2017-06 Perth

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INDIAN LINK

PUBLISHER

Pawan luthra

EDITOR

rajni Anand luthra

ASSISTANT EDITOR

Kira Spucys-tahar

CONTRIBUTORS

Aneeta Menon, Preeti Jabbal, dhanya Samuel, raka Sarkhel, Puneet Anand, Kira Spucys-tahar, Vandana

ADVERTISING

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ADVERTISING ASSISTANT

Charuta Joshi 02 9279 2004

EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

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indian link is a monthly newspaper published in english. no material, including advertisements designed by indian link, may be reproduced in part or in whole without the written consent of the editor. opinions carried in indian link are those of the writers and not necessarily endorsed by indian link. All correspondence should be addressed to

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Email: info@indianlink.com.au

As US backs away, India on the forefront to fight climate change

BY PAWAN LUTHRA

As the United States President

Donald Trump announced his decision to abandon the Paris Climate change agreement, joining only Nicaragua and Syria in this process, India has ramped up its efforts to be a global leader in renewable energy.

The Paris Accord is signed by 195 countries of the world with a plan to limit global warming to 2°C above preindustrial levels, in addition to shifting the world towards sustainable growth and practices.

India is cancelling plans for establishing coal plants and also committing to lower its consumption of fossil fuel by 60% by 2030.

Instead, spurred by sharply falling prices for solar energy (2.4 rupees per kilowatt hour as compared to 6.5 rupees per kilowatt hour for natural

gas), India is aiming for a target of 40% renewable energy by 2030. While this may seem an ambitious target for a country plagued with rolling blackouts and where over 300 million people still do not have power, what is credible is the commitment which is being shown to fight climate change.

While India ranks behind China and the United States as the third largest emitter of carbon dioxide in the world, in per capita terms, it is the 128th most polluting country in the world.

There seems to be a change in this approach at the very top of the Indian leadership. PM Modi had said on record around the time the Paris accord was signed in 2015, that there needs to be a greater responsibility by the developed nations in fighting climate change.

But at a news conference recently, Modi stated that India will continue working above and beyond the Paris accord. He has called the Paris agreement the “common heritage” of the world.

There also will be a jostling for leadership on this topic as the United States leaves the table. Both India and China will like to take the moral high

ground on this and be involved in leading the policy change discussions.

The youth of today are more zealous on climate change; any country seeking to limit greenhouse emissions and working towards curbing the negative impact of climate change will capture their imagination. There are also economic benefits as the Paris signatories work on production of renewable energy options and open the markets to trade their clean energy technology.

Stories of start-ups in India wanting to battle climate change have started to emerge. Companies which have developed waste technology platforms allowing for on-field sensors like biometric attendance devices, bin sensors etc. are emerging; solar and wind energy companies are ramping up their offerings. While they do have a long way to go to make a strong impact, they are slowly and surely firing the imagination of middle class and younger Indians. All the more power to the politicians who are encouraging this. Kudos to the lead shown in this by New Delhi and Beijing, brickbats to Washington on their turn-around in this area.

YOUR SAY

In mum’s sArI

We asked young Indian Australian women to raid their mums’ wardrobes to create a unique Mother’s Day tribute

The Chindian Diaries wrote: A nice feature about daughters in their mother’s sarees.

Ian wrote: Beautiful saris, and beautiful stories.

Suneela Ramaswamy wrote: You look simple and elegant in the sari, Smitha! What you say is so true, I feel close to my mom when I wear her saris. Miss her so much!

Carmel Caggegi wrote: What a beautiful connection!

Anita Rao wrote: Wow… wish we could somehow showcase their stories for younger generations to learn from.

Kala Raghunath wrote: Vishakha, this is the look and feel that I would expect from a mother’s saree - simple, humble and traditional. My favourite out of the lot.

Preeti Jabbal wrote: Devna and Rajni, like mom like daughter, beauty with brains.

Radhika Pradhan Mathur wrote: Both mums and daughters looking lovely.

Shyamali Sinha wrote: Beautiful ladies in beautiful saris. Amrita, the story behind this sari is an inspiration for our current generation. How sweet, Khyati, this sari is a symbol of your dream!

Nikita Dave wrote: Mum, so many of yours to choose from!

Veena Sudarshan wrote: Very appropriate for Mother’s Day.

Mamata Hegde wrote: So great. Hats off to your mums. Lovely saris.

LookIng bAck At 1947

PAWAN LUTHRA interviewed British director Gurinder Chadha whose new film Viceroy’s House tries to recreate the events that led to the Partition of India

Manisha Bakshi wrote: Love Gurinder Chadha movies, looking forward to this one!

Balvinder Singh wrote: Train from Pakistan. A literally and metaphorically burning June’s chilling reminder of a gory happening in bright colours, which know not their dark shades. Perhaps no colour, even the blackest of the black, can describe the agony my parents would have gone through during those three longest June days of their lives. Stuck with three kids - the youngest just six months old - for three days with scarce food and water, in the Amritsar-bound train whose engine was hijacked at Lala Musa junction, and was guarded, from a surrounding frenzied mob, ready to attack any time, by a handful of armed military persons.

sIkhs In sport

DAMNEET SAMBHY reported from the 30th annual Australian Sikh Games in Adelaide

Tony Huber @AusCG_Mumbai retweeted Indian Link: Great to see sport connecting diaspora across Asia-Pacific! The Sikh community is one of the oldest & largest Indian subgroups in #Australia

chronIcLIng the worLd’s most fAmous journALIst

In Tintin, Belgian cartoonist Georges Remi, who wrote under the pen name Hergé, drew from his own life experiences, wrote VIKAS DATTA

AMaughan‏ @AMaughan3 retweeted Indian Link and wrote: So did Jo, Zette and Jocko

Alistair McIntosh wrote: Unfortunately Herge was a Fascist and a Racist.

worLd buILt Around food

India’s best-known food personality Sanjeev Kapoor spoke with PREETI JABBAL while on tour in Melbourne

Dr Shailendra Singh retweeted Indian Link: [Using food as an anchor for tourism] is also an area for Fiji/the Pacific to focus on given the abundance of local, naturally grown/caught healthy foods.

SK RESTAURANTS @skrestaurants retweeted: What’s cooking in the world of Sanjeev Kapoor!

Sangramkeshari Padhy @keshari49 tweeted: I really want to meet you!

new pArentAL vIsAs A deceIt

The high cost of the new parental visas has left those who campaigned for it disappointed, reported SHAMSHER KAINTH

Aman Arora wrote: It’s very disappointing that the federal government has passed the ridiculous fee structure for the long stay parents visas - $20,000 per parent + private medical insurance. If you guys think it’s a rip off, please join together for a protest against it. I hope every one of you will spread this message to all your immigrant friends. Doesn’t matter what background they come from. Please share and let’s protest against the bullying and discrimination being done by the government against all immigrants.

the me AnIng of AnZAc dAY

Some of our young readers, RONIT, ARJUN, ANANYA, MANAN, KUVAM and RIA, shared their thoughts on Anzac Day

Akhil Jhingran wrote: Fantastic Ronit, well written. This works to enhance our knowledge about great Australian heroes.

Chaitanya Sharma wrote: Wonderful piece Ronit! Like mother like son! Naina Uppal wrote: Wow, Arjun. Your writing shows maturity of thought beyond your age.

Ina Takkar wrote: Arjun, beautifully penned piece. So vividly described. Great job, love reading your pieces.

Dr Sonia Bhatia wrote: Well done Arjun. You captured the essence of the Anzacs beautifully in your poem. Lest we forget.

Harvinder Rosy Bhagat wrote: Beautiful painting, Ananya!

Vivek Sharma wrote: A very creative piece, Manan.

Akhil Jhingran wrote: Great words Kuvam, your thoughts reflect maturity beyond your age.

Marion Barnes wrote: Wow. That is beautiful. You capture so many emotions in your poem. Well done, Kuvam.

Rekha Abrol wrote: Wow! Unbelievable and very touching. Congratulations Kuvam.

Praveena Nauty wrote: Kuvam, very touching and thoughtful, well done and great job Ria, our little poetess.

Chaitanya Sharma wrote: Awwww... that’s so cute! Well done dear Ria.

16,000 kms In A crAppY cAr

A team from Australia (calling themselves Honk Honk Old Monk) is set to take part in this year’s Mongol Rally. They will drive in a £11.50 car, purchased at a London scrapyard, all the way from the UK to Mongolia. Elliot Skyewalker wrote: Honk Honk! Good luck, gentlemen. What an amazing journey it will be. Full of adventure! Best wishes and be careful out there

Khera Rinku wrote: Enjoy

Jagdish Satnam Singh Kaur wrote: Good best of luck

pArt AborIgInAL, pArt kAshmIrI

For Reconciliation Week, we ran this from our archives: MAMATA SALAKAPURAPU on how Aboriginal art takes on new forms with some Kashmiri influence

Krish Na‏ @IndigoKKing tweeted: Great read!

whAt’s Your fAv mILk fun fAct for worLd mILk dAY

Sivee Bhatia wrote: Hot milk with powdered almonds is yum; hot milk with turmeric is so relaxing; hot milk with cocoa is delicious…list is endless

crAftIng sILence out of words

RAKA SARKHEL on Indian-Australian Michelle Cahill’s Letter to Pessoa which won the NSW Premier’s Literary Award for New Writing Michelle Cahill‏ @theherringlass tweeted: Wonderful review of Letter to Pessoa by Raka Sarkhel in @indian_link @GiramondoBooks

powerfuL IndIAn women shAtterIng notIons

SAKET SUMAN reviewed Ira Mukhoty’s Heroines – Powerful Indian Women of Myth and History

Dr Shailendra Singh‏ @ShailendraBSing tweeted: There should be some good insights/lessons in here

Long rIde on mY motorbIke

A young couple take a motorbike ride from their home in Oz to their home in India, wrote FRANKEY GERARD FERNANDES

Another Traveller wrote: Well done brave couple!

understAndIng of vIr dAs

Ing s

Indian comic powerhouse Vir Das spoke with VIRAT NEHRU about the changing perception of comedy in India

Virat Nehru tweeted: Had a ball talking all things comedy with @thevirdas as he gets ready to bring his brand of humour to Australia for the first time Girish‏ @bookwormengr tweeted: Very proud of you, dude!

Vir Das @thevirdas tweeted: Here’s a wonderful review, not of Netflix, but the new show I’m touring with Holier than thou?

wALkIng Across the worLd

KIRA SPUCYS-TAHAR spoke with Arjun Bhogal, who took five years to walk from Cardiff in Wales to Cardiff in NSW

B wrote: I met you on that orange line. That’s crazy!

Tom Warland wrote: Nice article mate

Jasmine Kemkar wrote: Truly inspiring. Congrats and keep up the good work

AMaughan‏ @AMaughan3 retweeted Indian Link and wrote: Crazy but awesome!!

Rajni Luthra: Wow Arjun Bhogal, my salaams to you. I can see a book coming out of your amazing walk! Some wonderful stories there - the Russian character (truth is stranger than fiction, right?), the beauty of northeast India and its people, and um, dealing with the parents...

smArt And sAvvY, or shY And nerdY?

PREETI JABBAL caught up with Kirsha Rebecchi (aka Vani Dhir) from the new family on Ramsay Street

Ritu Singh wrote: Awesome coverage with such a beautiful pic. Congratulations to Vani and proud parents Jessica n Mohit!!

Ruchi Singh wrote: Well done Vani so proud of you!!

Rajni Luthra wrote: Hope to see much more of you on our screens, Vani - all the very best.

embrAcIng cre AtIvIt Y

One of the primary roles of the educator must be to foster creativity in the classroom, wrote MOHAN DHALL

Dhanya Samuel wrote: An extremely useful read for both parents and educators

of Loot, mAssAcres And expLoItAtIon: the LegAcY of the rAj

SAKET SUMAN reviewed Shashi Tharoor’s new book, An Era of Darkness, based on his celebrated speech at an Oxford Union debate that went viral on the internet

Virat Nehru wrote: It’s a wonderfully written and persuasively argued book. Much needed in the current era where the horrors of colonialism seem to be washed over and watered down with the brush of a benevolent, but misguided enterprise

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Over the fence What do our Neighbours look like in 2017?

