian Exhibit, Beyond Bollywood: Indian Americans Shape the Nation, would not be possible if Indians Queens. were not as wealthy or as highly placed (in business, politics, arts & culture) as they are today. Indians everywhere have achieved considerable success, but economic disparities remain in large parts of the diaspora. History is important factor. Indians came to many of Britain’s former colonies as indentured laborers in the mid-nineteenth century and later as shopkeepers, railroad workers, and professionals. In some countries, their numbers became half the population, but after independence and a new constitution, Indians were placed at a disadvantage. I am interested in the global diaspora—Indian Americans are a significant part of it, but they are not the whole story. In some places, their political status is tenuous. Indians have been in Fiji since 1879, for example, but a series of military coups starting in the 1980s created a hostile political environment, forcing many to leave the country. There are now large Indo-Fijian communities in Auckland, New Zealand; Sydney, Australia; and Vancouver, Canada. Indians also struggle for political and economic parity in Malaysia, where a British-authored constitution reserves government posts, university seats, and business licenses for native Malays. Even Britain, which has received Indian immigrants for well over a century, struggles to integrate its disparate South Asian communities, who have arrived not only in large numbers from the Subcontinent but also from East Africa and the Caribbean.

I later traveled to Guyana to meet the extended family of the folks I had met in New York. Around the same time, I had unrelated magazine assignments that took me to Dubai and South Africa, so in short order I had the core of what would become a ten-year, fifteen country project (Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Fiji, Greece, Guyana, India, Kenya, Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa, Trinidad, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States). When I started, India’s footprint in the media was considerably smaller. We take for granted now in the United States that Bollywood movies are shown in mainstream movie theaters and that Indian food, clothing, and jewelry are readily available. But a decade ago, such things were harder to find, and the idea of a global Indian diaspora was unremarked outside of academia.

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family to see him.” Moqbel has recently been named to head the Foreign Affairs Ministry. In my experience, corruption in Afghanistan is everywhere, from the smallest office to the largest contractor. Examples range from the mildly irritating to the downright dangerous. President Hamid Karzai insists the problem came with the foreigners. In an interview with author William Dalrymple, he shifted blame to his major benefactor. “There is corruption, no doubt,” he said. “Our own petty corruption in the delivery of services was there before, is here today and will continue for some time. The big corruption was designed by the Americans. The contracts were used by the US government to buy influence in Afghanistan. It was designed to corrupt the Afghan political leadership so as to be usable by them.” There may very well be some substance to Karzai’s accusations. After all, if the United States and its allies had not funneled nearly $700 billion dollars into Afghanistan over the past 12 years, it would not have been there to steal.

Corrupt is Afghanistan? Reporter’s notebook: A peek behind the curtain at one of the world’s shadiest nations. By Jean MacKenzie - GlobalPost.com It’s now official: Afghanistan ranks as one of the three most corrupt nations on Earth — splitting the crown with Somalia and North Korea, according to Transparency International’s 2013 Corruption Perceptions Index. This is the second year in a row that the trio leads the list of the world’s bad guys. In previous years, the best Afghanistan could muster was first runner up. But just how pervasive is the problem? Can it really be true that after more than a decade under international stewardship, the most widespread skill the population has honed is graft? Let me start by saying that I loved every minute of my seven years in Afghanistan, and am fortunate to count many Afghans as close friends. I have happily put my life in their hands on more than one occasion, and would do so again. But in many Afghans courage, nobility of spirit and graciousness toward guests exist side by side with rampant venality, fed, no doubt, by a lingering resentment of the foreign occupation. A feeling that Afghans are owed some reparation for their pain doesn’t help much, either. I have spent significant time in several of Transparency International’s pantheon of the crooked: Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Belarus and Russia — all old haunts of mine — share the bottom third of the scale with Afghanistan. None of them comes close to the casual disregard for what’s normally considered legality that I saw in my years in Kabul. It starts at the very top. One evening several years ago I was invited to a dinner at the US Embassy in Kabul. I was seated next to an AfghanAmerican official, and we were discussing corruption. “How can we expect to make any progress when one of the most corrupt people in the country is the minister of counternarcotics?” I fumed. Ahmed Zarar Moqbel, who had been interior minister until the graft and malfeasance in that organization proved too much for the international community to stomach, had recently been made drug czar. The British government, which had taken the lead on counternarcotics, cut off funding to the ministry upon his succession, apparently convinced that Moqbel himself was involved in drug smuggling. Even in Afghanistan, he stands out. The official looked at me, amused. “Zarar is my relative,” he said. I choked simultaneously on my food and my foot, and tried to stammer out an apology, but he just leaned toward me and laughed. “Don’t worry, I agree with you,” he said. “I do not allow my Saathee.com

Many in the international community also have a habit of looking the other way when it suits them. Take the example of Karzai’s half-brother, Ahmed Wali Karzai, who was widely believed to have been a major figure in the drug trade before he was assassinated in 2011. Ahmed Wali enjoyed good relations with the US — in fact, he was a paid CIA informant. But the bulk of the responsibility has to lie with the Afghans, who have seized opportunities with alacrity. In one office where I worked, the office manager was an expert at procurement. He had scoped out all the best suppliers in Kabul, and had a list of places to go. Very efficient, I thought, until I went to one of his favorite shops to buy a circuit breaker. When I mentioned the name of my office, the store manager smiled understandingly. “Ah, yes, this is what you want.” He fetched a raggedylooking piece of equipment from in back. “It is reconditioned. Costs just a third of what a new one would. But don’t worry — we’ll give you a receipt for the full cost. We have an arrangement with your chief.” A quick count of circuit breakers in the office ran to several dozen — the office manager was making $100 or so on each one. He also had a habit of hiring his relatives for minor jobs — guards, drivers. He would pay them a small fee and pocket the bulk of their pay. Our resourceful manager was doubling or tripling his salary. After I left, one of my former colleagues left behind sent me a message, typos and all: 14

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“I’m so sad of that situation which is going on in our office in Kabul… corruption is in high level, making of corrupt invoices … hiring of relatives in office etc. ... I want to send some documents to head office.” But the head office was not interested. Exposing corruption is bad for business. Our office was not a rich one; just imagine the scams the big boys must have thought up. When I worked in Helmand, we liaised with a local official in Lashkar Gah, the capital. For the roughly two years of our stay we had to pay him a monthly “facilitation fee” not to make trouble for us. While there, I lived in the governor’s guesthouse overlooking the river. It was lovely, except for the fact that the Taliban were across the water and occasionally fired automatic weapons in our direction. By the end of my sojourn the window was sandbagged to keep out stray bullets. Helmand is a dodgy province: bombings, kidnappings, outright battles were common. Security seemed tight around the governor’s compound, except that one of our acquaintances, let’s call him Araf, would slip the guards a tab of hash to let him in without searching his car. Araf, I should explain, was collaborating with the Taliban. He and his brothers used to make trips to the Iranian border to swap drugs for guns, which they would hand over to the insurgents. His father was arrested and incarcerated for his sons’ crimes, and Araf was desperately looking for money to buy him out of jail. We stopped going to Helmand shortly after that, partly out of fear that our faithful “friend” would sell us to the Taliban to get the necessary funds. Afghanistan is a world of fun-house mirrors. One journalist I knew was insistent on bringing down a lawmaker from his home district, which bordered Tajikistan. The official, he claimed, was smuggling drugs. An obliging governor from a poppy-growing province had made a helicopter available to get the parliamentarian home; since it was a government vehicle it was not searched. On every trip home the chopper was loaded with heroin or opium; the lawmaker’s brothers would then take the drugs and smuggle them across the border. Ahmed (not his real name) brought me the helicopter pilot, who confirmed the story. “But how do you know about the drug trafficking through Tajikistan?” I asked. Ahmed laughed. “Because my brothers are in business with them!” he said. The story went untold, although it is common knowledge among many Afghans. The ultimate in corruption was the presidential election of 2009. Vote rigging was rampant, and far from subtle. Any election worker could produce sheaves of ballots all marked with the same distinctive squiggle — hastily filled out by the same hand. According to one United Nations election monitor, there were at least 1,500 “ghost” polling stations — meaning that the hundreds of thousands of mostly Karzai votes they sent to Kabul were fraudulent. The international community hailed the elections as a success, anointed Karzai as the legitimate winner, and, for good measure, fired the pesky official who tried to expose the fraud. Afghan malfeasance reinforced by international complicity — come to think of it, maybe Karzai’s got a point.

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Journalist Jean MacKenzie worked as a reporter in Afghanistan from October 2004 to December 2011. Saathee.com

February 2014

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February 2014

Upcoming Movie Releases O Teri (Director: Umesh Bist) Cast: Pulkit Samrat, Sarah Jane Dias, Salman Khan (Cameo), Bilal Amrohi, and Anupam Kher

Mango (Director: Abbas Tyrewala) Cast: Rannvijay Singh, Monali Thakur, Chandan Roy Sanyal, Swara Bhaskar, and Harmanjeet Singha

Heartless (Director: Shekhar Suman) Cast: Adhyayan Suman, Ariana Ayam, Om Puri, Deepti Naval, and Madan Jain

Dare You (Director: Mehul Simaria) Cast: Alisha Khan Queen (Director: Vikas Bahl) Cast: Kangna Ranaut, Raj Kumar Yadav, and Lisa Haydon

P Se PM Tak (Director: Kundan Shah) Cast: Meenakshi Dixit

Bhaag Johnny (Director: Vikram Bhatt) Cast: Kunal Khemu, Zoa Morani, Mandana Karimi, and Vikram Bhatt

Gunday (Director: Ali Abbas Zafar) Cast: Ranveer Singh, Arjun Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra, Irrfan Khan, and Sushant Singh

Shaadi Ke Side Effects (Director: Saket Chowdhary) Cast: Farhan Akhtar, Vidya Balan, Vir Das, and Ram Kapoor

Youngistan (Director: Syed Ahmad Afzal) Cast: Jackky Bhagnani, Neha Sharma, Farooq Sheikh, and Boman Irani

Happy Ending (Director: Raj Nidimoru) Cast: Saif Ali Khan, Ileana Dcruz, Govinda, Preity Zinta, and Ranvir Shorey

Darr @The Mall (Director: Pawan Kripalani) Cast: Jimmy Sheirgill, Nushrat Bharucha, Arif Zakaria, Asif Basra, and Nivedita Bhattacharya

Gulaab Gang (Director: Soumik Sen) Cast: Madhuri Dixit, Juhi Chawla, Mahie Gill, Shilpa Shukla, and Tannishtha Chatterjee

Gang of Ghosts (Director: Satish Kaushik) Cast: Sharman Joshi, Anupam Kher, Meera Chopra, Saurabh Shukla, Chunky Pandey, and Yashpal Sharma

Traffic (Director: Rajesh Pillai) Cast: Manoj Bajpayee, Jimmy Sheirgill, Prosenjit Chatterjee, Parambrata Chattopadhyay, and Divya Dutta

Hasee Toh Phasee (Director: Vinil Mathew) Cast: Sidharth Malhotra, Parineeti Chopra, Adah Sharma, Sharat Saxena, Manoj Joshi, and Sameer Khakkar

Total Siyapaa (Director: E Niwas) Cast: Ali Zafar, Yaami Gautam, Anupam Kher, Kirron Kher, and Sarah Khan Bewakoofian (Director: Nupur Ashtana) Cast: Ayushmann Khurrana, Sonam Kapoor, and Rishi Kapoor

Kaanchi (Director: Subhash Ghai) Cast: Rishi Kapoor, Mithun Chakraborty, Kartik Tiwari, Mishti, and Mahima Choudhary

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Highway (Director: Imtiaz Ali) Cast: Randeep Hooda and Alia Bhatt Anuradha (Director: Raju Mavani) Cast: Sachin Khedekar, Smita Jaykar, Manoj Joshi, and Kishori Shahane

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Main Tera Hero (Director: David Dhawan) Cast: Varun Dhawan, Ileana DCruz, Nargis Fakhri, and Abhimanyu Shekhar Singh 18

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February 2014

another slot of four episodes will be aired in the middle of the year. And the remaining slot will be released during the end of the year. The reason behind this format is that the actor wants the topic to sink in properly and give the audience some time to analyze about the issues being discussed in the show. As of press time, there were no confirmations of the dates.

Film Clips

Ashutosh Gowariker to produce TV show Everest

Suchitra Sen passes Away

Filmmaker Ashutosh Gowariker had been maintaining a low profile of late, but is now all set to give shape to his fiction drama called Everest for television. Gowariker will not direct the new show but will be on hand as producer and the concept supporter. Look for the show, touted to be one of a kind on TV, later in the year.

Legendary Bengali actress Suchitra Sen passed away on January 17, 2014 in Kolkata. The 82 year old actress suffered a heart attack after an illness. She was a highly respected actress who also acted in several Hindi films like the classics Devdas and Aandhi. Her Bengali films include Saat Paake Bandha, Agnipariksha, Saptapadi and Deep Jwele Jai. She lived out her last few years as a recluse and away from the limelight of the film industry.

Aditya Chopra Gives Tevar to Arjun Kapoor Father son duo Boney and Arjun Kapoor are teaming up for the remake of the Telugu blockbuster Okkadu. Producer Aditya Chopra has signed Arjun Kapoor to be the lead in the Hindi version Tevar, where he will be seen playing the role of a kabbadi player. Apparently the title was a favorite of Aditya Chopra’s father the late Yash Chopra. The film will also star Sonakshi Sinha and will be directed by debutant Amit Sharma.

Akshay Kumar’s Next Film to Be Released on Republic Day 2015 Special Chabbis director, Neeraj Pandey, will co-produce and direct an action thriller featuring the superstar Akshay Kumar. The film is slated to be released in January 2015. The, as yet, unnamed project is expected to star adrenalinejunkie Kumar in a pivotal role. Kumar told a Bollywood Hungama interviewer, “I’ll do at least one action film every year because of my fans. This is my promise to them.” The film begins shooting this spring.

Karan Johar’s next titled mr. and mrs.Tapori After appearing in Chillar Party as a tapori, it is reported that Ranbir Kapoor will star in producer Karan Johar’s next venture titled Mr. and Mrs. Tapori. The rumor mill says that Parineeti Chopra will star opposite Kapoor in the female lead. The filming is yet to be scheduled.

Boxer Vijender Singh Debuts in Fugly

Soumik Sen’s next Biopic on magician pC Sorcar

Olympic medal winner and boxer Vijender Singh debut movie Fugly, produced by Akshay Kumar, will release on May 16 this year. The movie is about four friends getting caught in an incident, which sucks them into the big bad world of corruption and politics in Delhi. The central characters are played by some fresh faces like Anil Kapoor’s nephew Mohit Marwah, Olympic medalist Vijender Singh, Sayed Jaffrey’s grandniece Kiara Advani and Slumdog Millionaire actor Arfi Lamba. Produced by Grazing Goat Pictures and directed by Kabir Sadanand, Fugly has been shot extensively in Delhi and Leh.

Bollywood has been cranking it biopics in the last few years. Films have been made on the lives of runner Milka Singh, pugilist Mary Kom, hockey player Dhyan Chand, vocalist MS Subbulakshmi, mathematician Ramanujan and actorsinger Kishore Kumar. The latest venture into this field is director Soumik Sen’s project on the magician PC Sorcar. He has acquired the necessary rights for the film from the magician’s family. Apparently the script is ready and the director is on the hunt for the actors to play the lead characters.

Remo Fernandez to Act in The Villain

Aamir’s “Satyamev Jayate” to Air This year

Pop sensation Remo Fernandez has now been bitten by the acting bug at the age of 60. He will be seen in a pivotal role in the upcoming thriller The Villain. He will play a boss in the film, which is currently being shot in Goa. Director Mohit Suri and Balaji Productions felt that he was the perfect choice to play this shady character. The Villain pairs young actors Sidharth Malhotra and Shraddha Kapoor along with Riteish Deshmukh. The film is expected to complete the shooting in March 2014.

Aamir Khan’s previous attempt to spread awareness regarding social issues proved to be a success and now the actor is planning the second season of the popular show “Satyamev Jayate.” This year the show will air in different seasons of the year. He told interviewers that they will be releasing twelve episodes out of which four will be released in the consecutive Sundays of a month and then after a gap of a few months, Saathee.com

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Film Lyrics

PoPulAr MuSIC oF INDIA

By Kirit Shukla

Tribute to Past Hindi Film Lyricists

Song: Jhootha bole kauvā kāte ... Film: Bobby Year: 1973 Music: Laxmikant Pyarelal Singers: Shailendra Singh, Lata Mangeshkar Lyric: Vitthalbhāi Patel Based on Indian Classical Rāgā: Mishra Khamāj Tāl/Rhythm: Kaharavā Staring: Dimple Kāpadiā, Rishi Kapoor, Prān , Premnāth Jhootha bole kauvā kāte Lyrics in English: Jhootha bole kauvā kāte, kāle kauve se dariyo Main maike chali jāoongi, tum dekhte rahiyo, Are jhootha bole... Tu maike chali jāyegi, main dandā lekar āoongā Tu dandā lekar āyegā, main kue mein gir jāoongi Main rassi se khinchwāoongā, main peda pe chadha jāoongi Main āri se katwāoongā, pyār kare āri chalwāye, Aise āshiq se dariyo, main maike chali jāoongi Tum maike chali jāyegi, main doojā byāh rachāoongā Tu doojā byāh rachāyegā, hāye meri sautan lāyegā Main maike nahin jāoongi, re maike nahin jāoongi Are tere sadke jāoongi re maike nahin jāoongi Main sāton vachan nibhāoongi re maike nahin jāoongi Jhootha bole kauvā kāte, kāle kauve se dariyo Main teri sautan lāoongā, tum dekhti rahiyo Main maike nahin jāoongi, tum dekhte rahiyo

Vitthalbhāi Patel (1939-2013) Vitthalbhāi Patel was an Indian poet, lyricist and a senior congress leader known for his contributions in social services and politics. He was born in 1939. He was twice elected to the Madhya Pradesh Assembly from Sagar constituency. He was a minister in the cabinets of Arjun Singh, Motilāl Vorā & Shyāma Charan Shukla. Poetry was his hobby. During his life he also wrote lyrics for 55 Hindi film songs and has published five collections of poems. He was also known for his straightforward and bold approach towards politics. He had one son and two daughters. He passed away on September 7, 2013 in Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, India, after a long illness. Some of his songs were featured in the following Hindi movies: 1973 - Bobby; 1975 - Do Jhoot, Sanyāsi; 1977 - Dhoop Chhāon, Hatyārā, Dharam Veer, Duniyādari; 1978 - Vishwanāth, Satyam Shivam Sundaram; 1980 - Red rose, Nazranā Pyār Kā, Garam Khoon; 1981 - Shamā, Biwi O Biwi, Harjāi, Gahrā Zakhm; 1982 - Daulat; 1984 - Divorce; 1988 - Dariyā Dil etc. His popular Hindi song lyrics “Jhootha bole kauvā kāte...” from Raj Kapoor’s classic film Bobby are shown below.

Meaning (Summary): If you tell lies the crow will bite, be afraid of the black crow. I will go away to my parents' house, you will see. Oh, if you tell lies… If you go away to your parents' house, I will come with a stick. If you come with a stick, I will fall in a well. I will pull you up with a rope. I will climb on a tree. I will get it cut down with a saw. you love me then use a saw! Be afraid of such lovers. I will go away to my parents' house. If you go away to your parents' house, I will marry again. Will you marry again! oh, you will bring your co-wife (second wife)! I will not go away to my parents' house, oh, I will not go away to my parents' house. Oh, I will sacriﬁce my life for you, but I will not go away to my parents' house. I will fulﬁll the seven rites (of marriage), oh, I will not go away to my parents' house. If you tell lies the crow will bite, be afraid of the black crow. I will bring a second wife, you will see. Note: The contents of this article are compiled from news, books, I will not go away to my parents' house, you will see. internet and my knowledge and love for Hindustani music. The lyrics in Hindi are shown on the right.

Kirit Shukla Contact him at kiritsshukla@hotmail.com

You can watch and hear this song along with other songs on YouTube. Our special thanks to Siddharth Shukla for always assisting in identifying the classical Raga & Tal/Rhythm of evergreen classical songs in the past. Saathee.com

February 2014

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HIndustani Music: On a Spiritual Journey – Gaan Saraswati Kishori - part 2

Indian Classical Music Components of a Carnatic concert By Smitha K. Prasad Dear readers, this month, I would like to discuss the components of a Carnatic music concert. Previously, Carnatic music concerts would start later in the evening, and would go on through the night till sunrise the next day! These days, most concerts are held in the evening and they last about 2.5 hours on average, although shorter concerts are also commonly seen. The modern day kutcheri paddhathi or concert format that most musicians follow today was introduced by the legendary vocalist Sri. Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar. The present day concerts are a well-proportioned mix of preset compositions and creative improvisation (manodharma). The preset compositions typically include: Varnam- Most musicians begin concerts with a varnam. This is a composition that has both swara (notes) components and sahithya (lyrics) components. Varnams have been composed in a number of ragas (melodies) and talas (rhythm cycles) and serve as a warm-up for the artist before plunging into some of the more demanding aspects of the concert. Krithi- The krithi is the main music compositional form in Carnatic music and consists of three main units. Krithis are composed by various composers in various ragas and talas. Some krithis in a concert are used to elaborate on elements of improvisation Thillana- The thillana is a rhythmic composition sung typically towards the end of a Carnatic music kutcheri. The incorporation of rhythmic syllables makes it extremely suitable for dance presentations also. Other preset compositions typically include “lighter” compositions (tukkadas) such as bhajans, devaranamas, javalis, etc. While bhajans and devaranamas can differ in melodic interpretation between artists, the compositions are usually tuned beforehand. The manodharma (spontaneous improvisation) elements in a concert are in the form of alapana (melodic improvisation of raga), neraval (improvisation of a composed line of a krithi), swaraprasthara (improvisation of swara exposition) and ragamtanam-pallavi presentation. Ragam (or alapana is the melodic improvisation, tanam (improvisation with a rhythm component) and pallavi (improvisation similar to neraval but with more complexities). Till we meet next time, do attend a Carnatic music concert and try to identify the various components discussed above.

By Anita Kulkarni

Kishoritai Amonkar is a spiritual classical singer as discussed in the last essay. Here I would like to write about her more. She appears to have been born with a divine gift on April 10, 1932 in Mumbai. She was an Indian classical vocalist recognized as one of the foremost singers in the Hindustani tradition and as an innovative exponent of the Jaipur gharana. Kishoritai’s mother was the well-known vocalist Mogubai Kurdikar, also a great singer of the Jaipur gharana, who trained under Alladiya Khan Saheb, the doyen of the Jaipur gharana. While learning the finer points and techniques of the Jaipur gharana from her mother, Kishoritai also developed her own personal style, which reflects the influence of other gharanas and has generally been regarded as an individual variant of the Jaipur tradition. Her music has undoubtedly swerved from classicism and become one with romanticism. The principal feature of romanticism is the preference for emotional expression and relative indifferences to structural aspects. The identifying features of classicism are the grace and shapeliness of the tonal picture, the arrangement of rhythmic cycles in such a way that each one is more effective than its predecessor, the determination to capture the attention of the audience on the very first sum. A classical piece is like sculptures erected on the stream forming an inseparable content. Aside from being a renowned musician, Amonkar was a popular speaker and traveled throughout India giving lectures, most notably on the theory of rasa (feelings, emotions) in music. In recognition of her contribution to the arts, she received many awards, including the Padma Bhushan (1987) and Padma Vibhushan (2002), two of the country’s top civilian honors. In 2010 she became a fellow of the Sangeet Natak Akademi (India’s national academy of music, arts, and dance), a lifetime appointment held by just a few dozen individuals at any given time. Amonkar’s own words, “Music is not just about words and beats. It is also about the emotion behind the rendition. Words turn into music when emotions are weaved into them. And the notes—not just the basic seven, but the hundreds of other mini and micro-notes help to bring out the soul of a music composition.” Kishori Amonkar has two sons Nihar and Bibhas with her husband Ravindra Amonkar. Amonkar lives in Mumbai. It’s a proud privilege to have listened to her classical music, which is also filled with admiration for her. Undoubtedly, she is a top Indian classical vocalist. Her soulful music is very famous and she has received recognition all around the world. You can hear her wonderful, timeless music on Kishori Amonkar radio. It is available free online.

