2013-05 Sydney (1)

Family feud

AUD$300,000-$400,000 mark 20 years ago, are now valued at over AUD$10 million. This kind of spectacular growth is largely spread across various cities in India.

Over the next decade, Indians in Australia could find themselves involved in litigation with family members in India over assets which have increased sharply in value in the past 1015 years. One such obvious asset is property.

In 2012, residential property prices in New Delhi rose by 17 % according to the National Housing Bank (NHB). In Mumbai, house prices rose by 8% while Pune registered India’s highest annual house price increase of 33%. Chennai and Jaipur also recorded strong house price increases of 24% and 21%.

These price increases are just the tip of the iceberg as real estate values are known to have two values - the stated value on transactions and the actual value, often the difference of which is financed by cash at time of purchase. Over the past 10 years as the Indian middle class has emerged, property in India has increased substantially in value. For example, properties in South Delhi’s influential areas which may have been around the

Indian migrants who arrived here in the last 10-20 years, were searching for a better lifestyle - both personal and economic. With limited resources, they settled down and over the years have worked hard to establish themselves. Meanwhile, their parents and other siblings in India have continued on with their lifestyles in India. The annual holidays for the Indian migrant to India are a mixture of family gatherings, shopping and talking about both the economic growth and political situation in India. Often the great unsaid is the value of the family and ancestral property, especially as the parents still live in them. What can be a potential challenge is the settlement of the property as and when the elders move on. Whereas once upon a time, when the underlying value was in the low hundreds of thousands of dollars, it may have been easier to resolve these issues. But now when the inheritance can be in millions of dollars, it can give rise to family discord.

Family members left behind in India can feel that they have full right to these assets, especially if it is a joint family

asset with people still living there and in some cases, running family businesses from these properties. Those living in Australia may like to access their part of the entitlement and invest it as they deem fit for themselves and their future generations.

A potential sale of property in Mumbai in the Bandra region or in Defence Colony in Delhi can add up to $10 million to the family coffers. This lump sum, even if split two ways between siblings, will allow for a high level of family security to the sibling in Australia or overseas.

While there is no easy solution to this, it is often advisable to discuss these issues rather than to have them as an elephant in the room at later family gatherings when things are not so pleasant. The tyranny of distance between India and Australia and the horrendous Indian legal system can make these conflicts very difficult to resolve when there is limited guidance from the elders, and unsolved property matters can lead to long-term conflicts within the same family.

Family feuds are never pleasant: pathways must be found to defuse this situation before it comes to a head.

Pawan Luthra is the current Parliament of NSW Multicultural Journalist of the Year.

PAWAN LUTHRA

SPIRITUAL

Gopa Kuteeram

4th Sunday of every month 4pm-5:30pm

The Global Organisation for Divinity runs free spiritual educational classes for children aged 4-12 years. Crestwood Community Centre, Crestwood Drive, Baulkham Hills. Parents can join in the devotional lecture by Sri Deepak Vinod. Classes are also being run in Liverpool. Baulkham Hills. Details: Jayashree on 02 9620 4676.

Liverpool details: Deepak Vinod 0422 127 956.

Chinmaya Mission events Finding Your Place

Sat 17 May 6pm

Stage Musical by Director

John D Williams at Chinmaya Sannidhi, 38 Carrington Road,

What’s on

Castle Hill.

Details: Ashok 0439 620 414.

Dare to Face the Change

May 26 – Jun 2 7:30-9pm

Details: Jagadish Sury 0414 703 151.

Classes

Shishu Vihar Classes for children between the age of 2- 4.5 years, tailored to increase love and bonding between parent and child. Vedanta

Classes In Castle Hill & Epping on Wednesday nights

Meditation Classes

10-week program at Castle Hill Sanskrit Classes

10-week program for beginners (Course 1) and advanced students (Course 2) at Castle Hill Hindi Classes

Beginners level starting in May at Crestwood

Community Centre, Baulkham Hills

Details: Br Gopal Chaitanya 0416 482 149.

Ramakrishna Sarada

Vedanta Society of NSW activities: Sankaracharya’s Birthday

Celebration

Sun 19 May 10:30am12:30pm

Hari Om Ramakrishna Chant, Silent Meditation, Talks by Pravrajika Gayatriprana and Dr Ashit Maitra. Offering and distribution of Sweets and Savouries.

Buddha’s Birthday Celebration

Sun 26 May 10:30am -12:30pm

Hari Om Ramakrishna Chant, Silent Meditation, Talk & Guided Meditation by Graeme Lyall A.M (Past

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Bombay Jayashri’s special event for special needs kids

The eminent Carnatic vocalist Bombay Jayashri was in Sydney recently to perform at the Sydney Opera House.

During her visit, I was pleasantly surprised to receive an invite from Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) stating that Bombay Jayashri would be presenting a concert solely for special needs children. Being the mother of one such beautiful child, I had the privilege of the invite. I decided to go even though I had other commitments that evening, as a gesture of appreciating the artiste and the time she was devoting to the privileged children (‘God’s special children’ as Bombay Jayashri preferred to call them).

Logistics planned for commuting fell apart on that day as luck would have it, and, my going became a question mark with time ticking away. With the foremost thought of paying my respect to the organisation (especially Akila Ramarathinam of the VHP) and the singer, somehow the whole thing was managed and there we were just in the nick of time at Ermington Hall where the event was organised. There were only about 40-50 of us with about 15 special kids. I thought to myself that this lady who was going to perform at the Opera House the next day in all its grandeur, will probably want to save her voice and sing about two or three songs perhaps. Wrong. She sang no less than 10 songs!

Chairman of Buddhist Council of NSW) and Talk by Pravrajika Gayatriprana. Offering and distribution of sweets and savouries. Both at: Vedanta Hall, 15 Liverpool Road, Croydon. Details: 02 9745 4320 or www.saradavedanta.org

Sydney Sakhi Sangam’s Teej function

14 July 11am-onwards

This is their 15th year commemorating Indian Women and their friendships. Details: Nandini 0423 684 340, Sushma 0411 967 374.

F ILM

The Taj Foundation hosting The Great Gatsby movie night Fri May 31 6:30pm (screening starts at 7pm) A night of drama, mingling

and fun. Stay on for drinks after the movie.

Tickets: $25 Feel free to dress 1920s style Hoyts Cinema Paris, Entertainment Quarter, 38 Driver Avenue, Moore Park. Details: www.tajfoundation.org.au

MISC

Hindu Council of Australia Opportunities Available Hindu Council of Australia invites expression of interests from anyone who wishes to expand their horizons and get involved with one of the biggest community events of Sydney. These are voluntary positions.

Details: Raman Bhalla 0401 057 224 or www.hinducouncil.com.au

Apply: info@deepavali.com.au

The performance opened with a beautiful rendition of Shuklam bharatharam from one of the kids bringing tears to our eyes. They continued to flow on hearing Ms Bombay Jayashri say, “Allow these kids to be - don’t restrict them should they make a noise or run around”.

With all her songs centred around the theme of motherhood, my tears did not stop flowing, such was the sincerity with which Jayashri sang for us that evening.

Madhava maamava deva Krishna and Enna dhavam seidhanai were so very special to me as my son’s name is Krishna. Each song had me dance with pure joy in my mind with my son...

Afterwards, the star singer stayed on to mingle with the crowd. She was a picture of grace and sincerity as she took time to pose for photographs with each child, and to speak to the parents in her soft and gentle voice.

Now, I have no idea what her take from the event was, but mine and speaking for all of us who were there - it was a garland of tears etched with gratitude and joy from the bottom of our hearts not just for her time but for the “dignity” she gave our kids and us parents.

It was an evening we will all savour for a long time. Suchie Vijaykumar Roselands NSW

I have recently moved to Australia. I came across Indian Link and read your section. It’s totally amazing, and you must be too. I don’t have anything to ask but couldn’t stop myself from writing to you. It’s fun reading your section. Keep up the good work!

Deepika Marwaha Homebush NSW

info@indianlink.com.au

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Remembering

A second Indian contingent makes its debut at Sydney’s annual ANZAC Day parade

BY NIMA MeNON

The marching contingents at the ANZAC parade in Sydney this year had a very valuable addition, 10 veterans from the Indian Army and Navy. They marched under the Indian Defence Forces banner honouring and remembering the Indian soldiers who fought alongside the Australians and the New Zealanders at Gallipoli. The reaction from the spectators was one of jubilation and surprise, for very few people are aware of the Indian presence in the campaign. As in previous years there was also a Sikh contingent marching under the banner of the Sikh Council of Australia.

The 7th Indian Mountain Artillery Brigade, the Indian Mule Corps, a medical establishment and the 29th Indian Infantry Brigade represented the Indian Army at Gallipoli. The artillery landed with the ANZACs on the 25th of April and stayed on till the final evacuation in December. The gallantry displayed by the soldiers of the 29th Indian Infantry Brigade in the battle of the Sari Bair Ridge was unassailable. It is believed that over 1000 Indian soldiers lost their lives in the Gallipoli campaign and records indicate that 371 of these were from the battalion of the 14th Sikh regiment. The first battalion of the 5th Gurkha Rifles also lost 136 of their brave soldiers and one of their companies was one of the last to leave during withdrawal. The Indian presence may have been in smaller numbers, yet their contribution was a very significant one. The valour of these soldiers has left an indelible mark on the pages of history.

Watching the ANZAC parade and the marching Indian contingent brought back a number of nostalgic memories. I have watched a number of Army Day and Republic Day parades, sat in the ramparts of the Red Fort listening to the Prime Minister deliver his Independence Day speech, and the feeling I had watching the parade was no

different - it was unique, binding and enthralling.

I have had first-hand experience of bidding a beloved one goodbye as he leaves in preparation for war and have experienced the uncertainty, the fear, the hope and the pride - all at the same time.

The wives stood on the sidelines, watching the serving personnel and the veterans march past, we were engulfed by a deep sense of gratification. We ran alongside our marching husbands, cheering, clapping and waving with pride and joy. Seeing your husband march in a contingent in India or march as part of an

Indian contingent in Australia is no different. Patriotism and the satisfaction of being part of the ‘fauji’ fraternity surpasses all boundaries. You feel connected to the people who made history in a different era and time.

The participating veterans had their own story to tell. “[It was] a glorious day in our lives. It was a privilege and an honour to march to the ANZAC spirit and values. The reception and welcoming gesture from the crowds were overwhelming and humbling,” commented one of the officers after the parade.

“It was indeed a ‘great

They all felt that they had taken off from where they had left more than 10 years ago and that they “would be eternally grateful to the traditions of the Indian Armed Forces for moulding us to fit-in to any service environment”.

Let us not remember our fallen heroes just on ANZAC day or Independence day. Let them be in our thoughts everyday as we enjoy this bountiful life of ours, let us acknowledge that they sacrificed their today for our tomorrow.

Let us also take a moment to

Seeing your husband march in a contingent in India or march as part of an Indian contingent in Australia is no different. Patriotism and the satisfaction of being part of the ‘fauji’ fraternity surpasses all boundaries

pay homage to all the surviving veterans who have given their all and will always be haunted by the memories of their fallen comrades.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning, We will remember them. Lest we forget.

(From For the fallen by Laurence Binyon).

our fallen

Mother Indian Link’s

Sweety Makwana will use prize money towards funding Mission Twisha

BY USHA RAMANUJAM ARVIND

I am only one of the many faces of Oesophageal Atresia. I am only one, with a small voice but great hope. While there is no cure for TOF/OA, there is hope, and where there is hope, there are miracles… (www.twishamakwana.com)

Sweety Makwana and her bubbly toddler make it a point to attend every Indian event possible.

Dressed up in their weekend best, they always turn up at Bhangra, Dandiya and Bollywood Nites, gala dinners, fundraisers, charity bashes and such like. But unlike most partygoers, the duo is hardly there for the good time. They would love to sing and dance no doubt, but not in the foreseeable future.

Instead, for Sweety, these events are a muchawaited opportunity to hand out pamphlets and raise awareness about Twisha’s medical condition.

Sporting a brave smile, the single mum is on an ambitious odyssey - to find a permanent solution for her only child through a life-changing surgery. With this aim, she has launched Mission Twisha, a multipronged fundraising campaign that desperately seeks to raise $800,000 for the project.

Effervescent, naughty and attention seeking, the adorable Twisha might seem like any other two-year-old to the average onlooker. Her pretty frocks and cherubic demeanour hide a heartwrenching tale, the twenty-sevenmonth old cannot eat normal food and is not likely to, unless she can access urgent correctional surgery. For most human beings, eating is not just a much-savoured experience, but also a basic instinct.

Twisha suffers from a very rare medical condition called Long Gap Oesophageal Atresia (LGOA). She has already

undergone over 20 major surgeries in the past 24 months and certainly received the best possible medical attention that Westmead Children’s Hospital can provide, but with limited success.

There is still a gaping hole in her food pipe. For the moment

expert surgeons have fitted her abdomen with a little flap (gastronomy button) through which a nutritionally balanced baby formula is injected five to eight times a day. As a result of this, her weight gain is normal and she is generally healthy and happy, despite the surrounding trauma. She also receives “fake” oral feeds,

a messy and laborious procedure, to keep her sensory reflexes alive.

Affecting 1 in 5000 children, LGOA is a congenital medical condition affecting the alimentary canal. Quite simply, the food tract fails to develop as a continual passage while in the womb and instead ends in a blind sac. It is identified at birth primarily through excess salivation and resultant

embryological development, the reason for this birth defect is

Correctional surgery at birth, known as anastomosis is the preferred solution (sewing together the two ends of the undeveloped oesophagus using fine sutures). For infants with long gap EA (the condition which Twisha has), however, management and treatment is a major surgical challenge.

Currently, Boston Children’s Hospital is the only known centre in the world with proven success. Pioneered and perfected by Dr Foker, the delicate surgery involves traction sutures in the tiny oesophageal ends. Tension is placed on these sutures daily, pulling on them slightly until the ends grow close enough to be

While Twisha has undergone multiple procedures here, “replicating” the Foker technique, the desired outcomes have not been achieved unfortunately. Sweety Makwana is now determined to give her daughter a normal and secure future by taking her to Dr Foker. The procedure however comes at an eye popping price tag - $800,000 besides incidental costs for

Raising the whopping figure in a short span can be quite an ask for well-provided families, the figure is quite simply unattainable for Sweety Makwana.

A victim of relationship abuse and domestic violence, Sweety was turned out of her home by her former husband, when Twisha was only five months old.

“When it is a battle for survival, there is no time for emotions like grief and self pity. My child’s needs are much greater than mine and for her sake I have learnt to be brave”

Blamed for “producing a defective child” as Sweety bluntly puts it, she became a destitute, with no family in Australia and very few friends. As Twisha’s sole primary carer, Sweety is unable to seek employment as well. Currently she subsists on Centrelink’s carer payment and lives in shared accommodation at Westmead.

Given Twisha’s complex medical requirements, Sweety cannot access childcare as well, putting enormous physical and mental strain on the single mother. Sweety’s repeated appeals for a federal grant to aid the US surgery were shot down recently as the government believes Twisha could undergo alternative therapies in Australia.

With no other means to raise the amount, Sweety has turned to the Indian community, using the social media and public events to highlight her toddler’s cause.

“My daughter has the right to lead a normal life just like anyone else and I am determined to fight for her dignity,” appeals the emotional mother.

Between fundraising and caring for Twisha, Sweety has virtually no time or energy for anything else. “When it is a battle for survival, there is no time for emotions like grief and self pity. My child’s needs are much greater than mine and for her sake I have learnt to be brave,” she confesses.

For Sweety though, Twisha is

Sweety Makwana

of the Year 2013

not just her mission but her life force too. She feels nothing but profound, unconditional love for her only child. “It’s terrific! To stay awake till early morning with tired eyes… feeling like vomiting, headache, back pain... having restless days and nights leading Mission Twisha ... Tomorrow Twisha will fill me with energy with her bright morning smile.”

Her poignant Facebook post sums up her rollercoaster journey since Twisha arrived.

Sweety had an inkling of a possible congenital defect during her second trimester ultrasound. She courageously chose to continue with the pregnancy in the hope that issues could be ironed out. Little did this delicately built young woman realise that she would soon be embarking on a perilous solo journey into the unknown. Adversity no doubt is a great character building exercise.

Two years on, Sweety has steadfastly not given up hope. In the face of acute physical hardships, she firmly believes in a miracle and is relentlessly chasing this dream.

So far, she has door knocked on many institutions seeking support for her herculean task. United Indian Associations is one such organisation that has taken up her cause. They hope to lobby with senior politicians including Parramatta member Julie Owens to plead her case for government intervention.

“The Irish government has so far flown two children to Boston for fully paid surgery,” Sweety tells us.

She is still hoping for a positive outcome in Twisha’s appeal. In the meantime, she has mounted a renewed campaign for fundraising.

Her sheer courage and unwavering determination are saluted by some of her newest friends, (made along her bitter sweet journey called Mission Twisha) who nominated her for the Indian Link Mother of the Year award. Sweety was nominated by four separate individuals.

“She is not just the Indian Link Mother of the Year, but deserves to be named Australian mother of the year too,” says Adam Shah, one of the nominators.

“I salute her indomitable spirit.

Behind this brave front is a vulnerable young woman, who is prepared to weather the biggest storms. Hers is not a happy position to be in,” he tells Indian Link

“I first met Sweety and Twisha at a charity fundraiser at Bowman Hall on Valentine’s Day this year and later at the Fairfield Holi Mela,” adds Avleen Chand, another supporter. “She was up on stage and the MC highlighted Twisha’s medical condition and the cost involved. I was very disturbed and wondered how I could help her so I mentioned it to the girls in my volleyball group - Golden Homes Desi Girls”.