Indian families have been a part of Australian society for many decades but it is only now we’re beginning to see a reflection of this on screen

Shane: “She caused a bit of a ruckus with some fireworks back home”

Yashvi: “It wasn’t a big deal”

Dipi: “Excuse me, blowing up the Big Emu was most definitely a big deal!”

BY ANEETA MENON

If you’ve noticed something a little different on your screens lately, don’t adjust your sets. What you’re seeing is the expansion of diversity in Australian media. Flick over to the iconic series Neighbours and you’ll be greeted with the welcome addition of Sharon Johal, who has recently joined the cast as Dipi Rebecchi, the wife of Shane Rebecchi.

“We are just another family who have moved to Erinsborough,” Sharon tells Indian Link

Alongside Sharon Johal, Olivia Junkeer, Vani Dhir and Scarlett Vas make up the mixed-race Rebecchi family. “I am extremely proud to be a part of such an iconic and progressive show,” Sharon says. “In my view, it reflects the Australian community more accurately than any other Australian television show I am aware of.”

Pursuing a career in acting has not been without its hurdles for Sharon though, as she was not only required to battle against the overwhelmingly Anglo-centric television climate, but also the limitations placed upon her by her own family and their cultural values. Looking back, she says, “They were concerned that I would have limited opportunities for success in the profession in Australia given the lack of diversity on screen at the time, as well as the sheer difficulty of attaining success as an actor

generally - their perceived impossibility of being that “one in a million” that actually got one of the rare jobs available.”

With the lack of diversity in Australian media and advertising being notorious, the initial concerns of Sharon’s parents are not hard to understand.

Indian Australian actress Georgina Naidu played legal eagle Helena Chatterjee in ABC’s Newton’s Law earlier this year and she faced similar difficulties starting out.

“I’ve wanted to be an actor since I was three. When I got into the industry I was naïve and optimistic, not expecting any obstacles. I did youth theatre with St. Martins,” she says. “When I got into the VCA (Victorian College of the Arts) I did see a lack of diversity, but I thought it was due to a lack of actors available. I got a shock when I graduated. The casting people saw me in a particular way, and I found myself becoming pigeonholed. I couldn’t go to just any role. After that first year I became proactive about trying to change.”

A staple of Australian television, long-running shows such as Home and Away and Neighbours have been the pinnacle of reflecting Aussie life back to Australians, and have also become the vehicle by which Australian communities are depicted to those overseas. However, each has come under scrutiny for their limited representation of what Australia “looks” like, with the overwhelming majority of families depicted being of Caucasian, Anglo-Saxon background. At a time when 47 per cent of Australians were themselves born outside Australia or have one parent who was, and with over 260 known languages spoken across Australia, a simple glance at the suburban landscape on television does not reflect reality.

georgina naidu

georgina on newton’s Law

It was Shakespeare’s Hamlet who resolutely announced that the purpose of drama is “to hold as ‘twere the mirror up to nature: to show virtue her own feature, scorn her own image, and the very age and body of the time his form and pressure”. Indeed, throughout history, drama and storytelling have been an imperative tool in documenting and communicating the social, historical and cultural contexts of the time.

Visual media, specifically television, is one of the ways in which our world is reflected back to us. Behind a steady stream of current affairs and news media, television operates in overt ways, such as via reality or news shows, or in subtle ways, through the construction of narratives within scripted comedy and drama series. Television enables us to view the world through the eyes of characters specifically designed to invite audiences to either relate or object to a series of moral and practical dilemmas. This aids in creating our own sense of self, and in no situation is it more crucial to have a representation of ourselves than when presented with the day-to-day trials and tribulations of the community around us, particularly our own neighbours. Knowing this reality and having grown up without seeing people like herself represented on television, Sharon always wanted to be an actor. Taking her parents advice on board, she decided to pursue a ‘sensible’ career whilst not giving up on her dreams.

“I graduated in Law and Commerce and worked as a litigation lawyer whilst still auditioning for acting jobs,” she explains. “It was definitely easier for me to achieve success as a lawyer. Of course, there are hurdles in equal pay as a woman and promotions, however, generally, if you work hard, you get the results. I truly don’t believe race was a hindrance in working in the legal field. Acting is not like that. No matter how hard you work, it doesn’t equal success, and you can only be successful if not only everything goes right for you in the audition room, but the opportunities have to be there in the first place. The roles that were available to audition for over the years for television and film were few and far between.”

but is the cultural landscape of Australian television finally changing? Johal’s character and that of her family are not the first family of Indian background to have moved to Erinsborough. Back in 2011, the Kapoor family moved to Ramsay Street and were written out in 2013. Why has it taken another four years for a family of Indian background to find a home in suburban Melbourne? Are the roles for actors becoming more or less available as time goes on?

“In terms of diversity on screen and my personal experience with auditions for that work, I believe things have changed positively in the last few years,” Sharon reflects. “The reality is that Indian families have been a part of Australian society for many, many decades so I cannot comprehend any resistance to a reflection of this on screen, and it would be disappointing if there still was.”

In addition to speaking with Sharon Johal, who is currently having a blast on the show, we spoke with Neighbours alumnus Menik Gooneratne, who played the role of Priya Kapoor on the show from 2011 to 2013. During this run, the cast and crew received some negative backlash from small segments of the broader community regarding the casting of an ethnic Indian family. In speaking with Menik, she explains that she’d been actively in the entertainment industry in Australia for ten years before receiving her ‘big break’ on Neighbours.

Despite the controversies at the time, Menik looks back on her time on the series fondly. “As a personal experience, it was absolutely amazing. Everyone is like a great big family.” Of course, the unexpected criticism of a family from an ethnically Indian background was “a bit confronting”, but ultimately it was contained to a “small, but vocal, segment” of the viewership.

What ethnicity were the Kapoor family on Neighbours? Indian? Sri Lankan? When asked about the specific heritage of her character Priya, and whether she was “just generically brown”, Menik laughs and admits that no specific ethnicity had been plotted out for her character and

those in her family, however, the writers “wrote the characters to evolve to suit the actors”.

As her own heritage is a mixture of British and Sri Lankan, Menik approached the character of Priya as being from a similar background. Menik has since relocated to LA where her career has skyrocketed and she is “living the dream.” She is currently on location in New Zealand shooting a science-fiction feature film Mortal Engines based on the highly successful novel by Philip Reeve. On speaking about the future of diverse roles in a rapidly-evolving world, Menik says, “I certainly think the arts are the rebellion, but also from a business perspective, it is good business sense to include diversity in your show.”

One of the most notable shifts from the original Kapoor family to the new Rebecchi family is the shift from a fully Indian(ish) family to a mixed-race one, with Dipi’s husband, Shane, being

Caucasian as opposed to the character of Ajay Kapoor, Priya’s husband, played by Sachin Joab, being of Indian descent. The world has changed considerably since 2013, with the rise of right wing populism, and the re-emergence of white supremacist ideologies. It is therefore interesting that Neighbours has removed one of the most politically contentious images from its screens: the brown male body.

the sub-continental female body has traditionally been associated with a non-threatening, exotic beauty. The brown male, on the other hand, is often associated with less favourable connotations, such as the immigrant job stealer, the unattractive nerd and, at its most nefarious, the terrorist. Overseas, roles for men of subcontinental men have expanded much more broadly, with the success of Aziz Ansari’s Master of None, and BBC’s Class – a spinoff of the iconic Doctor Who series – featuring Ram Singh, the ‘hot jock athlete’ character in a lead role. His character is of visibly Sikh origin, grapples with a disability and is portrayed by actor Fady Elsayed, who is outspoken in calling out Islamophobia. In the US, Rahul Kohli plays the role of Ravi Chakrabarti on the cult series iZombiea character who appeared at first to be inline with the stereotypical

the rebecchi family on neighbours

sharon johal

Television helps create our sense of self, and nowhere is it more crucial than when presented with the day-today issues of the community around us, our neighbours

‘‘

Indian doctor, but has since evolved as a core ally and a serious love interest to other major characters (as opposed to Kunal Nayyar’s cringe-worthy hopeless-atlove-for-laughs Raj in The Big Bang Theory).

“I think in the writing room the white male is the loudest voice,” says Georgina Naidu. “It is perhaps easier for white males to see a white man with an Indian girl, rather than the other way round.”

Lena Nahlous, Executive Director of Diversity Arts Australia - whose emphasis is on changing the arts landscape to one that is reflective of the social and cultural diversity - tells Indian Link, “At this critical time in Australia’s screen industry, a truly diverse spectrum of content and audiences will be what strengthens, builds and sustains it into the future.”

She goes on to specify, “This goes beyond casting diverse actors or hiring diverse crews,

although this is very important. It is about telling real Australian stories that will enrich our culture and attract audiences from the 31 per cent of us born overseas. The content created through these initiatives also could have a higher propensity to sell overseas, as other diasporic communities connect with these stories.”

As vital as it is to see a wide array of faces on screen, we must also see diverse stories as a result (as opposed to characters who are simply generically ethnic).

“Storytelling is important in breaking down barriers, making connections and creating understanding but storytelling alone is not enough. Who is going to tell these stories? And who is going to make the decisions about which stories are “worthy” of being told?” Nahlous asks. “We need to create opportunities and platforms that enable people from non-white backgrounds to have agency in the screen sector, to create artistic and screen work, to be makers, actors and decision-makers.”

Georgina Naidu felt empowered working on Newton’s Law and having a say in the development of her character. “Having a law degree as well, I’ve been involved in the show since the very inception, doing legal research. Later, as an actor, I began to have input to the Indian elements. Whenever something is culturally inappropriate or clichéd, I’ve addressed it early on. I’ve been against elements that are new age or hippie or stereotypical, and I’ve added a nuance of what I feel is real. (My outlook is) people of colour should get the joke.”

As diversity on-screen expands, we must also be aware of what is happening behind the scenes. “We have never before lived in a time with such high levels of human migration and global interconnection via technology,” Lena Nahlous says. “Our stories are intersecting in ways that never have before and we need the arts to help us make sense of this.”

Brown faces are also beginning to make an appearance in our advertisements, Myer’s Mother’s Day campaign, Queensland Tourism and McDonald’s among them. Advertisers are beginning to see the need to reach out to a broader cross section of their target markets.

Whilst it is undeniable that racially blended families are quite common in Australian circles, it’s worth noting that in terms of overall statistics, they are still a minority when compared to the subcontinental population overall. Given the sparse representation of ethnicity on Australian television, the erasure of a fully ethnic family in favour of a ‘safer’, mixed-race one can be interpreted as problematic - particularly if viewed through the ‘white saviour’ lens, which is a common trope in outdated Orientalist narratives in which Caucasian men meet ethnic women and liberate them from their oppressive communities and away from barbaric men, Nahlous says. Once again, counter-acting these representations overseas are characters such as Priyanka Chopra’s Alex Parrish in Quantico, whose

role as a CIA trainee coming from a CIA training background is as far removed from the stereotype of the submissive subcontinental Indian woman as it gets.

Sharon Johal wholeheartedly agrees about the diversification of roles for women of colour. When asked about her dream role, she confesses, “I would absolutely love to play a lead action hero. A Marvel Comics character would be the absolute dream. She would be strong, smart, independent and complex in her vulnerabilities. She would be a warrior and a lioness, who saves the world.” Now that is something we can get behind.

As is the case with Neighbours, all representation is undeniably good, and Sharon tells us, “I personally have received immense support and encouragement from the general community. I am aware that a few negative comments have been made online as to race, however, I hope that is a minority speaking, and it doesn’t reflect the general population that is the Australia I know and love.”

