2013-11 Sydney (2)

Window to India

For one thing, the stereotypes that both communities hold about each other, came to the fore.

Gopinath, Ritam Mitra, Noel G De Souza, Mohan Thite, Yesha Joshi, LP Ayer, Hasnain Zaheer, Radha Ravi, Shafeen Mustaq, Sandip Hor, Minnal Khona, Rani Jhala, Prashant Dixit

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BY RAJNI ANAND LUTHRA

ABC TV’s recent Q&A program broadcast from India offered a realistic peek at the issues that plague contemporary India, including its perceptions of Australia.

Much like India itself, the program was an assault on the senses from the onset, in terms of sight as well as sound, thanks to the unusually bright visuals and the passionate but noisy panellists! In the end, it left the ‘visitor’ Tony Jones somewhat impressed, perhaps intrigued, and definitely exasperated as he tried to make coherent sense of it all. The final sentiment for the viewers, indeed as many tourists have reported upon returning from India, was a wish for the engagement to continue for just a little bit longer, the realisation notwithstanding that there are some massive problems there, some of them beyond comprehension. Ahhh, the enigma that is India…

The issues that are engaging India at the moment came out loud and clear from the panel. To some degree, insights into Indian society also came from the live Twitter feed on screen.

It was ‘You treat your aborigines appallingly’ versus ‘How can you talk about racism when you invented the caste system?’

And, ‘Your men are disgusting for the manner in which they treat women’ versus ‘Your society is disgusting for the manner in which you treat asylum seekers’.

The open honesty of it all was impressive, and tellingly, there were no hard feelings.

The Australian viewers at least were able to glean some understanding of the level of involved debate taking place in India today as it struggles to find answers for its particular problems, whether food security, raising the standard of living, or gender equality. It was evident also that such involvement is taking place not only at the policy-making level, but at the social consciousness level as well.

Perhaps a reverse forum will allow Indian viewers to understand how Australia is debating the asylum-seekers question, other social issues such as alcohol-related violence, or even those that it has faced historically such as Stolen Generations.

It is here that migrant or ‘new’ Australians can make a contribution. Two people on the program, a panellist

and a questioner, both Indian-origin Australians, impressed with their particular allegiance to the two countries that make up their sense of identity. With their unique long-term perspective on their country of origin and their adopted country, they can be the bridging gaps that other forums, such as government agencies and the business community can only try to be. While one is not in any way undermining the work done by these platforms, the suggestion is made that increased people-to-people contact can help shatter stereotypes and build relationships based on mutual respect. And yet, India teaches us, that it will be alright in the end. The pretty girl will get up and dance to bring some much-needed cheer. India will forgive the British for their injustices and even learn to love them. The Commonwealth Games will conclude with no major mishaps. Heck, Indians might even change their perceptions about Australians and treat them like friends, because as Indian-origin Australians will tell you, they really do have many interests in common.

And another thing, it’s really not that difficult to find an Indian-origin person who doesn’t follow cricket. Believe it or not, we do exist (shock horror). Or haven’t you noticed that there isn’t a single mention of the game in this particular piece until now?

Astha Singh, Jyoti Shankar, Deepa

Fund-raising at Diwali Hope for gender equality

Around the time Deepavali celebrations were going on in Sydney with so many organised events and family get togethers, a tragedy stuck the community living in the Blue Mountains and other parts of NSW in the form of bushfire. The Australian Indian community heard in disbelief of the large-scale devastation caused by the worst bushfires in NSW. The full extent of this unfortunate natural disaster cannot be described in words. It is a huge tragedy for all those affected victims. It is at this moment of great sorrow and loss that humankind comes together to support, share the grief of fellow human beings and minimise the sufferings.

Our community organisation Federation of Australian Indian Associations Inc. (FAIA) considered it appropriate to launch an appeal for assisting NSW bush fire victims in our successfully held “Shaame-Diwali” event on 27 October at Dundas Community Centre. Our FAIA Community Benevolent Fund is a registered charity by Australian Charities and not-for-profit

Commission (ACNC), and is endorsed by Australian Taxation Office (ATO) as a Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) for tax exemption purposes. During our Shaam-eDiwali function, we requested community members present to donate generously to our FAIA Community Benevolent Fund in aid of bushfire crisis. Including the collections on the day, FAIA has mobilised an amount of $1,582 to be donated to Salvation Army, which is allocating resources to support victims of the NSW bushfire.

FAIA appeals to all community members to consider donating towards NSW Bushfire Crisis, to alleviate sufferings of innocent victims of this natural disaster.

Donations can be directly credited to FAIA Community Benevolent Fund’s account 062 028 10266121.

Neera srivastava

President, Federation of Australian Indian Associations Inc (FAIA)

Putney Nsw

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Send your letters to:

This is with reference to the recent article by Sydney Srinivas and published by Indian Link in the October 2, 2013 issue (A tale full of complexity and compromise).

The points made by the writer regarding Sudarshan’s latest Kannada film Thallana that we all had the opportunity to watch here in Sydney, are quite accurate.

The current situation in the IT capital especially, for women, be it a maid servant that is struggling to make ends

Pole dancing in India

Family and friends often tease me when I say everything originated in India and it is the ‘Cradle of Civilisation’.

Having read Usha Ramanujam Arvind’s article on the ancient sport/art Mallakhamb in your October 2 issue (Pole dancing of a different kind), I am quite convinced from the title that it is indeed pole dancing Indian style!

Amazing piece, Usha: keep it up and I shall read your columns avidly.

karam Ramrakha

Putney Nsw

meet or a girl from an upper or middle class group, is the same. As Srinivas rightly puts it, the film also shows an element of hope, and we as the audience are relieved to see parents saying ‘Don’t worry, we are here for you and with you’ to their daughter who is forced to abort her female foetus. Srinivas, very well written article that beautifully covers all the aspects of Thallana. Well done!!

Rekha shashi

Hornsby Heights Nsw

Correction

Our report on the Deepavali Mela held in Sydney (November 1 2013 issue) erroneously listed Shiamak Davar Dance Group as the first runners-up in the Western Union Dance Competition.

The prize was claimed by the Rhythms of India Dance Group The Shiamak Davar Dance Group did not participate in the dance competition at all.

The error is regretted. Ed.

s PEC IAL REPORT

PBD

Meagre attendance and few program sessions with mass appeal mar diaspora event

estimated $2.8 million worth of economic activity for NSW”.

AN LUTHRA

If the mission statement for the Regional Pravasi Bharitya Diwas (Overseas Indians Day) in Sydney was “Connecting for a Shared Future – the Indian Diaspora, India and the Pacific,” sadly, the event does not appear to have achieved its objective.

Poor attendance, unrealistic costing, a skew towards business in the program sessions, and less than satisfactory execution have been cited as factors.

With more than 800,000 Indian diaspora in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Island nations, Day One on November 10 saw less than 150 people in attendance. Numbers picked up on Day Two to about 350, but dwindled to about 200 on the last day.

The Sydney Convention Centre with its capacity of over 2,000 looked strangely desolate as key note speakers, some of them highly accomplished in their fields, made their addresses.

The concept of the Regional PBD

Regional PBDs are organised by the Indian Government’s Ministry of Overseas Affairs to provide a platform for the Indian community in a selected region of the world to contribute to the relationship between the countries of their region and India. Last year, the event was held at Port of Spain, Mauritius.

Earlier this year, there was much excitement in Australia’s Indian community as Sydney was picked to host the convention. An Indian High Commission communique said it expected “1,000 participants from within Australia and from Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Fiji, New Zealand, PNG, Hong Kong, Phillippines and the Pacific Islands”. The Premier of NSW Barry O’Farrell showed the same enthusiasm, declaring that he foresaw “an

In the end, no more than 350 delegates attended, of whom 140 were invited speakers. Most attendees were local Sydney-siders, with only a smattering from other states, predominantly Victoria. The overseas delegates made up a negligible number.

PBD Sydney: Highlights

At the very outset, it must be said that hosting the seventh Pravasi Bhartiya Divas in Australia presented a great opportunity for the Indians in the region to connect with the motherland and with each other. Attendee Raj Natarajan, past UIA President, pointed out, “PBD Sydney was a perfect opportunity to present issues of concern in the local diaspora to the policy makers both in Australia and India, because we had the ears and eyes of the highest office in States, the Premiers and some of the highest offices at the Federal level like the Immigration and Trade Ministers”.

A significant platform was created by Australia’s nomination as the venue for the 2013 Regional PBD.

As well, attendees were afforded an excellent opportunity to listen to speakers with some great stories to tell. The passionate and emotional speech by the former Prime Minister of Fiji, Mahendra Pal Chaudhry, particularly stood out. Equally well presented was the warm welcome by NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell who hosted the delegates at Government House, speeches by the Premier of South Australia Jay Wetherill and the Deputy Premier of Queensland Jeff Sweeney, and the warm and friendly Pallavi Sharda, Australia’s own Bollywood celebrity. Well-known recluse and cricket legend Steve Waugh turned up as well, to share his experiences in India.

From the Federal level, the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection Scott Morrison and the Minister for Trade and Investment Andrew Robb found their way to the PBD even as their new government

one on languages and the other on media, went down particularly well. Never has the PBD discussed the power of Indian languages in the Indian diaspora; seeing this on the program was indeed heartening, and sets a positive precedent for future PBDs. The session on media was efficiently handled by moderator Sushi Das as she led the participants through a structured session yet allowed flexibility in the various discussion points.

Flying in two accomplished performance artists such as santoor maestro Shiv Kumar Sharma and acclaimed vocalist Meeta Pandit also added a deeper dimension to the cultural engagement of the PBD. Both artists thrilled the crowd, however small, at their performances.

Perhaps most successfully, the convention turned out to be a great opportunity for delegates to network with community members from other states and nations. Faces were put to names

So what went wrong?

The Chief Guest, India’s Minister for Overseas Affairs, Vayalar Ravi looked stunned as he stood at the dais to address the nearly empty Sydney Convention Centre in his opening speech. He fumbled his way through his address, which he attributed, somewhat strangely, to ‘poor stage lighting’. Speaking to Indian Link on the last day, the Minister did comment on the poor turnout, citing “the vast distances people would have had to travel, which would have added to the cost of attendance”.

Unfortunately, more things went wrong than right for this much-anticipated event.

For starters, the organisers chose an overly bureaucratised ‘top-heavy’ approach, about which much comment has already appeared in community media.

Decisions were made out of Canberra, not exactly the greatest hub of connectivity amongst the local India population in

of the targeted audiences of the PBD, and it is input from these concerned pravasis which should have been sought.

Perhaps the eligibility for membership in the managing committee should have been a non-GPS drive to centres of influence within the local Indian community, say Harris Park in Sydney. This would have verified the candidates’ credentials in terms of how connected they are to the bulk of the Indian community! (Take for instance, Senator Lisa Singh, who sat on the organising committee. While she is deservedly admired for making it to Parliament through sheer dint of hard work, her indepth knowledge of the Indian community here is questionable).

Jokes aside, the organisers simply could not excite the community about the PBD.

Perhaps the marketing could have been better, to reach a wider section of the targeted audience. Instead, thousands of dollars

The Languages session: One of the few that appealed

unable to engage

were spent on the venue and on brochures distributed at the event.

Sydney resident Rajesh Kumar wrote on Indian Link’s Facebook page, “There was absolutely no marketing. If people (or organisations) want to sell something, they first have to spend money to spread the word. Generally our people have this habit in India of relying on the population, the quantity but not the quality; the Indian government has to realise that the quantity stuff with no quality can work

only in India and not outside India”.

The figure of registered delegates bandied about was 600; however even at the peak of the conference on Day Two, it was obvious that there were less than 350 people in attendance. When questioned about this, organisers responded that there had been 600 registrations, and perhaps people chose not to attend. Hard to believe, as there are not too many people who would forfeit the attendance fees of $425.

The cost of $425 per delegate was deemed extreme even by those who did attend. Not only was this amount prohibitive to most in Sydney, interstate and overseas visitors would have had to add travel and accommodation fares as well.

“I found it very pricey,” said one Sydney resident who chose not to attend. “There seems to be little idea of the income and lifestyle pressures of the local Indian community”.

He added laughingly that one organising committee member tried to entice him with the attraction of food: two grand lunches and two dinners, besides quality speakers at the sessions.

(Reporting on the event in Indian magazine Kerala Today, delegate Treassa Joseph commented that most of the attendees were members of the Indian community who were closely connected to the Indian High Commission or organisations that were already engaged in bilateral relations with India).

The decision to run the event over weekdays was another point of contention. This meant that

NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell with delegates

Perhaps most successfully, the convention turned out to be a great opportunity for delegates to network with community members from other states and nations

many could not attend due to work commitments. Much of the Indian diaspora works in an employed category, and for most to take two out of their allocated 20 annual leave days to attend a conference, or take unpaid leave, is difficult. The weekday choice is more conducive to a business program where attendance suits the business community.

The heavy focus on business programs was robustly criticised by most of those attending.

Sources within the organising committee pointed the finger at Canberra’s micro management of the whole affair. With just a couple of individuals who had the ear of the High Commissioner Biren Nanda, there definitely was a strong bias towards business, with less emphasis on issues which concern and connect the local diaspora with India and within the region. Business sessions of opportunities in services, business opportunities in resources, business opportunities in primary commodities, business opportunities in infrastructure etc. would have all been well appreciated in an Indo-Australian business forum, not in what was

an essentially a forum for the diaspora to connect.

Saba Zaidi Abidi, the founder of Vision Asia network services was outspoken in her views.

“The Australia India Business Council was heavily involved in the planning and execution of the PBD event along with the Indian High Commission and dominated most of the sessions,” she wrote in a letter to Indian Link. “This makes one wonder as to what was the objective of this whole exercise? If the purpose of the PBD was to promote B2B relationships between governments, then yes, it did achieve that objectively to some extent. But if it was about people coming together to celebrate their common heritage, share experiences and bring to focus their current problems and issues, and highlight the needs of the pravasi community at large, it fell short of delivering that. There was hardly any P2P or people-topeople contact”.

Some break-out sessions saw no more than 20-30 people attending.

On one occasion, an organising committee member was seen imploring attendees to return to

the auditorium, even as they stood outside lamenting the lack of relevance.

Most sessions ran late – even the cultural performances. Well-known santoor artist Shiv Kumar Sharma could not help commenting that Indian Standard Time seemed to have crossed international boundaries, as he patiently waited to start his show as part of the opening day entertainment. Members of the event management company that helped put the conference together were heard muttering in frustration as the organisers took time to get the event underway.

A note to organisers

It was clear to all those who attended that while it was an excellent opportunity to network, PBD Sydney could perhaps have been better thought through.

