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JULY 2014 3

One of the 3 founding Directors of lronlish.

Susanne has had an lnterest In pf0perty stnc:e 111 early stage or l1Elf career, developlflll more than 1Oyears of industry ~ g e. She 1s experienced across a raft ol different operational and custanar seMce areas lrtrn property management and customer serva:e lo complian<:e, rislc mitigatioo and financial management Susanne was the Sydney OperabOns Manager for Joseph Chou's Oliginat Sydney propefly company from 2002 to the end of 2005. bebe setting up lronlish with Joseph Chou and Grant Rya, In earty 2006. Over the past 5 years she has since systemlsed and developed Ille operati:lnaf and management side ol the ~ into one of the most sophisticaled operational systems of any property investmem business in AilslraHa_

One of \he 3 founding Directors of lronflSh. Aller studying Law al'ld Arts 1n Wellington, New zeatand, Grant migrated to Australia 1n 1994.

He met entrepreneur Joseph Choo by chance in Dec 1998 and has been worl<ing with him

eversince.

Grant has been a respected property investment strategist, researcher and market commentator for more than a decade. He developed and refined lronflSh's diversified "Portfolio Approach" strategy to property investment over the past 12 year.; and it is widely regarded by many property experts as an asMe inveslment strategy that enables every investor to maximise profit and minimize risk whfle buildIng their portfolio. Grant IS an avid property Investor and has built up a substantial propefly portfolio.

A l\een propeny 111vesl0,' he!Self. Susanne has a pas54011 lor conunualy clellverir~ value to ltonllsh IIM!slors, developel's. panner.; and staff

Managing Director, lronfish S)'dney In early 2003 Linda left one of Auslralla"s leading lmpOrt & eXjl()l1 COITl)8nies to v.a1I with JOSBQh Chou Her business expenence combined With hElf pass1a, lor property as a successful iwestor quickly enabled Linda to become ono ol lrooflSh's most successful strategists aoo leadels. She WOil the runber one investment st,ategisl award 3 years running Having personaffy ao:,.i,ootatec1 a muffi-millOO dollar multi-state property portfolb. Linda IS a powerful mentor for Clients and staff and is an advocate of lionflSh's Portlolio Approach In 2006. Linda moved to Adelaide 10 aSSlsl Adelaide MO Damon Nagel to set up lronlish's Adelaide office and for 3 years was a crucial part of the management team By mid 2009. lronfish had become Ille most rerogrnzed property investment brand in South Australia. In 2009. Linda was appointecl the Managnig Director ol lronfish's second Sydney C4)erabon lroofish Burv,.ood Linda ls an accomplished speaktlf about property 1nveslmenl She Is a registered Jl.CSllW of the Peace (J.P). a liceiised real eslate agent and a runyqualified finance broker

Managiig Dtre<:tor, lronflsh Mellioume

019nal y lr001 lianjin. Chm . Bien lived and studied 111 New Zealand for many years before fllllllly sel1Jing In Melbourne in 1999. She h;ls an exteoslve media backg,ouod, and WO!ked !Of 3 years as Mal1\ellng Manager for Australia's only 24 hour a day ctunese Radio Station.

Horctea1ivdy, innovatiOn and c!ynamiC business skils resulted in recold reveoues for the company and esiabrished herself as one of the mo:,t influential marketing figures In Melbol.me. In 2Q03. she met Joseph Chou and was inspireQ by him to jOin Ifie property industry. Ellen's natural tnlent.s surfaced as she immediately started de~vering phenomenal resuits and was extremelY successful under Joseph'S leadership. In 2006, she was invited to

set up lhe Melboome olfice of lronflSh In Box Hill. Wilh Ellen's passion for investmen~ she

has buiH up a substanllal property portfolio IOI' herself, and helped more than 1,000 families

Managing Director of lronfish Shanghai Lanny has over 14 years of oorporate experience with both Australian and global Fortune 500 companies In the early 2000's. Lanny was the regional manager for Corporate Finance of a large Sydney firm and In 2004 he met founder and CEO Joseph Chou. He was so inspired by lhe lronfish vision lhal Lanny joined the Property Investment Industry and has never looked back.

Lanny quickly became one of Sydney's top investment strategists and is today a sought after speal<er and presenter on Investment strategies and mar1<et trends. Lanny is a JP. a M y licensed real estate agent and has an MBA from one of the most presbgious management sehools In the Asia-PaoflC region.

Managing Director, lronfish Adelaide In 1992 he n'lOlled lo Loodoo to further his education in fine wine. By 1994 Damon changed careers and started WOl'king In real estate in the salubrious suburb of St Johns Wood. Within a year he boUght his fir.rt Investment property. In 1997 he opened ood ran a successful and in• novative property msnagementr111V8slmenl company in South London. The business was a mar1<et leader and so successful that by 2003, Damon was able to sell hls business and move back to his home town of Adelaide, where he bought a vineyard and spent the next 3 year.; building award winning boutique winery, Brackenwood.

In 2006 Damon root Joseph Chou aoo oouldn't resist the opportunity to open the Adelaide office of one of Austrafia's most dynamic property investment brands. Damon has a large portfolio of properties In AuSlralla and the UK. He oontinues to run his winery in his spare lime.

along 1ne way.

General Manager, lronf1Sh Penh Helen moved to Pertll fran Beijing In 2006 aner a distfnguJshed management career spanning more than 12 years Her experience included business development. marketing, sales, customer care and operations. She has led various teams and smashed many company records along the way.

Upon arrival in Australia, Helen was paSSionate about property and Joiied the Real Estate Industry She sel up the first Chinese WA propefly websrte Perthmyhome.oom to introduce property related knovAedge to the Perth Chinese oommuOlly. She continues to be a guest snc:11or on a major Pertll Chinese Radio station and has been a writer for one of Perth's local property papers since 2007. In 2009 lronfish's CEO Joseph Choo invited her to estl!blish lronfish's Perth office.

As well as her passion !Of extending her property portfolio. Helen ls passionate about Chantable work and spends much of her spare time doing volunteer work in the community.

General Manager, lronfish Melbourne (Box Hill Office} Born in Hong Kong and educated in Canada, Gary eventually migrated to Auslrafia whele he setUed in Melbourne. He has been in lhe professional sales industry ror l'TlOfe lhan 25 years. During tiis 20 years of working with one of the top Toyola dealerstnps In Austraria, he was part of a senior mana900Jent leam that helped Toyota regain the number 1 car ma11t1facturer status from Holden in Victona, and along the way won many personal awaros 111ciuding lhe coveted saver knight award for excellence in customer setVice. As General Sales Manager, Gary led a dynamic sales team that W>n the best saiespe!SOO award in Australia 5 times.

Gary met lronfish CEO Joseph Chou and Melbourne Maoagrng Difedor EPan Bian In early 2007 and was Inspired by them and Ille lronfish Investment system and vision. He fina•y joined lronfish's Melbourne office that year and enjoyed Immediate success as Sales M:m. ager and then on lo General Manager.

General Manager, lronfish Brisbane Nicole migrated from Taiwan with her fal'nly to Austraba in 1989.

NiCole isa well knOWn success s101)' "Mtt11n the Brisbane Propeny Industry v.ilh OV8f 10 years

expenen<:e in property speciaflSlflg fl sales. property management aro marl<eling

In August 2006. she was appointed General Manager of the lronf!Sh Brisbane office Wrlh demonstrated expertise, a natural aptitude for property investment and outstanding v,(J(t( ethics. Nicole has assisted many Brisbane investm; realise their dreams of begiming and expanding thetr propefly por1foti0. She leads a dynalfllC team of some of Bnst>ane's best propefly tnvsslmenl strategists,

Managing Director, lronfish Melbourne (SI l<ilda Road Office) Jason migrated to Australia from Sllanghal, China In 2001 and was Immediately slllJCk by the atroost limitless oppo,tunilles avaHable in Austrsfia. Jason observed lhe propefly marital closely and over \he years buiff up a substantial property investment portfolio.

Halling obtained a Mssler.; 08',1'88 1n Computer and lnformalion Engineenng. he worked in lhe IT indust/y before vef'IIUrtng out on his own to run a very success/ul business. In 2008, he met Ellen 8tan end beu~ a suoces&ful 111vestOI' and businessperson, he was insptred to join the property 111vestment industry with the lrooflSh Melbourne office as a propefly strateg1st, Jason quickly established himselfas a leader and was promptly promoted to a leadership role Wllhin the company. He ,s a fuly lk:ellseO real estate agent and was appointed Managing Df. reclc:r of ln;nfish'ssecond MeltxxKne office 0ronfish St Kilcla) at \he end of 2010.

Gary is an avkl property investor hnnself and has a passiOn for the company VISiOll to help ordinary people fulfil lhelr dreams in this ·1uc11y country"

Please email your resume to ADELAIDE BRISBANE MELBOURNE PERTH SYDNEY SHANGHAI ww.i ronfsih.com.au

4 JULY 2014

stkllda@lronflsh.com.au or call 03 9529 3988 I0433 891 122

www.indianlink.com.au

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EDITORIAL INDIAN LINK

Preventing the radicalisation of our youth

PUBLISHER

Pawan Luthra

Mi110,it;1 Ajfairs. He states here that

EDITOR

Rajni Anand Luthra SUBl:DITOR

Lena Peacock MELBOURNE COORDINATOR

Preeti Jabbal 0423 242 522 melb@indianlink.com.au CONTRIBUTORS

Dipanjali Rao, Usha R Arvind, Jyoti Shankar, Chitra Sudarshan, Dhanya Samuel.

Ravi Singh, George Thakur, Uzma Beg, Leanne Woodward, l=arzana Ahmad, Nancy Jade Althea ADVERTISING MANAGER

Ashish Chawla 0468 389 272 cl ient@indianlink.com.au ADVERTISING ASSISTANT

Nitika Sondhi 02 9279 2004 DESIGN

Danielle Cairis

PROUD MEMBER OF:

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Indian Link is a monthly newspaper published in English. No material, including advertisements designed by Indian Link, may be reproduced in part or in whole without the written consent of the editor. Opinions carried in Indian Link are those of .the writers and not necessarily endorsed by Indian /ink_:.t'-11 correspondence should be addressed to INDIANLINK

Level 24/44 Market St, Sydney 2000 or GPO Box 108, Sydney 2001

,Ph: 02 9279-2004 l=ax: 02 9279·2005 'E!'laU: info@indianlink.com.au

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N

-e ,vs that up to 150 Austt:alians could be fighting in Syria and Iraq for the extreme radical militant group ISIS is indeed concerning for all Australians. The Australian government, law enforcement agencies and, more importantly, tl1e community need to cake steps to prevent former radicalisation of our youth.

The Federal Government has in the past sec aside funds, such as up to $700,000 in 2013 for community progran1s, co tackle e.xtrem ism. To an extent it seems robe workin_g but it can be questioned if more can be done.

The challenge not only involves what needs to be done with those of Australian origin who are currently involved in tl1ese jihadist activities, but tl1ere are also concerns of hmv ro integrate them with society when they remrn ratl1er tl1an allow furtl1er proliferation of extremism in the country.

To combat such .radicalisation both Stace and Federal governments need to move decisively.

An insigh c in meeting iliis challenge is given by Shahram Akbarzadeh in his 2013 article 'Investing in Mentoring and Educational lnici.atives: The Limits of DeRadicalisation -Programm.es in Australia,' which appeared in d1e Joumal rf lviwlitJJ

scare sponsorship of moderate Islam neglects tl1e broader context of Muslim experiences, which is marked by socio-economic under-privilege and political alienation.

These experiences marginalise Australian Muslims and make diem vulnerable co extremist ideas. This pattern is most evident an10ng the youth, whose sense of self is stiU in Aux, says A kbarzadeh.

Youth in our communities are still trying to find their place between d1e country of their parents' birtl1 and mat of their own upbringing. T he share o f Indian-born Muslims is 2.1 % according co the 2011 Census and 5.6% for Pakistani-born :tvluslims.

From the commmtit:y point of view, iLis important tl1at we address tl1ese issues so as to educate and franchise OLU· youth better. \l(Thile Australia is home co them, their sense of identicy is still h)1)henated as they are referred co as Indian-Australians, Sri Lankan-Australia.ns or Pakistani.Australians. To the educated classes, these distinctions can bill[ with time. For tl1ose who may be from a Jess advantaged socioeconomic background however and are on d1e fringes of religious marginalisation from die mainstt·eam, thtcre is more susceptibility to the pressures of the radicals within their society.

As the youth go searching for answers, those who can incite ratl1er than excite them about life should answer their questions.

The 9 / 11 attacks, the London bombing,

the Mumbai attacks and the Boston Marathon bombings are all examples of youth gone astray when their desire to believe is greater than their capacity co judge good from tbe bad.

Society needs co step in, and acceptance bas co be the keir. .Media, both social and traditional, has to be more accepting of d1e differences between peoples.

Political leaders need to aUow for more inclusiveness in tl1eir policy programs ratl1er than jllst make token gestures.

Businesses have ro step Llp the educational campaigns to convey die benefits of diversity.

In. view of iliis, Attorney General George Brandis' intention co repe.--il section 18c of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 is clearly wrong. le is the right of individuals from all walks of life co feel free and protected from unfair discrimination based on race. The government needs to retain section l8c of the Ace, which mal,es it unlawful for people to vilify otl1ers on racial grounds. Any repeal of chis act can send our society backwards.

The Racial Discrimination Act helps create a fairer Australia for all, and stops inclividuals from offending, insulting, humiliating or intimidating another person or a group of people, based upon race, colour or national or etlmic origin.

The problem of marginalised youtl1 in our migrant com1muuties could pose serious security concerns and so needs to be handJed sensitively.

Community acceptance and respect of eacb ocher will be an important platform in this end eavour.

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JULY 2014 5

WHA.T'SON and drop ott points: Melbourne CBD.

Community cricket tournament:

Jhankar 2014: The rhythm

Adults: $75, Children: $50. Sangam

Jags Premier League (JPL)

of revolution

members and family groups get

Participate in a South Asian cricket

STAGE

FUNDRAISER

North Indian classical Wed 16July

Debashish Bhattacharya, Grammy

Sat 19 July 7.30pm

discounted prices. Price incl udes bus

tournament organised by Wyndham

Award nominee and architect of the Hindusanti slide guitar, will perform at

Era of Entertainment presents a 'musical extravaganza'. Al I

fare, resort entry fee, morning tea and brunch.

Jags Cricket Club with the support of ICC and Cricket Victoria. Grand Finals

Arts Centre Melbourne for one night

proceeds go to East West Overseas

Det ails: Chirag 0411102 426,

on July 19 t o be played at Lawrie

only. Performing with Sukanya

Aid Foundation. Held at The National

Joel 0411233314, Umesh

Emmins Reserve, Laverton, followed

Bhattacharya on vocals and

Theatre, 20 Carlisle Street, St Kilda.

0402 509 965, Gurpreet

by prize distribution by Mayor,

brother Subhasis Bhattacharjee

Tickets $39 standard, $49 deluxe,

0433 124 335 or

international players and other

on tabla, this virtuosic trio

$59VIP.

sangamassociatlon@yahoo.com.au

special invitees at Suzanne Corey

will perform a suite of North

Details: jhankar@eraofexcellence.com

Indian classical songs with a twist, in a display of stunning

or 0414351 162.

musicality.

Triguna

High School Theatre, Werribee.

Free English courses at Universal

Details: www.multiculturalarts.com.au

Sat 15 Nov 7.30pm

or office@multiculturalarts.com.au

Sam Goraya presents a fundraiser for

Bollywood Dance

Theatre, Malthouse Theatre, at

Sat 26 July 7.30pm-1am

The Coopers Ma!thouse,

Annual Bollywood Dance

113 Stu rt Street, Southbank.

Details: www.samgoraya.com

Essay writing competition Australian university and tertiary Certificate I in EAL Access (English institution students are invited Additional Language), Certificate to participate in an essay-writing II in EAL (Access) Certificate Ill and competition on the topic Bhagavad Gita Certificate IV Further Study. All English as it is. Cash prize $10,000. Deadline for courses are open t o people 17-90 years essay is November 28 and essays must old. Courses run for six mont hs. Check be 2,500 to 3,000 words. website for eligibility. Held at UIT, Level Details: Satya Armstrong enquiries@ 4, 398 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne. bgasitisessay.com.au or 02 8005 6140 Details: www.uit.edu.au or www.bgasit isessay.com.au

UIT are offering free courses in

India Vision Australia. Held at Beckett

presented by the Melbourne

Details: Salvi Manish 0419 028 973

Institute ofTechnology

Rangers Club. Tickets must be pre-purchased. Held at

MISC

Gaelic Park Hall, 324 Perry Road,

Sangam's Snow Trip to Mt Buller

Keysborough.

Sat 26 July From 7am

BYO drinks.

Sangam is offering a nippy get

Details and tickets:

together in one of the best snow

Jenny Gray 0438 092 909 or Glaxton Saunders

mountains of Victoria. Mt Buller is

0418176 501 .

far enou gh away for a holiday. Pick up

For full calendar of What's On listings (nation-wide) check out:

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JULY 20 14 7

INDIAOZ

Add Aussie technolo y to Indian milk, stirwel New collaborations are set to open up between Indian and Australia in the dairy industry

high-level 16 member lndian dairy business delegacion visited Australia this month to explore potential coUaboration opportunities.

The delegation was led by Yes Bank, India's fourth largest private sector bank, and was supported by Austrade.

Auscrade has recently signed a Memorandum of U nderstanding with Yes Bank's Food and Agribusiness Strategic Advisory & Resea.rch Group (FASAR) to offer Australian experience to improve the productivity and exports of India's food and agricultural sector, including the dairy sector, as India addresses its food security concerns.

The d elegation, representing some of the largest dairy companies in India, toured Australian research inscitutes, farms and dairy companies to understand technologies for possible use in India.

The L1dian delegation was made up of chief operating officers of agri business co ncerns and NGOs, agri commodities experts, research scientists, veterinary scienrists and entrepreneurs in the dairy industry from across the country.

T hey belonged m cooperative and private dairy sector companies such as the International Food Policy Research Institute (TFPRI), ITC Led, Gopaljee Dairy Foods, Deshpande Fopndarion, Lakshya Foods, Rajkot Dairy of the Amul union Paras Dairy, Asad Farms and Kiaro Farms.

Traveling co Melbourne and Brisbane, delegates gained an insight into Australian dairy farming, processing technology; \Vaste management, breeding, and research and practice in genetics.

"I'm excited about the possibilities in two particular aspects," Nitin Puri, speaking o n behalf of the delegation, cold Indian Link at tl1e e nd of it all. ·'These are farming procedures and genetics. There's a lot of scope for us to learn

A

8 JULY 2014

from Australia here, and there are significant possibilities for business collaboracious as weU".

Puri is tl1e head of FASAR, a division of Yes Bank which focuses on consulting, advisory, policy and research in food and agriculture, working in the multinational, Indian corporate, government and multilateral space. ''India is the largest producer and consumer of milk iJ1 the world at 140 million tonnes per day," Puri said. "This means that while we are self-sufficient in daiqr, we are nQt really exporting.

Auscralia o n the other hand, produces one-tench of what we produce, but exports half of it, thanks to its expertise in processing and livestock development".

Another stack difference in the Indian and the Auscralian industry is in farm size. "In India, tl1ere would be about rwo to three cows per farmer," Puri observed. "Here, it is hundred cimes that number.