When it comes to analysing the television and media landscape, it is also important to consider not just what is being included, but also what is being deliberately left out. Like Sharon and Menik, Lena Nahlous is optimistic about the future of diversity on Australian screens. “If any sector can make change happen the arts sector is one that can - it has the flexibility and creativity to generate interesting conversations and engagement, challenge perceptions and misperceptions in an engaging, emotive, and funny way, but also in a way that leaves audiences challenged.”

It is only when we can look to our screens and see all our neighbours, that we can be proud of genuine progress.

With Rajni Anand Luthra

SMART AND SAVVY, OR SHY AND NERDY?

Meet Kirsha Rebecchi (aka Vani Dhir) from the new family on Ramsay Street

As a young child, Vani Dhir had once written on a wish list that she would like to be on television one day.

Well, her dreams have come true with a role in Australia’s longestrunning drama renowned for depicting the good, the bad and the endlessly entertaining lives of the residents of Ramsay Street in suburban Melbourne.

Thirteen-year-old Vani plays Kirsha Rebecchi, the youngest daughter of the newly arrived family in Neighbours

Vibrant and talented, Vani says she is the opposite of the shy, anxious and nerdy character she portrays in the show.

“For as long as I can recollect I have always been a performer, doing random things on stage, at family functions, at home and at school, and I have always wanted to act,” Vani tells Indian Link with confidence belying her age.

“I was happy and thrilled to get this role as I am now doing what I love and enjoying every bit of it,” she reveals.

“I wish I could be filming everyday but I have to go to school,” she smiles wryly.

Vani’s routine varies depending on her shooting requirements.

Some scenes require two to three weeks; others take a day, but all her shoots wrap up in a couple of hours, according to Vani.

The outdoor scenes are shot at Pine Oak Court in Vermont South, the setting of the fictitious Melbourne suburb of Erinsborough and the rest are filmed at Television Studios in Forest Hill.

“My school has been very supportive and I get to catch up with any work that I may miss,” says the Year 8 student at Haileybury in Keysborough.

Vani’s parents Jessica and Mohit Dhir are medical practitioners who moved to Keysborough five years ago from Frankston to be closer to her school.

Vani is the youngest of three siblings. Her sister Sakshi is 22 and brother Sahil is 18.

“We are very happy and proud of Vani,” her mum Jessica says.

“The school has been very supportive and Vani understands that she cannot ignore studies as her primary goal,” she adds, when asked how she feels about Vani’s catapult to fame.

“As parents we sometimes tend to overthink,” Jessica admits. “We had our initial concerns about the impact

on her studies, the exposure and cultural considerations, however, it is working out very well so far.”

According to Vani’s parents she has been entertaining friends and family from a very young age, always initiating and participating in acts, skits and other performances at family events.

“That is the reason we had her enrolled in the Young Australian Broadway Chorus (YABC) stage school through which she got to audition for this role with Talent Company Australia.”

“Vani is super excited about the role and she is very well looked after on the sets. The show crew ensures her safety and wellbeing and we are consulted prior to any scenes that may have unusual or sensitive themes,” Jessica reveals, and her now famous daughter agrees.

“I was really nervous in the beginning but the crew explained everything and we did not dive into shooting from day one. I had an orientation that involved drama classes, costumes, meeting other cast and crew and the director, and a drive around the location of external shoots,” she shares.

Early days of filming were nerve-

wracking for Vani, but she got used to it quickly and developed a great rapport with her onscreen family.

“Sharon Johal (who plays mum Dipi) is amazing and I have connected very well with Olivia Junkeer (sister Yashvi). It’s like we are real sisters,” Vani says enthusiastically.

“It’s great to be part of a family that breaks through stereotypes and depicts the diversity of a multicultural Australia,” the young actress says.

Preeti Jabbal

At this crucial time in the industry, a diverse spectrum of content and audiences is what will sustain and build it Lena Nahlous

‘‘ ‘‘

menik gooneratne

vani dhir

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Rainbow of opportunities

Hindi Samaj of WA struts its stuff at Indradhanush

They also conduct many not-for-profit events, one of which is Indradhanush. Events such as this allow for students and participants to present their talent to the community.

BY PUNEET ANAND

there’s oodles of talent in Perth’s Indian community and thanks to Hindi Samaj of WA, we got to witness some of this recently.

HSWA’s “Indradhanush 2017” wowed the audience awestruck with its resonating talent.

HSWA has been active in Perth for over 20 years now, promoting and supporting the Hindi language, literature and culture among Indians as well as non-Indians. Among their many activities, they operate the Hindi school Paathshala which has 66 students currently enrolled, and bring out an annual Hindi magazine Bharat Bharati

The show began with a traditional Ganesh Vandana and both national anthems, followed by welcome by president Vinod Aggarwal and a note by the Consul General of India (Perth) Amit Mishra.

Amongst the formalities was the presentation of the Volunteer Award to the much-loved Rajyashree Malaviya, who has been supporting the association for 25 years now.

It was an evening of back-to-back stunning stage presentations.

Amongst the dances, the kathak was superb. Beautiful costumes, crisp hand mudras, orhani and tikkas in sync with body flow - kudos, girls, it was a stunning presentation. Tisha Shah totally nailed her dance number based on Shankar

Mahadevan’s Breathless . Ram Mrynal and Vishesh Singh with their groups came off well too. The Uttarakhand community, presenting for the first time, brought in a touch of folk, light and lively. Complimenting this, was the mood evoked by the Mauritian fusion dancewonderfully zingy!

The musicians did their bit to add to the ‘rainbow’ of talent, again showcasing a variety. A mother-son duo with a strange talent held the moment in their hands with their renditions of Aayat ki tarah and Lal ishq, the son striking the chords on casio. Sandeep Boolkan (from Mauritius) channelled Kishore Kumar as he yodelled in Tere sang yara and Dekha nah aye re. On the other side of the interval, the audience sat drenched in the melody of ghazals by the hugely talented Amit Galib: that jugalbandi with Gurmeet Singh on the tabla, was jaw dropping.

And there was drama as well. The

Paathshala kids performed Swaraj, a skit deeply soaked in the spirit of patriotism. The varied age of performers didn’t hinder the performance even for a second! Slogans like Vande Mataram, Jai Hind, Tum mujhe khoon do main tumhe azaadi doonga weighed heavy even though coming from such tender young mouths who couldn’t even utter them properly. The staged skit Kalyug ki Savitri by Prashant Tupe group and Sanskriti group went off well too.

Meanwhile, the witty MCs kept the crowd in splits, as they cleverly stitched the ‘rainbow’ together and connecting to all age groups in the audience with ease.

Closing note came in the form of a finale song by Vivek, Anurag, Sandeep and Nazrul.

Well done, HSWA: you left us feeling like we want to see more from this grand manch and its varied kalaakars. Looks like there’s a rainbow of opportunities awaiting the HSWA horizons.

We will remember you, Nain Singh Sailani

BY PUNEET ANAND

Private Nain Singh Sailani, an Indian-origin Sikh soldier who gave his life for Australia in World War I, was honoured at a special service in Perth on 1 June.

It was his 100th death anniversary.

Private Nain Singh Sailani, who wore the service number 658 of the 44th Battalion Australian Infantry AIF, was killed in action in Belgium during World War 1. His sacrifice to his adopted country was remembered with honour at the State War Memorial, Kings Park.

Many members of Perth’s Sikh community, and dignitaries from the mainstream were present to honour the unsung story of this Sikh braveheart.

The ceremony was organised by the Sikh Association of Western Australia supported by Amit Kumar Mishra, Consulate General of India, Perth.

Private N. S. Sailani was born in Shimla, India, in 1873. He arrived in Geraldton, WA in 1895, probably aged 22. In his initial days he worked as a labourer and had even applied for mine licence once. There is evidence that he used the Perth General Post Office to receive his mail. He was friends with a Mr Cyril Coleman, who he nominated as executor of his will.

He was 43 when he volunteered for Australian Imperial Force in 1916 and was allotted to the 44th battalion for his clear records. During his deployment in France, his work was dangerous and risky, serving in the frontline. Australian War Memorial records show that his battalion was involved in heavy battle against the Germans during late May and early June, 1917. It was at this time that Nain Singh Sailani was killed.

Nain Singh’s mother allowed for his burial to take place in the Strand Military

Cemetery in Ploegsteert Wood, Belgium.

Mr Tarunpreet Singh of Australian Sikh Heritage Association (ASHA) and Mr Gurdarshan Singh Kailey, President SAWA, addressed the attendees and extended thanks to Colonel John Tick, President of Army Museum of WA, Mr John Sweetman, World War History society, Mr Richard Offen Executive Director Heritage Perth.

Tarunpreet Singh said on ABC Radio later that the contributions of Private Nain Singh and others like him must be highlighted to the mainstream, to show that in the hour of need, they will stand up, and lay down their lives if called for.

CG Amit Mishra mentioned that stories such as those of Nain Singh remind us that Indians and Australians have been comrades-in-arms for long.

The Australian Sikh Heritage Association (ASHA) has undertaken much research to bring to light the Sikh settlement in this country, particularly in service to its armed forces. It does this by researching information stored in various local, state

and federal archives and private collections across Australia. It has just been awarded a $62,000 grant to produce a booklet based on its findings.

The participants at the State War Memorial laid wreaths at the memorial and observed a minute’s silence in remembrance of Nain Singh Sailani. His name is included in The State War Memorial Cenotaph at Kings Park.

When you next visit the nation’s capital Canberra, go and locate Nain Singh’s name on the Roll of Honour at the Australian War Memorial. It is located at 138 in the Commemorative Area.

This year, the Australian War Memorial is honouring the gallantry of our fallen soldiers by projecting their names onto the exterior of the Hall of Memory. Private Nain Singh Sailani’s name is scheduled to appear at the following times

Sun 11 June, 2017 8:37 pm

Sun 23 July, 2017 7:52 pm

Thu 7 September, 2017 11:43 pm

Thu 2 November, 2017 12:41 am

Sat 6 January, 2018 5:06 am

An Indian-origin Australian soldier from WWI is honoured in Perth

Irish PM-elect Indian links

QUAID NAJMI meets Leo Ashok Varadkar’s extended family in Mumbai

shortly before midnight on 2 June, residents of an otherwise quiet home in the middle-class locality of Abhinav Nagar in Borivali east Mumbai, suddenly erupted into frenzied celebrations involving lusty cheers and shouts of joy.

The Varadkar family were over the moon as barely minutes ago, their relative Leo Ashok Varadkar, 38, was elected Taoiseach or head of the ruling Fine Gael Party in Ireland to succeed outgoing Prime Minister Enda Kenny, thus making the medicoturned-politician the next PM-designate.

Ireland, the island nation in the North Atlantic near Great Britain, has a population of around 4.6 million, or hardly one fourth of Mumbai’s (17 million).

For Leo Ashok Varadkar’s cousin and cancer survivor Shubhada Varadkar, his success had fulfilled the wish she made on her visit to Ireland last year.

“In July 2016, Leo took time out to take me around Dublin, the Irish Parliament, his alma mater Trinity College and even the Prime Minister’s Residence. I saw it and blurted: Dada, I hope to see you in there, someday. He smiled as we walked away. After exactly a year I feel so thrilled that my dream has come true,” an excited Shubhada told IANS.

However, the family, including another cousin, Shekhar M. Varadkar, a retired Air India official, and his sister Shubhada, are a tad disappointed they have not been able to connect directly with Leo and convey their love, felicitations and best wishes for his achievement.

“It’s a great thing -- beginning of a new era in the world. Ireland has elected him without any consideration of caste, religion, and ethnic background. Merit is the only criterion,” an overwhelmed Shekhar told IANS.

He spoke amidst ongoing celebrations

Leo took me around Dublin, the Irish Parliament, his alma mater Trinity College and even the Prime Minister’s Residence. I saw it and blurted, ‘Dada, I hope to see you in there, someday’. He smiled as we walked away. After exactly a year I feel so thrilled that my dream has come true

Shubhada Varadkar

at the family home in Borivali, which Leo had last visited in 2011, hectic media interviews and palpable excitement in the suburban area that borders the lush green Sanjay Gandhi National Park in north-west Mumbai.