A press release by the organisers sent out upon the conclusion of the conference described it as “a very successful first-ever Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas held in Sydney”. They can continue to live with the delusion that it was “very successful,” or consider some of the following as suggestions. If they are not already doing such analyses, the community out there definitely is, and these suggestions are compiled from them.

The costing should have been reconsidered. Daily pricing or separate pricing for attending relevant forums would probably have brought in more attendance. A more suitable venue could have kept the prices down. Would a weekend PBD have been better? A solid publicity plan should have been put in place, much in advance, to ensure the message of the PBD got through clearly to the community at large. A more transparent way of working and organising the conference ought to have been adopted, rather than isolated decisions taken on the advice of a few who are largely not connected with the local community. Other minor plans to create goodwill in the community could have been implemented, such as free entry to attend the cultural performances (rather than have the maestros perform to empty halls).

The implications of Sydney PBD

The message that the Indian government will probably get out of the Sydney PBD, is that the Indian community in Australia (and the region) is too small, and/ or too uninterested, for them to bother with.

Deplorably, this is far from the truth. The Indian community is strong and fully capable

of making a difference, as mainstream politicians in Australia have already found out. Their strength, and this is not just in their numbers, but also in terms of their influence, is set to grow in the very near future. The Indian government has been slow in engaging with Australia, and a strong Sydney PBD would have indicated to them that the diaspora here could be relied upon to help them take the relationship further. Regrettably, this opportunity was missed. On the other hand, the message that the Australian government will get out of the event, is that the organising committee could not engage the Indian community here. Both sides of the political divide are constantly on the lookout for strong Indian figures that they can count on to reach the community, a viable votebank. Perhaps the organisers were not those that the local diaspora look to as the true leaders of the community?

And finally, the message that the Indian community is going to take away from the Sydney PBD is this: the powers-that-be within the Indian government representatives here, as well as those within the community, need to be better in-touch with the community they serve, or hope to represent.

Saba Zaidi Abdi with Steve Waugh

Former Fiji PM Mahendra Chaudhary was a popular speaker

Manpreet Singh with Minister Vyalar Ravi

PBD Sydney: An opportunity lost

It is heartening to know that the Indian Government has a separate ministry for overseas Indians and also makes an enormous effort to recognise the contribution of the overseas Indians to their motherland India, by conducting Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (PBD) every year. The regional meet of PBD held in Sydney on 10, 11 and 12 November presented a great opportunity to address some of the major problems facing people of Indian origin living in Australia.

We always talk about three Cs which bind Australia and India: Curry, Cricket and Commonwealth, but most recently another C has been added which is commerce. Yes, the PBD platform is used to promote commerce between India and other countries which have benefited from Indian migration like Australia. Most of the Indian migration, especially to western nations including Australia is through skilled migration, bringing doctors, engineers, IT professionals, accountants and business brains. Australians of Indian background are generally well educated and belong to the top economic strata of society and hence they are not only able to look after themselves but also look after and help disadvantaged people in their community.

The disadvantaged people in our community are those people with Indian passports who travel to this country like the senior citizens who come to live with their children, Indian international students, and Indian workers on short term work visas who work in farms etc. These disadvantaged people are doing it tough and they need the help of the Indian High Commission/Consulates in major cities like Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. However, such help can be delivered only with the help of the host i.e., State and Federal Governments of Australia. It is in this context that the Australian citizens of Indian heritage can play the role of ambassadors of India in Australia and have the power to lobby with politicians to make those policy changes necessary to make the life of Indian seniors/ students/workers a bit easier and happier.

PBD Sydney presented a perfect opportunity to make those points with the policy makers because they had the ears and eyes of the highest office in States, the Premiers and some of the highest offices at the Federal level like the Immigration and Trade ministers. Unfortunately no such attempt seems to have been made to lobby for change in policies which affect Indian seniors/ students/ workers.

For example, the Indian seniors do not have Medicare cover, travel concessions or seniors’ card facilities, which results in a huge drain on those young immigrants who are trying to find their feet. Indian international students are being used as cash cows. Indian workers who are on work visas are being exploited by their employers in farms and factories. What did PBD, Sydney do to address these problems? I am afraid nothing, unless I am proved wrong.

While there were some highlights like NSW & SA Premiers’ and Immigration & Trade Ministers’ speeches, Steve Waugh’s address and the Pallavi Sharada interview, I think the following shortcomings were too many to ignore:

• To start with the high registration fee discouraged many interested non-resident Indians to participate.

• The registration fee could have been waived for Indian seniors, students and workers to ensure their participation, thus providing an opportunity to tell their stories and seek

solutions to their problems.

• Publicity was totally lacking and 90% of the non-resident Indians in Sydney, I spoke to were completely unaware of PBD Sydney.

• Although there were many eminent speakers, it was evident that merit was not the criteria for selection of most speakers. It was apparent that personal preferences and favours played a part in the selection.

• I found very little scope for interaction between the Indian Government delegates, including the Minister for Overseas Indians, who mostly kept to themselves and the participating non-resident Indian delegates, with exception of a privileged few.

• PBD Sydney was a good idea but poorly executed.

some extent. But if it was about people coming together to celebrate their common heritage, share experiences and bring to focus their current problems, issues and highlight the needs of the Pravasi community at large, it fell short of delivering that.

There was hardly any P2P, or people to people contact. So why did it fail to attract the community? Was it the high cost of $350 [early bird discount] for a 3-day event fair? Or because it was scheduled on working days? Perhaps the programme lacked lustre and failed to attract interest amongst the community at large. Maybe it was a combination of all the above.

Raj

Natarajan OzIndTV Sydney

Disappointing turnout

I think the program outline and the calibre of speakers at the Sydney PBD were fantastic, especially at the breakout sessions. Pt Shiv Kumar Sharma’s santoor recital and the exhibition on Indian migration to Australia were my personal highlights, and also the fact that I met a lot of people for the first time – people I had previously only heard of or known of, but had never met in person. It was disappointing to see the low turnout though – the large venue seemed to swallow up the small-ish audience quite easily. Also, having attended the PBD at Kochi in January this year, I had expected the RPBD to have a much stronger focus on local community concerns, people’s issues and diaspora matters than it did – the Sydney convention seemed to focus more on business instead. That said, perhaps the objective of holding the RPBD was not clearly understood by most of the attendees, and only the organisers can tell us if they were able to achieve what they set out to. All in all though, it was a good experience and a great networking opportunity for those who attended.

Manpreet K Singh

Executive Producer Punjabi Program

SBS Radio

B2B,

not P2P

After months of preparation, pooling of enormous resources and publicity hype, one was expecting PBD to be a huge celebration of people of Indian origin in the Oceanic region. As it turned out it did attract some politicians, a few businesses, the education sector and large Indian delegations exploring business opportunities with Australia. 1,000 delegates were expected to attend the PBD at the prestigious location of Darling Harbour Convention Centre, but only 500 plus enrolled, out of which over 1/3 were speakers or invitees. The plenary sessions were attended by not more than 250 people at any given time in a hall that had around 3,000 capacity. The show went on but the audience was missing. It was a well organised event but lacked lustre. AIBC was heavily involved in the planning and execution of the event along with the Indian High Commission and dominated most of the sessions.

This makes one wonder as to what was the objective of this whole exercise? If the purpose of the PBD was to promote B2B business and bilateral relationships between governments, then yes, it did achieve that objectively to

Indian Link media group

Why were there no popular events scheduled, open to the public free of cost? If the Government of NSW could host AR Rehman in a free concert for the Indian community, why can’t the Government of India do the same for its pravasis? Renowned artists like Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma and Meeta Pandit were invited to PBD but the concert was open only to the delegates and they performed to an almost empty hall. In fact Meeta Pandit commented, “Where is the audience - is there a cricket match taking place?”

Some important sectors like medicine and health, tourism and sports were missing from the 3-day agenda.

As for the round table discussion on ‘Power of Media in the Asian Century,’ which was well chaired by Sushi Das of The Age, which I was invited to be a panellist on, we had a robust discussion on:

• Role of media in both countries in reporting Violence against Indian Students in 2010 and lessons learnt from it.

• Will the Indian media play a dominate role in shaping the world opinion on the global stage like the west did in the last century with the power of its economy and the magnetism of its culture? Will we see an Asian Rupert Murdoch emerge?

• Thirdly, in the next 20, 30, 40 years, where are we likely to turn for authoritative, accurate and balanced news coverage? The influence and uses of new media – whether it’s the social media such as Twitter, Facebook etc. or online news, analysis and blogging, as well as online TV/radio.

• The need to have an NRI TV channel which connects the Indian diaspora globally and focuses more on issues and concerns for non-resident Indian and 2nd and 3rd generation Indians. (Minister Ravi who also attended the sessions agreed to offer support to any such initiative).

• A critique of the local print media which has predominantly become an advertisement directory. (The fact that no local print media was invited to be on the panel was pointed out as they could not contribute to the discussion).

• While we enjoyed meeting and exchanging ideas with many interesting people from other cities and countries, we missed the local participation.

In his concluding remarks CGI Mr Arun Goel commented that the two useful recommendation that emerged from the PBD deliberations were:

• Need to have Old Age Care facilities for ageing Pravasis.

• Need to have a NRI TV channel to connect the Indian diaspora globally.

Saba Zaidi Abdi Managing Director Nuvera Media

The first elected Hindu in the US Congress

A young American Hindu’s philosophy of life blends the teachings of the Bhagwad Geeta with the aloha spirit

she came with the spirit of ‘Aloha’ (the traditional Hawaiian greeting), and inspired all of us with the essence of Karma Yoga and spiritual Hinduism.

The charming Tulsi Gabbard, an American politician who represents Hawaii’s second congressional district in the United States Congress, visited Sydney early this month. She was invited to meet with interested members of Hindu, Indian, American and Australian origins at the Radisson Hotel during her visit. Organised by the Hindu Council of Australia, Friends of India Australia Inc. and the Hindu Swayam Sevak Sangh, the event saw over 100 like-minded people attend.

As Ms Gabbard lit the traditional lamp, she was greeted with a Hindu welcome song in Sanskrit, Sarwa Mangal Maangalya, Shive Sarvardha Sadhikey

32-year-old Tulsi Gabbard introduced herself as someone who understands the challenges that Hindus face throughout the globe, and clarified that she is not of Indian ancestry though she is often mistakenly perceived as a person of Indian descent.

“However, I do want to learn Hindi to help me understand Hindu religious scriptures well, and to enable me to communicate with the Hindi-speaking community,” said Ms Gabbard.

Born in Leloaloa, American Samoa, the fourth of five children, Tulsi grew up in a multicultural, multi-religious household in Hawaii. She fully

embraced Hinduism as a teenager with encouragement from her parents who practised karma yoga, especially with her mother being a practising Hindu.

Being an extremely shy person in her early age, Tulsi was more interested in books rather than leadership, growing up. Leadership came as an initiative she took in her teenage years by forming an environmental coalition when she understood the meaning of ‘sewa’ and how she could be of service to others. Thus began Tulsi’s journey of service to society.

Today she is the youngest woman in Congress.

But before she entered public life, Tulsi joined the National Guard and spent a year in Iran and Baghdad. Serving in a medical unit, she claims she “understood the meaning of life” and that it is a blessing to all of us. She also began to understand the real essence of the Bhagwad Geeta,

while acquiring perspective and figuring out the difference between what is petty and what is important.

“The Bhagwad Geeta teaches us to look at diverse cultures and respect each other for the spirit soul we really are,” explained Ms Gabbard.

The Hawaiian way to say hello, ‘Aloha’, means sharing the eternal breath of the soul, she said. It removes all existing barriers to communication include socioeconomic class, educational pedigree, race, religion, ethnicity, anything else that separates people.

The parallels with the ‘Namaste’ of the Hindu culture are obvious.

“Greeting others with a sense of respect and sincerity filters a lot of barriers, is a great and useful way to overcome the political divide, and can open up conversations,” stated Ms Gabbard. “Diversities within different communities in the US is

what makes its society unique, and tolerance, respect and sincerity amongst one another is the key to a great society”.

Ms Gabbard is proudly pushing for a Diwali stamp in the US Congress, which will help people from other parts of the country understand the deeper meaning of the festival: it will initiate conversations about the spiritual foundation of what symbolises the festival, truth over untruth, which is most beneficial in politics and everything we do.

At the Q&A session towards the end of the event, Gabbard impressed all present with her ideal answers and inspiring clarifications to every question. When asked, “What was the biggest milestone in your political career?” by yours truly, Ms Gabbard proudly stated that during a session in Congress, all her colleagues recited ‘Rama Krishna’ with her, and that was

During a session in Congress, Tulsi convinced all her colleagues to recite ‘Rama Krishna’ with her, and that became a very significant personal milestone

a very important personal milestone.

Ms Gabbard spoke beautifully of her mixing of military service with her deep-rooted spiritualism. A lifelong vegetarian, she has also been a long-time practitioner of martial arts and uses yoga to create a sense of balance between her various endeavours.

She also talked about her plans to travel to India soon, and stated that she seriously advocates Hindu human rights in Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Ms Gabbard comes across as a personification of the Obama period, with its crushing of political typecasts and upsurge of cultural diversity.

Gabbard consistently seems to specialise in ‘firsts’ – she is the first person born in American Samoa to be elected to Congress; one of its first two female combat veterans, and the Congress’ first elected Hindu.

Tulsi Gabbard

Humanity versus

Vandana Shiva’s Dangerous Idea of ‘Growth = Poverty’ explained the concept of consumerism in relation to eco-sustainability

BY JYOTI sHANk AR

Three years ago, on November 3, 2010, Vandana Shiva won the hearts of many a Sydneysider with her fiery oration at the Sydney Peace Prize lecture at the Sydney Opera House. On exactly the same day this year, she was back at the Opera House presenting her lecture at the Festival of Dangerous Ideas on Growth = Poverty. The fire still smouldering within her, Vandana enthralled an almost full to capacity audience with her views on why the present measure of the world economy, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), is a “rogue concept creating rogue economies the world over”. Vandana also spoke to Indian Link the day before the lecture on globalisation, seed banks and her views on patriarchy and culturally perceived poverty.

Opposing patriarchy

Being one of the leading ecofeminists, Vandana’s views on the effects of the patriarchal society we live in has often offended numerous men. However, she offers no apologies for these views. “We need to be more aware of structures of patriarchy today

as they have taken more virulent forms,” says Vandana. “Traditional patriarchy based on structures of religion and caste have now joined forces with capitalist patriarchy based on the rape of the earth. This is increasing the violence against women”. No one can deny the truth of her fundamental arguments, in spite of her inflammatory remarks and fierce rhetoric. She clarifies that it is the patriarchy she is against, not the male sex.

“If we want to use pleasant words, but our women still get raped every day, that is a choice we make. For me to speak the truth is the very basis of my existence and my conscience,” stated Vandana.