Smitha Prasad

Anita Kulkarni

is a Carnatic vocalist based in Cary, NC Email: smithakprasad@outlook.com www.smithakprasad.com

is a Hindustani music vocalist and teacher based in Raleigh, NC Email:anitakul@gmail.com

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Outside Delhi, few people believed AAP would get anywhere. Odisha local leader Nishikanta Mohapatra told GlobalPost the party had a paltry 400 volunteers before the Delhi elections. He now wants 100,000 volunteers, to put a candidate up for every parliamentary seat in the state. “We have a presence in 20 out of 30 districts here,” he said. “Right now lots of people are interested but we have to see how Anna Hazare-inspired ‘common man’ party takes first much they are dedicated to our cause.” step toward its Indian revolution. After scoring an upset victory in Delhi, a ragtag collection of political Since the Delhi elections on Dec. 8, AAP claims to have gained amateurs threatens to wreck India’s political order. 500,000 members and opened offices in more than 320 districts By James Tapper - GlobalPost.com across India. Party leaders had aimed for a relatively modest 100 candidates NEW DELHI, India — Ever since 1947 when South Asians for the national poll, but say the huge swell of support means they threw off the yoke of the British Raj, India has been dominated will stand in at least 300 of the 545 constituencies. by the Congress party, led by the Gandhi family, with occasional But some commentators believe AAP is naive to believe it can interruptions from the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party. overturn the established political order. Now a new force in Indian politics has emerged that threatens Praveen Patil, a political blogger who works for the to wreck the established order. Vivekananda International Foundation, a New Delhi think tank, Late last year, the Aam Aadmi Party, a ragtag collection of said he rates their chances of further success as “practically none.” political amateurs, crushed the Congress party in elections for the “I don’t even think they could replicate their performance in Delhi assembly. And against everyone’s expectations, the party Delhi,” he told GlobalPost. has taken the reins of power to govern the Indian capital. “They need infrastructure. Each state has about 150 to 200 The party’s leader, former tax inspector Arvind Kejriwal, polling booths. You need 10 to 12 volunteers at those booths to engineered a political decapitation by defeating local Congress get voters in. So you need about 100,000 to 200,000 volunteers in leader Sheila Dikshit, ending her 15-year tenure as Delhi’s chief each state.” minister. He did it resoundingly, with a whopping 25,600 margin. India has 28 states. Even attracting 500,000 volunteers in three AAP won 28 seats out of 70. That left Congress with only 8, weeks would not be enough for a truly national campaign. and ruined the BJP’s hopes of a landslide victory by limiting them AAP leaders seem to recognize the scale of the task. Activists to 32 seats. The two big parties dared Kejriwal to form a have been asked to each donate 2014 rupees ($32) in pursuit of a government and he called their bluff, insisting that Congress $16million election war-chest. supports AAP without conditions or influence in government. He And still people keep signing up, building the party was sworn in as chief minister a few days after Christmas. infrastructure. In Punjab, AAP leader Harjot Singh Bains has Kejriwal had launched the Aam Aadmi Party — Hindi for been getting hundreds of calls a day. “common man” — in 2012 with the promise of a “political “About 300 people are joining every hour,” he said. “We had revolution” to sweep corruption out of India after widespread maybe 5,000 members in Punjab before.” Three weeks after the demonstrations against graft, led by his mentor Anna Hazare. Delhi vote, they claim to have about 100,000 in the state. The activists, who adopted the broom as their symbol, were Bains, a 22-year-old law student, has interrupted his studies dismissed by the big parties as a joke, a collection of childish to campaign. “They have given the responsibility of a state-level idealists who were just playing at politics. position to a student. None of the other parties would do this.” AAP’s detractors were stunned by the party’s extraordinary The challenge to other parties is not lost on them. Rahul results in Delhi. Gandhi, the likely Congress candidate for PM, promised his Now Kejriwal and his supporters are turning their attention party would “learn from” AAP after the Delhi poll. to the national parliamentary elections, likely to take place in The opposition BJP candidate, Narendra Modi, had seemed May 2014. to have gathered unstoppable momentum. Now he is facing a So, does the Aam Aadmi Party really stand any chance of possibly serious challenge in his home state, Gujarat, where the winning a large number of seats in the Lok Sabha, India’s AAP say they will field candidates for every seat and a reported parliament? And what would they do if they came to power? 7,000 people have signed up in a day. It is no small task to campaign in a country of 1.2 billion Worse still for Modi, his solid support from business leaders people with 22 official languages. The only truly national party is being undermined by high-profile executives coming out for is Congress — the BJP has little or no presence in many of the AAP. Supporters include Captain Gorur Gopinath, the founder southern states and both parties have relied on complex of budget airline Air Deccan; former Royal Bank of Scotland coalitions to govern. CEO Meera Sanyal; and Infosys exec V Balakrishnan — who AAP grew from the networks of anti-corruption campaigners was widely tipped to become the firm’s next chief executive but who joined Anna Hazare’s protests at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar in resigned before Christmas and is devoting his time to Kejriwal’s 2011. cause. Kejriwal was among Hazare’s advisors, but a rift grew Congress and the BJP believe running a state government between the two men after Kejriwal decided to enter politics — will distract AAP too much from the national campaign. something Hazare insisted he would never do. Kejriwal hopes Delhi will be a showcase. So far he has given The 45-year-old activist-turned-candidate built a network the city’s population an allowance of free water — shortages of volunteers from the students and young people who had are common — and cut electricity bills in half for low-use joined the Jantar Mantar protests. During the Delhi elections, customers. around 120,000 people canvassed for votes. Some had come It’s too early to call AAP a revolution. But no one is from other states to help out. dismissing Kejriwal as a joke any longer.

n a m n o m Party m o C

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February 2014

Town. Situated on a peninsula, Cape Town is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. It was established as the first garden in Africa for ships restocking en route to India. Cape Town lies on a narrow peninsula that curves southward into the icy Atlantic Ocean. A spinal ridge of mountains divides the eastern and western shores of the peninsula. The rugged mountain range with twelve peaks is known as “twelve apostles”. The massive sandstone bulk of Table Mountain is the most dramatic landmark. The “lion’s head” and “devil’s head” are other peaks in the geography. In Cape Town, the whites, the “colored” and the blacks live in fairly distinct neighborhoods because of economic reality, even though Apartheid came to an end in 1994. There are many “townships” in Cape Town, where the poor live in shacks made from corrugated tin sheets. These lack basic amenities like running water. At night, we went to a unique African restaurant called Gold. The 14 item menu included dishes from various African countries (Morocco, Ethiopia, and Namibia etc.) as well as Cape Malay. Springbok, the national animal, was also on the menu. True to my Indian background, I chose lentils in lieu of Springbok. During the meal, African performers entertained with drums, dancing and singing in their colorful costumes. Tall Mali puppets danced around us. It was a festive and enjoyable evening with audience participation.

The Chai Table Visiting Mandela’s Land Part II Whale watching and Cape Town By Ron Virmani, M.D.

In the first part of this series, I narrated my encounter with the free and the wild inhabitants of Madique Game Resort. I sat motionless in a Jeep with five other companions, a lion 10 feet away. I used all my might to avoid looking at his powerful open jaws hoping that he would just pardon my puny presence in his territory. Since he did, I am able to write the second part of this series. From Johannesburg, we flew to Cape Town in South Africa and Daryn, our driver, drove us to Hermanus, one and a half hour van ride. We checked into a very nice hotel – Quarters, right on the waterfront. I ventured onto the built up waterfront and saw the picturesque coastline of Atlantic Ocean. A few dussie animals (they are like large rabbits) were scurrying around looking for handouts from tourists. Couples were taking pictures with the scenic backdrop. I picked out an ostrich leather belt and a few Sun, Dec 1 – Cape Peninsula Tour other souvenirs in the local shops. We departed the city along the picturesque Atlantic seaboard and stopped on the beach in Camps Bay for a Fri, Nov 29, 2013 – on the sea We drove 45 minutes to Gaansbaai (goose bay). From here beautiful view of the white surf in turquoise waters in the we divided into two groups. One group had opted for diving golden sunshine. We passed the fishing village of Hout Bay and with the Great White Sharks. We dropped this group at drove through the Cape of Good Hope nature reserve. We saw Kleinsbaai harbor. Since the water temperature was a few baboons, ostriches and the majestic Eland, the largest antelope degrees above freezing, this group put on wet suits and went on the planet. Finally, we arrived at the Two Oceans hotel for lunch. I had delicious shrimp curry. The name Two Oceans is a for shark cage diving and sightings of the great white sharks. Having faced lions at close range a few days prior, I was not misnomer, because the only ocean here is Atlantic ocean. The about to face yet another set of jaws and freeze my booty in the true southernmost point in Africa is Cape Agulhas, 105 miles process. So I went with the other group for the less daunting southeast of Cape of Good Hope. That is where the Atlantic sport of whale watching. We piled onto a fast boat and felt the and Indian oceans actually meet. There was a Flying Dutchman funicular ride available up to cold, piercing wind as the boat sped along. We spotted a mother and a calf Southern Right Whales in the distance of about 100 the Cape Point lighthouse. I decided to run up and down a yards. They were just having a good old time in the shallow couple of times on the 20 minute walkway. We took pictures of the magical ocean vistas 600 feet below, at this, the south waters. The skin of these whales is dark grey or black. The adults westernmost point of Africa. We drove down to the cape itself and took pictures in front are up to 60 feet and may weigh 65 tons, compared to our 15 ton boat, which they could flip with the flick of a tail. The male of the sign that says “Cape of Good Hope”. I felt like I was has the biggest testes of any animal on the planet – up to 1160 Vasco de Gama or something! On the way back, we visited an ostrich farm and fed the lbs each. The penis can be up to 10 feet. At night, we went to a seafood restaurant for dinner. I ostriches by hand. The female ostrich lays a lot of eggs that are ordered the catch of the day - yellow tail fish. We came back to hatched artificially. At about one year of age, the ostriches are the hotel and had a little party. I only drink non-alcoholic slaughtered for their meat and skin. We headed along the False Bay coast to Boulders Beach near beverages! Simonstown to see a colony of adorable African Penguins. They are smaller than the emperor penguins of Antarctica. Sat, Nov 30 – Travel to Cape Town After breakfast, we left the Quarters hotel. We stopped at Hundreds of them frolicking on the beach presented a the Cheetah Outreach Park. Cheetahs are bred here in captivity heartwarming sight. Last year, I saw penguins in Galapagos on the grounds of Speir wine estate. You can pat an adult Islands and that is the farthest north they go. (Question – why Cheetah or play with a cub. This park is there to grow does a polar bear not eat penguins? answer – they live on different poles) awareness of wildlife in general. The park is home to many other animals as well as the impressive Anatolian Shepherd dog which is bred and placed Mon, Dec 2 – Seal Island and Wine tasting After breakfast, we headed to Hout Bay to catch a cruise to with farmers to stop Cheetah attacks on the farmers’ flocks. We checked into Commodore hotel on waterfront in Cape the seal island. It was a tremendous sight to see thousands of Saathee.com

February 2014

seals perched on the rocks and also splashing around in the water. The antics of young babies are always so cute. South Africa has more than a dozen designated wine routes. Stellenbosch route is one of the best known ones. On this route are many wineries and estates. We went to Boschendal manor house of 1812. It has beautiful grounds and great wines that we tasted. Stellenbosch has the second oldest university in SA. The language of instruction is both Afrikaans and English. Next we went to Fairview vineyards in Paarl and tasted more wines. I bought some Gouda cheese with cumin here. We had lunch at a rustic restaurant with African theme, drums, music and festivities. I got my face painted like a native African. Third we went to spectacular Spier wine estates. I had a feeling that some people were doing more than just tasting! At each winery, we tasted five different wines. In the evening, we went to Camps bay area for dinner. The sunset was beautiful in the Atlantic ocean, dipping toes in 45 degrees water is all I could do.

Spending about an hour in the garden, we headed on to the Skeleton Gorge Hiking trail. I did not find any skeletons there nor did I leave any behind! The trail requires good fitness level without being an extreme adventure. It leads quite steeply up the back of Table Mountain. It is shaded by forest of trees but the muscles and lungs get quite a workout. Magnificent Yellow- and Ironwoods surrounded us. Fynbos and Protea were everywhere. We had to negotiate loose river stones and several ladders. We came across a dam, the water too cold for swimming and hiked up to McClear’s point, where a cairn marks the top of Table Mountain at 1085 meters (3500 feet). So I was not a mile high (like in Denver, CO) but a kilometer high. We sat down for lunch. After this, Lauren lent me one hiking pole so I could follow her down the Platteklip gorge. The going was slow, steep and arduous. It would have been a killer on a sunny day but this day was overcast and cool for most part. We saw wonderful wildflowers on the descent. The hike up and down took a total of six hours. It was a great icing on the cake of my 10 day trip. We all had a wonderful dinner at Beluga restaurant. I had Norwegian Salmon, which was out of this world. Around 10 pm, we were taken to the international airport. On December 5, I flew from Cape Town to Amsterdam, then to Atlanta and then to Charlotte. Only 32 hours of travel time. When I came back, I heard the news of Mandela passing away that very day. I pay my homage to the great man. I dedicate my South African trip to our guide Chris and my hiking guide Lauren. And to many others who helped making this a memorable trip. I hope that I return some day to the wonderful African animals and Cape Town! So long, Lauren!

Tue, Dec 3 – Cape Town tour We departed the city for the Lower Cableway Station at the bottom of the Table Mountain. Here we boarded the cable car for a five minute ride to the top. The car itself rotates as it ascends, thereby providing spectacular views of the city. Once on top, we were able to walk around the summit for more views of the city and the peninsula. We could see the Twelve Apostles and the Lion’s head. We returned to the city via the old cape Malay quarter. The city center of Cape Town lies in the City Bowl, surrounded by Atlantic Ocean and Table Mountain. The buildings are a combination of Cape Dutch, Victorian, Georgian and 20th Century architecture. We walked through the Company Gardens, the fresh produce gardens for the ships and the locals from the mid-17th century and today. Now it is home to SA museum, Cultural History museum, Houses of Parliament, National Gallery and St. Georges Cathedral. We strolled through the city to Greenmarket square to purchase some African mementos such as a painted ostrich egg. I ate some fish and chips for lunch. It set me back $5. We drove to the Castle, the oldest building in SA and took in the grand parade where Nelson Mandela addressed the nation on his release in 1990. In the evening, I spent time at the V & A (Victoria and Alfred) waterfront. This immensely built up area has a Ferris wheel, shops, museums, restaurants, boat rides and family entertainment for everybody. I saw the Puff Adder and Mamba among other snakes in the Reptile center. One could buy African artifacts here. Wed, Dec 4 – Kirstenbosch and Hiking Table Mountain. I asked the hotel to hire me a guide to hike up the Table Mountain today. Lauren, a young fit hiker (she is married, btw) showed up at the hotel at 7:30 am. We went to internationally acclaimed Kirstenbosch (bosch=bush). This is the flagship botanical garden, established in 1923, of the South Africa National Biodiversity Institute, which conserves and promotes the indigenous flora of South Africa. We walked thru different parts including Fynbos (fine bush) garden, fragrance garden, Protea garden etc. King protea is the national flower of SA. I saw many plants of king and pincushion protea on this trip. We saw remains of the wild almond hedge that was planted in 1660 to demarcate the colony from indigenous Khoi. Saathee.com

February 2014

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BIG DATA +

BIG PHARMA

=BIG MONEY

By Charles Ornstein, ProPublica.org Need another reminder of how much drugmakers spend to discover what doctors are prescribing? Look no further than new documents from the leading keeper of such data. IMS Health Holdings Inc. says it pulled in nearly $2 billion in the first nine months of 2013, much of it from sweeping up data from pharmacies and selling it to pharmaceutical and biotech companies. The firm’s revenues in 2012 reached $2.4 billion, about 60 percent of it from selling such information. The numbers became public because IMS, currently in private hands, recently filed to make a public stock offering. The company’s prospectus gives fresh insight into the huge dollars – and huge volumes of data – flowing through a littlewatched industry. IMS and its competitors are known as prescription drug information intermediaries. Drug company sales representatives, using data these companies supply, can know before entering a doctor’s office if he or she favors their products or those of a competitor. The industry is controversial, with some doctors and patient groups saying it threatens the privacy of private medical information. The data maintained by the industry is huge. IMS, based in Danbury, Conn., says its collection includes “over 85 percent of the world’s prescriptions by sales revenue,” as well as comprehensive, anonymous medical records for 400 million patients. All of this adds up to 10 petabytes worth of material — or about 10 million gigabytes, a figure roughly equal to all of the websites and online books, movies, music and TV shows that have been stored by the nonprofit Internet Archive (archive.org). IMS Health says it processes and brings order to more than 45 billion health care transactions each year from more than 780,000 different feeds around the world. “All of the top 100 global pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies are clients” of its products, the firm’s prospectus says. Dr. Randall Stafford, a Stanford University professor who has used IMS data for his research, said the company has grown markedly in recent years through acquisitions of competitors and other companies that host and analyze data. As the pharmaceutical industry has consolidated, he says, IMS has evolved by offering more services and expanding in China and India. “They’ve been trying to beef up their competitiveness in some areas by making all of these acquisitions,” he said. IMS has especially expanded its database of anonymous patient records, which can match patients’ diagnoses with their prescriptions and track changes over time, Stafford said. IMS sells two types of products: information offerings and technology services. The information products allow Saathee.com

pharmaceutical companies to get national snapshots of prescribing trends in more than 70 countries and data about individual prescribers in 50 countries. IMS’s prospectus offers examples of the questions companies are able to answer with its data, including which providers generate the highest return on a sales rep’s visit, whether a rep drives appropriate prescribing and how much reps should be paid. IMS Health’s data collection and sales have been controversial. Several years ago, three states passed laws limiting the ability of IMS and companies like it to collect data on doctors’ prescriptions and sell it to drugmakers for marketing purposes. Their intent was to protect physician and patient privacy and to reduce health care costs by reducing marketing of brandname drugs. Once a drug loses patent protection and becomes generic, promotion essentially ceases. IMS and other companies sued, and the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately ruled in their favor, finding a First Amendment right to collect and sell the information. (ProPublica and a group of media companies filed a legal brief supporting IMS on First Amendment grounds.) ProPublica has sought to purchase data on individual providers from IMS and some of its competitors but was told by each that it could not buy the information at any price. Instead, reporters obtained data from Medicare on providers in its taxpayer-subsidized drug program, known as Part D, which fills more than one in every four prescriptions nationally. The data is now on Prescriber Checkup (http://projects.propublica.org/checkup/), where anyone can look up individual doctors and compare their prescriptions to peers in their specialty and state. ProPublica has found that in Part D, some of the top prescribers of heavily marketed drugs received speaking fees from the companies that made them. Physicians and privacy advocates have argued that prescription records could be used to glean information about specific patients’ conditions without their permission. In addition, physicians have argued that they have a right to privacy about the way they choose drugs — but aren’t asked before pharmacies sell information about them. Stafford said those concerns have parallels to recent revelations about mass surveillance by the National Security Agency. “It’s part of a larger dialogue, which things like the NSA scandal have brought up,” he said. “There’s a lot of data out there that people don’t necessarily know about. ... We’re living in a time where people can accept some loss of privacy, but they at least want to know how their privacy is being compromised.” In its prospectus, IMS cited several challenges to its growth, including data-protection laws, security breaches and increased competition from other data collectors. The filing notes that the United Kingdom’s National Health Service in 2011 started releasing large volumes of data on doctor prescribing “at little or no charge, reducing the demand for our information services derived from similar data.” Until 2010, IMS Health was a publicly traded company. At that point, it was acquired for $5.2 billion, including debt, by private-equity groups and the Canadian pension board. Bloomberg News, citing confidential sources, reported last fall that IMS’s owners may seek to value the company at $8 billion or more. IMS Health declined to comment for this story, citing the regulatory quiet period before the public offering takes place. No date has been set.

February 2014

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BeHIND THe

Congressional Curtain House of Cards: where perception turns into reality By Neal Patel For almost a year, I heard nonstop from friends and family about this great new drama based in the nation’s capital about the inner working of Capitol Hill. People swore up and down to me it was one of the greatest shows on television, well on Netflix anyway, and urged me to invest the time to set aside one weekend and watch the entire season in uninterrupted succession. When pressed as to what separated this show from others, people stated, “You just have to watch it, Neal. It’s really interesting. You’ll be hooked after the first episode. The best part is you can watch it all at once.” Of course, I was very skeptical about such a program and was sure it was no different than other dramas such as the West Wing. Alas, after Episode One, I was hooked. It may have been the opening scene where the main character illustrates the relative ease of crossing between his darker side and his kind and generous nature. I watch three episodes in a row without even thinking twice. However, the brilliance of House of Cards is it makes you somehow want to keep cheering for its main character, House Majority Whip Francis J. “Frank” Underwood, played by Kevin Spacey, despite his numerous character flaws and questionable ethics. The show centers on Underwood and his insatiable appetite for power. Quickly, you’re taken “behind the scenes” and seen how things “really work” in Washington: back room deals, intricate power plays, dark alleys, bait and switch diversions created to protect characters’ real motives, and of course, one liners full of humor and political realities. No doubt, the show also embellishes the working relationships of reporters, politicians, and staffers to raise the level of intrigue, develop the plot, and increase the salaciousness. Underwood also sets the wheels in motion for a murder of a sitting member of Congress. That is a very farfetched occurrence to believe in this day and age. As Congressman Kevin McCarthy of California, the real-life Frank Underwood, stated about the fictional character: “He does what he believes in; he does what he likes. He portrays this person with all the wrong things you hear about Washington. He literally murders one member. If I could murder one member, I’d never have to worry about another vote.” Truth be told, Frank Underwood is a more effective politico in Washington than the real House Majority Whip. He has to be, it’s Hollywood. Underwood has subscribed to the Machiavelli quote, “It is better to be feared than loved if you cannot be both.” While he uses the latter sparingly, he employs the former as frequently as possible. He also unilaterally exudes his will against any roadblocks he faces in a very swift and decisive manner. However, as a Hill staffer, I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed the first season. Though my job as a staffer on Capitol Hill is nowhere near as exciting as House of Cards makes it appear, Saathee.com

the egos and thirst for power are very much a reality of Washington today. Most days encompass answering constituent requests, shuffling in and out of hearings, and attending events after hours pertinent to the Member’s agenda. Unfortunately, House of Cards makes every day seem packed with action where juicy information and earth-shattering events take place. Again that’s Hollywood at its finest. If only our days as staffers on Capitol Hill were filled with this much fanfare and drama. The show does a great job of highlighting the personalities of officials and talking heads within the Beltway. I must also give the writers and producers credit as they incorporated many political quotes such as, “Friends make the worst enemies.” But please do not walk away with the wrong impression; this is a fictional setting with fictional characters. It is not reality. As brilliant as the show is, its lasting legacy may have absolutely nothing to do with the story line. That’s right. By releasing all episodes of the first season at the same time, Netflix has created a new term for the masses known as “binge viewing.” In essence, Netflix empowered consumers by making its best content available for its members’ viewing pleasure. This model was launched with House of Cards, and its success has led it to be copied by other shows. Judging from the size and loyalty of the House of Cards’ following, Netflix and its new business model have revolutionized the television industry. Don’t believe me? Check out the Netflix stock summary for the year 2013, it was up 248 percent for the year to date. People flocked to it for its marathon viewing options. Other providers and shows have followed suit and also released entire seasons on a single launch date. Season Two of House of Cards begins later this month. It will be released on February 14, 2014. I look forward to reuniting with Mr. Underwood and his team as they continue their ascent to power.

neal Patel Neal Patel is the Communications Director for Congressman Charles Boustany, Jr., M.D. neal.patel@mail.house.gov

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Riddles Riddles Riddles

Children’s Corner

What do you do when you see an elephant with a basketball? You get out of the way.

Word World

How do you know if there is an elephant in your refrigerator? The door won’t shut.

By Kirit Shukla

U R

E N

How do you know if there’s an elephant in your refrigerator? Look for footprints in the pizza!

How do you raise a baby elephant? With a fork lift.

What does a mixed-up hen lay? Scrambled eggs. What does an evil hen lay? Deviled eggs.

Make words using 4 or more letters. The central letter must be used in each word. Letters cannot be used more than once. Use all letters for the subject word (underlined in solutions below) 31+ words = Excellent; 21 to 30 words = Good; 20 or less = keep looking. Words we found are in solutions below.

Where do tough chickens come from? Hard-boiled eggs. What do you get when a chicken lays an egg on top of a barn? An eggroll! A rooster laid an egg on a barn roof. Which way would it roll? Roosters don’t lay eggs, hens do.

The Daydreaming Priest (A Panchatantra Tale)

Why are elephants so wrinkled? They take too long to iron.

Once upon a time there lived a priest who was extremely lazy and poor at the same time. He did not want to do any hard work but used to dream of being rich one day. He got his food by begging for alms. One morning he got a pot of milk as part of the alms. He was extremely delighted and went home with the pot of milk. He boiled the milk, drank some of it and put the remaining milk in a pot. He added a little bit of yogurt in the pot to make yogurt. He then lay down to rest. He was extremely delighted at the pot of milk he found and started dreaming about the pot of yogurt while he lay asleep. He dreamt that if he could become rich and somehow all his miseries would be gone. His thoughts turned to the pot of milk he had set to form yogurt. He dreamt, “By morning the pot of milk would set, it would be converted to yogurt. I would churn it and make butter from it. I would heat the butter and make ghee out of it. I will go to that market and sell that ghee, and make some money. With that money I will buy a hen. The hen will lay many eggs which will hatch and there will be many more hens. These hens will in turn lay hundreds of eggs and I will soon have a poultry farm of my own.” He kept on imagining. “I will sell all the hens of my poultry and buy some cows and open a milk dairy. All the town people will buy milk from me. I will be very rich and soon I shall buy jewelry. The king will buy all the jewelry from me. I will be so rich that I will be able to marry an exceptionally beautiful girl from a rich family. Soon I will have a handsome son. If he does any mischief I will be very angry and to teach him a lesson, I will hit him with a big stick.” During this dream, he involuntarily picked up the stick next to his bed and thinking that he was disciplining his son, raised the stick and hit the pot. The pot of milk broke and he awoke from his sleep. Only then did he realize he was daydreaming.

What time is it when an elephant sits on your watch? Time to get a new watch. Why did the elephant wear green sneakers? Her red ones were in the wash. What’s the difference between a piano and a fish? You can tune a piano, but you can’t tuna fish. What do you get when you cross a shark and a snowman? Frostbite. Which part of a fish weighs the most? The scales. Which fish is the most famous? The star fish. How do you confuse a fish? Put it in a round fishbowl and tell it to go to the corner. Word World (Solution): AMEN, AMUSE, ARES, ARSE, AUNE, EARN, EARS, EMUS, ENARM, ERAS, MAES, MANE, MANSE, MANURE, MARE, MARSE, MASE, MEAN, MENSA, MENU, MESA, MURE, NAME, NARE, NEAR, NEMA, NURSE, RAMEN, RASE, REAM, REAN, REMS, RUME, RUNE, RUSE, SAME, SAMEN, SANE, SEAM, SEAN, SEAR, SERA, SERUM, SMEAR, SNARE, SURE, SURNAME, URASE, UREA, URENA, USER and so on.

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What is gray and blue and very big? An elephant holding its breath.

February 2014

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February 2014

d. In a reasonable length of time e. A wonderful experience f. We were not too late g.With a quickly approaching time limit. h. An interval with nothing to do i. Out of date, old-fashioned j. There was once a time k. Simultaneously l. Punctually, on schedule m. Almost instantly, immediately n. In installments o. On occasion, sometimes p. To the beat or tempo of q. However r. Indicating that you are late. Suggested strategies to increase your word power this month: Pick one article each week from different sections of your newspaper. Underline all the uses of time, see how many were used in idioms and define each one. References: 1 http://www.quotationspage.com/subjects/time/31.html 2,3 http://www.idioms.thefreedictionary.com/

Mastering Meaning HArNeSSINg THe PoWer oF AMerICAN eNglISH

By Judith L. Bergman M.A. CCC The London Royal Observatory is the exact spot where the civilized world officially starts “counting time,” the location of Greenwich Mean Time. In reality, clock-time is an illusion. In the age of jet travel, we can pass through several times zones in a matter of hours, outrunning the earth as it turns, but there we were, standing on the starting point of all of these time zones. Our experience of time is so central to our awareness of our mortality and is also so changeable. Time flies when we are enjoying ourselves but we kill time when we are forced to wait. Some people resist the passage of time, brain-washed by the youth culture, and keep plastic surgeons wealthy. Others continue to learn and grow, staying vital and fully alive, wiser and happier and, often, looking much younger than their chronological age. Will Rogers a wise and clever humorist wrote, “Half our life is spent trying to find something to do with the time we have rushed through life trying to save.” Maria Edgeworth says, “If we take care of the moments, the years will take care of themselves.” 1 The English language has at least 15 slightly different meanings for time as a noun.2 Most advanced speakers of English as a second (or third) language are probably very familiar with many of these. However, time is also a key element in at least 18 idioms, that is, non-literal expressions, some with multiple meanings.3 Match the idioms in the sentences below with the correct definitions.

