. . . .
Think The mind of the urban woman
Live a rich life
Live Surviving police academy Work Stress is good
Spring Edition Volume 1. Issue 1 January – March 2011 Rs.200
. ..
SPRING EDITION Volume 1 Issue 1 2011 January – March
The first immortals How you could live forever
. . . .
Think
Live
Work
Play
The pursuit of happiness The essential white shirt George Bush on life in Air Force One
Play Beauty in Kabul
004 /
/ 005
Contents
.
130/ The Lost World A refugee returns
Think
Spring Edition > Volume 1. Issue 1 January ‒ March 2010
137/ The Curators of Interesting Experiences 137/ Flâneur; 138/ Potlucky; 140/ Contrarian; 142/ Perambulation
047/ Findings - The Mind of the Urban Woman Surprising findings from an exhaustive survey 068/
054/ Masterclass - Love-50 A tennis lesson with Laver and Rosewall; from the ForbesLife archives
The Pursuit of Happiness - Hope and Glory
The secret to Asha Bhosle's smile
059/ Coming of Age Alternative sexuality in mainstream cinema
.
064/ Home Advantage Can schooling ever leave the classroom?
Work
072/ Shrink Rap - The Advice Column Life’s more unusual conundrums, discussed
147/ Style - The Curious Case of the White Shirt A fresh look at that wardrobe essential
076/ The Curators of Interesting Ideas 076/ Books; 079/Music; 082/Art; 086/ Film
155/ Move Out of the Cube When work is a perpetual holiday
Pete Souza / White House / Corbis
160/ You're Lunch Eat, don’t get eaten; from the ForbesLife archives
091
Biological Immortality Are we the generation that will live forever?
.
Live
163/ Second Opinion - Stress is Good Timeless advice on managing stress; from the ForbesLife archives 116
Man oh Man, was it Comfortable! What’s better than Business Class? Let George H.W. Bush tell you; from the ForbesLife archives
100/ Adventure - Run With Me The man who just doesn’t stop running 012/
104/ Surviving the Police Academy What it takes to become a tough cop
The Meaning of Life 018/ Designing Life 021/ Contributors
107/ The Rise of Malbec There's a new grape in town 112/ You are Being Watched Every step you take, someone’s looking
036/ Invocation
122/ Loneliness From the bustle of India to the quiet life
Write to us:
126/ Design - Scandinavia in Your Home Mixing Nordic and Indian design sensibilities
forbeslife.india@network18online.com
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
039/
Atlantis
A graphic look at life in the urban sprawl ForbesLife India Spring 2011
168/ Ultimate Lessons Can business learn from a sport with no referees? 172/ Cubist - The Work Culture Column Getting out of the rut 174/ City Report - London An executive city guide
004 /
/ 005
Contents
.
130/ The Lost World A refugee returns
Think
Spring Edition > Volume 1. Issue 1 January ‒ March 2010
137/ The Curators of Interesting Experiences 137/ Flâneur; 138/ Potlucky; 140/ Contrarian; 142/ Perambulation
047/ Findings - The Mind of the Urban Woman Surprising findings from an exhaustive survey 068/
054/ Masterclass - Love-50 A tennis lesson with Laver and Rosewall; from the ForbesLife archives
The Pursuit of Happiness - Hope and Glory
The secret to Asha Bhosle's smile
059/ Coming of Age Alternative sexuality in mainstream cinema
.
064/ Home Advantage Can schooling ever leave the classroom?
Work
072/ Shrink Rap - The Advice Column Life’s more unusual conundrums, discussed
147/ Style - The Curious Case of the White Shirt A fresh look at that wardrobe essential
076/ The Curators of Interesting Ideas 076/ Books; 079/Music; 082/Art; 086/ Film
155/ Move Out of the Cube When work is a perpetual holiday
Pete Souza / White House / Corbis
160/ You're Lunch Eat, don’t get eaten; from the ForbesLife archives
091
Biological Immortality Are we the generation that will live forever?
.
Live
163/ Second Opinion - Stress is Good Timeless advice on managing stress; from the ForbesLife archives 116
Man oh Man, was it Comfortable! What’s better than Business Class? Let George H.W. Bush tell you; from the ForbesLife archives
100/ Adventure - Run With Me The man who just doesn’t stop running 012/
104/ Surviving the Police Academy What it takes to become a tough cop
The Meaning of Life 018/ Designing Life 021/ Contributors
107/ The Rise of Malbec There's a new grape in town 112/ You are Being Watched Every step you take, someone’s looking
036/ Invocation
122/ Loneliness From the bustle of India to the quiet life
Write to us:
126/ Design - Scandinavia in Your Home Mixing Nordic and Indian design sensibilities
forbeslife.india@network18online.com
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
039/
Atlantis
A graphic look at life in the urban sprawl ForbesLife India Spring 2011
168/ Ultimate Lessons Can business learn from a sport with no referees? 172/ Cubist - The Work Culture Column Getting out of the rut 174/ City Report - London An executive city guide
006 /
Contents
.
Play
179/ Derriere - The Art of Peeing A scientific study 195/ Gadgets as Yet Uninvented Patents are not pending 198/ Passions - The Toon Collector A young man obsessed with graphic story-telling 202/ Tête Offensive The noble art of the headbutt 206/ Gameworld - Less Virtual, More Reality Real and simulated move closer to each other 188
209/ Curators of Interesting Things Class you can buy
Adrenaline - “When in Doubt, Flat Out!” Driving off a cliff, and other rallying
218
Beautiful People - The Streets of Kabul A photographer searches for beauty in Afghanistan
Cover Photograph: Dmitry Bairachnyi / Fotolia
Altaf Qadri / Associated Press for ForbesLife India
experiences
012 / Lett er From The Editor
Lett er From The Editor / 013
The meaning of Life There is no other way to say this, but use a cliché. ForbesLife India is different. As we did with Forbes India, we did not benchmark ourselves by any of the existing players in the market, choosing instead to create, for better or for worse, a niche all our own. We built ForbesLife India on the back of a fairly simple premise. We live in breathless times. It may seem counter-intuitive, therefore, to attempt something
What the world needs now is deliberation, sweet deliberation. ~ Thomas Davenport
that slows the pace down. But, as Thomas Davenport wrote in Forbes India’s
to start subsequent editions with artist-writers as accomplished as Amruta, who will challenge the boundaries of your mind.
•
We spend a good part of our waking lives in the pursuit of happiness.
It made sense, therefore, to devote a few pages in every edition to explore the theme, to search for the ingredients of a happy life. We feel privileged to begin our quest with Asha Bhosle, one of the happiest people most of us have heard of.
•
I don’t know of a single human being who doesn’t like to stand and stare
anniversary issue last year: “What the world needs now is deliberation, sweet
at beautiful people. That is why we thought it a good idea to ask photographers
deliberation.” It is a thought that found resonance with a lot of readers when the
from across the world to capture notions of beauty in places they are intimately
essay was first published, and it stayed with us.
familiar with and we know little about. Our first outing is to war-ravaged Kabul.
Taking this from light fancy to the solid block of — very high quality! — paper you’re holding meant a couple of things. The physical form, in terms of heft, size and quality of paper used in this
•
Then there are the Curators of Interestingness, as we like to call them. You
will find their voices in various parts of the magazine, sifting through ideas, experiences and things to give you the finest there is to be found. Not, mind you,
production, is distinct from anything else you may have experienced until now.
the most extravagant or the blingiest or the most exclusive; this is about things
We believe this is the first in a series of reasons why you may want to preserve
that we believe you need a fine mind to appreciate, and no amount of money can
this lavishly produced book, as opposed to read-and-discard magazines. It is also
buy you that.
the reason why we chose to bring in a design firm that, until this experiment, had no experience with magazine design. The outcome, I think, is avant-garde. But timelessness isn’t about form alone. If we are to earn a place on your
•
From the 20-year-old archives of ForbesLife, we’ve picked a few stunners.
My personal favourite is George Bush, the 41st President of the United States, writing at length on what it is like inside that presidential perk, Air Force One.
bookshelf, it will be as much — in fact more — about offering you a carefully
Think of it as the ultimate insider account of a journey most of us would not
curated selection of the finest our world has to offer.
otherwise have access to.
To go about that in as structured a manner as possible, we split the book into
•
And, finally, there is Dr. Vikram Sheel Kumar’s jaw-dropping personal
four parts: Think, Live, Work and Play. They’re simple, self-explanatory words,
account of his quest to live to be at least 120 years of age. The doctor, who trained
and they gave us a set of lenses with which to view the world we live in.
at Harvard and MIT and serves as consulting editor to ForbesLife India, has finally
Allow me a few moments to take you through some themes we intend to explore on these pages.
•
This edition starts with a path-breaking visual story by the celebrated
convinced me to clean up my lifestyle. That’s just a small sampler. In the pages you’re about to read, there is a whole lot more. An eclectic collection of stories that we hope will satisfy your soul and
graphic novelist Amruta Patil, on urban living. We think the graphic story is a
stimulate your mind. That will bring you back for more. Which you will get, less
narrative technique that hasn’t been explored enough by periodicals. We intend
than three months from now. Meanwhile, your feedback will be deeply appreciated.
Charles Assisi Editor, ForbesLife India charles.assisi@network18online.com Twitter: @5n0wcrash
012 / Lett er From The Editor
Lett er From The Editor / 013
The meaning of Life There is no other way to say this, but use a cliché. ForbesLife India is different. As we did with Forbes India, we did not benchmark ourselves by any of the existing players in the market, choosing instead to create, for better or for worse, a niche all our own. We built ForbesLife India on the back of a fairly simple premise. We live in breathless times. It may seem counter-intuitive, therefore, to attempt something
What the world needs now is deliberation, sweet deliberation. ~ Thomas Davenport
that slows the pace down. But, as Thomas Davenport wrote in Forbes India’s
to start subsequent editions with artist-writers as accomplished as Amruta, who will challenge the boundaries of your mind.
•
We spend a good part of our waking lives in the pursuit of happiness.
It made sense, therefore, to devote a few pages in every edition to explore the theme, to search for the ingredients of a happy life. We feel privileged to begin our quest with Asha Bhosle, one of the happiest people most of us have heard of.
•
I don’t know of a single human being who doesn’t like to stand and stare
anniversary issue last year: “What the world needs now is deliberation, sweet
at beautiful people. That is why we thought it a good idea to ask photographers
deliberation.” It is a thought that found resonance with a lot of readers when the
from across the world to capture notions of beauty in places they are intimately
essay was first published, and it stayed with us.
familiar with and we know little about. Our first outing is to war-ravaged Kabul.
Taking this from light fancy to the solid block of — very high quality! — paper you’re holding meant a couple of things. The physical form, in terms of heft, size and quality of paper used in this
•
Then there are the Curators of Interestingness, as we like to call them. You
will find their voices in various parts of the magazine, sifting through ideas, experiences and things to give you the finest there is to be found. Not, mind you,
production, is distinct from anything else you may have experienced until now.
the most extravagant or the blingiest or the most exclusive; this is about things
We believe this is the first in a series of reasons why you may want to preserve
that we believe you need a fine mind to appreciate, and no amount of money can
this lavishly produced book, as opposed to read-and-discard magazines. It is also
buy you that.
the reason why we chose to bring in a design firm that, until this experiment, had no experience with magazine design. The outcome, I think, is avant-garde. But timelessness isn’t about form alone. If we are to earn a place on your
•
From the 20-year-old archives of ForbesLife, we’ve picked a few stunners.
My personal favourite is George Bush, the 41st President of the United States, writing at length on what it is like inside that presidential perk, Air Force One.
bookshelf, it will be as much — in fact more — about offering you a carefully
Think of it as the ultimate insider account of a journey most of us would not
curated selection of the finest our world has to offer.
otherwise have access to.
