Golden and shiny or grimy and grey?

India Inc still hides mammoth social issues under its veneer of glitz and opulence

tha t need to be changed or a complete re-haul! It's scary to see tl1e falling service levels and rising expense level s Let's look at tl1e services provided by the domestic staff.

s it finally happe ning - are we witness ing the rise of t he East? Is the ,vorld tilting, the powers sh ifting? Are we looking ar India rising and lndia shining?

Is lndia lnc all golden?

Or does it have some deep, dark greys?

This question hallllts me as I return to Sydney after a 2 -momh holiday back ' home' in Mumbai.

The ci ty of Mumbai, a city I've caUed home for 25 years, always did bear to its own drums. It's truly a city that never sleeps; it fiUs you with a manic ene rgy, a crazy insatiable zest for something. I felr like an 'energizer bunny' buzzing around a ll day and all night, giddy, restless and unab le to sleep.

It felt like l should be doing things, achieving sometl1ing, digging for gold!

The roads are packed. Traffic is a snarl bm tl1e cars are aU high end - from Audis to BMWs, Ferraris, Me res, Le,xus, Hondas, Toyo tas, Skodas. The city i s changing: there is huge amount of mone y being earned and spent - it's the middle and upper middle class spending on lifestyle!

Tbe roads maybe broken in pares, but along these are maUs and more maUs - b igger, brighter, more extravagant and boasting of brand s from around the world : spas, salons, beer cafes, lounges, theatres, multiplexes, parlours, lifestyle and hobb y s tores rep lacin g the humb le kim11t1 shops.

Fine dining restaurants with cuisines from around the world are peppered across tl1e city. An average meal cost per person at one of tl1e 'new age' cafes ranges from Rs 1200 to Rs1500 (average $25).

Tbe new residential complexes come buil t w itl1 all the bells and whistles - ntbber paved p lay areas for kids, swimming pool, clubhouse, g ames court, spas, mini theatres and security systems. Each home has a maid, cook, nanny a nd driver - along wi th the grandn1other supervising the daily chores and the granclchildren's activities!

Eve rything is ordered over the phone and de livered at home.

From medicines to milk, from daily needs to fanc y needs - aU it takes is one phone caU.

And it functions 24/7!

There are 300 channels on

W

TV from which ro choose , and BoUywood has become big bus iness. Films are cross ing the R s l 00 crore mark, and Mumbai is buzzing with MONEY!

There is investment in infrastructure; the Sea Link which has been built over the sea connecting Bandra to South Mumbai (\Xlor li) is world class.

Travelling on tl1e bridge, as tl1e Mumbai skyline comes into view, you know yo u are in o ne of the major cities of tl1e world.

The Jl.1fetro construction is also underway.

Most of our friends who are emp loyed by the corporate sector are now also venmring into being entrepreneurs. Besides their day jobs tl1ey are becoming restallrateurs, firm owners, etc.

High risk, high returns! Looks like the city of i\fambai is p la ying me high stakes game!

This is India lnc: sh ining brigh t and go lden.

Or is it?

On the sur face, i t seemed W,e easy answer. There was p lenty of evidence to support tl1e hypothesis of Jndia's phenomenal progress, aU golden, proud and brave.

However, digging deeper and looking beyond tl1e gold, I found cracks which seemed very grey, very deep and unaddressed.

The first crack , wh ich is personal to me and perhaps to many families in our situation, is tl1e service leve l and support provided to parents in tl1eir o ld age.

Lacklustre support se rvices with little adherence to process, ethics or humaniLy ! Mose se rvices are de.Li vered patl1eticaUy, and often fo r the elderly, it is a curse to get anything repaired or serviced.

I t could be the TV, washing machine, laptop, camera, microwave, it's always tl1e same Story.

A fter inm1merable calls, repeated requests and humble p leas, half- hearted anempts are made b y technicians co solve the problem. Evenrnally it always leads co more repair costs, parts

'Maids in Mumbai' co m e equipped with certain prerequisites about working hours, bonuses, holidays, perks, loans, advances etc The y all carry mobile phones, iPods, and a 'don't talk to me, I will do what I want' policy while working!

The cooks, or sho uld I say 'chefs', behave like they are cookin g for a 3 -hat restaurant. oses in the air, they will only cook certain types o f food and of course, the ingredients have to be hi g h -e nd The domestic sta ff are holding to ran som hap less Indian families acc usto med to tl1eir support lodia shines today, bur hiding behind me glitter are some very deep -rooted issues.