A narui-al advantage is pasture areas lilied with open grass. We don't have that, sadly; and because we have to make it up with consolidated feed, cosr structures become involved. The yield size, currently at 6-7 litres per farmer per day, is stagnating. We are not foUowing good practices ro see a substantial increase. In Australia, even though the number of farms have gone down in receuc times,

tl1e herd size per farm has gone up, tripled in many cases, sc) the farms have scaled up tl1eir operations".

U nlike Australia which is very strong on value-added longer shelf-life products such as cheese and specialised milk powders (it is the world's fourth largest exporter of processed dairy produces), tl1e Indian consumption is in liquid milk only. But witl1 an increase in health consciousness and lifestyle in the expanding Indian middle class, tl1is need for value-add is growing, and so the domestic marke r will start seeing a shortage too.

India's Narional Dairy Development Board has forecast milk demand co touch 180-200 million tonnes by the end o f 2020.

Yet a ational Dairy Plan (NDP) drawn up in 2010 proposes co nearly double India's miU: producrion by that rime.

Fortunate!)~ stakeholders are eager to bring in momentum to see chis through.

"Unlike other areas of food production, dairy is far more evolved in India," Puri noted.

"No doubt tl1is is because of theinfluences of co-operatives such as J\mul in the 1960s, and more recently, tl1e involvement of the private sector. Storage, for example, is at par witl1 global pracrices, as opposed to grains which is under governmen t control".

Changes have also been induced by factors like easy credit facilities and dairy friendly policies by the government, so tl1at dairy farming is less agrarian and more a professionally managed induscry.

"W/e are currently on the lookout for initiatives to have a marketable SLltplus in the next five to seven years".

And this, he is sure, wiU come from herd genetics.

"Genetics wiU be a game changer. W hat we've learnt in Australia this trip has been a revebrion for us. I'm foreseeing that with Australian technology helping us in farming metl1ods and in generics, we wiU be able co increase our production substantially".

A ustralia showed off its dairy expertise and technology to lndia ar tl1e Dairy Show in H yderabad earlier this year. It provided an engagement model to co1mect with t he Indian industry using

tl1e global PRETSS approach (offering expercise in policy, research, equip men t, technology, services and s kills).

Here's to another white tevolurion in India, with a biLof help &orn A L1stralia.

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JULY 2014 9

PEOPLE

Freedom without fear Activist Kavita Krishnan talks in Oz on leading the charge against sexual violence in India

''

"Women have EVERY right to be adventurous.

And we WILL be adventurous. Don't tell us how to dress, what time of night or day is safe, how many people need to escort us" Kavita Krishnan

'' ' (

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BY DIPANJALI RAO

ekbauf Azaadi!

Freedom without fear! This chant reverberated in the streets o f Delhi following the horrific gang rape i.n 2012 that shook India. Politician and activist Kavita Krishnan was one of the first to join the movement. Soft spoken and unassuming, she is the secremry of the A.11 India Progressive Women's Association (AIPWJ\) and a member of the Communist Party of fodia (Marxist-Leninist) (CPI-ML). In 2013 she responded to the prevalent victim blaming culture and accusations of victims' 'advenmrous' behavio ur with a fiery speech: "\'v'omen have EVERY right co be adventurous!

And we WILL be adventurous!

Don't cell us how tO dress, what time of night or day is safe, how many people need tO escort us. We shouldn't need to take measures to protect ourselves (from rape).

Wle want freedom without fear.

Bekhmtf azaad1'. The speech went viral. Kavita Kcislman toured Australia in June on a speaking tour on the movement against sexual violence in India.

Tndia11 Link caught up with her in Melbourne.

She began by explaining the movement and AlPWA's involvement. "There was huge

B

10 JULY 2014

anger amongst people," she said.

"Everyone was demanding the death penalty. People were getting sexist rubbish from politicians and self-righteous stuff about rapists being put to death. But there wa.s something new; slogans against victim blaming: 'Don't cell me how to dress, tell them how not to rape'. We felt we could deepen and expand this conversation".

Of her speech that went viral she said, "People were looking for something like that".

"We need co keep working on it," said Kavita of the momentum of the movement. "There is no room for complacence".

She cited M uzzafarnagar in Utrar Pradesh and Dharmapuri in Tamil Nadu where right wing political parties have mobilised support demanding that Hindu women be protected from Muslim men and upper caste women be protected from Dalir men.

"This is a political attempt to rum tbe awakening lllst year on its head," she rued, "so chat we start imagining that instead of safeguarding women's right to be free, we need co safeguard chem from certain communities like Datits and Muslims".

On what we can expect from Narendra Modi's government, Kavica stated, "It's early days yet. fostead of predicting, let's see what the government does".

She made three demands of the government, the first one being to acknowledge and criminalise marital rape. The second demand is to remove the impunity that the armed forces enjoy against rape

complaints. Third, decriminalise homosexuality. She went on to talk about the impuni ty that organised right wing groups have in limiting the freedom of young people, especially women.

"The Bajrang Dal, a Sangh Parivar outfit close to BJP, and their student body ABVP very regularly attack young people o n Valentine's Day and threaten that they will force them to tie Rakhis," she said. She hoped the government will rein them in.

"Modi can't say 'good times for Indians' if they are not democratic times," she reflected.

Democratic or not, Modi's popularity is u nquestionable.

"People are very glib," said Kavita matter of factly, ''in saying that cl1e Supreme Court SIT (Special Investigation Team) didn't find him guil ty. Bm we must ask questions. Why were cl1e dead bodies from the Godhra train fire allowed by M.odi to be displayed in the procession by cl1e Vishva Hindu Parisad (VHP)? On cl1e next day, why did Modi mention the Hindus chat were killed, but not the Muslims? He mid the SIT that his police officers didn't tell him. So why didn't Modi take action against these police officers?"

Krishnan also talks about the Modi government in Gujarat conducting illegal surveillance on a young woman. "Was it Modi who is referred to as the 'Sahib' in cl1e Snopegace tapes?" demanded Kavita. "We deserve ro know, but instead we are pretending none of this matters; which is very

dangerous for the country."

About cl1e BJP's popularity amongst the lndian diaspora, Kavim ventured chat Indians overseas do not see and experience tbe social change in lndia, and hang onco a te.'{tbook version of Indian and Hindu culture. ''They don't realise that the freed~)m they en joy here wouldn't be available to them in say, BJP ruled Karnataka when the Shri Ram Sene was around," Kav:ica said. "Women in Mangalore have been attacked going to work with a male friend. If they (Indians overseas) were living in India, their perspective would be different".

Kavita's activism against gender violence, caste and communal politics has attracted vicious trolling. She was threatened with rape on a live chat about gender violence. "lc's crazy!" she exclaims and explains cl1at trolling isn't fuuited to social media, it also happens on live television.

Politician Subramanian Swamy said she s tands for 'free sex' during a debate on national TV. "It cook me a while ro develop a thick skin," she said.

About how she copes, she says, "I read a lot of detective fiction!

Ian Rankin, Sara Peretsky, Kate Ross. 1 also listen to Hindustani and Carnarak music. I love the veena!"

I mention that I do a bit of Carnatik singing and her eyes light up. "Have you read T.M. Krishna?" she asked enthusiastically. "l'm reading his book abom bow Brahminism

''

Kavita's activism against gender violence, caste and communal politics has attracted vicious trolling

''

is pervasive in Carnatik music.

I'm hooked!" she laughed. \Y/e talked a bit more about music and I promised to send her a link co a folk rock renclition of Tyagaraja's 'Bantureethi' by a band called Agam. "I'd love that," she said warmly. "And you read T.M. Krishna," she said with a conspiratorial smile. "His writings should be mandatory for (privi.leged) Indians everywhere".

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JULY 2014 11

INNOVATION, C E OF LEAIJE S ft'.,; ... :-;.,

BY USHA R ARVIND

r Marlene Kanga finds great inspiration in the lace Steve Jobs' prophetic words, ''The only way to do great wor.k is to love what you do".

Embracing this philosophy, d1e chemical engineer, who specialises in risk management and safety engineering, has scaled greac heights. l11e lme of the land <lown l]J]der proved too hard to resist

D

for cbe feisty Indian lnstirute of Technology graduate. It was Australia in the 1970s. The White Australia policy had finally been dismantled and the AntiDiscrimination Act had passed rluongh Parliament Armed with an engineering degree, hope and a never-say-never spirit. P une-born Kanga migrated to Australia with her husband Rusrom.

Despite a stellJlt academic career anti dedication to her profession, breaking into the workforce was not easy. What proved even harder for Kanga was shattering wellentrenched stereotypes, particularly gender based ones.

Nor one to give up, the outspoken Kanga eventually

secured her first breakthrough, rising quickly up the corporate ladder, making many meaningful contributions along the way.

Inspired by her father's achievements as one of India's first engineers in Goa and :iYiaharashtra, a young Marlene was determined ro follow in his footsteps.

She enrolled at me Indian Institute of Technology in .Mumbai, one of the pioneering women co do so in a male dominated industry. ''l'vfy father bad a great deal of integrity. He also had a great sense of purpose in senring d1e commmucy," she said.

It is this legacy that she has passionately carried forward. \X7b.i.le

UNDERST DIJ I C D For herservices to medicine, tertiary education and Indian community

\_ft~

5

BY USHARARVIND

lcohoJ-induced pancreatiris and pancreatic cancer, a highly aggressive form of cancer with high mortality. to-incidence ratio, have been the focus of Dr :M inoti Vivek Apte's research for neacly tluee decades no\v. Hirl1erco, pancreacic cancer has defied traditional tl1erapeuric approaches, spreading aggressively before visible symptoms appear.

A professor in the Facuh:y of Medicine at University of New South Wales and rile lngbJltn lnstimte of Applied Medical Research and Director of the

A 12 JULY 2014

Pancreatic Research Group, Dr Apte was the first in the wotld co isolate and characterise the pancrearic scellate cell (PSC), the key cell responsible for producing scar tissue in the pancreas. An internationally acknowledged researcher in rl1e field of alcohol-i.nducecl pancreatic injury, sbe is particularly recognised as a pioneer in the field of pancreatic /ibrogenesis. More recently, her work has established rl1ar close cross-talk bet\veen srellate cells and cancer cells is responsible for rapid progression of pancreatic cancer. These pioneering srudies, have helped put Australian pancreatic research on the world map.

Dr Apte has a very accive sen,ice record at Faculty, University and Discipline Jevds. She is a fouoding member of the Australasian Pancreatic Club and Asian Oceanic

Pancreatic Association. As past chair of tbe Faculcy HJgher Degree Committee and as pose-graduate coordinator for tl1e South \Western Sydney Clinical School, Dr Apre has mentored numerous medical and science smdents.

"Nurturing talenc is a very important responsibility to preserve the future of medicine and research in our country," Dr Apte acknowledged.

"Students need tl1e right stmctnre and guidance rl1r0t1gh their journey. As medicine becomes more evidence-based, we have ro engender strong research skills and critical rl1inking," she added.

She also regularly engages with the research community worldwide through gastroencerological forums.

1n recognicion of her significant contribution, she was recently made a Fellow of the American

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lj

~IVERSITY AND A UNI RSHIP For significant service to engineering, and as a role model

her core expertise has been in oil, natural gas and chemical industries, Marlene Kanga has served on many boards, driving innovation and creative leadership. She bas actively campaigned for diversity in engineering, and espoused the migrant cause. "l always think of myself as an engineer and consider the task at hand in terms of the teclmic.'ll aspects,'' Kanga said.

"Others may see me as a woman and i:nay challenge my ability co do die job on di.is basis. I usually easily challenge chem back because l know l am good at my job and l always do it verr well," she added.

The co-founder of iOmniscienc, a market leader in intelligent

NG ~ITIS Gastroenterological Association (AGA).

For her services to medicine, tertiary education and Indian community, Dr Apte has been awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia (OANI).

"It is a recognition, of not just my work bur m y whole team, particularly my snpervi:mrs Professors Jeremy Wilson and Ron Pi.rola, who encouraged and allowed me d1e freedom ro explore different areas," Dr Apte told Inditm Link.

"More impommtly, iris also very bwnblingas I often wonder if ] have done enough to deserve this".

Dr Apte is particularly grateful to her husband Vivek for being her bedrock of support and to her so□ Tushar for coping with bavingsucli a busy mum.

INDIAN LINK

surveillance systems and video analytics, Kanga is also on the board of Sydney Water and has held many prestigious positions in her long and illustrious career.

She has fearured in the Top JOO Engineers in Australia as well as the Top 100 Women of Influence in Australia. ''If you ace able co w01:k in the area you love, it will never be just a job, you will discover that it will be endlessly satisfying and you will make a contribution chat is beyond your greatest dreams," Kanga tokl fodiatl U11k.

"1 never set out to change die world. 1 had smne clear goals and just faced each problem as lit] came along, The cumulative impact,

C "Without your family behind you, it would be difficult co achieve yoar full porentia~" she reiterated.

"After all, research and academia are nor 9 co 5 jobs. It is a job for life, which requires dedication and commiunent".

She also credits her parents, .her sister and brother-in-law and a very tight-knit group of friends for her successes.

Dr Apte strayed inm pancreatic smdies quire by accident. An alllllll1us of BJ Medical College in Poona wid1 an interesrin E T, she first accived in Australia on a dependem spouse visa in the eighties.

"My visa did not permit me co work, so l volunteered in the Hismpadiology depamnenr at Newcastle University. where my husband was pursuing his doctorate io Chemical

looking back, has been amazing," she said.

A member of the Engineers Australia Council since 2007, in 2012 Kanga was Chair of the Lmovation Taskforce charged with promoting further advances in engineering. She was also Chair of the National Comm.itteefor Women in Engineering in 2008 and 2009.

More d1an d1ree decades after immigrating to Australia, in 2013 Marlene Kanga became National Presidenr of Engineers f\ustralia, the peak advocacy body and professional membership forum for engineers. "Although 1 am goal oriented, becoming President of Engineers Australia was not one of my goals," Kanga admitted.

''M y aim in contributing to the iostimtion was to give back to d1e profession and to Australia. I was later encouraged by my peers in engineering to srand for election because d1ey tboughtl would do a good job".

Today Marlene Kanga is a board member of Innovation Australia as well as Chair of the R&D Incentives Committee, spearheading cliange and advising the government on new initiatives.

Due to her stams as an exceptional role model and for her services to engineering, Kanga wa,5 appointed a l\-lember of the Order of Australia (AM) in the 2014 Queen's Birthday Honours List.

"This award is a great ~xample of the openness and generosity

TICC Engineering," she recalled.

She soon began researching alcoholism and liver disease, winning a Commomvealth scholarship for a Masters in Medical Science, and became one of the 1:irst graduates of the programme. She moved co Sydney and eventually found a job ar ·the Prince of Wales Hospital.

L1 1998, as patt of her PhD thesis tinder mentors Dr Wilson and Dr Pirola, Dr Apte developed her world-first metbod for srellare cell isolation.

"We were the Erst in the world to show that a specific cell type in die pancreas helped pancreatic cancers grow," explained Dr Apte. " lts unique feamre is the huge amount of scar tissue. \'<!e proved d1at cancer cells recruited normal pancreatic stelbte cells to help them grow and travel to distant

parts of the body. Our ultiniare aim is to develop new treatments diat target the cross talk between the cells in pancreatic cancer so as co interrupt tl1ese growthpromoting pathways".

The pancreas is a very significant organ in the body Dr Apte cold Indian U11k.

1\Jong with insulin secretion, it produces crucial digestive enzymes. Before her research, nobody knew v;,hat die mechanisms behind scarring were. ·'Scar tissue is found in pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer and plays ru.1 iniportam role in die progression of bod1 diseases," she explained.

Indeed, patients widi chronic pancreacitis have a 15 fold higher risk of developing cancer d1an the normal population, according to Dr Apte.

Unfornu1ately, alcoholism is

of Australian society," she told l11dia11 Link. "When I came to this cmmrry, knowing no one at all and starting from scratch, 1 never anticipated that 1 would receive such recognition. I am both honoured and hwubled by this award. It shows d1at anyone can be a great engineer and make an effective contribution to Australia".

Having excelled in her calling, Marlene Kanga hopes to inspire many new generations to take up the challenge.

"The world needs more engineers", she said. "lt is such a dynamic and creative pathway.

Young people need to understand the importance of science and technology in their lives from a very young age".

CER now a major problem worldwide.

"Drinking is no longer a stigma in Asian COLIJltcies," she lanienced. "Therefore, we have a responsibility ro prevent alcoholrelated disease through better education".

Not one to rest on her academic laurels, Dr Apce is heavily engaged in promoting 'M arathi culmre and arts through 1:,,L\Sl Her passion for classical dance and choreography has led to a□ active involvement in event coordination and management, the highpoint being D11rgr1 Zali G{lfrri, a musical (dance-drama) wid1 120 participants.

Dr Apte has found time in her busy schedule co fir in meditation and dance classes as well. "I really enjoy diem." she confessed. ''Everyone needs a hobby, dance is n1ine".

JULV 2014 13

PUTTING STRUCTURES IN PLACE FOR SOCIAL ENTERPRISE For service to the Indian community ofNSW initially and to the wider South Asian communities of NSW over past eleven years

•1 . .

:.iNI ANAND LUTHRA

:..-.

alk to RK Ram about his widespread community work, and he will tell you humbly tl1at he is bm carrying on a significant family legacy.

"My passion for service to migram comrnrn:uties can be traced back tO my grandfather, who moved .froll1 India to Bmma in the late 19'' century," Ram cells lndia11 Link.

"He was clrawo towards helping

T

other migrants, especially labourers from India, who he taught to read and write and learn basic matl1s.

The informal cbssroom be stared became a well-kno,vn higb school".

Like his grandfather, Ram saw many needs and issues with the migrant communities in Australia that required addressing.

"I was fortunate tO come in contact with like-minded people," Ram says.

Together they undertook social welfare activitie$ tl1at have gone on to make a difference.

After years of work, Ram is now in a position where he help~ directly by creating structures for social enterprise mat provide service where a need is identified.

This led to the creation of SEVA (Social Em:repreneurial Vearures of Australian South Asians), well-known in Sydney's Indian

community for its social work in different fields. "lo the area of aged care, for instance, we at SEVA are looking at training community workers wbo can provide culturally relevant homecare. For families with special needs childrea, we have come a long way with our carer support program Sahelis ro meet me challenge of soc.ial isolation.

Samarpan, an as~oc.iation d1at represents people witl1 disability was registered as an associacion in 2012 after starting off informally in 2002. In ilie field of domestic ,riolence, we want to set up a safehouse for victims, but are starting with drop-in centtes where sympametic elders in ilie communitr can lend an ear; we hope to ultimately have medical and legal counsellon;. For these and similar programs, we are

engaged in evidence-based research activities in collaboration with universities".

Social inclusion is another particular passion with Ram, ignited after tbelndian students' crisis of 2009-10. Rhythms of Peace is a recent ptogran1 of which Ram is particularly proud. "\:(/e came up with the program to enhance cross-cultural understanding at ilie earliest possible stages. In coUaboration witl1 Lhe Islamic Council of NSW and .Arab Council Australia, the government fw1ded us to engage primary school children in crosscultural activities. ivfiddle Eastern and Soum Asian kids presented performances and organised food fescivals to enlighten their peers about their culture. These took place in me Parraniatta and Auburn districts and culminated in

a grand performance at Riverside Theatres on Harmony Day''.

