Milon 2015 final review

miLON OCTOBER

2015

A BENGALI ASSOCIATION OF SINGAPORE PUBLICATION

OCTOBER 2015

Confluence of Bengal i Culture Beyond Borders

52

THE MILON INTERVIEWS Reviving a feature started two years ago, where we carry interviews of community members who have tread the uncommon path and can be an inspiration

60

THE LAST YEAR IN REVIEW The Bengali Association and its members have organised various cultural and community welfare activities. Retrospect of the last 12 months

SPECIAL SG50 FEATURE

The Golden Age:

Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow Reflections of the past 50 years of Bengalees in Singapore and crystal ball gazing into their future

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DURGA PUJO : A UNIQUE JOURNEY A researched look at the most celebrated occasion of the Bengali community worldwide, tracing the roots of the many sections of the five day festivities

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Our heartfelt thanks to following key sponsors for funding the costs of Protima,Purohit,Cultural programs and Dinners for Ashtami & Nabami 2015 LEE FOUNDATION Basabi Banerjee Subhalaxmi Mukherjee Anil Baran Ghosh Sandeep Sen Sandeep Chatterjee & A Group of Well Wishers

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miLON OCTOBER

2015

A BENGALI ASSOCIATION OF SINGAPORE PUBLICATION

OCTOBER 2015

Confluence of Bengal i Culture Beyond Borders

12

THE LAST YEAR IN REVIEW The Bengali Association and its members have been various cultural and community welfare activities. Retrospect of the last 12 months

32

DURGA PUJO : A UNIQUE JOURNEY A researched look at the most celebrated occasion of the Bengalee community worldwide, tracing the roots of the many sections of the five day festivities

SPECIAL FEATURE

The Golden Age:

Yesterday, Today & Tomorrrow In this special SG50 edition, reflections of the past 50 years of Bengalees in Singapore and crystal ball gazing into their future

65

THE MILON INTERVIEWS Reviving a feature started two years ago, where we carry interviews of community members who have tread the uncommon path and can be a inspiration

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Creative, Humorous & Artistic

Bengali Association of Singapore wishes all its members and their families a very Happy Pujo 2015

MILON represents the archetypal Bengali

O

ur expectations in respect of the variety and quality of the contents in MILON are elevated and exceeded with aplomb every single year. MILON in its range of creative, humorous and artistic pages represents the archetypal Bengali.

MILON 2015, like every year, contains an assortment of articles, stories, essays and poetry in English and Bengali. There is a collection of wide variety of paintings by artists young and mature, and subjects that cover divinity, nature’s splendour and expression of individuality.

“The Milon Interviews” introduced in 2013 has been welcomed back after a year’s hiatus. We have tried to bring to our readers facts about certain members of our community who dared to dream and live them too. We hope to keep investing more effort in this section in the future.

This year’s issue contains a very special feature on the history, myths and social customs of and around the festivities of Durga Pujo. This feature will apprise the readers with the origins of some special characters accompanying the deity and clarify the significance of specific prayers and customs within the overall celebration.

We have made an attempt to capture the golden jubilee celebration of our nation within the design of MILON’s cover. The contemporary look, the easily readable fonts, the headlines and highlights, the use of colours and images to imply themes or representing

feelings have been incorporated for greater reading pleasure of our readers.

The year just gone by has witnessed a significant number of events organized

by BAS which has been captured through a splendid collection of photographs taken by members. For the first time BAS arranged a very interesting and well participated quiz competition and this year witnessed the revival of the Bangla Natok. In 2015 BAS initiated community projects that represented a sincere and honest effort to give back to a society much wider than our own community.

In MILON 2015 we replaced the President’s message by an interview with the President. His thoughts, aspirations and learnings have been captured in a Q&A session. Lastly, due to a change in the regulatory requirements relating to protection of personal data we had to discontinue the Members’ Directory from this year’s MILON. MILON always intends to remain connected with its readers as your suggestions and encouragement pave the path for the enhancement of MILON’s content, look and feel. We will await your thoughts and put forward our best effort to accommodate your recommendations in the next issue.

In conclusion, we wish the readers of MILON a year full of happiness, peace and fulfilment.

Sharodiyar Subhechcha aar Abhinondon from THE MILON 2015 TEAM

PRESIDENT & CHIEF PATRON Abhijit Ghosh

MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE Partha Ray Debananda Ghosh Shantanu Chatterjee Rittika Mukherjee Piu Lahiri Anish Mukherjee

THE MILON TEAM Ananya Mukherjee Deb Mukherji Sanjoy Banerjee Gargi Mazumdar Samyajit Chaudhuri Arnab Banerjee Debananda Ghosh

Photographers Devashis Das Partha Ray Mithu Chakraborty Gargi Mazumdar

Address: SINDA Building 1, Beatty Road Singapore 209943 mc@bengaliassociationsg.com www.bengaliassociationsg.com COPYRIGHT All material appearing in Milon Magazine is copyright by Bengali Association of Singapore unless otherwise stated or it may rest with the supplier of the material.

Milon Magazine takes all care to ensure all information is correct at the time of printing, but the publisher accepts no responsibility or liability for the accuracy of the contents or advertisments. Views expressed are not necessarily endorsed by the publishers or the editorial team.

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CONTENTS 34

Special Feature: A Look at the life and progress of Singapore and its Bengalees

60

Looking at the multifarious events in the last eventful year.

94 The Arts & Scuplture talent of the community is displayed with full grandeur

122

Photography talent among the community matches upto the best available. See some for yourself.

08 11 40 52 56 60 79 138 145 204

Editor’s Ramblings The Literary Section The President’s Interview The Milon Interviews In Memory The Year in Review Member Achievements The Cookery Section The Bengali Literary Section Tailpiece

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“An-an-yaaa Mukherjee? Sister of Rani Mukherjee? Your name sound like banana, so many n and a lah! So, you study in overseas ah, your English so Ang Mo! No? So how mah? Where in India are you from? Bollywood?”

That’s how I was inducted into the little red dot way back in 2003.

No, my parents did not think of a fruit when they christened me. Apparently, I was told, Rabindranath inspired them. Also, not all Mukherjees are related, and convent schools in India actually offer great education.

We live and breathe grammar and pronunciation, and often times protect the sanctity of the Queen’s language with a greater fervour than many born in the land of the Queen. We know our “Whwaats” and “Dyorings” thanks to some amazing teachers in school, and our Wren & Martin lives through all the dust and spite of grammar lessons (the second most hated class after Moral Science but brilliant nonetheless).

In addition, just to clarify, India has many more cities than Chennai and Bollywood (Bollywood by the way is no city with a pin code).

It took me a while, actually a little over 10 years to understand that “khar phaak” meant carpark, “can can” had nothing to do with Coke or Fanta and was an affirmative as sure as “Can do” and that “no have” was not a distorted theory in Marxism but simply implied “I don’t have it”. Also, call it a fallacy of my upbringing in a secular democratic nation, it took me a good many years to register and respond to seemingly inane questions like “Are you a foreigner?

How your skin so white, ah?” With time, I realised it was not a racist remark, no one was trying to make a judgment on my skin or the Fair & Lovely that I have never used, but a simple lack of general knowledge classes in elementary school bolstered by the obvious visibility of first generation immigrants mainly from the southern state of Tamil Nadu made India limited to the Deccan in the eyes of a common Singaporean.

I do not blame them. In Lake Market, my ancestral home in Kolkata, people in a veiled assumption still address their “tetul” neighbours as “Madraasi” no matter which state in Southern India they came from.

Moving back to Singapore! For

my creed, the North Indians, another lesson I learnt when I stepped offshores, and it had nothing to do with Agastya, was that India was divided into two halves-North and South. In the South, everyone was a Kanjeevaram-clad Tamil perfumed with fresh jasmine and Chennai was the most happening of all Indian cities; the North was Bollywood and the entire diaspora was part of a Suraj Barjatiya flick dancing in a lavish family wedding in a farm house somewhere in the world, preferably Swiss Alps.

My daughter, of course was a quicker learner than me. Having started her Kindergarten here, she not only spoke Mandarin, ate Chicken Rice but also befriended the locals like twins separated at birth or the proverbial kumbh ka mela. Her best friends in Kindergarten school were Ching Wei and Goh Ching Wei. My foodie Bong soul, very conveniently and much to her disapproval registered them as salivating Bong delectables --Chingri and Golda Chingri (prawns and tiger prawns).

Of course, she was infuriated! Her friends were not seafood on a platter, she told me categorically, hating the distortion but it helped me memorise names that sounded like references to sauces in my kitchen cabinet. My dad, in jest would call her peer group“Hing Ting Chhot”!

During my early days, I was also told Fish Head Curry was India’s National Dish. Though I cannot vouch for what it is in reality and I wonder if anyone else knows for sure if its’ tandoori chicken or khaman dhokla or the fiery maacher jhol. I gather it depends primarily on our origins and an ever changing political climate. The British, of course, have adopted our chicken tikka and now claim it as their national dish. But then, the British are known to have a history of first adopting and then claiming authority, whether it is a recipe, a government or an entire nation. So when Fish Head Curry was first introduced and offered to me, I freaked out at the sight of big fish eyes floating in a red curry looking straight up at me from a pool of egg plants and ladies fingers But with time, I learnt to say, “Sorry fish, I love what I am eating. You are dead anyway and you don’t care,” and

THE SPECIAL QUOTE ....what mystery lies behind that lah.........

ruthlessly learnt to avoid the “gaze” and savour the curry.

Then, of course, fellow native Indians warned me how the locals were the coldest, most distant, uncooperative inhospitable population in the world. No one smiled, no one even bothered if you were dead or alive. No one even romanced! The government was at several points pushing campaigns called Romancing Singapore, Smile Campaigns and Kindness movement to encourage people to live, love and laugh! However, it took very little to understand all this was hearsay and interpretations of individual perspectives.

Let me share two anecdotes with you today. If you have ever visited or lived in Singapore, you would know that there are only two seasons here-rains and more rains.

It was in one of those evenings with a torrential downpour when I came out of office and helplessly searched my bag only to realise that I had forgotten my umbrella at home. Now, that’s a taboo in this island. You can leave home without your spouse but never without your umbrella. That is unpardonable. However, I had already committed the grave mistake

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The Editor’s Ramblings

MY LAH -LAH LAND

of forgetting my umbrella and the rain was too heavy to not give me a Mandakini shower in Singapore’s bustling Central Business District. It was also very windy, like a cyclone swirling up the island in twists and turns. I stood under a little shaft for a little over 20 minutes, hopelessly praying that it would stop at some time and I would make my way to the nearest tube station just across the road, when out of the blue I saw a very young Chinese executive braving the lashing rains and crossing the street. He had a huge umbrella in his hand which he very chivalrously offered to me. We crossed the road; I said thank you. He smiled and left without a word. A very simple act but I was reminded of an adage I had learnt a long time ago-- “There are always good people around.”

a damsel in utter distress in the heart of the city not knowing whether I should break the other heel too or walk bare feet into a client meeting as if I were on a pilgrimage! I don’t know if it was the sheer vulnerability of my expression or the benevolence of the young lady who came again right from nowhere to offer me a pair of slippers she apparently had in her hand bag. Her exact words were, “I just came from the gym. I have a pair of slippers that you can use. I can’t see you like this.” I stood transfixed at the stranger’s generosity, unable to respond, thanked her profusely and asked how I could return the slippers.

“Don’t bother,” she smiled and left me speechless. In hindsight, from that day, be it a conspiracy of fate or a providential coincidence, I would think Singapore became home.

In another instance, my four inches heels gave away at a rather awkward moment. I was formally dressed in a business suit rushing to a meeting and running down a staircase to catch a cab. The darn left heel just dumped the sole. So here I was in a black business suit, looking oh- so-propah but inclined at a 72 degree angle, stranded helplessly like

From there till now, as the old Chinese security guard holds my condominium’s gate for me as a daily ritual and hails...”The most beautiful lady in Floravale...”, the smiles we exchange as I beam “Thank you, Uncle” somewhat embarrassed, somewhat flattered, to the cabbie who smiles from ear to ear and says “Gong Xi Fa Cai. Bless your family,” to

Emily, my tea lady in office who tells me every day like a guardian health monitor if I look bright or dull or “face so thin” and “eyes so lovely”, to the fish monger in Tekka who swears by the freshness of the “Ilees” and “Maagur maas”; to the salesgirl who serves me Gelato and does not take an order because she knows my flavour, to the lady at the counter at Guardian who by the medicines I buy knows I am unwell and enquires about my health like an old friend, to all the Chinese, Malay, “Ang Mo” , Bangladeshi and friends from other states in India who make Rabindranath and Durga Pujo their own, to the spirit of the red and gold, to all things and people that make me feel at home in this tiny red dot!

Happy SG50 my beautiful island country! May Ma Dugga bring you peace and prosperity!

And yes, in case you are still wondering what mystery lies behind that lah….it simply means, love!

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Somewhere the expressions Should find a vent; The deep yearnings that Lay underneath Buried under sediments of Corpses Of suppressed emotions fossilized in time.

The Core Perhaps Is still alive.

Who looks deep Or cares to dig; The tides around you Keep The humdrum of survival On. The Sun and the Stars above you Hold at bay the lure Of diving deep For the real Pearl In the Oyster Which perhaps now rests pretty In the core Resigned to its fate Of perhaps getting fossilized One day.

But what about the occasional Bubbles Which seep out once a while Emanating from the Core To find their way Through the sediments Collecting a few more of their kind along As they rise.

The Waves and the Sun And the Stars How much ever their interplay Can’t stop the Bubbles Escaping the discerning eye.

As the turbulence gets more rough Do I just take the deep dive To get to the Core And perhaps get fossilized With the Pearl In the Oyster!

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AT SEA

SAIKAT PODDAR

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Sultan Ibrahim Adil Shah II in procession Bijapur, early 17th century

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Basabi Banerjee is a long term active BAS Member, She has made tremendous contribution to preserving Indian culture in Singapore

Travelogue

Deccan Chronicles

by Basabi Banerjee

A

Unveiling the aura and influences that lie beneath the cultural and artistic grandeur of the Sultans of Deccan India

trip to New York in May this year gave me the rare opportunity to see a special exhibition at The Metropolitan Museum of Fine Art, titled: Sultans of Deccan India - Opulence and Fantasy. The exhibition presents one of the most charismatic and dynamic societies of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries through a remarkable array of paintings, textiles, jewellery and courtly art brought together from private and royal collections. The artistic style of the era which blended Indian traditions with those of Iran, Turkey and Eastern Africa, produced a unique Indo Islamic culture giving the lie to the notion that globalization is a recent phenomenon.

The Bahmani dynasty founded in the mid-fourteenth century, grew to control most of the Deccan plateau but was eventually divided into five independent Sultanates: Ahmadnagar, Golconda, Bijapur, Bidar and Berar. While the cosmo-

politan courts of these Deccan kingdoms respected tradition, their enlightened rulers were receptive to outside influences. Droves of Persian immigrants, Sufi Mystics, Shi-ite muslims and European traders made their way to the region during this period, paving the way for rich cultural and artistic exchanges with the Middle East, Africa and the West.

The Hindu kingdom of Vijaynagar to the south and the Imperial Moghuls in the north, added to the diversity and enchantment of Deccan art. The Sultanates were finally conquered by the Mughals in the late 1680s, but not before they had established an era which would arouse admiration and awe for centuries to come.

Resplendent gems nothwithstanding, it was the Deccan paintings which truly conveyed the spirit of the age in their combination of technical finesse and fantastic styles.

Brilliantly executed portraits of royalty, nobility, yoginis and Mullahs, scenes of courtly life and lushly patterned paintings transport us to a fascinating era. Some of the paintings on display reflect the ability to cast aside narrow sectarian affiliations and show equal respect to all religions.

Sultan Ibrahim Adil Shah the second of Bijapur (1580-1627), known for his devotiion to both Sufi and Hindu divinities, is depicted wearing rudraksha strings in a procession scene, showing his devotion to Saraswati.

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and counts among its former owners an Ottoman Sultan and Imelda Marcos! My personal favourite of the gems on display, was the twenty eight carat exotic pink diamond that Babur wore in his turban; he was no doubt aware that the ancient Indian text on gems, Ratnapariksa, regarded pink diamonds appropriate only for the most important kings.

The colours in the paintings are as vivid as when they were first created some five hundred years ago.

Teal green columns are painted with copper corrosion products and pink robes get their brilliant hue from the gorgeous scarlet red juice extracted from insect bodies. Vibrant yellows apparently result from the acid present in the urine of cows which have been fed on mango leaves!

A parrot perched on a mango tree, a ram tethered below Golconda, ca 1630-70

One of the most interesting aspects of the exhibition was the revelation that African slaves were recruited for the Deccan Sultanates through the Baghdad slave market.

The Africans sold to the Deccan must have been pleasantly surprised by the political conditions which permitted them to participate in the government and the military if they could prove their mettle. The legendary Ethiopian general of Ahmadnagar, Malik Ambar, brought over many slaves from Africato work under him as soldiers and proved to be a formidable adversary to the Mughals in the north. A painting of the

This spirit of religious liberalism also shines through a painting of a Sufi dervish receiving a Hindu holy man covered in ashes.

Few of us realize that some of the world’s most famous diamonds come from Golconda in the Deccan. Long before the discovery of Brazilian and African diamond mines, European traders flocked to Golconda to look for Deccan diamonds, celebrated for their size and pink and blue hues. Sultans usually wore large, flat-cut diamonds as amulets to bring the wearer good luck and protection. By contrast, the seventy-carat ‘Idol’s Eye’ diamond displayed in the exhibition, has the dazzling cut representing European taste

Sultan Muhammad Adil Shah and Ikhlas Khan riding an elephant Bijapur, ca 1645!

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creative levels, is truly impressive.

Marbling, first imported to India from Persia and Turkey was given the most interesting and unusual forms.

Exotic Kalamkari textiles presented delightful scenes of Deccani life through a complex process of dying and hand-painting.

Bidri metalwork from Bidar hammered beautiful designs in brass and silver onto dark metal alloys, creating beautiful trays, ewers and boxes. Masterful Arabic calligraphy adorned magnificent manuscripts of the Quran and appeared within zoomorphic designs.

Lady carrying a peacock; Probably Hyderabad, late 17th - early 18th century Watercolour on paper and marbled paper

In telling the story of the European discovery of the Deccan and the region’s rich, cultural exchanges with the Middle East, Africa and the Mughals, the Metropolitan Museum has taken us on an incomparable journey of ‘opulence and fantasy’.

For my husband and me it was a thrilling revelation of an era which, for us, had hitherto been shrouded in mystery.

Emperor Jahangir shooting an arrow at the severed head of the general can best be described as wishful thinking.

The allegorical painting dramatically portrays the antagonistic relationship between Malik Ambar and the imperial Mughals. In Bijapur, Sultan Muhammad Adil Shah had a powerful Prime Minister of African descent, who, in a famous scene painted in 1645, is seated behind the king on an elephant’s back to symbolize that he was the power behind the throne.

This Prime Minister, Malik Raihan, moved up from slave status when Sultan Adil Shah took the throne and received the title of Ikhlas Kahn in 1635.

The variety of artistic techniques that the Deccan took to new and

Kalamkari Rumal; Golconda region of Coromandel Coast; Ca. 1640-50

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Seeing Isn’t Believing Utpalendu Gupta

When

we see, do we see what is out there, or what is internal to us?

There is unlikely to be much argument over the claim that we see only internal images; the external world is forever beyond our direct grasp. But how are the two connected? Is there a connection at all? Is the external world only a seeming existence, not real?

Billions of words have been poured through the ages on to Himalaya-sized books in search of an adequate answer, and no one is any the wiser till today. This small article attempts to add a million words more, the kind Editor of Milon permitting.

The provocation came from the idea of “model-dependent realism” that Stephen Hawking and co-author Leonard Mlodinow talked about in their book The Grand Design. But more about it later.

Before going into the attempts in philosophy (metaphysics) over millennia to grasp “reality” – the dichotomy of the “out there” and the “in here” – let me first put forth three key propositions.

First, knowledge – or understanding – involves drawing of parallels, without which perception is possible, but neither knowledge nor understanding.

Second, reason – or logic – involves drawing of parallels, without which reasoning is possible, but not validated1.

Third, words – the tools for expressing knowledge and reasoning – involve drawing of parallels, without which words are possible, but rendered into babble2.

At the root of knowledge, of reasoning, and even of individual words, lies our ability to draw parallels.

We compare the current input data with the old data recorded in our brains, and only if we believe there’s a match, we understand the word, acknowledge

the reasoning, and claim to acquire knowledge.

The old data obviously are stored as experiences. What we have not experienced, we cannot talk about, cannot apply reasoning to, cannot transform into knowledge.

In any serious work, which this piece is, there must be footnotes. That is all this footnote has to say.