Answers: 1-g, 2-k, 3-o, 4-i, 5-b, 6-a, 7-m, 8-c, 9-d, 10-n, 11-l, 12-e, 13-p, 14f, 15-h, 16-q, 17-r, 18-j. Judith L. Bergman M.A CCC is the director of Triangle Speech Services specializing in foreign accent modification. Contact: jlbergman@mindspring.com or 919-489-5464 www.trianglespeech.com

1. We worked against time to meet the deadline. ___ 2. On “Black Friday” all the shoppers tried to get into the store at one time. __ 3. At times our baby gets very fussy and we get very little sleep. ___ 4. His teaching style was interesting but his use of technology was behind the times. ___ 5. “It’s high time that you settle down and do your homework.” ___ 6. For the time being we’ll take a different route to work. ___ 7. I’ll have the report finished in no time. ___ 8. In time most of us learn that the only person we can change is ourselves! ___ 9. You’ll improve your public speaking skills in good time. ___ 10. We plan to pay for the home improvement on time. ___ 11. Usually, the trains were arriving on time. ___ 12. The children had the time of their life at Disney World. ___ 13. In preschool, the children liked to march in time to music. ___ 14. In spite of the heavy traffic, we arrived at the theatre in time for the play. ___ 15. I knew I would have time on my hands in between flights, so I brought some reading material.___ 16. I understand your argument. At the same time, I can’t agree with you. ___ 17. It’s about time you got here! ___ 18. Time was when we felt safe letting our children run around outside without supervision. ___

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February 2014

Immigration Matters Stress-free H-1B: A four-part series leading Employers and Employees to a successful H-1B Cap Season By Lakshmi Challa January 2014: Back to Basics: How do I get an H-1B, anyway? H-1B season is fast approaching, but the question in the title of this article is one that comes up year-round in my office, from employers and employees. Sponsoring a new H-1B employee can seem like a daunting prospect, especially if you’re new to dealing with the U.S. immigration system. You won’t get overwhelmed as long as you pay attention to a few key details. Start Early The H-1B Cap is just that—a cap on the number of H-1B visas that are issued by the immigration service, USCIS, every year. Each year, 65,000 H-1B visas are made available for employees with bachelor’s degrees; an additional 20,000 are authorized for employees with U.S. master’s degrees. The visas are available starting October 1—the first day of the federal government’s fiscal year. The immigration laws prevent employers from filing applications for visas more than six months ahead of time. For H-1Bs, that means that the first business day of April is the earliest possible date that USCIS will accept an application for an H-1B visa. In fact, regulations require that USCIS accept H-1B applications for the first five business days of April. It is critical that employers be ready to file during this period—otherwise, they risk losing their chance to sponsor their employee for an entire year. It is recommended that employers begin analyzing their immigration needs for the upcoming year in December and January, so that they have ample time to prepare a strong application. Know What They’re Looking For At its simplest, the H-1B visa category is available for jobs requiring at least a U.S. bachelor’s degree; and available for foreign national employees who have such a degree, or its equivalent. Employers should look realistically at their hiring practices—if you routinely hire employees with associate’s degrees for a position, it may simply not be possible to sponsor a foreign employee for that position on an H-1B visa. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t other options available; any qualified immigration attorney can assist you with exploring your options as an employer. Employees, too, should be mindful of their degrees. U.S. degree holders should verify that their degrees are from accredited institutions. If you hold a U.S. master’s degree, ensure that it is from an accredited, nonprofit university— otherwise, you will not qualify for the Master’s cap exemption. Foreign degree holders should make sure to secure a credentials equivalency evaluation which references the AACRAO Edge database. In all cases, you should make sure that your degree field “matches” the type of job you’ve been offered. In the past year, USCIS has even questioned the appropriateness of electrical engineering degrees and MBAs for a variety of IT positions; be aware that these issues can and do come up regularly.

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understand the Process Visa sponsorship is controlled by the employer. The employer must offer a particular job to its foreign national employee; the employee must both qualify for the job and be willing to accept it on the terms offered. In order to offer the job to its foreign employee, the employer must first get permission from both the Department of Labor as well as USCIS. The Department of Labor (DOL) requires that all employers who want to hire a foreign national employee on H-1B demonstrate that they will pay that foreign employee the same amount they would pay any other U.S. worker; this wage amount is referred to as the “prevailing wage.” This helps to curb bad employment practices, where employers recruit poorly-paid foreign workers to undercut U.S. worker wages. It also means that responsible employers must take on some extra record-keeping as a condition of hiring a foreign national employee. In order to demonstrate compliance to the DOL, the employer will file a Labor Conditions Application (LCA), certifying that they will pay the prevailing wage for the job they are offering to the foreign national. The DOL has the authority to audit the employer’s payroll records, and even assess back wages—so the employer should always check with an attorney before changing a foreign national’s wages. Once the employer receives certification from the DOL, it files an application with USCIS to sponsor the foreign national employee. In this application, the employer is called the “Petitioner” and the employee is known as the “Beneficiary.” The application will include a great deal of information about the Petitioner—information about the company itself, its financial records, employee handbooks, benefits documentation, just to name a few. The Petitioner also needs to provide information about the position it is offering the employee, like a job description, employment contract, even documents related to the projects on which the Beneficiary will be working. The Beneficiary will have to provide their educational documents and resume, and their prior immigration documents. Once approved, the Petitioner will receive an approval notice with the Beneficiary’s name, the status (H-1B), and the approval period, which is generally three years. This H-1B status is only valid as long as the Beneficiary is working for the Petitioner; once the employment relationship is terminated, the H-1B status no longer exists. Therefore, the Petitioner and Beneficiary must both be aware of any obligations incurred at the termination of employment, and make proactive plans to address such a situation. Manage Your Expectations Last year, nearly 125,000 applications were received in the first five days of April—triggering an electronic lottery. This means that despite all their preparations, some employers were left without a key employee when their application wasn’t selected in the lottery. With this year’s demand expected to exceed last year, employers and employees need to be prepared with contingency plans in case their application isn’t selected. Such plans can range from taking a months’ leave of absence to enrolling in school—the options available depend on your particular situation. Don’t be afraid to ask the hard questions when consulting with your immigration attorney—any one worth his or her salt will work hard to develop a realistic contingency plan based on your unique situation.

February 2014

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February 2014

Dances of India By Dr. Maha Gingrich

Martial Arts and Dances As I started to prepare for Dances of India, I was connecting the rich Indian culture and its influence on other cultures including martial arts. Next couple of months I will share a handful of such dances with you, performed primarily by men. If you want to see these martial arts in action, come to Dances of India on April 26, 2014 in Charlotte. Paika Nacha and Paikali In Orissa two kinds of martial dances are prevalent. In the Khurdha region of Puri district Paika Nacha is performed. My sister lived in Puri with her family and loved the location filled with beauty and many dance forms. In Oriya, Paika means soldier. This dance was used by solders in the past as a warm up as well as an entertainment. Paika Nacha dance style is not very popular, because it has not been refined to fit into the modernization of current dance forms. However, these are very difficult dances to perform, requiring them to showcase various kinds of physical feats rhythmically to the beats of the drums. Some of the dance movements have acrobatic elements. This challenges the dancers with the ability to be flexible and strong at the same time.

provided by Mahuri, a wind instrument like Shehnai but with a sharper timber. The stamina to perform and sing at the same time is rare in todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s world. Of course we cannot forget the dynamic Kalaripayattu from southern state of Kerala. One of the oldest fighting systems in existence, it is now practiced in Kerala and contiguous parts of Tamil Nadu and among the Malayali community of Malaysia. It was originally practiced in northern and central parts of Kerala and the Tulunadu region of Karnataka. It is simply amazing to see these warriors / dancers move swiftly and gracefully while performing critical stunts. In several prosperous villages, display of traditional gymnastics, acrobatics and the dance by various village-groups are arranged on competitive basis. Each group participates with great enthusiasm. If we are lucky, we may be there to see it. The 12th anniversary Dances of India, featuring Dr. Maha Gingrich and group, will take place on Sat, April 26, 2014 at 4pm at the Halton Theater, Charlotte. Experience traditional Indian classical and folk dances that tell the story of ancient India through costumes, dance dramas, and music. The event features the signature dance â&#x20AC;&#x153;University in Diversity,â&#x20AC;? which will be set to a live international orchestra and features an array of international dances. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children. For further details call 704.330.6534 or visit tix.cpcc.edu.

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On the other hand the Paikali dance which now survives in northern Orissa, especially in the districts of Mayrubhanj and Keonjhar, is a much stylized form of dance. It is marked for its leg extensions and stylized jumps which are very much similar to those of the widely known Chhau dances and Bhangra dances. Each of the Paikali dancers hold a sword in the right and a shield in the left hand, like a warrior. While dancing they also sing in recitative style. They smear their bodies with a whitish kind of powder called Kaimati.

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A major segment of the dance is a mock attack-and-defense called Ruk-maar-nacha which is the foundation of the Chhau dances as well. The orchestral music that accompanies Paikali is as rich as appealing. The orchestra consists of three kinds of drum, such as Dhol, a barrel shaped drum that dominates the music, Dhumsa, a huge kettledrum made of wood and Chadchadi, somewhat like snare drum. The melodic music is Saathee.com

February 2014

It Takes a Village By Dipika Kohli Off the coast of Schull, Ireland The following is an extract from my forthcoming memoir, Kanishka. This is the final in a four-volume series about love, loss, risk, and chance.

I sized him up quick, anew. Curly hair. Long fingers. A pronounced collarbone, looking especially fragile. Ten yards away, he was a roar. I noticed wrinkles in the blue t-shirt that shifted and pinched, already matted with sweat, as he flailed. Getting our attention with giant sweeping arcs of his arms, Getting us to move it, now, for feck’s sake. The man liked to talk loud most of the time, not just in moments of fear, and it was my hunch that this was because he wasn’t a tall man, or one with a good singing voice, or some other wild insecurity of the sort we put deep in a pocket and try to hide, mostly from ourselves, if we are honest about it. That’s what I saw first. But that day in the almost-there of the big storm, the one that toppled a couple of shrubs and put some lashes into the wooden fences at Reen Pier, way on the other side of West Cork, as we fondly called it with the capitalizing of the ‘W,’ or maybe upturned a skiff or two, I wasn’t really sure about him, and I had to figure out my feelings, fast. Paddling this way, or that? It seemed unlikely that where he shouted us over to go was right. But was it? How could I know. Deep within my core, the one I’d been working to build so I could become a better kayaker, I felt the first soft drops of a small girl, inside, begin to weep. That. That was the weird thing. “Come on, Karin!” I shook myself alive. The others gaped at me, I could tell from even this distance, with their exhaustion from the hard push against the wind through the midday splotching their faces with red. “Let’s go!” I heard, but I couldn’t comply. Not yet. Something... something dark and ugly had compelled me to stay there, looking at the sky going from grey to darker charcoal, then an almost-black. What was that? What was it doing here? How did this happen, anyways? All the colors of breathy prayers of men and women lost at sea floated, then, towards me, in a wave of perspiration and saturation that clouded only when I blinked. Ice. Don’t know how long I stayed like that, in the cockpit of my tiny vessel. Thoughts aren’t fully formed, in those moments, when layers recede deep in all directions to reveal in onion layers slow, clear, nothing-words that tell you all. Sheer fragments of feelings, of emotions, brought towards you when the quiet space makes itself whole, and pulls you in. You can sense it when you’re ready, but you have to be alive, fully and completely, to know that you’re looking right at the white sheet, the pane of frozen light, that separates you thinly from one dimension, and the fantastic and cosmic next.

The dozen of us got back from the excursion early. Rain. That wasn’t uncommon, of course, but the way the sky darkened, like a giant metal placard flipped in the sky, put some pressure on our instructor to make a snap decision. A charcoal canopy overhead isn’t good when you’re in a tiny kayak, and the waves are coming in, hard. We’d gotten started easy enough, back in Schull, but now, things felt strained. Can’t remember, exactly, what he said but there was some shouting and waving, and then Taidgh O’Reilly, Irish and swearing and brusque, pointed hard the way we’d come. But this is where it got kind of hazy, for me. I didn’t know it then, but something weird was going to happen. Something that would make me wonder, later, if it had really happened, all of it, or just been some kind of nightmare of the sort you read about in sailor’s stories, of things that go down out at sea. Anywhere you’d look was black. My red kayak bobbed and swayed, imploring me to keep steady. A splice of wintry icicle-shapes pierced my upper chest. Jaysis, it’s cold. Rain pelted and slashed cheeks and fingers. Inside the dry suit, I felt a trickle of wet. What the! Wasn’t three hundred euros supposed to guarantee we stayed warm and dry, no matter what? So what was that, a leak? The sea rocked out of alignment, like a hurricane or earthquake was roiling within. Just moments before, we’d been chatty, all right, just paddling idly in the cove, asking after who’d tried out a new Thai restaurant in Skibb or been to The Cellar Bar. I’d lived next door to that place, I told them, in a flat on Main, with just a tiny dripping of warm water most of the time. “It was a good bedsit for just forty pounds a week, and you could tell you were in Ireland just because of the dancing every Friday and Saturday night, in the step that’s so unique to this part of the world.” I wondered what it was like, though, on the other side. If you’re just listening through the wall it’s different, I bet, from when you’re right there in the thick of it, having a rip roaring grand time with your friends. But for me, freshly new in the country, it seemed a little odd. Dipika Kohli (@dipikakohli) writes at Kismuth. So much in the same rhythm, not even like the Electric Slide, but more orderly than that, even. Clack. Clack. Clack. Now the water spun so close, almost whacking at your face, and I felt it could tackle me if it just poked out an arm. You could almost smell the frigid salt there, you could feel it in your Dipika Kohli teeth, grinding and molding, and you knew this was a big deal. Contact email: dipika@designkompany.com Getting back. Safety. Was there a way to return? The small instructor, the one who talked too much, could we trust him to get us back, to the land, to the shore, to the warm folded earth that didn’t move, or threaten to upturn your boat? Saathee.com

February 2014

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February 2014

Is it just one pattern … or many? Remember the story of King Midas? Anything he touched turned into gold, including his beloved daughter. Similarly, everything we see changes shape when we see it. Since the pattern we discern depends on the way we look at things, there can be many, many patterns: even an infinity of them. So, might you be misled by the prestidigitation of a sorcerous mind? Maybe your mind sees the one world that happens to be visible, out of the many that could exist.

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About Thinking By Balaji Prasad Architecting Your World

Would you like to see, at least momentarily, a world that Principle #3 – Do not design for just what happens to be visible vibrates and breathes in a different manner from the one that You must see many, because there are many. Your designs for the you have come to know? Would you like to architect your world so that you, the Architect, craft your house with care … and one world that you happen to see will flounder in the face of the richer love? If so, let us embark on a brief flight of fantasy in which I reality of parallel universes that you co-create. ask that you consider me your guide. I can claim a bit of competence as an architect of a certain kind: I coach IT The Mother of all patterns! architects, and have led the practice of this discipline at several “It is no wonder that truth is stranger than fiction. Fiction has to make sense.” ― Mark Twain corporations. Of course, we are discussing a different kind of architecture here, but architecture is architecture. When you think of your world, there is an implicit “I” that Where in the world is Your World? seems to lay claim to the world that is being talked about. We “The hardest thing of all is to find a black cat in a dark room, reflected upon how we change the world when our eyes graze especially if there is no cat.” ―Confucius it, and that there may actually be many worlds that can be fabricated. In a similar vein, might there be many “I’s”, Before you can architect your world, it is clearly important including the one that accidentally happens to be visible to the to get a grasp of what “your world” means. naked “eye”? Doesn’t it feel strange, even a bit convoluted, to With a deterministic view of the world, you may see be talking about an “I” looking upon itself as an “I”? Maybe it something “out there,” which implies something “in here.” feels strange because it is not the usual fiction that we are “Knock, knock, who’s there?” “Surely, It is I”, you say. But accustomed to. Perhaps, being embroiled in the “I” of the storm, maybe … just maybe, there’s more to it than meets the “I”. If we remain oblivious to the tempestuous winds that swirl you rush to design, you may end up solving the wrong problem violently around the soothing illusion of stability at the center. really well. It’s time to state the Architect’s first principle. Could your “I” really be a foundational pattern that is the engine for all the other patterns? Can tuning the engine enhance Principle #1 – Seek, first, to understand; postpone your judgment the experience? and action If you are going to be a good architect, you don’t take anything off The Mother of all principles: Humility the table. In other words, you decide to do nothing, at least until you “True humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of have had a chance to observe a bit more, and to reflect upon what was yourself less.” ― C.S. Lewis seen. It is only then that the architect in you would seek to shape things. In design theory, this way of being and doing is known as “the Various philosophers, mystics and thinkers, over the theory of deferred action.” centuries, have pondered the notion of “I”, its definition, and Is the world just an architecture pattern? We shape, not just with our hands, but even more so with our eyes, and with our minds. We see patterns that are based on, and biased by patterns that already exist within us. We literally give shape to our world with the power of our minds. And as we do so, we assimilate these new patterns, ingesting them voraciously into our ever-growing treasure chest of patterns. Pattern seeking and collecting are lifelong hobbies – fueled by a passion that departs only when we die. But good architects do not rush to create patterns! We wait, patiently, and watch the wheel as it turns. Patterns appear as the sands of time drift, form, then re-form into dusky dunes that we almost hesitate to look at, for fear that our eyes may make them shift yet again. Principle #2 – Be Nature’s child; respect your parents If you want your patterns to be stable, you have to be patient. Time will not move faster because you wish it to. The winds will not blow differently because you will it to. You can perform as a member of Nature’s ensemble and co-create beautiful patterns, but only if you play your notes in harmony with the band. Otherwise, your patterns will jar. Saathee.com

its place in the universe. It is possible to conceptualize the “I” as the lens of a telescope that helps us ascend through the vast night sky and catch a star as it blazes its way through the cosmos. As Galileo did, we must first architect our telescope, if we aspire to accomplish a task of such infinite proportions: of architecting our world. A diligent architect realizes the importance of examining and tuning his or her master instrument: the “I”. Such realization requires a willingness, and a commitment, to see oneself as the starting point. This requires an attitude that can best be captured by the word, humility. So, Architect! Above all else … Be humble!

Balaji Prasad is an IIT/IIM graduate, a published author, SAT/ACT Online and Offline Coach, Math instructor and essay, resume, & career coach at NewCranium. Contact: 704.746.9779 balaji.prasad@newcranium.com February 2014

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Thinking of filing a civil lawsuit? Understanding the basics of a civil lawsuit will help you with the process even if you have hired an attorney to handle the lawsuit on your behalf. This article reviews the different steps and terminology of a lawsuit. Complaint & Answer The plaintiff or the party that brings forth the issue or issues files a Complaint with the court and serves a copy to the defendant, which is the party being sued. The complaint describes what the defendant did or did not do that caused harm to the plaintiff and it is the legal basis for holding the defendant responsible for that harm. Within a specific amount of time, the defendant files an Answer to the complaint. The answer is the defendant’s opportunity to present its side to the court. The defendant may also file counter-claims against the plaintiff, alleging that the plaintiff has harmed the defendant and should be held liable for that harm. Additionally, a party may request that the other party clarify or correct deficiencies in its factual allegations or legal theories, or may ask the court to dismiss part or the entire lawsuit. This may lead to amended complaints or amended answers. Once the parties have completed the complaint and answer, the issues for the court are defined.

Trial The next phase of a civil lawsuit is the Trial in which the parties present evidence in support of their claims or defenses to a jury and/or judge. Some trials, known as bench trials, do not involve a jury and are decided by the judge alone while other trials are jury trials. Before the trial begins in a jury trial, both parties question potential jurors during a selection process known as voir dire. Once the jury is selected and the trial begins, each party gives an opening statement where they lay out how they will present their case. Next, the parties present evidence through witnesses or the introduction of documents and exhibits. After each witness is called and questioned, the opposing party has an opportunity to crossexamine the witness. Once all the evidence has been presented, the parties give their closing arguments. The closing arguments are where each party through their attorneys summarizes their case and argues their side to the jury. After closing arguments, the court instructs the jury on the law to be applied to the evidence. The jury then deliberates and reaches a decision in the matter. Appeal Following trial, a party dissatisfied with the result may Appeal. During an appeal, a party asks a higher court to review the trial court proceeding. The parties present their arguments in briefs, which are submitted to the appellate court along with the record of evidence from the trial court. The appellate court usually reviews a case for legal error only. The appellate court will affirm the verdict if it finds that there was no error in the trial court proceeding. However, if there was an error, the appellate court can reverse the verdict or order the trial court to conduct a new trial. These are the basic steps and terminology of a civil lawsuit. Before you decide to file a lawsuit, make sure you understand the process and procedure.

Discovery The next step in the process is called Discovery. This is the method by which the parties obtain relevant information about Disclaimer: The information presented in this article is for general the lawsuit from each other or from independent third parties. information only, and does not constitute legal, tax or other It begins after a lawsuit is filed and usually continues until professional advice. trial. During discovery, the parties ask each other and third Sumeet P. Shah parties for information about the facts and issues of the case. is Principal Attorney at Shah Legal Group, LLC Information is gathered formally through written questions to in Atlanta, Georgia. His areas of practice include each party known as Interrogatories, Requests for Production of franchise, corporate, real estate, and estate planning and business litigation. He can be Documents, and Requests for Admission, which ask a party to reached at sumeet.shah@shahlegalgroup.com admit or deny statements of fact. or (678) 274-9335. The parties can also conduct depositions, in which witnesses are questioned under oath by the parties’ attorneys and the witnesses’ answers are taken down by a court reporter. Depositions are a tool to learn more about the facts of a case and what the different witnesses contend occurred in the issues DEAL WITH SOMEONE YOU TRUST!!! of the suit. Depositions may be used as evidence at trial to • Tours, Cruises & More or pF show inconsistencies in a witness’s story or to question the Re URS • Rates from India Available s ina O witness’s credibility. • Great Service and Rates rol S T C a IN G l ia Before trial, the parties may use motions to ask the court to • ARC & IATAN approved agency fic & K f O OX rule or act. Motions usually pertain to law or facts in the case, C • Tours to Europe, India, Asia, but sometimes they seek clarification or resolution of & United States. procedural disputes between the parties. Some motions, such 3322 Daniel Place Dr., Charlotte nC 28213 as a motion for summary judgment, ask the court to dismiss e-mail: vyastrav@gmail.com part or all of a plaintiff’s case or a defendant’s defense and 704.569.8220 or 704.724.5981 dispose of issues without trying those issues. Other motion Ahmadabad Office: Vyas Travels Devashish, examples include asking the court to order a party to produce Near Klassic Gold Hotel Navrangpura, Ahmadabad documents or to exclude evidence from trial. Phone: 26561422, 26444422

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What South Indian percussion musical instrument is this?

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Tax Matters

Guarantee: Check if the software company offers guarantee for accuracy of the program. In most cases the guarantee may be limited only to the extent of the fees paid for the program. You may be out of luck, if an error results in IRS penalty of $1000.

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Tax Audit Support: Check if the software company will provide a tax professional to assist you in case of an IRS audit. Although this is rarely required, it can be very painful experience if you Most of us think of taxes typically twice a year. First when don’t have a professional helping you. we get the paycheck and see a bunch of taxes deducted from it and second when we file the tax return to claim the tax refund If your Adjusted Gross Income is less than $56,000 you may from IRS. In the first instance most of us are sad (and maybe even qualify for “Free File” online tax program offered by IRS even angry!) that money is being taken away from us in form of in partnership with private companies. You need to start on IRS taxes. In the second instance most of us are pretty happy that website in order to get the “Free File” version we just got some extra cash in a tax refund. What we miss out (www.irs.gov/efile). The program provides step-by-step guide between the emotions of these two instances is careful planning to e-file the return and also sets up direct deposit of your tax and some smart choices. Let’s see if we can help identify some refund into your bank account. Now, here’s a free lunch in choices today. America! There are several paid tax software programs such as In recent years every aspect of our lives has been Turbo Tax that you could use as well. transformed by technology. Just as Google and Amazon have become part of our lives, preparing and filing tax returns is no Working with a Tax Accountant exception to the internet revolution. Filing tax return using DoLet’s say you have a complex tax situation and have it-Yourself software such as turbo tax has been popular for a determined that you need professional help in filing your tax while now. Although the do-it-yourself tax software helps return. Complex tax situations involve more than one source of capture your tax situation and claims to get you the most tax income (W-2s, self-employed, 1099s etc), investments in stocks, refund, estimates suggest that Americans that file their own tax real estate, multiple state returns and business partnerships etc. returns may be leaving behind close to two billion dollars in Here are some tips on how to make the use of your accountant’s taxes that they could have claimed in tax refund. time with you.

Tax Return Preparation and Filing

“Can I self-file my Tax Return using Online Tax Program?” Most individual tax payers may be able to self-file their tax return using online tax program. However as per the data released by the IRS, close to two-thirds of the tax payers still find comfort in having their tax returns prepared by a tax professional. Individual preferences and complexity of tax situations continue to drive individual and small business tax payers to work with tax professionals. There are definite advantages in filing the tax return using online programs. Who does not like the convenience of working at your own pace and file taxes while watching a football game at home? But just make sure you are not leaving any tax refund money behind on the table!

Start Early: Give yourself enough time ahead of the tax deadline as you may run into road blocks and getting an appointment with a tax professional at the last minute may prove difficult. Tax Documents: Working through the complex tax situation can get quiet tiresome, often going back and forth collecting all the supporting documents from your banks, brokers etc. If you are not very well organized, you may take longer than most people, so give yourself enough time.