One of the deepe.5t and mos t fundamental cracks in the system is the medical service, com mercialis ed and full of contradictions.

B ig shiny, beautiful hospitals, state-of- the- art equipment, doctors with advanced degrees - it's a.LI tl1erel Unformnately it's acc o mpanied by expensive but shoddy services and practices which inspire Li ttle faitl1. Again, l heard man y horror stories of wrong diagnosis and treatment, and expensive tests tha r were n ot needed.

It is di stressi ng to see tl1e h elpless ness and pain our parents feel while trying to live and cope with their daily lives, encountering big issues with simple things, which defeat them.

So what can old people expect from 'India Shining' in their twiligh t years? Are rhere adequate social support systems, legal systems, and consumer forums to protect chem and make life easier for t hem ?

Maybe we should discuss this in the new cafe down the Jane.

Anotl1er debatable topic is the education system in India roday. Th ere are n ew fancy sch ools with international boards bur questionable admission processes, donations, super h.iked fees, etc.

After various discussions and drinks witl1 farniJ y and friends, there is only one conclusion I can safely reach: it remains a very complex and c o nfusing issue.

There is plent)' of wealth being generated; however depending on where you sit in the equation, the spectrum shifts to gold or grey.

Eac.h hnme has a ma id, cook, nanny and driver -along with !hi: grandmother ~upErvising th e daily ch1Jres iind the gramk hildren's activit ies!

Th P. fil'st cra (k, which isper.sonal to me und perhap s to many .families in our situation! is th e .service !€:ve! and supµol't µrovided to paren1 s therP. in their old agE

Travel Notebook Cruising The Hugli

While the cru ise ship I trave lled on no longer operates, the high ly recommended Assam Benga l Navigation s Suka pha does, an ex perience I find not dissimila r to travelli ng with fr iends. Assam Benga l Navigation ope rates cru ises from Kolkatato Fa rakka on the HugIi and from Fara kka to Pat na on the Ganges. The cru ises may be taken separate ly or combined. TheSu ka pha is compact at 40 metres long and with a maximum of 24 guests; it ma intains an on board ambience convivial to relaxation Cabins are spacious with a lounge, dining and observat ion deckfor viewing the pas~ng scene ry Contact: Ind ia: Assam Bengal Navigation Co. Tel :9192070 42330 E - ma il: sales@assambengal.inWebsite:www.assambenga lnavigat ion com

Getting There

Singa pore Airli nes flies from Austra lia to Singapore wit h connections to dest inat ions across India incl uding Kolkata ACCOMMODATION in Kolkata lo experience exemp lary serv ice ingracious surrounds the Oberoi Grand is a hotel that harks back to a bygone era. Contact Tel: 9133 2249 2323 emai l re servat ions@oberoi-cal.comor www.oberoihotels.com

This comedian thought it was a simple case of 'humourroids; but it turned out to be a close brush with colon cancer

Descend ccording to organisations like Bowel Cancer Australia and The C ancer Co u ncil A ustralia, bowel cancer is the second largest ca use of cancer deaths in Australia. Not necessarily restricted w an age group, bowel cancer is more prevalent in older peop le and we are enco uraged nationwide to partake in voluntary bowel cancer sc re ening testS once we've hit the fifty mark. (As k your GP about symptoms and testing regardless of yom age).

When my body's 50,000 miles service came up, J had a few sym proms but found man y very p la us ible reasons fo r m y symptoms nor to be b owel cancer so I d id n't bother getting tested. 1 arc quite well and exe rcised so mewhat, l wasn't ove rweight and my general health was good except fo r the onset of trawna arthritis from a prior close encounter in the d c rriere of nl)' wee ca r b y an idiot in h is humungous 4WD. Perhaps the 4WD was still in situ, up my derrierc Thar's another who le sto ry about getting it up the clacker b y the idiot and then getting it up the Khyber by the idiot's insurance company.

I also felt being born in New Delhi, India has given me an advantage in char my gut's we ll travelled witho ut man y incidents of Delh i b elly JJoweve r, one of d1e major stresses on my g u r and its s urrounds is purely <l ue to my preperformance nerves p rior to doing a srnnd-u p appearance,

Colon cancer sites

especially a high-stress g ig

It was spook y getting DeJhj b e ll y eac h rime I had tO get in m y Indian character fo r a show. I'd spend at least five hours prior to an evening gig playing a frenzied ver s ion of musical chairs with the d u nny b owl. I was probab ly a kilo or two lighter by the time 1 got on stage and as soon as my name was anJ10 Lu1ced, T'd need m do a po o - n ow that's a uthentic comic relief right there!

