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EDITORIAL

INDIAN LINK

Cricket magic casts a spell

PUBLISI-U:R _Pawan Luthra

EDITOR RajniAnand Luthra

ASSISTANTEDITOR Kira Spucys-Tahar. '

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MELBOURNE COORDINATOR Preeti Jabbal

CONTRIBUTORS Mohan Dhall, Royston Rebello,.Gaurav Masand, Dhanya Samuel, Raka Sarkh�I.Astha Singh, · Sanam Sharma, Kalyani Wakhare, Chit�a Suda.rshan, Nancy JadeAlthea

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Al>VERTISI NG M A N AGER Vi�ek Trivedi ·· 0410_ 578.146

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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 Level 24/44 Market St, Sydney 2000 or GPO Box 108, Sydney 2001 Ph: 02 9279-2004 l=ax: 02 9279·2005 Email: info@indianlink.com.au

ccording to the International Cricket Council, 1,016,421 people attended the 49 matches over 44 days across Australia and New Zealand to witness tl1eir teams battle it out for the Cricket World Cup ride for 2015. While tl1ere were only a handful of games which could be considered close, the magic of cricket kept all, especially tl1ose from the lnclian sub-conrinent, spellbound.

My takeaways from the 44 days of cricket: You can tal<e the cricket out of India buc cannot keep the cricket fan away.

Of tl1e 1,000,000 plus who attended, those wearing the blue t-shirts were seen ar almost all matches. lnclians from all over the globe descended on Australia and New Zealand to enjoy the battle between the bar and the ball. While attending tl1e various matches, I ran imo family groups from India, cricket tragics from the US, famer-son duos from me Middle East, all following the Indian

cricket team as mey travelled around the two conntries. There were local lnclian Australians who took weeks off work to either be at the grounds or be glued to tl1e television coverage. All this provided an an1a7jng atmosphere at matches, especially the Inclia-South Africa match at the MCG when more tl1an 86,000 people - mostly Indian fans - cheered from the beginning of the match till tl1e end. Even the great Sachin Tendulkar admitted that he felt like donning his pads and gloves, so strong was the excitement in tl1e air. ,Vhile Channel 9, as me local free-to· air TV, played true to form by televising only Australia-centric matches, pay TV did manage to offer live coverage of all the marches. More man just telecasts, it was great to hear good cricket commentary from icons such as Brian Lara, Rahul Dravid, Harsha Bhogle, Sourav Ganguly and so on. Compared to the commentary on Channel 9, it was a refreshing change to hear real professionals behind the microphone.

Yes, some of the commentary on pay TV in Hindi did leave a lot to be desired, bm it did lighten up some of the more boring matches.

On tl1e negacive side, also part of Channel 9, were two of their anchors who are eimer silly at best or snipid at worst. Morning anchor Karl Srefanovic's

comments to lnclian supporters prior to the India-Australia semi-final, and Shane Warne's post-win interview with the Aussie cricketers, are t\VO regrettable episodes from the tournament.

On the grand final day, with India bundled ouc and tl1e contest being between neighbours Australia and New Zeal.and, it was great to see the local Indian Australians discard tl1eir blue gear in favour of the green and gold.

While they may have fumbled through tl1eir rendirion of Advance Australia Fair, there was no denying their passion for Australia as Mitchell Stare bowled Brendan l'v[cCallum in me first over. And yes, the sight which will remain with me for a Jong time, is the dhol player in Australian colours leading tile sound effects in the great Southern Stand at tl1e MCG, with me locals joining in tl1e hhangm.

The loud cheers for special guest Sachin TendullG1r at tl1e final ceremony also warmed the heart. Admired for his contriburion to cricket, Sachin's acknowledgement was in sharp contrast to the boos which rang mrough tl1e MCG when ICC Chair N. Srinivasan was introduced. Australians wear their emotions on meir sleeves and their clisdain for aUegations of tainted behaviour was clear to note.

Now we wait for tl1e Ashes to begin!

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WBA.T'SON SPIRITUAL Triveni Satsang Yatra of Australia Thurs 19 Mar -Wed 8 April

Shri Shiva Mandir Minto invites devotees to join and host Satsang Bhajan, Satsang Shri RamKatha, Shri Mad BhagwatKatha, MataKi Chowki.

Sunder kand paath etc. at their temple and home. Details Gorav Aggarwal 0434 004 174.

Chinmaya Mission events Mon 6 April - Sat 11 April Free public

talks by Swami Tejomayananda: Life is a gift, Living an art Sat 11 April Devotional songs Swara to lshwara Sun 10 May Youth workshop: A teens guide to success 16-17 May: Theatrical production Rama: Prince of Power Details Br Gopalji 0416 482 149 BAPS special event Thur 16 April · Wed 22 April

BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir (40 Eleanor St, Rosehill) invi tes you for Rarnayan Parayan and Kirtan Bhakti in the presence of Sadguru Par am PuJya Mahant Swami and Sant Mand al.

Mahaprasad will be served every day.

Details 0 2 9760 2277 or info@apac. baps.org.

Amma's Australian Tour 2015 Mon 13 April 10am; 7.30pm Tues 14 April 1 0am; 7pm

India's 'hugging saint' Amma is coming to Sydney. Her FREE programs will be held on two days with a Devi Bhava held at 7pm on the second day of the tour. Held at Sydney Boys High School. Enter Gate 2, Cleveland St, Moore Park. Details http://www. ammaaustralia.org.au/ DANCE Sydney Dance Festival of Classical Indian Dance Sat 18 April 2pm-9pm

See performances ofKuchipudi, Odissi, Bharatanatyam andKathak dance.

Held at Lennox Theatre, Riverside Theatres, corner Church and Market Streets, Parramatta. DetailsKalpana Sriram 0411 015 396 Tukre' by Raghav Handa

29 April· 2 May

FORM Dance Projects and Riverside Theatres will present the contemporary dance work, Tukre', that explores how cultural lineage can be communicated and shared through objects and movement. Tukre' (meaning pieces in Hindi) will see Raghav Handa, an Australian choreographer and dancer of Indian heritage, aeate a memory map of his ancestry through music and dance. The performance is an exploration of the connections between our past, present and future as well as the importance of family- even when they are thousands of kilometres away.

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Behind the Beautiful Forevers Sat 25 April 1 pm and Sun 26 April 1 pm Riverside Theatres will be screening the play Behind the Beautiful Forevers captured live from London's National Theatre. Audiences will be transported to urban India in playwright David Hare's adaptation ofKatherine Boa's award-winning book. The book was written after Boo spent three years in Annawadi, India recording the lives of its residents.

Details 02 8839 3399 or www. riversideparramatta.com.au FESTIVAL Ugadni celebrations Sat 18 April 3pm

Telugu Association of Canberra celebrates Ugadhi at Albert Hall , 100 Commonwealth Avenue, Yarralumla, ACT. Details: tacuqadi201S@qmail.com Valsaki Mela Sun 3 May

The Panjabi Sangeet Centre Sydney presents its annual Vaisakhi Mela at

Blacktown Showground. Featuring Bhangra, Gicldha, folk music, rides, competitions, food stalls and more.

Details: Devinder Dhaira 0407 434 867, Harklrat Sandhar 0432 2D9 323 Girmit Diwasfestival 2015 Sat 9 May 12pm-12am

In memory of the indentured labourers who came from India to work In Fiji.

Celebrations will feature entertainment, children's activities and food and market stalls. Join the fun atWhitlam Centre, 90A Memorial Avenue, Liverpool.

Details: Sashi Lal 0406 449 474 MISC Indian and Nepalese night market Sat 11 April Hurstville City Council

is hosting an Indian and Nepalese night market along MacMahon Street, Hurstville, from 5.00pm to 9.00pm. Highlights include street food, live Bollywood DJ performance accompanied by Dahl player, cultural dance performances, Henna tattooing, boutique clothing and accessories, free Yoga class, free children's activities such as face painting and a jumping castle plus a free screening of an award winning Indian movie feature.

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FESTIVAL

Celebrating Tamil New Year �:-- ------7 Revellers take part in the fourth annual Sydney Chitnh1: ·ra :1� · fi:e:s: tiv,:a:1______

spirit of celebration resonated in the air.

Added to this, the sentiment of culmraJ solidarity as well as song and dance to top it all, made it a memorable day at the recently held Sydniyil Chithiraith Thir11vizfla, or Sydney Chithirai festival, marking the Tamil r ew Year at Rosehill Racecourse.

Now in its fourth year, the colossal, day-long event is notable, and worthy of praise, for solidifying the cultural ties of the Tamil community in Sydney.

Organised by the Tamil Arts and Culture Association Inc. (fACA), it is hailed for bringing together

Tamilians traversing geographical boundaries including India, Sri Lanka., MaJaysia, Singapore, South Africa, Mauritius and other parts of the world.

This year, the Tamil Nadu government's cultural entity, Ta.mil Nadu Eyal Tsai Nataka Manram, stepped forward and principally supported the festivities. The organisation's Chairman and veteran South Indian film music director Deva (a.k.a Thenisaith Thentmg, aJong with his ensemble of 20 renowned folk artists, delivered many Tamil culmral folk performances for the gathered spectators. Acts like Karagam, Kaavadi, Poika!kJ1dhimi Atta111 i (dunlfl[)I horse dance), Kaa!i, J\Tay, mdi lv[elam, and Kai Silav1b11 AttaJII, left the audience spellbound. The ensemble is regularly invited co perform in the Indian Republic Day Parnde and their talent and skill were certainly evident.

Presidenc of TACA Anagan Babu said, "This is a unique festival loved by the Sydney Tamil community for its folk flavour.

They feel back at home. This festival is growing year-on-year and this year it.� special as the Taniil Nadu government has joined with us in promoting Tamil folk arts on foreign soil. 1 thank aJI our sponsors, stall holders and many other supporters to have made this happen."