The three propositions I am not seeking to prove here, because by their very nature they aren’t provable. They may not, for all I know, even be true in all cases. But if, upon reflection on these three propositions, they seem to be mostly true, that would suffice for me.

With this opening salvo, I now come to “maayaa”, the doctrine postulated in ancient Indian texts and often understood as a grand illusion that explains the unreality of the external world that we see (or perceive, using senses other than the eyes).

What does maayaa mean, and how does it work?

For a word to convey meaning, it must evoke the memory of a prior experience. That does not of course prevent a word from having several meanings. Depending on the context in which the word is used, the specific meaning relevant to that context survives, other meanings are merely shrugged off. Many commonplace words have dual or multiple meanings.

But the greater the number of possible meanings attached to a word, the lesser is its value as a tool of communication. If the same word is used to mean a straight drive, a leg glance, an outswinger, a top-spinner, a penalty kick, a forehand volley, a birdie, an eagle, a poem, a novel, a theory on electromagnetism, and bypass surgery, the word is as good as meaningless.

Maayaa, unfortunately, is one such word that philosophers have used to signify a wide range of possible meanings, and often as a meaningless word in the garb of spouting profound

wisdom.

Should we look then to splitting the word maayaa into components, and inferring back the “authentic” meaning of the composite word? The etymology of a word, while often useful in trying to figure out its meaning, does not at the end determine it – only usage and custom do. For reasons that one need not go into here, words often revolt against their origin and history, and acquire quite different meanings.

It is for this reason that I would not place much significance on the root of the word “maayaa” in trying to interpret it today.

Swami Vivekananda, a renowned scholar of ancient Sanskrit texts, tells us that maayaa did indeed begin its foray into ancient scriptures with the meaning of illusion, or delusion, even magic. In some texts maayaa is personified as a deity. But the meaning kept evolving and changed over centuries. In a later-day Upanishad, says he, the word maayaa appears with a mass of new interpretations different from illusion.

In Advaita Vedaanta, the doctrine of maayaa is far removed from the popular interpretation of illusion. Here, Vivekananda says, maayaa is not an explanation for anything, but just a name given to the fact that the universe cannot be known or understood. There is no suggestion that the external world is an illusion, as if in a dreamland.

Holding the world as illusory would have surely destroyed the conviction with which Vivekananda embarked on the gigantic and long-lasting social welfare programme that he instituted, by and through the Ramakrishna Mission, and otherwise too. Maayaa, according to him, simply denotes the inscrutability of nature. No matter how one may try to understand and explain nature, one is bound to end up against a brick-wall of contradictions. The veil of maayaa, in that sense, cannot be lifted.

There are many examples Vivekananda quotes to elucidate

| october 2015

the principle of maayaa in Advaita Vedaanta. Man seeks desperately to acquire new knowledge, yet is aware that knowledge will forever remain inconclusive and incomplete. This, says Vivekananda, is maayaa. A mother loves her child dearly, but the child upon growing up rejects her. This is maayaa. We all are going to die, yet want somehow to cling on to life. This is maayaa. Good and evil are inseparably bonded together; increasing the good increases evil too, and reducing evil reduces the good too. This is maayaa.

Child marriage is good to maintain chastity in the young, but it leads to degrading the race physically and mentally. This is maayaa.

It is hard to find a common thread in the many examples Vivekananda sets before us to illustrate the principle of maayaa. One may only infer that he is referring to the principle of irreconcilable contradictions that infest our lives. At the end he says, maayaa is just a statement of the fact of the universe as it is, and isn’t an explanation of any sort.

Are we now better off in grasping the concept of maayaa?

Well, as Vivekananda himself says, the Advaitist interpretation of maayaa is only one among many. There are quite a few others doing their best to confound us.

Some (both Western philosophers and Indian sages) have been led to argue that there is no reality outside of us. The whole of existence is inside our consciousness. The mind constructs the external world which therefore rises with the mind, and sinks with the mind. Indian philosophers proffer various methods of hastening the dissolution of the external world, and one who in his mind has succeeded in dissolving the duality is called jeevanmukta.

Consciousness, in the view of such philosophers, is all-powerful, because it is our consciousness that creates the whole world and cradles it too. As an example, the Upanishads repeatedly point out to our dream experience. The argument put forth is that dreaming is a kind of awareness – wakefulness is another – and just as the “reality” seen in a dream dissolves when we wake up, the “reality” seen in wakefulness would dissolve when we wake up to a higher

state of awareness. Both “realities” are the handiwork of our consciousness – and that is maayaa. Both can be equally dissolved by our consciousness. The objective world has no independent existence.

As Vivekananda hints at, the Upanishads carry different interpretations of maayaa. The strict monism I mentioned above is not widely accepted. In their dissenting view, other sages – while conceding that the external reality as it is is beyond our cognition – do not rule out its existence altogether.

Most such arguments are unfortunately often presented in dense, almost impenetrable, language – creating room for a thousand interpretations by later scholars, each going his own way but claiming to be strictly faithful to the original.

It is not difficult to see the limitations of the monistic argument that consciousness is all-powerful to create whatever it wants to. We live in a three-dimensional world (as “created” by our consciousness).

No matter how hard we try, our consciousness cannot create a ten-, twenty-, or ninety-six-dimensional world. We can see and differentiate between colours in the so-called visible range of the electromagnetic spectrum. Again, it is impossible for us to see any other colour, even if we flog our consciousness to death.

The equating of the dreaming state to the wakeful state (inasmuch as both states would dissolve upon reaching a “higher” state) seems overdone.

In the dreaming state, one does not create any new world, but only draws on the existing material from wakeful experiences (i.e., a dream is a re-jigging of the memory, although the memory is often jumbled up, and fragments taken from different memories get mixed up to “create” something “new”).

Dreaming is a derivative of the wakeful state, not an independent state. One never dreams of something that is impossible to perceive in the wakeful state – no ten-dimensional space, nor time moving backward, nor colours outside the visible range, nor cuboids that are spherical. We do not even meet strangers in our dreams. There might be a crowd, but never a one-toone interaction with an unknown face in our dreams.

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That is all I can say about maayaa.

A million words that I promised seem now a distant dream, a maayaa of sorts. But let me push on.

Where do The Grand Design and model-dependent realism figure in this discussion?

The basic idea of modeldependent realism is that our brains have to interpret the inputs coming through our sensory organs, and the interpretation necessarily involves making a model of the outside world.

The mental concepts we form of our home, trees, other people, atoms, molecules, and other universes, are the only reality we can know. There is no model-independent test of reality.

The pursuit of science, too, involves making models that seek to approximate nature. The scientist has to always bear in mind that truthseeking isn’t her goal, for the simple reason that truth-seeking isn’t a winnable game, as the doctrine of maayaa tells us. What scientists can indeed do, through both theoretical and experimental research, is to first conceptualise and then make use of models to enhance the utility of the things around us.

There are thus two types of models The Grand Design is effectively talking about. The first type is those models that are created by our system involuntarily. The redness we see in a rose is an example, because it can be safely assumed that (i) the redness is not inherent in the rose, but is merely the way we see it because of our human-specific biology and physiology, and that (ii) the process is involuntary, our conscious will having no choice in perceiving the rose as of some other colour.

The second type comprises models used in scientific research, in the pursuit of knowledge. These models are obviously our voluntary creations, and we keep amending as well as rejecting models based on their utility to us.

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| october 2015

My Culture My culture sees the vibrant, colorful streets during festivals and the little girls with beautiful henna peacocks painted on their palms and the rangolis and the diyas and the paintings But it also observes as the skyscrapers arrogantly tower over the nearby distressed slums.

My culture draws in the musky smell of spices and the bittersweet smell of petrol and the pungent smell of the garbage on the streets.

My culture tastes the salt from the Arabian sea and the spicy street food from Kolkata and the curry and the rice from South India and the crunchy apples from Kashmir and all the delicious mouthwatering sweets.

Srishti Bhawal Grade 9 UWCSEA Music and art to me are an expression of life. I love mythology, nature, animals and social causes like child education, women empowerment are very close to my heart constantly motivating me to debate on them and aspire to contribute to the betterment of children and women across geographies.

My culture hears the loud honks of frustrated drivers and the boisterous shouts of street hawkers and the booming laughter flowing out of a nearby tea stall and the ancient mythological tales that children flock around grandparents to absorb.

My cultures wraps it arms around the powdered color brought out a day before Holi and the thousands of sparklers lit on Diwali and the millions of people who call it their home.

My culture embraces humanity.

| october 2015

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Sayantan Mukhuti

MY CULTURE

When I look into my land, I see golden statues of Gods, colourful garlands, Red brick buildings and everything from Tall snowy peaks to barren desert land.

When I delve into the culinary senses Of my nation, I discover curry with an Array of spices and fresh, juicy mangoes, Straight from the tender arms of the deep rooted trees.

When I listen to my culture, I just sit and hear the distant ringing of Bells with the humming of endless chants in all Possible dialects.

I hear the deep, calm, rushing sound of The River Ganges as it snakes its way through my nation.

Alas! All this is overshadowed by The noisy honking of monotonous cars Finding its way through frustrating traffic.

Whenever I touch the delights of my country, I feel the warmth of being at home, the soft petals Of flowers, amazingly growing from rocks.

On the other side of the land, it’s another World with the full torture of the dry, blistering heat.

When I smell what my culture has to offer to me, I find the pungent smell of cigarettes Mixed with the soothing smell of Darjeeling tea.

If I go to a temple, I am sure to be greeted by the tantalising Smell of burnt nutmeg and the divine smell of Lighted Incense Sticks.

Looking Beyond this space, There is a lot more to experience.

I watch the sun as it rises from the horizon, the first shimmers of light The first of many shimmers of our culture

Sayantan Mukhuti studies at the United World College of South East Asia, East Campus. He is currently in Grade 10

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| october 2015

KOYENA PAL

MY FUTURE! MY ASPIRATIONS!

When I first started school, I questioned myself ‘Why do I need to learn so many subjects?’

I bet everyone must have asked himself or herself this question when they were young. To be honest, I have often pondered about ‘what am I going to gain’ when in my Mathematics exam, I was tested to find the value of ‘x’.

Now that I am in an age where soon I would be off to university to study for my major, I could finally answer all my queries that I have asked myself throughout my school life. All of my questions led to one important answer – to lead a fruitful and satisfied life where I can ensure personal growth in terms of intellect and knowledge and help, protect and serve myself as well as others in a society. Now I know that the value of ‘x’ is significant as it is the unknown quotient that makes life challenging.

From the time I was a toddler, I was always curious and interested in electronic devices. I always

wondered how a particular gadget worked, where it came from and how it was designed.

There was never a time where I did not fiddle with my parent’s cell phone, computer and of course the television. There was also never a time where I did not get mesmerised with the astounding data that a particular device could store. When I discovered that one could delete data permanently, I constantly thought whether that data could be retraced and recovered. In school, when I first learned that I had an IT lesson, I was probably the happiest kid so much so that my classmates found my enthusiasm quite weird. So by now, you must be wondering whether my goals have anything to do with technology. If you were thinking about that, you are hundred percent correct. One of my aspirations to achieve in this lifetime is to be a Computer Forensics Analyst.

If you don’t know what one needs

to do as a Computer Forensics Analyst, let me tell you in simple words! You get to be all James Bond or even the hacker in CSI who always gets information about the criminal they are chasing and all those hidden or even deleted data that hackers can actually retrieve. However, in reality, no one can get any sort of this information as quick as a snap of your fingers. It obviously takes time and a lot of patience to get any type of evidence.

The reason I want to be one of them, is that I wish to help the law enforcement officers to solve cases that would help bring justice to the victims. In this case, it usually concentrates on cyber crime cases. You must be thinking, if I am so interested in saving or providing justice to innocents, why not be a lawyer or a police officer? The fact is that I want to follow my passion in computers as well as help citizens by protecting them. I want to enjoy the challenge of recovering data troubleshooting

| october 2015

and being actually be in a position to make a difference. I want to feel satisfied for following my desire and also experience a life which not many individuals take part in even though it means looking at the bad and darker side of mankind.

But in order to have the skills to be one, I also need to learn about cyber security. I need to learn how data can be protected from being revealed to the wrong ones. Most companies, especially banks, suffer from insolvency because an illegal hacker is capable of stealing nearly all the monetary possessions of the company online. The best example would be the incident that recently happened to JPMorgan Chase bank, the biggest bank in USA. This one was hacked last October where around ‘76 million households and seven million businesses had their data compromised’. How would you feel if you were one of them? You would feel distraught, right? That is why, I also wish to protect people’s personal information by ensuring the security is enforced by making more complicated codes or software that would be difficult to hack. Even if this is a time consuming and difficult job, I will feel thrilled to be in one because I like being challenged as it would bring out my true potential and explore as well as expose nearly every skill that I have learned throughout my life.

Speaking of learning and performing in my dream job as a Computer Forensics Analyst, I believe my work may take me to exciting parts of the world that I wish to explore. I do not want to be the ‘all work and no play’ kind of an individual. I hope to discover the different cultures and rich traditions of a particular place. I would like to witness their lifestyles and learn about social conventions.

It always fascinates me how despite our physical limitations, we are all global citizens and how we can connect to each other globally through the Internet. Though we can learn nearly anything about each culture and language online, the excitement of acquiring first hand knowledge about something is truly inspiring when we see it live. I wish to appreciate the unique beauty of each place, experience all kinds of lifestyles and interact with new people. I want to make my life a joyful ride and not a monotonous routine. I don’t want to spend a week just waking up in the morning, and then going to work and coming back home late at night only to sleep for few hours to repeat the whole cycle again. But, sometimes, this is how most individuals spend their whole lives. That is why, I seriously hope that in my lifetime, I get to travel around the world to experience a change, relax myself, learn new facts, and fulfill my dream of seeing new places.

Till now, I have only covered two of my significant hopes that I wish to achieve in my life. I believe my last one, is usually every individual’s dream – to lead a satisfied life. Some people get confused with the terms ‘satisfied’ and ‘successful’ life. I believe that one has a successful life when one has achieved all their aims and goals. Like, if I become a Computer Forensics Analyst and have travelled around the world, I will lead a successful life. One has a satisfied life when one is content with whatever he or she has and is delighted about his or her life’s direction going forward. Fulfilling my goals will definitely make me feel content but not fully satisfied. For me, a satisfied life is when I can achieve the much coveted work-life balance so that I can spend quality time with my friends and family. Sometimes, it gets hard for some professionals to have enough time for their loved ones. This

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is usually the case when both the parents are workaholics. They are unable to give their time to their children. I, most definitely wouldn’t want that happen to show me their genuine smiles that will light up my day. I would want choose a life where I always get to be with someone who makes me feel at home rather than a life where I am only surrounded with materialistic luxuries. This is my third and the most important wish that I desire to achieve in my lifetime.

Les Brown once said, ‘If you get goals and go after them with all the determination you can muster, your gifts will take you places that will amaze you.’ This quote has truly inspired me and motivated me to believe that nothing is impossible. Hope this helps all of you out there as well.

My name is Koyena Pal and currently, I am a junior college (IBYr1) student in GIIS. I am 16 years old and am hoping to lead a fruitful life as mentioned in my essay. My main hobbies are playing tennis, piano, and definitely watching movies.

Since quite a few people ask me questions about my recent awards, I might as well just write it here. This August I was awarded as an honorable delegate for the Yale-NUS Model ASEAN and also just found that I won Silver Medal in the Commonwealth Essay Competition. I am sure this essay must have given you an insight about what I am and what are my qualities. So, it’s for you decide what you think I really am and how would I come about when I am talking face-to-face with you.

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| october 2015

Am I Charlie?

Je Suis Charlie

NABONITA SEN

. This was a phrase I had heard and seen many times on television and cover pages of magazines. I had no idea what it meant. So when my father returned from Europe after a business tour with a copy of the latest issue of a French newspaper Charlie Hebdo on whose cover was the cartoon of Prophet Muhammad with those same words “Je Suis Charlie”, I asked my father about it. He told me that recently, there had been a terrorist attack at a French newspaper called Charlie Hebdo’s headquarters. I decided to find out more about it and so I read through a few articles. My initial thoughts were that the attackers were totally unreasonable but as I thought more and more about the incident, I started wondering that it was probably not totally the attackers fault, though killing another human being is never excusable. This is what made me decide to write about Charlie Hebdo and examine the underlying issues of culture and conflict from different viewpoints.

Charlie Hebdo is a satirical weekly magazine that features cartoons, reports, polemics and jokes. Although it seems to me that it is entertaining, it is quite offensive too. It publishes articles on religions (such as Catholicism, Islam and Judaism), politics, culture, etc. After

publishing some contentious cartoons on Prophet Muhammad, the magazine has been the target of two terrorist attacks, once in 2011 and once earlier this year.

Even though twelve people were killed in the second attack this year, one of whom was the magazine’s former editor, Stephane Charbonniere (Charb), the magazine is still continuing to publish issues every week.

Back in the 18th Century, the target was the royal family, and these type of scandal sheets wrought havoc with tales - often illustrated - of sexual antics and corruption at the court at Versailles.

Charlie Hebdo is part of this venerable tradition in French journalism going back to the scandal sheets that denounced Marie-Antoinette in the run-up to the French Revolution. French people, though they may not necessarily read these scandal sheets, still allow them to be published because they were responsible in some ways for the French Revolution and thus helped the common people.

The same spirit of insolence that once took on the ancient regime - part coarse and funny writings, part political selfpromotion - is still very much on the scene and take on politicians, the police, bankers and religion. Satire, rather than outright fabrication, is the weapon of choice. For example, Charlie Hebdo

| october 2015 published a cartoon in 2009, making fun of the nepotism of then-French president Nicolas Sarkozy, who tried to get his son Jean a job as the head of the development agency for France’s largest business district. “I slept with my father to get ahead,” said Jean Sarkozy in the caption of the cartoon. The French media then went onto take up the story, which led to a public protest. The younger Sarkozy was forced to turn down the job offer.

The right to say, write or print what you want is rooted in the declaration of rights that came with the 1789 French Revolution, but even then law limited abuse of that freedom. Those exceptions were defined in 1881 (in French) as defamation, slander and incitement to hate. There is also explicit reference to condoning crimes of war, crimes against humanity or collaboration with the enemy. Blasphemy, however,was definitively removed from French law by the Act of 29 July 1881, which instated freedom of the press. However, not since the revolution has blasphemy been against the law in France, and according to Mr Valls, current Prime Minister of France, it never will. Charlie Hebdo has used this feature of the French law to publish the cartoons of Prophet Mohammed, which would be against the law in many countries. I feel that Charlie Hebdo basically took advantage of their law not prohibiting blasphemy.

In my eyes, freedom of speech is the concept of the inherent human right to voice one’s opinion publicly without fear of censorship or punishment. The right is preserved in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and is granted formal recognition by the laws of most nations. Nonetheless the degree to which the right is upheld in practice varies greatly from one nation to another. Countries take different approaches to issues such as hate speech, obscenity and defamation; laws against these issues, even in countries seen as liberal democracies are often criticized as censorship by activists. France as a country while supporting the principle of “freedoms of speech” as a concept and not having any laws against blasphemy has felt the need to progressively tighten its laws against defamation and hate speech.

Though images of Prophet Muhammad are not explicitly banned by the Quran itself, prominent Islamic views have long opposed human images, especially those of prophets. Such views have gained ground among militant Islamic groups in the Middle East.Accordingly, some Muslims, particularly in conservative Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia, take the view that the satire of Islam, of religious representatives, and—above all—of Muslim prophets is blasphemy forbidden by religion and that it can even be punished by death. It is interesting to note that the Al-Azhar University in Egypt released a statement denouncing the attack, stating that violence was never appropriate regardless of “offense committed against sacred Muslim sentiments”.

However, it did reflect the views of many Muslims that what Charlie Hebdo had done was indeed an ‘offense’ as seen by them.

Some notable public figures however took a different view of the incident and the condemnation that followed. American journalist David Brooks wrote an article titled “I Am Not Charlie Hebdo” in The New York Times, arguing that the magazine’s humor was childish, but was necessary as a voice of satire. He also criticized many of those in America who were ostensibly voicing support for free speech, noting that were the cartoons to be published in an American university newspaper, the editors would be accused of “hate speech” and the university would “have cut financing and shut them down.” He called on the attacks to be an impetus toward tearing down speech codes.

Noam Chomsky views the popularization of the Je suis Charlie slogan by politicians and media in the West as hypocritical, comparing the situation to the NATO bombing of the Radio Television of Serbia headquarters in 1999, when 16 employees were killed.

“There were no demonstrations or cries of outrage, no chants of ‘We are RTV’ [...]”, he noted. Chomsky also mentioned other incidents where U.S. military forces have caused higher civilian death tolls, without leading to intensive reactions such as those that followed the 2015 Paris attacks.

As I think more about the whole incident, I am convinced that while killing is unpardonable, insulting someone else’s religion is wrong too. Although when I was reading through articles, I felt that freedom of speech is fair and everyone should have it, I now think that it is better to have some restrictions as it can easily offend people.