To go about that in as structured a manner as possible, we split the book into
•
And, finally, there is Dr. Vikram Sheel Kumar’s jaw-dropping personal
four parts: Think, Live, Work and Play. They’re simple, self-explanatory words,
account of his quest to live to be at least 120 years of age. The doctor, who trained
and they gave us a set of lenses with which to view the world we live in.
at Harvard and MIT and serves as consulting editor to ForbesLife India, has finally
Allow me a few moments to take you through some themes we intend to explore on these pages.
•
This edition starts with a path-breaking visual story by the celebrated
convinced me to clean up my lifestyle. That’s just a small sampler. In the pages you’re about to read, there is a whole lot more. An eclectic collection of stories that we hope will satisfy your soul and
graphic novelist Amruta Patil, on urban living. We think the graphic story is a
stimulate your mind. That will bring you back for more. Which you will get, less
narrative technique that hasn’t been explored enough by periodicals. We intend
than three months from now. Meanwhile, your feedback will be deeply appreciated.
Charles Assisi Editor, ForbesLife India charles.assisi@network18online.com Twitter: @5n0wcrash
018 /
On designing ForbesLife India
When the ForbesLife India team approached us to design and give creative direction to the magazine,
informative, entertaining, thought-
wanted to ensure that the design
provoking and unpretentious.
contributed to a positive ‘brand
The first thing that came to our
we said to ourselves, “What utterly
minds was that we had to ensure
gullible people.” You see, we had never designed a magazine before. Of course, we take great pride in being a media-neutral, multidisciplinary ad agency. For us, it’s business as usual juggling a variety of projects: A viral video, a social media tactic, a print campaign, a retail environment. But magazine design? We’d never encountered that particular creature before. At our first meeting, the ForbesLife India team put their vision for the magazine on the table. The singleminded brief was that ForbesLife India is like “a lavishly produced book that curates the reader’s life.” This got us excited and champing at the bit. A few days later we received a very comprehensive concept note that detailed the content wire-frame. On going through it, we realised that the content promised to be rich,
the message did not get lost in the delivery of the design. That’s where our ad agency experience kicked in. We’re quite
experience’ and helped differentiate and position it appropriately. While no interns were harmed during the design process, a few design rules were certainly broken. For the cover, we took a conscious
used to taking complex categories
decision to demarcate the masthead
such as finance or information
from the rest of the page. This would
technology and translating them
always ensure a legible masthead
into easy to understand, engaging
no matter what the rest of the page
communication.
looked like. The grid had plenty of
In this instance, our challenge was
negative space, which is uncommon
to convert the content into visually
for magazines. We also tried to deviate
succinct statements without making it
from the regular templates for each
just page décor.
story, while still maintaining the
We wanted our design to shepherd
discipline of working within the grid.
readers from story to story via its
You’ll also discover that the
near-invisible presence. We also
images are more ‘real’ pictures and
knew that inappropriate design could
less glamour, and the illustrations are
sabotage the content if it trivialised it
avant-garde, yet simple.
by being distracting and obvious. The other thing we kept in mind
For those with an unhealthy fascination for detail: We’ve just used
was that ForbesLife India would be a
one font throughout. This is unheard
new entrant into a crowded category.
of in magazine design. Yet we’ve
From a marketing standpoint, we
cleverly managed to differentiate ForbesLife India Spring 2011
/ 019
the various sections using only this beauty. The font is Feijoa, (fee-jwa). It’s ideal for extended reading and is legible even when scaled down. To us, this project has been like assembling a giant and complex jigsaw puzzle. All the pieces have had to be The closed doors of KA Advertising behind which the design of ForbesLife India took shape
identified and positioned in the correct order to create a single coherent entity. And just like with assembling a jigsaw puzzle, it’s been challenging and frustrating, but in the end, infinitely rewarding. On a final note, everyone who’s worked in a creative industry knows how testing it is to create decent work. The birth pangs are prolonged and agonising. You need a client who’s willing to take risks, and you need a team that’s ready to put some elbow grease into it, push boundaries, heck,
Sachin Powle
even fail along the way before hitting Prashant Kanyalkar and Asif Ansari are founders of KA Advertising. They both believe that life is too short to drink bad wine and tolerate mediocre advertising www.kaadvertising.com ForbesLife India Spring 2011
paydirt. We were lucky to have both. We had a fantastic time designing this magazine. We hope you get as much fun and joy out of it.
Contributors
/ 021
Elizabeth Flock is a multimedia
Contributors
freelance journalist at the Washington
Neelima Mahajan-Bansal was born in
Post, where she’s currently a jill-of-
Kenya, even as Idi Amin’s government
all-trades. She previously reported
was being toppled in Uganda. She later
for Forbes India, and has also written
spent seven years in Zambia before
for Chicago Tribune, Boston Phoenix,
moving to India. A former Forbes
Boston Globe, and Hindustan Times.
India staffer, she had been a journalist
.
She loves India, post-punk revival
for more than nine years before she
bands, pani puri, and is kind of a
decided to enjoy student life again.
nomad.
She is now a Visiting Scholar at the
pgs 107 & 122
Graduate School of Journalism,
Altaf Qadri began his photography
Kevin Rivoli is a freelance
University of California, Berkeley,
career as a freelancer in Delhi, but
photojournalist published in
and part of its Bill & Melinda Gates
soon moved back to his home town
newspapers and magazines across the
Foundation-funded Africa Reporting
in Srinagar, where he worked with a
globe. He taught himself to shoot, and
Project.
local newspaper before the big photo
landed his first job at The Citizen in
agencies came calling. He worked with
Auburn, New York. In ’89 he attended
Priyadarshini Rao retails her
EPA for a few years, and is now with
the Eddie Adams II Workshop and was
eponymous fashion label out of
AP. He has shot extensively in war-
named National Press Photographers
premium boutiques in India, Japan,
affected Kabul and Srinagar. and has
Association’s Region II Photographer
Israel and Spain. She has been Design
won many awards.
of the Year; he has since won more
Head for Shopper’s Stop and on the
than 48 state and USA photo awards.
board of the Fashion Design Council
He became an assistant photo editor
of India. She believes in making
.
Pg 218
.
.
Pg 130
in ’96, but returned to shooting in
clothes that women love to wear
2000. His client list includes AP, New
more than just once. Jaydeep Shetty
York Times, and USA Today.
has held senior positions in fashion
Pg 104
retail, including in Future Group and Shopper’s Stop. He represents the worse half of Priyadarshini Rao and runs a womens wear fashion brand,
.
Amruta Patil is a writer and painter.
Mineral, with her. Jaydeep also suffers
Author of Kari, she is currently
from an untreatable condition called
.
lunadiesophobia.
working on a graphic novel based on the Mahabharat. Her blog is at amrutapatil.blogspot.com
Pg 147
Rajat Chauhan is an ultra-marathon
Pg 39 Marie-Lou Fernandes has survived
runner, and in his spare time, a Sports
a Master’s in English Literature from
- Exercise and Musculo-Skeletal
Mumbai University, a Master’s in
Medicine physician. He is a founder
Public Administration from Harvard
of the Back 2 Fitness chain of clinics
University’s Kennedy School of
that focus on getting people back to
Government, and a particularly
fitness and helping them perform
lethal Doctoral Program in Social
physical activities at their optimum
Sciences from the Maxwell School,
level. He believes India has the largest
Deepa A is an independent journalist
Syracuse University. She now
unfit workforce and it’s high time we
based in London. Her reports on
writes, teaches and consults on the
changed that if we are to keep up with
education and the impact of religious
ponderous subjects of leadership,
China and other close competitors.
violence on children have won the
organisation design and governance,
He’s also the race and medical
Developing Asia Journalism Awards
but also enjoys penning lighter stuff
director of La Ultra – The High and a
(2006 and 2008), the Sanskriti-Prabha
on the fascinating world of Indian
columnist with Mint.
.
Dutt Fellowship in Journalism (2006)
policing. She is a founding partner at
and Every Human Has Rights Media
worldXperts, a knowledge consultancy
Awards (2008).
matching website. Write to marie-
Pg 112
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
lou@worldXperts.com.
.
Pg 104
.
Pg 100
Contributors
022 /
Contributors
.
for cities, photography, travel and
advertising and branding consultancy.
publications. Her recent articles
International. She has also directed a
architecture is her blog, Urban
He is guilty of creating brands like
are all collected at dpanjana.tumblr.
film, Looking for Amitabh.Reach her at
com
meenakshishedde@gmail.com and
.
Legends (flaneurbanite.blogspot.com)
Barista, Crossword, Kaya, Lodha and
where she narrates photo-stories from
Wrangler, amongst many others.
fragments of urban life.
His last venture in the world of
Pg 126
Pg 82
.
/ 023
meenakshisheddeartsandculture. blogspot.com
editorials was for the Indian Post for
Pgs 59 & 86
Sirish Chandran joined Overdrive
which he did a weekly cartoon.
magazine as a road tester and seven
With each successive cartoon release
years later took over as editor. He
the paper's circulation declined, until
Rayna Jhaveri thinks the phrase "Not
is also editor and lead anchor of
it finally folded up.
all who wander are lost" was written
the Overdrive television show, and
expressly for her. She’ll dance in the
launched India’s first motorsport
Anand Ramachandran is a writer,
desert, dive in the ocean, camp at
magazine, Grand Prix. He has
comics creator and videogame
music festivals and talk to strangers
competed in races and rallies, taking
designer who works when he isn’t
Manjula Padmanabhan is a writer
around the world, all for research.
class victories on debut in the Raid-
playing some game with an “of” in
and artist. Her most recent novel is
She's done stints as a biologist, chef,
de-Himalaya and Desert Storm rallies.
its name. He grew up in the city that
Escape, a dystopian adventure about
Mitali Saran has held two full-time
Indian rock. It shut shop in 1999,
health educator, typesetter, grad
In 2010, he clinched third place in
was called Madras, and now lives in
the last little girl in a country from
jobs, at Business Standard and Outlook
when he moved to New York with his
student and festival organiser, and is
his class in the Indian National Rally
Mumbai. He blogs at bosey.co.in and
which women have been eliminated.
Traveller, but has been a freelance
newly-formed band Alms For Shanti.
now trying her hand as a professional
Championship on debut.
tweets at @bigfatphoenix
Harvest, her fifth play, won first prize
writer, editor, and traveller-on-call
He returned to Bombay in 2008 and
in the 1997 Onassis Award for Theatre,
for most of her working life. She
relaunched Indus Creed in 2010.
.
traveller. Perpetually hungry and
.
Pg 188
.
Uday Benegal is lead singer of Indus
Pgs 137 & 179
Creed (originally Rock Machine)
.
Pg 206
which, from the mid-80s through the late-90s, carved trails across India and abroad, touring, winning awards and setting the stage for contemporary
thirsty, she often finds her foot in her
Sunil Raju’s grandfather gave him his
Ashwini Kakkar is what you would
in Greece. Her comic strip character
writes reviews and features, and for
They are currently working on a new
mouth.
first camera, a Russian-made Zenith
call the intrepid traveller. There is no
Suki appeared in Sunday Observer
over four years ran a weekly column
album, expected by June 2011. He has
whose shutter jammed on every
corner of the world he hasn’t seen, and
and Pioneer and in two separate
called ‘Stet’ which appeared every
written for a number of publications,
Sanjay Tiwari is CEO of Juxt Consult,
twelfth picture. Two cameras later,
there are no big cities he doesn’t know
collections, Doubletalk and This is
Saturday in Business Standard. She has
including the Village Voice, Time Out
a leading new age market research
he graduated from CAVA, Mysore
like the back of his hand — aided
Suki! She has illustrated 25 books for
had the good fortune to experience
New York, Mid-day, Tehelka and Rolling
firm he co-founded after 12 years in
(Photography and Photo-Journalism,
in large part by the fact that he runs
children including, most recently,
travel of all kinds, from standing all
Stone India.
advertising, marketing and branding.
majoring in Advertising Photography).
the immensely successful Mercury
Where’s That Cat? and Same & Different.
night in the vestibule of a train to
Juxt specialises in conducting robust
He apprenticed with India’s finest
Travels. He was conferred the “Ordre
You can visit her blog at marginalien.
sipping martinis at the Four Seasons
large scale syndicated research studies
advertising photographers before
National du Merite” by the French
blogspot.com
in Sydney, and is here to tell you that
using both face-to-face and online
moving to Dubai. He returned to
government in 2007 in recognition of
research media. He is also the author
Mumbai in 2009 and now brings
his contribution to promoting Indo-
of the books The Uncommon Sense of
campaigns to life in both cities. He
French relations.
