NRI Pulse Print Issue Dec 2014

Atlanta’s Premier South Asian Newspaper December 2014

Tel: 404-235-4998

www.NRIPulse.com

India Launches Tourist Visa On Arrival Scheme Atlanta, GA: India’s Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, along with Dr. Mahesh Sharma, Minister of State (I/C), Tourism & Culture and Minister of State for Civil Aviation launched the Tourist Visa on Arrival (TVoA) enabled with Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) Scheme on November 27.

The facility will be available at nine international airports in the country namely Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata,Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Thiruvananthapuram,Kochi and Goa. The TVoA enabled with ETA Scheme will facilitate nationals of 43 countries including the USA, Australia, Brazil, Cambodia, Cook Islands, Djibouti, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Finland, Germany, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kingdom of Tongo, Laos, Luxembourg, Mauritius, Mexico, Myanmar, New Zealand, Niue, Norway, Oman, Palestine, Papua & New Guinea,

Philippines, Republic of Kiribati, Republic of Korea (i.e. South Korea), Republic of Marshall Islands, Republic of Nauru, Republic of Palau, Russia, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Thailand, Tuvalu, UAE, Ukraine, Vietnam and Vanuatu.

Launching the facility, the Union Home Minister assured that his Ministry would ensure a safe and secure environment for visiting foreign tourists.

Minister of StateTourism & Culture Dr. Mahesh Sharma reiterated Government’s priorities: “Our Government is acting swiftly to fulfill the promises made to its people. The implementation of TVoA enabled with ETA will send a clear and powerful message that India is serious in making travel to the country easy”, the Minister hoped.

More information and instructions are available at the following link. https:// indianvisaonline.gov.in/visa/tvoa.html

Free Copy

4 NRI PULSE

........City News ........

December 2014

Raksha Celebrates Youth at ‘Ek Shaam Raksha Ke Naam’ P.O Box 191124 Atlanta GA 31119 Tel: 404-235-4998 Email: nripulse@gmail.com www.NRIPulse.com

Publisher NRIPulse Media Inc.

\

Editor Veena Rao editor@nripulse.com

Reports/Features Jyothsna Hegde Supriya D.G.

Columnists/Writers Ravi R. Ponangi Mahadev Desai Sri Sri Ravi Shankar Rani Sharma P.S. Lakshmi Rao

Advertising Veena Rao 404-235-4998 nripulse@gmail.com

NRIPulse Newpaper is the monthly print edition of www.NRIPulse.com, and is published by NRIPulse Media Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, duplicated, reprinted or stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, photocopy, recording or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher.

Disclaimer: Any views or opinions published in this newspaper are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the publisher.

NRIPulse News Magazine accepts no liability for the errors and content of advertisements in the newspaper.

Subscriptions: NRIPulse Newspaper is available FREE at major retail locations in Atlanta. Want NRIPulse at home?

Only $10 for 12 issues. Call 404235-4998 for more details.

Atlanta, GA: On November 1, 2014, more than 200 community members joined Atlanta based organization Raksha at Buckhead Theatre for the the sixteenth annual fundraiser Ek Shaam Raksha Ke Naam, An Evening in the Name of Raksha. This South Asian non-profit’s goal is to end domestic and sexual violence in the community and Georgia. The evening focused on celebrating youth who volunteer for Raksha, youth who receive our services, the partners who help us serve the youth clients, and of course a reminder of the inherent strength and resilience our clients and community have both within themselves and through the help of community members who provide the love and support to overcome the challenges they potentially face.

The night consisted of powerful presentations, live music, Indian and Italian food from Villagio, silent auction and dancing. Aasees Kaur and Japjee Singh received the Tenth Annual Ramesh and Vijaya Bakshi Community Change Award. Dekalb County Police Department –Special Victims Unit received the 4th Annual Himmat Award The evening was hosted by Sonya Thaper, Anouskha Singh and Raksha board member Parag Mehta.

The program opened with a local poet Pooja Garg Singh reciting her original published poetry, “In Parts”.

This was followed by a moving dance performance “Nirbhaya” by Deeksha School of Performing Arts in Atlanta. The dance which focused on the Delhi rape that made headlines throughout the world left a lasting impression on the audience. This was followed by a presentation on survivor’s source of resiliency by Raksha staff, interns and volunteers.

This year’s Ramesh and Vijaya Bakshi Community Change Award winner Japjee Singh, a very confident young adult, shared his experience when he was bullied at his school for just looking different than most of his school mates. Co-award winner Aasees talked about the importance of listening and engaging youth. Aasees and Japjee organized the very first Sikh day at the Georgia State Capitol this year.

Raksha’s Executive Director Aparna

Bhattacharyya talked about how many of their clients draw strength not just from themselves but also from the people who remind them of their strength.

Raksha then went on to honor the detectives from Dekalb County Special Victim’s Unit who have been playing a critical role in working for the safety of

Photo by Photography young South Asian survivors of violence as well as adult survivors with the Himmat (Courage) Award.

Sergeant Mercer, spoke on behalf of the unit, and pointed out how strong and brave many of the survivors of violence are and that the survivors deserve the accolades for their courage and strength. Sgt Mercer went on to talk about the strong partnership with Raksha and how that helps her team in the work they do every day.

Ranjana Rathi’s dance group energized the crowd with her students performing traditional folk dances followed by Preeti Howlett and Neha Partain performing a Bollywood Zumba piece. Raksha took a break for some dancing to Xtra Hot DJ’s DJ Arsin while folks bid on silent auction items such as a communitree- a unique piece of art work that all of the attendees had a hand in creating. Other items on auction included clothing from Mumtaz Fashions, Bawree, items from Innoconcepts, local artwork, gift certificates and more.

The second half of the evening opened with the

Seeds of Change Award being given to APCA, the home of Asian Pacific Islanders for Professional and Community Advancement, one of the AT&T Employee Resource Groups for hosting a school supply and backpack drive for Raksha for the past 7 years. Many of the APCA members have continued to support Raksha in other ways by organizing tax consultations for our clients, organizing yard sales and donating outside of the school supply drive to support Raksha’s work. Raksha then went on to honor the youth of Chinmaya Atlanta BalaVihar at The Hindu Temple ofAtlanta for their annual food and toy drive for which Raksha’s clients benefit. The youth group has been doing this for more than 7 years and other non-profits such as the Atlanta Food Bank and theClaytonCountydomestic violence shelter also benefit from this annual food and toy drive that is lead and organized by youth. The BengaliAssociation of Greater Atlanta’s (BAGA) Youth committee was

by Vinod to also be honored but were not able to attend the event. This year the BAGA youth committee raised $1,000 for Raksha.

The evening continued on with more Bollywood Zumba with Shelia Devlia. Tanweer Mian then took the stage and had the audience dancing to his amazing voice.

“Raksha is extremely grateful for the support from the community for this event and for the past 19 years,” said Bhattacharyya. The gold sponsor for the event was Delta Air Lines. The silver sponsors were Kumar, Prabhu, Patel, and Banerjee and Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP. Bronze sponsors were Ameriprise, Action Bartending and Design, Antonini and Cohen, The Chugh Firm, First Medical Care, Georgia Cancer Specialists, Kuck Immigration, The Law Offices of Joe Rosen, Metro Medical Associates, Bawree and The Sheth Family Foundation.

The Photography was provided by Photography by Vinod. If you were not able to attend, please consider making a donation to Raksha atP.O. Box 12337,Atlanta,GA30355. The funds raised from Ek Shaam Raksha Ke Naam help keep Raksha’s services available to the community.

Music, Dance, Comedy & More at GATS Diwali Event Atlanta, GA: Greater Atlanta Tamil Sangam (GATS) celebrated Diwali and Isai Medai 2014 in a grand and traditional manner at the Rialto Center for the Arts on Saturday, November 1. There was a huge turnaround with more than 1000 people attending the event. Ex-Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment and well-known Tamil actor Napolean was the chief guest.

Guests were welcomed with grand sweets from India and jasmine flowers which gave a feel of back home. The south Indian lunch and later, dinner was also in keeping with the cultural atmosphere of the event.

The day started with cultural programs by kids and adults, and included group dances, skits etc. It was

followed by Atlanta Super Singer & Super Dancer finals.

Later on standup comedian, Sun TV fame Madurai Muthu

made sure the audience had a good laugh. He also conducted a comedy debate in the evening.

The elections for the office bearers for the year 2015 was also was conducted and there was a very

good turn around for voting.

The highlight of the day was the music program by famous playback singers Sadhana Sargam, AR Rehana (sister of AR Rahman), Chikku Bukku fame Suresh Peters and playback singer AlRufian.

They were ably supported by Vasanth Vaseegaran’s band from New Jersey. Together they performed rocking numbers Chikku Bukku from Gentleman, Dil Se Re from Dil Se, Chaiya Chaiya, Snehithane and other popular numbers.

The crowd was on its feet and went into a frenzy through the evening. GATS President Ezhelan Ramarajan felicitated the current office bearers and awarded them with mementos. Over all the event was a great success with the crowd enjoying every bit of the program and staying late into the night.

6 NRI PULSE

........City News ........

December 2014

Ambassador Jaishankar Discusses Growth of India-US Relations

BY VEENA RAO Atlanta, GA: Indian Ambassador to the United States S. Jaishankar delivered a public talk, “India and the U.S.: Taking the Relationship Forward,” on November 19 at Emory Conference Center Hotel’s Silverbell Pavilion. The event was hosted by Emory’s Halle Institute for Global Learning. This was Dr. Jaishankar’s first visit to Atlanta as Ambassador.

Ambassador Jaishankar’s talk focused on the history of India-US relations, its significant growth in the recent past, and the bilateral cooperation necessary to take the relationship forward in the future.

The two countries have had a “distant and difficult relationship” in the past, he said. As one of the super powers after the Second World War, the US had multiple priorities, sometimes contradictory, part of which worked for the US-Indo relationship.

“One the one hand, we had the US providing significant economic assistance to India in terms of food aid, infrastructure projects, setting up of educational institutes in India etc. There was a broad sympathy for a democratic society that was establishing itself against all odds.” On the other hand, he said, the US was focused on an ideological competition with the USSR, in the pursuit of which, the US was somewhat disdainful of India’s security interests, and a little impervious to consequences of arming a hostile neighbor. That India offered neither a significant market nor a fertile investment climate, didn’t work in its favor, he added.

From the Indian side matters were no less complicated, he said. The post –independence climate was marked by continuous suspicion of western powers. India had its own balance of power

cultures centered around Asia, and cultivation of the USSR was a key element of that relation. India’s preferred policy was to avoid unnecessary entanglements, preserve its own freedom of choice and leverage a polarized world. “This was not a

time when the dot com revolution unfolded in the US and the demand for techies went up. India overcame its teething problems to establish national cohesiveness.

“In terms of international security its emergence as a nuclear weapon state gave it greater weight,” he said. This was further amplified by its responsible behavior and political restraint.

The global security order transformed in the aftermath of the cold war and saw the rise of China. Developments to the west of India saw new threats arise to plural and secular societies. Finally the rapidly growing Indian-American community helped to determine the image of India in this country.

Ambassador Jaishankar pointed out that the growth in Indo-US relations has happened through different administrations in both countries. An Photo by Wilford Harewood, courtesy The Halle important shift was the US stance over Institute at Emory University. the Kargil war. The India-US nuclear deal enhanced the relationship further, different approach from what the US did in the as did the parallel defense trade that took place 19th century, he said. between both countries.