Build a long term relationship: The most value you will get in working with a Tax Professional is long term tax saving strategies and advice. Different stages in life will bring opportunities to save on taxes and a little bit of advance Choosing the Right Tax Program? planning can save you hundreds of thousands in taxes over the Now, that we have been cautioned, let’s consider some key years. Take the time to build the relationship with your tax factors in selecting a good do-it-yourself tax software program: accountant; it will pay off in the long run. Support: Select a company that offers phone support in case of an issue while preparing the return. There are two levels of support that you may need. One is with the application or software itself, if something does not work. The other support is related to the tax laws. Most software companies are good at technical support to resolve software bugs but not so much when it comes to tax advice. Identity Theft Protection: Make sure the online E-file provider uses secure technology to transmit data. We have all learnt with the recent data breach at Target that identity theft is a real issue and tax returns contain your most confidential data. Tax Situation: Good tax software will have a step-by-step guide asking questions and dig up information about your specific tax Saathee.com

Keep in mind this column and the articles published here are only meant to provide you with high level information about taxes and in no way should you consider this as tax advice. Hopefully I have got you started thinking about saving more of your hard earned money and paying less to the IRS as you brave through the economic head winds in a recession. Consult your Tax Advisor regarding your individual situation. This Article provides only an overview to the complex Tax Laws. It is not exhaustive nor a substitute for Independent Tax Advice provided by a Tax Accountant or a Tax Attorney familiar with your case.

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Marketing Turnaround By Gail Z. Martin Kickstarter, Marketing and You Maybe you’ve heard about Kickstarter. It’s one of several sites that are part of the crowdfunding trend that’s hot right now. Why should you pay attention? Because Kickstarter and crowdfunding are becoming an important part of launching and marketing new products in today’s online world. Kickstarter is a site where inventors, authors, video game designers, product developers and people with a great idea can pitch it to the world and ask for funding. It’s the democritization of investment banking, making angel investors of us all, often for sums as low as one to five dollars. It’s interesting that Kickstarter and similar sites have catapulted to popularity during a recession, when credit is tighter than usual for entrepreneurs and artists. Not so long ago, to get a great idea off the ground, you either had to front the seed money yourself, persuade a bank to take a risk on you, or go hat in hand to friends and relatives, even for sums of just a few thousand dollars. Not too surprisingly, that didn’t work out well for many people, whose projects got shelved in the “someday” file. How many of those products, software programs, games, books and other items might have been a big hit – and made our lives a little bit easier, interesting or more enjoyable – but never got the chance? Crowdfunding lets the market decide, and fund, what it wants. While this is a big change from the way things have been done in the last fifty or seventy years, in some ways, it’s a return to the way business has been done for thousands of years, with the help of patrons who underwrite expenses. Except that now, instead of finding a wealthy individual or a powerful institution, the average person can kick in a buck or five and maybe be part of the next big thing. Recently, I’ve been part of three Kickstarter publishing projects. Two of the projects raised substantially more money than their original goal, enabling them to add extra features. One project is still underway, but making great strides towards its goals. The first two projects were anthologies, and the third is a graphic novel. What’s important to remember is that each of these projects succeeds because it has made a direct connection with customers who want exactly that type of product, and aren’t finding what they want in the “regular” marketplace. Kickstarter projects ultimately rise or fall on three key points: 1) the strength of the concept; 2) the social media energy of the product’s supporters; and 3) how well the concept originator communicates both the core concept and the specific benefits funders will receive for every funding goal met. In this sense, Kickstarter success is a quintessential exercise in marketing. For example, the second Kickstarter anthology in which I participated was an anthology of science fiction/fantasy short stories with adventurous female characters written by women writers. The authors on the roster ranged from established pros Saathee.com

to lesser-known but published professionals to new authors. The Kickstarter outlined what rewards backers would receive every time the project reached a new milestone. Rewards included free ebooks, e-short stories, paper books and artwork, music CDs, professional services and recognition as a patron in the book. In addition, eight more authors were eventually added, making the original anthology a larger book, a second related anthology was funded, and a sequel was funded. All three books received enough funding to produce a trade paperback edition and a limited hard cover edition. In this case, the Kickstarter project had an original funding goal of $8,500, and in its 29 day run, 1907 individual contributors raised over $44,000 to bring the project to life. In exchange, backers got the entertainment value of watching the tally rise day by day (including a white-knuckle last half hour to hit the final goal that rivals any sporting match for drama), eight free ebooks (in addition to the original anthology), thirteen free e-short stories, a free music CD, free original artwork, and recognition for being part of the process. In addition, the project will donate a portion of the proceeds to charity. That’s a heckuva value for a $5 contribution! The concept’s strength and originality is a key point in attracting backers. If you’re thinking of doing a Kickstarter, make sure you can clearly explain what your project is all about, why it’s different, and who the intended audience is. Here’s where marketing comes into play. Successful Kickstarters incorporate video to share their message, include lots of photos of the project, and go into great details about features and benefits. Likewise, writing copy that outlines exactly what backers receive for their specific dollar-level contribution as the project reaches funding milestones encourages readers to invest. By including everyone in the rewards that are unlocked milestone after milestone, investors have a reason to help you spread the word, effectively marketing your project for you. Social media plays a key role in funding a successful Kickstarter. That’s one reason anthologies do well, because they are a team effort and appeal to the readership of a dozen or more authors. On the other hand, I’ve seen individual authors and product developers also successfully Kickstart their projects by reaching out to their personal networks through social media and encouraging friends to tell friends. A friend telling a friend is really the secret to funding a Kickstarter, and it’s the essence of viral or word-of-mouth marketing. The more friends you can connect with early and often on social media, the more active you and they are in spreading the word, and the more interconnected interested parties are in talking up the project, the more buzz is in the marketplace and the more people find the project and contribute. For example, the Kickstarter anthology project included seventeen original authors. Most were already active on continued on page 118

gail Z. martin owns DreamSpinner Communications. Contact her at Gail@GailMartinMarketing.com

February 2014

eternal promises. All the horoscopes were right after all, and at a reception hall in a nearby hotel, my niece walked through the corridor in a gorgeous red sari, decked out in jewels, her face obscured by two paan leaves. The ceremony was beautiful, symbolic, educational and thorough in its insistence on the permanence of the institution of marriage. It left me stunned. It left my brother in tears 7,000 miles away in Pakistan (watching live on Skype) as he missed his eldest child’s wedding due to work-related issues. After the ceremony and lunch, my cousin and his wife took my sister and me to enjoy the Black Friday frenzy in the outskirts of Boston. We sat at a Starbucks, and I looked around and wondered about what really unites us, and more importantly, what differences divide us, and why. The evening reception was a superb occasion held at a Salem museum. We met people from all over, and every walk of life. A formal dinner followed, and a few glasses of champagne later, my sister and I decided to open up the dance floor with our own crude version of bhangra. Around 11 pm, we left the younger generation doing their own Bollywood thing to tunes too fast for my cardiac health. We sat around the hotel lobby and talked late into the night and breakfast time arrived too early. People were rushing this Saturday morning. There were evening flights to India and Pakistan from New York, and scores of local flights to catch across the U.S. My sister and I were supposed to leave for Charlotte at 4 pm. But one situation remained unsettled. A Bengali friend of the groom’s parents had invited the bride’s party to lunch. The two of us were all the family remaining in Salem past breakfast. Nervously, we followed the groom’s family to the other side of Boston. To our shock, there were seven giant dishes of food on the table: chicken, goat, daal, pulao, spinach, cauliflower, breads, chutneys, and sweets—a feast to feed 40 people. We were just an hour removed from a heavy breakfast, and the host was kind enough to serve my sister and me first so we could head to the airport. We could hardly walk. Saying an early farewell, I caught a last glimpse of my niece surrounded by 20 people she had never met before. They were performing various rituals, everybody was hugging everybody else. A few women were making loud calls as part of a ritual. Elders were placing flowers petals on her and the groom’s heads. She gave me half a smile from a distance. I somehow knew things will be alright. She had now gained a new, warm, loving family. The little girl next to me on the plane was practicing for a spelling bee with her dad. I ignored hundreds of words during the two and a half hour flight. One I remembered: Tolerance. TO-L-E-R-A-N-C-E. Tolerance. Following a beautiful sunset into the landing, I somehow felt deeply positive about life. I felt like one with the sea of humanity at the airport. Christmas was beginning. There was a box of Indian sweets in my laptop bag.

Subcontinental Divide Bhangra and the Butterball Turkey By Ahsen Jillani

Deep breaths. Deeeeep breaths. Yoga, homeopathic elixirs, imagining still lakes in the Himalayas all failed to calm my nerves flying into Boston on Thanksgiving Day. I was on USAir, not the Mayflower, but I was still a pilgrim heading toward a turkey dinner. The future of this memorable holiday weekend was quite uncertain then…. You see, I was heading into sunny but bitterly cold Salem, MA for a wedding. It was a desi wedding, so I had visions of mehndi, singing, kheer served in clay bowls, and giant pots of food being prepared on the grounds of my grandmother’s estate south of Lahore. I was 35 years removed from the joy, pain, laughter, frustration, love, and hospitality that we all take for granted back in the ancient cultures of our homelands. Love, in its exquisite simplicity, can be such a complicated thing. Families, cultures, religions, nationalities, social status, prejudices can all come into play to make a masala that gives you heartburn instead of setting your heart on fire. And so this was another day on planet earth. Almost 55 years ago was one day, when my middle class Punjabi father proposed to my aristocratic Uttar Pradeshi mother. And from that point on, along with my father’s liberal education in the U.S., we never looked back. I married Americans (twice); my brother found love in graduate school; my sister found a much older and eccentric playwright and journalist. Our choices were never met with immediate approval by my mother, but she always remembered her own story and her father’s heartache when he handed his daughter over to Punjabi “dhoti walas.” So yes, there was turkey that day in the gorgeous lobby of the historic hotel in Salem (and lobster, caviar, good wine and desserts if you wanted to spend $45/person). My sister had flown in from Pakistan a few days earlier and joined me at the airport from Washington so we could drive into Salem. My cousin and his family had battled 18 hours of heavy snow driving from Detroit. We all opted for heavy appetizers in the bar. We talked and wondered. The next day, Friday, was the wedding, followed by the reception. My niece and her fiancé had met in graduate school at Cornell. They worked various jobs in Washington after graduating and romance blossomed. That’s the simple story. She is a blended Shia/Sunni Muslim. He is a Bengali Hindu who spent most of his life in the United States. In truth, the justice of the peace would have been just fine here, maybe followed by a reception. But that’s not what the traditions and the cultures demanded. Subcontinental Divide is a new feature in Saathee. We invite writers There were rumors that somewhere along the way an Islamic to send queries. The column deals with the vast diversities in the Indian ceremony had already taken place. Waking up to a phone call Subcontinent and how social norms are changing or progressing to from my sister-in-law on this crisp 12 degree Friday morning, I realized that civil paperwork still had to be filed that morning make these cultural variants more tolerant of each other. before the Hindu ceremony could begin at noon. We weren’t Ahsen Jillani invited to the morning civil ceremony. Over eggs, blood sausage a former editor and publisher, is originally and bloody marys (a very Muslim breakfast), my sister and I from Islamabad , Pakistan , and now lives in wondered if we would even be advised about the Hindu Charlotte with his wife, Lisa, and their two ceremony’s location, etc. daughters. He owns Must Media, a PR company focusing on both political and corporate clients. Things fell together like they usually do on beautiful mornings when lovers look each other in the eyes and make Saathee.com

February 2014

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feasible within a critical window where the brain cells can be revived. Lack of oxygen can cause permanent and irreversible damage to the brain. The spinal cord carries compact tracts of nerve fibres from the brain to the peripheral body i.e. skin, muscles and organ systems. Interruption of these pathways from a direct injury such as a Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) or a slow growing tumor can put pressure on parts of the spinal column. Physical trauma or pressure on the cord will result in slow and progressive or sudden loss of function.

Healthwise The Human Brain and Spinal Cord: is your processor or neural network affected? By Chetan Deshmukh

The Peripheral Nervous System Nerves that exit the spinal cord travel along the extremities after undergoing complex divisions and branching. These nerves originate from certain specific levels of the spinal cord. There are 31 pairs of spinal nerves in our body. They exit the spinal cord through the vertebral column and follow the long bones of the Upper and Lower Extremities. As they reach their destination they end up forming a network or mesh that is integrated to the skin. This final network or mesh has a specific distribution pattern that is common to all of us. We can identify the level of injury to the spinal cord by testing sensation along the length of the arm, forearm or the hand. Each nerve has a specific distribution pattern which can also help determine if a specific nerve was damaged and at what level after exiting the spinal cord. The higher the level of injury to the nerve the greater the loss of sensation along the distribution pattern in the arm. For example: when you have sensory changes such as tingling and numbness in the distribution of the thumb and first two fingers it is easy to confirm of the affected nerve. The nerve chiefly responsible for distribution of sensation to the thumb, index, middle and half of the ring finger in the hand is the same nerve that is called the Carpal Tunnel Nerve. The little finger and the remaining half of the ring finger is supplied by a different nerve. There is a very specific distribution pattern between the two nerves and when tested are almost diagnostic determinants of the type and level of injury.

understanding the Human Nervous System: The human body has five senses that are controlled by the brain and spinal cord. Collectively, the brain and spinal cord are referred to as the Central Nervous System or CNS. There are three parts to the nervous system: (a) Central (b) Peripheral and (c) Autonomic. The Central Nervous System The Central Nervous System controls higher function and lower function of the human body. Higher function includes Cognition, Perception and Memory. Feelings, Emotion and Thought are a combination of cognitive and perceptual functioning of the normal disease free brain. When there is direct or indirect injury to the brain these functions can be altered. Diseases and conditions such as Cerebrovascular Accidents (CVA’s), Stroke, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) can have a direct impact on these areas of normal brain activity. Epilepsy, Seizures, Mirgraine headaches that alter the function but not the structure of the brain can have similar changes that can affect the 5 senses. Touch, taste, smell, vision and hearing may be altered with functional changes and disruptions to synaptic pathways in the CNS. The brain and spinal cord carry electrical impulses to the brain from the skin and bring back electrical impulses back to muscles. The direction of the electrical impulse determines the type of message that is traveling to and from the brain. Nerves that carry pure electrical impulses from the skin to the brain are sensory in nature. Muscles and organs receive impulses from the brain and therefore are classified as “motor” impulses. Patients suffering from diseases and injury to the spinal cord may retain some of the synaptic connections which helps determine the prognosis and recovery after trauma. Injury to the CNS can be permanent or temporary and/or classified as complete or partial. Prognosis and recovery are dependent on the type of injury and severity of the injury. If the injury to the brain and central nervous system is partial and temporary the prognosis may be favorable and one can expect good recovery with little residual damage. However, if the injury is complete and/or permanent the recovery is limited. Examples of temporary injury to the brain include a Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA) or Stroke in Evolution which may come on quickly and may resolve quickly leaving very little evidence of a neurological deficit. Patients usually complain of a sudden headache, dizziness or flashing of lights and slurring of speech. By the time the individual reaches the Emergency Room or the hospital the signs and symptoms may have resolved. Patients experiencing such changes in physical status or mental status should continue to seek professional help and monitor their health through a qualified healthcare provider such as a cardiologist or their family physician. Generally, TIA’s result from a clot or embolus that travels up the blood stream through the heart and to the brain through the blood vessels in the neck. The brain and spinal cord receives oxygen rich blood supply from the heart and lungs. It is critical that this oxygen rich blood supply reach the smallest cells in the brain as soon as possible and without delay. When someone is experiencing difficulty with blood supply to the brain it is essential that the blockage be removed or dissolved as soon as Saathee.com

What are the types of treatment and where is treatment available? If you experience any signs or symptoms of a nervous system disorder you should seek help immediately. Start with consulting your family physician. He or she will recommend some tests and monitor your symptoms. If needed, they will recommend a Neurologist and/or a Neurosurgeon. Occupational Therapists specialize in the treatment of neurological disorders such as Stroke, Spinal Cord Injuries and Peripheral Nerve Injuries (including Carpal Tunnel pain and nerve pain due to Cervical Spondylosis). Loss of function such as a weak grip, dropping of objects from the hand, burning or tingling and numbness are early warning signs of a neurological problem. Symptoms p you may experience in other more complex disorders may include vision or hearing changes, swallowing difficulties or breathing problems. Most of these can be helped if we can find the root cause of the problem. Consult an Occupational Therapist and they can help discuss your symptoms with your family physician to get treatment started without any delay. Your insurance generally covers care for acute and chronic problems even when a diagnosis is being confirmed. Chetan Deshmukh, mBA, OTR/L, CPC, CHDA is a Hand Rehabilitation Specialist based in Cary, NC Email: info@theraccess.com Website: www.theraccess.com Twitter: #theraccess 74

February 2014

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Method: Boil the broth, stir in quinoa, reduce heat to low, cover and cook until all the liquid is absorbed. Drain any excess liquid if necessary, mix all other ingredients well, serve warm or cold. Makes six servings. Each provides about 200 calories, 25 grams of carbohydrates, 7 grams of protein, and 4 grams of fiber.

Nutrition for Life By Anjana Agarwal understanding the Fiber Maze You may have noticed lately that many of the favorite foods such as yogurt, Ice cream, sugary cereals, energy bars, Splenda (sugar substitute) and even some juices have fiber in them. These manufactured foods offer isolated (functional) fiber just so they can make a “high fiber” claim. The fiber you get naturally from plant foods promotes good bowel function, lowers blood sugar and cholesterol, among other benefits. The general recommendation is to get 14 grams of fiber for every 1000 calories. But are the isolated fibers in the foods mentioned earlier as good as you get from plant foods? Artificial fiber versus the real fiber: • Isolated fibers are either extracted from foods or chemically synthesized; they include Inulin, pectin, polydextrose, methycellulose and maltodextrin. • Food companies also use small amounts of isolated fiber for a variety of reasons – for instance to replace the fat and sugar or as a thickening agent to prevent separation and to add crispness to bread and pizza crust. These fibers have some benefits, such as they may enhance satiety. There’s some evidence that Inulin may enhance the absorption of calcium and magnesium, reduce the calories by replacing fat or sugar. But research on isolated fibers is inconsistent, as most of the studies are funded by manufacturers and often the amount of fiber added is too little to count. When consumed in large amount some of the isolated fiber such as polydextrose may have laxative effects. In fact, any food that contains more than 15 grams polydextrose must have a warning label stating that “sensitive individuals may experience a laxative effect from excessive consumption of this product.” The bottom line is that these artificial isolated fibers can boost your overall fiber intake, but they tend to be foods which are not nutritious. You are better off eating fiber-rich unprocessed foods such as whole grains, beans and lentils, vegetables and fruits; these foods have a range of different fibers as well as many other nutrients. The natural fiber will keep you regular; the main reason people seek for high fiber foods. Tips for adding fiber to your diet: • Slowly increase amount of fiber to 25-35 grams per day. • Look for 100% whole wheat, rye, or oats as first ingredient. • Have brown rice instead of white rice and potatoes. • Include variety of grains such as oats, barley, and quinoa. • Eat beans and lentils more often. • Eat fresh fruits, salads and vegetables instead of juices. • Choose food products with 3-4 grams fiber per serving. • Drink eight cups or more water or unsweetened beverages. Try this high fiber fruity quinoa salad: Ingredients: 14 ounce vegetable broth 1 cup quinoa, rinse 1 tablespoon canola oil 1 tablespoons fruity vinegar, such as raspberry or pomegranate ¼ tsp salt 2 ripe firm mangoes chopped or fruit of your choice ¼ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper ½ cup chopped roasted walnuts or pecans Saathee.com

Sleep Apnea - More than just a snore Snoring is usually a minor problem, except for those who have to listen to it. But heavy snoring can be a symptom of sleep apnea, thought to affect mostly men. Sleep apnea can keep you from getting a restful sleep. You may stop breathing for anywhere from ten seconds to a minute, then large sound erupts as you struggle to recover, this pattern may be repeated hundreds of times during your sleep. Sleep apnea can cause fatigue, drowsiness and headaches. Sleep apnea has also been linked to heart attacks, strokes, hypertension, diabetes and depression. If you think you have sleep apnea, get professional help. Your doctor may refer to you to a specialist for sleep disorders center, the most reliable place to have sleep apnea diagnosed. Being overweight is not only a risk factor for sleep apnea, but also makes you more susceptible to develop many other medical problems. You need to take practical steps to lose weight or see a registered dietitian for weight management. Limiting alcohol intake and exercising 30- 45 minutes a day most of the days are also beneficial to ward off many medical conditions. Fortunately, there are effective treatments for sleep apnea, losing weight definitely helps, or you may be fitted for an air pump, called CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure), which is attached to a nasal tube or mask and can maintain flow of air while you sleep. Make sure you are evaluated by a board certified doctor in sleep-medicine. The website www.sleepcenter.org can help locate a nearby accredited center. Jumpstart your metabolism to lose weight by: • Strength training helps to build muscle, each pound of muscle burns about six calories a day, versus fat burns two calories for each pound of fat per day • Exercising 30 minutes a day can burn 1000-1200 calories per week that works out to about 15-16 lbs weight loss in a year. • Eating breakfast. Studies suggest that it gets your metabolism going. • Eating a balance diet. Get about one gram protein per kilo of ideal body weight to ensure that you lose fat weight not muscle. • Drinking water. A body functions more effectively when you are well hydrated. Water is the best no calorie, cheapest beverage choice. • Avoiding crash diets. Very low calorie diets slow your metabolism • Getting adequate sleep. Lack of sleep increases level of the hormone Ghrelin, which can make you hungrier while slowing your metabolism. • Lowering the thermostat by few degrees in the winter can reduce your heating bill and burn a few extra calories. For individual nutrition counseling see a registered dietitian. Many insurance companies now pay for the consults. Anjana Agarwal, mS, RD, LDn, CDE Registered Dietitian Phone: 704-890-3162 Carolina Nutrition (Adult & Pediatric) www.carolinanutrition.com

February 2014

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February 2014

Edit Notes By Samir Shukla Democracies in action “Those are my principles, and if you don’t like them... well, I have others.” - Groucho Marx It’s election year for the planet’s two largest democracies. India will hold its national Lok Sabha elections sometime in May. The exercise is so huge (almost 415 million people voted in 2009) that several days are needed for voting. The varied infrastructure and the massive population spread in cities and far flung rural areas require mobilization of an army of election workers. Once all the votes are cast, it takes several days for counting and tallying. This year as in the last election, the two major parties, Congress and Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP), will duke it out for seats in the parliament and a chance to take the Prime Minister seat. Operatives in both parties have been putting the necessary infrastructure in place to get votes. There’s an insurrection this year, though. The upstart Aam Aadmi Party (people’s party) hopes to give voters another option. The AAP surprised many in the Indian political establishment and media with their recent win in New Delhi constituency. Their leader Arvind Kejriwal became the Chief Minister of Delhi last month, dislodging long running CM Sheila Dikshit. Of course there are many other political parties in India, but these three will form the prime talk of the news cycles in the next several months. The other big news is of course Narendra Modi, BJP’s candidate for Prime Minister. Modi comes with controversial baggage, but is also quite a colorful character. The business class loves him. By most accounts he has been an effective Chief Minister of Gujarat for over a decade. It remains to be seen if he can convince Indian voters across the country to give him a shot. Can he effectively build a coalition to govern the entire country? Well, his party has to win elections first. The United States will stage their mid-term elections in November. The wolves of political propaganda on both sides have already unfurled their fangs and are digging in for bitter and divisive battles. The Republicans hope to capture the Senate and strengthen their hold on the House. President Obama clearly needs the political winds to blow his way. He knows that after the November election, unless the Democrats somehow manage to take back the House or at least hold their majority in the Senate, he will simply spend the next two years finishing his second term. A lame duck. It’s a curse all two-term presidents face. He won’t be able to affect any major policy changes if the political winds hand him a loss of majority in the Senate. But he’s got a few months to introduce something big, further form his legacy, if you will. Immigration reform is obviously big on his list. And with enough Republican support it could be one more thing he can accomplish. Saathee.com

Here’s my suggestion, Mr. President. Yes, work on immigration reform, but be bold and offer a plan for widereaching tax and entitlement reforms. Come up with something big, and do it soon. Put concrete ideas and plans out there and let the cards fall where they may. Your party won’t like it. The Republicans will scratch their heads at the notion and be put on notice. The knuckle draggers in the House will have to come up with their own ideas. Both parties will scramble to answer the call, if you can come up with something that affects longterm reforms. There’s not a heck of a lot more to be done in creating jobs. The economy is healing and will progress on its own accord. Immigration reform is necessary, but tax and entitlement reforms are crucial. Mr. President, surprise everyone with bold reform ideas. Put it down on paper, take it to the people. Use your bully pulpit to help put the country on a long-term, solid financial footing. What have you got to lose? The wolves and operatives of all persuasions are filing and sharpening their claws, readying the inevitable negative ads and attacks. The political action committees are raking in the big bucks. The battle lines are drawn. Let the feasting begin.

Worth reading The Siege: 68 hours inside the Taj Hotel (Penguin; Authors Cathy Scott-Clark and Adrian Levy) is a fast-paced, gripping account of the terror attacks in Mumbai that began on November 26, 2008. The 9/11 of India, the attacks have become known as simply 26/11 in the country. Clark and Levy, the two British journalists, have long covered the Subcontinent and in this book they detail the accounts of many inside the famed hotel, from employees to guests, to responders, and tell their stories in a way that details the horrors of those few days when one of the world’s most populous cities was thrown into terror by 10 gunmen. Those harrowing days are documented in researched detail in this book. Pakistan-based Laskhar-e-Toiba terrorists attacked targets throughout the city; the most visible was the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel. The sixty-eight hour attack left scores injured and over 150 people dead. Thirty one people died at the hotel. The book also chronicles the heroic acts of hotel staffers and guests that helped save many lives. The book exposes government and security ineptitude and lapses that could have prevented the attacks from taking place. The authors also trace the backing of Pakistani security services in providing training, funding and support for the planning and execution of the attack. This is a real-life thriller, a spy novel, mystery and human narrative woven into one. The authors take a little time getting the narrative going, but once the pace is set and a few pages into it the book transforms into a gripping read.