She has witnessed first-hand the relationship between women and ecology way back with the Chipko movement in the 1970s, when women formed human circles around trees to prevent their felling. As an eco-feminist, Vandana suggests that a more sustainable and productive approach to agriculture can be achieved through reinstating a system of farming that engages women, works with nature, respects ecological limits to growth, understands the interconnectedness of all living things, and celebrates bio-diversity.

Patriarchy as a masculine mode of thinking has a mechanistic view of the world. It has created huge corporations that are trying

to transform the world into a supermarket, where growth of an economy is measured by the narrow concept of GDP.

Grouse against GDP

“The first poverty is at the level of the mind, that humanity should have shrunk its mind so deeply and reduced the amazing plurality of options we have on how to produce and how to consume, to one number, the GDP,” she said in her lecture. Being a quantum physicist herself, Vandana says that she can appreciate the beauty of the abstract. Looking back to her school days, she reminisced that she never liked to speak at school assemblies, or write essays when five lines of equation would do. “I believe that the abstract as abstract is fine, but when it starts becoming the measure for the real world, that’s when the destructiveness comes in,” she explained.

“We are sacrificing our entire world for this flawed abstraction,” she said, giving an example of how the GDP does not measure the hydrological cycle of nature but takes into account what Coca Cola produces, though its processes use ground water extensively and leaves behind pollutants and heavy metals. In the act of eating and by making a choice in what we eat, we can make a difference. Vandana says that to this day she cannot bring herself to drink Coca Cola,

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referring to it as ‘the brown liquid’, after visiting Kerala where women were fighting to prevent the setting up of a Coca Cola plant. Another example of this flawed abstraction was that if you cook a wonderful meal at home, you do not contribute to the GDP, but if you consume a McDonald’s burger, you do.

“And then you contribute extra, to the obesity and all the things that come with the hamburger,” she said on a lighter vein.

Vandana quoted Robert Kennedy’s famous speech in 1968 about GDP, “It counts air pollution and cigarette advertising, and ambulances to clear our highways of carnage… It counts napalm and counts nuclear warheads and armoured cars for the police to fight the riots in our cities… Yet the Gross National Product does not allow for the health of our children, the quality of their education or the joy of their play. It does not include the beauty of our poetry or the strength of our marriages, the intelligence of our public debate or the integrity of our public officials… it measures everything in short, except that which makes life worthwhile”.

Cult of consumerism

It is often said that the Green Revolution saved India from famine, and though it is hard to deny that it did, it also gave rise to monocultures, corporate

control over seeds, the depletion of soil fertility and pollution of rivers from chemical run-off from the over-use of fertilisers and pesticides. That this also destroyed indigenous farming cultures and has since caused many suicides, is telling. The statistic of farmer suicides quoted by Vandana is 284,694 and that is only the ‘official’ figure, she points out, which is chilling. She asks everyone to take another look at

“The first poverty is at the level of the mind - that humanity should have shrunk its mind so deeply and reduced the amazing plurality of options we have on how to produce and how to consume, to one number, the GDP “ Vandana Shiva

versus the

gDP

growth of plants, of diversity, of children, of health, and of our relationship with the earth. It is not the narrow growth of finances.

“If people don’t rise up and start questioning the power of giant corporations, we will see that what has happened to Indian farmers will happen to all levels of society the world over,” emphasised Vandana.

Globalisation as the phenomena of countries opening their markets is now over, she avers. What is now happening is agreements such as the Trans-Pacific partnership agreement, which in effect allows corporations to sue governments.

“This next step of coercive globalisation where corporations sue governments will mean the end of democracy, the end of human rights and the end of sustainability,” Vandana warns.

Seed solution

the paradigm of growth. The cult of ‘growth,’ which has dictated policy for decades. Consumerism as a cult is the way the growth mechanism keeps growing. Amidst the serious talk, Vandana drew laughter from the audience when she pointed out that the word ‘consumption’ was the word for TB or tuberculosis in the Middle Ages. You died of it!

Her detractors call her the High Priestess of the ‘keep the poor poor and hungry’ movement. But Vandana believes in change at a grassroots level. Navdanya, literally Nine Seeds, is an organisation she started in 1987 to create a non-violent system of farming where one works with nature. It was created as

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an alternative to the idea of seed as patented intellectual property, and the imperative that industry had to push genetically modified seeds. So the organisation started creating sanctuaries for seed in the form of community seed banks. Vandana said that her colleagues are working on distributing seeds that are salttolerant in Orissa, which was

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“In fact, the seeds that we saved have helped each time in recovery after a climate disaster, whether it is drought, flood or cyclone” said Vandana.

She believes that every garden should be a seed sanctuary, using open pollinated seeds that can be renewed and saved, creating a different growth economy; a

When asked who was the real Vandana in private, she replied that she could not do what she does as a 9 to 5 job. It is her very existence. She has rejected politics in spite of requests from close friends who will be contesting the Delhi elections with the new Aam Aadmi Party. “I made a choice not to be in politics but rather, be in deeper transformational processes,” she stated.

Vandana Shiva and Simran Sethi at FODI 2013

Photos: Prudence Upton

Delightful energy

A new trend is afoot in the classical dance scene

BY DEEPA GOPINATH

In many cases, a Bhrathanatyam Arangetram is the solo dance debut of a student of the classical dance discipline. However more and more, audiences are seeing group Arangetrams that allow two or more girls to debut together, thereby spreading between families the financial and organisational stresses that accompany a project of this magnitude.

Late October, Guru Neeta Sura of Nrityaniketan dance school in Sydney, presented five of her students in one such debut performance. Shilpa and Puja Kunte, Akshada Dhumal, Aditi Chaudhari and Shruti Jagadale were the students who completed this important milestone by presenting a full Bharathanatyam repertoire at the Science Theatre, University of New South Wales.

The first half of the recital consisted of a fairly traditional set of items, with classic pieces that have been performed by generations of dancers. Ganesh Dheemahi (Raga: Keervani, Tala: Adi) was a vibrant invocation piece which paid homage to Lord Ganesha and allowed the dancers to give the audience a taste of their ability to show abhinaya, or expressive dance. In the Shabdam, Akshada Dhumal was a standout as the coy Radha who is being teased by the mischevious Lord Krishna (Aditi Chaudhari).

In contrast, the Alaripu and Jathiswaram as always were abstract dance compositions that are designed to allow a dancer to display technical finesse. Puja Kunte was especially impressive in the Alaripu, although all of the dancers displayed a delightful energy.

The Padams, or expressive pieces that followed the intermission were a further opportunity for the dancers to demonstrate this aspect of their talent. The enchanting Bho Shambho in Revathi raga and Adi Thala was a vibrant piece on

memorable choreography. Then followed two Goddess-centric pieces, Laxmi Stuti and Durga Padam, the feminine contrasts to the previous piece which were delicately presented. The Thillana, or finale was another classic musical composition in raga Parasu and thala Adi

An aspect of the recital that stood out was the dance choreography by Guru Neeta Sura. Each piece was intricately composed, using the five dancers to create interesting formations that ensured that the attention

arrangements.

The MC’s Shilpa Madiwale and Purnita Mane did an exceptional job, and their performance should set a precedence for future Arangetrams. Evidently dancers themselves, they spoke clearly as they enacted the story of each piece so that the audience could grasp the concepts well.

The orchestra consisted of Laxmi Narendra, Bharath Mohan, Sivakumar Sethupathy and Nagraj Iyer, and they were fine accompaniments to the dancers and Neeta Sura.

own challenges, such as having to co-ordinate a number of dancers and their families, while ensuring each dancer has a chance to shine and demonstrate his/her talents.

These challenges were overcome with finesse in this recital, and the dancers their families and the Guru should be proud of this achievement.

Puja Kunte

Akshada Dhumal

Shruti Jagadale

Aditi Chaudhari

Shilpa Kunte

Diwali

It’s the mother of all Diwali parties at Manjit’s exclusive affair

at Manjit’s

The classiest Diwali event in Sydney’s Indian community: that’s the reputation Manjit’s annual Diwali Ball is fast gaining.

Leading Indian-Australian restaurateur Manjit Gujral, who is so well-known that you only need to know his first name, has been attracting the A-list of the community each year at his Diwali do.

The Four Seasons venue, a fab feast and some fantastic entertainment have become hallmarks of this event.

Again this year, the Grand Ballroom was done up in a festive Diwali theme. It was packed to capacity not only with Indian guests but also many from the mainstream, dressed up to the nines in what they like to call ‘Bollywood’ style.

Kanwal Gujral, Manjit’s gracious wife, welcomed guests with a traditional bindi and some carefully picked Diwali presents, bracelets for the women and Himachali caps for the men.

A giant ice-sculpted Lakshmi smiled down at the revellers, who made the most of the Goddess of the day by taking selfies with her. In days past, they would have bowed their head in obeisance, but these days the smart-phone is indeed one of the essential elements of (self) worship.

Inside, the trademark Manjit touch in the decorations, with flowers and oversize candle stands, was immediately evident. As guests settled in, MC Preeti Thadani promised a night of great entertainment.

Manjit’s team at Total Events Management have over the years, learnt to pick the best entertainers, both from within the community and the mainstream.

Ruchi Sanghi’s School of Indian Dance, and Ramona Lobo’s Sirens Group, are two dance companies that will find themselves in anyone’s list of top five entertainers in our community. Luckily for the Gujrals, their styles are quite different (with the former specialising in the classical kathak style and the latter in the

more contemporary Bollywood style), so they can be called upon for the same event. At the Diwali Ball, both troupes brought out their lead dancers, who did not disappoint.

The mainstream acts at the Ball are always thrilling: while last year it was the aerial acrobat group Aerialize, this time round we had fire performers Razed in Flames, perfectly in keeping with the Diwali theme. The spectacular fire dancers, fire eaters and fire twirlers kept the audience absolutely spellbound. They were treated to thunderous applause, especially as they took pains to bring in an Indian link to their act with cleverly picked background numbers such as Dil se re and Taal se taal mila. Truly fantastic!

The fashion show kept to a Diwali theme too, From Darkness to Light. Refined and sophisticated, the exhibition was presented by Neelu Maharaj from the exclusive Saree Haven boutique, and moved from elegant black outfits to lighter hues.

Co-MC and stand-up comic act Tarun Mohanbhai of New Zealand however, did not have a happy time. Indian audiences are not used to stand-up comedy unless it is the Johnny Lever-Kapil Sharma variety. Even if, sadly, the artist is already successful in the mainstream. To the heckler in the audience who used that unfortunate militant tone, all we can say is, where was your Diwali

spirit? And how come the Aussie ventriloquist Darren Carr did not raise your ire, even as he brought out his bad-mannered Mahatma Gandhi doll?

Kudos to the Gujral boys, who are willing to give something new a go, rather than stick to the tried and tested.

The Diwali meal itself, though, was definitely tried-and-tested Manjit-style, a lavish multiple course affair served at the tables with much elegance.

At the end of it all, coming up on stage to wish everyone a Happy Diwali, was not Manjit this year, but his sons Karan and Varun. Karan spoke about the festival and about the story of his dad’s company, which started small but by sheer dint

of hard work, has stamped itself in the hospitality scene in our community. He admitted at the end that his speech had been written by his beautiful fiancée Natasha Verma, who had already impressed with her cameo on stage to draw the winning raffle tickets.

The indoor fireworks came on as the grand finale, engulfing the stage in a spectacular display and bringing on a Diwali feel reminiscent of the festival in India. The surprise fireworks at the dinner tables, in custom-made devices cleverly concealed as candles, delivered that essential pop and bang! Diwali Mubarak!

The regular attendees though had one major request: Manjit, bring back Larry Stellar, the 80plus crooner who lives up to his name so beautifully.

Rajni Anand Luthra

at

Parliament House

Diwali P

Dominello invited select guests from the Indian Australian community to celebrate Diwali at the Parliament of New South Wales. The elegant function with about 200 guests in attendance was a delightful gesture by the NSW government for its Australian Indian citizens.

Acknowledging the Indian Australian community Premier O’Farrell, thanked them for their contributions to society and how richly they added to the multicultural diversity of NSW. Continuing on this theme Minister Dominello also congratulated the community for their efforts in keeping their traditions and culture alive in their new home of Australia. “I love the colour and pageantry of Diwali,” he added.

Well-known singer Kamahl entertained with his thoughtful rendition of Heart and Soul, and the Annakut display by the Swaminarayan devotees enthralled many.

The NSW Government also showed its respect towards the Festival of Lights by illuminating the exterior of the Parliament House at Diwali.

Pawan Luthra

Photos: Warren Duncan/ CRC

Deepavali

Milan 2013

It’s a warm and fuzzy ambience yet again at the annual North Shore Diwali celebration

The Hornsby War Memorial Hall sparkled as it played host to Diwali in early November.

Women in colourful sarees and men in resplendent kurtas and the little ones matching their parents in their colourful best, filled the hall.

This was Deepavali Milan 2013. A North Shore based community group’s annual Diwali night, has grown from its small beginnings to an eagerly awaited event.

Like in previous years, this year the organisers Kamini Sahni, Shibani Sahni Patel, Veenu Singh, Deepa Arora, Kamini Raj Singh and Kavita Mistry, welcomed guests at the door with the characteristic warmth that has become the hallmark of this event.

People stopped to pay obeisance to the gods of the season Lakshmi and Ganesh, and to admire the rangoli created in their honour. Great work there, Maya Narpatsingh and Niti Bajaj!

Inside, the simple stage stood transformed into a magnificent platform, housing a portable shrine. Niti Bajaj, it was revealed later, was to be credited for the beautiful decorations on that night.

As guests mingled, new friends were made, such as the recently arrived Manager for Air India Ravi Bodade. He brought with him an old friend known to all present. After a 16-year absence, it was nice to see the airline’s now famous icon ‘Air India Maharaja’ also make his presence felt on

the stage.

Panditji Dave and Lt Col Virander Sahni performed the Diwali pooja (worship rituals) to kickstart the event. As MCs Divya Dhingra and Nitin Madan took to the floor, a thoroughly enjoyable program of dances and fashion shows began.

The children’s fashion show was equally entertaining as Savar Bajaj, Sana Bajaj, Dhylan Dugal, Roshni Raj Singh, Aanya Goyal, Anisha Goyal, Tanisha Kurlekar, Paavni Singh, Reet Raj Singh, Sania Sehgal, Aditya Vikram Arora, Lara Kumar, Shayaan Patel, Rishi Mistry, Jason Raj, Jashan Dugal, Jaiman Dugal, Siyona Jain, Tejal Yadav, Addya Rajankar, Khushi Arora, Supriya Segal, Ghazal Chawla and Muskan all strutted their stuff on the stage. The littlest ones were accompanied by their adult partners who encouraged them along.