Once I was on stage and got my first laugh , the fi reworks i n my gut would settle down bu t it would take me days to recover afte r a show -m y g ut WOLud feel funny but] wasn't h1ughing lt was time to give my gut a b reak for a bit. 1 had to adjus t a few thi ngs in my gastrointestinal life a nd unfortunately doing stan d -up had tO be the first tO go, for a w hi le at least.

Several gig-free months later, 1 realised my gut was performing like a B-grade mini-series regardless o f the absence of m y stand- up pressures Bur even now, I cmud write o ff these episodes as a collaboration with 'Peri-menopause, the musical ', whi ch was now in full swing.

My GP s uggested l do so me blood rests to check m y hormone levels and other vitals. As I was about to have man y samples of m y various bodily ALtids extracted, I fig ured 1 might as well do the bowel cancer sc re ening rest and get that our of the way too. Turn s o u t m y rest was pos itive, i.e. there wer e traces of blood present - as a comedian on sa b b a tical, it was probabl y just a simple case of humou.rroids.

The next step was a colonoscopy ASA P. The good news is, mo st get the all clear. Unfortunately I didn't, but vital early d etection and a second en d oscopy w ith the help of a brilliant colorcctal sLLtgcon (who vowe d he wo ul dn't look), means I'm free of the dreade d 'c' wordcancer!

A colonoscop y d oesn't have to end io a bum rap - the o ld adage, there's light a t the end of the tunn el, comes to min d. l'm now in the dirocs of writing

''I now have a degree.· in Colonosopliy making_n1ea Colonosophel'~with inside info why tt1e exit needs as much attention as the entrar,ce m )' next stand - up show but can't d eci d e between Po(yp, the lllUSim/ or l\!!J' B eo11tijitl Co/011.

Even though a colonoscopy conjures up all lcin d s o f unwanted images of yo ur back end being invaded by fol k you hardly know w ieldi ng va rio us accoutrements of d1cir trade including a camera and a wide screen to view your innards, it's not as bad as it sou n d s. 1 LlJJderwcot two pro ccdmes in as many wee ks, a colonoscop)' and a Ae xi b le sigmoidoscopy (a shorter scope is used in the la tter), and at no poi nt did I fee.I chat anything or anyone had bee n up my prove rbia l The worse pare of the process is d ow ning 2 litres o f h ospital grade 'bowel b laster' to prepare for these procedures.

So if you're reading chis, co n sider it a friendly reminder if you haven't addressed th is is sue and you kn ow rou shou ld - there's more d1an one ring of confidence to be had. Go ahead, get anally retentive your li fe d epe nds o n it!

I'm now in the throes of writing m.Y next si:and-up .show but can 't decide bet11Veen Polyp, the •musical.or My Elerwtiful Calm,

Australia Day isn't just about ce l ebrating our beautiful b eac h es and wide-open spaces. It's not just about celebrating our rich diversity of cu ltures , or th e fact we take o u r sport more ser iou sly than w e take ourselves. And w e'r e not just celebrating because we have a day off to share with o u r fami l y and fri ends. Whe rever our personal stories begin, we 're celebrating on January 26, because tomo rrow w e get to live it all over again. To find out about celebrations near you, visit A U STR A LIADAY O RG .AU

Purple and precious, this vegetable is healthy, nutritious and versatile in cuisine

if you have a sweet tooth; it is definitely a healthier type of chocolate cake!

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Roast Beetroot

6 -8 medium beetroot

Beetroor as garnish. l'd never seen that before. As l sat looking at my p late of tok,i chaat at Chandigarh's most popular eatery

GopaJ's, the beetroot took my breath away Long thin shreds of the vegetable brought the p late alive with colour, especially as its juices spread like tiny rivulets of maroon-and-purple over that furn! yogurt topp ing. Its beautifully earthy flavour was a perfect precursor to the e:-.-plosioo of taste tha t was to foUow.

The beetroot garnish has since been adding a much of glamour to my own salads, a bright reminder of my recent India hoLiday that already seems eons ago.

Wasn't so crash hot about beetroot juice, though - a regular horel breakfast item during m y tenday tour of Kerala. Nonetheless, there's been a fair bit of beetroot ever since I got back.