I think that both sidesin this incident – the editors of the newspaper and the terrorists who attacked them - firmly believed that their values were right and they were doing the right thing. But is unlimited freedom of speech the most important value for everyone?

We know, as I believe, it is not, as many countries including countries considered liberal democracies, have placed limits on it. To quote Bilahari Kausikan from the Straits Times “There is no one as rabid and intolerant as a liberal in full bray in defense of

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liberalism, an irony that liberals seldom appreciate”. Any action taken to defend a system of values which one believes as absolutes,seldom ends well. In my opinion, while it is important to have freedom, it is also important to be careful that you do not offend someone.

There clearly has to be some reasonable limits to the principle of “freedom of speech”. France, like many other European countries, has laws against the denial of the holocaust. When the law was challenged on the grounds that it infringed freedom of expression, the United Nations Human Rights Committee held that it was justifiable as necessary to counter anti-Semitism, that is behavior discriminating against the Jews. Even the United States prohibits hate speech.

As Uncle Ben says in the movie Spiderman “With great power there must also come great responsibility!” Similarly if we are lucky enough to have the privilege of having “freedom of speech”, we must use it responsibly. Isaiah Berlin, a political philosopher and intellectual historian, probably made the argument best. To summarize the central point that infuses his body of work: there is not only one Good but multiple Goods and these Goods often contradict each other and so cannot be simultaneously realized. We all need to understand this and use our privileges responsibly.

Nabonita Sen, 12, is a P6 Gifted Education Program student of Raffles Girls Primary School. In addition to her excellent academic performance, she is a also a accomplished dancer (having performed on television several times from the age of 5) and plays the trombone for her school band. She is also a connoisseur of good food and bakes in her spare time.

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| october 2015

Those

Ninety Minutes

W

Soumyaditya Choudhuri (Mohul)

e were late. Very late. Comparatively, it does not feel great to miss even one nanosecond of football action. Not at all in European football, but even more so in Barcelona football.

The match was supposed to be on the day after we arrive in Barcelona by train. But of course, that was an estimate. The thing in European football is, a match can be on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday. It is almost always a Sunday as most people are free then. And hence the ticket booking portal showed Sunday.

But, unfortunately, it was brought in front to the previous day, Saturday. Our train was arriving on the same day from Nice, a train route by the Mediterranean Sea coast. The train was delayed by a few minutes, it basically meant we were going to miss the first few minutes of the match.

We anticipated the delay on the way and as we reached Barcelona Sants, we got out of the station and caught a taxi fast to a hotel just near Camp Nou. We just put our luggage in the concierge, and ran off to Camp Nou. As we entered the huge, beautiful compound in which the Camp Nou was located, we were overwhelmed by the huge roar. “VISCA EL BARCA!!!�, they cheered. I almost froze in terror, by the thought of have missing the first goal. The legs of a cheetah spawned inside my own. Luckily, we did not miss action.

We missed 3 long minutes. If not for the high tension in the match, the crowd, quiet one moment, loud the next, we would probably never find our way through to the seat. We had to walk all around the stadium just because our seat was on the opposite corner. Even luckier, there was

The Stadium!

| october 2015

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| october 2015

no action then.

And then, as we have all heard the common phrase: “Make hay while the sun shines”.

And I guess it was true. Into the second half, when Barcelona was attacking the goal we were sitting right behind, Xavi started looking dangerous. Then he started lurking in the shadows, waiting for an opportunity. And then he got a chance. And then he shot the ball, a slight tap, slow but steady and consistent, which found its way into the binding of the net. Slow and steady wins the race. Correct, Xavi. Good demonstration as well.

How long did it take you to read that? Reflect calmly. Now, divide your seconds by the biggest number you can actually think of. You will eventually get a hyper micro number. Which has a few zeros after the decimal, before starting the natural digits. That is exactly how long the Barcelona team needed to combine, in a fruitful effort to go in front.

Only twelve minutes later, it was not over. They have a strict selfless rule, I guess. Neymar sent the ball home with one of the most distinct of shots. Sliding his right foot across knee level, he just tapped it somehow, with some part of his foot, that just demonstrated how he was the de Villiers of football. Creativity.

The most intricate of shots are made by the most creative of thoughts. I mean, I think so. How nice to have two in a row. Even better when one demonstrates team move, and the other pure delicacy.

So there, we have won the match.

Or so, I think.

Forget what I said two lines ago.

Or maybe, don’t. Let’s just add a bit more to the sentence. We

have won the match, but not completed it yet. Of course. We forgot Him.

match ends. But, weren’t eighteen minutes supposed to be left?

Him, the God of perfection. The purity of the touches. The fertility of the soil under him seems to increase. Every step.

Yes, but no. I mean, they passed away.

Messi is still left.

Lurking midway in the opponents half of the pitch, is Messi.

Standing quietly, as if to merge with the surrounding is Messi.

Making quick, but not that noticeable movement with his feet, is Messi.

And two minutes later, scoring the third of the evening, is the same. Messi.

A calm and peaceful piece of play ends with a goal. A nonthreatening look on his face, he just paces up the pitch, as if indifferent to his surroundings. But when the man gets the spherical ball between his feet, the lights in the stadium change. Everyone watching carefully, as if no small detail of this play can be missed.

And the little genius, looking with all intent, all the necessity, calculated every angle, every timing within a split second. And then, the release. The ball leaves the foot. And strikes the pole. In unison, everybody sighs. And turn away.

But the genius starts celebrating.

For the ball is in the side netting.

Three goals to nil. An impactful and amazing scoreline. An amazing sight. The blue and claret wave around, colouring the night sky, as a six year old would do with crayons.

Current score: FCB 3-0 EIB, the scoreboard displays, in large, bold lettering.

And then, all too suddenly, the

With a sad heart, but elated mood, I walk towards the hotel.

I do not know how feelings can contradict each other. But they do. The sadness of the match ending so fast, and the joy of watching all three astounding goals. As they do at even this very moment.

For that momentary occasion has now died down. But the fire remains flaring, glowing in my heart forever, in such a way, to demonstrate that other things can die.

But, ninety minutes cannot die.

Soumyaditya Choudhuri (Mohul) Student of Grade 7, UWCSEA Dover. 12 years old. Most favourite subjects: Mathematics, Science, Spanish and Computers. Soccer is one of my passions, Minecraft is another. I love the sport of cricket as well, and idolise AB de Villiers.

In football, Lionel Messi is my role model in the Beautiful Game.

| october 2015

Illustrated by: Ritarupa Dhar

SUDESHNA DHAR

Rose Petal

Love is a delicate rose fragile, breakable, beautiful.

Pick it up and then you’ll see how you bleed, how you cringe how you squeeze your eyes shut, a tear escaping how you hiss in pain, how you hiss in shock how you watch the blood of your life mix with the red of that fragile, breakable, beautiful rose petal.

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B

| october 2015

oom, crash, bang was all he heard, day and night. Rony lived with his uncle who was a scientist, or a crazy scientist, as some people said. For a scientist like him, he needed a huge, no, a mega house. The best place was Mount 223 of Village Two, Two, Three. The mountain was dark and gloomy at first.

Even if Rony’s Uncle, Professor Bubbles made it better by adding lights, sunlight never reached in.

Professor Bubbles was a serial inventor with crazy inventions like a machine which could hear voice of leaves, flowers and trees. One day he invented a scooter which could fly with twist of a knob. One day he put some leaves in water and turned it blue. That blue water was enough to run car and truck engines!!

People’s way of life had changed; the way they thought and the way they acted.

People now thought that they would never die, so they became carefree.

They did anything they wanted. They acted like a male lion resting and doing no work, most of the time. Thinking they wouldn’t die, people stopped having food or water, as the potion destroyed any hunger or thirst they had, not letting them die. The villagers stopped taking care of their pets and animals like cows, dogs, horses. The animals started dyeing because of hunger. The potion healed any wounds and no one got sick, so people did things which they wouldn’t probably do in normal circumstances.

People became very lazy.

Professor Bubbles’s latest invention was bubbling in the heart of the mountain. It was a curious and interesting potion, golden in colour.

“What’s the new invention?” asked Rony.

This went for a few days, but as Rony had said, “It’s impossible to live forever!”

The potion did heal but not for long, as it was impossible. But the people of the Village Two, Two, Three were ignorant and didn’t realise it. They started getting sick and when they finally realised it, it was too late.

“What’s the new invention?” repeated Rony, shouting at top of his voice.

“Don’t disturb me when I am busy! I shall tell you when it’s over,” replied the Professor.

Next day, Professor Bubbles announced that he had made a potion which would make people immortal!

Even worse, Professor Bubbles had exported the potion to other places, in a ship. So, Rony went to stop the ship, in a mini aeroplane, which his uncle created.

When he reached the ship, he told the captain of the ship that he should take the barrels of potion back to Village Two, Two, Three.

“That is impossible! It is against the law of nature,” said Rony.

The captain angrily said, “You just want to keep the potion to yourself!”

He didn’t let Rony to take the potion back, even after he explained why. Rony somehow managed secretly to put the barrels into the plane and bring it back to Village Two, Two, Three. No one knows how he did it because he did it so secretly.

“Then I managed to do the impossible,” said Professor Bubbles.

Soon there was a long queue of people in front of Mt.223. Professor Bubbles started handing the potion out to the villagers “I still think it’s a bad idea,” said Rony.

The professor replied, “Rubbish,” and continued to hand out the potion.

The queue remained long in front of Mount 223 throughout the day.

Prof. Bubbles hadn’t thought that anything would change other than people never dying, but something major changed.

Meanwhile, Professor Bubbles after realising his mistake started working day and night on an antidote in his science lab in Mount 223. After seven days and nights of hard work, Bubbles managed to make an antidote. Using that people in Village Two, Two, Three became normal and the crazy scientist Professor Bubbles learnt a good lesson of life.

IMPOSSIBLE

A Short story

By: Adrija Mazumdar, 12 yrs

POETRY

OINDRILA

GUHA The Voice of Addiction

Well, it’s nice to finally meet you.

I’ve been waiting for your call.

I’ve noticed you’ve been crying, And, I’ve watched you pace the halls.

I should probably introduce myself.

I am your very own addiction.

But, you can not be angry with me.

I am your own self-conviction.

Whatever has been hurting you, I can make it disappear.

You know you have nothing to lose, Nothing to live for, nothing to fear.

You have nothing to worry, I’m your addiction, I’ll never leave your side.

We’ll become well acquainted over the years There’s no use trying to hide.

I bet you feel rather stupid, Falling right into my lap.

I’m a master at manipulation.

You’ll never escape my trap.

How does it feel to dance with something you can’t control?

You and I are one in the same.

God, has completely abandoned you, So, you might as well stay in the game.

Are you honestly going to try and beat me?

A useless battle if you want to know.

Go ahead and make an attempt.

Besides, I’m in the mood for a good show.

I’ll always be your dirty little secret.

I won’t disappear over time.

Twenty years from now you may falter, And, I’ll be the first thing that comes to mind.

| october 2015

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In Front of the Mirror In front of the mirror is where she stood, a look of disgust she cast herself; something no one understood In front of the mirror is the reflection she hated to see, all she saw was everything society didn’t want her to be In front of the mirror, tears flooded her eyes, everything about herself is what she has grown to despise In front of the mirror stood a girl who wanted to change, her personality, her looks - she wanted to rearrange In front of the mirror was a shattered soul, thanks to society’s unruly standards that took its toll In front of the mirror the girl altered herself, The very person she was before, now tucked far away on some distant shelf In front of the mirror now stood a girl she could not recognize, someone alternate from who she used to be; someone she no longer needed to criticize In front of the mirror she now felt confident, but as time went by, society standards proved dominant In front of the mirror she finally realized, the standards of society were petty, and she didn’t want her facade to be idealized In front of the mirror to herself she vowed, to be comfortable in her skin, to love herself the way she was - and so she stood, proud In front of the mirror was a changed girl, who knew with all her flaws, she was still a pearl In front of the mirror was a reflection so irrefutable, she knew deep down that she was beautiful.

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| october 2015

of Caterham. It is a good 45 minutes drive. We saw all sorts of farm animals in the farm and needlessto say that it was spread over acres and acres of land!

After reaching the farm, they checked our riding ability. Whether we were able to change the rein, trot, walk and then canter. It went about for 30 minutes. After successfully passing the test, I was given a horse named Bella and Mashi was given Anna. Our Instructor, Joe was riding Bamby.

Hacking In London May 2012 Summer in London Today is one of the top 5 best days of this 15 year old life of mine.

Quite like a procession we went out onto the road and started to trot. We came across many cars on the road and although they were travelling at quite a speed, neither did they honk nor did they show any signs of rudeness or ignorance. From Joe and Mashi I learnt that people in the UK follow and practice “Horse Etiquette”!! This basically exists due to the Royal Family’s love and practice of Riding, Bless them!!

Let me start from the very beginning.

My First Term exams just got over and I am in London at my Mashi & Mesho’s place right now for a holiday. They live in Caterham. And the best part is that, the very day we reached London, me and Mashi went for Horse Riding. I went Horse Riding after almost 3 months!!

After riding for about 15 minutes on the country roads, we reached a gate beside which I could see a curved lane heading towards the woods. Every now and then you could see foxes and rabbits crossing your paths. While going through that narrow lane in the woods , I felt quite like the “Mad Hatter” in ‘Alice in Wonderland!’

We both knew that after getting back home, both of us would have to go through excruciating pain! Although I knew that Ma would be there to take care of both of us. Mashi explained the whole process to me which I’ll in turn describe to you now, and, then write about my experience.

This story is about ‘Hacking’. Which is used to describe the process of taking the horses out of the farm or riding schools onto the roads and woods, fields and most excitingly to the highways!!

After a while we reached another small woods where I could see slight traces of habitats. All the houses had beautiful gardens in font and the other three sides were surrounded by fields for their animals to graze and play around in. These houses were full of cats, dogs, sheep, pig, hens and ducks. The dogs from all the houses went barking seeing the three horses roaming around in their territory!

After walking out of the woods we reached a road which leads us onto a bridge built over the M25 (one of the longest and most important motorways of the UK).

Where vehicles move nonstop at very high speeds! That feeling was so exhilarating. We felt quite like the Royalty!

Then we entered the woods again after a long walk by the M 25. Joe asked us if we were ready for a Canter. I agreed and Mashi agreed

So, in the morning after our arrival and breakfast, Me, Ma, Mashi and ofcourse ‘Olu’, Mashi’s furbaby, pet dog started our journey to Brenda’s farm.

The farm is situated on the outskirts

with me and we held TIGHT!! In the procession, I was placed in between Mashi & Joe. There are four levels of Cantering, if you exceed the 4th level then it becomes Galloping. Now, me and Mashi were still in just level 1 of Cantering in our respective riding schools. But Joe even while knowing that crucial piece of information decided to pick up cantering of the 4th level. We two were overwhelmed by the sudden speed, let go the rein andheld on to the saddle as tight as possible. I’ve never experienced so much speed. After what felt like forever, we came to a halt and walked on. Then we entered a huge field called TwoFields.

It was a very pretty sight. The typical scenery as often described by the English authors. A huge lush green field surrounded by massive trees acting as a natural boundary. We were suppose to guide our horses around the field and not through the middle of the filed. Joe, after around 10 mins of trotting asked us “ Do you wanna do another canter?”

The horses, according to what I think were tired of listening to our instructions and thought that they should take decisions by themselves!

Well that is something which is not suppose to be happening. As I mentioned above Joe said the word ‘canter’ out loud to reach our ears. Now Bella picked up on a canter without any warning!

And we went right through the middle of the fields. Watching Bella’s ‘freedom fun’ Anna thought she should get hers! Joe was left behind because Bamby was an old horse and also Joe had complete control over her horse. Bella shot towards the North East and Anna towards the West.I could hear Mashi screaming a lot.

In the meantime Joe came galloping toward me, she was instructing me at that moment in time to ‘sing’ at the horse ‘stopeeeyyy’.. ‘sing to her stoppeeyy’!! I was not in a position to sing to a horse which is cantering away with me as if she is helping me to elope with my prince charming and my father is chasing us with all the soldiers of the kingdom! We entered another part of the field which was about 1000s of yard away from where we were supposed to

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be. I prayed to god and pulled her reins as tight as I could but she tried to throw me off! Now suddenly I turned around to check if Anna was there. What I saw was Anna was following Bella but there was no trace of Mashi on her back!!! My heart leapt to my throat. Fearengulfed me completely when I tried to think where she could be? Now satisfied with heradventure, Bella decided to listen to me and came to a halt. I saw Anna and Bella’s hoof markson the wet mud. I took hold of Anna’s rein with my left hand and bella’s with the right and guided them back to the place where we came from. But could not see Mashi anywhere. Then suddenly Joeappeared and took over Anna. I asked her where is Mashi and she murmured something which I dreaded the most. Mashi had fallen down and hit her head on the ground but as she was wearing a helmet it shouldn’t be a problem she said.

got scared but due to my slurred fast speech and haste she understood only the key words those were: mashi fell down, hit her head, cannot remember anything, lost her glasses.

Me and Joe started returning back. On the way, I lost my riding stick. From a distance I could see Mashi lying on the muddy field filledwith long grasses. I immediately disembarked from the horse and found her without her glasses. I asked her what happened. However, to my surprise, she had no recollection of what had actually happened. I was terrified! Mesho is not in town, me and Ma are visitors here... we didn’t know a single person who could drive us home or to a nearby hospital!!

Where will we go and look for her glasses in this huge forest?! How will she drive? She cannot even remember what happened to her!

How will we face Mesho? What will I tell him? All these thoughts were infiltrating my mind me one after the other. On top of that, Mashi kept on asking me, ’what happened to me? did I fall down? Where are my glasses?’

After resting for a while she managed to drive us to Twofields where, within a few minutes of searching my mom found her glasses and my riding stick.

My heart almost stopped beating. But, the moment Joe gave the horse to Mashi she hopped onto it like a professional. After that the ride was smooth, and we reached Brenda’s farm. There I saw my mom and the sense of relief flooded through every vein in my body. I immediately started narrating every tiny detail to her at top speed. She

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We were taken inside Brenda’s living room cum office where cats, dogs, rabbits, hamsters all live in harmony. She heard us out and wanted to call for the ambulance.

Although, from the field itself, Joe had informed her about the incident and she had reported an ambulance but wanted to see mashi for herself then, would have confirmed with them.

Ma also spoke with mashi and felt that her loss of memory might have just been due to the sheer shock.

She was in quite a bit of pain but she hid it well till Mesho arrived the next morning. Brenda gave her some drinks to revive her senses. And after about 15 to 20 minutes she started feeling better.

We went home that day with a lot of adrenaline rush and pain. However, the memories and experience was worth it all.

About Diya Chatterjee I am Diya Chatterjee. I am 18 years old and I study Economics and Politics at the University of Kent in the UK. I love adventurous sports and since I grew up in Dubai, Horse riding has been a strong passion of mine. This is where I learnt horse riding.

While living in Singapore I volunteered at Riding for the Disabled Association.

Here I had the opportunity to teach horse riding to kids with various mental, physical or learning disabilities. I also learnt a great deal about maintaining stables and grooming and training horses.

I hope to be able to continue riding while living in the UK as well.

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D The ‘Face Book’ of Our Lives.

o our lives have a ‘face value’ today as we prefer to lock ourselves in a ‘digitized cosmos’ where we, our actions, reactions and emotions are mostly driven by ‘cyberspace’? If so, what parameters and scale are used to calibrate? What are the inputs and outputs? Does it have a process flow that defines the sequence of activities, programmed by some smart computational algorithms? Is there a regulatory framework with structured guidelines governing the impacts, the level of control, precisely the whole nine yards of operational mechanics around the ‘how to’s, ‘what if’s, ‘do’s and don’ts’, ‘karmas’ & ‘chakras’?

While an ‘inquisitive’ but ‘bewildered’ mind seeks answers to these questions which are beyond the reach of his instinctive trivial guesses, he takes recourse to a simple solution. Sign up for ‘Facebook’, a vehicle that has become an integral part of our very survival and existence.

What is Facebook? Is it some BOK (book of knowledge)? A religious doctrine?

A political manifesto? A Thesaurus?

A gadget or a gizmo? One of those offshoots of the rudimentary tenets of ‘Software as a Service (SaaS)’ or some other snazzy buzzwords from the world of tech.? Brainchild of Mark Zuckerberg and his roommates from the hallowed corridors of Harvard, it’s a platform to build social networks and social relations amongst people who share similar interests, profiles, real-life connections cutting across geographic boundaries and borders. From a relatively low-key beginning, thanks to stiff competition and tremendous popularity of the-then Orkut, it gradually leapfrogged into the popularity charts eclipsing its peers in the same space including Orkut which faded into oblivion, finally bidding adieu on September 30, 2014. On the other hand, the FB (as Facebook is colloquially referred to) graph soared to stratospheric heights in Oct 2012, when the number of active users reached the 1 billionth mark. Notwithstanding it’s still growing from strength to strength, clocking its 10th anniversary last year and still moving on a healthy track record.

