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JOELJENSON (Tutor) ATAR:99.90
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As we go to print, India has just celebrated its 14'" Pravasi Bharatiya Divas inBengalurn. Heralded as the largestever gatheringof overseasIndians, the event wasattended,as per official estimates,byover 7,000 delegates, of whom 1500 were NRis and 500 wereAoating NRTs.This from over 30,000,000 Rls globally.Yes, less cban 0.007%of the target audience werein attendance.
Once the annual conference isover, it may be worthwhile for thosein charge to question whether thereis a better way toengage with global Indians.That they want roengage isclear from the ongoing stagingof the PravasiBharatiya Divas (PBD),buris chis annual talk festwinningand makinginroadsinthe hearts and minds of theNRls? Do they deservemorefromthe governmentof India?
On onehand, wben NRis relinquish
their citizenship or residence status,they are lessof a responsibility of the Indian government. Yet, what the NRI has to offer roIndia, should be enough of an incentivefortheIndiango,rernment to work throughwaysof greater engagement with chiscommunity.
The 30 millionnon residemIndians arelargelyhighlysuccessfulin their new country. According co an estimate from a leadingUSsource, "If NRis were a country, their GDP would be in excessof US$800billion,equalto 40%of India's GDP, eventhough their population isless than3°/,, of resident lndians."There alsois an estimate chatNRls' remittances to India stood at US$68.91billionin2015, accounting for over 4%of the country's GDP. This is growingas moreIndiansfan out across the globe.
Looking at the financial returns alone, without takinginro account the softpower opportunities which this community can exert, this is an extremely important resource which shouldbe marshalled and used to work towards India's growth.
With an estimated 500,000peopleof Indian originin Australia,wedorepresent a very smallpart of the'Iodiaspora'. But what we lackinmm1bers,we do make up
inpassion for all things lndian.JLIStlook at the turnout duringd1e India-Australia cricket series,or d1erevenue figures from Australia when majorBollywood blockbustersare released, cobecome awarethatwhile the"Indiancan betaken out of India, itisharder cotaketheIndia om of theIndian".
On a more practical basis, PBD details need ro be circulatedin the community much earlier in die year ratherthan a few weeksprior co9January. MostIndian Australians plantheirIndia tripduring thisholiday rimemuch earlierin the year, and knowingdetailsof PBD may allow for agreater participation. Perhaps workingon a delegation representing Australian Indians to attend asa cohort, may bring further momentum from the community.
PBD is but oneoccasion of the many opportunities for theIndiangovernment to engage with dielocal community lnvit:ing greaterinteraction from the community such as an Australia India Day for an openfonm1 to meet with consular officials,could beone such new opportunity, by way of example.
Afterall, thepassion for providing greateroppornmities forLidiais shared by both Indian governmentofficeshere, and the local Indian community.
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Why Ignorance Is more dangerous than Musllm Immigration
This piece from RITAM MITRA sparked much debate on the dangerous ignorance and intolerance displayed by Sonia Kruger's comments
Aashath Kaamll wrote:Wellwrittenarticle.FullcredittotheauthorRitam Mitra.
Bikinisas well as blndls
Perth beauty Chandrika Ravi spoke with our MIMA YoungJournalist of the Year NAM/TA GOHIL about herpath to stardom
Chandrlka Ravi wrote:Whatafuninterviewthiswas!Definitelyoneofmy bestof2016's!
Trevor Pritchard wrote:Soawesome!You'rebeautifulandarolemodelfor others,Chandrika
Chura llya...l
She's still got it! RAKA SARKHEL on how Asha Bhos/e rocked her Melbourne andSydney concerts
Mahesh Berwal wrote:OneofthebestconcertsIhavebeento.LoveAsha
What the IPL can leam from the BBL SANAMSHARMA on what BCCI can learn from Cricket Australia about nurturing, managing, and promoting cricket
Aussie Phll wrote:IfeelforyouSanam.Itmustbefrustratingtoseecricket bastardisedasitisnowintheIPLandatthesametimeseehowitcanbe runifonlytheBCCIcouldcomeoutoftheirbunkerandsnifftheair.Ibet theyareverywellpaidbutisitvalueformoneyspent?Hangintherethough, withshrinkingviewersthesestick-in-mudsmayhavetoshapeuporshipout. Timewilltell.
High School, Check!
Year 12 finishers from 2015 shared their experiences with RADHIKA BHATIA Rusequlthe wrote:Thanksforsharingtheseinspiringexperiencesof learning,Radhika.Iwassoimpressedhowyoushowedsomeindividual experienceforeachpersonwhojustgraduatedonfromtheircourse.
After his recent tripto India, THE MUMBAI MUMBLER was unimpressed with Modi's demonetisation
Vlkas Kesarwanl wrote:Ithinkadecisionofsuchabigmagnituderequires timetomakeitseffectsknown,anditistooearlytomakefinaldecisionfor oragainstit.Therewillbetroubledtimesexpectedwithsuchdecisionsat large.Thisdecisionitselfwillnotincreasecorruptionashasbeenmentioned inthearticle.
Whatisforemostimportantisthatthepeoplewhoareopposingtheissue themostinthemediaarethepeoplewhoarenotthebigchunkofdirect taxpayers.Theyarethebusinessmenwhotransactalotincash,thattoo inmillionsofrupees(eventhewriterofthearticleisabusinessmanasit appears).Ortheyarethebunchofpoliticianswhowouldbehappierifthis wasabigblunderonthepartofthegovernment,butaretheoneswhohave gonetotheHighCourtandSupremeCourttogettheordinanceback,which isatestimonialthattheyarebadlyeffectedtotheirrootsandappeartobe lostcompletely.
WehaveseenthattheIndianmediahastriedhardtogetpeopletospeak badwordsaboutthegovernment'sdecisionbutfailed.Theopposition'stried tocallforanallIndia bandh, buttheyfailed.Thisshowsthemoodofthe publicwhoislargelyincorruptandwantsIndiatochangeatanycost. AtleastitnowappearsthatIndiaisaliveandtherearediscussionsof curbingcorruptionandpeoplearesupportiveinwhatsoeverway.Letswait andwatch fingerscrossed.
Uday Mitra wrote:Ihavereadyourarticleonthedemonetisationissue.I entirelyagreewiththeauthoronthepointsmade.IwasinIndiaduring8 Novto20Nov,andexperiencedfirsthandthehavocitcaused.ThemoneyI withdrewfromtheairportATMuponarrivalon8Novprovedtobevalueless assoonasIsteppedoutside.Themotivewasnoble,buttheexecution waspoorhavingnoregardfortheplightoftheordinaryIndiansandsmall businesses.ThisdoesnotevencountthelossGDPforthecountryas awholeduringtheprocess.Icouldnotbelievethatahighlyintelligent, sophisticatedcountrywithitsintelligentpublicservicecouldprepareso poorlyforsuchasignificantstep.
H.S. Subbaramalah wrote:GoodreviewondemonetisationbyTheMumbai Mumbler.Whetherthepurposeofthedemonetisationof86%ofIndian currencyachievesthetargetofourPrimeMinisterornot,onethingis defnite,therewillbeagreaterlosstotheIndiannationalexchequerinthe shapeoflostmanhoursbybankemployeesandextremelyco-operative citizensofIndia.Theyhad/haveshowntheutmostfaithintheabilityofour PrimeMinisterbystandingforhours,undergoingalltheinconveniences mentionedabovearticle.Thereisalsothecostofprintingthedevastated currencyaswellasthenewcurrencybeingprintedwithtransportationand otheroverheads.
Apartfromthat,over100peoplehavediedwhilestandinginthequeue, about53bankstaffriskedtheirjobs,theincometaxofficialsareontheir heelstocatchthebulkdepositors,anpoliceareonwatchtoseizebulk moneytransporters.Withallthis,thecitycorporationsandmunicipal councilsgotbacklongstandingarrears,alongwithsomebanks.Afewmoney launderingpersonsmadenewsonTVchannelswhicharetotallybusyin showingthehardshipofthehonestcitizensofIndiastrugglingtorestore theirfaithinanindividualoftheirdevotion.
Kala Raghunath wrote:Well,discomfortwasapartofthedealbutisnot theentirestory.IwasthereinIndiawhenthishappenedandmyfatherwas justoutofhospital.Itoofounditverydifficult,butthetruthismostofus Indiansdonotreallybelieveinfollowingrulesandtheyneedtopusheddown uponusbycertainforcetobeimplemented.Theideaisbrilliantbutyesthe implementationcouldhavebeenbetter,butremembertheyhadtokeepthis wholethingasecretsopeoplesufferingwasalwaysexpected.
Klrltl Mortha wrote:Here'smoreammunitiontocounterpeoplewith'Modiblinders'on!
Datwanl Chand wrote:SalutetothedeterminedSultan!Let'shopemany morearegeneratedwithhimasaprecedent.
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Dr GK (Hari) Harinach OAl\f, Chairof 1v[ulticulmra.L NSW, has been awarded the Indian Government's2017 Pravasi BharatiyaSammanAward for community service.
Heisamong30 awardeesannounced in Bengaluruon9January at the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD).
Indian-origin PormgalPrimeMinister
AntonioLuis Sanws da Costa and IndianbornUS diplomat Nisha DesaiBiswal are some of the other high-profile winners.
The 55-year-oldCosta,aChief Guest at thethree-day 14th PBD (Non-Resident Indian Day) celebrations, is the son of GoanfatherOrlanda daCosta.
Asa seniorIndian-Americandiplomat, the48-year-oldBiswal, who hails from Gujarat has been overseeing theUS foreign policy and relations with 11 countries in the regionfromBangladesh toUzbekistansince October21,2013.
Costa andBiswalhave been awarded for public service andpublic affairs.
"Of the awardees, six are from theUS, two eachfromBritain and United Arab Emirates (UAE) and oneeach from27 ochercountries the wodd over," noted the statement.
Five otheroverseasIndians fromdie
US sharing d1e honours wid1 Biswal areHari Babu Bindal for environmental engineering,Bharat HaridasBarai, Mahesh Mehta andRamesh Shal1 forcommunity service and Sampatkumar ShidranrnpaShivangi for community leadership.
Priti Patel and Neena Gill are the awardees fromBritain for public service.
Vasudev Shamdas Shroff and IndiaSocial andCulturalCentre from Abu Dhabi in the UAEare me winners for community service and philanthropy.
Two moreorganisationsAntwerpIndianAssociationin Belgimn and SingaporeIndian Association inSingapore have beenhonoured with the award for community service.
Theother winners for community service are),Naseer Abamed 1fohamed Zackiriah (Brunei), Nalinkumar Suman.LalKothari (Djibouti) and Ariful Islam (Libya).
Od1er two winners forpublic service are Pravind KumarJugunath(Mauritius) and WinstonChandarbhan Dookeran (Trinidad &Tobago)
Raghunach Marie AntoninManet (France) and Sandip KumarTagore Qapan) bagged honours for arts and culture. Ocherawardees are1-fokundBhikhubhai Purohit(Canada) andSusbeel Kumar Saraff (Thailand) for business; Vinod Chandra Patel (Fiji) forsocial service;LaelAnson
E. Best (Israel) for medical science;Tan Sri DatoMuniandy Thambirajah (Malaysia) for education & communityservice; Raghavan Seecharan1an (Qatar) for business management; Zeenat MusarratJafri (Saudi Arabia) foreducation andCataniBalaraman Sanjeevi (Sweden) formedicine.
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Name:Xenia Lopes ATAR: 99.2
Subjects: English Advanced, English Extension 1, Mathematics, Business Studies, Legal Studies, Economics School: HornsbyGirts High School
Whatwasyouroverallexperienceof Year12?Whatwereyourexpectations goingintotheyear?
XeniaLopes: My initial thoughts going into Year 12 were quite daunting. I wasnot preparedfor the endless hours of work and stress chat would fill the months tofollow and was definitely not prepared to beon lockdown, withno room forsocial events in the HSC calendar. I thought thatmy ATARgoalof getting99+ \Vasimpossible and nomatter how hard I worked, there were alwaysgoingcobekids fromselective schoolsandprivate schoolsaround the state char weresmarter than me and going toget better marks. But it was one of the most challenging yetamaz.ingly fun years of my life. As Iquickly organised thenext few months and planned my srndy accordingly, thestress ran dry and Ienjoyed Year 12 more than any of my other years at high school. It was nothinglikeIhadever imagined,J was travellingmore,goingout moreand makingmore new friends thanall thepreviousyears of high school. Although there weremany latenights at the library, I definitely think chat as rhe months passed, mygoal became more achievable and I realised chatmy results wort.Id only reflect the amount of effort that I had pm m.
PreethamKadappu:Year 12 was exciting, stressful,enjoyable and challengingall the whilefeelingas if it's just another year at school with everyone.There's nothing chat parallels all thenew paths opening upi.n your lifeand beingexposed to more of the "real world". Every year isa fresh slate for me,1 always try to have noexpectations and instead just try appreciate what mrns omin theend, andthis year wasno different. I feel as if it helps me both not slack off or gettoo caught upin past
Name: Preetham Kadappu ATAR: 99.90
Subjects: English, Mathematics, Mathematics Extension 1, Physics, Chemistry, Geography School: Sydney Boys High School
failures. On the whole havingno set expectations just made the entire experienceof Year 12more enjoyable, it made disappointments less harsh and achievementsmore fulfillingbutthat never avoids the faces that there are alwaysups and downs duoughout diisentire year, which was quite something coexperience.
KabirAgrawal: I enjoyed Year 12,alotof it was quite funfor me,especially Mathematics. GoingintoYear 12 was daunting,as it should be because itis such abigleap. In theencl,it becomes like a cricketgame,if you trainone week, then you should be fine for the weekend. If you train for a year,thenyou should befine for a few weeks of exams.
VineyKumar:The backdrop of d1e HSC loomed over the eventsof Year 12. Coupled with thestressassociated with decidingon universities,subject preferences and career choices,it was anunsurprisingly cough year. However, contra.ry tomy expectations, I stiliimmensely enjoyed my last yearof school despite the exams.I'm surethatmy memoriesof schoollife and the friendships I've forged overthepast few years will remain entrenched,evenafter d1e HSCbecomes adistant memory.
JasnoorMann: Ifound Year 12 tobe a challengingschoolyear,however,at the sametin1e it was excitingas I wouldfinally be finishingschool after 13 years. I was expectingan ATi\R resultof around99, givenhow I hadperformedinYear l1. I exceeded my expectations considerably scoringa high 99 ATAR,as well as achievingDUX of theschool.
HarjaapSingh:Year 12 was just as previoussmdentshad said; it wasgoingto be tough,butenjoyable attimestoo.This wasmy exactexperience.Duringexam times it was quitestressful however during
Name: KabirAgrawal ATAR: 99.70
Subjects: Mathematics Extension 1, Mathematics Extension 2, EnglishAdvanced, Physics, Chemistry, Economics School:SydneyBoys High School
Name:Viney Kumar
ATAR: 99.25
Subjects: Maths Extension 1, English Extension 1, Maths Advanced, English Advanced, Software Design and Development, Physics and Chemistry. School: Knox Grammar School
numberof tasks and obligations, moreover, I would strengthen the friendships 1 had made with many of mypeers to come out of the HSCin onepiece.,and it was that levelof supportthat made theHSC a far better experience than Ihadinitially anticipated.
holidays it was agood time to easeoff the smdy and relaxa little.
AshvinBandodkar:To bebrutally honest, Year 12 was arollercoaster of both challengesandemotions thatseemed to presenta newchallengearound every corner,however it wasall the more comfortingknowingdiatall yourpeers werein thesame boatas you. If Ihad to summarisemyYear 12 experience inone word, it would be diat of resilience.Year 12 was a huge eye-opener wid1 regardsto the importanceof pushingthrough and ensuringthat you learnedfromyour mistakes,and even more imporrandy did not takeyour successesforgranted. Having done my Chemistry HSC in Year 11, J walked intoYear 12 withgreat hesitation as to how J would balance all my remaining subjects over the courseof only one year. I knew thatYear l2 would be achallenge, however I neverstopped toconsider the fact d1at over the next year, not onlywould Ilearn how to balance a seemingly infinite
ChiraagBhalla:As my final year,I bonesdy found it my best and most enjoyable year. Obviously met with the increased academicpressure, I found thatit wasa great year to form valuable and great bonds with mycohort, as wellas forrning friendshipswith teachersyou mee[every singleclay. Alsomany forget thatYear12 is our transitionalyear to university,sothe increased freedomwasgreatly enjoyed! Beingd1oroughly preppedfrom elder family and friends,I can comfortably say l wasexpectingto beAooded with work and assignments that would i□e\Titably lock me inmy room. As the year continued, however, I learnt di.at d1epace you take. it at iscompletely up toyou, and it is upto you withwhat you decide tomake omof it. lr wasthisrealisationchat helped mesetmy own targets, somethingI hadto develop throughout the year.
XeniaLopes: The most important thingI learnt about myself was mypotential to work hard towardsagoal 1 was passionate about. Ididn't realiseunti.lYear 12 chat 1 badthe capability to even smdy for eight hours straight if it meant chat1 would be one step closer toachievingmy encl HSC goal. T learnt to be more resilient,even when I didn't get the mark 1 was expecting and1 chink most of all I realisedhow much growtl, capacity I have as an individual to dogreat thingsin the fumre.
PreethamKadappu: I th.ink Year 12 helps
,, Eventhough my subjects didn't have ngreat scaling", I knew Iwould be in a better position if I actually enjoyed the subjects. By playing to mystrengths, I was still be able to get a goodATAR
''
Xenia Lopez
Name: Jasnoor Mann
ATAR: 99.70
Subjects: Mathematics (2 Unit), Mathematics Extension 1, English Advanced, Chemistry, Physics, Business Studies School: Parramatta Marist High
Name: HarjaapSingh
ATAR: 98.35
Subjects: Chemistry, Physics, EngineeringStudies, Mathematics Extension 1and 2, English School: Glenwood High School
Name: Ashvin Bandodkar
ATAR: 99.95
Subjects:: Modern History, Chemistry, Biology, Economics, English (Advanced), Mathematics Extension 1and 2 School: Girraween HighSchool
Name: Chiraag Bhalla
ATAR: 99.50
Subjects:: Advanced English, Mathematics Extension 1 and 2, Physics, BusinessStudies, Economics School:Girraween HighSchool
you learn multiple aspects about yourself as a person and orient yourself forthe future
KabirAgrawal: I felt enlightened. o,not really! I just felt that l reallywasa lot better than l thoughtafter changingmy mindset. I mean, youjust understanda lotmore about your own capabilitiesandwhat exactly someonecan achieveif focus is applied and you just have funwith the subjects.
