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मेरा घर, मेरी जगह अपनेी ज़रूरत्यो​ों क्यो पूरा करने​े वाला घर पाएँ ! चाहे आप अकेले या दोस्तों के सार् रहिा चाहते/चाहती हैं , या निर िए दोस्त बिािा चाहते/चाहती हैं , हमारे एिडीआईएस समनर्​्भत स्वतंत्र जीवि आवासों में से हरे क में एक दे खर्ाल और समनप्भत टीम है जो आपके नलए नबल्ुल सही नवकल्प हो सकती है ।

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EDITORIAL

Brand India vs Brand Modi

All things Indian. In Australia.

PUBLISHER Pawan Luthra EDITOR Rajni Anand Luthra CONTRIBUTORS Torsha Sen, Vivek Asri, Lakshmi Ganapathy, Suhayla Sharif, Jodi Mckay, Neeru Saluja, Kristen Dias, Prutha Chakraborty, Kersi Meher-Homji, Sandip Hor, Minal Khona, Auntyji SALES AND MARKETING Charu Vij ADMN Aanchal Matta 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:

Indian Link Media Group Level 24/44 Market St, Sydney 2000 GPO Box 108, Sydney 2001 Ph: 02 9279-2004 Email: info@indianlink.com.au

by PAWAN LUTHRA

“E

xcruciating diplomacy”.

That was how Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s response this week on Australia’s most popular morning show Sunrise (Channel Seven) was described. Host David Koch put to Mr Albanese, “(PM Modi) has reduced press freedom; he discriminates against minorities; he is accused of watering down democracies - he is seen as a bit of a tyrant.” PM Albanese, rather than refuting any of these points, squirmed as he weakly explained the democratic values of India to a sceptical interviewer.

In fact, every radio and television show which covered PM Modi’s visit to Australia referred to the freedoms and treatment of minorities. When also asked the same questions, Foreign Minister Penny Wong agreed that though these and other issues are raised behind closed doors “respectfully”, if they are ignored, there is not a lot Australia can do about it.

PM Modi’s visit has had wall-to-wall coverage in Australia: every major media outlet reported on his Quad-meetingturned-bilateral-trade visit to Australia.

One suspects that if PM Albanese could pick which of the three Quad leaders President Biden, PM Yishida or PM Modi could come through in case of a cancelled Quad, he would have chosen NaMo. The diaspora reception for PM Modi was a resounding success with Albo enjoying the reflected glory of his Indian counterpart and banking on the political capital from the voting Indian Australian community at Qudos Bank arena.

PM Modi himself did not disappoint with his 45-minute speech, cleverly crafted and professionally delivered with a waggle of a finger to chide the detractors, and with an open-arm stance to embrace the qualities of those present.

For the non-Indians who were there, it must have seemed like a different world to have the 18,000 plus attendees hanging on to every word.

But then, this is PM Modi’s speciality, and he revels in it. Yes to large crowds and big speeches. No to press conferences and door stops. For the leader of a modern democracy aiming to be a superpower, not having its leader

answer questions from professional journalists will indeed be noticed.

While Brand India, which has the tailwinds of an economic juggernaut, takes an increasingly important position on the world stage, the question is how Brand Modi will be seen globally.

Akin to this Australian visit where every report questioned Modi’s democratic credentials, one wonders whether the same criticisms will be raised as he travels to other Western democracies such as the US later this month. While within the diaspora, there will be cult-like support, will Brand Modi get similar respect globally?

Accusing Western media of bias may not be the answer. Perhaps, through occasional press conferences and media interactions, there can be greater transparency on decisions taken. External Affairs Minister Jaishankar has shown, quite admirably, that this is a way to explain India’s choices and decisions and he has only gained in stature from that.

India as a nation with centuries of wisdom has much to offer the world.

Its interactions globally have made it a powerful voice respected by all. Our leaders need to ensure that this continues long into the future.

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contents special features IND-AUS In conversation with Penny Wong

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HARRIS PARK

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A plaque in search of a home

OPINION

On our wilful blindness when it comes to Modi

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TRIBUTE

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MasterChef’s Jock Zonfrillo

CUTTING CHAI

Our new interview column

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PM Modi in Sydney Mega rally at community reception; Bilateral exchanges

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YOUR SAY

SUTR SANTATI: THEN. NOW. NEXT PM MODI RECEPTION AT QUDOS BANK ARENA With help from the IADF, Indian Link was able to live stream the community reception for PM Narendra Modi from Qudos Bank Arena. 43,000 views were recorded in the first 24 hours alone.

RK Ram wrote: Do you have this event recorded for posterity or is it only available only for a limited period? For old timers like me who were fortunate enough to welcome PM Rajiv Gandhi over almost 3 decades back (as the Chair of the Citizens Committee), it was a rare occasion indeed. Enjoyed very much all the variety of Indian cultural items presented by our own fellow citizens of the diaspora.

Vidya Muthanna wrote: It was excellent coverage.

Bala Balachnadran wrote: YouTube link was fabulous and telecast was brilliant too.

Jayaram Iyengar wrote: Brilliantly done.

Shantha Vishwanathan wrote: Thank you for sharing the link to the community reception for Modi. Many who couldn’t be there were very grateful.

I sent your link to Chennai too.

Nawal Moudgil wrote: I’ve shared to all my groups and social media portals.

Srinivas Karkenahalli wrote: We watched it in full on your YouTube channel.

It was excellent coverage.

Manjula Vishwanath wrote: Excellent initiative!

Melbourne Museum’s exhibition on Indian textiles is on until September, and is must-see for anyone interested in textiles, history, or India.

Sarah Storey (Australia’s Deputy High Commissioner in India) wrote: Listen in to Lavina Baldota, the curator of SutrSantation display at Melbourne Museum, talk about the sigificnaceof textiles duringIndia’s freedom struggle and how the exhibition is an ode to 75 years of India’s Independence Rohini Kappadath wrote: Indian Link’s video clip on SutrSantati is exceptional. So welledited that every word has a place and powerful meaning.

Thank you very much!

Jillian Abery wrote: I visited this exhibition today at Melbourne Museum.

Interesting to learn the background and hear the talk by the curator, as well as many of the designers who had come from India for the opening weekend.

Amazing display of textiles. Well worth the visit.

Rohini Kappadath wrote again: A must do pilgrimage particularly for the Indian diaspora who wish to share the soul of India, (through the lens of her textiles), with the next generation.

Ajay Bhoj wrote: Thank you so much for sharing our work ‘Ramavali’. Thank you for your appreciation.

Vivienne Ruffles wrote: Congratulations India Andrew Spurway wrote: Well done.

Celeste Rowe wrote: Looks amazing.

Ashok Malik wrote: Great to know Australia and India are working together on exploring old art.

Rajni Anand Luthra wrote: Goosebumps when I saw the exhibition. It was goosebumps as well when I first saw pics of the original in Delhi’s National Museum late last year. So I knew I’d be going to see it when the Melb show was announced. It’s a stunning show and photos just do not do justice. Also great to hear directly from the makers themselves. A def must-see.

Jillian Abery wrote again: Excellent exhibition, I highly recommend a visit.

A MYSORE SILK SARI… AND A WARATAH BROOCH!

MY MEMORIES WITH MUSIC MAESTRO PANKAJ MULLICK

CHARISHMA KALIYANDA spoke to PAWAN LUTHRA about her first day at work as a Parliamentarian.

Tulsi Achia wrote: She’s from my community - she’s Kodava! So great to see her wearing the sari in the Kodava style. Truly a huge moment.

Jodi McKay wrote: We’re so fortunate to have Charishma Kaliyanda in the NSW Parliament. A lovely article.

Sue Advani wrote: Congratulations Charishma Kaliyanda! Good touch wearing a sari for the memorable occasion.

Readers Thiru Thirunantha Kumar, Chandrika Subramaniyan, Prakash Chand, Mala Mehta, Rekha Kanth, Chitra Iyer, Meenakshi Chopra, Monica Monica, Srinivas Karkenahalli, Mira, Parnell Belliappa, Sujay Kumar Sringeri, Dhiraj Patel and Aruna Chandrala also wrote in with notes of congratulations and best wishes Charishma Kaliyanda wrote: Thank you all.

KERSI MEHER-HOMJI shared with us a letter from the music maestro, as a tribute on his recent birth anniversary.

Virat Nehru wrote: This is so sweet.

Raj Saneja wrote: Wonderful article. I love Pankaj Mullick’s songs like Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam and Tere Mandir ka Hoon Deepak to name a couple.

Didn’t know he was such an erudite. It shows what a great singer and a great human being he was.

Pooja Tripathi wrote: Read Pankaj Mullick’s letter here, not once but twice. I only knew of him as a singer of yore. Perhaps he had a career in writing? Oh, and bring back the art of letter-writing, I say. How many of us even take time over a simple thank you note?

Torsha Sen wrote: A great piece. It inspires me to write something similar, perhaps in 50 years’ time. One of my own treasured possessions at the moment is a hand-written note of appreciation from Amitabh Bachchan.

SAY IT AGAIN 8 JUNE 2023

I have been to literary events in India where the intelligentsia is calling out Modi as a fascist, but at the same time when I talk to taxi drivers who may not be that literate, they speak highly of him. Great man, India is strong now… on the global front. Look, I am no statistician but I believe there are more taxi drivers than there are literary types.

Booker Prize winning Sri Lankan author Shehan Karunatilaka, on ABC’s Q&A

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LOVING RIGHT NOW What we were into last month: We ate Malai Cheeni Toast (yum!); read Asma Khan’s Ammu; listened to William Dalrymple and Anita Anand’s podcast on the Koh-I-Noor, and watched tenor Shanul Sharma as Gandhi at Opera Australia.

William Dalrymple wrote: What a fab mix!

Manish Kaptta wrote: More than enough for mind body and soul - heavenly experience.

Pravin Shah wrote: How exciting that an Indian is singing Italian opera, and is being applauded. Are these songs on YouTube?

Vimala D’Souza wrote: Wish I could be in Melbourne to see Shanul Sharma perform for Opera Australia. Hope he comes to Perth with this performance.

Soumi Paul Mukhopadhyay wrote: Thank you for picking me as the winner for your Sydney Writers’ Festival contest. This is unexpected! I’m looking forward to the event The dinner that changed my life and hear Asma Khan and all the other eminent food writers and chefs talking about food. Very grateful.

Ambika Girglani wrote: Thank you so much for your Sydney Writers’ Festival contest, and thank you for my prize – tickets to the Story Telling Gala featuring among others, Booker Prize winner Shehan Karunatilka. It was an amazing event.

Hasveen Chahal wrote: Thank you for sending me to Sydney Writers’ Festival to see Annabel Crabb interview Indian-origin food writer Asma Khan.

WHERE IN INDIA Known as the 'Mosque of the Four Minarets’. The monument was created to represent the first four caliphs of Islam respectively. Where in India?

CAPTION CONTEST What are Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and NSW Premier Chris Minns listening to here?

Hetshri Pandit wins a movie ticket for her response wrote: Brown munde Chitra Iyer wrote: Bruce Springsteen Amit Suthar wrote: Love Charger Viral Kothari wrote: Looking at their stunned faces, must be some Bhojpuri song Adlakha Kunal wrote: We are Family Harshil Gupta wrote: Tiwariji's totala translated commentary.

Saroni Roy wrote: Naatu Naatu?

Sarah Macdonald wrote: They both love some giutar shredding so perhaps a translation with Gang of Youths as background music. Due to government spending reduction measures, one headphone per two leaders.

Aruna D'ugu wrote: Listening in for tips on how to get the reception Modiji got.

Prathibha Shivashankar wrote: Waiting to hear The Boss order his fans to re-elect Albo for the next 10 years Raj Saneja wrote: Listening with concern to see if Boss Modi, after changing the names of Parramatta and Harris Park to Parmatma and Harish Park, asks for their names to be changed to Krish and Anand.

Ian Hendry wrote: Morrison’s resignation from politics Ritesh Verma wrote: Speech of their boss Rachna Gupta wrote: By their expressions it seems they are just blocking one ear.

Dhaval Patel wrote: They want to make sure PM Modi's speech has a better understanding at both state and federal level.

Gaurav Wadekar wrote: Keenly listening to see if Mr Modi will announce the ban of $100 and $50 notes here in Australia Mala Mehta wrote: Great capture!

Sheba Nandkeolyar wrote: How did you manage to this photo? A masterpiece!

Libby Conway wrote: Hilarious!

Amit Sharma wrote: Going green, using less plastic. The team that shares that vision, shares the headphones too.

WHERE IN OZ With a diameter of 64 metres, this is one of the largest singledish telescopes in the southern hemisphere dedicatedto astronomy.

This giant dish was the primary receiver of Apollo 11 TV transmissions.

Where in Australia?