Another similar program that Ram is excited about which is in tbe pipeline is based on story-telling.

Ram came to d1is country in 1969 as a member of the first ever Indian trade delegation. He was back in 1970 to set up a regional office here to look after trade between lnclia and Austtalia, NZ and Fiji, and has stayed on since then. W/hile his professional life was dedicated to ilie growth and enhancement of tl1e bilateral trade and other relationships between rhe two countries, his volw1tarism has been an enduring aspect of his personality. le is now coming to the fore as the community grows large enough to be able to support the plans he has long envisioned, and is now seeing to fruition.

ROCK SOLID IN HIS SUPPORT FOR SENIORS, A TRUE GEM! For significant service to the Indian community of Victoria, to aged welfare, and to education

' 1

,,

BY PREETI JABBAL

tom humble beginnings to being recognised with an A1\lf in the Queens Birthday honours list this year, D.t Prem Phakey AM and his wife Usha have a lot to celebrate. Thi.s year was also a oillestone for tben.1 as it marked 50 years of living in Austtalia. The recently announced prestigious honours list recognised Dr Phakey for significant service to the lndian community of Victoria, co aged wel fare, and to education.

Life has been a gem for Dr Ptem Phakey who arrived in Australia in 1964 to take up a three-year contract reaching assignment. He was appointed as lecturer in Phrsics at ilie Monash University in L967 and promoted

F

14 JULY 2014

to senio r lecturer in 19TI and later on to reader in Physics till he left the University in J994.

He was also honorary lecmrer for Gemmological Association of Australia, Victorian Di,rision from 1968-1988. His scientific research included minerals, rocks of importance, shells, teeth, gemstones and diamonds. He expresses gratitude to Professor Rachioger, late Professor Street and Monash University for encouragement and support to carry out scientific research.

"I am passionate about Indian diamonds and have recently given a series of l O talks on iliis subject," said Dr Phakey wbo continues to be engaged in academics well past his retirement. With an expertise in crystallography, microscopy and optics, Dr Phakey has contributed various papers and articles on gemstones and Indian diamonds in community newspapers.

Renowned for his work in moon rocks and lunar dust (both American and Russian sao1ples) Dr Phakey held many academic appoiotrnems and fellowships at institutes like

U niversity of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), University o f California Berkeley, University of Washington and \X/illian1 E vans Fel.lowship at U niversity of Otago, New Zealand. Locally he held a fellowship at Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, senior fellowship at the School of Dental Science, University of Melbourne and after retirement, senior fellowship at Monash University.

Dr Phakey is well regarded in the Indian community for his dedication and involvement in the welfare of the community. .He was the founding secretary and then vice president of the Punjabi Club of Victoria in 1987-199 l, vice president and public officer for Australian Indian Innovations Inc. (AIU) from 2003-2005 and trustee of cbe Australia India Charitable Trust.

Heis equally passionate abouc the wel fare of senior citizens as the founding chairperson of d1e Indian Senior Citizen's Association (ISCJ\) and current president since 2007.

"Tbe need and composition of our society has changed and it is important to make efforts to

avoid isolation and boredom for se1:uors, especially chose who may rely financially and emotionally on their children," said Dr Phakey as he e.xplained ISCA's objectives.

"At ISCA we offer an env ironment where seniors can socialise, display their talents, be entertained and educated," claimed Dr Phakey, "We hold regular taJ ks on issues relevant to the senior communit); we hold classes that assist seniors to adapt tO new technology like iPads, mobile phones, and we bave dedicated seniors teaching yoga and clmir exercises to others. In terms of entertainment we have a day centre that holds weekly sessions of various activities and we also celebrate multicultural festivals and events. Our membership is growing at a rapid rare we have a pool of knowledge, ralenr and expertise wid.tlo our organisation''.

Dr PhaJcey went on to share his vision for ilie senior community. ·•we have given the organisation a strong footing and taken it to a sustainable, stable position, however, it's now rime for the next generation ro get involved

and rake i r further," Dr Phakey explained. "My dream is chat every senior sho□Jd benefit from an organisation li ke lSCA and we should have more clay centres, in n.10re areas around Victoria chat offer a structured, or open environment co facilitate senio r care solutions and indepeadence".

Letters of congramlations are pouring in for Dr Phakey from all directions including commendation from tbe G o vernor of V ictoria Alex Chemov, Premier Denis r apthine, local u:uoisters and councillors. His family, comprising of WLfe Usha who is a retired reacher, son Vivek Phakey who is. an ophthalmologist and daughter ishi who is a dentist, are proud of his achievements. "lt's good to be recognised with tl:u.s honour, however, as an academic I have had the opportunity to be rewarded in many od1er ways and all of diem are equally significant for me," answered Dr Phakey when asked about receiving the recognition. "This is tl1e icing on tbe cake, and as far as 1 am concerned there's still miles tO go before I sleep".

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JULY 2014 15

PEOPLE

Young architect William Chan utilises his passion for the built environment to develop global communities

oung architect William Chan demonstrates how the sharing of knowledge can result in the de,,elopmenc of innovative solutions co global issues. \'{/illiam, named one of Australia's Top 100 Brightest Young ]\,finds in 2010, recently received the 2014 Student Prize for the Advancement of Architecture from the J\uscralian lnstitute of Architects.

His achievements are spectacular for one so young. Besides being a Future Green Leader for tl1e Green Building Council of Australia, he is also a youth mentor for the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney.

His passion for socially and environmentally sustainable architecture has taken this young Australian, originally from Hong Kong, around the globe assisting communities in need.

William graduated from the U niversity of Syd ney with the Convocation Medal from the Faculty of Archfrecture, Design and Planning and received a faculty scholarship co participate in an inter-disciplinary design program called Global Studio.

Global Studio is an action research program with students, academics and professionals from all over the world diat use a participatory design process co facilitate projects.

William's first experience was at Diepsloot, a slmu in J ohannesburg.

This project opened his eyes to how archicecmre could positively inAuence people and their livelihoods.

His continued involvement witl1 Glo bal Smdio gave William the next opportunity co coordinate the program in Bhopa~ India.

Here William was part of a team developing an urban renewal master plan with a process o f indepm community consultation. ''Working in Bhopal and visiting other places in India was an incredible and eye-opening experience for me," William said.

The inter-discipl.inary project that William was pare of had sLx different groups working in tl1e Bhopal slums. Students and professionals from around the

Y

16 JULY 2014

One to One Wall House at the Venice Bie nnale

Global Studio students in Bhopal, India world - Europe, USA and Asia from the areas of architecture, business and law, worked in designoriented projects or researchoriented project~, covering different aspects.

William's group looked at the master plan of Bhopal. They studied me new and old parts of Bhopal city, examining how the distinctive Islamic side and Hindu sides worked cogetl1er.

He fom1d me history of Bhopal fascinating. " It was amazing to see how d1e ci ty 1·ecovered following the U nion Carbide disaster and seeing how it has impacted me community," he said.

As part of the process of developing a masrer plan for Bhopal, his group went around me public spaces of the city, tallcing witl1 residents co find o uc how and

why mey enjoyed me space.

T hey partnered wim tl1e local universi1:y, Manlana Azad Natio nal Institute of Technology (MANTI) who helped the overseas guests with incerpreti"n g, as weU as research.

The highlight of the whole process was its culmination in a festival called [Pe are Bhopal, which encouraged people who l.ive in Bhopal to share their ideas for the city. ''\'(/e held a communir:y consultation, asking children and adults to draw on maps of Bho pal and put down me.ir ideas," said William, me memory of me interactions still fresh in his mind. "\'.\le showcased different ideas to give the comnmnity an idea of how a public space could change.

We did illustrations and compmer renders to show the 'before' and 'after' of possibilicie.~, so d1ar they could start talking and discuss these ideas" .

So did di e project get implemented after the overseas visitors returned home?

William regrets th01t tllis was unfortunately nor the case.

"Attempting co change a city is a large scale project," admitted William.

T hey presented the plan to the local government but he said implementing it would be a long, hard process.

"At least we were able to initiate some discussion around how to make the city better and we invo lved the co mnmnicy in chis process. I feel it is so powerful if we actually speak to the people. They will tell you what d1ey need, we just need to take the time to listen and find out d1e best solutions," he said hopefully.

Volunteering with World Vision and having worked in aid

and development, William mer many people who had previously travelled to lnclia.

"When I was leaving, they warned me about h ow incredible and crazy India is. \'Vhile I was over there l could understand why!"

Besides Bhopal, he travelled co Mumbai, Delbi, Agra, Varanasi and Chandigarh.

"Chandigarl1 was a llighlight for me as ic was designed by me famous architect Le Corbusier and it was interesti ng co see how architecture and design changes d1e way people l.ive. Here was a city which was completely planned and I noticed how different it was from tl1e rest of India. People followed road rules and respected tl1e environment," he said.

Tllis reiterated what William passionately believes - an architect can create an environmenr that influences me way people l.ive and behave, through design.

In 2012 William also received a scholarship co participate in d1e Internacional Exhibition ar the Venice Architecture Biennale, d1e world's most prestigious archirecmre festival.

Here he helped Anupama Kundoo, an Indian architect now based in Brisbane, build a low impact house based on her own home atAuroville in Pondicherry. "l was captivated by Dr Kundoo's passion in sustainability and genuine advocacy for social inclusion within architecture, particularly how she re-inte1-prets a·aditional design, materials and skills," said William.

His experiences in Bhopal and around me world, has given the young man direction for what be wants co achieve in tl1e future.

www.indianlink.com.au

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JULY 2014 17

INTERVIEW

To take the path less travelled, was the motivating factor in Sanjeev Kapoor's stellar career

tis said, you bave to stand out to be outstanding" and tbat's exactly what Indian celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor wished ro do in life. Today he is the head of an international media and food empire and a household name in India.

Millions of viewers around d1e world watch his daily television show, and he has hundreds of cookbooks and multiple restaurants in his name.

Bur did you know, the Kbanr, Khaza11r1 whiz ventured into tbe field of cooking by accident?

At a reception while touring :Melbourne recently, Sanjeev Kapoor surprised everyone with the story of how he stumbled on to what ultimately became a glorious career.

At a time when the 'professions' (read medicine, engineering, accoLmtiog) were considered prestigious above all other options, Sanjeev was determined to pursue something different.

"When I finished school I wanted to do somedtlng that no one in my family o r circle of friends had attempted before," Kapoor revealed.

"Cooking however was not on my wish list at that poi.nr of time. I had al ways been creative and brilliant at academics, and so ,vas veering cowards architecture, a little-known but still prestigious field rben".

A friend coerced him into applying at a cooking institute so he could gain from Sanjeev's experience at me interview.

Sanjeev applied on a wbim and even received au interview call.

His fuse reaction was to refuse; however, he agreed co accompany his friend for his interview. ''\XThile waiting for rbe interview, the others around were discussing how the institute was really tough to get into and that merit did not count as one needed to 'know someone' in order to get

I

18 JULY 2014

admission there," Sanjeev recalled.

"This triggered a challenge in my mind. 1 became determined to get an admission there witl1 absolutely no intentions of joining!"

He cooked up a plausible excuse and gained another opportunity to be interviewed. According to Sanjeev at that time, cooking was considered to be a mediocre field in India and not a common choice for people who scored well academically. During me incerview Sanjeev managed co convince me panel that despite his brilliant scores he wished to do nothing else in his life but train as a chef.

He got selected, bur the admission into

A visit to the MCG e arlie r this year

architecture came through as well.

Sanjeev decided to join cookery upon advice from his father's friend who said co him that 'it is better to excel in a mediocre field than be mediocre in an excellent field'.

Sanjeev decided he would t'lke up cooking and raise irs profile.

The rest, as tl1ey say; is history.

Witl1 his passion, sustained effort and some pretty smart choices, Sanjeev Kapoor

"

ci em barked on a rnission to raise the profile o f cooking across the countt:y.

Today, his Khana Khazpna show is the longest running TV show in Asia with m ore than 500 mi!lion viewers. He has l.aunched

Soumeasc Asia's debut 24/7 cooking channe l, Food Food. He is an internationally bestselling author, recipient of countless major awards, and the O\'lmer of a line of restauran rs, a cookware range and ready-co-eat meals.

"l dreamt big," San jeev said simply, wim a shrug of his shoulders.

Sanjeev was in Australia earlier this year to fiLn a series on the cuisine and produce of this coumty.

www.indianlink.com.au

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fetch~ JULY 2014 19

MUSIC

•

ec ass1ca It's a weekend-long tribute to Carnatic music's most enduring

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he annual rwo-day Mummoorthigal and Thyagaraja Festival organised by the futvichandhiras of the Academy of lndian Music Australia Inc. and Sruti Laya Kendra, lnclia, was held at the Kel Watson theatre in late May. This is the 167th anniversary of Saint Tyagacaja. This event pays tribute to his contribution to Camaric music, as well as that of his illustrious contemporaneous composers M L1thuswamy Dikshitar and Shyama Shastri.

Tbe gala event began with a traclitional puja at the al tar, followed b y the congregational singing of the Pancharama kritis, the five immortal 'gems' composed by Thyagaraja.

For the Carnatic music conuoisseurs of Melbourne, this is a much awaited event in their annual music calendar. There are few that can equal the grand eur and the splendour of the top vocalists, instrumentalists and percussionists rendering d1ese great compositions together. lt is a truly npli fting experience.

T h is year, they were joined on the stage by visiting artistes Sikkil Gurucharan, Shaswari Prabhu (vocalists), mrudangam maestro Karaikndi Mani, violinists Sriram Kumar and A G A Ganasundaram, and Bangalore Amrith, kanjira player. Maesa:o Karaikud i Mani has performed with many international artistes incluclingJazz musician Paul G rabowsky of d1e Ausa:alian Arc Orchestra. A series of his compositions were adapted by the Australian Art Orchestra imo jazz and released as album Into tbf Fire in 2000.

The Talented Young Musicians E nsemble (TY1\ffi) is an initiative of Sri Ravichandhira to encourage and promote young, emerging artistes of iVIelbourne by giving them a platform and an opportunity to perform before top Carnaric musicians and dancers

T

20 JULY 2014

from India, as well as a discerning audience. The group got alJ of this and much mo.re at d1e fescival mis year, presenring some interesting items, one of whicb was clirected b)' Gurucharau himself assisted by the 1yer brothers.

The TY1-,1[E segment consisted of mo.re than 35 vocal, percussion, instrumen tal numbers.

A competent and Wring bharatanatyam presentation was also made by a munber of students nominated by Melbourne's reputed dance schools uuder the coaching and able guidance o f Shantby Rajendran, which aptly included, among d1e items, Thyagaraja's Sti G,111ap"ti11i in raga Saurashtram.

These were followed b)' individual concerts by the crean1 of Melbourne's Carnacic music community, all familiar and established artistes and teachers.

One of the hig hlights of the entire event was the fullAedged vocal concert by Sikkil Gurucharan. He was supported on me violin by Sriram Kumar, on the rnrudangam by Karaikudi Maui and on kanjira by Bangalore

Arn.rich. The percussion interlude

by Guru Mani and Amcit was a smnning n1asterpiece.

The second day began with a TYi\iiE ensemble. The instrumen tal segm ent was presented under t he able guidance of A GA Gnansm1da.ram which reflected the trueLalgudi padand1aram. Percussion was overseen by Bala.sci Rasiah, which gave some insight into distinctive s1:yles of structures composed by die stalwarts.

After some inclividual vocal and instrumental concerts by tbe cream of Melbourne's Indian classical artistes, AGA Ganasundaram presented a violin solo. Rajeshwari Sainath, a wellknown bharatanatyam artiste, who is no sa:anger to Ausa:alia, having performed here o n many o ccasions such as TEDx Sydney where she was hailed for her 'imaginative splendour tbat goes beyond technique', gave a brilliant performance, consiscing o f a fu!J repertoire: beginningwith a 111(1//a1i, a 1J(lra711 in valaj composed by the legendary music critic, tbe late Subbudu. In it, a marad1on item, Ms Sainatl1 not onl)'

displayed her mastery over no(y11, bur also nritf(I by weaving intricate patterns with her footwor k, the jati.r having been composed by her uncle Karaikudi Mani himself, and ad111J11.r which would have been a challenge to dancers even much ymmger.

Vocalist Saaswachi Prabhu (a disciple of the legendary Lalgudi Jayaraman) impressed witb her pleasing and tastefo..l selectio1J of music. Yow1g Sai Nivaeidian who recendy obtained B high grade in All India Radio made us proud by his effortless delivery of Nadbam mixed with dexteriry ou his mticlangarn.

Tbe festival director Ravi M Ravichandhira OAM, said d1e event has now become an integral part of Melbourne Indian community's cultural calendar and was recognised by leaders in government, Australia Council, Department of Foreign Affairs, and tbe community, as e\Tidenced b y me presence of both Liberal and Labor leaders mis year. I t has grown in the last 25 years to beco me perhaps the second largest conference and fesrival of its kind outside India.

The festival's overseas guest of

honour was Prabhu Yagyararnan, tl1e Secretary of one o f the most respected s"bhm / m usical societies in Chennai, the Krishna Gana Sabha. He had high praise for die way in which the festival was being conducted, keeping classical traditions alive in a land far from home.

www.indianlink.com.au

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aroos •

m1r co ours Vijay Kou/'s pie bounces into first place at the Canberra Times Autumn Photography Comp

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o Canberra and Kashmir have anything in conrn10n? They do, according to CSIRO scientist, Vijay Kou! who won the fuse prize in the Ca11/;erm Tiv,e.r Autumn Photography Competition, 2014. Koul's winning click, was picked out from more than 400 en a·ies, is a shot of a bunch of kangaroos grazing peacefully amidst the breatluaking orange and red hues of the spectacular Canberra autumn.

A native of Kashmir, Kou] has been living in Australia with his family for tl1e past 21 years. He is a scientist working with the Bush Fire Research Grou p of CSIRO. Koul said that the beauty and magnificence of the changing seasons of Canberra, especially the spring and autumn colours, were highly reminiscent of his homeland, Kashmir, which is often referred to as Paradise on Earth for it.~ breath raking beaut)~ This is the second time Koul has entered this p hotography competition. Last year, he cook part in the Canberr" Times \X'inter Competition 20 13; his picture was shore-listed to be published but did nor win the title.

Photography has always been Koul's passion, but this interest took flight when he began work with CSlRO, as he regularly caprures photographs of hi s experiments. Eve n tl1is winning picture was shot as he was finishing work in a nearby CSIRO lab.

"1 looked outside my window and saw d1e beautiful autumn sunset, trees, kangaroos; luckily I had my camera wid1 me, so jumped over the fence and clicked the shot," he said of his winning photo.

And when he is not wol'.king, he also enjoys shooting for weddings,

D

INDIAN LINK

birthdays and communi cy-related events for friends and family. At the moment, Koul said d1at he is not thinking of turning his passion into a profession, due to work and family commitments, but he is keeping the avenues open.