Chand has lobbied her band of sisters to sell food packs at an upcoming event to raise money.

They have created awareness campaigns in the social media.

“For me, Sweety is such a powerful role model who has not given up hope. She keeps approaching organisations or charity functions in a desperate attempt to raise any bit of money she can. She doesn’t have transport but travels far with her daughter searching for help. I think no other mother has been through such an ordeal on a daily basis,” Chand notes.

Moved by this story, real estate agent and sponsor of Chand’s team Sanjay Prasad has helped Sweety find a place within walking distance from the hospital. For Sweety, this has been a godsend, as she often needs to access emergency care in the middle of the night.

Only recently, Twisha

gastronomy button, triggering a choking fit.

A thoughtful neighbour delivers subsidised “dabba” service. Several others help her access weekly supplies from Salvation Army.

Sharina Shanaz, another person who nominated Sweety for the award, met Sweety at the same events and offered to drive her to another show.

“It was heart wrenching to see this young mother constantly talking to people, sometimes delivering the same message over and over again,” says Shanaz. “Since then I have taken Sweety to other events where she is able to raise awareness for Twisha’s conditions through the distribution of pamphlets, setting up banners, talking to people and going up on stage for about five minutes and informing people

about Twisha. Determined as she is, sometimes she is at the mercy of volunteers like me to drive her to these events and also organisers who can take at least five minutes from their time to allow Sweety to come up on stage with Twisha. At some events I went to with her, the organisers have not been so kind and just could not find five minutes to talk about Twisha on stage. In these situations, when Sweety distributes the pamphlets, it gets thrown away, people don’t take it seriously and in the end we go around and collect all the discarded pamphlets. It costs Sweety money to get it printed”.

It is Sweety’s mental strength that Shanaz admires more than anything else. “Despite facing all these difficulties, she still has big hopes for Twisha. She sincerely believes that Twisha can be cured and works around the clock. Sweety has inordinate amount of patience as Twisha needs care 24/7, she adds.

Rather than discussing her failed relationship or wallowing in self pity, she spends every spare moment on renewing her fundraising efforts, lauds Shahnaz.

“I know she is often depressed but she says that Twisha’s smile motivates her”.

It is Sweety’s never say never spirit that touched another

‘Mother’s love is the fuel that enables a normal human being to do the impossible’ is one of the proverbs from her website and this is exactly what Sweety does day in and day out for her daughter

nominator Sajida Bi.

Mother’s love is the fuel that enables a normal human being to do the impossible’ is one of the proverbs from her website and this is exactly what Sweety does day in and day out for her daughter. As a working mother of a two-yearold, I can deeply empathise,” she admits.

“Fundraising for such a big

next to impossible for me but it is so inspiring to see Sweety never losing faith and always turning up for various Indian events. A major award like this will boost her self confidence and help her profile”, she adds.

As the Indian Link team visit Sweety, she is in the middle of unpacking, tired from the physical demands of the move and relentless pressures of round

my child,” she says courageously, fighting back tears.

Hopefully Baby Twisha will soon indulge in the simple everyday pleasures like nibbling on toast and sucking on lollies that most mothers take for granted. Please support Mission Twisha. Visit her Facebook page or website (www.twishamakwana. com). Donations are eagerly sought through Kids for Kids

P: nominated by sons

Sumallya Roy and Sudeb Roy, daughters in law Anitha Roy and Srishti Roy, and grandaughters

Sharanya Roy, Kiran Roy and Oviya Roy, Sydney

hile nuclear families are the preferred norm

Roybaari in the Blacktown suburb of Sydney is a happy testimonial of a fast eroding tradition, the joint family system. At the centre of Roybaari, which includes Sumallya and Sudeb, their wives Anitha and Janet, and kids, Srishti, Kiran, Sharanya and Oviya, is the matriarch - Nandita Roy. But quite unlike most domineering mums, she has been the epitome of self-sacrifice and

“Mum, literally is the backbone of our family. We all live together as a happy family only because of her sincere affection, dedication and her nurturing and approachable attitude. It is a great feeling to be together as we all have learnt how to give space to each other. True, we have our ups and downs but mum’s personality shines through these difficult patches.” This heartfelt compliment comes not from Nandita’s sons but her daughters-

The wheelchair bound Nandita, who recently celebrated her sixtieth birthday was nominated Mother of the Year award by her tight-knit

Nandita’s tale is an inspirational one – of a woman who has braved innumerable personal hardships, without ever losing faith in core human values. Her life has been a long rollercoaster but there has been no room for bitterness or pessimism.

Raised in a traditional Bengali household at Kolkata, she moved to Bangalore at the age of seventeen after her wedding. Unfortunately, her marriage was

short-lived as her locomotive engineer husband succumbed to cancer within a decade.

Overnight, she became the primary carer of her two boys (then aged 10 and 8). With little academic qualifications and no family support, Nandita was forced to take up shift work at a local factory. Through sheer grit and determination, she not only raised her children, giving them a solid education but also managed to save enough to buy a small family home. In a cruel twist of fate, she was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis.

When close friends moved to Sydney, she opted to follow in their footsteps, making a brave decision to carve out a new future for herself and her boys in an unknown land. At the age of 42, she arrived in Sydney quite alone, except for a few contacts, who made the transition easier.

She soon found a job in an aged care facility and also enrolled in a Certificate III course to update her skill set.

By now, her older son had a secure job in Bangalore but Sudeb was still at university and quite a source of worry for the single mum.

Having established tentative roots in Australia, she now tried her best to bring her sons into the country. But her applications were rejected several times, as they were no longer in the dependent category. Nandita flew back to Bangalore to support Anitha through her first pregnancy.

After much struggle, Sudeb finally migrated to Sydney in 2000. Sadly, Nandita’s health deteriorated considerably around this time. She underwent multiple operations including knee replacements, forcing her to finally give up her job. High dosage of steroids has also led to limb deformations. But through these difficult periods, her deep commitment to her family never waned.

To her joy, her elder son and his

family also relocated to Sydney in 2003, finally moving in with her. No longer the main breadwinner, Nandita now devoted her energy to fostering love and affection to the extended household.

Affectionately called Thakurma (grandmother in Bengali), she has instilled a strong sense of tradition and values in the family. Respect for their individual identity coexists with a genuine desire to support each other.

“That is the best thing about her,” Anitha, her elder-daughter in-law notes. “She is the binding agent without ever squashing our personalities. She runs the household without ever being overbearing.”

Thakurma not only shops and cooks for the family but even feeds the children with her own hands, to this day despite the rheumatism. For Anitha and Janet, who both work full time, this is quite a relief, knowing that the family is well cared for. They readily chip in with housework and shopping, while Sumallya often takes over the kitchen on weekends, having inherited his mother’s fine culinary skills.

“In fact every one crowds round us at work the moment we open our lunch boxes, because mum has packed us something different every day”, Anitha admits.

Together, they have created a beautiful structure, where they all collaborate. Her frail health is their biggest worry. For this reason, Sudeb has now opted for shift work, so he is able to accompany her on numerous hospital trips.

Festivals and birthdays are quite an event at Roybaari. Ever since the grandchildren were born, Nandita initiated a novel birthday celebration, where the child’s mother cooks five traditional dishes and fasts until the child has been fed and the whole family joins for a sumptuous repast.

Despite forging a strong Bengali identity, the family is truly multicultural and celebrates several religious festivals harmoniously, as Janet is Manglorean and Anitha a Malayali. The family enjoys experimenting with different cuisines. Macher jol and Aappam just as popular as ham sandwiches.

Despite being plagued by rheumatism, Nandita travelled to Bangalore last year to renovate her house, spending eight months by herself overseeing the project.

While in Bangalore, she suffered multiple fractures injuring her spine, ribs and shoulders.

Today, she is wheelchair bound and spends more time in the hospital than at home. Her intake of medicines is more than her normal meals, as she has succumbed to many more chronic diseases over a period of time.

“But this has not kept her away from any of her routines as she still helps in all household chores and cooks for all of us and takes

care of her grandchildren moving in her wheel chair,”

Anitha is quick to point out.

As a mother, she has sacrificed a whole lot of happiness for the wellbeing of her children and their welfare. She is a selfmade woman and a perfectionist, who makes all of us proud to be her kids, she adds.

Runne R up: Akila Ramarathinam, nominated by son Krishna Ramarathinam, Sydney

Sanatana Dharma champion, disability campaigner, linguist, educator and activist Akila Ramarathinam has received many awards for her tireless community efforts. But it is as a caring mother of her two children Krishna and Santoshi, that she is best remembered.

An economics graduate, Akila had a bright future in the finance industry. But she sacrificed her career to give 100% of her time to her special needs child Santoshi. In 2000, Santoshi was diagnosed with autism and severe intellectual disabilities. Since then Akila has not only supported her own daughter, but has also helped many others find meaning in life. Her infectious enthusiasm and genuine smile have inspired many to pull through difficult situations.

Akila’s husband Ramarathinam and son Krishna, have been extremely supportive of her efforts. In fact, it was Krishna, who inspired his mother to turn the stumbling block into a stepping-stone.

As a mother of a special needs child, Akila has been liaising with various organisations looking after children with special needs and frail aged adults. Since 2009, she has been organising day camps every year for special needs children and adults. As a part of the camp, various services, networking, respite facilities and support group organisations provide information for the benefit of special people.

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad general secretary has been a resident of Australia since 1988 and has also completely dedicated herself to the Hindu cause, promoting awareness in the mainstream.

Akila has been the driving force behind various community projects across Australia in the areas of public education, special needs and community welfare.

“The eternal values embodied

in our philosophy and the sacred texts are the source of inspiration for my projects. As senior members of the community, it is our responsibility to involve and engage the youngsters and pass on our rich cultural heritage. Awards like these are an indication that the VHP Australia team is getting recognised by everyone, and our work is going in the right direction,” Akila told Indian Link

Known for her infectious enthusiasm, willingness and dedication, Akila joined VHP Australia as a committee member in 2007. Since then, she has overseen the recruitment and training of a wide network of volunteers, who have been engaged in a range of activities. Not content with her extensive commitments in New South Wales, Akila has also been responsible for establishing VHP’s Victoria and Queensland chapters. As well, she has inducted many members to Hindu Youth Australia (HYA). Her gregarious personality has helped her connect with the young, just as much as the old.

A prolific speaker, Akila has participated and presented papers at various conferences across the globe including Parliament of World Religions, International Coordinators Meet, and the World Hindu Women’s Conference,

WINNeR

Sweety Twisha, nominated by Adam Shah, Saajida Bi, Sharina Shanaz, Avleen Chand and Zabia Bano, Sydney

RUNNeRS UP

Nandita Roy, nominated by sons Sumallya Roy and Sudeb Roy, daughters-inlaw Anitha Roy and Srishti Roy, and grandaughters

Sharanya Roy, Kiran Roy and Oviya Roy, Sydney

Akila Ramarathinam, nominated by son Krishna Ramarathinam, Sydney

NOMINATIONS

Kamini Sahni, nominated by daughter Shibani Sahni, Sydney

Kamlesh Saini, nominated by daughter Sheetal Saini, Melbourne

Kush Maharaj, nominated by daughter Kavita Maharaj, Brisbane

Jyoti Rao, nominated by children Jannavi Rao and Aryan Rao, Sydney

Anamika Srivastava, nominated by husband Saket, Melbourne

Asha Chand, nominated by daughter Eashna Chand, Sydney

to name just a few. She has coordinated two Australian Hindu Conferences held in April 2008 and April 2009. Both of these conferences were well attended by representatives of the Australian Government, Indian organisations, temples and overseas experts.

It was at these conferences that Sydney Veda Pathashala and Hindu Social Services Foundation were born, Akila pointed out. Today, the Sydney Veda Pathashala is the only institution outside India teaching Sanskrit through weekend classes. She is also working hard to reinstate oral chanting to its formal glory. Akila has also been instrumental in organising Ekadasha Rudra Japam, Mahaa Vishnu Lakshaarchana and Mahaa Shivarathiri events at events across Australia.

Likewise, she has helped expand the Hindu education portfolio. In 2003, Akila facilitated the Hindu Scripture classes under the special religious education (SRE) provision of NSW Public Schools. At NSW public schools, as many as 6,000 children attend Hinduism classes every week. She has been responsible for preparing curriculum, coordinating and liaising with principals, as well recruiting and training voluntary teachers.

The Bala Samskar Kendra has

Dr Sushama Deshpande, nominated by child Ananya Deshpande, Sydney

Dayawanti Garg, nominated by daughterin-law Ruchika Mittal, Melbourne

Tanu Bhatia, nominated by daughter Hitika Bhatia, Perth

Sharmila Shankar, nominated by daughter Nivrita Shankar, Sydney

Nandini Thadani, nominated by daughter Preeti Thadani, Sydney

been another pet project of Akila’s. Introducing children and young adults to all aspects of Hinduism through structured learning, the weekend schools have grown exponentially, and have spread to many suburbs. She liaised with NSW Department of Education & Community Language Program division to obtain recognition for these schools and procure school rooms for conducting classes. Both BSK and SVP have hosted annual days, holiday camps and workshops besides regular weekend classes.

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Calming and soothing

Despite being an incredibly talented classical musician, Jayashri has the advantage of humility and compassion

BY MALLI IYER

To quote Bombay Jayashri’s own words, “It is every artist’s dream to perform at the Sydney Opera House and I am truly grateful”. This simple statement encompasses the humility of a great artist, which is undoubtedly what Jayashri is all about.

Jayashri received a warm welcome in Sydney. Her music concert at the Sydney Opera House was sponsored by Gayatri Krishna of Bhoomija (Bangalore), and organised by her Sydney partner and volunteer, Nalini Shankar. Renowned within classical music circles, Jayashri recently captured the attention of music makers across India and abroad thanks to her nomination for an Oscar in 2013, for a song that she wrote and sang for critically acclaimed movie Life of Pi.

Bombay Jayashri’s impeccable musical career spans over 30 years since her first public concert in 1982. She is a singer, author and composer with a highly commendable reputation.

Her early training in Carnatic music was with TR Balamani and in Hindustani music with Mahavir Jaipurwale and Ajay Pohankar. Her guru was the late violin maestro, Lalgudi G Jayaraman. Jayashri’s versatility and uncanny ability to adapt has seen her blossom in Carnatic and Hindustani classical music, light and fusion music, as well as cross cultural musical collaborations at the international level. Jayashri has performed globally, in jugalbandis with Ustad Rashid Khan, Ronu Majumdar and Richa Sharma, and has won several awards for playback singing. She has also released a few albums of devotional music.

Bombay Jayashri’s concert at the Sydney Opera House was simply superb, as she entranced an audience of nearly 500. Over two and a half hours, it was full of deft touches and classicisms which seemed to flow with little effort to repeated applause.

Despite her short but busy schedule, Jayashri even took time out to conduct a workshop for students of Carnatic music.

So what makes this talented lady such a great artiste? We find out as she speaks exclusively with Indian Link here.

Malli Iyer: Having already achieved celebrity status in the field of Indian classical music, how much longer do you think it will be before you reach legendary status like your guru, the late Sri Lalgudi Jayaraman?

Bombay Jayashri: My focus at present is to preserve his legacy, his bhani and style, which in itself is a huge responsibility. With the grace of God, I hope to eventually chart my own course and work towards promoting music, while developing my style of solo concerts.

MI: How do you nurture your voice, your most valuable asset?

BJ: I follow guidelines for general well being and good health. I practice praanayaam and do yoga, and do not exert my voice too much, or put unnecessary strain on it. Indian and Carnatic music are very natural to the voice. I do not believe in using medication to assist in caring for my voice.

MI: As you have done some work in this area, how do you go about creating healing and therapeutic music for the sick and mentally disabled young?

BJ: From an early age, I have been trained to believe in the healing properties of music. I sang to my grandfather in the last two years of his life, which soothed and calmed him. This is now implanted in my mind. Nursing mothers have told me that my music is a lullaby that helps their children sleep easily. I have done a few workshops with autistic children and have noticed that the calming effect of music makes them respond and show improvement. The success of this experiment has egged me on. We know the impact of music on the nerves and neurological receptors is not exactly measurable, but music is healing and therapeutic because it soothes and calms, especially in autistic children.

MI: Great composers like Saint Thyagaraja and Purandaradasa were inspired by their bhakti or supreme devotion to God. What or who is your inspiration?

BJ: Music is not just an occupation, it is a philosophy of life and I am devoted to the Goddess Saraswathi, who is my inspiration to learning. My guru has definitely been my inspiration. He always taught me to learn the nuances of the art, and that it is a continuing process throughout life.

MI: Do you feel you have a role in the continued evolution of Carnatic music, akin to your guru whose compositions have rendered him immortal?

BJ: Currently I have no definite plans except to maintain my musical involvements, but I may respond to any challenges at my level. I have a ceaseless quest for quality music in any form as can be gauged from my track record in classical, light classical and fusion music. I hope to develop further the legacy of my guru in time to come, but it is difficult to define the exact direction that I would take in the future.

MI: Your training in Hindustani classical music has made your music more pitch perfect, with improved purity of shruti. Do you believe that these attributes are a casualty in the way a number of Carnatic musicians approach it?

BJ: Hindustani classical music traditions and their system calls for emphasis on voice training and purity of shruti and it certainly makes it very pleasing to connoisseurs. Carnatic music has a much larger syllabus and the range of talas and ragas bring more complexity. Additionally, Carnatic music is sung in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada, as well as in Marathi. The mathematical connection for Carnatic musicians is greater, and therefore ‘adherence to shruti’ might appear to be less important; but advanced students of Carnatic music train

hard to achieve peak levels in all respects.