Food staJls at d1e venue supplied attendees with delicious Tamil cuisines - the id!i and dosa were not to be missed. Kids were comfortably engrossed in various amusement games.

TACA also received support from ocl1er organisations including the Australian Tamil Broadcasting Corporation, SBS Tamil Radio and many others. The Community Migrant Resource Centre (C1IB.C)

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Parramatta including Executive Director Melissa Monteiro, the Ethnic Community Council and SydWest Multiculmral Services were also represented at the festival.

As the evenc was held in western Sydney just prior to the NSWI Seate election, d1ere was a strong showing from local politicians. Special guests who attended the event included Parliament Secretary for Justice David Clarke MLC and Shadow Minister for Multicultural Affairs Michelle Rowland. Labor party members John Robertson, Julia Finn and Susai Benjamin were also present along with their Liberal colleagues Geoff Lee MP, Tony Issa and Deputy Mayor of Hornsby Gurdeep Singh.

Chithirai marks the first mond1 in the Taniil calendar. The Chicl1irai FestivaJ is a celebration during the month of Chitirai (April) in Madurai, India. le is also

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COVERS TORY

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efore starcing his career as a stand. up comedian in November 2004, Papa did his MBA at Oxford and worked as a management consultant in London.

Travelling in England, Papa says people would say to him they knew about India because they'd seen S/11111dog Millionaire.

He would reply, "And I know about England because I've seen 1'1r Bean!"

And when non-Indians talk co him today about the (freakish?) concept of arranged marriages and the big weddings, he points out to them chat it is theif'system chat is arranged - or over-arranged - down co the last detail, with place settings and planned menus and rehearsed walks down the aisle, whereas our weddings are chaotic parries with hundreds of people coming and going, and where che dinner is more like a food fai.r.

"I like co mess with die stereotypes chat people have about us," Papa CJ says. stwiibled into stand-up while smdyiog in England. He loved going to the Edinburgh Festival and took a shot at d1e US contest La.st Co,nic Sta11di11g where he managed co gee into the finals ("There must have been a diversity clause," he jokes).

Moving back to India, where stand-up wasn't a thing, he claims he started it aJJ off, wich his first few shows at Delhi's lVIocha Bar, Within ten months, he'd done some 250 gigs.

"The stand-up scene in India is pretty massive at die moment I've done gigs aJJ around the country, and people pay anywhere from Rs300 to Rs3000 to come and listen. The corporate circuit is picking up coo."

This year marks Papa CJ's Australian comedy festival debut as the first Indian comedian to be invited to perform a solo show at the Melbourne Internacional Comedy Festival.

Established in 1987, the Melbourne Internacional Comedy Festival (]VfICF) is the third­ largest comedy festival of its kind in the world and one of

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the largest cultural events in Australia. The event rakes place annually over four weeks and plays host to hundreds of local and international artists; in 2014 the festival listed 469 shows and 6,488 performances (including 159 free performances) by 2,228 artists.

This year's edition of l\illCF has notewordiy representation from India. The flag bearers include Rohan Desai, Ruchir Ash besides Indian comedy circuit favourite Papa CJ, as well as international acts with links to the sub-continent including Arj Barker, Hari Kondabolu, Vivek Mahbubani, Sameena Zehra and Australia's own Suren Jayemanne.

"We work in a bubble in India," Papa says. "It's great to be able to come here, representing India, and to see that what we're doing at home is relevant on a world stage."

He has performed at the Just for Laughs festival in Canada and has become a regular on stage at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. He has visited Melbourne before, but these shows will be his Australian comedy festival debm.

But surely 'Papa CJ' is not the comedian's real name? "Papa is not the name I ,;vas born with but is the name I have taken," he explains. "As a teenager I \\�tnessed a brutal assassination involving an international mafia cartel. I have since been under a witness protection program by the International Court of Justice in The f-lague ... so I cannot reveal my true identity." 0-,'i/e hope he's joking!)

His new show, 'Naked' is different co the kind of work usually does, in mat it is a narrative, largely autobiographical. ''My regular style involves plenty of crowd-work, where l chat with d1e audience and build from there." ''\Xfirh 'Naked', I talk about d1e human experience. And while I use my life story in the show, I talk about experiences diat most people have had and emotions chat most people have felt. Everybody leaves my show feeling mar during a part of it, I was talking about their life and not mine! " "'Naked' is a show d1at

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straddles the realms of stand- up comedy, theatre and storytelling," Papa CJ continues. "ln this journey, one brick at a ri m e, I remove the waJJs chat most human beings keep between themselves and others, exposing myself with aJJ my vulnerabilities and all my pain. For me it is both terrifying and exhilarating at the san1e time and by the end, while I am completely naked, I am also completely free."

Papa CJ has performed on a plane, on a train, on a bus, on a boat, in a police station, in the emergency room of a hospital while holding the head of a girl getting 32 stitches on it, and even at gu.npoiJ1t! He bas toured sell-our shows across the globe and last year won the '.Asia's Best Stand-up Comedian' award from Top 10 Magazine.

So, how did this Indian tea-planter's son become one of India's most successful comedi ans?

"There are so many reasons why I do stand up. For one, it is the most amazing high ever.

In years past, adventurers went out iuto the unkuown in search of gold with great hope but not knowing whether or not they would find it. As a professional comedian, l go out into the unknown knowing that I have to find and deliver comedy gold every 15 seconds! But by far d1e best part of my job is never having to set an alarm co wake up in the morning. Ever."

He adds, "I love d1e honesty d1ac is involved in comedy. The interesting thing in comedy is the inward journey it forces me to take - what is my ge11ui11e feel about diis particular issue?"

CJ likes to think of himself as an 'Ambassador of Happiness'. "I had an 86-year-old woman come to me after a show iu Kol.katta and say, 'God bless you son, 1 haven't laughed so much in 30 years.' The other compliment I get frequently, which I really appreciate, is when people tell me that l make them proud co be Indian. l personally consider mysdf to be in the happiness business and not the comedy business. I get genuine joy out of seeing people laughing and

happy. Thar is why in addition to pure stand-up, I do motivational speaking, have founded a d1arity for underprivileged children and do free shows in hospitals as wdL" Another audience member once called him a 'blessing collector'.

"She said, 'You just go around the world bringing happiness into people's lives and collecting blessings.' That really is what I do it for. The laughter on d1e faces of people and the blessings I receive are my return on investment."

And what would he advise people who wane to get in on the act? ''\Vhar are you waiting for? Get our there and do it. Drop me a line if you wane, I'll gee you some stage rime!"

Comedy Zone Asia: Rohan Desai

Almough the Melbourne Internacional Comedy Festival is mainly a vehicle fo.r headline stand-up and cabaret acts, the event is also an opportunity for up-and-coming local and international acts.

Fellow Indian comedian Rohan Desai has already made his mark at d1e 2014 edition of MICF. The 25-year-old won a guest spot after winning the RAW Comedy India event in New Delhi in 2013.

"Going to Melbourne was my first international trip," Desai says.

"Jc was amazing to go to tbe RAW Comedy Final. To perform in a stadium of 2,000 people was just great!"

Desai grew up in Surat, Gujarat, four hours away from the nearest comedy club. He tried his luck around different open mic nights before bitting the stand-up scene wid1 a bm1g. He says he's "still figuring ouc the whole comedy dung", but tal{eS his inspiration from comedians he looks up to.

"Stewart Lee, Obviously, like many Indians, Louis CK, and Jerry Seinfeld," Desai says. ''I also take inspiration from movies.

Don Hertzfeldc, from the US, makes diese short films and he has a really odd sensibility which l enjoy."

After appearing in Melbourne, Desai earned a place on the

Comedy Festival Roadshow Indian tour. ''You're performing in all these different places and I got to travel with the Australian comedians, to gain experience and learned from them on the road," Desai says.

Desai believes there is great enthusiasm for comedy among Indians and that tlie scene in India is slowly expanding, "It's a very exciting time for comedy in India," he says. ''There are people who talk more about the culture the urban youth can relate to - Facebook, Bret1ki11g Bad; then there are people who perform Hindi comedy; then there are people who have a more traditional stage style; then you have people who are experimental all the rime. It's growing so fast.

The best thing is - you can do whatever you like! There's an audience for everything, as long as you do it well."

At MICF, Desai will be performing as part of the 'ComedyZone Asia' program, feacuring top up-and-coming comedians from across Asia and d1eir different comedy styles.

"If you're expecting just a lot of Indian references . . . it's not that," Desai says of bis performance.

"It's very universal. It's very accessible, and hopefully funny.

Ir's just me being a nervous guy."

Desai says he would describe himself as "an odd guy" with "a very strru1ge way of enjoying comedy", He recently performed at India's largest comedy event - the Weirdass Pajama Festival.

"The best part is nor only performing, but seeing a lot of other comedy which opens your mind to different possibilities," Desai says.

On d1e recent All India Bakchod controversy, Desai is frank. "It's nor the comedians' fault," he says. "People don't underscru1d the style of comedy.

Ic was expected people would get offended, but not that chey would take legal action! The problem is India has outdated laws. It's just an easy way for these people to get publicity and attention by taking (die AIB group) co court. \Xlben you introduce new ideas to a traditional culture, you're bound co have such issues."

India's comedians bare all ahead of their performances at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival

12 APRIL (1) 2015

www.indianlink.com.au

l'J

COVERS TORY Clockwise from top: Ruchir Ash; Rohan Desai; Sameena Zehra; Suren Jaymanne

RAW Comedy National Grand Final: Ruchir Ash

Desai tells Indian Link his RAW Comedy successor, Kolkata's Ruchir Ash is ".really good" and he looks forward to seeing him perform in Melbourne.

When the 18-year-old arrives next week, it wi.ll be his first time in Australia. Ash, who is travelling with bis dad, says he's "really excited" about coming Down Under.