The children’s presentation included the famous Lungi Dance, while the Taal group from Sanskriti (Tejal Yadav, Ghazal

Chawla, Muskan, Khushi Arora and Supriya Segal) presented contemporary beats and some Bollywood tunes. Deepa Arora from Sanskriti choreographed the entire show and also gave a stunning solo performance to Aaja Nachle. Among the ladies that also danced on the night were the group Dhamal (Reema Goyal, Surbhi Jain, Hemlata Gupta, Suman Yadav and Poonam Kurlekar). These ladies then took part in the fashion show along

CBA’s Diwali extravaganza

It is said to be one of the best venues in Sydney, the Waterview restaurant at Bicentennial Park in the Sydney Olympic Park. This was the venue chosen by the Commonwealth Bank to celebrate the Festival of Lights Diwali last month.

With over 250 people in attendance, it was an evening

filled with fun and excitement capturing the Diwali spirit. Be it the sincere MCing of Divya Dhingra or the robust dhol players as they escorted the main guest to their seats, Commonwealth Bank’s Premier Banking and Migrant Financial Services celebrated Diwali with their guests with great flair.

Their General Manager Ed Box spoke eloquently about the value which CBA places not only on their valued customers but also their staff.

“At CBA, we are like a family. We recognise the diverse needs of the community and I am proud to say our staff meets these needs. In fact at CBA we live for customer

gracefully swayed to the number Chalte Chalte from Pakeezah and proved that mothers can still be ‘stars’. It was wonderful when Deepa credited her success to her husband Vikram and equally lovely to see many others wives, especially Mrs Sahni, nod in agreement as they looked at their own partners!

Gifts and prizes, games and raffle draws kept everyone entertained before dinner. Among the prize givers, was Cr Gurdeep

Singh from Hornsby Council. The food served on the night was scrumptious. Maya da Dhaba excelled themselves yet again as expected!

While the adults were at dinner, the kids were well and truly kept occupied by Hannah from Bop Till You Drop.

The night ended with a trademark Indian tradition, Bollywood dancing; but at this event, there was also a final Diwali present, a take-home box of Indian sweets for each family to relish later.

Rani Jhala

service and have been recognised as No.1 in customer service in our industry,” he added with pride. Box also acknowledged the high value which CBA places on both the Chinese and Indian markets and his pride in having at least 51% of the Indian migrant market business. Their Mumbai operations were launched in 2010.

With tongue in cheek, he played out to his audience linking their love for cricket and the Commonwealth Bank’s sponsorship of Cricket Australia. The bank observed Diwali with their well-wishers with Bollywood dancing, fine dining, colour and plenty of music.

Pawan Luthra

Julie Bishop

Third round of civil nuclear talks to take place soon

Australia and India are to hold the third round of their civil nuclear cooperation talks Nov 26-27 to pave the way for an early conclusion of the agreement, visiting Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said in New Delhi on Nov 18 after talks with India’s External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid.

Australia will also support India’s membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), Bishop said during a joint press conference.

The two sides inked two agreements, including a statement of intent between the Australian government and India’s Nalanda University.

Bishop said both sides hoped to conclude the civil nuclear cooperation negotiations that would pave the way for the sale of Australian uranium to India.

She said both sides are negotiating in “good faith” and added that the Tony Abbott government is in favour of selling uranium to India.

Australia and India are also planning to begin negotiations on a free trade agreement, she said.

Khurshid said both sides were looking to schedule a visit early next year of new Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott to India.

“We are looking at an early slot for him to come down next year,” he said.

The visit was being planned amid indications that Abbott “wants to begin his term with a fruitful visit to India,” he said.

Australia and India are also increasing air connectivity with Air India deciding to start direct flights to Sydney and Melbourne and Air Australia planning to launch direct flights to India, said Khurshid.

The external affairs minister said Indian business had an “impressive footprint” on Australian soil and hoped that a larger number of Indian companies will invest in Australia.

An Indian-Australian CEOs’ forum is to meet soon, he said.

Bishop said she wanted to visit India early in her tenure “to show the significance we attach to ties with India”.

With staff at the Australian High Commission, New Delhi

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop meets students who have benefitted from ASHA, which helps disadvantaged young people attend college and university

in India

She said the “ambitious” free trade agreement (FTA) they planned to negotiate would be mutually beneficial.

As part of their deepening engagement in security cooperation, the navies of the two countries are to hold

Both sides also discussed cooperation in counter-terrorism

In the field of energy security, Bishop said India could count on Australia for its “trusted and reliable support” for its needs, including coal, LNG and civil nuclear energy cooperation.

Bishop said there were “no specific time lines” in concluding the civil nuclear agreement with India and both were “waiting to Energy-starved India aims

to upgrade its nuclear power generation capacity to 20,000 megawatts (MW) by 2020. Australia has one of the largest known uranium reserves in the world.

Australia, a key member of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, had earlier been opposed to selling uranium to India as New Delhi has not signed the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty (NPT). It reversed its policy in 2011.

Bishop also said her country welcomes Indians coming to Australia to pursue higher education. As part of wooing bright Indian minds to that country, the Abbott government has proposed a new programme under which students can pursue internship with a business company, she said.

With India’s External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid at Hyderabad House, New Delhi

Uttam Kumar, who won a study trip to Australia as part of Austrade’s “Win Your Future Unlimited” contest

Meeting Finance Minister Sri P. Chidambaram in New Delhi, along with Australia’s High Commissioner to India Patrick Suckling

With senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Arun Jaitley

Thank you for

retirement from cricket earlier this month marks the end of a

BY RITAM MITRA

story to share – whether it is watching him on television, seeing him play live, or meeting him in person. They say that India stood still when Tendulkar was batting –but it was in those moments that the country’s, and indeed cricket’s love affair with him, reached

It was an affair only partly based on his feats on the cricket field. His batting was magical, make no mistake; but his statistics are a mere by-product of the romance – a love child that everyone knows about, but wouldn’t mind living without.

After all, the ‘most memorable Tendulkar moment’ question is not answered with ‘His 34,347 runs in international cricket’ or ‘His 100 international centuries’.

The cricketing world’s romance with Tendulkar has been built around stolen moments that will stay frozen in time: his lone stand against the might of McDermott, Hughes, Whitney and Reiffel on a dicey Perth deck in 1992; his

devastating assault on Warne in Sharjah, 1998; his brutally flayed cut shot for 6 against Shoaib Akhtar in the 2003 World Cup. It has been a somewhat dysfunctional relationship. After 24 years in the spotlight, none of us can say we really knew Sachin Tendulkar at all. On what would be his last day of international cricket, his wife Anjali gave an interview that revealed an almost mundane life with him at home. When he spent those rare periods of time with his family, he would annoy her immensely with his knack for finding faults – pointing out peeling paint here, cracks there. Harsha Bhogle later told viewers that the first time he visited the Tendulkars, Anjali made him tea while Tendulkar brought out the tea cups, “… just like any other middle-class Indian family”.

But this was not the Tendulkar we knew, and perhaps it was best

that way. Sachin’s rise coincided with India’s rise as an economic power – not just in cricket, but on the world stage. In a country traditionally disillusioned by politics – exemplified even in the heavy emotion following Tendulkar’s last match, when Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan and National Congress Party President Sharad Pawar were greeted with jeers and booing from the crowd –Tendulkar was the hero India needed. Not for his straight drive or back-foot punch through the covers, neither for his Pepsi commercials, nor for the timeless stories of his early-morning drives around the streets of Mumbai in his Ferrari, although those are the things we might well remember most about him.

In the end, India needed Tendulkar for his humility. As the nation found its voice on

the memories!

countless records.

To the rest of the world, Tendulkar’s greatness may well lie in his insatiable appetite for runs. He was particularly ruthless against Australia, plundering 20 centuries against them, including the 114 in Perth that many regard as the greatest innings played by a visiting batsman in Australia. Time and again, he showed the world that he was at his best when he was being challenged. His innings in Cape Town, during which he prevailed in a titanic struggle with Dale Steyn, is testament to his ability to score against the best bowlers of every generation he played against. Starting with Younis and Akram in 1989, he overcame attacks that featured Ambrose and Walsh, McGrath and Warne, and more recently, Steyn and Morkel.

Sachin’s rise coincided with India’s rise as an economic power – not just in cricket, but on the world stage

and revered him as they would a deity. His records might be broken – Kohli is already on the hunt in the ODI arena, and Kallis is hot on his heels in Test matches. Some may argue that Lara was a greater match-winner, or Kallis a more valuable cricketer. But it is the sheer romance of Tendulkar’s story – a quiet, shy 16-year-old Indian boy like any other, taking on the world and carrying the hopes and dreams of an entire nation for almost a quarter of a century –that makes him so special to India, and will outlive his

No one in history, sportsperson or otherwise, has endured the adoration of a billion people. It is not something Tendulkar ever asked for - and perhaps that is why we gave it to him so readily. Tendulkar has transcended sport, bringing together cultures, religions and castes in a way that no leader, politician or warrior has ever achieved – whether in India or abroad. In his retirement speech, Tendulkar said that the “Sachiiiin, Sachin” chant would reverberate in his ears until his last breath. Despite the entitlement every fan felt to the heartfelt ‘Thank you’ from Tendulkar, you could not help but feel a touch of pity for the man.

For although he might move on from the game and his time in the sun is now at an end, the nation will never move on from him. He will remain far and away the most adored son of India, and that will surely haunt Tendulkar, now that he does not have cricket as an outlet. The eerie moment when Tendulkar ventured out on his own to touch the Wankhede Stadium pitch reminded us once again that Tendulkar was only ever at home on the cricket field. It has been that way for a long time. Tendulkar was born to play this game.

This chapter of India’s love affair with him is over. Cricket will be poorer without him. But it was better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.

The eerie moment when Tendulkar ventured out on his own to touch the Wankhede Stadium pitch reminded us once again that Tendulkar was only ever at home on the cricket field

distances itself from the people. It then

tends to be seen as elitist and the ‘tall poppy poppies in Australia get cut down to size because the populace sees them as aloof

One of the unfortunate aspects of the Blue Mountain fires has been the revelation result of a defense exercise. Nobody denies that such accidents happen, but those who should be compensated by the

royals at the time of the fires has elements of egalitarianism woven into the glamour of a small-town Aussie girl who, Danish throne, made Australia proud. After all, her husband, the Crown Prince of Denmark, incognito into an Australian pub for a glass of beer. We are now awaiting Prince Charles likewise. They are also known for their unconventional ways.

of Australian egalitarianism. That is what makes Australia what it is. But he takes a dour view when he looks at the statistical formation of the Federation and the late lowest incomes narrowed steadily; but after 1910s the top 1% got 12% of all personal income, but that declined to around five per cent by 1980; whereas now it is about 9%.

alone. It is the spirit of mateship, that is the desire to look after each other in good and bad times which counts. There are built-in measures in Australian budgets which look after the common people such as child endowments, unemployment benefits and aged pensions. There

reduced consultations which help

Two of the biggest supermarket accept donations for the fire crisis dollar. A worthy ‘thank you’ from from the agricultural products of

The most critical aspect of the pollution are emitted into the air. It is a horrendous fact to ponder upon. Are we going to emit that much by way of carbon dioxide emissions every year? We have been critical with regard to Indonesian forests going up in smoke. There seems to be no end in sight for our yearly pollution.

Australia is renowned for its impartiality, and this was

The future for Indo-Oz relations

Will the new government prove to be old wine in a new bottle or will it make an effort in genuinely improving Indo-Oz relations?

BY MOHAN THITE

Despite the change of government in Australia after six years, the impact and implications for relations with India are most likely to be minimal.

First of all, India is mired in its own economic, political and social problems, adversely affecting its growth rate and global leverage. There is a looming tussle between Rahul Gandhi and Narendra Modi in the upcoming elections. Until India finds its own direction and moves decisively, it can’t expect the rest of the world to take it seriously.

it up nicely: Learning from chaos: Win in India to win everywhere. India is like a wild horse. Once you tame it, it will be your Black Caviar”. Australia is fast losing its attractiveness for Indian students as a destination for higher studies. With the high Aussie dollar and increasing restrictions on student visas and permanent residency, Indian students today tend to prefer the USA and UK over Australia.

With the high Aussie dollar and increasing restrictions on student visas and permanent residency, Indian students today tend to prefer the USA and UK over Australia

But India is becoming strategically important to Australia in one respect, human resources. The focus of Australia’s migration program has significantly shifted over the last decade towards an ‘emphasis on attracting skilled migrants in order to meet Australia’s labour needs’ and skilled migrants, both permanent and temporary, are allocated the lion’s share (68%) of the migration intake.

Even though both Liberals and Labor have endorsed selling uranium to India, it is highly unlikely to warm Australia’s relations with India. The key challenge in the relationship is ‘trust deficit’. It is telling in the fact that no Indian Prime Minister has visited Australia in over 25 years, whereas Australian Prime Ministers have been to India several times during that period.

In finding reasons for India’s lack of interest in Australia, the Sydney Morning Herald (29/8/2012) felt that “to India, Australia doesn’t matter that much [as] Australia is, at best, a third-tier partner in Indian eyes”. It is true that the only thing that interests India about Australia is its energy resources. Private Indian firms like Adani and GVK Group have made some major inroads in regards to this.

Today, India is Australia’s fourth largest trading partner with trade heavily skewed in favour of Australia. Still, Australian companies have had very limited success in entering the burgeoning Indian market. In my keynote address on ‘Doing business in India’ organised by the Queensland Government’s India Council in 2012, I had noted, “Success in India requires a unique approach to find the jugaad way, like ‘water flowing through the paths of least resistance’. Slicing through the chaos in India to success demands a unique genius, one that can sometimes confound Western logic and norms. The title of an upcoming book sums

In 2011-12, India became the largest source country for permanent migration, and second largest for temporary skilled migration in Australia. India is also the prime destination for global services offshoring. Harnessing Indian human capital is therefore vital for the long-term economic and labour needs of Australia.

There is tremendous scope for relations between India and Australia to reach new heights – economically, politically and socially. To realise this potential, both sides need to make some serious strategic moves. India on its part needs to shed its ‘reluctant superpower’ image and should participate seriously in global affairs by taking decisive steps in forging enduring partnerships with USA, Japan and Australia.

Let us hope Tony Abbott and his government will be the guiding light that heralds a new era of Indo-Australian relations

The Australian government and political/ business leaders equally, need to look beyond short-term fixes in strengthening their relationship with India and show patience, perseverance and genuineness in their engagement.

Let us hope Tony Abbott and his government will be the guiding light that heralds a new era of Indo-Australian relations.

After all, the Indian and Australian tectonic plates were fused together millions of years ago and according to new research, Australian aborigines had contact with Indian migrants 4,000 years ago. So our relations go a long way back, and even Pauline Hanson will not be able to tell Indian migrants to “go back to where you came from!”

Being the change I want to see

We are living in exceptional times.

We live in world where our world leaders are failing to address climate change. There’s depleting natural resources, extreme poverty, human rights abuses and global warming.