Like any other social networking

medium, Facebook too allows one to establish new connections, renewing ties with school pals, college and university buddies, spread over any part of the world, distanced by professional commitments (work, research, personal etc.) exchanging thoughts, ideas, pictures, snapshots of past memories, reliving the bygone moments. Ease of use has largely contributed to its hit ratio, proliferation in the number of users. Along with the enhanced user base faster adaptability led to increase in comfort level and familiarization with the commonly used terminologies such as News Feed, Friend, Wall, Timeline, Like, Messages, Notifications etc. These have become part of the daily lingua franca, a source of active oxygen for a larger universe of population, who are connected virtually for hours together, completely engrossed with the happenings in theirs and others personal space.

Any tool, whether it’s a ‘brick n mortar’ machinery of the industrial revolution era or the ‘click n byte’ smart device off the shelves today, has the capability to be ‘used and abused’. Facebook is no exception as it does a ‘trade in and a trade-off’ our ‘head and the heart’, multi dimensional thoughts, expressions, intricately tied to sensory impulses leading to significant bytesized communication of myriad kinds.

Discussions span over ‘anything and everything under the sun’ from Obama to Osama, Netaji to Nehru, Ronaldo to Messi, Federer to Rafa, EPL to IPL, Yakub to ISIS, Modi to Didi, Radhe Ma to Asaram Bapu, PSLE to IIT-JEE, Big Data to Internet of Things, iPhone to Android, David Letterman to Arnab Goswami, the list is endless and goes on without following any particular scope definition. However the workflow is pretty predictable - any news (courtesy newspapers, online reports, media etc.) views, commentaries, clips (YouTube etc.) get posted, shared, liked, commented, debated etc. Result - call it an information explosion, a networking overkill under the garb of social bonding and camaraderie. As the data grows, does the value grow too?

Depends, the value addition quotient is questionable in a majority of cases where the volumes are more, but the content commensurably less.

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Again it’s highly subjective. One may have abundant time in the world to dissipate their energies with singlethreaded focus in not just putting their personal life ‘in shared mode’ with their friends through photos, posts etc. but the relationships are completely reciprocal in terms of similar / same behavioural pattern of like-minded individuals (in their ‘friends’ list) who seem to ‘like, follow, comment..’ with equal gusto.

While there seems to be nothing ‘right or wrong’ in this trait, lines are often blurred with respect to ‘where to draw a line in the sand’. And this is where things can potentially go ‘unsocial defeating the purpose, necessitating the checks and balances to be put in place. While everyone has their democratic right to argue, debate, challenge each other as long as it stays within the periphery of decency limits without hurting each other’s sentiments, feelings, things are fine. Sometimes the discussions centre around controversial topics involving public figures, where instead of making guarded and responsible statements, one tend to cross that delicate fine line getting too candid and personal, making scathing and caustic remarks either inviting trouble drawing flaks and condemnation if it elevates to alarming proportions drawing attention of the vigilance squads.

To cite an example - Like button, which allows users to express their appreciation of content such as status updates, comments, photos is one of the ‘most abused’ features so to say – we indiscriminately put ‘likes’ for even sensitive posts such as a death, a loss or bereavement. Tone mayn’t be intentional or it could be attributed to lack of availability of suitable alternatives (heard that ‘Dislike’ is knocking on the doors ‘to be launched’ soon). Similarly, tagging a photo or a post en masse with everyone adding their two cents of 2-liner comments on top of the likes not only result in significant amount of notifications generated, and can tantamount to huge spamming.

By now you’d have felt that I’ve written enough to be bucketized into the segment of ‘the most vociferous critics of Facebook’, hurling aspersions on the very integrity of it. Not really, being a FB user myself, I actually have seen a digital divide amongst the ‘Good, Bad &

Ugly’ sides to it leading to harbour my own perceptions. Needless to say the pros are many. I’m thrilled to be able to connect with my fellow ‘Pointers and Jadubongsis’ (South Point & Jadavpur University friends). With some of them, it’s been ages since we were in touch ever since we left our alma mater. FB brought us together to rekindle the bonds we nourished and nurtured in our ‘grown up years’. Then there are those, some of the finest pieces of writing in the form of posts and articles (e.g. essays, film reviews, travelogues etc), which are documented with utmost lucidity, precision and above all originality. With the right mix of content richness and the way of expressions, they are not only are good reads but also truly inspiring enough to instil one the confidence, more importantly the drive and fervour to ignite their creative passions in making similar attempts with the pen (read the keyboard).

Change is the only constant in the realm of technology. Yesterday was Orkut, today is Facebook, tomorrow there may be a newbie emerging as a communication bellwether. Undoubtedly they have a profound impact on our lives, as it goes through a transformational curve. One hopes that Facebook will continue its onward march in the value chain, differentiating itself from other products through innovative strategies, tactics and practices, security and privacy safeguards, continuing to serve us, shape our lives keeping it ensconced in a state of equilibrium ‘mixing, matching and marrying’ the value coefficients with its underlying services.

About Me

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A true-blue Bong by heart and soul, from ‘chingrimacher-malai-curry’ to ‘aloo posto’, ’36 Chowringhee Lane’ to ‘Coffee House’, ‘Esplanade-r michil to Maidan-er Football’, ‘Statesman to Dalhousie Institute’ (used to be the ‘Mecca of Cal quizzing’) the city-scapes, the lights and shades of Calcutta flows in my arteries and veins regardless of my occupational position coordinates (Mumbai / Chennai / LA and now Singapore).

A passion for quizzing drives me and my quest for seeking information of all dimensions.

Have a strong penchant for creative writing. Other interests include following films which are contentdriven regardless of whether it’s mainstream or parallel, Rabindrasangeet, recitation.

Used to be a diehard follower of cricket, football and tennis but seem to have lost the enthusiasm.

Although a non-smoker believe in following maxim – ‘Life is a cigarette, smoke it away’.

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SPECIAL SG50 FEATURE

The Golden Age:

Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow As Singapore celebrates its 50th birthday, we take a moment to pause and reflect on the past 50 years and preview the future of Bengalis in the island country

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RESEARCH & INTERVIEWS ANANYA MUKHERJEE

Flashback. 1970s.

It’s late in the evening and Mr Chakraborty has just returned home from a long day at work. He is a bachelor and lives alone in a rented house. Though he has finally begun to experiment with his mother’s recipes from “back home in India”, he has not quite mastered his culinary skills as yet. He misses the shorshe bata ilish or the simple mushur daal and jhurjhure alu bhaja his mother could cook in a wink. It’s already 10 pm and he is tired to the bones. While he is toying with the idea of whether or not to wrap up his day with alu-dim sheddo bhaat, the easiest recipe he has learnt and can now more or less manage, he hears the welcome call of the Mee Goreng man pushing his cart in the estate. He rushes past a group of little children playing with marbles and calls out to order a plate of Mee Goreng. As he watches his “savior” cook up a portion of yellow noodles,

beansprouts and bean curd sizzling merrily in a huge wok, he thanks God for the simple respite in life.

Cut to another frame.

An evening in 2015.

I am stepping out of the airport, just back in town after an arduous business trip to London. It’s a Sunday and I know my helper will be away.

It’s her day off. My husband is busy fine tuning a presentation he has the next day and my 16 year old daughter cannot cook a meal beyond baking walnut chocolate brownies occasionally. She calls me from the MRT to inform she is on her way back home from a friend’s birthday party. I want to reach home early and don’t want to wait for a taxi in the queue. I check my phone and book one through a mobile App. It arrives in the next five minutes. I

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Orchard Road = Scotts Road crossing in the sixties

call a number, choose from a list of options and order some pizza and side dishes enroute my drive home.

By the time I am home, the delivery boy is collecting cash for his bill and zooming away from my driveway. I thank God for the simple privileges in life that are only a click away.

You get the two pictures, don’t you?

But can you visualize a Singapore without its bustling Central Business District, tall sky-scrappers, MRT or air-conditioned buses, sprawling condominiums, swanky cars and expressways or Mustafa, Tanmoy er dokaan or Tekka to choose your tyangra from ilish? Of course, you cannot, if you are used to living in the Singapore of today, where nearly everything is either a click or tap away. I had the rare opportunity to hear from two of our senior members who have lived in Singapore for nearly four decades and more and have seen the nation grow alongside and with them.

“I came to Singapore in 1974 after a rather nomadic childhood in various parts of Malaysia where my father, a

doctor in government service moved from one state to another at regular intervals. I lived in a number of places like Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh, Penang, Kuantan, Alor Star, Kangar and Kota Kinabalu in the eastern Malaysian state of Sabah. Although it was an enriching experience staying in so many places, it was also unsettling moving to another town or city with lorry loads of belongings including my father’s precious plants and our beloved pet dog. When we came to Singapore, it was a big lifestyle change for me as the most one can move on this little island of ours is from Nee Soon to Serangoon to Balestier to Holland Road to Jurong and Siglap (all of which I did!). On a personal level, things moved fast for me in Singapore.

Soon after coming here, I landed a job as a Producer in the then Radio and Television Singapore, later to be

called the Singapore Broadcasting Corporation and today, MediaCorp.

I spent 36 wonderful years on Caldecott Hill, involved in broadcast related production, management and training duties. Marriage into a Singapore Bengali family followed.

Today, we have two sons, their wives and just this year, we have been blessed with our first grandchild, a precious little baby boy,“ recalls Sakuntala Gupta (pic alongside) Today’s Singapore is much more crowded than it was in the 1970s, 80s and 90s. In the 70s, couples were encouraged not to have more than two children. “Girl or boy, two is enough”, said the Family planning slogan.

Today, there are many incentives like the Baby Bonus scheme for couples to have more children. The population has swelled from over 2 million in the 1970s to more than 5 million today.

This is good for people watchers

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at the human level, but one hears constant grouses about insufficient infrastructure to accommodate the needs of the growing population, she tells me. There was another difference- there was no Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) in the 1970s! “It was only after intense debate with foreign consultants on the pros and cons of an all bus system as opposed to a bus rail system that a decision was made to build the MRT,” she shares.

Technology too played an important role in catalyzing the change. When she came to Singapore in 1974, she did not have a mobile phone, did not use the Internet, was not on Facebook or use other modern high-tech devices. Now she does.

At her broadcasting workplace, she recalls, they had to carry heavy Nagra and Tandberg machines when the crew went out to do interviews for programmes. Recordings were done on open reel tapes which they spliced when editing. Now, no heavy machines are used for field work, and editing is done on computers. Also typewriters are a thing of the past as are long playing records that they used in the broadcast studios.

Sakuntala mashi as I call her, shares the three things she misses from the yester years. On the top of her list is the Mee Goreng man. “I also miss the low cost of living. Can you imagine bus rides for 10 cents or buying a colourful iceball drenched in sugary syrup for as little as 5 cents? In those days, the kampong spirit was present in housing estates where children played simple games like marbles, five stones, hopscotch, chatek and the like. The onset of high-rise living and computer games changed all that,” she fondly remembers.

It takes me a while before I can actually look back into the time machine and become a part of a frame as my next story teller engages me in a fluid narration of a beautiful past. Unlike, Shakuntala Mashi, Gautam Banerjee or Gautamda (pictured above) moved to Singapore as a teenager in April 1971. “It was

entirely fortuitous. I accompanied my parents to Singapore when my father decided to move from Mumbai to take up a position in the city state, “ he shares.

“I had done my research on Singapore and its founder Mr Lee Kuan Yew and as I boarded the BOAC plane from Kolkata on my first international flight, the sense of anticipation and excitement was palpable.

So you can imagine how I felt when just a few weeks later I was in the audience listening to Mr Lee Kuan Yew delivering his key note address at the official opening of my new school, the United World College of Singapore. He spoke passionately about his vision for Singapore - a multi racial meritocracy, where

Photo Caption: Singapore River / Boat Quay How it looked then

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corruption and nepotism would not be tolerated. His messages left an indelible impression on me and though I left for England a couple of years later for my tertiary education, I knew in my heart that I would return to Singapore.”

Sure enough in April 1982, armed with the necessary paper qualifications and some City of London work experience Gautam da returned to Singapore with his wife Basabi. The next three decades and more in Singapore seem to have just flown by with some notable highs, including an interesting stint as a nominated member of Parliament, and very few lows, he fondly recalls. “Singapore

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also provided the ideal environment to raise our children, Ishani and Rishiraj who were both born here and benefited from Singapore’s excellent schools and opportunities for holistic development such as classical Indian dance and competitive cricket. SG 50 got me to think and reflect on my journey in Singapore.”

So here are some of his impressions, anecdotes and observations. The first impressions of Singapore as he drove into the city back in April 1971 from Paya Lebar airport ( Changi Airport was a decade away from completion ) was its greenery and cleanliness. “So in two important

about 5.5 million in 50 years.

The biggest change I have witnessed in Singapore over the years is its transformation from a small oasis in South East Asia, albeit clean and green, to a global city. A safe, prosperous, cosmopolitan and swanky city which is a major financial centre and business hub. The art and cultural scene is also more vibrant with centres like the Esplanade, an array of museums and the soon to be opened National Art Gallery. The integrated resorts, our two wonderful gardens, one of which has recently become a world heritage site, and the

Bengalis and a sprinkling of expatriates. The early local stalwarts of the BAS like Dr Sinha, Dr Narayan Sengupta, Moni and Niva Dutt, AB Ghosh (Nan Da) , Mrs Prova Majumdar ( Pishima ) , Sunil and Baby Paul to name just a few were joined by successive waves of expatriate Bengalis who brought new energy, ideas and artistic and cultural talent to the BAS. As the membership base grew the BAS was able to hold bigger and better events including full fledged Durga Puja celebrations.

While the changes in the BAS were inevitable given the much larger Bengali community today, some of us

The Ang Mo Kio MRT turned out to be exactly as the artist had intended

respects, Singapore has not changed over the years even though it’s now a much larger and more populous city, thanks to numerous land reclamation projects which have given us new neighbourhoods and precincts such as Marina Bay , East Coast Park and Jurong Island, and a proactive immigration policy which has attracted talent from all over the world, helping to boost Singapore’s population from about 2.5 million to

ultra modern sports hub have made Singapore a more exciting, happening and livable city.”

How do these veteran Singaporean Bengalis see the change in BAS over the years? “Just like Singapore, the BAS of today is very different from the BAS of the early seventies.

I remember the BAS membership being about 100 families for many years comprising mainly Singaporean

remember, with a tinge of nostalgia, the heartwarming experiences we had in the smaller and more homely BAS of the seventies and eighties, where all the members knew each other and it felt like we were one large family,” Gautam da remembers.

Shakuntala mashi’s views are not very different. In the 1970s and 80s, there were less Bengali families in Singapore and most of them knew each other. “They gathered at the

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index. “I hope that we come up with an amicable solution to the localexpat divide which was a big issue in the recent General Election. I don’t see how we can function effectively without foreigners in our midst. We do need them at various levels and really there are heartwarming stories about the good they have done in our midst. But equally, Singaporeans must get what is rightfully theirs as citizens of the country. How can we achieve this? I’ll leave the authorities to figure it out.”

At the end of my conversations, I am both enlightened about the past as well as positive about the future of Bengalis such as me and you in this island country. We have travelled a few leagues together and we shall continue to traverse many miles in future. Whilst technology and modernism have made our lives simpler in 50 years, safeguarding the union and cohesiveness of the Bengali community will make us culturally and emotionally richer in the next 100 years to come.

Photo Caption: Singapore CBD without the skyscapers. Can one even imagine the CBD without the buildings

Kamala Club for functions. Durga Puja was celebrated in a much more simple way than the ‘dhoom-dham’ we see now. Today, the expatriate Bengali population has grown by leaps and bounds. They have brought with them the rich cultural traditions of Bengal. We are definitely much richer for it, but the warmth and camaraderie that existed in the old days have somewhat disappeared as the numbers have become too big!”

Having been swept in a maelstrom of nostalgia, we shift our focus to crystal ball gazing now. “Looking ahead I am optimistic about the future of both Singapore and the BAS. Singapore has shown repeatedly how it can reinvent and remake itself to stay relevant and competitive weathering one crisis after another such as SARS , the Asian Financial Crisis and more recently the Global Financial crisis.

Singapore has always punched above its weight, and as long as we remain agile and nimble and keep reinventing itself ourselves as a country, there is no reason to doubt PM Lee’s recent assertion that the best is yet to be.

The BAS too has evolved and adapted to changing circumstances always embracing new members, ideas and talent. As long as our love of the Bengali language, art, culture and of course, Bengali food and adda , keep us united and cohesive as a community the BAS will flourish for a 100 years and more, “ Gautam da says optimistically.

For Sakuntala mashi, she says, she would like a less stressful school and workplace for her children and grandchildren with good opportunities for the minorities, good economic growth, affordable healthcare and better rankings in the happiness

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Interview | Ananya Mukherjee Photographs | Gargi Mazumdar

DID YOU KNOW OUR MISSION & VISION? To serve the spirit of multi-ethnic Singapore through the Bengali community.

To facilitate the exchange of traditional art and culture and promote sharing of culture among the various community groups in Singapore.

To hold cultural, social and other Bengali events to foster community friendship, facilitate integration, support social Midolsen-Kates cohesion and enhance multiracial bonding

FROM THE PRESIDENTIAL SUITE

W

hat are those defining mission and vision statements that guide the Bengali Association Singapore? What are we trying to achieve through our cultural integration? How will the future of the association look different from its present? In an exclusive interview with Ananya Mukherjee, Abhijit Ghosh, President, Bengali Association Singapore, outlines the existing challenges and the roadmap for BAS’ future in times to come.

Tell us about the background, mission, vision and objectives of the Bengali Association Singapore

T

he year 2015 marks the 59th year of the Bengali Association Singapore. As we step forward into the diamond jubilee year of the association, it is imperative that all members understand the basic guiding principles that bring us together as a community and are aligned to the vision, mission and objectives of the Bengali Association Singapore.

Though the Bengali Association Singapore is nearly 60 years old, Durga Pujo only started in 1980. In

the interim period, Bengalis only met for cultural programmes and social gatherings. Over the years, the member strength has grown from 150 to over 700 members and families as on date. The association has not only facilitated in bringing the new generation of Bengali immigrants together but has also helped enormously in integrating the members with the social fabric of Singapore.

Singapore, as a commercial hub, has always been attractive to professionals from all industries and in the process of inducting our new members, we have discovered time and again that the BAS has an enviable pool of talent, in terms of culture, professionalism, budding and established entrepreneurs who have a passion to support our rich culture and heritage.

What are the biggest challenges you face in bringing the community together?

A

t present, our members include many different generations; those who were born and brought up in Malaysia and had moved to Singapore in their early years while the Nation

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was still young, those like us who had migrated in the 90s and have been here for 20 years or more, the second generation youngsters, and the generation of new immigrants. As an association, how do we ensure that the new immigrants seamlessly integrate with the existing and older generations of Bengalis in Singapore? The challenge is to bring them together and make them believe that this unification will be relevant and meaningful to them.

Of course, it helps that we are culturally bound and celebrate our heritage every few months, but can that binding alone cement the community?

What else must we do to stand up and hold true as a community that has a higher purpose beyond cultural and social gatherings?

G

ood point. Keeping this objective in mind, we have launched Samarpan, the charitable arm of the BAS blending it into our cultural mosaic.

Samarpan, our Community Service programme means “to dedicate”. The Samarpan team members are involved in planning and executing charitable and other social activities to support primarily the underprivileged and elderly people of Singapore.

Through Samarpan, we are trying to reach an audience beyond the association and contribute back to the society in which we live and operate.

We are working closely with the different grass root associations, taking steps to integrate with other associations like the Gujarati Association, Assamese Association, Maharashtra Mandal, Khalsa Association so that the whole ethos of building an Indian-ness can be brought out.

How much support are you getting to champion Samarpan and other community related activities?

O

ur committee members and volunteers are proactively supporting us and the initiatives are getting appreciation and endorsements from the High Commissioner of India and Singapore, as well as People’s Association, LISHA and many other communities. It is indeed rewarding to see the results. We were invited by the People’s Association this year to be a part of the Community Fiesta. Our team went and performed at the Fiesta, we had a booth displaying Holi, a mock celebration with colours and exhibited the culture of the land that binds us together as a unit. It was very well attended and highly appreciated.

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How do we take BAS to the next level from here?

W

e need to perhaps now focus our attention to broad-basing BAS beyond the territorial boundaries of Singapore. Can we not liaise with other neighbouring countries to facilitate cross cultural integration or exchange and ensure that our successful events find an exposure, a suitable platform and an audience in another country? How do we take it to the next level? We have already started the process by taking proactive steps in partnering with some associations and communities of other countries in the region.