Management and The Uncommon Sense
has earned three Cannes Finalists, a
of Advertising.
One Show Merit Award, three London
Pgs 155 & 168
.
Pg 47
.
.
.
Pgs 64 & 195
.
travelling rough is a good deal easier than writing fiction.
Pg 174
Pg 142
Nanda Majumdar is Director, intellectual capital, Nishith Desai
.
International Merits, six New York
Associates, a leading international
Fest Finalists, an IAA Silver and a Gold
tax, regulatory, and corporate law
at the Dubai Lynx Awards.
firm.
Pg 147
Pg 172
Curators & Columnists Meenakshi Shedde is an independent Deepanjana Pal is an author and
film curator, film festival consultant,
critic. Her book, The Painter: A Life
critic and journalist. She is India
Shilpa Bhatnagar is an urbanist,
of Ravi Varma, was critically well-
Consultant to the Berlin, Locarno
writer and photographer based in
received. When she isn't diligently
and Dubai Film Festivals and curator
London, UK. An alumna of the School
procrastinating by exploring the
to festivals worldwide. Winner of the
Nilanjana S Roy is a literary
of Planning and Architecture, New
profusion of brunch spots and
National Award for Best Film Critic,
columnist and critic and the editor
Delhi and the London School of
coffee shops that are mushrooming
she has been on the jury of 15 film
of the food anthology A Matter of
Economics, she writes extensively
in Mumbai, she is working on her
festivals, including Cannes, Berlin
Taste. Her collection of literary
on urban and interior design, travel
first novel. She also writes regularly
and Venice. Former Assistant Editor,
essays, How To Read In Indian, will be
.
and cities. Somewhere around
Alok Nanda is founder and CEO
about art, literature and films
Times of India, she freelances for
published by HarperCollins India in
the intersection of her passion
of Alok Nanda and Company, an
for a variety of print and online
Variety, Cahiers du Cinema and Screen
2011/ 2012.
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
Pg 76
.
Pg 79
Contributors
022 /
Contributors
.
for cities, photography, travel and
advertising and branding consultancy.
publications. Her recent articles
International. She has also directed a
architecture is her blog, Urban
He is guilty of creating brands like
are all collected at dpanjana.tumblr.
film, Looking for Amitabh.Reach her at
com
meenakshishedde@gmail.com and
.
Legends (flaneurbanite.blogspot.com)
Barista, Crossword, Kaya, Lodha and
where she narrates photo-stories from
Wrangler, amongst many others.
fragments of urban life.
His last venture in the world of
Pg 126
Pg 82
.
/ 023
meenakshisheddeartsandculture. blogspot.com
editorials was for the Indian Post for
Pgs 59 & 86
Sirish Chandran joined Overdrive
which he did a weekly cartoon.
magazine as a road tester and seven
With each successive cartoon release
years later took over as editor. He
the paper's circulation declined, until
Rayna Jhaveri thinks the phrase "Not
is also editor and lead anchor of
it finally folded up.
all who wander are lost" was written
the Overdrive television show, and
expressly for her. She’ll dance in the
launched India’s first motorsport
Anand Ramachandran is a writer,
desert, dive in the ocean, camp at
magazine, Grand Prix. He has
comics creator and videogame
music festivals and talk to strangers
competed in races and rallies, taking
designer who works when he isn’t
Manjula Padmanabhan is a writer
around the world, all for research.
class victories on debut in the Raid-
playing some game with an “of” in
and artist. Her most recent novel is
She's done stints as a biologist, chef,
de-Himalaya and Desert Storm rallies.
its name. He grew up in the city that
Escape, a dystopian adventure about
Mitali Saran has held two full-time
Indian rock. It shut shop in 1999,
health educator, typesetter, grad
In 2010, he clinched third place in
was called Madras, and now lives in
the last little girl in a country from
jobs, at Business Standard and Outlook
when he moved to New York with his
student and festival organiser, and is
his class in the Indian National Rally
Mumbai. He blogs at bosey.co.in and
which women have been eliminated.
Traveller, but has been a freelance
newly-formed band Alms For Shanti.
now trying her hand as a professional
Championship on debut.
tweets at @bigfatphoenix
Harvest, her fifth play, won first prize
writer, editor, and traveller-on-call
He returned to Bombay in 2008 and
in the 1997 Onassis Award for Theatre,
for most of her working life. She
relaunched Indus Creed in 2010.
.
traveller. Perpetually hungry and
.
Pg 188
.
Uday Benegal is lead singer of Indus
Pgs 137 & 179
Creed (originally Rock Machine)
.
Pg 206
which, from the mid-80s through the late-90s, carved trails across India and abroad, touring, winning awards and setting the stage for contemporary
thirsty, she often finds her foot in her
Sunil Raju’s grandfather gave him his
Ashwini Kakkar is what you would
in Greece. Her comic strip character
writes reviews and features, and for
They are currently working on a new
mouth.
first camera, a Russian-made Zenith
call the intrepid traveller. There is no
Suki appeared in Sunday Observer
over four years ran a weekly column
album, expected by June 2011. He has
whose shutter jammed on every
corner of the world he hasn’t seen, and
and Pioneer and in two separate
called ‘Stet’ which appeared every
written for a number of publications,
Sanjay Tiwari is CEO of Juxt Consult,
twelfth picture. Two cameras later,
there are no big cities he doesn’t know
collections, Doubletalk and This is
Saturday in Business Standard. She has
including the Village Voice, Time Out
a leading new age market research
he graduated from CAVA, Mysore
like the back of his hand — aided
Suki! She has illustrated 25 books for
had the good fortune to experience
New York, Mid-day, Tehelka and Rolling
firm he co-founded after 12 years in
(Photography and Photo-Journalism,
in large part by the fact that he runs
children including, most recently,
travel of all kinds, from standing all
Stone India.
advertising, marketing and branding.
majoring in Advertising Photography).
the immensely successful Mercury
Where’s That Cat? and Same & Different.
night in the vestibule of a train to
Juxt specialises in conducting robust
He apprenticed with India’s finest
Travels. He was conferred the “Ordre
You can visit her blog at marginalien.
sipping martinis at the Four Seasons
large scale syndicated research studies
advertising photographers before
National du Merite” by the French
blogspot.com
in Sydney, and is here to tell you that
using both face-to-face and online
moving to Dubai. He returned to
government in 2007 in recognition of
research media. He is also the author
Mumbai in 2009 and now brings
his contribution to promoting Indo-
of the books The Uncommon Sense of
campaigns to life in both cities. He
French relations.
Management and The Uncommon Sense
has earned three Cannes Finalists, a
of Advertising.
One Show Merit Award, three London
Pgs 155 & 168
.
Pg 47
.
.
.
Pgs 64 & 195
.
travelling rough is a good deal easier than writing fiction.
Pg 174
Pg 142
Nanda Majumdar is Director, intellectual capital, Nishith Desai
.
International Merits, six New York
Associates, a leading international
Fest Finalists, an IAA Silver and a Gold
tax, regulatory, and corporate law
at the Dubai Lynx Awards.
firm.
Pg 147
Pg 172
Curators & Columnists Meenakshi Shedde is an independent Deepanjana Pal is an author and
film curator, film festival consultant,
critic. Her book, The Painter: A Life
critic and journalist. She is India
Shilpa Bhatnagar is an urbanist,
of Ravi Varma, was critically well-
Consultant to the Berlin, Locarno
writer and photographer based in
received. When she isn't diligently
and Dubai Film Festivals and curator
London, UK. An alumna of the School
procrastinating by exploring the
to festivals worldwide. Winner of the
Nilanjana S Roy is a literary
of Planning and Architecture, New
profusion of brunch spots and
National Award for Best Film Critic,
columnist and critic and the editor
Delhi and the London School of
coffee shops that are mushrooming
she has been on the jury of 15 film
of the food anthology A Matter of
Economics, she writes extensively
in Mumbai, she is working on her
festivals, including Cannes, Berlin
Taste. Her collection of literary
on urban and interior design, travel
first novel. She also writes regularly
and Venice. Former Assistant Editor,
essays, How To Read In Indian, will be
.
and cities. Somewhere around
Alok Nanda is founder and CEO
about art, literature and films
Times of India, she freelances for
published by HarperCollins India in
the intersection of her passion
of Alok Nanda and Company, an
for a variety of print and online
Variety, Cahiers du Cinema and Screen
2011/ 2012.
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
Pg 76
.
Pg 79
068 / Think
Think / 069
The pursuit of happiness
Hope and Glory Peter Griffin and Dinesh Krishnan sit at the feet of one of the world’s happiest women
Asha Bhosle likes my hair.
and Dinesh gets his shot. As we walk
her hair; Dinesh’s lanky frame folded
We’re standing in the grounds of
her back to her car, where her retinue
into a corner on the floor; me perched
a Nashik hotel, and she is posing in
is waiting, I feel a little tug at my hair.
on the edge of my seat. She is less
the shade of a tree. Dinesh is shooting
Forgive me, says the world’s (arguably)
comfortable speaking in English; my
from almost over my shoulder as Asha
most recorded singer — and that
Marathi is limited to being able to
Bhosle and I talk, me doing my best to
famous infectious laugh again — but I
understand directions, the way to the
get her to laugh into the camera. She
just wanted to see what it felt like!
toilet, and invective, and my Hindi is of the tattered Bambaiya variety. I ask
is, unquestionably, a diva. There is no
photography: Dinesh Krishnan
façade of fashionable humility here;
The night before, she had been
her if I may put my questions to her in English, and she nods assent.
she has worked very hard to get to
performing at an outdoor concert
where she is, and she is quite happy to
somewhere near the city. It was cold,
We begin by talking about her
enjoy it, thank you very much. But, as
she told us, very, very cold; backstage
ability to laugh her way through life,
Rudyard Kipling put it, she can “walk
and in the audience, people were
infecting those around her with her
with kings — nor lose the common
huddled up in multiple layers of
cheerfulness. “It comes from within,”
touch.” Perhaps it’s long familiarity
clothing; she, however, wore a simple
she says*, “I have always believed that
with the media; maybe she has
sari, and no footwear (she always sings
one should share happiness; it is a
outgrown the insecurities that seem
barefoot), and had stayed on stage
medicine for life’s sorrows. We all get
to come with stardom in a package
singing into the wee hours. And the
stuck in negatives: Anger, desire… I
deal from hell; or it could be that she
food had upset her stomach badly. But
prefer to find happiness in everything,
has lived with success so long that
since she knew that Anand (Bhosle,
in small things: A flower in the
it sits easily on her shoulders. Or, as
her son and manager) had set up a 10
morning; good music; cooking. I keep
Dinesh and I conclude, she’s just very
a.m. meeting with us, she had woken
telling people, smile, you will look
comfortable in her skin.
at eight. One must, she told us, always
young; it is exercise! If you don’t smile,
Now, we’re continuing to chat off
be ready well in time for visitors.
your face will look dull.”
the record, and she abruptly changes
We find a corner and sit: She,
track. I like your hair very much, she
straight-backed, elegant, understated
truth of this: When she smiles, the
says, I’ve been looking at it for a while;
silk sari, shawl, three strands of pearls
years melt away and you forget that
it’s so long, so curly! And she laughs
and diamonds, signature flower in
she is a 76-year-old grandmother.
