Editorial Dashing magazine - June Edition 2013 Harish Srinivasan - Executive Editor Sathish Kumar - Associate Editor Priyanka Ravi - Senior Editor Sathyanarayanan Raveendran - Senior Editor Harsha Jayakrishnan - Output Editor Sivaranjani Ganapathy - Design Editor Shradha Jain - Chief Correspondent Ashwini Ashokkumar - Creative Writer Aafreen Nawresh - Creative Writer Darshika Rajasekaran - Senior Correspondent Atma Pai - Correspondent Bhusan Sivakumar - Editotial Administrator Sujata Sridharan, Correspondent Mehavarshini - Correspondent
Management
Hassan Ali - Correspondent Grishma Raj - Correspondent Rathnakar Sundaresan - Correspondent
Sheik Mohaideen A , Co - Founder,
Venkatesh Aravindh - Sub Editor
Vidhya Sagar, Co - Founder,
Aparna Mano - Creative Designer
Jayashree , Head Marketing
Preethi Ravi - Visual Designer
Ashwin Raman, HR Manager, Surya Rathakrishnan - Talent Manager Arun Prasath, Legal Advisor Anish Steve - Head, Photography Rajesh Thanikasalam - Senior Photographer Abinaya Shankar - Senior Photographer Nanda Kumar - Senior Photographer Achuthanand Ravi - Senior Photographer Priyadharshini - Senior Photographer Nivedditha Elangovan - Creative Director Swetha Renukumar - Research Executive (Documentary) Vignesh Ravi - HR Executive
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Editor’s note. As we enter into the 4th edition of our Dashing magazine I wish to thank all the readers who have encouraged us right from the start and giving us feedback to improve upon. It is due to which we strive to improve upon different aspects of the magazine. It is my duty to give you a basic insight on what we all strive to do. One of our main motto is to provide a good platform for developing entrepreneurs, new talents in the field of arts and sports to express themselves. Time and again we have interviewed several new talents, budding entrepreneurs and published them in our magazine and website. The main reason behind this is when you look at a successful person you sense a gap between a starter and the top person, which is filled with the fear of unknown and other hindering factors . So, we at Dashing decided to bridge this gap by bringing in talents at their budding stage. This will not only help the talented ones to express themselves, but also help others to come out of their inhibitions to pursue their dreams. We also bring out articles based on current trends and topics which concerns the youth. In this edition we bring to you two interviews both entrepreneurs and an article by a guest writer on “Placement Preparedness� among several other contents which focuses on Indian education, food review, a book review and a movie review. I also wish to thank my Dashing team for their efforts put forth in bringing out the magazine. I hope you enjoy this edition. We Look forward to your feedback.
Harish Srinivasan, Executive Editor, Dashing Magazine.
Sharath Ram
Biggest chink in the armoury f o s g n mi o em c t t s r y o s h The s education n India
5
Dashing Magazine June 2013 The lull, disinterested and disgruntled faces have remained to stock the classrooms. The mind is wandering, the heart is beating for something outside the classroom, the eyes lack the dazzle, the spark is off and books and lectures have been soporific, making education a gruelling affair. Though there were a plenty of measures to persuade Over the years, ever since the media emerged a kingpin in the society, ever since the print industry transcended readership, columns have been abound with the shortcomings and lacklustre of the Indian education system. Voices have censured it, denigrated it, dissected it hunting for hitches and there have been a lot of perspectives to it. Erudite educationalists and academicians have never ceased to postulate ideas and to be fair; a few of them have been incorporated into the system. The system has seen a sleuth of changes and most have them bolstered the profession of teaching and education on the whole has witnessed a surge. From the old martial ways, institutions have broken the shackles and taken giant strides and the bonhomie or the amiability within the classroom has seen a considerable surge. The aid to teaching has grown manifold and so has the access to knowledge thanks to renowned academicians. Yet, the bull’s eye is missed. The hindsight has evaded most of the visionaries.With a sea of changes sweeping the classroom, there remain the strong holds that have ceased to sway.