MI: What is your contribution to musical accompaniment to dance, which is a different art form?

BJ: I learnt Bharatanatyam in my early life and have always seen dance music as adding to the beauty of music. After moving to Chennai, I composed a dance ballet for Leela Samson and it was a complete surprise for me to see music being given expression by another art form. The perception of music when seen through the eyes of another art makes it wonderful.

MI: How has your upbringing in Mumbai influenced your music, thoughts and feelings about your audience?

BJ: I am grateful for my upbringing in Mumbai; it is a pulsating and vibrant metropolis. Musically it is multicultural with enriching ingredients like ghazals, Bollywood, Hindustani classical, dance and cultural connections from all over India. The audience too is very receptive and appreciative of entertainment from diverse cultures and communities.

MI: Have the accolades from Pi’s Lullaby changed your perspectives and outlook?

BJ: I welcomed the opportunity to perform for director Ang Lee, and to the music of Michael Danna. I enjoyed the experience, shaping and delivering the song and later

We know the impact of music on the nerves and neurological receptors is not exactly measurable, but music is healing and therapeutic because it soothes and calms, especially in autistic children

on, the Oscar nomination. It has been a challenge – with my Guru’s blessings, I hope for more future opportunities. It has not changed my perspectives in any way because I like to learn and I respond to tasks that give vent to my creative urges.

On this tour, Bombay Jayashri is travelling next to China for a 6-city tour of world music, and will follow with performances in Finland, France, Singapore and finally, at the Carnegie Hall in New York.

Hariharan Sankaran

When Bombay Jayashri serenaded Sydney

Mesmerising vocals and astute instrumental accompaniment transform the historic Sydney Opera House

BY SHRADDHA ARJUN

Silent and gentle waves glistened in golden hues as the sun set across the iconic Sydney Opera House. It was a stunning Sunday evening in Sydney and amidst the usual travellers, there were quite a few familiar faces clad in traditional Indian attire walking into the Opera House.

Marghazi Couture as they call it, seemed to be the fashion trend of the night. Women in their beautiful Kanchivaram saris and traditional jewellery with big bindis on their foreheads were greeted at the box office with fresh tiny strands of jasmine flowers. They graciously pinned these into their hair to complete the look. As people moved to their seats, I noticed that this look was not just popular with Indians in the audience, but was very beautifully sported by a handful of Australians as well.

An unspoken code of silence ensued, as the audience waited in great anticipation and excitement to see the performer of the night - Bombay Jayashri. An artist who definitely needs no introduction, and indeed rightly so. So no time was wasted in one prior to the performance.

Bombay Jayashri entered the stage in a beautiful green pattu saree, as avid followers of the Marghazi Couture sighed in awe and appreciation. Without much ado she began with Valaji Varnam, a composition by late legend Lalgudi Jayaraman. The performance was scintillating and a perfect homage to the legendary musician and teacher.

Jayashri then went on to sing Shyama Sundaranga (Dhanyasi raga) followed by Mamavameenakshi (Raag Varali). It is a common sight at musical concerts or kutcheries as they are called in south India, for the audience to clap along with the performer, the tala/talam to which the song is set. This venue was no exception as the audience, entirely oblivious to their surroundings, clapped and nodded along in

praise of the performance.

Enta Muddu was the next song on the list, a beautiful composition by Saint Thyagaraja that talks about looking beyond materialistic pleasures and exploring the beauty of the divine. The song was very soulfully delivered by Jayashri.

This was followed by another gem of a composition by Thyagaraja, O Rangasayee (Raag Khamboji).

A typical classical music performance includes along with the singer, percussionists such as a mridangam player, a violinist and tambura player.

HN Bhaskar the accompanying violinist completed Bombay Jayashri’s improvised phrases on occasions and there were times when her voice and the violin converged into one. VV Ramama

Murthy’s mridangam and Giridhar

Udupa’s ghatam complimented and competed with each other during the performance.

The thani avarthanam (percussion

solo which is one of the highlights of a modern Carnatic music concert) is worthy of mention here. Set to the Adi talam it was a mesmerising duel between the mridangam and the ghatam that culminated in a grand finale when Bombay Jayashri resumed where she had left off.

In Kanden Kanden in Raag Bhageshwari (a raga which depicts the emotion of a woman waiting for reunion with her love), Jayashri’s performance, true to the raga, invoked the feeling of yearning and devotion within the audience. Sarvam brahma mamayam (Raag Darbari Kaanada) followed soon after.

A lively thillana in Raag Behag was skillfully performed next. This thillana was also a Lalgudi Jayaraman composition. As is ritual, Jayashri adeptly ended her performance by singing mangalam. While the Carnatic music aficionados know that when

this marks the end of a Carnatic music performance, many hoped against hope that this was not the end of a magical night. With a heavy heart and immense pride, everyone then stood up to give Bombay Jayashri the standing ovation that she rightly deserved.

Apart from the music, what I took away from this performance was the humility and grace with which Jayashri conducted herself throughout the night. No unnecessary pomp and show, not the slightest hint of arrogance and best of all, no unnecessary pretentious presentation. Most concerts and events nowadays seem to lack in substance, and this certainly was an exception and a welcome break. I left raring for more and slightly disappointed that Pi’s Lullaby, the song that earned Bombay Jayashri her Oscar nomination, was not a part of her repertoire for the evening.

Bombay Jayashri entered the stage in a beautiful green pattu saree, as avid followers of the Marghazi Couture’sighed in awe and appreciation

Bharath Ravichandran

Bombay Jayashri in concert

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Students’ passages to India

Study programme gives students cultural sensitivity, resilience and patience abroad

prepare students for both day-today and professional challenges of living and working in a developing country, and to ensure their smooth return. They are also expected to participate in pre-departure training provided by the volunteer agencies. The agencies also provide students with in-country orientation sessions and 24-hour emergency assistance and support.

FHSA recently organised an information evening bringing together prospective students, staff, health experts and members from the wider community.

Addressing the gathering, Consul General of India, Arun Kumar Goel discussed further initiatives to achieve improved outcomes for faculty’s students and the Indian communities they will visit. He was delighted with the positive results so far and offered every support for building a closer relationship with FHS. Several students shared their experiences of working in healthcare centres in India.

“Overall, the event was a great first step and the guests were not only moved by the stories shared but also offered to help in all sorts ways and pledged to assist us in building strong relationships with the Indian community in Sydney and further afield,” Scarf indicated.

BY USHA RAMANUJAM ARVIND

In the late sixties and seventies, a steady influx of medical professionals from India helped boost the flagging Australian healthcare system. Since then strong bilateral collaborations in several mainstream and allied medical fields have spawned multiple opportunities for partnership.

Building on this, the University of Sydney’s Faculty of Heath Sciences (FHS) has initiated a novel project, whereby senior students are offered an opportunity to gain practical skills overseas.

Aimed at providing an enriching learning experience, while fostering global citizenship, Passage to India is a unique study programme launched in 2010. Since then a number of students have travelled to various institutions in India to learn about its allied health industry. Students are involved in health promotion, community outreach, exercise program planning and delivery, as well as observing and shadowing local health professionals from a range of allied fields.

reference through which to view the Australian health care system”.

“Children living with physical disabilities in regional and rural India are helping to teach our senior students about India’s therapeutic practices,” programme director Dr Elaine Ryan told Indian Link

“Through FHS Abroad (FHSA), we hope to embed internationalisation within the curriculum by providing senior students across undergraduate and graduate entry masters programs with the opportunity to gain international experience in a developing country as part of their degree,” project coordinator Charlotte Scarf explained.

“Developing cultural sensitivity, resilience and patience, the programme is certainly a life-changing experience,” she acknowledged. Some even report new career goals in international public health and communitybased rehabilitation, she added.

As part of the curriculum, students are offered two electives, involving academic study of global

and a four to six week placement in a health sciences field, with a community-based organisation in South or Southeast Asia.

Students who take part in FHSA volunteer the knowledge and skills they have gained from completing at least one year of degree programs in Bachelor of health science (majoring in subjects as diverse as Psychology, Nursing and Human Movement), Applied Science undergraduate degrees (Exercise and Sports Science, Exercise Physiology, Diagnostic Radiography, Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy and Speech Therapy) and Postgraduate degrees (Exercise Physiology, Developmental Disability, Occupational Therapy, Orthoptics, Physiotherapy, Radiation Therapy, Rehabilitation Counseling and Speech Language Pathology).

Besides India, the extension opportunity is currently available in, Nepal, Vietnam and Cambodia. The overseas component is being managed by two private agencies, Antipodeans Abroad and Projects Abroad. Antipodeans Abroad is an Australian company, specialising in student volunteer travel, while Projects Abroad is a global company that caters for all types of volunteer travellers worldwide.

have completed the program and another 60 are expected to do so this year. 22 students are expected to travel in the next June/ July cycle. Currently, students can either travel in June/July or November–January. Intake has steadily increased, particularly in the popular summer cycle.

At present, FHS has linked up with community groups, including the New Horizons Child Development Centre (NHCDC), the Society for the Education of the Crippled (both Mumbai based) as well as Amar Seva Sangram and Shine Educational Trust (Madurai based community rehabilitation and vocational training institutions for disable people) for work experience. These schools specialise in a number of disabilities including cerebral palsy, Down’s syndrome and autism, and combine education, physio, speech and occupational therapy and training.

As part of their academic study program, students who undertake FHS Abroad are required to produce a pre-departure research paper on health and development issues they expect to encounter on placement and attend a briefing workshop hosted by the Faculty which includes intensive lectures and learning activities designed to

Professor Kathryn Refshauge, Health Sciences Dean is also set to address a number of community groups to leverage on the existing relationships.

At present, funding remains a key challenge to widen participation and improve inclusiveness. The cost of participation is high, ranging between $6000-8000 depending on agency and destination involved.

To find out more contact FHSA coordinators Elaine Ryan or Charlotte Scarf: fhs.abroad@sydney.edu.au

“Children living with physical disabilities in regional and rural India are helping to teach our senior students about India’s therapeutic practices”

Dr Elain Ryan

Now a Shariah Index for financial inclusion of Indian Muslims

Followers of Islam, the second largest faith in the world with an estimated 1.7 billion believers, can now be surer when an Indian firm stands the pre-requisites for observant Muslims. The Shariah index launched by the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) recently is a new measure in town, assuring compliance with the Islamic canonical law.

Besides giving Islamic mega funds a surer handle on Indian markets, the aim of the S&P BSE 500 Shariah Index is financial inclusion of Indian Muslims - around 177 million in number and hitherto wary of stock markets - and attract them to “correct” equities.

“For us, the index is part of a bigger exercise - of inclusion and fairness,” said Ashishkumar Chauhan, managing director of BSE and an alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology and the Indian Institute of Management who spent his early years in Ahmedabad.

“The ‘maahoul’ (composite culture and environs) in the city influenced my appreciation of ‘inclusion’ as an imperative,” said Chauhan in an interview, who in the past headed an Indian Premier League franchise. Last month, the BSE Institute, a wholly owned subsidiary of the exchange, in association with Taqwaa Advisory and Shariah Investment Solution, announced an online certification programme in “Islamic Banking, Finance and Capital Markets”. Chauhan bets there is a big market for students who have an understanding of the latest developments in the fields of Islamic banking, finance and the capital markets. Islamic banking and finance extends to some 75 countries, growing at over 15 percent per annum. To be able to sustain its growth, the industry needs large numbers of banking and finance professionals who require training about its basic principles and practices.

This list includes fund managers, chief financial officers, merchant bankers, corporate financial advisors, portfolio managers, product development managers, finance marketing professionals, chartered accountants, stock brokers, wealth and fund managers, students and researchers.

Globally, S&P Dow Jones is big on Islamic financing. In its existing partnership with Ratings Intelligence Partners, boasting a crew of Islamic finance jocks and theologists on its board, S&P offers a variety of Islamic indices such as S&P Global BMI Shariah, with an adjusted market capitalisation of $15.183 billion; S&P Developed BMI Shariah, with an adjusted market capitalisation of $13.340 billion; and S&P Developed LargeMidcap Shariah, adjusted market capitalisation $11.554 billion.

These are among 11 others encompassing Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe and North America. Befittingly, after S&P and the BSE entered into a tie-up this February, the index is their first new product. Ratings Intelligence Partners remains the knowledge driver.

Each of the BSE indices, including the iconic BSE Sensex, bellwether of India’s market economy comprising 30 top stocks, already stand co-branded under an “S&PBSE” banner.

The preferred Islamic investment format is equity, as interest is forbidden. Yet, giving due currency to the exigencies of modern businesses, particularly the pervasiveness of interest-based transactions, Shariah scholars have a minimum compliance criteria.

These criteria, while excluding companies in gross violation, also provide investors a reasonable choice of Shariah-compliant equities. These minimum guidelines, however, are not uniformly applied by all Shariah advisors.

Companies dealing with pork, alcohol, gambling, tobacco, telecom, advertising and media, with some exceptions, are left out of Islamic indices. So are banks as Islamic investors are not allowed to profit from interest. Similarly, firms with certain financial ratios - like a debt of more than 33 percent to the market value of equity - do not make it to Islamic indices.

But companies, whose involvement in non-permissible businesses is less than five percent of total revenue, do qualify. These calculations are monitored and status updated from time to time.

Besides curbs on interest and debt, Islamic funds cannot pay fixed or guaranteed return on capital. Instead of borrowing or lending, Islamic finance relies on shared ownership of assets and therefore risk in the form of

profit or loss. As Islam forbids gambling, derivatives, forwards, options and futures trading are also prohibited - so are shortselling, margins and scalping trading. Day trading is also considered akin to gambling.

Data from djindexes.com shows the Dow Jones Islamic World Index has an adjusted market cap of $13.254 billion. The FTSE Shariah All-World Index stood at $15.586 billion. All this suggests the potential in India, where the BSE had a market capitalisation of $1.2 trillion from over 5,100 listed stocks in 2012-13, is fairly large.

Thus far, despite having the second-largest population of Muslims on the planet, Indian markets had a dearth of scientific ways to tell if the investee company eschews what’s repugnant in Islam. The financial exclusion of Indian Muslims also remained a faultline and the walk to mend it hardly matching the talk. Now there is hope, and promise.

Gene causing motor development disorder found

In a discovery that is paving the way for the diagnosis and treatment of a rare genetic disorder related to the brain’s functioning, a team of researchers has identified the causative gene behind the disease, which delays development of motor activities in children.

The study was done on a four-yearold child from Punjab, and nine other children who were suffering from motor developmental delay. They could not walk and sit without support.

The team, led by Ryan Taft of the University of Queensland’s Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB), comprised 16 researchers including I.C. Verma, director, Centre for Medical Genetics, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and Monica Juneja, Department of Paediatrics, Maulana Azad Medical College.

The doctors used genome sequencing to determine that these children were suffering from a defect in a gene previously not associated with human disease.

“It has been found that mutations in a gene called DARS gene is responsible for causing inherited brain disorder called HBSL (Hypomyelination with Brain Stem and Spinal Cord Involvement and Leg Spasticity), which affects the motor development activities,” a statement from the doctors said.

“We analysed the genome sequences of this child and his parents, using a method called whole genome sequencing and found that a mutation in the DARS gene was likely causing the disorder,” Taft said.

“In collaboration with clinicians from India, Canada, Netherlands, Australia, and the US, we then examined the genomes of nine other children who appeared to be suffering from the same disease and the genomes of their parents, and confirmed that they all had mutations in the DARS gene,” he said.

“This gene has never previously been associated with human disease and may not have been identified as the culprit using any other method,” said Verma, who heads the department of genetics at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital.

Experts from Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and Maulana Azad Medical College, Delhi, India and IMB in Brisbane, Vrije Universiteit Medical Center in Amsterdam, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and The Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne, and Children’s National Medical Centre in Washington D.C came together for this research.

Verma elaborated: “They have named the disease HBSL because it causes Hypomyelination in the brain stem and spinal cord, leading to leg spasticity. Hypomyelination occurs when people do not have enough myelin, the substance that coats nerve fibres and enables the transmission of electrical impulses in the nervous system”.

“Our goal is to dramatically reduce the number of unresolved paediatric cases of the rare genetic disease,” said Taft.

The technology of exome sequencing and whole sequencing now allows doctors to find the cause of disease in many children with unknown brain disorders. The doctors say they have used exome-based targetted next generation sequencing to identify the culprit gene in other patients also.

At present 30 to 40 percent of patients with intellectual disability go undiagnosed in India. Doctors say the new techniques will remarkably reduce this number.

“Discovering the causative gene will help in providing genetic counselling to the family. It will also ensure that they have normal children,” Verma said.

“This is the future of medicine - doctors, including clinical specialists like MRI experts - and genomics researchers working together to diagnose and develop treatments for people with unknown diseases,” he added.

Iran proposes joint investment, new oil contract to India

Iran proposed to India joint investments and a production sharing contract for oil exploration as the two countries agreed to expand cooperation in the transportespecially cargo transit from Chabahar port to Afghanistan and energy sectors and building the North-South corridor linking Russia.

Meeting under the aegis of the Iran-India Joint Economic Commission in Tehran recently, the two sides agreed to work on a trilateral transit pact involving India, Iran and Afghanistan.

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said the abundant commonalities and cultural affinity between the two countries served a solid base for joint investment.