VineyKumar: Ibelieve the HSC and the circumstancessurroundingmy HSC year taught mehowtosec myown goals and bowto systematicallywork toachieve tl1em. TheHSC isnot just one setof exams-it's a marathonoveran entire year that endswitl1 tl1e final examsin October. Ilearnt that by focusingonmygoals for thefuture, I could overcome any barriers toachievement in any aspectof my life. Ialsofoundomhow valuable motivationwasas a resource.
During theholidaysand through first two weeksof term three,I undertook a sixweek researchinternship at the Massachusetts Instituteof Technology (l\lII1),Boston. Thisremoved much of the time I hadto study for tl1eexams,and I rem.med to schoolonly twoweeks before thedreaded trialexams began. Despitethis difficult circumstance,the motivationI had accumulatedfromthisamazing e.xperience allowed mecocondenseeightweeksof smdyintotwoweeksand achieve the best resultdiacI could.
JasnoorMann: Ilearnt thatI had the abilitycoworkhard andstay motivated, which ultimately allowed me coachieve and exceedmy goals.
HarjaapSingh: I learntd1acIwas capable of doing somethingwhichI previously had thoughtwas outof my reach. Developing multitaskingskills and learninghowto manage stresswas all due co my experiences ofYear 12.
AshvinBandodkar: The first thingI learned about myself was that IreaUy needed mysleep, and so toallfuture HSC studentsIwould recommend,at tl1every least, takingnaps to make sure youcan makeit through schooland smdyingat home. As theyearunravelled,Ilearned that I stoppedworryingaboutwhat everyone elsewas doingandstartedfocussing on just myself.Of course, it'salways good to know and care abouthow your peers are doing, howeverI feel chat throughdirecting my attention towards myown challenges that I got throughwork a lotguicker andwith much less stress.
ChiraagBhalla: Itwasthe first time that I realised chat I actually enjoy studying! Previously,I found studying a chore,and my results reflected char. However, aftera clearvisualisation of my goalsand targets,I could see my efforts in studying had a direction. Andthrough thisprocess, I actually began toenjoythe subjectsIwas learningand was motivated to do thework. Whatwasyourstudyingtechnique?Did youhaveanyaddedsupportfromatutor orathome?
XeniaLopes: I had gu.ite a miique studying technigue;Ineverstudied athome,but rather at ilie library.To myparents,thiswas strange at first as they never saw me study and tl1oughtIwasn't caking tl1e HSCas seriously as I should have. But after myfirst assessments, they realised that chiswasdie rightstudy techn.igue for me. Ilooselyprelearned thesyllabus for my content heavy subjectsandwrote my English essays many weeks before d1e exam sotliattheweeks leadinguptoexams werenotas stressful as I had nonewcontentto learn. In the1wo weeks before any examperiods,Iwould start revising and doing past papers -which
I d1ink was the most importantpractice for any exam, especially under rimed conditions.
PreethamKadappu: I always used co cake notesof what we didin classthe day and onceIwasborne,detailthemwith any ocher resources - textbooks, interneeor classmates. EveryweekendI'd go through chem side by sidewith tl1e syllabus,ensuring I'd marked every poinr. Then as my major exams cameup,I'drewriteall thenotesI had untild1atpointin a condensed form. It didn't cakelong, usually less than 1 hour each day, butnearing examswould reach 2-3 hours a day.Tutoringhelped me reinforcewhatIwas learning at school, and consolidated my knowledge. Bue much morenecessary tomy successwasthe ongoingsupportat home,myfamilywere extremely understanding of my situation and guided meilirough the year and more importantlylet me skip doing chores.
KabirAgrawal: Iaimed to study in chtmks. So d1e idea for mewasto groupchunks of common information toged1er and learn chis through a stepby seep Row,and th.is was commonly applicable tophysics,
chemistry and econoniics. For English and l\fathemarics, it is purely through practice andperfection,writing essaysand doing questions under rimepressure.Yes,I didget help from other mtors.
VineyKumar:Before thestareof the school year,I had been encouraged to come upwith astudy timetable. However, tl1ese timetables hadn'tworked for meinpast years, and I had picked upthe unfornmate habit of discarding d1e plan after aweek or so,asit simplywasn't flexibleenough tobe adaptable. OnetechniqueI used was to construct a "Not Smdy" plan,where I listed down alltbeextra-curricular and od1er activities Iwanted cocomplete during the week (e.g.music practice, sports training rimes ere).Aftercompleting thisplan,1was able cofind theoptimal rimeswhen l could putinblocksof study. Iwas never tempted to disregard theplan as it contained all the things Iwas really excited aboutduringYear 12! 1n addition, the smaUspaces in my plan nor covered by a massof extra-curricular activities made me aware oftl1elimited time I had,which certainly renewed my focuson thetasksathand. Od1er than this, I used past examinationsas my fall back method of smdying,as thesepaperswere reliable ways robecomeexposedtomany different guescion types and topics LL11der exam conditions,while also improvingmy exam technique.
Myparents pmin a lotof effort to accommodate for my study and od1er commitmemswasabsolmely incredible,and ic certainly enabled me to succeed in my studiesand in otherareas this year. My grandparents from India also made aspecial effort andwere here right on rime to support me from tl1e trials all the way to d1e HSC results.
JasnoorMann: My studying cechniguewas
,, Make sureyou enjoy Year 12. It is honestly the best year of high school, and the friendships you form are ones that youwill truly value ,, ChiraagBhalla
focusedon addressingall therequirements of the syllabus dotpointsandcompleting as many past papers as Icould.Also,I had tutoring for afewsubjects which was very helpful.
HarjaapSingh: Ilearntmuch berter when I wrote down all ofmy notes as compared to typingthem upon a PC. I was only tutoredfor Extension2 Mathematics and Chemistry.
AshvinBandodkar: For me, the most important thingtoconsider whilst studying was to ensnrethat I dedicated equal amounts of time roalJof my subjects, whichmeant30 minute rotations between each subject, which1 repeatedoverthe courseof each evening I never really botheredstudyingduringrecessor lunchat school because that was my time tojust rellLx withmates. As far as tutoring goes, I had a wonderful supportnetwork of tutors for Mathematics,Biology andEnglish, alongside my mother who's a Chemistry teacherherself.
ChiraagBhalla:My studyingmethodology relied heavily ontask delegation and recordingalltasks and assignmentsIhadro complete.Thismeam thateachday whenI came from home,I knew what tasksIhad togetdone, andit was these minitargets th.at allowedmetostay ontrack intheJong run. DuringYear 11,1 noticed that l had a fewconceptual gapsin a fewsubjects,so 1 soughtthe aid ofan external tumr.
Howdidyoudecidewhatsubjectsto pickandwhy?
XeniaLopes: Going inco thePreliminary and HSC years,I was often told topick subjects drnr "scaledwell"or I wouldn't be able to get a goodATAR. However, d1ese "high scaling subjects" weren't really me subjectsI waspassionate aboutor enjoyed very muchin junior school. I wasn't keenon studyingScience and l didn't really like Maths so l decided ro stick tomy strengths and focuson socialsciences.Forme, even though these subjects didn'thave "great scaling",1 knew I wouldbe in a better positionstudying for the next two years of my li.fe if I actually enjoyed the subjects and byplayingmy strengths,I would still beable rogetagoodATAR
PreethamKadappu: I decided copick subjects basedon my interest in me subject, my strengd1sand time management. I was alwaysinterestedin the sciencesandin maths,and luckily they werealsomy strengths. Ionly didExtension l rather d1an Extension2Maths becauseof rheextra ti.me [ wouldget which I used to workon my weakpoints.Geography was a subject I
wasn't coo interestedin,but ir was a strength of mine, which is why I choseit.
KabirAgrawal: I mainly pickedme sciences because they are the most logical subjects, unlike Englishin which there are so many possible answers mat can be expressedin so many differentways.
VineyKumar: I picked my wbjects based mainly on a combinationof interest and career ambitionsas a Year 10 student. Scalingis alsoan additionalfactor,but it only plays a rolein decidingthe marks one needs to scorein each subject inorder to achieve any particular J\TJ\Rscore.As long as you deem these marks tobe achievable and the marks themselves arenot affected too much bychancefactors thatvary from exam toexam, scaling factors shouldnor inAuencedecisions. However, I would encourageanyonewhois cryingtodecide on subjectsforYear 11 and 12topick AdvancedMad1s and English (orhigher),as these subjects are of vital importancein developing the criticalmin.kingand writing skills which areessential for university.
JasnoorMann: Building uponmy interests fromYear 7-10, I chosesubjects that I enjoyedand wanted to potentially pursue a degreeor further study in university
HarjaapSingh: Ihad decided what course I wanted to study atunivei-sityby d1eend ofYear 10 so Ichose thesubjects thatmer the prerequisitesto increasemy chances of being given admission. 1 also enjoyed a challenge and d1at iswhy Ipicked more
academic subjects.
AshvinBandodkar:After speakingto a lot of my teachersand friends in the year above,it becameevident that if 1 was codo well, I wouldneedcochoosesubjects that I had aninterest in. That definitely meant lockingin my twosciencesubjects,a.s well as Economics and1:vfodern l-listory. I chose those subjects with the aim of having a well-rounded studying experjence. I definitely enjoyedthehigh levelof thinking involvedin Extension2 Mathematics. ChiraagBhalla: My subject selection was basedon my natural interests mat I discovered duringYear 10. Ithink this was oneof my best choices,becauseoften students fallin the trapof pickinghigh scaling subjects. Whilst d1is is goodfor chose whoenjoy the subjects, forcing yourself to study a subject youdon'tlike for two yearsis alot harder than it sounds.
Didyoufeeltherewasmuch competitionwithinyourcohort?
XeniaLopes; At a selective school, there was definitely competition withinthe grade. TheATARsystem works in such a way that it pitsstudentsagainst each od1erin competitionfor thehighest possible rank and naturally with this comes a lot of competition. However, asthe mondis passed andmy cohort began to realise that the HSC exams were soon dawningupon us, thecompetition disappeared and we begansharingnotes andhelpingeachod1er toensure we all did really well,toged1er. It was when we realised d1atwe all needed to work together that we were able to help each other and motivate each other to achieve the best results we couldinour final exams
PreethamKadappu: At any selective school there will becompetition,but l felt as ifwithinourschool,it wasn't a hostile competition,people were sti11very cooperativewith each other,and we would often runpeer tutoring during lunchtimes and before exan1s. The competitivenature of eachpersonmade us strivecobe the best,but alsodidn't make us forget about ourpeers.
KabirAgrawal:There is always competition. Especially at the top endof any cohort. lt becomes really pressurising becauseonce you get to the top, there is always the need tostay there because things can changevery,very quickly.
VineyKumar: While there was competition amongst my cohort at school, it was friendly competition and \Ve never let academic competitionstandin the way of personal friendship. In fact, everyone inmy
cohort supportedeach other and helped other students tobounce back afteran exam setback This culture of peer teaching was immensely helpful as it helpedeveryone to succeed, as mere was always somed1ing to]earnfrom the experienceof teachingthe contentto someoneelse.
JasnoorMann:Yes,my cohortwas very competitive, which was beneficial for all students as wepushed eachother to improve.
HarjaapSingh: Competition was always present howeverthis allowedfor positive growth. Withoutcompetitionstudents including myself wouldnothavepushed themselvesas far to gain the bestoutcome
AshvinBandodkar: Throughout the year, I like to think that d1e healthy competition wid1inour gradeis whatmorivated mostof us to achieve our absolute best in every one of our subjects. That beingsaid, there was never a time where individualsin my cohort wouldnothelpone another,andas such I believe thatme competition we had establishedbetweenourselves was mere as a motivator to do our best.
ChiraagBhalla: When 1first started Year 12, l ,vas expecting students tobecome a lot morecompetitive,andfriendships to strain under the stress. However, contrary to my thought,I sawmy cohort become stronger and tighter than ever before.This was largely due to acultural changeour school introduced, and the benefitsinperformance and mentalhealth have beenpositive and encouraging.
Whatextra-curricularactivitiesor hobbieshelpedyoumaintainabalance betweenworkandplay?
XeniaLopes: DuringYear 12, for me it was really imporu'lllt to maintain a balance between work andplay.Being heav ly involved in the community in theyears leadinguptoYear '2,I didnotgiveupany ofmy commitments duringmy T-ISC year. I played netballon Saturdays with my team of five years,practiced music lessonsonce a week and volunteered atd1elocalRedCross Shopas a retail volunteer, completing my GoldDuke of EdinburghAward during Year 12. I became apart of many school committeesto keep myselfbusy during lessons and relieve d1e stress that came up from just beingin the atmosphere of the HSC year.
PreethamKadappu: I always tried to involve myself in as many extracurricular co make sure I didn't overworkmyself, d1ese included sporttennis,basketball and soccer • which I would have games foron Saturdays;music • Iplay the guitar and diat
,, The first thing I learned about myself was that I really needed my sleep, and so to all future HSC students Iwouldrecommend good sleeping habits. Second, I learnedto stop worrying about what everyone else was doing and startedfocussing onjust myself ,, Ashvin Bandodkar
•
hasalways beena sourceof relaxation;and I,vould vohmteerat several different places ona weekly basissuch asat a childcare and at anEnglish IntensiveHigh School.
KabirAgrawal: My mainextra-curricular activicywasplaying sport, especially cricket, whichwas themajoroutlet forme through school. Iwould also just spend rime watching TVfor some rime,usually a regular showsuch as Scorpion.
VineyKumar: My mainextracurricular activitiestncluded captainingtl1e 1st sguash and chess tea.msand playing tl1e Autein tl1e school symphony orchestra and wind ensemble.These activitieswere definitely bothengagingandrelaxingand helped me to maintain a balance betweenwork and play.
JasnoorMann:I occasionally played video games, watched sports onTVand played sportswith friends.
HarjaapSingh: Flying is a passion of mine and being able to go ro airport and rake
control ofa small engine aircraftallowed meto getaway from all the stress of Year 12.
AshvinBandodkar: A lot of whatIdid aside fromstudyinghappened at school, and I am so graceful to havehad the opportunity to dothese activities as my formof stress relief tl1isyear.Serving as the School'sVice-Captainallowed meto heavily imrolvemyself in our school community, and tluough partakingina.lJ the variousprefect-organised events throughout me year, served asa great oppornmity ro rake a break from srudyingwhilst doing sometlungproductive. Other tl1an that,1 canhonestly say char itwasjust me recess and lunchthat Ispent relaxingwithmates thathelped meget through and talk to them about the struggles of 4UNfath of how muchwe all hated English,and tlrnt really helped me find tl1at balancebetweenwork and play.
ChiraagBhalla: I quickly noticed tl1at
from the beginningof Year 12 Iwould have to maintain a healthy balanceof extra activities co prevent themetaphorical "burningout"everyonewarns you about. Forme,I did this through regular activities that l found relaxingand allowed to exit schoolthought. Withinmyschool,Iwas in my debating and chess team. In my community,1would regularly volunteer and actingas aYouth Ambassador for che Red Cross further helped me.
WhatisyourmostmemorableYear12 experience?
XeniaLopes: The lastfewweeksof Year 12wereguitememorable.Wehad just finished allourcontent and wewere done with all theschoolexamsand our trialsand itwas time to complete our high school journey. The events that the school put on during d1is time definitely made it harder co enjoy the factthat wewerefinally going to bedonewirnschool anditwasespecially
ourYear 12 concerttl1atI tl1ink I,vill remember fortl1erest of my life.
PreethamKadappu: Desp te every great memory of th.is year, ringingme bell aswe walked out of Chemistry,our last exam,has to betbemostmemorablemomentof Year 12. Nothing could compare to the point wherewe finally crossed the finish line, and with our sanity intact asan added bonus. KabirAgrawal: My most memorable experience is related tocricket game in school team where I took 7wickets and gave away 6 run in8 over when we played against SydneyGrammar School.Th.iswasa record breakingbowlingfigure in tl1e history of Sydney Boys' High School. Sure enough,Icouldn'tbelieve Iwas getting wicket afterwicket off smart bowling, and 1 cangenuinelyremembereachof me 7 wickets I took evennow.
VineyKumar: The week before graduating fromYear 12wasabsolutely awesome.lvfy schoolmade this celebrationincredibly
HarJaap Singh • Jasnoor Mannspecial,holdingeventsrangingfrom Year 12 breakfasts, to muckup days and even an entirefunfilled carnivaldaycompletewitha bouncingcastle!Year 12 presenrntion day was anincredible way tocapit all off and finish my schooling career at Knox.
JasnoorMann:Achieving the Duxof my school,as well as receiving theSenior Cup for EnglishandScience.
AshvinBandodkar: Unlike rhe blur of assessments Ifaced this year, my most memorableYear 12 experience would have tobe hostingthe annual schoolMusic,Art, Dance and Drama production alongside my otliercaptains. Havingtheopporumity to justhave a laugh along with our whole school for onenightand view some amazingexamples of music and dance was somethingI will always remember, and was oneof tl1e fe,vmomentsindieyear that we could alltruly forget ourstudying commim1entsand relaxa little.
ChiraagBhalla: My mostenjoyable exper:ience was afterourTr:ial examinations, when several of my mates decided togoon a roadtrip tomentally reset and relax. It was one of the best choices I made to go, andthe memories Ihave aregreat.
Whatwouldyoudodifferently?
XeniaLopes: I'm quitehappy with how this year wentbmI thinkthere aretwo things mat Iwould dodifferently if I had to doit all over again. Firstly, I think l would have wanted tocomplete. an accelerated HSC subject before my HSC year to remove die workloadI had in Year 12 as many of my classmatesdid do ili.is and it really relieved their stress levels. Theotlier rbing would be droppingExtensionMathematics sooner as I feel like 1 did waste half ayear doingthe examsforthesubject and studyingfor it even though I dropped it before theHSC.
PreethamKadappu: Noiliing, nor because of what I've achieved, bur becauseof the fact that 1 putin my best effott throughout the journey,and the ability togoforward knowingmar evenif I wasn't gifted by sucli results,I would still be ablero say 1gaveit my all.