Kou! shoots d1ese captivating images using a Pemax witlJ Sigma zoom lenses 18-200mm and 70300mm. He told fodi011 U11k that he prefers not to use any photoediting software and if be must, he uses the software provided

by Penta.'i:. He does not believe in fancy camera equipment, but rather in the creative eye when it comes to capturing beautiful shots. " It is always best ro use auromode till one is confident before migrating ro manual focus," i~ KoLtl's advice for photography emhnsiasts and wannabe professionals. It is important to have an in-depth und erstanding of shutter speed and aperture when using manual mode. He also mentioned tl1at a good way of learning and broadening knowledge is to refer co good journals, books and magazines dedicated to photography. Digital Photogn,pf?y for Dummies and Digital SLR Camern a11dPhotographsjor D11!!1111ies by David. D. Bush are the two books that Koul would suggest for novices with a passion for photography.

For those into travel photography; Koul's advice would be to invest in a good camera, a couple of SD cards and spare batteries. "Go ahead and click as many pictures as you like; you can always delete the b ad ones," he explained. "And also remember the best cin1e for capturing good photographs is during the magic or golden hour which is one hour after sunrise and one hour before sunset".

He also points out tl1e benefit of using a wide angle for capturing landscapes.

He said that tl1e scope and potential for growth in tbe field of natme and travel photography is immense, as Australia has many scenic locations and breathtaking natural beauty. He also mentioned that d1e scope for event photographers is also huge owing to the large lndian population here.

Koul is currently in tl1e p ro cess

of prod ucing a photographic book capmring the spectacular scenery of tl1e spring and autumn seasons of Canber ra. A project very close to hi s heart, he says d1is book will be his dedication to

Canberra and to its breatluaking natural beauty during these seasons.

To interact with Kou! and catch a glimpse of his amazing work, visitwww.facebook.com/vkoul

JULY 2014 2 1

COMMUNITYSCENE

Model, actor... and change agent Mr Melbourne launches new organisation to encourage social change

M

r Melbourne Australasia

2013 Puneet G ulati

recently officially launched his noL- for-profiL o rganisation O ne World Family (OWF).

The lau nch took place at his residence, with prominent figures including Assistant Commissioner of Police Victoria Mr Andrew Ctisp and Djrcctor of the Victorian M LLlticulmral Commission Senior Sergeant Mr Rudy Monteleone in attendance.

The concept of OWF focuses on raising awareness of issues through visual mediwns. Projects

are filmed in documentary form and presented to the world through a webisode posted on OWF's YouTube channel. The documentaries aim to make people think about the power of the common person and his ability to do sometbing special for the community.

OWF's first project T:-Jope to Homeless aims to better the lives of homeless people and raise awareness of the increasing prominence of homelessness, particularly in the western and northern suburbs of Melbourne.

Hope to Homeless has already

made an impact by providing a makeover for a homeless man, sponsored by Penny's Salon in Box Hili. The man was tben given private accommodation and work so that he could earn money and smrc a new life. j\fr Andrew Crisp said he is impressed w.itb tl1e organisation's focus on homelessness, as it is a difficult issue for police to deal with and is always prioritised in order to keep homeless people safe.

O\XIF plans to further the organisation's impact by raising awareness of a broader range of issues from violence related causes to environrnenml concerns. Their main objective is to empower people to influencing change. If OWF can do it, so ca□ they.

O\XIF will maintain the webisode and visual media strategy. They strongly believe that visual media, along with the vision of O\XIF, has greater power

ro impact viewers. Audiences can learn from both the good and tl1e bad by watching responses co situations surrounding an issue.

OWF hopes to gain the support aud sponsorships of local and in ternational businesses to enhance their cause. Being a notfor-profir, they also rely heavily on public donations and support.

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or the Sankat Jvfochan Samiti, it was a long-cherished dream realised.

Tbey celebrated the grand opening of a temple dedicated to Lord Hanumru1 in south-east Melb01.une recendy.

They call it 'Kendra', or centre, to denote tliar it binds, rather tban segregates humanity.

Fighting me deplorable 8 degrees of soggy Melbourne weather at 9am o n Sunday, 15 June, a 100 plus of us were already congregated at tl1e venue. A select 40 of us rook our sears in groups of eight around five individual sacrificial fires known as Hova11 K1111d.s. Simul mneously and wimonr b reaking the continuity of the rhythm, we chanted the uhutis, all e leven thousand of the Gtl)'Ohi Mo11tra.s discipline, and burned consecrated saat11ag1i ro seek god's blessings for our physical aud spirin1al purification. Volunteers in the background

continued to refurbish the hall. The day's activities included M11rti Pra11 Prn1ishtbt1, the actual 111oorti sthapno and _pra11pmtishtht1, supported by t1t11"ti and Sha11ti Path. The ceremony ended with offerings of prasnd aud 1110haprasad.

The Kendra boasts 200 plus square metres of the hall t hat is used for spirin1al activities, and eight square metres of office space. ln Ram Datbar, the devotees perceive the sanctified manifestation of f-It11111111,m;i, D111;go Mato, Gonesl?J~ Shirdi Sai Bnba, Sbivali11g, and also 1'\Javagraha, the nine planets that determine destinies. The Kendra will be former augmented with deities in years to come.

Just as unconditionally as Hanuman served Lord Rama, the Sankat Moch an Samiti, a welfare organisation, is committed co providing physical, morn! and spiritual guidance tb those of any colour, caste or creed in need. Irrespective of one's religious beliefs, the Samiri involves itself in providing culrnral heritage education to members of the fastest growing community in Victoria, the Indian community.

Juxtaposed imaginatively in a refurbished shed at 1289/\ North Road ia Huntingdale, the Kendra is by the Monash University bus stop and a convenient walking distance from tl1e station, off street parking aplenry.

For more information, please contact Samiti President Dr. Sunila Srivastava on 0427 274 462.

George Thakur

www.indianlink.com.au

ll

COMMUNITYSCENE

Australian Telanganites celebrate statehood Telangana fever results in the creation of new associations in Australia

n J une India celebrated the formation of its 29'1' state, Telangana. T hese celebrations extended to the Indian community in Australia as well, resulting in the formation of rwo more IndianAustralian association. in Sydney, over 500 people gathered at Greystanes Community Centre to participate in Forrnation Day celebrations, organised by the Australia Telang ana Porum (ATF).

A lamp was lit at the Telangana Thalli portrait, followed by prayer and a two-minute silem tribute dedicated co the martyrs that gave

I

their lives to enable the formation of the new state.

Councillo r Gurdeep Singh from H.ornsb y Council shared his happiness towards rbe new state, and stressed more communication and contribution towards the relationship between Australia and Telangana.

Members of the ATF, and o ther Telanganires and sponsors, who worked on coUective initiative, venue arrangements, food arrangements, entertainment programs and the other logistics of the function, were thanked.

Telangana food was se1ved co all participants, and the event

was a grand success.

Nso following the Formation Day celebratio ns was the inaugural fooction of the new Australia Telaogana Association Incorporated (ATAl) in Melbourne.

Held in June at Hawthorn Arts Centre, the event gathered over 600 people and involved culrural acts including classical dances, skits and fashion shows based on Telangana culmre and tradition.

The ATAl serves as a platform for cultural, educational, social and economic developmental activ ities. It~ visio n is ro support and represent the Telangana

community in V ictoria and address issues facing the community such as education a□d health.

T heir role involves catering to the needs of migrant students, preserving and promoting Telangana culture and identity and addressing issues of the growing population.

They hope w do this by conducting workshops, forums, info sessions and suppo rt groups to edL 1cate and raise awareness of issues facing rhe Telangana Australian community. They also hope to engage in developmental and charitable acts ro support

the state ar home o f which rhe majority o f people live under the poverty lioe.

ATAI conducted a blood donation camp on I June and donated fuods to an orphanage in Hyderabad in order to renovate their Sharadha V idya N iketan school. They also cook o ver a water purj fication plant in Koorkal village, where impme water is converted to mineral water. This has enabled the serving of 4,000 people with clean water.

Around 200 families have shown their support for the formation o f ATJ\l. "lt is my hope drnr ATAI will fill the gap and ful fill the resident's needs by conducting various programs to keep m1r culture and help the need)' in Melbourne and Telangana stare," said ATAl Treasme Shyam Lingam palli.

Present at the inauguration was president of ATAI Raj Vulpala, and Vice-CotmciUor of the lncliao Co nsulate Shri. M.C. Bhagath, who la1mched the ATAl's official website.

Ravi Singh

Preventing hair loss after cancer Disha raises funds for new tool that tackles hair Joss after chemo osing hair can be more frigh tening tban a mastectomy or even death.

"I would rather die than lose my hair," uttered a very scared but determined young lady who refused co go through chemotherapy even though her doctor had informed her that this treatmeOL could save her life. This young lady is nor d1e only one to experience this dilemma.

According co docrors, in the majority of cases, when cancer patients are recommended to undergo chemotberap)' their fusr question will not be ''Will I be cured?' instead it is "Will I lose my bair?"

Losing hair is one of the most visible signs o f a cancer patient's battle to get well.

"Losing hair during chemotherapy can be traumatic and distressing for patient~," said Dr Ta.ra Chandramouli from Disha - Direction to Hope, which is an organisation that raises funds for worthwhile causes. "lt can rob them of their confidence and self esteem ro look

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INDIAN LINK

at the mirror and see someone who does nor look like them anymore. A t Disha we wanted to do something ro keep their spirit going. Disha helps cancer patients to <lea.I with a cruel chapter of their lives by offering them hope in various ways," continued Tara.

Disba is proud to introduce to Melbourne the 'Scalp Cooling Machine' tharwill stop hair from falling during chemotherapy.

The 'Scalp Cooling Machine' called Dignitana, meaning for dignity, costs $50,000. Disha is aiming to donate this equipment to the Peter M.ac Hospir.'ll. Disha will

also support the Olivia Newton John Cancer & Wellness Centre in their pilot project ro start a Library of Wigs and Accessories. This will aUow the patienrs LO walk our after the treatment with a brand new hairstrle rnd1er than with no hair at aU. An annual dinner dance was recendy held by Disha to raise funds for this wonhwhile cause.

Held at Lincoln of Toorak, it was a fun filled evening with a serious intent. The d1eme of 'Pink for Health' saw the majority of guests make an effort to dress up in variations of pink. With BoJJywood

style entertainment, music, raffles and auctions the evening was enjoyed by hundreds of people, mainly from the Indian community in Melbourne.

A highlight of d1e evening was an entertaining video of a flash mob dance performed around Melbourne's Flinders Street by the Disha team. The ladies managed to gather many people to join them in singing and dancing to Pbareli William's hit song Floppy Their fun filled video was met wid1 thw1derous applause from the auclience who seemed to appreciate

their efforts and enthusiasm.

However, the evening reaUy belonged to a young lady who spoke from her heart about her family's journey through her morher's battle with cancer. The attendees were touched as she spoke candirUy about d1e reversal of the morher-daughrer roles when she found berself taking on the responsibility o f supporting and assisting her mother during her treatment. Her moving speech brought home the realisation that more needs to be done in terms of cancer treatment, research and education.

Disha has raised more than $100,000 for cancer since their foundation was founded. They have donated money to rhe Alfred Hosp.ital for lung cancer Researcl1, Royal Mel bourne Hospital for d1e Booe Marrow Transplant Unit., and the Royal Women's Hospital for ovarian cancec. Disha continues to work with dedication towards supporting those that are fighting this disease and helping those who are coping with or who have survived its effects.

Preeti Jabbal

JULY 2014 23

The Vatican announces its cricket team: From left, Deepak Anto from India, captain Anthony Currerfrom England, and Ajeesh George, Davidson Jestus and Pratheesh Thomas are part ofthe St Peter's cricket team, made up largely of Indian and Sri Lankan priests, deacons and seminarians st udying in Rome. The new team is going on its first tour in September, playing an Anglican squad at the Kent County Cricket Club and the royal household's XI at Windsor. The "Light of Faith Tour" aims to forge greater ties between the Catholic and Anglican churches, which split in 1534 after English King Henry VIII was refused a marriage annulment

Government claims that Indians in captivity in Iraq are safe According to the government, Indians held captive by suspected Sunni militants in Mosul cown of Iraq are une une unharmed even as efforrs continue to secure their release from their abductors in the vjolence-h.it Gulf country.

Exrernal affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbarndclin cold reporters that efforts were being made to move Indians our conflict zones in Iraq, He said the government's information flow has improved and is enabling more efficient channels of information transmission.

"On the iliplomatic front, our efforts are continwng both in Iraq and outside.

Our initiatives are gaining impetus. We are proceeding systematically and carefully.

Various doors are opening now; these are primarily in lraq at various levels, all of which are significant," .he said.

Akbarudilin claimed there were about 120 Indians in conflict zones in Iraq and 17 had moved out.

"Seventeen lnclians have been removed from die conflict zone. \Ve are working to ensure that rest of the Indian .nationals in conflict z.ones are moved out of there," he said.

Asked if there was real danger of d1e 39 abducted lndians being used as a shield, he claimed there was " no safety in captivity". "'~/e are every day trying to obtain information, corroborate information and confirm information. Based on drnr, I can confirm d1ey remain unharmed as of now," Akbarudilin stared. ] t is understood that India is in touch with countries in the region like Saudi Arabia to urge them to assist in freeing die captives.

24 JULY 2014

The Inilia.ns, who belong mostly to Punjab and Hai-yana, were working .in Mosul as construction workers, drivers or sarutary workers. Suspected militants of tbe Islamic State of Iraq and d1e Levant (ISIL), who have overrun large parts o f northern Iraq and taken over Mosul and Tikrit, abducted d1e workers around a week ago.

Accoriling to Akbarudilin, die 46 Inman nurses i□ Tikric are also safe. He said the safety and security of Indians in Iraq remained a matter of priority for d1e government. ''We have received 120 requests in Baghdad and 300 at our control room in New Delhi for assistance of various types," he said. Some of the requests may, however, be duplication, he added.

Akbarudclin said diere were more dian 10,000 Indians in Iraq and d1e return of those not in the conftict zones would be on normal contracmal terms. He claimed there were 12 major comparues where Indians were working and the company with the largest presence of Indians, around 2,500, was in , ajaf. Several Indians wan ted to return and the lniliai1 government is also in couch wid1 the companies d1at had sent them to Iraq to wo.rk.

On reports of the death of an Indian, he said d1ere was no information from the concerned company about d1e possibility of an Indian worker in southern Iraq who may have succumbed co a heart attad,.

"When I checked that up, d1ey [tl1e Inilian mission] hadn't yet got confirmation from the concerned company. It is possible that the company is completing their procedures ar their end before they come to us. Bur should this unfortunate event have taken place, we will assist the return of die mortal remains of diat lnruan national in

accordance with the standard procedure," Akbaruddin said.

Officials stated that requests for assistance from lnilian nationals in Iraq were being constantly addressed. The Indian mission will help the workers to obtain passports ro rerurn, as the employers would have taken their passports away under the Iraqi labour laws.

The 'Phoren' dream results in Iraq misery Promised a good life in rich havens like Dubai, Kuwait and Jordan, hordes of gullible youth from Punjab and Haryana have been manipulated by travel agents and in country associates to work in miserable conditions in conflict-torn Iraq.

With the number of people stuck in lraq due the recent sectarian Rare-up, rising to neatly 700, the old story of failed "phoren (foreign) dreams" and lost big bucks is being retold. ''Many youth are pronused jobs in Dubai, Kuwait and Jordan bur d1ey are taken by d1e travel agent.~ to Iraq instead. Once tl1e you th reach there, rney do □or have d1e option of rerutru.ng. It is a nuserable trap. The youd, spend lakbs of rupees of bard earned money or sell land ro go abroad, and end up in a life of hell," said Paramjir Singh, who remrned from lraq after working d1ere for over cwo years.

Bbagwant Mann, the Aam Aadmi Parry (AAP) Lok Sabha member from Sangrur, has taken to social merua and set up a helpline to reach out to youths stranded in Iraq and also help connect them to their families in Punjab. f-le said the actual number of people from Punjab snick in Iraq could be much higher than 700.

"Though Tdon't have the actual figure, I am told diat up to 4,000 Indians, mostly Punjabis, are sruck in Iraq," Mann said.

"1v1ajority of tl1e youth are raken to Dubai, Jordan and Kuwait and dien sold o ff to companies in Iraq," he added.

The Punjab government has already submitted a list of 514 people from Punjab who are stranded in lraq.

Going abroad is a common fad among youths from Punjab, especially in the Doaba region (ilie area between Sutlej and Beas rivers) comprising the districts of Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur, Nawan Sbabr and Kapurthala. " Rural youths and also diose from smaller towns just want co go abroad by any means.

They see no fumre and employment for themselves in Punjab. Despite big promises, the Punjab governmem does little for d1em.

The levels of frustration are Lugh," said Sarnam Singh, a Jalai1clbar-based travel agent.

The unscrupulous travel agents take advantage of mis simation and exploit such youth. They swindle them of lakhs of rupees and dump them in counc11es like Iraq," he said.

Accorrung to reports, militants have taken hostage 40 Inilians, mosrly Punjabis, in Iraq's Mosul town. Their fate is unknown since they were abducted. The families of the men smck in Iraq, who are mostly poor or lower middle class, say they can only hope for the remrn of dieir loved ones. ·'We don't have the resources or money to gee them back. We want ouc boys back," said Baldev Singh, a relative of one of the youths held hostage in Iraq.

The story of Ancaryami and two o thers, who were taken hostage in Iraq neru·ly a decade ago, is still fresh in the nunds of people but tliat has hardly deter red youd,s from risking everytlung to go to Middle Eastern countries such as Iraq.

The fanuly of An taryami, who live in a village in Hin1achal Pradesh's Un a ilistrict, adjoining Punjab's H osluarpur ilistrict, wanes to keep away from the media glare at d1is time, when d1e hostage crisis is being repeated with odier youd1s from Punjab.

Amaryarni rumself drives a truck and has not worked on foreign shores since.

Indian missions pick up pieces of US Visa mess lndian missions in tbe US have mrned to social media ourlets such as Facebook and Twitter as d1ey scrambled co clear up a visa mess as a result of the changing of contractors for proces!>ing consular services.

Following numerous complaint.~ against the previous service provider BLS International, the Indian embassy awarded the new contract for provirung visa and od1er consular services to Cox & ((jogs Global Services in May. The switch, however, made ilie ordeal of travelling to India, particularly from d1e West Coast, worse in the i1utial clays. According co a media report, outrage and anger over delays boiled over inco fights on ar least t\VO occasions at the outsourcing agency's office in San Francisco. " Is the Indian Consulate in SFO complicit in stealing US passporrs...maybe not but should nor d1e DHS look into trus," t\veeted one angry traveller.

"There would be no emergency if you bozos would just process a normal visa application," he said in another tweet.

The Indian consulate general in San Francisco has reassured those who had applied wjth the previous service provider

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BLS International for Overseas Cicizenship of India (OCI) that their applications bave been taken over for ptocessing by the mission itself.

Earlier, to deal with the crisis, d1e Indian embassy in Washington DC and other Indian consulates in the US started moving their own staff to consular service outsourcing centres in order to help the applicants.

The missions also started directly providing visa services to all Urgent/ Emergency cases and set up helplines for complaints against the previous and new service provider.

The Indian "embassy and consulates are taking extraordinary steps to respond to recent Consular complaints. Write to Consu.larHelpline@indiago\7.org," said a twitter message.

"Senior officers would be visiting the consular service outsourcing centres to monitor the progress in service," the embassy assured in another Lweet.