Readers Raghu Rules, Aruna D'ugu and Nitin Setia got it right; the answer is Char Minar, Hyderabad

Traditionally India has sought to realise its own interests, less in competition with single forces than by working with everyone at the same time. That goes back to ancient times. There is a document called Arthashastra by Kautilya that actually deals with that kind of ability, to work across boundaries with everyone, rather than singling them off.

Allan Behm, Director, International & Security Affairs Program, on ABC TV’s The Drum, talking about India’s multipolarity

Sridhar Kumsy, Kerren Lumsden, Gurmeet Singh and Manoj Jindal got the right answer: Parkes

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COVER STORY

A booster shot of national pride by RAJNI ANAND LUTHRA

F

rom the very first images of Narendra Modi being received

by Anthony Albanese at Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena, it was clear that the Indian Prime Minister was very much the star.

He just had that air about him.

The crowds inside erupted as both Prime Ministers made their entry, but it was on one of them that the cameras were focused.

The adulation, quite amazing to witness, prompted Mr Albanese to recall a similar previous visit to the venue to see rock star Bruce Springsteen, The Boss.

“Mr Modi is The Boss,” Mr Albanese said, giving the journos their headlines for the day (and cause for criticism, days later).

As Mr Modi The Boss took to the podium at the event organised by the Indian Australian Diaspora Foundation (IADF), the audience of 18,000 of his countrymen went near delirious. They’d been chanting all afternoon, and the chants just got louder as the night went on.

And for them, he delivered.

It was the diaspora that was first and foremost on Narendra Modi’s mind.

“I promised you in 2014 that you won’t have to wait another 28 years for an Indian Prime Minister to visit,” Mr Modi said early in his speech. “I’m back, and I’ve brought with me with your Prime Minister,

10 JUNE 2023

Anthony Albanese.”

Modiji spoke in Hindi. Mr Albanese listened in on earplugs, sharing them with NSW Premier Chris Minns. Foreign Minister Penny Wong had them too, but Leader of the Opposition Peter Dutton did not, and perhaps should have chosen to sit closer to MP Julian Leeser, who we know speaks the lingo.

ScoMo was there as expected, given his close friendship with Modi – although we didn’t see Tony Abbott, who’s also a good friend. Besides both foreign ministers Penny Wong and Jaishankar, also in attendance were a whole host of state and federal ministers and MPs from both sides, basking in the Modi glow.

Among community attendees, anyone who’s anyone was there of course, choosing to wear traditional Indian, and eagle-eyed watchers spied singer Anup Jalota, currently on tour in Australia.

The address itself was classic Modi, or classic Diaspora Modi. Adept at

talking to large crowds, the PM kept his speech simple, and replete with cultural references. Such as elements from our life here in Sydney’s Indian community: our favourite eating joints in Harris Park (actually naming two of them – Chatkazz and Jaipur Sweets are never going to live it down); the Indian names with which we lightheartedly refer to Harris Park hotspots (much hilarity in the crowds); the brand new Lord Mayor of Parramatta Sameer Pandey; and significantly, the work that the community does, professionally as well as the exemplary voluntary endeavours at times of crisis like bushfires, floods and lockdowns.

He also acknowledged the Australian government and people for embracing the Indian community. He loved that the Sydney Opera House was bathed in India colours on its 75th Independence Day; that a major recognition was given this month to an Indian-origin World War I soldier in Perth, and that Indian festivals are marked

in Australia’s parliaments and local councils.

He thanked NSW for the Little India nomenclature at Harris Park, adding, “Thank you, my friend Anthony.”45 per cent of the suburb’s 5,043 residents trace their roots to India.

The Indian PM spoke also of how Australia has itself seeped into daily life back home in India - with cricket of course (the deep sadness that was felt at the loss of Shane Warne, and welcoming Australian women players at IPL); with MasterChef enjoying great popularity, and with regular connects with family members who have moved to Australia to live or to study.

The announcement of a Brisbane Consulate General of the Indian High Commission came with much applause. A long-standing request, it is welcome news to the community there.

About the India-Australia relationship, Mr Modi didn’t talk a lot about the intricacies of the engagement in terms of trade and numbers and potential areas of mutual benefit. Instead, he stressed that mutual trust and respect form the foundation of the bilateral ties, and doubled down on his commitment to doubling the trade over the next five years.

The three Cs in our relationship are now passe, he suggested. “We’re moving on to the Ds and Es: Ds for Democracy, Diplomacy and Dosti (friendship), and Es for Economy, Energy and Education.”

Words that will be repeated a few times in the near future, no doubt.

Narendra Modi was in his element, and

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had them eating out of his hand. All the classic Modi mannerisms were on display – the sturdy outstretched finger to make a point, the double arm raise to show strength, even the bear hug.

Despite his popularity, Mr Modi did see some criticism from a segment of the society. Protests took place outside the venue, with campaigners for an independent state in Punjab shouting anti-Modi slogans and waving flags of the so-called Khalistan movement. Additionally, a banned BBC documentary questioning Modi's actions during the Gujarat riots two decades ago was aired within the Australian Parliament complex, organised by a group called "We the Diaspora."

Prime Minister Modi also chose not to address the media throughout his visit, maintaining his practice of avoiding news conferences.

However, none of these issues mattered to his followers. The enthusiasm and support they displayed during the community reception, show the strong bond they maintain with their homeland.

Modi's ability to mobilise and energise his supporters within India and abroad remains a defining feature of his political persona.

May I ask a favour of you all, the PM said

his mates and preparing itineraries right now.)

Finally, the PM got down to brass tacks – what he has accomplished for India. He got the crowds truly roused up, at each listing of a dozen or so major achievements, from fintech to digital payments, from smart phone use and production to internet usage, from vaccination rates to even fruit and vegetable production. First in the world, he said for each, urging his listeners to repeat.

You could say it was all intended to instil a sense of national pride. Or you could call it electioneering, given its campaign-like vibes (India goes to the polls next year).

Modi’s mega rallies outside of India and his close engagement with the diaspora have been seen as campaign tools, his own team apparently referring to them as “force multipliers”.

Either way, give them a booster shot of national pride, he did.

It was what they came for, and he delivered.

at one point in his speech.

One man shouted back, “Aap jaan maange ge to woh bhi haazir hai. (Ask for our life and we will give it to you).”

The favour in question was much simpler, thankfully. When you next visit India, Mr Modi said, bring an Aussie friend. (Jaanhaazir guy is in all probability rounding up

Use this QR code to watch the highlights on your phone

JUNE 2023 11

COVER STORY

“Our ties have entered T-20 mode”

A

Some highlights from Indian PM Narendra Modi’s visit to Australia

fter their sixth meeting in one year, Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Anthony Albanese have demonstrated that the two nations have strengthened their relationship to mutual benefit.

“This is a relationship we need to invest in,” PM Albanese said during PM Modi’s visit. “Our strong partnership with India will deliver benefits for Australia in trade, investment and business, and in regional security and stability.”

Mr Modi agreed. “In the language of cricket, our ties have entered the T20 mode.”

He added, “Our democratic values are the foundation of our ties. Our relations are based on mutual trust and respect.”

For the diaspora waiting for Mr Modi to visit, the main event was a large community gathering at which both prime ministers attended alongside some 18,000 IndianAustralians.

The Qudos Bank Arena event, organised by the Indian Australian Diaspora Foundation, made headlines across both nations. The sheer energy at the event saw Mr Modi later describe the diaspora as “both a bridge and the beating heart of the (India-Australia) relationship”.

In more formal settings, a slew of new measures were announced in the bilateral relationship.

In increased diplomatic presence Australia will open a new Consulate in Bengaluru this month, its fifth diplomatic presence in India after New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata. India has just announced its own fifth diplomatic presence in Australia, 12 JUNE 2023

With PM Anthony Albanese, Governor General David Hurley and Mrs Linda Hurley

this time in Brisbane, following Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne and Perth.

The Australia-India Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement was signed.

This will promote the exchange of students, graduates, researchers and business people; expand people-to-people ties and enhance cooperation in preventing people smuggling.

The Australia-India Green Hydrogen Taskforce was established to expand the cooperation on the global clean energy transition. This will comprise Australian and Indian experts in renewable hydrogen and report to the Australian-Indian Ministerial Energy Dialogue on the opportunities for the two nations to cooperate in the area of renewable hydrogen. “Investments like the taskforce will help power our industries in

the future, and ensure that Australia and India meet our energy targets in the interests of both our respective countries, but also in support of reduction of global emissions,” Mr Albanese said.

At a business roundtable in Sydney organised by the Australia Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) and the Indian High Commission, PM Modi met with top Australian CEOs. “We elaborated on the business opportunities in India and the reform trajectory of our Government, and invited Australian businesses to invest in India,” Mr Modi noted. The fields of interest mentioned were infrastructure including digital infrastructure, IT, telecom, semiconductors, fintech, renewable energy including green hydrogen, space, education,

pharma, healthcare including medical devices manufacturing, mining including critical minerals, textiles, agriculture and food processing.

Among the corporate leaders who met with PM Modi were Swati Dave (CAIR), Sanjeev Gandhi (Orica), and Jennifer Westacott (Business Council of Australia), Catriona Jackson (Universities Australia), Matt Comyn (CBA), and Prof Mark Scott AO (USyd).

Mr Modi also met with Gov Gen David Hurley and Leader of the Opposition Peter Dutton.

Prime Minister Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong announced that the new Centre for Australia-India Relations CAIR will be head-quartered in Parramatta.

The Centre, which began operations this month, aims to drive deeper engagement with India through business, policy and cultural activities and work with Indian diaspora communities.

The Centre is led by Chair Swati Dave and CEO Tim Thomas. The inaugural Advisory Board for CAIR was also announced, and includes Florence Drummond (CEO, Indigenous Women in Mining and Resources Australia), Adam Gilchrist AO (former Australian cricket captain), Amrit Gill, (Creative Program Lead, City of Melbourne), Catriona Jackson (CEO, Universities Australia), Sammy Kumar (CEO, Sayers Group), the Hon. Martin Hamilton-Smith (former South Australian Minister for Trade), Mitu Bhowmick Lange AM (CEO, Mind Blowing Films), Jodi McKay (National Chair, Australia India Business Council), Gunjan Pagare (Executive Manager, Community Investment, Commonwealth

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(Top row) CEO Roundtable; Harbour Bridge decorations. (Middle row) Meeting scientist and Nobel Laureate Dr Brian Paul Schmidt of the ANU, celebrity chef Sarah Todd, and singer Guy Sebastian. (Bottom row) Opera House decorations; meeting Parramatta Lord Mayor Sameer Pandey, and ‘toilet warrior’ Mark Balla

Bank), Amit Singh (Managing Partner, Mandala Partners), and Jan Adams AO PSM ex-officio (Secretary, DFAT).

The Indian PM met one-on-one with a select bunch of public figures from a variety of fields, including Toby Walsh, singer Guy Sebastian, scientist and Nobel Laureate Dr Brian Paul Schmidt of the ANU, sociologist Prof. Salvatore Babones of USyd, ‘toilet warrior’ Mark Balla whose social enterprise builds toilets for girls, celebrity chef Sarah Todd, First Nations artist Danielle Mate, Gina Rinehart (executive chairman of Hancock Prospecting), Paul Schroder (CEO Australian Super), and Dr Andrew Forrest (executive chairman of Fortescue Future).

Prime Ministers Albanese and Modi revisited the issue of the attack on temples in Australia and activities of separatist

elements. “We will not accept any elements that harm the friendly and warm ties between India and Australia by their actions or thoughts,” Mr Modi said.“I thank Prime Minister for the actions that have already been taken. Prime Minister Albanese has once again assured me today that he will take strict actions against such elements in the future also.”

At the end of his visit, Mr Modi said he looked forward to meeting his Australian counterpart again shortly, at the G20 summit in September. He also had a much broader invitation: “I invite Prime Minister Albanese and all Australian cricket fans to India for the Cricket World Cup this year. At that time, you will also get to see the grand celebrations of Diwali in India.”

JUNE 2023 13

COVER STORY

F

‘PM Modi’s three Ds exemplify the depth of our relationship’ oreign Minister Penny Wong, thank you for joining us at Indian Link today. Namaste.

Great to be with you. Namaste.

You’ve met India’s External Affairs Minister Dr Jaishankar a few times. Picked up any Indian words other than Namaste?

Not very many I’m afraid! But I would say, I’ve met Jai or Dr Jaishankar many times since I became Foreign Minister and I always find our interactions enlightening. He’s a very reflective and thoughtful External Affairs Minister, and it’s been wonderful to get to know him.

The scenes at the Qudos Bank Arena last night were vibrant and energetic. What do you think attracts that sort of crowd and adulation for Prime Minister Modi?