youngsters to take to education, little has been done to sustain the ones well entrenched in the system. Books don’t magnetize as cricket or movies do. The dire consequence of flunking an exam is what puts one behind the books and the same intimidation has made generations of graduates. Love and hunger are the sine qua non for success in any field and to one’s dismay such hunger has been scant in this field. Technology, in the future might grow leaps and bounds, yet, this drop of poison would inhibit the entire growth.Hence, the cynosure of the factors plaguing the education system has been its inefficacy to procreate the ebullience that would in turn lead to an appetite for books.If one guzzles without the hunger, unpleasant tendencies are sure
6
Dashing Magazine June 2013 to follow. Therefore, to put it in a nutshell, education system has failed to create the interest that would sustain the system and nurture better individuals. A few days ago, Dr.Padmashree Kamal Hassan, in one of his rare appearances, took to the game show “NeengalumVellalamOruKodi” the tamil version of “KaunBanegaCrorepathi” on Vijay TV. The marketing ideas of the Star group were well veneered under benevolent cause of the bounty. In the course of answering the questions, he put the entire audience in awe about his knowledge. He is a virtuoso when it comes to cinema is what the world believes, but to their surprise, he is adept at every subject under the Sun. Putting to shame even the best of historians, he was verbose in his account of the first war of independence. His version of the story of a Tamilian named “Marudhunayagam”, who pioneered the first war of Independence hundred years before 1857, the year history books have recorded, was nothing short of intriguing. On a similar note, he gave his insights into certain unexplored subjects as well and it turned out to be the most intellectual and insightful episode and anchor, Prakash Raj, took to the media to express his astonishment of this man’s knowledge. This man is no historian or a researcher; he is a school dropout and has seldom stepped into a college. I, on the other hand, an engineering graduate was stumped by most of the questions aired on that particular day. There was further shame in the store with Kamal Hassan accounting for every answer with the story behind it. I was belittled, my fifteen year schooling with seven years of history classes were ridiculed by this uneducated. So, what made this unschooled stalwart to delve deep into the history books is certainly a food for thought and that is precisely what the education system falls short of.
He loves his trade and he is passionate about it. He’s got a niche for detail and his inquisitiveness is colossal. The inquisitiveness made him plunge into the subject and make a movie out of it. The story seemed so fascinating to him that he decided to narrate it to the world. The backbone of all this is the ebullience and interest with which he took to the subject. Hence interest is the key driving force that leads to the enlightenment of an untaught. The story of this man accentuates the miserable inefficacy of the education system. A school dropout can carry out such a profound research and on the other hand, an engineering graduate is incompetent even at his own trade. An engineer, having undergone the rigors of the four years graduates out to be a scientific illiterate and engineering turns out to be his biggest mishap in his life.When he graduates and forays into the world, he is a misfit in the society and is a
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Dashing Magazine June 2013
Photography : Pink Sherbet CC
testimony to the failure of the education system. The
coming years, it is the oratorical
lack of interest can be attributed to only the teachers
skills that would be the biggest
of today; they are to bear the brunt.
deterrent in shaping a student’s
The attributes of a teacher today is expected to be
future.
much different than it was a decade ago. A teacher,
Kamal Hassan didn’t shirk reading,
along with his finesse at the subject, must possess
hence the erudite connoisseur he
the uncanny knack of enthralling the listeners. With
is. He was interested and that
the attention span of today’s students dwindling, a
drove him towards the book and in
teacher’s job is complicated. A teacher doesn’t have
turn towards knowledge. Thus the
to be adroit at the subject, yet he needs to be an
pumping power lies in the interest
enticing orator who can keep the attention of seventy
and an interested student would
odd students intact over an hour. As Albert Einstein
turn out to be an adept profession-
puts it- “you haven’t learnt it well if you cannot put it
al. Education at any level, in any
a simple way”. A good teacher is one who can demys-
form has succeeded the day when
tify complex theories with adequate anecdotes and
attendance isn’t mandatory and
put it across in a manner that it would be etched
yet the classrooms are full,
deep into the minds of the students for years to
thronged by ebullient faces. The
come. An interested student will ace any examination
school children come out of school
and even the sternest of tests would be galloped
with a smile is the day education
through. When Kamal Hassan, the prodigy he is
has come off age. The day books
today, education can churn out better products at
fascinate a student is the day
ease, just by the tweaking of its approach. In the
education has graduated.