Passports of Indian workers being held by Iraqi employers According to Amnesty International, there is evidence that several hundreds of Indians were stranded in the N ajaf province of Iraq as d1eir employer refused to return their passports.

"With fighting between state forces and armed groups intensifying and affecting civilians across Iraq, the stranded Indian workers could be facing rising dJtnge rs," Amnesty International India said in a press release.

They said they spoke over phone to some of the Indian workers.

"They said they have not been paid salaries for the past five mond1s and d1eir passports have been held.

"We have been restricting ourselves to the company premises since d1e conflict began because we are scared. \'v' ithout our passports, we can't leave this country, and every passing clay rnakes us feel more and more tmsafe. We just want to go home," one o f d1e workers was quoted as relling Amnesty.

The workers also cold Amnesty char d1ey had raised di.is concern with the Indian embassy in Baghdad, wluch asked them to provi.de their passport details via text message.

The workers sent the details and are now awaiting a response.

Anod1er worker said their employer told them they were safe and would be moved to safer locations if they perceived a dueat from the armed groups led by the Islamic State in Irag and al-Sham (ISIS). However, another worker said d1ey were only 200 km from the conflict zone.

The international human rights organisation welcomed the lncl.ian goverument's initiatives ro evacuate stranded workers quickly and urged ir to "pay special attention ro ru.igra.i1t workers who may have had to hand over their passports and other travel documents to their employers".

They also called on the armed groups to immediately a.11d unconditionally release all civilians they were holding as hostages, and end all attacks on civilians.

Amnesty furd1er said ir had called on the telephone Lines of the construction company as well as o.n d1e mobile phones of three of irs managers but could not get on to anyone.

"Migrant workers, including those from lndia, are among d1e most vulnerable groups in Iraq," said Amnesty.

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"Under international huma.rucarian law, state and non-state actors are obligated co take necessary precautions to avoid endangering d1e civilian population. The parries to me conflict muse facilitate the safe passage of all chmians wishing to flee tbe fighting".

Gujarat stepwell listed as World Heritage site Queen's stepwell, Rani ki Vav, in Gujarat's Patc'ln town, has been added to UNESCO's list of World Herimge sites, said a cultmal ministry release.

Prime tvliti.ister Narendra Modi welcomed the decision, calling it a "matter of great pride" for d1e state. ''Rani Ki Vav in Patan., Gujarat, has been added to the UNESCO Wodd Heritage list!

A matter of gi·eat pride for us. Next tin1e you visit Gujarat, you muse visit Rani Ki Vav, an exceUent symbol of our great art and culture," he tweeted.

"Rani ki Vav has been approved for inscription on the World Heritage list," said d1e release, adding that UNESCO made tbe decision at the World Heritage Committee session at Doha.

Ur ESCO recognised this masterpiece as an excepcional example of technological development in utilising ground water resources in a single component. lt was also acknowledged for its water management system and for illustrating the exceptional capacity to break large spaces into smaller volumes following ideal aesthetic proportions.

"The ancient stepwell wa.s buil c in che 11th century and is an exampl.e of a wuque lndia.11 subterranean architectural structure. Its seven storeys of ornamented panels of sculpmres and reliefs accurately represent the MaruGmjara style," said the release. ''Following the flooding and d isappearance of die Saraswati rivet due to geotecton.ic changes, the property was buried under layers of silt for almost seven cenruries and has been preserved undemeatl1 an exceptional state of conservation by d1e Archaeological Survey o f India (ASl)," the release added.

Reconnecting maritime cultural landscapes across the Indian Ocean The cu.ln1re ministry has launched a project that aims to re-establish commrnucation between countries across the .lndian Ocean.

Culture ministry secretary Ravindra Singh launched the 'Mausarn' project at d1e 38th session of the World Heritage Committee at Doha.

"One of rhe main deliverables o f this project is d1e nomination of maritime cultural landscapes across the Indian Ocean as a transnational property on d1e \Xforld Heritage IJst of UNESCO," stated an official release. Tbe project endeavours to position itself at rwo levds. ''At the macro level, it aims to re-connect and re-establish communications between counrries of the Indian Ocean world which would lead to an enhanced understa.11ding of cultural values and concerns," said the statement. ''At the rnicro level, d1e focus is on understanding national cultures in their regional maritime milieu," .it added.

According to the statement, the central rnemes that hold this project together are chose of cultural routes and maritime landscapes thar not only linked different parts of me Indian Ocean, but also

The Rani-ki-Vav (Queen's) stepwe/1, on the banks of the Saraswati River in western Pata n, some 120 kms from Ahmedabad, has been granted UNESCO World Heritage status

connected the coastal centres to d1eir hinterlands.

New approach to development needed that benefits poor and saves the environment There might not be any end to the debate on how to promote urban development without harming the environment.

However, environmemal journalist and aumor Baha Dutt believes she knows where d1e problem lies.

The issue is a "development model drnt alienates locals perspective and is carbon intensive," says Dmt. "There is something wrong with our model of developmem that is so carbon intensive, a.11d doesn't take into account how local people feel about natural resources".

As an environment journalist, Dutt has compiled an account of her work assignments in a bo0k tided Green IV'01,· d1at talks abonc development in different parts of the cotmtry. It explains bow di.is aimless deforestation .is destructing the serene environment and displacing many people.

One of d1e chapters of the book highlights how in 2006, the then chief 1nin.ister of Uttar Pradesh, Mulayam Singh Yadav, proposed a plan to build a stace-ofart airport at his ancestral Safai village in the Ecawah district.

This "development" was a death warrant for sarus cranes of India, \vho have made d1ese vast wetlands their home.

Upon learning of bis proposa~ Dutt

pledged Mr Yadav co abandon d1e non-migratory crane's narural habitat.

H.e initially refused to respond, but when her CNN-IB:M news channel spoke of d1e issue, Yadav had no other oprion bur to drop the project.

The tit-bits of this investigative• environment report is what the book is all about.

"The book looks at areas o f conflict, for .instance in the northeast where over I 00 dams are slated for construction in a biodiversity hotspot, or areas like Goa where people have wa_ged a war against nuning," she said.

"Everyone says that mining or dams will bring development to a region, but by that .logic Oclisha, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand should have been our most rich states".

Du rt feels development models sustain lifestyles of me rich, and barcl.ly do anything for the development o f d1e area of the poor. ''1 wish our development models were for our population or d1e poor.

Bm what I have tried to highlight is that more dams, roads and ruining projects are being used to sustain the lifestyles o f the rich in our cities," she said.

"If diey were meant for the poor, then tbat would still be. less of a problem. Odcl.ly enough we develop coal power plants for the rich and want the poor to turn to renewable sources of energy such as solar," she concluded.

IANS

JULY 2014 25

FOOD

From fires to crimes against the taste buds, our readers share their stories about all things disastrous in the kitchen

Green leafy vegetables are good for you (whichever way you eat t hem!)

Mamta Lalwani This happened quite a while ago, back in L1dia, during my college days. J was in my furn! year and very close co graduating so f decided to invite some college friends over for lunch to celebta[e my binhday. l'vfy sister-in-law offered to cook palak paneer and I thought I would whip up my famous pm1ipmi co serve as an appetiser.

I felt quite good having opted for the easier of the two dishes to make. The "puris" were ready made, I onJy needed co prepare the pa11i so I came bad, earlier than usual from college and set about doing my smff. I cook ouc all the ingreclients, whizzed them through the blender and pm them in a bowl. I got interrupted by tbe door bell and ran to let my friends in.

Everyone wished me "Happy Birthday" and had brought presenrsl l got really flustered and excited. All thoughts of the p,mi pmi got shoved ro the background, as I started ripping open my presents.

I realised I bad promised them my famous p,mipu,i so l went to the kitchen co get it. All I had to do was add the icy cold water co the ground mixture in the bowl which 1 quickly clid, decorated ic w ith boondi; and very confident of my special.icy, served it without tasting it. One b y one all my friends casted it and each one of them put their plates down with a very weird expression on their faces. The expression was an amalgam of confusion and pure clisgust! What on earth was going on? Why in the world were my friends acting like I had fed them rat poisoa?

I quickly tasted it myself and wished I were dead!

My sister-in-law who was makingpalak pa11eer had ground the pcilak and some 11111salas in

26 JULV2014

a s.imil.ar bowl co 11:i.ine. I had accidentally served that with the go!gappas and she in tbe mean time had come into the kitchen aad pm my pani p11ri mixmre in rbe palak paneen The outcome was two really bizarre dishes! " Palak Puri" and "Pani Paneer"! Basically there was nothing to eat on my birthday!

There were presents for sme ... but was I going to give anything back to m y friends? No sir! I was going to starve my friends on my birthday! A pa.r ty they'd never forget. Surprise!

Sweet daughter -in-law

Nuzhat Rasheed l was newly married and v ery eager to please my in-laws. In those clays there we.re huge expectations from daughters-inlaw, especially in the first couple of years of marriage.

I had onJy been married a few days and m y in-laws were coming over for tl1eir very first meal at our place, which meant they were going to taste my cooking for the very first time. I am a very good cook, conlidant of my culinary skill.s, but on tliis occasion was nervous nevertl1eless because it was my in-laws l had to impress.

I had decided to go the extra mile and prepare a huge feast.

Since cooking came so naturally to me I never folJowed recipes. i\liy clear mot!1er bad caught me all tl1e tricks aad I had made her proud. I used my instincts when it came co adding in 111tJsalas. After a full day of laborious cooking 1 was very pleased with the sumpruous spread. i\'1y in-Jaws arrived very punctually and after tl1e pleasamries were exchanged, clinner was served. A very strange eirpression came over their faces the moment they tasted the food. They all seemed to be exchanging glances and smiles that didn't exactly say "WOW" ! \Vhat were these sniiles about? 'i\'lhat on earth was going on? I was so busy serving everyone I hadn't casted tl1e food yet. :M aybe it was time to do so.

1 quickly puc some food on my plate and into my mouth. \X!hy did everything taste like dessert? Oh my God! 1 had pm sugar in. the food instead of salt!

Nothing goes to waste here!

Ru Duff I was cooking a chicken soup one night, along witl1 some fried chicken, as an appetiser before the mam course.

When the chicken was fried I realised there was some unused corn Aour lying around. I thought it would be a tenible waste to

throw it away, so 1 decided co use it in the soup. The excess corn Aour in the soup completely destroyed it, rendering the main course inedible to all and sundry!

My husband tried to eat it on account of the fact that be was starving. However, it was an exercise in futility because it tasted like goo! My kids clidn't have ir either; they hated it. I thought, rhe hell with this, 1'11 eat it m yself, but spat it out as soon as I tri.ed it. So 1 decided co just tluow it to the dog. The dog examined it from

all sides and looked at me like I was crazy serving bim a clish like that! Even the clog didn't eat my cooking!

To salvage a little bit of corn flour, 1 had destroyed the family's entire meal and wasted two chickens!

Red hot chilli aloos

UzmaBeg I was visiting my cousin in London and decided co try my culinary skills on hirn. He was a bachelor and a very bad cook so I had a great chance of looking

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really good in front of the really bad.

I decided to make aloo ki sabzi (curried potatoes). It was d1e simplest recipe and wouJd be easy, or so I d1ought!

The family cook back home had said to heat up the oil and put red chiUi powder in it before adding the potatoes. I put the oil in the pot to heat and settled in from of the TV to cm the potatoes and got completely absorbed in tbe television show that my cousin and l were watching. After a while m y cousin said, "I smeU sometlung burning in the kitd1en" Oh dear! I bad completely forgotten about ilie project 1 had commenced! l ran to the kitchen.

The oil was burning hot and there was smoke everywhere. I told my cousin to open the window and proceeded to put chilli powder in d1e oil.

As soon as I threw in the chilli, the oil Rared up into Rames! I screamed. .My cousin rushed into the kitchen. He was horrified to see the Aames and grabbed tl1e burning pot and shoved it under d1e tap in the sink. As soon as the water hit the oil the Aames burst our of control and }ut the ceiling!

1 screamed hysterically.

My cousin, realising that the apartment was going co be on fire pretty soon, grabbed the Aaming pot and made a mad dash for d1e balcony. Meanwhile I was scream.ing hystecicaUy and waving a very sharp butcher's knife in d1e air. My cousin saw the knife coming straight at him and to avoid being scabbed, he made a sharp turn right into the g lass dinning table which moved wit!, lus weight and jammed into the gyprock wall, putting a big dent in it!

He somehow managed to escape aU iliis drama and make it to ilie balcony door. The fire alarm was deafening. There was banging on tl,e front door and seconds later the concierge burst

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into the apar1ment. 1 just kept screaming unconrroliably throughout iliis fiasco.

The fire was finally put out. The pot had to be lefr outside overnight for it to cool down. My cousin was bleeding from having h it the glass cable's corner while trying to avoid being stabbed by m e.

The landlord had to be informed about the big dear in the dioning room wall and the black kitchen ceiling, and of course my cousin had to pay for all the damage!

Oops! AJJ l was trying to do was make aloo ki st1bzi.

Eggsand chicks Veena Kumar It was a beautiful cloudy day and my whole fanilly demanded breakfast in bed. The boys all had a day off from school and my husband and I always SL'lttecl d1e clay late anywa)~ so I decided way I read to spoil everyone.

I read recipes tne same They all wanted au · \ oet to · science f1ct1on. ~ English style breakfast the end and I think. with the works; eggs, baked beaus and roast •Well, that's not" Buc unlike ilie English, going to happen. they wanted their eggs boiled. With at least two eggs per person it came to ten eggs in all so 1 decided ro boil the entire your~ cards case Qf a d9zen eggs.

As soon as I put the was Nus Sharma, The Son eggs qn the phone rang.

Mrs Sharma's son was in love and His Gori. Kind of W<e The with aJ,ori and she was devastated, Lion, Tbe IVitch, t111d The lf:1/ardrobe!

Gossip had a scrange way of and of course 9 o'clock in the morning was the best rime to giving immense satisfaction to bring it up. I got completely all participants. The eggs were engrossed in me sqap opera tha t completely out of focus bf now

and d1e screams for breakfast iliac came from up stairs were totally muffled. The only thing chat was crystal clear was the gori dragon who was about ro enter Mrs Sharma's Life.

The loud wail of the fire alarm made me jump our of my skin and brought the rest of the residents of the house come iliunclering downstairs. THE EGGS!!! Oh Ill)' Goel! wlrs Sharma had to be stopped or the fire engines would be parking outside pretty soon! Tbe eggs no lo nger existed! They had boiled themselves to dead,; all the water was gone and die eggs were omv on the ceiling! Instead of breakfast in bed I had given my fanuly a special treat with breakfast on the ceiling!

Check out our Pinterest board for more food fails: www.pinterest.com/ indianlink/food-fails/

JULY 2014 27

OPINION From

Adelaide to Agra and almost anywhere in between Send money and share the joy.

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United we stand, divided we...

Why the decision to welcome Telegana as India's 29th state is wrong need to pump in to uplift the majotity of Telangana is colossal. and to the tune of several billions. lt is a task that might not be easy to achieve in spite of getting Hyderabad which practicaUy functions like a satellite city. And o□ the other hand, are the cost and resources required for setting up a y homeland has been divided yet new government and related governmental agencies and administrative offices. The again ... on 2"d June 2014, India witnessed the formation of its truth is that the elected government does 29d, stare, Telanga□a. nor have a clear blue print to address any I believe in a of the critical .issues facing Telangana today. democratic, secular and Politically, the riots and tolerant India and hence, 1 believe rbe decision to struggles for a new state began form this new state is in the early 1960s. Initially, it Democratically, as was a public outcry against the enrirely wrong; socially, landlords of undivided Andhra eco□om.ically, politicaUy we get closer to and democratically. completing 68 years who exploited d1e farmers Socially, a conunon of independence, it is and other workiiig class of the dissent (amongst many a saddening thought Telangana regions. It didn't others) voiced by the take long for the politicians that we still follow citizens of Tehmgana to discover that chis sense of the'divide and rule' who aspired for a new injustice in rhe minds of the policy of the British state is diat linguistically, public was a good wa)' to gain Raj which destroyed votes. Soon tlie public disdain they spoke different our land became a political outcry. The languages .&om the other regions of 1\ndhra Telangana Rashtra Samithi (f'RS) formed in 2001 as a Pradesh. Exarnple,"i\tfy result of this and rhe party Telugu accent has always been ridiculed by those chose to form an alliance with from other parts as I the Congress (which held the stronghold at that rime) in the hopes of a speak a different version of the language".

Our country was divided along linguistic new statehood. But the Congress party had lines at the time of state formation postno sucb inclinations and hunger strikes, riots and social unrest becan1e d1e o rd er lnd ependence, bur within a state, every village or district speaks with a different of d1e day. \Xlheu the date for the 2014 style or accent even today and all o f us have general. elections was set and the Co ngress at some point ridiculed or been ridiculed for parry realised that it could be wiped om our accent or language. But does this qualify from power, the decision for the new state for die demand of a new state, of Telangana was pushed in a last minute a new division? attempt to gain a couple of votes from Economically, the citizens of Tela□gana the region. A petty political m iscalculation which cost the party dearly i□ die general celebrate as if d1e battle has been won. elections.

But the real battle is yet tO begin! The new Democratically, as we get closer co government is faced wi ch the mammoth cask of the economics of running a new completing 68 years of independence, it is a saddening thought that we still follow tl1e state. J\ principal reason cited for needing a new s tate was d1e fact that 'divide and rule' policy of the most regions of Telangana British Raj which destroyed our were economically land . We did not need a separate backward and not given state; we needed a sensitive government to understand tbe d1e due attention by the We did not need real plight of d1e people. We former A□dhra Pi:adesh to cut ourselves did not need to cut ourselves government. With a total up on the basis up on the basis of language land area of 11 4,000 sq. km of language and and rei,>ional differences; we and a population over 35 regional differences; need less corrupt leaders who million, the only prized asset Telangana can boast of is we need less corrupt wilJ direct funds in the right manner to promote growth and Hyderabad, rbe technology leaders who would hub of I□clia which che new direct funds in the development. And above all, government believes can right manner to we need to exercise tolerance, a sense of unity and brotherhood, contribute tremendously promote growth and a trait in such short supply to tl1e development of development the new state. Though among Indians back home and around rhe globe. the city of Hyderabad has tbe economic potential to We shmtld hm7 e learnt bring Telangana out of its from our past mis cakes, the financial and developmental glaringly obvious ones like doom, it is .important to realise tli at the rest Jbarkhaod. 1t is going ro be a lonely road for Telangana and Seema□dhra, but here's of the state remains backward with poor infrastructure, farming or irrigation facilities. to hoping the new leaders can deliver rbe Water is another issue on which the two promises m ade. As well as hoping diat tl1e divided states will continue to lock heads new government does not di,1ide and cut up with each o ther. Oo one band, the revenue lnclia again into Gorkhaland , Bodoland and and resources that the new government ,vill Vidarbha for petty political interests.

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JULY 2014 29

TECHNOLOGY

A Melbourne-based engineer develops an app that lists Hindu temples in 50 different countries

Temple Details Sri Venkateswara Temple SVT S...

Driving Directions

or the devout Hindu, god is everywhere and in every being. He is omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent. :Most of us, nevertheless, also fi nd strength and solace in a peaceful dm,·bt111 at temples. Today, no matter which corner of the world the globetrort:i.ng Hindu finds him or herself in, there is bound to be a Hindu temple, offering the right spiritual direction.