India has certainly progressed to address environmental issues, but there is a long way to go. The country faces challenges such as air pollution, deforestation, environmental degradation, high greenhouse gas emissions, solid pollution and waste. Despite all this, its people are establishing a lifestyle based on consumerism and materialism.

Our ecosystem does not have any borders, and so our actions have repercussion on the whole planet.

But what can one person do?

What is our responsibility? Is there a need for young people to be involved in politics?

I think there is. For me, ‘politics’ is not a dirty word.

Being involved in politics in Australia means to make your voice heard on issues that you care about. It means to not be ignorant and to not stand on the sidelines. It is to challenge our Members of Parliament to commit to governing our country through progressive laws. For this to happen, the general population needs to be actively involved in social issues and be the change they want to see.

I first realised this when I was 11, as I watched the Hindu-Muslim conflict unfold on the news on TV. I was so upset with what I saw that I cried for the whole night feeling completely helpless, and at the same time refusing to accept that such incidents could occur in a place that I call home.

At 14, my friends and I campaigned at the local shopping mall to raise awareness about human rights abuses taking place in a Chinese Apple iPod factory. I found that workers were forced to work 24 hours without a break, were significantly underpaid and their working conditions were unsafe. My friends and I urged the shoppers to sign our petition to compel the company to put in place basic workers’ rights in the

factory. I remember one shopper walking directly up to me, looking at me in the eye and saying, “I know why you are here and I support what you do, keep it up!”

This was the beginning of knowing that I should never remain silent on issues that mattered to me. If one person out of hundreds of shoppers felt that I had made a difference that day then, evidently one person can make a difference.

Currently, I have the absolute privilege of working in the Parliament of South Australia as a Policy Advisor and Parliamentary Liaison Officer. My job is to read pieces of legislation, lay out a policy strategy, consult with respective stakeholders and put forward recommendations. My main achievement to date has been the ‘Work Health and Safety Bill’, which was a national harmonising safety law. I am currently working

on a Bill that seeks to better protect our state’s firefighters. I recently worked for Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young on her re-election campaign. It was a great experience to play a pivotal role in Sarah gaining a Federal seat for SA!

I feel compelled to act and get involved in politics, as it is my citizen’s duty and a right. Unfortunately, in many parts of the world this is not possible. I am influenced by my parents who are passionate environmentalists, and hold strong social justice values with which I have grown up. Change begins at home. It begins by talking to friends about issues and spreading the word by raising awareness. One piece of advice I’d give is to be informed about the choices you make. As consumers we make a political statement with every choice that we make. For instance, by

refusing to purchase cosmetics from companies that undertake animal testing, you make a political statement that consumers are moving against animal cruelty and animal testing. Also, it’s a great way to support cosmetic companies that do not practice animal testing.

I think young Indian people are politically minded as we challenge the ‘status-quo’. There is a need to be empowered to believe that we are the leaders of today and tomorrow. It is up to us to make a difference. We need to stand up on issues that matter and make way for change.

22-year-old Yesha Joshi is Policy Advisor and Parliamentary Liaison Officer to the Hon. Tammy Franks MLC in South Australia. She is also co-producer and presenter at a weekly ‘Your Rights @Night’, a radio program that tackles industrial relations issues.

My job as Policy Advisor is to read pieces of legislation, lay out a policy strategy, consult with respective stakeholders and put forward

A rising star with a dedicated agenda in South Australia’s political arena, writes about her work

For me, ‘politics’ is not a dirty word. Being involved in politics in Australia means to make your voice heard on issues that you care about

Yesha with Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young

To Australia, by a long shot

An international incident puts into motion a series of events that charts the course of one man’s life

BY LP AYER

President Kennedy’s assassination propelled my migration journey to Australia. Sounds incredible?

Major tragedies often create a ripple effect, affecting people living far removed from the scene and not even remotely connected with the event, like 9/11 or the tsunami. Kennedy’s death was one such event, in my case.

I was a journalist with the Financial Express, the first financial newspaper started in India in 1960 as part of the Indian Express group. After gaining my Honours degree in Economics, I joined this paper from day one of its planning stage.

In that set-up, the News Desk was responsible for editing news items, designing page layout and producing the paper. It worked in two shifts, with a chief sub-editor in charge for each shift. The night shift Chief sub-editor was the sole arbiter of what stories would go on the front and other overflow pages, as well as their layout.

Promotion came to me reasonably quick. Just a couple of months before that fateful

Friday night in 1963, I was made Chief sub-editor. And that week in November it was my turn as the night shift in-charge chief subeditor.

Being a financial daily with a small print-run, it was printed first around midnight, before the Group’s other two papers, the Indian Express and Lok Satta in Marathi, with a quarter of a million print run each, all on the same rotary machine.

Every night after checking the front page proof, I would give the go-ahead to the printing room. While waiting to see the first printed copy, the sub-editors would have a card game, then sleep on our office desks as there was no public transport after midnight, and none of us could afford a vehicle. We used to be woken up by the cleaners early next morning to return home.

Friday, November 22 was like any other day. Things went smoothly with good local stories breaking early, and the pages were ready on time for printing. We sat down to our card game a couple of metres from the teleprinter (a typewriter-like device in a glasstopped cabinet) that used to send out stories from the news agency. Usually the agency would give a couple of rings on the machine to indicate it was closing for the night and no more stories were to come. If some important news was about to break, it would sound longer

and louder. But that was rare. As the cards were about to be dealt, there was a loud ring a few minutes past midnight. The line on the teleprinter read: ‘Flash ..... Flash.....Flash’. It was a regulation line to warn of a major story coming.

‘PRESIDENT KENNEDY SHOT’.

I nearly froze in my seat, only for a few seconds though. I asked one of the sub-editors to type out a few paragraphs on Kennedy, another to get a grim looking picture of him from the paper’s library, and a third staff to keep watching the teleprinter. I rang the printing room foreman to stop the press and rushed down to the composing room to retrieve the front page stone (a metal frame encasing news items cast in metal). Those were the days when each line was set in molten metal on a linotype machine; even changing a few lines would mean major layout changes to the page. There were no computers or cut-and-paste magic then.

As soon as the new paragraphs were composed, I placed the story and the picture on top of the page, removing parts of another story. All this took thirty minutes. The printing foreman was getting anxious as the papers would miss the delivery vehicles. I was equally nervous. The page was ready to go.

‘KENNEDY DECLARED DEAD’, the staff watching

the teleprinter rang me at the composing room.

A quick re-editing, re-setting, a new bold headline and layout change. After another 15 minutes the rotary printer was spewing thousands of copies with the grim story. I returned to my desk. As a journalist I felt a sense of ‘pride’ in handling such a challenge in only my third month as a probationary Chief sub-editor. Kennedy was then a hero to most Indians, including me. I broke down and wept - a thing journalists are not expected to do in their line of duty.

Next morning I found out that only the Express Group of papers had covered the story and other ‘rival’ groups missed it. It was a sense of victory in that moment of great sadness.

I wrote an article on how I handled the story for the Indian Press Institute’s quarterly magazine Vidura. I submitted this as my entry and was selected by the Institute for a scholarship program in journalism at Cardiff in the UK, run by the Thompson Foundation, founded by Lord Thompson owner of The Times in London before Rupert Murdoch.

On that course there were twelve journalists from nine different countries, including the editor of a major regional newspaper in South Australia, Mr. Don Winton of Whyalla News He and I became good friends.

After the fourteen-week course we returned to our respective posts. I got a promotion and later moved to Public Relations at Tata Steel, thanks to my overseas stint. It is in this steel city that I met my future wife.

Don and I corresponded regularly. I took him to a few interesting places during his first visit to India. Our friendship grew and so did my interest in Australia, and at his urging I decided to migrate here. His support added weight to my application. I arrived with my wife in1972 and Don was there at Adelaide airport to greet us. Since then, Don visited India a dozen times until his death a few years ago. He was our guest during many a Christmas at our Adelaide home. In the 40-odd years since, Australia and our family of four have treated each other with great love and affection.

I often wonder if, were I not present at that particular time when news came through of Kennedy’s assassination, would I have got that scholarship, met Don and come to Australia? Should I cry at the tragedy or feel happy at the turning point in my life, or simply assign that to my karma?

PS: In the years gone by, I learnt that out of those dozen journalists on that Cardiff course, four had met with tragic ends - two from Uganda became the victims of dictator Idi Amin; one handsome leftist Brazilian joined a guerrilla force somewhere in Africa and was killed in action; one from Egypt, the Deputy Editor of Al Ahram, the mouthpiece of President Nasser, died in a car accident. Don Winton too, was hit by a car but lived with broken leg, and died a couple of years later.

Nov 22 2013 marks the 50th death anniversary of John F Kennedy

Kennedy was then a hero to most Indians, including me. I broke down and wept - a thing journalists are not expected to do in their line of duty

On money and happiness

BY SHAFEEN MUSTAQ

If the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer, does this mean the rich have to curb their dreams and aspirations to lift up the status of the poor? When David Beckham earns $100,000 a day, should he be giving that away to live in Ingleburn, so that the poor can rise up to a proper standard of living? The reality of modern society is that the rich are rich at the expense of the poor. We live off the poor, we take their money, their oil, minerals, gemstones and their labour at such horrifying low costs that we create a socioeconomic divide responsible for the brain drain and resource drain of other countries. In doing so we make ourselves wholly responsible for the growing economic divide and the misfortunes of those less well off.

Does this mean the rich are not allowed to aspire? No. Everyone is entitled to aspire. The garment worker who is only paid 50c for a dress you bought at $110 is also entitled to aspire. But she lives in a society in which you have contributed to the death of her dreams. We have built a socio-economic arena in which third world countries are pitted against first world countries like gladiators, with little to no hope for success. Shouldn’t we work towards a society where this worker’s labour is duly paid and her right to dream is duly respected and given a fighting

chance? Islam’s way of wealth distribution gives people that chance. The concept of ‘zakaat’ which is to donate a small portion of one’s wealth to the less fortunate means that if we all gave a little of what we have, there would be no poverty in this world. But we don’t. We would rather spend it on a new house or another car, than give even a cent more than what is expected of us.

It is here that I believe it is our collective responsibility to judge each other, and remind ourselves of our boundaries and of the risk of hedonism. A reminder between friends that extravagance leads to the loss of values and sense of self, should not be considered offense. Rather, it should be gratefully accepted so that we do not lose ourselves in the consumerist mad dash for materialistic satisfaction. So, no!

I don’t think David Beckham should live in Ingleburn. He has worked very hard to get where he is, by virtue of his looks, talent and his efforts at harnessing his fame. But he should remember that the privileges he takes for granted which position him in the crème de la crème of society, are but a dream for 90% of his fellow humans. And he knows that.

His efforts with UNICEF and those of Meryl Streep and Angelina Jolie with other NGOs, show that there are celebrities who take on the responsibility of helping those less fortunate, and take it very seriously.

So the next time you look at that amazing red sports car, or the brand new housing complex in which you can build a mansion, remind yourself that having food, shelter, clothes and access to education puts you in the top

10% of society. Remind yourself that we live in a world of 6 billion people in which the majority go hungry every day, have little to no shelter, or are facing religious and cultural persecution. Recognise that the current socioeconomic status, division of wealth and labour, and political hegemony only perpetuate this divide and drive mankind to total despair and apathy. Remind yourself that you can make a difference by doing

The concept of ‘zakaat’ which

your bit for your fellow humans. Buy fair trade, look behind the façade of materialism, refrain from extravagance, put aside some portion of your wealth for charity.

The most important thing you can do to stop the perpetuation of our consumerist culture is to educate your children, families and friends. Teach them the value of money. Show them through your own actions that simply because you have the means to deck

yourself in Louis Vuitton, doesn’t mean that you do. For somewhere in some dark decrepit factory, there is a little girl who makes those lush things you crave with no hope of ever wearing them herself. Remember that while you have aspirations, you are not the only one that does. And there is nothing more rewarding than giving back someone’s right to aspire, in whatever way you can.

is to donate a small portion of one’s wealth to the less fortunate means that if we all gave a little of what we have, there would be no poverty in this world

Showing more empathy and charity towards the poor can help reduce poverty and destitution in the world

Education as a business proposition

HASNAIN ZAHEER reports on opportunities in education business in Australia and India

Indian Link has already covered the useful and much needed business conferences on education and training organised by Pradeep Khanna of Global Mindset earlier in the year. His initiative of ‘Integrating Australia with Asia’ and building a community of like-minded people comprising of Australian and Asian entrepreneurs and business executives to do business in the Asian century is gaining momentum.

These conferences are helping Australians and Asians to engage with each other, understand the problems and attempt to solve them by customising the products, processes, resources, knowledge and skills that they already have.

For example, Australian companies have the opportunity to build large scale and size in their business by deploying strategies for serving large numbers in a market like India. The growth prospects of a company that can successfully achieve this innovation can go ballistic with India’s population being more than 50 times that of Australia. Tim Tams in India,

anyone? Desi Vegemite? In fact, consumer businesses such as the coffee chain Gloria Jean’s and cookie chain Cookieman can be found in Indian shopping centres.

Pradeep Khanna’s initiative is helping to encourage Australian and Asian businesses to come closer.

The latest conference on October 29 specifically tackled the topic of using data analytics in higher education. Moderated

by Tim Dodd, the education editor of the Australian Financial Review, IT and learning managers of University of Technology Sydney (UTS), Australian Catholic University (ACU), Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Government agencies such as Office of Learning & Teaching, Education Services Australia and consultants such as Deloitte Analytics presented their thoughts on how education is now managed

with the help of data and analysis as large number of data points are collected and then used to improve learning outcomes.

Devin Fidler of US-based The Institute of the Future connected on Skype to talk about how education is changing. He mentioned how the best lectures are now on the web because of Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs). He stated how University of the People has aimed

to bring a degree to anyone who needs it by offering bachelor’s degree courses for as little as $5,000 in America.

Other examples of innovations in education include:

1. Duolingo: Free language lessons.

2. Codecademy: Learning programming.

3. General Assembly: Entrepreneurship training.

4. Coursera, uDacity and edX: Free online courses offered by leading universities.

5. Lynda: Subscription based fee for hundreds of technology courses.

6. Demy: Courses that can be hosted or taken by anyone.

Organisations such as Global Mindset, initiatives such as ‘Integrating Australia with Asia’ and communities such as TIE Sydney (the local chapter of the global entrepreneur community originally started by Indian professionals in America), have done much to help Indian professional and business community to benefit from opportunities in their adopted countries.

From left to right: Suzi Hewlett, Federal Department of IICSR & TE, Kevin Ashford-Rowe, ACU, Prof Shirley Alexander, UTS, Chris Bridge, QUT

Mastery at memorising

The very concept and definition of memory function is changing with a smarter, tech-savvy generation

We have come along a fair bit since then. Calculators are used almost universally; you are even allowed to take a calculator to the classroom, even at examinations like SAT.