Economic interactions between the two counHalf a century after India’s independence the relationship was still ambivalent, he said, adding tries are also rising steadily. In the last decade that unlike major powers, India was never in direct trade and investment levels have tripled. “We are approaching each other now increasingly as global conflict with the US. The relations between the two countries started partners. In short we are moving towards a full to change thereafter for a number of reasons. In the spectrum relationship,” he said.

The last part of Ambassador Jaishankar’s talk 1990s, India began its economic reforms that significantly increased its growth rate and made it a increas- focused on the question, “Where do we go from here?”

“From the Indian perspective, the American ingly serious destination for US investment and trade.

India also emerged as a player in the services industry at relationship is important for the realization of key

national objectives- for growth and for expanding employment opportunities,” he said. “As the driver of global sentiment and provider of capital technology and best practices, the role of the US cannot be overestimated. Other countries take their economic cues from the US.” Security is another area of collaboration, the Ambassador added. “We face similar threats, sometimes from the same sources. A stronger India is of strategic interest to the US. A dynamic Indian economy is an investment opportunity and an attractive market for the US. An English-speaking India a natural ally in its human resources.

Ambassador Jainshakar said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to the US has widened the ambit of bilateral cooperation, and has reenergized the relationship between the two countries. “There are no obstacles to raising our ties to new levels,” he said.

Quoting from the recent joint op-ed by President Barack Obama and Modi in the Washington Post, he said: While our shared efforts will benefit our own people, our partnership aspires to be larger than merely the sum of its parts. The promise of a better tomorrow is not solely for Indians and Americans: It also beckons us to move forward together for a better world.

“It is that journey that will make ours a truly defining partnership,” he concluded.

Ambassador Jaishankar was earlier introduced

by Ambassador Marion Creekmore, former US Ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Maldives.

Philip Wainwright, Vice Provost for International Affairs, and Director, Halle Institute for Global Learning welcomed the small public gathering.

Greater Atlanta Punjabi Society Celebrates Diwali

Atlanta, GA: Over 400 people gathered re- tival is as important to Hindus as Christmas is to cently for a joyous celebration of Diwali at Ashiana Christians.

Banquet Hall in Global Mall, Norcross, GA. At the beginning, there was a prayer service Diwali, the ‘Festival of Lights’ is a time of great with Lakshmi aarti puja by the ladies of the comcelebration and joy in India and South Asia and the Greater Atlanta Punjabi Society along with the Indian American Cultural Association organized this annual on Friday, October 24.

Diwali is one of the most celebrated events in the Hindu calendar. The festival gets its name from the row of clay lamps that Indians light outside their homes to symbolize the inner light that protects them from Photo by Photography by Vinod spiritual darkness. This fes-

munity. The cultural program included traditional Punjabi folk dances, Bollywood medleys, and fusion dances. It was an evening to enjoy the splendor, decoration, and enticing solo and group performances along with a plateful of delicious appetizers and a drink of your choice!

The program had great sponsors, raffle items and the final prize of $1500 credit towards a diamond ring was eagerly awaited by the patrons. The DJ had foot tapping Indian numbers – Punjabi and Bollywood songs which the audience lapped it up and danced until past midnight. A lavish spread of sumptuous North Indian food and a grand stall of India sweets had everyone wanting for more. Ash Chandler, an all-in-one entertainer was a surprise item in the program and icing on the cake (nee Indian sweets!)

Ambassador Ajit Kumar, Consul General of India in Atlanta graced the occasion.

In his brief address, he said this was his fourth year attending the Diwali in Atlanta, and he is always encouraged by the audience response, the dazzling performances, and great organization. He was happy to note that the Indian culture continues to grow strong with younger generation participating with enthusiasm.

It was a festive atmosphere and everyone had a great time wishing each other Happy Diwali, enjoying the program, delicious food, and a very well organized function.

8 NRI PULSE

........City News ........

December 2014

Global Indian Business Council Holds Economic Seminar in Atlanta Atlanta, GA: With a mission to facilitate global economic development with emphasis on India, Global Indian Business Council (GIBC) launched and helped promote the Pravasi Divas 2015 in Gandhi Nagar and Vibrant Gujarat Summit in Gujarat, India by organizing a meaningful half-day economic seminar on November 22 in metro Atlanta.

GIBC is a network of business and technology leaders across the globe based in USA to promote and facilitate greater cooperation in trade and commerce between India, USA, and the rest of the world following the new vision offered by the pragmatic and dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India.

The seminar was well attended by several distinguished speakers, processionals, corporate executives, and leaders of governments, chambers of commerce and academics.

In welcoming address, Dhiru Shah, Presidentelect of GIBC, President-Suraj International, Inc., Alumnus of London School of Economics and Harvard Business School with 40 plus years of international management and business experience, dwelt upon the need to have an organization like GIBC to promote and facilitate bilateral trade, commerce and investment between all countries particularly at a time when the global economic situation is facing severe recessionary trends. Shah pointed out that both European Union and Japan are already facing recession and China is slowing down. He further stated that while the US economy is stable, it is very important that massive investments in India from overseas can help stimulate further the economy of India. For this effort, GIBC (which strives to help) can become a major player in facilitating investment, trade and business in India.

Dr. Mahesh Mehta-President of GIBC, an eminent scientist and research scholar in Membrane technology, explained the basic mission and objectives of GIBC. Dr. Mehta stated that the election of 2014 has for the first time brought a

party to power with a clear majority which in turn has elected the most dynamic, visionary, incorruptible and pragmatic leader, Narendra Modi as Prime Minister of India.

He felt confident that the time has come for India to become an economic powerhouse under the leadership of Modi and his hard working team to lead India to its new zenith. GIBC with it networking abilities with the Indian government and the state governments, USA and the rest of the world will be able to provide its (GIBC) services from USA and the rest of the world to set up businesses and industries in India.

Hon. Consul R. Srinvasan of the Indian Consulate-Atlanta conveyed his best wishes for the success of GIBC. He explained the role of the Atlanta consulate in furthering the economic development of India by offering different services to facilitate investment in India. Consul Srinivasan informed that the Atlanta consulate serves eight US states with about 300,000 NRIs and PIOs by offering Visa and other facilities. Currently he, at the Consulate, also deals with economic, trade and commerce wing to help US and NRIs businesses and companies by providing information relating to the Indian economy and various Indian government economic entities.

As a keynote speaker, Hon. Kwanza Hall, Council member of city of Atlanta, felt that there was a big need to invest in small and medium scale industries and business in Georgia, which would generate massive employment for the poor African American people. Hon. Hall wanted that the

Hanuman Chalisa Held in Covington

BY DR PANKAJ GAUR Atlanta, GA: The 108 recitation of Hanuman Chalisa was held at the Shri Hanuman Dham Mandir at Chugh Plaza, Covington, Georgia on Nov 8. The recitation of the Chalisa is dedicated to Hanuman Swami, who dedicated his life to serving his Lord, Sri Ram. This event was organized

by Kamlesh Chugh and family, the owners of Chugh Plaza.

Each session began with recitations by different people, followed by bhajans and aarti. The Hanuman Chalisa describes the qualities of Hanuman – his strength, courage, wisdom, celibacy, devotion to Rama and the many names by which he was known. There are more temples devoted to

Hanuman than any other deity in India, and recitation or chanting of the Hanuman Chalisa is a common religious practice.

The devotees present said they were blessed to have such a rare chance to read, listen and contemplate on the greatness of Hanuman Swami and his many wonderful exploits as were so beautifully described by the priest.

Atlanta City would welcome investments in Atlanta from India and Indian diaspora in America on a reciprocal basis Hon. Yasukata Fukahori, Deputy Consul General, Japan Atlanta Consulate talked about the close economic relationship Japan has with India.

He stated that the recent meeting of Prime Minis-

ters of India and Japan has further strengthened the economic ties between the two countries. He praised the efforts made by GIBC in helping facilitate the trade and commerce between Indian and other countries. Hon. Fukahori stated that Japan has a very large investment in GA even though the number of the Japanese living in GA is very small compared to Indian Americans.

Andjela Kessler, President-Incentive Travel & Meetings, talking about the Indo-Global tourism, informed the audience that her company has been successful in developing tourism in India and particularly in Gujarat. She spoke about the success of the short Gujarat tourism advertisement videos/films by engaging the Bollywood film star like Amitabh Bachchan and her good fortune to interact with then CM. Narendra Modi of Gujarat She pointed out about the great success story of tourist industry in Thailand and felt that India can also become a major tourist nation in the world if the Indian government and businesses developed the basic infrastructures like good hotels, roads, and reliable transportation.

Raj Anand, CEO of Southern States LLC and an alumni of IIT India, narrated how successful his company has been able to develop a close and mutually beneficial business relationship with a few Indian companies like Crompton Greaves. He stated that there is a large pool of qualified engineers and technically trained workers in India who will help the country to develop economically fast with the help of the Indian government, foreign investment and established Indian business corporations.

Charles Wood of ETech Global Services, Dallas, TX spoke about the US-India Collaborative success in the field of IT industry. His company has set up two offices in Gujarat employing about 500 IT executives who are responsible for software development for their global operations including USA. Their first office in Gandhinagar was inaugurated by the Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi (then Chief Minister of Gujarat).

ITech CEO, Matt Raco conveyed the message that his company will join hands with GIBC in facilitating investment in India and congratulated its

President Dr. Mahesh Mehta for this visionary and timely endeavor.

On the topic of Medical Tourism in India, Dr. Raghunath Katragadda, Asst. Prof. of Medicine, Div. of Cardiology, Emory Heart & Vascular Center, talked about his success story of setting up a top class hospital chain in Hyderabad, India to cater to the medical tourism from USA and other countries.

He stated that in order to build a successful medical tourist industry in India, it is necessary to have top class hospitals, reliable nursing, follow up care, trained doctors and surgeons with affordable pricing. Currently, there are only a few hospitals in India, which can treat patients from the western world.

Kanchan Banerjee, VP, GIBC, CEO- Ipremm, Inc. and Editor in Chief of the New Global Indian Magazine, made a power point presentation on Vibrant Gujarat 2015 and urged audience to join the GIBC delegation to Vibrant Gujarat program scheduled to be held on Jan. 9-11, 2015 which will give them the opportunity to meet industrialists, the Chief Minister and top government bureaucrats of the Gujarat government for signing MOUs in investing in Gujarat. He added, never before has the business environment so friendly in Gujarat. “So, take advantage of it!”

Subash Razdan, VP-GIBC, an active participant and recipient of PBD Samman Award 2013 and Director, Georgia Chamber of Commerce, gave a brief overview of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD-People of Indian origin), the opportunities to invest in India and encouraged the audience to attend the 2015 event to be held in Gandhi Nagar, Gujarat on Jan. 7-9, 2015, especially so when it is followed by the Vibrant Gujarat Summit (VGS).

He underscored the importance of this year’s PBD as it will celebrate the centennial celebrations of return of the father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi from S. Africa to India in 1915 and for further details, one could get in touch with the Consulate General of India (CGI) and/or members of GIBC. Ashwin Patel, VP- GIBC, Chairman-Apsilon Hotels LLC, Supreme Hospitality Supply LLC and Alpha Renewable Energy LLC, offered the vote of thanks to invited guests, media persons, officials and volunteers and the hospitality of Staybridge Suites staff.