KabirAgrawal: I wouldhave loved ro changeeverything if I could. I would've done alotbetter if I clianged my study techniqueearlier. But I would also rry and improveme way 1 approached life, especially talkingroothersaboutsomething different toacademics.
VineyKumar:Sleep moreby procrastinatingless.Adequate sleepis increclibly important forsuccessin the classroom as well as in examsituations. Even anhourcan make a huge difference. Procrastinatingon tasks less wouldhave enabled me to sleep a little earlier, enhancingmy performance in thelongrun.
JasnoorMann: InhindsightImink I should have been less stressed and been more optinlistic throughout theyear.
HarjaapSingh: I believe theoutcomeof my results was quite satisfactory so I wouldn't doanyth.ingdifferently.
AshvinBandodkar: Lookingback,I always regretnorgoingbeyond diescope of thesyllabusandonly rememberingwhat I absolutely needed to know.Tbesubjects westudents areofferedhaveanincredible breadth and coverage, and so if 1 were to dothisallover,l would probably setaside more time beforeeachexam tohave a wholesome undersrnndingof my subjects in order to truly appreciatethem.
ChiraagBhalla: I learnt thatin theirutial stages,I was relyingheavily on motivation tokeep megoingand sn1dy.Whilst this doespush you to smdy in the early stages, you quickly learn that motivationis only temporal. It was only later matl learnr the
valueof discipline, and it is something 1 hope to integrate duringuniversity and further life.
Whatperksdidyouenjoy(eitherat schoolorathome)?
XeniaLopes: I think the best perkwas definitely not having co do chores at home, haha. Jokes aside, my school did giveYear12s some an1azingperks which included ourveryownYear 12 cottagewitha functioninglcicchen, lunch access coWestfield Hornsby andof course ourwitty name jerseys whichwerethe best perk of being Year 12s.
PreethamKadappu: Our school was notonly academic oriented, but was stronglysupportiveof cocmriculars and excra-curt:iculars andprovided uswith more opportunities topartakein chem than otherschools,which wasthe best perk of my schoolingcareer.
KabirAgrawal: 'i,\'lell, I lovedto playsports andjustas much,I love academics, and having this balancewas definitely a perk of going to Sydney Boys' High.
VineyKumar: I received incredible support from my parents for my endeavours.Thiswas backedup by facilities available atschool. I made particular useof a facilityknown as "eveningstudy",which aUowedstudentsco srudy in the Library after schooluntil 9pm (witha break for dinner). In addition, I did nothave co undertake a part time job during my final year of school.
JasnoorMann: My parents looked after me verywellwitl1food, support and less chores, aUowing meto focus on my studies and atschoolmy friendswerealso motivated to dowell.
HarjaapSingh:Time to rimecoupleof school friends sit cogether inpark andeat pizza dmingstressful rime. Arhome1 asked mtm1tocookmy favourite dishes.
AshvinBandodkar: I think the biggest perkof the HSCis tl1e ability to useit asan excusefor almost anything, and for me, that certainly came in the form of gettingmy brother to do all thehousework (although I'm surehe'll remrn the favour intwo years when hesicsthe HSC).Otl1erthan thatI think that the HSCmakes chose around you a lot morecaringandsympathetic,which acmaUy really marter given the high level of stress involvedin doing everything in the span of only one year.
ChiraagBhalla:To break the monomny
of continuous studying, Iwouldprovide myself perks after 1 achieved each of my study goals. Often thiswould be watchinga TVshowor movie afterwards,guilt free,or even just meetingupwith mates. I felt that this method of study first,enjoy later,was personally really effective as it felt more earned and continuedto drive meto smdy inthe fumre.
Whatdoesthefutureholdforyou?What areyouhopingtostudyatuni?
XeniaLopes: I recently receivedan early offer from tl1eUniversity of Sydney to study in the prestigious CombinedLaw Program. In thisprogram Iwill be studying aBachelorof Laws/Bachelor of Commerce.
PreethamKadappu:For me,I never know, I would like tosay Ihave a set out plan or knowwhereexactly I'm going, but over thepast yearI'velearned ro dealwith life as it comes, as it's coo spontaneous for any plans to be made soearly on. I'm hoping to study either medicineor actuaries andscience double degree. lam reallj'and almost equally interestedinboth.
KabirAgrawal:Thefumre isalways unexpected. But I aim to be a successful Actuary graduatewhoisalso agood cricketer,andthis much I can strive to achieve in thefumre. Obviously, it is not going to be easy,butI can alwaysendeavour for the best.
VineyKumar: Ihopecocombine my passionforMaths andSciencewith my love for debating,publicspeakingandwriting by stud)�nga combined degreeinLawand Mathematics at meUniversity of Sydney. It's incredibly exciting for me and I'm looking forward to seeingwhat the future holds for me there!
JasnoorMann: Iwasvery interested in sciencein my schooling years andwant to study AdvancedScience in theTalented
Smdent Program (TSP) at UNSW. HarjaapSingh: 1 am planning to study at tl1eUniversity of NewSouth \Vales inthe courseBachelor of Aviation (Flying) and attain myCommercial Pilot License.
AshvinBandodkar: In all honesty I'm not smewhere exactly Iwill endup,bur Ihope that next year l v.rillhavetbeopportunityco smdy l'v[edicine or somehealth-related course at universicy.
ChiraagBhalla: In2017,l am planning on studyingLawandCommerce atme Universityof Sydney.Thechoicewas hard tomake as Ihad co declineaCo-Op scholarship and Cadetship, but itwill help me better reach my professional and personal goals.
Whatwouldyouradvicetofuturefinal yearsmdentsbe?
XeniaLopes: I th.ink the best adviceI can give is never give up. Duringthose 12 monthsof tl1e HSCyear,it can bequite hard to continue toworkco me best of your abilities andget back upwhen something has knockedyou down,bur tl1e an1onnr of effort that you pmin to your Year 12 studies will definitely be reflectedin your reslllts, andyouwill receive a reward for youreffort! Also, don't forgetto treat yourself, take breaks and take some time to chill out once in awhile before you start co burn yourself out. The Year 12experience is somethingthat canteachyou many dungs about yourself anditisalso oneof the most enjoyableexperiences of yomlife so make sure you take advantageof all opportunities thatcome yourway!
PreethamKadappu: Although it'll be a 100111 sprint on tl1e racetrack in the course of our lives,whilewe go through ic,it feels more likea 1000 mile kayak across the Pacific Ocean.Remember co nor let the tides of results, hobbiesorrelationships carry you too far from your goals,and alwaysknowthat you'llnever be alone. Good luck for your endeavours!
KabirAgrawal:The best piece of advice l can give isrelax and balance the\vork. During tl1eexam period,always relax so diat youcan remain mentally strongwhen doing me exams. When I say balance the work,1mean make sureyouput equal effort intoeach one of the subjects that you do,because tl1eHSC is dependent on multiplesubjectscores, not just onesubject.
VineyKumar: Despiteexams,thefinal year of school can be as enjoyable asyou make ic. Findways to makeit enjoyable and fun, andtl1e examswillbeoverin no time! Also,watch our for alternativeentry
pathwaysinto Lmiversity, aseach university has at least one of these programs. Apply for them midway throughYear 12,as these pathways can ease the added burden of universiryplaces beingdependent upon exan1marks, and enable you to focus on the exam and ease thenerveswhen tl1ecrunch rimecomes.
JasnoorMann: Itis important to setgoals, study hard andconsistently,while maintaining a balancewithleisure activities and lastlyto do yourbest.
HarjaapSingh: Iwouldadvise future students to keepcairn and collected because if you put your mindto studying, you can achievetheresults yonwant.
AshvinBandodkar: Honestly the best pieceof advice I can give foranyone sitting the HSC chis year is to bewell-aware for what you'rein for, and ensure that you do not place all your efforcs intoone subject. I also constantly remember pushingmyse.lf to writeheaps of English essays because,at me endof me day,ic has to count! Ocher than that be sureto not burn yourself out, coexerciseregularly andkeep your family and friends close; you'll definitely need them toget throughit all!
ChiraagBhalla: I am surestudentsgeea lot of adviceabout smdying hard and getting good results,and that .is really important. 1 personally feel itis aJoe easier when you knowthe WHY of why you are smdying, andwhat itis dedicatedcowards. Also make sure you enjoy Year 12. leis honestlythebestyear of high schoo� and the friendshipsyouform areones that you willtrulyvalue.
Xenia: Stressful yet rewarding
Preetham: Unforgettable challenging adventure
Kabir:
IMAGINE with all your mind
BELIEVEwith all yourheart
ACHIEVE with all your might
Viney: Veni, Vidi, Vici
Harjaap: Challenge persistence commitment
Chiraag:Justhavefun
Ashvln: Exciting, challenging and humbling
,, Ibelieve the HSC taught me howtoset my own goals and how to systematically workto achieve them ,, VineyKumar
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left him.
BYKIRA SPUCYSTAHARAlone and frightened. The young boy,just five years old,waits for his brother to return. Thinking his brotheris on board, the boy climbs aboard awaiting train which takeshim thousands of kilometres across India.
He lives on thestreetsof Kolkata for severalweeks,farfromhome,barely surviving.
UrbanIndia is not kind to yetanother child beggar.
But luck shines on the young boy. He findshimself at anorphanage. Adoptedby an Australian couple,John and SueBrierley,thelittle boy grows up in Tasmania.
Twenty-five years later,haunted by memories,hepainstakingly pieces cogerher railway lines andsnippets of memory, using Google Earth to track down and reunite withhis home town andbirth mother.
The story of Sa.rooBrierley and his remarkable journey, first to Australia and then rerurningto Indiaona quest to find his birthmother,is nowwell-known."It's nor norma�"Brierley admits.''Ir'sabsurdreally."
Firstwritten as an autobiographical book, ALong llV�yHome, the incredible story is nowthe subject of a newHollywoodfilm, Lio11, directed by Australia's Garth Davis, starringDev Patel and Nicole Kidman.
Brierley never forgot his Indian family, and tl1ememories of his tin1e in lndia never
"Itwas definitely scary. I don't think those events you couldeverforget. I think it'sscarred inmy memory,"Brierley tells TndianLink. "Thosememorieswere daunting,but ultimately chat intense memory iswhathelped me findmy way horne.Some peoplewouldgo,'Ymtmust have been so traumatised', but I think I was quire resilient. Iwasn'ttaughthowto decrypt it.I neverhad therapy or anything like mac.Itwasleftto mecomake a decision aboutwhatI thoughtabout it,how co process it."
Resilienceis a key themein Briedey's story. Hewrote the book asa personal reAectionin an attempt to help andinspire otherswhohave becomeseparatedfrom their family.
''I had been carryingthisweight on my shoulders, bu[ I achieved, I did it," Brierley says. "Itwas aboutsharingthat knowledge."
The harrowing, against-tl1e-odds scory has captivated audi.ences.
"This has been apowerfuljourney and awhirlwindtimeforme," Brierley says.
"As I stepback, I realisetherearethese themes- everythinghappensfor a reason. Therewas this nostalgia.Iwouldhear songs that,vould bringmemoriesback. Watchingchildren play innuclearfamilies would bringmemories back. I had lotsof dreamsontl1eastralproject side of things.
I had these out of body experienceswhere I wouldmaterialise on the streetsof my old hometown.That kep[tl1ememories a.live, perpentaliy inmy mind."
ReAectingonthe powerful ability of tl1e bra.intoadapt,Brierley says, "The bra.in is a fascinatingor!,>aninstilled witl1 adaptability,instinct, emotions,ability to wander. I followed that and led co my
accomplishment.Thiswas just my destiny."
Movingto Australia,growing upin Tasmania,Brierley sayshe never really felt singled out or different.
"l minktl1atwas there,but 1wasjust so used cochangeand transition. One minute Iwaswitl1 my family. The nextIwason a train,wantingfor,searchingformy family. Then IwasinKolkata and thenin Australia. Change just seems to bewithme,"hesays. "Therewasn'tmuch of an issue. I didn't registerwhatpeople thoughtof me. Ijust tookit a dayat atimeand wasgrateful tobe ina lovingfa.nlily."
Brierley was involved in the script development of thefilm, but then left it up to the directorand actors to tellhis story. "lfyou'vegot agreat script,it'sup to everyone elsetobringit to life."
Hewatched the film for the first time togetherwith his family.
"Iwasholdingontomy seat so hardmy fingernails were diggingimo the leather. I was so enchanted, so enth.ralled. l should befeeling desensitised, bur it feltLike Iwas relivingthewholethingagain.1 couldn't hold those rears in,"Brierley says. "At the endof themoviewea.IIgot up and had a grouphug.My dad turned tome and said,'I didn'trealisehowmuch youwent through.' Wehad talked about it, but tl1isreally showed him."
On the castingof DevPateland Nicole Kidman,Brierley says, "Ithink itwasa good choiceof people. NicoleKidman hasadoptivechildren and DevPatel is an amazingactor -fromSl11111dogNl.i!lio11aire,to Skins, to Chappie, therewas nobody better out there toplay this role.They're both wonderful people, bothon stageandoff stage, full of effervescence andvitality."
Brierley met witl1 Patelover several hours,
and the actor also studied l1is character through readinghis book andinternet articles.
"Henailed that Australianaccent," Brierley says. "He personifiesme really well. And my adoptive mother and Nicole Kidman talked alot.Mum'secstatic shegot Nicole to play her."
Asan adoptee himself,Brierley sees the adoptionprocess as"agreat thing" and hopes thegovernmentwill help break down tl1e barriers.
"My parentsjustwantedcohelp achild in need of care andlove instead ofproducing their own,"he says. "They should re-open thegateswhich bave been shutfor a bit. Wecan only wish. Youhavepeople like DeborahLeeFurness and Nicole Kidman tryingcoget things underway.Wecan only hope they help open thosegates.And I hope thismovie portrays tl1actoo.My parents a.re sograteful tohaveus,butI'm even moregratefol for beingwith tbem. Theyhaveshownnothingbur genuine love for me and my brother."
Since reunitingwith his Indian family, Brierley has remrnedto India around 14 times in the past fouryea.rs. Hehas bought his biologicalmothera house and looks after his remainingsiblings. They speak on the phone at least twice a montl1 He says hewould Like to spendmore timein lndia, seeingthecountry,travellingaroundasa courist.
"13eingin India, seeingtheoldstyleof buildings,visitingmy hometown,visiting my biologicalmother, the family home, tl1eorphanage in Kolkaca, it'samental cleanser,"hesays. "At the sametime,my parents arehere in Australia; I know the people, the culture,the language. Iget a bit homesick.Both places are great."
ThesewordsresonatethegraveconcernsaboutAustralianeducationstandardsas projectedInthenationalreporttitled'TrendsinInternationalMathematicsandScience Study2015:A firstlookatAustralia'sresults'releasedbytheAustralianCouncilfor EducationalResearch(ACER)
ThisarticlewhichappearedinallmajornewspublicationsinNovember2016raisedalarm bellsinthemindsofmanyparentswhoweregenuinelyconcernedabouttheirchild's futureintoday'stechsavvyworld.
Consideringthistobeawake-upcall,manyparentsmetProfKSen,Principalof AchieversAcademytodiscusstheissueandtolookintohowtheAcademy'spersonalised studyprogramscouldhelptheirchildimprovenotonlyinMathsandSciencebutalsoin English
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✓ AMemberofAustralianTutoringAssociation. ProfKajolSen Principal,AchieversAcademy
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ConsulateGeneralofIndia RepublicDaycelebrations,Thurs 26Jan,9am-1030am
Ontheoccasionofthe68thRepublic DayofIndia afaghoistingceremony willbeheldatthepremisesofthe ConsulateGeneralofIndiainSydney, Level2,265CastlereaghSt,Sydney
AllIndiannationals,personsofIndian originandfriendsofIndiaarewelcome toattend Confirmyourparticipationat eventbritecomau/e/indian-republicday-celebration-tickets
FIANAustraliaDayandIndian RepubllcDaycelebration,Wed25 Jan,7pm
JointheFederationofIndian AssociationsofNSWatTheMadison FunctionCentre,632OldNorthern Road Dural,astheycelebratethe sharedmilestoneof26JanuaryAustraliaDayandIndianRepublic Day Tickets:$50pp Contact:DrYadu Singh0413375669or fianinc1@gmail.com
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National BloodDonationDrive bySathyaSalInternational Organisation
SathyaSaiInternationalOrganisation ofAustralia&PNGisagainhaving ablooddonationdriveandis encouragingallofitsmemberswho areabletocontributeinthiswonderful andmuchneededservice Giving bloodisgivinglife Whatbetterwayto 'Loveall;Serveall'andhonourSathya
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Sai Baba Contact:Mayavan 0404059093
MISC
HindiClassesSaturdays2.30pm4.30pm
LocatedattheIndianCultural Centre,Level1,265Castlereagh St.Sydney.Hindiclassesare$5 peronehourclassor$40forten classes.Registrationisessentialas thereisamaximumof20people perclass.Paidparkingisavailablein thevicinity.Toregisteremailhindi@ indianconsulatesydneyorgorcontact 92232702.