Good question. It is in many ways unprecedented, isn’t it, to have a democratically elected leader have that kind of reception. We see some sort of similar reaction in some parts of the world, but last night, as you said, was vibrant and energetic. And one of the things the Prime Minister said which I thought was really insightful was, that three Ds define the relationship – democracy, diaspora and dosti. I think that exemplifies some of the depth of the relationship.

What do you think about his reference to the soft power part of the relationship, like MasterChef?

Well, it demonstrates, doesn’t it, that we’ve got such a broad relationship. Our relationship with India is about our interests. We share interests – very clear-eyed strategic interests about the sort of region we want, the sort of world we want. So that is central to our relationship. Our values are also central to how we envisage the relationship.

I think that the words of PM Modi where he talks about the diaspora, the Indian diaspora, as being both the bridge and the beating heart of the relationship was demonstrated last night.

And so whether it’s MasterChef or cricket or family ties or educational ties, we are the full gamut. The full breadth of the relationship is wide and deep and growing, and that is a good thing for both countries.

Minister, I’ve been in Australia now for 37 years. I always felt that the relationship could be very strong, but we’ve only started accelerating in this area in the last seven to eight years, since 2014 when PM Modi first visited Australia. What has taken Australia so long to realise the similarities and potential in this relationship?

You’re probably more well placed than I to do that, but whatever the reasons for that in the past, I’m really pleased as Foreign Minister that we see the momentum in the relationship now.

As you know, Prime Minister Albanese visited in March, I visited, we’ve had a number of other ministers visit, a lot of bilateral visits, and now, of course, an historic visit by Mr Modi.

So what that does say is we both recognise, at a time when there are a lot of challenges in our region and change in the world, that we both need partners. We both want to work together in the reshaping of our region to ensure it remains open and inclusive and stable 14 JUNE 2023

and prosperous.

India is a global power, and it will become increasingly so. As you know, it’s the most populous nation on earth and it will continue to develop and it will continue to grow its security capacity. So I’ve no doubt that Australia-India relations are central to Australia’s national interests. And certainly as Foreign Minister I’m going to keep pressing for that.

Regarding the Centre for Australia-India Relations, Minister, what targets would you like for it to achieve in the next two or three years?

Swati Dave and Tim Thomas are the Chair and CEO respectively, and the Prime Minister and I have just appointed the board. Your question is a good one because I think that all of us have been to many meetings over the years where people talk about our relationship being underdone. People say we have a good strategic relationship, but the economic relationship is underdone. And what I have said to the Centre is I want some practical ways in which we can improve and deepen the economic relationship. In part that is the larger companies, but in part it is the strength of the diaspora, because, as you know, we have businesspeople in the diaspora who are building the economic relationship. I want to understand how we can as government facilitate more of that and how we can encourage more of those businesses to grow.

You mean the entrepreneurial spirit in Indian-Australians to do business with both Australia and India?

That’s right. We’ve got a CEO forum later today that I’ve got the privilege of being in with Prime Minister Modi. I’m sure there’ll be a lot of discussion about opportunities there. And I do want some practical outcomes. I don’t want to have an interview with you in three years’ time in hopefully a second term of an Albanese

Labor government where we’re having the same discussion about what we have to do in the economic relationship. I hope we can have an interview then where you say, ‘Minister, you actually did – we have actually shifted the dial on a few things.’

I would love to have a chat to see how things are progressing. Minister, changing tack a little, in many interviews you’ve given earlier today you’ve been asked how Australia would raise allegations of how India treats its minorities. You said, “We’ll do so respectfully.” But if India ignores these inputs respectfully, then in view of a larger relationship between the two countries, there’s not a lot Australia can do about that, is there?

Well, that proposition is the case in relation to every country. This is the nature of international relations – in relationships between nation states, on some issues there’s a lot of confluence and on other issues there’s difference. And part of what we have to do as we engage is to manage to find alignment and where interests and values are shared, but then where there are differences of views, how to manage that. It’s certainly not exclusive to India. I would again make the point, though, it is the world’s largest democracy and that is an extraordinary achievement.

Minister, at a press conference in Canberra last year you had looked really surprised when I asked Dr Jaishankar about the resurgence of the Khalistan issue in the Sikh diaspora in Canada. His answer was blunt, and I’ll quote what he said: “I have myself engaged my counterpart on this issue and we have flagged the need to ensure that freedoms in a democratic society are not misused by forces which actually advocate violence and bigotry. So, it's important I think for countries to understand today really how democracies should function not

only at home, but also the responsibilities the democracies have to other democracies abroad.” The Khalistan issue is now playing out here in Australia. In the context of the above, has the Australian Government done enough to respect India’s wishes?

Look, I think we have been very clear that there is no space in Australia for hatred and bigotry. There is no space in Australia for violence. We value deeply - and treasure our multiculturalism. Equally, we safeguard the social cohesion which enables that multiculturalism to thrive. And that is how we approach this and any other issue. The Prime Minister and other ministers, including I, unreservedly condemn the violence that we have seen in terms of the defacing of temples and so forth. You have seen, obviously, the appropriate responses by police. We’ll continue to ensure that these sorts of views which people may hold, in our society cannot be translated into violence and hate speech. We have a very clear view about it.

Before I let you go, Minister, Prime Minister Modi mentioned his favourite Indian eateries in Harris Park in his speech yesterday. Is a trip to Harris Park on your list when you visit next?

I’d love to. I’m from Adelaide and spend a lot of time in Canberra, so I haven’t actually spent time in sampling some of that cuisine. But I have someone who works for me who grew up in the area, and she’s promised me she’s going to take me to her favourite restaurants. I’ll let you know.

Thank you for sharing your views.

It's very good to speak with you again.

Thank you.

Use this QR code to watch the interview on your phone

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JUNE 2023 15

COVER STORY

A mammoth task A behind-the-scenes look at the “Australia welcomes Modi” reception by PAWAN LUTHRA

R

ahul Jethi of the Indian Australian Diaspora Foundation (IADF) failed to keep his interview date for this piece.

Turns out, at the allocated time, he had already retired for the night, even though it was not exactly late in the evening.

He spoke the next morning, in the midst of a school drop off.

Apparently, a week after the mega community reception at the Qudos Bank Arena for PM Narendra Modi, it was the first night he had got to bed before 2 am in weeks.

“It feels surreal actually,” he revealed.

“I didn’t realise how mammoth a task this was going to be. But it’s great looking back at the last two months. Feels good about the bringing community together.”

Some 300 organisations from across the country contributed in one way or another for the event, with some 20 volunteers making up the core team.

The experience from being part of the 2014 organising committee, when Mr Modi visited last, would have come in handy, we put to him.

“Yes it did, although there were a couple of key aspects in which the logistics were different,” he offered. “Firstly, we had 14,000 people attend last time, and had used only part of the arena then. This time we wanted to open it up fully to accommodate a larger audience. To do so, we had to redo the stage. A prefabricated rotating stage was organised for the centre, for the main event after the cultural program. It presented a special challenge to organise.”

Secondly, Jethi said, the attending dignitaries from the Australian side, the Prime Minister included, added to the agenda.

“In 2014 we had the NSW Premier Mike Baird attending, but he only stayed briefly. This time round, we were surprised at the number of ministers and MPs who 16 JUNE 2023

Rahul Jethi

This time round, we were surprised at the number of ministers and MPs who expressed an interest to attend.

There were strict protocols to follow and that added to our responsibilities for the day. On top of that, for many the confirmation came very late in the piece, as Parliament was sitting and special permissions had to be sought from the Speaker. expressed an interest to attend. There were strict protocols to follow and that added to our responsibilities for the day. On top of that, for many the confirmation came very late in the piece, as Parliament was sitting and special permissions had to be sought from the Speaker. Let me just say, we were expecting less attendance from our leaders, and so seating arrangements had to be changed at the last minute.”

Also to be taken care of, were submissions from 120 cultural organisations to perform in the lead up to the main event.

“Not wanting to disappoint anyone, we came up the idea of inside and outside events to accommodate all.”

Did those attending know PM Modi would be speaking in Hindi?

“Yes we did inform them that there would be a direct translation from two appointed translators, played on the hearing loop in the arena. We also advised them to bring ear pods.”

And so, between Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Premier Chris Minns, who forgot to bring theirs?

Jethi laughed as he said, “Yes I’ve seen

that pic go viral!”

About crowd numbers, while seating capacity at the Qudos Bank Arena is 21,000, there were some empty seats spotted, especially in the upper arena. And yet there were many who were seeking tickets until the last day.

“I do feel bad for those that missed out,” Jethi expressed, clarifying, “But it was a totally free event, supported by businesses. One always expects a 5% dropout rate, for whatever reason. Unless a ticket is returned, another one cannot be reissued. And in any case, we had the event streamed outside, and actually found that some people enjoyed that more, with food etc.”

Financially as well, Jethi revealed, as a not-for-profit IADF was overwhelmed with people’s generosity with many making small donations to help organise the event. “We are still working through final numbers but expect that the event will cost around $1.3 million. We are keen to be transparent and will share audited numbers on our website and through your media,” Jethi said.

And what was his own top moment from the entire experience?

“My personal highlight after weeks of hard work in planning the ‘Australia welcomes Modi’ event, was when PM Modi stopped where I was positioned. He smiled at me, acknowledged my namaste, and said ‘Dhanyavad’ (thank you).”

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Flourishing dosti: On the train back home from the community reception for PM Modi at Qudos Bank Arena

Democracy, Diaspora, Dosti

T

JODI McKAY on the next stage in the Australia-India relationship

he visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, besides whipping up a storm of interest in all things Indian, laid down a new challenge for the relationship between Australia and India.

Moving on from the traditional three Cs of Cricket, Curry and the Commonwealth, Prime Minister Modi declared that we needed now to move to the three Ds of Democracy, Diaspora and Dosti.

The simple turn of phrase to the three Ds is a powerful message to Australia in how it shapes up to this new chapter of interaction with India.

India and Australia are two proud democracies. Our respective blending of cultures, belief systems and customs makes our democracies even stronger. With this comes challenges and at times conflict, but our open, democratic systems must, in their own unique ways, guide and shape our societies as we move into the economic, geo-political, social and environmental challenges of the next decade.

The diaspora is what I see as the “secret ingredient” of the India Australia relationship. The language of Prime Minister Modi was imbued with the notion of the diaspora as the “living bridge” between our two nations. I say secret, because up till now, Australian politics and to a lesser extent business have struggled to realise the potential of the diaspora.

In 2018, former Australian High Commissioner to India Peter Varghese, released his seminal report An Indian Economic Strategy to 2035, which placed a strong focus on the role of the diaspora

in building, shaping and strengthening ties between India and Australia.

The Federal Government’s Centre for Australia-India Relations (CAIR), which was launched by Prime Minister Albanese this week, is tasked with ensuring the living bridge has the support and infrastructure for it to prosper. The announcement was a positive step in delivering business outcomes through growing cultural understanding, India literacy and diaspora engagement.

But we cannot afford to be complacent in our relationship with India because there are other nations equally keen to strengthen their ties with the economic juggernaut.

Our Prime Ministers are also very busy

people and can only shine a light on the way forward periodically.

This is why we need to follow up and follow through each and every time these significant events and meetings take place.

We need agencies working hand in hand with the diaspora to identify opportunities, open doors and help solve inevitable challenges when they arise.

Ultimately we need to use the momentum of this visit to not only promote India as a place to do business, but to demystify India.

There is still a perception in Australia of an India fifteen years ago, of a business system that is overly bureaucratic and complex, and a country underdeveloped.

So how do we change those misconceptions and then make it easier for businesses wanting to explore the Indian market?

There is now a framework for our corporates to engage bilaterally under an MoU between the Business Council of Australia (BCA) and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), which commits to a CEO forum annually. We now need to ensure that agreement delivers with tangible trade and business outcomes and those success stories are promoted.

For small to medium businesses, the Australia India Business Council calls for the Indian Government’s investment

Ultimately we need to use the momentum of this visit to not only promote India as a place to do business, but to demystify India.

attraction agency, Invest India, to establish a presence in Australia and work directly with state-based trade agencies to ‘handhold’ businesses through the set up phase to operation. We currently have the infrastructure in both countries, but collaboration is ad hoc at best.

And we need a multi-level diaspora strategy. While the focus has been on the Australian Government to lead this work, the States also have a responsibility to activate their diaspora networks. In the course of my work as National Chair of the Australia India Business Council, I have seen real progress

by States such as Queensland and Western Australia. Their India presence is strong and their domestic strategies commendable.

But we need all States to be capturing the opportunities and opening themselves up to the opportunities of trade with India.

I look back to where the relationship was in 2018, when Peter Varghese presented the Federal Government with his report. The green shoots of a deeper, more advanced, more mature relationship were there, but the recent visits by our Prime Ministers to each other’s country are important signposts of just how far we have progressed.