He thanked Dr. Narayanan Komerath, Prof. of Aerospace Eng. at GA tech for his design of the GIBC website. He thanked Madhu Tata of Swapna Indian Cuisine for catering an exotic dinner and Sanjay Pandya of Davis Printing. The event saw many prominent and other dignitaries present such as Hon. Greg Pridgeon, former Council Member of Atlanta and former Chief of Staff of City of Atlanta under Mayor Shirley Franklin and key proponent of the Atlanta-Ahmedabad Sister City relationship; Hon. Eric De Groot of Sandy Springs International Economic Affairs and President of the Holland Chamber of Commerce; Wayne Lazarus of the prominent law firm Stokes, Lazarus and Carmichael who has drafted articles of Incorporation of many Asian (also Indian) American non-profit organizations, Jitu Patel, Chair of the Atlanta-Ahmedabad Sister City Exchange Committee (AASCE) et al.

For more information about GIBC, please contact Dhiru (Dhirendra) Shah, President-Elect, GIBC at 770-664-8779, 678-612-1661; e-mail: siaram@aol.com.

November 2014

Continued from Pg 1.....

NRI PULSE 9

........City News ........

CRY America, Atlanta Center Holds Inaugural 3K Walk

Atlanta, GA: The Atlanta Action Center of CRY America organized their first 3K walk this past October. CRYAmerica (Child Rights and You) is a 501c3 non-profit organization driven by its vision of a just world in which all children have equal opportunities to develop to their full potential and realize their dreams. They ensure that basic rights of education, healthcare and protection from exploitation and abuse are restored to under-

privileged children, girl children; children bonded in labor, physically and mentally challenged children and children in institutions.

The CRY Atlanta Chapter was founded this June by Aarushi Jain, a rising sophomore at Northview High School along with her father, Sandeep Jain.

Many fun loving students and adults came together on this cold fall morning to show their support for underprivileged children. The Walk included zealous Zumba by Bolly Z and a children’s treasure hunt. The walk was inaugurated by Dr. Vijay Arora, a renowned pediatrician from Lilburn Practices. Dr. Arora also contributed to the walk by making a notable donation and helping Aarushi Jain reach her fundraiser goal of $3250.

The walk witnessed lots of support from many high school teams including Northview, Peachtree Ridge, Johns Creek and Chattahoochee High.

Leslie Tran, a senior at Peachtree Ridge was awarded the best high school walk lead for teaming more than 30 students from her school who supported the cause.

The walk also saw tremendous support and turnout from the Jain Society of GreaterAtlanta.

Mrs. Shaveta Jain (Mrs. India International 2012) and Mrs. Kamini Jain (Mrs. Suwannee International 2013) also participated in the walk and showed their support for CRY. The key sponsors were Venkat Kuttua Photography, Bawree, GlobalAcademy, High Points Learning, and Atlanta Healthcare.

CRY Atlanta endeavors to make their Walk for Child Rights an annual event hosted by their chapter.

They also welcome anyone who wishes to be a volunteer, contact at: cryamerica.atlanta@gmail.com.

‘Shanti- A Journey of Peace’ Enraptures Atlanta

BY MADHAVI INDURTI Atlanta, GA: Shanti – A Journey of Peace, the pioneering multimedia musical experience conceived composed and directed by Cincinnati based composer Kanniks Kannikeswaran enraptured a filled to the capacity auditorium at Robert Ferst Center at Georgia Tech on November 8.

Shanti is in its 10th year of presentation and Atlanta was the chosen city for its tenth performance. The program Photo by brought together 200 talented participants from diverse cultures in Atlanta.

This seemingly effortless and smooth flowing program encapsulating the evolution of a 5000-year-old civilization, started with an invocation to Ganga, a suite of six movements depicting the human mind’s enquiry into the very idea of existence. The second depiction, Faiths, was a suite in five movements outlining plurality of faiths linked through mystery. The third depiction, the boundless human spirit, traced the achievements of the human spirit in a state of internal peace. The fourth depiction,Ashanti, was a musical interpretation in three movements of the state of unrest or lack of peace. This was followed by Reflection a musical narrative of how the human spirit relates to existence and a vision of future and the celebration of the spirit of recreation and rejuvenation, dance of creation. The finale was an expression of a vision for the future which offers nothing but peace and joy.

This dance drama comes at a time when the world is torn apart with growing violence everywhere making it all the more appealing and apt.

The program received a standing ovation from a mesmerized audience who were enthralled with the unique program that celebrated the bond of connectedness through music. The orchestra comprised of musicians from various symphony groups, faculties from major universities and sing-

ers from operas. The night felt truly uplifting.

Earlier in the evening, the program opened to a brief introduction of Kannikeswaran, conductor Huu Mai and acknowledgment of several sponsors, institutions, departments and groups such as Raksha (Aparna Bhattacharya), Deloitte, and Veena & Ajay Madwesh who have been instrumental in making this show happen in Atlanta. IACA provided support along the way

Venkat Kuttua Photography

as well. Consul General of India in Atlanta, Ambassador Ajit Kumar, who was chief guest at the event, released the CD recording of ‘Sacred Choral Chants’.

The program was a collective effort of several acclaimed personalities in the cultural genre such as Payal De (Odissi), Uma Murlidhar (Planet U Performing Arts), Sasiskala Penumarthi (Kuchipudi) Padmaja and Siddharth Kelam (Bharata Natyam,Kalaivani Dance Academy), Bhavini Rajan (Samarpanam School of Fine Arts), Gayatri Subramanian (KA Academy of Music and Dance) Kumud Sawla (Kathak, Nritya Natya Kala Bharathi) and Anupa Thakurta (Deeksha School of Performing Arts).

The Atlanta performance of Shanti, like the other previous performances is a grassroots movement. Composer Kanniks Kannikeswaran has been traveling for several weekends to Atlanta to teach the music score of Shanti to the newly assembled group of

singers. The singers varied in musical abilities and varied from trained professionals to casual singers. This group of 80 singers then rehearsed with a western choir at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Metropolitan Atlanta North in the weeks leading up to the performance under the baton of the conductor Huu Mai. “Watching the program take shape from its infancy to watching the final performance at close quarters was extremely fulfilling!” said Ajay Madwesh, who had sung earlier in Shanti in 2008.

Kannikeswaran who also wrote the script, narration and musical score for Shanti, is a recent recipient of the prestigious McKnight Visiting Artist Fellowship (Minnesota) and the Ohio Heritage Fellowship. His projects are consistent with building community by emphasizing peaceful coexistence of diverse cultures through epic representation of 5000 year old cultural history of India via music, dance and visuals. The program’s choral and orchestral director Huu Mai is a concert pianist of the highest caliber and is also a well known conductor in the Atlanta area.

Shanti touched, moved and inspired audiences and performers alike and left the audiences wanting for more.

“It was wonderful to hear something that I composed 10 years ago come alive afresh in Atlanta after 10 years.

I was overwhelmed by the energy of the performance and am very grateful to Atlanta for breathing life into this score’, said Kannikeswaran.

“Each visit of mine to Atlanta to teach the music to the singers was a very special one. Shanti grew layer by layer and it all came together on Saturday the 8th. I was swallowing lumps in my throat as I heard the choir rehearse the finale – just a day before the show. The singers were great, the dancers were wonderful, the audience was wonderful – overall it was an unforgettable experience,” he added.

Over 500 Devotees Attend Shiv Mandir’s Ayyappa Pooja Atlanta, GA: On November 15, 2104 Shiv Mandir of Atlanta performed the annual Sri Ayyappa Padi Pooja, or the pooja of the Pathinettam Padi, in the name of the 18 Hill Gods of Lord Ayyappa. Guru Swami Kiran Mudigonda was once again instrumental in the 5th year celebrations. More than 500 devotees from Atlanta, Tennessee, Knoxville, Maryland, and Charlotte attended this pooja. Shiv Mandir priest Pandit Santosh Duddilla started with the Ganesh Pooja following which Retired Military officer Guru Swami Chandrasekhar from Hyderabad performed the Ayyappa pooja followed by the Padi Pooja.

Devotees were blessed to see the pooja performed

by Guru Swami Chadrasekhar, who has been performing the Ayyappa pooja since 1968. Srinivas Sarraf

Swami who came from Virginia took the lead in performing Ayyappa abhishekam along with other local Atlanta swamies. People from different communities (Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra, Kashmir, Punjab and Sri Lanka) attended this celebration and made it a huge success. Melodious bhajans were performed by Atlanta Sampradaya Bhajan Mandali with Subra Viswanathan and team.

The 18 Holy steps are the holy pathways for the Jeevaatma to reach the Paramaatma. Jeevaatma has to cross the 18 virtues to merge with paramaatma. The Holy steps 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 represent the five panjendriams: (smell, hearing, sight, taste and touch). The Holy steps 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, and 13 represent the eight ashtaragas: kamam, krodham, lobham, moham, madam, matsaryam, thanbha and asuya. The Holy steps 14, 15 and 16 represent 3 Gunas: Thamas, Rajas and Satva. The Holy step 17 represents vidya and the Holy step 18 represents avidya. By observing stringent vruthams (austerities), the Ayyappa devotees called Ayyappas and Malikappurams,

purify their body, mind and intellect and achieve the ultimate sanctity to make pilgrimage to Sabarimala carrying on their head the Irumudi containing the Pooja items, to climb the 18 holy steps and have the Darsan of Lord Ayyappa.

“Shiv Mandir of Atlanta is very happy to perform the Padi Pooja for Lord Shiva’s Son Ayyappa every year,” said Ram Sahani, President of Shiv Mandir of Atlanta. Sahani personally thanked all the sponsors and volunteers as well. “We are excited to share that the construction of the building will be starting in December of this year at 890 Peachtree Industrial Blvd., Sugar Hill, GA 30518. We encourage our community to visit our temple and learn about the development of Shiv Mandir of Atlanta,” he added.

December 2014

NRI PULSE 11

12 NRI PULSE

........City News ........

December 2014

SEWA 5k Run Raises Awareness For Animal Rights

BY SHIVIKA BHAYANA Atlanta, GA: The youth generation is a promising group of individuals. We students, with our creativity and dedication along with the help of our elders, can work together to improve the conditions of the world. There are many issues facing us today from diseases to poverty to animal rights. My

name is Shivika Bhayana and this our story of how a group of passionate students have made a difference in the world. On October 18th, a few high school students including me hosted of the most rewarding events of our lives: Run for SEWA. This 5k run successfully raised awareness for animal rights and money for the Sacred Cows Sanctuary.

We have been involved with SEWA (Selfless Efforts for Welfare of All) for the past few years.

The most admirable quality of this organization is the opportunities it endows onto the youth generation. From volunteering at SEWA’s Swami Vivekananda Laser Show to being an intern at SEWA’s

Get Inspired Program, we have always been granted great trust and responsibility. We have been treated like an equal volunteer regardless of the fact we are working with many adults. In addition, SEWA truly foster skills of leadership in every single project.