Born on January 18, 1979 in Dublin, Leo Varadkar’s Mumbai-born father was a medico who went to England in 1970 and married a nurse, Miriam, to settle in Ireland.

Leo visited Mumbai several times as a child, as a medico intern at the KEM Hospital in Parel, and later as a Sports Minister of Ireland in 2011.

“He was a voracious reader and continues to be even now; he was interested in the mysteries of space and astronomy. We always felt he was a visionary, far ahead of his times and he has proved us right,” said Shekhar.

The young Dubliner joined Irish politics

at 22, and became an MP five years later. Now, he has created history by becoming the youngest Taoiseach of the country at 38.

Shubhada and Shekhar have fond memories of Leo’s trips to India “when he made it a point to visit each of our 10 family homes in Mumbai” and meet all the relatives in the huge joint family.

In fact, besides the celebrations in Borivali, a celebratory procession involving music, beating of drums and dancing was taken out in their ancestral Varad village in Sindhudurg district in coastal Konkan, around 500 km south of Mumbai near the Goa border, by the entire Varadkar clan.

“Leo is a very homely, family-loving and traditional person, enjoys homecooked food and Maharashtrian cuisine in the typical Malvan style. He likes Malvani prawns, fried fish, amboli (a rice-

dosa preparation) and gulab jamun,” said Shubhada.

Leo’s visits to India see much celebration, feasting and merrymaking by the Varadkars in Mumbai, mostly at the Borivali home.

But, now that Leo will become the Prime Minister of Ireland, the family is not so sure whether he will be able to make it to their home, owing to security and protocol considerations, but they look forward to a visit by him.

Coming out openly as gay on his 36th birthday in 2015, Leo’s extended joint family in India comprises four uncles and five aunts, including two -- Manohar Varadkar, 93, and Madhukar Varadkar who are freedom fighters, and Avinash, 79, a former Indian Railway employee, and a host of cousins and their children. IANS

will win 2019 polls by bigger margin, will control kashmir situation: Amit shah

BJP President Amit Shah said that his party will win the next general election in the country in 2019 by a much bigger margin than the majority achieved in the 2014 elections.

Addressing media in Chandigarh during a ‘Meet-the-Press’ programme of the Chandigarh Press Club, he said that the people of the country were overwhelmingly behind the BJP government at the centre led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“We will win 2019 general election with much bigger majority. It will be much bigger than last time (2014),” Shah said, noting that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), in three years of being in power in the centre, had provided a corruption-free and developmentoriented government.

“The BJP has freed the country from (the shackles) of casteism (jaativaad), dynastic politics (pariwarvaad) and appeasement,” said the BJP chief, who arrived in Chandigarh to a rousing reception by party leaders and supporters.

Asked about the ongoing turmoil in Jammu and Kashmir, he said that the situation would soon be brought under control.

“Regarding Kashmir, such situations have occurred many times since 1989. We will control the situation,” he said, adding that security agencies have started their work against separatist leaders who had a role in adding to the present tense situation in the Valley at the behest of Pakistan and its agencies.

Highlighting the achievements of the BJP in three years in power at the centre, Shah said that the Modi government had taken the country forward on all fronts.

“Even our political opponents unable to level any allegations of corruption against BJP government in three years. This is a big achievement for BJP,” he noted.

He said that the BJP had emerged as the biggest political organisation in the world with over 11 crore party members.

Asked about the questions being raised by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders regarding the electronic voting machines (EVMs), Shah said: “I want to ask AAP leaders which EVM

they used to get 67 seats out of 70 in Delhi elections.”

On the BJP’s loss in recent assembly elections in Punjab, he remained guarded.

“You all know that we (BJP) were a minor partner (in the alliance with the Shiromani Akali Dal,” Shah said, stopping short of blaming the Akali Dal for the loss.

He maintained that the Akali Dal-BJP alliance in Punjab “continues in the present”.

“The party doing its internal analysis of the election defeat in Punjab,” he added.

‘

us , c hina, India to be top prospective destinations for fdI’

The US, China and India are considered to be the most prospective destinations for foreign direct investment (FDI), predicted the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in its annual report on investment.

According to the World Investment Report 2017: Investment and the Digital Economy, global FDI flows retreated marginally in 2016 by two per cent to $1,75 trillion, amid weak economic growth and significant policy risks perceived by multinational enterprises, Xinhua reported.

Flows to developing countries were especially hard hit, with a decline of 14 per cent, while FDI outflows from developed countries decreased by 11 per cent, mainly owing to a slump in investments from European multinational enterprises.

The US remained the largest recipient of FDI, attracting $391 billion in inflows, followed by Britain with $254 billion, and China with inflows of $134 billion.

According to the report, with a surge of outflows, China also becomes last year the second largest investing country.

In 2017, the global FDI is expected to rise by 5 per cent, to almost $1.8 trillion, attributed to higher economic growth expectations across major regions, a resumption of growth in trade and a recovery in corporate profits.

The modest increase in FDI flows is expected to continue into 2018, taking flows to $1.85 trillion, but still below the all-time peak of $1.9 trillion in 2007, said the report.

“Although this report projects a modest increase for 2017, other factors such as the

elevation of geopolitical risks and policy uncertainty may impact the scale of the upturn,” said Mukhisa Kituyi, UNCTAD Secretary-General, adding that “the road to a full recovery for FDI remains bumpy.”

Indian presidential election on july 17, counting on july 20

The election of the next President will be held on July 17, the Election Commission announced setting in motion the process to choose the successor to Pranab Mukherjee. Counting of votes will take place on July 20.

Announcing the schedule at a press conference, Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi said the filing of nomination will begin on June 14 and the last date for the purpose will be June 28. Scrutiny will take place on June 29 and the last date for withdrawal is July 1.

“The date on which polling will be held, if required, is July 17. Counting, if required, will be done on July 20,” he said. The term of Mukherjee, the country’s 13th President, will end on July 24.

Zaidi said members of the electoral college -- comprising members of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha and state assemblies, including Delhi and Puducherry -- will be provided special pens to cast their ballot and use of any other pen will render the vote invalid.

The poll announcement has set the ball rolling for the declaration of candidates by the ruling National Democratic Alliance and the opposition parties for the country’s highest elected office.

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA, which is seen to have a clear edge in the electoral college, has so far not given any indication about its choice. Several opposition parties have since held parleys to find a consensus candidate but have decided to wait for the ruling alliance to reach out to them with the name of its candidate.

The parties have said that if a consensual candidate does not emerge, they will field a candidate “who will steadfastly defend the constitutional values”.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi has initiated moves to bring the opposition parties on a common platform for the presidential and vice-presidential elections.

muslim devotees wait to break their fast at the shrine of makhdoom Ali shah mahimi in mumbai, India, 4 june, 2017. muslims across the world are observing the holy fasting month of ramadan, where they refrain from eating, drinking and smoking from dawn to dusk. Photo: AP

The term of Vice President Hamid Ansari will end in August.

Zaidi said that Lok Sabha Secretary General Anoop Mishra will be the Returning Officer for the presidential poll and ballots will be cast in Parliament House and in the respective state assemblies.

The counting of votes will take place in the national capital under the supervision of the Returning Officer.

The Chief Election Commissioner said presidential election will take place through secret ballot and political parties “cannot issue any whip” to their respective MPs or MLAs.

The election is held in accordance with the system of proportional representation by means of single transferable vote.

Every elector can have as many preferences as the candidates contesting the election and the winner has to secure the required quota of votes to be declared elected -- 50 per cent of the valid votes plus one.

Zaidi said a nomination paper has to be backed by at least 50 electors as proposers and at least 50 electors as seconders.

He said Assistant Returning Officers will be appointed in all state capitals, besides Delhi and Puducherry, to ensure smooth logistics for the election.

He said each candidate will be allowed to deploy a representative at the venue of polling.

Zaidi said MPs are expected to vote in Parliament House in Delhi and the MLAs in their respective assemblies but they can vote at another polling station in case of exigency after applying to the poll panel in advance.

Zaidi also said there are 13 vacancies in the electoral college, including MLAs and MPs.

“The EC will from time to time fill up these vacancies. As far as vacancies of MLAs and MPs are concerned, that is a continuous process. All such vacancies will be filled after presidential election,” he added.

He said: “The Rajya Sabha elections, have been suspended for now, and will take place after the presidential election.”

Asked if the 21 MLAs of Aam Aadmi Party, against whom the case of office-ofprofit is pending with the EC, would be able to vote, Zaidi said: “It is sub judice matter. As on date, they are eligible to cast their vote.”

He also added the schedule for the election of Vice-President will be announced later.

The total value of 4896 electors for 2012 presidential elections was 1098882. This included 54, 9408 as the value of votes of MPs and 549474 as the value of votes of MLAs.

Indian origin charity gives healthcare to 3 million nigerians

An Indian origin charitable organization, Tulsi Chanrai Foundation (TCF), has provided public healthcare to over three million disadvantaged children and adults in Nigeria.

TCF achieved the feat in the past two decades through its three key programmes: Mission for Vision, Mission for Primary Health and Mission for Water.

TCF, which started operations in 1994, is the charity wing of the Chanrai family which set up the first Indian company in Nigeria in 1923. The company has since become one of the most successful and respected business houses in the country.

The TCF report for 2015-16 said the Chanrai family has businesses in the areas of trade, manufacturing, agriculture and finance and currently employs about 30,000 people in Nigeria. It is one of the largest employer of local staff among the private sector in Nigeria.

The Nigerian government has accorded TCF the status of an International NGO. Since its inception, the TCF report said, more than 100,000 eye surgeries had been performed in Nigeria, restoring vision to the poor.

Also, over 1.5 million mothers and children have been provided access to basic healthcare services.

In the same period, 4,384 hand pumps and 85 solar and electric bore holes have been rehabilitated to provide potable water to 1.95 million people.

“When Nigeria is battling internally with acute insurgency and economic recession for a protracted period, TCF remain committed in extending its services unabated and assist the needy across the country,” the report said.

In 2015-16, the TCF said, it undertook several other projects including setting up the G.K. Chanrai Memorial Hospital in Zaria Kaduna.

From April 15, 2015 to March 16 last year, a total of 195,317 people were treated and 83,050 infants immunized.

The report said its Mission for Vision programme aimed to reduce avoidable blindness, predominantly cataract, among the rural poor of Nigeria by providing high quality ophthalmic surgeries for free.

“As a result, a large number of underprivileged people in and around Katsina, Kebbi and Cross River states have been able to avail of high quality eye treatment for cataract and glaucoma at no cost.”

no emergency situation here, say Indians in Qatar Keralites in Qatar said there is no emergency situation in the country after seven Gulf countries snapped diplomatic ties with it.

“There is no situation of emergency as such here. The social media is twisting things, and maybe that led to a rush in the supermarkets here,” C.V.M. Vanimel, a social activist from Kerala, said, speaking to the media in Thiruvananthapuram from Doha.

“The cabinet meeting made it very clear that there be no reason for any panic as food items will be made available,” said Vanimel.

“Given our understanding of things, hectic diplomatic efforts are currently on to ease the situation.”

Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Yemen, Bahrain, Libya, the UAE and the Maldives severed diplomatic ties with Qatar, accusing it of supporting terror groups, including the Muslim Brotherhood. Qatar, however, denied the allegations.

“The media should not go overboard as it creates a panic,” Vanimel said.

Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have also closed their borders preventing any movement by road, to and from Qatar. Also, their airlines have decided to stop flight operations to Qatar.

Passengers who arrived from Doha at Kochi and Kozhikode airports said “as things stand, there are no issues there (in Qatar)”. They, however, expressed concern over the operation of flights.

Kerala Local Bodies Minister K.T. Jaleel told the media in Thiruvananthapuram that Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has already written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, asking for his immediate intervention to see that Indians are taken care of.