BAS recently partnered with the Tagore Society Singapore to bring in a troupe of Bengali musicians from Malaysia to celebrate an evening of Rabindra Sangeet. On the same stage were our own local BAS members who performed and showcased the spirit of the cultural exchange with an equal fervor. We do not wish to restrict visits to Malaysia only to celebrate Kali Pujo in Port Dickson. In an ideal scenario, we would hope to see many more cultural exchanges where our teams and performers can showcase their talent to a broader audience in Malaysia and other countries in the region.

Of course this cross cultural, cross territorial exchange requires more commitment, coordination and a greater connectivity with Bengalis elsewhere, but I think the future of BAS belongs there. With

“Thanks to our brilliant Management Commitee who without much experience led all the initiatives and converted the ideas to fruition.�

Singapore playing a lead role as the hub city for the Asia-Pacific region, BAS can connect all Bengalis from neighbouring countries to build up a platform where the Bengali diaspora can feel much more comfortable about connecting with each other, networking and cherishing the rich culture.

Do we foresee a Bongo Shommelon akin to what happens in North America in future?

A

bsolutely, I think that should be the mission and vision for the next generation of leaders who take the association to the next level. But, of course, for that we need lot of participation and lot of support from our existing members and a much broader base to make that happen. We need financial support, governmental back up, and a lot of commitment from volunteers. It is easily possible in Asia-Pacific or Southeast Asia. We just need to start that journey of a cultural exchange on a bilateral basis first and eventually develop a multilateral platform. Also, we need to connect with the cultural bigwigs in Bengal and see how we can integrate with them. As you probably know there are other associations in Singapore who are propagating Bengali culture.

Should we not consider combining all these and see if we can make that happen?

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What else would you like to see in the BAS?

T

here are two things that I personally think will add a lot of value to our association. It would be good to have a centre for ourselves, wherein Bengalis can gather for cultural events or simply a plain adda over chaa and shingara and relive the adda culture of Bengal. Again that means there must be commitment, donations, funding that need to come into play. We probably can develop what we call the Bengal Club for Southeast Asia, a platform for Bongo Shommelon for our part of the world. Of course, on a smaller scale, we do have a room in SINDA for the Association where we can look at starting an adda session once in a while. In addition, in order to create more traction on the cultural front, we have been quite passive to sports in BAS in the last year. We hope to revive our sporting culture by organizing sports events for the members in future.

Any other observations that you would like to share?

W

ell, I want to sign off by saying BAS strives to keep Bengal’s rich culture and heritage alive through celebration of various events and festivals.

All of these events are meant to foster multicultural integration, support charitable causes and develop closer cohesion amongst different communities, and above all to unify the Bengali diaspora in Singapore.

None of these activities, campaigns and events is complete or successful without the support of BAS members and participation from the volunteers.

It is a rewarding journey, challenging in bits but worthwhile only when all of us are in it. Thanks to our brilliant MC team who without much experience led all the initiatives and converted the ideas to fruition.

PUJA GREETINGS

ENAKSHI GHATAK NANDINI GHATAK KAUSHIK GHATAK

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RISHABH BANDOPADHAYA

A The Leaf

s you might have known, leaves are common to find on trees. But I’m telling the story of a leaf that explored beyond its valley. The leaf was tiny and one day it broke off the tree. So the wind took it took it to places unknown to the leaf and his kind. The leaf travelled vast distances with the wind on his side and after an hour, it left the valley. Just outside the valley was the hot savannah. The leaf saw a lion roaring loudly, proud to be the leader of his pride. The leaf also saw some hippos relaxing in a large waterhole and some zebras drinking from there.

The leaf might have had a lot of fun in the savannah, but more fun awaited the adventurous leaf. Soon after that, it entered the forest. It saw a family of monkeys grooming each other in the late afternoon right after lunch. It saw

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My name is Rishabh and I am 11 years old. My favourite sport is basketball and I am also part of the school basketball team. Apart from sports, I also like to read books.

Some of my favourite books include, “Call of the Wild” by Jack London, “Private Peaceful” by Michael Morpurgo and “The Boy who Swam With Piranhas” by David Almond.

Writing poems and stories keep me busy. I have shared a poem and a story about a leaf

The Wants!

“I

don’t want my leaves to drop!”

Said the little young tree.

“I don’t want to freeze!”

Said the starry night.

Said the calm shallow pool.

“I don’t want to rise!”

“I don’t want to smile!”

Said the high tide.

Said the fat sombre man.

“Or ever to fall!”

“Or ever to cry!”

Said the silly fool.

“I don’t want to open!”

Said the colourful kite.

They wished and they murmured, They said that to change was a crime, Then a voice from nowhere announced, Said the little rose bud.

“You must do as I say.”

I don’t want to end!”

Said Time!

owls hooting and snakes making their way to the river.

Later it left the forest behind and entered the desert. It saw camels with their huge humps as they tried to cross the desert.

It also saw an oasis and a few desert travellers resting there.

Then it decided to have a nap.

The courageous leaf woke up not long after, and to its surprise, it was flying right into a cave! There was so much to see! It saw miners trying to mine gold. The miners got a huge shock when they saw a mere leaf gliding past them.

Further deep into the cave, it

was getting steep. The leaf saw the exit at a distance. Beyond the cave was a mountain range. The leaf saw climbers and animals like snow leopards and deer. It even saw a glacier.

It caught a glimpse of sand at the end of the mountain range. Could it be? Was there another desert in the way of our amazing leaf?

As it got closer, it realized that it was not a desert but a small beach. The leaf had finally made it to sea. When it was far out at sea, the wind changed course. The leaf went back the way it came from the sea to the

beach to the mountains to the cave to the desert to the forest to the grassland and back to the valley. The leaf had ended its journey when the wind stopped under the leaf’s tree.

The leaf descended down and told his fellow leaf friends what he had seen.

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| october 2015

Travelogue Debasree Das

Zanzibar

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T

hey say the world is a book and people who don’t travel just read one page!

Since childhood I have always loved travelling and my job does take me across various continents!

One such place, which never makes me fail to amaze, is the beautiful jewel on the Indian Ocean called as Zanzibar, well many wouldn’t know about this small island which lies off the coast of the mainland Tanzania.

I had some wonderful opportunity to visit this archipelago; It’s characterized by beautiful sandy beaches with fringing coral reefs, and the magical historic Stone Town – said to be the only functioning ancient town in East Africa.

It’s indeed a fascinating way to reach the island just a 30 mins ride by Ferry wherein if you are lucky you can catch a dolphin or two; the other way to travel is a personalized chartered plane that takes 15 mins only and it was fun boarding it.

The fabled Stone Town, where history appears to stand still; for me Stone Town is Africa at its best. Bustling market, winding alleyways, ornately carved and studded doors, two cathedrals and countless mosques, characterized by the beachside food joints, where you can happily cherish the local cuisines.

Talking of the food, reminds me I stayed in this wonderful resort a few miles away from the Stone Town known a Mbweni Ruin Resort located on the warm turquoise water of the Indian Ocean; it has the best sunset I have ever seen or properly I was fortunate enough Needless to say, the curries in Tanzania are no different than the Indian curries and the freshest catch of the seafood will make you drool for sure.

Food has been majorly influenced by the incredible mixture of the ethnic backgrounds across the country.

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Travelogue Zanzibar

Along with Zanzibar, there’s another island which also forms a part of the archipelago is the Pemba island, known for its clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, pepper and many other spices and major exports of clove happens from here.

The west part of the island has a long stretch of white sandy beaches surrounded by private resorts, which are ideal for family outings, people also own their own private holiday home.

While I was taking an evening walk and waiting for the sun to set; I spotted a small island across the Ocean; which is known as the Prison island. Here years back as the name suggests misbehaving salves were kept; it is the home of ancient Aldabra tortoises. Prison Island is an excellent place for snorkeling and ideal for day tour!

Therefore relax, soak and take a break in the beautiful paradise on the Indian Ocean called “Zanzibar “ in East of Africa!

“relax, soak and take a break in the beautiful paradise on the Indian Ocean called “Zanzibar“ in East of Africa!”

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A small town Bengali girl goes Global breaking all stereotypes!

About Debasree Das Travel addict/ Pageant queen (Mrs. Asia International Goodwill 2015) & (Mrs. Singapore India 2014), a business Head (FMCG) and a mother

Like many more I too had a dream, to be someone whom the world recognises other than just someone else’s mother, daughter or wife! This hunger of searching an identify other than what the society gifts me made me discovery a person whom the society is proud of today!

I strongly believe, dreams have the ability to make you fly provided you give them the power to do so. No dream is small, if you strive with dedication and perseverance to achieve it and live it.

Yes, I am a small town girl who hails from Midnapore in West Bengal, belonging to a small business family; where my parents are still living there. Completed by schooling from kharaghpur and then went on to Pune form my MBA. Refused to abide by the social norms of getting married early I ran away from home to be independent! This hunger of mine took me to places like Moscow.

South Africa, Paris, Dubai and to 37 plus countries. I gradually took up International business as my profession, where I could travel places and explore the world on my own being exceptionally independent!

The society doesn’t love such girls who makes it so big at a tender age, so marriage happened to me while I was about to be declared as old. Found my soul mate in a North Indian guy from UK who fell head over heels over me. Soon motherhood welcomed me into a new phase in Singapore which made me a responsible woman.

Still being stuck with the passion of maintaining the tag of being independent yet different, I thought to join Mrs Singapore India in 2014. I took this as challenge to proof my mettle that I still have that something in me that takes to be a winner and shinein my convincing aura of beauty!

As I won it, post that there was no looking back, I was sent to Mrs Asia International 2015, to represent Singapore on an international level, where I won Mrs. Asia International Goodwill 2015 too for the country contesting against 31 contestants across 9 Asian countries!

This was the much deserve gift that I came back with this June on account of SG 50!

Today this small town girl has metamorphosed into someone, which the world calls as a superwoman, beauty queen, business woman, mother, daughter, wife and a home-maker. I still carry the same old beauty secrets passed my Grandmother and mom, especially like Boroline , which still finds a place in my makeup kit!

Whosoever I am today, I am the product of my own thoughts and dream that took me so far and made me believe that if a girl believes in her dreams the sky is the limit and she’s the creator of her Destiny! So all you aspiring and budding star, what are you waiting for? Go ahead and give wings to your dreams to make them come into reality and live them just the way you always wanted.

I want to carry ahead this inspirational story of mine to the small town woman in West Bengal from where I hail from. Because I know what it takes to be a woman in India than anywhere in the world!

Sharing a part of my journey and inspiring many lives across the region, I would feel accomplished if I am able to touch a single life and make their journey a happy a worthwhile one!

Here Mrs. Asia International Goodwill 2015 signing off!!

The eyes dream, which the mind perceives and the heart achieves!

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Psychology churns my brain as though creating Lassi.

Tanya Ghosh

From a Psychological Peephole

H

ave I lost it? An altered perception is what studying Psychology has left me with. Every thought, conversation and situation becomes a topic of interest for further psychological analysis. The world begins to look far more complex with deep-rooted connections between practically everything. In short, Psychology churns my brain as though creating Lassi.

Apart from the newly acquired skill of over-complicating simple sentences, as demonstrated in my introduction; I must say, there are many upsides to studying the subject. An example?

Well, my sensitivity to brewing trouble has been heightened, since now I can sense it from a mile away, right before I commence my marathon of running in the other direction... or more commonly phrased as “lyaj gutiye palano”.

Whether it is a person’s tipping point or their peak of happiness, along that spectrum, Psychology has aided in identifying, explaining and reacting accordingly. Here’s a snippet of my thought processes before taking Psychology: “Uh oh, Maa is angry…yup, she’s definitely angry…maybe I should just clean my room”. And here’s a snippet of the same, after taking Psychology: “Uh oh!

Maa has that look of anger in her eyes… her tone and language indicates she’s displeased; perhaps because I didn’t clean my room…maybe I should boggle her with Psychological jargon as a form

of emotional blackmail.” Thus, when mom began, “Eeesh! Aato messy kore rekhecho! Kano koro emni…”, I had cut her off, dramatically stating (with my hand in the air), “Ma! Do you even know what I’m going through? Have you ever stopped to consider that the clutter in my room could potentially be a representation of the clutter in my head? I’m going through a great deal and am in need of empathy, sympathy and care… instead, tumi aamake bokhcho!”. *Cue the crocodile tears and heavy drama* She stood there, flabbergasted. See? Brilliant, isn’t it? She was left perplexed, mission accomplished!

Though it is not relevant that my psychology-based plan backfired - since my mom’s response was, “Accha? Dhop merona. Chup Chaap kore room clean koro.” - Psychology has truly equipped me with many skills! Another skill I have been graciously gifted with, after 2 years of strenuous studying of the subject, was conjuring theories!

Recently, whilst at a crossing, I noticed a distinguishable-visually impaired man across the street. He was in obvious need for help yet, no one provided.

This reminded me of one of the major subtopics in Psychology I had learnt about. Conformity. The definition of this term: a type of social influence where individuals avoid deviating from social or group norms in order to acquire a sense of belongingness blah blah blah.

In a nutshell, conformity in Singaporean terminology is as such: “Ei if no one got do, then I also don’t do lah”. For example: if everyone on the MRT is quiet, it becomes a social/group norm to remain quiet. If I begin blabbing loudly, either I shall be deemed as mentally ill or weird. If not, I can guarantee at least deathly stares from my fellow Singaporeans.

This phenomenon was known to be far more common in collectivistic cultures – cultures where individuals heavily relied on group/social norms. Thus, Asian cultures have been known for taking the golden trophy home for the highest rates of conformity since hardly anyone wants to be deemed as abnormal…or at least ‘the odd one out’.

Using this, I conjured a theory! There was a lack of initiative to help because majority of the individuals there were blissfully ignorant to the man in need.

Therefore, the social norm became to not help him; and to deviate from that would mean being cast as abnormal or a ‘weirdo’.

As I helped the man cross the street, I wondered whether it was my psychology background that urged me to do so or my mother’s voice in my head, “shobhshomai aakta bhalo manush hobe!”

As I further analysed the situation, I realized that I myself had deviated from the social norm. Therefore, according to my conjured theory, that deems me as…abnormal. I suddenly found myself thrilled, scared and confounded all at once. My own theory regarding the situation I had just encountered, classified ME as abnormal…

That was when I realized…abnormality is brewing. You know what that means: ‘lyaj gutiye palao’! Maybe I should just pursue a normal degree in Bachelor of Commerce.

*Sigh*

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THE MILON INTERVIEWS

Tannishtha Sarkar

LOOKING THRU THE LENS

What does it take to break the norm and choose a path few dare to pursue? Can talent and passion alone take you to a height few achieve and most envy? In an exclusive interview with Ananya Mukherjee, Film director, composer, singer Tannishtha Sarkar outlines how important it is to keep the rebel in you alive.

H

er journey started from the narrow lanes of North Kolkata, India. Like most young Bengali girls, Tannishtha’s world pretty much revolved around school, coaching classes, music lessons and occasional visits to movie theatres. She remembers herself as an obedient student in class who loved to spend all her spare time in singing and writing. Both these passions were rewarding enough to get her a handful of medals too. “However, it all took a back seat and studies took it over, thanks to our age old tradition and society. I did my bachelors in Electronics and MBA from NMIMS, Mumbai. I have worked in corporate communication management for 6 years before I rebelled into film making and music.”

Tannishtha recalls.

I am particularly intrigued by the word “rebelled” and probe how films happened to her. “ Things happen in life while we are too busy planning it,” she smiles reflectively and explains, “ I was more than occupied juggling my career and a baby when I opted for a work break to welcome our 2nd child. This break was quite fulfilling from motherhood perspective but a

rather frustrating one, career wise.

Often His blessings come in disguise of challenges. So was this. It is during this pause of career that I realised the under-utilisation of my potentials and passions in regular jobs. I chose to put together all that I enjoy doing, and the summation turned out to be film making.” Such is the power of a pause in our lives!

At this point, Tannishtha emphasises how lucky she was to have a stable support and encouragement from her better half, so she could aspire to start this adventurous journey. “I followed my heart without any expectations and even accepted the risk of failing miserably, when I started. It was quite a drastic and unconventional decision for a mother of 2 toddlers. All I wanted, is to tell stories in my way,” she adds.

I am curious if the journey was as simple and smooth as it sounds. No, it was not a cakewalk, she clarifies. “It is challenging, if you are used to receiving a decent sum monthly deposited to your account and/or you are too comfortable with your pre-defined work hours and family time. Independent Film

making puts a threat to both of the above assurances. In this era of big production house banners it is still hard to get funding for alternative cinemas and documentaries. In addition to that, convincing people to work for a low paid project and keep them motivated throughout is tough in a country where one Yashraj film is made of crores. On a personal level, it surely takes a toll on staying away from family for indefinite time but at the end it’s all worth if the film is ready and looks close to how you have conceived it as. It’s an enormously satisfying feeling for an artist,” Tannishtha shares.

“What exactly does it take to be a film maker?” I ask.

“A mind that can conceive ‘it’, a hand that can type ‘it’ and a voice that can express ‘it’” pop comes the reply.

Tannishtha shares how her award winning film Maafinama created an ocean of difference to her career as a film maker. “ I had written Maafinama during my film school days, but never thought, I would finally make it. A) for its sensitive social message, I was not

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We talk of the future of films in a relatively small space like Singapore.

Tannishtha tells me that she is talks for a future project here soon. “Both the Government and people are quite supportive and encouraging. And good Indian films are quite an ‘in’ trend here, partly thanks to Darpan initiatives. And there are no shortages of talent here either. So if demand and resources both are available, I don’t see any reason why it shouldn’t be an option, “she says with a clear of optimism.

She is currently working on a documentary on Human Trafficking in India. I am keen to know more about the details. She does not share much but adds, “It’s exciting as well as challenging, for a woman film maker to be able to work on a subject of this nature. I cannot help all those betrayed, tortured and battered woman personally. But feels good when I see myself bringing out their stories to the world to change their tomorrows may be...”

Photo Source | Tannishtha Sarkar

BEHIND THE LENS

I am inspired by: Uncertain paths of life, the fact that anything can happen a second later amazes me. The varied shades of emotions are fascinating, such should be the characterizations. In short the spirit of life totally thrills me to go on and on.

My other interests: I am into various things, and I believe each one of those has its own contribution to my art. I have learnt Hindustani Classical Music since very early childhood, and later on diversified into contemporary music. I have achieved a number of prestigious awards and recognition on national level in vocal music.

Gold medal at Nehru Yuva Kendra, Finalist at Channel V Popstar 2, 1st Runner up at Radio Masti voice hunt, are to name a few. I have been into freelance screen writing for the last five years. I have travelled quite a bit. I love clicking whatever manages to catch my attention, be it a stray dog or my little girl’s frown, or a majestic snow cladded pick. I have even worked as a Radio Jockey at one point of time! We have only one life, you know what I mean!

My most memorable moment in life: Life is an ocean of beautiful moments, choosing one might be tricky. Saying bye to baba on my first day at school, my first medal in an inter-school music contest, the day I left my parents and Kolkata for my first job, the day I stepped into a conjugal life in a new country, or the day I saw the face of our very own newborn; all are magical to me. Let me rather share a not so widely common but a truly ‘wow’ moment. It’s the day I finished shooting my first film. It’s the moment, I realized internally, that whatever my instincts have been all these times provoking me for, was not really just a new craze.

That night, I actually found out that one thing that defines me. M ore than any awards I’ve received so far, this inner call with this little piece of self-recognition was the ‘Wow’ thing that changed my world!

Five years from now, I will be: Well, I see myself as much more of an organised, calm and composed being who forgets lesser than now (my forgetfulness is the biggest concern I have with myself!).

And yes, by that time I should be able to put more time into work as my kids would be more independent, hence, the idea of a full length film at that point does not sound that impossible ;) But again the uncertainty of life, that has been my muse of art, may even cast its own spell and re-write its own plans :)

THE MILON INTERVIEWS

sure if it was the right time to come up with it, B) of course, resources that a plot like this required. My mentors and fellow students who read the story, are the people who convinced me, it’s a story that needs to be told, especially on a time when rape has become such a regular incident that it fails to even make its place in newspapers.

Everybody joined hand for the cause of making my script a film.” And it has really paid off. The film received “Best Director” award at NACT Bangalore 2014, selected as the opening short film at the prestigious Darpan International Film Festival Singapore, Official selection at Kala Ghoda Film Festival Mumbai, got a special screening at National University Singapore for its South Asian Studies department, and recently got telecast in NDTV Prime.

“Honestly, all these are way beyond our expectations when we were literally struggling for locations, actors, props and equipment!” she beams.

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| october 2015 Interview | Arnab Banerjee Photography | Gargi Mazumdar

FOR THE LOVE OF THE GAME

If you are drawing titular parallel references with a 1999 Kevin Costner starrer sports drama of Billy Chapel, an ageing baseball pitcher, who is nearing the twilight of his career, you are mistaken. Rather the title summarizes the mission, vision, aspirations of a person, whose unwavering passion for sports coincidentally amalgamates with his profession.