When we approached SEWA to host a youth-organized 5k run project, It was exciting experience to get an approval from SEWA. We began planning Run for SEWA in April of 2014, gathered a group of student volunteers and through the next few months we worked on venue, the cause, and promotion. Originally we had decided to raise money for poor children’s healthcare and education, but the SEWA team asked me to come up with a more local cause. Thus, we picked Sacred Cows Sanctuary. This safe haven for cows located in Georgia was very dear to our hearts as many of us practice vegetarianism or are animal lovers.

As time progressed, many students dropped out of the planning committee and many others joined. This project was time consuming, but we can confidently say that we learned something new every minute. Only through organizing Run for SEWA could we gain so many valuable skills. We learn to communicate with each other; every mem-

ber had to be informed about our decisions from ticket pricing to sponsorships to state décor. We held conference calls and in-person meetings frequently.

But it was not just speaking to our team, we needed to go out and talk to businesses and CEO’s for sponsoring our event. We learned time management; with several AP courses, standardized testing, a part-time job, and other clubs, planning this event was frustrating at times. This frustration, however, made us more efficient and organized. The most prized skill we gained was teamwork. Leaders are part of the team. We made sure to help out with every task with each and learned to delegate because every effort must be a collective effort.

The planning took about seven months. Every step of the way, we had support from my friends, family, and the SEWA team. We had together signed up around 200 people for the run and raised $7,000 before expenses. We were delighted to see so many dedicated volunteers show up at 5:30 am on event day to help set up. It was a clear, sunny day: the perfect weather for a run. The event ran smoothly and every volunteer and guest enjoyed it. We had various breakfast items, a yoga/stretch session, a DJ, music, speeches, diya painting, sponsor booths, and of course the 5k run. We have also invited the Sacred Cows Sanctuary own-

ers. It was so heart-warming to see the joy on their faces. This amazing organization has saved and protected many cows from slaughter, and we were truly honored to help them.

Reflecting back on the event, we feel so grateful to have been blessed with this opportunity.

The skills we have learned are so priceless. The people we worked with are so sincere and have become my true friends with each other. Our efforts have helped save the lives of innocent cows.

The most remarkable aspect of Run for SEWA, however, was that the whole event was put together by students. We hope our success instills faith in the future generations and inspires similar selfless projects.

The core student team members included Shivika Bhayana, Devneet Singh, Fatima Webhe, Vidushi Gupta, Madhav Ghatpande, Pragya Bhayana, Avanti Joshi, Janani Rammohan.

Shruthilaya Holds Annual Carnatic Music Competition Atlanta, GA: Shruthilaya has been conducting Carnatic music competitions since 2005 in Atlanta. The music school has the distinction of initiating competitions in Carnatic music (for students) for the first time in Atlanta.

This year, the competition was held for 12+ years on November 8 at Ivy League Academy.

The day started with the invocation by the junior

ing was one of the highlights of the competition. Anish Anand Nair won the first place in this segment.

The judge’s panel included esteemed and renowned musicians from Atlanta: Smt, Subhashini Krishnamurthy, Sri. Subra Viswanathan, Sri. Ramesh Panchagnula and Smt. Ranjani Yoganand.

Theory questions were part of the competition.

The judges made the competition very educative

category prize winners of the previous year’s competition. There were 22 participants grouped in three segments based on their lessons level.

Five prizes were allotted in each category. A special prize for ‘Best performer of the day’ was introduced this year. This was won by Smruthi BalaSubramaniam who also won the first place in the kriti segment.

Manodarmam, advanced and improvised sing-

and informative for many students and parents.

Many parents thought it was similar to a Carnatic Idol program, as the judges were so involved with the kids and imparting knowledge. The judges got the kids to think about this art form beyond a matter of memorizing and reciting.

The competitions have over the years inspired many kids to showcase their talents, and to get better in their singing.

December 2014

........City News ........

NRI PULSE 13

Studio! Students Celebrate “Musicology” at 7-Year Anniversary Recital Atlanta, GA: The end of October is usually filled with pumpkins, candy and Halloween decorations. But instead of picking scary costumes, students at Studio! Music Academy picked songs to perform for the school’s seven-year-anniversary recital. Students at Studio! learn classical piano, voice and Bollywood piano. This year’s theme, “Musicology”,” showcased three segments: Classical Compositions, Voices and Vibes and Bollywood to Hollywood. Around 150 music enthusiasts graced the Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Alpharetta on Sunday, October 25th for the piano/voice recital.

Founder/Director of Studio!, Archith Seshadri and Assistant Director/Piano Teacher, Ashwin Seshadri emceed the program that started promptly at 3 p.m. The afternoon began with a group chorus ensemble to “My Favorite Things” from The Sound of Music. This year’s program mixed all genres so that the audience could get a sample of classical pieces as well as the latest Bollywood number.

In the classical segment, you had Pachelbel’s Canon in D as well as several Latin inspired pieces including Malaguena and Matador. There were no shortage of popular Bollywood numbers including Balam Pichakari, Titli and Pehla Nasha. The voice students showcased their range with pieces including Puff The Magic Dragon, Let It Go and Colors of the Wind. The recital wrapped up with a group vocal ensemble to Mamma Mia the popular tune from the band ABBA! The school’s teachers performed a surprise ensemble as the show reached a finale. Ashwin

Seshadri and Archith Seshadri performed a piano/ voice piece jamming to “Chanda Re/Vennilivae” a popular A.R.Rahman classic. Archith Seshadri sang a soulful rendition of “Alone” by Heart. Prateek Viswanathan played a Chopin classical repertoire. The recital ended with each stu-

dent receiving a musical trophy for their performances. Shalin Financials served as the Gold sponsor for the recital. DJ Jaz, Madras Chetinaad, The Rao family, DDS, Mehul Designs and Yagna Collections served as Silver sponsors. The Ganjam family served as Bronze sponsors.

“I’ve always been passionate about teaching and music. We started the school on accident after some parents asked us about teaching their kids.

Now that it’s been 7 years, we can truly see the difference in the community. We’ve made so much progress over the past few years and are able to teach so many different styles of music to our students. When our students’ create their own songs, and win competitions, it’s a gratifying feeling. I think the balance of having young teachers who have grown up with the American way of teaching, but are still embedded with their Indian roots makes Studio! unique. Now that we’ve come to our 7year mark, we have some exciting ideas for the road ahead,” said Archith Seshadri.

“When the older students played Bollywood songs on the piano, the audience was really able to connect with it. It’s good to pass on what you know to the kids, and you’re teaching them something they’ll remember.”

“It makes a positive impact on them and I feel like we’re role models to the kids,” said Ashwin Seshadri.

“I am extraordinarily lucky to teach so many students at once, and was very proud to hear all of Studio!’s students. I figured that after years of learning piano, I could give back to the music community by teaching it. My favorite moment in teaching is just when my students figure out a concept,” said Prateek Viswanathan.

With an enrollment of 60+ students in 7 years, students at Studio! not only learn different styles of music, but also learn music theory. This helps them read music, and write their songs. Students apply their music knowledge by completing research projects about composers, time periods, and world music. “Teaching students theory is important so that they know what they are playing instead of just memorizing songs. It helps them prepare to become better musicians. It also lays the groundwork for students wishing to qualify for the ABRSM exams. It’s a worldwide certification program where students can earn college credit,” saidArchith Seshadri.

Studio! students have also performed at community and cultural programs including the Festival of India and Naach Fusion’s Dance Recital. Studio! is one of the only schools in Atlanta that offers Bollywood piano. “The structured curriculum, flexible schedule and goal-setting methodology really help our students and parents. Students not only learn music but they learn test taking skills, how to be organized, and how to develop stage presence. Parents are given periodic surveys for feedback and students are given exams and report cards to evaluate their progress,” said Archith Seshadri.

14 NRI PULSE

Obama to Be Chief Guest at 2015 Republic Day

New Delhi, Nov 21 (IANS) US President Barack Obama has accepted Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s invite to be chief guest for the 2015 Republic Day, and will be the first US president to grace the occasion as chief guest.

“We have now received a confirmation through diplomatic channels of President Obama agreeing to come to India as the 1st US President for a Republic Day function as the Chief Guest,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said in a statement.

He said the “prime minister had a very successful visit to USA earlier during the year in September. Following this, as a personal initiative, he did extend an invitation to President Obama to be the Chief Guest of our next Republic Day celebrations during a diplomatic conversation”.

“Following that diplomatic conversation which the Prime Minister had with President Obama, a letter was sent in writing, formalizing that invitation,” he said.

With Obama confirming he would attend, he would become the first US president to come to India a second time during his term of office.

“We will now look forward to this development which stems from the initiative of our PM, which followed their bilateral meeting in Washington,” he said.

Breaking the news, Modi had tweeted: “This Republic Day, we hope to have a friend over…invited President Obama to be the 1st US President to grace the occasion as Chief Guest.”

The invitation to Obama comes weeks after Modi’s hugely successful visit to the US. Modi and Obama also met on the sidelines of G20 summit in Brisbane Nov 14.

Obama had called Modi a “man of action”.

........NRI News ........

December 2014

Richard Verma Nominated US Ambassador to India Washington: (IANS) Richard Rahul Verma, the first Indian-American to be nominated as the US Ambassador to India, believes there is renewed enthusiasm on both sides to take a reenergized India-US partnership to the next level.

“There is no question that this is a defining and exciting time in the US-India relationship,” he told the Senate Foreign Relations committee Tuesday at his confirmation hearing.

Verma, 45, a former key aide to then secretary of state Hillary Clinton, noted that President Barack Obama “will make a historic visit to India in January, becoming the first US head of state to attend India’s Republic Day and the only sitting US president to visit India twice.”

“His trip will build on Prime Minister Modi’s highly successful visit to the United States this past September,” he said.

“There’s little doubt the relationship has been reenergized, with renewed enthusiasm to take our partnership to the next level,” said Verma , who was named as the US envoy to India just ahead of Modi’s visit.

If, as widely expected, Verma is confirmed by the full Senate, two Indian-Americans will be dealing with matters relating to India in both Washington and New Delhi. Nisha Desai Biswal, hailing from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat, became the first Indian American to head State Department’s South Asia bureau last November.

Recalling his past association with the panel, Verma said “If confirmed, I am committed to

partnering with you again in shaping our relationship to India - a country so important that President Obama called it the defining relationship for the United States in the 21st Century.”

“The US and India share a wide-range of critical national interests,” he said. “Our partnership is deep, it touches nearly every endeavor of hu-

man pursuit, and it has produced important gains for each of our countries.”

“Across Asia, US and Indian interests are converging. India has been called the lynchpin of our Asia rebalance,” Verma said.

“With India’s Look East, and now Act East policies, our two countries can play a critically important role together in bolstering peace and security and promoting a rules-based, liberal, demo-

cratic order in the Indo-Pacific region,” he said “The ripple effects of our partnership need not be limited to Asia,” Verma said.

He cited Modi as noting, “the true power and potential in this relationship is that when the oldest and largest democracies come together, the world will benefit.”

Verma acknowledged that India and US “will have our differences from time to time - close friends often do - but when we do have differences, it is imperative that we maintain a healthy dialogue.”

Expressing deep appreciation of all those who have worked so hard on cultivating this relationship over many decades,” he also acknowledged the contribution of immigrants from the Indian subcontinent.

They “took a chance like my parents, who worked hard, who continue to pursue their dreams, and along the way have helped ensure India and the United States become the closest of friends and partners,” Verma said vowing to “strive to live up to the high standards they have set.”