SPIRITUAL
12JyothlrUngamsofLordShiva, Sun15-Thurs19Jan ArareopportunitytoWorshiptwelve jyothirlingam(Jothilingam)inSydney atShriShivaMandir 201Eagleview Road,Minto Thereareonly12 JyothirlingamsdedicatedtoLord EeshwaraintheformofShivalingam These12Jyothirfingamsaresituated acrossIndiaandareconsideredrarest oftherarebyHindusalloverthe world Contact:SriRangarajan, 0408966517
SwamiVivekananda'sBirthday PublicCelebrations,Sun22Jan, 1030am
RamakrishnaSaradaVedantaSociety ofNSWandVedantaBookAgency hostthiscelebrationatVedanta Hall,15LiverpoolRoad,Croydon Featuringspiritualmusic,Hari-Om
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Ramakrishna,silentmeditation,Vedic chants,multimediareadingfromSister Nivedita'sTheMasterAsISawHim, byDayaandQueenieNaidoo panel discussiononSwamiVivekananda andtheRiseofSpirituality by RobertGrantandWalterMason, andtalkbyPravrajikaGayatriprana Contact:0408029336orvisit: saradavedantaorg
SpiritoflndlaYoga,Saturdaysand Sundays NewClassesstart14Jan YogaclassesareheldinRyde, Wentworthville,QuakersHilland Epping.Alllevelsincl.beginners seniorcitizens,children's Toenrol inthis15weekcoursee-mail spiritofindia2002@yahoocom visit www.spiritofindiaorgorcontactSuresh 0412202182
SantNlrankarlMissionSydney, Sundays530-730pm
Congregationhelpsusstrengthen ourdevotion Weeklycongregations heldeverySundayatSantNirankari Bhawan 166GlendenningRoad, Glendenningfollowedbycommunity meals Contact:Devinder, 0403216084
HeartfullnessRelaxationand Meditation
Saturdays430pm-5.30pm;Sundays 1130am-1230pm
Allarewelcometoexperence
Heartfullness Itisfreetojointhegroup atSevaYogaStudio,3c/8,CowperSt. Parramatta Contact:0280046547or sydney@heartfulnessorg
SrlmadBhagavadGitaclasses, everysecondSaturday Learntheproperchantingofeach shlokaanditsmeaninginEnglish StudentsalsolearnSanskritasthey progressandnopriorknowledge ofSanskritisrequired Participate eitherthroughphysicalattendance at20StationSt,Pymbleoronline attendancethroughZOOM:zoom. us/j/6140211522 Contact:Babu 0402115223ordevbab@gmail.com
SVTClasses-VedicChanting Sundays10am
TheclassestakeplaceinSri
VenkateswaraTemple,TempleRd, Helensburgh Thiscoursewillcover pronunciationandthenpractise withSanskritbeforemovingtoVedic chanting Toregisterandattend,email enquiry@svtsydneyorg
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The DiasporacomprisingIon-Resident Indians(NRls) andPersonsof Indian Origin(PIOs) has soughtextension of the deadline to exchange or depositthe banned notes till December31.
"Thedeadline shouldbeextendedby six monthstillDecember 31 as aUthosehaving the banned noteswill not come toIndia just to exchange or depositthem by June," Thomas Abraham, aIRl from Dubai, said at thePravasiBharatiyaconference in Bengaluru.
The governmenthad onDecember 31extendedthe deadlinetoJune30 for the diaspora to deposit orexchange thespecified bank notes (oldRs 500 andRs 1,000) after theNovember 8 demonetisation.
Resident Indians travellingor living abroad temporarily have beengiven three months(uptoMarch 31) to declare the banned notes they arecarrying acairports on arrival before submittingthem in designatedReserveBank of India (RB]) offices across the country.
''Though many of us may nocholdhuge amountsof the bannednotes aswe transact in localcurrency and theIndian rupee is not fully convertible,we should begiven enough rime to exchange chem since most of uscome to Indiaonceor twicein a year," Abraham said onthe marginsof the 14thPravasiBharatiyaDivas.
AnotherNRI from Oman said the governmentshouldallow the diaspora to deposit the banned notes acIndian embassiesorhigh commissions andcredit them in theirbankaccountsin case the deadline is not extendable afterJune 30.
"TheRBIor overseas branches of statenmbankslikeSBI(StaceBankof India) shouldbe advised to opencountersat our embassies inallcountries for depos.iting the bannednoteswhateverbe theirnumber as they are our hard-earnedrnsh,"said Gopalankutty Karnavar,alvhiscat-based NRl from Kerala.
Severaloverseas Indiandelegatesattending thethree-day biennial jamboree saidthey normal!)'keepor carry Rs25,000-50,000in cashwhencomingtoIndiaforcontingencies despitehavingbank accountsandusing debit/credit for payments or transactions.
"W/e bring afewthousandsof rupees withuswheneverwe fly toIndia for initial expensesat airportsor food, local travel and purchasesbefore converting dollars or other currencies," said Kanavar,a blue collar worker fromAlappuzhain Keralawho heads the Malayli wing of the L,diansocial club in theGulf country.
TheGlobalOrganisationof Peopleof IndianOrigin also urgedthegovernment coextendthe deadline to December 30, 2017, for exchangingor depositingthe high denomination noces inRBI or SBI.
Terming the noce ban awelcome move, a majorityof thediaspora said its implemenrntionwas,however,poor as their kith andkinwere at the receiving end of the cash-crunchand che economic disruption.
"If thehighvaluenoteswere banned cofight black money, terror funding,fake currency andcorruption,the moveis laudablethoughic exposesthegoverntnenr's failure to cmb the menace through ics enforcing agencies," aUS-based RIsaid onthe condition of anonymity.
Although Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday thanked the diaspora for supportingthenote ban,many NRls and IPOs said unliketheir residentL,dians they werenotimpacted by it as they don't transact in rupee, whichis not fully convertible.
"The suddenbanhas takenus by surprise thoughnotaffectedby itas the rupee is not usedin our country andthe valueof our remittancesisinrnct in our bankaccounts," saidJames Mathew, an accountantin a privatefirm atManama in Bahrain.
Prime'Minister NarendraModionSunday urged theIndian diasporaco first develop India by investing and contributingits expertiseincheland of itsorigin.
"To me, FDImeansFirst DevelopIndia through Foreign Direct Investmem,whose norms have beenfully liberalised for NonResidentIndians(NRis) andPersons of IndianOrigin (PIOs) andmadeonparwith domestic firms for availing same benefits," Modi cold the 14th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (Non Resident Indian Day) inBengaluru. Inauguratingthe three-day mega event, J\fodi exhortedtl,e diaspora to participatein
thegovernment's flagshipprogram.mes like Digital India,Make InL,dia, Start-up India, SwacchBharat(Clean lndia) and Namami Gange (Clean Ganga) for the country's allrorn1d development.
"Diaspora can contribute to India by sparingtl1eirtime andenergy on implementingourflagshipprogram.mes andstay connecced," said Modi during a 40-minutespecial address in Hindi and English.
Assertingthatengagingwith the overseasIndiancommunitywas apriority area forhim, tl,ePrime Minister said the governmentwastrying co convert 'brain drain' into 'brain gain'by inviting the diaspora to contribute tl1eir mite in making Indiastrong and self-reliant.
"Brain drainhasbeen considered aloss for the country as Indians went abroad seekingjobs andbetter life.But for me and my government,sucha movement isnota braindcain bmbrain gain as they canhelp us in thedevelopment," notedModi. ForyoungIndians seeking jobsabroad, Modi said his government would soon launch a skill development programme.
"\'v'ewillshortlylauncha skill developmentprogram.me, thePravasi Kaushal Vikas Yojana,targetedat Indian yomh seeking overseas employment" he said.
Theprogran1mewilltraintl,ejob-seekers w.ith soft skillssothatthey do notfeel scrangersin the country they migrate toin termsof manners andculture.
Modialso appealed to allpersonsof Indian originlivingtl,eworldover to converc their PIOcardsintoOverseas Citizen of India (OCI) card at the earliest.
"Weareworking on new procedures to ensure all descendams of Indians, especially their fourthand fifth generationslivingin Fiji,Suriname,Guyana andCaribbean states co becomeeligible for OCIcards,"Modi said.
Clarifyingthat the government does noc seeche colour of thepassport but the blood ties, thePrimeMinister said thePIO card supersededtheindividual's passport as far ashis or her ties to Indiawereconcerned.
When the PIO cardis seen,"we don't see thecolour of thepassport but tl,e blood ties",Modi said to huge applause.
ReferringtoMahannaGandhi's rernrn
India'sSania Mirza andAmerican BethanieMattek-Sandsteamed upto takeouttheBrisbaneInternational women'sdoublestitleon 7January, 2017,capturingthetrophywith a6-26-3victoryoverEkaterina Makarova and ElenaVesnina.Thewin meansMattek-SandsovertakesMirza astheNo.1-rankedwomen'sdoubles playerintheworld.
from South Africa, Modi said this day marked the return to India of one of the greatest Pravasisand thathis government's priority was co convert "brain drain" into braingain".
" Rls and PIOshave madeoutstanding contributions. Among them are politicians of greatstature,scientistsof repute, outstanding doctors, brilliant educationists, economists, journalists, musicians, engineers,bankers and did I mentionour wellknowntechnologyprofessionals," addedModi.
Northeast could feed India up to 1,100 MWofpower by yearend
The north-easternregion,withitshuge energy potential - 50,000 M\'\�by some estimates -couldsoonbecome the"power house of India". And caking asmall first stepinthis direction, it is expected to feed the restof the country upto 1,100 l\llWby the end of this year,energy expercs say.
Sevennortl1-easternsrntes, excluding Sikkim, currently have aninstalled capacity of 2,690 MW,butas some of the plants are very old, theoutputis some 100 MWshore of tl,epeak-hour demandof 2,200-2,300 '/vf\'v: However, there isa surplus of 300 i\fWduring off-peakhours,while another 767:r,.,f\'v'of capacitywilJ beadded by yearend.Sikkimisself-sufficientat 95.70 MW Thestace-run orth EasternElectric Power Corporation ( EEPCO), a min.iratna company under the Union Ministry of Power, alonegenerates 1,290 MWfrom its sevenpowerplams a mixof hydroelectric,gas-and solar-based unics.
"tEEPCO'sgeneration capacity would rise to2,060 MW by this end-2017 as commissioning of three morepower projectswould be completed much before the end of tl1isyear," NEEPCO Chairman and ManagingDirector A.G. West Kharkongor told lANS.
"The company is nowcommissioning threepower projects 600MWand t10 NfWcapacity plants in Arnnachal Pradesh and anotherof 60 MWcapacity in Mizoram," he added.
"If thegovernment allowsNEEPCO, it would supply surplus power toother states of thecountry,"Kharkongor said.
And, to feedthesurpluspower from thenortl1east to other partsof India, the state-runPower GridCorporation of India Limited (PGCIL) has erected 800-kv capacity and1,728-km-longHighVoltage Direct Currem (HVDC) transmission line fromBiswanath Chariyalli inGuwahati co Agrain Utcar Pradesh at an investment of Rs 12,000 crore ($1.8 billion).
Thepower ministry hasestimated the hydro-power potentialof the nortl1-eastern regionat 58,971l\,f\'(� almost40percentof the country's total potential, but only less thancwopercent (1,200'MW) has been exploited rillJaseyear.
Energy expert SudhindraKumar Dube said thatthepower generation potentialof thenottl1-eastern regionmustbe utilised withproper planning.
"Theregionhas not only potentialto
TibetanspiritualleadertheDalai Lamainteractswithdevoteesduring thefifthdayoftheKalachakrain Bodhgaya,India,onFriday,6January, 2017.Buddhistdevoteesfromacross theglobe, includingHollywood actorRichardGereandhisgirlfriend AlejandraSilva,havegatheredinthis smalltowntoattendthe'Kalachakra' orWheelofTimeinitiationsbythe DalaiLama. Photo:AP
generate a huge amount of hydro-power but also has scope to set up more gas- and coal-basedplant5iuthe region," Dube told IANS.
NEEPCO also plans to generate at least 1,500MW from non-conventional sources of energysuch as solar and windpower in the next fiveyears.
With a population of 45.58million iuthe northeastern region,theeight statesincluding Sikkim, haveaper capita electricityconsumptionof 257.98 kilowatt hour (kWh) against the national averageof 778.71 kWh.
Seate Power andTransporc Nlinister Manik Deysaid thatTripura hasagreed to supplyan additional 100 M\'v'of elecrricit:y to Bangladesh over and above the 100 MW being suppliedsinceMarch23,2016.
"TheBangladeshgovernment has sought more electricity from India cocackleits powercrisis in the eastern part of the country. India's power ministryrecently wanted toknow whether theTripura government is ready toprovideadditional 100l'vf\Vof power toBangladesh. Wehave accordinglyagreed,"Deytold IAt'-JS.
US-basedSikh body gifts
diamond-studded
AUS-based Sikh bodygifteda diamondstudded sabre withasilverhilt atTakhtSri
HatimandirJi Patna Sahib,thebirthplaceof GuruGobind Singh,duringthecelebrations of tl1e350tl1'PrakashUtsav' orbird, anniversaryof tl1e l0thSikh master.
The'KhalsaRaj'swordpresentedbyme Sikh Dharma International (SDI) is plated in 24-caracgoldand costmore manRs1crore.
Hymnsfrom theSikh scriptures,bothin Englishand Gurmukhi,havebeen engraved onboth sidesof thesabre.
Thesabre was craftedespeciallyfor the celebrationsheld atthe gurdwaranear Pama fromJanuary3 to 5.Thesabre wasabig attraction for thousandsof devotees who thronged mecelebrationsfromacross the country and abroad.
TheAmericanSikhs associated with thereligiousbodyshowcasedtl1eirskills with 'gatka' (Sikh martial art) during me celebrations, she said.
A delegationof moretl1an ·125 American men, women and children associatedwith theSikh Dharma locernational visited gurdwaras inPatna and nearbyTakht Sri HarimandirJi Patna Sahib copayobeisance.
formerUSAIDchief RajivShal1to head Rockefeller FoundationRajivShah,who headed theUS government's foreign aid operations,has beenappoimedthe head of theRockefeller Foundation,a multi-billion dollarprivateglobal charitywith programmes in India.
TheNewYork-basedFoundationsaid iliatits trustees had selectedShah,whois a medicaldoctorand was the administrator of USAlD tobe its nextpresident. He willtake overtl1ejob fromJudithRodininMarch.
The43-year-oldwillbetheyoungest personandtl1efustIndian-American tolead theorganisation, whichhasan ambitious $75 millionproject tobringelectric power to
Indianvillages.
Shahreceivedthe PravasiBhartiya Sammanaward fordistinguished Indian diasporain2011.
"I look forwardto charting a course for TheRockefeller Foundationtoengage witl1partners topromote tl1e well-being of humanity,and totakeontl,echallenges of todayand tomocrow both intheUnited States andaround me world,"Shal1said Shah's appoinm1ent came adayafter anotlier lndian American with the same surnameand asimilarfirst name,RajShah, wasappointedbyPresident-elect Donald Trumptobehisdeputyassistant and research director.
TheRockefeller Foundation, which sics onassetsof $3.4 billion accordingto Bloomberg, says that it focuseson healtl1, ecosystems, "securelivelihoods,"and urban problems.
Announcing tl1e appointment,tl1e Foundation said tliatRajivShal1 "is best known for elevatinginternational development in foreign policy, delivering resultsthrough public-private partnerships and tl1erespecthe earned working with counterpartgovernmentsfromAfghanistan toCentral Americaand witli bipartisan leadersin theUSCongress".
He will be takingover the Foundation at atime whenthe lndian governmem is tighteningsupervisionof tl1ework of foreign charities and NGOs. The other majorAmericanphilantliropy,theFord Foundation,hasbadrun-ins with the government overits fi.mdingof certain groupsorindividuals witlia perceived politicalbent
Born in theUS andeducated intheUS and Britain,Shah,asa medical student,had volunteeredin a poor communityinIndia. Hehasa medical degree and a mastersin healtheconomics from tl1eIvy League Universityof Pennsylvania.
He wasthebeadof USA.IDfrom2010 to 2015 and amongthehighlightsof his work tl1erewasmobilising actionagainstd1e Ebola epidemicin Africa and organising relief for Haiti afteritseartl1quake.
Afterleavingmegovernmenthe was appointedDistinguishedFellowinResidence attl1eGeorgetownUniversity,aJesuit-nm instimtion inWashington.
He also fow1ded aprivate equityfirm,
LatimdeCapital,whichainistofinance powerandinfrastructureprojects in developingcountries.
He started in President Barack Obama's administrationin2009 as chief scientist and AgricultureUndersecretaryand thenext year was appointed USA.IDhead. Hehas alsoworkedfor theBill andMelinda Gates Fow1dation
In historic breakthrough, 5 Indian-Americanssworn-in as membersofCongress Sealinga historicbreakthroughforIndian.Americans,five weresworn in mismonth as members of theUS Congress -oneof them,Kamala Hards,becoming thefirst to become a Senator.
Ami Bera, who was meonlyIndianAmerican in the435-memberHouse of Representatives and re-electedin the November elections, was joined bytl1e four others, increasingtheIndian-American contingent to five members in theCongress. Alifive are Democrats and tlireeof them- Harris,Bera andRepresentative Ro Khanna - are fromCalifornia.The otl1er twoRepresentativesareRaja Krishnamoorthifrom Illinois and Pramila Jayapal from Washington state.
Harris, whose mother wasfrom Chennai and fatlier fromJan1aica, has a dual identity asbotl1 an Indian-American and an AfricanAmerican.Vice PresidentJosephBiden administeredher theoath of office which she sworeon aBiblecopyheldbyher husband Doug Emhoff.
Afterwardsher familyand friends gathered around thecouple in celebration. Twoof tl1em were dressed in saris,although Harris wore a two-piece western outfit in blue.
In 1956, DemocratDalip Singh Saund became the first Indian-Americanelected to Congress. Forry-eightyearslater, Republican PiyushBobbyJindal waselected to the Housein2004 and re-elected in 2006. Buein2007 he was elected governor of Louisiana and left Congress. After a fiveyear gap for Indian-Americans, Bera was elected toCongressin2012.
Republicans havethemajority inboth chambers. In the House of Representatives, theyhave 241seats to Democrats' 194 and RepublicanscontroltheSenate\\,ith
Banned Indian noteswith special numbers couldfetcha fortune
Am.id tl1e rush among Indian expatriates who scurriedhome toexchangetl1e demonetisedRs500andRs1,000notes before tbe December30deadline,a Dllbaibased numismatistwhohails from India, has advisedhiscompatriotsto"holdontoilieir old currencynotes".
"Check the serialnumbecsof thecurrency notes. Special serial nw11bers, fancyand royal notescouldfetch several times their face value in future,"tbeKhalerjTi111esquoted numismatist Ramkumar as saying.
The collectorwill never make aloss,said the 36-year-old numismatist who isfond of rarenotesand hasbeen collectingthem from last 15 years.
Ran11.7Jmar,who is fromChennai,said people should"treasure"currency notes of anycounrry.
"How muchprofitonecan makeontliese notes,purely depends ondemandand supply. Thereis worldwide demandfor fancy notes," Ramkumar said.
Hesaidthatrarenoteshave abeautifol historyandfrom aninvestmentpointof view theygiveveryhigh returnsiulong term. Ranikurnarhasa collectionof royal number 000001 from LO differentcountries. He alsoowns anold noteof Rs 1,000 which wasdemonetised in 1978 inIndia under the High Denomination Bank NotesAcc. Apartfrom theoldRs 1,000banknote,he alsohastherecently-demonetisedRs 1,000 note, andbotl1have same serialnumber 666666. According to himitis''tl1eonly known fancynumber thatsurvived".