And she does demonstrate the
* Ms Bhosle spoke to ForbesLife India in Hindi. The quotes here attempt to convey the spirit of what she said rather than accurately translate each word. ForbesLife India Spring 2011
068 / Think
Think / 069
The pursuit of happiness
Hope and Glory Peter Griffin and Dinesh Krishnan sit at the feet of one of the world’s happiest women
Asha Bhosle likes my hair.
and Dinesh gets his shot. As we walk
her hair; Dinesh’s lanky frame folded
We’re standing in the grounds of
her back to her car, where her retinue
into a corner on the floor; me perched
a Nashik hotel, and she is posing in
is waiting, I feel a little tug at my hair.
on the edge of my seat. She is less
the shade of a tree. Dinesh is shooting
Forgive me, says the world’s (arguably)
comfortable speaking in English; my
from almost over my shoulder as Asha
most recorded singer — and that
Marathi is limited to being able to
Bhosle and I talk, me doing my best to
famous infectious laugh again — but I
understand directions, the way to the
get her to laugh into the camera. She
just wanted to see what it felt like!
toilet, and invective, and my Hindi is of the tattered Bambaiya variety. I ask
is, unquestionably, a diva. There is no
photography: Dinesh Krishnan
façade of fashionable humility here;
The night before, she had been
her if I may put my questions to her in English, and she nods assent.
she has worked very hard to get to
performing at an outdoor concert
where she is, and she is quite happy to
somewhere near the city. It was cold,
We begin by talking about her
enjoy it, thank you very much. But, as
she told us, very, very cold; backstage
ability to laugh her way through life,
Rudyard Kipling put it, she can “walk
and in the audience, people were
infecting those around her with her
with kings — nor lose the common
huddled up in multiple layers of
cheerfulness. “It comes from within,”
touch.” Perhaps it’s long familiarity
clothing; she, however, wore a simple
she says*, “I have always believed that
with the media; maybe she has
sari, and no footwear (she always sings
one should share happiness; it is a
outgrown the insecurities that seem
barefoot), and had stayed on stage
medicine for life’s sorrows. We all get
to come with stardom in a package
singing into the wee hours. And the
stuck in negatives: Anger, desire… I
deal from hell; or it could be that she
food had upset her stomach badly. But
prefer to find happiness in everything,
has lived with success so long that
since she knew that Anand (Bhosle,
in small things: A flower in the
it sits easily on her shoulders. Or, as
her son and manager) had set up a 10
morning; good music; cooking. I keep
Dinesh and I conclude, she’s just very
a.m. meeting with us, she had woken
telling people, smile, you will look
comfortable in her skin.
at eight. One must, she told us, always
young; it is exercise! If you don’t smile,
Now, we’re continuing to chat off
be ready well in time for visitors.
your face will look dull.”
the record, and she abruptly changes
We find a corner and sit: She,
track. I like your hair very much, she
straight-backed, elegant, understated
truth of this: When she smiles, the
says, I’ve been looking at it for a while;
silk sari, shawl, three strands of pearls
years melt away and you forget that
it’s so long, so curly! And she laughs
and diamonds, signature flower in
she is a 76-year-old grandmother.
And she does demonstrate the
* Ms Bhosle spoke to ForbesLife India in Hindi. The quotes here attempt to convey the spirit of what she said rather than accurately translate each word. ForbesLife India Spring 2011
070 / Think / The pursuit of happiness
Hope and Glory
Hope and Glory
Think /The pursuit of happiness / 071
As long as I can sing I will sing. I do riyaaz everyday. The day my song gets over will be the day I will be no more. Music is like breathing to me
he was a sadist. But no one would hear
ended badly — birds sing outside,
education. I didn’t aim at giving them
done, Dinesh and I express relief
genetics took it all away. “Why don’t
father, Dinanath Mangeshkar, was
about it outside. I gave him respect,
the air is crisp and the day is lovely
a luxurious life but a decent one.
that the batteries had lasted. Her eyes
you do something about it,” she asks
a famous and well-respected singer
never questioned what he did. I just I
— so we talk instead of the late R.D.
Today, people ask me, why didn’t you
sparkle again: “It has been said that
me, “It’s our duty to be presentable,
and actor. “From as far back as I can
did my duty as per Hindu dharma.”
Burman, the other music director in
build a bungalow? I say, I am happy
things get recharged when they are
to look the best that we can.” She then
remember, I saw my father and sister
She had been taking singing
her life, and her second husband. She
in a flat. Who needs a bungalow with
near me!”
tells me what she has been using,
We talk about her childhood. Her
[Lata Mangeskar] singing. We owned a
lessons, and had begun singing
laughs as she recollects drives with
many bedrooms? You need only one
theatre, employed around 200 people.
playback for the movies. So, she says,
him, where he would only use one leg
bedroom to sleep!”
When our father passed away [he died
she asked her guru whether she
on the pedals (the other was folded
young, at 41], our financial position
should sing classical or switch to light
under him), have a glass of whisky
of genres, but also in a number of
We’d drive ahead, find a shady spot
was not good but we kids were not
music. “He asked me what I wanted.
balanced on the dashboard, steer with
languages, many of which she does
where the harsh noon light wouldn’t
cars had slowed down at the sight of
much affected. We would have one cup
I said, ‘Where is there more money?’
his left hand, and sing, while his right
not speak. I tell her that she speaks
bleach out the shot. But all the likely
a big, professional-looking camera
of tea or peanuts, then go off to play.
I thought once my husband sets up
hand played the beat on the car roof.
three universal languages: Music, food
locations we’d marked out on the way
and lens, and then screeched to a
There was no radio, we only used to
a business, gets stable, I would quit
(Later that day, she talked about that
and laughter. She, gracefully, does not
to Nashik were now shadeless. We find
stop when they recognised who was
sing. Life was beautiful. My mother
singing.” Pause. “But once I started,
relationship too. “It was not a typical
cringe at the cliché. Instead, she talks
one rock face with some shade. But
being shot. Now, as she takes my arm
it was difficult to quit. I thought, God
marriage,” she said, “It was more a
of a performance at an IIT. “I sang
it is a foot lower than the road level,
again to negotiate the uneven path
has sent me for this job, I should not
musical partnership. There was much
to the beat of rock music, and these
rutted, rubble-strewn, dusty, ash-filled
back to the road, the fans close in,
go against his wishes.” The fact also
more in it than most marriages.”)
twenty-year-old kids were jumping
from some recent fire. Ten minutes
proffering scraps of paper, asking
with joy! I said, ‘These songs are forty
later, her car pulls up, and she alights,
for photographs. “I’m tired,” she tells
If I hadn’t gotten married, I wouldn’t have left home, I wouldn’t have become a singer. If I had not met Bhosle, I wouldn’t have become Asha Bhosle was a very clever lady. She took care
is that her husband never made very
“Everyone gets married but how
She has sung in a multiplicity
successfully, to combat thinning We had persuaded Ashaji to let us take a few more pictures on the road:
hair, and recommends I use it too. I promise I will. Here, in the middle of nowhere,
much money, and she had to bring up
many of them love each other? Out
years old, you weren’t even born!’ If
with a little difficulty. She surveys our
them. But she signs a few, poses for
her children and look after the rest of
of every 100 people, maybe there are
these youngsters know my songs, my
spot and declares that she wouldn’t
a few photographs from phonecams.
his household. Yet, she says, she never
20 who are soulmates; everyone else
career will go on. I don’t know how
be able to manage it. We put on our
Then she turns to us. “I’m close by, at
let her children speak ill of the man,
adjusts. I have never found a perfect
many generations love me and my
best pleading expressions. She relents,
Pedder Road,” she says, “Come and
because he was, after all, their father.
man in my life. I kept searching
songs. As long as I can sing, I will sing.
and we help her descend. Again, while
visit; and not about work.”
For all her forbearance, the marriage
for love my whole life. Life is an
I do riyaaz everyday. The day my song
Dinesh shoots, I squat under his lens
ended. Her husband threw her out.
adjustment. When we travel by train
gets over will be the day I will be no
and chat. She asks about us, our lives,
I had been holding for her while we
and there is space next to us and a
more. Music is like breathing to me.”
where we come from. Then brings
took photographs, and she smiles a
Dinesh, who has been sitting
the conversation back to my hair. I
thank you as the car door closes. The
I give her back the dark glasses
of five kids alone, with no money. She
“My older sister Meena is also
used to tell us, ‘You are the children of
a very good singer but she doesn’t
stranger comes to sit, we adjust. Why
a very big man. You will do something
sing. Even Usha doesn’t sing a lot.”
shouldn’t we then adjust with our
at her feet looking adoringly up
wear it long because I’m balding, I tell
fans sigh. So does Dinesh, our big,
big, you can’t live in poverty. God has
Young Asha, on the other hand, was
families? I adjust easily and that’s why
at her, chimes in: “Have you ever
her, and so I mean to enjoy it before
tough outdoorsman. So do I.
given you beauty and given you this
literally singing for her supper. “If
I am happy.”
met someone like you?” She thinks
voice.’” She laughs: “She convinced
I hadn’t gotten married, I wouldn’t
us dark-skinned, homely girls that we
have left home, I wouldn’t have
of her music. “The part of my life that
distance over the years, thinks some
were great beauties!”
become a singer, I wouldn’t have
is not spent sleeping, I want to spend
more. “No.” We burst out laughing.
had such wonderful kids, such great
working. I work from morning till
20 years older, against her family’s
grandchildren.” She pauses for a
midnight. Imagine, I have sung almost
conversation, I had noticed the battery
wishes. “I never thought I would be a
moment. “If I had not met Bhosle, I
13,000 songs till date! There were days
indicator on my recorder slipping
singer. I always wanted to lead the life
wouldn’t have become Asha Bhosle.”
when I worked till 3 a.m., slept for
into danger territory. I asked Dinesh
of a housewife, have kids, run a family,
Her musical partnership with
a few hours and then went to work
if he had spares. Unfortunately he
cook for them.” But the marriage
O.P. Nayyar played a large part in the
again. I used to manage the home,
had none. Ashaji interjected, with a
turned sour: “My husband was short-
creation of Asha the star. I decide
dropping the kids at school, cooking,
chuckle: “I always last longer than
tempered.” In short, he beat her.
not to ask her about the personal
putting them to sleep. My aim was
these batteries.” We decided to chance
“Maybe he liked to inflict pain, maybe
relationship with him which also
to provide my children with proper
it and kept recording. Now, interview
She eloped at 16 to marry a man
I ask her how much joy she got out
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
hard, looks at us, looks back into the
Somewhere mid-way through our
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
.
070 / Think / The pursuit of happiness
Hope and Glory
Hope and Glory
Think /The pursuit of happiness / 071
As long as I can sing I will sing. I do riyaaz everyday. The day my song gets over will be the day I will be no more. Music is like breathing to me
he was a sadist. But no one would hear
ended badly — birds sing outside,
education. I didn’t aim at giving them
done, Dinesh and I express relief
genetics took it all away. “Why don’t
father, Dinanath Mangeshkar, was
about it outside. I gave him respect,
the air is crisp and the day is lovely
a luxurious life but a decent one.
that the batteries had lasted. Her eyes
you do something about it,” she asks
a famous and well-respected singer
never questioned what he did. I just I
— so we talk instead of the late R.D.
Today, people ask me, why didn’t you
sparkle again: “It has been said that
me, “It’s our duty to be presentable,
and actor. “From as far back as I can
did my duty as per Hindu dharma.”