The New Delhi post has been vacant since the previous ambassador Nancy Powell quit in May after India-US ties hit a low after a major diplomatic spat over the December arrest and strip search of Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade in New York.

Rutgers Student Took Bear’s Photos Before It Killed Him Washington, Nov 26 (IANS) An Indian-origin student in the US took photos of a bear while hiking in a US preserve before it mauled him to death, media reported.

Darsh Patel, a Rutgers University student, and four others were being followed by the black bear in the West Milford Apshawa preserve, New Jersey.

But moments after Patel used his mobile phone to capture images of the animal, it attacked and killed him, New York Daily News reported recently.

The five friends had been hiking Sep 21 when they met at the preserve’s entrance a man and a

woman who advised them to turn around as a bear was on the loose, authorities said.

But the group went on, and Patel took photos from a distance of about 100 feet. Another hiker took one photo.

The group turned and began walking away, but the bear followed, police said.

When it got within about 15 feet, the five split up and took off running. Four of them escaped and made a 911 emergency call.

Patel was last seen climbing a rock with the bear close behind. He screamed for the others to keep going. Rescuers found the body two hours later.

It was the first killing by a bear in New Jersey since the 1850s, authorities said.

Obama’s Immigration Plan Falls Short Of Indian Techies’ Hopes Washington: (IANS) As President Barack Obama campaigned to sell his immigration plan to shield up to five million people from deportation and retain high-skilled immigrants, largely from India and China, analysts called it a mixed bag.

Obama’s plan, according to the White House, “focuses on cracking down on illegal immigration at the border; deporting felons, not families; and accountability through criminal background checks and taxes”.

It would also “make it easier and faster for high-skilled immigrants, graduates, and entrepreneurs to stay and contribute to our economy, as so many business leaders have proposed”.

Nearly six million Mexicans make up over half of an estimated 11.2 unauthorized immigrants in the US. India is a distant fourth top source country with 450,000 living in the country without papers, according to a new Pew Research Centre report.

While about 8.1 million unauthorized immigrants make up 5.1 percent of the US labor force, many of them engaged in low paying jobs that Americans don’t want to do, Indians cornered nearly two thirds of the total work permits for skilled workers in 2012.

What he’s offering is a “common sense” first step to fixing a “broken system,” Obama told a rowdy crowd at Del Sol High School in Las Vegas, where two years ago he had outlined his postelection promise to finally reform immigration in his second term.

“Our immigration

system has been broken for a very long time, and everybody knows it,” Obama said asserting his plan was “not amnesty” as alleged by his Republican critics.

Obama claimed he tried everything to work with Congress and chastised Republicans in the House for refusing to vote on the immigration reform bill that passed the Senate.

“I cajoled and I called and I met. I told [House Speaker] John Boehner, ‘I’ll wash your car. I’ll walk your dog.

Whatever you need me to do, just call the bill.’

That’s how democracy is supposed to work,” he was quoted as saying by

ABC News.

Commenting on Obama’s order, The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) said it will have only moderate benefits for the technology industry.

To help the technology sector, Obama has agreed to increase the number of foreign graduates of American universities with STEM – science, technology, engineering, and mathematics – degrees stay in the US to ease employment pressures and enable qualified students to stay in the country, it noted.

But it does not address industry hopes of keeping these individuals here on a long-term basis, CFR said as it does not increase the number of H-1B visas for highskilled experts, currently capped at 65,000. The Washington Post agreed that “the rule changes would make it easier for those from abroad to get a toehold in the US tech industry but will not address one of the tech industry’s top policy priorities: increase in H-1B visas.

December 2014

NRI PULSE 15

16 NRI PULSE

........Perspectives ........

December 2014

Black Money: BJP’s Advantage, Congress’ Problem From the time in the 1960s when undeclared income, or black money, stashed away in foreign banks was said to constitute a parallel economy, the issue of unaccounted funds has remained a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.

The riddle or brainteaser relates to those who have deprived the Indian exchequer of vast amounts. It is a matter of some relief that after the passage of more than half a century, an estimate of the numbers is now available.

According to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, the government has a list of 627 accountholders, of whom the identities of 427 have been established. Moreover, 250 have admitted that they have kept their money abroad.

But, is the list complete? How many of those who are in it are politicians who have always been the prime suspects? And businessmen, who have long had a bad reputation in India? Are there any famous names among the guilty which can bring down a government or rattle a political party?

Such questions may appear to be too prying and insidious. But, at their root, lies the inordinate delay in shedding light on the subject, which has strengthened the popular belief over the decades that the governments at the centre of all hues - have been basically engaged in a prolonged cover-up operation lest anyone in the

political establishment should be shamed or incarcerated.

If this perception persists, the reason is that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) hasn’t played its cards well in this sensitive matter. A fair share of the blame for this lapse lies with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who merrily used the black money stick to lambaste the Congress during the campaign for the April-May general election.

It was a legitimate political tactic since it could not but evoke cheer, except for the fact that he ignored the possibility of the charges and the promises backfiring. This is exactly what has happened since his pledge to recover all the hidden money and deposit Rs.15 lakh in the account of every citizen has now come to haunt the prime minister and his party. What sounds good at an election rally can prove to be embarrassing when one sits on the throne.

The present scenario is not unlike what happened when V.P. Singh failed as the prime minister in 1989-90 to keep his promise to nail the culprits of the Bofors howitzer scam - the plank on which he rode to power.

Similarly, the present prime minister too will

suffer a loss of face if the secret vaults where the plundered wealth - is it Rs 85 lakh crore? - is kept remains a mystery. If no progress is made in the near future, then the ingrained suspicion in the minds of virtually all Indians - that the people in power are birds of the same feather - will be confirmed.The customary explanations, which are generally seen as bureaucratic obfuscation, about banking regulations on confidentiality and the danger of alerting the hoarders to move their funds from one location to another, will not suffice. Yet, given the snail’s pace at which the case is progressing, it will be months, if not years, before the veils are removed from the faces of the accused.

The BJP’s only advantage is that it is somewhat more believable at present than its predecessor in office if only because of Modi’s emergence as an “ace avatar of modernity and progress”, as Shashi Tharoor put it, much to the dismay of other Congressmen. But it goes without saying that too much delay will deny the party its present advantage of probity.

The Congress’ problem is that for all its attempts to trip up the BJP for failing to keep its promise, the (no longer) Grand Old Party simply

does not have the moral authority to press home its point because of its recent crushing election defeats and inability over decades to nab the culprits.

Moreover, the black money problem is the result of the Congress’s socialistic policies of a controlled economy when the income-tax rates touched 97 percent and passport-holders were allowed to leave the country with all of eight dollars in their wallets.

This was the period in the 1960s and 1970s of all-round scarcity and forced abstinence - manufacturers were not allowed to expand their production even if there was demand for the goods - when crafty politicians and businessmen found ways and means of amassing fortunes in safe havens without having to pay tax at home.

The ever-rising poll expenses must have also acted as an incentive to keep the black sheep in the political class and the corporate sector together.

Arguably, there are no Indians who can match the bank balance of $40-70 billion of Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak, or the $13-35 billion of the Philippines’ Ferdinand Marcos, or the $7.8 billion of Tunisia’s Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali or the $2 billion of Saddam Hussein in Switzerland and elsewhere.

But, whatever the amount, the size of the “parallel” economy will now probably begin to shrink in view of the first serious attempts to trace and punish the tax-evaders.

“I don’t want to rot in the soil. Please don’t cry.

I love you”, she told her mother. “I wish I could have hugged you until I died.”. These were the last words of Reyhaneh Jabbari, the 27 year old Iranian woman who was hanged a month ago on the charges of killing a man who was trying to rape her.

And if you think that was unjust, what would you say about ‘British-Iranian woman jailed for a year for trying to watch volleyball game in Tehran!’? Visible in different avatars, violence against women is a worldwide phenomenon, with the countries in the middle-east taking the top honours.

Nature made men and women differently.

It is no co-incidence that the occupations which demand utmost gentleness and kindness, such as nursing, are exclusively related to the women.

Similarly, while women have been granted the bliss of reproducing, they have also been made much gentler than the men. There are some obvious physiological differences between men and women that make women much more susceptible to violence than men.

The United Nations has given a call for ‘Orange YOUR Neighborhood’ campaign from 25th November (International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to 10 December (Human Rights Day). This 16-day campaign asks the people to show solidarity to the cause by putting up Orange colored posters, flyers and banners at all their neighborhood and nearby public spaces. At a time when we have solved innumerable mysteries about mankind, space and nature, this is one of the few evils which are still prevalent in well developed countries as well. Globally, about 35% females end up facing physical or

cal violence by an intimate partner in USA. This includes both men (in 5) and women (1 in 2) who experienced sexual violence other than rape at some point in their lives.

The US government has come up with a number of laws to tackle this menace. The National Domestic Violence Hotline –partly funded by the U.S. government- operates open 24 x 7 and assists the victims in more than 170 languages.

Not surprisingly, on alBY DR. MUNISH KUMAR RAIZADA most all the aspects of viosexual form of violence in their lifetime. Even more lence against women, India stands out when comhorrifying is the data that over 125 million women are pared to the statistics taken across the world. living testimony to the dangerous and painful proce- Based on the reports compiled by the National dure of ‘female genital mutilation/cutting’ (fgm/c). This Crime Records Bureau of India, women in India loathsome practice is prevalent in about 30 African face a crime every 3 minutes. While certain patcountries and Middle East. UNICEF estimates that 30 terns of the violence are seen uniformly throughmillion females are at risk of ‘being cut within the next out the world including Physical and sexual violence, there are some other horrific forms of viodecade’.

According to the official data from the U.S. lence against women which are unique to India and Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), in the year 2003- some other third world countries. Examples in12, domestic violence accounted for 21 % of all clude female foeticide and infanticide, acid attacks, victimizations in USA. Domestic violence covers human trafficking, honour killing and violence and a gamut of phenomena ranging from simple or ag- harassment related to dowry.

While cases such as sexual violence and honor gravated physical assault to sexual violence to rape committed by intimate partners or family mem- killings manage to get noticed, the growing evil of bers and relatives. Even though the rate of domes- human trafficking has been a silent assassin over tic violence has decreased over last 2 decades, yet the past few years. Each year, thousands of girls according to Centre for Disease Control (CDC), from the states of Bihar, Jharkhand and every minute 20 people become victims of physi- Chhattisgarh are brought to the metro cities and

sold off to work either as domestic help or forced into human flesh trade. Thousands of girls are also illegally brought from neighboring countries like Nepal and Bangladesh and forced to work in circus shows. Official figures in Nepal suggest that between 5,000 to 10,000 girls are trafficked to India every year.

Lack of strict laws and open sale of concentrated acids have resulted in a major spike in the number of acid attacks in the country. Indian women have been at the receiving end of most acid attacks in the past few years. The prevalence of honor killings, especially in the states of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Rajasthan is yet another blot on the Indian society. More sickening is the fact that most of the honour killings are tacitly supported by the fellow villagers and relatives.

Till date, a number of laws have been framed to fight against this growing menace, including Preconception and Prenatal Diagnostic Techniques Act of 1944 (to prevent pre-birth sex determination), Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005 and Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act of 1956. It would also be incorrect to say that all these laws have been completely futile. However, with new dimensions of violence against women emerging with every passing year, law makers, law enforcers, judiciary would do mighty well to win the race against such criminals of humanity. However, above all, the society must reflect as to how to usher more peace and sobriety. As the U.N. correctly says, violence against women and girls is not inevitable and prevention is possible.