Through the innumerable resources of the World Wide Web and the irumvation of Indian Australia Hari Iyer, finding god is now easier than ever.

Leveraging on the very latest in mobile technology, lyer has come up with a nove.l web and mobile phone application to service the needs of the Hindu community.

Mapping over 2,000 temples in 50 major coLmtries outside India, Iyer recently lamiched his free Hindu temples directory, www.allhinduteruples.com, and app for iOS on www.

HinduTemplesApp.com downloadable through App Store.

The temples app is a comprehensive directory and is particularly handy for getting directions, opening hours, contact details and services offered. The information can also be saved ofAine to d1eir device.

The highly interactive app is particularly unique in its \Xfiki-style customer interface that allows users to netwm:k, collaborate, leave feedback and provide useful advice for omer temple-goers. Users can also update information and include phocos.

"Every other religion except Hinduism has apps and directories as weU as lots of information

30 JULY 2014

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Contact Details Temples

htlpd/www.svtsydney.org/

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on.line about d1eir places of worship," lyer told Indian Ut1k. "\Vhile so many Hindus have carved a niche for themselves in information technology, we don't have many resources online".

The idea for the app arose when Hari and his wife Samridha turned up at a local Sydney temple, o nly co find it dosed.

"I subsequently tried to find their opening hours and realised mere was not much information available," Iyer said.

"Their website was down as well and even when .it was restored it lacked adequate content in a mobile friendly website. This is the case for most temple websites".

It was the frustration of not having access to basic in formation that inspired Iyer co create his app, wim d1e intention of making temple visits easier for everyone.

"I decided to create a directory whose main purpose is instant access to basic logistical information. ~'herever they are in

the world, me rech-savvy devotee can use the app to locate a Hindu temple near rbem," explained Iyer.

As a typical "Tam-bram" (Tamil Brahm.in) the Mumbai-born Iyer was a frequent visitor of local temples. His marriage to Samridba also strengthened his spiritual foundations as she not only brought a furn religious grounding back inro bis life bur also actively encouraged him to create the directory.

The industrial engineer, whose expertise is sales and consulting, invesred all his spa.re time into this unique project. A year in d1e making, it initially began as an Australian temples direcrory and blog, expanding steadily to include many more countries.

"It did mke a lot of coordination, bringing together work from different locations wim data analysts in Noida, app developer in Europe and graphic designers in Kolkata. I had a lot of support from family, since a

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Joe of my personal time and money has gone into bringing .it tO current stage," ryer explained.

Each of me temples had to be individually mapped on Google maps as weU as data sourced and cleaned, co ensure accuracy for users. The App itself had been in development for over four months and was exrensively tested to ensure compatibility with all iOS devices and screen sizes.

"In spite of the best of our efforts, this sort of information is clynam.ic," he added.

"Opening hours change, temples often start small and then move on to bigger, permanent locations, phone numbers change and contact details also vary. So I'd call upon users to report any changes that mey notice so it can be updated to benefit me whole community".

Although the project itself was self-funded, in order to cover d1e cost of sustaining it on App Store, me app bas been priced at $2.49 and has already received many five

star 1·eviews.

Consumer feedback has also been overwhelmingly positive. Peak H indu organisations like VHP, Hindu Council of Australia and Overseas Friends of BJP Aust:ralia have offered their support, but Iyer hopes to expand the app's reach even furtl1et.

"There is still work needed to spread the word especially in countries like U K, US and Canada," he reiterated.

"Mapping temples all over the world is such a massive project that no one can possibly do it all by himself, but if everyone had to ooly look after one or two temples in their local area co keep d1em updated and correct mat's easily doable and will benefit me entire communiry".

Iyer is also keen for temple managers to claim ownership of d1eir listing and manage it d1emselves. The sire also allows temples to upload any local events or festivals to help them get more visibility amongst devotees.

In d1e future, Iyer also hopes to connect with temples in India.

"That will be a mammoth pro1ect and we are trying to find local organisations there that we can work with. Conservatively speaking there would be at least 10,000 large temples in India d1at we'd like to include in the directory," he stated.

Spurred by me demand, he has already begun work on the Android version. To reach a wider audience, d1e app will be free. ''.As I will soon be mapping lndian temples, I do not wish to put it a behind pay wall," Iyer indicated. "1 also don't want to run ads, as it ,;vill corrupt d1e spir itual experience. Instead I plan to hold a fundraiser through I.ndiegogo, where pe()ple can contribute whatever mey wish towards app development cost".

Fi11d out more at: bttps:/ / 1JJ11111J. i11diegogo.co1J1/projects/globa!-hind11te11Jp!es-t!irector;y-belp-cm1te-r1n-aiveso111efi'ee-011d1·oid-opp-110-ads

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Diwa i atsc Celebrate India launches essay competition for primary students hen tbe Celebrate Inclia organisation was founded some eight years ago, the main intem was to undertake activities that would give mainstream Australians a feel of Indian culture.

Today, the group can claim iL has accomplished this successfully, given they have taken the festival of Diwali straight to the heart of Melbomne city, attracting thousands of citizens as well as those in the topmost rungs of government, as guests.

But of course Cdebrate India will not merdy rest on their lamels.

Led by Arnn Sharma, the notfor-profic organisation has come up with a unique initiative that will take che lndian festival of lights to primary schools across the state.

An essay competition o n Diwali has been bunched for studencs in Years 5 and 6, designed to encourage them to explore and share their e:s,.-perience of lncli:an culture. Entrants will submit a piece of descriptive writing, 300 350 words long, on the similarities and cliJferences between the

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lndian festival of Diwali :and Christmas.

Some aruactive prizes have been announced, including cwo Air India tickets to India, and a 6-week APL Leadership Program (including a visit by an APL player) for the school with the most entries. Winners will be annow1ced at the mega Diwali celebration to be held at Fed Square later this year.

Sharma has been working on the project for nearly two years now. "lt a.U sea.reed with a little experiment last year," be cold Tndia11 Llnk. "We worked witl1 one school that has adopted the study of Hiocli across all year groups.

Focussing on two classes, we ran a simple essay competition on Diwali. Some 20 students emered, and ,ve received some beautiful pieces. We feamred them in our magazine, This got us excited, and we decided to cake it furtl1er".

The Education Deparanent was immecliace in its support to take tl1e initiative across the scare.

"Nearly 5,0UO scliools will now

be approached to participate," an excited Sharma revealed.

"Even if we get ten entries from each school, it will be a fantastic response!"

And a logistical nightmare for purposes of assessment, he confessed, bm he is not fazed.

Especially given the response he has received when requesting support. The Education Department jumped at the idea as soon as it was presented, and the Government of India was just as quick to offer assistance.

Air India was happy to oblige, and the APL, ,vh.ich has been pushing hard recently to increase .its multicultura.l 1·each, ca.me on boa.rd too.

This got some fabulous prizes Lined up; more are currently being worked out.

"I'm looking at tl1e b igger picture here," Sharma revealed.

"To promote social inclusiveness, there's no better place to start than ac me ea.cliesc possible age levels. Giving young kids a feel of other cultures helps in building familiarity, decreasing discrimination and racism, and

merefore in promoting harmony.

With the essay contest for inst.'lnce, not only the participating kids but ceacliers as well will become involved, for whom we have developed a teacher's resource kit on Diwali.

Then, hopefully me families of ilie students will become involved coo".

This possible trickle. effect will ultimately help in promoting acceptance.

"I've just been told that when mis venture was described at a school principals' natio nal conference, there was widespread positive feedback," Sharma revealed. "No other 11on-English speaking community in the country has ever suggested such an initiative. In Victoria at lease, I believe students are required to spend a stipulated number of hours in activities of a multicultural nature, and programs such as these easily fit in there. So we're hoping that other schools, even private schools, take up this or similar projects".

Of course there are other aims too, Sharma revealed, one of them

ArunSharma being to re:ach out to out o,vn kids in a different way.

"For our second generation kids, who are not as connected to our traditions, ir will be meaningful to see the mainstream community participating in an Incli,m activity and enjoying it''.

Speaking to lndia11 Link before the official launch of the program, Sharma mentioned chat he has been seeking support from a variety of otl1er platforms.

"We've approached the mainstream press, VMC, and many parlia.memacians. To tl1e Indian community ac large, we say, get behind this initi:ative and help us make it a success".

The competition rw1s from 30 July to 20 September.

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BOOKS

Check out this list of fascinating books that paint a picture of Delhi through the ages

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homas Metcalfe, while working as the Governor General's Agent at the 1mperial Court of the Mughal Emperor, senr his daughter the 'Delhi Book' in 1844, which was au album of 120 paintings of the ciry by Indian artists. .!Vfetcalfe wrote his own descriptive text alongside the paintings, and the album remained in the family for almost 150 years before being added co the British Library collection. Ever since, Delhi has prompted historians, novelists, academics and travel writers, to pm pen to paper ;md capture tbe elusive spirit and soul of the city.

There is the definitive work of Delhi-at-the-time-of-the-Mutiny

by Mahmood Farooqi (2010) called Brsieged: Voicesfro111 De/bi 1857 whereby au author, historian and raconrem captures the pall

32 JULY 2014

111 l II,/ ,1

diat fell over the rebel govemmenc of Bahadur Shah Zafar in Delhi, around whom the sepoys rallied and marched against the British in Shahjahanabad. Farooqi laboriously translated Urdu documents from the time of the Mutiny in the National Archives to evoke the mood of that seminal momem in Delhi's hjstory.

Two other books N e111 Delhi: Making of a Capital, by Malvika Singh and Rudrangshu Mukherjee (2009) aod Delhi Metrapolitan by Ranjaoa Sengupta (2007) trace die evolution and emergence of the modern city from the time the British moved the capital to Delhi in 2011 : from the new city that Lutyens planned, to the colonies that came up to absorb the in Aux of refugees at the time of partition, to the new metropolis of 16 million people that it is today.

Two works of fiction T!11ilight in Delhi by Ahmed Ali ( 1940) and Delhi by Khushwant Singh (1990) paint vastly different images of the city tl1rough tlicir protagon ists. Ali's novel chronicles the disintegration of a Delhi family d1at traced its lineage to

one of die city's sultanates. \'>;Then tl,e patriarch of the family visits the 1911 Durbar, he grieves when he sees the descendants of the exiled Bahadur Shah Zafar begging in the streets. Si.ngh's p rotagonist inimitably describes Delhi as the "mistress to which he returns when he has had his fill of whoring in foreign lands".

Two od1er books can be said to be predominantly about Delhi at the time of the Emergency. They are Salmart Rushdie's Mid11ight's Children (1981) and Emma Tado's U11settli11g Memories (2003). Rushdie riles against tl1e excesses of tbe Emergency in his novel; so does Taro, but as an anthropologist who uncovers files of the Municipal Corporation in Delhi tl1at involve the fot:ced sterilisation of the poor.

Then tliere is the book about Delhi for expatriates by Dave Prager titled Delin·ous Delhi (20 l3).

Prager and his wife moved co Delhi from New York. His was a love-hate relationship with the city before he found a balance between the best and worst their new home had to offer. Prager strucnu·es his book as a guide for

ocher expatriates, with chapters on food, shopping, workplace culture and transportation. It especially highlights Delhi's traffic, about which Prager seetl,es. Howe,1er, the book is more than just a howto guide. It i~ an appealing memoir, as Prager is a solid storyteller, and the book is an enjoyable tour through the ciry. Highly recommended for anyone wishing to travel to the cicy.

Dalrrmple's Ci-()1 of Djinns (1993) remains one of the most popular books on the city ever written. His Delhi is the city of multiple empires and kingdoms, shaped by money, food, art and Jiterature. 1fore recent!)\ San1 Miller published Delhi: Adventures in a Megacit)•, which is almost entirely h.is view of the place as a wal king city: th.rough manho les, obstacles and speeding traffic, through Naida and G urgaon and the most absurd sights.

This brings us to a recently published book called Ud1a11 V ill11ge1; wrinen by Vandana Vasudevan (2013) on the recent urban expansion that has led co tl1e growth of satellite towns

such as Noida, and the city's push furtl1er into what were once rural Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.

There, modern gated colllmtmities jostle for space among erstwhile and urrenc villages, in a neverending search for new laud for 'developments' tliat are shorn of any character or ingenuity. Arvind J\diga, writing in his novel White Tige1· (2008) , said Gurgaon was built by tbe rich and had ".no parks, lawns or playgrounds - it was just buildings, shopping malls, hotels and more buildings. There was a pavement outside, but char was for the poor to .Live o n" .

Rana Dasgupta, anotl1er novelist who made Delhi hjs home i.n 2000 when he moved tliere from Britain, bas recently written a book on his adoptive city called Capital: A Portrait of Tiven!J First Cet1t11ry Delhi (2014). le i s a brilliant and compelling book that examines the growth of Delhi since die country embraced free market principles i.n 1991. He writes with the elegance of a novelist and the incisiveness of a chronicler, and argues cl1at globalisation has been catastrophic for capitaJism. The nexus between politicians and developers has only fuelled corruption and the market economy has curtailed the rights o f the poor. It bas ruptured d1e delicate fabric that held the city together since Partition when over one million Hindu and Sikh refugees poured into the ciry. A ciLy that once fuelled the ambitions and hopes of millions of people, now serves only the rich. Dasgupta concludes, rather sombrely, chat for tl1is reason, Delhi will never be a city like any in the West.

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Khushwat Singh's protagonist inimitably describes Delhi as the"mistress to which he returns when he has had his fill of whoring in foreign lands"

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MAINSTREAM

A modern twist to an old classic LEANNE WOODWARD and DHANYA SAMUEL on Chef Vikas Khanna and his recent stint on MasterchefAustralia c was a moment of pride and honour for all Indian foodies to see acclaimed l\1.ichelin-scar Chef V ikas Khanna appear on 1\i[aste,Chef ./11tstralia currently being aired on Channel Ten. He was invited to set up a pressure test challenge on the 6th season of the show.

And the challenge be set up - chicken tikka masala! t ow before you th.ink chat would have been easy, rem ember this is Vikas Khanna and this is Maste,Chcf. The hosts were pleasantly surprised and che contestants filled with dread when Chef Khanna lifted the cloche to reveal his signature creation, rose rea smoked chicken tikka masala with coriander oil, rice pappadurn and lemon rice.

Khanna said tl1at th.is dish incorporated the numerous traditional elements that he learnt while growing up and travelling in India along with some modern and contemporary Western influences that he learnt while living and cooking in the US. He explained to the conrestanrs that the smoking technique is a traditional one followed in lnd.ia where spices are added to ghee and poured over hor charcoal to infuse flavour and aroma into the dish. In this particular dish, he used a melange of spices, dried rose buds and Darjeeling tea leaves to lead a distinct tandoor flavour to the chicken.

There were many modern. elemenrs but Chef Khanna said that the main one was the chicken itself; instead of using regular boneless p ieces, he created a chicken roulade stuffed with roasted tomatoes, garlic, Madras spice mix and figs to create the traditional sweet and spicy flavour tones of chicken tiklrn masala. The rice pappadum was the ocher surprise element where he infused boiled rice with orange blossom, white wine vinegar and mustard seeds and then oven baked it to create the pappadum.

The dish was a challenge for marry of the contestants who were nor familiar with Indian flavours and in spite of being a pressure test, Kha= was present with each contestant throughout the challenge offering advice, boosting morale and sometimes, even_ lending a helping hand. 1n spire of being such an acclaimed celebrity

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34 JULY 2014

chef, he is an extremely warm, kind and friendly person which really came across on the show.

Khanna's cooking journey began in his original home town of Amritsar, Punjab. He was interested in food from an early age, so naturally, his grandmother became his first reacher. She passed on to him the traditional arc of his family's cuisine. From then, it wasn't long before he scarred co share his love of cooking with otl1ers. Ar the age of 17 he starred his own catering business.

Today his accomplishments are numerous and varied, and his recognicion is wide. Khanna is an accomplished chef, restaurateur, fil mmaker, author, and television personality. He also runs and owns Junoon, a highly acclaimed restaurant in New York showcasing modern Indian cuisine. He admits running a restaurant is no easy task and still works very hard to prove his potential.

Ocher successes include catering for events ac the White House in the US and authoring many books including Tbe Spice Street and Modem Indian Cni.,ine. Producing

and filming the series Ho(y Kitche11 is also on this list, where Khanna taltes a look at the role tl1at food plays in our spiritual lives, festivals, traditions, and how cooking food and sharing food can bring people, and the world closer. His successes also include becoming a television chef and personality, scarring in Gordon Ramsey's Kikhen Nigbtf!lares and Hell's Kitchen, with Martha Stewart on her show, and hosting A{dstnChef .l11dia.

During his brief visit to Melbourne, Chef Khanna took a whirlwind culinary rour of the cicy with the Maste,Chefhosrs, Gary, George and Matt. He said char he enjoyed sampling local Indian fare which also made him realise

tl1at there i s much more to explore and experience in culin:u:y Melbourne and promised that he will be back soon.

Whac advice does Kharu1a have for fellow ymmg Indians here in Melbourne who have migrated from the east co live now in the west W,e he did? \Xlas he ever lonely, did he struggle with cultural differences, how di.cl be gee his confidence?

"New York is a place where everyone is from everywhere else," he replied. "Everyone is a selfsrarter and everyone is moving and creating, and that is the culture of the place. There was no one particularly lonely; there is not that sense, what you do is, you just get stuck iaro it, into plans and imo creating a life for yourself roo".

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• • • • • Indian writings ofpleasurable things between the pages win Bad Sex Awards for all the wrong reasons

!though they come from the land of Karna Surra, I ndians are now gammga repmariou at the dreaded Bad Sex in Fiction A,,mrd for passages of pleasure gone wrong. The award's .latest recipient, for the year 2013, is Mani! Suri, who took the gong, o r rather the climax, with his subatom.ic bisexual orgy The City of Devi (Bloomsbury).

Aniruddha Bahal's B11llker 13 cameio a[lmmber o ne.in 2003, and there have been many, many other nominees includ.ing bigwigs Salman Rushdie and J\rundhati Roy. For those not familiar with Literary Revieuls annual antiaward, it was established in l 993

by Rhoda Koenig and Auberon \'v'augh and aims "to draw atten tion co the crude, badly written, often perfunctory use of redundant passages of sexual description in the modern novel, and to d.iscou.rnge it". Lad y D iana, Princess of Wales even presented tbe award one year.

Critically-acclaimed writer, professor of mathematics at a US university, nominee on the ]\fan Booker and even shortlisted for the FauJ.kner awards, Manil Suri is now also the wiru1er of a Bad Sex Award. Suri's taboo-busting book The City of Devi, his third, is an apocaln)tic thriller set in Mumbai.

The famous, or .infamous, depending o n how you look at it, sex scene comes from an unusual lo,,e rr.iangle includ.i ng the narrator Sarita, her husband and a young gay Muslim man. Suri managed co woo me judges wim the passage: S11rely supernovas explode that instant, somewhere, in some gal.axy. The h11t vanishes, and with it the sea and the sands - only Karim's body, locked with mine, 1·emaim. We streak like superheroes past suns and solAr systems, we dive through shoals ofq11arks and atomic nuclei. In celebration of our breakthrough fourth star, statisticians the world over rtjoice.

How couJd rh.is sexual explosion through time, space and consciousness, involving all of tl1e characters of the book, not win?