His collection also includestheoldest sucvivingIndian banknote, datedSeptember 1812.
Askedabout thevalueof sucl1notes, Rajkumar said,''There are a few items for which pricecannotbedetermined,asthey are eitl1er oneor two that are knownto exist and mere is noprevious salehistoryof sin1ilaritemsto determine thevalue."
Solid (orcontinuous) serialmunbersare morevaluablecompared toroyal numbers.in bank notes.
IANS
Hemaybeacharismaticcurrent affairspresenterontelevision, butAbhigyanPrakashisalsoan astutepoliticalanalyst.
Prakashhasbeenpresenting liveelectionanalysesforIndianelections, bothstateandparliamentary,since1996 (ElectionPoi11t,VoteKi]uni)lntenTiewing Primel'vlinistersandtopleaders,i\bhigyan hasbecomeknownforhisparticularstyleof presentation-direct,honestandcredible. Alongwithnationalissues,inthepastfive yearsthefocusofhishugelypopularshows Newspoi11tandM11kabalahasbeenonpolitical economy.
Here,heshareshisvie,vsonavarietyof issuesinafreewheelinginterview.
PawanLuthra(PL):TheDword, demonetisation,continuestobethetalk ofthetownamongstIndianstheworld over.PMModi'sstatedviewswerethat thiswillexposethosewithblackmoney, weedoutcorruptionandalso,tackle counterfeitcurrenc.-y.Nowtwomonths on,wherearewe?
AbhigyanPrakash(AP):Thekeyissue hereischatthepayouthasbeend1eproblem oftheprocess.Sincethearu1ouncementon 8November,2016,thepeoplehavebeen facinghugedifficulties,queuingupfor hoursatbanksandATMs,exchangingtheir notes.\Vhathasbeencriticisedthemost,is theprocessinwhichthisentireexercisehas beencarriedout.Betterplanningandproper procedurewasneeded.Alargesectionof thepopulationareinfavourofthemove,no doubt,theydon'twanttheeconomytorun onblackmoney.Butyoualsohavecoaccept therealitychatinIndia,only3percentof thecountry'spopulationaredirecttaxpayers, 97percentareindirecttaxpayers.Abour68 percentofchataremembersoftherural workforce,soyou'vegotaneconomywhid1 isverycomplexascomparedcoothe.rs. That'swhy1991,theyearofliberalisation andfreemarket,whichst'lrtedu.nderthe NarasinmaRaoCongressgovernment,is consideredtobesuchamilescone.
PL:Wastheremuchplanningdoneprior tothisradicalannouncement,ordoyou thinkthiswasdoneratherhurriedlyor withverylimitedconsultation?
AP:Therearemanytheories,butmytake onitis,ofcoursetherewasplanning,but thatpla□ningwasnotsharedwithcertain relevantpeople.Thispointhasbeenrai.sed bytheOppositioninParliamentaswell.
PL:Wouldthathavedilutedtheimpact andbeenacaseoftoomanypeople drivingthecaratthesametime?
AP:Ir'snotaquestionoftoomany peopledrivingthecarattl1esan1etime,it's aquestionofhowmanyroadblocksdo youwantthecartohavetodrived1roughl Thepointis,couldyouhavereducedd1e roadblocks?Wereyouable to convince theIndia□middleclass-whichlovedyou in2014andvotedhugelyforyou,giving youthatmagicalnumberof282(seatsin Paclian1ent)?Thepeoplewerecaughtby
surprise.Totallycaughtbysurprise.Soat 8pmon8Novembertheannouncement ismade,andthenyouseeatleasthalfof urbanIndiastandinginqueues!Ithink thesurpriseelementcouldhavebeen takenaway.Therecouldhavebeenamore dialogue-orientedprocessoftellingd1e people,'d1egovernmentisplanningtodo somethingandweneedyoutobackitand supportit'.Planningwaslacking,fromthe perspectivethatthepayouthascreatedsuch problems.Thatwasperhapsnotcalculated properly.
PL:Thethreereasonsgivenforthe policy are:exposingthosewithblack money,weedingoutcorruptionand tacklingcounterfeitcurrency.Eight weeksintothescenario,howsuccessful hasdemonetisationbeen?
AP:Eightweeksisashorttimetojudged1e scenario,butdefinitelyalleyeswillbeonthe budget.Ihavealreadywrittenaboutitinmy regu1'lrcolumnsforthemajorpublications inIndia.Oneofmycolumnswastitled, What1vi/11JJeget011tofit?Andthat'sd1ekey questionIndianswillbeasking,andthere shouldbeaclearplanandvisiongivento that.Prime"MinisterModihasdonewhathe wantedtodo;andnowpeoplewanttoknow fromhim,whatarewegoingcoget?\Xfill youbeab.lecogiveuscompetitiveinterest ratesascomparedtotheglobaleconomy?
PL:Whichhecan'tdo.Ifyoulookatthe globaleconomy,outsidetheUS,inmost OECDcountriesthey'relendingatone ortwopercent. InIndiait's10-12per cent!
AP:That'sright,that'sthesamepointI've raisedinmycolumns.Canyouslashthatby half?No,youcan't!Whentheeconomyis inasluggishmodeorstruggling,youcan explainitawaybysayingtbeglobaleconomy isinrecession.AUgovernmentsdothisBJP,Congress,whichever.You're□O\Vliving inaglobalisedworld,soonceyourbanksare backtobeingcash-rich,whatistheaverage Indiangettingoutofit?
I'vereportedextensivelyonruralagendas, economiesandfarmers.It'sanagrarian economyinIndia,wid168percentofd1e workforceinrurallabour.Isthefarmer nowgoing to comeoutoftheclutchesof thelocalmanwho!endshinlmoney,the sahuk.a1?\Vhoeventuallyforcesthefarmer to commitsuicideifthecropdoesn'twork out?Theclistressoffarmers,wiUthat drnnge?Isthefarmergoingtogetcash-rid1? You'vetakenmoneyawayfromd1emiddle class,orthosewhoyouthoughthadalot ofblackmoney,whichwastherightthing todo,nooneisquestioningthat.Burare peoplegoing to geeashareofthatnow?ls thisfarmergoingtogetit?Willhebeableto ploughhisfieldswithouttheworrythat'I'U havecoborrowmoneyfromthelocallender whowilleventuallytakemysignature,own mylandforchenext"I00yearsand,every time,addinterest?'
PL:So,doyouthinkitwillfilter through?
AP:I'mnottherightpersontoanswerthat. That'sthequestionthatNarendraModi hastoanswereventually,withJanDhanor variousod1erschemesd1athe'sworking onorhasintroduced.Willitactuallyreach thesepeople?Thatisthequestion.Let'sbe honest,nowhere.intheworldcanyoucreate acashlesseconomy.Youcanreduceit.Even inthemostdevelopednations,youdon't haveacashlesseconomy.It'.sagreatnotion, butitdoesn'thappen.Andaboutterrorism, yes,itisveryin1portamtocheckcounterfeits becausechat'syourmainsourceoffunding forterrorism.lndiabasbeenstruggling withterrorismforthepast25years,wid1 Pakistan'sISlregularlydisturbingpartsof Indiathroughhomegrownterror.Soallchis istherightmove,butwillitreachthepeople itneedstoreach,andhowfast?Thatiswhy I'llbeveryclosel)'\Vatchingthenextbudget.
PL:Anythingelsepeoplecanexpectin thenextbudgetwhichcouldbeeffected bydemonetisation?
AP:Worldwide,lookattheexampleofthe secondObamaadministration:weallknow hewasstrugglingwithalotofhispeople becomingjobless.Economieshavetobe refundedinawaybygovernmentspulling chemoutofd1eirowncrisisIfthatisd1e agenda,ifthatisthereasonthelndian governmentha.scoliecteclmoney,thenitwill havetoreinvestitintotheeconomy.And thatreinvestmenthastobeveryevidentfor thepeoplecoknowandrealise.Youcan't buildalltheroadsandhospitalsandbridges inrwoandahalfyears.Thatreinvestment hastobehighlyvisibleandthatwillsurely beoneofthechallenges.
PL:Toyourknowledge,howhave corporatestakenthedemonetisation?
AP:AlotofchemhaveofficiaUysaid,yes thisisshorttermpainforJongtermgain. Thathasbeentheline.Again,corporatesare verytaxdriven,whatelseisbusinessabout? It'sabouthowmuchtaxtheyhavetopayco thegovernment,sotheywillalsowantto know,whataretheconcessionscorningtheir wayfromthegovernment?Alreadytl1ere hasbeenatime-boundreductionsuggested ford1ecorporateta.xind1elastbudget. Everybodyagrees,thiscmmtryshouldn'tbe livingoffacash,blackeconomy.Butifit's aboutgettingorganised,aboutinlpleme□ting structure,leeusknow.That'smykeypoint. Letusknow,whatarewegettingbackfrom you?TellusaclearplanofwhatIndiansare gettingback-beitindustry,farmersornew businesssectors,andofcoursed1ehuge middledasswhichhasliteraliychangedthe landscapeofIndiainthepast25years.
PL:IsthisthebiggestgambleModihas takeninhispoliticalcareer?
AP:Ithinkyou'vehitd1enailofthehead. Ihavewrittenaboutthis.Inmycolumns forOutlookandBusinessWorldmaga7.foes, myfirstparagraphsargued1epointcbat NarendraModiwillbejudgedverycritically, justlikeNarasimhaRao'-Vaswiththe economicliberalisationandBahriMasjid incident,ViswanathPratapSinghforthe
mandalisationofIndianpolitics.1fany Primei\,[inistershavebeenverycritically judgedbywhattheydidinhistory,sowill Nare□draModi
PL:WhatdrivesNarendraModi?
AP:I'msurehehasacertainconviction; hehashisvisionforthecountry.Hehas beenkno,vntobeapersonwhoworks onthatandtakesadecision.Thisisavery bolddecisionNarenclraModihastaken. AnyPrimeMinisterwhohas282seatsin parliamentandhasacomfortablemajority, hasnothreat to hisgovernmentforthenext fiveyears,hascohavealotofconviction withinhimtotakeabolddecisionlikethis, whichcouldeasilytakeawayhisentire popularity.
PL:Youhavespokenaboutthe differencebetweenbeingthe'Chief MinisterofIndia'versusbeingthe 'PrimeMinisterofGujarat'.
AP:Thereason1saidthataboutNarendra Modiis,hewasaverydifferentkindof ChiefMinister,compared to otherChief MinistersinGujarat.Quickdecisionmaker. Wouldpushthedecis.ions.BueGujarat isastate.Nowhehastodealwithavery complexsocio-economicscenarioofahuge countrylikeIndia.Andyet,peoplewant hin1 to rakedecisionsinthatsamemanner. Hehadnothing to worryaboutasfaras thistermwasconcerned.Stillherookd1e decisionandheknowsitcangoagainsthim ifitdoesn'tworkourthewaylndianswant itto,orexpectitto.HashetreatedIndialike Gujarat?InGujarathecookdecisionsvery quicklyandimplementedthingsveryfast, butthisisIndia,averycomplexcountry.
PL:Whatarehisfall-backoptions shoulddemonetisationnotworkandhe hurtstheveryvoterbasewhobrought himtopower?
AP:Heisaverypopularleaderamong themiddleclass.Theyareahuge,affable, loveablesupportbaseforhim.Soitwill beveryinterestingtowatch.Women, inparticularwillbeanimportantfactor becausedemonetisationhasdi.reedyaffected them.Women,ourhome-makers,Ifeel aresomeofthefinesteconomisesIndia has-thewaytheyruntheirhouseholds. Remember,itwastheirsavingsthatwere broughtourofd1ehousedu.ringd1erecent weeks;it'ssomethingwhichhasnever happenedearlier.
PL:IfyouwereModi,whatwouldkeep youawakeatnight?
AP:ThequestionthatwhateverI've thoughtof,isitbeingquicklyin1plemented? Andalso,an1Igettinghonestfeedback? Feedbackisextremelyimportantina countrylikeIndia.Manypoliticianscome topowerandsicinanivorytower;they don'tgetthefeedbacktmtilit'stimetovote again!IthappenedtotheCongressin2014. Amajoritygovernmentbyanationalparty, wentclowntoamere44seats.
PL:Youhavebeenakeenobserverand
commentatorofpoliticsinIndiafor20oddyears.Howhaspoliticschangedin thisperiod?
AP: In a lot of ways! For a simple reason: we'reavery youngnation,and our youth are very active inpolitics in terms of opinion making,in terms of contributingto that opinion, and of cmirsein termsof being part of the electoralprocess.There arenew politicalpar-ties thathaveemerged in urban centres liketheAam AadmiParty in DeU.i. A lothaschanged. 1 think politiciansare comingcloser to thereality that new ways of politicshave tobe adopted.But despite that,castepolitics hasn'tchanged.It has segmentedsectionsof Indianpoliticsover thelastfivedecades thathasn't changed the way it shouldhave.
PL:Isthereroomforsensiblediscussion inpoliticstoday?Istheretoomuch far leftandfarrightbutnomiddleground?
AP:That'savery per-tinem,seriousquestion. 1 was on a program recently withJaved Akhter and weboth made thispoint: India's greatest socio-politicalstrengthhasbeenin its liberal,centrist,secularposition in key tin1esof crises. At tl1e moment, it's becoming diJficult becauseeitherit'sextreme leftor extreme right.People arelookingfor the oppornmity for themiddlegroundtocome back.That'salso why it'sveryimportant co see howCongress willgo from here.
PL: Isthemedia in India stopping sensible debate?
AP: A lotof tl1e time, yes. The solutionis youhave to change the wayviewers look at the media. The media has to tmderstand it hasbeen completely positioned-either
Nawaz Sharif attendingl\fodi's swearing in ceremony. And then Modi wascriticised after hestopped by unannounced in Lahore to attend a family function. But there11111s a lot of effort made. Sushma Swaraj went toIslamabad and announcedtalks.Then of courseit all derailedafter a seriesof terroristincidents.
Narendra Modi bad avery good relationshipwitl1 Barack Obama andit should continue with DonaldTrump. The key factor there will beto see tl1e kind of Americanpressure a President likeTrump pms on Pakistan, and how his friendship with Indiagoes fon.vard from here.
PL:WhataboutTrump'sxenophobic statements?Howdoesthatplayintothe extremerightelementsoftheworld, includingtheBJP?
AP: It willtake time co understand the reactions.Thegood tl1ingaboutTrump- of course he has a lot of people who disagree with him - burhis positionsare quite welJ known. He's oneperson from whom there's noc much of an element of surprise. I don't tl1inktheBJP will havemuch of a problem on that front.
againstor for.
PL:Let's dive alittle deeper into the politics of India.TheCongressparty had aresoundinglossinthelastgeneral election. TheBJPhad anoverwhelming majority.India,asthelargestdemocracy intheworld,needsstrongoppositionto anyelectedgovernment.Fastforward 15 yearsfromnow,howdoyouseethe politicallandscapein termsofcentral majorpartiesandregionalbutstrong parties?
AP:There's no doubtthat the national parties,India's only twomajor alternatives toeach other -BJP and Congress-have both ended up running the country through understandingthepoliticsof coalition. Traditionally,both of them were against it. The new space will not entirely be left to a nationalparty,or noc entirely to a regional party. It will alwaysbe a combination.
The nationalparties are notbeingable to reinvent chemselvesin thestates.They docometo power inthestates,but ic's also very ob\Tious, whenever they're inpower in the centre, naturally they also dovery well inilie states.Bmfr has nor yet come to a position where theregionalparties aregoing to be finished. Thatis notgoingto happen. TI1ey willhaveto live with that reality. Theseniorparty willbethemainpolitical parties, but you willnot be able to everlook atIndianpolitics where regional parties arecompletely sidelined, it is notpossible. There are regional aspirations;thepeople want and demand more, andmay feel that theregionalplayersmightprovide becter.
PL:Movingonfromnationalto
internationalaffairs,within24hoursof medemonetisationannouncement,we hadanotherseismicchangeinglobal politicswithDonaldTrumpelected asthe45thUSPresident.Howdidthe world,andmedia,getthissowrong? Nobody had predicted this result. ls medianowmorefocussed 011creating menewssuchaswhoshouldwinrather thanreportingongroundrealityofwhat actuallypeoplearethinking?
AP: l don't know how to answer.Those who are takingdefinitive linesor following definitive agendas in the media willhave to watch out. The American election again is alesson for tl1e media itself to learn, worldwide.There's nodenyingthefact that thecredibility of tl1emediais at stake in India. A Joe of peoplenow question ilie media, massiveopinion has come against the media. Peoplehave to bevery careful, because they generaUy feel media is not getting the kindof independence it should, by itsel£ I don'tknowabout the American media, but of course I also watched the elections and resultsvery closely.Your question is very relevant,because Isaw, after news of Trump's winningin different states started comingin, the experts and their viewsalsostartedchangingontelevision.
PL:WhatdoesaTrumppresidency meanforIndia?
AP: It should begood, for a very straightforward reason: he bas hisviews on Pakistan which hehasvoicedin chepast. India hasbeenputtinga lotof pressure onPakistan,giventhe last incidents of terrorism. TheIndo Pak relationship itself, started off welJ under Modi, with
PL:Youhavetravelledextensively overseasandmetwithanumberof Indiansabroad- do you seethem playingany roleinIndia'sfuture or wouldyoubelievethatastheyhaveno skin in thegame,theyshould keep quiet abouttherealityinIndia?
AP:They should play a much larger role. We arelivingin an era of information and change.There is a need togather tl1e information andpass it on to ilieyoungsters backhome and make tl1em more alive to what the world is about and how the world is changing.
PL:Whathasbeenthemostfascinatng storyyou'veworkedon-something whichhasbeenanabsolutegame changer?
AP: \'{/hen tl1e Pokhrannuclear test took place in 1998,l was the first reporter to break it. Acal BihariVajpayee was tl1e Prime :Minister then andI literaUybroketl1e story from inside hishouse. I stillremember tl1at very clearly. It was a hugegarne changer for India,because just a few days later Pakistan also rested.Thar was a momentous time for lndo-Pak relations.