BY AMULYA GANGULI

The author is a practicing medical doctor (Neonatologist) in Chicago and a socio-political commentator. Twitter: DrMunishRaizada

December 2014

Alibaba To Invest More In India: Jack Ma

New Delhi: (IANS) Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba’s founder and executive chairman Jack Ma said he wanted to invest more in India.

“I myself commit that we will invest more in India and work with the Indian entrepreneurs and Indian technologists to improve the relationship between the two nations and to improve the great lives of human beings,” he said.

Jack was addressing the Zhejiang China-India Business Cooperation Conference here organised by Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

Alibaba that went into initial public offering (IPO) in September this year ranking as the world’s biggest at $25 billion.

Saying “Indians are smart”, Jack added that Indians are the second highest users of Alibaba after China.

“They use our site often. We are improving technology into a platform that will help small business in India to be using us,” he said.

The next key strategy of Alibaba is globalizing to ensure that all small businesses around the world use its platform, Jack added.

“Our mission is to help do business easier. In Alibaba, we have 400,000 Chinese consumers buying things from India. They mostly buy Indian tea, spices and chocolates. I think India has more great products that can sell to China ,” Jack added.

“India is getting changed by the internet. India is a great nation with so many young people.

India is a nation with hope. internet is a business of young people. India is a nation of mobile phones.

“If both the nations work together they will benefit from each other. These two nations have great culture. I believe this is a great opportunity for both the nations to work together to improve the culture,” he said.

Speaking about Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said: “Recently, I have heard the speech by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It was a very passionate and inspiring speech. As a business person I was moved and inspired. “I think after President Xi Jinping’s visit the two nations have a great time to make business.

Right now it is the time for business people of the two nations to work together.”

Alibaba is based out of China and the company is focusing to help do more business in the internet, Jack said. “We are listed in the New York stock Exchange. We want the company to last 102 years.

We started in the last century, in 1999; we have 100 years in this century and one year we need of the next century.”

According to the annual online shopping growth report compiled by Forrester Consulting and Google search trends, India will have 100 million online shoppers and the country’s e-tailing sector will become a $15 billion market by 2016 and the The number of online shoppers in India is projected to be 35 million in 2014.

......Biz Pulse......

NRI PULSE 17

“India Will Double Foreign Tourist Arrivals By 2015” New Delhi: (IANS) The Narendra Modi government intends to double the number of foreign tourists by next year from the present 7.2 million, union Tourism Minister Mahesh Sharma said and assured that total cleanliness will be ensured in the most visited tourist monuments in the next three months.

In an exclusive interview with IANS, Sharma talked about a slew of initiatives planned by his ministry to realise the country’s untapped tourism potential, including tourist police, cleanliness and safety.

Sharma said India’s share in foreign tourist arrivals was far less compared to other Asian countries like China and Thailand.

“Our total inflow of international tourists is about 72 lakh. (7.2 million). We want to double it by next year. We are lagging behind, considering the fact that India has vast natural resources and (places of) beauty. So there is a lot of potential,” Sharma told IANS. According to government data for 2013, India’s share of international tourist arrivals was 0.64 percent. India ranked 42nd in world tourist arrivals and 16th in world tourism receipts.

The data also says that China was much ahead of India in terms of foreign tourist arrivals, getting 55.7 million tourists in 2013. The figure was 26.5 million for Thailand, 60.7 million for Spain and 69.8 million for the US.

Sharma, who is minister of state (independent charge) of tourism and culture and minister of state of civil aviation, said that three things needed to attract more tourists were “cleanliness, safety and hospitality.”

He said the tourism ministry has embarked on ‘Swachh Bharat, Swachh Samarak’ (Clean India, Clean Monuments) to carry forward Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s clean India campaign.

“We have set a target to clean the most visited monuments in the next three months,” he said.

He said monuments such as the Taj Mahal would have provision of e-ticketing by Jan 1 next year.

A doctor by profession, he said that cleanliness will also be taken up at the partially-visited monuments followed by those monuments which

were relatively unexplored.

Sharma, who represents Gautam Buddha Nagar (Noida in Uttar Pradesh) in the Lok Sabha and was inducted in the council of ministers earlier this month, said the ministry intends to increase “safety of international tourists” by providing them a phone number, which can be used for round-the-clock assistance.

“We plan to implement a system where a tourist is given a toll free number which he can call on 24 X 7 and seek assistance,” Sharma told IANS. “We propose to employ tourist police also. It is an important part of tourism,” he said and added that the ministry could create its own tourist police in the future.

With Prime Minister Narendra Modi talking of the potential of tourism to create employment opportunities, Sharma said the ministry has a “Hunar se Rozgar tak (from talent to finding employment) programme which seeks to create employable tourism-related skills in the youth.

“Our rich Indian heritage and culture has been our strength, so we propose to take this rich heritage and culture via the mode of tourism (by) giving wings of aviation to the corner of the world,” Sharma told IANS.

American Whiskey Faces Challenge in Whisky-Gulping India Washington: (IANS) For the most part Indians love things American, but when it comes to their tipple, the world’s largest whisky drinkers usually go for Scotch or their very own homemade brands.

Indians drink almost as much whisky as the rest of the world put together, according to Distilled Spirits Council (DISCUS), US liquor industry’s leading trade association representing 16 large to medium and 110 small American companies.

In 2011, for example, Indians consumed 1.3 billion litres of whisky worth about $21 billion in retail sales. But only $2.86 million worth of it came from the US in 2012, it told a Congressional panel last year.

By 2013, US direct spirits exports to India had risen to $4.2 million, but it was still only a minuscule fraction (0.28 percent) of its worldwide sales of $1.5 billion with premium Bourbon and Tennessee whiskeys alone exceeding the $1 billion mark for the first time.

“We are facing a very challenging market in India,” Frank Coleman, senior vice president, Public Affairs and Communications at DISCUS, told IANS on the American Whiskey Trail last week with a group of international media.

What most of the Indians are drinking can’t be called whisky in the US and the European Union, both of which have a pretty specific definition of whisky as the grain based product, he said.

Most of the Indian whiskys, particularly the cheaper stuff, on the other hand, are made from cane sugar as the cheaper sugar source, said Coleman.

Then they add caramel color and a little bit of Scotch to give it flavour and they call it Indian

whisky with names like Bagpiper or Scotties.

“That drives Scotch whisky guys nuts,” he said. “We don’t like it either.”

Coleman also sees other issues galore ranging from labeling to customs to tariffs - though they have come down from a one-time high of 400 percent to 150 percent. Then there are some

dry states where one can’t drink at all.

To change Indians’ drinking habits, DISCUS has made India one of 15 key targeted countries in its export promotion program - Cheers from the USA - run in partnership with the US Agriculture Department since 2005. It even has American Whiskey Ambassadors in India and China.

Coleman pins his hopes on change in cities like Bangalore with its techie population, Delhi with its cocktail circuit and certainly Mumbai which has a vibrant night life. “I think those are the main entry points for American companies.”

“We just think it’s going to change,” said

Coleman, as “there is a large middle class in India that’s not satisfied with the status quo and wants that to change.”

But “change in India comes slowly - you guys think in millennia, we see things in what happens next week,” he quipped.

At this point because of import challenges, he believes that Jack Daniel’s, America’s top selling brand, and Jim Beam, world’s best selling Bourbon, are going to be the main players in India thanks to their large distribution networks.

One could also see potentially Bulleit in the future as it’s owned by Diageo, London-based producer of Johnnie Walker Scotch whisky, which recently bought India’s largest liquor company United Spirits Ltd. Indian whisky is also making its appearance in the US market, Coleman said though only some would qualify as whisky in America.

He rates Amrut, the first single malt whisky produced in India, as “a pretty darned good product - certainly leans towards Scotch, but it’s not American whiskey style.”

The US companies would also be looking for opportunities for joint ventures or distribution in India, Coleman said. “But you couldn’t make Bourbon in India because it’s considered a distinct product of the US. So, you could make a Bourbon like product, but not Bourbon.”

18 NRI PULSE

Gauahar Slapped, Film Fraternity Shocked

Mumbai: (IANS) Members of the film fraternity are shocked and speechless after hearing the news that actress-model-host Gauahar Khan was slapped by a man for reportedly wearing skimpy clothes.

Director Madhur Bhandarkar finds it “disgusting and highly condemnable”.

“Shocked to hear that Gauahar Khan got slapped for alleged indecency. Absurdity just touched a new level. Disgusting and highly condemnable,” tweeted the “Chandni Bar” director.

Gauahar was slapped Sunday night on the sets of singing reality show “India’s Raw Star” here. The accused was one of the audience members.

Farhan took to Twitter to express his anger.

“Dearest natural selection, please help us outevolve morons like the one who slapped Gauahar Khan. Sincerely,” he tweeted Monday.

Actor Rohit Roy was left “speechless” after reading the headline: “Man slaps actor Gauahar Khan for ‘wearing indecent clothes’.”

Sharing a shot of the story, he captioned it: “Headlines of today! I mean, seriously?? Have I moved to Taliban country ?! #speechless”.

The case is being investigated.

An official from Aarey Colony police station told IANS: “Last night (Sunday night), the accused Mohammad Akil Malik was brought here and he is in our custody. We are investigating this case.”

The “Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year” actress had sought help from police Sunday night itself.

Zonal DCP Panjabrao Ugle added: “Gauahar Khan was shooting last night so, after finishing her shoot she came to the police station and we have already recorded her statement. Now, the case has been registered and we are taking care of it”.

The accused had been reportedly observing the model for the last three days. On Sunday night, he suddenly got up and went to the stage.

He initially tried to touch her and then slapped her. He is likely to be booked on charges of molestation and assault.

He asked her how could she wear skimpy outfits and dance to cheap songs despite being a Muslim.

........Bollywood Pulse ........

I Had No Clue, Says Priyanka About Sex Racket In Her Apt New Delhi: (IANS) Commenting on recent reports about her flat being used to run a sex racket, actress Priyanka Chopra says she had no clue about what was happening in her property as she doesn’t snoop around.

“When we rent properties we don’t go and check what is happening in the bedroom.

Hence I had no knowledge about what is happening there,” the actress, who was in the capital to support the Girl Rising campaign, told IANS. It was reported that Mumbai police busted an alleged sex racket being run from Priyanka’s property in Andheri. As of now, the matter is being investigated.

The “Mary Kom” actress also mentioned that

she will stand by what the police has to say after the investigation.

“It’s a police case and police is investigating the matter. We are law abiding citizens and if there is anything that is against the law, we will obviously stand by whatever the cops say,” she said.

The multi-talented actress, who has carved a name for herself in acting, singing and has now also ventured into production, quashed reports of her fainting during a shoot of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s film “Bajirao Mastani”.

“I did not faint. It is a false news. I just swooned a little bit. I don’t know why it happened...maybe it was because of little jet lag as I had come from Los Angeles or back to back shooting,” she said.

December 2014

Ajay Devgn Doesn’t Support Eight-Pack Trend

Mumbai: (IANS) Actor Ajay Devgn believes in being muscular and fit rather than running after six-pack and eight-pack abs that other actors have flaunted in their films.