“When schools are closed there and if foreign airlines are not operating, there would be problems. Air India should ensure operation of more flights. The already high price of air tickets during summer rush could shoot up even higher,” said Jaleel.

With other Middle East airlines stopping their services, Qatar Airways and Air India are operating services to and from three Kerala airports, and if additional flights are not run and present embargo against Qatar is not lifted, things could go haywire, a worried officials said.

The banks and foreign exchange outlets have been directed not to exchange money for Qatari Riyal, said an airline source.

According to a study report, there are around 1.5 lakh Keralites in Qatar.

Around 4.82 million Indians live in the Gulf, including 630,000 in Qatar.

91% of businesses in India feel at cyber-attack risk: study

When it comes to cyber security, 91 per cent of businesses in India say their organisation is at risk because of the complexity of business and IT operations, which is above the APJ (Asia-Pacific and Japan) average of 85 per cent and the global average of 83 per cent.

According to a global study by leading IT firm Citrix and Ponemon Institute, 72 per cent of businesses say it is time for a new security framework.

“With an increasing number of traditional businesses taking the digital route, workspaces are no longer confined to the four office walls. While this shift has made the modern workforce more flexible and productive, it has also brought along its own set of security concerns,” said Parag Arora, Country Head and Area Vice President, Citrix, India Subcontinent, in a statement.

“For modern enterprises, security management and protection of data is an integral business function and no longer an IT task,” Arora added.

Nearly 60 per cent of respondents stated that employees and third parties bypass security policies and technologies because they are too complex.

Less than half of respondents in India (44 per cent) said their organisations have the right policies and procedures in place to protect information assets and critical information.

The research involved insights from over 4,200 IT and IT security practitioners globally.

Indian American selected among 12 nAsA astronaut candidates

Indian American Raja Chari, a Lieutenant Colonel with the US Air Force, has been selected by space agency NASA among 12 astronaut candidates who will conduct research off the Earth for deep space missions.

Chari, who will report for duty in August this year, is from the state of Iowa who graduated from the US Air Force Academy in 1999 with bachelor’s degrees in astronautical engineering and engineering science.

He continued on to earn a master’s degree in aeronautics and astronautics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and graduated from the US Naval Test Pilot School.

Currently, he is a commander of the 461st Flight Test Squadron and the director of the F-35 Integrated Test Force at Edwards Air Force Base in California.

After receiving a record-breaking number of applications -- 18,000 -- to join an exciting future of space exploration, NASA on Wednesday picked 12 -- its largest

astronaut class since 2000.

Vice President Mike Pence joined NASA leaders as they introduced the members of the 2017 astronaut class during an event at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

“These are 12 men and women whose personal excellence and whose personal courage will carry our nation to even greater heights of discovery and who I know will inspire our children and our grandchildren every bit as much as your forebears have done so in this storied American programme,” said Pence.

“And to this newest class of astronauts, it’s my honour to bring the sincere congratulations of the 45th President of the US, Donald Trump. Your President is proud of you, and so am I,” the Vice President added.

The astronaut candidates will return to Johnson in August to begin two years of training.

Then they could be assigned to any of a variety of missions, including: performing research on the International Space Station, launching from American soil on spacecraft built by commercial companies, and departing for deep space missions on NASA’s new Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System rocket.

“We look forward to the energy and talent of these astronauts fuelling our exciting future of discovery,” said acting NASA Administrator Robert Lightfoot in a statement.

“Between expanding the crew on board the space station to conduct more research than ever before, and making preparations to send humans farther into space than we’ve ever been, we are going to keep them busy,” he said.

With the addition of these 12 members, NASA now has selected 350 astronauts since the original Mercury 7 in 1959.

“These women and men deserve our enthusiastic congratulations,” said astronaut and Johnson Space Center Director Ellen Ochoa.

The 12 new candidates include six military officers, three scientists, two medical doctors, a lead engineer at SpaceX and a NASA research pilot.

cricket fever catching on: Indian fans at birmingham at the Icc champions trophy match between India and pakistan, 4 june, 2017. Photo: AP

Walking across the world

BY KIRA SPUCYS-TAHAR

travelling through 20 countries, averaging 30 or 40 kilometres a day, wearing through 12 pairs of shoes, and experiencing threats of beheading, visits from secret police, and a stint in jail.

What began as a two-man, three-year journey, became a one-man, five-year solo mission for Arjun Bhogal - walking from Cardiff, South Wales, UK to Cardiff, New South Wales, Australia.

The idea for the Borderwalk came about in 2011, when Arjun, studying film and television production, and his friend Kieran Rae were in their final year of university.

“We were initially inspired by the millions of people around the world who walk for water on a daily basis,” Arjun tells Indian Link in Sydney.

The adventure was dreamed up by the pair after watching an online video of a man who had converted a car engine to run on something other than petrol and drive it around the world, and another video of a couple cycling around the world.

“My mind kind of put the two things together and I thought, ‘I wonder what it would be like to walk that,’” Arjun says. “What started as a passing comment kind of snowballed…”

From the outset, they wanted to raise money for WaterAid and the Marine Conservation Society, and to raise awareness of borderless issues such as water shortages and overfishing, which affect us all no

matter where we live.

With the pair carrying all their own equipment, including clothes, tents, electronics, food and water, they used backpacks and carts to traverse across 10 countries.

Before the walk began, Arjun was not a keen adventure sportsman. “I was not fit at all. I had this idea that if I could lift my own body weight it’d be fine,” he laughs.

“I had this dream of hanging off a cliff going, ‘I shouldn’t have left!’ I went to the gym a bit, but people who do this kind of thing normally are ex-military or endurance athletes, and we couldn’t have been anything further from that!”

Borderwalk begins

Leaving from outside Cardiff Castle in April 2012, no one could foresee where the journey of Borderwalk would lead.

One of the sponsors requested a route the pair would take to Australia. “We sat down and planned a route,” Arjun recalls.

“And we stuck to it all of four days!”

It became a journey stitched together by myriad people from across the world.

“There are literally hundreds of people from each country who have helped me out along the way,” Arjun says.

The most unexpected person he met on the road was a Russian man called Valentin.

“I went to Russia thinking, ‘I’m going to die’,” Arjun says, gesturing at his tan face. “There was a thing on the road were people in the previous country would always tell you that the country coming up would be terrible for you, but Russia turned out to be lovely!”

After first arriving in Russia, Arjun and Kieran stayed at a guesthouse in a small town where they met Valentin.

“This man knocked on the door, a man

that we later know as Valentin, holding a kilogram of walnuts,” Arjun recalls. “He said, in a thick accent, ‘You are walking, you will need these for strength.’”

Almost a month later, over a thousand kilometres on the other side of Russia, the pair again ran into Valentin.

“In the middle of the day, he just rocks up in a car with his friend. He’d driven a thousand kilometres just to come and have lunch with us!”

As the pair moved into Kazakhstan, they stayed with a friend of Valentin’s. “While we were in Russia, one of our two carts broke, so we were down to one. When we arrived in Kazakhstan, Valentin had sent us a parcel. It was this big crate. We asked the friend, ‘What’s in there?’ And he said, ‘It’s a new cart. Valentin made it for you.’ He had hand-made a cart and then taken pictures of how to assemble it! It was crazy! The

man is a legend.”

Arjun and Kieran documented their bold journey on a blog and social media channels, walking up to 40 kilometres a day between towns and villages, surviving on basic food and searching each day for fresh water.

“We definitely suffered from a lack of access to clean water and sanitation along the way,” Arjun says. “At one point we were suffering from dysentery in the Kazakh steppe.”

The longest the pair went without a shower was three months while trekking through Kazakhstan.

“There was just nothing,” Arjun says. “Every drop of water that we had, that we were able to find in wells or were given through people’s generosity, it was all just used to drink or sort out our food.”

In late 2014, about 18 months after

Arjun Bhogal has trekked across cities, jungles, deserts and mountains on his five-year Borderwalk. He has also been robbed, threatened and kidnapped. But the experience has been life-changing.

leaving Cardiff, the pair were thrown in jail for three days after overstaying in Kyrgyzstan while awaiting Pakistani visas. Kieran returned to the UK.

“A year and a half in, we’d spent each waking moment together,” Arjun says. “When he went home, it was also the first country where we would have been hitting mountains together. It was the first time I was completely alone in a country and I definitely started feeling a bit lonely. It was in the winter, the snow had started, it was minus 30 or 40 degrees, it was cold and wet.”

But Arjun didn’t give in.

“I can see this situation in the future where I expect, at some point, I will have children,” he says. “One day, I imagine those children will come up to me, and whether they say, they’re not smart enough to do something, or they’re not fit enough

difficult and he had to remain circumspect.

“Every time at a police stop, it would be, ‘here we go again,’” he says. “Going through Europe was a bit weird. In Dover, we had immigration call on me! Somebody had called the police saying there were immigrants walking around. We were a bit bearded, pushing our clothes and our belongings and the police showed up with an officer from immigration. As soon as she heard me speak, she was like, ‘Oh, you’re English! Keep going, whatever you’re doing.”

“I felt like I was pushing my luck with every country I was going to. With Afghanistan, I just kind of got picked up, chewed up and chucked out the other end into Pakistan and then India. In my head, I thought Myanmar is where it would go too far. Immigration didn’t really want you there, it was during the elections

be deported back to the UK or be taken to Kabul and on into Pakistan. And I went with Pakistan.”

Moving forward

Having completed the Borderwalk, and having survived to tell the tale, Arjun’s family have become his biggest supporters - and logistics assistants - but like most parents, there were initial concerns regarding the journey.

“Indian parents around the world want to encourage their children to become engineers or doctors,” he laughs. “For some reason, my mum was set on me becoming a barrister. That was never going to work out. When they’d ask me if I was going to carry on after graduation to go and do my Masters, I had to say, ‘I think I might give the walking thing a go…’ But they got straight on board and have helped no end. There’s two things this wouldn’t have been possible without - my family and the people I met on the road.”

Having never been to Australia before, and walking from Perth to Sydney, joined again by Kieran, Arjun says his favourite place is the Nullarbor Plain.

“Not because of anything on the ground,” he explains. “But when you look up at night, it’s just…next level! I’ve never seen anything like it. I was born in London, grew up around outer London, I’ve never seen a sky like that. I went through Kazakhstan, that was a desert, but it doesn’t exist there either. It’s crazy! It’s just mindboggling!”

When it comes to India, “I really enjoyed North-East India. I’d never really known anything about it. Nobody ever talks about it. Sometimes it’s even cut off when you see a map of India. I got there and it was lovely. Weirdly enough it was the first place somebody took me into their house, in the whole of India.”

The first thing Arjun did when he finished the walk and arrived in Cardiff, NSW, was to have a long sleep.

to do something, I’ll have this story to tell them where two people - who were not outdoor adventurers whatsoever – were able to achieve this one thing. And I think that will be a good story to tell them, and hopefully be inspiring in terms of letting them know that you don’t have to be ‘special’ to achieve something special.”

Going it alone

After Kieran’s departure, going into the mountains, Arjun left the carts behind and carried everything in a rucksack on his back. “I had all my stuff on my back for three years. And I could only carry maybe five litres, which is about a day of waterespecially in a hot country. Every day it was the issue of finding water and making sure to stay hydrated. It became my daily worry.” With regard to being an Indian origin man travelling the world, Arjun says it was

and I was being accused of being ISIS, being interrogated by ten policemen in a monastery, having my passport photo compared to ‘wanted’ men in a folder at lunchtime. It was always a bit tense.”

In Afghanistan he had a gun pulled on him and was kidnapped by the military.

“General passers-by told me I was going to get my head chopped off,” he says.

Despite, or perhaps because of, the kidnapping ordeal in Afghanistan, the mountains of the region are the number one place Arjun would like to return.

“I don’t feel like I got enough time there,” he laments. “I only made it a third of the way through and then I got kidnapped in the middle of the night.”