A tete-a-tete with Dr. Swarup Mukherjee, Assistant Professor at National Institute of Education (NIE) Singapore, and a physician with specialisation in the area of Sports Medicine, on a haze-free Saturday afternoon in his office, unleashed not only his enriching life’s journey and experience but also the principles and beliefs underpinning his persona with a subtle mix of wit, simplicity, gravitas. Conversation spanned across a myriad mix of topics ranging from the bygone era of classicism in test cricket with the advent of its modern avatars in T20, importance of sports and the upkeep of fitness, interesting anecdotal experiences, single malt to Gulzar, Swarup da, as he is endearingly known to many of us, led us to a discovery of the different facets of him. Here is an excerpt from the interview.

Arnab in conversation with Dr Mukherjee at the NIE Campus Singapore.

Arnab: Where were you born in India?

Swarup: I was born in Dhanbad in erstwhile Bihar, now Jharkhand, with my parents hailing from Varanasi. That way I consider myself to possess a lethal blend of Bihar and UP. I’ve heard that you grew up across different states of India in course of your father’s work-related transfers. How was your experience to cope from a culture, cuisine, and language perspective?

As a part of this move, I ended up being part of 14 schools across states. Indeed it was a shift from the standpoint of different parameters - cultural and environmental. Cuisine wise I never have had problems adapting to the variety of Indian food. At one point of time I used to speak 9 languages fluently. This has actually come handy during my medical practices later, being placed at different locations demanding me to understand the local language. Sampoorna, my daughter speaks fluent Mandarin, Spanish and French.

How do you describe your ‘Bong Connection’ given you are born outside Bengal?

My surname speaks of my biggest identify as a Bong. Aside from I have had a few good Bengali friends and more important Durga Pujo, the sheer intensity of the festival brings back good old memories..

What’s your favourite sport?

Javelin throw, a sport which happened quite by chance. In those days in Grade 9, I used to be the shortest student in my school and used to be usual carrier of water amongst others. On the annual sports day, while 4 houses were battling for the pride and glory, I stood amongst the list of participants in St. Claire’s house with everyone wondering ‘chothu kya khelega’. My turn came with the javelin handed over to me,

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notwithstanding my height I used t run fast and threw the javelin at 42m, earning top spot leaving everyone awestruck. Thereafter, I was formally trained in the sport and enjoyed great success throughout my student life.

I’ve enjoyed playing all sport.

Games. However soon I realized that I was getting entangled into the political circles of AP Government, ending up having non productive lengthy meetings with diplomats rather than being able to add any value to my career as a physician.

What were the drivers behind your interest for a specialisation in ‘Sports Medicine’?

My love for sport. When I was in medical college, while my friends were focussed into neurosurgery et al I used to ponder over metabolism variations of 10.5s vs10.2s in a 100m sprint. As a part of my army tenure I was posted in a sleepy town of Kamptee near Nagpur. One day I bumped upon a physical education college under Nagpur University, met the principal, and enquired about the courses. He was surprised as it was bit unnatural for a medical doctor to pursue physical education.

It was 3 years Honours Degree with my first 2 years fees were waived off in lieu of me teaching anatomy and physiology. It was a unique experience of me playing the dual role of a teacher imparting lessons on cardio respiratory systems at the same time learning the finer aspects of coaching, officiating, pedagogical aspects as a student. It helped me to broaden my understanding in sports.

That’s very interesting. Please go on.

Another event while I was serving in Patiala, as a National coordinator for doping control, I used to arrange urine sample tests Late one day, a top Indian athlete came to me shattered whether I can do anything to ensure he can win 400m finals the next day as his win is linked to getting 3 lakhs rupees, a government job, a house and daughter’s education..

I had no answer thinking how few seconds of life in a running track can rescript one’s life. I realized I need to learn more about functional aspects of human performance. That led to my landing in Singapore in 2004 to pursue a doctoral degree in Exercise Physiology from the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) following the PG Diploma in Sport Medicine from Netaji Subhas National Institute of Sports, Patiala.

What happened after?

On completion of the course when I was contemplating what next, I got an invitation letter from Chandrababu Naidu, Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh requesting me to fill in the void and join as a sports physician at the backdrop of 32nd National

“in medical college,

while my friends were focussed into neurosurgery et al I used to ponder over metabolism variations of 10.5s vs10.2s in a 100m sprint. .”

Sports Medicine & Exercise Science, are they inter-related?

Well there are synergies between the two. What I enjoy most is I can ride on two vehicles at the same time travelling on the same road. And they are completely agnostic vehicles of, Sports Medicine & Exercise Science, mutually complementing each other. And this where I feel I have a strong edge over others who don’t have this dual combination. I’m involved in teaching Sports injuries - understanding, prevention and management, growth and motor development and physiology of exercise. Tighter coupling of these two disciplines not only makes my learning, teaching and understanding situations inclusive and comprehensive enough but also provides me that fulfilling kick of blending whatever knowledge and experienced I’ve acquired through my academia in pursuing MD & PhD. Tell us briefly about your books and publications.

My first book was on doping and its

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adverse effects on athletes. Second book, Repeated High-intensity Running in Youth Professional Soccer Players Assessment and Evaluation of the Indicators. Third book, that’s in the pipeline, pertains to injuries in team games, preventive mechanisms the coaches and trainers and come out with. On top of this I’ve written four book chapters and numerous research papers in international peerreviewed journals.

How long were you in the Indian army? How was the experience?

I was a Medical Officer in the army for 5 years starting with a military hospital in Jabalpur. It was absolutely by choice. Patriotic gene was in my DNA from early on. That was the life I loved to lead, the regimentation, organization, strong sense of structure, discipline and purpose.

Amongst 7 other S. Mukherjee, I did well in basic medical course leading to my posting in Kargil between 199698. Experience in the army transforms one’s personality making one more responsible, accountable, a strong sense of pride and honour.

You love shayaris and poetry. Do you write as well?

I used to write poetry in Hindi.. I tend to identify more with Gulzar as a writer, can visualize what he is trying to express.

What’s your favourite single malt?

It’s been a late love of my life as I was a completely teetotaller till my army days when Old Monk used to be available at 16 paisa, Although I’m not a regular consumer of alcohol, I love the taste of Laphroaig, I enjoy drinking following the right etiquette & precision.

Do you love to travel? What’s your favourite holiday destination?

I love to travel. It is an opportunity for self exploration. My favourite destination will be Himalayas.

Last question, how do you relax?

Relaxation has many dimensions. To me, the greatest form of relaxation is sports, sweating it out, because the way I put it being physically active is a dynamic form of meditation.

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MIHIR DASGUPTA 1932-2015 WORDS DEBARATI DASGUPTA

FOREVER IN OUR HEARTS M

y father, Mihir Das Gupta was born in Bareilly, India. After graduating as part of the pioneering batch of students from the former DMET (Directorate of Marine Engineering Training) in 1953, he continued his professional Marine Engineering training and rose to the position of Chief Engineer on British owned merchant navy ships.

My father moved to Singapore with my mother Gaetry in 1964, and joined the Marine Engineering Department at Singapore Polytechnic.

Singapore was a natural choice, given his previous visits to Singapore while sailing, as well as the island’s proximity to the hometown of Kolkata and “desher atteeo sajon”.

My father was fortunate to witness the birth of Singapore as an independent nation in 1965, and over the course of the next 30 years participated actively in the development of Singapore as a maritime hub through his career with the Marine Engineering Department and Shipbuilding and Offshore Engineering Department of Singapore Polytechnic and Ngee Ann Polytechnic respectively.

His light may have been extinguished but the glow will linger in the hearts and minds of many

My father was also very involved in the Bengali Association Singapore (at that time known as the Singapore Bengali Association) in the 1960s and 1970s. He participated in various Bengali Association functions, was involved in the Committee and held the position of Association President for two years in the 1970s. In subsequent years my family continued to attend BAS functions, although in recent years health issues prevented my parents from attending as many as they would have wished.

Active to the very end, he was always humble, jovial, and helpful, with a ready smile for both young and old. Soft spoken and gentle, he had his unique sense of joie de vivre that was cruelly snatched from him in the early hours of 29 July 2015.

To many of the Bengalis in Singapore he was fondly known as “Mihirda”, “Mihir Babu”, “Mesho” or “Kaku”. To me, he will always be my Baba; my guardian, my mentor, and my friend. I was forced to say goodbye to you, Bapi, but I will miss you and love you always.

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Pranati Paul R

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BABYDI

1936 -2015 Babydi became a BAS member in 1959. While Sunilda became a Treasurer in 1971 and served as one of the longest serving treasurer for close to 22 years, Babydi also used to actively lend her helping hand in a multitude of activities.

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RESEARCH ARNAB BANERJEE PHOTO COURTESY SUNILDA

DOLLY SINHA DAVENPORT

I remember our Babydi

M

rs Pranati Paul, whom we used to call Babydi, was a woman of great dignity and compassion.

Every time I resolve to pen down my thoughts and reflections on her, because of my long association with her, I am beguiled by her dedication, capability and enthusiasm.

Any reference to Durga Puja cannot begin without the mention of Babydi’s name. She was an early pioneer of Durga Puja and her outstanding contribution to our Durga Puja will always be remembered.

From 1979, when Durga Puja first started and until 2005, whether it was Kalyana Mandapam under Perumal temple in Serangoon road, or Kamala Club premises in Rangoon road or Indian Association and Khalsa Association in Balestier road, she was the most integral part of Durga Puja.

At the beginning she looked after the food part of Durga Puja celebrations and then she took over the puja section. An excellent cook, her capability and natural ability to mix with young and old made everybody at ease, whoever came in contact with her.

Later on it was decided by the committee that the priest who came

Any reference to Durga Puja cannot begin without the mention of Babydi’s name. She was early pioneer of Durga Puja and her outstanding contribution to our Durga Puja heritage will always be remembered.

from Kolkata will stay at Babydi’s place as it meant economic sense. I was taken by surprise when I visited her premises soon after Durga Puja and I saw her sitting on the floor and fanning the priest while he was having his lunch. Just the way he was used to in his own village.

She not only used to cook for him a variety of dishes but also washed his clothes too. Her dedication and sense of duty was admirable. While fumes of the incense and sound of mystic mantras filled the nostalgic puja pandal and people congregated there flaunting the latest trend in fashion, Babydi used to be there early morning with her husband and the priest to start her duties without any fuss and fanfare. I was in awe of her dedication that was further highlighted by her heart-warming, hospitable welcoming smile.

She remained committed until her health started deteriorating preventing her to continue. But we were optimist that soon she will come back when summoned her for extending her support again.

An extraordinary woman in a very ordinary way, she will remain in our thoughts eternally. Let us celebrate her life by dedicating these few lines in her honour.

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words | arnab banerjee Since its inception, Bengali Association Singapore (BAS) has been always been in the vanguard, playing an active pivotal role in expanding its horizons in the multicultural landscape of this ‘little red dot’.

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Nurturing the Culture

Year after year, BAS has hosted a multitude of events that have not only demonstrated the best-in-class talent of our members but also reinforced the richness of our cultural roots, which forms the quintessential DNA of Bongs ‘from ages, beyond borders’.

Bolstered by a strong foundation that has matured over the years, 2015 calendar has witnessed a diversity of events in terms of ‘continuation of some, revival of others, and arrival of ‘New Kids on the Block’.

photo courtesy | mithu chakraborty

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SANJH BELAR ANANDO DALI THE MOMENTS

photo courtesy | partha ray | suparna ghosh | amit mukherjee

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SANJH BELAR ANANDO DALI

&

Sudhu 25 se baisakh ba 22 se srabon-i noye, amader shilpochetonaye, jibon-darsane, riturange, chirokaler moto aajo Rabindranath amader Bangali sottar sange otoproto bhabe joriye ache. In keeping with these vibes, ‘Abhishar’, a musical program based on Tagore’s timeless classics, penned amidst the backdrop of his fascination for the monsoons was staged under the auspices of “Sanjh Belar Anondo Dali” held on 22nd August @ Khoo Auditorium, Singapore Chinese Girl’s school. Scintillating performances by our local music and dance talents did complete justice to the poet’s conceptualization and vision of his views of the rains following a scorching summer to be analogous to man’s need for God during trials.

The dance was choreographed by Susmita Datta & Swati Mukherji and the music was arranged by Samit Ghosal

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Abhishar

Susmita Datta Samit Ghosal Swati Mukherji

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SANJH BELAR ANANDO DALI THE MOMENTS

photo courtesy | partha ray | suparna ghosh | amit mukherjee

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kenaram becharam

SANJH BELAR ANANDO DALI

Eki sathe harano diner smriti taja korte ‘khokababur pratyabartan er’ moto ‘Natok’ er punoragamon holo Manoj Mitra-r ottonto janopriyo shristi ‘Kenaram Becharam’ er manchastha hoyar marfot.

Like the original play which has stood the test of time and has enthralled audiences globally with its profound social message and dramatic effects, the ‘Natok’ team captivated us leaving a lasting impression by dint of their brilliant absolute top notch performance. Sab miliye natok-gaan-naach er tribeni sangame, sundor poribeson e ‘Sanjh Belar Anondo Dali’ tar namer sarthokotar sakkhor rekhe gelo darsokder anabil anondo daan kore.

The Manoj Mitra play was directed by Indranil Banerjee.

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Indranil Banerjee

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Baisakhi Mela THE MOMENTS

photo courtesy | partha ray

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‘Eso he baisakh, eso eso..’, ‘nabarser jete na jete Baishakhi Mela proudly stepped in on 2nd May at Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuen Dance and Cultural Centre, 5 Sennett Road with an assortment of offerings in the form of workshops, cultural events, Mela-sque stalls – sarees, jewellery, food to name a few. Four parallel workshops on (a) Dance by legendary Mrs. Tanushree Shankar, (b) Photography conducted by Aniruddha Banerjee, Partha Ray.Devashis Das & Alan, some of our best connoisseurs of photography, (c) Indian Classical appreciation by noted classical singer, Ravindra Parchure, from Temple of Fine Arts, Singapore and (d) Arts on Jamini Roy

and Madhubani style paintings conducted by some of our best local talents kept the day busy with enthusiastic participation amongst members, non members, non-Bengalis et all. Evening followed with equal excitement with musical and cultural program by local artists. Event ended with the breathtaking poetry recitals by Mrs. Bratati Bandyopadhyay.

From Nazrul Islam’s ‘bolo bir bolo unnata momo sir..’ to Sunil Gangopadhyay’s ‘ekti chithi’, her voice her renditions regaled in the SHHK auditorium, enraptured the audience, providing a perfect finale for this day-long event.

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Baisakhi Mela

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Bongo Rongo

BY THE BAY

THE MOMENTS

photo courtesy | suparna ghosh

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BY THE BAY

Pujo ese gelo. Nil akase halka polka megher anagona.

Saroter choyaye batase kaash phooler gandho, sisirer alimpon.

Shopping cholche jor kadome.

To trigger a build up to the festive mood, ‘Bongo Rongo by the Bay’, a pre-Durga Pujo Mela was held on 6th September at Marina Room, Costa Rhu Condominium, Tanjong Rhu Road and evoked a tremendous response in a shopping spree amongst the shopaholics getting ready to be decked up for the ensuing Pujo.

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Bongo Rongo

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SARASWATI PUJO THE

MOMENTS

Saraswati Pujo was held on 24th January 2015 at the Global Indian International School (GIIS) Auditorium at Jalan Rajah.

Many members inducted their children with ‘Haatey Khori’ on the day. The function was widely attended.

BAS member, Ranjan Chakraborty, conducted the puja and the rituals.

photo courtesy | devashis das

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SARASWATI PUJO &

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Basanta Utsav THE MOMENTS

photo courtesy | aniruddha banerjee | suparna ghosh | devashis das

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‘Ore Grihobasi khol daar khol, laaglo je dol...’, ‘Rang Barse..’ songs that are synonymous with colours of joy ala colours of life manifesting itself with ‘Festival of Colours’, acting as a harbinger of spring. Dol Purnima / Holi was celebrated on 7th March at ECP, Mana Mana Beach Club with the usual dose of ardour that accompanies the festivities surrounding it with songs, dance, and mouth watering delicacies.

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Basanta Utsav

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collage courtesy | paromita rakshit

PA One Community Fiesta

THE MOMENTS

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BAS partnered with LISHA (Little India Shopkeepers & Heritage Association) to join the bandwagon in Indian New Year celebrations, held in Serangoon Road from 24th April to 1st May. BAS stall set up for the event was decorated by our members Paromita Rakshit, Manisha Sarkar, Anamika Das Dutta and Sudeshna Dasgupta. The stall highlighted our cultural tradition of celebrating Durga Puja. Rosogollas were distributed to visitors and other stall participants. The event comprised different events such as the exhibition held, stage performance of ‘Aaaj Dakhin Duar Khola’, choreographed by Srabonti Dutta, with support from students from Global Indian International School, UTSAV street parade. Performances took place in the august presence of Singapore President Tony Tan, MND Minister Khaw Boon Wan.

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KISTIMAAT

THE MOMENTS

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While Uncle Sam was going gung ho with their 4th July (American Independence Day) celebrations, Bongs and non-Bongs, who possess strong leanings for this intellectual mindsport, thronged the corridors of Waterside Condo function room to partake in “Kistimaat”, a Quiz contest, organized for the first time under the aegis of BAS. It had ‘Something for Everyone’, ‘Anything n Everything under the sun from ‘Tendulkar’s to ‘Tintin’, ‘Rocky Mountains to ‘Rock n Roll’ to hold the audience making the atmosphere electric with sumptuous food stalls adding the perfect ‘food for thought’. 12 teams gallantly competed against each other like true gladiators in the ‘Battle of the Brains’, split across 2 qualifiers followed by an exhilarating final which ended in a cliff hanger in deciding the outcomes.

photo courtesy | partha ray

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KISTIMAAT

Absolut Trivia’s – For the Quintessential Quiz Lovers

1.

3.

2.

4.

One of the signers of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, Francis Hopkinson, while toying with the year 1776 came up with an idea, which he submitted to US Congress, who liked and approved it.

He added the figures 1, 7, 7 and 6 and found that they totaled twenty-one. He thus got the idea for a “21 Gun Salute” for Presidents, which is now prevalent all over the world.

As a member of the British Parliament, he spoke up only once — and that was to tell someone to close a window. He had a more successful stint as a ‘Master of Mint’, during which he recalled old currency and substituted them with circularly milled coins, making counterfeiting difficult. There goes the saying that Diamond, his favorite dog upset a candle, setting fire to manuscripts containing his notes on experiments conducted over the course of twenty years. If you are wondering whom are we referring to, it’s none other than the great Sir Isaac Newton.

1983 James Bond movie, “Never Say Never Again” is allegedly based on a conversation between Sean Connery and his wife. After Diamonds Are Forever (1971) he told her he’d *never* play James Bond again, and there he was, playing James Bond again marking his return to the role after 12 yrs. Her response was for him to “never say never again”.

Mathematical concept of Poisson distribution was formulated in 1898, when Ladislaus Bortkiewicz, a French mathematician attempted to codify the number of soldiers dying of accidental horse kicks in the Prussian army.

7.

1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles were cast under a cloud of the Great Depression that had affected most of the participating nations. Brazil, for instance didn’t have the money to send their athletes through traditional means. They came up with the following ingenious solution to combat the financial exigency and to fund their contingent’s travel. They sent them all on a boat filled with coffee and told them to sell it along the way to fund the trip.

8.

Madame Tussauds last words were “Once I was waxing and now I’m waning”.

5.

9.

6.

10.

Before coming to films, Satyajit Ray worked as a graphic designer and designed any famous book covers like Jim Corbett’s “Man Eaters of Kumaon” and Jawaharlal Nehru’s “Discovery of India”.

News of Mahatama Gandhi’s assassination wasn’t carried on the front page of ‘The Hindu’ as its front page used to have only advertisements ONLY in those days.

In a London county versus Marylebone Cricket Club match played between 23rd – 25th August, 1900, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle claimed the wicket of the legendary WG Grace, incidentally his first and only first class wicket.

In the realm of science, (I - 2/2 C - 1/1 P - 2/2 M - 3/3) x 2 denotes the Dental Formula of Man. CONT’D NEXT PAGE

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KISTIMAAT - ABSOLUT TRIVIA

11.

Flag of Mozambique includes an AK-47 with a bayonet and is the only national flag in the world to feature a modern rifle.

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12.

Steve Jobs travelled to India in mid-1974 to visit Neem Karoli Baba in search of spiritual enlightenment.

13.

Montpelier, Vermont is the only US state capital which doesn’t have a McDonalds.

14.

Raphael, the famous painter was born on Good Friday in 1483 and died on Good Friday in 1520.

15.

Members of Combat 18, an ultra-right group in UK based on the principles of leaderless resistance have been suspected in numerous deaths of immigrants, nonwhites etc. 18 in its name is derived from the initials of Adolf Hitler: A and H are the first and eighth letters of the Latin alphabet.