The disturbingbit was 26/11 -tl1e attack onMumbai andat theTaj Hotel. I was tl1ere as a reporter allthrough rheperiod. I had seen many terrorist incidents in ilie past, but when you realisehow close terrorism can actuaUy get co a normal hmnan being's life, that's when you really understandhow internal security is not just somephrase tobe discussed intellecmally, it has to be implemented. It made me realise how absolutelyvitalit is to livein a safe and secure environment.
,, Narendra Modi must decide whether he is the 'Prime Minister of Gujarat' or the 'Chief Minister of
For those of us in India and elsewhere,whose perspectives of theRaj have been shaped by theBritishversion- that the metaphoricalpoliticalunity, democracy and law-bound society asweUas modernity and technological advancement were a direct resultof colonialism- Shashi Tharoor's latest bookwillcome as a fitting response, an Indian scholarly offering sttikingbackat bothcolonialism and the way it is looked at today.
1nAnEmo Darkness: TheB,itishEmpire inIndia,the former diplomatand now Congress MP from Thiruvananrhapuram, holds a mirror to theBritish andreminds themthat there arequestionsco be answered. Andthese answers,theauthor insists,are not afavourfor empowering
their one-timecolonies bur rather atool for themselves co"atone for thewrongs that have beendone".
Tharoor'sweU-researchedwork becomes significant primarily becausesome of the most prominent Western hisrorians,the likes of iall Ferguson andLawrence James, havepronounced theconduct of theRaj as apositive force,describingthe colonialmle asidealistic and baskingin theglories of the railways,education and democracy. This has led many tobelieve thatultimately the Rajwas humane,fairand constructive.
Jtis thismyth that isshattered in this offering. The ambor has marshalled impressivearguments and supported them with historical factsand records.
Tharoorarguesthat the Rajwasan era
of darkness for India,whereeconomic exploitationof an unprecedented scale wascommitted. Peasantswere dreadful])' damaged by punishing tax laws and were drivenoff their lands, compelled into deportation as indentured labour to far-off lands and made to suffer and die in famines.
EverythingBritain did, argues the author, was for its own benefit and notfor that of Indians. Theriseof Britainwas financed by its depredations inIndia.
The amhor,a fonnerUnder Secretary Generalfor Communications andPublic Information attheUnited Nations,is unforgivingin hisapproach. His arguments arebacked by exhaustive research of historical facts and there is atingeof irony in them,to tbepointwhereitwillhurt the most - theJewel in tbe Crown.
,, Peasants were dreadfullydamagedby punishingtaxlaws and were driven off their lands, compelledintodeportation asindenturedlabourto far-off lands and madeto sufferanddie infamines
Everything Britaindid inIndia, was forits own benefit and notforthat ofthe Indians The rise of Britainwas financed byits depredationsin India ,,
"Still, Aaumingthe Kohinooronthe QueenJ\,fother's crownin theTower of London is apowerful reminder of theinjustices perpetrated by the forrner imperialpower,"hewrites. "Until it is remrned - at least asa symbolicgestureof expiation- itwill remain evidenceof the loot,plunderand misappropriation that colonialismwas really all about. Perhaps that isthe best argument for leaving the Kohinoor where itemphatically does not belong- inBritish hands."
Tharoorargues that the vastsumsof money thatwerecollected fromIndiain theformsof taxesand exploitations cannot "realistically be reclaimed"bminclividual piecessittinginBritishmuseumscould be.
''Afterall, if looted razi-era art can be (andnowis being) returnedco their rightful owners in various\'(lesterncountries,why is theprinciple any different for looted colonial treasures?" he asks.
Many readerswill remember the actual sourceof this book -Tharoor's speech at the Oxford Union debateon the proposition "Britain Owes Reparations to her FormerColonies", which went viral on the internet andprompted publisher David Davidar toi1-1sist that the amhor projecthis argumentsin a book.
Notsurprisingly,A11EraofDarknessdoes not tell a story; rather, it makesapassionate argument. The authormakesit clear that readers looking for achronological narrative of theBritishEmpireinIndiawillnotfind it inthis title.Thebook isalsonotabout British colonialism as awhole,but simply aboutIndia'sexperienceof it.
Theofferingexaminesthelegacy of the Raj and critically studiestheclaims made for itsallegedbenefits. In doingso, the author succeeds in changingalong-existing narrative and presentsenoughevidence co supporthis arguments.
Wbat did you do on NYE?
Me,Imissed the whole shebang.Yeah,this wasa first for me. Ijustslipped into oblivion, the day went in a blur and ewYear'sEve tiptoed past without menoticing. The fireworks weren't loudenough coteasethis snoozing Janeawake.Thecelebrationsdidn't tickle meto deck up andjoin in. And whenI did cometo,theNew Yea"rwas nocso new,in factit wasa day old.Now don'tyou jump to conclusions assuming I was OUT on something! Iknow how some dirty little minds workl
OK, let me unravel thetangles andput tl1ose worms backin checan.
Here's whathappened:I wasoff on Christmas breakandhadcomfortably eased into the 'late to bed, seriously late to rise' routine, quite common this time of the year. Armrnd noon (which was dawn for me), I was deeply engrossedin a virtual realityexperiencewhereI wasstrapped to anelectric chair waiting to die. The atmosphere of my nightmarewas pregnant with suspense.Theprisonofficer stood tensely next tothe retroredtelephone ready to catch astate pardon the second it wasdelivered. I was terrified burhopeful at tl1e sametime, willing and praying for me telephonecoringin me hopeof receivinga last-minute pardon. Why I was ontheelectric chairin a strange country is a harrowing taleI'llsavefor another day. Right now,my heart waspounding,my eyestightly shut,fists clenched in nervous balls asI concentrated on my prayers, tryingtoestablishaconnection wim the Almighty. I was repenting fervently for my sins-and thoseof my forefathers' -invoking,begging, demandinganother chanceru1dwilling for theugly monstrosity of thephone to ring.The clock ticked away mournfully. 12 lvlississippi l1 J\,lississippi mocking,building up the climax to my finalcountdown. 10 9 8 God,pleaselet thephone ring 5 4
Now,God, PLEASE 3 Heart pounding in my ears,eyes throbbing with white pain, PLEASE,PLEASE GOD 2 Rrrrrrrrrrrring.
My eyes Aewopenruidtheadrenalin made mebolt om of the electric chair and straightinto tl1e woodenpillar on theside. Wham! Barn!Spin!Stars!Thebeam of my four-poster bed What??? Hang on, wasn't I strapped to thechair? Rrrring rrrrrrrring, why wasn't theprison officer answering?I turned around and banged my head on thepost again, this time with fullblunt force.l fell. onmy bed likea sequoia treestruck by lightning AsI slipped through thefingers of consciousness,I realisedoneof d1edevicesonm>7sidetable wasannouncinganincomingcall with an irritating retroriogtone1 had tl1oughtso cool just last night.
What happened next isa second, third andfiftl1 hand accotu1t of my husband, sonsandsister-in-lawrespectively.
My better half Q1elikes to clunk) foll11d me conked our,a littleon and a lot off tl1ebed as hestompedin to answer the incessant ringing. Let mementionheremat theaward for the most Annoying Caller of theYeargoes to my sister,whorefused to beignored. (She later confessedshe
knewI'dprobably be asleepbutthescoop shehad on cousin wasa developingstory that justcouldn'twait. in retrospect, shedeclared, I should be tbruiking her for saving111)7 life,after aU,if the phone hadn't rungwouldn'tIhavedied on me electric chair ruiyway?) Shedoeshave apoint I guess (hear/scratch),thanks sis, owe you one!
So,coming back, Husband reported he cook one lookat thephoneand another at me. He had been headingout to the golf course,must Isleep like a log? Hechecked the caller ID ru1d almost died witl1 guilt, as he closed hiseyes,put the cordless behind his backand quickly pressedreject (you see,he likes my sister, bur notmorethan golf). Now he tutnmedas he triedto drag me back up on the bed to amorecivilized sleepingposition. More timewasted, tut mt!
TI1e light bulb finally wenton(methinks his isanenergy savingoneon delayed stare mode) whenhe rnrned m)' head and saw athin trickle of crimson oozingfrom a golf ball sizedbumpon my forehead (thereferencetogolf ball was probably unintentional but anindication of what was really on hismind).
Accordingto Husband,he immediately donnedhis '1-.facho Mao-in-Control' cape. Realisingl was tooheavy for him topull on the bed by himself,he called the kids up to help (though howmuch a m1·ee and fomyear-old could help beggars belie£).
Enter thekids running. This brings us to die third-hand account of events tl1at ensued, a slightly different version to the second-hand account. The boys swear Dad letouta bloodcurdling scream which made tl1em drop their Xbox controllers and come rushing on the double.They found
Husband clutchingthepostof our bed, swayingdangerously close to afull on drop onmein aclassic damselin distress fashion ready to swoon at the sight of blood.
What were the littleones co do?They started screaming-shoucing cryiJ1g at thetop of their ltu1gs. The commotion attracted my sister-in-law'sattention as shepaused to switch tracksonheriPodin herbedroom downstairs. Thesplit second of silence was shattered by the boys' screams. She bolted straightupstairs (she does dote on her nephews). My babies wererl1ebravest, they're my little heroes for savingmy life for the secondtime dus after-morn.
Sis-in-law quickly assessed the siniation according to herfifth person account. (EJ'e roll)She was the womanof thehour as she modestlyexplains to whoevercares to listen. Firstly, she calmed her brother down, (yeah,lookafter your own first, don't mind me, I'm only dead for all youknow,typical in-laws for you)"ShegotHusband to call theru11bulance whileshesettled thekids in theotl1erroom.Then she rushedback to tend to me.Theambulancearrived in less tl,anfiveminutes.Sis-in-law will tellyou howmud1 theparamedics admiredher level headedness and praised her appropriate responses.
I was wheeled into the hospital on a stretcher.Tests wereperformed and I was found tohavesuffered aconcussion which had sentme into a coma. It was decided by themedical experts that there was nothing they coulddo but wait for metocome around. I could wake up ina few hours or daysor montl1s.
Luckily foraU involved,I was up thenext morning,but by that time a yearhad passed
and the world was welcomingthe first day of 2017.
Wow,what a start! I could onlyhope this was not a sign of thingstocome for tl1e next 364days.
""'*
"You clunk it works?" I ask my editor.
"Hmm needspolishing,butyes,"she snulesin approval as she saves the script to herUSR
The New Year's issueof WellSpunYarnis on u·ack.
'' The lightbulb finallywent on when Husband turned myhead andsaw athin trickle of crimson oozing from a golf ball sizedbump on myforehead (the reference to golf ball was probably unintentionalbut an indicationof whatwas really on his mind} ,,
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wheretheystarted tl1e mulberry plantationin2005.
BYDHANYASAMUEL
Silk Estate,a beautiful twohectare expanse on theSouth Gippsland Highway,is the dream project of Sarita Kulkarni, who is determined to helpAustralia rediscoverits longlostsilkgrowingindustry.
In a bidtoshowcasethatgrowing mulberries canbe a commerciallyviable and sustainablecrop industry, apart from its sericulrure use,Saritabegangrowing mulberrytreesonher estate. Today,it makes for a breathtakinglybeautiful sight insummer, with trees laden with thousands of sweet berries. The fruit evenruaUygets bottled as mulberry wineor liqueur and as pure mulberrysyrup.
A nativeof Karnataka,Sarita arrived in Melbournein 1987 followingher engineer husband. Armed with al\fasters inZoology (specialisationinsericulmre from Dharwad University,Karnataka), she also had ample experience teachingand workingin the sericulrure iJ1dustryin India.
Sarita wasverypassionateandambitious about her sericuJmre work, so shedecided to further her expertisebydoinga PhD.
Bue, unfortunately,Australia's sill,industry haddiedJongagoand noone seemed to know anythingaboutit. Quiteoften,she was taunted whenpeoplerespondedthat theyknewonly'Aussieculture'andnot 'sericulnue'.
Not one to accept defeat,Sarita went on toget a secondMaster's degreein Applied Agriculture/Entomology froml\fonash University, andin 1994, began work with the Agriculture Department workingher way up tobe a quarantineofficer.It is here chat shegot theopportunityto work closely with, andunderstand,tl1efarmingpractices andindustrywith.in Australia, also working extensively with thegrapevine industry here.
Beingknowledgeable aboutAustralia's golden silk era,Sarita was positive that it was onlya matter of timebefore she would findmulberry trees here. J\J1d that opportunity came aftera chance encounter with Monnie Penner who used to maintain silkwormsto spinsilk for her weavingand craft activities.Sarita's excitement knew no bounds wben she came across anursery which was sellingtwo-year-old mulberry trees to thepublic who were interestedin growingtheseintl1eir backyardsfor tl1e sweet fruit.
Thisrelentless enthusiasm andpassion forher subject made herplace anorder for 20 mulberry trees, apersonal attempt co prove that the silk industrycan be revived andcommercialisedintbis country.This eventually led co the Silk Estate farm, which Sarita andher familypurchasedi.n2003 and
Sarita refused toaccept the fact that silk does not fare well here as depictedin the history of Australian silk, but her repeatedanempts toget the universitiesor tl1egovernment interestedfellon deaf ears. Projectsand studies were taken upand discarded for the silk venture; soshe decided that it was time toshowcasethe versatilityof mulberry as afruit andin adifferent light to the public.
lo an attempttoprove that it can be acash cropand mulberrycultivation isan organic and sustainableventure, she began topackageandsell the berries to markets across Australia. \'v'hile Sydney cook to these delicious berries in a bigway,Melbourne markets were abitsceptical. And this presentedanother chaUeoge; mulberrieshave an extremely short season. Sarita was forced toresearch bow to preserve these for longer, and th.is led tothe mulberry liqueur, wine, syrup and ;am project.
Whenthe Silk Estate MulberryLiqueurwon abronze award at aninternational wine show iu2011,Saritaknew shewas on theright path. Today, the liqueur andsyrup is produced in smallbatches every year, dependii1gon the crop, in association with aVictorian companyand isavailable for sale onrequest A boutique product handcraftedwith lovingtender care,the liqueur is sweet andvibranton thepalate remindingyou instantlyof port wmes.
The \VU1e makesan excellent pairingwithpoultry,seafood, desserts and can alsobe used in makingcocktails. The syrup is thick andsweet from the namral sugarspresentin mulberriesandwouldbe anincredible addition toanybakingproject.
In spiteof a majorhealth setback, Saritaisstillpassionate about takingher sericulnire work forwardin thehopethat the silk industry of Australiacan be revived. Silk Estate alsogrows otl1er produce, has asmalltempleonsite and Saritaalso hasplans cobuild a museum co educate, it1crease awareness and showcase her studies withsilkworms.
ot one tosit still, she also runs a successful businessand is the Quality Assurance Inspectorand Entomological/ Quarantine andSericulrureConsultant at BrijBugTrap ConsultancyPryLtd. She
also worksas CommunityDevelopment Officer/Trainer/Lifecoach with the VictorjanImmigrantandRefugeeWomen's Coalition (VIC& RWC). She is also a trainer with Learn L ocals in the community in manydisciplines, to keeptheproject afloatandviable.'1 am extremelythankful to each and everyone for their effort in rnakit1g thisventurepossible," she told IndianUnk.
While the mulberryliqueur andother byproducts makeexcellent business sense, Sarita's realpassion remait1s for sericulture.
"Sericulrureis avibrant,incredible, prodigious, sustainable,environmentally friendlyand miraculous commoditygiven to mankindbyaccident,which should
giveour agriculmreindustrya boost not onlyin the wine industry,bm alsointhe fruit, health,and well-beingof mankind," Saritaobserved,her passion fortl1efruit comingthrough clearly. "Thegurusof the sill<worldonce said tome when I wasin their country, togive them 100 hectares of land and theywillmake surethatAustralia willbe seen asoneof the copproducers in the world marker of silk production. le is this dream that keeps me alive. One day, I wish co see the silkindustryof Australia get uponits feet again witl1 a lot of help from families, government bodies,venture capitalists, and manyentrepreneurial dreamers whohave avision and similar goal."
Whether youarecoeliac or just enjoy followingagluten free lifestyle,theserecipesuse fresh, wholesomeingredients and show howyoucanadd vaciety and casteintoagluten free diet.
From thepetlectsavoury orsweet
breakfast dish toagourmet sandwich for lunch, followed by the perfect altemati\7e to friedfish and chips, this summer menu has beencreatedby SophieHenleyof Henley's Wholefoods,usingHelga'sGluten Freebread.Someof therecipesare also dairyfree.
Preparationtime:10 minutes(plus30minutessoaking)
Cookingtime:17 minutes Serves2
Ingredients
4slicesHelga'sGlutenFreeWholemeal
bread
3eggs
1/3cupalmondmilk
Pinchofsalt
50gwalnuts
1/3cupmaplesyrup,plusextratoserve 4rindlessrashersbacon(optional)
2smallbananas
1heaped.tbspcoconutsugar
Method
Placeeggs,almondmilkandsaltina bowlandwhiskuntilcombined.Place breadintolamingtonpanorsimilar rectangulardish.Pourbatterover
bread.Leavetositandsoakintheeggy goodnessfor30minutes,gentlyturning after15minutes.
Meanwhile,heatovento1800 Linebakingtraywithbakingpaper, scatterwithwalnutsandpourover maplesyrup.Stirtocoatnutsevenly. Roast12minutesoruntilnutsare toastedandcaramelised,stirring occasionally.Setaside.Turnoffoven. Heatalargenon-stickfryingpanovera mediumheat.
Cookbacon2-3minuteseachside. Removefrompanandkeepwarmin oven.
Removebreadfromthebatter,cookboth sidesuntilgoldenbrown.Removefrom
pan.
Cutbananasinhalflengthwaysandcoat insidelengthswithcoconutsugar.Place inpan,sugarsidedownandcookuntil goldenandsticky.
Nowit'stimetoassemblethestack! Layerfromthebottomup:bread-bacon -banana-nuts-bread-baconbanana-nuts-thendrizzlewiththe extrasyruptoserve.