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Dashing Magazine June 2013
Darshika Rajasekaran
Business is Innovation The other name for business is, ’innovation that stands
unique’. Emerging entrepreneurs face a great challenge not only to establish a good organization/company but to sustain in this competitive world. Young entrepreneurs are increasing in numbers and the number of companies is increasing too but the greatest question mark is if they could sustain. Why does this arise? The answer is simple. Society believes in brand mark. But creating the brand mark is not a cake walk for every entrepreneur. Let it be from Hero pen to BMW, people expect the brand value. A business would not succeed without the wit to tackle problems by converting challenges into opportunities and motivation to flourish. If we consider development to be the most important aspect of business, let me put it in a right way then. ’Development’ in modern business is the utilization of resources based on the current trend that ensures reliability and customer satisfaction.
Photography : Praveen Balu
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Dashing Magazine June 2013
“
I protracted the computer knowledge I had by installing OS, maintaining database, dealing with hardware
What’s the impetus behind being an entrepreneur ? The inspiration towards entrepreneurship and I framed a goal to be an entrepreneur. In fact I had a motive to start up a good business.
“
This urge started while I was doing the seventh grade. I realized the interest towards software and hardware development, where I installed Operating system for the
The Irregulars is one such different venture started by
computers in my school laboratory.
Mr.D.G.Prabhakaran ,in the year 2012. It is all about,’
Besides I was well versed in main-
Anti –slip pad’ that can hold objects in the car like cell
taining database. Marking it as a
phones, coolers, and many more to prevent falling
start I protracted the computer
while driving. Apart from that they are widely used
knowledge I had by installing OS,
for holding lighters, toothpastes, brush and other
maintaining database, dealing with
domestic objects. They can also be used in office to
hardware and software problems
hold pens, pen drives, and many more. Overall it’s a
in the system for the shops near
pad that can be used everywhere for a longer time
my home and few book shops in
without losing the adhesiveness. In the interest to
Moore market,Parrys. On realizing
know more about this Engineering student’s start up I
the increased demand for my
interviewed him.
service, I started up a demand and get service company in the same
According to your business what is different?
year. My interest in programming
The product I sell because, it is widely used in foreign
and computers amplified day by
countries and realizing its multipurpose I felt that one
day and I pursued my under gradu-
must be introduced in our country too. So the pad
ation in Information Technology.
that I design is reusable and highly adhesive. We can
Besides the Entrepreneurship cell
stick it on tiles, varnished wood surface, and other
in my college motivated me a lot as
polished surfaces. Initially it was designed to hold
it provided me an environment to
objects like cell phones in car which tend to fall often
organize business ideas in a right
while driving. It is also used to hold lighters, and
way.
other house hold objects like tooth brush. As I mentioned, ‘reusable’ before, it can be washed by
Was organizing the business easy
immersing it in water and rubbing the plastic surface
as you thought to be?
to remove the dirt.It retains the original strong
It wasn’t very easy. In fact planning
adhesiveness when it is partially dried. It can be
was required at every point,
struck on the required surface to hold the objects.
considering all the factors to
We design the pads in various models and shapes like
organize the idea in a better way. I
heart, car, professional box and many more impress-
thank the Entrepreneurship Cell of
ing our customers.
my college for, it made me derive a
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Dashing Magazine June 2013 Sustainability has become a primary factor for business development. How do you expand the business in this competitive world? It’s by differentiating our business from others. By working on different impressive designs, researching on the quality, models, shapes and colors that really attract the customers. Price framing plays a major role so that the demand rate does not decrease. The product is offered at a highly reasonable price that ensures customer satisfaction. The homework would be on product’s research and development by looking at the feedback, innovation
proper business model by taking into account, all possible factors that a business can face initially. Under the guidance of my seniors, I started this business at a higher level after considering the importing and exporting aspects. Though the capital investment was scarce initially, the product value rose in the market and a good profit is made from the beginning. This motivated my team to sustain and I feel it’s a great investment for a long run.
in business for better satisfaction by increasing the availability of the products that are not available in our country. Our next venture is about designing pen drives. It may sound trivial but, the most different aspect is it will be designed in various models that draw people’s attention like zoo -zoo, car, bus or even more professional designs like company logo and many more. This kind of venture was focused as it would be really good to have pen drives as complementary during a formal business meet thereby targeting difference in the business.