Burman, the other music director in
build a bungalow? I say, I am happy
things get recharged when they are
to look the best that we can.” She then
remember, I saw my father and sister
She had been taking singing
her life, and her second husband. She
in a flat. Who needs a bungalow with
near me!”
tells me what she has been using,
We talk about her childhood. Her
[Lata Mangeskar] singing. We owned a
lessons, and had begun singing
laughs as she recollects drives with
many bedrooms? You need only one
theatre, employed around 200 people.
playback for the movies. So, she says,
him, where he would only use one leg
bedroom to sleep!”
When our father passed away [he died
she asked her guru whether she
on the pedals (the other was folded
young, at 41], our financial position
should sing classical or switch to light
under him), have a glass of whisky
of genres, but also in a number of
We’d drive ahead, find a shady spot
was not good but we kids were not
music. “He asked me what I wanted.
balanced on the dashboard, steer with
languages, many of which she does
where the harsh noon light wouldn’t
cars had slowed down at the sight of
much affected. We would have one cup
I said, ‘Where is there more money?’
his left hand, and sing, while his right
not speak. I tell her that she speaks
bleach out the shot. But all the likely
a big, professional-looking camera
of tea or peanuts, then go off to play.
I thought once my husband sets up
hand played the beat on the car roof.
three universal languages: Music, food
locations we’d marked out on the way
and lens, and then screeched to a
There was no radio, we only used to
a business, gets stable, I would quit
(Later that day, she talked about that
and laughter. She, gracefully, does not
to Nashik were now shadeless. We find
stop when they recognised who was
sing. Life was beautiful. My mother
singing.” Pause. “But once I started,
relationship too. “It was not a typical
cringe at the cliché. Instead, she talks
one rock face with some shade. But
being shot. Now, as she takes my arm
it was difficult to quit. I thought, God
marriage,” she said, “It was more a
of a performance at an IIT. “I sang
it is a foot lower than the road level,
again to negotiate the uneven path
has sent me for this job, I should not
musical partnership. There was much
to the beat of rock music, and these
rutted, rubble-strewn, dusty, ash-filled
back to the road, the fans close in,
go against his wishes.” The fact also
more in it than most marriages.”)
twenty-year-old kids were jumping
from some recent fire. Ten minutes
proffering scraps of paper, asking
with joy! I said, ‘These songs are forty
later, her car pulls up, and she alights,
for photographs. “I’m tired,” she tells
If I hadn’t gotten married, I wouldn’t have left home, I wouldn’t have become a singer. If I had not met Bhosle, I wouldn’t have become Asha Bhosle was a very clever lady. She took care
is that her husband never made very
“Everyone gets married but how
She has sung in a multiplicity
successfully, to combat thinning We had persuaded Ashaji to let us take a few more pictures on the road:
hair, and recommends I use it too. I promise I will. Here, in the middle of nowhere,
much money, and she had to bring up
many of them love each other? Out
years old, you weren’t even born!’ If
with a little difficulty. She surveys our
them. But she signs a few, poses for
her children and look after the rest of
of every 100 people, maybe there are
these youngsters know my songs, my
spot and declares that she wouldn’t
a few photographs from phonecams.
his household. Yet, she says, she never
20 who are soulmates; everyone else
career will go on. I don’t know how
be able to manage it. We put on our
Then she turns to us. “I’m close by, at
let her children speak ill of the man,
adjusts. I have never found a perfect
many generations love me and my
best pleading expressions. She relents,
Pedder Road,” she says, “Come and
because he was, after all, their father.
man in my life. I kept searching
songs. As long as I can sing, I will sing.
and we help her descend. Again, while
visit; and not about work.”
For all her forbearance, the marriage
for love my whole life. Life is an
I do riyaaz everyday. The day my song
Dinesh shoots, I squat under his lens
ended. Her husband threw her out.
adjustment. When we travel by train
gets over will be the day I will be no
and chat. She asks about us, our lives,
I had been holding for her while we
and there is space next to us and a
more. Music is like breathing to me.”
where we come from. Then brings
took photographs, and she smiles a
Dinesh, who has been sitting
the conversation back to my hair. I
thank you as the car door closes. The
I give her back the dark glasses
of five kids alone, with no money. She
“My older sister Meena is also
used to tell us, ‘You are the children of
a very good singer but she doesn’t
stranger comes to sit, we adjust. Why
a very big man. You will do something
sing. Even Usha doesn’t sing a lot.”
shouldn’t we then adjust with our
at her feet looking adoringly up
wear it long because I’m balding, I tell
fans sigh. So does Dinesh, our big,
big, you can’t live in poverty. God has
Young Asha, on the other hand, was
families? I adjust easily and that’s why
at her, chimes in: “Have you ever
her, and so I mean to enjoy it before
tough outdoorsman. So do I.
given you beauty and given you this
literally singing for her supper. “If
I am happy.”
met someone like you?” She thinks
voice.’” She laughs: “She convinced
I hadn’t gotten married, I wouldn’t
us dark-skinned, homely girls that we
have left home, I wouldn’t have
of her music. “The part of my life that
distance over the years, thinks some
were great beauties!”
become a singer, I wouldn’t have
is not spent sleeping, I want to spend
more. “No.” We burst out laughing.
had such wonderful kids, such great
working. I work from morning till
20 years older, against her family’s
grandchildren.” She pauses for a
midnight. Imagine, I have sung almost
conversation, I had noticed the battery
wishes. “I never thought I would be a
moment. “If I had not met Bhosle, I
13,000 songs till date! There were days
indicator on my recorder slipping
singer. I always wanted to lead the life
wouldn’t have become Asha Bhosle.”
when I worked till 3 a.m., slept for
into danger territory. I asked Dinesh
of a housewife, have kids, run a family,
Her musical partnership with
a few hours and then went to work
if he had spares. Unfortunately he
cook for them.” But the marriage
O.P. Nayyar played a large part in the
again. I used to manage the home,
had none. Ashaji interjected, with a
turned sour: “My husband was short-
creation of Asha the star. I decide
dropping the kids at school, cooking,
chuckle: “I always last longer than
tempered.” In short, he beat her.
not to ask her about the personal
putting them to sleep. My aim was
these batteries.” We decided to chance
“Maybe he liked to inflict pain, maybe
relationship with him which also
to provide my children with proper
it and kept recording. Now, interview
She eloped at 16 to marry a man
I ask her how much joy she got out
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
hard, looks at us, looks back into the
Somewhere mid-way through our
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
.
100 / Live / Adventure
Live / Adventure / 101
“Are you looking to get people
R
u
n
w
i
t
h
M
e
because it was the first edition; in 2011,
in the first edition of La Ultra-The
the time limit will be 60 hours), in
High was screaming at me. “Why
temperatures ranging from 40°C to
couldn’t you include one mountain
-6°C in July.
We were at South Pullu, 24 km
Unveiling the spaces where Murakami never ventured by Dr. Rajat Chauhan with photography by Madhu Kapparath
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
killed?” The crew of two participants
pass in the route, instead of two?”
What does an ultra-runner think of when he’s running?
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
ft. All in 72 hours (and that’s only
As the crew ranted, I remembered discussing a lower altitude version of
from Leh (14,200 ft), 60 km into the
the run — starting from 6,000 ft in
toughest and highest ultra-marathon
Manali and going up to 16,000 ft —
on the planet. The 222-km course
with the Adventure wing of the Indian
passes through Khardung La, the
Army. The army men had dismissed
world’s highest motorable mountain
the idea as impossible for civilians’ to
pass (officially claimed by National
accomplish. Expressing concern about
Geographic to be at 18,380 ft, though
High Altitude Sickness (HAS), they
we recorded 17,700 ft) and the town
had said that we’d need to camp at
of Leh, before ascending again to the
9,000 ft and again at 13,000 ft for up to
second highest motorable pass at
four days for acclimatisation to avoid
Tanglang La (17,583 ft) and finishing
any incidents. I found this suggestion
in the Morey Plains, a high altitude
impractical, as it would make the
desert with an average height of 15,000
event a multi-stage run, instead of a
100 / Live / Adventure
Live / Adventure / 101
“Are you looking to get people
R
u
n
w
i
t
h
M
e
because it was the first edition; in 2011,
in the first edition of La Ultra-The
the time limit will be 60 hours), in
High was screaming at me. “Why
temperatures ranging from 40°C to
couldn’t you include one mountain
-6°C in July.
We were at South Pullu, 24 km
Unveiling the spaces where Murakami never ventured by Dr. Rajat Chauhan with photography by Madhu Kapparath
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
killed?” The crew of two participants
pass in the route, instead of two?”
What does an ultra-runner think of when he’s running?
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
ft. All in 72 hours (and that’s only
As the crew ranted, I remembered discussing a lower altitude version of
from Leh (14,200 ft), 60 km into the
the run — starting from 6,000 ft in
toughest and highest ultra-marathon
Manali and going up to 16,000 ft —
on the planet. The 222-km course
with the Adventure wing of the Indian
passes through Khardung La, the
Army. The army men had dismissed
world’s highest motorable mountain
the idea as impossible for civilians’ to
pass (officially claimed by National
accomplish. Expressing concern about
Geographic to be at 18,380 ft, though
High Altitude Sickness (HAS), they
we recorded 17,700 ft) and the town
had said that we’d need to camp at
of Leh, before ascending again to the
9,000 ft and again at 13,000 ft for up to
second highest motorable pass at
four days for acclimatisation to avoid
Tanglang La (17,583 ft) and finishing
any incidents. I found this suggestion
in the Morey Plains, a high altitude
impractical, as it would make the
desert with an average height of 15,000
event a multi-stage run, instead of a
102 / Live / Adventure
Run with Me
continuous one. “What if,” I asked,
permanent damage — not just for
Ram Sethu, I ran a marathon on five
40,000, which a couple of well-wishers
“we acclimatised first and then began
runners, but for schoolchildren and
consecutive days from Jodhpur to
and friends helped out with. I dream
the run from 13,000 ft?”
corporate warriors as well.
Jaisalmer. So I’d have easily done more
of making The High the Tour de
than one hundred marathons. Then
France of running: It deserves to be in
again, why count these experiences?
the same league.
Crazy’ was the response written
Over time, I’ve understood that the
all over their faces but, in theory, my
body tells you all you need to know:
proposal made sense. So we had begun
Once you learn to listen to your body,
the run from around 14,000 ft, after
you can pick up signals the latest
spending 10 days to acclimatise at
gizmo can’t. No wonder then that Tim
in October 2009, after a 21 km run
frequently. I answer: Why not?
11,000 ft and above.
Noakes, renowned sports physiologist
from 6,000 ft (Manali) to 11,000 ft
Watchmen writer Alan Moore probably
and ultra-marathoner, offers all
(just short of Rohtang Pass), with
said it best in the context of his great
runners simple advice on hydration:
my running mate, Melvin Baretto.
switch from a desk job to creating
Drink according to thirst.
It was an extremely tough run, but
comics: “To make such a leap you have
exhilarating as well.
to put aside the fear of failing and the
And now I was being accused of planning mass murder. ✶✶✶
I believe that to do big, one needs
Running ultras is an extension
the peaks of the Annapurna lay ranged outside my window, quietly triggering a desire to run in the Himalayas. But my passion for ultras was ignited in 2004, when I moved to London after my masters in sports and exercise
La Ultra-The High was conceived
Earlier that year, I had considered
to dream bigger. While I was at medical school in Nepal in 1994-99,
✶✶✶
I’ve understood that the body tells you all you need to know: Once you learn to listen to your body, you can pick up signals the latest gizmo can’t
medicine in Nottingham. Siri
✶✶✶
Why run, is a question I face
desire of succeeding… You have to do
running two serious ultras: 500 km
these things purely, because the things
on the Changthang plateau (15,000
we do without lust of result are the
ft) on the Ladakh-China border,
purest actions we can take.”
and the Badwater, in Death Valley,
Most runners seek a ‘high’, a ‘zone’.