He said Iran was ready to expand cooperation with India in the fields of

A wax figure of Sachin Tendulkar at the Sydney Cricket Ground, before going into Madame Tussaud

agriculture, industry, telecommunications and education on bilateral, multilateral and regional levels.

The oil offer is significant as Iran is hit by US and European sanctions. It has so far been offering service contracts to foreign companies, allowing a fixed fee for exploring and producing oil. The contours of the production sharing proposal was not immediately clear, but is believed to envisage possible ownership of the oil explored and produced by firms and the freedom to ship it wherever they like.

India’s External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid reiterated India’s decision to participate in the upgrade of Chahbahar port. The secretary in the shipping ministry would travel to Tehran soon for negotiations on costs and other issues.

The Chahbahar port, surrounded by a free trade zone, is critical for India as Pakistan does not allow transit facilities to Afghanistan.

The Iranians said the Chahbahar project was important not only for their country and Afghanistan, but also for Central Asia.

Khurshid called for more contacts between the private sectors in the two countries as well as academic and educational cooperation.

The two countries discussed ways to enhance two-way trade and people-to-people contact, liberalising the visa regime. It was felt that the volume of trade did not reflect the close relations between the two countries and identified agriculture and pharma products and aeronautics the areas where cooperation could be stepped up.

“We are determined to explore and use all capacities for economic cooperation and that Tehran-New Delhi joint economic commission is of high importance for preparation of the ground, removal of impediments and follow up the agreements already reached,” the official Iranian news agency IRNA quoted Khurshid as saying.

Iran and India also reviewed the NorthSouth corridor which will link Russia with Iran, with Khurshid saying that all hurdles should be resolved.

Both sides also discussed the security situation in Afghanistan and agreed to remain in regular contact.

Iran’s controversial nuclear programme also came up during the meeting and Salehi said talks with P5+1 would resume this year.

On Syria, both countries asked all sides involved in the conflict to abjure violence and supported the Geneva Communique which includes the 6-Point Plan of Kofi Annan and welcomed the efforts of Joint Special Envoy Lakhdar Brahimi.

Khurshid also called on President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and met Ali Akbar Velayati, advisor to the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei and Majlish speaker Ali Larijani.

Khurshid also inaugurated the Indian Cultural Centre in the Iranian capital.

Hornbill conservator Aparajita Datta gets Whitley Award

Conservator Aparajita Datta has won the Whitley Award, also called “Green Oscar,” for her work to save threatened hornbills in the forests of Arunachal Pradesh.

Datta is one of eight grassroots conservation leaders awarded a share of prize funding worth $295,000 by the Whitley Fund for Nature.

Datta leads a programme to conserve hornbills in the Eastern Himalaya at the Nature Conservation Foundation (NCF), an NGO set up in 1996 to promote science-

based wildlife conservation in India.

“Focusing on hornbills as a conservation flagship species, she is seeking to improve the status of the bird’s populations outside protected areas by establishing models of community-based conservation,” the Whitley Fund said.

“Datta is spreading knowledge of the needs of hornbills and their importance, as seed dispersers, in the maintenance of healthy forest ecosystems. Key to her approach is raising awareness of the threats to the bird’s survival, and creating a wider rural and urban constituency for conservation through a participatory community outreach programme that gets people involved,” said the fund.

Datta has been monitoring 60 hornbill nests in Arunachal Pradesh.

Datta will use the prize money to conduct surveys in Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland to figure out the status of hornbills. This will help to create an ideal model to conserve hornbills outside protected areas.

Princess Anne, daughter of Queen Elizabeth II, presented the award at a ceremony at the Royal Geographical Society in London recently.

Mumbai surgeon wins US award for anti-tobacco campaign

Panjak Chaturvedi, a cancer surgeon at Mumbai’s Tata Memorial Hospital, has won a prestigious US award for his innovative leadership in the fight to reduce tobacco use and tobacco-related disease in India.

The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids presented Chaturvedi with the Judy Wilkenfeld Award for International Tobacco Control at its annual awards gala in Washington recently.

The Wilkenfeld Award was established in honour of Judy Wilkenfeld, the founder of Tobacco-Free Kids’ international programme, who passed away in May 2007.

The award recognises international tobacco control advocates who contribute significantly to reducing tobacco use and inspire others to do the same in the spirit exemplified by Wilkenfeld.

“We have seen great progress in India and hope to serve as an example for the global community,” said Chaturvedi accepting the award.

“The world must hear the voice of tobacco’s many victims and know that progress in the global fight against tobacco

is possible”.

“Cancer specialists like me who work with tobacco victims are the constant witnesses of the crimes perpetrated by the tobacco industry,” Chaturvedi said.

“I could no longer sit back and watch how helpless my patients and their families felt. I hoped these victims’ personal stories would rock the consciences of policy makers who must be convinced to take action.”

“Dr Chaturvedi has not only created a lasting legacy in India, but also provided a global example in combating tobacco use,” said Matthew L. Myers, President of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

As a head and neck cancer surgeon at one of India’s leading cancer hospitals, Chaturvedi was motivated to act by the suffering of patients with tobacco-caused cancers.

Described by his colleagues as visionary, tireless and undaunted, Chaturvedi recognised that fundamental change wouldn’t happen until public figures had to confront the horrifying reality that he sees every day in his operating room, according to a media release.

So Chaturvedi “launched the Voice of Tobacco Victims campaign. This revolutionary campaign has mobilised tobacco victims and their doctors to confront India’s leaders and demand that they enact and implement strong tobacco control laws,” the release said.

Today, this group is one of the leading forces behind India’s growing tobacco control movement that has resulted in bans of smokeless tobacco products in 23 of India’s 28 states and five of seven union territories.

It has also contributed to tobacco tax increases in 20 states.

Marry outside caste in Himachal, get Rs.75,000!

While ‘khap panchayats’ (caste councils) in Haryana continue to frown on inter-caste and sub-caste marriages and punish those who do so, marrying outside one’s caste is ever so profitable in neighbouring Himachal Pradesh - it’ll get couples all of Rs.75,000.

To prompt young men and women to break the caste barrier, the cabinet headed by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh has enhanced the inter-caste marriage incentive from Rs.25,000 to Rs.75,000. It’s given to couples where one of the spouses

belongs to a Scheduled Caste.

“We have seen in the past few years that the cash incentive of Rs.25,000 was not encouraging too many couples. So we have decided to make it lucrative by doubling its amount,” Special Secretary (Social Justice and Empowerment) M.P. Sood said recently in Shimla.

Departmental records show that only 1,113 inter-caste marriages materialised in the past four years.

In 2012-13, 277 couples got the incentive, 304 in 2011-12, 300 in 2010-11 and 232 in 2009-10.

The Himachal Pradesh government introduced the scheme in 1994.

“Now, we are expecting more and more young couples, especially women, will come forward to break the caste barrier,” Sood added.

Newlywed Shimla-based Aneesh and his wife Shweta believe that the choice is for the man and the woman to make. Aneesh, a handsome banker, belongs to a lower caste, while Shweta is a high-caste Brahmin.

“It’s you who spends your whole life with the partner, not your parents. Your decision is final,” Aneesh said.

“In our case too, we convinced our parents and finally they agreed. But we were lucky as many still get threatened or even murdered for this,” Shweta added.

Rameshwar Sharma, additional director of the social justice and empowerment department, said the state is expanding opportunities for the Scheduled Castes, who constitute 24.72 percent of state’s 6,856,509 population.

“Promoting inter-caste marriage is just one step in destroying the caste system,” he added.

The Supreme Court in 2011 held that inter-caste marriages are in the national interest. Justices Markandeya Katju and Gyan Sudha Misra said: “The caste system is a curse on the nation and the sooner it is destroyed the better. In fact, it is dividing the nation at a time when we have to be united to face the challenges. “Inter-caste marriages are, in fact, in national interest as they will result in destroying the caste system,” the court added.

The court held that diktats by the “khap panchayats” aimed at coercing or committing atrocities on young men and women who wish to marry inter-caste/religion were illegal and should be stamped out. IANS

Manchaster-based artist Gavin Parry poses in front of his art work during the ‘Ahmedabad-Manchester Cotton Exchange Material Response Exhibition’ to mark World Heritage Day last month, at old Rajnagar Mill in Ahmedabad. Thirteen artists from Gujarat in India and Lancashire, and Manchester in the United Kingdom have been exchanging ideas and travelling to each others’ cities over the last two years as part of a project called Cotton Exchange. Telling stories of travel, the works explore the linked cotton heritage between India and the UK.

Glitz and glam launch film fest

From Balan to Bachchan - with the Pratts in between - the glam quotient is up at Melbourne’s Indian Film Fest

PREETI JABBAL

Icould write about my recent visit to celebrate the magic of Indian cinema at Raheen, the Pratt mansion, in two ways. I could play it cool and totally unaffected by the rare opportunity of visiting a multimillion dollar mansion, or I could gush over just about everything from the coordinated wall paint and dustbins in the

this is your cue to turn over to the sports page. For all the others, join me as I go over the events of those crazily hectic days at the start of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne 2013.

The first exciting event was a pre-festival dinner hosted by Richard Pratt and Jeanne Pratt at their Italianate mansion in Kew. Personal invitations featuring the impressive Raheen were sent to those associated with the Indian Film Festival and Mind Blowing Films. The theme of course was Bollywood glamour and adding to this heady mix was the presence of visiting Bollywood personalities

companies, Anthony Pratt is on the advisory board of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne and Visy is its major supporter this year. Clad in a silk kurta pyjama (given to him by festival director Mitu Bhowmick Lange), Anthony Pratt sat with leading Indian actress Vidya Balan on one side and ‘queen of suave’ Simi Garewal on the other. Yash Chopra’s wife Pamela Chopra, Louise Asher (Minister for Innovation, Services and Small Business, Minister for Tourism and Major Events and Minister for Employment and Trade) and Anthony’s mother Jeanne Pratt were among the other

Vidya Balan. An award was presented posthumously to iconic filmmaker Yash Chopra for his contribution to world cinema. His wife Pamela Chopra accepted the award on his behalf. “The whole world his movies but it was his humility not his said Mrs. Chopra as she accepted the award from Minister Asher.

someone selected him for an award he always turned around and asked me do I really deserve this? He may have been a renowned film-maker but he was always humble about his success” she added.

cream and black polka dotted saree and an eyecatching silver neckpiece thanked the Pratts for their hospitality and continued to profess her love for Melbourne and her desire to call it her second home.

As global chairman of Visy, one of the world’s largest paper recycling and packaging

restricting the impulse to get closer to the main guests and whip out my notepad. We were there to ‘socialise’, according to the gentleman on the door who relieved us of our cameras as we walked in. Between the courses (no curries in sight) we heard from attending dignitaries, Minister Louise Asher, a visibly pregnant Mitu Bhowmick Lange and the predictably saree-clad

“I am addicted to Melbourne like I am addicted to acting. I wish that I continue to be the brand ambassador for the Indian Film Festival in Melbourne for ever and ever,” she said charming the audience with her mega wattage smile and warmth.

Vidya continued to gush over Melbourne during the press conference held the following morning. Accompanying her at the press conference were dancing sensation turned director

“I am addicted to Melbourne like I am addicted to acting. I wish that I continue to be the brand ambassador for the Indian Film Festival in Melbourne for ever and ever”

Vidya Balan

to dine at the historic mansion of one of Australia’s richest tycoons,

Girish Taurani

from Tips Industry family, outspoken choreographer and director Farah Khan and the sophisticated yesteryear actress and popular TV host Simi Garewal. Split into two parts the conference began with festival guests and judges of the Western Union Short Film Competition, award-winning director Kabir Khan and critically acclaimed filmmaker Paul Cox. Conspicuous by

dwelt on the changing role of women in Indian cinema today.

Simi Garewal who continued to sport her designer sunglasses indoors due to ‘some issue with her eyes’ endorsed Vidya’s observations about Indian women taking centre-stage both in reel and real life today. Simi, who is also on the festival advisory board, said it was time for the Festival to grow upwards.

“Time has come for us to consider giving awards on best film, best actors and director and make this Festival competitive,”

It would have been interesting to hear from Bollywood A-lister Farah Khan as well however she had to leave the conference early due to ill health.

of entertaining queries however the most amusing one was from a man who wished to know why Raja Harishchandra was a silent movie? Was there something wrong, he asked. The audience who was already having a good time burst into more spontaneous laughter and applause as Farah declared it, tonguein-cheek, to be the best ‘question of the night’.

Molloy. Mitu Bhowmick from Mind Blowing Films and Western Union Marketing Manager Monica Khanna were also present. Nilesh Desai from Mumbai who won the Western Union Short Film competition for his confronting film Sati also attended. Predictably most of the questions from the press were directed at Vidya Balan and Kabir Khan who articulated their answers and fielded some inane questions from certain local scribes quite well.

Between urging Melbournians to come and watch the array of fantastic films playing at the Festival and answering questions about her married life, Vidya also

Farah Khan recovered from her illness sufficiently to be able to accompany the festival guests to the gala opening night on Friday 3rd May. Mingling with other festival guests in the lounge prior to the main event, the stars obliged with photographs and autographs.

Vidya was resplendent in a stunningly simple maroon saree and her hair swept back in a soft vintage style; Simi was in her favoured white; Farah Khan was understandably in no mood for glamour while Prabudeva, Girish and Kabir Khan sported some spiffy eveningwear. They were unanimously keen to watch the opening night special screening of India’s first feature film, 100-yearold Raja Harishchandra. Prior to the screening the festival conducted a Q-and-A session where the audience could ask any question from the special guests. There was

The merriment subsided to some extent as the screening began with the confronting yet creative Western Union short film winning entry Sati. According to the message portrayed through this film the practice of Sati (burning of widows/brides) was abolished in India in the year 1829; however, women in India are still not free from evil practices. This thought provoking film was followed by the muchawaited screening of Raja Harishchandra (1913) accompanied by music from a talented local group called Tehai3. The jury is still out on whether the music added or took away from the otherwise silent movie. The rest of the opening night was taken up by the screening of Marathi film Harishchandrachi Factory. On the next day the Festival declared the other two winners of the Western Union Short Film competition Dimi from New Zealand won for

the movie Lockie n Love and Sean McCart from Australia for Give Sheep a Chance.

The Festival is in full swing as I write this and Melbournians are waiting for the piece de resistance of the Festival - the arrival of India’s most celebrated film star Amitabh Bachchan. According to festival reports he will be awarded by the Victorian Government the ‘International Screen Icon award’ for his remarkable contribution to Indian cinema and will officially close the festival on 22 May. The La Trobe University in Australia will be naming a scholarship after the actor, calling it the ‘Shri Amitabh Bachchan Scholarship’. He will also receive the ‘Ambassador of Goodwill’ award from the Vice Chancellor of La Trobe University during his stay in Melbourne. Currently there is great anticipation for

the closing night event on 22 May where people are expecting to see the star and watch his film Deewaar. The details of his trip to Melbourne are closely guarded and raising the inevitable speculations.

With its exciting line-up of films, prominent guests, special events and interactive masterclasses the 2nd International Film Festival has warmed up the Melbourne winter entertainment scene like nothing else. While it may not yet compete with the prestige of lofty festivals like Cannes or have the box office power of festivals like Toronto and Sundance the Indian Film Festival is certainly growing from strength to strength. Will the Victorian Government continue to support the festival beyond its three-year commitment?

According to Minister Louise Asher the Victorian Government is committed to supporting this festival and the resultant cultural engagement for three years and any further announcements on whether this will turn into a longterm commitment or not will be made at an ‘appropriate time.’

“Time has come for us to consider giving awards on best film, best actors and director and make this Festival competitive” Simi Garewal

Photos by: ISSM and Ravinder Jabbal

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Rags to riches is possible but comes at a cost

The format of a self-help book tells the story of a rise from humble beginnings to untold wealth, writes

MADHUSHREE

Mohsin Hamid, the Pakistanbased author of best-selling novels like the Moth’s Smoke and The Reluctant Fundamentalist, shows what it means to get rich in a rising Asia in a new novel at a time when the developing economies in the region are straining to push up their GDP figures that have been slumping all too often.

How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia published by Penguin India, uses the format of the self-help and motivation book as a literary device to tell the story of the third son of a cook who leaves his village to move to a city, falls in love with a pretty girl and sets up an industry. He becomes an entrepreneur and ‘filthy rich’.

Hamid takes his hero through 12 steps, in 12 chapters to become a moneybag in a nameless city in South Asia that sizzles with energy, opportunity and inequality.

The writer says that he had initially started out with the idea that he was not going to name things and people because they mean certain things.

The idea of taking the names of the narrative, reminiscent of many

avant garde writers like Lawrence Sterne, James Baldwin and James Joyce, is ‘liberating’ for Hamid.

The ingrained view is that South Asia is an ‘exotic place, a peculiar place and a central place, it is a colonial mindset’. It could have been any place, why not Lahore or Lagos? The writer explains his narrative without specifics, comparing it to the Sufi ghazals that he grew up with.

The songs invoking the nameless divine speaks to the listener or the exponent like the book that addresses the reader in a second-person narrative.

This is his third book and one inspired by the writer’s personal fortunes. “I had just become a father and I wanted to write a novel about the tri-generational life,” Hamid stated.

Generations are a way of life in

Pakistan, where young men often live with their parents and elders, like Hamid who shares his home with his parents.

The young and old play a catand-mouse waiting game.

This inter-generational divide is captured in a vivid clash of body language in a domestic confrontation between the ‘saas’ and the ‘bahu’.

“Your mother cleans the courtyard under the gaze of her mother-in-law. The old woman sits in the shadow, the edge of her shawl held in her mouth to conceal not her attributes of temptation but rather the lack of her teeth and looks on in unquenchable disapproval.