Irecently came across this quote from Albert Einstein, “Never memorize something that you can look up.” It seems like a great quote from this great scientist. Now why would he have made such a statement? I did some research related to memorising, with results that were not too surprising. The web is awash with articles around how to increase memorising capability, obviously a well-researched topic. Yet, the statement from Einstein is in complete contradiction to that. This made me think of the need for memory and how we use this great faculty of ours.

When my father was growing up, his father gave him 25 paise to memorise the complete list of countries and their capitals. “United States of America, Washington DC; United Kingdom, London…” A generation later my dad made the same deal with me, upping the reward to Rs5.

I remember having competitions at school where general knowledge was tested in the form of matching languages or currencies to their countries. Or, the names of the Presidents and Prime Ministers. But no such trick works with my kids. There is little need for children to know it all when everything is just a touch away.

Nowadays, everybody has a smart device, smart phone, iPad, iPod, etc. By some reports, 2013 is

the first year where smart phones are meant to outsell plain ones. In other words, having a computer in your pocket is the current norm. Search engines are just a tap away, so why bother memorising anything.

Parents of my generation, as parents in the previous generation and before, have had the same predictable reaction: “These kids today! They don’t want to learn anything! All they ever want to do is play on smart devices!”

The proponents of the memory debate often cite school exams, quiz shows, and travelogues as examples of a person’s fine memory. Our own scriptures were transferred through memory.

Now that’s an understandable argument. But on the other hand, there is a powerful counter argument. A society must move forward, leaving any obsolete

skills behind; just as we have left calligraphy, analogue cameras, audio and video tapes, and many others. Memory is slightly different since it’s not a device, and to say that it should not be used will be trivialising its role. We cannot say we don’t need it anymore, but how we invest in skills in this modern age, definitely needs to be looked at and changed in many ways.

This is not the first time we have had to do that. In fact, we have confronted the memorising argument before – when pocket calculators were introduced. Memorising skills were questioned even then, the generation before being a master of timetables and therefore, calculations. When pocket calculators came along, parents were aghast about their children losing the ability to calculate in their heads.

In this time and age, critical thinking skills and problem solving have overtaken memorising skills. Calculators and smart phones are seen as machines that do the grunt work while students focus on more global issues. Memorising the names of the countries and their capitals is no longer seen as important as understanding the political landscape and macro economics of those countries. Of course, there will always be some memorising required for the information that is too clumsy to look up every time such as simple spellings, calculations, names of neighbouring countries etc.

So does that mean the teachers should do away with asking students to memorise times-tables? Or, historical timelines? Hmm, that would be interesting. More research suggests an important distinction. Memorising is not ‘rote’. What we have been doing is trying to memorise to build a database of information. This database is no longer required, as that’s what the internet is for. But memorising can be used as a way of learning. Memorising facts can build the foundations for higher thinking and problem solving. Constant recitation of times-tables might not help children understand mathematical concepts, but it may allow them to draw on what they have memorised in order succeed in more complex mental arithmetic. Memorisation therefore, produces a more

efficient memory, taking it beyond its limitations of capacity and duration.

There are some further benefits too. Students who ‘just know’ equations, functions, definitions and other memorised facts can save brain power that can be used for other things. If concepts and information are grasped well, students can move onto more complex things rather than spending a whole lot of time looking up things. And it helps show off too. Students who know everything are well liked amongst peers and teachers. Memorising or not. This debate is not going to go away anytime soon. Meanwhile, the list of countries seem to be growing. So, better get started at it.

I had the pleasure of attending Deepawali Mela – Festival of Light celebrations in Liverpool on Saturday 26 October. It was a fantastic cultural event attended by thousands of people who came along to celebrate one of India’s most colourful festivals.

Did you know that Council recently became a signatory to the FlouroCycle scheme to reduce the amount of mercury-containing waste being disposed to landfill? We will be ensuring all mercury-containing lamps from Council owned buildings will be recycled and I encourage you to do the same. To find out where you can drop off and recycle your mercury-containing lamps go to http://www.fluorocycle.org.au/recyclers.php.

It’s time to nominate local citizens and groups for Liverpool’s Australia Day Awards. The categories include Citizen of the Year, Young Citizen of the Year, Fraser Environment and Sports Awards. Please visit Council’s website www.liverpool.nsw.gov.au for more information and nomination forms. Nominations must be received by Friday 22 November 2013, 4pm.

Mazhar Hadid Deputy Mayor

RADHA RAVI

Memorising the names of the countries and their capitals is no longer seen as important as understanding the political landscape and macro economics of those countries

Serene and striking Switzerland

The Red Cross nation of Switzerland is imbibed with lots of history, and so does the Storchen Hotel in Zurich. Located on the banks of the River Limmat, this hotel has been renowned for its hospitality for more than 650 years. Following the famous novelist John Irving’s mention about this hotel in his novel A Son of the Circus, I opted to stay here during my recent visit to the world’s money-vaulting epicentre, and not only immersed myself in history, but was also captivated by its picturesque setting and nearby sights that claim to be the landmarks of the city.

Dotted on the romantic Weinplatz quarter in the heart of Zürich’s old city, the Storchen Hotel is encircled by cobblestoned alleyways, and stands next to St Peters Church whose 9m round clock-face that I could see from my room, is the largest in Europe. Not far is the Fraumunster, a 1000-year-old cathedral famous for its stained glass windows. Its soaring spiky spire dominates the skyline of Zurich along with the Gothic twin towers of Grossmunster, another Romanesque styled basilica located opposite the hotel on other side of the river.

When sitting at the hotel’s terrace overlooking the river, the vista of ornamented bridges sharing the blue waters of Zurich Lake in a distance, and the Alpine mountains forming the background were a feast for my eyes, particularly in the early mornings when the serenity of the swathe was an added special effect.

Switzerland is famous for chocolates, cheese and clocks, and in Zurich there are several places to source them; but the classiest is Bahnhofstrasse, located only few steps away from the hotel. The 2km shopping stretch has elegant shops selling not only the three Cs, but also the latest in fashion. While wandering there it is almost mandatory to have a chocolate drink at the world famous Sprungli chocolate shop, the taste of which still lingers in my mouth.

Zurich has several museums in

its menu for art lovers and history buffs, the two significant ones that I managed to visit were the Swiss National Museum called Landemuseum, and Kunsthaus, the country’s greatest art gallery. They surely added fuel to my cultural appetite!

Located in Central Europe, the history of Switzerland began in 1291 when three small cantons or regions joined together to fight against their foreign occupier, the Germanic Hapsburgs. Over time other neighbouring cantons joined the confederation, but political stability was not achieved until 1848 when a central government was established, Berne was made the capital and the journey was triggered off towards social and economic progress. Today with a population of 7.5 million, Switzerland stands as one of the most progressive and rich nations in the world.

Switzerland is a relatively small country, you can travel from one end to the other in hours. Sharing geographical borders with Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein, Italy and France has inspired this peace-loving state to thrive with a mix of culture and traditions; one example of that is having four official languages, French, German, Italian and Romansh. Also as a result of that, there is no such thing as a typical Swiss city, all of the nation’s major cities and towns, Zurich, Berne, Basel, St Gallen, Lucerne and Geneva display their own character, to some extent influenced by elements from the bordering nation. However, what is common in all of them is their proximity to nature.

Switzerland is indisputably a natural paradise. Every cliché that I had heard before about the region’s natural splendours came out true to me. I stayed in Zurich and used the Swiss Travel Card to enjoy unlimited travel on national transport such as train, bus and boat to criss-cross this scenic land as much as was practically possible.

After completing my exploration of Zurich, I visited Lucerne, the picture perfect lakeside settlement where Chapels Bridge, a 14th century covered pedestrian walkway and the Lion’s Monument, a massive figure of a dying lion sculpted on sandstone, boast as iconic attractions. Then, I continued my journey to Interlaken to get closer to the gorgeous Alps, via the legendary

While chocolate, cheese and cuckoo clocks are epicure delights, natural and architectural wonders blow the mind

SANDIP HOR

Switzerland

Today with a population of 7.5 million, Switzerland stands as one of the most progressive and rich nations in the world

pocket-sized principality of Liechtenstein, the sixth smallest country in the world, was highly rewarding. Its capital Vaduz is only a short journey by train and bus from Zurich. Measuring 25 km in length and 6 km in length, it’s remembered mostly for its stunning natural beauty that aptly competes with neighbours Switzerland and Austria. The nation is governed by a friendly Prince whose home, a magnificent castle, is the main sight in the capital while a visit to his winery is grandly stimulating after tasting some fabulous reds and whites.

Though small in size, one visit is not enough to savour everything the region offers. So I left Switzerland with a taste of cheese and chocolates in my mouth, a cuckoo clock in my bag, several photos in my camera, the

extraordinary scenery of mountains and lakes frozen in my brain, and a strong desire to return locked in my mind.

Golden Pass train. It not only presented the best of the scenery comprising of mountains, lakes and waterfalls, but also showcased the typical Swiss countryside with small villages and grazing cattle powdering rolling green valleys intermittently sprinkled with conifer forests. The setting and even the colour of every view came out exactly as I have seen on picture postcards and many Hollywood and Bollywood movies.

I knew that Albert Einstein developed his famous theory of relativity while living in Berne, and that notion inspired me to visit the nation’s capital, particularly to see this great scientist’s dwelling. Berne is a beautiful city with grand medieval arcades;

the buildings, monuments and fountains lining its cobblestoned streets are striking as architectural gems. Einstein lived in a modest apartment which has now been converted to a museum, a café downstairs called Einstein Kaffee, serves refreshing doses of caffeine.

Switzerland boasts of several architectural marvels that represent an array of styles from the Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque periods, a fine example of the last being the St Gallen Cathedral which was originally established in 747 AD.

I was there on a Sunday morning to join locals and tourists from various parts of the world for the celebrated Mass.

A side-trip one day to the

Travel noTebook SWITZERLAND

Gettin G there: Singapore Airlines (www.singaporeair.com) has daily flights from Australia to Zurich via Singapore.

Gettin G around: A Swiss Travel Card is most convenient.

accommodation: Storchen Hotel (www.storchen.ch) for style, comfort and convenience.

m ore information: Check www.myswitzerland.com for details on Switzerland and www.tourismus.li for details on Liechtenstein.

Scenery at its best Scenic train

Historic Storchen

Hotel

Swiss time

Mouthwatering chocolates

St Gallen Cathedral

Romantic Zurich

Leichtenstein

Clockwise from top left:

Gunning for glory

Gunner Prasad becomes the first Fiji-Indian rugby referee in Australia

BY RITAm mITRA

If there is a sport in Australia under-represented by those with a subcontinental background, rugby, in all its formats, is a serious contender. But Gayanendra ‘Gunner’ Prasad, who recently became the first FijiIndian rugby referee in Australia, is breaking the mould. As the Rugby League World Cup unfolds on the other side of the world, Gunner will be watching on, with a set of especially keen eyes.

Born in the small village of Vuniyalyala in Labasa, Fiji, Gunner had always followed the immensely popular sport of rugby union. When he came to Australia to study in 1989, he soon fell in love with Rugby League and started following the Brisbane Broncos in the NRL.

“I loved the intensity, the defence and the star attraction of big name players such as Wally Lewis, Mal Meninga, Allan Langer to name a few,” says Gunner.

After moving back to Fiji on finishing his studies, it was a 1996 Fijian National Rugby League job advertisement for referees in the local paper that began Gunner’s rise to the top. Speaking of his decision to give it a shot, Gunner recalls, “Rugby League had just started in Fiji in 1992 so it was a pretty young sport and the thought of me making a contribution was quite inviting. However, I also knew this was going to be a huge step because Rugby League was played by native Fijians, and me becoming an Indian Fijian referee was akin to going into uncharted waters”.

Although Gunner’s rise since his early years has certainly been meteoric, it has not been without its struggles. “The biggest challenge I faced during my formative years as a referee was being accepted as a member of a Rugby League community in Fiji because there were a few incidents, which highlighted that I was considered as an ‘outsider’,” says Gunner. Having earned the respect of the players, spectators and Fijian Rugby League community in general, he then had to do it all over again, in

Australia. Despite one incidence of racial vilification in Queensland four years ago, with 18 years of experience under his belt, Gunner has now earned a reputation as a ‘hard, but very fair’ referee amongst players and spectators.

Given the physical, demanding nature of Rugby League, it is no surprise that Gunner has to stay on top of his fitness in order to stay on top of the game for 80 minutes. Gunner’s regime includes waking up at 4.30am on at least four weekdays, and starting a 90-minute gym session at 5am. The games themselves are no easier - in a typical week of refereeing, Gunner will run between 30 and 40kms. As a high school sports and mathematics teacher, he also manages to squeeze in a bit more fitness work during working hours. “Basically,” says Gunner, “you need to be fitter than the players if you want to be successful as a Rugby League referee”.

Gunner’s achievements are not confined to the field of play; he has also done a great deal for the development of the game in Fiji. On a visit to Fiji in

2010, he refereed a few games and noticed that a number of junior rugby league players were playing without boots. He was also disheartened to see that the different senior and junior sides would have to share jerseys between themselves because there was only one set of jerseys for each – so players would often be pulling on sweaty, dirty jerseys. “It did affect me a bit because it reminded me of my younger days when I was not able to afford to buy boots. I knew there were heaps of boots and jerseys that were being thrown away in Australia, so every year since then I have collected boots, jerseys, training gears, balls and taken them over to Fiji for clubs and players,” he says. As a result of his philanthropy, Gunner was recognised by the President of the Gold Coast Rugby League with an award for services to the game of Rugby League in Fiji.

In a long and illustrious career, the high point for Gunner was only in October this year, when he was given the privilege of refereeing the warm-up match between Fiji Bati vs President’s

XIII in Nadi, sharing the field with household names such as Petero Civoniceva, Aquila Uate and Ashton, Korbin and Tariq Sims. Gunner also officiated in the 2013 Battle of the Bati in Suva, which was televised live and featured a massive crowd of 14,000.

Gunner concedes he started refereeing too late to make a full-time career of it in the NRL, but has no hesitation in recommending the career to interested youngsters. “It is a very rewarding profession,” he says.

“The career path is there if you want to become a NRL referee, but you do need to start by the age of thirteen or fourteen. The financial benefit is quite huge too. If refereeing is not your cup of tea, then definitely consider the options of trainer, first aid, manager and various positions as a volunteer of Rugby League as you grow up”.

After he retires from refereeing, Gunner looks forward to coaching referees and improving the standard of refereeing in Fiji. Looking back on his career, Gunner is more than satisfied.