“For ‘Action Jackson’, the makers wanted me to sport a bulky body, which was very easy for me to achieve.

“I believe six-pack and eight-pack abs make you weak. They look nice, but they can make you physically weak. I believe you should be muscular and fit. I don’t want to promote eight-pack abs,” Ajay said.

The actor, who’s currently busy promoting his film “Action Jackson”, says there is no buffoonary in the film.

“Prabhudheva is a very good actor himself and there is no buffoonary comedy in the film, and his comic timing is great. I enjoyed working with him,” he said. Directed by Prabhudheva, “Action Jackson” also features Sonakshi Sinha.

Warren Anderson Chose To Remain Inhuman: Martin “Sonakshi Lost Oodles Of Weight Sheen Warren Anderson had shut his life out and chose to remain inhuman, says the very accomplished Hollywood actor Martin Sheen, who essays the Union Carbide chief in “Bhopal: A Prayer For Rain”, a movie which relives the Bhopal gas disaster, 30 years after its occurence.

In an interview, Sheen has spoken about his life, cinema, career and new role as Anderson in Ravi Kumar’s “Bhopal: A Prayer For Rain”, which releases Dec 5.

Excerpts from the interview: You’ve portrayed Warren Anderson in “Bhopal: A Prayer For Rain” as an out-and-out villain?

We didn’t want to do a hatchet job on him, if you’ll pardon the expression. We didn’t want to make him an easy target. Anderson was still very much alive when we did the film. We tried to contact him and his family to show him our script. But he never made a single move towards us.

It was almost as though he had shut that entire episode out?

Well, in that case, he had shut his life out. He had an opportunity to become human. He chose to remain inhuman.

You have spent a major part of your life trying to be a responsible human & artiste. Amazingly enough, you’ve never won an Oscar? (laughs heartily). I am not amazed.

Why? Aren’t you aware of your talent?

It’s a gift from god. So it’s nothing I can brag about. I’m very happy that I’ve been able to make a living doing what I love most in the world. I’ve been able to do things that I never thought possible. I’ve travelled to many enchanting places, including India.

I’ve led an amazing life and I give thanks every day that I’ve had such a life. I don’t think I can be any happier even if I received an Oscar.

So you don’t covet an Oscar in spite of your brilliant body of work?

It wouldn’t make me sad if I received it. But I don’t look forward to it. In life, sometimes, you just do what you have to do without thinking of the rewards and affect on the audience. You do it (the acting) for yourself. I do what I do because I cannot not do it and be myself.

You’ve worked with some of the best directors including Francis Coppola, Richard Attenborough, Oliver Stone, Terence Mallick, Mike Nichols and Martin Scorsese.

Whom did you enjoy working with the most?

All my directors have a place in my heart. Terence is an old and dear friend. I also enjoyed working with Mike Nichols and Francis Coppola. But if you’re asking me which of these directors I’d like to work with again, I’d say Martin Scorsese without hesitation. .I’ve never worked with a director who loved his actors more. I adore him. I’m a huge fan of his work.

For ‘Radha’ Song”

Boney Kapoor is working with his son Arjun for the first time in his latest production venture “Tevar” but it’s the film’s leading lady Sonakshi Sinha that the producer is raving about.

“Look at her in ‘Tevar’. Sonakshi has never looked more stunning. She lost oodles of weight specially to shoot the song ‘Radha nachegi’ (of the film). Look at how gracefully she has performed the song.

“Very few contemporary leading ladies can carry off a semi-classical number so fluently,” raves Boney and adds that he will work with her again “very shortly.”

The “Radha nachegi” song is one of the most expensive song-and-dance sequences to have ever been shot.“We had to recreate the banks of the river Yamuna on a studio floor. It wasn’t easy...or cheap,” said Boney.

December 2014

........Features ........

NRI PULSE 19

Sanjay Olivier Lafont: An Checkmating Indophile Rewrites Mythology Your Creditor

- Nury Vittachi

SuDoku Challenge Rules: 1.The 3 x 3 sub grids are called regions 2.Numbers already filled in the grid are called givens 3.The goal of the player is to fill the blank grids of · Every row · Every column and · Every 3 x 3 box · With the numbers 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9 However: All rows and columns and regions (3 x 3) should contain numbers 1 to 9 without being repeated.

6 1 9

7

6

5 3

4 3

4

5

7

9

9 2

3

1

4 8

3

1

3

SuDoku Solutions 4 7 2 8 3 5 1 9 6

9 3 1 4 6 2 7 8 5

6 8 5 7 9 1 3 2 4

7 9 8 5 4 3 2 6 1

2 6 3 1 7 8 4 5 9

1 5 4 9 2 6 8 3 7

Do you feel a sense of displacement having lived in different countries? Is this a part of your writing?

Does this global exposure also provide you with a unique perspective when you write?

I did feel a sense of displacement. Before the age of seven I was a French What are your links to boy growing up in France.

India?

Then to become a French My family moved from boy growing up in India in France to India when I was the 90s, it was quite diffiseven, so in many respects cult adjusting. When you’re I grew up within Indian older, as an adult, you’ve culture, although my home got enough maturity, upbringing was quite awareness, and tools to French. My gorgeous wife cope with a change of culis Indian, so she ties me even ture – but as a child I was more to this beautiful counBOOKS just completely at sea. try. In my soul also, I feel Maybe that sense of isolation, Indian, that wonderful conof being a stranger within your cept of being Indian that is human, pluralistic, own culture is reflected in ‘Warrior’, since Saam vividly spiritual, democratic, peaceful, harmonious… feels that as an immortal demigod in the mortal multiYou are a familiar face in Indian television and tude of Mumbai. I feel very comfortable being French Bollywood. Given the somewhat stereotypical his- in India today, however, and whenever I travel abroad I feel completely rooted in mytory of roles for actors who self. are not of Indian origin, are Having lived in and traveled to you not anxious of being a fair amount of countries has typecast? certainly influenced my writA substantial amount of ofing, no doubt. We talk about fers I get are in the same comic culture in large continent-sized range as ‘3 Idiots’. I’d love blocs in order to understand and to do more serious and dracodify it, but culture is really matic roles. I’d also like to only relevant at the level of indo more international films, dividual experience. What that since I’m also fluent in means, for me, is that each individual in my story is his French and Spanish. I have also just written a feature film screenplay for myself as the main or her own unique culture that is a puzzle of disparate character (the first film I wrote opened at the cultures. A lot of the interesting conflict in my story Toronto Film Festival and went on to win several comes from these personal clashes of culture. awards worldwide), and I’m looking for an international producer to partner with, as this film is As a first time author, what was your reaction when you were short listed for the Tibor Jones South particularly pertinent to the NRI community.

Asia Prize?

Your first book is based in Mumbai. What are At the time I didn’t have an agent or a publisher, so it the influences and sources of inspiration for felt good to know that the book was well-received. your writing?

‘Warrior’ begins in Mumbai, it’s the hub of the story, Will this international acclaim see multi-taskbut it then expands to a really magnificent scale, encom- ing or a focus on your literary career? passing all of India and other lands beyond. I had origi- Multi-tasking, although these different streams are all nally written ‘Warrior’ as a feature film screenplay, in part of the same flow for me. My passion for storytelling 2001. The inspiration for it then and since was the finds its expression in acting in films, acting in adverMahabharata. For me the Mahabharata is the most tisements, screenplay writing, and now in being an complete and complex epic of human history. What I author. I don’t see why any one of these should take loved about it were these really intense family dramas away from the other. I intend to continue pursuing all and feuds between people who grew up together, who my interests for as long as they interest me.

Checks are dying out, a report says. This is a tragic loss of an ancient Asian invention - so I learned from the new Museum of Accountancy in India. That country invented that form of promissory note way back in the Mauryan period (321 to 185 BC), when Westerners were still evolving from jelly-like invertebrates in warm ponds.

The Romans copied the idea in the 1st century AD, coining the word praescriptiones. When buying togas from the “New Arrivals” section, they would say: “I’ve only got MXXIIV in cash, may I pay the bill by praescriptione?”

Checks caught on in Europe in the 1700s and spread out to be used worldwide until the 1990s, when they started to die out. During those two hundred years, some were written on unusual items, although, sad to say, the famous case in which a man paid his tax bill using a check written on a live cow was fictional.

The checks best worth saving are checks (that’s how they spell it) from the United States because US banks leave a space in the bottom left called the Check Memo.

Computers which read checks these days skip that part, so you can write anything you like there. I am happy to report that over the years, many of my American friends have used this little space to exercise their creativity. For instance, you can write “For Bribe” in that space, or “Hush Money” or “Here’ Your Blackmail Money, You Evil @#$%”. Other good ones are “To Help With Your Gambling Debt” and “Final Payment For Successful Hit Contract”.

I knew someone who worked really hard to embarrass his friends using the Check Memo space. For men, he wrote: “Donation To Sex Change Fund” and for women: “Lapdance Training Fee”.

Although this was meant for fun, there was sometimes an unexpected bonus. The payee often didn’t cash the check, preferring to keep it for its humorous value, or because it would be too embarrassing. If he sent a check to someone in a small town, where it was likely to be handled by a human clerk, my friend would put a more subtle joke, such as “Friendship Payment”.

He once wrote “Death To Infidels” on a check but changed it, worrying that he would end up on a stop list and never be able to fly again. It is well-known that airport security people have their senses of humor surgically removed as a job requirement.

The one place you must never be non-serious about checks is Japan. If you bounce a check twice in that country, your company is automatically suspended from stock market trading, a run is triggered on the Nikkei Index, a global stock crash follows and the world falls into economic crisis from which it never emerges. That sort of thing can spoil your day.

And that’s why I love checks.

5 4 7 3 8 9 3 1 2

were so close, whose ambitions and jealousies are reflections of the love that tied them to each other; and then we have the setting, this massive backdrop which is the greatest war of wars, where gods and demigods and demon kings walk the earth vying for power… So I created, for ‘Warrior’, what I thought was a very compelling family with Shiva as the father and Saam, my hero, as the son. And then I painted this epic background and story through which Saam has to battle.

3 1 6 2 5 7 9 4 8

There is an ah ha! moment as one connects Olivier Lafont’s name to his visage as the arrogant fiancé of Kareena Kapoor in the movie ’3 Idiots’. However, Lafont’s modest success in the entertainment industry in India as well as the lightness of his character roles in several films and advertisements do no justice to his academic brilliance and international achievement both as a film maker and a writer. His novel “Warrior” was recently shortlisted for the Tibor Jones South Asia Prize, an annual literary prize to encourage unpublished and unrepresented South Asian writers.

In an email interview with NRI Pulse, Lafont spoke about his work and his relationship with India.

8 2 9 6 1 4 5 7 3

BY SUPRIYA D G

THE FUNNY SIDE

2

8

5

6

NRI Pulse Online Magazine The Complete Portal for NRIs www.NRIPulse.com News, Views, Blogs, Features, Perspectives, Debates, Community Profiles, Immigration, Health, Business, Youth, Fashion, Entertainment, Bollywood, Cookery, Free Classifieds and more...