When he entered the RAW Comedy India event he was still eirperimenting with his comedy as a university student. "The Kolkata finaJ was an unreal experience," Ash says. "The response I got from the audience was beyond anything I had expected. The thrill of performing is unreal!"

Ash says his parents are l supportive, bur "\,fy mum doesn't know what comedy is; she hasn't seen me perform. She doesn't really understand or know about stand up."

He reveals his biggest inAuences including Louis CK and India's Rajneesh Kapoor. "I love Bill Burr and John Oliver because they use comedy to tackle serious issues rather than just punch-line humour. All forms of comedy are okay, but 1 personally would not want to go .into 'roast' comedy," Ash says, alluding to the AlB controversy.

J\sh reveals he has already started wocking on material for the RAW Comedy Final. "I've tried to evolve. I don't think I'm going to repeat much material from the heats. You get too accustomed to it, stop believing in your own jokes," he says. "I'm just going to try co be myself and hope it works."

"I've seen the audience on YouTube videos, and it's a comedian's dream - just thinking about performing is exciting!"

Homicidal Pacifist: Sameena Zehra Someone who knows a lot about performing is Sameena Zebra.

After working as a professional actor for almost 20 years, Zebra

14 APRIL (1) 2015

•. .. made the switch to comedy. "All of my life inAuences my comedy," Zebra says, "No topic is off the table."

After being born in Kashm.ir, Zebra moved to London as a baby. After her parents divorced when she was about seven, she moved back to Kashmir with her mother.

Zebra's comedic influences range across different genres of comedy from Lenny Bruce to Jo Brand and Josie Long. And though she may be pe.rceived as more of a rarity - a successful female in a male-dominated industry - Zebra doesn't engage \'lrith the idea ,vomen are, or should be, treated differently in comedy.

"Through comedy I have met interesting, generous people," she says. "I'm very confident and outgoing, so nothing has ever been said to my face, but I don't know if I've missed out on shows because I'm a won1an."

"Women still get lesser wages, women are still fighting to be taken seriously across aJI fields.

I think it distracts from the comedy itself to focus on that," she continues. "I don't think of myself as a 'female, Asian comedian', 1 want to be thought of with no qualification, just as a 'comedian'.

Zebra is conscious of participating in 'Asian-only' gigs in the UK, saying she prefers to take part in interviews, shows and gigs that are about "crossing the. divide".

"I often won't do 'Asian­ only' gigs," she says. "Bm l did one show for \X1omen Against

FtmdamentaJism, which is a cause close to my heart, and the women in the audience said to me, 'We need to hear people like you; yoms is a voice we want to hear.' J\nd time bit home to me how it can be important for younger women and men to see someone like rne."

"I grew up in India, but I'm very British and western in my thinking. I'm proud to consider myself a feminist. I don't belong to any stereotype, 1 want to talk about human beings; it's about engaging and having a conversation."

Zebra's show at lvfICF, 'Homicidal Pacifist', is a political and satirical performance about her "cull.ing list". ''I'm a pacifist," Zebra says, ''But I'm also very angr y. The show is my attempt to put those two conflicting elements together. It's tongue-in-cheek, dark humour."

In the show, Zehra outlines the individuals who should be 'culled' from the htm1an race. "Ir's not groups of people, just the individual ones. Like people who pur spoons in the fork section of a cutlery drawer - I hate that!"

She taJks about sex, the bmqa, Charue Hebdo. "Ir's very personal, from my point of view.

And everything I say has to be the truth. lf it's nor the truth, it doesn't work. My aim is to make people uncomfortable with the world and affect change."

Eat Praline, Die: Suren Jayemanne Closer to home, Australian-born Suren Jaymanne says his Sri

Lankan and Malaysian background has slow!)' beglln to influence his comedy and change the way he looks at the world.

"Growing up I never really saw myself as South Asian, I was just another kid," Jayemanne says. ''It didn't really stand out to me chat I was different. More recently I've noticed a change in society, a shift to an 'us and them' mentality. Slowly I've starred to incorporate that into my comedy.

Originally my comedy was shorter jokes not based on persouaJ experiences, things observed or interpreting things differently. As I've progressed, I'm talking more personally, it's more about tl1e way I see the world."

"If you kind of come from a different background to the standard white Anglo Saxon, you don't want to rely on stereotypes for comedy," Jayer11aru1e says. "But now I have more experience, I feel like I can do ic with meaning."

Jayemanne admits he still works part time as an accountatlt tl10ugh his passion is comedy. "I think of my accounting career kind of like the Carwash or Los Polios in Breaking Bad," he says. "It's like tl1e front or legit part of my business."

Originally influenced by American comedians like. Mitch Hedberg, Steven Wright and Demetri Martin, Jayemanne says after performing in Australia and watching and learning from others, "i\,fy inAuences have become tl10se on the local scene.

I'm a real fan of the Fear of a Brown Planet guys (Aamer Rahman and Nazeem Hussain) and I'm starting to incorporate more of that into my comedy." ln 2014, Jayemanne was handpicked for MICF's prestigious

'Comedy Zone', a showcase of Australia's best emerging comedians. This ye.at he's malcing his FestivaJ debut, fresh from a sold-out run at the Sydney Fringe. "'Eat PraJine, Die' is a reference to the face I've grown up with food aJlergies," Jayemanne says.

(As a child he was aJlergic to eggs, sesame, nuts and shellfish.) ''The show is a collection of stories about the two things I feel have influenced and shaped who I am today - growing up witl1 food allergies and growing up witl1 an ethnic background. The cat.'llysc was going co tl1e big 10 year high school reunion. It prompted me. co reflect on where. I'm at i.n life, what it is time's led me to this point."

"Over past few years I've outgrown a few of the allergies," Jaymanne says. "I had prawns for the first ti.me in December. My mum's signature dish is samba! prawns so chat was exciting."

Jayrnanne says as a child he used to joke around as a kind of defence mechanism to being 'different'. "Thinking back, food alle.rgies made me more unique than my cultural background," Jaymanne says. "Now it seems society notices chat more."

The Melbourne International Comedy Festival and its Roadshow regulady tours South East Asia and India, and searches for local comics in Australia.

He.re's hoping they continue to tmcover new comedy talent so the Indians can take on Melbourne more often - not just on the cricket pitch!

Kira Spucys-Tahar, Gaurav Masand, Rajni Anand Luthra

www.indianlink.com.au

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APRIL (1) 2015 15

ENTREPRENEUR

Gauri Maini went from high flying HR executive to organic soap maker

!

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T

h.is is one of the most interesting career profiles [hat I have come across among tbe Indian community in Australia. After decades of service in the HR industry working wicl1 some of [he biggest corporate giants, Gauri Maini gave it all up to become a soap maker.

Today, she is the owner of a small business venmre cal.led A Wicked Scrub and creates completely narnral and organic soap bars, cleansers and other tream1ents for the skin and hair.

"A Wicked Scrub is abonr treating yourself wickedly well," Main.i says. ''It is not just about beauty; it is a celebration of cl1e beauty cl1at in abundant in us and in nan1re."

Gauri Main.i grew up in Gujarat, but wicl1 her dad being in cl1e police force, the farn.ily shifted towns frequently. Her parents, like otl1er Indian parents, encouraged her in academics and pushed her co be independent. Though mey wanted her to take up a career in the services, Gauri's heart was set on a business degree. She graduated with an MBA degree

16 APRIL (1) 2015

from XLRI, one of India's premier business schools.

Marriage and children followed and me move to Australia happened in 2000. Her boss at Larsen & Toubro called her "mad" to leave her career in India behind.

"He gave me a book which I have even today - Hope for the F/0111ers," Main.i says. "I clunk the caterpillar who is constantly looking for more is me. Until he realises that he needs to hang upside down and wait till his metamorphosis imo a butterAy, he cannot fly. Trouble is, I don't know if I am Ayi.ng yet!"

After an initially slow transition period, Mai11i's corporate career rook off in Australia. But, in spite of having it all, the restlessness continued. She wanted to be in the not-for-profit sector, but was considered 'too corporate' by many. So, one day, she quit. . . and hasn't looked back since.

Being a crave! buff, Maini has always had a love and fascination of namral soaps. Wim no prior experience and completely self­ taughc, she made her first batch of oatmeal soaps. It was love at first sight, touch and smell.

Then she began experimenting with omer natural ingredients creating soaps from natural salts, goat's nlilk, aloe vera and so began the journey of A Wicked Scrub.

"I th.ink it was initially just mind blowing co see how I was

so gullible consuming exorbitantly priced cleansers, creams and treatments for my skin and hair without paying any attention co what is in it," Maini explains.

"The main inspiration behind A Wicked Scrub is that we all need a liccle bit of push to pamper ourselves, to slow down and enjoy each other.

I hope cl1rough my products people feel like d1ey can do mat."

Mai11i is completely self-caught when it comes to the process of making soaps and oilier beauty products. Bue she is not willing to compromise on qual.icy and works in close association with local artisans and producers ro ensure high quali.ty and pure ingredients for her products. ''I don't want co use preservatives or emulsifiers.Just plain narnral ingredient.s, as close to the source or farm as possible."

It is a common fact mat allergies, especially skin associated ones l.ike eczema, are extremely common in Australia. Oauneal or goat's milk soap is recommended for people who suffer from these conditions as it hydrates and moisntrises the skil1 in a natural manner, wimour tl1e presence of any irritating chemicals. Though mis is not a cu.re for the problem, using natural products like these can greatly help to reduce the

intensity of me symptoms and get relief.

Apart from local producers, l\faini also works in close association with producers from around the globe co ensure that she uses only the best and top quality ingredients for her products.

While d1e cold pressed neem oil comes from a village in Kutch, the shea butter is from Kwabena.

Her gift hampers and trays come from Ann of A.n Assorted Affair, while me body brushes are from Import Ants who works in close association with women in Sri Lanka.