“So far it has been a good ride. Apart from a few minor incidents I have been treated as any other referee here in Australia. You do cop a bit of banter, but most of the time it is all in good fun. It is part of the Australian culture. In Fiji, I have been treated with the utmost respect…Whenever I go to referee in Fiji, the players, club officials, spectators, fellow referees and administrators of the game consider me as one of their own and look out for me. I absolutely love refereeing in Fiji,” he says. Having never set out to be a rugby league referee, Gunner’s story is a shining example of the fruits of simply following your passion. Speaking of the journey, Gunner says, “I loved the game of Rugby League and when the opportunity to become a referee presented itself to me, I grabbed it with both hands. I knew there would be few obstacles on the way to become a referee but once I jumped into it, I was determined to succeed”. Gunner credits the support of his mentors, Master Vito Qaqa and Master Takanana Nunu, as well as the Fijian National Rugby League administrators Culden Kamea and Master Iosefo Bele, who encouraged him to keep going. Of course, no career would be complete without the support of a loving family – including his wife Sophia, and his two children.

Honey, honey…

It’s natural, cost effective and can be great for your skin and hair

dry and itchy. Honey takes care of that too, and moistens the skin effectively.

Honey highlights

• Use honey as a cleanser, hair mask or even as a face scrub.

• To cleanse your skin with honey, first splash your face with water. Leave the hands wet and pour a fair amount of honey onto your palms. Apply all over your face like you would do with your face wash. Alternatively, dilute a little honey with water and spread all over your face. Scrub in a circular motion for a few minutes and wash off. Only keep in mind that because honey doesn’t have any oil content, it is not useful to remove waterproof make up or sunscreen.

hile many natural ingredients work as worthy skin and hair care aids to improve our looks, there are none as versatile as honey. From a scrub, to a hair mask, to an astringent, you can use this extremely underestimated yet wonderful gift of nature to improve your skin and hair. For those who like going back to the most original form of everything, raw honey would be the natural choice. However, it can be

thicker than the processed variety we see on our supermarket shelves. It does contain more enzymes than processed honey, but it is also more expensive. Having said that, processed honey is equally good to use as it is cheaper, retains most of its goodness and is easier to apply.

Most people who know about skincare will promptly tell you that honey is a natural moisturiser. It is a known fact that Cleopatra, the original beauty queen, was an authority on skincare treatments, and she used to bathe in a concoction of milk and honey. Leaving it on your skin like a mask for even ten minutes will make your skin feel fresher and plumped up. That is because honey is a humectant, it absorbs the moisture from the air and transfers it onto your skin. For best results, apply

honey on slightly damp skin and leave on for as long as you can. This will soften the skin and hydrate it and if you do it regularly, you will see the difference in a few days. Honey is also effective for sensitive skin as it is gentle, so if you have spent too long at the beach and are sunburnt, apply honey on the sensitive areas to soothe the skin instantly.

In case those of you with oily skin think that honey is only good for people with dry skin, think again. Honey can be applied directly onto pimples and acne as it contains antibacterial properties. It kills the bacteria and prevents the condition from spreading. Also, the creams we use to get rid of pimples often leave the skin around the pimple

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• To use as a moisturiser, simply apply all over face and neck and leave on till you shower.

• For your hair, mix a quarter cup of olive oil with half a cup of honey till they have blended well. Then apply all over your hair and leave on for half an hour. Wash and dry hair as you do normally.

• To make a face scrub, mix honey with a little granular brown sugar, add one spoon of lemon juice and a spoon of olive oil. Rub all over your face and neck in a circular motion to slough off dead skin cells.

• You can also make a lip balm with honey, brown sugar and olive oil to relieve dry and chapped lips.

So no matter what skin or hair type you have, this easy and natural remedy can make you look as sweet as honey!

From a scrub, to a hair mask, to an astringent, you can use this extremely underestimated yet wonderful gift of nature to improve your skin and hair

Honey can be applied directly onto pimples and acne as it contains antibacterial properties

INNAL KHONA

People Parties Places

Astha Singh talks about Diwali at a book-reading session at Ultimo Library

Photo: Sunny cherian

Tony Walters shares his birthday with writer Allama Iqbal, but his cake, only with his close friends!

Diwali at church: Fr Phil Crotty of St Mary’s Church, North Sydney organises a Diwali Mass

Uzma Beg kicks up her heels with friends at a Melbourne Cup lunch

Mischa Sahgal dons her devil costume to go trick-ortreating with friends on Halloween

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MAT R IMONIALS

SeekinG GroomS

Seeking suitable match for fair and young looking hindu lady, 5’ 2”, 55, divorced, vegetarian, australian citizen. he must be a non-smoker, ideally aged between 50 and 60. Please contact: 0449 623 316 or email: alpine_rhapsody@hotmail.com

Seeking alliance for a smart, familyoriented and well-educated ramgariah girl. She is 27 years old, 5’3” software engineer residing and working in india, but willing to move in australia. Sister is married and settled in Sydney. Please contact:  div111982@gmail.com

Seeking match for Hindu divorcee, settled professional woman (48), living in dandenong, melbourne. has no children. Please contact: vi_saw@yahoo.com or 0421 090 069.

Seeking suitable match for 36 year old, who works for a multinational company in a senior position (chartered accountant) and values both indian and western culture. Seeking hindu professional man, preferably from a well settled family background. Please contact: ganesh2011v@gmail.com

Seekin

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Seeking bride for 37-year-old 5’ 11’’ tall melbourne based hindu agarwal boy. divorced (no kids). Working in it caste no bar. contact with bio data and pic: desidownunder01@gmail.com or call / text 0416 164 651.

Alliance is invited from a Hindu, well settled and well educated indian family for an indian unmarried doctor guy (55), ready to settle in australia. Please contact: vi_saw@yahoo.com or 0421 090 069.

Agarwal (Goel) boy, 34 years old, 5’8”, good looking, seeking suitable bride from a hindu educated family. General manager with australian company based in ncr, delhi. Boy visiting Sydney in december and open to settling here. one aunt well-settled here. Please email girl’s details and photos to: foraanand@gmail.com

Local born melbourne based turbaned Sikh boy with trimmed beard, 33 years old, 6 feet tall, from established family. he is a masters graduate, working as a finance manager, who is looking for a likeminded professional Sikh girl who is local born, or grew up in australia, with a mix of western and indian culture and values. Send interest with photos to: sikhmundah@gmail.com

G OLIYON K I R AASLEELA R A m- LEELA

HHHHH

Just when you think you have seen it all, there comes a film that reminds you of how far the cinematic medium has come... and how far it can go in the right hands.

Let’s face it - Bhansali is Bhansali. the visual imagery in all his earlier films - from Khamoshi: The Musical to Guzaarish is comparable with the best art from any field of aesthetics.

in terms of its free-flowing, unmeasured and operatic opulence, Ram-leela (with or without the censorial prefix), comes closest to the giddy high-pitched and yet miraculously controlled tempo and tenor of Bhansali’s Devdas that too was a steeply sensuous cinematic adaptation from a literary source.

Ram-leela goes to William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and comes away with a marvel of a tale of love-at-first-sight. Bhansali tilts his hat to mythology, folklore and the culture of community clashes with a blend of spontaneity and brilliance. the rigorous reworking of the Shakespearean classic required a certain sense of recklessness. earlier this year, we saw some of the same creative recklessness in two other Bollywood adaptations, namely aanand L. rai’s Raanjhanaa and manish tiwary’s Issaq

But in Ram-leela every image and frame tells a story.

Bhansali’s romeo and Juliet are unabashedly sexual in their body and verbal language. none of that traditional coyness and hesitation that characterises traditional courtship when Leela discuss one another’s vital statistics. he runs a porn video parlour. She comes from a family of gunwielding criminals helmed by a steely matriarch (Supriya Pathak, brilliant). he comments on her ‘136 inch’ chest, she talks about his, er, trigger. they are in love and they know lust is an integral component of their relationship.

no two lovers derived from a classic romance have celebrated their mutual sexual desires so frankly and fearlessly.

Gosh, these two are romeo and Juliet on steroids! and this is as good a place as any to tell you that no other two actors could have done to Bhansali’s romeo/ ram and Juliet/Leela what ranveer and deepika have done. they don’t play the two characters. the couple owns their characters.

in his quest for the most visually invigorating shots, Bhansali is here assisted amply by his cinematographer ravi Varman. Varman uses the camera like ustad amjad ali Khan uses the

Sarod. i t’s an instrument to converse with divinity. Wasiq Khan’s art work too unfurls a spiralling tapestry of kaleidoscopic colours that find a place in the hectic frames without jostling or crowding the canvas.

o f the innumerable imperishable images that emerge from the film’s tumultuous tale of overnight passion, elopement, estrangement and reunion, i’d single out two. the first shows Barkha Bisht as ranveer’s widowed sister-in-law running away from a gang of attackers.

as she runs through the rugged hinterland, her brass vessel tumbles down-slope with her.

the sequence, caught in a desperately dying light, is probably the most vivid image of impending doom i’ve seen in any recent film.

the other unforgettable image features deepika, her hand bloodied after an injury, lying on the wet ground in a streak of blood. i t reminded me of aishwarya rai’s slashed wrist creating a

pond of blood in Bhansali’s Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam

fire and blood are never far from Bhansali’s vision. though there is plenty of bloodied images in Ramleela, the fire this time rages in the eyes of the characters.

Bhansali’s self-composed songs assisted by monty Sharma’s evocative background score, perfectly capture the film’s impetuous mood.

the actors do the rest. every performer surrenders to the tempestuous saga. While Supriya Pathak leads the supporting cast with a stellar performance, richa chadda, abhimanyu Singh, Gulshan devaiah and Sharad Kelkar are the portrait of pitch-perfect emoting.

as for the ranveer-deepika pair, there’s some great on-screen chemistry there!

SUBHASH K. JHA

Victor S. Lamba

S Tarrin G: deepika Padukone, ranveer Singh, Supriya Pathak, Gulshan devaiah and richa chadda

WRITER/D IRECTOR: Sanjay Leela

Bhansali

ThE DOOMED AND DANgEROus

SATYA 2

S Tarrin G: Puneet Singh ratn, anaika Soti, aradhana Gupta, amriyaan

Direc Tor: ram Gopal Varma

HHHHH

Spot the difference. i t’s the same in all-apparent details. mumbai’s underworld caught in a compromising position by ram Gopal Varma (rGV)’s camera, prying into the mutilated lives of characters looking so scruffy and aggressive, you wish they would leave aside the bloodbath and just take a ‘bloody’ bath.

Yup, this is ostensibly, very familiar rGV territory. But hang on, something very different is going on here. Strikingly rich and articulate in production design, Satya 2 is a startling original take on the evolution, collapse and restoration of mumbai’s underworld in ways that question the economical paradigm of a nation on the brink of damnation.

Yes, we are talking about our country where crime and corruption grow in direct proportion to the apathy of the powers that be. Given the incredible leap in atrocities against the ‘un-empowered’

R AJJO

(to coin an anti-capitalistic phrase) where does the poorest of the poor go when his daughter gets gang-raped, his wife dies of adulterated medicine and his father cannot get his rs.500 pension without paying a bribe?

rGV’s film shows a devilish daring. i t takes the underworld into confidence to build an anti-corruption empire that would feed the fed up by paralysing the super privileged.

don’t seem any different in its activities from the underworld.

rGV gives the saga of gangsterism a new spin, creating for the underworld genre of cinema an entirely new formula and folklore of survival.

i

t’s a startling premise, and one that rGV is not able to work out into any tenable blueprint of socio-political reform. But the very fact that he is able to suggest a solution, no matter how implausible, to the current climate of desperate de-escalation of morality, is reason enough to applaud this flawed, but riveting drama of the doomed and the dangerous.

Beware of the hopeless. they have nothing to lose except their despair. this is the propelling premise of rGV’s neo-Satya’s plot. the narration is most of the time taut and tactile as we follow the new millennium Satya’s journey from a village in rajasthan to the vortex of gangsterism in mumbai. ironically, the police, sturdily represented in the film,

Vikas Sharaf’s cinematography captures mumbai in stunning sepia tones suggesting decadence and rebirth in the same range of vision.

Visually Satya 2 is rGV’s smartest and most eye-catching film in years. the shootouts on the streets of mumbai, which have been done to bludgeoning death in the past, acquire a new life here. the sequence where Satya is shot at in an open cafeteria is specially brilliant in the way the editor cuts to the chase without getting out of breath.

the under-construction buildings, a favourite haunt of filmy gangsters, are shot here with vigorous virility.

So many years after Satya spoke a new cinematic language, rGV is back in form

displaying the sparks of brilliance that made the first Satya a trendsetting experience. no relation to the earlier film except the one of bhai-giri, Satya 2 sneaks slyly into mumbai’s dark dangerous sinister and ominous underbelly.

rGV’s eye for the migrant’s dismantled soul is unerring and powerful.

the performances range from the reined-in to the embarrassingly over the top. in the title role, Puneet Singh ratn’s restrained intensity aids the work’s aura of karmic catastrophe.

SUBHASH K. JHA

FALLEN wOMAN sAgA FALLs FLAT

STarrinG: Kangana ranaut, Paras arora, Prakash raj and mahesh manjrekar

Direc Tor: Vishwas Patil

HHHHH

Films about prostitutes, with or without a heart of gold, have fascinated filmmakers and viewers from the time nargis and meena Kumari did Adalat and Pakeezah, respectively. then there was Sharmila tagore carrying the concept of the pristine prostitute to the peaks of sublimity in Shakti Samanta’s Amar Prem

With time, the concept of the prostitute with a halo has lost its sheen. Virginity and sexual sacrifices are no longer the sacrosanct commodities they once used to be.

Rajjo tries hard to create empathy - or is it sympathy - for the prostitute on the path of rehabilitation. Years ago, we had anil dhawan trying to give a home and a sense of security to call girl rehana Sultan in Chetna. in Rajjo, we have a newcomer Paras arora trying very hard to look like the guy that the distressed prostitute can depend on. the older

woman’s sexual seduction was far more sincerely done recently in B.A. Pass Rajjo is a losing battle all the way. not only does the callow youngster (said to be 21 in the script but looks 16) seem ill-equipped to give it new life, the script itself seems in desperate search of a life. i t meanders from an intended plot of self-righteous nobility to a domain of absolute absurdity and crudity.

Writer-director Vishwas Patil means well. maybe just as well as B.r chopra when he cast Vyjayanthimala as the rehabilitated nautch girl in Sadhna But Vyjayanthimala could dance. Kangana can’t.

Lamentably, good intentions don’t translate into good cinema. dialogues comparing women to commodities that are meant to be scathing attacks on the position accorded to women in our society, come out sounding cheesy. the editing and choreography don’t support Kangana’s character in any way.

instead, they drive the narrative around the bend creating a kind of chaotic universe where actors drop in, say their allotted lines quickly and leave without getting involved in the mess.

the actors, even triedand-tested ones like mahesh manjrekar and Prakash raj seem to be screaming to get attention. the only technician who seems to take his job seriously is cinematographer Binod Pradhan, who shoots the messy material with sincerity. But what can a world class cinematographer shoot in a film that’s hell bent on shooting itself in its leg? the fallen woman has never before fallen with such a thundering thud.