How important is advertising and customer service? I feel customer satisfaction is more important to advertising. I look at my business as, a service more than making money. I think every entrepreneur must bear this before they start up because; it enhances the company’s growth profile at a quicker phase. The primitive customers were my friends. Because of the product’s reliability and the price the demand increased among other friends, colleagues and many more people. In fact we ordered only fifty pads in the beginning, and it was sold within a week. Then we increased the number during the second order to eighty and they were also sold within a week and we gained a good feedback. Apart from this we render the customer service through salesmanship, and we visit their house to teach them how to use the pad if they call for a repair. In a very rare case we replaced the pad. However, I think advertising is important so, a page was created in Facebook in the name of, ‘The Irregulars’ for networking and then a focus on the newspapers like, ’The Hindu’ and other regional newspapers.
What would be your advice for the emerging entrepreneurs? Young entrepreneurs are not only emerging, but also flourishing. For a bigger business idea team work, salesmanship and marketing skills are required which wouldn’t be honed unless it is experienced. In this highly competitive scenario difference is more important in business not only to satisfy customers but also to hike the demand in the market. Besides all these aspects the will power to sustain, self motivation and thoughtfulness are important to run a business successfully. This is truly an innovative idea. To know more about the irregulars visit https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Irregulars/
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Dashing Magazine June 2013
P
lacement reparedness
When someone gets placed in a company, at the outset it is just a student getting placed in a company.
T.Vimala Rane
However placement for that student is a sense
Soft skill trainer,
of achievement and financial freedom, for the
Vellamal Engineering college.
parents, it’s a proud moment, getting a helping shoulder, a moral support, the son or daughter getting independent, the family
Nothing happens to most of the students most of the time till they
getting a status in the society, for a friend a
have to face the campus interview. Majority of them focus mainly
sense of relief, for the college a proud
on the technical skills and forget the other skills like aptitude,
moment…
group discussion and soft skills.
Most of the colleges get the reputation based
Students think their CGPA (Cumulative Grade Point Average) will
on the number of placements they do in
fetch them the job, however they forget the fact that their CGPA
addition to the quality education and disci-
will only allow them to be eligible for campus recruitment and
pline they drive. So placement plays a very
does not guarantee a job.
important role in a student’s life. So what is this Placement and what are the areas one
The reality comes as a shock when the student realizes that along
has to look into to face it successfully.
with good CGPA there is a whole lot of other skills one need to develop. However it becomes too late for them. They are informed
What happens to a student when he/she
about the various skills to get a job in the first year itself; however
hears the word placement/ campus recruit-
more focus is on technical knowledge than developing all the other
ment? This awareness is given in the first year
required skills. This laid back attitude results in lot of negative
itself through orientation program; however
emotions which leads to not getting placed in any company during
how many students take it seriously?
campus recruitment.
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Dashing Magazine June 2013
Photography : Sarah CC
When a student is not placed in the first company, he/she
What is that spark which ignites few highly moti-
gets the feeling that he is not worth it. He has to now
vated students?
work harder to pull his mental strength to face the next
Is it that high performers are the ones who really
company. If a person has a strong self esteem he/she is
know the value of the course and puts in 100% to
able to work harder to get placed in the next company.
do their best?
However one with a very poor self esteem considers
Who are the students who do not realize the
himself/herself as an unlucky person and does not get a
importance of placement readiness? Are they the
job even after sitting through 25 interviews. Instead the
ones who are forced by their parents to join a
student may focus on a few skills and stop blaming his/her
course which they really don’t like and the one
luck.
who has an attitude problem, hence take it very
All students aspire to get a rewarding and fulfilling career.
lightly without bothering about the end result?
How the students do well in the campus interviews
The courses are very expensive and 4 years of a
depends on how well they have prepared their personali-
students’ life is very precious. If they are not
ty to meet the corporate standards.
selected in the campus interview a few of them
Students who are self motivated start taking up things
think of further studies and invest two more years
seriously from the first year and they focus on all the
and what happens after two years?
aspects required to finish the course with flying colors.
What should be done to change the scenario?
Who are called self motivated students and why other
Is it too much to ask for 95% of students getting
students are less focused? Even students who score high
placed at the end of the course completion?
CGPA fail in campus interview. Why does this happen? What can be done to make all the students be self moti-
There is no suspense to it. Students have to work
vated to finish the course successfully and clear the
on Aptitude, Group Discussion, and soft skills.
placement?
What next? It’s time to think and get into action.