Your mother is regarded in the compound as vain, arrogant and headstrong, and these accusations have bite, for they are all true. Your grandmother tells your mother she has missed a spot. Besides, she is toothless and holds a cloth between her lips, her words sound like she is spitting... The older woman waits for the younger woman to age.”

Hamid spotlights on the society in Pakistan’s middle-class fringe with refreshing psychoanalysis of the characters. But he punctuates

his narrative and observations with sage advise that tends to sound like homilies at places, flagging in their intelligence like the scores of droll motivation manuals crowding the bookshelves.

“...As far as getting rich is concerned, love can be an impediment. Yes, the pursuit of love and pursuit of wealth have much in common,” Hamid fritters in cliches, robbing pace off the narrative.

The book ends with the death of the rags-to-riches hero, surrounded by his ex-wife, son and a pretty girl that the hero had been in love with as a teen.

Hamid touches upon new South Asian realities, broken hearts, failed marriages, a culture of corruption, politics, lifestyle pressures on fast street, and the perennial near-war edge that Pakistan balances on.

The writer says his book tries to bring out a ‘narrative of loss’ in a market of growthbased language that does not equip us for loss. “Throughout history, human civilisations have been a series of narratives that talk of loss,” the writer said.

Rediscovering the bold and beautiful in Tagore

Tagore’s views through his works that reflect a modern perspective are revealed in this anthology, writes

PALOMA GANGULY

Filmmakers bring alive his stories. Rock bands experiment with his music. From poets to politicians, everyone loves to quote him. So what is it that makes Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore relevant even in the 21st century?

Perhaps a vision that was modern, yet unique. One need only delve into his novels to discover how Tagore, writing almost 100 years ago in colonial India, made bold statements on themes like women, sexuality, caste and nationalism.

He produced an astounding range of works, be it poems, plays, essays, paintings or songs. But less known is his stature as a novelist. It is this aspect of his oeuvre that academic Radha Chakravarty

highlights in Novelist Tagore, published by Routledge.

At a time when the world is showing renewed interest in the bard of Bengal after his 150th birth anniversary celebrations, the book uses gender and modernity as yardsticks to discuss Tagore the novelist.

Be it Chokher Bali and The Home and the World, both of which have inspired films, or Gora, which was serialised for TV, the book takes up several stories.

We learn that Tagore’s views on gender and modernity neither conformed to Western stereotypes, nor succumbed to deep-set Indian traditions.

Consider the monumental work Gora, written in 1910. Chakravarty says it articulated the need to

construct an alternative modernity that could include features of both Western and Indian culture. Set at a time when the role of women were confined to the home, Gora also recognised that any future vision of India would need to give them a decisive place in it.

Another work, Chaturanga, questioned the institution of marriage. In it, a woman enjoys conjugal bliss with a man while still in love with another, as she is free of the conventional restraints of marriage.

In Tagore’s novels, “physical desire is not condemned or rejected. In place of the conventional objectification of women as targets of male desire, his novels also present women as desiring subject,” writes the author.

Citing Nashtanir, turned into the film Charulata by Satyajit Ray, Chakravarty says in Tagore’s later writings it is “through the expression of her sexuality that woman articulates her revolt”.

Novelist Tagore may not be a book for the lay reader, as too many cross references render it as more

of an academic text. But researchers, teachers and students, whom the book essentially targets, will find it of immense help.

Here’s to discovering more to the man who continues to loom over the literary and cultural firmament of Bengal, and indeed India, even 152 years after his birth.

The idea of taking the names of the narrative, reminiscent of many avant garde writers like Lawrence Sterne, James Baldwin and James Joyce, is ‘liberating’ for Hamid

We learn that Tagore’s views on gender and modernity neither conformed to Western stereotypes nor succumbed to deep-set Indian traditions

CHATTERJEE

Radha Chakravarty

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opinion The aspirations of many parents result in undue pressure on their children to perform for success, not skill

BY TANVEER AHMED

While some of us might pity Mrs Dhaliwal, the reality is that many people from the local South Asian community would share her views, particularly about extracurricular activities being a distraction.

remember as a child, watching a family friend who bought their only daughter medically related toys from an early age. For example, the mother would buy a plastic stethoscope for the child’s fourth birthday or the game Operation for her seventh. All of it was strategically aimed to help their one and only daughter to ultimately become a doctor, an aspiration many South Asian parents hold for their children. There was little question that the mother was a loving parent who only wanted the best for her child and ultimately, she was successful. Her daughter did become a doctor. But it raisedIn reality, this is a misunderstanding. In the past few decades, a great deal of brain research has shown that we actually use more of our brain in navigating complex social tasks, than in technical ones. The vast areas of our brain that we are yet to understand are most likely to be complex apparatus to help us deal with the complexity of human social interactions.

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I have a firm view that we underrate this in our culture to our detriment. A twelve-yearold child will use more of their brain at a sleepover, or school camp, than in any mathematics examination.

In today’s world, technical knowledge is of much lower priority than it once was, for the knowledge is accessible to all. What are highly prized are the soft skills of communicating, collaborating and mobilising

whether we are flexible enough to promote a wider variety of careers for our children.

Amy Chua is a Princeton academic who attracted headlines worldwide several years ago for suggesting that white, Anglo parents were just too soft on their children. She openly spoke of how her children were studying many extra hours on top of their

A key suggestion she makes is that the message within Western circles is that children are ultimately quite fragile, whereas Asian or Indian culture teaches that children

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In today’s world, technical knowledge is of much lower priority than it once was, for the knowledge is accessible to all. What are highly prized are the soft skills of communicating, collaborating and mobilising.

Many children from South Asian backgrounds perform extremely well academically, but struggle later in the work setting exactly because their skills in these other arenas are not as well developed. They then find themselves resenting their peers who are more successful in spite of poorer academic performance, playing out an occupational story similar to many of their parents.

This is certainly the case in India, where there is enormous pressure and competition to enter the best schools and thereafter, the most prestigious and lucrative careers. The child’s achievements are closely tied to the

They then find themselves resenting their peers who are more successful in spite of poorer academic performance, playing out an occupational story similar to many of their parents

it, in part, on the immense pressure parents place on their children to achieve high grades.

A Fairfax article about so-called ‘tiger mothers’ suggested Indians were likely to be as aggressive as any other ethnic group.

A mother living in Australia identified as Mrs Dhaliwal said she does not allow her daughters to sleepover at friends’ houses and says sports can be ‘time consuming’ and might cause them to ‘fall behind in

Another facet of parents focusing too heavily on studies is that children, sons especially, become dependent in areas like domestic chores or have a lacklustre work ethic. Unlike Western style parenting, there is no great emphasis on achieving autonomy and independence from an early age, for there is a more collective expectation that the children will retain close ties and even some dependence with the extended family. This is in many ways a good thing, but there are disadvantages. We are all too aware of the esteemed place the eldest son has in South Asian cultures, to the point where they are often placed on a pedestal. When those same children grow up and are required to be independent, they are often grossly unprepared. I can look back on my own experience of having to prepare canned food briefly amidst driving back home in a panic to eat my mother’s cooking after first moving out of home. Wives are also faced with hopelessly underprepared men barely capable of tying their own shoelaces without their mother’s help. This is the worst case scenario, but the broader point is that being prepared for the modern world requires a great deal more than being adept at quadratic equations or having a degree in medicine.

Well-being as seen from the East and West

Jogging, swimming and emptying your mind towards health

BY NOEL G DE SOUZA

The Western prescription for good health, such as for those who have diseases like diabetes and heart problems, is to remain active. Practically speaking, this means walking or jogging. More energetic versions are cycling or swimming.

In contrast, the Eastern prescription (Hindu-Buddhist) for good physical and mental health is staying still and includes emptying the mind (pratyahara). Emptying the mind is no easy task; the mind is naturally designed to flit from one thought to the next. Memory consists of a jumble of mind-images which are an imprint of the world which one has experienced. Patanjali counsels against modifying such images as that would be being active and not passive as pratyahara should be.

In these troubled times; worry and fear are widespread. The almost instant transmission of troubling news exacerbates the effect of events which may be far away but nevertheless relevant. Emptying the mind of the effects of such emotions is no easy task. The horrendous bombing in Boston and the tragic explosions in Texas have traumatised people in even far away places.

need to guard against allowing unhealthy emotions to permeate our way of life. Permitting such emotions as sadness and fear to dominate our thinking can be detrimental. Instead making happiness and hopefulness a part of our meditative process could mean good health.

There is an obvious age factor which can dictate the exercises an individual chooses to make. Young athletic-oriented individuals with reasonably good health may opt for jogging and cycling, while older persons may choose relaxing exercises and hope that inner calm develops. A variant of active exercise is the military goose-step movements which are seen so often in the news about the threats from North Korea. Similar parades are also common in the Balkans such as in Greece.

Aged persons who choose relaxing exercises could possibly benefit from the Chinese Tai-Chi system which can be performed by individuals of all ages. Its main aim is apparently to achieve inner calm through graceful movements. A variant is the martial style movement invented during Mao’s time. It was political in character and meant for galvanising the Chinese people.

The Western way to get fit is to activate one’s muscles and breathing, while the Eastern way to de-stress the body and slow the breathing is to calm the mind

The Hindu scriptures liken the mind to a raging bull which needs to be controlled by holding its horns. Chapter 6 of the Bhagwad Gita extols: “in a fair still spot… having his fixed abode … there restraining heart and senses, silent, calm, let him accomplish Yoga, and achieve pureness [of] soul, holding immovable body and neck and head… tranquil in spirit, free of fear… that Yogin, so devoted [and] so controlled comes to the peace beyond...” (E. Arnold’s poetic version of the Gita).

Modern workplaces demand a lot of mental activity and alertness. This places stress on individuals who long for calm and often go on holidays to distant places. International tourism has become the order of the day.

Of course, the Eastern and Western systems often contain elements of each other, but predominantly the Western way is to activate one’s muscles and breathing, while the Eastern way to de-stress the body and slow the breathing to calm the mind (the highest version of this is dhyana). It is slowly being accepted in the West that emotions can have an effect on health. Such psychosomatic illnesses mean that we

Hospitals in Australia bar visitors during certain hours when patients are encouraged to rest and to sleep. Such supposed “inaction” is said to help in the curative processes. This coincides with the Eastern way. It is possible for all individuals, whether sick or not, to set aside a period when they can rest with no interruption. It is then that they can stop worrying about workplace and other matters and try to “empty their minds”.

Modern medicine has produced a whole range of medicines for inducing sleep. Amongst these, barbiturates have a reputation of being habit-forming. Milder versions for helping one to sleep are periodically being announced by drug companies.

Some practitioners of yoga developed a type of yogic rest or trance called turiya which is absolute rest with the organs going into a feeble state of activity. Such a trance is obviously difficult to achieve. Modern medicine has its variant in the form of induced coma which is used in very serious medical cases.

Every individual needs to make a conscious choice depending on what suits that person’s ability. For example, someone who cannot have a daily run might still be able to swim. Even someone who mostly lies in bed can engage in mental exercises. The above exercises might be decided upon by consultation with a health practitioner, or by reading books, but the choice is entirely left to the individual. It is based on freedom of choice and on self-discipline.

The ‘different’ child as an agent of change

Parents should understand and accept the differences between their children’s abilities and interests

lead independent lives, always regretting their childhood.

Recognising that there is difference

A family that adapts to difference learns to grow with each child. A child who is a bit ‘different’ to everyone else can be precisely what a family needs to grow. Therefore, the ‘different’ child, if recognised, can act as an agent of change.

It can be hard to recognise difference even though the cues are right in front of us. A child who says things like:

‘I don’t fit in here’

‘No-one ever listens to me’

‘Why is he/she (the sibling) always getting their way?’

school, the parents who treat their child according to their strengths will be far better able to advocate in favour of this child, and reduce the level of comparison between siblings.

A further implication is how to manage and shape expectations around academic performance. One child may not need tutors. Another child may require speech therapy, or the support of academic tutors. One child may know the university course they want to get into and which field of study they want to pursue. Another child may not be suited to university studies.

In summary

BY MOHAN DHALL

In many families each child has special abilities, talents and aptitudes. It is rare to find a first, second or third child with equal academic ability, similar interests, senses of humour or similar level of independence. This can be very confronting for parents who want a school system to treat their child as unique. Parents want each child to be affirmed for their own special abilities and strengths, and also to be nurtured to improve in areas that are of relative weaknesses.

When children have very different characters and when one child is academically inclined but another is not, there can be stresses in parenting and schooling. It can be very difficult not to compare children. Often eldest, first-born children are

keen to please parents (and vice versa) and can be very focused on schoolwork. A second child may have very different strengths. Sometimes a second child is more socially aware and more adept at making friends and also sharing.

A third child can complicate the situation. For example if the first two children are of the same gender, a third child with a different gender can cause difficulty for parents in terms of adjustment and expectations.

When children are different, families need to find ways to accommodate these differences. This is essential as each child needs affirmation, and sometimes a child who feels different can also feel hidden. The importance of this extends to the classroom. After all, how can parents advocate in favour of a child they cannot see or do not know?

How does difference court a need for change?

It is very typical for one child to be an excellent ‘talker’ who is

adept at commanding attention and articulating what they want and need. It is also typical for another child to be much quieter and seemingly more ‘emotional,’ complaining about not being heard, to not being understood, or expressing dissatisfaction more easily. Clearly parents and schools both need to learn how to adapt to meet the needs of both children.

The excellent talker is easy to manage and parents may find they tend to ‘negotiate’ with such children. This can contrast with the more emotional child who the parents may be dismissive of or find very ‘hard to please’. This difference courts a need for change for a very simple reason. Families are the most important place for a child to find acceptance, to make mistakes, to grow. If a family cannot accept or accommodate a child, that child can grow up misunderstood, ‘far behind their eyes’ or feeling like the ‘black sheep’ of the family. Later in life such children can move away from their parents to

Recognising that a child is left out can be a humbling experience. But rather than drown in regret a parent should, like a teacher, ask themselves, “what can I change to make this child feel included?”

Once this question has been asked, a few things have occurred, an acknowledgement of exclusion, an awareness of a need to change and also an affirmation that change is to be made.

The implications for schooling

If parents can act to become inclusive of each child, decisions about school choices and decisions made through the years at school are easier. For example, parents will question whether each child should go to the same school. After all, why should a non-academic child attend the same school as their highly academically successful sibling? This almost certainly will lead to a situation of the younger child feeling compared and inadvertently devalued by teachers.

If a child does attend the same

Recognising and accommodating the difference between siblings is an essential aspect of parenting with very significant educational ramifications. A child who feels ‘different’ needs to be understood in such a way as to feel affirmed for who they are.

Parents want each child to be affirmed for their own special abilities and strengths, and also to be nurtured to improve in areas that are of relative weaknesses

The gift of a Mother

Reliving a life is a painful journey, until it becomes a reality

lad who became a hero when he rescued Tina, and years later, he proposed to her daughter.

BY RANI JHALA

Thirty years had gone by and each year was etched in Anita’s mind. Memories refused to fade, still haunting her days and traumatising her nights. Her every breath was a prayer and every word was a wish. All she wanted was to be able to hold her baby and tell her that she loved her. But it was too late to say anything now. Those ties had been permanently cut and her daughter was now lost.

Anita picked up the first photograph. In it, a woman stood holding a newborn. The look on her face was one of awe, and the look on the child’s was one of trust. Anita could barely recognise herself. The first bloom of motherhood had made her look radiant. Happy, proud and so very grateful for the miracle she held in her arms. A teardrop fell on the photo, which she quickly wiped away, picking up the next one.

Her daughter Tina was now three and she saw the girl’s bright and bubbly personality. Chubby cheeks with deep dimples and huge doe like eyes that were always twinkling. With her infectious laugh and clever mind, she always overshadowed other children. Those were the days when Anita was the most important person in Tina’s life and no matter what she did, she always looked around for her mother.

As Anita’s eyes moved to the next photo, an older child looked back at her. A five-year-old dressed in her school uniform and heading for her first day at primary school. There was joy written on her face, confidence in her gait and excitement in her demeanour. At the end of the day, she had made five friends. By the end of the week, she had fifteen ‘bestest friends,’ and by the end of the month Tina knew her whole class! Those were the carefree days.

At 12 she was in high school. The photograph Anita now held was of her daughter’s first camp. Tina was laughing as she tried to balance on a floating log with her classmates while a lanky lad tried to stir them to safety with a thick branch. He failed and they all fell into the river. It was the same

They married and over a hundred people attended the wedding. Tina had insisted they all be included in the group photo. Now holding that photo, Anita looked at the radiant bride as another tear escaped. Everyone had said that Tina was the most beautiful bride they had seen, and Anita knew it was the truth.

She quickly flicked through the photos. Of the honeymoon, their first home and the day Tina found out that she was expecting. Happy shots that made Anita smile even now. Tina took a photo of herself every week, and twelve photos reflected her blossoming trip towards motherhood. She loved being pregnant and it showed. And in every photo she held a protective hand over her stomach protecting her little baby from everything and everyone.

Anita picked up the next photograph. It was taken by the police at the crash site. Tina’s husband did not stand a chance as an oncoming truck had swerved into his side of the car. The impact was devastating, his death instantaneous. There had been no time for goodbyes or promises. He was there one moment and gone the next. In this photo, Tina still had her hand on her stomach, but it was the look on her face that spoke of what was to come.