Arizona, where temperatures go up
You could have done a very painful
to 45°C. However, I had just turned
100 miles when, suddenly, you slip
entrepreneur and neither idea had
into a space where everything is in
a shoestring option. That led me to
perfect balance. Then, no matter
Terjesen, a running buddy who had
of the same ‘optimum’ theory: One
consider organising an even crazier
how fast you run, you never get out
represented the UK and the US in 100
simply decides one is not going to
run, in an even more brilliant
of breath. To me, it’s like meditation.
km races (and would run for Australia
quit. What’s fascinating, however, is
location: The Himalayas.
Ultra runners agree that 90 percent
as well), pointed out that my best time
that almost anyone can do an ultra-
for a marathon (in practice) of 2 hours
marathon: You simply need to know
the Web site (thehigh.in), describing
remaining 10 percent, too, is mental.
38 minutes, while not competitive
how to use your body optimally.
the event as an epic run’. Besides
Evolution has primed humans for
Noakes, who came on board as
endurance events. But, frankly, The
e-medical director of The High, Joe
High is a run for challenge-seekers
distance running a shot, Siri made
Prusaitis and Joe Jurczyk, established
who find other extreme runs too tame.
me sign up for a Paris-to-London run
ultra-runners, coaches and race
Amateur Athletic Federation, a
in 2004, which involved running a
directors, joined us.
marathon is a distance of 42.195
marathon (or a longer distance) for
km (26 miles 385 yards). Anything
eight consecutive days, culminating
event wouldn’t make any financial
is the only condition exclusive to
beyond that is an ultra-marathon, the
with the London marathon. I trained
sense if I didn’t have at least 25
high altitudes. In the Himalayas, it
commonest distances being 50 km, 50
for the event by doing marathons on
participants. Over Facebook, I invited
combines with freezing temperatures
miles, 100 km and 100 miles.
four consecutive weekends, followed
200-odd ultra runners; four of them
and mountainous terrain. The only
by 20-30 km runs for five consecutive
responded positively, but one dropped
solution is proper acclimatisation.
a runner first. In my spare time, I’m
days. Five days into the run, however,
out. I was looking at a loss of up to Rs.
a sports medicine doctor and family
my left foot swelled up to gargantuan
10 lakh. But runners are known to be
man: My ultra running career would
proportions. On the day of the London
have been impossible without the
for a professional, was decent by amateur standards. “Then why stop at a marathon?” she asked. According to the International
Over the years, I’ve realised I am
✶✶✶
After convincing me to give long-
By November 2009, I had created
Businessmen friends said the
of ultra running is mental — and the
At the same time, it is important to keep in mind the danger participants run if they are ill-trained. Thin air High Thinking Ultra runners agree that 90 percent of ultra running is mental — and the remaining 10 percent, too, is mental
The High at 48 hours 50 minutes
severe syndromes that can occur with
— told me that it felt like he was
rapid ascent beyond 8,000 ft and can
physical and mental limits to
breathing out of a narrow straw that
be fatal.
thick-skulled and ultra runners even
completely new levels. Hypoxia, the
was getting thinner and thinner all
marathon, my running buddies locked
more so. I decided that volunteers
reduction of oxygen supply to human
the time. Hypoxia can lead to several
another problem: Ultraviolet light
support of my very understanding
me into my room, because they knew
would have to bear 50 percent of their
tissue, starts in altitudes as low as
illnesses, some of them fatal. The
increases rapidly with elevation.
wife, Nidhi. Running brings order,
I’d still want to attempt it.
costs. A dozen of them agreed. I also
5,000 ft. At 14,765 ft — an altitude
most common is Acute Mountain
The radiation level at 14,000 ft is 55
roped in four cousins — Hitendra,
reached 20-25 km into the run —
Sickness (AMS), with symptoms such
percent higher than at sea level, and
discipline and passion into everything
A few months after moving to
The High pushes participants’
High altitudes are associated with
I do, but it also raises questions. For
Bangalore in mid-2006, I became the
Jitin, Pramod and Sushil — to be part
partial pressure of oxygen drops
as headache, lack of energy, insomnia,
can cause severe sunburn and snow
instance, we created units to measure
medical director of the Bangalore
of the core crew.
to 40 percent less than at sea level,
loss of appetite, nausea, dizziness,
blindness. Appropriate eye wear
time and distance and, consequently,
International Marathon and, in 2007,
producing arid air with low water
shortness of breath, fluid retention
is essential.
speed. I think measurements simply
of the first Bangalore Ultra where
participants (Mark Cockbain, William
vapour, further reducing the amount
and vomiting. The only treatment
complicate matters. All of us have our
I did 100 km. In late March 2008,
Andrews and Molly Sheridan) and
of oxygen available to human tissue.
is descent to a lower elevation. High
“Only those who risk going too far can
own optimum speeds; going faster
along with running buddies Madhu
16 crew — was a mammoth task. At
Around 16,000 ft, Mark — the only
Altitude Pulmonary Edema (HAPE)
possibly find out how far one can go.”
or slower to suit others could cause
Avasarala, Satheesh Ramalingam and
the end of the event, I fell short by Rs.
one to finish the first edition of
and Cerebral Edema (HACE) are more
In an ultra, it stops short of murder.
Pulling together 19 people — three
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
T.S. Eliot sums it all up really well.
.
102 / Live / Adventure
Run with Me
continuous one. “What if,” I asked,
permanent damage — not just for
Ram Sethu, I ran a marathon on five
40,000, which a couple of well-wishers
“we acclimatised first and then began
runners, but for schoolchildren and
consecutive days from Jodhpur to
and friends helped out with. I dream
the run from 13,000 ft?”
corporate warriors as well.
Jaisalmer. So I’d have easily done more
of making The High the Tour de
than one hundred marathons. Then
France of running: It deserves to be in
again, why count these experiences?
the same league.
Crazy’ was the response written
Over time, I’ve understood that the
all over their faces but, in theory, my
body tells you all you need to know:
proposal made sense. So we had begun
Once you learn to listen to your body,
the run from around 14,000 ft, after
you can pick up signals the latest
spending 10 days to acclimatise at
gizmo can’t. No wonder then that Tim
in October 2009, after a 21 km run
frequently. I answer: Why not?
11,000 ft and above.
Noakes, renowned sports physiologist
from 6,000 ft (Manali) to 11,000 ft
Watchmen writer Alan Moore probably
and ultra-marathoner, offers all
(just short of Rohtang Pass), with
said it best in the context of his great
runners simple advice on hydration:
my running mate, Melvin Baretto.
switch from a desk job to creating
Drink according to thirst.
It was an extremely tough run, but
comics: “To make such a leap you have
exhilarating as well.
to put aside the fear of failing and the
And now I was being accused of planning mass murder. ✶✶✶
I believe that to do big, one needs
Running ultras is an extension
the peaks of the Annapurna lay ranged outside my window, quietly triggering a desire to run in the Himalayas. But my passion for ultras was ignited in 2004, when I moved to London after my masters in sports and exercise
La Ultra-The High was conceived
Earlier that year, I had considered
to dream bigger. While I was at medical school in Nepal in 1994-99,
✶✶✶
I’ve understood that the body tells you all you need to know: Once you learn to listen to your body, you can pick up signals the latest gizmo can’t
medicine in Nottingham. Siri
✶✶✶
Why run, is a question I face
desire of succeeding… You have to do
running two serious ultras: 500 km
these things purely, because the things
on the Changthang plateau (15,000
we do without lust of result are the
ft) on the Ladakh-China border,
purest actions we can take.”
and the Badwater, in Death Valley,
Most runners seek a ‘high’, a ‘zone’.
Arizona, where temperatures go up
You could have done a very painful
to 45°C. However, I had just turned
100 miles when, suddenly, you slip
entrepreneur and neither idea had
into a space where everything is in
a shoestring option. That led me to
perfect balance. Then, no matter
Terjesen, a running buddy who had
of the same ‘optimum’ theory: One
consider organising an even crazier
how fast you run, you never get out
represented the UK and the US in 100
simply decides one is not going to
run, in an even more brilliant
of breath. To me, it’s like meditation.
km races (and would run for Australia
quit. What’s fascinating, however, is
location: The Himalayas.
Ultra runners agree that 90 percent
as well), pointed out that my best time
that almost anyone can do an ultra-
for a marathon (in practice) of 2 hours
marathon: You simply need to know
the Web site (thehigh.in), describing
remaining 10 percent, too, is mental.
38 minutes, while not competitive
how to use your body optimally.
the event as an epic run’. Besides
Evolution has primed humans for
Noakes, who came on board as
endurance events. But, frankly, The
e-medical director of The High, Joe
High is a run for challenge-seekers
distance running a shot, Siri made
Prusaitis and Joe Jurczyk, established
who find other extreme runs too tame.
me sign up for a Paris-to-London run
ultra-runners, coaches and race
Amateur Athletic Federation, a
in 2004, which involved running a
directors, joined us.
marathon is a distance of 42.195
marathon (or a longer distance) for
km (26 miles 385 yards). Anything
eight consecutive days, culminating
event wouldn’t make any financial
is the only condition exclusive to
beyond that is an ultra-marathon, the
with the London marathon. I trained
sense if I didn’t have at least 25
high altitudes. In the Himalayas, it
commonest distances being 50 km, 50
for the event by doing marathons on
participants. Over Facebook, I invited
combines with freezing temperatures
miles, 100 km and 100 miles.
four consecutive weekends, followed
200-odd ultra runners; four of them
and mountainous terrain. The only
by 20-30 km runs for five consecutive
responded positively, but one dropped
solution is proper acclimatisation.
a runner first. In my spare time, I’m
days. Five days into the run, however,
out. I was looking at a loss of up to Rs.
a sports medicine doctor and family
my left foot swelled up to gargantuan
10 lakh. But runners are known to be
man: My ultra running career would
proportions. On the day of the London
have been impossible without the
for a professional, was decent by amateur standards. “Then why stop at a marathon?” she asked. According to the International
Over the years, I’ve realised I am
✶✶✶
After convincing me to give long-
By November 2009, I had created
Businessmen friends said the
of ultra running is mental — and the
At the same time, it is important to keep in mind the danger participants run if they are ill-trained. Thin air High Thinking Ultra runners agree that 90 percent of ultra running is mental — and the remaining 10 percent, too, is mental
The High at 48 hours 50 minutes
severe syndromes that can occur with
— told me that it felt like he was
rapid ascent beyond 8,000 ft and can
physical and mental limits to
breathing out of a narrow straw that
be fatal.
thick-skulled and ultra runners even
completely new levels. Hypoxia, the
was getting thinner and thinner all
marathon, my running buddies locked
more so. I decided that volunteers
reduction of oxygen supply to human
the time. Hypoxia can lead to several
another problem: Ultraviolet light
support of my very understanding
me into my room, because they knew
would have to bear 50 percent of their
tissue, starts in altitudes as low as
illnesses, some of them fatal. The
increases rapidly with elevation.
wife, Nidhi. Running brings order,
I’d still want to attempt it.
costs. A dozen of them agreed. I also
5,000 ft. At 14,765 ft — an altitude
most common is Acute Mountain
The radiation level at 14,000 ft is 55
roped in four cousins — Hitendra,
reached 20-25 km into the run —
Sickness (AMS), with symptoms such
percent higher than at sea level, and
discipline and passion into everything
A few months after moving to
The High pushes participants’
High altitudes are associated with
I do, but it also raises questions. For
Bangalore in mid-2006, I became the
Jitin, Pramod and Sushil — to be part
partial pressure of oxygen drops
as headache, lack of energy, insomnia,
can cause severe sunburn and snow
instance, we created units to measure
medical director of the Bangalore
of the core crew.
to 40 percent less than at sea level,
loss of appetite, nausea, dizziness,
blindness. Appropriate eye wear
time and distance and, consequently,
International Marathon and, in 2007,
producing arid air with low water
shortness of breath, fluid retention
is essential.
speed. I think measurements simply
of the first Bangalore Ultra where
participants (Mark Cockbain, William
vapour, further reducing the amount
and vomiting. The only treatment
complicate matters. All of us have our
I did 100 km. In late March 2008,
Andrews and Molly Sheridan) and
of oxygen available to human tissue.
is descent to a lower elevation. High
“Only those who risk going too far can
own optimum speeds; going faster
along with running buddies Madhu
16 crew — was a mammoth task. At
Around 16,000 ft, Mark — the only
Altitude Pulmonary Edema (HAPE)
possibly find out how far one can go.”
or slower to suit others could cause
Avasarala, Satheesh Ramalingam and
the end of the event, I fell short by Rs.
one to finish the first edition of
and Cerebral Edema (HACE) are more
In an ultra, it stops short of murder.