AIRPORT SERVICE

March 2014

INSURANCE

PHOTO/VIDEO SERVICES

REAL ESTATE

To Advertise here, call 404-235-4998 or email ads@nripulse.com

RELIGIOUS SERVICES

LEGAL SERVICESNRI PULSE

TAILORING/ALTERATIONS

WEDDINGS

1

EVENTS/FEATURES

December 2014

CLASSIFIEDS THREADERS WANTED THREADERS WANTED for immediate hire. Pay is $10 hr plus your daily tips. High Volume,Very Busy Waxing & Threading Salon, Stockbridge GA area, 30281. We are closed on Sundays. Also hiring Experienced Waxers. Call (770)744-8977 or (404) 263-2044

RESTAURANT HELP WANTED

Bhopal: A Prayer For Rain Disturbing, Timely & Hard-hitting Film: Bhopal: A Prayer For Rain; Cast: Martin Sheen, Raajpal Yadav, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Mischa Barton and Kal Penn; Director: Ravi Kumar; Rating: ****

BY SUBHASH K. JHA They say all you get from love is a love song. Disasters, man-made or otherwise, too can face a similar destiny. All we really get from disasters are disaster movies. Some that shake

Immediate opening for Exp. Chef, Tandoori Chef and waiters for Indian Restaurant in Doraville GA. Email/Fax Resume; calcuttapalate@gmail.com 678-694-8692 or call 678-863-2875

LOOKING FOR SURROGATE Loving couple seek a healthy gestational surrogate to carry their child. Great compensation and all expenses covered.

Please call 706-495-3848.

To advertise in our Classifieds section, please call 404-235-4998 or email ads@nripulse.com.

Only $15 for the first 20 words and 50 cents per additional word.

EVENTS Atlanta Tamil DEC 14 - 31 Church: December Events, 2014 Sunday, Dec 14 - Kids and Youth Christmas Service, gifts by Santa - 10am Sunday, Dec 21 - Family Sing Song Service - 10am Thursday, Dec 25 - Christmas Service, followed

by Special Lunch - 10am Wednesday, Dec 31 - WatchNight & 2015 New Year Service - 10:30pm Where: 6111 Oakbrook Pwky, Norcross, GA 30093 Contact: AtlantaTamilChurch.org, 770-723-1711 Sadhana Mandir of DEC 16 - JAN 1 Atlanta: December events December 16, 2014 (Tuesday) Dhanu Sankranti 7:00 to 8:00 PM: Hanuman Chaalisa followed

by Arti and Prasad December 21, 2014 (Sunday) Amavasya 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM: Sunderkaand Paath followed by Arti and Mahaprasad December 31, 2014 (Wednesday) 7:00 to 8:00 PM: Bhajan / Kirtan followed by Arti and Prasad January 1, 2015 (Thursday) Temple Open All Day 3:00 to 5:00 PM: Mata Ki Chauki followed by Arti and Mahaprasad Where: Suite 733, Global Mall, Jimmy Carter Blvd, Norcross.

Contact: Acharya Ved P. Joshi, (770) 9216889; (770) 310-5944, www.joshiji.com Indian Armed Forces DEC 21 Officers monthly meeting All serving & ex-officers of Army, Navy, and Airforce are invited.

When: Sunday, December 21, 2014 (every 3rd Sunday of each month) at 7 pm.

Where: RV @ 5245 N.Buford Hwy, #101, Norcross GA 30071.

Contact: Sqn. Ldr. Parmesh Erramilli (E.P. Babu), 678-860-5415 Radha Madhav DEC 25 - JAN 1 Society Family Retreat Guided by Siddheshvari Devi Ji When: Dec 25th - Jan 1st Where: Yugal Kunj, 2769 Duluth Hwy 120, Duluth GA 30096 Contact: 404-358-5316, 678-920-6669 Retreat is free of charge. Donations are accepted.

To submit an upcoming event, follow the link for ‘Submit Event’ on our website www.NRIPulse.com

NRI PULSE 21

and stir. Others that move and change lives.

Ravi Kumar’s melodramatic recreation of the Bhopal gas tragedy, said to be the worst industrial disaster in the hisMOVIE tory of civilization, has an instant and lasting chemical reaction.

While familiarizing new generations with the enormity of the calamity which claimed and maimed thousands of lives during one December night in 1984, the short and slick film also puts

forward the theory of arrogant hegemony practiced by US on poor countries.

There are portions of the narrative where we watch the proceedings with a feeling of dread and stupefying horror. The ironical logistics of making a quaint Indian city a dumping ground for the American Dream, is not lost on us. The narrative never slackens. Its vice-like grip on the moral dilemma of a town stricken by a desperate economic recession.

The director laces the dialogues between Union Carbide personnel (white and brown skinned) and the unsuspecting naive workers, with dollops barbed cynicism. The dialogues are strongly redolent of the stench that imperialistic forces spread in the Third World.

Yet ironically, this film depicts the smallcity India that the Westerners who adored “Slumdog Millionaire” love to gaze at: a kindly Chaplinesque rickshaw-wallah (Raajpal Yadav)

and his doting wife (Tannishtha Chatterjee),a wedding in their family juxtaposed with the disaster striking the town ....a slimy journalist (Kal Penn, in excellent form) who discovers unplumbed depths of integrity during the crisis, a pretty foreigner journalist (Mischa Barton, role unfinished), adorable little peasants running around doing errands for the privileged classes....It’s all there, packaged in a glorious display of wealth stealth and exploitation.

While the performances are uniformly convincing, with true actors like Raajpal, Tannishtha, Kal Penn, Fagun Thakrer, Joy Sengupta and Vinit Kumar blending fluently into the bleeding fabric, it’s Martin Sheen who towers above the entire cast. He brings to his role of the Carbide killer elements of motiREVIEW vational integrity that make the monster humane yet unpardonable.

The film is at times deeply engaging in its exposition on nature and human avarice. The characters form an integral part of the narrative.

If anything, you wish they would get more space to grow in the plot. Director Ravi Kumar hurls forward in the quest of a closure to a story that defies all culmination.

“Bhopal: A Prayer For Rain” leaves us with feeling of a deep longing for the victims of the Bhopal gas tragedy, and for the victims of imperialism anywhere at any time.

Come to think of it, while the victims of the tragedy in Bhopal await justice, the only good thing to come out of the tragedy is this haunting dramatic film.

Not to be missed.

........ What’s Cooking? ........

22 NRI PULSE

Bournvita Barfi 1/2 cup bournvita 2 ½ cups all purpose flour 1 ¼ cups melted ghee

BYP.S. LAKSHMI RAO

3 cups sugar 1 cup water 1 cup khova (mawa)

blend Blend bournvita in blender until soft.

Heat a four-quart non stick pan on medium low heat and fry 2 ½ cups all purpose flour for five minutes. Divide the fried flour into two bowls.

1 ½ cups flour into one bowl and 1 cup into the other. Mix ¼ cup of melted ghee into1 ½ cups flour. Mix another ¼ cup of ghee plus ½ cup bournvita with the remaining 1 cup flour. Set aside both bowls.

Return the pan to the stove and mix 1 ½ cups sugar with ½ cup water on medium high heat. Add khova and mix until khova is melted. When the syrup starts to bubble reduce the heat to medium low heat. Add the 1 ½ cups flour and ghee mixture into the sugar syrup, mixing briskly to make sure there are no lumps. (Remove the pan from the heat and mix if needed.) Slowly add ¼ cup ghee while mixing on medium low heat until the flour mixture (barfi) loses the glossy texture. Pour the barfi on to a greased cookie sheet and spread it with a rolling pin into

half an inch thick sheet. This has to be done quickly.

Return the pan to the stove and make sugar syrup. Add khova. Mix bournvita mixture into sugar syrup while mixing the other ¼ cup ghee slowly. Prepare bourn vita barfi the same as the flour barfi. When barfi looses the glossy texture quickly pour bourn barfi on top of flour barfi. Let it cool for five minutes before cutting. Cut it into two-inch squares or 1 x 2 inch rectangles.

Makes 35 to 40 pieces.

Note: Mix little more ghee if the barfi starts to stick to the pan. If the sugar syrup is too thick it is hard to spread the barfi and it will be crumbly.

I would like to thank Mr. Kommaraju Ramakrishna (chief cook at the Hindu Temple of Atlanta) for sharing this recipe.

Black-Eyed Beans, Sweet Potato & Kale Salad

December 2014 the leaves, wash and squeeze the water out.

Heat a large pan with 2 tablespoons oil. Add onions and garlic, if using. Fry for two minutes.

Add kale and fry for five minutes on medium heat stirring until the moisture evaporates.

½ cup dried black-eyed beans ½ teaspoon salt 3 large sweet potatoes 2 tablespoons oil ½ teaspoon salt ½ teaspoon fresh ground pepper 1 small bunch kale or 6 cups chopped 2 tablespoons oil 1 small onion chopped 3 garlic cloves finely chopped (optional) 2 tablespoons lemon juice 3 cups cooked quinoa or couscous (cook according to directions) Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Wash beans and soak over night with three cups water.

The next day, wash beans and cook with one cup water and ½ teaspoon salt for five minutes on medium heat. Drain them into a small colander.

Wash and peel sweet potatoes. Cut them into half inch pieces. In a bowl mix them with 2 tablespoons oil, ½ teaspoon salt and pepper. Spread them onto a cookie sheet and bake them for 25 minutes tossing them around periodically.

Remove kale leaves from the stems. Chop

In a large bowl toss together black-eyed beans, sweet potatoes, kale and cooked quinoa or couscous and lemon juice. Add more salt and pepper to taste.

Variation: Top with croutons for crunchiness.

Note: This dish is great for ringing in the New Year. There is a southern tradition to eat blackeyed beans for luck and greens for wealth. It is also good for your health.

I would like to thank Mrs. Subha Thrivikraman for sharing this recipe.

........ InVogue .......

Silk saris are the ultimate art expression of a 5000year-old civilization. It has history and never goes out of style. Silk is spun in different parts of India, and are known by many names- kanchipuram, paithani, patola, handloom silk, iqqat, pochampalli to name a few.

The Splendor of Silk and rich zari work in the pallu.

Patola- Here we feature a patola in a base shade of green with a carefully woven geometrical design in mustard shade. A finely woven light zari border is topped with gold and red horizontal stripes. Flo-

Khadi cream black check antique gold zari sari is a designer’s creation. This beautiful sari has a very stylish border in pure antique gold with black trim. The pallu gleams in the light with zari work woven with thread to create multiple traditional patterns.

Red, black and white silk sari- This exquisite hand woven sari is an exclusive piece for a special person.

Raw silk designer sari- in rusty orange with thread and antique embroidery work with a contrast border and pallu.

Silk saris are perfect for weddings, parties or as evening wear. They are always elegant and present our culture and the history of Indian art beautifully.

Kanchipuram gold pure handloom silk sari with a light black border that is enhanced with zari motifs

Dry cleaning is recommended.

BY RANI SHARMA ral designs are delicately woven on the red base, making the pallu very attractive. The sari includes blouse material in red.

Jewelry, Makeup and other accessories- Go for the “mesmerizing in traditional” look. Wear an onyx beaded necklace with a pretty silver pendent. Match with onyx earrings.

Makeup- Brush a shade of light brown on the eyelids. Highlight lips with bright maroon lipstick.

Style your hair loose and keep it in place with hair spray.

Purse- Combine with a pretty batua bag in deep green. Footwear- Wedge leather green sandals.

For More info, call me at 404-386-2062 or visit Raneez Boutique in Decatur, GA.