Samir Shukla is the editor of Saathee magazine. contact - saatheemag@hotmail.com

February 2014

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February 2014

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News Notes Dr. S. Jaishankar Assumes Responsibility as Ambassador of India to the united States Dr. S. Jaishankar, Ambassador of India to the United States, presented a copy of his credentials to the US State Department on December 26, 2013. Ambassador Jaishankar met with Under Secretary for Political Affairs, Wendy Sherman, and Under Secretary for Management, Patrick F. Kennedy. Dr. Jaishankar comes to Washington, DC with more than three decades of diplomatic experience. Joining the Indian Foreign Service in 1977, he has represented India’s interests and fostered friendly working relationships in countries around the world. Dr. Jaishankar’s first postings abroad were as Third and Second Secretary (Political) at the Embassy of India in Moscow from 1979 to 1981. From 1981 to 1985, he served as Under Secretary (Americas) and Policy Planning in the Ministry of External Affairs. He then spent three years from 1985 to 1988 as First Secretary handling political affairs at the Indian Embassy in Washington, DC, followed by two years as First Secretary and Political Advisor to the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) in Sri Lanka. In 1990, Dr. Jaishankar became Commercial Counsellor in Budapest. After three years in that position, he returned to India where he served first as Director of East Europe Division of the Ministry of External Affairs, and then as Press Secretary for the President of India. Following this service in India, Dr. Jaishankar went abroad again - to Tokyo in 1996 as Deputy Chief of Mission. In the year 2000, he was appointed the Ambassador of India to Czech Republic and served in Prague till 2004. Upon completing his time as Ambassador in Prague, Dr. Jaishankar returned once again to India, where he led the Americas Division in the Ministry of External Affairs. After three years heading the division, he again left India in 2007 to serve as High Commissioner to Singapore for two years. Most recently, Dr. Jaishankar was the Ambassador of India to China from 2009 to 2013. ICE returns recovered, “most wanted” stolen antiquities to India NEW YORK — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) returned three recovered sculptures, valued at more than $1.5 million, to the government of India last month during a repatriation ceremony at the consulate in New York City. One of the objects – a 350-pound sandstone sculpture stolen from an Indian temple in 2009 – was listed as one of INTERPOL’s top 10 most wanted stolen works of art. HSI Executive Associate Director James A. Dinkins presented the artifacts to Consul General of India Dnyaneshwar M. Mulay, alongside INTERPOL Washington Director Shawn Bray. “The excellent international cooperation between the United States and India led to the recovery and return of these priceless antiquities,” said Dinkins. “The pilfering of a nation’s cultural patrimony cannot and will not be tolerated.” “Prevention of illegal trade in antiquities has emerged as an Saathee.com

important area of cooperation between India and the United States as can be seen from this recent recovery of stolen Indian antiquities,” said Mulay. “I deeply appreciate the excellent work done by ICE HSI in getting these three priceless Indian assets recovered. The successful investigations and repatriation of these cultural artifacts underscores the importance of growing institutional partnership, which is of great significance to both countries.” “There is no better example of what can be accomplished through the collaboration between US and international law enforcement via INTERPOL than the astounding results of this investigation, which have led to today’s repatriation of these artifacts to their rightful place with the people of India,” said Bray. “INTERPOL Washington is proud to have been able to assist ICE Homeland Security Investigations in obtaining the documentation and images necessary to help identify the objects as those stolen from India.” Two of the three artifacts returned to India were reported in 2009 by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), who notified the Indian Consulate about two sandstone sculptures stolen from the Gadgach Temple in Atru, Rajasthan, India. The 350pound “Vishnu and Lakshmi” sandstone sculpture dates back to the 11th or 12th century and was listed as No. 6 on INTERPOL’s top 10 most wanted works of art. Also stolen from the temple and repatriated during the Jan. 14 ceremony was the 600-pound “Vishnu and Parvati” sandstone sculpture, dating to the same period. The third artifact is a male deity black sandstone sculpture, depicting a Bodhisattva, a popular subject in Buddhist art, and is believed to date back to the 11th or early 12th century from either the Indian State of Bihar or Bengal. The investigation that led to this repatriation began April 13, 2010, when HSI New York special agents received information that the Indian sandstone sculptures recently looted from India were being offered for sale in the United States. HSI special agents discovered that the “Vishnu and Lakshmi” was transported from India to Hong Kong. From there, it was sold to a dealer in Thailand, and then resold to a buyer in London. The London buyer shipped the sculpture to New York City for an exhibition in March 2010. On April 15, 2010, HSI special agents recovered the piece while it was being shipped back to London. On July 12, 2010, as a direct result of the “Vishnu and Lakshmi” seizure, a sister piece, the “Vishnu and Parvati,” was seized. It was transported to Hong Kong, sold to a buyer in New York and then sold and shipped to a buyer in Basel, Switzerland. On July 7, 2011, the Indian black stone Bodhisattva figure was discovered being smuggled into the United States at Newark Airport by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers. HSI special agents seized it after discovering that its accompanying paperwork declared Great Britain as a false country of origin. In addition, the item was grossly undervalued. The New York County District Attorney’s Office assisted in this investigation. The last ICE cultural property repatriation to India was in 2006 when ICE agents in NY returned a ninth century stone idol that had been stolen from a temple in Mandsaur in Madhya Pradesh in 2000. HSI plays a leading role in criminal investigations that involve the illegal importation and distribution of cultural property, including the illicit trafficking of cultural property, especially objects that have been reported lost or stolen. The 82

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HSI Office of International Affairs, through its 67 attaché offices in 48 countries, works closely with foreign governments to conduct joint investigations, when possible. HSI specially trained investigators, assigned to both domestic and international offices, partner with governments, agencies and experts to protect cultural antiquities. They also provide cultural property investigative training to law enforcement partners for crimes involving stolen property and art, and how to best enforce the law to recover these items when they emerge in the marketplace. Since 2007, more than 7,150 artifacts have been returned to 26 countries, including paintings from France, Germany, Poland and Austria, 15th to 18th century manuscripts from Italy and Peru, as well as cultural artifacts from China, Cambodia and Iraq. Learn more about HSI cultural property, art and antiquities investigations. Members of the public who have information about suspected stolen cultural property are urged to call the toll-free HSI tip line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or to complete its online tip form. More about the Consulate of India at http://www.indiacgny.org/.

Better Business Bureau – Don’t Call Back that Number on your Cell Phone Wallingford, CT – Better Business Bureau is warning cell phone users about a new scam that can result in unauthorized charges appearing on their monthly wireless statement. Consumers in several states report getting calls on their mobile phones during which the caller hangs up. When cell phone owners call back, they are connected to a paid international adult entertainment service or chat line located outside the country. Victims are subsequently billed not only for the incoming international call if they answer, but also the unwanted “premium service,” which typically appears as a $19.95 charge. In some cases, crammers may only put a small charge of several dollars, so as not to arouse suspicion. The area codes that appear on the caller ID often originate from the Dominican Republic (809), Jamaica (876), British Virgin Islands (284) and Grenada (473). The practice of third parties placing unauthorized charges on wireless accounts is called “cramming.” The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) have reviewed thousands of complaints about the practice, and expect the problem to grow. Better Business Bureau recommends if you don’t recognize an out-of-state telephone number on your caller ID, ignore it and if you do answer, do not call back. Check your wireless bills carefully and inform your carrier if you spot any for unauthorized charges. Founded in 1928, Connecticut BBB is an unbiased non-profit organization that sets and upholds high standards for fair and honest business behavior. BBB helps consumers find and recommend businesses, brands and charities they can trust, offers objective advice and a wide range of education on topics affecting marketplace trust. BBB also offers complaint and dispute resolution support for consumers and businesses. Today, 113 BBBs serve communities across the U.S. and Canada, evaluating and monitoring more than three million local and national businesses and charities. For more advice on finding companies and businesses, start your search with trust at www.bbb.org. Saathee.com

India successfully launches cutting-edge cryogenic rocket Last month India successfully launched its first rocket using domestically made booster technology, taking another step forward in its ambitious space program. The Indian-made cryogenically-powered rocket blasted off from the southern spaceport of Sriharikota as scheduled, as Delhi tries to join an elite club of countries which have mastered the complex technology. The 415-tonne rocket deployed a two-ton advanced communications satellite 17 minutes after blast-off, said Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) chairman Dr K. Radhakrishnan. “I am extremely proud and happy to say that team ISRO has done it,” Radhakrishnan announced at mission control in Andhra Pradesh. “Team ISRO and the project directors all have put their heart and soul in making this proud moment for the country,” he said. India has for years been trying to develop its own cryogenic engine for rockets that are designed to put heavier satellites into high orbits, about 22,000 miles from Earth. The powerful booster technology, using super-cooled liquid fuel, is a much needed tool to help India capture a share of the lucrative global market for launching commercial satellites. The technology has only successfully been developed by a handful of countries including the United States, Russia, France, Japan and China. In November India successfully lifted into orbit a spacecraft bound for Mars as it tries to become the first Asian nation to reach the Red Planet. – Courtesy of ISRO

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Community Focus Swamiji The show mixes cutting edge laser animation, threedimensional visual effects, as well as stagecraft and performance art to trek a journey through Swami Vivekananda’s inspirational life. The show Swamiji commemorates the 150th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda and revisits his life and his teachings. Swamiji will be held in Raleigh at the Duke Energy Center for Performing Arts on March 8, 2014 at 7 pm. Vivekananda was an influential figure and powerful orator who toured the USA and England during the late 19th century, spreading a message of harmony and peace among religions. At the 1893 Parliament of the World’s Religions in Chicago, he captured the hearts of Americans with a rousing speech on universal brotherhood and religious tolerance. His prescriptions for attaining a healthy and spiritual life through practicing Yoga and Meditation are now ubiquitous in the United States and other countries. For more details visit www.Swamiji.Vedantanc.org.

Events of Note Kiran Awareness Event Kiran is hosting a sexual assault awareness campaign on Sunday, February 23, 2014 at 4:00 pm. The event will feature an afternoon of street theater and panel discussion to celebrate Valentine’s Day. The event takes place at the Maple Room, Bond Park Community Center, 150 Metro Park, Cary, NC 27513. This is not a fundraiser. For more information or to R.S.V.P. call Kiran office at 919-831-4203. Light refreshments will be served. Kiran, Inc. is a community based South Asian organization promoting self-reliance and empowerment of South Asian women and men who are in domestic violence through crisis counseling and intervention, language assistance and translation and resource referrals in a confidential manner.

Inner Awakening Inner Awakening is a 4-day unique transformational program to awaken an individual’s true potential. The program takes place from February 6 - 10, 2014 at the Charlotte Meditation Center. For Further Details call 704.766.1420 or visit the following links: Basant Bahar 2014 http://innerawakening.org/about-ia/top-10-reasons.html Hum Sub Presents “Basant Bahar 2014” - Panchabhootham – http://innerawakening.org/benefits-of-ia/health.html The Five Elements of Nature in Harmony. The annual event will feature a tribute to an Ancient Indian cultural ideology Queen City Sahelis The Queen City Sahelis present their first gala “An Evening of Panchabhootham, which says that all of creation, including the Giving” at the Firethorne Country Club, Marvin NC on human body, is made up of five essential elements of nature ie. Saturday, February 8, 2014, at 7pm. The event will benefit Water (Jal), Fire (Agni), Earth (Bhoomi), Air (Vaayu) and Space “Turning Point” - a shelter for battered women and children (Aakash) and in the end they dissolve back into these five and “East Elementary school” in Monroe, NC. Queen City elements, thereby balancing the cycle of nature. The event takes Sahelis (QCS) is a Charlotte-based social network of women of place on Sunday, March 9, 2014 at Cary Arts Center, 101 Dry Asian Indian descent. The mission of QC Sahelis is to organize Avenue, Cary NC. For further details visit www.humsub.net. and assist local charities that are underfunded, unrecognized India Fest 2014 and unable to grow independently or are just starting out. The objective is to take purposeful and determined steps in making Nuv Yug presents the 11th annual India Fest on Saturday & a positive impact to support causes in the local community. The Sunday, March 22-23, 2014 at the Dorton Arena, State Gala will be a formal event featuring Priya Saluja’s fashion Fairgrounds, Raleigh, NC. All programs are indoors and there show, dinner, dancing, raffles, and more. For more details call is free parking. Over the years, India Fest has been an exposition Indira Vallabh (704-258-4321), Indu Gangadhar (704-451-3010), of South Asian culture and an opportunity for the Triangle or Raveena Kashyap (704-907-4429). Tickets are $60/person community to discover Indian cultural arts through an array of before January 31 and $75 per person afterwards. Cocktail attire dance, music, fashion, crafts and cuisine. The festival includes various performances by local dance groups, vocalists and and the event are for adults only. musicians of all ages, as well as professional performances. For more details visit www.nuvyug.net. Bhangra Sutra UNC Bhangra Elite Presents Bhangra Sutra 2014, a showcase of the top performing talent from North Carolina universities, including Indian fusion, Raas, Bharatnatyam, hip-hop, A One of the Carolinas’ biggest Cappella, and Bhangra. This event will take place Sunday, Bollywood NYE Blast 2014 February 23, 2014 at UNC-Chapel Hill, in the Great Hall of the took place at the Goels Plaza FPG Student Union. Dinner will take place from 5 – 6 pm and in Raleigh and was attended the show will take place from 6 – 8pm. Tickets will be sold by 600+ guests from several online beginning February 11th and at the box-office on the day states. The evening featured of the show. Prices are $7-10 for dinner and show. Contact pulsing music, food, and Sagar Shukla for more information, marketing opportunities, dance. or to request UNC Bhangra Elite to perform at your next event: sagars.shukla@gmail.com Saathee.com

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Community Organizations various Indian languages are used in the Sunday services. Contact for further details Rev. Dr. K.C. Paul (704.771.1414), Rajan Mathew (704.756.4969), Jose Varughese (704.453.6177), Varughese K. Thomas (803.322.9549).

Charlotte Art of Living (Healing with the Breath) Art of Living is dedicated to serving society by strengthening the individual. This is done through self-development programs that recharge the body, mind and spirit and allow people to function at their optimum potential. People from all backgrounds, religions and cultural traditions come together in service and celebration. For Further Details: 980-216-8732 charlotte@us.artofliving.org www.artofliving.org or www.artofliving.org/charlotte

Charlotte Gita Study Group Beginners and advanced students of the Gita are welcome. The group meets the second and fourth Sunday of each month from 3 - 5 pm. This course is based on the Home Study Course of the Arsha Vidya Gurukulam, Saylorsburg, PA. Each session starts with a meditation followed by a recorded lecture in English, supplemented by discussion among the group. For further details: Rishi and Shikha Bhatnagar, rishi@solveron.com, 513.518.5300 Shridhar and Kruti Dave, skdave@hotmail.com, 704.844.9567 Naras and Beena Eechambadi, narasee@gmail.com www.freewebs.com/gitastudy

Association for India’s Development - Charlotte A volunteer movement committed to promoting sustainable, equitable and just-development. AID Charlotte supports grassroots organizations in India and initiates efforts in various interconnected spheres such as education, livelihoods, natural resources, health, women’s empowerment and social justice. For further details: Kiran Uppalapati 704.307.6450; Venkata Ramana Duddu 662.231.2350.

Charlotte Hindu Center Table Tennis The group meets every Monday and Wednesday from 6.30 - 10 pm. New players come after 7.30 pm for orientation. The TT action takes place at the Vihar Hall of Charlotte’s Hindu Center, 7400 City View Drive, Charlotte, NC 28134. All levels and types of play. Free coaching and lessons. For further details: s_jan@yahoo.com or visit www.ttclt.com.

BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Regularly scheduled activities include a daily Aarti at 6:30 am and 7 pm. Darshan: Mon-Fri 6:30 am-12:30 pm and 4 - 8:30 pm, Sat/Sun 6:30 am-8:30 pm. Gujarati classes are held every Sunday from 3 - 4 pm and “Satsang Sabha” is held every Sunday at 4:30 p.m. The Swaminarayan Temple is located at 4100 Margaret Wallace Rd, Charlotte, NC, 28105. For Further Details: 704.573.0805 704.573.0820 (fax)

Charlotte Indian Christian Fellowship We meet on the third Saturday of every month at 6:30 PM for Prayer, Bible Study and Fellowship. Anyone who is interested to spend an evening with us is welcome to come with your family and friends. For Further Details: Hema at 704.841.7060 hadhopper@hotmail.com Charlotte Indian Karaoke Group CIKG invites karaoke lovers to come and sing Hindi songs on karaoke. It does not matter whether you are a beginner or experienced. The most important thing is to get together and have fun. The event is held once a month, usually on Friday or Saturday. Entry and participation is free. For Further Details: Dinesh Patel at cikgrocks@yahoo.com

Bethel Christian Fellowship Bethel Christian Fellowship offers services in various Indian languages (i.e. Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, etc.) .Sunday School Time - 11:15 - 11:45 am; Sunday Worship Service time : 11:45 - 1:15 pm. Sunday Service Location: Fort Mill Church of God, Student Life Center Building, 216 Academy Street, Room 102. Fort Mill, South Carolina 29715. Saturday Service Location: Life Builders Church - 730 Oak Dale Rd, Charlotte NC 28216. For further details: 803.792.7223; pastorofbcf@gmail.com (Pastor: Rajan Samuel). Carolina Sanskrutik Maharashtra Mandal CSMM promotes Maharashtrian culture and language. Maharashtra mandal is committed to serve Carolina Marathi community with various cultural, social and traditional Marathi programs and events. For Further Details: Sangeeta Korde, sangeet_k@yahoo.com, 704.421.4279 Sonali Tamhane, sonali_tamhane21@yahoo.com, 704.364.8605 www.charlottemarathimandal.com

Charlotte Kriya Yoga Group Charlotte Kriya Yoga Group Promotes Kriya Yoga meditation practice, as taught by lineage of realized masters such as Mahaavatar Baba Ji, Lahri Mahasaya, Sri Yukteshwar Giri, Paramahamsa Yogananda, Hariharananda, and Prajanananada. A sincere seeker who follows the path of Kriya Yoga with love and devotion and a desire for spiritual growth can attain Self-realization- even in one lifetime. The center hosts two annual initiation programs and a weekly Sunday meditation for initiates. For Further Details: Agupta1@Carolina.rr.com www.kriya.org

Carolinas Christian Assembly - Charlotte Everyone is cordially invited to join for Sunday worship, Bible class, Sunday school: Sundays from 9 am - 12 pm. English and

Charlotte Malayalee Association The purpose of this association is to promote and facilitate the cultural, educational, social and economic welfare of the

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Community Organizations economic wellbeing and happiness. The Carolinas Region of the EVFUSA conducts fund raising and awareness programs in North and South Carolina. For Further Details: Ekal Charlotte Chapter: Neena Narumanchi neena.narumanchi@gmail.com Ekal Columbia: Janak Dalal / jaydalalcolumbia@gmail.com

Charlotte Malayalee community. For Further Details: Sunu Sebastian (sunu@email.com) or www.cltma.org. Charlotte Tamil Sangam Charlotte Tamil Sangam works to bring together the vibrant Tamil community in the Charlotte area and strives to promote the Tamil language, arts and culture. For Further Details: Lakshmanan Krishnan (lakshmanank@hotmail.com) or visit www.cltts.org

Gurdwara Sahib - Charlotte The Sikh Heritage Society strives to unite and enrich the lives of the Sikh & Punjabi communities of Charlotte and surrounding areas. “Gurdwara” address: 1760 Stoney Creek Lane, Charlotte, NC 28262. Regular Program: Every Sunday: 10 - 11am, Asa Di War by Bhai Satnam Singh Jee, 11:00 am – 12:00 pm, Keertan by Children, 12:00 pm – 1:15 pm, Keertan by Bhai Satnam Singh Jee, 1:15 pm - 1:30 pm, Ardaas, followed by Guru Ka Langar. For Further Details: Gurdwara: 704.509.2828 704.541.0350 (Sajjan Dhaliwal), sajjan@carolina.rr.com, 704.948.8091 (Inderjeet Rajpal), irajpal@aol.com

Charlotte Telangana Association Charlotte Telangana Assoc was formed to promote Telangana cultural activities within greater Charlotte area and also bring together all the Telangana people living in the area to discuss, plan, and take action around the development of Telangana focusing both on rural and urban Telangana areas. For Further Details: www.charlottetelangana.com Charlotte Vipassana Meditation Group Vipassana, which means to see things as they really are, is one of India’s most ancient techniques of meditation. It was taught in India more than 2500 years ago as a universal remedy for universal ills. The Charlotte Vipassana Meditation Group holds weekly group sits and monthly all day sits for established students (those who have taken at least one ten day course from S. N. Goenka or one of his assistant teachers). Ten-day courses are also available for all students. There is never a charge for a course. To apply for a 10 day retreat visit www.patapa.dhamma.org For Further Details: 704.277.5013, rbddesai@gmail.com 704.563.5440, dspranger@gmail.com www.dhamma.org

Hindu Center of Charlotte The temple holds many regular events and religious ceremonies. The temple library is stocked with books, CDs, DVDs and other materials on varied genre such as religion, culture, history, philosophy, yoga and health. The Hindu Center is located at 7400 City View Drive, Charlotte, NC 28212. Upcoming Events: Thu, Feb 27: Maha Shivratri For Further Details: 704.535.3440 or 704.607.8412 (facility manager) admin@hcclt.org or www.hcclt.org IAMC (Indian American Muslim Council) - Charlotte Chapter IAMC is committed to promoting peace, pluralism and social justice for all through advocacy. The organization is also committed to promote and protect human rights and human dignity in India as they are the foundation of freedom, justice and peace. IAMC-Charlotte, seeks to reach out to Indian Muslims living in and around Charlotte to join efforts to promote Peace and Social Justice for all, and to strive for InterFaith, Inter-Community understanding particular focus on Indian Diaspora. For Further Details: Ashfaq Mehdi 704.904.5778 Afzal Syed 704.770.1103 iamc-charlotte@yahoogroups.com

Classical Music Association of Charlotte (CMAC) CMAC sponsors many classical concerts during the year in Charlotte. Membership forms are available at concerts. For Further Details: 704.541.3361 (Rama Rachakonda), 704.814.9355 (Lakshmi Muthukrishnan lakshmi7778@yahoo.com cmacmusic@yahoo.com www.onlinecmac.com Dada Bhagwan Group What is Gnan Vidhi? It is scientific process of attaining Self Realization in the presence of Atmagnani. It is the gracing of real knowledge that separates the real Self from the non-self. The benefits of Gnan Vidhi are many like attaining awareness of the soul, getting solution through right understanding, removing wrong beliefs and destroying past sins. For further details contact 877 505 Dada (3232). www.dadabhagwan.org

India Association of Charlotte (Festival of India) The organization works to foster fostering better understanding of the rich diversity of Indian culture by the larger community in and around Charlotte. A key activity is the annual Festival of India, which is held every September in uptown Charlotte. For Further Details: Toni Sawhney 704-604-2133 / Lal Vishin 704-545-3727 www.indiafestival.net

Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation of India (EVFI) was established to help in the overall development of the remote tribal and rural villages in India. Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation of USA along with EVFI is committed to the cause of eradicating illiteracy from tribal areas. Education is the key to self-esteem, self-sustenance, Saathee.com

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Community Organizations and Professional Networking activities. It arranges various events and maintains deeper ties with Businesses & the community. It provides various effective ways for Carolinas’ Indian Professionals to connect with other successful professionals. For Further Details: www.netIPnc.org

Indian Performing Arts Association of Charlotte (IPAAC) IPAAC (Indian Performing Arts Association of Charlotte) promotes classical Hindustani music by inviting well-known artists from India. For Further Details: Chaula Jain 704.364.0984 Richa Pathak 704-921-4276 contact@ipaac.org www.ipaac.org

Pratham - Charlotte Area Pratham organizes grassroots programs in the area of primary education. Pratham has made an impact on the learning levels of several million children through its Read India campaign. Pratham has developed an accelerated learning technique which helps children to read and write in two months. With nearly half the children in India who attend schools are not learning to read and write at the required level, Pratham is trying to fill an important gap in the area of primary education. For Further Details: Anju Desai (ajdesai66@gmail.com or 980-622-0125) and Shubhra Chakraborty (shubhra.chakraborty1@gmail.com) or 704-942-4798). www.prathamusa.org.