Beetroot is filled with amioxidants and minerals such as sodium, potassium and magnesium, and V itamin C. lts bright colour comes from antioxidants call ed beracyanios which are fantastic for cardiovascular health, protecting b lood vesse ls and preventing b lood pressure, heart disease and stroke.

Go lden beetroots, available from select grocers, are sweeter: they do nor b leed or stain, as their colour is not dominating. Roasting bdogs our a sweet caramelized fla vo ur. Beetroot leaves are edible as well.

Beetroot lends itself to a variety of easy preparations such as so ups and salads, as \veU as raitas, chutneys and hahvas. This last one will probably nullify any benefits of die beetroot towards cardiovascu lar heald1, but you could try beetroot chocol ate cake

2 tsp fresh thyme

2 tsp balsamic vinegar

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp honey

Sale and pepper to taste

Heat oven to 200 degrees. Scrub beetroot and u·itn. Cur into wedges and arrange o n a lined oven tray. Mix together vinegar, olive oil, rhyme and hooe y and pour over d1e beeti·oor. Sprinkle sal t and pepper over and toss together well - use hands to ensure the beetroot is th~1rough l)' coated Roast for 25 minnres until the beetroot wedges are cooked through.

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Roast Beetroot Salad

6 -8 medium beetroot

200g walnuts

2 tsp honey

150g Danish feta

¾ cup pomegra nate seeds

3 tsp light o li\Te oil

3 tbsp balsamic vit1egar

I 1 / 2 tbsp brown sugar

Salt and pepper

Rocker leaves

Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Scrub beetroot and trim. Wrap in foil and cook in oven for about an how- or until tender when reseed with skewer. Remove from oven and unfurl carefully. Stand for 10 minutes and then peel - wear d isposable gloves to save hands from staining. Cut into large neat portions.

Put walnuts into small frying pan and add hooey Cook, stirring, till outs are well-coated and heated through. Cool. Make dressing by combining o Live o il , balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, salt and pepper.

To put s alad together, throw in rocket leaves in deep bowl and add beetroot, pomegranate, honeyed walnuts and Danish feta (cubed or crumbled). Dciz7Je dress ing over and toss.

Beetroot Raita

1 tbsp oLive oil

1 tsp mustard seeds

I dry red chilli

1 tsp sesame seeds

1 sprig curr y leaves

Ptnch asa foetid a

1 cup (200g) thick Greek -style yoghurt

2 small beerroots, cooked, peeled chopped into 5mm cubes

Heat oil in a small frying pan. Add the mustard seeds and dry red chilli Cook till chilli is blackened: this gets rid o f its heat and increases its Aavour. Throw in sesa me seeds, curry leaves and asafoetida, and cook till sizzling. Meanwhile, combine the yogh urt and beetroot in a b ow l and season with salt and pepper. Pour tempering ove r straight from the frying pan and mix, and watch the yogh urt turn inro a beautiful pink

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Beetroot Chutney

I large beetroot, grated

¼ tsp tamarind concentrate

3 numbers eschallots (scallio ns)

4 tbsp fresh g rated coconut

1 tbsp chopped garLic

1- 2 dry red chillies

1 tsp chana dal

1 esp coriander seeds

I tsp urad dal

Salt to taste

3 cloves

½ inch cinnamon stick

¼ tsp fenugreek seeds

For fe11ljming:

1 tbsp o il

1 tsp mustard seed~

Pinch asafoetida

1 sprig curry leaves

Heat oil in a pan and add garlic, fenugreek seeds, dal s, cloves, cinnamon and red chillies and cook until sizzling. J\dd grated beetroot, coconut and rarnarind. Stir to combine. Cook till the raw smell disappears. Cool. Process in a blender w i th a little water, to make a smooth paste. Add salt to taste and mix well. To temper, heat oil in a small frying pan and add mustard seeds, asafoetida and curry leaves. When it comes ro a sizzle, pour over beetroot chutne y

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Beetroot Dip

1 kg beetroot

1 /3 cup ora nge juice (preferab ly fresh ly squeezed)

3 tsp dry roasted and ground cumin seeds

2 esp dry roasted and ground coriander seeds

Sale and pepper to taste

1 cup yoghurt

Roast the beetroot as explained under Roast Beetroot Salad Cool and chop flesh up.

Process together witl1 orange juice, cumin powder and coriander powder.

Add yoghurt, s alt and pepper and m.ix well. Refrigerate until needed.