One of the best-selling products is the body scrub, which is an indulgent, bespoke, natural and organic blend of beeswax, essential oils, salts or sugar. l\,faini also dabbles witl1 cleansing and essential oils; her favourites include pure rose geranium, rosewood a.nd jasmine wllich can be found in many of her products.

A Wicked Scrub runs as an online store. Gauri Maini does not wane to scale up for profit's sake as she prefers to retain her personal touch and create indulgent products for all at an affordable price.

www.indianlink.com.au

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ARTS

nnate stren

Instinctive artist Pinky Bhatt in a tribute to womanhood inky Bhatt, a Limca Book of Records holder for her 130-foot painting on women's empowerment titled Stree Shakti, is a self-taught artist. She draws inspiracion from her surroundings, including both the Uiban and rural spaces of Sydney (Australia) and Ahmedabad (India) between which she divides her time. She paint.,; the first Australians witl1 as much elan and energy as she does the tribal women of Kutch.

As a child, Bhacc would gaze at long weaves of Kalamkari pain t i ngs portraying scenes from the Ramayana and the N[al1abharata Ln hues of red, yellow, olive, black and ivory at her homecown in Khanpur, Ahmedabad. It is only natural that her compositions reflect these colours. However, Bhatt refuses to restrict her palette or style and has introduced blues and whites, which depict the bmhmand (universe) and shimmery souls respectively.

Her lacest Sydney exhibition at the Tap Gallery in Darlinghurst, is entitled Stm Shakti, again.

With thcit dotted textures and patterned backdrops, Bhatt's works are reminiscent of Indian Madhubani and Gond paintings.

For Bhatt, art is nor just limited to the canvas. She finds art everywhere around her, "In a salad bowl, cushions and curtains, and in namre". These are her real tutors and they urge her to seek inspiration from within herself and paint freely without being overtly conscious. Ir is perhaps because of this sincerity thac her art finds collectors from Europe and Australia to her hometown in Gujarat, India.

Bhatt's women are determined and driven, merrily going about their daily chores. ''Thar is tl1eir true shakii - their stoicism and colerance in the face of adversities," she reiterates.

The penchant for detail with respect co clothing, ornaments and tl1e setting provide a context to

her canvasses, which make them easy to relate co. She spends hours in libraries to research her women, and wants her paintings co reach out to aU age groups. That said, I hope she paint.� women of all forms and frames in future, nor

be?" I ask.

"I find my muses everywhere," Bhatt replies. She turns her attention toward the gaHery owner and waves a hand in her ilitection, "In Leslie, for instance!"

"It could be you too, you know! " she quips at me.

restricting herself to slender and lissome muses as most of her canvasses exhibit.

I ask her about what is next on the cards and she says dreamily, "To devote myself completely to art".

Raka Sarkhel

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APRIL (1) 2015 19

u 1n can ance...

DANCE

•

u

The inaugural 'Short+ Sweet Bollywood' dance festival helps unearth new talents

T

here was kathak, hip­ hop, hhangra and classic Boliywood.

The dancers were solo, duets and groups, youngsters and adults.

They strutted their stuff in front of an audience and a panel of judges, competing to win awards in a number of categories.

This was 'Bollywood Short + Sweet', a new addition to the Shorr + Sweet movement that is devoted ro the ten-minute theatre format.

Festival Director Aishveryaa Nidhi (picntred), an actor, direcror and playwright who ha.s presented at Short + Sweet herself on multiple occasions, helped conceive die Bollywood event that debuted this year.

It may have been the newest version of the world's biggest 'little' festival, but in terms of the presentations themselves, perhaps there was nothing d1at was short and sweet: the festival was a robust attempt to showcase the variety and spice of all diings Bollywood.

Each ten minute routine enthralled and entertained with its foot stomping beats and variety of dance styles.

Elements of the cricket mania then gripping tl1e community crept in here as well: Monsuun Dance, in an inventive opening style, depicted the Jndian cricket team, then waved die Indian Aag at the end of their amazing medley called Ho1vzat Bol!J11Jood.

They won die Most Innovative Style award.

John Bosco infused personal style to his Kyonki t11111 hi ho and had the audience swaying with his digitised moves. Bosco also t ickled the audience with his clever one­ liners and call outs for claps to accompany hini. He took home the Best New Talent award.

The Boliywood l'vfayuris were arguably the most chilled out performers in the contest. Well into their fifties, they knew they couldn't compete with the tbttmkas of ilieir competitors, so they

20 APRIL (1) 2015

concentrated their efforts in other department.5, such as costwnes. Their get-up, a showcase of die different sari styles from across the nation, was a fine tribute co Indian womanhood. "Wle did not even expect to be a part of the finals," declared Deepa Bhatnagar, an enthusiastic 'Bollywood 1110)1//rl, adding, "We did it all for fon!"

A little older than the Mayuris, Dave and Kanchan Passi were adorable with their golden oldie Jo 11Jada kiya 11Jo nibbanapadega.

And what dance competition would ever be complete without Baby Doll especially when it's coupled with bhrmgra beats.

Rajkirna and Nishan, the sibling duo transformed the atmosphere with their vigorous Punjabi routine.

Shabnam Tavakol from the Swastik Insti t ute of Dance, who took home the award for best female dancer, mesmerised with her stupendous l\Jere dholna s11n.

Her bright red lehenga, incredible expressions and near-perfect kathak moves kept the audience spellbound. Swastik Dance School also ended the evening with a vibrant group routi n e on Rridha 11achegi. Simply marvellous!

Rochelle, one of the outstanding dancers from die group, mentioned that she bad no idea what the lyrics meant; alJ she did was feel the music.

Other Swasti k dancers were also successful on the night: Smririe Bhardwaj was declared Best New Talent and Akash Arora and Ajesh Shanna, Best Male Dancers. The best choreographer award went to S\vastik's Sumati Lekhi.

Judges Sunjay Sudhir (Consul General of India), Anupam Sharma (producer direcror) and Raj Suri (entrepreneur) seemed ro concur on their overall choice of Swastik, which scooped the pool of major prizes, including Best Overall Production and the People's Choice (audience vote) awards. Harclly surprising, given the anioum of effort and

passion that went imo Swastik's presentations: they practised daily for two hours, for some three months, prior to the event.

Earlier in the three-day event, it was the ymmger dancers who competed in a contest entitled Fast + Fresh.The line-up of these performers was full of energy and Aair. Shiamak Show Kids, the little dancers from die Shiamak Dawar Dance School, ended up endearing to borh die judges and the audience with their exhilarating moves and excelJent coordination. The Prabha t i Banerjee group, runners-up, impressed as well.

Super-cute five-year-old Raina Jain won many a fan at the event, as her parents beamed with joy at her performance. ]\,[um Rubi cold lndirm link, "It gives us so much satisfaction and joy to see our little wonder dancing on this platform."

It was interesting to note the

Jain

mainstream venue, Fusebox Theatre at The Factory, Marrickville, rather tl1an a regular community hot spot.

Quite pleased with this maiden effort, Aishveryaa has promised to return "bigger and better" next year.

This is not the first lndi an link at Short + Sweet, a movement founded by Mark Cleary in Sydney in 2002. Presentations at the festival have included entries from Sydney's Indian community ever since its inception, and recently, the movement made in.roads into India as well.

www.indianlink.com.au

l'J

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APRIL (1) 2015 21

THISMONTH

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A vishka Wakhare ce birthu �ay With . febrates her 3r.d sisterAn anya

the , 24, wonntlY heId al w r a N Ash·' ma d at the rece = . ntest Awa r f;fegance neY Austraha co ,vtiss syd

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Radio's Sagar ratulations to Indian Link on the birth of baby M��;!tra and his wife Nidhi brother /shan) Saisha (pictured with big

22 APRIL (1) 2015

Indian Literar y andArt Society ofAus recently held tralia their H,asya Kavi Somme/a n

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APRIL (1) 2015 23

I NDIAN NEWS

Artha: Indian artist Prashant Pandey's sculpture made of discarded blood slides at the Kochi Biennale

'Diamond' made of 1 0,000 blood slides a hit in Kochi fair

A huge sparkling 'diamond' made of 10,000 discarded blood slides strung together by stainless steel wire and neatly stacked in a brick­ like manner, has been the cynosure of all eyes at the Kocbi M uziris Biennale.

The creator, Prashant Pandey, has termed the installation A,1ha, a Sanskrit word that has two meanings: it refers both to the pursuit of material wealtl1, as weU as to the quest for meaning.

Explaining the theme of his work, Pandey said Artht✓ recalls and recounts tl1e countless sacrifices made during successive colonisations and the quest for land, domination, wealth and power.

It hints at the way in whid1 colonialism intertwined religion with economics.

It also raises questions about the price of progress and the relationship between worldly possessions and the purpose of life. (A diamond is a tmiversal symbol of wealth, power and vanity.)

"As I hail from a family of marble sculptors in Jaipur, I used to play with waste marble chips after the scnlpnires were chiselled.

This is how my fascination for discarded materials was born," said tl1e 30-year-old Pandey.

"My desire has always been to work on the changing ideologies of hrnnan emotions. I feel it is n_1y responsibility as an artist to look at byproducts of human activiry and to regenerate that waste in order to create something new," he said.

The artist coUected discarded blood slides from unknown people, mostly from Rajasthan,

24 APRIL (1) 2015

and indudes some of his own slides too.

"My interest lies in working with memories and reminiscences of the past. I wanted to use this to represent the history of this beautiful site which is why I used waste blood slides. Blood signifies both life and death, glory and sacrifices in the history of Kocbi.

A,tha is an effort at recollecting all memories toged1er in one form," he said.

Jicish Kallat, curator of the Kochi Muziris Biennale, said that in stark contrast to his family tradition of chipping away at stone to create stanies of gods and goddesses, Pandey works with tl1at which is discarded and often ostensibly

"impure".