Jain Center of Greater Charlotte (JCGC) The JCGC serves the spiritual, cultural, social, and community needs of Jain families in and around metropolitan Charlotte area. JCGC is dedicated to the practice, understanding, promotion, and preservation of the Jain faith. Members meet regularly for worship, ceremonies, and festivals throughout the year. The Jain Center is located at 7631 Mallard Creek Rd., Charlotte, NC 28262. Upcoming Events: Sun, Feb 9, 2014 (Dasam): Paathshala for children @ 10:30 am Thursday, Feb 13, 2014 (Chaudas): Pakkhi Pratikraman @ 7 pm Saturday, Feb 15, 2014 (Ekam): Snatra Puja @ 10:30 am Sunday, Feb 23, 2014 (Aatham): Monthly Meeting, Paathshala for children @ 4 pm Friday, Feb 28, 2014 (Chaudas): Pakkhi Pratikraman @ 7 pm All Other Weekdays: 9:30am - Mon-Friday - Prakshal and Pooja, 7:30pm - Chaityavandan, Aarti and Mangal Divo Weekends: 10:30am - Prakshal and Pooja,7:30pm – Chaityavandan, Aarti and Mangal Divo Street Address: 7631 Mallard Creek Road, Charlotte, NC 28262 For Further Details: JCGC President – Suresh Shah: 704.717.8481 info@jaincenter.us www.jaincenter.us

Probasi of Charlotte Probasi’s goal is to organize cultural and educational program related to Bengal in the Charlotte area, to increase Bengali cultural awareness, and to provide community service in the area. For Further Details: www.probasi.org Sahaj Marg Meditation Sahaj Marg, which means Simple or Natural path, is a Raj Yoga system of spiritual training based on the heart centered meditation. The features of this meditation include transmission of divine energy into the heart of the practitioner and cleaning of deep impressions, thereby regulating the mind. Regular practice of this system of meditation integrates the physical, mental and spiritual aspects of human being, while still encouraging people to maintain a normal family and working life. In the Charlotte area, group meditation is held at the Unity of Charlotte on Sundays and Wednesdays. For Further Details: Srikanth Katakam 704.496.4411 naturalpath.nc@gmail.com www.srcm.org

Kiran Kiran, Inc. is a community based South Asian organization promoting self-reliance and empowerment of South Asian women and men who are in domestic violence through crisis counseling and intervention, language assistance and translation and resource referrals in a confidential manner. Kiran operates a 24/7 hotline service. Services offered at Kiran are confidential and free of charge. The organization spreads awareness about causes and effects of domestic violence in the community and cooperates and collaborates with organizations in the USA and elsewhere with similar objectives. Kiran assists and provides information on referrals to professional and community services regarding legal issues, health care, short-term child care, psychological counseling, and temporary shelter and housing. For Further Details call or visit website: 24 Hour Crisis Hotline: 1877- NC-KIRAN or 1-877-625-4726 Phone: 919-839-6203 Email: kiran@kiraninc.org http://www.kiraninc.org

Sangamithra Foundation Sangamithra Foundation is a Charlotte based charity organization formed by a group of people who thrive to make a difference in the society. The team has taken the path of identifying the needs of underprivileged communities in India and provides support to meet those needs. Sangamithra has made its presence known in the Charlotte community by its participation in the 2013 Festival of India, as part of its fund raising activity. In addition, with liaisons in both the UK and the UAE, Sangamithra is reaching out on a global scale and working collectively towards realising its vision. If you would like to be a part of this noble cause, please touch base with Sangamithra Foundation. For Futher Details: www.sangamithra.org; www.facebook.com/SangamithraFoundation email: info@sangamithra.org

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Community Organizations Shree Swaminarayan Satsang Mandal Vadtal On the 1st Saturday of every month, Shree Swaminarayan Satsang Mandal Vadtal has kirtans and bhajans at the Hindu Center of Charlotte at 5 pm. After the bhajans, there is Aarti and Mahaprasad. In addition, on the 3rd Sunday of every month, an additional Satsang Sabha is held at sponsor’s house at 3 - 5 pm. For Further Details: 704.392.4488 - Ramesh Dhanani admin@issvcharlotte.org

Trimurti Temple Charlotte, NC Trimurti Temple is open daily, morning puja (10am) and evening puja (7pm). Sunday abhisekhams (11am) and other special pujas. Temple is located at 6441/6519 Beatties Ford Road, Charlotte, NC 28216. All Sundays at 11 am Venkateswara Abishekam For Further Details: 980-219-7556 contact@trimurtitemple.org www.trimurtitemple.org

Shri Rang Avadhut Parivar (Parspar Devo Bhav) The group meets Thursdays from 6 - 8 pm in Charlotte. The group recites Datta-Bavani, singing devotional Dattatraya Bhajans and reading Guru-Lilamrut. Detailed information about Charlotte meetings, literature, Videos, Nareshwar Ashram and Shri Avadhut’s life is available. For Further Details: Bharat Shah - 704.724.6247 Nagesh Patel - 704.399.7805

Vallabh Pushti Samaj of Carolinas (VPSC) VPSC has announced Shrinathji Haveli – “Shrinath Dham” in Charlotte with support of all Vaishnav families of Carolinas. VPSC is starting construction in the near future of “Shrinath Dham Haveli” for benefit of entire Vaishnav Samaj and Pushtimargiya devotional activities. VPSC is moving forward with objective to fill devotional need for hundreds of Vaishnavs in Carolinas to worship and pray together, perform “seva and rituals” and to observe and celebrate festivals and to perform and engage in humanitarian and educational activities. Regular “Paath and Bhajan” recitations are held on 2nd Sunday of each month from 4-6 pm at Shrinath Dham Haveli Address - 1006 Vickie Lane, Stallings, NC 28104. For Further Details: vsccarolinas@gmail.com Prathmesh Shah: 704.763.3059

Sindhi Association of the Carolinas The Sindhi Association of the Carolinas (SAC) is organizes religious, cultural, community, and social events in Charlotte. SAC also sends donations for the needy to the schools in India for Scholarship and also sends donations to refugees in camps in India. For Further Details: contact, soniahassani1@gmail.com or 704.779.2396.

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SouthPark Cricket Club South Park Cricket Club is based in Charlotte, North Carolina and it has been an active member of the Mid Atlantic Cricket Conference since 2002. The club’s home ground is located at the Reedy Creek Park, 2900 Rocky River Road, Charlotte, NC. For Further Details: 847.722.9865 (Baseet Ahmed), baseer_11@yahoo.com www.southparkcc.org

Art of Living (Greensboro) The Art of Living Foundation offers programs to uncover the strength, peace, and joy that lie at the core of every human being. Part I courses are offered regularly in Chapel Hill, Raleigh, Charlotte and now Greensboro. The Part I course covers breathing techniques to eliminate stress & tension; skills for improving relationships at home & at work; practical wisdom to get the most out of life; insight into the laws that govern the mind & emotions; low-impact yoga and the masterpiece of the Art of Living Course is a powerful breathing-based technique called Sudarshan Kriya, or the healing breath. For Further Details: Nirupama Shankar @ shankar.nirupama@gmail.com Puja Verma @ puja_usa@yahoo.com http://us.artofliving.org/greensboro

Srishti of Charlotte Srishti works to fulfill the NC community’s need for togetherness and the desire to showcase Bengali culture, heritage, literature, theatre, music and popular arts. Literally, the word Srishti means an act of creation. Though established and coordinated by a group of Bengali families, Srishti welcomes and brings together people of varied cultures, ethnicity, languages, background and nationalities who are interested in East Indian traditions. For Further Details: Samiksha Bose: 704-321-1964 Santanu Sarkar: 704-541-3451 http://srishticharlotte.org/

BAPS Greensboro BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir is located at 922 Gallimore Dairy Road, High Point, NC 27265. Every Sunday sabha times: Shishu (Toddlers) sabha: 4 pm to 5 pm Bal/Balika sabha: 4:15 pm to 5:30 pm Kishore sabha: 2 pm to 3:30 pm Main sabha: 4 pm to 6 pm Gujarati classes: 2:30 pm to 3:45 pm Arti at 6 pm followed by Mahaprasad Fresh Shayona snacks available on Sundays. For Further Details: bapsgreensboro@gmail.com

Telugu Association of Greater Charlotte Area (TAGCA) The organization’s mission is to bring together Telugu speaking people and to promote Telugu Culture. TAGCA organizes regular events and programs. For Further Details: www.tagca.org

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Regular Activities Worship Service - Sundays at 8:30 AM Child Care Available 1524, North Harrison Avenue, Cary (Next to SAS Campus) Children’s Sunday School & Adult Bible Study - Sundays at 11 AM 1215 Jones Franklin Rd Suite 204 Prayer Fellowship - Wednesdays at 7:00 PM Meet at Four Zones at host families Raleigh, Durham, Apex, Cary, Morrisville, Holly Springs & Chapel Hill

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Community Organizations Temple of the Holy Name Prabhupada Village is a rural Hare Krishna community situated in the beautiful foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Puja/Worship of Sri Sri Gaura Nitai/Sri Pancha Tattva starts at 5:00 am every day. Every Sunday at 3 pm there is chanting, dancing, feasting and philosophy. The temple is located at 1283 Prabhupada Rd, Sandy Ridge, NC 27046. For Further Details: 336.593.2322 or 336.793.7138 prabhupadavillage@gmail.com www.prabhupadavillage.com

Greensboro Cricket Club (GCC) Good news for cricket lovers! There are several teams that play cricket in Greensboro. The goals of GCC are fun, fitness, and friendship. For info on play and location contact below players. For Further Details: 336.501.3566 (9:00 am - 9:00 pm, S&S) Dev, Greensboro Warriors, happy4mehta@yahoo.com; Venky, Triad Tigers, venkyhot@hotmail.com. Gujarati Cultural Association of Piedmont (GCAP) The Gujarati Cultural Association of Piedmont serves the Asian Indian community through sponsored events, cultural, educational and social programs. GCAP, 127 Landmark Drive, Greensboro, NC 27410 For Further Details: Jack Dhekar: 336.254.1727 Manubhai Patel: 336.253.7182 www.gcap.us

Raleigh AANC - Assamese Association of North Carolina AANC is a Socio Cultural organization with the objective of promoting and providing understanding of Assamese Culture and Language. AANC celebrates Assamese festivals and organizes cultural activities like Bihu Dance, music, songs and social get-togethers with essential touch of Assamese culture. Everyone from Assam as well as anyone with any connection to or interest in Assam or Assamese culture is most welcomed. For Further Details: 919.200.4020 assameseassociation.nc@gmail.com

India Association of the Triad (IATNC) Greensboro The objective of the Association is to promote social, cultural and educational interests of its members, develop understanding between members of the Indian community and other residents of the Triad, and make the latter aware of issues of concern to the Indian community. For Further Details: Ruby Singh - 336.430.9068, rs7227@gmail.com Krishna Balu - 336.292.9462, balu3103@triad.rr.com www.iatnc.org

Academic Foundation for International Cultural Exchange (AFICE) Interested in exploring the diverse cultures of the world? Become a host family for a high school exchange student! All the students will come from various countries around the world, and all students speak fluent English. They are of high school age (15-18) and will attend local high school in their respective communities. Each student will live as member of their American host family, sharing household duties and responsibilities. AFICE is a non-profit educational organization dedicated to bringing cultural gaps by allowing foreign students the opportunity to live as part of an American community. For Further Details: lathapamarthi@earthlink.net www.afice.org

Indo-uS Cultural Association of Winston-Salem The Indo-US Cultural Associationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s primary mission is to increase awareness of the cultural heritage of India which is tremendously rich in its diversity and history. The Association seeks to reach out to the thriving Indian-American community within the Piedmont and Triad areas to share the vibrant Indian culture and promote cross-cultural understanding. For Further Details: Manjunath C Shamanna, 336.413.5090 http://indouswinston.org/contact.aspx Life Mission, uSA This ashram has been established to provide helpful benefits for all - physical, mental, emotional and spiritual. All these benefits can be achieved through the natural remedies of yoga therapy, Ayurveda, naturopathy and diet. 8136 NC Highway 119 South Mebane, NC 27302. For Further Details: 336.421.0690 848.459.7401 (Dr. Manoj) lifemissionusa@gmail.com www.lifemissionusa.com

Art of Living (Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill) The Art of Living Foundation offers courses that teach practical tools to better handle the stresses of daily life, to unlock their deepest potential and bring fullness to life. In the Art of Living course participants will learn and experience: Breathing techniques that heal and harmonize the body, mind, and spirit, eliminate stress & tension; Skills for handling negative emotions and situations; Practical wisdom for improving work and relationships; Insight into the laws that govern the mind & emotions; Low-impact yoga. The centerpiece of the Art of Living Course is a powerful breathing-based technique called Sudarshan Kriya, or the healing breath. It incorporates specific natural rhythms of breath to release stress and purify the entire system by releasing toxins at the deepest cellular level. For Further Details: http://us.artofliving.org

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Community Organizations Association for India’s Development (AID) Duke university Chapter AID’s mission is effect social change in India, by supporting projects with grassroots non-governmental organization in India in the areas of literacy, health care, rural credit, women’s empowerment etc. For Further Details: http://www.duke.edu/web/aid/ Atlantic Coast Sikh Association This is one of the oldest Sikh associations in the Southeastern USA. It meets every Sunday from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM at its gurdwara, located at 3108 Sparger Road, Durham, NC 27705. Kirtan is done by Bhai Dyal Singh Jatha. Classes for Punjabi and religious studies are held for children at the same time. For Further Details: 919.309.1045 - Bhai Dyal Singh www.acsagurdwara.org Balagokulam Gokulam is where Lord Krishna’s magical childhood days were spent. It was here that his divine powers came to light. Every child has that spark of divinity within. Balagokulam is a forum for children (4-15 years age) to discover and manifest that divinity. It will enable Hindu children in the US to appreciate their cultural roots and learn values. This is done through games, yoga, stories, songs, shlokas, arts/crafts, and Seva (selfless service) in the community. Balagokulam sessions are free for all and are held on Saturdays. For Further Details: balagokulam.rtp@gmail.com hss.charlotte@hssus.org (Charlotte region) www.balagokulam.org BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir BAPS Shree Swaminarayan Hindu Mandir invites everyone to the regularly scheduled events: Ravi sabha - every Sunday at 4 - 6 pm followed by Aarti and Maha Prasad. Mahapuja – every Purnima at 7 pm. Many classes are conducted. Fresh Indian snacks and sweets available at Shayona. 1020 Aviation Parkway, Morrisville, NC 27560. For Further Details: 919.469.6605 www.swaminarayan.org Bengali Association of North Carolina (BANC) BANC seeks to promote Bengali culture, language, music, arts and social activities by offering varieties of programs for members of INDO-American community within North Carolina and adjacent states. The association is organized exclusively for charitable, cultural, social and educational purposes. For Further Details: 919.461.2386 (Ratan Ray), ratanray@hotmail.com 919.510.7943 (Swaty Sen), swaty_sen@yahoo.com banc_members@googlegroups.com www.banc-online.org Bharatiya Senior Citizens of NC The Bharatiya Senior Citizens of NC (BSCNC) is organized for Saathee.com

folks of Indian origin aged 60 and above. The BSCNC members meet second Saturday of every month from 10am - 3pm. The next meeting will be on Sat, Feb. 15 at Cary Senior Center at Bond Park, Cary, NC. For Further Details: Mahendra Patel (919.793.6588) Raojibhai Patel (252.236.4391) Carolina Rajasthani Association The group organizes several events throughout the year. For Further Details: Sushma Maheshwari - 919-880-8529, sushmaofnc@yahoo.com Shruti Singhi - 919-412-4819, mshruti@yahoo.com www.carolinarajasthanis.org Chinmaya Mission Chinmaya Mission is a worldwide organization promoting spiritual growth, started by Pujya Gurudev Swami Chinmayananda. The Chinmaya Mission Raleigh Durham (CMRDU) chapter conducts Balavihar classes from 3 year old to youth on Sunday from 10 am to 11:30 am at Reedy Creek Middle School, Cary. The classes are tailored to each age group by special curriculum created by experienced Swamijis and Acharyas exclusively for CM Balavihar. Trained teachers conduct the classes. Curriculum includes learning to chant the Bhagavad-Gita verses, shlokas, singing devotional bhajans, stories from scriptures, family pujas, meditation, and fun activities like overnight lock-ins, picnics, and competitions. Introduction to Hindi and Sanskrit is also included. All festivals are celebrated. A regular adult study group is conducted for adults on Sunday mornings at Reedy Creek Middle School, as well as other locations in the Triangle. For Further Details: www.chinmaya-RDU.org Dada Bhagwan Foundation The Foundation was formed with the goal of spreading peace and harmony to the world through the science of Akram Vignan - the science of Self Realization as expounded by the Shree A.M. Patel, known as Dadashri or Dada Bhagwan. DBF organizes Spiritual Satsangs /Gnanvidhi (2 hour scientific process of self-realization) of Pujya Deepakbhai around the world. There are no formal lectures here, but it’s in the format of questions and answers on various topics. This is a practical spiritual science. Dada Bhagwan Satsang on Harmony in Life: VCD Satsang of Pujya Deepakbhai and Pujya Dr. Niruma, various character building activities for Kids and Youth. Every 1st, 3rd and 5th Saturday of each month from 5 to 7 pm followed by Prasad at the HSNC Hall, 309 Aviation Pkwy, Morrisville, NC. For Further Details: 877.505.3232 ext 1003 rabhatt@yahoo.com www.dadabhagwan.org | www.kids.dadabhagwan.org Datta Yoga Center - Raleigh Mission: Spread the teachings of Sadguru Sri Sri Sri Ganapathi Sachchidananda Swamiji of Mysore. Activities: Namasankeertana - Bhajans written, composed and sung by Pujya Sri Swamiji. Future projects: Kriya yoga classes by Pujya 100

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Community Organizations Sri Swamiji-trained teachers from India. The group meets on the first Saturday of every month and every major festival day for Satsang and Namasankeertana (divine singing). Everyone is invited to attend the satsang with family and friends and receive divine blessings. For Further Details: 919.484.1993 (Srinivas Chittineni) 919.461.0843 (Suresh Kota)

glorifying past times of Sri Krishna. The group holds programs every Friday 7 to 9 pm in the Triangle area. Children are assigned with projects like book distribution, charity for cow protection, food for poor, and more. Classes are conducted with two semesters per year with tests and scores. For Further Details: www.gokulbhajan.com

Duke Diya Duke Diya is a Duke University student organization that is committed to providing a forum for interaction through political, cultural, community service, and social events relating to South Asian Americans. For Further Details: 732.865.3173 www.dukediya.com

Heritage India Association of North Carolina (HIANC) Heritage India Association of NC aims at providing Indian cultural experience through performing arts, cultural arts, fine arts & crafts of India. Its mission is “to preserve and promote Indian heritage and culture.” During the year, Heritage India Association of North Carolina presents several events and also coordinates Indian dances for the main stage performances for the Raleigh International Festival. For Further Details: yashcgarg@gmail.com

Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation RTP Chapter Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation of India (EVFI) was established to help in the overall development of the remote tribal and rural villages in India. Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation of USA along with EVFI is committed to the cause of eradicating illiteracy from tribal areas. Education is the key to self-esteem, self-sustenance, economic wellbeing and happiness. The Raleigh Chapter EVFUSA conducts fund raising and awareness programs in the Triangle area. For further details: Ekal/RTP: raginiusa@yahoo.com

Hindi Vikas Mandal of NC Hindi Vikas Mandal (HVM), based in the RTP area, promotes study and appreciation of Hindi language and strives to foster Indian culture and traditions through Hindi. HVM has a special focus on the youths for the preservation of Indian Culture and heritage. For Further Details: Saroj Sharma 919.851.0225 V.P. Tiwari 919.423.0365

EKTAA South Asian Student Organization EKTAA (meaning unity) is the South Asian Student Organization at North Carolina State University (NCSU). The organization was founded in 1970. The motto is “unity within diversity.” EKTAA strives to spread culture and heritage of South Asia all over the campus as well as the local community and the organization works hand-in-hand with many organizations on and off the NCSU campus, as well as South Asian organizations from area universities. For Further Details: www.ektaa.org Geet Bazaar Radio Program Every Sunday morning from 10 am - 12 noon on WKNC 88.1 FM, join hosts Afroz Taj and John Caldwell, for a wide variety of music from India, Pakistan, and other countries and languages of South Asia. Geet Bazaar will also publicize community events free of charge. For Further Details: 919.851.1119 (Dr. Afroj Taj) taj@unity.ncsu.edu GEM - Raleigh Church of God Attend worship services, prayer meetings or Sunday School. For Further Details: 919.395.6208 (Pastor Thankachan M.) globalem@gmail.com Gokul Bhajan and Vedic Studies Weekly meeting of parents and children singing bhajan and Saathee.com

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Hindu Society of North Carolina - Morrisville, NC The Hindu Society of NC is located at 309 Aviation Parkway, Morrisville, NC and serves the greater Triangle area. Temple Timings : Sunday to Monday - 7am-9pm (all day open) Morning Aarti: Mon-Friday-10.30am, Saturday-10am, Sunday 10am Evening Aarti: Mon-Friday- 8pm, Saturday-Sunday 6pm Regular religious events: Ramayan recital, Sunderkand, Hanumanchalisa, Shiva abishek, Gayatri Bhajans, Vaishnav Bhajans , Vedic havan, Jain Pooja, Bhagvatam, Vishnu sastranam, Ekadashi Bal Krishna abishek, Lalitha sastrnamam, Skananda shasti Kavacham, and Sholaka chanting. All major religious celebrations are observed throughout the year. Facility rentals are also available. Activities: Yoga Classes(twice a week), Hinduism and Meditation classes; Weekend Community Classes: Jain pathshala, Hindi classes, Sanskar Gurkul Classes,Tamil classes, Balmukund classes; Youth Affairs: Ohm Squad is the youth wing of HSNC involved in the youth activities like camp, games, craft and arts, music, shlokas. Regular pooja services are done in the temple. Upcoming Events: Feb. 27: Maha Shivratri For Further Details: Saroj Sharma at 919.654.5224 Trilok Pillai (manager) at 919.599.9567 hsnc@hsnconline.org www.hsnconline.org Hindu Students Council (HSC) - NC State university HSC-NCSU is a chapter of the national organization Hindu Students Council (HSC). HSC-NCSU is a cultural and religious February 2014

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Community Organizations student organization. It aims to provide opportunities to learn about Hindu philosophy, spirituality and cultural heritage through various activities, events and projects and is dedicated to provide “seva” (service) to the community. For Further Details: 919.676.0298 (Mrinmoyee Sanyal) msanyal@ncsu.edu www.hsc-ncsu.org Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS) The HSS conducts weekly activities to develop character and leadership skills in participants, emphasizing values such as self-discipline, self-confidence and a spirit of selfless service (seva) for humanity while maintaining Hindu cultural identity in harmony with the larger society. HSS is inspired by the idea that the whole world is one family. HSS started in 1989 in the United States and currently has over 100 chapters (shakhas) across the country. The Research Triangle Park chapter meets every Saturday. Activities are tailored to include yoga, games, songs, lectures and discussions on Hindu dharma and culture. For Further Details: hss.rtp@hssus.org - Triangle area hss.charlotte@hssus.org - Charlotte region. Hum Sub Hum Sub is dedicated to sharing the social and cultural traditions of India with the residents of the Research Triangle Park and North Carolina. Upcoming Events: Sun, March 9: Basant Bahar For Further Details: 919.931.3572 - President (Meena Jeyakumar) 919.757.6666 - Vice President (Sunny Surana) www.humsub.net Immanuel Assembly of God Immanuel Assembly of God is a Full Gospel Christian church serving the Indian / South Asian community in Raleigh and RTP area of North Carolina. The church is located in Morrisville. For Further Details: 919.442.8537 Email: thechurch@immanuelassembly.org www.immanuelassembly.org Indian American Forum for Political Education (IAFPE) IAFPE, known as the FORUM, is the oldest and largest Indian American organization for political education in the country. This is a non-profit organization with numerous chapters throughout the United States. The North Carolina Chapter is in Raleigh and has just established a new committee for a 2year term. IAFPE is excited and motivated to educate the community on political issues and help the community with various services. Support is needed from the community and members to help us grow and provide relevant services and informative events. For Further Details: Nilesh - 919.656.4361 www.forum-nc.org

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Indian Classical Music & Dance Society (ICMDS) ICMDS is dedicated to the task of promoting Indian classical music and dance in the Triangle area. ICMDS invites the top artists from all over the world to perform in the Triangle area. For Further Details: www.icmds.org Indo-American Friendship Foundation Did you know that about 90 percent of rural orphans are female and most of them are abandoned at birth due to their gender? Not one of them gets the opportunity to become a doctor, engineer, or even receive basic education. Because they cannot live in the orphanage when they turn 18, many of them fall victim to different types of exploitation, including sex trade. IAFF has created an orphanage education fund to help qualified orphans to rise as high as they can climb in the educational/professional ladder. For Further Details: 919.362.7653 (Dr. Subhas C. Mohapatra) www.iaff1.org InStepp InStepp is located in Durham and its mission is to create a vibrant community by empowering women who’ve come up against some challenges in their lives to rise above those challenges and succeed personally and professionally through innovative, gender-responsive training, educational and prevention services. If you need assistance transitioning into the workforce after losing your primary source of income from a significant other due to divorce, separation, death or disability, ask about eligibility to participate in New Choices, an economic self-sufficiency program for women. Services include employment & career counseling, resume development, employability skills training, federal and state benefits application, financial and tuition assistance, community and college referrals, computer skills training and more. InStepp welcomes all women from South Asia and understands the differences in customs and religions across South Asia and can provide services in many different South Asian Languages. For Further Details: 919.680.8000 pmanhas@instepp.org www.instepp.org International Community Church CC is a worship center for people from India and neighboring countries. The pastor is Joseph B. Jesudason and the church office is located at 1215 Franklin Jones Road, Suite #204, Raleigh, NC 27606. For Further Details: 919.233.2900 www.internationalcommunitychurch.org International Hindi Association International Hindi Association (IHA) promotes Hindi language and literature and has chapters all over the United States. The Raleigh Chapter periodically organizes Kavi Sammelans with local and indigenous talents. Open to those interested in listening to poetry or in reciting poetry. For Further Details: 104

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Community Organizations 24 Hour Crisis Hotline: 1877- NC-KIRAN or 1-877-625-4726 Phone: 919-839-6203 Email: kiran@kiraninc.org http://www.kiraninc.org

919.656.5224 (Saroj Sharma) 919.678.9056 (Sudha Om Dhingra) www.hindi.org International Swaminarayan Satsang Organization (ISSO) ISSO is a socio-religious organization and its primary objective is to advance the Sanatan Dharma in accordance with the principles and teachings of Shree Swaminarayan Sampradaya, founded and ordained by Bhagwan Shree Swaminarayan Himself. ISSO Raleigh-Durham chapter organizes a regularly scheduled biweekly “Satsang Sabha,” every other Saturday, at HSNC Cultural Hall (309 Aviation Pkwy., Morrisville, NC27560), which includes Kirtan bhakti, Katha, Aarti and Mahaprasad. Pujya Santo visit often to impart the divine knowledge of Swaminarayan Bhagwan. Devotees come together to practice their religious duties in harmony. All are welcome. For Further Details: 919.964.1008 isso.nc@gmail.com http://issonc.org ISKCON New Goloka Temple of North Carolina New Goloka temple is a member of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, also known as the Hare Krishna Movement. The Radha-Krishna temple is in a rural, peaceful setting at 1032 Dimmocks Mill Rd. Hillsborough, North Carolina 27278. Visitors are welcome any day of the week to come have darshan of Sri Sri Radha Golokananda. Every Sunday at 4pm, there is a special program consisting of arati, kirtan, Bhagavad-gita discourse, and a sumptuous prasadam feast. From 4:30-5:30pm, there is a Sunday school program for children ages 3-7 and 8-12. Children take part in learning Bhagavad-gita slokas and bhajans, understanding the basic philosophy, reciting and hearing stories from the Vedas, enacting dramas and other fun activities. New Goloka also provides educational classes, seminars and programs for adults. New Goloka Daily Darshan Times 4:30 – 5 am, 7:15 am1:00 pm, 4:15 - 5:45 pm, 7 - 8 pm. Saturday and Sunday Darshan open from 7:15 am to 8 pm. For Further Details: 919.593.6827, golokanandapriya@hotmail.com www.newgoloka.com Kiran Kiran, Inc. is a community based South Asian organization promoting self-reliance and empowerment of South Asian women and men who are in domestic violence through crisis counseling and intervention, language assistance and translation and resource referrals in a confidential manner. Kiran operates a 24/7 hotline service. Services offered at Kiran are confidential and free of charge. The organization spreads awareness about causes and effects of domestic violence in the community and cooperates and collaborates with organizations in the USA and elsewhere with similar objectives. Kiran assists and provides information on referrals to professional and community services regarding legal issues, health care, short-term child care, psychological counseling, and temporary shelter and housing. For Further Details call or visit website: Saathee.com