Pulling together 19 people — three
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
T.S. Eliot sums it all up really well.
.
138 / Live / Story
Live / Story / 139
FOOD
still pink in the centre. Throw in some
also offer some of the simplest dishes. So, naturally, we set about trying
sherry (brandy will do as well), salt and pepper, bung into the mixie, add
to make things more difficult for
some cream for pure indulgence and
ourselves. On a November day a
whiz up. Set the mixture in the fridge
couple of years ago, the husband and
for about five hours (add a layer of
I hit on the idea of a Christmas cake.
butter to avoid any skin forming, or
Now, no one in our families has ever
simply use clingwrap) and there you
baked one, as far as I knew, and though
have it — a starter that’ll keep them
cake on Christmas in Calcutta is a
talking till the main course.
hallowed tradition, the confection
Unless, of course it's time for
Living by the Knife by Sumana Mukherjee Did you notice the revolution? Like all change-the-world movements, it started in the marketplace and
was always sourced from Nahoum's,
hummus, another preparation so
the stalwart Jewish bakery in New
simple that I'm always surprised
Market. Come December, and it would
people are willing to pay good money
arrive, a butterpaper-packed round
for it in a restaurant. A chef friend
about eight inches across, a medley
once told me that no matter if an iced
of mysterious fruit and flour, imbued
tea is priced Rs 80 or Rs 180, its cost
deep with the spirit of the season.
to the eatery is around Rs 2. Hummus
That recipe, of course, is guarded
comes under the same category: No
more fiercely than the formula for
matter how much olive oil or red
Coca-Cola, so I set about creating
chilli they use to dress it up, hummus
my own, based on instructions I
is, at the end of the day, a function
found in an English newspaper. I
the local market, too, can make for the
themselves to endless improvisations,
of the mixie. Sure, the nuttiness
blithely substituted hard-to-find
most astounding ceviche.
and, what’s more, they’re awfully
(from lightly roasted sesame seeds),
ingredients with commonly available
quick. But because it’s so convenient
lemoniness (from judicious use of
ones (only succumbing to adding
It’s a tough admission, but
gradually crept into our homes, before
we’re spoilt by the choice at the
to grab a bottle off a supermarket
nimbu) and smoothness (whip it,
imported prunes), played around with
conflagrating right on our dining
supermarket. Hung up on the Nigella
shelf, few venture into the territory —
whip it, whip it — and don't forget to
combinations of fruit, mixed alcohols
tables. It morphed the parathas into
Lawsons of the world, we believe a
thereby leaving the field open for you
skin the chickpeas post the cooking)
(rum and cognac, anyone?) and, last
pasta, nudged rotis and ratatouille
ragú sauce comes from a bottle or paté
to take a bow when the unmistakably
take some perfecting, but that's just a
year, doubled quantities. Maybe it's
matter of practice.
just an extremely forgiving recipe, or
closer together. Reclaiming the
from a tin — just as our children think
non-commercial, preservative-free
kitchen from paid help, the urban
milk comes from packets. With every
taste hits the tastebuds.
Indian began discovering the thrill of
self-respecting metro and many of the
verandah barbeques and learning to
so-called tier-two towns possessing
distinguish between wok and paella
From store-bought tomato sauce
perhaps my friends and family have
for pasta to bottled pesto, the urban
been kind — or maybe it's just the
achingly elegant starters that you’ll
kitchen and the local market now
copious amounts of alcohol that acted
at least one store overflowing with
happily pay megabucks for at a
rise to offer alternatives to every
as a preservative (though one friend
(the dish takes its name from the pan).
tinned produce, processed sauces and
five-star when it comes suffixed with
convenience food. And not just
did say she'd been arrested for drunk
The global had finally become local.
dinner-table-ready dips — much of it
'foie gras', but which you can dish
Indian-for-Italian either, but food
driving after a slice) but no one's died
imported, but a few the brainchildren
up in minutes — and, what do you
from every corner of the world,
yet.
trend assumes gigantic proportions,
of enterprising local foodpreneurs
know, extremely inexpensively. Most
we’ve ended up sacrificing finesse
— we end up losing sight of what
butchers are aghast when I ask for
for flamboyance. Size may not
exactly it is that makes the home-food
chicken liver — it is not considered
matter when it comes to food, but
experience pleasurable: Preparation,
a delicacy in any Indian community,
exaggeration certainly does, and the
buoyed by the idea of not-too-delayed
as far as I can tell — and can’t seem
Indian home-chef has been quick to
gratification.
to be able to stuff enough into a bag
As a firm believer in the why-buy-
for Rs 20. Bring it home, wash it well,
Somewhere along the way, we’ve
it-when-you-can-fry-it principle, I
get rid of the membranes and other
started worshipping at the altar of the
label pestos, patés, dips and sauces the
yucky bits, dab dry, sizzle a generous
Norwegian salmon or the Japanese
cheat-chef’s passport to panegyrics.
dollop of butter and sauté carefully
tuna, bypassing the fact that fish from
They’re fun to whip up, lend
(this is the tricky bit) so that they are ForbesLife India Spring 2011
Corbis; Hussenot / SoFood / Corbis; Amiel / Corbis
pick up on the restaurateur’s mantra.
Gerry Whitmont / Corbis
But, as is natural when a niche
Consider patés. It’s one of those
from Malaysian to Moroccan and
And so it goes on. The cake, now
from Caribbean to Korean — though
a tradition, and the cooking. We love
eastern cuisines (with the possible
our restaurants and eating out as
exception of Thai and not counting
much as the next person, and we still
the Indian take on 'Chinese') continue
make a note of the new place with an
to be the most difficult to reproduce.
offbeat menu (and we swear by packet
And while, of course, you might claim
soups), but we're enamoured right
your stove-microwave-oven can't
now of the chemical magic created by
really aspire to do justice to a Peking
heat and enthusiasm and ingredients
Duck, there's no gainsaying the fact
chopped by our own knives. The
that the greatest cuisines of the world
Indian kitchen now owns the world.
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
.
138 / Live / Story
Live / Story / 139
FOOD
still pink in the centre. Throw in some
also offer some of the simplest dishes. So, naturally, we set about trying
sherry (brandy will do as well), salt and pepper, bung into the mixie, add
to make things more difficult for
some cream for pure indulgence and
ourselves. On a November day a
whiz up. Set the mixture in the fridge
couple of years ago, the husband and
for about five hours (add a layer of
I hit on the idea of a Christmas cake.
butter to avoid any skin forming, or
Now, no one in our families has ever
simply use clingwrap) and there you
baked one, as far as I knew, and though
have it — a starter that’ll keep them
cake on Christmas in Calcutta is a
talking till the main course.
hallowed tradition, the confection
Unless, of course it's time for
Living by the Knife by Sumana Mukherjee Did you notice the revolution? Like all change-the-world movements, it started in the marketplace and
was always sourced from Nahoum's,
hummus, another preparation so
the stalwart Jewish bakery in New
simple that I'm always surprised
Market. Come December, and it would
people are willing to pay good money
arrive, a butterpaper-packed round
for it in a restaurant. A chef friend
about eight inches across, a medley
once told me that no matter if an iced
of mysterious fruit and flour, imbued
tea is priced Rs 80 or Rs 180, its cost
deep with the spirit of the season.
to the eatery is around Rs 2. Hummus
That recipe, of course, is guarded
comes under the same category: No
more fiercely than the formula for
matter how much olive oil or red
Coca-Cola, so I set about creating
chilli they use to dress it up, hummus
my own, based on instructions I
is, at the end of the day, a function
found in an English newspaper. I
the local market, too, can make for the
themselves to endless improvisations,
of the mixie. Sure, the nuttiness
blithely substituted hard-to-find
most astounding ceviche.
and, what’s more, they’re awfully
(from lightly roasted sesame seeds),
ingredients with commonly available
quick. But because it’s so convenient
lemoniness (from judicious use of
ones (only succumbing to adding
It’s a tough admission, but
gradually crept into our homes, before
we’re spoilt by the choice at the
to grab a bottle off a supermarket
nimbu) and smoothness (whip it,
imported prunes), played around with
conflagrating right on our dining
supermarket. Hung up on the Nigella
shelf, few venture into the territory —
whip it, whip it — and don't forget to
combinations of fruit, mixed alcohols
tables. It morphed the parathas into
Lawsons of the world, we believe a
thereby leaving the field open for you
skin the chickpeas post the cooking)
(rum and cognac, anyone?) and, last
pasta, nudged rotis and ratatouille
ragú sauce comes from a bottle or paté
to take a bow when the unmistakably
take some perfecting, but that's just a
year, doubled quantities. Maybe it's
matter of practice.
just an extremely forgiving recipe, or
closer together. Reclaiming the
from a tin — just as our children think
non-commercial, preservative-free
kitchen from paid help, the urban
milk comes from packets. With every
taste hits the tastebuds.
Indian began discovering the thrill of
self-respecting metro and many of the
verandah barbeques and learning to
so-called tier-two towns possessing
distinguish between wok and paella
From store-bought tomato sauce
perhaps my friends and family have
for pasta to bottled pesto, the urban
been kind — or maybe it's just the
achingly elegant starters that you’ll
kitchen and the local market now
copious amounts of alcohol that acted
at least one store overflowing with
happily pay megabucks for at a
rise to offer alternatives to every
as a preservative (though one friend
(the dish takes its name from the pan).
tinned produce, processed sauces and
five-star when it comes suffixed with
convenience food. And not just
did say she'd been arrested for drunk
The global had finally become local.
dinner-table-ready dips — much of it
'foie gras', but which you can dish
Indian-for-Italian either, but food
driving after a slice) but no one's died
imported, but a few the brainchildren
up in minutes — and, what do you
from every corner of the world,
yet.
trend assumes gigantic proportions,
of enterprising local foodpreneurs
know, extremely inexpensively. Most
we’ve ended up sacrificing finesse
— we end up losing sight of what
butchers are aghast when I ask for
for flamboyance. Size may not
exactly it is that makes the home-food
chicken liver — it is not considered
matter when it comes to food, but
experience pleasurable: Preparation,
a delicacy in any Indian community,
exaggeration certainly does, and the
buoyed by the idea of not-too-delayed
as far as I can tell — and can’t seem
Indian home-chef has been quick to
gratification.
to be able to stuff enough into a bag
As a firm believer in the why-buy-
for Rs 20. Bring it home, wash it well,
Somewhere along the way, we’ve
it-when-you-can-fry-it principle, I
get rid of the membranes and other
started worshipping at the altar of the
label pestos, patés, dips and sauces the
yucky bits, dab dry, sizzle a generous
Norwegian salmon or the Japanese
cheat-chef’s passport to panegyrics.
dollop of butter and sauté carefully
tuna, bypassing the fact that fish from
They’re fun to whip up, lend
(this is the tricky bit) so that they are ForbesLife India Spring 2011
Corbis; Hussenot / SoFood / Corbis; Amiel / Corbis
pick up on the restaurateur’s mantra.