However, we must maintain this momentum and build on the achievements made over the recent past. And to that end, the role of the diaspora will be critical.

Jodi McKay is National Chair of the Australia India Business Council; Advisory Board Member of the Centre for AustraliaIndia Relations, and Vice Chancellor’s Fellow - South Asia, Western Sydney University JUNE 2023 17

COVER STORY

A plaque in search of a home Where exactly at Harris Park will the Little India plaque be located? And when will we be able to see it? by VIVEK ASRI

I

t was unveiled with full fanfare by not one but two Prime Ministers.

The Prime Ministers of India and Australia drew the curtains back to inaugurate the Little India plaque, in front of 18,000 attendees at the Qudos Arena community reception for PM Modi.

The plaque reads “The Foundation Stone of the “Little India” Gateway in Harris Park, City of Parramatta was laid by the Hon Anthony Albanese MP, Prime Minister of Australia and His Excellency Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of the Republic of India on 23 May 2023.”

Yet days after the event, the plaque lies in the offices of Andrew Charlton, local Federal Member of Parliament, with what seems to be an indefinite timeline as to its permanent home.

Gurmeet Tuli, a prominent businessman in Harris Park and President of Little India Australia, has voiced his concerns about this.

“Where will it be erected?” he asked.“Will 18 JUNE 2023

it occupy one of the proposed streets in Harris Park or the roundabout? When will the council allocate the necessary land? When will the Development Application be lodged?

Will the Little India precinct receive its own postcode, or will it remain a symbolic part of Harris Park? These questions remain unanswered.”

The official recognition of Little India entails a lengthy and complex process. Tuli emphasised the initial steps: “First of all, the council needs to submit a Development Application. With the community's support,

I hope they do so sooner rather than later.

Next, the proposed name will be presented to the Geographical Names Board, and they may conduct a community consultation.

Subsequently, the council must allocate suitable land, which won't be easy, given the various stakeholders involved.”

The question which has been raised is if this was a pre-mature announcement of an event which has not been sanctioned at the various levels of government, including at the Parramatta Council level which is ultimately one of the main parties, other than the

Geographical Names Board.

Sanjay Deshwal, president of the Little India Harris Park Business Association, was one of the strong proponents of having a plaque at the Little India gateway. Now that the plaque is officially here, Deshwal believes that Parramatta Council needs to step up.

“It is in the hands of Parramatta Council now,” he told Indian Link. “We had been working towards this goal for over a decade.

The unveiling of the plaque by Narendra Modi was a significant outcome of our collective efforts. I hope the council acts upon it promptly.”

There are calls for the newly elected Parramatta mayor Sameer Pandey to assist the community in this endeavour and help get the Council to accelerate their efforts on the concept of Little India to gain legitimacy.

Indian-born Lord Mayor Sameer Pandey confirmed the Council's intentions, saying, “We'll be installing (the plaque) to mark the gateway to Little India precinct.”

The Lord Mayor said the bronze plaque unveiled by the two Prime Ministers on the night is intended to be attached to a foundation stone at the gateway to Wigram Street, Marion Street and Station Street East in Harris Park – a precinct already known by many in the community as Little India.

“The City of Parramatta is engaging closely with the community and the Federal Member for Parramatta Andrew Charlton MP to secure grant funding from the Investing in Our Communities Program to fund the installation of the plaque. The project contributes to the shared goal of making the Little India precinct a national and international destination,” the council said in a statement.

MP Andrew Charlton had promised funding of $3.5 million for the Little India precinct prior to the last election.

It is understood some Parramatta councillors are uncomfortable with the renaming of this precinct, citing deep historical reasons for retaining the current status quo.

There are also questions being raised by different members of the community as to the constant rumours that circulated during PM Modi’s visit, that the unveiling of the plaque would take place at the site itself, Harris Park, on 23 May, with PM Modi himself attending.

“It would have been clear to all, given that there was no structure or post or site earmarked for the plaque to be installed, that PM Modi would not be coming to Harris Park. We spent a few hours in that area on 23 May with high expectations of seeing the PM as the local community leaders were still suggesting on radio and TV that he may come there. It just seems to be a case of selfpromotion,” Kanti Shah from Glenwood said.

The saga of the Little India plaque location will still take time to play out, but one thing is for sure, PM Modi in his multiple references to Little India in his Sydney address has put Harris Park on the map.

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OPINION

The Modi Question

We can celebrate our identity, but we need not be blind On our collective wilful blindness when it comes to questions on Modi. By ANON

T

he coverage of the recent visit of India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Australia was met with widespread adulation, positivity and excitement by many in the diaspora as well as mainstream and multicultural media. We are no doubt at an exciting time in AustraliaIndia relations and the prospect of closer ties has never been more real. Yet the mass hysteria and adulating nature of the coverage of Modi’s visit left me deeply uncomfortable and saddened by our inability to think critically and ask questions.

India has undoubtedly gone through many changes during Modi’s tenure. Some may argue that the economy has boomed under his leadership, others may say the opposite. Some may claim that Modi has radically improved India’s cleanliness and environment, others may say that it has worsened. Those political debates are not where my concerns lie. My concern is our collective wilful blindness when it comes to questions on Modi and his government on issues that concern the very basic foundations of democracy, freedom and human rights – issues that ought to be above political ideology. The list of those

issues is long.

The arrests and prolonged detention of journalists and human rights activists who have criticised Modi and spoken out about the discrimination of minorities. The internet blackouts in Kashmir and Punjab denying citizens and press with the ability to share information about protests and unlawful arrests. The rise of Hindu nationalism and growing marginalisation and violence against minorities as well as weaponising legislation like the CAA and NRC that ultimately target the citizenship rights of Muslims (noting that the resultant protests saw the government outlaw gatherings of four or more people and saw a period of time where 23 people were killed and 1,500 arrested). The banning of a documentary that contains criticisms of Modi. The rewriting of history textbooks and school curriculums that erase the teaching of

the Mughal era, Islamic influences in India and Darwin’s theory of evolution. This is not a complete list. These are not the actions we expect from any country that claims to be a thriving democracy. It is no wonder that India’s ranks in press freedom and democracy have nosedived in the time Modi has been in power.

Ultimately, dear reader, whatever your views are - if you find yourself reading this article and seething at the mere mention of any question or criticism of Modi, I ask you to introspect and ask yourself why? You are free to support any politician, without losing the ability to think critically. At the very least, question why a leader like Modi has refused to hold a single press conference in 8 years (including during his recent visit to Australia). We would be horrified if any of our leaders in Australia dodged basic

accountability structures like that. This masthead quoted statements like “Aap jaan mange ge to woh bhi haazir hai” (If you ask for our life, we will give it to you) at the Sydney community reception. It echoed the frightening but likely true musing of Donald Trump that “I could shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose any voters”. All of us are worse off when we choose to follow the masses without any pause for thought or critique.

Finally, you may validly wonder why someone like me who is willing to criticise Modi for lack of transparency is themselves writing anonymously. Call me a coward, but in answer to that, I think it speaks volumes about the current state of play in the Modi era. Critiquing Modi has become akin to being ‘anti-India’ or anti-national.

It has turned people into social pariahs.

Yet, I am truly proud of my identity. I visit India frequently. I have undertaken study there. I celebrate our culture and am ecstatic about the leaps forward in the AustraliaIndia relationship – a credit to both the Australian and Indian governments. I am a proud Indian and proud of our diaspora. We can indeed celebrate and be proud of who we are. But we need not be blind.

JUNE 2023 19

TRIBUTE

Remembering Jock Zonfrillo Jock Zonfrillo, the Scottish-born chef, restaurateur and judge on MasterChef Australia, has left an indelible mark on the culinary scene in Australia. He not only connected with contestants from different cultures but mentored and inspired them. He was well known for his fascination for Indian cuisine and had also planned a trip to India. NEERU SALUJA takes a trip down memory lane with some MasterChef contestants whose lives he touched deeply.

He constantly challenged me to explore new techniques, flavours, and ingredients

SARAH TODD

Season 6, 2014; Season 14, 2022 (Fans and Favourites)

M

y first impression of Jock was that he was a visionary. He was uniquely able to see the untapped potential in our Aboriginal native ingredients in Australia and was determined to showcase their richness and diversity.

His passion and innovative approach to cooking were genuinely inspiring. I admired his work ethic and his commitment to elevating our culinary heritage.

There was a moment during my culinary journey when I prepared a lobster dish that left a lasting impression on Jock. To my surprise and overwhelming joy, he announced that my creation was three-Michelin-star worthy. It was an incredibly humbling and emotional experience, as his praise validated my hard work and dedication to the craft. I will forever treasure that unforgettable moment.

20 JUNE 2023

One of the most memorable incidents with Jock was when he took the time to understand my cooking style and creative approach truly. He recognised the unique spot I had carved out in the culinary world and encouraged me to embrace it wholeheartedly. His belief in me and his unwavering support allowed me to embrace my individuality as a chef and gave me the confidence to explore uncharted territories in the kitchen.

One invaluable piece of advice I received from Jock was always to push myself beyond my comfort zone. He constantly challenged me to explore new techniques, flavours, ingredients. Jock emphasised the importance of staying true to my culinary vision and creating dishes that reflected my unique style. His guidance extended beyond cooking and influenced how I approach life always striving for growth, embracing innovation, and daring to dream big.

Jock's impact on my culinary journey cannot be overstated. He was not only a mentor and a role model but also a true believer in my abilities. His recognition of my cooking style and his unwavering support guided me towards realising my potential. I am forever grateful for his influence, which has shaped me as a chef and individual.

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He always told me to cook Indian food the way it was supposed to be cooked, not to suit a particular palette

DEPINDER CHHIBBER Season 13, 2021

W

hen I met Jock for the first time, I was scared and fascinated at the same time. Being a French-trained chef, he made me nervous, but throughout the series he was one of the best mentors I could’ve asked for.

He was the person to give me my white apron, which meant the world to me! That was basically how my MasterChef Australia journey began.

Jock was a big fan of my bento box, which was my take on an Indian tiffin.

He absolutely loved it and was an emotional moment for me as I served him food I grew up eating.

He gave me the best advice ever during my MasterChef journey. He

Coming from Adelaide, we had a lot in common

He had a genuine love and curiosity for food from different regions

SASHI CHELIAH

I

KISHWAR CHOWDHURY

Winner Season 10, 2018; Season 14, 2022 (Fans and Favourites)

knew Jock before my MasterChef journey started, as a regular diner at his restaurant. There was no personal connection then, but I enjoyed his creativity, his love for native ingredients and for modern techniques. We then got connected on the show, when he appeared as a guest judge in Season 10. After I won the competition, we met up in Adelaide again.

When I opened my restaurant, he was one of the first few chefs who came to show his support. I still remember him sitting down with my head chef and enjoying my eggplant curry and fish curry. He raved about it again when we caught up recently.

Filming a few episodes with him during Season 15, we had some wonderful discussions in the green room. He shared his knowledge of food and expertise about the industry, and asked me about my products and about India. He was quite new to the Indian culture and wanted to know more about the culture and cuisine.

Being a restaurant owner and from

always told me to cook Indian food the way it was supposed to be cooked, not to change it to suit a particular palette. It was not only reassuring at the time, it also gave me a huge confidence boost.

Season 13, 2021

I

Adelaide, we had a lot in common to talk about.

I found him very passionate in whatever he did – be it his lifestyle, MasterChef or personal life. We were like friends, as we shared our experiences, and he would always give his input. I’m still shocked about his death.

admire the work Jock has done to cultivate Australia’s culinary identity using native indigenous ingredients. I revered him as a chef before knowing he was to be a judge on MasterChef.

The very first dish I cooked, Jock said that was the best thing he had eaten that year.

There were many dishes on and off camera that Jock would eat at my bench - he had a genuine love and curiosity for food from different regions.

There was a lovely day just before the finals when Jock cooked for us three finalists.

He said, you’ve cooked so many dishes with so much love all season, today I want to cook something for you. And it’s one of the dishes I’ll always remember.

Jock led by example. He was a no nonsense, pull-your-socks-up leader who extended himself beyond his role as a judge on camera to teacher and mentor off camera.

His relentless work as a migrant to this country, in documenting and highlighting Australian native ingredients, led a new generation of cooks like me to embrace

He was a very funny man with a quick wit!

ADI NEVGI

W

Season 15, 2023

hen I met Jock for the first time, honestly, I was a little intimidated! He had so much knowledge and was such a stalwart of the food industry – it was hard not to feel a little awed. But he genuinely wanted all of us contestants to do well, he cared, he wanted to see us succeed in the food industry. He was also a very funny man with a quick wit.