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Lakulish Yoga and Health Retreat Lakulish Yoga and Health Retreat is a secluded resort in Caswell County, located at 8136 N.C. Highway 119 South, Mebane, NC 27302. It is a place of natural beauty that stimulates a spirit of detachment and inspires and uplifts visitors. This resort is hallowed by a Yogi, a Sannyasi who ensures that the true practice of Dharm and Yoga flourishes here, offering the North Carolina community and visitors an ongoing program of free Yoga Classes. The classes are offered each Wednesday from 6 - 8 pm, and each Saturday from 11 am - 1 pm. For Further Details: 336.421.0690 lifemisionusa@gmail.com www.lifemissionusa.org Nuv Yug Nuv Yug is a cultural organization with a mission to promote awareness of Indian cultural arts and heritage. Striving to create synergy among various cultural groups from the South Asian region. Upcoming Event: March 22 - 23, 2014: India Fest For Further Details: www.nuvyug.net Pakistani American Association The Pakistani-American Association (NCPAA) is a nonpolitical, non-sectarian, cultural and social organization that promotes Pakistani culture to all the communities in the Triangle Area of NC. Several events are presented during the year including a family dinner on the second Friday of every month. For Further Details: payamber@ncpaa.org http://ncpaa.org Pratham - Triangle Area Pratham is a grass-roots organization that works towards universalizing primary education in India. With a goal of reaching 20 million children, Pratham is one of the largest NGOs in field of literacy movement in India. Pratham continues to evolve, grow and works to meet the continually changing needs of the children it educates. Pratham’s North Carolina chapter actively aims to collaborate with individuals, local organizations and community associations and seeks ideas, volunteers and resources to deliver the vision of “Every Child in School and Learning Well.” For Further Details: Rajeev Thalla - rajeev.thalla@gmail.com Monica Awasthi - awasthimonica@yahoo.com www.prathamusa.org Professional Indians’ Association [PIA] PIA is a meetup that serves young South Asian professionals February 2014

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Community Organizations in the Triangle Community. The group is made of Indian professionals and grad students interested in cultural events, socializing and meeting/making friends with like-minded people around the Triangle. Monthly events include meeting at bars/restaurants, Bollywood movie nights, potlucks, Indian concerts/performances, outdoor activities, community service and volunteering. This will also be an opportunity for professionals to share their thoughts on respective industries, social causes, the economy and politics. For Further Details: http://www.meetup.com/PIATriangle/ Punjabi unlimited Punjabi Unlimited is dedicated to promotion/creation of a public awareness and education about Punjabi Arts, Culture, Sports, Language, Music, Dance etc. All welcome who are “Punjabi at Heart.” For Further Details: Gurpreet Burmi president@punjabiunlimited,org; Arvinder Singh vicepresident@punjabiunlimited.org www.punjabiunlimited.org Raleigh Sai Center Parthi Sai devotees of Triangle area meet every Sunday from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm in the Mini-Hall of Hindu Bhavan in Morrisville. There will be Study circle, Bhajan Practice, Veda Chanting etc. during the 4-5 pm slot depending on the week, followed by bhajans from 5:00 - 6:00. The center carries out several service activities as well. The Human Values Education (SSE) classes for the children of different age group will be from 3:30 - 5:00. All are invited to participate in the Satsangh and service activities. For Further Details: Rakesh Huria, President, Raleigh Sai Center at 919-244-1263 E-mail rsc.president@yahoo.com. Ramakrishna Vedanta Society of North Carolina The Ramakrishna Vedanta Society of NC draws inspiration from the timeless, philosophical wisdom of the Vedanta as practiced and preached in the modern day by Sri Ramakrishna, Sri Sarada Devi and Swami Vivekananda. Perhaps you know a great deal about Practical Vedanta and the message of the harmony of religions and the spiritual oneness of Existence or perhaps you are just curious and want to learn more. Regardless of background and/or knowledge the organization welcomes participants. For Further Details: www.vedantanc.org RTP Maharashtra Mandal RTP Maharashtra Mandal is a home away from home for Marathi-speaking people. The goal of the Mandal is to advocate the vibrant culture, the rich heritage as well as the wellendowed language of Maharashtra. The Mandal is dedicated to showcase the cultural, social and traditional attributes of Maharashtra to the local community through variety of entertaining programs, events and get-togethers. All aficionados are warmly invited to join. For Further Details: Mohana Dighe: 919.378.1947 Saathee.com

Sameer Mohile: 919.851.8799 Deepa Kardekar: 201.673.6193 www.rtpmm.org S. V. Temple of North Carolina S.V. Temple of North Carolina is built on over nine acres of centrally connected triangle area. This grand tribute to Lord Venkateswara and his consorts is designed to exacting standards of shilpa shasthra and features the only shrine in North America to incorporate abodes to Lord Viswaksena and Lord Sudarshana/Lord Narasimha as part of Srinivasa Parivaram. The temple rituals are performed in accordance with Pancharathra Agama Shastra. For Further Details: 919.468.0040 comm@svtemplenc.org www.svtemplenc.org Sahaj Marg Meditation - Triangle Area Sahaj Marg translates to “The Natural Path.” It is a natural, simple system of Raja Yoga meditation and spiritual practice that helps one realize the ultimate potential within oneself. Regular spiritual practice under capable guidance enables aspirants to progressively experience the sublime presence of the divine in their daily lives. Sahaj Marg system of meditation is freely offered to seekers worldwide through Shri Ram Chandra Mission. In Triangle area, group meditations are held on Sundays and Wednesdays. For Further Details: (919) 303-7447 (Raj Solanki) (919) 493-6180 (Devi Sekar) raleigh.center@gmail.com> www.srcm.org, www.sahajmarg.org Sahaja Meditation Ongoing meetings, seminars and workshops are available in Raleigh. There is never any charge for Sahaja Meditation instruction or for receiving one’s self-realization which is the birthright of every human being. Anyone can do it. Sahaja Mediation is free and without obligation. RSVP in meetup: Sahaja-Meditation-Triangle-Group Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. 9308 Fairbanks Drive Raleigh, NC, 27613 More information: http://www.sahajamediation.com http:///www.coolcheck.org For Further Details: balaram.krishna@gmail.com 919.757.3135 Sky Meditation and Kaya Kalpa Yoga Sky Meditation and Kaya Kalpa yoga benefits include Longevity, Wellness and Stress Management. Triangle Sky Meditation group holds weekly group meditation and simplified physical exercises every Friday in Cary for those who have attended Shri Vethathiri Maharishi’s Kaya Kalpa Yoga course. Kaya Kalpa Yoga Courses are held several times a year for anyone 14 years and above. For more details about the course visit www.vethathiri.edu.in For Further Details: 919-830-9764 vikram.renganathan@gmail.com

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Community Organizations South Indian Fine Arts Academy (SIFAA) SIFAA is a non-profit organization that works to arrange and promote concerts and performances in the Triangle and Triad areas, concentrating on Carnatic music. For Further Details: 919.773.1580 / www.sifaa.org Tamil Cultural Association of North Carolina (TCA NC) TCA NC was formed for the purpose of providing youths with exposure to Tamil culture. Everyone is invited to join TCA and become part of the organization promoting Tamil culture in the Triangle area. For Further Details: tca_nc@yahoo.com www.tcanc.org Tamil Sangam of Carolina The Tamil Sangam is an organization that promotes understanding of Tamil culture and provides a medium for people of Tamil culture to get together. The activities include music, drama, lectures, Tamil movies, etc. For Further Details: 919.461.3057 - Alli Dass (President) www.tamilsangamofcarolina.org Telugu Christian Fellowship of NC (TCFNC) The Telugu Christian Fellowship of North Carolina (TCFNC) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to reach out to Telugu Christians living in North Carolina, to be united and bonded together as a Telugu Christian family of God and encourage and pray for each other. TCFNC provides a place for Telugu Christians for time of worship, prayer and fellowship. They also provide a forum for kids to grow in the knowledge of the Lord and to equip them to be ambassadors of Jesus Christ. The group organizes, each year, an Annual Telugu Christian Family Conference. For further details: www.tcfnc.org Phone: 919-43-TCFNC (82362)

supports volunteer-based, honest and highly experienced nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in India in serving their populations’ critical needs around education, childcare, healthcare, women empowerment and tribal welfare, as well as relief and rehabilitation in times of natural disasters. For Further Details: www.idrf.org. Triangle Gujarati Association (TGA) TGA’ s mission is to promote and serve Gujarati culture in the Triangle area by organizing various events throughout the year and impart Gujarati culture and language on the youth. The association sponsors events throughout the year. TGA would like to welcome the new president, Manisha Patel and her committee for CY2014. The first event for 2014 is a Gujarati Play, Two Idiots. It is planned for Feb 9th, at HSNC hall. TGA’s famous Holi Festival is planned for March 15th at the HSNC hall. For Further Details: nctga00@gmail.com www.nctga.org Triangle Rang Mandal Devotees of Pujya Sri Rang Avdhoot Maharaj meet every Saturday in Cary or Raleigh from 8:30 PM - 10:30 PM to sing devotional Dattatreya Bhajans and Datta-Bavani in a spiritual atmosphere. Special programs organised on Guru Purnima and Rang Jayanti and on the occasion of Pujya Sri Prem Avdhoot Bapji’s annual visit to the US. For Further Details: rangmandal@gmail.com Triangle Vegetarian Society (TVS) The mission of TVS is to build a sense of community between current vegetarians and people who are interested in vegetarianism and have a forum for a discussion of issues. For Further Details: barman@cs.unc.edu www.trianglevegsociety.org

Triangle Bangladesh Society (TBSNC) TBSNC strives to arrange musical programs by artists who have captured the hearts and minds of millions of Bengali-, Urdu- and Hindi-speaking music fans all around the globe. For Further Details: 919.741.9343 (Ishtiaque Mohiuddin) Ishtiaquem@gmail.com www.tbsnc.org

Triangle Vipassana Vipassana, which means to see things as they are, is one of India’s most ancient techniques and was taught 2500 years ago as a universal remedy for universal ills. The Triangle Vipassana meditation group holds weekly group sittings in Cary, Raleigh on Thursday, Saturday, and Monday and 3-hour sitting on 3rd Sunday each month, and one day sitting once every few months for established students (those who have taken at least one ten day course from S.N.Goenka or one of his Assistant teachers). Ten day courses are available for all. There is no charge for the course. To apply for a retreat visit www.patapa.dhamma.org. For Further Details: 732-213-9660 carync.sittings@gmail.com Hitesh & Vaibhavi Parekh www.dhamma.org

Triangle Chapter-India Development & Relief Fund (IDRF) IDRF is a registered, tax-exempt non-profit organization that

Vaishnav Samaj of Triangle Area The Vaishnav Samaj is a group of like-minded devotees who

Triangle Area Telugu Association (TATA) The Triangle Area Telugu Association (TATA) is a non-profit organization (started in 1983) committed to building a vibrant Telugu Community and promoting Telugu culture and language in the Triangle area of North Carolina. For Further Details: committee@tataonline.org www.tataonline.org

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February 2014

Community Organizations meet for religious worship and understand Pushti Marg Principles at large. Recently, a sub-chapter of Vallabh Youth Organization (VYO) was formed under the leadership of Mrs. Harsha Shah. Regular Bhajan recitations are held 2nd Sunday of the month from 4-6 pm and Seniors are requested to encourage youngsters to participate in the activities. For Further Details: Arvindbhai Shah 919.233.7677 Vithalbhai Shah 919.467.4254 Navinbhai Parikh 919.387.8808 Vibha Vibha is a volunteer driven non-profit organization dedicated to creating a brighter future for underprivileged children. The Raleigh Action Center has a group of energetic and enthusiastic volunteers from varied backgrounds, including working professionals and students. This group came together through a strong belief in Vibha’s mission and a resolve that we can create a positive societal impact in India – even from half way around the world. The group works to organize social events that spread awareness and raise funds to further the organization’s mission. For Further Details: raleigh@vibha.org http://raleigh.vibha.org.

Regional Hindu Society of Eastern NC (Greenville, NC) The temple celebrates major festivals and holds regular bhajan seesions and Geeta study. For Further Details: Temple 252.752.2670 B.S. Srivatsa 508.654.0360 Hindutemplenc@gmail.com Sri Somesvara Temple Sri Somesvara Temple is located near Asheville, NC. Temple hours are 8 am - 7:30pm. Regularly scheduled pujas: Subrabhath Aarti - 8 am, Rudrabhishek Nityapuja - 9 am - 12 noon, Pradoshakala puja and mangala aarti - 6 pm - 7:30pm. The temple also hosts special events. Contact the temple: 828.476.4073. Lcated at 95 Mount Soma Blvd., Clyde, NC 28721 Upcoming Events: Thu, Feb 27: Maha Shivratri Sat, March 15: Satyanarayana Puja (11:30 am) For Further Details: www.srisomesvara.org.

South Carolina American South Asian Cultural Association of Columbia, SC The American South Asian Cultural Association of Columbia’s fundamental goal is to increase cultural awareness and develop cultural understanding among American Southeast Asian Community in Columbia area. A monthly Lunch meeting will be held on the Second Sunday of every month between 1 to 3 pm. There will be $7.00 Per Person charge for Lunch (Kids Ages 6-10 pay half price) at Delhi Palace, 542 Saint Andrew Road, Columbia, 29210. Contact in the evenings: (803) 233-7042 OR (803) 233-3995. Saathee.com

Bethel Christian Fellowship Bethel Christian Fellowship offers services in various Indian languages (i.e. Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, etc.) and Sunday Worship services are at 11:30 a.m. Address: Fort Mill Church of God, Student Life Center Building, 216 Academy Street, and Room 102. Fort Mill, South Carolina 29715 For Further Details: 803.792.7223 Pastor Rajan Samuel @ pastorofbcf@gmail.com www.bethelchristianfellowship.org Carolina Buddhist Vihara (Greenville, SC) Regular beginner meditation program conducted by a Buddhist Monk. Activities are held Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings: 6:30 pm (puja), 7 pm (meditation), and 8 pm (“Dhamma” talk or discussion). A “youth program” is also held once a month. For Further Details: dhammasc@hotmail.com Hanahan TableTennis Training Center There are no membership fees of any kind to play at HTTTC. Free open play and training. Free USATT league. Informal free coaching as time permits. Open to all levels of players from recreational to competitive. The center is located at City of Hanahan Gym, 1255 Yeamans Hall Rd., Hanahan, SC 29410 (Adjacent to Police Station). For Further Details: www.ttHanahan.com Hindu Society of Greater Spartanburg The daily Aarti is at 7:00 p.m., Balvihar classes are conducted from 10 - 11:45 am on scheduled Sundays, and Satsang is on second Sunday every month from 5 - 7 pm. Temple is located on 1130 Fairview Church Road in Boiling Springs, SC 29303. For Further Details: 864.599.7048 Hindu Temple and Center (Columbia, SC) The temple is located at 5704 Kiawah Road, Columbia, South Carolina 29212. It is open on weekdays between 8:30 am to 12 noon and between 5 pm and 8:30 pm. On weekends, the temple is open between 8:30 am to 1:00 pm and 5 pm to 8:30 pm. Bal Gokulam (Sunday School) classes are held every Sunday from 10:30 am to 12:00 noon. Classes are designed to help children build physical, mental, cultural, social & spiritual lives. Contact: 803.772.6940 www.hindutemplesc.org Hindu Temple of South Carolina The Hindu Temple and Cultural Center of South Carolina was established with an objective to fill the need for thousands of Hindus in the State of South Carolina to worship and pray together, perform sacraments and rituals, to observe and celebrate festivals, and to perform and engage in humanitarian and educational activities. For Further Details: http://www.hindutemplesc.org/index.php

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Community Organizations

M a g a z i n e

India Assoc. of Greater Charleston (IAGC) The IAGC was founded in Charleston to bring together people who were interested in India and to provide a forum to increase the understanding of the heritage of India in US. For Further Details: 803.884.0859 iagcfolks@yahoo.com

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International Fellowship Church of Greenville, SC International Fellowship Church offers Sunday worship services and other weekly activities for people of Indian origin. For Further Details: 864.234.1256 (Pastor Suhas Raiborde) www.internationalfellowshipchurch.org

______________________________

Kannada Association of Greater Greenville (KAGG) An organization devoted to the awareness and promotion of Kannada culture in the Greater Greenville area of South Carolina. KAGG is a primarily run by volunteers and invites Kannadigas living in and around Greater Greenville area to participate in the organization. Kannada classes for children are being organized to meet at the Vedic Center in Mauldin every other Sunday morning. For Further Details: 864.430.4973 www.kagg-sc.org Masjid Noor-uL-Huda The Mosque is located at 517 Winmet Dr., Columbia, S.C. On the first and third Saturday of every month from 6 - 8 pm, Islamic session is held by Hafiz Mohammed Basheer. Quranic Reading classes are conducted daily, and everyone is encouraged to send their children to these sessions. For Further Details: 803.749.0827 (Dr. Shami) 803.740.5127 (Qari Abdul Khader Multani) 803.754.2632 (Mosque main number) Telugu Association of Greater Greenville The Telugu Association of Greater Greenville, SC, serves the Telugu community of the Greenville/Spartanburg area of South Carolina. The group sponsors several events throughout the year. For Further Details: www.taggsc.org Triad Avatar Meher Baba Group The Meher Center is a spiritual retreat/ashram located on SC Highway 17 immediately North of the Highway 22 connection 8 miles from Myrtle Beach, SC. Meher Baba visited this place 3 times and considered it His home in the West. A small brick house built especially for Him is open for “Darshan” on Fridays and Sunday (11:00 am.) / Meher Center: (843) 272-5777. For Further Details: 336.299.9683 runderwood@webtv.net www.avatarmeherbaba.org Vedic Center of Greenville The Center is located at 499 Bethel Road in Mauldin, S.C. 29662. Daily Aarti is conducted Monday to Friday at 8 pm. Bal Vihar classes are conducted Sundays from 11:15 am - 12:30 pm. Sri Venkateshwara Suprabhatam is held on 2nd Sat of month at 9 am. For Further Details: 864.967.2852 Saathee.com

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Pop’s Puzzles & Jokes By Kirit Shukla

Note: * denotes abbreviation of the word or phrase Clues Across: 1. NFL Super Bowl winner: 2010. 6. A region of porous limestone with deep ﬁssures and Sinkholes, characterized by underground caves, streams. 11. To put something in a place where it is not easy to ﬁnd. 12. A black mineral, hydrous calcium aluminum iron silicate. 14. Contrary to what is or might be expected. 16. A woman’s undergarment. 17. February 14th is “___’s Day ”; (Lovers’ Day) 19. Arkansas. (*) 20. “Muhammad __”, an American former professional boxer. 21. Disk Operating System. (*) 22. A raised platform at one end of a room, as for a throne. 24. The act of breathing; inhaling and exhaling. 27. Covering worn to protect the body against weapons. 28. Units of land area measured in FPS system. (Plural) 30. True Type. (*) (Microsoft font) 31. To choose or pick out from among others. 34. Rhode Island. (*) 35. Adequate; not obscene. 36. Selective Service System. (*)37. Individual Retirement Account. (*) 39. Not withstanding that; however. 41. Past tense of eat. 43. A city in South Siberia, near Lake Baikal. 45. A method of surveying where elevations, distances are obtained by observing the interval on a graduated, upright rod intercepted by two parallel horizontal lines in a surveyor's transit set up at a distance from the rod. 46. Like the Moon. Saathee.com

Clues Down: 1. The Hindu religious festival celebration in the honor of Lord Shiva, with worship, fasting etc. (Feb. 27, 2014) 2. The state of readiness by air force units in which aircrafts are put in the air for immediate response to orders. 3. False reasoning; a fallacious notion. (Archaic) 4. A greyish-brown Hawaiian bird. (Once nearly extinct) 5. A part of a circle bounded by two radii & the included arc. 6. A furnace for drying, burning or baking bricks or pottery. 7. An advertisement. (*) (Informal) 8. To steal something from in any way as by burglary. 9. A device for sifting or filtering; sieve, colander etc. 10. Pulls apart by force; rips or rends. 13. A monetary unit if India, Pakistan & Nepal = .01 Rupee. 15. Deviating; roundabout; not straight. 18. An official public order issued by authority; decree. 23. Album-oriented rock (or radio). (*) 25. Pretense; to assume a certain position, as in modeling. 26. Of the sense or organs of touch. 29. A woman as related to other children of her parents. 32. A myrtle family tree of Hawaii with bright-red flowers. 33. A tautomer compound containing the group C: C(OH). 35. Information suitable for processing by a computer. 36. To keep away from; avoid scrupulously and consistently. 38. A long-tailed rodent larger than a mouse. 40. A large African wildebeest with an ox like head, horns that curved forward and a horse like mane and tail. 42. Department of Education. (*) 44. District Attorney. (*) (Puzzle solutions are on page 118. NO peeking!)

Hee Hee Man: “I want a divorce. She hasn’t talked to me in 6 months.” Lawyer: “Better think it over. Wives like that are hard to get!” •••••••••••••• Mafatlal: “Guru, is it true that behind every successful man there is a woman? What about the unsuccessful man?” Guru: “Behind every unsuccessful man, there are more.” •••••••••••••• A girl proposes to Booddhoo for their wedding. Booddhoo: “Sorry, I can’t marry you since everyone in my family only marries relatives. Grandpa wed grandma, uncle wed aunty, dad wed mom…” •••••••••••••• Patient: “Doctor, I have watery eyes, running nose, aching head and scratchy throat. Please give me some medicine.” Doctor: “Take these tablets. They will relieve your pains. But the side eﬀects are runny eyes, watery nose, aching throat and scratchy head.” ••••••••••••••

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YOUTH CORNER (Created By Kirit Shukla) (Find & circle the words in the puzzle). (Subject: “Lakes of India”)

Math Magic Use these numbers only once: [ 2, 3, 4, 5, 5, 6, 7, 8 ] in empty squares, to get = the final given answers. Note: Follow the order of operation per basic math rule: ×,÷, +, The multiplication or division is done before addition and subtraction. (solution on next page)

AMAKHERA ASHTAMUDI CHILKA DAL HAFLONG KANKARIA MANAKODY NAINITAL NAKKI NALSAROVAR OOTY

POWAI PRASHAR PULICATE SHESHNAG SHIVSAGAR SURAJKUND SURSAGAR TAWA THENNARI UDAYSAGAR WULAR

The unused 12 letters spell the subject of this feature.

EZ-BZ

TEST YOUR IQ The common letters are “WO” - Fill in the blanks 1. A devotion for a deity. WO _ _ _ _ _ 2. One plus one. _ WO 3. Things made of wood. WO _ _ WO _ _ 4. An exchange, trade, or barter. (British). _ WO _ 5. A phrase submitted to a SEARCH ENGINE in an effort to locate relevant documents or websites. _ _ _ WO _ _ 6. An adult female human being. WO _ _ _ 7. Lacking merit; not deserving. _ _ WO _ _ _ _ 8. Past tense of ’Awake’. _ WO _ _ 9. Wood used as fuel. _ _ _ _ WO _ _ 10. Great sorrow; grief. WO _ 11. Work of craftsmanship. _ _ _ WO _ _ 12. To move with a sharp whistling sound. _ WO _ _ _ 13. A puzzle of numbered squares to be filled with letters per clues given for each number. _ _ _ _ _ WO _ _ 14. The feeling of surprise; marvel. WO _ _ _ _ 15. To revise; to process for use again . _ _ WO _ _ 16. Blow up; bulging. _ WO _ _ _ _ 17. A group singing style of 1950s involving a lead singer supported by chorus and strong rhythms. _ _ _WO _ 18. An insect larva like caterpillar. WO _ _ 19. A secret phrase used to gain entrance. _ _ _ _ WO _ _ 20. Made of fleece of sheep. WO _ _ _ _ 21. The loss of topsoil by wind erosion . _ _ _ WO _ _ 22. A wild canine carnivore; (Wild dog!) WO _ _ 23. The past tense of ‘Unwind’. _ _ WO _ _ _ 24. A seminar for intensive study. WO _ _ _ _ _ _ 25. A favorite pet phrase. _ _ WO _ _ (Puzzle solutions are on next page. NO peeking!) Kirit Shukla Contact him at kiritsshukla@hotmail.com

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Marketing Turnaround continued from page 68

Festivals & Holidays

February 2014 Feb. 2 - Groundhog Day Feb. 2 - Super Bowl Sunday Feb. 4 - Vasant Panchami Feb 10 - Jayā Ekādasi Feb. 14 - Valentine’s Day Feb. 14 - Māghi Purnimā (Full Moon) Feb. 17 - Presidents Day Feb 19 - Shivāji Jayanti Feb. 22 - Shrināthaji Pātostav Feb. 25 - Vijayā Ekādasi Feb. 27 - Mahā Shivarātri March 2014 Mar. 1 - Darsha Amās (No Moon) Mar. 3 - Rāmakrishna Paramhans Jayanti Mar. 9 - Daylight savings time begins Mar. 12 - Āmalki Ekādasi Mar. 16 - Holi / Akshar Purnimā (Full Moon) Mar. 17 - Dhuleti Mar. 17 - St. Patrick’s Day Mar. 27 - Pāpamochani Ekādasi Mar. 30 - Darsha Amās (No Moon) Mar. 31 - Gudi Padvo

Puzzle Solutions

Facebook or Twitter. The authors immediately liked, friended and followed each other so they could retweet, share, like and comment on each other’s posts about the project. The Kickstarter also had a Facebook fan page, a Facebook event page, a Tumblr page, Twitter hashtags, Pinterest posts, a YouTube video and a Goodreads event. Authors and their friends talked it up on all those social media sites plus others like Reddit and Google+, and reached out to bloggers, podcasters and book review sites. They kept up a constant flow of commentary, banter, witty repartee and flat-out asking for funding for 29 days, often interacting with each other in realtime on multiple platforms at once. (And should you think the authors were all twenty-somethings, the average age was 40+). Kickstarter needs constant buzz. It’s not a set-it-and-forget-it medium. Kickstarter creates an exciting opportunity to reach what pundits call the “Long Tail” of customers. The “long tail” refers to the trail of a comet, which stretches on for a long, long time beyond the comet itself. The marketing theory around the “long tail” holds that there are viable niche markets that often go untapped because they are too small to be profitable for the business models of very large companies, but which can provide a very nice living for entrepreneurs or small, efficient companies that can tap that niche and provide a desired outcome. Thinking about bringing your product to market but stymied on funding? Take a look at Kickstarter. But remember, what appears to be just a funding mechanism is really an endeavor that requires a lively network, a clear concept, a niche audience and a lot of marketing mojo.

Gail Z. Martin is the author of 30 Days to Social Media Success, 30 Days to Online PR and Marketing Success, and 30 Days to Virtual Productivity Success. Learn more at www.DreamSpinnerCommunications.com or follow Gail on Twitter @GailMartinPR.