Shattered, Tina secluded herself, slowly growing isolated from family and friends. Even Anita could not break through the melancholy that set in. The doctors assured them that time would heal Tina, and the baby would ease that pain. Anita was not so sure, for Tina seemed truly lost.

The baby arrived four weeks early but he was healthy and did not require medical aid. The photo she now held was of Tina looking at her two-day-old son with love in her eyes.

Looking back, Anita realised that the photo had held a vital clue that no-one had picked up. Tina had refused to hold the baby and even though the love was reflected in her eyes, the tears on her cheek were not of happiness, but of pain and regret. It was almost as if she was saying farewell. Five days later, she walked out of the hospital and was never seen again.

In her room she had left her son with a note attached to his

bib: ‘Don’t look for me. I don’t want this baby or this life. I want to be left alone.’

Anita wiped away her tears as anger replaced her sorrow. Tina had said that she wanted to be left alone. She took that right because she was an adult, but what of her son’s rights? What of her mother’s? Of course, he survived. Anita made sure of that. The court gave her legal guardianship. She showered her grandson with the same love and care that she had showered on her daughter. He even went to the same school as his mother. And in place of a smiling girl, Anita now looked at the photo of a little boy holding her hand as they stood outside his classroom. And while every other child had called out to their mother, Anita’s little grandson, had called out ‘Grandma’. Her life was now busy with him and she had no time to think of her daughter. She was glad as in the five years that followed, not once had Tina tried to contact them or sought to see her son. For a while she even feared that Tina was dead until the police assured her that as her closest kin, she would

be informed if that happened. That assurance should have given her relief, instead it just added to the fear of not knowing. At times Anita thought that Tina’s death would have been better, so that the worrying could cease. In rare moments of anger she even cursed her daughter’s selfishness.

Anita put away the photographs. She never knew why she kept looking at them. Maybe because on Mother’s Day she longed to go back to the time when she had her little girl!

The phone rang and her grandson picked up the phone, politely asking, “Who’s speaking?”

Turning to Anita he said, “Grandma, it’s a woman saying she is my mum, but it can’t be because I don’t have a mum. I just have a Grandma, don’t I?”

Anita grabbed the receiver, cuddling her grandson. “Tina? Is that you?” she whispered.

“Hi Mum, yes it’s me. I had been unwell. Depression they called it. I am better now. That was my son, wasn’t it? Can I come home, Mum?”

“Darling, of course! Where are you? Your son and I will come and

And in every photo she held a protective hand over her stomach protecting her little baby from everything and everyone

Tina had refused to hold the baby and even though the love was reflected in her eyes, the tears on her cheek were not of happiness but of pain and regret

get you,” said Anita, elated. Just then the doorbell rang. Anita opened the door and her daughter was standing there. She was thinner and weaker, but still beautiful. Anita could see that the recovery was not complete, but she had her daughter back. It was all that mattered.

As she hugged her daughter she heard the words, “Happy Mother’s Day, Mum!” And then Tina turned to her son and said, “Aren’t you going to wish your mum Happy Mother’s Day too?”

The little boy looked questioningly at his grandmother and when she nodded, he flung himself into the arms of his mother.

Thanks, mum!

Meaningful and healthy gifts can make your mum’s day very special

BY GEETA KHURANA

Mothers are always looking after us in a million different ways, making every day special for us. But do we make the effort to ensure that she takes care of herself, while taking care of us? As mothers, scores of women around the world ignore themselves as they get caught in the routine of caring for their family and loved ones. They forget their health and nutritional needs while juggling between child-rearing, taking care of the home, being a wife and working in a professional environment.

Mother’s Day is a day especially meant to make our hardworking mums feel special, and we look for gifts to show our love and appreciation to them. But this year, let’s substitute jewellery or flowers with the most important gift of all - the gift of health. Here are a few ideas to make Mother’s Day more meaningful for your mum.

1 Fruit basket

A fruit basket is the healthiest gift you can give your mum. Fill it up with your mother’s favourite fruit or a variety of different ones, even some she may have never tasted before like rambutan, or something with a touch of home like pomegranate, guava or papaya. According to dietary guidelines we should have at least two serves of fruit and five serves of vegetables every day, but most of us do not consume even one fruit a day.

Fruits such as oranges, limes, mangoes, strawberries, rockmelon, and pineapple are excellent sources of vitamin C that help heal cuts and wounds, build up our immune system and keep our gums and teeth healthy. Bananas, prunes, dried peaches, apricots, honeydew, melon and orange are good sources of potassium. Fruit is also a good source of fibre. Some fruits such as avocadoes, olives are excellent sources of unsaturated fats.

2 Dark chocolate

If your mum loves chocolate and you would really like to give her some, present her with a gift box of dark chocolate. It is loaded with antioxidants which help rid your body of free radicals that cause oxidative damage to cells. But make sure to pick the ones with less calories and sugar.

3 A healthy pantry

Most of the time when your mother does the grocery shopping, it’s the children she keeps in mind and tends to buy stuff and snacks that kids like to eat. So sneak

out to the supermarket and stock the pantry with healthy nutritious snacks for your mum such as yoghurt, nuts, crackers, low fat cheese, dried fruits green tea and low GI bars. Prepare small packets of mixed nuts and dried fruits, or buy muesli or nut bars and keep those ready for her to carry to work.

4 Healthy cookbook

A healthy cookbook is a great gift not only for your mother, but for the health of the whole family. Looking for the perfect cookbook can be a daunting task but try to look for something with lots of visuals, interesting and easy, quick recipes. Avoid buying cookbooks with long tedious recipes or very expensive ingredients. Try to find a book with nutrition information on all recipes and focusing on low sugar, fat and sodium recipes, or some tips on adding different herbs, spices and veggies to meals. Try to cook something from the cookbook for her on Mother’s Day as a special treat and a headstart into using the book. Or order a subscription to a health magazine, so that she has health tips on hand for the whole year.

5 Kitchen gadgets

Low fat cooking is not always easy, especially for families who are fond of curries, paranthas and pakoras. But nowadays, a new range of cooking utensils can make this task easier for us. Invest in a non-stick pan that helps your mother cook with the least amount of oil. Also look for gadgets such as a wok , or a grill that makes the cooking process faster and with minimum use of oil.

6 Cooking classes

Some mothers may find that cooking

help her learn new recipes using different ingredients, as well as different cuisines. She could also learn a lot of information about nutrition. This can be a great experience for your mother, as she will meet new people, experience a wider range of cuisine, and will learn different ways

7 Exercise bits

Exercise is a very important part of your mother’s health. It is not essential to go and buy her a gym membership, as she may not have the time nor the inclination to give up her precious leisure time to work out at a gym. But no matter how tired one may be, just 30 minutes of walking can keep one fit and helps to decrease anxiety and stress. Buy your mum comfortable footwear to wear for her walks, and accompany her, as exercise is often easier with company. You’ll be able to spend quality time together and at the same time, stay fit. If she would rather walk alone, get her a pedometer and an MP3 player. And if she would rather just stay home, a yoga DVD and stretch mat will be a broad enough hint.

But the best gift that you can give your mothers is your love, support, and time. Spend some time with her, look after her, and make her feel special not just on Mother’s Day, but every day.

If your mum loves chocolate and you would really like to give her some, present her with a gift box of dark chocolate

Looking for the perfect cookbook can be a daunting task but try to look for something with lots of visuals, interesting and easy, quick recipes

Garden design 101

How to create an easy-to-maintain garden on a sunny elevated site

BY SANdHYA SUNIL

Problem:

Mr and Mrs B recently refurbished their house, and they wanted a simple garden to compliment it. Their garden design brief was simple. They wanted an easy-tomaintain garden (don’t we all), which was hard wearing, and could handle three young children and a dog. Oh, and they wanted their garden to bring a bit of colour to their property. It all sounded simple enough, until I turned up to the job one summer morning, and found a bit of a challenge.

The property sat at an elevation, at the junction of a curving street and sloped steeply to the street level. The front garden faced north-west and got the full brunt of the afternoon sun. The site soil had been ripped up and damaged by the various pieces of machinery involved in the house refurbishment. And the many feet that had walked over it had compacted the soil beyond redemption.

The house that the garden needed to match was rendered in grey and beige tones, and had sharp angles and a whole lot of glass. It was a very contemporary look. This would need to be reflected in the garden design.

Solution:

I started the way all jobs must start, and started making plans on paper. I drew two sets of retaining walls, which would retain the slope, as well as making the garden more accessible and userfriendly. Because the house is approached from around a bend, my designs would need to hug the edge of the site with a curved retaining wall. I decided that two sets of retaining walls would soften the level difference. And to suit the house, I chose to have them rendered in the same finish. This would unify the project. The designs included a 2 metre wide turfed space on either side of the driveway, which would be enclosed by the lower retaining walls. And, while we’re on the subject of grass, here’s a quick wording of warning. While there’s nothing better than a swathe of green grass to offset the planting

beyond, any grassed surface needs a good edging to contain it. There is nothing more painful than having to remove the runners of Couch or Kikuyu. Trust me.

Coming up to this level, is the second level, which I also decided to turf. This has now become the home oval where the three kids can kick their footy ball around, or do handstands. The deep beds and the sun exposure has been sensational for the grass.

Beyond the grass, I decided to create garden beds, which zig-zag all along the front of the house, faithfully following the offsets of the facade. Rising behind them are flat bland walls. Here the opportunity to create a symphony between the architecture and the landscape existed, which I decided to fully utilise. It was just a matter of scaling. The idea was to bring the high walls down to the turf, via a sweep of planting. This ended up turning out perfectly. I complimented the verticality of the walls with Dracaena marginata (Dragon Tree). Their twisted

stems added a sculptural quality to the scheme and broke down the straightness of the wall edges.

In addition to the Dragon Trees, I planted some other modern, ‘architectural plants,’ including Cordylines and Aloes. These plants became the lead stars of the show, with a supporting cast of filler plants, which was achieved by intensely flowering natives and Proteas. To blend the architectural plants with a softer look I used some Grass Trees. The sheer beauty of the wispy and wiry leaves added a soothing element to the garden design. All the plants chosen are very good at tolerating the sun exposure. And the beds were mulched with pebbles to compliment the planting scheme. Overall, I created a garden which neatly fitted the bill, it’s easy-to-care for, low maintenance and fuss-free. The lush grass in front is deeply satisfying, and more importantly, the kids are loving it. The owners have a front which shows off the house. So it was a massive success.

Bushwalking from Berowra

Attempting a 9km walk through varied terrain

writes

Bushwalking is serious business and needs adequate preparation and planning, with due importance for safety. You can’t just get up and go bushwalking with a bottle of water and a packet of biscuits. Here is my experience of a 9km walk that began from Berowra train station in the north of Sydney to Mt Kuring-gai station on the eastern side of the train line.

There is another walk on the western side of the train line which is part of the Great North Walk. This walk takes about six hours if you move at a leisurely pace, but nevertheless, it requires physical fitness. It may not be suitable for first time bushwalkers and small children.

My friend Wolfgang is an experienced bushwalker and, having lived in the area previously, he had completed this trail a number of times. We started off from Berowra Station at 9am, and set off into the bush. Initially it is a descent which is a reasonably steep, but not hard walk. At the bottom we crossed Waratah Creek, which was fortunately dry. There is a climb of about three feet from the creek bed to the next section of the track, which would not have been easy to cross if the creek had been filled with water, or if it was raining.

We passed green scenery and a rocky terrain, while the weather was pleasantly cool for a day which was forecast as being 27 to 30 degrees. We continued on until we reached Waratah Bay where the walk is on level ground, parallel to the water, and we soaked up the panorama of water views. A few small boats were moored at the bay, while others skimmed across the water. We took a snack break, enjoying a well-deserved rest after a long stretch of walking.

Now with renewed energy, we followed the winding track that led us to Lords Bay. This picturesque location was made even more beautiful as we saw a single anchored boat with people on board enjoying a relaxing day in the sun, or swimming in the clear greenish-blue water, covered in the mid-morning light.

Next up was Winson Bay, where we sat under the cool of the trees to enjoy a break. Natural seats are everywhere, as it is a very rocky area.

We walked on to No Name Bay, and considering that this

was the most beautiful of the four bays we passed, it was perplexing to discover that it had no name! Amidst dense bush, we sat on rocks that were so cool, I had to check if I was sitting on something wet. We had a snack again, looking over a moored yacht, small boats and a lone man in a kayak on the water. The couple on the yacht got into their colourful kayaks and came ashore, stopping to have a quick chat with us. The water was shallow near the end of the bay, crystal clear and inviting, but having no towels or swimming suits, we had to forgo the pleasure of a dip.

Soon we began looking for the track that would lead towards Mt Kuring-gai, a mere fifteen minutes from No Name Bay. The signboard, which can be easily missed if you’re not on the lookout for it, indicated a distance of two and a half kilometres to Mt Kuring-gai station.

The climb was initially steep and lengthy interspersed with some level walks, which took an hour to cover as we took a break to rest and chat. In an exciting encounter, we came across a goanna of nearly a metre long from head to tail, which jumped into a tree and climbed high, on sighting us. Wolfgang reckoned that goannas are capable of mistaking humans for trees and they would even climb a person standing still to escape from danger. Not the best thought, given their sharp claws. We decided to get moving.

We finally reached our destination of Kuring-gai station at about 3pm, and were exalted at successfully completing the walk.

Planning a walk

Bushwalking can be very relaxing but needs careful planning, as it involves risks. Based on your route, start the walk early in the morning, to avoid a steep climb in the hot afternoon. Leaving early also ensures plenty of time in case there are any mishaps that may delay you.

Don’t forget to inform your family, the police or national park authorities about the walk, location, route and expected time of return. Also, let them know once the walk is completed.

Bushwalk in groups of at least four, so if someone is injured or becomes ill, there are enough people to go for assistance, while others can stay with the person in distress. Ideally two should go for assistance and one should stay with the injured.

All the people in the group should stay together to avoid getting lost in the bush. A wrong

turn can be detrimental. The leader stays in the front and the second-in-command brings up the rear.

Mobile phones may go out of range in the bush; however, emergency numbers have more range than normal numbers. Apart from 000, 112 is an emergency number to call from mobiles. Some mobile phones may allow the number to be dialled even with the keypad locked. Some may even allow a call without a SIM card in the phone. A Personal Location Beacon (PLB) is a good investment if walks are regularly undertaken. In a serious emergency, an activated PLB can transmit your location to search and rescue teams.

Always check the weather forecast for your route before setting out.

Risks on the trip

Snakes are to be expected when

bushwalking, however walking along a well-trodden path may keep them away as they tend to pick up vibrations from the ground and seek shelter from intruders. Wearing thick, long pants, socks and boots will be helpful. Always be alert.

To avoid tripping and falling, a walking pole or stick may help. Tripping can happen even if you are being careful.

It is possible to become disorientated, so a detailed map and compass is vital. A battery operated GPS will be helpful too.

What to pack

Carrying a sensible load in a backpack is always helpful when walking in the bush.

Take a raincoat, wide brimmed hat, map for the area, water, food, sunscreen, first aid kit, GPS, Personal Location Beacon (PLB), a small torch, spare batteries for the GPS and torch. Wear a long sleeved shirt and pants and comfortable walking shoes.

When the walk is long, it is best to travel as light as possible. However, do not restrict water, as towards the end of the walk, it can always be poured out. Wear comfortable clothes in layers so that you can add or take them off, depending on the weather.

Additional information

You can find more tips at: http://www.nationalparks.nsw. gov.au/safety/bushwalking http://www.police.nsw.gov. au/community_issues/crime_ prevention/trek

Useful phone numbers NPWS Phone: 1300 361 967 or (02) 9995 5550 Emergency: 000 or 112

can be challenging but enjoyable, if you are well prepared,

SUNNY CHERIAN

www.worldexpeditions.com

www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au

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A Mughal experience and more

Fine dining with a theatrical twist in Epping

Krishna loves to put on a show with his Rumali Roti flipping skills. He will roll out the fine dough and twirl away in the air for anyone who is willing to appreciate his special talent.

And when he brings it out of the kitchen with a flair, he loves to watch them marvel at it as they dunk into his Lamb Korma Usmani or Punjabi Chicken Curry.

Krishna, executive chef and host of Mughal Palace Fine Dining Restraurant at Epping, is passionate about feeding people in style. Having graduated from the Institute of Hotel Management, Pusa, New Delhi twenty years ago, he built his career in five-star hotels in India and abroad. A year and a half ago, he decided to do it all his own way, and got together with mate Mukesh Verma to settle into their own place at Epping.

Verma is an Agra man by background who started off in the travel and tourism industry, and so there’s no surprise as to the name Mughal Palace.

As we walk in to the restaurant, we notice the décor is predictably Mughal as well. Miniature paintings in the Mughal tradition adorn the walls, and as if to leave no doubt that you’re in an Indian restaurant, there’s the mandatory cricket bat, suitably framed, taking pride of place amongst the paintings. It’s probably signed by Sachin Dravid or Rahul Tendulkar, or one of their mates.

The menu is also predictable, with terminology such as Shuruwaat and Khaas.

But when that first entrée arrives, Malai Tikka, we know we’re in for a treat. Succulent as ever, and just that right touch of spice. Delicious.

Chilli Paneer is placed in front

of us just as the entertainment picks up. It’s hot-as-chilli Rekha and white-as-paneer Amitabh in Salaam-e-Ishq (Mukaddar Ka Sikandar). We realise that the dances are all mujra, a Mughal style of entertainment: it may seem alien today, but who cares, as over our finger-licking good Amritsari Fish, we watch a beardless Amitabh try very hard not to kiss a willing and comely Rekha.