Indian migrant's story wins Folio literary prize

Indian-American writer Akhil Sharma has won tl1e second annual Folio prize for fiction for a novel which marts an emigrant family's heart-wrenching search for me 'American dream'.

Sharma won me prize for his second novel, H:1111ify Life, an amobiographical work, which tells the story of a young boy, Ajay, and bis family who emigrate from DeUii to t ew York in search of a better . liJe. AU is mrned upside down when his older brother bas a dreadful swim.ming pool accident and needs rotmd-the-dock care from men on. \'(/illiam Fiennes, who chaired tbe panel of judges, praised tl1e no,7e1, currently a bestseUer in the US, as "lucid, compassionate, quietly funny". "fiJFllify [4e is a masterful nO\Tel of distilled complexity: abom catastrophe and survival; attadlment and independence; the

tension between selfishness and responsibility.

"We loved its deceptive simplicity and rare warmth ... This is a work of arc that expands witb each re-reading and a novel tl1at will endure," he said.

It was chosen from a shortlist of eight books, which induded what was the bookmakers' favourite for the prize, Ali Smith's novel Hotv To

Be Both.

Sharma said after winning tl1e 40,000-pow1d (nearly $60,000) prize that writing the novel, which cook 13 years to complete, was a frustrating and difficult challenge, often "like chewing stones", witl1 ar01-md nine wasted years when it did not go well, according to a G11ardia11 report. ''I'm glad the book exists, I just wish I hadn't been tl1e guy who wrote it," he said.

Sharma, a former investment banker, said be was professionally happy that people were .reading the story of care givers, buc admitted chat he thought abom giving up.

However, he stuck witl1 it. ''I couldn't bear the idea of having spent all those years and tl1en notlung good having come Out of it. ''In the end, I feel the book itself is good, ir does certain things that are artisticaUy impressive. So I feel good about that."

Parts of tl1e writing process were fun, be said, but much of it was not. "I'm 43. I started writing this when 1 was 30. So I spent my 30s writing this thing... I really feel like I shattered my youth."

The prize, sponsored by the Folio Sociery, was created last year with d1e aim of celebrating the year's best English-language works of fiction, regardless of form, genre and geography.

The first winner was American short story writer George Saunders for Tenth of Decef!lher.

FBI to track hate crimes against Sikhs, Hindus, Arabs

Six US lawmakers along with leading advocacy groups have welcomed the inclusion of Sikh, Hindu, and Arab American communities in the Department of Jusrice's hare crimes tracking effort.

Tlus is the final step in the long­ fougbt effort to encourage the US federal government to finally begin tracking and quantifying hate crimes against these at-risk communities.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) r. ecently updated its hate crimes database and FBI training manual in order to stare tracking hate crimes committed against tl1ese groups - mat system is now fully operational.

Ami Bera, the lone l ndian­ American member of tl1e US House of Representatives, along witl1 feUow House members Joe Crowley, Bill PascreU, Mike Honda, Grace Meng and John Garamendi attended d1e event. These lawmakers led a Congressional effort to encourage tl1e Department of Justice and FBI to document hate crimes against Sikh, Hindu, and Arab Americans.

They spearheaded numerous letters to tl1e DOJ and FBI and introduced a Congressional resolution in the wake of the tragic August 2012 massacre in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, and submitting testimony urging action on hate CDl11e5.

In 2011, t\vo elderly Sikh Americans, Gurmej Atwal and Surinder Singh, were shot and

killed while out for a walk in Elk Grove, California, a part of Bern's consti tuency, in a suspected hate crime that is sti l l unsolved.

"Since the September 1 1th attacks, too many Americans, especiaUy Sikh, Hindu and Arab­ Americans, have been wrongfully subjected to hare crimes and discrimination, including the shooting of t\VO Sikh Americans in my own city," Bera said.

"Religious tolerance is a fundamental value of our nation and we must do everything we can to prevent these crimes motivated by bias against a victim's religious beliefs," he said.

"Until no,v, Anti-Sikh hate crimes were not recognized by the FBI," said Rajdeep Singh, Director of Law and Policy at tl1e Sikh Coalition.

"Year after year, Sikh Americans were being targeted for harassment and violence because of thei. r distinct identity.

"For tl1e first time, the FBI now officially acknowledges that Sikhs are targeted for being Sikhs.

While refinements are needed to the agency's tracking system and training standards, we are making progress," he said. ''The federal tracking of anti­ Hindu, anti-Sikh, and anti-Arab hate crin1es is an important, i f long-overdue, development.

Even as our community grows, Hindu Americans remain uni9uely vulnerable to harassment, bullying, and violence," said Harsh Voruganti, Associate Director of Public Policy, Hindu American Foundation.

The updated FBI manual "marks a step towards ensuring accurate reporting of hate crimes committed against Sikhs, an important step that will ultimately aid d1e Sikh commtmiry as we continue to address d1e root5 of anti-Sikh bias," said Jasjit Singh, executive director of the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF).

Update of FBI hate crimes training manual co include Arab, Hindu, and Sikh categories "is more important now than ever wid1 the recent spike in hate violence targeting ouc commwuties," said Lakshmi Sridaran, Dii-ector of Policy and Advocacy, South Asian Americans Standing Togetlm (SAALT).

"Onr work ahead will be to ensure our communities are informed of these critical updates and are able ro build trust with law enJorcement so that hate crimes targeting South Asians, Muslims, Sikhs, Hindus, J\,(jdd.Je Easterners, and Arabs are appropriately documented and prosecuted;' she said.

Cancer treatment breakthroughs by Indian-American researchers

Queen's University cancer researcher Madhuri Koci has discovered a biomarker that will help lead to better predictions of the success of chemotherapy in ovarian cancer patients.

Biomarkers are an indicator of a biological state or condition, and

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the discovery could lead to better treaanent options in the fight against ovarian cancer, according co a press release from the university.

"Recent successes in harnessing the immune system to combat cancer are evidence for the significant roles of a cancer patient's immune responses in lighting cancer," explains Indian American professor Dr. Koci.

'1vfany of these successes are based on boosting anti-cancer immunity via different therapies.

Such therapies would prove to be most effective when coupled with markers predicti n g a patient's evenmal response to a specific therapy".

Dr Kori's study, conducted on over 200 ovarian cancer patients, utilised a combination of cutting­ edge detection technologies for identifying such markers.

A major impact of this discovery is that these novel markers, when used at the tin1e of treatment initiation in the specific type of ovarian cancer patient, will help oncologists make decisions on additional tream1ent needed in these patients, thus increasing their potential for survival.

Ovarian cancer .leads co apprnximatel)r 152,000 deaths among women worldwide each year, making it a leading cause of gynaecological cancer related deaths in women.

Meanwhile, an Indian-origin researcher at the Stanford University in the US has found a method that can cause dangerous leukemia cells to mature into harmless immune cells known as macrophages.

Assistant professor of medicine Ravi Majeti made the key observation after collecting leukemia cells from a patient and trying to keep the celJs alive in a CL1lmre plate.

'We were throwing everything at chem to help chem survive," said Maje.ti in a paper chat appeared in the journal Proceedings of the at o i nal Academy of Sciences.

B-ceU leukemia cells are in many ways progenitor celJs that are forced co stay in an immature state.

During the study, :tvfajeti and post-doctoral scholar Scott McClellan found that some of the cancer cells in culture were changing shape and size into what looked like macrophages.

The team confirmed that methods shown to have altered the fate of the mouse progenitor cells years ago could be used to transform these buman cancer cells into macrophages which can engulf and digest cancer cells and pathogens.

B-ceU acute lymphoblastic leukemia with a mutation called the Philadelphia chromosome is a particularly aggressive cancer with poor outcomes.

"So finding potential treannents is particularly exciting," Majeti added.

Majeti and his colleagues have some reason to hope that when the cancer cells become macrophages they will not only be neutralised but may actualJy assist in fighting the cancer.

"Because the macrophage cells

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came from the cancer ceUs, they will ah-eady carry with them the chemical signals that will identify the cancer cells, making an immune attack against the cancer more likely," l\fajeti explained.

The researchers' next steps would be co see if they can find a drug chat will prompt the same reaction and that could serve as the basis for a therapy for the leukemia ..

Online hiring firm Talview wins British contest

Online hiring start-up Talview has won the Great Tech Rocketships contest in Britain to explore business landscape of Europe.

Tbe US-based start-up, promoted and run by Rls, is an automated interview platform to assist organisations screen and hire techies faster.

Set up in May 2012 as Interview ]\faster, the company's irmovative video platform is based on the concept of asynchronous ,1ideo interviews.

Recruiters the world over use Talview's tool co hire talent for Fortune 500 in IT, engineering, pharma and BFSI (banking, financial services and insurance).

Cognizant, ABB, \Vockhardt, Teamlease, Cipla, ABC Consultants, and JSW ace some of Talview's clients among ocher global firms.

It is funded by Mayfield, a leading Silicon ValJey Vennire Capital fund.

Talview was one of five start­ ups to win the contest organised recently by the UK Trade & Investment in partnership with TechHub and iSpirir. The four other winning startups in the contest are Congruent Solutions, FRILP.com, Tone Tag and Agrinrn Infotech.

The British government also offered Talview free work space in the start-up facility (fhe Landing), which is a part of the media city in Manchester.

Tbe company plans to make Britain headquarters of planned European operations.

Talview also bagged a one­ year membership in TechHub, providing it access to ics co­ working centres in Boston, London and Bengaluru.

Kipling's birthplace to become tourist attraction

The heritage btmgalow in south Mumbai where amhor and Nobel laureate Rudyard Kipling was born will be converted inco a tourist attraction by the Maharashtra government.

The bungalow is situated inside the shady campus of Sir School of Arc, close co the UNESCO \Vorld Heritage monument, Cbhatrapati Shivaji Terminus and other heritage buildings like Crawford .Market and the Mwnbai Police Conunissionerate.