Preparationtime: 15minutes Cookingtime:45minutes M'lkes2lafftec
Ingredients
4slicesHelga'sGlutenFree5Seeds bread
1tbspoliveoil
1brownonion,finelychopped 500gbeefmince(Ifyoudon'teatbeef, youcansubstituteanothermeatproten)
1carrot,grated
2clovesgarlic,crushed
3tspgroundcumin
1tbspfinelygratedginger
1-2redchilies,finelychopped(keep seedsiflikealittleextrakick)
400gcandicedtomatoes
¼cuptomatopaste
1½teaspoonsdriedoregano
2tspfreshthymeleaves
Salt,totaste
Oliveoilspray
2eggyolks
Babyspinachleaves
Method
Heatoilinafryingpanoveramedium
heat.
Addonionandcook10minutes,until softened,stirringoccasionally. Increaseheatandaddmince,carrot, garlicandcumin.Cook,stirring constantly,tobreakupmince,until browned.
Addginger,chilies,tomatoes,tomato paste,oregano,thymeandsalt. Reduceheatandsimmer30minutes, untilverythick,stirringoccasionally. Sprayajaffeironwitholiveoilspray,then preheat.Spread1heapedtablespoonof spicybeefoveronesliceofbread,make awellinthecentreofthebeefmixture, thencarefullyplaceaneggyolkinthe well.Topwithafewbabyspinachleaves. Gentlycoverwithanotherbreadslice. Repeatwithremainingbread.
Carefullyplacethetwosandwichesinthe jaffeironandspraywitholiveoilspray. Closethelidandcookfor5minutesor untilbreadisgoldenandcrunchy. Refrigerateleftoverspicybeefmixture.
Preparation time: 35 minutes (plus overnight chilling of coconut milk and 30 minutes cooling of chicken)
Cookingtime: 1 hour 20 minutes
MakP-s 24 r.ocktail sandwiches
Ingredients
Poached chicken
1whole chicken
1 tbsp whole black peppercorns
1 stalk celery, roughly chopped
1 onion, roughly chopped
1 carrot, roughly chopped
2 bay leaves
1sprig rosemary
Henley's "sour cream"
165ml can coconut milk
3tsp lemonjuice
½tsp apple cidervinegar
¼tspsea salt
FIiiing
¼ cup finely chopped parsley leaves
3 spring onions, finely chopped
1/3 cupslivered almonds, roasted and roughly chopped
Sea salt and ground black pepper
12 slices Helga's Gluten Free Wholemeal bread
Garnish
1 Lebanese cucumber, thinly sliced
Torn parsley leaves
Placecan ofcoconut milk inthefridge overnightto chill.
Placechicken, peppercorns, celery, onion, carrot, bay leaves and rosemary in a largesaucepan and cover with cold water. Bringtotheboil,then reduce heat to low and simmergently for1 hour and 20 minutes.
Remove chicken and set asidefor 30 minutes to cool.
Removechickenfrom bones and skin, thenshred meatwith 2 forks. Carefully turn the can of chilled coconut milk upside down, then use a can openerto removethe bottom ofthe can. Drain off the liquid and scrape thethick coconut cream into a bowl. You should have about 1/3 cup coconut cream. Add the lemon juice, vinegar and sea salt. Stiruntil smooth.
Combine 2 cups chicken, Henley's "sour cream", parsley, spring onions and slivered almonds into large bowl, and mix well.Season withsalt and pepper. Evenlyspread filling over 6 ofthe bread slices.Topwith remaining bread slices and press down gently. Cut each sandwich into 4 squares. Top each squarewith a slice ofcucumberand garnish with parsley.
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cookingtime: 22 minutes
c;.iP-,VP-c:. 4-6
Ingredients
5 slices Helga'sGluten Free Sunflower & Red Quinoa bread
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
½ cup chopped parsley leaves
1 long chilli, finely chopped (remove and discard seeds)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/3 cup pine nuts
Sea salt and ground black pepper
750gfathead fillets, halved if large
Olive oil spray
Quick lemon mayonnaise
2 eggyolks, atroom temperature
¼ tsp sea salt
1tsp Dijon style mustard
1 tbsp lemon juice
100ml vegetable oil
100ml extra virgin olive oil
To serve Lemon wedges
Sweet potato chips
Green salad
Method
Preheat ovento180C.
Tearbread into rough piecesand place on a large bakingtray. Drizzlewith 2 tablespoons ofthe olive oil and tossto coat. Bake 12 minutes oruntil toasted. Place bread pieces in a food processor along with parsley, chilli, garlic, pine nuts, salt and pepper and the remaining olive oil, and processinto rough crumbs. Linethe oventraywith baking paper and place fathead filletsonto the paper. Evenly pile and compressthe breadcrumb mixture on top offillets. Spraywitholive oil. Bake 10 minutes or until fesh isjust cooked through and crust has browned.
Meanwhile, to make lemon mayonnaise, place eggyolks,salt, mustard and lemon juice in a talljug. Combine oils and pour ontopofeggyolks. Place a stick blender intothe bottom ofthejug. Blend for 10 seconds, then slowly draw thestick blender up, thus pushing remaining oil intothe emulsion.Season with extra lemonjuice, mustard and salt, totaste. Servefsh with lemon mayonnaise, sweet potato chips and a green salad.
China rodayisfullof travellers . .
fron .
1 different parts of theworld. Although our tour covered four cities, itis thecityof Xi'an that leftthegreatest imprint. ModernXian isa large city andthecapital of Shaanxi Province in centralChina. Once known as Chang'an (Eternal Peace),itis fullof symbolism: itiswhere thegreat Silk Roadbegan; itwas theOldTangdynasty capital, and capitalof theZhou, Qin, [-Ian andTangdynasties and for manycenturies, thecentreof the Chinese Empire. ltwas notwithout significancethat Indian Prime MinisterModi met the Chinese President hereinMay, 2015. PresidentXiJinping travelledtoXiancowelcomeModi- the first time hehas doneso. Itis veryrare for Chinese leaders to accompany foreign guests outside Beijing. Xian also happens to be Xi's hometown.
Modern China isnowrevivingthe conceptof theSilkRoute andhas also Aoatedthe idea of aMaritime SilkRoad (MSR) asan expression of itsaspiration to develop astringof portsand coastal economic hubs alongits maritime trading routes.Thisencompassesd1eOneBelt OneRoad (OBOR)initiative,and theChina PakistanEconomic Corridor (CPEC) atits core.Thesuccessof thisvisionwouldallow China to gate-crash as a powerful rule-maker of internationaltrade andcomrnerce,and iscentraltoBeijing'sriseasa matureglobal power.Xian is borh thecentreof ancient Chinaandtheharbingerof anew,inAuential andpowerful Chinaasaworldpower.
H.iscoricXian hasthree great sights co offer: TheOld CityWall and d1e Palace; the'\Xlild GoosePagoda and the famous Terracotta\Warriors.
XianCity\Xlall and the Old Palace are quite impressive. Once asophisticated defencesystem protecting China's ancient capital, Xia.n's 637-year old l\iling dynasty citywallis nowthe onlycompletewall fortification leftin China.After d1e establishmentof theMing dynastyin the 14"' century,ZhuYuanzhang, the first emperor, began to enlarge thewaU built initiallyduring theoldTangDynasty (618907), creating the modernXian City Wall.
TheSoud1 Gateof the City Wall is theimpressiveZhu Que gateway,where distinguished guestswere once greeted andwelcomedin times of yore.Reading thesignsand placards in the Old Pa.lace, I in1aginedhowin 645AD,whenthe great Xuanzhang returned to ChangJ\n after an arduous seventeen-year journeyco Indiavia the ancient SilkRoad,hewouldhavebeen warmlygreetedatd1atveryspotbythe Tangdynastychancellor FangXuanling
Today,you can rent bicycles and go riding
Tothehistorybuff,Xianhas several tales totell,and everyancientwall inXian remindsoneof Xuanzhang, thegreat medieval traveller andBuddhist scholar whocame to India during the reign of King Harsha.
For those uninitiated,Xuanzhangstarted off fromChang'an (ancient Xian), along the Silk Road in 629, in defiance of the TangEmperor's banontravel. Helped bysympathetic Buddhists, he travelled via Kumu�followingtheTianShan mountainstoTmpan. Hethencrossed whata.retodayKyrgystan, Uzbekistan and Afghanistan,imoGandha.ra(modern Kandahar), reachinglndiain630AD.
Xuanzhang travelled throughoutthe Indian subcontinentfor thenext thirteenyears, visitingimportant Buddhist pilgrimagesires, studying at the ancient universityat alanda, and debatingtherivalsof Buddhism.
Afterreturning toChinaand having obtainedpermissionfrom d1eEmperor Gaozong (628-683),Xuanzhang, established theDaci'enmonasteryand,as thefirst
abbot of the Daci'enTemple, supervised thebuildingof a pagodainside.
Oneof d1epagoda's manyfunctions was tohold the Sutrasand relicsof theBuddhathatwere brought to China from India byXuanzhang. With the support of royalty,he asked 50 'hierarchs'in the temple cotranslate Sanskrit sutrasinto Chinese, totalling ],335 volumes!
Even roday, thisWorldHeritageListed temple containspractising Buddhists in the monastery.
,, Every ancient wall inXianl'emindsone of Xuanzhang, the gl'eat medieval traveller and Buddhist scholarwho came to India dul"ingthe reign of King Harsha ,, alongthewall, and the view of the cityfrom the copof thewaUis quite impressive. Although Xianis apparently onlya 'secondtier' city, with a population of abour 14 million,ithas a large airport, wide roads,parks, shops andboastsseveral Indian restaurantsas well. Since the discoveryof d1eTerracotta Warriors,ithas become a popular tourist destination.
Thenow-famousTerracottaWarriors of Xian isa sight not to be missed byany visitor co China.Theyarethe thousandsof life-size, hand-mouldedfigureswhich were buried wid1 China's first emperor, Qin Shi Huang. 111e Terracotta Warriors and Horses are the most significant archaeological excavations of the 20th century. Work is ongoing at d1is site,,vhich is around 1.5 kilometres eastof Emperor QinShi Huang's mausoleum in Lintong,a few kilometresfrom Xian. Upon ascendingthe throne at the ageof 13 (in246BC),Qin Shi Huang,laterd1e first Emperor of all China, had begun towork on his own mausoleum. lt tookhim I1yearstofinish the project. Each soldierlooksdifferent, and for rourists, there is the mandatoryvisitto the sitewheretheydemonstratehowthe figureswere made and manyshopping opportunities!
Modern Xian has excellentinfrastructure, wid1 averymodern airport, train station, wide boulevards,statelybuildings,good public transport, and several Indian restaura.nts aswell!
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SEEKING GROOMS
Seekingagroomfora well-qualified Gujarati,Vaishnav girl,MSc, age31,currendy wot:king,basedin India,visitingher brother (Canberra) inFeb2017.Interestedcandidate withsimilarbackground can contactbhaumik_bmnia_2000@yahoo.com for further inquiry
Seeking professionaland well seeded match forMelbourne-based, Hindu Goldsmith (Verma) girl. Australiancitizen, workingin acustomer service role, 1982 born,5'2", mediumbuild,divorced (issueless).'iXlhacsApp:SnehVerma (callor message): +91 9 876 798 901, Email: tiuavermapallvi@gmaiJ.com
Thingshavebeenalittleunsettledforyouoflate.Thecardsare indicatingatimewhenyouwillbetryingtosortoutmattersfromthe past.Therewillbesomefnancialissuestoorganiseandtherewill benewopportunitiestobringinfunds.Therewillbesomeunsettling discussionsaroundfamilyrelationships.Trytokeepcalmand positive.Youwillbethinkingofmovingtoanotherarea,andwillbe makingplansforthecomingmonths.
Thismonthyouwillbelookingatnewopportunitiesandmaking planstoclimbhigherupthecorporateladder.Thecardsare indicatingatimewhenyouwillbeconcentratingonfinances,your careerandprogression.Romantically,youwillbewantingmovement withinarelationshiporsomeoneyoulike.Youwillplanaholidayand therewillbesomegoodnewsregardingtestsyouhavehadrecently. Therewillbeagreatfeelingofenergyanddeterminationaroundyou thismonth.
Youhavestartedtheyearfeelingslightlytiredandundertheweather. Itwouldbeagoodideatolookatyourdietandstarteatingmore freshfood.Thereisafeelingofoptimismwhenyouandyourpartner startsortingoutyourrelationshipwhichhasbeenalittlestressfulof late.Thecardsindicateyouwillbedoingwellfinanciallyandatwork. Youmaydecidetobuyanewcarandhelpafriendintrouble.
Theremaybesomere-organisationatworkandyoumaybe askedtotakeonmoreresponsibilitythismonth.Thiswillcome withbenefitsandmightwellleadtoapromotion.Thecardsare indicatingyouwillbefeelingalittlerestlessinyourrelationships. Youneedtostartrelaxingmoreandcommunicatingbetterwith yourpartner.Therewillbesomeinterestingrevelationswithregard toamatterthathasbeenbotheringyouforawhiletodowiththe family.
�-��yr.1 Youneedtokeepaneyeonyourhealththismonthastheremaybe someupsanddowns. Thecardsareindicatingyoumaybethinking aboutmovingtoanewcareer.Takesometimeoutanddecidewhat youwouldliketodo.Therewillbesomeinterestingdevelopmentsin theloveareaofyourlifeandyouwillbefeelingquitecontent.Take timeouttogoforwalksandgetsomeexerciseincludedintoyour routine.
VIRGO Aug 23 - Sep 22
Averypassionateandfierymonthwillbeenjoyedbetweenyou andyourpartner.Therewillbesomediscussionswithregardto whereandwhenyournextvacationwillbe.Thereissomeimportant paperworkthatyouneedtosortout.Makesurethatyourcaris checkedatthemechanic.Thecardsareindicatingyouwillhavea .,. hecticandproductivetime.Therewillbealotgoingon,butprogress inbusinessandfinancesisexpectedthismonth.
Asusual,youwillhavestartedthisyearwithalotofthinkingand planning.Youwillbemakingsureyouhavearrangedyournext holiday,financesandaffairs.Thecardsareindicatingyouwillbe abletotakeholdofopportunitieswithsuccessandease.There willbesomeinterestingdevelopmentswithanoldfriendyouhave reconnectedwith.Yourpartnermaynotbefeelingverywell,soitisa goodtimetogoonthatmuchneededbreaktogether.
Thismonthyouwillfeelpassionate,renewedandfullofenergy. Youwillbefeelingextremelylovingandhighlysensual.Thecards areindicatingyouwillwantyourlovelifetobesortedoutand contentmenttoprevail.Therewillbesuccessfulnegotiationsat workandyouwillbeabletoobtainwhatyoudesiremost.Itwillbe amonthofkindnessandexcessivenessattimes.Youwillhaveto exerciserestraintandmakesureyoudonotspendunnecessarily.
SAGITTARIUS Nov 22 - Dec 21
Youwillbemakingsomeimportantresolutionswithregardtoyour relationshipthismonth.Youmayalsohavetomakesomedifficult decisionswithregardtofinancialaspectsoftherelationship.You havebeenworkingveryhardlatelyandyouwillbeatthepoint offeelingthatyoueffortsaregoingunnoticed.Thecardsare indicatingatimewhenyouwillspeakupandgetwhatyoudesire anddeserve.Agoodtimetomeditateonyourissues.
CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 19
Thismonthyouwillbedecidingwhatyouwouldliketodowith regardtoyourcareer.Youhaveamindfulofideasandplans. Therewillbesomedizzyspellsofexcitementandyourheadwill bespinning.Inyourlovelife,youmaybeheadingtowardsamore settled,committedphaseofyourunion.Thecardsareindicating youneedtothinkaboutyourhealthmore.Plantowalkandtake someoutdoorholidaystoreviveyourmotivation.
AQUARIUS Jan 20 - Feb 18
Thismonthwillstartwithboldplansanddecisions.Yourcurrent jobisverybusyandhectic.Therewillbenewsuperiorshiredand theremaybesomeupsetaroundtheworkplace.Ideasandplans maybealittlemuddledbutthereisanindicationthatthingswill settledown.Financeswillbehealthy.Thecardsareindicatinga timewhenyouwillwanttogetbackintouchwithpeoplefromthe pastandstarttheyearwithpositiveenergy.
PISCES Feb 19 - March 20
Youmaybefeelingalittleupanddownwithyourmoodsthis month.Therewillbedefiniteplanswithregardtocareerand relationships,andyouaredeterminedtomakeeverythingwork justhowyouwantitto.Theremaybeconfictswithcolleaguesas you'renotinthemoodforsoftwords.Youneedtogetyourpoint acrossandyouknowhowtodoit.Youneedtolookafteryour spendingandnotexceedyourlimits.
STARRING:AamirKhan,SakshiTanwar, FatimaSanaShaikh,SanyaMalhotra DIRECTOR:NiteshTiwari
....,\
Thereareoutstandingfilms.Thenthere is Dangat. Afilmsorichinthefavoursof home-grownemotionsyoufeelyouare floatinginafieldofaromaticsensation forclosetothreehourswithoutfeeling manipulated.Youcomeawayfromthis experiencesomovedandsomuchwiser thatyouwonderwhycinemacan'tbeso rewardingmoreoften.
Butthenagain,ifeveryotherfIm wasa Dangal howwouldweknowthe difference?
ThereIgo,ravingaboutaflm which,letmestaterightaway,willbe rememberedbyposterityasoneofthe landmarksofIndiancinemainthesame breathas,say MotherIndia, Sholay or Lagaan. Yes, Dangal hasthatkindof animpact.Notbecauseithasanything newtosay.Onthesurfaceitisanother
rags-to-richessportsfilmwhereagirl, GeetaPhogat,fromasmalldustytown ofHaryanabringsthegoldmedalin wrestlingtoIndia. No.Itisnotthetheme.It'sin
theheartbreakingdirectnessand artlessness,theabsoluteabsenceof artifice,inthenarrativethatwediscover thatmysteriousoft-abusedentityknown astheRealIndia.Theseareplacesand peoplewithrealdreamsandambitions. Thesearecharacterswhomwelive with,sometimeswithinourselves.It takesaMahavirSinghPhogatand hismulishobstinacytopullIndia's perversepatriarchydraggingkickingand screamingoutofitsheavilycordonedlair andtosay,enoughisenough.
IttakesanAamirKhantobulkup totheextentoflookinglikeatired butundefeatedhas-beentoplaythe I wrestlerwhosedeterminationsawhis daughtersbreakthroughthemasculine bastionofwrestlingtoprovewomen candoanythingmencan.Aamirlives theroleofPhogat,sternlymanoeuvring
hisdaughters'destinytoaglorydenied toalotofwomeninthiscountry.ls thishisbestperformance?Can'tsay whateverhehasdoneearlierpalesinto insignificance.