The middle-aged Caucasian couple on the next table are just as mesmerised as us. “How come she’s all ethnic, but he’s dressed in western clothes?” they ask us, perplexed.

“That’s India for you,” we reply, pretending to know the answer. “So conflicting, yet so captivating…”. We’re trying to eat that Chaat gracefully at the same time: the explosion of tastes in the mouth is one to savour, and we wish we don’t have to answer any more deep questions about our culture.

The restaurant is filling up. The waiter asks us in perfect English if we are ready to order mains. After four giant entrees we are actually done, but tell him we want to take a break. Meanwhile Madhubala is declaring undying love for Dilip Kumar as Prithviraj Kapoor seethes away in anger. No prizes for guessing that number. Wonder what our friends think of it all.

As our mains are brought out, the baby-faced Krishna tells us that the Kali Dal is cooked in true Bukhara style, and that the sauce for each of the curries is a different blend. “Notice the dark sauce for the lamb,” he points out expertly. “That comes from the use of red onions. Your chicken on the other hand, blends well with a white onion masala”. He means his kitchen will not store a ready-made one-type-fits-all masala base.

So what are his special preparations?

“My Butter Chicken and Kali Dal are the two most popular orders, but I like cooking the Tava-grilled veggies, the Biryanis and the Duma Bakra, a baby goat preparation marinated in spices and soaked in Indian rum overnight and then cooked on a spit. Of course it is usually ordered at our outdoor caterings, but if you make a special order I can prepare it for you with a leg of lamb”.

The Mughal tradition of cooking is said to have evolved out of the need for feeding large armies on the move. It was easy to find game, which was marinated in ground spices easy to carry, and then cooked inside makeshift portable ovens called tandoors. Today of course, it has developed into a fine art, which you can savour at restaurants like this one.

But at Mughal India, you get much more than Mughal cuisine. There’s dosas and other southern dishes too, as well as Indian Chinese and ‘British Raj’ specialties like Balti Chicken and Chicken Tikka Masala. And don’t miss the ‘Aussie’ offerings such as Kangaroo and Dariya Ka Crocodile!

“I cook the Kangaroo with rich herbs and spices to complement the roo’s distinct flavour,” Krishna reveals. “And for the crocodile I experimented with a creamy coconut sauce which turned out pretty good”.

But wait, there’s more! Mukesh shows us round the function venue upstairs where you can host your private parties.

“We’re also planning to hold cooking classes here in the near future,” he reveals.

Back on our seats downstairs, the soft-spoken Krishna has coaxed us to try his all-time

Indian Link An award-winning media group

favourite dessert: Rasmalai.

“Dil cheez kya hai, aap meri…” the bewitching Umrao Jaan sings in the background.

Nisha Chaman

Golden, spiky fruit

Pineapples are perfect for sweet or savoury meals and are jam packed with vitamins

Pineapples are one of those funny looking fruits, with their dangerous, spiky leaves, that can take a bit of effort to cut into pieces. But once you use your muscles to cleave off the inedible parts, the yellowy golden, and oh so very sweet flesh is your reward. But did you know that they’re stacked full of vitamin C, vitamin B6, bromelain, manganese and potassium, as well as being perfect for sweet or savoury meals?

“Pineapples are the perfect fruit to use in recipes as they are incredibly good for you and can be used in so many ways, from curries to quinoa,” says Dr Joanna McMillan, a registered nutritionist and the Australian pineapple Ambassador. Yes, that’s right, we have an Australian pineapple Ambassador.

Although you might think of pineapples as just being a summer fruit, remember that they’re also available in winter. They just have a different skin colour, and you’re more likely to use them in a curry, than a tropical fruit smoothy.

To cut a fresh pineapple like a pro:

1. Cut off the top and bottom of the pineapple with a sharp knife, making a stable flat base.

2. Stand the pineapple upright and remove the skin.

3. Use a paring knife to remove any remaining eyes.

4. Slice the fruit away from the core. Discard core.

Here are some recipes to bring a bit of sunshine to the cooler months of the year (there’s no harm in pretending it’s still summer).

Recipes from: australianpineapples.com.au

Pineapple Salsa

Serves 6

Ingredients

500 g fresh pineapple, coarsely chopped

1 small red onion, finely chopped

1 long fresh red chilli, seeded, finely chopped

2 tbs chopped fresh mint

1 tbs fresh lime juice

Method

1. Combine all salsa ingredients into a bowl, stir and serve!

Note: salsa can be served with any grilled meat or white fish dish

Pineapple, Sweet Chicken & Chili Curry

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

750 g chicken breast or thigh, chopped

500ml coconut milk

1tbsp red curry paste

½ tsp fish sauce

3 kaffir lime leaves

½ fresh pineapple, diced

2 red chilies, sliced (seeds removed if required)

2 chicken stock cubes

Serve with brown rice

Quinoa Salad with Pineapple & Coriander

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

2 tbs olive oil

2 cups quinoa

4 cups water

dash of salt

2 cups fresh pineapple, chopped

1 avocado, peeled and roughly chopped

½ cup red onion finely chopped

½ cup fresh coriander leaves

1 cup cucumber, roughly chopped

Juice of 4 limes

Wash the quinoa in a fine strainer. Place the water, salt and quinoa in a medium pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer until water is absorbed, about 20 minutes.

In a medium bowl mix all the salad ingredients and Toss the cooked quinoa with the pineapple mixture and serve.

Pineapple and prawn BBQ kebabs with mint yoghurt

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

12 green king prawns, peeled and deveined

1 pineapple diced into bite-sized chunks

250 g haloumi cheese

chopped into bite sized chunks

1 red capsicum, cut into

and steamed vegetables

Method

1. Pour coconut milk, fish sauce, curry paste and stock into pot and dissolve to creamy consistency.

2. Bring curry to the boil over medium heat.

3. Add chicken and continue to cook over medium heat for 5 mins.

4. Add pineapple, kaffir lime leaves and chilis.

5. Continue to cook over low-med heat for 15 min.

3cm pieces

1 green capsicum diced, cut into 3cm pieces

300 ml Natural yoghurt

1 handful of fresh mint

1 clove of garlic

Method

1. Thread a prawn, piece of red and green capsicum, piece of haloumi and piece of pineapple onto a skewer, with prawn in

Pineapple Ambassador the middle. Repeat to create a colourful kebab.

2. BBQ until prawns are cooked through and the other ingredients are ever so slightly charred (approx. 7 mins).

3. Served drizzled with mint yoghurt. Combine natural yoghurt, 1 clove of crushed garlic and some chopped mint.

“Pineapples are the perfect fruit to use in recipes as they are incredibly good for you and can be used in so many ways, from curries to quinoa,” says Dr Joanna McMillan, Australian

THE BUZZ

National Film Awards

Talent from the Indian film industry received awards from President Pranab Mukherjee at the 60th National Film Awards on the same day as the industry’s 100th birthday.

The ceremony, hosted by actors R. Madhavan and huma Qureshi, witnessed performances by Shankar Mahadevan, who got the best male playback singer award for the song Bolo na from Chittagong, for which Prasoon Joshi received the best lyricist award.

Veteran actor Pran was honoured with the dadasaheb Phalke award, but the 93-year-old couldn’t make it to the event.

A healthy mix of Bollywood, southern, Marathi and Bengali cinema talent won awards and some of them, notably John Abraham and Nawazuddin Siddiqui, looked great in national attire.

Tigmanshu dhulia’s Paan Singh Tomar, about an athlete-turned-dacoit, won the best film award. Versatile Irrfan, who played the title role in the biopic, was named the best actor for the same film, and he shared the title with Vikram Gokhale for his performance in Marathi film Anumati

Actress Usha Jadhav won the best actress title for playing a rustic housewife in Marathi film Dhag, which won the best director’s gong for Shivaji Lotan Patil.

In the feature film category, a total of 38 films from 14 languages were selected for the awards.

From Bollywood, Kahaani, Vicky Donor, Paan Singh Tomar, OMG: Oh My God! and Dekh Indian Circus won multiple awards.

HAppY ONE HUNDREDTH!

It was a proud day for the Indian film industry that turned 100 on May 3, amidst a series of events to celebrate its success.

India’s film industry has made leaps of progress in fields as diverse as technology, music, direction, production, animation and graphics, storylines, in addition to the actors themselves.

Bollywood celebrities like Anupam Kher and govinda hailed the industry’s overall growth, saying they are grateful to be a part of the filmdom. Said actor Anupam Kher, “It’s a golden age for hindi cinema. You can make the kind of films you want to and audience may like them”.

Govinda was effusive in his thanks, claiming that he got the name, fame, respect and everything within the industry. he highlighted that there has been an improvement to the extent that the industry has now gone international.

“Starting from dadasaheb Phalke, the industry has grown progressively

and has reached up to this level. This is a very important and special year for our industry,” said actor-director Saurabh Shukla.

But there was the underlining concern of piracy that was raised by actor-filmmaker Satish Kaushik.

“Our cinema will progress more. I just want the piracy to be stopped and more theatres to be opened,” he said, emphasising that more digital theatres should be set up in remote areas to increase its reach, specially in this, its 100th year.

Filmmaker Nitin Kakkar stated that cinema must be beyond a “few reels of entertainment” as it is a good medium to channelise positive changes in the country’s socio-cultural milieu. his debut feature Filmistaan was named the best film at the 60th National Film Awards this year.

“As far as social issues are concerned, I feel cinema is a strong tool to bring about a change in society. Cinema is lot more that few reels of entertainment,” said Kakkar.

President Pranab Mukherjee also released postal stamps commemorating 50 iconic film personalities who brought changes in Indian cinema.

he also commented, “Cinema can play a crucial role in influencing societycinema must be used to portray positive societal values for building a tolerant and harmonious India”.

“The film industry ought to take steps to ensure that cinema is morally energising,” he said.

A new and open attitude

Bollywood has come a long way in its trend of filmmaking, but love scenes on screen are still a long way off from bolder sister hollywood. And with young stars, the road is always easier with a bit of help. Take 19-year-old new kid on the block Shadab Kamal, who is making his full-fledged debut with B.A. Pass. The youngster admits that co-star Shilpa Shukla made the intimate scenes more comfortable. “I was quite nervous with the intimate scenes because I was worried about my co-actor. It’s a very awkward situation, but when you have a confident co-actor, the job gets easier,” said Shadab.

There is an intimate scene between the two actors in the film and talking about

the experience of shooting it, Shadab said, “She (Shilpa) was very chilled out. The first shot I shared with her was the kissing scene and it went so well all thanks to Shilpa. Soon after the scene I went and I hugged her and thanked her for making me feel comfortable”.

In the erotic human drama directed by Ajay Bahl, Shilpa plays a rich, married woman, who turns a sex guru for the boy. She teaches him the art of lovemaking.

“The film has many lovemaking scenes and one of them is quite long,” said a source. B.A. Pass is the Chak De! India actress’ boldest role to date, while Shadab has featured in a small role in Chittagong.

But as for Arjun Kapoor, now there’s an expert in shooting lovemaking scenes. The young actor did an intimate scene in his debut film Ishqzaade, and has also shot a lovemaking scene for his forthcoming thriller Aurangzeb. And apparently, he seems to have mastered the art of doing them. The film will launch Sasha, daughter of Nikaah fame Pakistani actress Salma Agha, in Bollywood.

director Atul Sabharwal was apprehensive about how comfortable she would be doing an intense lovemaking scene with her co-star Arjun.

But Arjun explained to Sasha the reason for the scenes and its nuances. Arjun also requested Atul that minimum crew should be present on the sets.

“After the shoot was wrapped up, everyone joked about how he has become a lovemaking expert as he seemed to have a complete command on the scene,” said a source close to the film.

So will we see Arjun and Shilpa in Bollywood’s next blockbusting erotica flick? Wouldn’t surprise me!

Just a regular couple… happily married to Saif Ali Khan, Bollywood diva Kareena Kapoor says that just like any other regular couple, they try to enjoy small pleasures of life by doing things together.

“Saif and I are just a regular couple and it’s nice to be able to enjoy dinner at our favourite restaurant without light bulbs flashing in our faces constantly,” Kareena said recently. She is appreciative of the

kareena kapoor

media for giving them their privacy.

“As a celebrity, being under constant media glare is a job hazard. But I truly appreciate the privacy the media has given me when it comes to my personal life,” she said.

Known for her great fashion and style sense, the actress seeks approval from her husband on what looks good on her.

“I seek approval from my man on how I look and what I should wear, and Saif with his great taste gives some fabulous inputs,” said the actress who married Saif in October 2012 after dating him for five years.

Being at the top of her career, the actress is busy with endorsements, films and other events but she makes sure to take out time for hubby Saif.

wHO wORE IT BETTER?

Kangana Ranaut or Bar Rafaeli in Roberto-Cavalli

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“Being from the same industry, Saif completely understands the pressure that comes with being an actor. While we never sideline our work, we ensure that we sneak in some ‘us time’ in the midst of our hectic schedules - be it catching up on a movie together, a quiet dinner or an impromptu vacation,” she said.

The actress further added, “Saif has always been extremely supportive and encouraging and I’m really grateful to him”.

The actress is philosophical about her success.

“When you enjoy what you do and when you give it all you’ve got, success will never be far behind. Always trust your instincts and have faith in your capabilities!” said Kareena who will next be seen in Satyagraha

After 13 years in the industry, there’s no doubt that Kareena’s the best in her class. Bet her colleagues are wondering when she’s going to take the plunge into motherhood, to give them chance at the top!

Riteish for politics?

After enjoying a good deal of popularity in hindi films, the buzz around Bollywood is now about whether actor Riteish deshmukh will take on the mantle of his father, late former Maharashtra chief minister Vilasrao deshmukh and make his foray into the world of politics.

Naturally, Bollywood’s best had their opinions. Actor-politician Raj Babbar said it would be a well thought-out decision. hema Malini also supported the idea, saying he will do a good job.

“Riteish is born in a family where politics is a way of life,” said Babbar. “his father was highly respected and one of the most powerful and influential political figures of Maharashtra. So politics is nothing new to Riteish. he has grown up with it and his father’s constituency and community are completely with him. Also, being a celebrity in his own field of cinema, Riteish already has a connectivity with the people. Most important of all, I’ve observed how Riteish has conducted himself after his father’s untimely death. The boy has a natural and sincere attachment to the people who loved his father. They are now willing to transfer that love to the son”.

“Riteish is very entertaining and funny on the screen,” hema Malini said.

“I am sure he can utilise his natural skills to be a good politician. Besides that, he has his father’s example to follow. he can’t go wrong”.

Shatrughan Sinha felt that Riteish could make a success out of his career in politics. “Politics is in Riteish’s genes. I’ve seen Riteish grow and I feel today he’s ready to step into his father’s arena.

What about Sunil dutt whose conduct in politics was exemplary? Amitabh Bachchan came into politics for emotional reasons. Today, I feel he is our best candidate to be the President of India,” said the veteran actor, somewhat surprisingly.

Riteish wasn’t available for comment. e was probably tossing a coin. Bollywood or politics? It’s a tough decision for the actor, but I think I know what he would choose. What do you think? IANS

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Kunal (to himself): Who’s the girl I’m standing next to?

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riteish Deshmukh

arjun kapoor sasha aagha

CINE TALK

A BEfITTINg HOMAgE TO INDIAN CINEMA

Bo MBAY TALKIES

STARRINg: Rani Mukerji, Randeep hooda, Saqib Saleem, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sadashiv Amrapurkar, Naman Jain, Khushi dubey, Vineet Kumar Singh, Sudhir Pandey and Amitabh Bachchan

DIRECTED: Karan Johar, dibakar Bannerjee, Zoya Akhtar and Anurag Kashyap HHHHH

Agirl on a railway station who croons Lata Mangeshkar songs with aching luminosity, a stoic gluttonous ostrich, a cocky gay entertainment journalist, a closet actor, a little boy who likes to dance like Katrina Kaif, and a man from Allahabad who just wants to meet Amitabh Bachchan for a few seconds... such are the engrossing characters that populate the unforgettable world of Bombay Talkies

Bombay Talkies is that rarity, which makes us thankful for the gift of the movies.

Four stories directed by four contemporary Bollywood directors merge with seamless splendour into a pastiche of pain and pleasure. Like four scoops of ice cream, one yummier than the other, Bombay Talkies serves up a flavourful quartet of delights that leaves us craving for more. It’s like that song written by the immortal Sahir Ludhianvi: Abhi na jao chhod kar ke dil abhi bhara nahin.

No, that song isn’t part of the film. But there are songs of the melody queen Lataji which haunt your senses as the restless edgy protagonists, each in search of an emotional liberation that strikes them in unexpected ways at the end of every story, seek a slice of cloudburst to nourish their parched spirits.

So on to the first and my favourite story directed by Karan Johar where a sterile marriage between an urban working-couple played by Rani Mukerji and Randeep hooda is shaken by the arrival of a young ebullient homosexual who enters their frozen marriage in a most unexpected way.

This story more than any other, pushes Indian cinema to the edge and explores a theme so far swept under the carpet. Karan, whose most brilliant film My Name Is Khan was also about a marginalised community, strips the urban relationship of all its shock value. he looks at the three characters’ frightening spiritual emptiness with a dispassion that was denied to the characters in his earlier exploration of crumbling marital values in Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna

Thanks to the unsparing editing

by deepa Bhatia, a gently arousing background score by hitesh Sonik, deft but credible dialogues penned by Niranjan Iyenger and camerawork by Anil Mehta that sweeps gently across three wounded lives, Karan is able to nail the poignancy and the irony of his urban fable in just four-five key scenes. This is his best work to date. Rani delivers another power-packed performance. It’s Saqib Saleem who steals this segment with his unmitigated spontaneity and reined-in ebullience.