Priyanka Ravi
TOTE ‘EM
THE SAGA OF AN ENTREPRENEUR “I am my own boss!” is what youngsters love to stand up and say these days. Long gone are the days when parents would strive hard to make their sons and daughters get a decent Government job, gone are even the days when youngsters wanted to get into white collar jobs. This is the generation of entrepreneurship, the generation where youngsters take up their career in their own hands, 360 degrees at that. The passion that drives an entrepreneur is something that a most others working in big companies with big names wouldn’t possess. This passion is what has made this young achiever, Miss Karishma Bhatia take the big leap and start her very own company and strive to stand out at that. “Tote ‘Em”- with a fancy name that would grab your attention and a simple page on facebook, Tote ‘Em comes out as a handbag making company. So what’s new in this? There are about hundred other online handbag stalls, why get a handbag in Tote ‘Em? With this curiosity, I flipped through their pictures and after the initial observance of a lot of pleasant colors and pretty designs, I came to realize that they are all cloth bags, CUSTOM-MADE, at affordable prices. Now it got me curious and I wanted to meet up with the owner of this online franchise and get to know what drove her to “totes”.
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Dashing Magazine June 2013
On a casual chat with Miss Karishma, I learnt something more than just about her entrepreneurship skills and efforts; I learnt what it takes to do something different, differently. Aged just 21 and a Food Science Management graduate from MOP Vaishnav College for Women, Miss Karishma has taken a huge leap towards something that is way out of her career path. This got me even more curious to know as to why she would set out to do something out of her path, she wouldn’t allow me to say “out of her league”! Why “Tote ‘Em”- the name? And who came up with it? I believe that what grabs the scrollers attention is the name of the page. When there are hundred other online shops that sell handbags, why would anyone want to check my page, so I wanted to come with a very catchy name, that would include a word play of sorts
That’s a lot like the Joker’s dialogue from The Dark
and then my sister and I brainstormed and came up
Knight, “if you’re good at something, don’t do it for
with this name.
free..” (we share a laughter at that as we get more comfortable over a cup o’ cappuccino)
You’ve graduated in Food science management, something completely different from fashion designing. So
Why did you set out to design handbags specifically?
what was the reason behind this venture?
The major reasons are, I know how to do it and it sells
As a matter of fact, there is a lot of connection between
pretty well. Handbags are always in fashion and
food science and designing handbags. Both involve
always in demand. No one ever goes out of want for
visualizing something, getting the appropriate ingredi-
another handbag and when it’s made in something as
ents/ raw material for it and then designing the product
comfortable to carry as cloth, there’s definitely a lot
to suit client’s requirements. Just like how you garnish
of demand for it.
your food, I garnish my handbags with bows and buttons to make them look more appealing. So after all
So, what sort of bags do you sell? And how are they
designing handbags and cooking dishes are a whole lot
priced?
similar.
I make make-up pouches, ear phone pouches, shades pouches, mobile phone pouches, all of which are
What or who was your inspiration to start designing
priced at Rs. 50- Rs. 100 each. I also sell sling bags and
and selling bags?
totes. Small bags are priced at Rs.180 and big ones at
I would like to say something fancy like to make the
Rs. 250- Rs.300 and add Rs.20 for any specific request
world see my talent and use my products. But that’s
such as bows and buttons. I’m very soon planning to
only secondary. I’d like to be honest and say that the
start making clutches.
main inspiration for starting this company would be pocket money. I love making handbags, so I thought, if
Any entrepreneur needs to see considerable success
you like doing something why not make money out of
to drive him or her further in to the venture, so what
it? So I started this company in April of 2013 and now
would you call your driving force?
my company is still an infant, just 2 months old.
My major driving force was from my parents, sister
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Dashing Magazine June 2013 and friends. While my family supported me and told me that it’s okay to take it slow, my friends constantly made me feel like a star. They purchased products from me and also referred me to other friends of theirs. This encouragement is what I needed to get past the initial obstacles and days of over work. Couple that with a profit turnover of about 30%, I knew I wasn’t going in the wrong path. What is your marketing strategy? Very simple. Facebook and friends. Word of mouth is what got me started and with almost every teenager and young adult alike on Facebook, it’s pretty much The place to sell products these days. For any business, the customer is considered as the God. So how do you work with your Gods? I have a very friendly relationship with most of my customers considering the fact that most of them are friends or friends of friends. They place orders for a particular bag or materials on the Facebook page and get in touch with me. I talk them through the process of making their bag to understand the specifics of what they want. In the end I want to give them a near perfect replica of what they visualized and hopefully more. Have you felt any difficulty in being a female entrepreneur? None at all. If anything, I’ve got more encouragement than my fellow friends who are guys and do business get. I’ve got a lot of friends who’ve sent me personal messages saying they are proud of me. Such things mean a lot to someone just coming up in life. What is your designing mantra? Give only the best quality to customers. If I make any mistakes while stitching or if there’s any defect in the cloth, I simply discard them. It is against my ethics to sell them.