While camped on the side of the road in a dried up river bed, Arjun was making a phone call to his family back home with an update. He saw a 4X4 van pull up and quickly ended the call.

“As soon as I put the phone down, seven men with AK-47s came running from every direction, screaming at me,” Arjun recalls.

“I just put my hands up.”

One of them checked his belongings, and then they dragged him up to the main road and threw him into the van and drove off.

“I thought, ‘Oh no, this is the end,” he says. “But then they pulled me out and we were at a military base.”

They took his passport and held him overnight. The next morning he had a sit down with eight Generals who were very angry about his presence.

“But one of them added me on Facebook, so he wasn’t that angry!” Arjun laughs.

“They told me that the Taliban knew of a British national that was walking through the region, so they came to get me before the Taliban did. They gave me two options:

At the moment, Arjun is finding it challenging to get back to day to day life.

“I’m struggling to describe to people what I’ve been doing, the things I’ve seen. Now I’m in this position where there’s no common ground with a lot of people.

Their normal day-to-day stuff is going to work or going to a bar; on weekends they brunch. I can’t really relate to that. For me it’s been, sat in a ditch, had a gun held in my face. All my references are about five years old. So when people say something, I have no idea what they’re talking about.

Arjun describes the scene after arriving at a hostel in Kiev, Ukraine to see people singing and dancing to a song they kept playing on repeat. “This song was completely grating on me. It was the most terrible thing I’d heard in my life. And I asked them, ‘What are you doing? What is it called?’ It was Gangnam Style!”

“I slept for three days,” he says. “I don’t think I had a proper night’s sleep for five years. It’s like when you’re going for a trip and you know you have to get to the airport early in the morning. Every night was always like that. When I stopped I just slept for days.”

On returning to the UK, Arjun wants to pursue work with homelessness and mental health charities, as well as with clean water access groups. “Camping in Asia was more akin to rough sleeping than camping, and that changes everything about you,” he says. “You don’t really sleep, you’re suffering from anxiety and depression, you’re just lonely. It changes who you are and it affects the relationships you have with family and friends you make along the way.”

Arjun has just one question that still keeps him up at night: “I wonder where my stuff that was stolen in Dubbo has ended up!”

clockwise from top left: kazakhstan steppe; tajikistan; with javanese kids, Indonesia; meeting cyclists, kazakhstan; kiev; the route

The Secret of Jahanara Begum

the first time she made her way past the crowd - the sellers of ittars and amulets, the custodians of pilgrims’ shoes, the cripples, the beggars, the homeless, the goats being fattened for slaughter on Eid and the knot of quiet, elderly eunuchs who had taken up residence under a tarpaulin outside the shrineand entered the tiny red chamber, Jahanara Begum became calm. The street sounds grew faint and seemed to come from far away. She sat in a corner with her baby asleep on her lap, watching people, Muslim as well as Hindu, come in ones and twos, and tie red threads, red bangles and chits of paper to the grille around the tomb, beseeching Sarmad to bless them. It was only after she noticed a translucent old man with dry, papery skin and a wispy beard of spun light sitting in a corner, rocking back and forth, weeping silently as though his heart was broken, that Jahanara Begum allowed her own tears to fall. This is my son, Aftab, she whispered to Hazrat Sarmad. I’ve brought him here to you. Look after him. And teach me how to love him.

Hazrat Sarmad did.

For the first few years of Aftab’s life, Jahanara Begum’s secret remained safe. While she waited for his girl-part to heal, she kept him close and was fiercely protective of him. Even after her younger son, Saqib, was born she would not allow Aftab to stray very far from her on his own. It was not seen as unusual behaviour for a woman who had waited so long and so anxiously for a son.

When Aftab was five he began to attend the Urdu-Hindi madrassa for boys in Chooriwali Gali (the bangle-seller’s lane). Within a year he could recite a good part of the Quran in Arabic, although it wasn’t clear how much of it he understood - that was true of all the other children too. Aftab was a better than average student, but even from the time he was very young it became clear that his real gift was music. He had a sweet, true singing voice and could pick up a tune after hearing it just once. His parents decided to send him to Ustad Hameed Khan, an outstanding young musician who taught Hindustani classical music to groups of children in his cramped quarters in Chandni Mahal. Little Aftab never missed a single class. By the time he was nine he

good twenty minutes of bada khayal in Raag Yaman, Durga and Bhairav and make his voice skim shyly off the flat rekhab in Raag Pooriya Dhanashree like a stone skipping over the surface of a lake. He could sing Chaiti and Thumri with the accomplishment and poise of a Lucknow courtesan. At first people were amused and even encouraging, but soon the snickering and teasing from other children began: He’s a She. He’s not a He or a She. He’s a He and a She. She He, He She Hee! Hee! Hee!

When the teasing became unbearable Aftab stopped going to his music classes. But Ustad Hameed, who doted on him, offered to teach him separately, on his own. So the music classes continued, but Aftab refused to go to school any more. By then Jahanara Begum’s hopes had more or less faded. There was no sign of healing anywhere on the horizon. She had managed to put off his circumcision for some years with a series of inventive excuses. But young Saqib was waiting in line

for his, and she knew she had run out of time. Eventually she did what she had to. She mustered her courage and told her husband, breaking down and weeping with grief as well as relief that she finally had someone else to share her nightmare with.

Her husband, Mulaqat Ali, was a hakim, a doctor of herbal medicine, and a lover of Urdu and Persian poetry. All his life he had worked for the family of another hakim - Hakim Abdul Majid, who founded a popular brand of sherbet called Rooh Afza (Persian for ‘Elixir of the Soul’). Rooh Afza, made of khurfa seeds (purslane), grapes, oranges, watermelon, mint, carrots, a touch of spinach, khus khus, lotus, two kinds of lilies and a distillate of damask roses, was meant to be a tonic. But people found that two tablespoons of the sparkling ruby-coloured syrup in a glass of cold milk or even just plain water not only tasted delicious, but was also an effective defence against Delhi’s scorching summers and the strange fevers that blew in on desert winds. Soon what had started out as medicine became the most popular summer drink in the region. Rooh Afza became a prosperous enterprise and a household name. For forty years it ruled the market, sending its produce from its headquarters in the old city as far south as Hyderabad and as far

west as Afghanistan. Then came Partition. God’s carotid burst open on the new border between India and Pakistan and a million people died of hatred. Neighbours turned on each other as though they’d never known each other, never been to each other’s weddings, never sung each other’s songs. The walled city broke open. Old families fled (Muslim). New ones arrived (Hindu) and settled around the city walls. Rooh Afza had a serious setback, but soon recovered and opened a branch in Pakistan. A quarter of a century later, after the holocaust in East Pakistan, it opened another branch in the brand-new country of Bangladesh. But eventually, the Elixir of the Soul that had survived wars and the bloody birth of three new countries, was, like most things in the world, trumped by Coca-Cola.

Although Mulaqat Ali was a trusted and valued employee of Hakim Abdul Majid, the salary he earned was not enough to make ends meet. So outside his working hours he saw patients at his home. Jahanara Begum supplemented the family income with what she earned from the white cotton Gandhi caps she made and supplied in bulk to Hindu shopkeepers in Chandni Chowk. Extracted with permission from Penguin India.

One of the most anticipated novels of 2017, The Ministry of Utmost Happiness hit the bookstands across India on 6 June. The novel comes 20 years after the author’s The God of Small Things, which won the Booker Prize in 1997 and was a bestseller

An excerpt from ARUNDHATI ROY’s book The Ministry of Utmost Happiness could sing a

Passion and portraiture

attended the event.

Sedunath, who migrated to Australia 8 years ago from Kerala in India, took 18 months to complete this ambitiously scaled project.

BY PREETI JABBAL

surrounded by portraits of former Victorian Premiers, the recent ‘Pride of Australia’ exhibition was unlike any other painting exhibition held before in the lofty Queen’s Hall of the Victorian Parliament.

Melbourne artist Sedunath Prabhakar (aka Pradeep Prabhakar) captured Australian personalities on a single 50-metre canvas to create an extraordinary display.

The exhibition was held over two days and was jointly inaugurated by Colin Brooks, speaker of the Legislative Assembly and Bruce Atkinson, President of the Upper House.

Robin Scott, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, and Manika Jain, Consul General of India were among the many dignitaries that

He selected 50 Australian greats from the years 1700 till date and created their likeness on canvas with acrylics. Each portrait took him 3-4 days and hours of focused effort to finish.

Despite the static and specific subjects of his portraits the overall body of work managed to depict a narrative of Australian history.

According to Sedunath, the driving idea behind this exhibition was to offer a tribute to the country that he has now grown to love.

“In Australia I have enjoyed complete freedom of expression,” he said. “I believe that Australia is an inclusive, multicultural society that offers good opportunities for the arts, culture and communities.”

Explaining his unusual choice of subject, he went on, “This work is my attempt to narrate Australian history through art and take Australians down memory lane so

they can appreciate the contributions of their luminaries.”

Sir John Monash, Robert Menzies, Donald Bradman, Ian Thorpe, Emily Kame Kngwarreye and Steve Irwin are some of the Australians included in his eclectic mix.

“It took hours of research to select from so many inspiring Australian personalities so I chose ones that are considered to be leaders or pioneers in their field,” said Sedunath, as he explained the parameters he worked with in his creative process.

“For example, I chose Julia Gillard, as the first female Prime Minister of Australia and Cathy Freeman as the first Australian Aboriginal woman to win a gold in the Olympics,” he said.

From trailblazers, to those who have left a legacy, Sedunath’s brush captures the essence of all the eminent Australians, giving plenty of reasons to visit this interesting exhibition.

Sedunath acquired his training and education from India’s prestigious

Baroda School of Arts. He is a writer, painter, musician and teacher of classical Indian music. He has also published a book in his native language Malayalam titled Embryo (translated in English).

The creative artist is currently in the process of writing another book based on the inter-communal violence that took place during the 2002 riots in Gujarat, India. He has been invited by the Indian Embassy of Oman to exhibit his new paintings at Fine Arts Society of Oman in November 2017.

Sedunath was delighted to share that the feedback to his labour of love has been very encouraging.

Besides the positive reviews from people, his subjects Cathy Freeman, Terri Irwin and Gotye have expressed their interest in the portraits and wish to meet him soon to see his work.

Talks are also underway to explore the possibility of taking his exhibition to the Parliament in Canberra.

Indian artist Sedunath Prabhakar presents Australian luminaries at the Victorian Parliament

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TAROT foretell

A RIES

March 21 - April 19

There are no half measures for you in June, Aries. Whatever you set out to do, whether at work or at home, your Mars passion surfaces and you are in your perfectionist avatar. The amazing Devil continues to figure in your reading as significator - only this time, with the Two of Swords it indicates that you progress steadily into a lighter, more balanced phase. By communicating your plans and hopes to a partner, you create your own secure space.

L E o

July 21 - Aug 22

You’re quite the star, Leo! Your charm and unswerving optimism gain you more admirers in June. Friends know you are special and go out of their way to make you feel so. As you are a leader with enduring positivity, you dwell on that which might be than permit tiny snarls to smudge your rose-edged picture of the future. A niggling business concern or legal matter peters out and towards the end of the month you experience a wish fulfillment!

TAURUS

April 20 - May 20

The world at your feet! Could you ask for more, Taurus? Well, perhaps you could, and it would be yours - real estate, investment and such like seem to naturally attract you. There appears to be a new phase of prosperity and abundance beckoning you. A new workplace, a larger office or a personal venture that is now grown to occupy your entire workday - the Ace of Pentacles assures you that your brilliance and creativity have brought you to this wellmerited cushy state.

V

JUNE 2017 BY VANDANA

June, you’re here! With your mix of pleasant showers and sunshine days you’ll brighten many a heart yet. As in May, we have a two-card reading for each zodiac sign – a significator card and a circumstance card from the RaiderWaite tarot deck. Happy reading and may happiness be with you.