When I cooked my first dish on the show, the ramen, he had such nice things to say about it. He was really pleased with how I got flavour in there in

this land, and reimagine what “Australian” cuisine can look like without compromising or hiding any part of our identities. Time and time again he reminded me that “Your food belongs here!”.

a relatively short amount of time, and getting praise from him like that on day one was really affirming.

He was also enthused about the butter chicken I made and encouraged me to expand on it – it wasn’t smoky enough, so he made me think about how I could infuse that flavour, which I then managed to with some coal. I didn’t win that challenge because I didn’t cook my rice properly that day, but having him challenge me and then pull it off – I was really pleased.

His knowledge of food was inspiring, and his advice always made me improve my dishes.

He gave me a really helpful comment about considering bicarb soda in dumpling mixture to loosen the mince. I looked up the science behind it, and how a tiny amount helps loosen the proteins molecules, and it’s changed how I make not only dumplings but meatballs, shish kebab, and so many other dishes.

JUNE 2023 21

ART

BYEBYEPRODUCTS !!BUYBUYPRODUCTS !!

UnSensored

Two decades of provocat work from India’s foremo artist Mithu Sen is on dis mOTHERTONGUE at the ACCA

by Lakshmi Ganapathy

W

hen it comes to making a statement through art, New Delhi-based artist Mithu Sen has never been one to mince her words. Funnily enough, she does so by doing literally that; sardonic contracts penned in comic sans, the cheeky insertion of ‘un’ into every imaginable crevice of a word, the deliberate, chaotic estrangement of everyday words in glitchy poems.

It’s gleeful and reckless. It’s playful and confronting. It’s ‘linguistic anarchy’, and the latest Mithu Sen exhibition from the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art (ACCA) delivers this in spades.

A multidirectional mind map

Structured as an ‘illuminated mind map’ traversing the last two decades of Sen’s career, the exhibition brings works past and present from Sen’s oeuvre into conversation with each other across the surfaces of the ACCA space. The walls surrounding each work are inscribed with text annotations, a kind of non-sequitur footnote from the artist, and a continuous LED strip integrates 22 JUNE 2023

Mithu Sen and ACCA Curator Max Delany

www.indianlink.com.au

Photos: Andrew Curtis; Casey Horsfield

the architecture of the ACCA space into the experience.

The result is a ‘constellation of images and word associations’ which resist easy consumption, a tangled network of connections immersing you in the multiverse of Sen's practice and demanding multiple visits to fully take in.

“Normally in museums when you see mind maps, they’re linear and chronological, whereas in this case it’s multidirectional,” explains ACCA Curator Max Delany. “Because Mithu’s work spans image, text, sound, language and performance, it really supplants any singular reading with multidirectional and multi-sensory registers.”

“Through footnotes, contracts and use of language, she is involved in modes of direct address to the audience, often in first person singular, not speaking for others, but a position that is very much that of the artist’s voice,” he says.

interview. “The hegemony and hierarchy of these lingual politics around our social platforms is quite hardcore for me.”

A middle finger to the art world

Within the international art world, nondominant cultures are often presented as decontextualised or exoticised, and there is an expectation that artists from the global south create and behave a certain way.

Sen’s work delightfully and riotously

Post-colonial lingual politics

For D(e)ad

tive and intricate ost contemporary splay in the exhibition ACCA in Melbourne The exhibition is a ‘constellation of images and word associations’ resisting easy consumption, a tangled network of connections immersing you in Sen’s multiversal practice.

MOU (Museum of unbelongings)

Sen’s preoccupation with language began when she migrated from her birthplace in West Bengal to Delhi in 1997 to attend art school. Having only previously written poetry in Bengali, she felt alienated in the cosmopolitan capital, where English and Hindi were the dominant languages and proficiency was associated with social position.

This discomfort prompted her to deconstruct the very foundations of language in her works, examining the ways it can be used to gatekeep, isolate and reinforce power structures.

“Of course ‘mothertongue’ is an emotional, sentimental word, but I tried to explore it here through the lingual anarchy position, as a primordial embodied space within our body. It’s a provocation and makes us curious,” said Sen, in conversation at ACCA about the exhibition.

“I still don’t have a mother tongue (or) a language where I feel comfortable. I’m still in search of that bridge. (I’d) say it’s poetry – (something) not always understood but felt.”

The questions posed by mOTHERTONGUE are especially resonant when considering the post-colonial lingual politics of India and the discombobulation colonised people experience in the face of lingual domination outside of the subcontinent. Her 29-minute-long video work I have only one language; it is not mine is one work exploring this dislocation, Sen adopting the character of Mago who converses in a made-up dialect to Malayali orphans.

“It’s a post-colonial situation, you can see [India] has never had a national language - we use Hindi but most of South India refuses to speak this,” she said in the same

ruptures this expectation and rebels against the power structures which dictate ‘acceptable’ art. It’s aggressive, visceral, sensual, and political – things which brown women don’t often ‘get to be’. How to be a SUCKcessful artist engages directly with this idea; a gibberish instructional video explaining with delicious brevity how artists from the global south can ‘maximise their impact’ through satirical tropes.

Equally disruptive is Sen’s graphic preoccupation with the body. Beauty and viscera are juxtaposed in pieces such as Until you 206 and BYEBYEPRODUCTS!!

BUYBUYPRODUCTS!! the latter of which is ‘awash in virulent red’, a violent yet intimate meditation on her ‘signature style’.

The notion of the artist who puts their blood, sweat, and tears into their work is literally manifested in Unbelongings, an embroidery of Mithu’s own hair, and personal and political collide in Ephemeral affair, the artist’s penetrating gaze teetering between emotional suppression and colonial subjugation.

“Working very closely with the artist to centre the artist’s voice was very critical,” says Delany on navigating these fraught expectations. “The annotations,

I have only one language; it is not mine

contracts and mind-mapping are a form of choreography which frames Mithu’s work within her own terms and her own language. On the one hand, she’s interested in artistic agency and the direct address of the artist, but on the other hand, she’s resistant to simple interpretation.”

Radical hospitality on stolen land

Perhaps the most ironic provocation towards the museological canon is found in MOU (Museum of unbelongings), a haphazard assemblage of trinkets, many of which could just as easily be displayed in your living room glass cabinet, but which now languidly carousel around inside a giant circular museum vitrine.

The carnivalesque spectacle endowed to sentimental, mundane objects which Sen has amassed over the years is a powerful stab at what is considered ‘fit for display’ in museums and invites reflection on museums repatriating objects stolen from cultures around the world.

It’s a statement that’s pertinent to the Australian audience, who are the first in the world to see such a retrospective of Sen’s work.

“There’s a lot of interest in Mithu’s work here,” says Delany. “I think her engagement with colonial histories, questions around language, colonialism and post-colonialism, and the baggage and questions around identity are also questions which are very much at the heart of contemporary Australian practice at the moment.”

“We’ve had wonderful engagement with the show; a lot of people are spending a lot of time with it and coming back for return visits, and lots of rich conversations have resulted.”

Whether it’s the Un-acknowledgement that begins the exhibition, or the contracts declaring the terms of reference and engagement next to each piece, mOTHERTONGUE constantly twists the relationship between spectator, institution, and artist, and this ‘radical hospitality’ as Sen calls it, has startling polysemy.

It's art that unsettles, that’s difficult to define, that figuratively and literally deconstructs perspective through it’s ‘un Sensored’ approach.

Sen herself best captures this sentiment in conversation with ACCA: “Everyone should admit and acknowledge those erased and hidden points that we see but don’t see.

Until something is said to our face, we don’t see it, we are blind.”

mOTHERTONGUE is on display at the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art (ACCA), 113 Sturt Street Southbank, until 18 June 2023.

UnMYthU UnKIND(s) Alternatives

JUNE 2023 23

EXPAT

What surprised me most when I lived in India

Common misconceptions about India that KRISTEN DIAS was able to shake off

UB City Bengalore

felt like an idiot. The rest of the group were Indian, and they would be answering questions about history, literature, music, science, geography, and the only questions I knew the answers to were TV related or ‘80s rock (occasionally biology).

I knew more about different cuisines (other than Indian) than Indians. My husband is very passionate about food and we have several friends who are chefs who are all far more knowledgeable than me about food.

There's lots of fine dining restaurants in Bangalore and lots of locals patronizing them.

Kristen and her husband Kayden at their wedding in Bangalore

I

had a lot of misconceptions about India before I moved there to work as a teacher.

Let me list these for you, and then I’ll share how I realised I was wrong about them all!

I didn’t think there would be much western music, and everyone would listen to Bollywood. There are lots of pubs and clubs (especially in Bangalore where I lived) that play western music, and even karaoke nights with western rock, pop etc.

My (Indian-origin) husband used to sing in a band that played western commercial music in 5-star hotels in Chennai. There’s a radio station in Bangalore that only plays western music. During my six years in Bangalore, Metallica, Bryan Adams, INXS, Megadeth, Iron Maiden, Guns N Roses, David Guetta and more played concerts.

I learned that the local music is not just Bollywood. In fact, each state has its own music and film industry like Kollywood

Not just curries

24 JUNE 2023

(Tamil in Tamil Nadu), Sandalwood (Kannada in Karnataka), Mollywood (Malayalam in Kerala).

It would be hard to get beef. There are quite a few beef shops in Bangalore; it's debatable whether it's beef or buffalo, but it was too similar for me to tell the difference.

There are steak houses in Bangalore like Miller's 46. There are lots of shops where you can buy beef biryani. So you can definitely get beef.

There wouldn’t be many western clothes stores and I’d have to bring them with me or buy them while travelling. You can get western clothes EVERYWHERE. Cheap T shirts in markets, brand-name clothes in malls - Levis, Zara, Burberry, Louis Vuitton, Steve Madden shoes, and heaps more.

Indians wouldn’t know much about the West. Indians know more than I do about the West. I joined a fun quiz group and

A Guns ‘n’ Roses concert

Most Indians are Hindu and I wouldn’t come across many Christians. Hinduism is the most common religion in India, but there are lots of Muslims, Catholics and Protestants (and other religions too).

The churches are huge and packed every week and especially during Easter and Christmas. There's a bakery which makes hot cross buns and sells out each Easter.

The Catholic Club in Bangalore is wellknown for its events such as Christmas dances. I even got married in a cathedral in Bangalore!

All Indian food is spicy and everyone likes spice. I just had lunch at my husband’s aunty’s place and one of the dishes was too spicy for his (Indian) uncle! It’s quite common to meet Indians who don't like their food spicy. I think there's a

Pele is revered in a cricket-mad nation

misconception around the interpretation of “spice”. Cinnamon is a spice. It’s used in hot cross buns, but I don't think many people would call hot cross buns spicy.

Indian cooking commonly uses spices but that doesn't mean the food burns your mouth. So my interpretation of the word spicy now means “gives flavour” rather than “burns my mouth” or “hot”.

I would easily be able to order butter chicken from any Indian restaurant.

To find butter chicken in Bangalore, I’d have to go to a restaurant that serves northern Indian food! India's food is so diverse that even within one state there are different regions with very different food. In Karnataka alone, Coorg has its own special dishes like bamboo pickle and pandhi curry (pork curry); Mangalore has coconut dishes like fish curry; Mysore has dishes like Mysore pak and Mysore masala dosa. And that’s just one state. Imagine the diversity of dishes across the 29 states of India.

Everyone likes cricket.

There are a lot of Indians that like cricket for sure. As soon as I said I was Australian, people would go“Oh Ricky Ponting, madam!” But not everyone likes cricket, in fact the national sport of India is hockey.

There are a LOT of people who like football, in fact that there is a statue of Pele (the famous football player) in Bangalore, next to a statue of Mother Teresa!

Bengaluru Mall

www.indianlink.com.au

by Neeru Saluja

W

ithin the first 15 minutes of listening to the audible Desi Down Under, you are transported from bustling Mangalore to the calm and crystal-clear waters of Coogee Beach.

Soon, you embark on a journey with three 20-year-old childhood friends who cross the ocean to learn surf-lifesaving skills in Sydney. It’s their first trip abroad, so while training as lifesavers they are also set to explore their freedom, dreams, desires and the nightlife of Sydney!

Desi Down Under, written by IndianAussie screenwriter Mithila Gupta (of Network 10’s Five Bedrooms fame) wanted to illustrate her love for India and Australia by telling a joyous story about Indians in Australia. It is also inspired by Partha Varanashi, Director of Surf Life Saving, India, whose mission is to make Indian beaches safer.

From this love, the concept for the podcast Desi Down Under was born. “The concept started 4 years ago,” Mithila tells Indian Link. “The producer Mala Sujan and I were keen to create something that will cut to both territories, India and Australia. I started writing, and pitched it to Audible Australia and they loved it. They shared it with the Indian team and they loved it, saying it’s been written Bollywood style! I started writing the episodes with the teams from Audible in India and Australia. They then got Mantra from MnM Talkies onboard and finalised Prajakta Koli, Adarsh Gourav and Taaruk Raina as actors.”