What is the one thing that you’re proud of doing till date through this venture? Actually there are two. One, the fact that I gave the profit from the sales of my first bag to charity and the other is that I do packaging only with newspapers. I could be a conventional seller and pack in plastic bags, but that isn’t good for the environment, I promote eco friendly products and hence I do eco friendly packaging only. I’d say this is what Mahatma Gandhi meant by, “Be the change you want to see!”… How do you plan to expand this empire you’ve created? My first step is to get enough customer database and money to set up a shop or a stall in the least. I am also planning to start my website. Apart from that in future I might use models to showcase my bags. So far I’ve believed that my bags should stand alone and speak for themselves, but if it gives the customers a better idea of how it’d look on them, I might definitely consider using models for showcasing the handbags. But I want to do all this from my money and my money alone!
FAST FIVE Choose one: cooking or designing handbags?
When you’re asked to choose between what you really want to do and what you are passionate about doing, it’s difficult to choose. I will do both!
Best place in the city to see fashion? Actually there are not really a lot of places where you can see fashion in Chennai. I’d say NIFT campus and Express Avenue mall. What, according to you is the most important thing while dressing up? To be comfortable with whatever you are wearing. You can easily exhibit a lot more confidence when you are at ease. What the best thing about Chennai as far as dressing is concerned? The best thing about Chennai is that people don’t judge you for what you wear. Unlike cities like Mumbai and Delhi, even if you were to wear a salwar kameez to a mall, people don’t give you the dirty look that makes you feel like you’re out of place. What would you say is the right color to wear and carry this summer? Bright colors are in, this summer. Colors like hot pink and orange go a long way!
Placing myself an order for a tote and wrapping up my interview with Miss Karishma, I came out feeling a lot more happy about where today’s youth are heading and feeling proud that I’m one of them! Now, it wouldn’t be wrong to call this generation, the generation of masterminds and job makers. Would it?
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Dashing Magazine June 2013
IT IS SPICY !
Grishma Raj
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Dashing Magazine June 2013
It all began with a spring onion curl and bite of chicken lollipops dipped in mild spicy ginger crush and tangy tomato. Dinner at “Peta Warp ” , a standalone restaurant on the bustling Tambaram road in Chennai that serves Chinese and Indian dishes gave a comfortable ambience. An outer space sheltered surrounding with Brown -golden lighting had the modest approach bringing in the delight for the customers. The frequently ordered “Dim sums” was simply delicious. It is a type of Chinese dough mixed with spicy vegetables, mostly served in Chinese tea shops as starter. This was an artistic wonder stuffed with soya, mushroom and meat fillings. One bite would give the real Chinky spark on the tongue. “A Dim sum is shaped beautifully by chefs. In Hon Kong homes, they serve hundreds of varieties of dim sums for the guests,” said Mr. Kulkarni Singha , the Corporate Chef. Dragon chicken served with roasted nuts and lettuce had the sweet and spicy taste that gave a different style to the Indian dishes. The South Indian recipes like – “Nadan fish curry” and “ Vanjara fish curry” was served with some excellent spices and green pudhina chutney. “ We prefer to add mixed ingredients to Indian dishes that would bring out uniqueness in the taste. Customers look on for variety in dishes and recently we have brought out a lot of IndianChinese combo dishes ” said Mr. Kulkarni singha , immediately after which the waiter served Roti
In tune with the hunger delights, starters like the soup servings, give many preferences. The “Steam boat” system, where the customers get into the act and prepare their soup with their choice of meat and vegetables give the right attraction to the customers. Authentic fare, large portions and courteous service simply add on to their external reputation. But an air conditioned hall inside would give a better convenience to customers to sit indoor or outdoor rather than just an outdoor sitting. Mr. Kulkerni insisted on serving their special diwali dish named-“ Looks good-feels good” to most of the tables, it was a cocktail of broccoli served with jeera rice and sweet curd that had a similar taste of Dahi Puri. The restaurant gave a good holiday bite as there were a lot of families occupying the restaurant on the eve of diwali. Children specials like – chocolate veggie rolls , pepper corn nuggets and toasts were some of the colourful dishes. “We have a lot of generation customers visiting us. Families treat eating out as an experience and we want to ensure that they have a good time,” exclaims Legrand Davis , a chef.
dipped in Chinese sauce and cucumber.
