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It's a laugh riot on UZMA BEG's morning show on Indian Link Radio, and yet there are some life-changing moments

If you're looking for a show with a C\visc, tune in to Moming Masala!

On Mondays we go from jokes to poetry co discussions about children and what on eanh to do with them once you've had chem!

Every Tuesday on 1'foming Ma.sala I cell you what to do with your kids so you're not tearing your eyes, out \Yhen they're tearing your house down! Relax, 1 am not telling you what my grandma cold me; I back my advice up with a lot of research.

Wednesday is a ve r y special day on Afor11i11g 1vfosala not bec ause the weekend is two days away bnc because our show brings hope to a lot of people. I en courage people co share their troubles so all the listeners can come toget her as a family and lend a helping hand. Those who wa.nc co remain anonymous most certainly do. Together we've helped so many unfortunate men and women find their vocation in life!

What's a show w i thout celebrities and gossip? That would amount to Mornings Without l\fasala! Hear the m ost candid interviews of celebrities and their juiciest gossip right here on 1'1-orning lv[a.sala Well, they have it all, so I am sure they won't mind!

For instance, my dear friend Ra hat Fateh Ali Kha n cam e on air w ith no notice at all and l can never thank him e n ough for that. People loved bearing ''Rahat the Friend" on a ir as opposed to Rabat the celebrity who chinks before he speaks to the press. Peop le were blown away by the humble man b ehind all d1a c ta lent. His an1azing self deprecating se n se of humom shines through when you know him as closely as I do, and people loved th e interview! He to ld us the uncut version of how he lost his manager Ch itresh Shivastav in a road accident while touring the US and how he escaped injury - or worse, death - by a la st minute dec ision to sic with h is musicians in tbcir van.

Johnny Lever may be a comedian to che world but my listeners got to know him as a healer. The way he prayed for me day after day when I lost one of my C\vins was at the ti me unbelievab le to me. The fact that he called me everyday during my pregnancy frorn Mumbai, right from tbe time he mer me to pray for me and t he safe delivery of rny baby, just b lew me away He may be a comed ian to his fans but to me he's the most amazing healer who helps people through d1e power of prayer.

\Xlasin1 Akram agreed co give me a very rare interview where he was at his candid best and had me in stitches with his amazing sense of humour. My listeners got co know him for the direct, frank, candid and humorous person he is. He narrated th e whole horror

Uzma

With Joh nnyLever

of being accused of match - /i.,ung in the C ri cket World Cup of 1999 when Pakistan reached the final an d lose to Australi a. He coul dn't believe that his peop le were so ready to blame him for the team's loss in stead of congratulating him for leading the team ro the finals. Cricketer Shahid Afridi gave only o n e personal interview whe n he was in Sydney last and iliac was ro me. His spirit of charity and his compassion for ilie Lmcl erprivileged really struck a nerve in me. \Xlhen l got to know him better I realised what a lovely, obliging, fLm loving and patriotic person he is.

I was thrilled to bits whe n multiple award winning director of award winning TV serie s East lf?"est 101 Peter An drikidis came to my show along wi th lead actor Don Hany. We talked from Bollywood ro Hollywood, co all aspects of acting an d directing including the episode of Bast W'esl 101 Thad acted in. le was a pleasure co ace for Peter Andrikidis a treat to see him in action a nd learn so much from him. An even bigger treat was co have him on my show and get to kn ow him as a person. Most definitely one of d1e most humb le, down to earth and unassuming peop le I've ever met.

Some memorable moments :

• \X'hen the listeners all got together as a fan1ily and h el ped a grieving sister find h er miss ing brother.

• When we helped a yOLmg man t hrough wedding ji tters and convinced him to go ahead w irn his marriage. Soon we heard al.I about his happily-ever- after from India!

• \Vhen we convinced a suicidal lady that the man she was giving it a ll up fo r was nod1.ing but a fraud and life had much better in sto re for her!

Earn show clone for people on Wednesdays i s a memorable one because it changes someone's life.

So if you're l ooking fo r a show t hat gives you fun, laughter, seriousness, goss ip and a chance to lose your i n hibitions and be crazy, tun e in to Morning 1'1fasafa

We do it all here, from A11tak.rhmi to composing poetry together, to making a movie script from just a couple of lines! Bored of your mundane daily routine? Well, no more pick up me phone and participate your heart out. I am just a phone call away!

Morning Masnla with Uzma Mon-Tu e-Wed 9am- 12 noon

Listen here: www.i11di1111link.t'o111.1111 n dia n link.com.au

What happens when the lure of easy money becomes an insatiable and unstoppable desire for wealth

job. Nita was a genius at making money. She called it a lucky streak, and promised d1at she could solve SaL'lita's problems too.

She stood beside the w indow and gazed out at the landscaped garden and colourful blooms. Serene and beautiful, it was the ideal locati o n in wh ich co sit and contemplate her life, meandering through the pathways that she had chosen , and to that all- crucial moment. Sanita was an addict and like all addicts she had remained in denial for over a decade. During that time she saw her marriage faU apart, her chi ldren lose faith and her friends disperse from her Life Of course, she regretted her every act and her every lie. She would always regret those, but de.spire the many losses she had brought about in her life , she had been unab le co take contro l.

Then o ne day, feeling lost and desperate, she had stood at the edge of her fifth storey balcony and looked at the concreted ground below. It welcomed her, and it o ffered her a conclusion. Then just as she prepared herself for the jump, t\VO question s arose ,._,;thin her: What were the odds chat she might survive? And if she did, what were the odds that she would recover complete ly? Bus y working out the odds, that decisive momenr to jump passed, and Sanita realised that she really did not want co leave this earth, at least, not as a failure.