State Education and Cultural Affairs l\finister Vinod Tawde had proposed chis week chat the government would ensme the bungalow emerges as an important courist hotspot and people get the

JJ

A model presents an ensemble by fashion designer Nikasha Tawadeyat the Amazon India Fashion Week on 25 March 2015 in New Delhi. opportunity to appreciate it.

All the artefacts in the house would be preserved and displayed with funding from the culmre department which would also repair, restore and maintain the wood and scone structure, he added.

On cards is a Kipling museum, a library, literary and culmcal events co attract domestic and foreign tourists to the birthplace of the amhor of classics like TheJungle Book and Kivi, and many poems like if... and Mandal'!J'· He was conferred with the Nobel Prize for Llreramre in 1907 - the fuse English writer so honoured.

The site of the bird1 of Kipling, born on December 30, 1865 co English arts teacher, illustrator and curator John Lockwood Kipling and Alice Kipling, was actually another structure adjacent co the existing bungalow, which has been

known as 'Kipling Bungalow' since over a cenmry now.

The bw1galow can1e up inside the campus of die Sir School of Art which ,vas founded in 1857 after a handsome donation of Rs.100,000 by Mwnbai businessman and philanthropist Sir Jamsecjee Jeejeebho)'The school was taken over by the government in 1866 and Kipling's father, appointed its first dean, lived in the bungalow on the campus.

The original btmgalow where Rudyard was born was located barely a few metres from the e,'(isting 'Kipling House' was demolished and rebuilt and again crumbled away, while the 'Kipling House' which came up a.round 1882 underwent a restoration in phases from 2002-2008, besides an earlier restoration several decades ago.

JJ.

Later, it became the Dea.n's Bungalow where subsequent heads of the prestigious School lived till around 2002, after which it remained locked and vacant and soon became cliJapidated.

However, there is a metal plaque with the legend engraved ''Rudyard Kipling, son of Lockwood Kipling, fuse Principal of Sir School of Arc, was born here on 30.12.1865", and a bust of the author points at his historic and literary links with the campus.

He left for England after spending live years of his childhood in Mumbai, and later rentrned to Lahore at the age of 16, and subsequently, as a Nobel laureate revisited his birthplace in 1930.

He passed away in a London hospital in January 1936 at the age of 70.

J.J.

IANS

APRIL (1) 2015 25

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OPINION

An open letter to

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BY

SANAM SHARMA

ear Karl, The apology you offered on air recently in response to your un­ educated tidicule of the 'Indian community' ahead of the India v Australia Cricket World Cup semi-final, .is even more insulti n g than your otiginal comments. An apology has to be heart-felt, genuine, and Ltn-conditional.

And frankly, yours is simply unacceptable. \Vhat you offered was a mere justification.

To use more 'Australian' terms for your benefit, you just ticked a box, mate (perhaps under duress from your employer). a culture of "entitlements" bestowed upon You want tl1e Indian community to you. accept your "ugly mtecings" as mere banter If we ever lose work or faced a comtesy your "wayward, misguided sense redundancy, we went around looking for of humour"? Well, there is another term otl1er work. Ai1y work. Perhaps a few extra that best describes a shifts at a 7-11. We not wayward, misguided sense line up in Centrelink of humour - insanity. And queues. you can only be cmed of We take pride in insanity if you seek help. earning an honest day's And for your sake I hope living. And working for it.

Frankly, your you are on to it.

We cake ptide in tl1e fact apology is simply As you've probably chat we contribute back co unacceptable. the nation that accepted guessed by oow, l affiliate us with open arms and myself to the Australian What you offered Indian community. I am offered wonderful new was a mere sure that by now you opportunities. justification. You would have been duly And yes, we can take a educated about the various joke. And banter as well. just ticked a box, achievements of the But there is always a fine mate, perhaps Indian community within line with these d1ings. under duress from Australia. So I will not It's ok to nudge tl1ac fine your employer delve into that. 1 am going line occasionally. Bur, in to endeavour to educate your case, you breached that line not only with you a bit more on being a your comments but migran t.

I, and quite a number also your apology. You of my friends within tl1is sit in that studio with a lndiaa community, arrived responsibility to queU in Australia as rnigrants. As lawful, skilled societal stereotypes and distinctions and migrants. We owe most of what we have not co promote them or sell them as being today to tl1is wonderful country called 'fum1y'. Please do not offer humour, banter, Australia. And let me tel1 you, we never take or any other 'casual' occurrence as an any of it for granted. excuse. The hurt and insult must be judged from the However, our begimungs were pretty perception of the person humble. And yes, for or community facing that me and most of my 'fLmny banter'. The 'idiot' fel1ow migrant friends, dishing it out is not the it involved doing odd benchmark.

If you feel this letter jobs to get starred in a If you feel this letter is is a bit of an overnew land. \Y/e drove taxis. a bit of an over-reaction, reaction, then good Some of us worked in gas then good for you, because stations (7-1 1 s included). your remarks made me for you, because Others cleaned dishes, feel livid. I tl1ought of not your remarks made laboured in factories, reacting co your slurs but me feel livid drove trucks, courier vans, you know anotl1er good and so on. thing that living in Australia But we all worked. has taught me - one must And worked damn hard. stand up and speak for And always with a smile. things that one feels are No job was big or small. not right.

Everything was an opportunity. And today So ir would have been pretty "un­ when we look back at those days we call Australian" of me to not voice my concerns. them "character building" - a term not easy Regards, to affiliate with easily when you grow up in Sanam

''

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SCHOOL

Schools must help the growth of resilience and humility, notjust in students but also in teachers and parents

0

ne of the besr lessons students can learn at school is to understand the issue and nature of entitlement. There are of course very basic entitlements for students that should characterise every classroom: respect from the teacher, safety from bullying, a stimulat n i g environment, and a sense of purpose, validation and order. These aspects of entitlement are enrirely appropriate, though sometimes absent. A teacher can respect these aspecrs of entitlement by preparing for lessons, becoming an expert on their subject matter, developing ongoing skills in pedagogy, and through learning to believe in the students they reach. Most classrooms celebrate th.is form of entitlement as an extension of tl1e human right to an education.

However, there are aspects to entitlement as practiced in schools that can create arrogance, reduce r. esilience, encourage selfishness and engender a false sense of security. These aspects of entitlement are evidenced in the approach some teachers can have to tl1e classroom and meir students, and that some parents can have witl1 respect to schools.

Negative aspects of entitlement can be seen when lazy teachers 'outsource' learning to students.

This can take the form of endless lessons based around the 'read and summarise' approach. Negative entitlement can also be seen when a reacher has a sense of ownership over a particular classroom space even though another reacher may need tl1e space. This sense of entitlement is particularly selfish when the room in question is needed for a student who cannot climb the stairs due to recent surger)' - but is not given up.

Entitlement can come across

30 APRIL (1) 2015

in a subtle manner. For example, teachers who have a practi c e of failing co clean a whiteboard in a room they have just used, or who fail co ensure a classroom is left tidy, appear to be particularly self­ cenrred and lacking in a\vareness of otl1ers. Here the sense of entitlement extends co a sense of space. Moreover, there are teachers who will not reply to emails, take weeks to mark smdent

work and who are only available outside of class for very restricted times.

Noc long ago l was on a lunch break at an interstate conference when I was marking work sent by a smdent via email during the holidays. A senior educator chided me and said that I was setting a very poor example.

She added that teachers who ran extra classes in the holidays for students were trndermining the profession because teachers deserved holidays. The next day a major newspaper carried a story celebrating a teacher who was running holiday classes at school for her Year 1 2 students, prior co major exams. I showed tl1e article to the critic who shook her head and said, "That teacher is placing herself in danger for being called a paedophile." Sadly, this critic was in a senior position within an educational institution.

The selfish sense of entitlement as recounted here and practiced by some teachers provides a negati v e role-model for students about the

namre of work and the nature of a 'professional' person.

Parents sometimes can also do mings, or bring an attitude that brings out the worst, from a skewed sense of ent ti lement. Here I am distinguishing between all responsible piuents wanti n g what is best for their child and more broadly for aU children, whilst understanding the limitations of resources, time, and energ)'.

From tl1e perspective of parents, the worse aspects of entitlement are evidenced by a sense mat their cluld must be in a part ci ttlar team, competition or class. le can also be seen when a parent cannot bear their child being dropped from an extension class or extra curricttlar activicy, even though the child does not merit being there and anomer child is more deserving. egative entitlement can also take tl1e form of unreasonable expectations. lt can be seen when a parent double parks in front of che school, placing me cluldren of other families in danger. It

can also come when there is a demand for attention but no commensurate understanding when limited resources cannot fulfill every demand immediately.

A misplaced sense of entitlement is also evident in tl1e atcicude of some smdents. This can be seen when they seem unable to adapt to circumstances mat arise quite often and are predictable, such as a failure in technology. It is also evident when mey are hasty to complain when expectations are not met, cannot work if there is no air conditioning or are reluctant to work with others, share ideas, time or space. These indicate a lack of resilience and a lack of humility.

Resilience and humility are character traits that an education should instil, foster and grow.

A sense of entitlement that is misplaced, arrogantly asswned or not tempered by empatl1y, patience and kindness, or that is poorly role modelled b)' teachers and parents, is Likely to undermine what a true education can provide.

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FIRSTPERSON

Beating the baby blues Away from her support network, a new mother can feel daunted and overwhelmed

i �

I

BY KALYANI WAKHARE

t left a deep impact on me, but also helped shaped wbo I am today.

Veiled beneath a degree of uncertainty and stigma, post-natal depression is often misunderstood or disregarded.

I suffered from th.is to a significant degree after the birth of my first child, almost bordering on the line of clinical depression.

As a new migrant, with no family support close by and no network of friends with babies, I often felt lonely, daunted and unable to cope with my daily routine. I wept for no reason and felt no interest whatsoever in getting out of the house.

I shared these feelings with my husband who thought I was simply missing my family who were only able to be around until my little one was two and a half months old.