Well, one thing that should never be missed is the crackling spinach
Baby corn noodles and schezwan naan induce
with salt, crushed chilli and a seasoning of sugar (to take away the
‘yummy’ effect . “In Chinese culture, everything is minced, shredded and finely cut with less oil. They always enjoy food in large groups. Here, I am just loving my feast.” said Madhubala Gopinath , a student of SRM University .
dessert after a heavy dinner! Crisp fried spinach pudding seasoned bitterness) packs a punch. Fried ice-cream and mango pudding are some of the desserts that give a cold thunder. Peta warp is an awesome hang in for a wonderful appetite and definitely worth a try for Chinese food freaks.
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Dashing Magazine June 2013
Rathnakar Sundaresan
What was the first thought that crossed your mind when you
read the title blink? Is it about an article that explains the bat of an eye? What if a split second was all it took your brain to generate a set of posit on what it would be?(Yes keep thinking, I might be talking about the birth of the first-impression-is-the-best-impression theory). The book blink- the power of thinking without thinking by Malcom Gladwell explains the de facto thinking within our heads as ‘the backstage process’ of the human brain, how we unknowingly frame our opinions and make concrete decisions. Gladwell starts by directly introducing us the concept of rapid cognition, where he writes about how fast the brain can jump to conclusions by processing data based on stored information of past experiences. He portrays instances which show us how and why intuitions can be fully trusted by explaining many case studies. Going deeper, he tells us about ‘Thin-slicing’, an activity of separating input into chunks, which help in processing information and making rapid decisions. It also focuses on the right slices to use while making a decision that will be much easier to make with higher efficiency. He feels that biased judging and the stereotype-the-thinking factor evolved through timeplays a major role in decision making; which he explains to be the pull-down factor of this process. Backing up his statement, ‘the best decisions are made by little pieces of high-quality information’, he also quotes instances where instantaneous decision making had failed because of the perception at the instant, which he proves by drawing similarities between autism and sudden adrenaline-generating actions.This, by carefully understanding the brain, can help us apply them in decision-based events in our real life.Finally, he speaks about how vision can dominate our decisions by showing statistical data on how the music industry was revolutionized by blocking vision during the selection process of a musical concert. From this book, I learnt that life is more than just tabulating information and formulating opinions inside our heads. We fail to notice what affects the decision- it takes two seconds to decide that “feel” of certainty we get. Gladwell convinces his readers by explaining the pros and cons of this type of thinking through a series of examples and also encourages his readers to make better choices in life. He feels our life is full of choices which once made, cannot be changed.So next time if you are going to make a choice, make sure you blink.
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Dashing Magazine June 2013
REVIEW Soodhu kavvum has really grabbed the attention of some interesting minds of kollywood and tamil cinema lovers.With much hype around Vijay Sethupathi, who's currently basking with a hat-trick hit in the K-town, it was a highly anticipated movie since it's posters were out. A negative title, elderly-lead role(Vijay Sethupathi has enacted as an 40 year old guy) & an untraceable trailer has summed up as a push factor in our mind to freak out with it in theatre. Again, Vijay has proved his mettle by transcending into another dimension of acting. Unlike commercial chartbusters, "Pizza" & "Naduvula konjam pakkatha kaanom" this film savors a right mixture of various entertainment factors. The debutant Director Nalan Kumarasamy has shown his wit onscreen by striking the balance between storyline and screenplay. Composer Santhosh Narayanan has again struck a chord with his fingers and editing this kind of a film is a daunting task.Hats off to Editor-Leo John Paul. Besides the technical team the cast comprising Sanchitha Shetty, Simhaa, Ashok Selvan, RJ Ramesh Thilak, Karunaakaran, MS Bhaskar, Yog Japee have done a tremendous job. There's also a bit of PSYCHO-logy in the film, which adds up to the spice. Overall, it was a great effort by Nalan & team for dealing so close with reality, yet entertaining. I end up this review conventionally by stating this one liner - "The crew has taken response of our 2hr17min & Rs.120.
Vasanth Doraiswamy