Solution to Math Magic

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February 2014

Your partner may prove to be a great help this month. Don’t try to cheat for making easy money. Also stay cool and avoid arguments at place of work. Avoid aggression. Act wisely. LIBRA (Sep 23 - Oct 23) This is the month for travel, relaxing, enjoying life, and celebrating success and achievements. Your long cherished wish is going to fulfill during this month. Seriously watch your health. Don’t dispute with your spouse. Do something different to achieve success. Don’t even think about profit or loss; just walk a few steps on an unknown path.

General Predictions for February 2014 ARIES (Mar 20- Apr 20) It is now time to enjoy the fruits of your success you achieved in the last few months. Don’t look for any more changes this month. Good family happiness is clearly indicated. You may spend some money to please your spouse or loved ones, but try to curb your expenses. Watch your speech in last week of the month. Minor health ailment could be there.

SCORPIO (Oct 23 - Nov 22) The labor that you put in the first half of the month will produce result in the second half. The results won’t be promising, but satisfactory. You will experience delay and disturbance in your daily pursuits. Don’t get involved in many things at the same time. The period is good for travel and vacation. A religious or social ceremony is also possible in the family.

TAuRuS (Apr 20 - May 21) Time will improve slowly but it won’t allow achieving any powerful situation. There will be a boost in positive energy which will help in financial gain. Good health and victory over enemies should help in controlling your opponents; however, dietary system could create minor health problems. Avoid dispute with family members. Also new job opportunity may come your way. Take your time to make a decision.

SAGITTARIuS (Nov 22 - Dec 21) Even though there won’t be any financial problems, the hyper personality and fear will rule you during this month. Try to develop mental strength. If you feel necessary spend some time and do meditation. Actually the period is not negative, but your aggressive actions won’t allow you to enjoy the time. At the same time watch your health. Tendencies to take risks must be avoided.

GEMINI (May 21 - Jun 21) You may have to compromise with your morals this month. Your skill is going to bring money for you. You may get very busy at place of work. Time is good for making new friends and a marriage-related decision. You may earn name and fame due to your creative activities. Take extra precaution of your health and avoid enemies.

CAPRICORN (Dec 21 - Jan 20) Very busy schedule and unexpected travel may change your plan everyday. Time is good for making a deal to buy real estate. Go against your nature and work very practically. Misunderstanding at the place of work may end up in hot arguments. It may not be possible to avoid it, hence try to act calm. Improvement in health is clearly indicated. Bad news from your partner is possible in the second week of the month.

CANCER (Jun 21 - Jul 22) Life should fly this month and you may experience major ups and downs. You can come out with great success at the end, only if you watch your morals very strictly. Any wrongdoing must be sincerely curbed. You can count on your partners, but don’t trust them blindly. Minor family problems may also drive you crazy. Heavy workload may also keep you on your toes most of the time. Don’t take risks.

AQuARIuS (Jan 20 - Feb 19) An important and big move will be delayed. You may lose a very important opportunity. Your own mistake will put you in hot water. You may need some kind of spiritual help throughout the month. Financial loss is unavoidable. Try to protect your morals. Tendencies to take risks must be avoided. Your regular income should remain undisturbed.

LEO (Jul 22 - Aug 23) A very hectic month is shaping up. You may get stuck between busy schedule and enjoying your time with family. Added responsibilities and very aggressive schedule may make you commit mistakes. Decision and tendency to take aggressive action must be curbed this month. Listen to your spouse before making any commitment. You may not enjoy good health. Just slow down and control your anger.

PISCES (Feb 19 - Mar 20) You have entered in a difficult phase of time. You may face tough competition at your place of work or in business. Your luck may not favor you at a critical time. You may get some support from your friends and see relief during second half of the month. A minor health ailment is also possible. Try to control your aggression and act wisely to avoid losses. Avoid tendency to take risks.

VIRGO (Aug 23 - Sep 23) Avoid moving fast during first half of the month. Major family-related problems may disturb your schedule this month. You will be back in control during second half of the month. Don’t rely much on your intelligence. Saathee.com

By Jalendu Vaidya Contact: 908-638-6388 / hindusvision.com 120

February 2014

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Consolidated Fares to India, pakistan, Bangladesh, Asia, Africa, Europe & the middle East on All major Airlines We provide Visa, passport, Cruise & Tour package Services. We can do tour packages & Railway Bookings in India February 2014

Classifieds Gas Station/C- Store for Sale: On I-85 North Reduced to $200,000 due to family Reasons. Great store location with very Convenience Store for lease: close to Cowpens,SC. $35,000 inside. Two options good income. call 252-676-1635. for lease: 1) with goodwill 2) no goodwill. C-Stores: Wilson, NC $89K + Inv, GR For more info call 704-813-2462. $750K; Chester SC $57K +Inv GR 500K; For Sale: Fully equipped day-care Mooresville, NC $99K + Inv, GR $2.4M; available in Clover, SC. 3,000SqFt brick Charlotte $79K + Inv GR 430K - No Gas; building with full classrooms, 704-821-8888 or www.Countysouth.biz bathrooms, large hall, office, and full EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES: kitchen. New roofing & new water heater. Dual heat and A/C system. 2.69 Franchised Hotel (COLuMBIA, SC) Acres on corner lot. $475K. Please call seeks couple. Competitive compensation 704-641-5902. and accommodations, if necessary. Legal

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES:

Nanny needed for our 1 year old baby in the Charlotte area. Legal status required. Please contact us asap on 215-341-7561 or gmdiet@gmail.com. Gas Station Help Wanted - full time in convenience store in the Concord NC area. Please call 704-737-9696. Need resident couple for 40 unit motel on Sugar Creek Rd Charlotte. Accommodations provided. Fluent in English, computer skill and legal status. For 1st and 2nd shift. Contact: bwhospitality78@gmail.com

Motels For Sale: Rock Hill, SC (60 Rooms) and (39 Rooms). Motel for sale in Richburg, SC (47 Rooms). Nick Patel 704905-7945.

Authentic Pakistani Chef needed in a status and English fluency required. E- Pakistani/Indian Restaurant in Raleigh, mail resume and contact information to NC. Accommodation and other salary columbiahotels@gmail.com benefits are best in the industry. Single Housekeeper needed: a vegetarian owner. Restaurant is more than 10 years family is looking for a live-in/ live-out old. Call 919-244-4741 or 919-434-6799. housekeeper in south Charlotte for Household Help Needed: Need cooking, laundry and house cleaning. Household Help. Live out. Light clean, Mon to Fri. Please call: 704-502-3960. laundry, ironing, cooking, etc. Driving Need full time babysitter for 3 month Licence is a plus. Call 980-328-4476. old in Cary, NC. Live in or Live out. Now Hiring: Full or part time Retail Please call 732-991-2908 Sales Associate in Columbia SC. Male/Female/Couple. Opportunity to Sales person: retail store in Mall. Must be fluent in English and possess pleasant advance quickly into management. personality. Base Salary PLUS Contact 706-877-0315. Commission. Flexible hours. Full / part Part-time/Full-time Single or Couple: time! Call 704-537-0664 or email resume Needed ASAP for a convenience store in to shehzad1975@hotmail.com Gaffney, SC. Must speak English and Nanny needed for one year old in the previous experience preferred. Call 704Charlotte University Area. Scheduling 726-7544 or 864-487-4939. flexibility required. Call 678- 640-5700 or Gas Station Help Wanted: full-time in 770-670-1655. McCormick, SC (near Greenwood & Augusta). Must speak fluent English & Couple needed for 40 unit independant motel in charlotte, NC. University Area have legal status. Good pay. Please call accomodations provided. Fluent English 704-299-8535.

Convenience Store for sale: busy highway near Clemson, SC. Inside 35k, gas 15k, 800/month lottery. Potential to add food, EBT, check cashing. Rent 1900/month. 65k +inv. 803-410-0185.

and legal status. 3rd shift night auditor. Help Wanted: Franchised Motel, Please email mars803@gmail.com. Charlotte, NC. Experienced front Refulgent Technologies Inc.: IT staffing desk/night auditor needed. Part-time company is currently recruiting Java, /Full-time. Must be honest / reliable / .Net, SQL Server and QA candidates. We fluent in English. Call Nina 704-299-3364.

Tobacco shop for sale: Kannapolis, NC. 75k + inv. or best offer. Tobacco products, smoking accessories, pipes, lottery, chew, beer,drinks, snacks, incense & more. Room for expansion. 336-997-6542 Motel For Sale: in NC. 50 rooms. Interstate location. Owner retiring. For info call Harry 336-314-4101. Gas/C-Store/Liquor Store for Sale: 40k gal/month gas. C-Store 50k+22K Liquor Store. Clinton, SC. $125K invest. + inventory. Serious buyers only. Call 864-923-4824 or 864-923-4213. Indian Restaurant for Sale in NC. Established customers. Selling due to family issues. Call 910-262-8379. Tobacco Store For Sale: Excellent and high visibility. North Carolina. Store volume 25K. Asking price only $40K Plus Inv. Please call Jitu Patel 704-743-6719.

Liquor and c-store for Sale: Clover, SC. also do Training & Placement. Contact Convenience store / Gas Station Help e-mail: recruiter@refulgent- Wanted: Looking for Couples/Single; Gross sales yearly $380,000-$400,000 Anu: Must have legal status; Locations in NC from both stores, monthly expenses only tech.com or 704-405-4238. $1,000 (or less)+ $1600 rent; Asking Hotel Management Firm Now Hiring: & SC; Opportunity to advance and grow! $85,000 + inv. ($70k-$90K). Owner finance House keepers, front desk (must speak Please Call 803-789-3133. available. Call Rocky 803-810-5105. fluent English), and General Manager/s Help Wanted: Looking for couple for Running C-Store w / Property For Sale / of franchise hotels. Experience required. Housekeeping for franchise motel in Lease in Ga. (Operator deceased). Inside E-mail resumes to abcone@abcinns.com Raleigh NC. Accommodations provided. 35K, 10K Gal Gas, 5K Diesel + other OR call 704-649-6833 (M-F, 9AM-5PM). Legal status required. Call 919-208-3513. income. Video Game Machine allowed. Looking for Experienced Threading Hotel Help Wanted: Charlotte, NC. Call 912-481-3773. Practitioners and Licensed Esthetician Competitive salary and accommodations For Sale: Conv store with gas and auto in Charlotte, Raleigh and Richmond provided. All positions/ Experienced night auditor & workshop. Prime I-85 location in areas. Full or part-time with great pay front desk, Full-time positions Charlotte. All EPA in full compliance. and flexibility. Experience required housekeeping. $675,000 includes prop and equipment. with good English skills. Please call available. Must be fluent in English. 980-322-1110. Email 123nash@gmail.com Call 704-641-5902. Saathee.com

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February 2014

Nanny Needed: Need a nanny for twin 2 months old. Please call 704-598-0458 or email rubyrn@yahoo.com Motel Help wanted: Need couple for front desk. Accommodations provided. Experience preferred but will train. Fluent in English and computer skill and has legal status. call 919-208-3513. Nanny Needed in Raleigh, NC: Reliable full time live in/live out nanny. 3 month and 6 year old. (Cooking and light house work) Please call 704-458-6142. Must have reliable transportation! Gas Station Help Wanted: Looking for a couple or single. Full-Time for convenience store / gas station near Charlotte. Accommodations Provided! 704-701-9975. Help wanted: Cooking and light housekeeping work. Person should be able to drive/commute on their own. North Charlotte. Please call 704-549-1180. Nanny Needed: Live in nanny needed for two weeks of a month( including weekends) to take care of our two year old son. Ballanytne area of Charlotte. Interested person can call 952-334-3666. Mother's Help / Housekeeping needed in Huntersville, NC. Light Cooking & Housework. Weekdays 6-9pm. Must have means of transportation. Contact 704-724-3993

MATRIMONIAL Seeking correspondence for brother Brahmin Gujarati boy 26, 5'8", cultured, Good looking, B.Com, MHRDA, working with MNC in Gujarat, India. Contact sister in Charlotte via E-mail: nams_er@rediffmail.com.

PROPERTY FOR SALE OR RENT Retail shopping Center For Sale: 6000 sq ft. new construction in Gastonia, NC. Close to Caromont Hospital. Zoned for office, retail & medical. Price reduced to $660,000. 704-779-6206.

SERVICES Tax Returns: Federal and state Taxes with e-filing, and Form 1040-NR and W7 Services to Individuals, Self-employed, Small Partnerships and S-corporations. Call Mahesh Patel, EA at (704) 799-6377, e-mail: masupatel4@yahoo.com Neeta’s Beauty Parlor: Charlotte area open 7 days a week. Full service. Please call for appointment. 704-968-0270 Saathee.com

NC Driver’s License? Obtain your license in record time; learn safely with certified, experienced instructors. Teenagers and adults. Charlotte area. 704-891-0114. Tutor / Babysitter Available: Charlotte, Fort Mill & Rock Hill areas. Indian female tutor for Hindi and Panjabi and for babysitting. Please call 803-389-3392. Drum Lessons! Professional drummer and teacher, 30+ years performance & teaching experience. Beginner to advanced. Drum set, snare, percussion. Convenient to Hindu Center. Contact Scott 704-451-8908 or martin.scott.brower@gmail.com Dholi For Hire: Plays the Dhol (drum) for any occasion! Classes Available! Barat, Doli, Graduation, Birthdays, Baby Showers & any other festivity. Affordable rates! Call Arpan Bhandari 704-843-7202 or email: arpandholi@yahoo.com Pretty Face - Indian beauty parlour :Threading, facials, waxing etc conveniently located at Ballantyne /South Charlotte area. Please call for appointment 704-726-8928. Vedic Astrologer, acupuncturist and Healer: For advice on Career, Finance, Marriage, Health and Healing services "Ask Dr.Ajay", Wellness Guru. visit www.astrouniverse.com. or E-mail: astrouniverseindia@yahoo.com 919-3427169 (6 to 9 PM) or (+91) 9444052660 Hindu Priest: All kinds of puja. Including: havan, katha, weddings, graha pravesh, funeral services & Shraadh. In Hindi, English & Tamil. Call Balaji 704-877-6320 or 704-545-7220 or email: priestbalaji@gmail.com Ribald Farms Nursery & Florist: Specializes in Indian wedding reception design and floral arrangements. For more info contact Shawna Turner at 803328-2266 or www.rockhillflowers.com Mehandi (Henna): Award-winning artist in the Chapel Hill/Durham, NC area specializes in Mehandi (Henna) parties. Perfect for weddings, birthdays & get-togethers. Creative & beautiful art! Krishna Priya Dasi Phone: 919-824-7734 E-mail: krsnapriyad96@gmail.com Web: www.lotuslyrics.com/henna.html Facebook: Krishna Priya Dasi South Indian Priest: Sastriji is an independent priest Call for Pujas, Gruhapravesh, Weddings, Multi-lingual, Vedic traditional priestly services, etc. Call 704-625-7578 or 704-231-0751. E-mail: sastrigal2003@yahoo.com.

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Gujarati Priest: Devendra Dave Independent priest. Ganesh, Randal, Navratri, Diwali’s Laxmi & Sharda Pujas, Satyanarayan Katha, Weddings, Vastu, Baby Shower, Funeral Seva. Call Daveji 704-780-3563. God Blessings to All Computer Consulting: Assistance with software installation, set-up, formatting, back-up, troubleshooting and more. Very reasonable rates. 704-619-7072. Astrologer With Gold Medals - Jayanti Lad- Contact for Health, Wealth, Relationship, Child, Enemies, Court Cases, Marriage, Job, Business, Vastu Problems, Preparing & Matching Horoscope. Call 919-463-5180 or Jayantinlad@yahoo.com Beauty parlor near South Charlotte/Ballantyne Area. 28277. Home: 980-225-0656 or 510-936-3334. Gujarati Priest in NC & SC for Ganesh, Randal, Laxmi, Sharda Pujan, Satyanarayan Katha, Wedding, Vastu, Baby Shower, Hawan, Grah Shanti. Kishor Trivedi Home: 336-774-0597 Cell: 336-486-7925 E-Mail: kishor7@juno.com Pari Beauty In Matthews, NC: Threading, Waxing, Facials, Bleaching & Much More! 23 years of experience. Special Deals & Great Service. For Appointment Call: 704-846-7912. Catering: Delicious Home Made Food, top quality ingredients available for Daily or Weekly basis. Making Fresh Roti's everyday. Catering any kind of Parties. Call Jyoti 919-610-3615 / raleighrasoi@gmail.com

Saathee Classifieds Business ads are $25 Personal ads are $15 Upgrade to color or add a box for additional $10 Saathee.com ads posted daily (call for rates) We accept all credit cards and checks. Ads up to 25 words. Deadline for print is the 20th. Web ads daily.

How do I Submit classifieds? 1. on-line: saathee.com (classified section) 2. e-mail: Saatheemag@hotmail.com 3. Fax: 704.527.7590 4. For more info call 704.527.7570 Saathee Magazine PO Box 11468 Charlotte, NC 28220

February 2014

Advertisers Index A & V Satellites ......................................................7

DJ Don (David Pandoria) .....................................16

Pardasani, Kamlesh (Real Estate) .........................35

Aarohan Music Recital ........................................39

DJ Lalit ...............................................................59

Passage To India - Fine Indian Cuisine..................71

Abacus Math.......................................................38

Elegant Designz...................................................75

Patel Brothers (Charlotte) .....................................29

Access Realty & Funding (Chandravadan Shah)....75

Eshaan Jewelers .................................................15

Patel Travels ........................................................53

Accounting Solutions (Muhammad Kamran Awan)53

Eye Level Learning Centers..................................73

Patel, Champa (Real Estate).................................42

All Car Care.......................................................115

Fairview Home Mortgage.....................................25

Patel, Mrugesh (Law Offices)................................77

Anand, Versha (Real Estate) .................................45

Family Fare Convenience Stores ........................125

Patel, Tony (Real Estate) .......................................43

Anil Bedi & Associates PC (CPA & Consultants) ....47

Friends Travel ....................................................121

Payal Groceries ...................................................49

Apna Travels (Morrisville)......................................75

Fu Lin..................................................................87

Persis Indian Grill.................................................85

Around The World Market Charlotte........................6

Fyvelement (24 Mantra Organic Food)..................34

Puja Boutique (Charlotte) .....................................43

Ashwini Kathak Dance Academy........................119

Gandhi International Market.................................23

Rajbhog Foods ....................................................15

Asiana Fusion.Sushi ............................................83

Gem Avenue..........................................................9

Rajdeep Mandap ...............................................55

Aura And More... Boutique (Ladies Fashions)........19

Geological Resources, Inc. ...................................13

Rajdeep Video & Photography (Ramesh Panjabi)...45

BallantyneTech Academy .....................................61

Global Mall / Legacy Jewels ..............................127

Rapid Car Care (Formerly Ali & Sons Car Care).....88

BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir (Charlotte)........51

H2 Laser & Skin ..................................................19

Religious Ceremonies (Swminath Sastrigal) ..........91

Barot, Tushar (Statefarm) .....................................50

Halal International ...............................................81

Robert Brown LLC (Oza, Rishi: Immigration Law) ..99

Bashyam & Spiro LLP (Immigration Law)..............37

Help Wanted (Threading)......................................99

Roop Beauty (Pooja Patel) ....................................91

Bhindi Jewellers ................................................2

Hindu Center Charlotte (Events) ......................64-67

S S Event Services (Event planning, Photo, Video).35

Bipin & Smita Parekh (Real Estate).....................125

Hindu Priest (Balaji)..............................................87

Saffron Restaurant and Catering ........................109

Blakeney & Steelcroft Dental................................80

Holy Joes Meats and More ..................................89

Scott Clark Honda (Muhammad Idrees - Sales) ....35

Blooming Buds....................................................84

India Grocers (Charlotte) ....................................107

Shah, Anish (Real Estate)...............................32-33

Blue Mango Indian Cuisine .................................59

International Community Church .........................97

Shah, Kirti (CPA - Sepa Consulting) ....................99

Bombay Grille (Charlotte) .....................................12

IT Max Solutions, Inc.

.................................121

Shining Star Academy .......................................113

British American School of Charlotte ..................119

Jag Insurance Group ..........................................93

Shyama Beauty Parlour .......................................49

Carolina Law Group (Monty Desai) .......................41

Jaipur Indian Restaurant (Charlotte)......................91

Sleep Inn (Charlotte) .........................................101

Carolina Wedding Belle (Event Design & DĂŠcor) ....25

K & M Accountant................................................95

South Char Endocrinology (K. Narasimhan, MD) ...80

CaroMont Medical Group (Dr. Manu Patel)..........105

K. Hovnanian Homes ...........................................55

South Charlotte Pediatrics..................................111

Chai Pani (Restaurant - Ashville, NC) ....................25

K.B. Zaveree..........................................................5

Spice South.........................................................63

Challa Law Offices, PLC (Immigration)..................77

Kabab Je Rotisserie & Grille .................................95

Spiceland Indian Groceries (Columbia, SC) ..........11

Charlotte Eye Ear Nose & Throat .........................72

KD Financial & KMD Realty ..................................22

Sunita R Lall Ruch (Real Estate)............................39

Charlotte Music School........................................19

KD Photographics..............................................101

Surreal Body Solutions (Personal Training)..........105

.............................................105

Kicklighter, Aleeza Khan (Real Estate) ...................11

Thakkar, Beena (Realty)..................................56-57

Concha, David - Immigration Attorney ................109

Kirit Shah CPA .....................................................16

The Blue Taj.........................................................31

Copper................................................................31

Kumar, Kokila (Real Estate - Allen Tate)...............103

Transportation (Diamond Cab)..............................28

County South Realty & Business Brokers..............97

Mahabazar.com Travels Maha Travel ....................79

Travel Universe ....................................................17

Cuisine Malaya (Charlotte) .................................111

Maharani Restaurant ...........................................93

Travelinks ............................................................99

Curry and Cakes (Charlotte) .................................27

Malani Jewelers ................................................128

Ttravel Guru ........................................................93

Curry N Kabab (Cornelius)....................................27

Malaya Kitchen (Charlotte) .................................103

Tulips Multi Cuisine Restaurant ............................69

Dances Of India...................................................79

Mathur, Gitanjali (Allen Tate Realtors)....................49

Urogender .........................................................114

Dentist (Dr. Prashant Rao - Cedar Walk Dentistry).95

Matthews Family Dentistry ..................................28

Vyas Travels.........................................................58

Dentist (Pineville Dentistry - Lina V. Mistry, DDS) .103

Mishra Architecture PLLC ....................................10

WebProDot (Web Design, C Shah) Logikwindo......43

Desai Desai Accounting ......................................10

MONTBLANC (Bhindi) ............................................3

White Horse Weddings.........................................59

Desai, Rajarshi (CPA, PLLC) .................................83

Nagpal, Sunil (MetLife).........................................45

Woodlands .......................................................126

Digital Room Photography ...................................93

Nationwide Ins. (Maqsood Khan) ..........................47

Worldwide travels ...............................................55

DJ Hangama ....................................................46

Neeta's Beauty Parlor ........................................105

Yafa Market & CafĂŠ..............................................61

DJ Desi (Amit Vasi) ..............................................53

OM Tech Training ................................................87

YuppTV................................................................21

Chiro-Carolina

Saathee.com

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February 2014

B I p I N pA R E K H R E A LT y, L L C Bipin Parekh

Smita Parekh

Owner / Broker / Realtor. Licensed in NC / SC / Georgia 704.841.9318(H) 704.608.8469 (cell) E-Mail: bparekh@carolina.rr.com

704.608.2191 (cell) smt_parekh@yahoo.com

Broker / Manager

Realtor with 25+ years of experience Sridhar Janakiraman

FuLL TImE REALTORS

• Hiring Realtors • Listing Agents • No monthly fees • $400/transaction • Future Profit Sharing • Referrals Provided (fee)

HOMEBUYER

*rEbATE* up to

pricE >

1%, 1.5%, 2%

Rebate Towards:

• Price Reduction • Closing Costs • Prepaid • Home Owner Assoc. Fees • Taxes *buyer must take lenders approval to use “rebate” (in HUD1)

Broker / Realtor; Licensed in NC/SC 978.590.7768 (Cell) / 704.771.1811 (Fax) SJIyer.NC@gmail.com

Catherine E. Janakiraman

P. Broker / Realtor Phone: 704.771.1811 / Fax: 704.771.1811 CESIyer@gmail.com

Gopal Kasarla Broker (PV) / Realtor; Licensed in NC/SC 980.297.9827 (cell) / 704.909.6557 (Fax) grkasarla@gmail.com

Haresh Kurani

Anupam Patel

Broker (PV) / Realtor Licensed in NC 704.807.7535 hkurani13@gmail.com

Broker(P.V)/Realtor, Licensed in NC 856.266.7664 (cell) / 980.333.4829 (fax) anupamjpatel@gmail.com

Raj Bani

Ram Venkat Kalagara

Broker (PV) / Realtor Licensed in NC 980.428.1746 rbanirealtor@gmail.com

Realtor/Broker 704.620.8208 Kalagara@gmail.com

w w w . r e b a t e F o r H o m e B u y e r. c o m

Helping you get there!

Leading convenience store franchise-retailer in north Carolina. Offering special incentives for qualified applicants through DiversityFran. Our retail consulting leadership team has over 200 years of experience to help you live our mission, vision, motto and tag line all rolled into one:

Family Fare. . .Helping you get there. for more information please visit our website

www.familyfareconveniencestores.com Saathee.com

125

February 2014

Catering for all occasions Birthday Parties, Weddings, House ceremony, private parties & more! Fresh Dosa made on site for your parties! Call Leslie Lobo 704.264.6525

Organic & Vegan Menu available Never frozen • No preservatives No artificial additives • Zero Transfat

Pure Vegetarian Indian Cuisine

A wide range of South Indian, North Indian, Indo Chinese, Chaats, Jain, and more

Tel: 704-569-9193 · Fax: 704-569-9188 7128-A Albemarle Rd. Charlotte, NC 28227 www.woodlandsusa.com

Visit our website for the menu, coupons, directions etc.

Open 6 Days a week: 11:30 am to 10 pm (Closed on Tuesday) Taste of Charlotte 2013 Winner “Most Unique Taste” Taste of Charlotte 2012 Winner “Best Appetizer” Talk of the Town 2012 “Excellence in Customer Satisfaction” Citysearch.com 2009 Winner Best Indian Restaurant

Woodlands Specials

Special Weekend Lunch Buffet

Saturday & Sunday 11:30 am to 3 pm! Over 30 items & hot dosa served at table

Weekday Special Lunch Menu Monday to friday Wine & Beer (Including Indian Beer)

zAgAT rATEd