Gerry Whitmont / Corbis
But, as is natural when a niche
Consider patés. It’s one of those
from Malaysian to Moroccan and
And so it goes on. The cake, now
from Caribbean to Korean — though
a tradition, and the cooking. We love
eastern cuisines (with the possible
our restaurants and eating out as
exception of Thai and not counting
much as the next person, and we still
the Indian take on 'Chinese') continue
make a note of the new place with an
to be the most difficult to reproduce.
offbeat menu (and we swear by packet
And while, of course, you might claim
soups), but we're enamoured right
your stove-microwave-oven can't
now of the chemical magic created by
really aspire to do justice to a Peking
heat and enthusiasm and ingredients
Duck, there's no gainsaying the fact
chopped by our own knives. The
that the greatest cuisines of the world
Indian kitchen now owns the world.
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
.
160 / Work / Power Lunch
Work / Power Lunch / 161
his belongings to hear what he’s saying.” Note that Jack does not lunge across the table and stab his companion with the dessert fork, as Luciano might have done. Instead, he relies on subtler means to tip the balance of power to his
You’re Lunch
advantage. ambitious young businessman named
A time–tested technique for making rivals feel ill at ease is to give them the impression
Charles “Lucky” Luciano took his employer,
that the place you’ve taken them — be it Bouley,
Guiseppe “Joe the Boss” Masseria, to lunch at
Spago or the Savoy Grill — is practically your
Scarpato's in Coney Island. Although Masseria
living room. Indeed, the goodwill of the owners
must have known Luciano had designs on his
and captains of the local hot spots is as critical
job, both men enjoyed themselves, eating lobster
to your career success as the make of your car,
and pasta with clam sauce and drinking vats
the cut of your clothes and even the quality of
of Chianti. When they were finished, Luciano
the view from your office window. If you go to
politely excused himself to use the men’s room,
the Four Seasons restaurant in New York City,
whereupon three consultants waiting outside,
ground zero of the business lunch, and engage
one of whom is thought to have been Vegas
in playful banter with the managing partners,
entrepreneur Bugsy Siegel, walked briskly into
Alex von Bidder and Julian Niccolini, who call
the restaurant and downsized Masseria with
you by your nickname, consider your lunch to
their Tommy guns.
be a rout. Two can play at that game, however,
It was a paradigmatic business lunch. Both
as an editor at a national magazine recently
men had great fun, despite the divided nature
learned while eating at Union Square Café in
of their relationship. Then the inevitable act
New York City with the new president of his
of aggression occurred, as it must at any meal
publication’s parent company. As eager as the
where real power is at stake. For the exemplary,
editor was to impress his companion with the
more or less law-abiding businessman, the
depth of his vision for the magazine’s future,
mealtime power play tends to be something
what he really wanted was for his friend Danny
more subtle than Luciano’s deployment of
Meyer, the restaurant’s owner, to come to the
thugs, but the basic principle is the same: On
table and say hello, which would have secured
the surface, lunch is a friendly, civil affair. Down
him a strong psychological advantage. But
below, it roils.
before that could happen, Michael Romano, the
In the contemporary business world, which feeds on telephone conversations, faxes and an endless stream of emails, lunch is one of the
chef, sauntered up to greet the president, thus trumping and trouncing the editor. Some choose to be abusive to restaurant
last places human contact occurs between those
staffers in hopes of getting one up on their
who don’t share the same office space, and thus
guest. Niccolini relates with some bitterness
it is one of the last places where deal-makers
how the late David Ogilvy, co-founder of the
face off in the corporeal world. Each table in
renowned advertising agency, made a sport of
each restaurant is an exposed performance
sending back extremely expensive bottles of
stage where adversaries still vie for power the
wine, just to “prove to his guest how important
old-fashioned way: Physically.
he [was]". In these more civilised times, such
An executive named Jack, for example,
displays are considered vulgar, not to mention
described by Michael Korda in his 1975 book,
unimpressive. “Raw Power,” says von Bidder, “is
Power!: How to Get It, How to Use It, habitually
always less attractive than subtle power.”
moves his pack of cigarettes, his lighter, his
When food and power collide, meals can get a little messy by Thomas Jackson
The most eccentric exertions of power at
reading glasses and his bread plate across the
lunch involves the manipulation of the food
table like pieces on a chess board. “By the time
itself. Journalist Alexander Lobarano learned
the meal is served,” Korda writes, “he has you
this valuable lesson when he was assigned
surrounded, while you’re leaning forward across
to write an expose about serious financial ForbesLife India Spring 2011
Terry W. Eggers / Corbis
O
ne warm day in April 1931, an
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
160 / Work / Power Lunch
Work / Power Lunch / 161
his belongings to hear what he’s saying.” Note that Jack does not lunge across the table and stab his companion with the dessert fork, as Luciano might have done. Instead, he relies on subtler means to tip the balance of power to his
You’re Lunch
advantage. ambitious young businessman named
A time–tested technique for making rivals feel ill at ease is to give them the impression
Charles “Lucky” Luciano took his employer,
that the place you’ve taken them — be it Bouley,
Guiseppe “Joe the Boss” Masseria, to lunch at
Spago or the Savoy Grill — is practically your
Scarpato's in Coney Island. Although Masseria
living room. Indeed, the goodwill of the owners
must have known Luciano had designs on his
and captains of the local hot spots is as critical
job, both men enjoyed themselves, eating lobster
to your career success as the make of your car,
and pasta with clam sauce and drinking vats
the cut of your clothes and even the quality of
of Chianti. When they were finished, Luciano
the view from your office window. If you go to
politely excused himself to use the men’s room,
the Four Seasons restaurant in New York City,
whereupon three consultants waiting outside,
ground zero of the business lunch, and engage
one of whom is thought to have been Vegas
in playful banter with the managing partners,
entrepreneur Bugsy Siegel, walked briskly into
Alex von Bidder and Julian Niccolini, who call
the restaurant and downsized Masseria with
you by your nickname, consider your lunch to
their Tommy guns.
be a rout. Two can play at that game, however,
It was a paradigmatic business lunch. Both
as an editor at a national magazine recently
men had great fun, despite the divided nature
learned while eating at Union Square Café in
of their relationship. Then the inevitable act
New York City with the new president of his
of aggression occurred, as it must at any meal
publication’s parent company. As eager as the
where real power is at stake. For the exemplary,
editor was to impress his companion with the
more or less law-abiding businessman, the
depth of his vision for the magazine’s future,
mealtime power play tends to be something
what he really wanted was for his friend Danny
more subtle than Luciano’s deployment of
Meyer, the restaurant’s owner, to come to the
thugs, but the basic principle is the same: On
table and say hello, which would have secured
the surface, lunch is a friendly, civil affair. Down
him a strong psychological advantage. But
below, it roils.
before that could happen, Michael Romano, the
In the contemporary business world, which feeds on telephone conversations, faxes and an endless stream of emails, lunch is one of the
chef, sauntered up to greet the president, thus trumping and trouncing the editor. Some choose to be abusive to restaurant
last places human contact occurs between those
staffers in hopes of getting one up on their
who don’t share the same office space, and thus
guest. Niccolini relates with some bitterness
it is one of the last places where deal-makers
how the late David Ogilvy, co-founder of the
face off in the corporeal world. Each table in
renowned advertising agency, made a sport of
each restaurant is an exposed performance
sending back extremely expensive bottles of
stage where adversaries still vie for power the
wine, just to “prove to his guest how important
old-fashioned way: Physically.
he [was]". In these more civilised times, such
An executive named Jack, for example,
displays are considered vulgar, not to mention
described by Michael Korda in his 1975 book,
unimpressive. “Raw Power,” says von Bidder, “is
Power!: How to Get It, How to Use It, habitually
always less attractive than subtle power.”
moves his pack of cigarettes, his lighter, his
When food and power collide, meals can get a little messy by Thomas Jackson
The most eccentric exertions of power at
reading glasses and his bread plate across the
lunch involves the manipulation of the food
table like pieces on a chess board. “By the time
itself. Journalist Alexander Lobarano learned
the meal is served,” Korda writes, “he has you
this valuable lesson when he was assigned
surrounded, while you’re leaning forward across
to write an expose about serious financial ForbesLife India Spring 2011
Terry W. Eggers / Corbis
O
ne warm day in April 1931, an
ForbesLife India Spring 2011
You're Lunch
Dlillc / Corbis
162 / Work / Power Lunch
problems at a large Italian corporation. He
dumb until his time came to seize power. The
made a lunch date with the Bologna–based
young man engages the maitre d’ in knowing
senior vice president of marketing who
conversation, then orders quenelle served in
suggested the two of them take a drive to a
caviar sauce, escargots wrapped in pastry, stewed
quiet little place he knew in the country, which
in fond de veau, apple and walnut salad and a
turned out to be a bare-walled, fluorescent-lid
glass of 1981 Corton Charlemagne.
shed. Once they were seated, a plump, middle-
The slackjawed expression of his superiors
aged peasant woman produced a large bowl of
illustrate the obvious: The young man has won
bite-sized delectables — apparently something
lunch and his colleagues will never look at him
battered and cooked in hot oil. The executive
the same again.
began cheerfully popping them into his mouth,
When it comes to deriving power from the
but refused to say what they were in English,
act of eating, it’s not what you do, it’s how you
forcing Lobarano to sneak one into the palm of
do it. Diamond Jim Brady, who had a stomach
his hand and steal away to the bathroom, where
six times the size of the average human’s, could
he broke the morsel’s crusty shell to discover
consume such unspeakable quantities of food
the mystery within: A tiny little frog — a head,
at meals that his guests were known to fall into
feet, eyeballs and all.
a trance simply watching him eat. In that state,
In the lunching professions — publishing,
they would sign any contract he put before
advertising, public relations, to name a few
them. A New York literary agent named John
— familiarity with fine food is of critical
Brockman, on the other hand, once invited
importance. An inadvertently ordered
an editor to lunch at his offices, offered him a
sweetbread on cepe risotto or tripe lovingly
sandwich and a Snapple from the local deli, yet
stewed with tomatoes, olive oil and pecorino
had nothing himself. While the editor engaged
Romano could put an abrupt halt to a promising
in the awkward bodily function of eating,
career. Choosing well from the menu, however,
Brockman sat serenely at the other end of
can have a profoundly salubrious effect.
the table… watching. Bob Hope used to play
In the film Tampopo, a group of Japanese
the opposite angle: He ate like a king during
businessmen struggle with the exasperating
story conferences with his writers but offered
task of choosing what to eat in a fancy French
them nothing. Perhaps the ultimate business
restaurant, knowing that to do so poorly is
meal, one that would have impressed Lucky
to lose face. The most senior man tentatively
Luciano himself, took place recently in the
orders sole meuniere, consommé and a
Siberian town of Kemerovo, where a local
Heineken. The next man orders the same, as
criminal sat down to eat with two close friends
does the next. And around they go, until the
and a rival crook named Vladimir Laptin. The
waiter arrives at the youngest man, whose ill-
three friends ate heartily and drank heavily, but
fitting suit, Coke-bottle glasses and bad haircut
Laptin was unable to partake. He was the meat
seem to indicate that he’s the office idiot. But
filling in the ravioli — called pelmeni in Russia
his moment has arrived, and he rises up to
— which are usually served with melted butter,
meet it like Emperor Claudius, who also played
vinegar and sour cream.
.
ForbesLife India Spring 2011