The second story by dibakar Bannerjee features that wonderful chameleon actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui as a man who would have been an actor if only life’s drudgeries had not overtaken his life. dibakar is a master-creator of vignettes from everyday life. here his detailing of chawl life is unerring.

Nikos Andritsakis’s cinematography doesn’t miss a single nuance in Nawaz’s sad yet hopeful, bleak yet bright existence. The sequence where Siddiqui washes clothes with the chawl’s women is savagely funny and poignant, as is his life-changing moment when Nawaz gets to perform one shot with Ranbir Kapoor. No we don’t see Ranbir, we just feel his presence, and we also hear filmmaker Reema Kagti giving orders from the directorial chair.

Nawaz in dibakar’s deft hands, takes his character through a journey of profoundly saddening self-discovery without any hint of self-pity. This segment is quirky funny and tragic. No one is allowed to feel sorry for Nawaz’s character. Not even Nawaz.

Ebullient and enchanting are the descriptions that come to mind while watching Zoya Akhtar’s film about a little boy (Naman Jain, brilliant) who would rather dance to Katrina Kaif’s song than become a cricketer or a pilot, as per the wishes of his tyrant papa (Ranveer Shorey).

The household brims over with song, dance and giggles between the Katrinaenamoured boy and his sibling and confidante (a very confident Khushi dubey). Charming warm humorous and vivacious Zoya’s film serves up a very gentle moral lesson. Let a child grow the way they want to. Zoya’s film makes our hearts acquire wings. And yes, it immortalises Katrina Kaif.

Finally, Anurag Kashyap’s homage to the unmatchable stardom of Amitabh Bachchan. A simple fable of a man journeying from Allahabad to meet Bachchan, this segment is more baggy and loose-limbed than the other three tightly-edited stories. This is not to take away from its power. As played by Vineet Kumar Singh, the Common Man’s

devotion to the Bachchan aura is manifested in the tongue-in-cheek spoken lines and the casual energy of Mumbai’s street life.

Anurag captures the sometimesfunny often-sad bustle around the Bachchan bungalow with warmth and affection. The segment certainly doesn’t lack in warmth. But it could have done with a tighter grip over the narrative.

Bombay Talkies is segmented and layered, yet cohesive and compelling from the first frame to the last. While unravelling the magic of cinema and its impact on the minds of audiences, it also displays how much cinema has evolved over the generations.

This is a beguiling, beautiful and befitting homage to 100 years of Indian cinema. It’s also proof that different stories in an episodic film could comfortably have directors with different sensitivities staring in the same line of vision.

only one film a year make sure it’s this one.

god for the motion picture.

S UBHASH K J

OUT AND OUT TESTOSTERONE-DRIvEN

SH ooTo UT AT WA dALA

g:

RITER-DIRECToR: Sanjay Gupta

HHH

Babli badmash hai, sings Priyanka Chopra in one of the three utterly wasted item numbers in this film about blazing guns, flaring nostrils, sanguinary revenge and bleak atonement.

Babli is not the only one who’s a badmaash here. The characters are all hardened players of the underworld from the 1970s. They all mean business in the business of being mean.

They sport the right clothes, dialogues and attitude.

Wordsmith Milap Zaveri is the real hero of this film about fascist solutions to the conundrum of urban chaos. Everyone is a smartass in this film, boys who never grew up - attention-seekers whose mums should have delivered solid

spankings during their childhood. They fight, scream, throw tantrums and draw blood when all fails. This is Sanjay gupta’s return to direction after a longish hiatus. he is in a tearing hurry to sweep us into the vortex of his violent kingdom. Mumbai as seen through gupta’s expertly sketched images, is a kingdom of the damned. Men pull put guns and knives as the background music (by Amar Mohile) settles scores. Tempers run high. The body-count matches the exacerbated emotions.

To his credit, gupta knows this world of internecine wars as minutely as Coppola knew his Sicily. The mood in the cat-and-mouse game is forever defiant and belligerent.

There’s no room for dull moments. The cat and-mouse game tends to get breathless but never wheezy, even when characters such as the one played by Manoj Bajpai splutter to a gruesome end.

Gupta keeps a firm grip on the proceedings on his out-of-control characters, all played by actors who understand the close link between oppression and violence.

Sameer Arya’s camera and Sabu Cyril’s art work (which blends bloody reds with nostalgic sepias) recreate an era of fathomless violence. A great deal of thought has gone into creating a mood of anarchy. Every frame is saturated with colours and atmospherics. Every dialogue is darkly underlined and emphatically italicized. The performances reflect the absence of a moral equilibrium in the lives of the characters. While Anil Kapoor makes his ‘encounter cop’ a combination of the quirky and the kinetic, John Abraham in the central role tries very hard to remain in character. going shirtless on a BeST bus in the bustle of Mumbai in the early 1970s is perhaps his idea of being in character. Wonder what the real Manya Surve would think!

While these two succeed in building an atmosphere of clenched crisis that threatens to blow apart their lives any minute, Sonu Sood, Manoj Bajpai and

Ronit Roy shine in briefer roles.

As usual Gupta invests a lot of time and attention to the images of violence. Shootouts and flare-ups in various public spots of Mumbai are shot with the arresting impunity of a storyteller who is profoundly fascinated by the violence that underscores suburban life.

except for Manya Surve’s anxious and physical love interest (played by Kangna who looks as though she wasn’t happy being in her character’s space), we hardly ever see the characters in their domestic space.

do these killers and cops ever sleep?

This is a bludgeoning saga of bloodshed, vendetta and ricocheting nemesis peppered with picturesque dialogues and episodes of frenetic aggression.

S UBHASH K J HA

wHEN LOvE IS TRAppED IN THE qUAgMIRE THAT IS SHOwBIZ

AASHIQUI 2

STARRINg: Aditya Roy Kapoor, Shradha Kapoor

DIRECTED By: Mohit Suri

HHH

It’s no coincidence that this surprisingly moving film is inspired by Frank Pierson’s 1976 drama

A Star Is Born. And I deliberately mention the funky psychedelic 1976 version and not the older (1954) version of the same story.

In spirit and in the way the two principal actors perform their parts of two soulmates and singers torn asunder by their allegiance to the same competitive spirit of showmanship, Aashiqui 2 is reminiscent of the Kris Kristofferson-Barbara Streisand film where he discovers a co-singer who steals his heart and also his career.

hrishikesh Mukherjee made his melodious Abhimaan on the same theme. It was easy for hrishida to portray Jaya Bhaduri as a better artiste than Amitabh Bachchan quite simply because she sang in lata Mangeshkar’s voice.

In Aashiqui 2 the two protagonists are pretty much left to their own devices to create that unbearable frisson between two people whose love is trapped in the whirligig of showbiz. For their love

to be liberated from the rituals of competitiveness, one of the lovers must make a huge sacrifice before the end.

For love to live, the lover must die. It’s a curious trade-off and one carried off in this film with an exuberance of emotions.

The premise for the plot presumes love to be selfless, all-giving and unconditional. Just to see Shradha Kapoor’s eyes melt in mutating emotions of unflinching devotion to her alcoholic lover makes us believe true love still exists. This petite beauty with eyes that never stay silent gives to her part so much heart, you want to just embrace her and protect her from her self-destructive mentorturned-tormentor.

Aditya Roy Kapoor as a rockstar who is rapidly slipping from the charts, gives all of himself to the character. And then some more. In Aditya’s persona, Rahul becomes a metaphor for all the success in showbiz that goes awry.

like all the heroes of Mahesh Bhatt’s cinema, Aditya has to portray a man who frequently creates a scene and embarrasses the person he loves the most. This young actor is not afraid to look compromised on screen. A fearless actor, Aditya falters in the higher notes. But then, the singing here is not quite Lata Mamgeshkar, Mohammad Rafi and Kishore Kumar in Abhimaan having said that, it must be admitted that the

music by Jeet Ganguly, Mithoon and Ankit Tiwari stands by the characters and never lets them down. The finely written poetry also helps to furnish the lovers’ journey with a feverish and fecund pitch. Aashiqui 2 is a film with its heart in the right place. Writer Shagufta Rafiqui and director Mohit Suri ferret out those feel-good places in the script where the protagonists plonk their emotions with a confidence and conviction that reaches out to the audience.

Man, woman, music, ambitions, dreams and despair, director Mohit Suri traverses the angst-soaked territory with a sincere and deep understanding of the dynamics that destroy love and trust between couples in the glamorous

and competitive profession. Aditya Roy Kapoor is impressively implosive while Shradha Kapoor plays off against him with a steely vulnerability that echoes Jaya Bhaduri in Abhimaan

Watching this smoothly-oiled drama of disintegrating love I couldn’t help remember Rahul Roy and Anu Aggarwal’s wooden performance in Aashiqui

Our cinema has a come a long way, and not always in the right direction. Aashiqui 2 makes us grateful for the movement of the love story away from the standard Romeo & Juliet format into the dark destructive domain of A Star Is Born

Sometimes love is just not enough. S UBHASH K J HA

STARRIN

Anil Kapoor, John Abraham, Tusshar Kapoor, Kangna Ranaut, Sonu Sood, Manoj Bajpai, Ronit Roy W

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taRot

ARIES March 21 - April 19

The cards indicate a time of renewal, as you will be looking at how to improve your finances and appearance. you will also look at new ventures. Take care of your stomach, eat a healthy diet. you are also making plans to purchase a new property, make sure you read all the documents carefully, as you need to keep alert and on top of things. There will be news in the family of a new arrival or a marriage.

TAURUS April 20 - May 20

you will look at buying a new property. you will be concerned about a loved one’s health. Take time out to care for yourself too, especially your back. There is an indication of a promotion or a higher salary. you have been working hard lately and it has not gone unnoticed. you may look at purchasing a new car, and have your eye on a special vehicle. your mother will feel a little unwell and will need a blood test.

gEMINI May 21 - June 20

predictions for MAY 2013

By NANCE JADE ALTHIYA www.cosmick-aura.com

LIBRA sep 23 - oct 22

The cards indicate that you need to complete unfinished projects and tasks. you have been planning and looking at new ventures. you may be thinking of buying a present for someone special. There may be some delays, but your relationship seems karmic and is bound to happen. Look at changing your wardrobe. It is time for a new look and haircut. Start taking vitamins.

SCORpIO oct 23 - nov 21

you may be feeling slightly upset and insecure about things. This will pass and you will find a new way of enjoying the fruits of your labour. Take it easy before speaking to anyone, as you will be feeling quite annoyed with certain people at work or in the family. There will be redecoration decisions around your home. you seem to be worrying about younger members of the family.

SAgITTARIUS nov 22 - dec 21

you are feeling as though everything is a real struggle right now. Start looking at doing more meditation and relaxation. you are under a lot of stress and seem to be worrying about money issues. There are some matters relating to your business or work that need to be handled very carefully. your boss may be putting pressure on you, but you will manage to get through this period. you need to start a new exercise plan and diet.

CANCER June 21 - July 20

The cards indicate that you are feeling very close to your lover. It is time to try and amend strained relationships with family members. Take care of your health, as you seem to be feeling a little unwell. you are looking at taking a holiday to let your hair down. There will be a fantastic gathering arranged by friends where you will meet new friends. you could be taking up a new hobby, a dance class or a new evening class.

LEO July 21 - Aug 22

This is a time of great inclination towards spirituality and matters relating to developing a greater understanding of what and who you are. Family commitments will stress you out. you will feel confused and upset about a matter close to your heart. This is the time to let go of inhibitions and go for what you want. Work is going well, you may look at overseas assignments. Be careful who your friends are, as competition will be close.

vIRgO Aug 23 - sep 22

The cards indicate that you will do well at work and career. you need to keep up the momentum. you will be feeling more settled in your love life too. Take care of niggling health issues, as you tend to neglect yourself when busy. There will be good news relating to finance, and you will be thinking about savings plans and investments. Take advice from a trusted source. you may be looking at going to another land on work.

The cards indicate a time when you will be deep in thought about your next steps. Right now you are capable of overcoming obstacles. Try and control outbursts of aggression, as you are feeling frustrated at the lack of progress with plans. you need to relax and take it easy, things will fall into place. There is a new opportunity coming into view, you need to decide what you want to do!

CApRICORN dec 22 - Jan 19

The cards indicate that you need to take the first step in romantic situations for love to blossom. Financially things are improving and new ventures will be a great success. Be careful when making decisions about your home and family. you may be feeling a little stressed out, take care of your health and exercise regularly. Take care of your possessions as you may be feeling a bit forgetful.

AqUARIUS Jan 20 - feb 18

The cards indicate that finances will be your main focus. There will be some stressful situations relating to tax returns and paperwork issues. Sort them out so you can relax and take life easy. There will be some discussions about a new position at work; if in business, you will look at new ways to improve your current working style. A great time for love.

pISCES feb 19 - March 20

you will be thinking about family and trying to keep things on an amicable basis. There will be a lot of catching up with friends and getting paperwork issues in order. you have put off sending important forms and documents. Make sure you check that your car is serviced. you will have to take a health test as you are feeling a little low in energy. Try to get more sleep.

Charlie makes a comeback

Slapstick comedy of the past still has the power to enchant and amuse the modern generation

BY SHERYL dIXIT

In an attempt to introduce a more refined form of humour into the lives of my young sons, I recently got them a DVD of Charlie Chaplin. Now the boys are charming and annoying in equal degrees, but some of their more unenduring virtues are to find anything relating to specific body parts absolutely hilarious. So they will laugh with abandon at fart noises, giggle with glee at burps and don’t even get me started with describing the pre-bath routine…

So I thought, if slapstick is their thing, the sight of an ill-dressed man with an ill-trimmed brush moustache, baggy pants, bowler hat and cane performing odd antics would be bound to take their minds off the scatological content that currently seems to dominate their young lives. A bit of innocent walking into doors, falling over feet and getting chased by baton-wielding cops would raise a few laughs. Charlie Chaplin and Laurel ‘n’ Hardy were a staple during my childhood and brought us hours of rib-cracking joy. And so, I brought home City Lights, one of Chaplin’s masterpieces, which at first, didn’t interest the boys at all. However, one evening after we had exhausted the superhero repertoire, I managed to convince them to watch it. With surprising and interesting results.

Now it’s been a while since I had watched the movie myself, and I was keen to rekindle some of that joy I had experienced when viewing it as a child. But like most plans that involve my two jokers, nothing went quite according to how I hoped it would. The beginning was innocent enough, but the first question I was asked was, “What are they saying, why can’t we hear them?” It took a while for me to get through a somewhat garbled explanation on the joys of silent movies, by which time, more questions followed.

“Why are those boys bullying him?”

“Is he smoking? Doesn’t he know that its bad for him?”

“Why is he looking at that girl like that?” This was a mannequin in a window, which Charlie was unashamedly ogling.

The questions continued.

“Why does that guy have a rope around his neck?”

“Why is he driving, would he have a licence?”

dangerous!”

“Are they drinking alcohol?”

“Why are they dancing so funny?”

By this time, the movie was exhausting me too, as my brain grappled to answer the barrage of questions that were being fired at me. And then came the scene where Charlie encounters the blind girl. “Oh no,” I thought, “I’m in for it now!” And I wasn’t disappointed!

Explaining the concept of the blind girl was tough work. Why she couldn’t see, how feeling would help her, how she would have to rely on her other senses…. Just as I thought I was getting somewhere, my younger one piped up, “But mum, she can’t speak either. See, I can’t hear her, can you?” I too, was speechless.

Another excruciating point of discussion was several scenes in which the actors appeared drunk as lords. “Is that how people behave when they’ve drunk beer?” asked one of them interestedly, possibly deducing that their dad’s consumption of the beverage is

as he doesn’t exhibit the same abandon that they were viewing on the small screen! I didn’t answer that one…

Now through this, I have to admit that the movie had them riveted. They picked up the subtler nuances and laughed heartily at all the right times. We all particularly enjoyed the scene in the boxing ring as Chaplin, his opponent and the referee do an amazingly coordinated dance routine several times over. They laughed hugely and naturally, at the end of the movie, attempted the same thing between themselves with hilarious results.

Chaplin movies tend to have a fair bit of physical violence, with people getting into a scrum, chasing each other, tripping over, clouting over the head and the inevitable kicks in the backside in which the recipient (usually Charlie) catapults several inches in the air. There was an abundance of these scenes which caused immoderate and happy laughter, making me realise that

enjoyment in someone else’s pain. And Chaplin himself is a virtuoso in enacting these scenes. Strangely, the next morning I found them on the lounge, feet entwined as they watched the entire movie again from start to finish, in silence and harmony!

Watching the movie made me realise that the boys do need to be exposed to some more of Chaplin’s art, and we’ll throw Laurel ‘n’ Hardy into the mix too. It will raise an enormous lot of questions again on the political and social correctness of the world we live in, but it will also give them a sense that the world can indeed, be a funny place. And I can only envisage the discussions that will ensue, about who will be Laurel and who will be Hardy, (a bit of a non-starter as they are both skinny) but they will, no doubt, find a compromise.

Besides, their attempts at emulating these great actors will keep us amused for a long, long time. So move over, Mr Bean and Spongebob Squarepants, real comedy’s making a comeback!

There was an abundance of these scenes which caused immoderate and happy laughter, making me realise that there is indeed a wicked sense of enjoyment in someone else’s pain

It will raise an enormous lot of questions again on the political and social correctness of the world we live in, but it will also give them a sense that the world can indeed, be a funny place

Illustration: Jesse Peacock