G EMINI

May 21 - June 20

Gemini, this is your birth month and you have the card of The Empress to show us you rule! With your fine balance of intellect, spirit and sensitivity, those around you sense your radiance and seek you out. It could be for a teaching or training assignment or perhaps you are asked to mentor someone. There will be a philosophical or educational dimension to your activities as the Seven of Swords inspires you. A risk-averse policy at sports is recommended.

L IBRA

Sep 23 - Oct 22

Destiny has brought you to a point of happy transition, and the Wheel of Fortune asks you to prepare for felicitous changes in your life. In a relationship you learn to know each other better and find deep joy and spiritual meaning. You’ve been hard at work for some time now, so wind down, take a step back and relax. It’s a time for celebration! Things move rapidly now, Virgo, so it would be best to go with the flow.

S AGITTARIUS

Nov 22 - Dec 21

Rewards come through perseverance. This is a call for you to review and rework a much-loved project. Perhaps it is a book you’ve written or a blog you’d started; your academic paper or travelogue; a painting, documentary or film - it is rather hard to go over something you believe to be perfect. Polishing and presenting with finesse is your forte, Sagittarius! The Two of Cups suggests that refreshing your work is easiest done when you combine forces with someone special.

C

APRIC o RN

Dec 22 - Jan 19

Misty moonshine washes calm over your homestead in this reading, Capricorn, and you need it this month. Your dreams, ideas and thoughts need reflection and some time-out would help you sift the practical from the imaginary. Your hard work and experience will find you your bearings in the workplace so dismiss all lingering thoughts of ‘I could have done better’. You always do your best, so believe in yourself and success will be yours - yes, it will be very sweet!

Venus-ruled people often harbour a strong spirit wrapped in enchanting dimpled smiles, so people around you may never know that your wisdom is born of tough experience, Libra. The Chariot lets you ride into victory this month to attain your higher purpose through journeying, publishing or teaching and learning. The Six of Cups by your side indicates that this victory will be all the sweeter for you as you create some special moments with an artistic, charming and cultured companion.

Aq UARIUS

Jan 20 - Feb 18

The Lovers card appears in your reading and Aquarius, you’re spoilt for choice! It’s a good thing Cupid is kind to you for you’re in need of some serious fun. The Four of Swords suggests that work and health issues have been taking up your time. This is the best time for you to recoup and heal. You will likely explore new places with your partner, or, if single, home in on the one person you can be yourself with.

CANCER

June 21 - July 20

You’ve been inclined of late to clamber into your shell, Cancer. The Hermit along with the King of Swords signifies that you may feel the need to indulge, as the focus shifts to your physical comforts. Your appreciation of the beautiful things in life is legendary. Cubicle, corner office or condo - you want your work and living space to reflect your fine taste. Should you engage professional decorators, they will learn from you how to combine practicality with artistic sensibilities!

S C o RPI o

Oct 23 - Nov 21

Work! Work! Work! If that has been your mantra of late, Scorpio, your loved ones are certain to demand more of your time and rightly so. It would be all too easy to recede into your inner world with your thoughts and concerns but the Knight of Swords encourages you to slash that thought at the outset and begin interacting with people. It is in voicing your own thoughts and understanding other viewpoints that you will accomplish your cherished aspirations.

P ISCES

Feb 19 - March 20

Oh, Pisces, how will you ever balance your dreamy idealism with the obligations of the real world? Yet, you are entreated to do just that, as opportunities present themselves for restructuring a project along more practical lines. The Five of Wands supports you as you bring empathy, kindness and heart to your work and bear your endeavour to fruition. Maintain an easy pace and act not in haste - the world needs your gentle touch, Dreamer, while keeping you unwearied.

cine TALK

s o much more th A n hope A nd gu ILt

She is a feast for the senses. This film is remarkable for how capably it uses this actress’ beauty and the feast.

Though Manisha’s Maya is central to the plot and her name is mentioned in almost every scene, Bhatnagar uses Manisha’s incandescent physical presence sparingly. This is a wise narrative device.

DEAR MAYA

STARRING: Manisha Koirala, Madiha Imam, Shreya Chaudhary and Rakeysh

Omprakash Mehra

W RITER-DIRECTOR: Sunaina Bhatnagar

HHHHH

First things first. Dear Maya is a dear little gem of a film that you would want to hold close to your heart. As debutante director Sunaina Bhatnagar charts a course through the heart of her beautiful protagonist Maya, the narrative tugs at your heartstrings without being manipulative or

excessively maudlin.

Among the many aspects of the film that left me deeply moved is its controlled emotion projection. This could have been an overwhelming story of a beautiful lonely woman and her faithful washed-out woman-Friday fading away in her self-created isolation in the anonymity of a hill station (something like our Bollywood diva Rekha, if she were not a celebrity). Until, one fine day, when she is suddenly jostled into a delayed blossoming.

Manisha Koirala plays the wilting flower with heartbreaking integrity.

Every time she is on screen, Manisha leaves you craving for more, not only because she is exceptionally watchable but also because her character is written as an epitome of enigma. The more we are told about her, the more we want to know.

The narrative works on two basic human emotions: hope and guilt. While Manisha’s Maya erupts in belated bliss after she receives love letters from an unknown admirer, the two young female protagonists Anna (Madiha Imam) and Ira (Shreya Chaudhary) are the unlikely catalysts for Maya’s metamorphosis.

Dear Maya is as much Maya’s story as it is about the two fun-seeking girls who blunder into a lifelong regret and

guilt. With remarkable restrain, this little film with a big heart tells us how a moment of judgement-error in life can affect and change lives forever.

While Manisha owns the film in every frame that she occupies (the camera has always been in love with her though she has not always reciprocated that love), Madiha Imam as the guilt-ridden Anna is a significant find. A younger, more sorted version of Anushka Sharma, Madiha takes Anna’s character through a memorable labyrinth of emotions all delicately threaded together in a stirring motion of frozen thoughts.

While we witness Maya’s journey into self-actualization, we also see Anna’s friendship with her best friend Ira go through its upheavals. Apart from one lengthy confrontation / breakdown sequence which both the young actresses are unable to handle, Madiha Imam and Shreya Chaudhary lend a supple tonal honesty to the proceedings.

But make no mistake. Manisha Koirala owns Dear Maya. As she transforms from a repressed woman in Shimla to a self-dependent life-loving diva in Delhi, Manisha again confirms her place among the greats.

Towards the end, filmmaker Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra shows up in a surprise role lending credence to the growing feeling in the audience that Dear Maya is a sum total of far greater human traits than hope and guilt. What this film says about a life well-lived is so much larger than its immediate concerns.

Subhash K. Jha

INDIAN LINK RADIO APP

A DEATH IN THE GUNJ

STARRING: Kalki Koechlin, Om Puri, Tanuja Mukerji, Vikrant Massey, Jim Sarbh, Arya Sharma, Tillotama Shome, Ranvir Shorey, Promila Pradhan, Gulshan Devaiah and Promila Pradhan

DIRECTOR: Konkona Sen Sharma

HHHHH

Based on a short story which was inspired by true events written by Mukul Sharma, the film sounds more autobiographical than fiction.

AY ered A nd sk IL fu LLY cr A fted

Mimi.

Apart from the homecoming, it is the reunion of friends that the tale focusses on. The bulk of the narrative, however, is about the mundane life of each character described in microscopic detail during the funfilled holiday activities, which include indulging in seance, playing kabaddi and spending time together frolicking around.

drive a car.

Kalki Koechlin is natural and brilliant as the attention seeking, sex-starved Mimi.

With Om Puri speaking in chaste Hindi, and Tanuja often breaking into Bengali, the duo as Mr and Mrs Bakshi, with no chemistry between them, strike out as an odd couple, who take each other for granted.

The film is set in the late 1970s, in the small hilly town of McCluskieganj in the erstwhile state of Bihar. The narrative begins with a corpse being transported from the hospital. It keeps you glued to the screen till the very end as to who is dead.

A few days before the end of the year 1978, Bonnie visits her parents Mr and Mrs Bakshi along with her husband Nandu, daughter Taniya aka Tani, cousin Shyamal Chatterjee aka Shutu and friends Vikram Choudhary, Brian and

While all the actors are ace performers and they shine in their roles, your heart bleeds for actor Vikrant Massey’s character. He plays the lonely and depressed Shutu who is taken for granted by the motley group, because he is 23 years old, the youngest of the adults and malleable. He is charming and sincere. How he bonds with little Tanya portrayed by Arya Sharma or gets hurt when accused by all, are some of the heart-rending moments.

Ranvir Shorey as the recently wedded Vikram Choudhary is the big bully who at his age “still behaves like he is a 23-year-old”, is aggressive and a chauvinist. Ranvir displays the repulsive side of the character with natural ease.

Tillotama Shome displays a variety of shades to her character Bonnie. She is aptly supported by the understated Gulshan Devaiah as her husband Nandu who acts like a dominant older brother to Vikrant while teaching him how to

Inform At I ve A nd I nspI r At I on AL

SACHIN: A BILLION DREAMS

STARRING: Sachin Tendulkar, Anjali Tendulkar, Ajit Tendulkar, Sara Tendulkar, Mayuresh Pem, Mayur More

DIRECTOR: Sachin: A Billion Dreams

HHHHH

Sachin: A Billion Dreams is a biopic that gives a holistic view of Sachin Tendulkar’s life, who is revered as “the God” of cricket by his fans.

Structurally, the film is designed as a documentary. While the film encapsulates the life of the master blaster right from his birth till date, it also gives an insight into the socioeconomic situation of the country, making it feel like heavy-duty stuff.

This may not be the first documentary on Tendulkar, but probably it is the only one endorsed by him. So, you have him as the narrator sharing his personal moments along with his views and fears in a sincere and heartfelt manner.

While the film tells us of his growth as a cricketer which is common knowledge, it also reveals his personal life bringing to the fore his close-knit family and friends. How he got the name Sachin, how he met his wife, got married and

how he spends his free moments, are a few of the interesting nuggets shared. So apart from Sachin you actually get to see his family and friends.

The script designed by director James Erskine and Sivakumar Ananth seamlessly encapsulates Sachin’s life with archived footages from his personal videos, cricket matches, news clips and clips from various talking heads like ex-cricketers Sunil Gavaskar, Vivian Richards, Wasim Akram, Ravi Shastri, Shane Warne, Ricky Ponting, Virendra Sehwag, M.S. Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Harbhajan Singh, sports journalist Gideon Haigh, commentator Harsha Bhogle, cricket historian Boria Majumdar, singing legend Lata Mangeshkar and megastar Amitabh Bachchan among others. Together, they give a fair insight into the life of Sachin. Visually, the film with the right blend of collected footage, is engaging and the narrative arc by default is definitive with a set-up, set-back and the finale - Sachin’s retirement speech after winning the 2011 World Cup. The euphoria of the brilliantly played matches is once again relived, giving the plot-graph its required jagged edges.  With a run-time of two hours and

20 minutes, the first half of the film is interesting and fast paced. It dramatically ends on a sombre poetic note. The second half moves at a slower pace and fatigue sets in, nevertheless the film is inspirational.

The others in the cast include Jim Sarbh as the Anglo-Indian Brian, and the characters Maniya and Manjari, the house helps.

On the technical front, with moderate production values, for her maiden directorial venture, Konkona Sen Sharma has astutely mounted the film. She has tackled every department with the sharp eye of an expert. The production designs, which include the costumes along with the background score, the cinematography, and the editing, all deserve a special mention. While the script written by Disha Rindani and Konkana Sen Sharma is skilfully drafted - giving every character equal weightage - there are moments that make it seem pretentious and predictable. But the last scene which works as a metaphor in the film, leaves a lot of scope for interpretations and discussions and that is what takes this film beyond the auditorium.

Troy Ribeiro

With editor Avdhesh Mohla’s smooth transitions and effective background score by A.R. Rahman, this well mounted documentary will appeal to cricket fans and every Indian. Troy Ribeiro

the BUZZ entertainment

SALMAN KHAN: I DON’T TAKE STARDOM SERIOUSLY

Is that why you put rubbish in your mouth while on stage, like no one’s watching you….?