Significantly, Dangal doesn'tplay thefeministcardatall.Thereareno speechestiradesandpushyhomilieson feminism.Themeninfactarenotshown tobeexcessivelysexistforthesakeof aggrandisingthedramaticimpactofgirls' ultimatevictory.WhileAamirplaysthe epitomeofgenderequality,Aparshakti KhurranawhoplaysGeetaandBabita Phogat'sgoofykind-heartedcousinisa feministevenwithoutknowingwhatthe wordmeans.
Nooneinthecastandcrew-noteven theeternalattention-seekerAamirKhan andnotSethuSriram'scinematography -seeksattentionhere.Notevenwhen fightingsoferociouslyinthewrestling akhaada. Thesepeopledowhatthey haveto.Theyfightinnerandouter adversariesbecause-well,theyarethere andtheymustbefought.
Danga/ neatlyandnimblyavoidsall classificationsandismsandemerges asoneofthestrongestcinematic statementsonwomen'sempowerment inrecenttimes.Theperformances goalongwayinimbuingasenseof unrehearsedclassicismtothesimple taleofasimplefatherwholivesouthis sportingdreamsthroughhisdaughters. Assimpleasthat.
Andsuchdoughtydaughters!The twosetsofactresseswhoplaythe youngerandolderversionsofGeetaand BabitaPhogataresoliberatingintheir spontaneitythattheyatsomepoint, ceasetodrawattentiontotheirskillsat characterassumptionandsimplyinvite ustofollowthegirls'journeytovictory.
WhiletheyoungerPhogatdaughter Babita,playedablybySuhaniBhatnagar andSanyaMalhotra,doeshavehersay
intheexpansivescript,thisisclearly theotherelderdaughterGeetasstory, herblow-hot-blow-coldrelationshipwith herfatherandherultimatetriumphin thewrestlingring.AamirandZarina Wasim/FatimaSanaShaikh(thetwo girlswhoplayGeeta)playagainsteach otherwithvivaciouscredibility.Whilewe watchGeetawrestleherwaytothegold medal-andshefightsheropponentsin thewrestlingringlikeatruepro-wealso watchGeetaandherfatherwrestlein waysthatarenotmanifestedphysically.
Geeta'schangeasshebecomes famousismappedwithnojudgmental regret.Thisisnotafilmthatwastestime tryingtoslotjudgeorcondemnhuman failings.Itbreatheswiththecharacters andletsthemexhaleattheirownwill. Thatistherealbeautyof Dangal. Itis whatitisnotbecauseittriestobegreat. butbecausethestoryithastotellis effortlesslyensconcedinexcellence. DirectorNitishTiwarisimplyplucksthe fruitsofatreewhoserootsgodeepinto ourculturepenetratingsocietalbiases towardsthegirlchild,withacluckofthe tonguethatisbarelyaudible.
Theclimacticwrestlingboutshotwith adrenaline-pumpingimmediacycould haveavoidedreducingGeeta'scoachto aschemingvillain.Neitherthefilmnor Aamir'stimelessportrayalofMahavir Phogatneededtobeproppedupand pepperedwithscripturalspice.
Dangalhasnopatiencewithjudgement values.Itissopreciousandsovaluable becauseitletsuslookathome-truthswith wisdomratherthancunning.Thisfilmwill berememberedbyposterityasoneofthe landmarksofIndiancinema,notbecause ittriestobeone.
ThankyouGeetaPhogat,NiteshTiwari, AamirKhan.Indiaisproudofyou. Phogat'ssake, Dangalmustbe watched.
Subhash K.Jha
· InAdrologer'1Famlly.
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Hiscraggy,pockmarkedbutdistinctivefacemayhavekepthimfrom becomingaleadingmaninfilms,butOmPuriusedtheremarkablerange ofexpressionshecouldconvey,fromimpotentragetoblazingmenaceto comicexasperation,alongwithhistrademarkbaritone,toplaysomeimmortal rolesonthebigandsmallscreeninIndiaandabroad.
Thetruetributetoanyactorisinrememberingsomeoftheirperformancesand forOmPuri,whosuccumbedtoasuddenheartattackthismonth,thereisno shortageofroles,bigorsmall,heroic,comicorvillainous,inmasalaorartfilmsto recallhisskill.
Willwerememberhimforhisdepictionofthevictimisedtribalof Aakrosh (1980),conveyinghisanguishedhelplessnessbyfacialexpressionstillthevery lastshockingscenewhenhefinallyopenshismouthinaloudprotest,thehapless policemanin Ardh Satya (1982),theenthusiasticpoetry-loverin In Custody/ Muhafiz(1993)orsinisterterroristSanatanin Maachis (1996). Orwillweprefertorememberhiminanotherlight,assuspicioussecretary BanwariLalin Chachi 420 (1998),thejovialandkindbutdutifulInspectorKhan in Pyar To Hana Hi Tha (1997)ordeterminedInspectorUdhamSinghin Gupt (1997).ThenthereisalsohisportrayalofBritish-PakistaniGeorgeKhan,whois lovingbutcanbeauthoritarianandabusivetowardshismixedfamilyin East Is East (1999).
Andletusnotforgettwocameoswherehewellmarkedhispresence-Nahari, theunrepentantrioterinRichardAttenborough's Gandhi (1982),andasGenZia ul-Haqin Charlie Wilson's War(2007),whichshowshowtheAmericansbegan theirslideintotheAfghanquagmire.
Vikas DattaPopularAmericantalkshowhostEllen DeGeneresthinksIndian-originBritish actorDevPatelshouldbenamedthe sexiestmanalive.
Devappearedon The Ellen OeGeneres Show recentlytopromote hisfilm Lion, andDeGeneres encouragedhimtostartacampaignfor "SexiestManAlive".
"Becauseyoulooksogood,and peoplearesayingyoulookbuffand everything,Ihadthismadeforyou," DeGenerestoldDevbeforepresenting the26-year-oldactorwithafake magazinecoverofhimas People's annualhotmanhonouree.
"Youcanhandthisout,it'llhelpyour career"
Patelresponded,"I'llgiveittomy mom,she'llputitattheentrancetoher house."
"Thisisveryawkward,"hewenton, leadingDeGenerestoquip,"Youdon't understandHollywood."
Awww,simple,lovableDev!
Meanwhile,Ellenismakingmany newIndianfriends.Recallhowwellshe gotonwithPriyankaChopranotsolong ago?ShehadPeeCeedowningvodka shotsoneaftertheother(inanobvious sendupof apni Priyanka'svodka confessionsataredcarpetjustprior). Andifnewsistobebelieved,Ellenhas signedDeepikaPadukonetoappearon hershow,intheleaduptotherelease of xXx: Return ofXander Cage.
VodkaforPriyanka, People magazine coverforDev wonderwhatEllen hasinstoreforDippy?Needanyhelp there,Ellen?Howaboutgoodlooking boysnamesRanbir,Ranveer,Ranvir maybe ?Justasuggestion!
Dev,PeeCee,Dippy,wecan'twaitto seeyouinyournewfilms.
AndonmoreTVtalkshows!
Herfirstfilm Oum Laga Ke Haisha containedthemessagethatover-sized womenarenotatadisadvantageas longasthereislove.
BhumiPednekar'ssecondfilmtoo hasasocietalmessage.It'sabout... toilets?No,it'salovestory.Heck,no, it'salovestorysetinatoilet.No,no, no,it'sastorywheretoiletsfallinlove.
Excuseourconfusion.Butthefilmmakersarenottellingusmuchabout thefilmotherthanthefactthatit's calledToilet: Ek Prem Katha. Nowyou understandourfoggyminds
The27-year-oldactorsaidthefilm isn'tpreachy.
"Itisabeautifullovestorythattaps intoaspectsofoursocietyaswell,"she noted.
Whileitisquiteapparentfromthe
titlethatthefilmisaboutpersonal hygiene,theproducersarekeeping thestorylineclosetotheircheststo retaininterestinthemoviethatisset toreleaseinJune.AkshayKumarstars alongsideBhumi.
Bhumiismorethanhappyabout Bollywoodmakingmessage-basedfilms andsayscinemaistheeasiestwayto communicatewiththepeople.
"Ifeelthattoday'speople,audiences andfilmmakers,weallhavebecome veryawareoftheproblemsandthe situationsthatwehavearoundus," sheremarked."Earlier,wewereina positiontoignorethembutIthinkwe havenowreachedapointwherewe cannotignorecertainthingsandIthink that'sfantastic.Cinemaisthelargest andtheeasiestwaytocommunicate withthemassesandifyoucanputitto gooduse,thenwhynot."
Shewenton,"Whatattractsmeis realstoriesaboutrealIndiangirls."
Yougo,girt!
Bhumi,whobeforeenteringthe worldofflmswasacastingdirector, considersherselftobeluckyfor baggingrealisticroles.
"IthinkIhavebeenreallyluckythat IhavebeengettingroleswhereIcan playthegirl-next-doororagirl...My rolesarenotsimilaratall,"shesaid.
Oum Laga Ke Haisha camein2015 andBhumi'snextfilmisallsetto releaseinJune2017.
Willthetimegaphelpherbuildanew image?
"ThetimeItookoffwasplanned becauseIhadtocomebacktobeing Bhumi(mynaturalself)andittookme thismuchtime.Ihadgainedaninsane amountofweightforthefilmandIhad todropitoff,"sheexplained.
PriyankaChopramadeaglittering statementattheGoldenGlobeAwards inhercustom-madeRalphLauren goldengown.
Priyanka'soutfitwasdescribed as'one-of-a-kindhand-embroidered eveningdress'bytheofficialTwitter handleofthedesignerbrand.
InacandidconfessiontoIANSbefore the74theditionoftheawardgala, Priyankahadsaidthatshelikestohave
a"funonredcarpetasImeetpeopleI workwith.It'sfuntimeforme."
Bollywood's'desigirl"madeher debutappearanceattheGoldenGlobe Awards,whichrecogniseexcellence infilmandtelevision,bothdomestic andforeign,topresenttheawardfor theBestPerformancebyanActorin aTelevisionSeries-Drama.Shewas joinedbyHollywoodactorJeffreyDean Morgan.Shegaveawaythetrophyto BillyBobThorntonforhisrolein Goliath.
ColleaguesZacEfronandDwayne Johnsoncertainlylikedherlook.
"Badisanunderstatement.Why Iloveher!Stunningtonight.Being 'Baywatch'GoldenGlobes,"Johnson tweeted.
"CongratsPriyanka!Teamskillinit tonight!Youlookbeautiful!'Baywatch' babe,"Efrontweeted.
Manybackhomecomplainthatmost Indiancelebritiesoptforinternational labelsfortheirredcarpetappearances. DoesPriyankafeelsuchcommentsare justified?
"Ithinkpeoplewearclothesthat workforanevent.IhavewornIndian designersinternationally,andvice versa.Thereisnoharminitasclothes areclothes.Peopleshouldwearwhat theyfeellikewearing,"Priyankasaid.
AUSSIE HOLIDAY FOR BIPS
BipashaBasuwasinAustraliarecently andonextendedhoneymoonwithher bridegroomKaranSinghGrover.Sydney
andtheGoldCoastfeaturedontheir itinerary,withthelovedupduobringing intheNewYearinSydney,anarms' lengthawayfromtheworld-famous fireworksontheharbour.Thebubbly actortweetedpiesofherselfandher miyan attheOperaHouseforecourt, atPittStMall,inMyerinthecity,ona boatinSydneyHarbour,fishandchips atWatson'sBay,inLeuraintheBlue Mountains,beach-bumming,atvarious restaurants allaccompaniedbythe hashtagaussiemonkeys.
Onya,Bipasha!
WORTH WAITING FOR? YOU DECIDE! Ohhhhh,here'sanotherunfortunately namedfilm: Haramkhor, starring NawazuddinSiddiquiandShweta Tripathi.
Shweta(ofMasaanfame)hasbeen gushingallovertheplaceabouther talentedcolleague.
"Atfirst,Iwasworriedsharingscreen withanactorlikeNawazuddinSiddiqui becauseheisaremarkableactor andanoutstandingperson,"shesaid recently."(But)hedidn'tmakemefeel likeanewcomer.Nawazuddinbrings himselfdowntomatchthelevel.Ifelt asthoughIwasworkingwithanactor whohassameexperiencelikeme. That'swhyIrespecthimsomuch.I
KATIE STEVENS or MALAIKA ARORA KHAN in ZEYNAP ERDOGAN?
+Shareyourviews with us on our Facebookpage //ndianLinkAustralia
don'tknowanybodywhodoesthat.He givesspacetoanotherco-star."
Er,okay.
ShotinasmallvillageinGujarat,the filmexplorestheromancebetween a14-year-oldschoolstudentandher teacher.
Themaincharactersofthefilmare theteacher,thestudent,aboywhohas acrushonthegirlandhisfriendwho helpshimandtheteacher'swife.
Meanwhile,SalmanKhanisheaded toMoroccowithformersqueeze KatrinaKaif,fordirectorAliAbbas Zaffar's TigerZinda Hai, asequelto 2012blockbuster Ek Tha Tiger. Zaffariscurrentlybusyscouting locationsinMorocco.
ProducedbyAdityaChopraunder YashRajFilms,theflmisgearingup foraChristmasreleasethisyear.
Matchthestarstothefollowingtweets DeepikaPadukone,ShahRukhKhan, PriyankaChopra,KaranJohar,Salman Khan,AmitabhBachchan,AkshayKumar
Sometimestoomanyoptionsaren't agoodthing #GoldenGlobes #Gir!Problems suggestions?
TheSundaywellwishers alwaysan occasiontoconsiderthatlifeisworth whatitgaveme
Jaanse#Zaalimatak Hopeyouall likeit!
Joininghandsonaprojectwhere@ akshaykumaristheheroandwillbeco producedby@karanjoharand#SKF
Hereitis #GoPagalwithour firstsong,myfavouritesongfrom #JollyLLB2!!
Criedmyheartoutin#LION and absolutelyloved#DevPatel sadand cathartic butsomagicalinmany moments
Thrilledtoannouncethat #XxX:TheReturnofXanderCagewill releaseinIndiafirst!beforeanywhere elseintheworld!#14thJanuary #VinDiesel
What's the chitchat between LION stars DEV PATEL and SONNY PAWAR
Send in your responses to win@indianlink.com.au and win a surprise prize
What's the chitchat between AKSHAY KUMAR and SAJID NADIADWALA duringtheir grand entry to the setof Yaaron Ki Baraat
Everybody get ready for Houseful/ 4!
SIMONE SINGH, Werribee, VIC wins a tickettoOKJANU
BY SANAM SHARMA
Abigpart of theIndian social fabric are the rishtedaars (relatives).1n India, one grows upon anoverdoseof 'relatives', sometimes those you'renot even really related to,andthey come in all shapes and sizes.There are the nice ones withwhomyou seemto spendyour cwomonth-longsummer vacationseach year. There are thenot-so-niceones,whoyoutry, usuallrunsuccessfuli) to avoid. There are the ones\vhoare only concerned abomche exam grades scored by theother kids in the family (aapkcbachekekitnem11J1berac!)'Ctypes). And the competitiveoneswho are always there tooutdo you in everything -but with
a charming smile,of course.
Familygatherings,birthdays and ,veddings have traclitionally been the bondinggrounds for the tribe. It isduring theseoccasionsthatall the relatives in the khandaan(clan) cometogetherover a hearty mixof celebrations,feasting, and gossip (in noparticularorder).
However,withthe adventof social media, the Indian 1ishtedcJarishavemoved online. Facebook andWhatsApp are the twomostconm1on platformswhere modernlnclianfamiliesplay out d1eir e.xtended social scene. Socialmeclia has brought familiescloser, especially the Indian ones. Relativeswho usedtocatch upand conversemaybe annually nowpingeach od1er 'round the clock.
With thisonline migrationof India's extended families, the Indian 1ishtedaari. etiguette seems co have seamlessly transitionedintotheWorldWideWeb. Internal family politics, gossip, jealousies, disputes and grudges all seem co have
adoptedanonline avatar. For those 'good' relatives, socialmediais a great forumco keep a tab on the welfare of the extended family. For d10se borderline tomischievous risbtedaars, Facebook and WhatsApp are potent cools to dishoutconcealed sarcasm and sometimes,notsoconcealed outrage. Therehas neverbeen a better time to be a sp)'in theInclian extended family. Just 'friend' d1e entireclan online and d1en peacefully sit back,with a drink in hand, and scrollmrough your Facebook tirneline atleisure. Inno time, youwill have enough verifiable data tocomeup with educated conclusionsabout the break-ups, link-ups, factionsand frictionswithinyour kba11daa,1. Gossip and glory of the entire famil)7at yourfingertips,ready co unleash at d1e slightest trigger. Itis dieWikileaks eguivalemof the on.line desi.
WhatsApp and Facebookalsocater for thosewho fancy keeping agrudge going. Dropin asubtlehintof displeasureand \mfriend'a 1isbtedaaronFacebook,or leave a
family groupon \X/hatsApp. Tiuswill get the entirefan1ily talking Groupspeculationwill givewartoone-on-onemessages,debating thecauseof yourdiscontentwhilesoliciting ways cobringyou backinto the family fold. Some may even becourageous(orstupid) enough to message youdirectly- either to discreetly shared1eirdispleasurewith the family as well, or co cry and plead a case for you to re-join theelectr01ucpe11ivacJr.
Then there are d1eonlinepassiveaggressiverelatives.They resort co creative status updateswhich are adeguately vague enough togive away identities,yet keep tbe restof the clanguessingaboutwho's d1e target of meir rams.The ones in the family whoaremost boggled by such updates are bound to reacl1 out and probe for further clarification (if only to rule themselves out).
Last but not d1e least,if youclaim to be awriter,youmarend upgettingyourself thrownout of d1eonlinefamily network for writing sucha piece.You know, kbcmdacmk.a naamhadnaal/lkaruekeljye!
Youare a soul ofa permanent unchangeable nature, and if you would five as a soul, you would never be affected or changedby outer changes.
-Sant BafjitSingh
Nurtureyour spiritual life through meditation on the inner LightUyoti)and Sound (Naad) and realise yourtrue self. All events arefree. fo fuithe info ,at1on 1800462 193 www.knowthyself.org