SUBHASH K. JHA

ThE BuZZ

amna set for india?

tall, dusky, confident and all of 23, amna ilyas is in the spotlight on ramps of the nascent yet booming scene of Pakistan’s fashion industry. and having tasted filmdom with Zinda Bhaag, she is now hopeful of clinching more movie offers. naturally from india. and why not?

“i am thinking of quitting modelling and focussing on acting,” amna stated recently when attending the abu dhabi film festival.

“a lot of films are being made in Pakistan right now and we are very happy about that. they are not big budget films, but small ones, which are nice. i currently have two scripts,” said the actress, who plays the female lead in Zinda Bhaag, the first movie that her nation has sent for oscar consideration in the last 50 years.

Zinda Bhaag, which is turning out to be a commercially profitable venture for producer mazhar Zaidi and co-directors meenu Gaur and farjad nabi, is currently doing the rounds at film festivals. the film is turning out to be a beacon of hope for Pakistan’s film industry, which had collapsed around the 1990s. amna says she doesn’t intend to be fussy, hollywood or Bollywood will do to promote her acting talent. “See... hopes are there from hollywood as well, it will be great, but yes, india is close by and we look at it as a big industry,” said amna who intends visiting india soon to scout for work.

a fan of designer manish malhotra, she will also be flaunting creations by him.

amna ilyas

is going from victory to victory. Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-leela has just hit the jackpot, making it her third blockbuster winner in the year, following Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani and Chennai Express naturally, the actress is receiving plaudits from all quarters.

from playing nerdy naina to South indian meenamma and now a Gujarati girl in Ram-leela, the 27-year-old has proved her versatility with the three movies.

AwARD FOR VETERAN wAhEEDA

Veteran actress Waheeda rehman will soon receive the inaugural centenary award for the indian film Personality of the Year, a special honour to commemorate 100 years of indian cinema. the 77-year-old actress will receive the honour at the 44th international film festival of india (iffi) in Goa. information and Broadcasting minister manish tewari whose ministry set up the award congratulated the veteran actress on the accolade.

“congratulations to Waheeda rehmanji for being conferred the inaugural centenary award for the indian film Personality of the Year-2013,” he tweeted. the award consists of a cash component of rs.10 lakh and a citation.

Waheeda rehman has graced the screens of indian cinema since 1955, when she starred in the telugu film Jayasimha a year later she made her debut in the hindi film industry with C.I.D., and has never looked back.

in a career spaning over five decades, she has appeared in over 70 films with hits like Guide, Pyaasa, Man Mandir, Kaagaz Ke Phool, Teesri Kasam, Ram Aur Shyam, Reshma Aur Shera and Neel Kamal to her credit. Waheeda also featured in the 2006 superhit movie Rang De Basanti. Winner of several awards, she was also conferred with Padma Shri in 1972 and Padma Bhushan in 2011.

Well done and well deserved, Waheeda rehman!

Karachi-based amna walks and talks with the panache and boldness of a seasoned talent, having been at the pinnacle of Pakistan’s fashion scene after she started her stint in modelling five years ago. She has worked with top-rated designers, and has been, surprisingly, supported by her family and a ‘chilled out’ community which is generally conservative - and amna can’t be more thankful about that. things are changing now for many, says the beauty, whose elder sisters are former models.

“Being a model in Pakistan is great. fashion is on a boom right now. We had our first fashion week in 2007 and since then, a series of fashion events are happening,” claimed amna. “Because of the fact that we have a bit of a conservative environment, a lot of girls were not able to do what they wanted. But now things are changing in Pakistan and people are becoming more modern and upfront. they want to change - and by that i mean, they want to move with the world. So, there are now a lot of people like me who are getting a chance to work abroad and travel”.

Well, it won’t be long before amna is signed up by some interested indian filmmaker anxious to improve indo-Pak relations. Let’s hope it’s sooner than later!

Deepika’s hat-trick

no, it’s not about her elegant or otherwise headgear, it’s just that deepika Padukone

in Ram-leela, deepika not just looks stunning, but she has also delivered an outstanding performance, qualities which have added to the film’s resounding success. director Sanjay Leela Bhansali presented the fresh pair of ranveer Singh and deepika to narrate William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet in desi style with Gujarat as its backdrop. it is believed the film garnered over rs.16 crore on its opening day.

“i haven’t received so many congratulations in a while. everybody is saying this is the kind of cinema they like to see me make. it’s a great feeling when your hard work pays off,” stated an elated Bhansali. the movie has Bhansali’s trademark touch of capturing culture and traditions vividly.

deepika, daughter of veteran badminton player Prakash Padukone, made her Bollywood debut with farah Khan-directed 2007 hit Om Shanti Om, where she played Shah rukh Khan’s love interest.

She then appeared in films like Bachna Ae Haseeno, Chandni Chowk To China, Love Aaj Kal, Housefull, Break Ke Baad, Aarakshan and Desi Boyz, but it was only after her bold character portrayal of Veronica in Cocktail that Bollywood realised her hidden potential.

deepika will next be seen in Finding Fanny and Happy New Year. and at the rate she’s going, it’s likely that 2014 will be a ripper of a year for deepika once again!

HritHik

Sunny determined  to break jinx

actor Sunny deol, who was eagerly looking forward to work in Ghayal Returns, says the project has been jinxed, but he is determined to make it happen. Ghayal Returns is a sequel to the 1990 revenge action drama Ghayal, which was a big box office hit and considerably boosted the actor’s career at the time. But Sunny feels the film is jinxed. “Ghayal Return’ is something which i don’t want to talk about because usko nazar lag gayi hai kisi ki (someone has cast an evil spell on the project). But it is happening for sure,” said Sunny, who had teamed up with meenakshi Seshadri and raj Babbar in the original. the 57-year-old said he has been trying to make the sequel ever since the original released, which is a long, long time indeed!

“ the first time, i was sure that we would make the film in the same year, but i don’t know why it didn’t happen. We tried the

second time, with no success. this is my third attempt and i am certain that it will happen,” said the actor whose recent hits are Apne and Yamla Pagla Deewana according to the actor, Ghayal Returns will begin from where Ghayal left off and we can only hope that Sunny doesn’t get ghayal in the process!

Urvashi cool about romancing Sunny model-actress urvashi rautela is just 19, but she has shot romantic scenes with 57-year-old Sunny deol for Singh Saab The Great and the discrepancy in age doesn’t bother the young debutante. age is merely a number, she says.

“age doesn’t matter to me. What’s there in the age? it’s just a number! if rajnikanth can romance aishwarya rai… i know it’s a big age gap, but we are all very professional and as long as we look great together, nothing matters,” said urvashi with admirable practicality for one so young. the actress claims that she was

whO wORE IT BETTER?

“not at all” sceptical before signing the film, because her “chemistry” with Sunny looks “great on screen”.

urvashi shot to fame after bagging the miss universe india title in 2012, but she was later dethroned because she didn’t meet the age requirement. a dancer trained in five different forms, she says she would love to do a film where she is able to harness her talent to the hilt. “i have learned five different dance forms including Bharatnatyam, kathak, hip-hop, jazz, belly dancing. that’s the reason i would like to do a film on dance,” she said. Singh Saab The Great releases soon, so it won’t be long before we see if the urvashiSunny chemistry works on screen!

Bachchan buzz news about Bollywood’s first family is always exciting, and it has been particularly so on november 16. the 71-year-old megastar enjoyed his granddaughter aaradhya’s second birthday, just as master blaster Sachin tendulkar was chosen for the prestigious Bharat ratna award, and Ram-leela was released. “an icon retires, a ratna to his name, the nextgen celebrates her 2nd year... and Bhansali’s Ramleela mesmerises. too much in a day,” Big B tweeted on his Twitter handle SrBachchan. he also praised the movie on the microblogging website, tweeting, “Ram-leela! the genius of Sanjay Leela (Bhansali), the passion of deepika (Padukone) and ranveer (Singh), the guile of Supriya (Pathak) and the rawness of richa (chaddha)!” meanwhile, abhishek and aishwarya Bachchan have been praised for their generosity by none other than renowned hollywood actress Sharon Stone, who is in india for an amfar ( the foundation for aidS research) fundraising event.

aishwarya and abhishek hosted the event, which was a grand success. Stone was impressed by their involvement, commenting on aishwarya’s graciousness in participating and the couple’s generosity in hosting the event.

“i love this country, india is beautiful. i am looking forward to seeing the taj mahal, Jaipur, rajasthan...” said Stone enthusiastically.

cAPTION cONTEsT

What’s the chitchat here between Deepika and Ranveer?

Send in your responses to win@indianlink.com.au and win a surprise prize

Preity Zinta or Kim Kardashian in Gucci?

So that’s it from the Bachchans, but keep watching this space…

What’s the chitchat between Sridevi and madhuri?

Sridevi (to herself): Hmmmm, I thought I had an exclusive stylist? madhuri (to herself): Hmmmm, I thought I had an exclusive stylist?

Medha Puri Bajaj Newtown NSW

Medha wins a free ticket to new release Gori Tere Pyaar Mein

Ask Auntyji

Dear Auntyji

Dear Auntyji

Beauty and the beholder

i have an eight year old daughter who is the spitting image of her aunt, on her father’s side. now this aunt, was and still is, the great family beauty. She is so beautiful with her russet hair, pale grey eyes, high cheekbones and wheatish complexion that multiple producers in Bollywood wanted her to act in their films in the 80s. of course, being a rajput, she would have none of that. none the less, Sheena is so lovely to look at that i have even seen children stop and stare at her and babies often just look at her as she walks by. the kids and babies don’t communicate with Sheena, but they just stare at her face. my husband, me and a number of other family members call it the ‘Sheena effect’.  Sheena is a nice enough lady auntyji, but recently her behaviour concerns me. my little daughter is looking more and more like Sheena each day. Whenever Sheena comes to visit she is friendly with me, but when ataansha comes into the room to greet her lovely aunty, Sheena just clams up and simply stares at the poor child, and does not say much. i don’t know what Sheena thinks when she looks at ataansha – but i know exactly what ataansha thinks. once her aunt has left, ataansha asks me why her aunt does not speak to her, and only stares at her. ataansha thinks that Sheena does not like her and i wish i knew how to address this issue, auntyji. is there any way you could guide me?

Auntyji says

oh, the mysteries of human behaviour! how to tell what is going in inside someone’s head? Well, the only way to deal with this problem is by addressing it head-on. tell Sheena what ataansha told you, and say that ataansha thinks that aunty Sheena does not like her. of course, this is the quickest, most efficient way to deal with this problem, but it may not have the desired effect. Sheena could be offended or upset – who knows? People that beautiful who have had a lifetime of being objectified because of their looks, might have a distorted version of reality. Your alternative is quite simple. tell ataansha that when aunty Sheena was little like her, she looked just like her. So when aunty Sheena sees little ataansha, she remembers her childhood and starts thinking about the times when she was a girl. ataansha should be happy that aunty Sheena thinks of her childhood when she looks at your little girl. You know, it could be quite possible that the Sheena effect is happening in reverse here – Sheena has finally seen in her niece what everyone else sees in her. So naturally, Sheena is only doing what babies and kids have been doing to her. Sheena deserves to gaze upon something so beautiful too. So i say you should be delighted by all this, and only look at the positive side of things.  no point pondering whether Sheena is now contemplating her diminishing youth and is being confronted by it in the form of ataansha, and there is certainly no reason to think that Sheena could be pitying the little mite – who now has a lifetime of people judging her because of her good looks and probably giving her unwanted attention as a result of it. Your problem in life is to now raise a child who is astonishingly beautiful without making this the most important thing about her. You need to teach ataansha that being a good human being, being smart, helping others, being kind, polite and loving is so much more important than being beautiful. But don’t downplay her looks – tell her she is indeed lovely, but that’s one part of her. and as for Sheena, be grateful for her – she is giving you a living example of what your daughter is going to be like as she grows older. By the way, send me a picture of ataansha nah, mei bhi dekhna chahaati hoon tumhhari choti si apsara ko

Matrimonial machinations

i am a 34 year old professional woman with two post-graduate degrees and a very well paying job in a bank in Sydney. But regardless of my achievements at work, each time there is a gathering, the only question everyone has for me is when i intend to get married, especially seeing that i am not getting any younger. Because i dislike the hypocrisies of my large indian family who prize familyhood above all else, over the last 12 months, i have resorted to making up all sorts of lies to amuse myself. i spread a rumour that i had married an australian in secret and my parents didn’t know, then i said i got divorced, then i said i married a muslim and had converted, then i said i was getting married the following month and no, it was a small wedding only, so no one was invited. So these lies have amused me for 12 months, but the questions are relentless and i am compared to my twin cousins disha and nisha who got married at 23, produced bouncing bubs and are living a life of mediocrity somewhere in Brisbane. can you please tell me what my recourse is here? note that i have nothing against marriage, but i have not found the right man yet. can you please provide a suggestion for a practical person like myself?

Auntyji says

hmm, oh, nothing is more irritating than smug relatives eager to get you married, so that you too could experience the perpetual unhappiness that they live through each day of their ordinary lives. my solution to you is simple, and seeing that you are a bit of a prankster, i am sure you will anticipate the delicious reward of it all. So the next time you have a big gathering, and everyone is sitting around discussing the price of onions, the corruption in Bihar (as though it’s something new), Kareena’s latest film, what so-and-so got up to, invariably, someone will make the mistake of mentioning your marriage. at this stage, you must summon all your theatrical muster and look at this person with the saddest look upon your poor unmarried visage, and slowly but surely, have one or two mote mote ansoo trickle from your cow eyes and then start sobbing, softly at first but then in deep, racking and hacking sobs. of course, you will have the attention of the entire room, and the ignoramus who had the temerity to ask you the question will be forced to explain what they just did. So then you run into the bathroom and come out after an hour, preferably with red eyes and a pitiful countenance. of course, another relative who was not present at this tamasha and did not have the good fortune to have this latest gossip imparted to them, will no doubt ask the same question at another gathering a few weeks later, and again, you must do an encore performance. i guarantee you that after three repeat performances, you will not ever be asked this question again! everyone will know that someone most zaleel must have broken your poor heart, and any talk of shaadi brings you to tears. there’s your solution, right there! no one will bother you after this. unless of course, you meet the right man, at which stage you can shout from the rooftops and balconies that you are in love. remember this final tip, you might want to practise in front of the mirror before you undertake the crying game. You don’t want ancient Pushpa nani, who has been around so long that she has seen everything and probably even the birth of the universe she is that ancient, to see through your natak. Good luck!