And for the first time in her entire Life, she also admitted diar she truly had a problem because even at the moment when she was end.i.ng her life, she was betting on the odds.

Careful.I)' she had climbed back o mo the balcony and, sitting down in an oucdoor chair, she spent d1e next three hours contemplating on all that bad happened. Like the pages of a book, she flipped through each and every moment of her life.

Her birth had been welcomed, her chi ldhood had been happy, a nd her ro ud1 was joyo us. Everytb.i.ng about that phase of her life was normal and beautiful.

At 21, Sanita married the man of her dreams. He was everydung that she had wamed in a partner - handsome, funny and generous.

Everyone loved him, even the kids in her family. They had a wonderful six mond1s which she treasured even today. If one thing lacked in their lives, ir was the freedom to spend what tbey wanted and d1e liberty to stay where they liked. Financially they were comfortab le, but nor rich. With bod1 of thern working fulltime the y had managed ro buy a lovely home, small buc quaint and close to her family.

Sanira had always seen her mother dependant on her father for ever)Ttbi.ng. He made aU the decisions, and whenever mere was budgeting to be done, it was always her mother who made the sacrifices. \'(Thile SaL'lita and her husband combined their income, she maintained d1e liberty of having her own account and she retained the freedom ro shop as she wanced. One by one, she bad decorated each room in their new home and d1ere had been just rwo more rooms to go. One of d1em was a nursery.

In tbe seventh month of their marriage, Sanita found out diat she \Vas pregnant. The initial joy was soo n overr idden by their financial worry. She ·wou ld have to give up work and d1e m o ment she did that, d1ey would have to sell rneir home. She was not prepared ro make that sacri lice.

She kept the pregnancy a secret from her husband for a week, while she debated on her action. At the end of rhat week she had come ro a decision. The baby must go. Nothing was ready for it. She and her husb and had planned a world trip which would have ro have been pm on hold She had also just bought her first car. It would have to be resold. They would not be able to educate the child .i.n a prjvare school, nor offer it all d1e luxuries they had planned for it.

On tbe morning of the seventh day, she gave her husband the news. He was ecstatic, but d1at euphoria lasted just a few moments before !us countenance turned to one of worry. His look gave her d1e courage to give him her second piece of news This she relayed as a decision. They would nor be keeping rhis baby as d1ey were both young, and could have anod1er baby in a few yea rs as planned. While her husband did nor verbally agree, he did n ot disagree eid1er. And the relief o n his face convinced Sanira d1ar she had taken the right decision.

A week later, their life had returned to normal. There was no baby and d1ere was no conversation about it. They worked each week and saved each monch. A year later rhey had cleared the car loan The second yea r they had saved enough to go on their trip B y the third year, they had sold their home and bought a larger one. This increased mortgage meant chat d1ey had to postpose having a c.luld for another couple of years. As she turned 31, d1ey were in a position to think about starring a fanuly, but it srill meanc that Sa11ita would have to return ro work, leaving d1eir baby in childcare. I t was d1is pl an that nnnerved her. le was also at thi s ti.rue that she befriended a woman at her new

And she was right On d1eir first ou ting together, Sanita had made $50,000. i\foner that would make her year- long marenuty leave, wori-y- free On d1eir seconding outing just three weeks later, she made another $25,000. The o utings became a regular 'all girls' event. A year later she fell pregnant agam. Two years la ter she had her second chil d Through it all she successfully mainrained her two lives.

Her husband never once questioned the ' bonuses ' that she was frequently receiving, but still she set up another secret bank account and began depositing the funds in there. Not once did her husb and de lve in rhe derails, and not once did he pick up diat she had become a gambler.

The lucky streak .l asted nearly ten year s, dur.ing which s he m oved from the racing circuit to casinos, and was now weU and truly hooked onro internet gambling. They were getting so far ahead in d1eir paymencs d1at her husband even spoke of early retirement.

Then just as if the skies had moved and the stars had shifted, that luck y streak ended. In the hope of a recovery she bega n to draw money from her secret stash. \Vhen that was exhausted, she began drawing on d1eir joint account. Thar too was emptied. Still hopeful, Sanita began using the mortgage payments. It was hard work juggling money around, bur she man aged for another nine months. She increased the home Joan by forging her husband's signature. She wou ld have been able to get away with it again, bad d1e kids not overheard a call to the bank and repeated it to 'Daddy' that evening. By die time Siuuta's husband returned from work rhe next day, he had found our everything. Eve r y desperate act and every fraudulent deed!

When he did not express either anger or horror, and instead blamed lumself for not being acti vely involved in the financial aspects of their life, Sanita knew the meaning of shame. When the bank foreclosed on their loan, she experienced the meaning of pain. And when her children told her that they hated her for making them lose their home, she knew

''As she turned 31, they were in a position to think about starting a family, but it still meant that Sanita would have to return to work, leaving their baby in childcare

''tl1e meaiung of degradari o n.

They moved in to a small aparanenr and the children even had to move schools Sanirn too had to change her job, ro a nonfii1ancial institution. Through it aU her husband blamed on.ly himself. Had he blamed her, life would have been bearable Had he yelled, her days would have been to lerable and had he mid her tl1at he hated her, her man~age would have been workable.

He did none of these; instead he found a second job and she had sought an o utlet on the balcony. Ir was at the balcon y that she had that Lifechanging moment.

She admitted herself into the cli11ic in which she now resided. She declared herself as a gambler and she promised ber kids rhat she would ne ver let d1em down again.

The recovery would be long, the journey hard and rhe experience unpleasant, bur she would succeed because the one person who sh ould have walked away, who was justified to leave her, never did.