Basenji is the ONLY dog that doesn’t bark.

16.

17.

This archaic English symbol @ suddenly shot into prominence in 1971. It’s referred to by colourful names such as aapstert (or monkey’s tail) in Afrikaans / Dutch, snabel

(elephant’s trunk) in Danish, arobase or escargot (snail) in French and lao shuhao (little mouse) in Mandarin.

18.

Although it is erroneously believed that it was built as a teaching tool for students to understand 3D objects, its real purpose was solving the problem of moving its parts independently without the mechanism falling apart. The object in question that was invented at the Academy of Applied Arts and Crafts in Budapest in the 1970s was none other than Rubik’s Cube.

19.

“I was surprised to read my own obituary, mistakenly published in a newspaper. I was disturbed by the fact that the obituary described me as the inventor of an article of death and destruction. So I decided to establish something positive that people would remember me for.

– Inventor is Sir. Alfred Nobel inventor of dynamite as well as the one who instituted the Nobel Prize.

20.

Shirley Temple, a child artist in those days presenting Walt Disney with 1 full-size large Oscar statuette and 7 miniature ones for the film “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” at the 11th Academy Awards

in 1939.

21.

Godrej introduced its soap ‘No.2’ in 1919. Three years later, it introduced the ‘No.1’ brand - which is sold in the Indian markets even today. Thanks to the Swadeshi fervour of the times, Godrej’s soaps found favour with patriotic Indians.

The soaps were used and endorsed

by Annie Besant, C. Rajagopalachari and Rabindranath Tagore. “I know of no foreign soap better than Godrej, and I have made it a point to use Godrej soaps,” said the Bard of Bengal.

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KUSHAL DAS

Kushal Das, son of Krishnapada Das passed the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) from ACS Primary with flying colours in 2014. With an aggregate score of 266, four A* in all four subjects including English, Mathematics, Science and Hindi, Kushal has made his parents (names) very proud.

Kushal has also completed the Gifted Education Program (GEP) in ACS Primary and is now a Secondary 1 student in Raffles Institution.

Congratulations, Kushal! All the very best to you in everything you aspire for in future!

member achievements

Congratutions,Kushal

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member achievements

A A H E L I T A R A F D A R

Aaheli passed her A-levels with A’s in all subjects from Raffles Junior College in 2015. She has joined the Imperial College London, to pursue Masters in Engineering (M. Engg.) in Chemical Engineering this year. She was awarded the SINDA Excellence Award for academic excellence for her PSLE, O-Levels (Integrated Program) and A-levels results, as well as Academic Excellence Award from Raffles Institution (Junior College). Aaheli has been an active BAS member since she was 3 years old, taking part in numerous BAS programs over the past 16 years. Apart from her studies, Aaheli takes keen interest in piano, Indian classical dance, contemporary dance, and drama – and she wishes to promote Indian arts and culture in her college over the next four years of her stay in London.

congratulations

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Reminiscing Singapore’s Durga Puja of 2014, the writer takes us through a journey of the mythologies and ceremonies behind the age old observances of Akal Bodhan …..he shares with us why Mahalaya is celebrated, the importance of Kola Bou, beliefs that influenced Kumari Pujo … along with other historical and cultural anecdotes of Bengal’s biggest and most anticipated festival……

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RESEARCH & STORY DEB MUKHERJI

PHOTO MITHU CHAKRABORTY

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DURGA PUJO

The blissful milieu of trad For the last few years, I felt intrigued with the rituals involved in puja and for that matter Durga Puja itself. Why it is perfromed for four days? What is the significance of Mahalaya (other than Birendra Krishna Bhadra’s stotra path? When and how did Durga Puja start in Bengal?

Why is Shandhi Puja perfromed in the night and mostly around midnight time?

In this article, I’ve tried to assemble my findings in one place and highlight the main events/rituals perfromed during Durga Puja.

The Origin of Durga Puja Probably, all of us know that the first Durga Puja was performed

by Lord Ram. Here’s what legend tells usIt was probably 7600 B.C. and Ram was invading Lanka along with his troupe of monkey soldiers to free Sita from the

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DEB MUKHERJI

traditions, faith and rituals grasp of Ravan. Just before the final battle with Ravan, Ram decided to perform Durga Puja to seek the Goddess’s blessings.

While Durga puja, those days was performed in Spring time, as started by King Suratha, Lord Ram had to evoke the Goddess in Autumn and get her blessings in order to win the war. That was untimely (Akal), therefore the worship (Bodhan) of Durga,as performed by Ram and performed henceforth between September and October was named “Akal Bodhan”.

Traditionally, one hundred lotus flowers are offered to Devi Durga during the Pujas. Ram had one short for the puja and finding no alternatives whatsoever, he decided to offer one of his eyes ,blue in colour and resembling a lotus, as the one hundredth flower. Goddess Durga, got thoroughly impressed with Ram’s dedication, appeared before him

and granted him his wish for victory over Ravan.

The First Durga Puja in Bengal The origin of Durga Puja could be traced back to late 1500 or early 1600 A.D. , when the zaminders of Malda and Dinajpur supposedly performed the first Durga Puja in Bengal. Some other sources give the credit to Raja Kangshanarayan of Taherpur or Bhabananda Mazumdar of Nadiya for organizing the first Sharadiya or Autumn Durga Puja in Bengal way back in c 1606.

The ‘Baro-Yaari’ Puja As the name suggest, in 1790, twelve friends from Guptipara, Hoogly came together and collected contributions from local residents to organize the first community Durga Puja.

This gave birth to the concept of “Baro-yari” puja. This collective form of celebrating Durga Puja was first initiated in Kolkata by Raja Harinath of Cossimbazar in 1832

Origin of ‘Sarbajanin Durga Puja’ or Community Celebration

Over time, more and more people started actively participating in Durga puja making it a community affair rather than a restrictive religious event organized by a few. The first ‘Sarbajanin’ or community puja can be traced back to 1910 when Sanatan Dharmotsahini Sabha organized the first truly community puja in Baghbazar in Kolkata with contribution and participation from large number of people. The

The BAS-sinetNurturing the Culture

Being a Bengali, born and brought up in Kolkata, Durga Puja was way more than a religious festival for me. It was that frantic expectation for the four days to arrive, frenzied whirlwind of activities during those days and then bidding farewell to the Goddess on the last day with a tinge of sadness but also rekindling the expectation for next year’s puja.

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PUJAS DURING THE BRITISH DAYS SOURCE | WEB

tradition of observing Sarbajanin Durga Puja in the eighteenth century paved the way for a phenomenal growth of Bengali culture over the next century.

British Involvement in Durga Puja While it may seem quite ludicrous, research indicates that high level British officials regularly attended Durga Pujas organized by influential Bengalis. Not only that, there are evidences showing British soldiers actually participated in the pujas, had prasad, and even used to salute the deity. Perhaps one of the amazing example of participation was East India Company’s organizing a thanksgiving puja in 1765. It was more a political gimmick of course, to appease the Hindu subjects, on obtaining the “Diwani of Bengal”. It is reported that even the Company Auditor General, John Chips organized Durga Puja at his Birbhum office.

Official British participation in

Durga Puja continued till 1840, when a law was passed banning all such participations.

Durga Puja – the rituals and their significance For quite some time I used to wonder if there was any significance of the puja days – why is puja celebrated just for the four days? Why does Mahalaya marks the commencement of pujo? How is ‘Tarpan’ linked to Mahalaya? Why do we perform Kumari Pujo? What is the significance of Sandhi Pujo?

To start with Durga Pujo itself - it is said that the final battle with Ravan started on the seventh day (Shaptami) after Ram performed the puja and Ravan was killed at the Shandhikshan (in between) eigth (Ashtami) and ninth day (Navami); he was cremated on the tenth day (Dashami).

Therefore the four days of puja is the celebration of the triumph of good over evil.

Let’s try to take a slightly deeper look into the pujo and the associated rituals.

What is Mahalaya?

Mahalaya is the day Devi Durga descends on earth to put an end to all evils. The main puja starts exactly on the seventh day from Mahalaya ending on the tenth day. Mahalaya is the first day of the fifteen days from the new moon up to the next full moon and this day marks the end of “Pitri Paksha” and commencement of “Devi Paksha”.

According to Hindu traditions, “Pitri Paksha” (also known as “Pitru Paksha”) is the period to perfrom Shola Shraddha or sixteen Shraddhas or food offerings to ancestors. This offering is known in Bengal as “Tarpan” and generally performed during the pre-dawn time in the holy river, Ganga.

There is an interesting story linked

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given a ceremonial bath. The tree is then draped in a white saree with red border, with some sindur or the vermillion powder applied on its leaves.

Thereafter, the tree is kept on the right side of the idol of Ganesh, implying that she is the bride of Lord Ganesh.

However, the traditionalists differ on the concept of the Kala-bou as they see it signifying the coming together of Naba-patrika, or the nine leaves. On the trunk of the banana tree are tied the leaves of the following trees –

tree)– representing Raktadantika

1. Holud gaach (turmeric tree) – representing Durga

9. Kala gaach (Banana tree) – representing Brahmani

2. Bel gaach (wood apple tree) – representing Shiva

Some scholars have even opined that the Nabapatrika is a form of Durga herself, which symbolizes all the aspects of

3. Daalim gaach (pomegranate

4. Maankochu (the arum plant) – representing Chanunda 5. Dhan gaach (Rice plant) – denotes Lakshmi 6. Ashok tree – representing Sakharita 7. Kochu gaach (colacassia plant) – representing Kaalika 8. Jayanti gaach (saal tree) – representing Kartiki

Another famous ritual of “Chakshu Dan” or painting the eyes of the Durga idols take place On the last new moon day just before the Mahalaya.

Kola-bou or the Banana Bride During Durga Puja, one of the most important ritual on Mahasaptami, or the seventh day, is the bathing of the Kalabou or the banana-bride. On this day, a small banana tree is taken to the river Ganga, and

Photo Caption: Kola Bou ceremony on the banks of the Hooghly in Kolkata, India

The BAS-sinetNurturing the Culture

to the Mahlaya and the ritual offerings to the ancestors by the Hindus. Karna, the legendary fighter from Mahabharata was also well known for his charities.

It is said that he used to donate gold and wealth to everyone who sought his help, which earned him the name of Data Karna.

After his death in Kurukshetra, Karna went to heaven and Yama, the God of Death showered him with many more times the gold and wealth that Karna had donated during his lifetime.

However, Karna was served with gold and precious stones as food instead of real food. Frustrated, Karna asked Yama the reason for this and then Yama told him that although Karna has donated wealth throughout his life time, he had never donated food to anyone. Neither had he offered food to his ancestors during his life time. Karna realized his mistake and requested Yama to give him a chance to make up for his mistake. He was then sent back to earth by Yama for 14 days, when Karna fed the poor people and made offerings to his ancestors. After these 14 days he returned to heaven and was served real food. So these 14 days are honored as Mahalaya Period.

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THE MOMENTS

8. Jayanti gaach (saal tree) – representing Kartiki 9. Kala gaach (Banana tree) – representing Brahmani Some scholars have even opined that the Nabapatrika is a form of Durga herself, which symbolizes all the aspects of nature in a complex vegetative state. According to a scholar the plant symbolizes the “festive

Photo Caption: ANANDAMELA DURING DURGA PUJO 2014 IN SINGAPORE MOITRY SARKAR | Photographer

photo courtesy | partha ray | moitry sarkar

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Many also feel that the worship of Kala-bou in the form of Nabapatrika might not have anything to do with Lord Ganesh at all. It could just have been a local or a primitive practice of worshipping the Mother Earth for a rich harvest and with the popularity of the Durga Puja, this ritual was assimilated in the festivities. In the absence of idolworship, the Nabapatrika was the symbol of Mother Nature herself. Autumn or Sharat was also the season for reaping the harvest and the peasants worshipped the Nabapatrika for

a rich and bountiful harvest. As far as the placement of the Kalabou is concerned, since Kartik was a confirmed bachelor, it was logical to place ‘her’ next to Ganesh! In fact, the worshipping of Nabapatrika in its original form is still prevalent in some parts of Eastern India.

Finally, to conclude, here is an interesting folktale related to Kolabou. According to this tale, the wedding procession of Ganesh had not gone very far from home, when Ganesh remembered that he had forgotten something. On returning, he found his mother Durga eating bowlfuls of rice and gorging herself. Ganesh found it odd and asked his mother, as to why was she gorging herself. To this Durga is supposed to have said – “Jodi tor bou aamaake khete na dai? (What if your wife did not give me enough food to eat?). Hearing this Ganesh was upset, he stepped out of his home, cut a banana tree and gave it to her saying “etai tomar bou (this is your daughter-in-law)”. Later, Ganesh was married off to the

Photo Caption: KUMARI PUJA DURING DURGA PUJO 2014 IN SINGAPORE MITHU CHAKRABORTY | Photographer

banana tree and thus the name Kala-bou, or the banana bride.

Kumari Puja The Goddess, during her stay on earth, is worshipped in several forms. One of them is the Kumari, which is the ‘Kanya’ or the ‘Virgin’ form. This is considered the most powerful form of Mahashakti.

A girl aged between one and sixteen is worshipped in front of the idol of Goddess Durga.

Interestingly, the scriptures emphasize Kumari Puja in order to enhance the purity and divinity of the women of the Indian society. Sri Rama Krishna had said that Kumari is another form of Devi Durga. He in fact worshipped Sarada Ma as Kumari. This concept of Kumari Puja is very ancient. We can find reference of Kumari Puja being performed by Arjun in the Mahabharat.

The scriptures mention the qualities required in the girl to match the dynamism, purity and serenity of the godly Kumari. The

The BAS-sinetNurturing the Culture

enactment of Durga’s return of the blood of the buffalo demon (Mahishasur) to the earth so that the order of the world be re-established and luxuriant vegetation appear.” As far as placing the Nabapatrika next to Lord Ganesh’s idol is concerned, it can be surmised that the same is due to Lord Ganesh being credited to be the creator of eighteen medicinal plants, for which he is known as Astadasausadhisrsti.

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Kumari has to be calm, serene and unmarried girl, who should not have yet reached her puberty.

Therefore, she would be bereft of desire, worldly pleasures and anger.

Depending on the age of the girls, they are worshipped in the different forms of the Goddess: • A one year old is worshipped in the Sandhya form of the Devi • A two year old is worshipped in the Saraswati form • A three year old girl is worshipped in the Tridha form • A four year old is worshipped in the Kalika form • Subhaga and Uma are the forms for a five and a six year old respectively • A seven year old is worshipped as Malini, while an eight year old represents Kujjika • Kalsondarbha and Aparajita

stand for a ten year old and an eleven year old respectively • Bhairavi is represented by a twelve year old and Mahalakhmi by a thirteen year old • Pitnayika, Khetragya and Ambika are worshipped by way of fourteen, fifteen and sixteen year old girls respectively Shandhi Puja An integral and important part of Durga Puja, Sandhi Puja is performed at the juncture of the 8th and 9th lunar day. Sandhi puja spans across the last 24 minutes of Ashtami till the first 24 minutes of Nabami. During this juncture (the “Sandhikhan”), Durga is worshipped in her Chamunda form.

Legend has it that while the Goddess Durga and Mahishasura were engaged in a fierce battle, the two generals of Mahisha, Chando and Mundo attacked

the Devi from the rear. Durga appeared to them, a brilliantly glowing woman with her hair knotted on her head, a crescent moon above her forehead, a ‘tilak’ on her forehead and a garland around her neck. With golden earrings and clad in a yellow saari she emitted a golden glow. Her ten hands possessed ten different weapons. Though she appeared beautiful her face turned blue with anger when she faced Chondo and Mundo. From her third eye then emerged a Devi with a large falchion and a shield. She had a large face, bloody tongue and sunken blood shot eyes. She was Chamunda.

With a bloodcurdling shriek she leapt forward and killed them.

This moment was the juncture of the 8th and 9th lunar day or the ‘Sandhikhhan’. Devi Durga

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killed, Chando and Mundo, the two asuras at “Sandhikhan” and thus acquired the name of “Chamunda”.

Ten Days with Goddess Durga The battle with Ravan started on Shaptami and Ravan was killed at the Shandhikshan, in between

Ashtami and Navami; he was cremated on Dashami. Therefore the four days of the puja that we celebrate represents the triumph of the good over evil.

While Durga Puja is celebrated in Bengal for four days, between Saptami and Dashami, in other parts of India, the nine days of the puja is called Navaratri, followed by Dussera or Dashami.

Navaratri symbolizes the

photo courtesy | mithu chakraborty

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THE MOMENTS

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The BAS-sinetNurturing the Culture

photo courtesy | mithu chakraborty | moitry sarkar

THE MOMENTS

defeat of evil and about having reverence for all aspects of life.

The nine days of Navaratri are classified as per the three basic qualities of ‘Tamas’, ‘Rajas’ and ‘Sattva’. The first three days are Tamas, where the goddess is fierce, like Durga and Kali.

The next three days are related to Lakshmi, known as Rajas – gentle but materially oriented goddesses. The last three days are dedicated to Saraswati, which is sattva. It is related to knowledge and enlightenment.

After Navaratri, the tenth and final day is Vijayadashami –

by this time one is supposed to have conquered all these three qualities, Tamas, Rajas and Sattva. While we are not supposed to give into any one of them, one should be able to see through every one of them. While we participated in every one of them, we are not supposed invest in any one of them. We must win over them. That is Vijayadashami, the day of victory.

This brings home the message of how being in reverence and gratitude towards everything that matters in our lives leads to success and victory.

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Soumili Basak

The Woman will learn to rise, The Woman will learn to fall, If She does not do so, how can She progress at all?

The Woman is the embodiment, of a million silenced cries, If She does not break free in time, it will be the spark in her that dies.

The Woman needs to understand, That she is not a piece on a chessboard controlled by Men, If She does not move past the black and white, Then what will be lost will be her fight.

The Woman has fought for centuries for her rights, Now, it should be equality with Men on which she sets her sights.

If She does not have the same level playing field, All the progress She has made with time- She will have to yield.

The Woman needs to understand, that She can save herself too, Be it in heels, or a gown, and with or without a beau. / We need to teach our girls that the colour of their skin does not matter, We need to teach our girls not to be obsessed, with who is skinnier or fatter.

We need to teach our girls that they should be proud to ‘run like a girl,’ We need to teach our girls that in this web of sexism, they should not be ensnarled.

We need to teach our girls that they are worth every bit as much, We need to teach our girls that in this world, they cannot care about those who prejudge.

We need to teach our girls that they are no different from all the boys, We need to teach our girls that that they can go out there and win the fight, instead of being coy.

Our girls are the ones who make up the other half of the planet, Are we really going to ignore all of their dreams, hopes and talents?

I'm Soumili Basak, and I've been writing into Milon every year since I was seven. I study in Raffles Girls' School (Secondary), and this piece was inspired by Emma Watson's legendary speech at the United Nations.

wordsWORTH

THE WOMAN

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Rupshi Mitra

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Feast for the Eyes

On the occasion of SG50, Rupashi Mitra’s apt vibrantly coloured painting alongside introduces the artistic side of the BAS members.

In the pages that follow some amazing works with colour, brush and pencil demonstrate the phenomenal talent that lies within the community.

About the Painter

Rupshi Mitra I am Rupshi Mitra, currently an University Professor (Assistant Professor level) in Nanyang Technological University and a very active Mother to my little girl. I am an active scientist in the field of Neuroscience/Nueropsychiatry and teacher for undergraduate courses in our University. In Home, I am a learner, player, friend, artist, singer, cook everything combined to my child. Between University and Home I have a very hectic time, but I enjoy every bit of both. I also realize the immense potential we have in each one of us. In my very rare spare times, I love to paint landscapes and abstract themes, mainly using acrlyic/oil and watercolors. I also love to sing Rabindrasangeet on a daily basis. Only thing I wish is to have little more time. I feel happy and grateful about Bengali Association Singapore where I find loving Bengali friends and culture that allows me to be my truest self. I believe everything that I am/I do today is because of my upbringing in a strong loving culture, through immense efforts of several people and most importantly the undying spirit and impossible dream of my parents.

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Sculpteur Magnifique Sayantika Banik

Stage 1 Conceptualising Stage 3

e Taking shap

Stage 5 The Basic Form

veloping Stage 2 De

THE MAKING OF MAA DURGA Sayantika takes us through the entire process of creating a masterpiece in sculpture . Something that she calls the ‘Making of Maa Durga’

Stage 4 Mahish

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Stage 6 Detailing begins

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e detail Stage 7 Adding mor

backdrop Stage 8 Adding the

uches done Stage 9 Finishing to

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Ma Durga

Ma Durga

Nunc pretium vestibulum dolor, non pellentesque diam placerat necorbi volut.