Mithila claims she also wanted to challenge expectations of Indians’ abilities to swim. To achieve this, she created nuanced characters with unique identities that we don’t often see represented in the media.

So what is the message people in India and Australia will take home?

“That despite our differences, we have more in common than what sets us apart,” replies Mithila.“That we are all human, complex, resilient beings, and we have a lot to learn and a lot we can teach each other. I’ve always wanted to explore the Indian-Aussie culture clash and fusion through comedy. A robust sense of humour is certainly something that both culture have in common!”

It is a thought that resonates with Prajakta Koli, one of the actors.

“The show is about love, family friendships, trying new things… but at the core of it, it’s about how similar we are as people – the primal instinct of survival, and being there for each other.”

The podcast was recorded live in Australia and India, and the cast of actors spans both countries. Jyotsna Sharma, the Executive Producer was the casting director for Australia and Pankaj Upadhayay (Euphony Films) was the cinematographer in Australia. Indian Aussie actors Ananya

Audible’s

‘Desi Down Under’ A sea of new experiences

In perhaps the first endeavour of its kind, check out the podcast created by Sydney-based writer Mithila Gupta

Actor Prajakta Koli

Mithila Gupta

Dixit, Taufeeq Ahmed Sheikh and Akshat Gupta lent their voice for characters in Desi Down Under.

Binaural microphones were used to capture the sounds of Australia and create an immersive sound experience, in and underwater recordings so that listeners feel like they’re surfing the beaches of Sydney, escaping sharks; partying with backpackers late into the night; bar hopping along Oxford Street, and everything in between.

“All credit to our writer and director though for getting that nerve of Coogee Beach,” Prajakta reveals. “I know what I’m going to do first when I visit Sydney – I’m going to Coogee Beach, get a beer, chill and watch the sunset!”

Filled with adventure, romance and comedy, Desi Down Under is a coming-ofage, immersive 9-episode Audible Original series which can be accessed for free at http://www.audible.com.au/desi

“I know what I’m going to do first when I visit Sydney – I’m going to Coogee Beach, get a beer, chill and watch the sunset!”

Prajakta Koli

Mantra Mugdh, Mithila Gupta and Nicholas Bird at work in King Sound Studios

JUNE 2023 25

You’ve been with us longer than...

Google has existed

People have sent SMS in Australia

GST has been increasing prices

Homosexuality has been decriminalised

Paid maternity leave has existed

Under 3% of Aussie homes had internet

Thank you for trusting and growing with us since Oct 1994

IndianLink All things Indian. In Australia.

For the past 28 years.

26 JUNE 2023

young 28YEARS www.indianlink.com.au

with Lakshmi Ganapathy

This month, we talk to Mr. Chai himself!

Sanjith Konda House

You started off in business school then dropped out to make chai.

What was this leap of faith like?

It was a big call; I was going down a very uncertain path, thinking it can either go all good, or all bad. My family didn't know I was going to do this; I was the first entrepreneur in my family. I had limited funds, and I had to decide whether I wanted to continue the degree or start the business, and I had a strong feeling I would work better if I chose the business, so I just jumped into it.

What's the go-to order at Dropout Chaiwala? What's your favourite menu item?

Cutting and Masala Chais are always competing with each other. Cutting Chai is especially popular in winter, and Masala Chai does well in summer. My favourite item is always Cutting Chai, and out of the snacks, Samosa, but recently I'm drifting through Bombay Sandwiches, so for now it's Cutting Chai and Bombay Sandwich.

It seems chaiwallas can become prime minister. Where do you see yourself at 50?

Maybe one day, prime minister - I wouldn't say no, 'cause I was part of student politics

is the founder of Dropout Chaiwala, Melbourne's first street chai cafe located in the heart of the Melbourne CBD.

for a long time. I'd love to go back into politics. If life gives me a chance, why not!

What's something you're currently listening to / reading / playing / watching?

I'm currently reading Zero to One: Notes on Startups and How to Build the Future

by Peter Thiel, and I listen to Raj Shamani's business podcast [Figuring Out] and try to match the visions the guests talk about with my vision.

What's a word that you like in a South Asian language, and what does it mean?

'Kala' is a Telugu word which has two meanings; one is 'talent' and the other is 'dream'. Everything I do and want to do revolves around that word.

And finally: Soan Papdi or Papdi Chaat?

Papdi Chaat. I'm not into sweets or desserts that much, so if you give me a sweet or savoury choice, I'll go for savoury.

JUNE 2023 27

Explore a rich tapestry of contemporary Indian textiles at Melbourne Museum

A

n exciting exhibition of contemporary Indian textiles, Sutr Santati: Then.

Now. Next. Stories of India woven in thread. is on display at Melbourne Museum until September. This extraordinary showcase takes visitors on a journey through the diverse and enchanting world of Indian textiles, celebrating the country's rich cultural heritage and its modern creative expressions.

Curated meticulously by Lavina Boldota of Abheraj Baldota Foundation, Sutr Santati: Then. Now. Next. Stories of India woven in thread. features a stunning array of hand-woven fabrics, intricate embroideries, and experimental textile techniques. From the timeless elegance of silk and cotton to the earthy charm of jute and linen, the textiles on display represent the vast range of materials utilised in contemporary Indian design.

Showcasing the seamless integration of traditional techniques with

Curator Lavina Baldota and Lynley Crosswell, CEO Museums Victoria

contemporary sensibilities, the exhibitiondisplays examples of block-printed sarees with bold patterns, hand-painted shawls merging ancient motifs with abstract designs, and digitally printed textiles that blend ancient stories with futuristic concepts.

In an era increasingly

focused on sustainable fashion, the exhibition pays homage to the eco-conscious practices of Indian textile artisans. Many of the designers whose work is featured in the exhibition prioritise organic materials and natural dyes.

This exhibition of

contemporary Indian textiles is a celebration of the country's rich textile heritage and its modern evolution. It showcases the diverse regional styles, innovative design techniques, and sustainable practices that make Indian textiles a true standout. This vibrant exhibition serves as a testament to the enduring legacy of Indian textiles and their place in the global world of art and fashion.

Sutr Santati: Then. Now. Next.

Stories of India woven in thread. is a visually stunning exploration of India’s cultural heritage and will appeal to art, design, fashion and craft enthusiasts alike.

Sutr Santati: Then. Now. Next. Stories of India woven in thread. is open now until 3 September 2023 at Melbourne Museum. For further information visit the Melbourne Museum website.

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By choosing a safer car, you’ll be protecting yourself, your family and your community.

To find out more about car safety features in your preferred language, visit the TAC website.

28 JUNE 2023

www.indianlink.com.au

FOOD

Dinah Samuels

Mum’s Jewish (and Indian) recipes Born and raised in the subcontinent, Kitty’s prowess as a cook came from multiple influences by PRUTHA CHAKRABORTY

I

n a cherished tribute to her mum Kitty’s cooking, Sydney-based writer Dinah Samuels has produced a cookbook of treasured family recipes. Titled Made With Love From Kitty’s Kitchen, the book contains 92 recipes that Kitty made her own, following her travels in Burma, India and Australia, as well as traditional Jewish favourites.

Dinah, 68, recalls how she helped stir the pot and chop veggies like a little ninja for her mum.

“Our house was always open to all our family, mum and dad’s friends as well as my brother and my own friends,” Dinah remembers. “Every Sunday, we’d have people coming over and my mum would make delicious foods for them. I was by her side in our extremely small kitchen doing all the menial jobs - peeling potatoes, cutting onions and watching her create fabulous dishes.”

Lucky for her, being part of a Jewish

Kitty’s Kulfi

Dinah and her mum Kitty

kitchen meant her mum was precise with what she created. “Whatever dish she made was fantastic, as she simplified many recipes,” Dinah tells Indian Link. “I always wanted to try and recreate them.”

Through the cookbook, Dinah has followed her mum’s wish to keep up her family’s heritage and traditions, passing on the Jewish food culture to future generations, as well as the flavours she so loved in her formative years.

The story of Kitty’s life is worth telling.

She was born in Rangoon, Burma.

“Dad was in the British Army in Rangoon and relocated to Mumbai (then Bombay) after the Japanese invasion,” Dinah shares.“At 13, mum left Rangoon with her mother and four brothers. She completed her Senior Cambridge (General Certificate of Education examinations held in India during the British regime) and went on to be a secretarial assistant for the manager

HAMEEM

(Baked chicken and rice) Traditionally made prior to the Sabbath and cooked overnight Serves: 8

Ingredients 2 tbs oil (any kind except olive oil as it is too dense) n 1 large onion, thinly sliced n 1 tsp (heaped) ginger n 1 tsp (heaped) garlic n 410 g tin tomato puree (liquid not paste) n 2 cups basmati rice n 1 tsp each salt and pepper n 1 tsp turmeric n 1 large stick cinnamon, broken into 3 pieces n 2 cardamon pods, whole n 4 cloves n 1 whole chicken skinned and cut into pieces – each thigh cut into 2 and the breast cut into 6 pieces n 6-8 giblets, cut in half (optional) n 2 cups fresh chicken stock (this gives it a rich flavour) n 2 cups water n

Mumbai wedding: Kitty and Jack

of British manufacturing company Lever Brothers. In Mumbai she met my dad Jack. They wed at Byculla’s Magen David Synagogue.”

Kitty and Jack left Mumbai for Sydney in 1948. Dinah was born in Bondi.

She worked in the travel industry for 35 years, visiting Mumbai and all the places her parents loved – Colaba Causeway, Regal Cinemas, and so on.

Retiring at 60, she began the job she had promised her mum when she herself had

turned 60 – recording the recipes that had made memorable family meals through the years.

“This was fun, as everything (ingredients) was ‘a pinch of this’, ‘a handful of that’,” Dinah laughs.“I had to convert this into imperial as well as metric measurements!”

When Kitty turned 87, she made Dinah promise that she would convert this collection into a cookbook. “This was very important for me,” an emotional Dinah says.

She’s kept the promise faithfully, but sadly her mum didn’t live long enough to see the published version. Kitty passed away at 91.

So what is her mum’s dish that Dinah remembers even today, we ask.

“She made the best Ohn No Khao Swe (Burmese chicken and noodles) and Mohinga (fish soup from Myanmar).”

While she was alive, aloo bonda (potato snack), pholouries (fried dough ball) and vegetable samosas were common on Sundays. “Her dinners were fabulous – mahashas (stuffed vegetables with mince), alu chops (potato and mince cutlets), chicken curry, and we loved khichdi with alubartha and fish fry. As we had a mango tree in our back garden, mum would make aamchur pickle too.”

Dinah started collating the recipes in 2020 during the Covid-19 lockdown. It took nine months for the book to be proofread, edited and designed.

“So far, I have sold 280 copies – some at London and Los Angeles.”

The proceeds are donated to the Sephardi Synagogue in Sydney in memory of her parents. Priced at $30, the only way to order a copy is through Dinah directly. Write to her dinahs@bigpond.net.au

Method Preheat oven to 150°C Using a large oven-proof pan with a lid, over a medium heat, heat oil and fry onions with ginger and garlic until light brown n Add in tomato puree and cook for about 3 minutes then stir in rice and allow to cook for 5 minutes n Add in salt, pepper, turmeric, cinnamon, cardamon pods and cloves n Mix in the chicken until coated then add in the stock and water n Turn up the heat, bring to the boil and allow to cook until half of the liquid has evaporated n Cover and transfer to the oven. Cook for approximately 2 hours then reduce the heat to 100°C and continue to cook overnight n At this point, you may wish to stir gently (without disturbing the chicken as it may break) n If you do not want to cook overnight then allow another 5-6 hours on the low heat.

The longer it cooks the more flavourful it will be. n n

JUNE 2023 29

nostalgia

I

always refer to the Indian spin triumvirate of the sixties and seventies, and smile to myself whenever anyone talks about a quartet.

The same as I used to smile to myself whenever an Indian talked about Erapalli Prasanna being dropped for Srinivas Venkataraghavan. I also thought, “I hope he has some influence in selection.” There was no comparison between Prasanna and Venkat as bowlers. Pras was the best opposition spin bowler I played against; he was seeking your wicket every ball he bowled and you knew you were locked in a serious mental battle each time you faced him.

His flight was impeccable. There were many times when I left my crease, certain that I was going to get to his flighted delivery at least on the half volley. It never happened: my estimated time of arrival never coincided with Pras’ appointed destination.

Years after our many on-field battles I organised a meeting between Pras and Australian off-spinner Gavin Robertson.

During the meeting Pras said to the evereager Robertson; “Gavin, it’s not an invitation to be hit into the grandstand. It’s a request to be lofted into the outfield.” That was how Prasanna thought about flight, “The higher up the bat you hit, the more loft on the shot and the less distance it will travel.”