If you missed this little episode, you missed seeing a bored Salman sitting on stage, peel off thread from his ripped jeans, roll it up between his fingers, and pop it in his mouth.

Like, as though, every camera in the room was not recording every movement he was making!

So it must be true when superstar Salman Khan says he lives his life in the present and does not take his celebrity status seriously.

“I live my life moment to moment,” he said to the media recently, this time taking care to keep his fingers as far away from his mouth as possible. “As an actor I’m doing my job. The persona you see on screen is a contribution of more than 100 people, from the different departments like camera, make-up and lights. How can I take that madness that you guys (media and common people) call stardom, so seriously? I don’t.”

The Dabangg star was talking about his upcoming film Tubelight, made by Kabir Khan.

Salman, who has previously collaborated with Kabir Khan in blockbusters like Ek Tha Tiger and Bajrangi Bhaijaan, said he is aware their styles were different.

“Our understanding of films is very different. His approach is more realistic, as he comes from documentary filmmaking. On the other hand, I am into commercial Bollywood. Perhaps that is why when these two meet, a new style is born.”

Nice line to sell a movie. If all else fails, though, you can still eat your pants…

Tubelight releases on 25 June.

RAHUL KHANNA: ON FRAGRANCE MEN WEAR

A WHITEWASH TO BRIDGE THE GAP

what the world needs right now is that the gaps in this world be bridged, says actress Priyanka Chopra, who has teamed up with Wiz Khalifa, Adwoa Aboah and Maria Borges for an ad film titled Bridging the Gap

“The most important (gap) for me is empowering women,” the Baywatch hottie said. “Women need to be given an opportunity to stand on their feet and do the best they can for themselves.”

Bridging the Gap, a one-minute film, features a bunch of celebs including Priyanka swaying to the music of that old favourite Sunny by Boney M. Created for American clothing brand Gap, the film is described as ‘celebrating American optimism’ and ‘individuality’. It does this by celebrating the different faces of America by - um - putting them in white… sorry, “by showing each in an iconic Gap white T-shirt.”

Bollywood actor Rahul Khanna, who has been roped in as the brand ambassador for a deodorant firm, feels that men are judged often on the fragrance they wear. Really!!

“How you smell can be as important as how you look and a man is often judged by the fragrance he wears. I’m happy to be associated with ENVY who’s bringing a new range of international fragrances to the Indian Man,” Rahul said in a statement.

ANUPAM KHER: MASTER OF REINVENTION

Anupam Kher looks every bit of Manmohan Singh in the first look of a film adaptation of Sanjaya Baru’s controversial book The Accidental Prime Minister: The Making and Unmaking of Manmohan Singh, in which the veteran actor essays the former Indian Prime Minister.

The recently released black and white

poster shows the side profile of Anupam, dressed as Manmohan Singh - complete with a white beard and turban. The focus of the poster is, however, more on the silhouette of a woman - presumably Congress President Sonia Gandhistanding in the corridors of Parliament House.

The deliberate placement of the silhouette near Anupam’s ear portrays the numerous layers that were perhaps behind the persona and the role of Singh, who was criticised for rarely being verbal and taking actions on his own.

Directed by debutant Vijay Ratnakar Gutte, the memoir by Sanjaya Baru is expected to hit the screens in December 2018, just ahead of the next general election in 2019.

Meanwhile, Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) chief Pahlaj Nihalani has said the film makers will need to obtain no-objection certificates (NOC) from the former Prime Minister himself as well as Congress President Sonia Gandhi for film certification.

Nihalani has warned that the film’s makers would have to abide by the guideline regarding all films based on real-life characters.

NAWAZUDDIN SIDDIqUI: TO SHAKE A LEG

The only way to find out if the Manjhi actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui can really dance will be in Munna Michael Nawazuddin will be seen in Munna Michael with Tiger Shroff, who is known for his skills at dancing.

At the trailer launch of Munna Michael, Nawazuddin said he cannot dance as well as other young heroes of Bollywood, but he can try to match up with them.

“I won’t be able to play a dancing hero. But yes, I would love to play a hero in any film. I think Tiger and our whole team helped me to dance a little bit in the film. I think somehow I manage just five per cent of Tiger’s level,” says Siddiqui.

Asked about his experience of working with Nawazuddin, Tiger said: “I think with every character, Nawaz bhai’s body language changes, and that is a sign of a good actor.

“I learnt a lot from him as an actor during the shooting of the film.”

The action dance movie’s female lead

UP-TO-DATE NEWS ON WHAT’S HOT AND HAPPENING IN B OLLYWOO D

Nidhhi Agerwal who is making her debut said “I am very lucky to be a part of this film where I got a chance to work with Nawaz sir. He is a very down-to-earth person and patient on set.

Munna Michael is slated for release on July 21.

VIJENDER SINGH AND RITEISH DESHMUKH: THROWING RAP PUNCHES

Boxing star Vijender Singh has joined forces with actor Riteish Deshmukh for a rap battle in a special appearance for a song in Bank Chor

The track, composed by Shameer Tandon and penned by lyricist Varun Likhate, is titled BC Rap Knockout: Mumbai vs Delhi, and dwells on the Mumbai versus Delhi argument.

Vijender has traded rap punches on the song, delivered to the voice of underground desi rapper Pardhaan, while Riteish’s voice is rendered by the original Mumbai gully rapper, Naezy.

Talking about the experience, Vijender said: “It was great fun for me to go head-to-head with Riteish on this song because of the ‘epic rap battle’ format. I am used to throwing punches in the ring, so this was like a musical bout, where I was throwing barbs at Riteish.

The inimitable Riteish said: “If there’s one thing I’ve actually loved about doing Bank Chor, it is that I play a Marathi Manoos in it, who is an out-and-out Mumbaikar. This song is special to me for the same reason — I got to represent

CAPTION CONTEST

my city, the city of dreams, Mumbai.” Bank Chor, directed by Bumpy and produced by Ashish Patil, will release on June 16.

The police have nabbed a total of 10 accused in the case, besides probing another seven wanted accused. Kulkarni’s alleged involvement in the racket was confirmed by some of the accused in the case.

WORTH A WATCH? YOU DECIDE!

What’s the chitchat between PRIYANKA C HOPRA and W IZ K HALIFA?

Send in your responses to win@indianlink.com.au and win a ticket to a new Hindi film

MAMTA

KULKARNI: ABSCONDING

Exactly a year after she was named an accused in the Rs 2,000 crore ephedrine drugs haul case, a special court declared former Bollywood actress Mamta Kulkarni and her husband Vicky Goswami “proclaimed offenders”.

“It is pronounced and declared that the accused Vicky Goswami and Mamta Kulkarni are the proclaimed offenders. The Special Court has issued warrants under Section 82 of the Criminal Procedure Code, against the two prime accused - who are believed to be in Kenya’s Mombasa city - in the case which has another eight accused and four absconders.

The recent development came nine months after Kulkarni, 45, denied all police allegations against her and claimed she was “innocent” and a “Yogini” (ascetic), in a recorded statement from Kenya.

Police said that Kulkarni’s name was included in the FIR after the DEA provided evidences of involvement of Moroccan and Colombian drug mafia in the case and how the Goswami-Kulkarni couple attended certain drug smuggling meetings in January-April last year.

WHO WORE IT BETTER?

GWENDOLINE CHRISTIE or SHRADDHA

KAPOOR in FENDI + Share your views with us on our Facebook page /IndianLinkAustralia

Director Alankrita Shrivastava is all guns blazing with her latest offering Lipstick Under My Burkha

The movie, which has done its fair share of festival rounds, was caught in a mess with the Censor Board for being laced with sexual scenes and abusive words.

The film has finally received a certificate for release following Film Certification Appellate Tribunal’s directive.

“We have fought so hard to be allowed to screen this film legally in theatres, it deserves the best release,” Shrivastava said.

“Films by women, about women and through women’s eyes need to be made and watched. Why should women’s stories of love, sex, secrets and rebellion not be screened and watched widely? Let’s claim our right to watch ‘ladyoriented’ films,” she added.

Produced by Prakash Jha, the film features actors like Konkona Sensharma and Ratna Pathak Shah, and tells the story of four small town women in search of a little freedom.

WHAT T WEETY BIRD TOLD US THIS WEEK

Match the following tweets to the stars that made them.

SRK, Priyanka Chopra, Anupam Kher, Akshay Kumar

A perfect New York afternoon with these lovely ladies Nicole Kidman, Kate Mara, Kendall Jenner and Keri Russell.

To reinvent yourself as an actor is to challenge yourself. Looking forward to portraying Manmohan Singh in The Accidental Prime Minister.

Something to think about... 50 percent of the rape cases in India can go down if we build TOILETS!

As overplayed as the pun is, I still can’t resist writing…“Hav u ever seen a better pair of perfect fitting genes?”

LAST ISSUE CAPTION CONTEST WINNING ENTRY

What’s the chitchat between A ISHWARYA and RIHANNA?

Aish to herself: Oh wow, Rihannaaaa!

Rihanna to herself: Someone tell me who this is again…?

Rajinder Singh

M T C OLAH NSW

Rajinder wins a ticket to Baahubali 2

mA mtA ku L k A rn I

A nupA m kher

Turning twenty one

A note from MUM AND DAD to their son on a milestone birthday

happy birthday, son. We are very proud to see the man you’ve become, but more important than that, you have given us much happiness over the last 21 years. We love you to bits. Here’s a little note for you on your 21st birthday. You could call them life lessons – they’ve come to us after years of experience, and tbh, there are some things here we wish we had done ourselves. Take from this list what you will: we know you will make your own list one day, which many people will read.

1 Laugh a lot.

2 Have lots of friends.

3 Dream big – about your own future. Then get out there and make it happen.

4 Read.

5 Learn new things; keep on learning. Don’t be afraid to ask questions.

6 Eat well. Remember our diet mantra when you were younger: Garbage in, garbage out.

7 Treat other people like you would have them treat you. Especially those less fortunate than you now. It won’t be long before they come up to your level, and go further.

8 Keep in touch with family: yes, they often embarrass you, but they are also your biggest fan club and will protect you and look out for you no matter what. You are quite lucky you have some very accomplished people in your family: they’ve given you the good genes and the good environment that have made you what you are today. Be good friends with your sister –and look after each other.

9 Be polite and respectful towards women. Treat girls as equals in every respect. Know that when mates say disrespectful things about girls, they are being uncool.

10 Do what you love. Love what you do.

11 Keep your room clean.

12 Shower every day, or twice daily. Wear a nice fragrance. Wear clean and good quality underwear.

13 Always know and feel that you’ve made your parents/family proud. At any given point in time, you should be able to say, yes, I think my family is proud of me. (If you ever feel you’ve done something that will make your family not proud, make amends immediately.)

14 Never forget where you came from. Learn more about your culture, Indian as well as Australian. It is quite cool to be proud of your heritage.

15 You may be an adult now, but don’t forget to play. Nurture your hobbies, and surround yourself with things related to them. If you can afford it, travel to different places to follow your hobbies.

16 You may be an adult now, but don’t forget to tease. Have a sense of humour and gently tease your significant others. It is a great tension reducer.

17 Drink alcohol – don’t let it drink you. And you know the rules about drinking and driving.

18 Always reach out to friends – even distant acquaintances – when they

experience a birth or a death in their family. Try and visit, and if you can’t, then send a note or flowers or a message.

19 Have lots of mentors, ie, people that you look up to and have respect for.

20 Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. Asking for help doesn’t mean you’re weak: it could mean you’re wise. And brave.

21 Be grateful. Show your gratitude. It is a truly uplifting feeling. Research shows that grateful people are happy people. Life coaches now recommend that we must all take a few minutes of our day to list some things we are currently grateful for. (Hint: whenever you feel down, list things you are thankful for. It will heal you).

Many happy returns, dude. Now let’s go and get a drink.