The symptoms just got worse, instead of better, over time. I had nothing new to look forward to; the change-feed-and-comfort routine just went on and on for what felt like eternity! I was supposed to be happy because 1 had a little bundle of joy in my life. '1sn't it natural for a mother to dote on and be lost in love with her new baby?" I would th.ink, and this would bring more guilt imo my heart.

But no matter bow many pre­ birtb classes I attended, or books I read on parenting, notl1ing could prepare me for reality.

My life had turned from that of a busy professional woman with great career aspirations, to being a full-time mother and caretaker witl1 heavy sleep deprivation and no me-time at all! Recouping after a difficult birth and with absolutely no adult around me co have some sort of conversation, I was almost ready to give up. My mother, a psychologist herself, felt terribly concerned, but her long-distance counselling over tl1e phone wasn't exactly helping. All she could say, ultimately, was, '.)use come to India for a few months.'

As tempting as this sounded for me, escaping and rllllning away from the situation wasn't going to help and I knew this within.

It was not practical to leave my husband for months and take my little infant from winter in Sydney tO summer in Mumbai either. I decided co stay on.

We had heard about at home-

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counselling and decided to try it.

Ic worked reasonably well, with fortnightly one-on-one sessions in the comfore of my home. Bm these were limited. The counseUor then advised me to go to new mothers' therapy sessions. The thought of packing all the baby things and reaching tl1e therapy group venue was scary in itself, let alone leaving my baby with a nanny for two hours. Also, I didn't even have a driver's licence at tl1ac stage. The whole idea seemed impossible to me!

And tl1at's when my husband gave me strength and solid support.

He organised a taxi for my weekly sessions, helped me get things ready and organised tl1e night before. Well, before 1 knew

it, I had started enjoying die sessions! I looked forward to Wednesdays, and l even mought about what I'd wear!

The sharing and stories from other mums made me feel less alone: 1 am not the only one'. iVfost mothers there were on anti­ depressants already. They were surprised when I shared that I was not taking any medication, and that I had decided to build my wiUpower to beat this.

Gradually I began co see tl1e bright side of things. 1 started going to the beautician and for coffee by myself over the weekend, leaving the little one co play with her dad, who gladly obliged.

At the end of eight amazing weeks, my little one had grown

up and started giving me smiles. It all made the pain of motherhood worth it. 1 organised a morning cea wim the lovely mod1ers in the group and we all recapped our journey and shared bow things had looked up eventually.

I got a contract from my University to tutor students one day a week, and th.is made rne feel absolucely elated. As much as I loved being a mum, now it was time for the gre)' cells to be stimulated and for me co embrace the oucside world and give back what I learned as a sn1dent! My mother visited us briefly to care for her granddaughter:, and finally we went co Melbourne wben Ananya was six monilis old to celebrate life as new parents and

how we had emerged victorious through tl1e whole post-natal depression journey.

Looking back, I can definitely say that sticking around and fighting the depression was che best thing I did. Today, this incident gives me immense confidence co face adversity and I teU all tl1e new mums I meet, or mums-co-be, to not be too hard on themselves, to depend on their network of friends and family, and call out for any help - including jL1st having a conversation ,vith another adult.

New dads play a really important pare coo; they muse be supportive and keep reiterating what a good mum ilieir wife makes. Believe me, it makes a world of difference!

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•

BOOKS

a1

The seedy underworld ofIndia's financial and entertainment capital has provided fodder for a plethora ofbooks

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' sv _f, CHITRA

,-/

I SUDARSHAN

hile trawling through books about Mumbai a few montl1s ago, I was astmrnded by me number of books written about the Mumbai underworld, their crime bosses and Dons. So ubiquitous is their presence, both in the literature on tl1e city as well as in BollY"vood movies, that this reviewer felt it deserved a whole column!

The Mumbai Mafia bas often been romanticised in BollY"vood movies; yet its tentacles hold the movie industry in a vice-like grip and has become as much a part of Bollrvood as it has of the metropolis itself. \Xiho has not heard of Haji Mastan, Dawood Ibrahim, Varadarajan Mudaliar (Varadabhai), Karinl Lala, Yusuf Patel or Abu Salem?

The Indian Mafia by Srikanta K Ghosh (1991) is one of the earliest books on the subject. It was one of the earliest exposes on the growing inAuence of tl1e mafia up to that time, comprising broadly of antisocials, gangsters, goo11das, musclemen, dt1das and other lumpen elements of the underworld, thriving on crime and vice, on industry, business, politics, education and society at large.

The most definitive contemporary works on tl1e subject are the books written

by S Zaidi Hussain, who is a Mumbai-based crime reporter who had worked with me Indian Expms and Mid-D'D'· His books include Fro111 Do11gri to D11bt1i: Six Dect1des of the MumbaiMafia (Roli, 2012); B!t1ck F,idrg (Penguin 2001); and The Nfajia Q11eens of Mumbai (Tranquebar 201 1). In D011gri to Dubai, he traces the rise (and fall) of me most feared crinle bosses in Mmnbai, from Haji Mastan ro the D-Company that was created by the proteges of Dawood Ibrahim.

The reader would be surprised to learn that l\fastan was tl1e son of a police constable, who built a rumoured billion-dollar empire that he now controls from Dubai and Karachi. Zaidi Hussain's latest book is a detailed biography of a well-known underworld figure Abu Salem who rose swiftly from the ranks of me D-Company. His life is the very stuff of Bollywood movies: a man capable of extreme cruelty and extreme passion for

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his girl£riend, actress Monica Bedi.

The books is titled /1'!)1 J,,Ta111e is

Abu Salem.

Written with Jane Borges, Zaidi Hussain's 1\tiafiaQ11eens of i\if11111bai is a compelling accou.nc of the women of the underworld: tl1e wives, girlfriends of mobsters, madams of brothels, and other ambitious women who were keen to scale the heights of notoriety: women who acted as advisers behind tl1e scenes, or women who took over when meir husbands were killed. One such was Gangubai, a girl who escaped from her small village to me streets of Mumbai and eventually became the matriarch of Kamathipura, Mumbai's red light district.

By far the best book on the Mumbai mafia.

Anil Kapoor

If it wasn't for this book there would be no Shootout at Wada/a.

Sanjay Gupta

The Most Dangerous Man in the World (2008) is an interesting

biography of Dawood Turn.him

by Gilbert King. The book begins by jmtaposing Ibrahim and Osama bin Laden, and King argues tl1at bin Laden is a pauper by comparison! The

GR

S. HUSSAIN ZAIDI

tDt ..DECADES OF. 1Yj � MARA

Author S Zaidi Hussain Dqy, who had also worked with the Indian Express and Hi11dusta11 Ti111e.r, Jyotirmoy Dey CJ-Dey) wrote a book

Kallaas: An A-Z Guide to the U11dem1orld, which was, as the

former controls a multi-billion dollar empire and his D Company is one of tl1e most politically connected gangs in the world, controlling some of me most lucrative drug and nuclear smuggling routes. The aumor traces Ibrahim's links with me ISI to 1991, and alleges that me communal riots unleashed in Mumbai in 1993 can be attributed to his D Company; he now lives 'like a king' in Karachi, and is purported to have bailed out Pakistan's Central Bank during the eris.is in 2000. There are several such connections he draws in the book, including the allegation mat Ibrahim had a role to play in the kidnapping of Daniel Pearl in Pakistan, and worked with AQ Khan in the illegal smuggling of nuclear material.

Anomer crime reporter and Editor of lnvestigations for Mid-

title suggested, a complete guide to tl1e Mumbai Mafia.

He wrote another book called Zero Ditr!, an expose on police informers. He amassed a wealth of information on tl1e subject by talking to the police, gang members, informers and tl1e dons themselves. His books also give an exhaustive list of euphemisms that the underworld uses to outsmart law enforcers. (These were later used by Vikram Chandra with great effect in his gangland-novel Samd Ga/Iles). So close was J-Dey to tl1e truth that this fearless journalisr was shot dead by four unknown hitmen in 20· 11; he was working on bis third book on underworld (and its connection to me oil mafia).

Bollywood's fascination wim me underworld - despite its vice grip on the industry today - has produced several movies from the above books. D011g1i to D11bt1i was

adapted by Sanjay Gupta into tbe movie Shooto11t at lf7rldala stan:ing Johan Abraham; Black Ftiday was adapted by Anurag Kashyap into a movie, and after a court battle was released in 2004. Meenal Baghel, another investigative journalist, wrote an account of a sensational murder in Mtunbai, which was nirned into a movie by Raj Gopal Verma called Not " Love Sto,y.

Mumbai's mafia and tl1e underworld have changed and adapted witb the iinancial capital's changing character.

Their beginnings can be traced back co tl1e early years of India's lndependeoce when tl1e Maharashtra government's prohibition policy led to bootlegging, and tl1e associated business of matka - an illegal gambling racket. In the 1960s, Varadarajan Munuswamy Mudaliar (aka Varadabhai), Haji Mastan and Yusuf Patel were the big players. The collapse of me textile industry in Mumbai around mat time led to tl1e rise of Dawood Ibrahim and his cohort.

The watershed event, however, is the Stock Exchange serial blasts of 1993 that left 257 dead and hundreds maimed; it changed the face of organised crime in MLm1bai. Until then, tl1e w1derworld had attracted Hindu and Muslim unemployed youths.

Dawood Ibrahim's involvement in tl1e serial blasts, however, (prompted by the ISi, according to King), changed it forever: most Hindus drew a line mere and left his gang. His trusted lien.tenant Chota Rajan formed his own gang in South East Asia.