Prasanna was an engineer by trade and he applied that the same sort of thinking to his bowling. I met him at a friend’s barbecue party when he was living in Sydney many years ago and we talked about spin bowling for about twenty minutes. At the end of the discussion, I said to him, “Now I know why I

Pras, Bish & Chandra Aussie cricket great IAN CHAPPELL tells KERSI MEHERHOMJI about his trysts with India’s magnificent spin trio

had so much trouble playing you.”

It was a fascinating discussion and one that any budding young spinner should have the privilege of hearing.

After I had got to know Pras better during our playing days, I said to him over a dressing room beer, “You’ve got a string tied to that ball and just as I’m about to get to the pitch of the delivery, you tug on the string.”

He just laughed and then smiled knowingly.

It was one of the great joys of my cricketing life to do battle with Erapalli Prasanna.

The difference between Bishan (Bish) Bedi and Prasanna in India was the former often resorted to trying to bore you out while the latter always attempted to bowl you out. Bish

would often place a strong off-side field and bowl at off-stump turning away, making it difficult to score. I felt there were times when he resorted to this ploy too quickly.

When I faced him in Australia during the World X1 series he attacked more and used flight cleverly. At the SCG he bowled me with a beautifully flighted delivery that I thought I had covered all the way and was in the process of driving wide off mid-on. It drifted late and I completely missed it. When years later I heard the great Australian leg-spinner Bill ‘Tiger’ O’Reilly talk about the “right-hand batsman’s blind spot,” I immediately cast my mind back to that delivery from Bish.

Whenever Bedi and I met these days I

greet him with “It was an arm ball, Bish.” He immediately laughs and wags his finger, “No, no Ian, it was the one that spins from leg to off.” This is a response to Bish getting me out for 99 in Calcutta [now Kolkata] in the fourth Test of 1969-70. To this day I’m convinced it was an arm-ball that I was looking to turn into the leg-side for a single to reach my century. However, it turned ever so slightly, found the edge and I was caught at first slip.

It was always a great battle facing the duo of Prasanna and Bedi and you couldn’t afford to ‘switch off’ even for one delivery.

In the 1969-70 series between India and Australia, Bhagwat Chandrasekhar didn’t play any of the Tests. I always thought that was a selection blunder and was perhaps the result of him having a poor tour of Australia in 1967-68.

There’s no doubt Chandra was easier to cope with in Australia on pitches that were more even in bounce. His most difficult delivery to cope was the wrong-un which used to bounce quite steeply in Australia. There was always the danger of being caught in the leg-trap.

On Indian pitches which were more uneven in bounce he would’ve been a handful. I can image him on the less-thantrue surfaces of Delhi and Madras [now Chennai] being a real handful but luckily for us the selectors seemed to prefer the allround capabilities of Venkat.

The other important aspect of the Indian triumvirate was the captaincy of M A K (Tiger) Pataudi. ‘Tiger’ understood spin bowling and he knew the individual bowlers well and got the best out of them.

The combination of threatening spin bowlers well captained, made batting a challenge, but one that I enjoyed greatly.

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n Tuesday, May 23, 2023, Melbourne Tullamarine Airport radiated a remarkable burst of vibrancy and energy, captivating the attention of all who arrived at its premises.

The usual ‘look’ of the airport was surpassed as an explosion of captivating colours - orange, white, and green decorated (almost) every corner. But it wasn't just the visual spectacle that elevated the atmosphere to new heights - a symphony of Indian singing and dancing filled the air, infusing the venue with a transferrable liveliness.

What is Modi Airways?

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aircraft commenced its journey to Sydney.

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The collaboration between Gaura Travel, IADF, and various partner organisations has not only facilitated seamless travel arrangements, but also provided a platform to celebrate the enduring friendship between Australia and India. The success of this effort demonstrates the commitment to strengthening bilateral ties, fostering cultural exchange, and nurturing the vibrant Indian diaspora in Australia.

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NOSTALGIA

, y l g n i r i ‘Yours adm ’ k c i l l u M j Panka f Pankaj o ry sa er iv n an th ir b e e, as we mark th musicians c A trip down memor y lan ifi ol pr t os m d an t es rli nema’s ea letter congratulating him.

Mullick, one of Indian ci by KERSI MEHER-HOMJI

I

urite n the 1950s and ‘60s, a favo every ng ndi atte s wa t igh del al person kaj concert the music legend Pan ai.

Mullickpresented in Mumb s at the wa d The last show I attende 9. I 196 late in a famed Metro Cinem ies lod me his to ped hummed and tap ki an paw le Cha m, usa Ye raaten ye ma e Ter a, aan zam ye a gay chaal, Guzar kaun mandir kaa hun Deepak, Ye ore the aaj aaya sabere, sabere... bef interval. which I Then the opportunity arose fifteen r ove for of had been dreaming man the h wit face -toyears. I came face on. issi rm inte the himselfduring uld I hesitated to greet him. Sho have I ch mu how say and I walk up would he enjoyed his singing? What if by d che get irritated, to be approa ked up a stranger? Regardless, I pic stralia Au to ng courage. I was migrati er get nev y ma I t ugh shortly, and I tho ch mu how him tell to an opportunity I ch mu how and ts cer con I loved his admired his music. mly.

To my joy, he greeted me war he n?” ma “What do you do, young asked, after formalities. ch I told him that I was a resear ving mo be uld wo I t virologist and tha n. to Australia soo said He wished me good luck, and sing uld wo that he

Sydney, Just before I left Mumbai for en ritt d-w han ge I received a two-pa m my fro er lett d rde wo and beautifully cess suc my for t bes me g hero, wishin in Australia. d Heaven bless you for your kin ss to dne goo congratulations and your have you love me. May this warmth of r good you to old nyf shown be repaid ma ss dne goo all om wh self by him with dwells. ects If one’s art of letter writing refl s, litie qua le nob the of ror like a mir at I wh n merits and acumen of his, the er lett nt elle have drawn from your exc gs son my of bearing many references ing and embellished with your endear ure of pict a is , nts thoughtful comme to the ed icat ded n ma ng not only a you and g nin lear of lth wea of acquisition and rthy wo ly ilar sim his h wit ng that alo of ed sess beloved partner in life but pos rt. hea and d many high qualities of hea h bot t tha h Most sincerely I wis e may yourself and your beloved wif dable lau ry eve r you attain success in of ss dde Go the y ma pursuits and achieve learning smile on you both and you live the desideratum. Pray, long piness, with undisturbed health, hap peace and prosperity. how he I felt ten feet tall when I saw ended the letter: Mullick.”

“Yours admiringly, Pankaj my st ong am on s live The letter later. rs yea 50 s, sion ses pos treasured a em Mullick adorned Indian cin sical mu er, from 1931 to 1969 as a sing er sing ck director, composer, playba movie and actor. His most famous was He 1.

194 in Doctor was made and gali Ben in sic mu pioneer of film ost alm ed pos com He as.

Hindi cinem rs. yea fifty in gs 5000 son also The immortal KL Saigal, as mar, Ku nt Sachin Dev Burman, Hema g san nsle Geeta Dutt and Asha Bho n. ctio under his music dire kept his kaj was a song especially for me. He Besides the Padma Shri, Pan Award lke .

Pha tasy b ecs ahe my das to word, awarded the Da for 2 197 in ent g: nm san ver He

by Indian Go n desh ian cinema.

Kaun desh hai jana, babu, kau lifetime contribution to Ind you are y ntr ased a hai jaana (To which cou The Indian Postal Service rele v paa ke l honour bha to Sam going) and added, postal stamp posthumously . lly) efu car uthana (Tread him in 2006. ess as I Kolkata I shed quiet tears of happin Born on 10th May 1905 in . me rco ove y ghl 8 aged rou 197 ry tho t, rua sea Feb sat in my he died on 19th uary Jan 26 on r, late s nth mo ly On 72. rded e Saigal, 1970, Pankaj Mullick was awa Guzar gaya ye zamaana. Lik re mo s hap per s the Padma Shri. I wa Pankaj remains an immortal. long elated than he, and wrote a

JUNE 2023 31

travel

Coober Pedy White man in a hole by Sandip Hor

A

ustralia is an island of many magical destinations from vibrant cities and romantic rural settlements, many of which edge the ocean waters, to myriad natural wonders.

Having visited many, the one which struck me as distinctly unique and wondrous is the tiny township of Coober Pedy.

Located inland at the top end of South Australia, its uniqueness comes from a barren and quirky red-coloured landscape, intermittently peppered with holes and mounds of dirt resulting from extensive digging to find underground a rare gemstone commonly called opal.

Geologists say around 150 million years ago, this region was under the ocean. As the ocean-water ebbed, climatic changes caused the lowering of the underground water tables. Silica solutions were carried down to deposit in cavities, faults, and fractures in the ground and now, millions of years later, have hardened into opal.

However, the world didn’t know about this treasure hidden underground, until little over a century ago when a teenager accidentally found a piece of a glittering stone which was nothing but opal.

The site was initially called Stuart Range

32 JUNE 2023

Opal Field, named after John McDouall Stuart, who in 1858 was the first European explorer to visit the area. In 1920 a new name was needed so a post office could be established, Stuart Range being unsuitable owing to the similarity to Stewart Range in the south-east of the state. So, the opal miners chose Coober Pedy, an indigenous term meaning ‘white man in a hole’.

The news of the discovery of the precious jewel spread rapidly like fire and drew attention of fortune seekers from different parts of the world. They began to flock to this remote and isolated outback location with their shovels in hand to dig and mine opal and become rich. A novel township was born, cosmopolitan by its inherent nature as over 40 different nationalities began a new life here. With prosperity blooming, overtime, it became a ‘mining mecca’ and earned the title ‘Opal capital of the world’ by virtue of being the largest source of the gemstone in the world.

The settlement, unfortunately, had to live with a geographical drawback because of its location at the hottest and most inhospitable climatic region, where the arid landscape is almost devoid of trees and vegetation and summer temperatures regularly get beyond 50 degrees Celsius.

To protect themselves from the blistering heat, the new settlers became creative and started building dwellings below the ground. This includes homes called ‘dugouts’, churches, shops, and even hotels

and restaurants. To the outside world, experiencing this unique way of life and discovering a labyrinth of underground establishments is a major attraction.

Visitors have many things to do here,

The Opal Capital of t Aussie destination – our national gemston

perhaps the most thrilling being going through the tunnels of a working mine or taking a guided tour of an historic mine like the Old Timers Mine, first dug in 1916. The Museum here is the best place to learn more about the

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the world, is a unique – for much more than ne alone

coveted gem and 100 years of mining history in this remote settlement. The other exciting experience is exploring an underground home and understanding what it feels like to live below the earth’s surface. With hardly any natural light, airflow and external noise, the environment is very cool, quiet and still. Some houses extend beyond just a few rooms into labyrinths that stretch out like spider webs.

It’s said the underground homeowners also try to find opals by digging through the walls. There are a few underground churches, the most visited being the Serbian Orthodox Church whose sandstone walls are decorated with intricate carvings of saints.

International film makers have a fascination for the lunar landscape of this desolated desert location.

Over the years, several feature films, mini-series and countless documentaries and television commercials have been filmed here, putting Coober Pedy on the world map. Some of the better-known ones are Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, Red Planet, Ground Zero, Pitch Black and Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.

Currently, a Fox Entertainment reality show titled Stars on Mars is filming at Coober Pedy, featuring William Shatner.

What strikes as the strangest experience in Coober Pedy is a golf course which traverses red desert flats instead of green grass. While tees are topped with artificial turf, fairways are maintained by spreading the local white sandstone on the rough areas. It’s the only golf club in the world which has reciprocating arrangements with Scotland’s St Andrews, the Mecca of golfers.

Coober Pedy lies on the Stuart Highway and can be reached by road from Adelaide 845km away or from Alice Springs 546km away. The other novel and perhaps the most convenient way of exploring the unique destination is by joining the three-night, four-day 2979km rail expedition from Darwin to Adelaide via Alice Springs on The Ghan – the legendary Aussie train named after the Afghan cameleers. This famous train journey includes a day excursion of Coober Pedy.

The term ‘opal’ is said to be derived either from the Sanskrit upala, meaning “precious stone,” or the Greek opallios meaning “to see a change of colour.”

JUNE 2023 33

ENTERTAINMENT

cineTALK

Worth waiting for? You decide!

What’s on our screens this June BLOODY DADDY (Jio Cinema)

MAIDAAN (In cinemas) Get your soccer gear ready as Ajay Devgn takes you to back to the golden era of Indian football.

Based on a true story, this longawaited Hindi sports drama will have you training to take on the pitch.

Releasing 23 June

Strap in folks, Shahid Kapoor is roaring and ready to show everyone that blood is truly thicker than water.