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36 JULY 2014

Suri was not present to accept the award for his super charged work. Instead, novelist Joan Colfa1s presented it to his publisher Bloomsbury, who accepted it o n his behalf in London. During the acceptance speech the sex scenes in the novel were described as "unfettered, quirky, beautiful, tragic and wildly experimental".

Aniruddha Bahal's 2003 espionage thriller B1111ker 13 (Faber & Faber), also went on to win tl1e Literary Re11ie1v's Bad Sex Award for i ts take on. sex, drugs and corruption in the Indian army.

A part of the winning section o f the novel is: She picks 11p " Bugatti's 1110111e11tt1111.

Yo1t JI/{//// her 1J1ore t1t a Volkswagen's steatfy trot. Sq11eeze the 1/lt✓Xillllllll lllileage out oj_yo11rgallon of gas.

But she's eating 11p the road with all rylif!dm h!t1zi11g.

Cars and sex seem to be a ,vill□illg combination in Bahal's novel, even if it does make one wonder what type of a Volkswagen he wanted? Perhaps a slow and steady kombi van?

Babat even decided to publish a tongue-in-cheek piece on outloo kinindia.com regarding his expectations on winning the pr.ize: My soitrce also told me that he had it on good a11thority that the winner ofthe award some years back was trailed by five beautiful and luscious women to the hotelfrom the evening's venue and taught many things by them during the course ofthe night.

They might have taken pity on the writer's sex writing and wanted to enrich his experience so that he could in future do full j11stice to the subject ofsex in his works.

It was also suggested that siJ1ger Sting, who presented Bahal the award, would catch up with him later with "five cantric sex goddesses and a bucket of grease". Surely such a night could not possibly be topped for a wrirer i n need of improving their written. sex scenes, for inspiration alone?

This comment raises an eyebrow at what the sex lives of these writers who win tl1e Bad Sex Award are really like. Bairn! comically answers th.is by saying in his piece: Some duffers have also started walking up to me these days and

Bunker 13

asking whether my real life sex was as interesting as nry writing. 17-Je women 1 have taken aside andjotted their phone numbers down to give them some detailed answers. 1be men have had their nuts reconfigured.

A lthough Bahal happily accepted the mvarcl as a "rebellious gesnue" for bis saucy writing, due to h.is belief that there is too much censorship o f writing in India, he was also a tad peeved, as, "lots of other writers in India moughc my book had great sex writing".

Following on from Suri's credentials, it seems that critical acclain1 of the writer is no guarantee chat me se.x passages they write will be any good.

Among noteworthy winners are John Updike, Hilary Mancel,John Mortioler and Kingsley Amis. And keeping up the lnclian trad.ition, we have none otl1er than Salman Rushdie in Shali1J1ar the Clown Qonathan Cape) nominated in 2005: "'Let's, you know, ca1·ess each other in five pl.aces and kiss in seven ways and make out in nine positions, but let's not get cmried away".

ln reply, Boonyi pulled her phiran and shirt offover her head and stood before him naked except for the little pot offire hanging low, below her belly, heating further what was already hot. ''Don't you treat me like a child," she said in a throaty voice that proved ,-he had been unsparing in her dmg abuse.

Sht1!i111ar the Clown was nominated for the prize, despite winning the 2005 Vodafone Crossword Book Award and being a finalist at the 2005 Whitbread Book Awards.

Keeping Rushdie company in the 2005 shortlist was Tarun Tejpal, currently in jail for sexuallr harassing a young journalist who worked at his magazine Tehelk11. Tejpal was nominated for his novel The Alche111y of De:ri,·e (Picador): We began to climb peaks and foll offthem. We did old things in new ways. And new things in old ways. Any body part could be joined to any body part. And it would result in 11 masterpiece.

A few years earlier, another of India's Booker Prize winners

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0 Arundhaci Roy found herself nominated for her highly celebrated work The God of .lfllall Tbi11gs, for ideas such as "nucbrown breasts (that would n't support a toochbrnsh)," along with "haunches (that could support a whole array of toothbrushes)". l remember blushing up a storm when I bad to read these passages ouc to my English lie class at uni. Wby oh why had I chosen those quotes for my speech?!

Other nominees have included Siddhant Dhanvanr Shangvi (2004) for his book The Lt,st Song of D11sk (Weidenfeld & N icolson); the Pakistani writer Nadeem Aslam (also 2004) for Maps far Lost Lo1,ers (Faber & Faber); Hari Kunzru (2002) for The b11jmssionisl (Hamish Hamilton), and Neel Mukherjee (2010) for A Life Apa,1 (Constable).

Certainly no one can say that writing a sex scene is an easy task, whid1 is why so many authors, Lldian or o therwise, shy away from writing one altogether, especially with the threat of winrung this award. Indian or otherwise. Writing about sex in a non-crude, non-redundant way is one of d1e hardest things to do.

How much information should the author give? Or not give?

As Sarah Crown in The GHardia11 writes, ".Maybe it's me, but l find ... d1e concentration on physical sensation, a whole lot sexier than any amount of thrusting, grabbing or grinding".

Sbe also notes that "as someone wbo works hard to get it right in my own novels, I'm very aware of just how difficult it is to depict well," and wanes to know where the good sex awards are? Perhaps writing from lndia, a country thar is foil of contradictions abour attitudes towards sex has even more of a challenge.

A survey conducred by Men's Health in 2013 found mat Indian men are the least sexually active among their counterparts. Noc only are Indian men having Jess sex, tbe education system refuses

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to even teach children about sex. Nirmalya Dutta on The Health Site asks, "Is our refosal to talk abour sex or pretend it doesn't exist breeding potential predators who never realise that sex is meant to be an enjoyable experience between two consenting adults?" He concludes, "\Y/e keep on having to remind people about this but t he so-called Indian culture they keep on h:uping on about isn't even Indian, it's the remnant of 19th cenrury Victorian morality and there's noming Indian about it".

Is it these attitudes chat are resulting in bad sex writing? Or maybe it's just a happy (ending) coincidence chat many of the win.oers and nominees are Indian writers?

And if you are wondering why Fif!Jr Shades of G,·ry bas yet to win d1e dubious honour of winning, d1e award is not for pornographic or expressly erotic Literamre.

So mere goes any mentions of the narrator's "inner goddess doing d1e lambada".

Such a shame.

From Roy's rood1hrushes, to Tejpal's peaks, Rushdie's awkward teenagers, Bahal's steady VW's and Suri's supernovas, Indian writers sure know how to impress tbe Bad Se,--c Award judges. Here's to me cmde, to the badly written, and co me redundam passages d1at lnclian authors have written, we salute you for giving it a red hot go in a tricky field of crumpled bed sheets and underwear on the floor.

Who "vill win tbe 2014 title?

And which lndian writer will find themselves on the shore-list?

Tweet @indian_link @Lit_ Review #BadSex what book you think should win this year's prize

JULY 2014 37

FOOD

• Add a tropical touch to your next sweet or savoury meal

weet and sharp aren't usuaUy words used to describe a piece of fruit. EspeciaUy when tropical is thrown into the mix. Bue that's exactly what passion fruit are, and they're the perfect addition to meals in winter.

"Weight is the most important fearure in choosing passionfruit," T ina McPherson, an Australian passion.fruit grower, says. "Choose a fruit that feels rather heavy for its size. "It doesn't matter whet!1er the fruit's skin is wrinklr as th is is not an indicator of ripeness".

Rich in antioxidants including vitamins J\ and C, potassium and dietary fibre (a.nd low in calories), they're g reat alongside pork, prawns, chucked into a smoothie or dessert.

S

PASSIONFRUIT, WHITE CHOCOLATE AND CASHEW CHEESE-FAKE

MOROCCAN GLAZED BBQ PRAWNS Serves4 For the marinade/glaze: 6 passion fruit '/2 bunch coriander (roots and stems) 2 cloves garlic 2 tbsp olive oil 2 tsp mild paprika powder 1 tsp ground cumin 2 tsp ground coriander 1 esp ground cinammon '/2 tsp ground ginger powder ½ tsp cardamom powder Chilli powder, to taste Sale and pepper For the remaining dish: 24 peeled, deveined, raw prawns, tails on 16 bamboo skewers 2 passionfruit ½ bunch coriander Qeaves, from above) Green salad and crusty bread, to serve Remove passion fruit pulp and place in a bowl, microwave for 30 seconds 011 high, then

38 JULY 2014

strain through a fine sieve. Reserve the juice and cliscard the seeds (op tional).

Thoroughl)r wash coriander and pick leaves, set aside for decoration. Chop the sterns and roots and place in a mortar and pestle along with some salt. Grind to a paste, then mjx jn olive oil, aU the spices, and passion.fruit juice.

Place marinate and prawns in a bowl and mix thoroughly to coat. Allow to marinate for at lease 30 minutes. In the meantime, soak skewers in some cold water for at least 30 nii.nutes to prevent burning.

Using rwo bamboo skewers at a rime, thread three prawns onto

eacli of the skewers so that the prawns are semi straight and sir snugly together. Keep remaining marinade and mix in the passionfruit and a little extra olive oil if you need to loosen it - this will be the glaze.

Heat BBQ to a medium heat and place prawns on grill, baste constantly with the passionfruit glaze, mrning every so often, and cook 1mti1 the prawns are just cooked through (you will see when they change colour).

Serve hot, garnished with coriander leaves and a side of crusty bread and green salad.

Sen•es4 Base: ¾ cup (11 0g) raw almonds ¼ cup (S0g) pistachios 1 cup (90g) desiccated coconuc 8 Medijool dates, (170g pitted) 1 vanilla bean, seeds only 3 tbsp of passionfruit seeds ot1ly Pinch of salt Cheesecake: 440g cashews, soaked over night 250g lemon and lime juice 250g honey; raw honey or agave 270g extra virgin coconut oil 2 vanilla beans, seeds only ½ tsp of salt l tbsp of lime zest I tbsp of lemon zest 1'/, cup passionfruit seedless pulp, (Approx. s ix passionfruit), reserve seeds for base Garnish: 200g block of good gllalicy white chocolate, shaved (optional for lactose free) 2 smaU passionfruit, halved and placed on top 1 tbsp of lime zest I tbsp of lemon zest Soak cashews overnight in water, or pour boiling water over cashews and soak for cwo hours.

Remove passionfruit pulp and place in a bowl, microwave for 30 seconds on high, then strain through a fine sieve. Reserve d1e

juice and seeds. Zest and juice t!1e lemons and lin1es, set aside.

Line the base of a 26011 spring form cake tin with baking paper.

To make the base place, almonds, pistachios, desiccated coconut, dates, vanilla, passion fruit seeds, and salt in a food processor.

Process 1mti1 the mbmu:e resembles a line crumb and comes toget!1er when pressed.

Place crumb into t!1e cake tin and press down evenly to form the base. Chill in freezer.

Melt the coconut oil in che microwave at 10 second bursts until it becomes a liquid.

To make cheesecake layer, place drained soaked cashews, lemon and lin1e juice, honey, vanilla, salt, melted coconut oil and zest into t!1e food processor. Blend until very smooth and well combined.

Pour half t!1e mixture into the cake riu and tap to level om the filling. Place in freezer to set for one hour.

In the meantime blend t!1e other half of tilling with passionfruit pulp unti1 weU combined. Then pour over chilled first larer, and set in freezer for at least two hours.

Prepare the garnish, using a vegetable peeler shave white chocolate into ribbons. Cuc passion fruit into halves.

When cake is sec, remove from freezer, and with a wooden skewer release the edges of d1e cake before removing it. Scatter shaved white clmcolate and zests around die center of the cake and top with hal ved passionfruic. Enjoy frozen or chilled.

All 1-ecipes and photos: Sammy and Bella Jakubiak (My Kitchen Rules 2011 winnen) for PassionfruitAustralia www.pnssio11fruitaustralin.org.au

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5. Lilly Singh (Superwoman), Canada

t takes a stroke of genius to be able to state the obvious in a manner that is side splittingly funny. Take this one liner for instance, 'I started out with nothing and I still have most of it; or 'I can handle pain until it hurts: Michael Caine once said, "I enjoy making people laugh. The trick is to tell them jokes against yourself. If you praise yourself, your stories aren't funny''.

To be able to laugh at yourself requires courage and confidence and Indians have mastered this art of making people laugh. They are achieving great success in the field of comedy doing just that and much more. Here is our round-up of Indian origin comedians making a splash on the global entertainment scene.

I

With three million subscribers to her YouTube channel Lilly Singh, aka Superwoman, is an internet star on the rise. Her vlogs, skits and standup acts present comical takes on various everyday issues. Born to Punjabi parents this 25-year-old Canadian entertainer remains true and proud of her Indian roots. In her work she aims to showcase Indian culture and characters inspired by her Punjabi heritage.

10. Paul Varghese, USA

4. Mindy Ka ling, USA

This Indian American comedian resides in Dallas and has often been dubbed the funniest stand-up comic in Dallas. His acts revolve around his observations on being an Indian. He has performed in the Just For Laughs festival in Canada, Last Comic Standing and the HBO comedy festival.

Identified as 'One of the 100 most influential people in the world'by Time magazine, Mindy Kaling is often referred to as the new queen of comedy in America. She is best known as Kelly Kapoor on NBC's sitcom The Office. Born to Indian parents the talented actor, comedian, writer, producer and director has been nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series as a producer of The Office five times in a row.

In 2011 her witty memoir Is everyone hanging out without me? And other concerns was well received by critics.

9. Dan Najnan, USA Dan Nainan is half Indian, half Japanese and usually bases his stand-up comedy performances on his personal ethnic experiences. He ls an American comedian with a mission, in 2007 Nainan opened the Bethesda Comedy Club in Washington DC with the aim of promoting clean comedy. His book How to become a full time stand-up comedian was published in 2012. Nainan has performed in countries all over the world including Australia, UAE, India and Ireland.

3. Sanjeev Bhaskar, UK As the host of the The Kumars at No. 42, Sanjeev Bhaskar's is a face recognised universally. The British Indian comedian, actor and broadcaster was awarded an O.B.E for his services to drama in 2005. He has starred in BBC Two comedy series Goodness Gracious Me and in British films including Anita and Me and The Guru. He was recognised as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy by The Observer in 2003.

8. Aziz Ansari, USA According to the Hollywood Reporter, Aziz Ansari is one of the most prolific writers and performers on the comedy scene in recent years. Born in America to Indian parents, Aziz started his career as a stand-up comedian in 2000.

He went on to create and star in MTV's critically acclaimed comedy show Human Giant. He is well known for his role as Tom Haverford in NBC's Parks and Recreation. Aziz released his first CD/DVD on Comedy Central in 2010 and continues to tour as a stand-up comedian.

7. Meera Syal, UK Married to comedian Sanjeev Bhaskar since 2005, theirs is a match made in comedy heaven. Hailing from a Punjabi Indian background Meera Syal is a well-known British comedian, actor, singer, producer and writer who sent the audience into stiches with her performance as hubby Sanjeev's grandmother in The Ku mars at No. 42. She was awarded the MBE in 1997, has written two novels, as well as numerous scripts and screenplays.

6. Aasif Mandvi, USA He may be best known for his performances on Comedy Central's The Daily Show With Jon Stewart, but Aasif Mandvi's career as an actor, comedian and writer is much more illustrious. Mumbai born Mandvi has appeared in numerous films and television shows including Merchant-Ivory's Mystic Masseur, Sex and the City, Law and Order and Miami Vice, to name just a few. He even has an Obie award under his belt for his hilarious play Sakina's Restaurant, which looks at the Indian American immigrant experience.

INDIAN LINK

2. Arj Barker, USA This American stand-up comedian and actor of Indian European descent admits he loves Australia, and partially lives here where his biggest fan base is. Arjan Singh started his career as a comedian in 1989 and adopted the stage name - Arj Barker. He appears frequently in Australian comedy festivals, has performed in Thank God you're here and hosted Comedy Central presents twice. His other claim to fame is his stand-up comedy inspired web series Arj and Poopy about himself and an animated cat.

1. Russell Peters, Canada Russell Peters was born in Toronto with an Anglo Indian ancestry and started his journey as a comedian in 1989. His achievements include winning a Gemini Award in 2008, appearances at various comedy festivals like Just For Laughs and David Frost Comedy Festival Special and talk shows on BBC TV. His quick wit and improvisation skills have made his shows sell out in many countries around the world. Russell is known for keeping his audience engaged with his humorous observations of different races and cultures including Indian society.

JULY 2014 41

· · · ···· · ·· MATRIMONIALS SEEKING GROOMS Looking for a Punjabi boy for our daughter who is 29 years, 5'7: slim, very beautiful and working in finance sector in CBD. We have been settled in Sydney for past 40 years. Elder daughter is happily married in Sydney. Looking for a professional Sydney-based boy for our younger daughter who is close to Indian culture.

Please email details with photo: ozindian 11 @gmail.com Seeking suitable match for 37•year-old Hindu girl, charted account, never married, w ith Indian family values and well-tuned to western values. Please email with particulars: rkn1263@gmail.com Fair and young looking Hindu lady, 55, Australian citizen, 5 '2~ divorced, veg, invites correspondence from a suitable match. He should ideally be aged between 50-60 and a non-smoker. Please contact 0449 623 316 or email: radiance88@live.com Looking for an intelligent. handsome, Punjabi/ Hindu boy for my younger daughter 28 years old, 57: slim, fair, beautiful, working in insurance industry with finance background, on high income. We have been settled in Sydney for past 35 years. My elder daughter is happily married here in Sydney. Please respond with your details and photo to: 24advertiser@gmail.com Looking for a groom in search for a bride born and brought up in Adelaide, Australia, currently working as a registered nurse at the Royal Adelaide Hospital. If interested please feel free to contact any time either by email or mobile.

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Seeking suitable match for the re-marriage of a 1978-born Punjabi Brahm in boy, 5'9". He is an issueless, well-settled Australian citizen, working as professional for a corporate based In Sydney.

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Early marriage. Phone 0422 812 939 or email: jas_ghai01@hotmail.com Alliance invited for Sikh, divorced, 38-year-old boy, 5'1O", CAD-CAM Engineer, Australian citizen.

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n TA K

Q TPR~DICTIONS !=OR JULY

ARIES March 21 - April 19

By NANCY JADE ALTMEA

LIBRA Sep 23 - Oct 22

July will be a time of some confusion and high energy. You will feel happy one minute and low the next. There are a lot of changes coming up, and it is time to hang on to all your dreams. The cards are indicating a time to take stock of what you really want right now.

Around mid month your love life should feel a bit more balanced. Take time out for yourself and try to meditate.

TAURUS April 20 - May 20

This month you will need to take care of additional expenses that come up at home. There will be some tension between family members. You will need to act as the mediator. Things will ease by mid month. There will be some exciting news which will make everyone happy. Make sure that you do not overwork this month as your energy levels will be depleted with everything going on. There will be some news of visitors arriving.

SCORPIO Oct 23 - Nov 21 This month will be a busy and exciting month for you. Chances are, you will make plans for your future. Some magical changes are taking place around you. You will be embarking on a new chapter in your romantic life leading to a commitment. You will feet content and balanced. There will be some stress with a work colleague that needs to be handled very carefully. Your stomach may be sensitive so be careful of what you eat.

July will be a great month for making progress and you will feel your confidence rising. On the work front you will feel a lot more settled.