The Beauty of the Eye

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A Daughter in the Shadow of her Mother PaleTte-able - Feast for the Eyes

Nunc pretium vestibulum dolor, non pellentesque diam placerat necorbi volut.

The Moments

Nunc pretium vestibulum dolor, non pellentesque diam placerat necorbi volut.

Anamika Dutta

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tathagata

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SHAKTI PaleTte-able - Feast for the Eyes

Pampa Roy As a self-taught artist, Pampa’s passion for painting is rooted in daily life. The vision that she shares with the world with every brush stroke comes from her love for nature and the vibrant colors that nature presents to all of us in some form. Along with her passion for painting; Pampa is an art-educator and conducts art classes for children, helping them in discovering and honing their creativity and imaginations, which are so essential in the formative years of a child.

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shuva m sarkar 10 years

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About Me Ritujit Mandal

(Age: 6 Years, P1, St. Stephen's Primary School)

WITH BEST COMPLIMENTS SAMIPENDRA CHAUDHURY & FAMILY

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Adreeja Dutta

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Soumyo Bhattacharya

I’m 5 1/2 years old. I was born in California. I go to a Montessori school. I love superheroes (with Spiderman being my favourite), Angry Birds Transformers, Hot Wheels and Dinosaurs. I love watching 'Tom and Jerry' cartoons. And I love eating pizzas, pastas, French fries, butter chicken with burgers being my favourite

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SHREYAN BANERJEE

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My eyes are the windows to my world But what I see is my vision blurred.

My pupils need the aid of glasses, frames that lay on my face I don’t want to lose my sight, I don’t want my vision to erase.

The buildings and trees all seem dull and hazy And inside; it looks plain old lazy.

Daddy got me glasses, blue ones the other day When I put them on I saw the world in a different way.

The colours seemed brighter, the edges seemed sharper I liked the way it grabbed my ears, it made me look smarter.

Neither do I have to squint nor I have to sit closer The days without crisp clear sight, they’re all over.

I see a whole new world full of wonder and excitement.

My eyes, my mind fill with great enlightenment.

But, over years, they keep on getting fogged With numerous attempts to clean it off, it still never stops.

Cannot stop smudging and being scratched I can’t take it anymore, even the lens are getting detached.

All my efforts for a containment; goes in vain Wish; I could visit the optician for a replacement again.

Sourick Paul

wordsWORTH

The Incredible Glass

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Rittika’s

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About Rittika: A quintessential Bong, a connoisseur of music and a painter by passion. Moreover I am a foodaholic and enjoy unleashing my creativity in cooking cuisines of different types and flavours.

PaleTte-able - Feast for the Eyes

THE RITTIKA MUKHERJEE experience

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PAINTING | DILIP GHOSH POETRY | LATE SMT RADHARANI BANERJEE

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MA, 2015

Ridhima Roy

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AMRITA MILI MUKHERJEE

DURGA | Pastel & Water Colour on Paper

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SHREYA ROY

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MY EXPERIENCE WITH ART Over the June holidays I took part in an art camp. It was organized by TFA (Temple of fine arts) I go there for my weekly dance lessons. During the art camp I learnt three Indian art designs called Warli, Madhubani and Pattachitra.

Warli is a folk art from Maharashtra, traditionally created by women. Warli art was found out in the early seventies. Warli paintings were mostly created on mud walls.

The only color used for Warli is black.

Madhubani art is done with fingers, twigs, nib pens and match sticks. The art form is practiced in the state of Bihar, India. It was created in the 1930’s. Madhubani is created on walls with mud or cow dung. Madhubani is done by women. All lines in the art piece are doubled.

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Artwork & Text by : Anoushka Bhattacharya Pattachachitra is one of the oldest and most popular art form in Odisha. It was created in the 18 century. Colors used in the paintings are natural. It is a cloth based scroll painting.

As the art camp was for two days only on the last day we had to come with a master piece with all three art forms combined. As the theme was SG50 for my border I did a flower design. In the art piece I did a Merlion in Madhubani, the unity of people in Warli, the buildings in Singapore in Madhubani, the cable car in Warli, Sentosa in Madhubani, Marina Bay Sands in Warli and Gardens By The Bay in Warli.

I was very happy with what I learnt in the art camp. I hope to be there again next year.

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Ayush is 10 years old and he love to do free hand sketching

I am Soma Bhowmik from Kolkata . Presently housewife in Singapore.

Have keen interest in singing and painting.

Completed Fevicryl Painting and flower making course .

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About me Name: Anisha Banerjee Age: 11 years School: Haig Girls School, P-5

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CRANES LOTUS POND

FINE ART!

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SANGEETA DHAR PaleTte-able - Feast for the Eyes

PEONIES VIBRANT EARTH

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How much obstacles we face how complexed and critical our road is life still goes on Street photography

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GALLERY GALORE

{FOCUS} MITHU CHAKRABORTY

&HER CAMERA

SHE PURSUES PHOTOGRAPHY, A PASSION FOR THIS ART FORM SHE HAD DEVELOPED AROUND 2009. SHE TAKES INTEREST IN CAPTURING ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING WHICH ATTRACTED HER EYES, GIVES HER OWN TOUCH AND TRIES TO LEAVE THE IMPRESSION WITH EVERY MOMENT FOR A LIFETIME. SHE HAS DEVELOPED HER INTERESTS LARGELY ON STREET PHOTOGRAPHY, APART FROM HER FAVOURITE GENRE TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL PORTRAITS. IN HER OWN WORDS, “STREET PHOTOGRAPHY IS NOT ONLY THE MOST COMPLICATED AND COMPLEX GENRE BUT ALSO THE MOST EXCITING AREA OF APPLYING ONE’S PATIENCE, INTELLIGENCE AND THE PRESENCE OF MIND. TO ME THERE IS NO DULL MOMENT IN STREET” SHE MANAGES A GLOBAL COMMODITY TRADING BUSINESS – SHE IS INTO FASHION AND JEWELLERY DESIGNING, CREATING HER OWN SUCCESSFUL LINE OF ETHINIC WEAR AND ACCESSORIES

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EYE - KATHAKALI: A TRAVEL PORTRAIT

Flash Setting: NORMAL Focus Mode: MANUAL ISO Setting: 0, 3,200 Lens Type: Nikon G series Lens Exposure Mode: Manual exposure Exposure Program: Manual Exposure Time: 1/4000 FNumber: 5.6 Focal Length: 105 Focal Length In 35mm Film: 157 Max Aperture Value: 5 Flash Compensation: 0 Focus Distance: 0.708 Focus Mode: One-shot AF Image Number: 10,004 Image Stabilization: Off Lens ID: -2,147,483,648 Lens Info: 18, 105, 3.5, 5.6, 18, 105, 3.5, 5.6 Lens Model: AF-S DX VR Zoom-Nikkor 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6G ED

HAVE YOU SEEN A FISH DRINK OUT OF A TAP? MIRACLE HAPPENS! Travel Photography

EYE - KATHAKALI : A TRAVEL PORTRAIT

{FOCUS} MITHU CHAKRABORTY

&HER CAMERA

Flash Setting: NORMAL Focus Mode: AF-A ISO Setting: 1, 12,800 Lens Type: Nikon G series Lens Quality: FINE Shooting Mode: 32 Shutter Count: 33,900 White Balance Mode: SUNNY Exposure Mode: Manual exposure Exposure Program: Manual Exposure Time: 1/125 File Source: DSC Flash: No Flash FlashPix Version: 1.0 FNumber: 5.3 Focal Length: 62

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GALLERY GALORE

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WAH TAJ! BETWEEN THE WALLS Travel Photography Life is not measured by the breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away! Wah Taj - between the walls....somewhere on a busy road in Agra!

Thanks to my family for tolerating my craziness .

{FOCUS} MITHU CHAKRABORTY

&HER CAMERA

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GALLERY GALORE

DEVISHAKTI - A SYMBOL OF POWER Mixed Media I really worked hard for this one to give this look. It’s a step by step procedure. Selecting vearious pics then placing all of them in same collage, giving the potraits inverted looks. After settling the placement and look then most tedious job was to draw the trishul correctly in one shot. I guess I succeeded somehow :)

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Photography & Text: Saheli Roy Choudhury

Through the looking glass What does a girl playing in a park with her dog, the day’s old sun sinking over the horizon, a gray Nissan speeding through a 40 km/h zone, and a fishmonger haggling away his keep on the crowded first floor of Tekka have in common?

Nothing on the surface. But look at them through a camera lens and you suddenly have four different worlds, each with their unique stories waiting to be told.

That’s what I like about photography - it captures a moment in time and tells a story.

Photography has always been a constant presence in my life. When I was younger, my parents were in the habit of documenting every step of my life, in expensive, archaic Kodak film rolls. Over the years, I’ve learned most of the stories behind the numerous stacks of 4 x 6 photographs from my childhood, stowed away in our living room.

Long has my father tried to, unsuccessfully, entice me into picking up photography as a serious hobby.

Calls of academia, social media, and other hobbies kept me distracted.

When I went to graduate school last year, I was forced to take a mandatory two-week photo ‘bootcamp’, as the school called it. There, my professor, Kirsten, a freelance photojournalist, taught me everything I know about photography today.

Kirsten sent us out on assignment on the first day of class. The task?

Photograph New York city’s rush hour. The requirements: Eight photos in total, including three portraits of strangers. It was late afternoon and I could feel an impending panic attack because the prospect of approaching

a stranger and asking to take their photograph was very uncomfortable for me.

It felt slightly creepy too.

Eventually, I decided to go to the Grand Central Station. Being the biggest train station in the city, I figured it had to have large number of people rushing from platform to platform in a bid to catch their trains. And my hunch proved to be somewhat correct - though it wasn’t anything like the office time rush at City Hall MRT station at 6pm on a Friday, there were small and large groups of crowds milling about.

After two hours of walking around the station, the platforms, and the adjacent streets, I was still lacking the most important requirement for the assignment: the three portraits.

For the longest time, I stood on the second floor of the station, surveying the crowd below. Everybody seemed to be in a hurry. There were at least a dozen excuses running through my head, to explain to Kirsten why I returned to class the next day without any portrait shots.

Eventually I tired myself out and walked out of the station. Exhausted and thirsty, I went down two blocks and spotted a bubble tea store and the Singaporean in me found something to cheer about.

The store was but a hole-in-the wall, with only a handful of seats available. After buying my bubble tea, I sprang to ‘chope’ the only available seat in the store.

Next to me sat a bespectacled man who was slurping on his bubble tea without a care in the world.

So I did what any desperate grad student out on a photo assignment would do. I struck a conversation with him. To my delight, he, Raymond, was from Southeast Asia (Indonesian to exact), he lived in Queens, and he was a big fan of Singapore. As we talked about the affairs of a home 7,000 miles away, I asked him if I could take his photo for an assignment.

Perhaps he appreciated my upfront honesty or maybe he enjoyed having his photograph taken - I never found out because I was buzzing with happiness after he said an enthusiastic yes.

Encouraged by his positivity, I went back to the Grand Central Station and made friends with seven other strangers, including a Singaporean from NUS, who was on his way to Canada for an exchange program. What were the odds?

The next day, I had a stack of 547 photos to choose from.

Kirsten was pleased with our efforts and I learned to get over my fear of approaching strangers. I considered that a small win, two weeks into the start of grad school.

Since then, I’ve met tens of people in New York, and back home in Singapore, on various photo assignments and each one had a story to tell that was special in its own way. Here are five stories that I wanted to share

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GALLERY GALORE

An impromptu decision to escape the choking haze in Singapore saw us end up at a quiet, quaint resort in Batam, by the edge of the water. There, my mum jokingly said, why travel all the way to Santorini (in Greece), when you can enjoy such a view only 40 kilometers away from home?

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Israeli-American fashion designer, Gita, looked for sewing threads; she was a student at the Fashion Institute of New York and was finishing up a collection to debut at the New York Fashion Week

Photography & Text: Saheli Roy Choudhury

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Squirrels running about on freshlymowed lawns around our school campus, foraging for nuts before Winter, was always a common sight.

GALLERY GALORE

Among the 400,000 people who took to the streets last year at the New York City climate march, this man wanted to only be known as “The Swamp Monster.� He said he was marching for a better future for swamp monsters the world over

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Photography & Text: Saheli Roy Choudhury

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GALLERY GALORE

This is what Grand Central Station actually looks like during the rush hour, with thousands of people crossing paths with a fierce determination to reach their destination.

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Gargi Mazumdar | Photography GALLERY GALORE

Some masterpieces in fashion photography and outdoor scenery shots are on display in these few pages. The deft use of the camera lenses and the conceptualization of the lighting makes clear the knowledge that Gargi has on the subject.

AS SEEN

BY HER Gargi is a much sought after photographer and is a presently a part of the MILON2015 team

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GALLERY GALORE

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Gargi Mazumdar | Photography

Paradise

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CANON EOS 700D | Focal length 135 | F 5.6 | Exposure 1/125

Gargi is immensely talented. In photography her interest lies in shooting outdoor sceneries and fashion photography.

Besides photography her artistic talents also cover graphic design.

The MILON 2015 cover is incidentally her adapted design.

GALLERY GALORE

CANON EOS 700D | Focal length 67 | F 5.6 | Exposure 1/125

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WHAT’S COOKING

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SWATI SINHA BANERJEE

Laal Mangsho

Mutton is cooked in various styles across India. Kosha Mangsho of Bengal and Laal Maas of Rajasthan are known for flavour, colour and heat. Here is one recipe which is a fusion of both recipes from these states. A great combination of colour, flavour and taste best suited for any special occasion where people forget about their diet and want to just pamper their taste buds. A great dish for foodies who would like to try something interesting.

Ingredients 1 kg mutton 1 cinnamon stick 5 cloves 2-3 cardamoms 1 large size bay leaves 10 large onions (6 roughly chopped and 4 finely chopped) 7 dried red chillies 1 table spoon Cumin powder 1 1/2 tablespoon Kashmiri red chilli power

½ teaspoon Black paper powder ½ teaspoon Garam masala powder 1 tablespoon Ghee or Clarified butter 1 ½ table spoon Curd whipped with 2 tablespoon water Mustard oil 8 table spoons Kasuri Methi 2 pinches Salt Sugar

Precooking preparation In a pressure cooker marinate mutton with cinnamon stick, cloves,

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WHAT’S COOKING

cardamoms, bay leaves and Âź teaspoon of salt and Âź teaspoon of black paper powder. Give 1 whistle and let it cool so that the mutton is cooked almost 25%. Separate the stock from the mutton pieces and keep it aside. This stock will be used later for cooking.

Simultaneously in 4 tablespoons of mustard oil fry roughly chopped onions and 6 dried red chillies; once the onions are dark golden brown and the oil separates, Cool the fried onions and red chillies and then

make them into a fine paste.

Cooking Method Take 4 tablespoons of mustard oil in a Big Wok, add Kasuri Methi and fry finely chopped onions till light golden brown. Then add fried onion paste, Cumin powder, red chilli powder and remaining black paper powder.

Add mutton with half of the stock; keep frying under medium to low heat till oil separates. Add

curd, garam masala powder and remaining stock and keep frying till oil separates. Then add warm water if required to have thick or thin consistency of the gravy; cook till the mutton is tender. For this recipe the best suited consistency of gravy is thick to dry. Add salt and sugar to taste. In a separate small wok or pan heat ghee with 1 dried red chilli and mix it with mutton just before finishing. Serve hot with steamed rice or parathas.

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WHAT’S COOKING

Wishing you a joyous Durga Puja

Sciente Group Phone: +65 6635 3888 www.sciente.com www.scienteconsulting.com | www.scienteinternational.com www.MyTechLogy.com

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WHAT’S COOKING

Brown rice, chicken and mushroom casserole

BEST WISHES FROM A WELL WISHER

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POETRY | LATE SMT RADHARANI BANERJEE

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With BEst ComplimentS

SUBHALAXMI MUKHERJEE & FAMILYE

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Mrs. Anjali Ghatak is a housewife, who lives with her son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter in Singapore. She has a keen interest in literature and history and enjoys expressing herself through the written media of poems and prose. She is a member of Bengali Association Singapore

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With Best Compliments

DEBANANDA GHOSH & FAMILY

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Give me back my childhood, yes .. my childhood

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[আিম খুব সাধারণ মােপর .লাক, আজেকর চলিত ভাষায়, একদম ‘আম আদিম’। আলাদা কের (সরকম িকছু বলার মতন রঙ #ব রেঙর ঘটনা #নই। তেব, অেনেকর মত আমার !ছােটােবলা !বশ আনেn !কেট িগেয়িছল, !সই কথাটাই একটু, !ছােটা কের আজ বলব। বড় হেয় আনেnই আিছ, তেব অতটা, না, সিত& কথা বলেত বাধা -কাথায়। অেনকিদন হল )ছােটােবলার িশ0টােক ঘুম পািড়েয় )রেখিছলাম, তােক ইে& মতন )খলেত িদ িন, ছুেটাছুিট করেত িদ িন, ,কন জািন এতিদন বড় (সেজ বেস িছলাম। আজ ওেক আবার (ছেড় িদলাম, &স &খেল &বরাক, ঘুের &বরাক, &খালা আকােশর নীেচ, গাছগাছািলর মাঝখান িদেয়, পুkেরর ধাের, সাদা কাশফুলেক পােশ সাkী (রেখ। (ছেড় িদলাম ‘িমলেনর’ মােঝ, সব পড়ুয়ােদর সেŋ মহািমলেনর জn। িমলেনর পড়ুয়ারা যিদ এটা পেড়, তােদর সেŋ িকছুটা িমল খুেজ পায়, হািরেয় যাওয়া *শশবেক আবার কােছ পায়, বা আেরা 0বশী !বশী কের পায়, যিদ আমার সেŋ একাt অnভব কের, 4সটা হেব আমার পরম pািp]

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WITH BEST COMPLIMENTS

SANDEEP CHATTERJEE & FAMILY

WITH BEST COMPLIMENTS

PARTHA RAY

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| october 2015 Gopa Datta Ray is a retired Branch Manager of Allahabad Bank from Calcutta.

Closely attached to Matri Sangha Janakalyan Ashram, she is very actively engaged in different types of social service activities. She likes spending a few months in Singapore every year and is a member of Bengali Association Singapore.

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with best compliments

abhijit ghosh and family

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With Best Compliments

SANDEEP SEN & FAMILY

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spা িমt spা িমt একজন pবাসী বাঙািল । িবjােনর ছাtী । pযুিk িবjােন উ:িশkা িনেয় >বশ িকছুিদন 'দশী এবং বhজািতক সংsায় কম-জীবন । pযুিk িবjােনর পাশাপািশ অেনক সময় িতিন কলম ধেরেছন । কখনও সমােজর িবিভn সmেক-র গিতিবিধেত আকৃ3 হেয় , কখনও আবার )ফেল আসা জীবেনর sৃিতেত । spার রচনা %শলীেত বারবার ফুেট ওেঠ আজেকর সমােজর pিতফলন । !লিখকার pকািশত )ছাট গেlর সংকলেনর নাম “একােলর গl” ও “িবেকল হেলই গl”

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My name is Mili, I am seven years old. I study at Singapore American School.

I love to draw & paint. My art teacher is Pampa aunty.

I have made many paintings with Pampa aunty. For Pujo I have made my first Durga painting for Milon. I love to read stories and I also like to write stories. I have a written a story with my mother called “Notun Ganga� for Milon. See you at the Pujo pandel.

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CONNE

BONG ECTION

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H A R O D IY A BHIONDON

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BASABI BANERJEE

& FAMILY

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Dolon is a special needs educator and teacher by profession. She has been living in Singapore for 23 years. Her passion for Bengali language and literature motivates her to teach Bengali in BLLS School.

Apart from occasional writing, her interests include reading, cooking, gardening and interior decoration.

WITH BEST COMPLIMENTS FROM

A GROUP OF WELL WISHERS

TO BE CONTINUED.........

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অnরাধা চkবিত&

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| october 2015 Asish Khan Bhaduri is a retired civil engineer by profession, a poet, singer, painter by passion and an ardent sports lover. He spends all his post retirement time writing and sketching in his home in Kolkata.

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Oil on Canvas Artist : Sibsaday Choudhury. Collection of Suprio Banerjee and family

WITH BEST COMPLIMENTS Suprio Banerjee | Sanchita Banerjee | Siddhant Banerjee | Ishita Banerjee

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This has also been a year where events stretched beyond the stereotypical mix of its cultural cosmos embracing new frontiers to philanthropic initiatives and community events under the umbrella of SAMARPAN. As the name suggests, it’s dedicated to championing the cause of extending support to the ‘needy’, working closely with the children and youth from underprivileged Singaporean homes.

17 June 2015: Visit to LION’s Home for the Elders, Toa Payoh Rise 3rd July 2015: Visit to Children Society’s Youth Centre

TAILPIECE

Samarpan - A BAS INITIATIVE

text | arnab banerjee photo courtesy | rittika mukherjee | suparna ghosh

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