This upcoming Hindi thriller is a rugged journey oozing with riot and revenge, as this dashing dad has no problem shedding some for his son.

Releasing 9 June

ADIPURUSH (In cinemas)

ZARA HATKE ZARA BACHKE (In cinemas)

An epic retelling of the revered southern star Prabhas stepping into one of the biggest roles of Hindi cinema in 2023.

Joined by Kriti Sanon, Saif Ali Khan and Sunny Singh, will this all-star cast be able to do cinematic justice to a sacred story?

Releasing 16 June

Even the simplest of love stories may not be as sweet as they seem with this upcoming Hindi romcom. Sara Ali Khan and Vicky Kaushal are the refreshing romantic pair bent on calling it quits rather than keeping the chemistry alive.

Releasing 2 June

MATRIMONIALS SEEKING BRIDES

SEEKING GROOMS

Seeking a professionally qualified settled match for Sydney-based, never married, Aus citizen, Hindu, Punjabi Khatri 48, 6', athletic built man. He is a project manager with an engineering background and is working in a reputed organisation.

Please contact ausind26@gmail.com

Seeking professionally qualified issueless match (working professional, not self-employed) from Australia, for ’88-born 5’ 3” Hindu Punjabi girl (divorced, issueless), working with a government organisation in Sydney. Must have Aus PR, and must be a non smoker and preferably teetotaler.

Email: matrimonial.ml@gmail.com

Alliance invited from a professionally qualified girl for a Sydney-based permanent resident, 5’11” tall, fair Punjabi Hindu Khatri, born March 1989.

Did his university studies in Australia and is now a successful business owner of a finance company.

Highly respectable and educated family back in India.

Please contact with details +61 466 872 415, or email manandtiet@gmail.com

34 JUNE 2023

South Indian parents seeking Roman Catholic grooms of age 32-35, for their daughter, working full time, age 31, Australian citizen. PR and citizens are preferred. Work visa and working student visa holders will be considered. Contact Ashok on 0409463819, email anthonyashok@yahoo.com.

Sydney residents only.

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SATYAPREM KI KATHA (In cinemas) While Manjulika may have been a myth, the leading pair’s love looks to be an unmatched tale of truth.

Kartik Aaryan and Kiara Advani will have you saying #couplegoals with this Hindi musical romcom that’ll leave you singing and swooning out of the cinema.

Someone should check up on Sid Malhotra soon!

Releasing 29 June

NEVER HAVE I EVER: SEASON 4 (Netflix) This Indian-American teen series seems to have no shortage of trouble as everyone’s favourite creator of chaos Devi Vishwakumar (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) returns for one last hurrah. Having wreaked havoc all through her high school journey, how many short straws will she pull in the final season of the much-loved series?

Releasing 8 June

veeran (In cinemas) A small-town hero with seismic superpowers that could probably make Krrish jealous. Lightning strikes before thunder in this Tamil action release that could be the Friday flick you’ve been craving for.

Releasing 2 June

VIMANAM (In cinemas) This Telugu drama release will tug at the heartstrings with an emotional tale of a father-son bond full of everlasting love. Make sure to take some tissues, for a tragic story where the sky’s the limit.

Releasing 9 June

CARRY ON JATTA 3 (In cinemas)

SPY (In cinemas)

Mark your calendars for the third instalment of the Punjabi family film franchise that has never failed to get the giggles going. This rib-tickling release is the perfect excuse to bring the family together for a few hours filled with laughs.

Releasing 29 June

If 2023 has taught audiences anything, India’s spy-thrillers have no competition when it comes to high-octane entertainment. Get ready to ride a rollercoaster full of twists and turns with this Telugu action release.

Releasing 29 June

THE NIGHT MANAGER: PART 2 (Disney+Hotstar) Looks like fans of the first instalment of The Night Manager will be in for a treat. All eyes will be on Aditya Roy Kapur and Anil Kapoor to show audiences whether this Hindi crime thriller series deserves another season in the spotlight.

Releasing 30 June

KATHAR BASHA ENDRA MUTHURAMALINGAM (In cinemas)

SCOOP (Netflix) Every crime reporter’s worst nightmare - becoming the suspect in their own story. Will Jagruti Pathak (Karishma Tanna) be able to weave her words well enough to save her from the cold-blooded grip of a crime underbelly?

Releasing 2 June

Rural rivals have no rest when the pursuit for power becomes a war of ideologies. This Tamil political thriller is a regional take on the chaos that ensues when leaders live as rulers and peace is surrendered to power.

Releasing 2 June

CHIDIAKHANA (In cinemas) For some, soccer is a sport that only leaves a mark on the field. For Sooraj (Ritvik Sahore), soccer is the surviving chance to succeed in a jungle of dreams.

This Hindi coming-of-age sports drama celebrates the struggle in achieving goals against all odds.

Releasing 2 June

SCHOOL OF LIES (Disney+Hotstar) The search for a missing schoolboy turns sour, exposing the reality of a school riddled with secrets. Find your magnifying glasses for this spine-chilling Hindi thriller series that will have you on the edge of your seat.

Releasing 2 June

LEHMBERGINNI (In cinemas) From London to Ludhiana, love truly conquers all. This Punjabi romcom will have you revving for more as the paths of Lehmber (Ranjit Bawa) and Ginni (Mahira Sharma) cross, leading to some important lessons on love and life.

Releasing 9 June JUNE 2023 35

backchat

Not so PC about ‘our’ PC Dear Auntyji Here is my problem. Everywhere I look, all I see is Priyanka Chopra Jones. Newspapers, magazines, online, bus stops, everywhere is her face. When I turn on my TV, I constantly see a promotion for her new show Citadel. So guess what? I decided to watch the show. Auntyji, she is a middle aged Indian bahenji who is trying too hard. Citadel has all the usual cliches - it rolls out a whole bunch of spy film tropes shamelessly. Like the doctor with a weird European name and a briefcase with torture tools. Like tremendously well-equipped bad guys who can’t shoot straight and the main leads never running out of bullets. Violence is always seen and never inferred, and sex is inferred and never seen. Then we have the cliche of the protagonists initially disliking each other followed by a swift turnaround to unbearable sexual tension through witty repartee - followed even faster with a romp in the obligatory Paris hotel room bed with silk sheets. Why is she everywhere, Auntyji? She is doing my head in. And her crazy accent shifts from scene to scene. I don’t like her, Auntyji. Why are these gora log so enamoured by her? What is so special about her?

ASK AUNTYJI Do you have a question for Auntyji?

Email it to info@indianlink.com.au

Auntyji says Chup, kalmouhi! Haven’t we had this conversation before about hating on Priyanka? Why can’t jalanthoo dayans like you just leave the woman alone? First, let’s get her name correct. It’s Priyanka Chopra Jonas. Second, do not confuse the quality of the series with her acting chops. Have you not seen her in all her films - Mary Kom, Barfee, and the others? She is one of Bollywood’s finest actors, and here you are putting chutney on her? What have you achieved in your life, Mrs Adha Darjan, that you feel compelled to cast judgment on a woman who is going about her business trying to make a living? Unless you have been Miss World and have conquered Bollywood and now Hollywood and what not, then you have no right whatever to put Priyanka down. Leave the woman alone - she is hugely successful - and whether it’s her hard work or talent or work ethic or luck or kismat, destiny is favouring her and you’re just jealous. Now the reason this has to be jealousy on your part rather than anything else is because you go looking for Priyanka. She is not everywhere - you just have your radar on for her, you kalankani. What if Priyanka was your sister - would you still feel the same way? Or would you be posting on social media how proud you are of her? I say you start doing more interesting things with your rather average life, and leave Mrs Jonas alone.

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FORETELL

June 2023

BY MINAL KHONA

Minal Khona has been reading tarot cards for the last two decades. She uses her intuition and connect with the cards mostly to help people.

aries

TAURUS

TAROT GEMINI

CANCER

March 21 - April 19

April 20 - May 20

May 21 - June 20

June 21 - July 20

An ongoing situation could change suddenly. Singles may have a passionate love affair. A promotion at work is on the anvil. Trust issues can make a relationship shaky. Someone you know may need hospitalisation.

A new business idea will help to increase your bank balance. You finally start believing in the workings of the universe. Success with support from others is assured. A good time to start new projects, and you will receive all the guidance you need.

The bull draws the card of the crab, making the stubborn among you cranky and moody too!

Watch for mood swings, and if dating someone, be sure of your intent before making things serious. Some change at home could change your attitude. Those in a job may want to set up their own business; a decision or action could convince you that the time is right to do so. Avoid binge eating or drinking. A stressful situation will end soon.

You are constantly analysing your current situation and blocks. Singles could meet someone, but the chemistry will be missing. Those in a relationship can see it go bad because of negativity or unexpressed feelings.

A sudden boost in finances put you in a better mood. A trip could get cancelled.

Business might expand but there may be some personal loss involved.

Take care of your eyes to ensure you don’t have an infection. Trust in a higher power.

Cancerians may be looking for a new job; the current one will bring you power and success. Self-improvement too is on the agenda for June. Singles should check whether the new date is already married. An ex might try and win you back. Eat healthier to gain more energy. Profits go up for the self-employed. Your thorough and planned approach to work can bring you a promotion and more money. If a decision has to be made, evaluate all the pros and cons first.

LEO

VIRGO

LIBRA

SCORPIO

July 21 - Aug 22

Aug 23 - Sep 22

Sep 23 - Oct 22

Oct 23 - Nov 21

The fiery Leo draws the card for Taurus which makes them more pragmatic and less impulsive this month. Singles might meet someone who is May-born. An unexpected event could occur at home or while you are travelling. Personal stress will affect your work life and you might look for new opportunities whether at a job or self-employed. Your best success will come from thorough planning, extra effort, and a gradual growth. Don’t believe anything negative.

Aces lead to beginnings, and when it is the ace of hearts, expect a new love affair or an engagement or marriage in the family. Some of you may acquire something for your home that you have wanted for ages.

A new project could be on the anvil at work, and you will have several original ideas. Health is good and a new project adds to your income. A fervent wish may come true and happy times are here.

New career opportunities are coming along. In your current job, you are still looking for stability, or the achievement of your goals. Travel for work or pleasure is indicated. Singles will be open to dating; those in a relationship could find themselves growing apart. Money owed to you will not come easily, but come it will. Focus on a feeling of abundance.

A new venture will become a profitable one in the near future. You will be more at peace.

A difficult month for some as situations that no longer serve you must be let go of. An attitude correction may also be needed if a relationship has to be saved. Stay low key at work or confrontations may have disastrous results. Finances remain upbeat and you could inherit some money too. An attachment to a person or place will end.

You might also be keen to move jobs.

Avoid negative thinking no matter how dire the situation appears to be.

Sagittarius

Capricorn

Aquarius Jan 20 - Feb 18

Pisces

Feb 19 - March 20

Some people from your past could make a reappearance in your life but will not stay for good. A new lifestyle is on the anvil for some. At work, productivity increases, and you will achieve success and financial gains. Any emotional setbacks you experience are but temporary so don’t panic. Health remains good. A new business proposal could come along.

Finances are good and you will indulge in some retail therapy. If a relationship is abusive, perhaps it is time to leave.

Travel, improving your relationship with others, and a spiritual quest define June for you. A love affair won’t go forward the way you hoped it would. The self-employed could get frustrated with a partner due to their covert behaviour. Arguments with family members will bog you down.

Finances are good and money comes in bigger lots than you expect. Interacting with people leads to success. You might want to avoid your current problems but facing them is the best option.

You set goals, settle legal or financial matters and want to spend time figuring out the working of destiny.

Singles will not settle for a frivolous relationship as they seek depth. Money will come to you though your expenses are high. Some of you may sell your home and move to another place. A new circle of destiny is about to begin so go with the flow. Take care of your teeth.

In self-analysis you will figure out what needs to change.

Expect disappointments in love; you may even choose to be alone than be with someone who doesn’t reciprocate. There could be delays and exhaustion from too many demands on your body, mind and time. At work, take a break to avoid feeling burnt out. Those in a relationship might be unhappy but unable to leave.

A loved one could be going through a bad patch. Be assertive in financial negotiations. If emotionally attached to a situation, you will be able to let go.

Nov 22 - Dec 21

Dec 22 - Jan 19

JUNE 2023 37

Apply for your $250 Power Saving Bonus today.

Get $250 in your pocket by visiting the Victorian Energy Compare website.

From 24 March, energy bill payers can claim $250 even if they’ve claimed the Power Saving Bonus before.

Only one payment is available per household, per round.

We’re bringing back the SEC to help drive down power bills.

Visit compare.energy.vic.gov.au Call 1800 000 832

For assistance in languages other than English, contact Translating and Interpreting Services (TIS) on 131 450.

38 JUNE 2023

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