Things seem to be moving in the right direction after a time full of delays. Travel is indicated and also moving to a new home, or selling a property. There may be good news in terms of a marriage or the birth of a child in the family. Time to celebrate.

GEMINI May 21 - June 20

SAGITTARIUS Nov 22 - Dec 21

A wonderful month for a new romance or making a love interest stronger. This Is a great time to live the llfe you really want. The cards are indicating that you will be looking to the future and making decisions about your work, and also where you want to live. There is an indication that you will be getting an increase In finances. Take care not to get involved in petty arguments. People will try to test your patience.

CANCER June 21 - July 20

You will be undecided about a business plan to start alongside your full time Job. You will also be looking at purchasing a house, and will be making enquiries as to where you would like to invest.

You are also looking to move to another city, as you want to spread your wings with work and there may be a promotion offered to you. A past back issue may start again so take medical advice. You are planning a surprise for your partner.

CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 19

This month you will want to spend more time with your family.

There will be some matters that you need to deal with at home, which have needed your attention for a while. An older member of your family may be suffering with some health issues, they need to take it easy. You will be making plans to take a holiday and relax.

But you will need to stay focused this month; do not get drawn into temptations.

LEO July 21 - Aug 22 This month you will feel a little upset as there may be some memories of the past haunting you. You may be under stress at work. You will feel a little stuck in a relationship. All you need is some time away together to talk to each other and decide what you want to do. You will be considering a new exercise regime and also a new eating plan.

Keep yourself grounded -try walking on grass barefeet!

VIRGO Aug 23 - Sep 22

··

This month you will be anxious about your assets and you will make plans to look into more investments or moving your investments around. You will have some problems sleeping, as you will be worrying a lot. The welfare of a younger male member of your family will be a concern. He may not be in very good spirits. Check how he is doing at school. Any legal matters around you will be sorted out In your favour.

This month will be filled with fire and ice. One day you will be sizzling with heat and excitement for everything around you. The next you will be thinking that you are just not getting anywhere. A new business plan will bear fruits of your hard labour. Financially you will be feeling more secure and content. Work will cause you minor stresses but you will handle everything as you do In a calm manner. Keep an eye on your diet.

AQUARIUS Jan 20 - f=eb 18

'

This month is a very eventful and busy month. You will be making plans to go on holiday with the family and there are also some major changes with your work life. You will be increasing your ptivate work and seeing more clients. The cards are indicating growth and recognition. You may even be thinking of writing a book and putting ideas down on paper. Keep your paperwork upto-date as there will be some bills lying around unpaid.

PISCES f=eb 19 - March 20 This month the love angels are working around you to keep you and your loved one in harmony. There has been a bit of stress around your relationship. If single you have a strong chance of meeting someone very interesting by mid-month. You will probably think of teaching or lecturing at a local institute. You could also be looking at purchasing a new car. A change of wardrobe would do you the world of good this month.

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I-IUM SI-IOCK-ALLS REEL UNDER Tl-IE FARCE

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HUMSHAKALS STARRING: Saif Ali Khan, Ram Kapoor, Riteish Deshmukh, Bipasha Basu, Tamnannah Bhatia, Esha Gupta DIRECTOR: Sajid Khan

,..__; r,,r.,.:r,,_'f

ammanah Bhatia makes so many faces in every frame you wonder if she's auditioning for a film against cocaine addiction while pretending to be in a comedy about three sets of identical characters wackily whopping it up.

Bipasha Basu who plays one of the female misleads... sorry, leads, in this comedy of ghastly errors, has gone on record to say she was extremely disturbed by the end-result of this film.

So, to be honest, are we. And the end that Bipasha talks about seems to take forever to reach as we watch three grown-up ostensibly evolved actors lapse into a collective state of incurable retardation.

Humshaka/s seems to be designed for the mentally challenged. Even they would cringe at the way the two protagonists Ashok and Kumar (Ashok Kumar, gedddit?) are depicted. Moronic and misconceived, the duo seems to

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revel in crass mediocrity.

As inmates in a mental asylum in London (no less), Saif Ali Khan and Riteish Deshmukh raise the ante for lunacy to a point where sanity begins to seem like a state of mind invented to make us believe there is a world, a relatively sane one, outside what comic filmmakers in Bollywood consider to be funny.

To be fair, Sajid Khan's new brainwave replete with triple roles for its three male leads, plus a drag act each in the second half which is genuinely funny, is as obnoxious in treatment as the slapstick comedies of Rohit Shetty or Anees Bazmi.

I suspect the actors had a whale of a time shooting the scenes. And Sajid Khan must have enjoyed writing the comedy of mistaken identity especially when the look-alikes keep multiplying as the plot progresses. But the growth is unstructured. It's like supplementary food being air- dropped to famine victims. The basic food items are missing.

What do you do with add-ons?

The comedy, ha ha, moves with the screechy stealth of a choir boys singing

Yo Yo Honey Singh's numbers when the head priest is on vacation.

Every member of the cast (and crew) seem to be in a vacation mood. Many of the gags stretch themselves out languorously as though the director commanded the camera to roll and then went off to sleep.

Saif and Riteish vacillate between being spoofy and spiffy with some help from Ram Kapoor who gets to play two characters, one of them suffering from what the medical experts on board for this specialized comedy refer to as "OCD Level 3''.

Riteish, a regular in Sajid Khan's cinema with titles beginning with "H': makes a better impression than Saifwho tries hard to show us he's in the fun nobrainer mood. Saif is clearly out of his depths indulging in the slapstick lunacy of a world that has no logic except to create a chaotic humour out of a stockpile of mistaken identities.

Oh, there are three ladies in the show who wriggle and pout whenever the plot is in doubt (which, as you can tell from the nature of the material, is very often).

Even the opposite-sexiness is handled more engagingly in the hands and chests of the three heroes wooing their own doubles in voluptuous drag.

While Saifwoos Riteish in drag and vice versa, bizarrely Ram Kapoor woo es himself in drag to create a kind of auto-eroticism that has no bearing on the fi lm's predominant

mood of sexual innocence.

To shock us, there are lots of gay jokes popping up when you least expect them to, as though the director wants to remind us that political incorrectness is not only about mistaken identities but also about identity crises.

Don't even try to make sense of the world that Sajid Khan builds.

The sand castle of goofiness can at any time be washed away by the high t ide. The director doesn't really care.

Sajid Khan takes potshots at himself and his sister Farah Khan by showing Himmatwala and Tees Maar Khan as part of torture curriculum in the mental asylum. Don't be surprised if the DVD of Humshaka/s shows up in Humshakals 2 as a torture device.

In one ofthe rare genuinely funny sequences, Saif and Riteish try to impress Ram Kapoor by pulling off the tablecloth from a table filled with food, promising as they do, that nothing will spill.

Of course all the food comes crashing down. But does the fear of falling ever hold back the broad comedy of ill manners which Bollywood thinks is funny?

Wish we had as much fun watching this film as the team seems to have had making it. Saif is shown to be a bad stand-up comedian. The film never outgrows its hero's character's craving to make people laugh.

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JULY 2014 45

Pretty Preity in Ness mess

KICKING UP A STORM

S

alman Khan's song Jumme ki raat, released recently as a teaser to his upcoming film Kick, has gone viral. Released appropriately on a Friday (jumma), the video shows a hunky Sallu romancing a ravishing Jacqueline Fernandes. It seems to have done its job, which was to whet the appetite of Salman fans across the diaspora eagerly waiting for the Eid release of the fi lm.

The song sung by Mika and Palak Mucchal is composed by Himesh Reshammiya.

Of course you can't help noticing the similarity to that other famous jumma number, Big Band Kimi Katkar'sJumma chumma de de from Hum (1991).

Salman himself agrees the similarities are there. "I love Jumma chumma; every time it plays on TV I watch the whole number!"

But his number is filmed differently, he hastens to add.

Regardless, the song has definitely kicked up a storm, with nearly 8 million views on YouTube for the film's trailer by the next morning. We wait to see if it translates to bums on seats, come Eid. A recent SRK-Kareena Kapoor pre-release of a song went similarly viral, but alas, did nothing for the film when it was eventually released.

Expectations from Salman and Kick are huge, especially since Salman's last release Jai Ho under-performed at the box office.

4 6 JULY 2014

Preity Zinta's allegation of molestation against her former beau and business partner Ness Wadia has not got much reaction from the film fraternity. Many like directorTanuja Chandra feel it's better to wait for the legal process to move forward and "avoid playing judge and jury ourselves;'while Moon Moon Sen feels"it is entirely their business''.

Chandra, who directed Preity in author-backed film Sangharsh, says, "I imagine she must have thought a great deal about it and hasn't done this on an impulse. Like all women in the country she has every right to approach authorities if she feels her individual space has been violated. We must wait for the legal process to move forward and avoid playing judge and jury ourselves''.

The outspoken Pooja Bedi has decided to sit on the fence.

She says:"Neither Ness nor Preity come across as a liar. Both are such lovely people. So it is just very unfortunate that it's all turning out the way it is. Having said this I feel it is for the courts to pass a verdict, not us''.

Neetu Chandra feels the matter is personal. However, she also feels Preity is not the kind to raise a hue and cry unnecessarily.

"As far as I know, she is a no-nonsense person and leads her life with dignity.

A break-up is never pleasant. Both the partners have to be very careful about preserving each other's self-respect in public after the break-up, for the sake of what they shared in the past''.

Preity lodged a written complaint againstWadia with the Marine Drive police station on June 12. She accused Wadi a, her former beau who co-owns the IPL team Kings XI Punjab with her, of grabbing her hand and abusing her during a cricket match in Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on May 30. Wadia has denied the allegations, terming them "totally false and baseless''. His friends have suggested that Preity is jealous because Ness has moved on and is now in a new relationship.

Actress-parliamentarian Moon Moon Sen feels the two should sit and talk it out, even though she says she admires Preity's courage here.

"Maybe there's a history of abuse and now it has erupted in a public place to embarrass both of them. Surely the two can sit down and sort it out. No matter how we look at it, it is entirely their business''.

Movie guru Shailendra Singh finds the

incident unfortunate.

"It's unfortunate that a girlfriendboyfriend fight has national import ance.

There are far more serious matters awaiting the nation's attention".

The battle of the newbies Fresh-faced Armaan Jain will soon make his acting debut with fellow newcomer Deeksha Seth and first-time director Arif Ali, in LekarHum DeewanaDil. The number of fresh faces continues to rise in Bollywood and Armaan Jain wishes them alI the best of Iuck. . . or so he says.

"There are a lot of youngsters, around l0to lS, ofmy age group doing the same genre of films;' he states.

"I believe in healthy competition. I hope we all work hard and have healthy competition. Hopefully, people accept my first film first and we all grow together''.

Yes you like healthy competition, we get it. .. but do we believe it?

Jain has worked with two former assistant directors Sidharth Malhotra and Varun Dhawan, who are now successful actors, and says that he bonded with them while assisting filmmaker Karan Johar on My Name Is Khan.

"I was an intern, joining towards the end of the schedule. I gotto spend a little bit of time with Sidharth and Va run during shooting schedule. It was great bonding with them,"says Armaan.

While he feels he is too young to explore the filmmaking part of the industry, he is not against it.

"When I started assisting, I wasn't aware of how films are made, what happens.

Once I got involved with technicals, I started making short fi lms. I used to try and get my hands into editing. I directed a short fi Im to understand the craft practically also. My main concentration is to get this film right and act for now.

Definitely at some point of t ime, I would love to direct a film. I love editing as well;' adds the former intern, assistant, editor and wannabe director.

Armaan is the cousin of actor Ranbir Kapoor, and has also shown interest in RK Films, the banner established by his

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"At some point, if my uncles or Ranbir do [revive the banner] and if they want to involve me in some way, I would be honoured to do so. If something comes up, then definitely,"says Armaan.

Lekar Hum Deewana Oil will release on July 4.

Lost in translation Ukranian ballroom dance expert Maksim Chmerkovskiy is visiting India to be the first internationa l judge of reality TV show Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, the Indian version of

Dancing with the Stars.

However, it seems that the housewarming was not so warm with reports claiming Maksim is already unhappy as a judge on the show as he cannot speak or follow Hindi.

Maksim was quick to deny the reports.

"That's not true. I am having a blast. And that report is bull- ;' he refutes.

"I came to India to embrace a new language and culture. This is a once-ina-lifetime opportunity for me. And I am enjoying every moment of it''.

Sounds legit. But he still can't understand a word of what the contestants and fellow judges say, with his own statements ticker-translated on screen.

Luckily, with a bit of help (and by that, we mean an entire production team), the ballroom prodigy battles on.

"I had hoped that the production team would understand there would be difficulties. And everyone is helping out.

I sit between Madhuri Dixit and Karan Johar. They're constantly telling me what's going on. It helps that the show is taped and doesn't go on air live. So, they stop the shooting and explain what's going on. The experience I am getting here is not something you get in a classroom;'he affirms.

At least something is going his way, with Maksim claiming that Bollywood contestants have a lot more respect for the judges on Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa than on

Dancing with the Stars.

First step to being a better judge on Indian TV: Hindi lessons!

The key to a healthy relationship: Breaking box office records Movie star Akshay Kumar's latest film Holiday -A Soldier Is Never OffDuty has minted Rs.102.62 crores in three weeks at the domestic box office and producer Vipul Shah could not be happier.

The Shah-Kumar partnership has once again struck gold with this fi lm adding to their collection of hits including Aankhen,

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However every relationship has its rough patches, for example the Action Replay fiasco.

"It has been a fantastic journey with Akshay;· Shah said, when talking about his partnership with the superstar.

"Holiday is our sixth fi lm together and four out of five films were successful. What is very important is that all films got a lot of credibility from the audience''.

Holiday is about terrorism, in which director A.R. Murugadoss focuses on sleeper cells and how quietly they merge into their target society before unleashing havoc.

The thrilling drama featured a new style of action directed by renowned British stuntman Greg Powell, known for his work in Hollywood's super hit franchises such as Harry Potter anc;t James Bond.

The filmmaker said the successes have helped them in winning a "good reputation''.

"My relationship with Akshay has reached that stage where we constantly want to do better work together. It has become stronger by the day;' said Shah.

We sincerely hope you've been buying him flowers. But we wonder, who pays for dinner?

No more Bipasha: Vashu Bhagnani Producer Vashu Bhagnani is so upset with Bipasha Basu, one of the female leads in his just released Humshakals, that he has decided not to work with her again .

Directed by Sajid Khan, Humshakals, which also features Riteish Deshmukh, Saif Ali Khan, Ram Kapoor, Esha Gupta and Tammannaah Bhatia, hit the theatres in mid-June.

The dusky beauty, who was m issing from all the promotional events of the film, stated that she was dissatisfied with the end result of her role in the fi lm .

Bhagnani says that he never misled her about her role.

"I asked Sajid myself to cast Bipasha," Vashu says. "She is a lovely lady. But I don't know what her problem is. It's not like we told her something and delivered something else''.

Is the feisty Bipasha too much of an alpha-woman for Bollywood's misogynist ways?

JULY 2014 47

BACKCHAT

••

I Dear Auntyji

Dear Auntyji l have been seeing this really nice boy for six m onths. About a month ago, I overhead his mother and aunt refer to him

On Facebo ok, my ex keeps posting pictures and comments about how much fun she is having wit h her new man, and she makes point ed

as adopted. I was shocked and amazed, vl but secret ly I was not su rprised because Ricky doesn't look anyt hing like h!s family lovlStV\855~ members. So Ricky does n ot know this because I tried to ask him in a number of ways wh ether he was adopted but he very proudly told me he was his fat her an d mother's du/ara. Yes, I know you're probably wondering who uses that word

references t o how crap I was. Each time she post s something, something inside of me dies.

I don't want her back, but I wish she wouldn't write such crazy st uff, you know what I m ean?

What should 1 do, Auntyji? I have not done the full tit-for-tat kind of thing, buttnan, I am so t empted. I wish I could just find myself a

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anymore, but he picked It up from a movie we were wat ching called Anmol Rishta or something. So it turns out his rishta with his parent s is not so Anmol after all. I am thi nking that in six weeks time, at a family gathering, I will ask Ricky's mum about t his and have her tell him to his face that he is not adopted and is her real son. I want t o fully expose her for the liar she is. So, I thought I would ask for your feedback on this first, I don't want Ricky to hate me after thfs, but I am doing him a favour. Please let m e know your thoughts, Auntyji?

Auntyji says My goodness, how old are you? Five? Seven? 17? You couldn't possibly be older than this because your total lack of common sense and empathy is indicative of a stupid bachchi, rather than a grown woman. Here is what is wrong with your nasamajh planning, you stupid kalaankani. How do you really know what Ricky's mum and aunt were speaking about? Were you part of the conversation? How do you know they weren't speaking about Ricky on Days of our Lives, because you do know that he was adopted right? Just after Bo and Hope got married. Wait, I am confusing myselfthere. In any case, your first mistake was to leap headlong into a conclusion w ith no basis. In doing that, it looks like you have yourself a concussion because your second mistake was to think, you horrid little besharam /adki that you can interfere in the lives of others. You have no right whatsoever to start making allegations about anything, and that too at a public forum. I mean, seriously, what were you thinking? All this is really none of your business and I would let sleeping dogs lie. Until you are told information first hand, you shouldn't do anything with this. And second, it's not your place to be the local grapevine. Having said all this, I'm beginning to think that Ricky deserves better than a churail like you, so by all means, go ahead with your plan. You will make it obvious to all that you don't deserve to be in that family then you can go and find some other family to torment. Man, you really have been watching too much Zee TV. Honestly, don't you have better things to do than to live a Zee TV serial of your own? And is your serial called, A busybody ki kahaani or Ek nadaan, pagal si /adki.

supermodel and post pictures on Facebook with pithy comments about how fabulous my life is. Do you have some honest candid advice for me, Auntyji? You know I really value what you have to say.

Auntyji says Ah, yes, Facebook, the place where friendships go to die and where people's spirits are slowly crushed. I have one very simple piece of advice for you. But first, I have a question.

What the fudge are you doing on Facebook anyway? Why are you on there vicariously living everyone else's meaningless and dull life? The only useful thing Facebook is good fo r is to help keep your self esteem down, where this one is getting promoted and that one is eating a fantastic meal and the other is living a lovey-dovey life with h is or her otherwise really boring other half. So, unless you are going to say th at you use Facebook to gather insights into human behaviour in order to predict the next big trend, I don't see any reason for you to be on Facebook. Who cares what your friends are up to. I mean, do you really care that Amrita from grade 6 is now married and living in Denver with two ugly, but intelligent kids who get trophies for w inning spelling contests? Do you really want to see narcissistic Ankhit posting p icture after boring p icture of his lovely-in-his eyes new wife Shila? And do you really, really care that Madhu ate aloo sabzifor breakfast?

Seriously, do you really want to know all this? No, you should want to know more important things in life, such as, how to eradicate poverty or malaria and what is Modi's five year strategy? So my advice is for you to get off Facebook, then you won't have to care what your ex does with whom. Remember she is playing to an audience of one. Why give her the satisfaction? Obviously you did not give her satisfaction when you were together, but she is getting her satisfaction now. Oh, I do hope this delicious irony is not lost on you!

In any case, get off Facebook, and live your own life. That's my candid advice to you. Now take it and go. Live your life. But not on Facebook for Vishnu's sake.

Do you have a question for Auntyji?

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