Also, whereas most of the mob leaders had hailed from Mumbai and its surrounds until the 1992; today most of them come from outside Maharashtra, mostly from UP and Bihar, and their use of katt1.r (hand.made pisrols) has proliferated. \"v'hereas once gold and silver smuggling was lucrative, today ha111a!t1 and money laundering, illegal trade in sophisticated arms and illicit drugs are the favoured activities of organised crime in Mumbai. Excortion, film financing and the smuggling of computer parts are now tl1eir bread and butter. Dons ate no longer simply satisfied with a share of profits from tl1e Bollywood film industry - they want partnerships, and a slice of overseas rights for film and music distribution. Their transnational linkages into legitimate businesses like hotels, real estate and me movie industry, have made it more difficult for law-enforcement agencies co rein them in.

APRIL (1) 2015 35

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Gourmet Gir A touch ofHoli mas ti extends to the kitchen

FOOD

s!

T

he rolling pins were out with a vengeance as a large group of fun-loving women gor together to celebrate Holi by learning to cook some traditional and modern sweets.

The recipes and i11strucrions were provided by well-known hobby cook Suneeri Misra from Rowville and the event was hosted

by Dr Ina Takkar at her residence in Glen Waverley.

An apron competition was held wid1 some uber cool designs on display including ones that said, Be my lamb chop and I have PMS (Power . i\foney. Sex). The winning apron was a sizzling pin-up girl design donned by Sanjoo

Kohli from Wheelers Hill.

Sharing recipes and cooking wim good company was great fun.

It was also a time to tall,, socialise and catch up widi each ocher.

Cooking wim lots of laughter and good conversat i on around you, never fails to lighten up me mood. A great time was had by all.

Suoeeti Misra shares me recipes wim our readers.

''

Cooking with lots of laughter and good conversation around you, never fails to lighten up the mood

''

NATIONAL EDITION

1 cup almond meal 1 cup sugar 2 ½ cup milk powder 600 ml thickened cream 1 tsp green cardamom powder

!• •

•

Mix all the ingredients together Place in a silicon container and microwave for about 8 minutes at medium or 60% power.

Take out and stir. Put back in microwave for a further eight minutes.

Repeatafter stirring or until the milk cake turns pinkish brown in colour.

Allow to cool and cut into pieces.

For dough: 1 cup self-raising flour 2 cups milk powder 400 ml thickened cream For filling: 100 gms green pistachio, soaked in water and powdered 1 tsp green cardamom powder Pinch safuon For syrup: 1 kg sugar 750 ml water for syrup

To make filling, mix a l l ingredients together.

To make the sugar syrup, boil water and sugar together until one-string consistency is reached when a spoon is lifted off from it To make dough, knead together self­ raising flour, milk powder and cream until a roti-dough-like consistency is reached.

Divide dough into equal parts and shape into balls. Flatten and put filling inside and shape them into sausages.

Deep fry till golden brown and dunk them in the boiling sugar syrup.

Cover with lid and leave for ten minutes.

Take out carefully and allow to cool down before cutting into halves.

APRIL (1) 2015 37

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FOOD

It's an unlikely combination, but try the sweet, juicy flavours of a watermelon curry

W

har is a curry?

It is an age­ old question that has been debated far and beyond with no hope of an answer in sighrl As far as Wikipedia goes, rhere is a definitive meaning co a curry: 'Cuny is a dish 111hose 01igi11s are i,1

So11th and Southeast Asian cuisines.

The co111,no11feature is the i11corporatio11 f spices or ef covrplex combinations herbs, 11s11alb1 inc/11dingfresh or d,ied hot chillies. '

o

Now, the hisrory of the cerm 'curry' is also very inreresting. The word was coined by the British Raj for the thick, meaty stews char were resplendent with spices and herbs. Some say that this is derived from the Tamil word 'k.an' which usually denotes meat. So if you head down co Tamil Nadu and say kari, it acn1ally means meat pieces rather dian 'curry'.

There are a couple of otber explanations too, but all of rl1ese are vague and in disagreement, so I guess we will never know the real history.

Ir's the same story with 'curry powder'. Traditionally, Indians don't use any spice blend called curry powder while the rest of d1e world uses it in tonnes.

For an Indian, a curry

practically denotes any dish which bas a gravy co it. And when die dish does not have a traditional name, we call it a curry.

This recipe is for a watermelon curry. Yes, you heard right - a watermelon curry; rind and all!

This curry is a far cry from the rich, spicy gravies. The watermelon curry is a famous dish of Rajasthao and can be enjoyed with both ph11/kas (Indian wheat Rat bread) and rice.

Yes, there is sweetness from tbe watermelon, bur then there is a whole lot of Aavour from the spices that penetrate deep into the melon pieces ro give you a delicious, refreshing and light dish.

This is a curry that stands as a perfect example to the fact tbat spices do not mean hear but Aavour. The cumin, carom seeds, nigella seeds and dried chillies release all their Aavour into the oil and cut into the sweemess of the melon pieces. The soft rind of rl1e watermelon adds just the right amount of bite and texture to an other\Vise soft dish.

The mosc beautiful part of this curry is the fact that you can use the rind part of the watermelon.

Usually cur our in chunks and thrown away, the watermelon rind can be delicious if cooked io the right manner. It is ju.icy, succulent and moist, absorbing every bit of tbe flavour like a sponge.

Next time, think twice before cutting away the rind.

Add it co the curries that you make at home, vegetarian or non-vegetarian, and enjoy the deliciousness of the humble rind.

1 kg seedless watermelon with rind 2 tbsp vegetable oil ½ tsp ajwain/carom seeds ½ tsp cumin seeds ½ tsp nigella seeds (black onion seeds) 3 dried red chillies, broken into small pieces 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped Salt, to season 1/4 tsp turmeric powder 2 tsp fresh coriander leaves, finely chopped I

f

Cut the outer dark green layer of the watermelon rind keeping the inner whitish­ green rind intact. Remove the red flesh ofthe watermelon from the whitish rind; dice both separately and keep aside.

NATIONAL EDITION

Heat oil in a pan and add the whole spices; ajwain, cumin, nigella and dry red chillies.

When fragrant, add the garlic and saute on medium heat for about 30 seconds.

Add the watermelon rind pieces and turmeric powder, mix well and season with salt. Cover and look for about 6-7 minutes till the rind has browned and softened. Do not add any water.

In the meantime, blitz half the watermelon flesh pieces and keep aside.

After 7 minutes, add the blitzed watermelon pulp and ½ cup water; mix to combine and cook covered till the rind has become tender.

Then add the remaining flesh pieces and cook on high for 3-4 minutes.

Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve warm.

APRIL (1) 2015 39

M AT R I M O N I A L S SEEKING BRIDES

Well-settled, Brahmin, Tamil speaking, Iyer family invites alliance for

Seeking match for a 32-year-old, Hindu boy. Good looking, unmarried, very mature, respects traditional and modern values. Non-smoker, social drinker. Manager at a large hardware company in Fiji, Looking for unmarried /divorced witb no ties.

Please communicare via email at aarya_syd@hom1ail.com or ph 0421420902

27-year-old daughter, S'S tall, good-looking, Australian Cirizen, working full­ time in Sydney. Boy should be vegerarian, non-smoker, non-drinker, well­ educated and settled in Australia. Please comacr us on 0403120045.

North Indian parents KP, settled in Australia, invire alliance for chemical engineer

son - 6fr, '88 born, working in gas indusrry. Looking for professional girl with good family background. Contact wirh full details- kashaust@gmail.com

slim, 29 years, 5'7", in Finance 6eld. Family settled in Australia for pasr 35 years.

Elder sister married, settled in Sydney. Parenrs working in Government firms.

Please send photos and details to jyoti2015au@gmail.com

Qualified professional match for Punjabi boy, 30, 5'11", fair, CA, Australian

Match required for my sister - 5' 5", 26, beautiful, slim, fair complexion,

Seeking Punjabi boy for professional Sydney-based Sikh girl, beautiful,

citizen & working wirh bank in Sydney. Girl should be Hindu, 23 m 29, fair, slim, well qualified & Australian citizen. Please send photo & details to: deesanj5@gmail.com

Ramgharia Sikh, Masters in Accounting. Working in Sydney. Caste no bar.

Contact: 0412 96 I 92.

Bride wanted for Sydney-based, Indian origin Punjabi Khatri boy - settled/working

Well-settled, moderate Indian Muslim family invites alliance for 25-year-old

in Sydney as an Anstralian Citizen; 33 years old; CPA and i\lIBA qualified; rail (175 m1); slim; no siblings; parents living in Delhi; prefer bride to be professionally qualified, willing to Live in Sydney, call/slim/fair complexion, between 25 to 32 years old, never married, enjoys an active and healthy Lifestyle. Please contact Anuj on 0424 533 120 Matrimonial alliance invited by Medical Doctor, 27, Saraswat, Mararhi, from a

professionally (not necessarily medical) qualified girl from a repmed Hindu family. Boy 170cm ralJ, fair complexioned with medium build. He would like m settle in Sydney or in a bustling township of NSW Casre, community no bars. Reply with photograph ro dabols@iinet.ner.au

daughter, good-looking, Masters Degree and Australian Citizen. Working full­ time in Sydney. Boy should be moderate, well-educated and settled in Australia.

Please contact zafsha1964@hotmail.com.

Hindu lady, 57, Australia citizen, fair complexion and young looking,

divorced, Sydney-based, seeks suitable match, between 52-60. Call: 0449623316 anytime or email: radiauce88@live.com Seeking Punjabi boy for professional Sydney-based Sikh girl, beautiful,

SEEKING GROOMS

slim, 29 years, 5'7", in Finance field. Family settled in Australia for past 35 years.

Elder sister married, settled in Sydney. Parents working in Government firms.

Please send photos and details ro jyoti20 lSau@gmaiJ.com

Well-settled family in Australia invites alliance for 27-year-old, 5'7 Indian girl,

Well settled family in Australia invites alliance for 27-year-old, 5'7 lndian

Australian citizen, working in the Australian public service on good salary. Please send bio data/particulars to fordsyd88@gmaiJ.com. Professional match preferred from Australian citizen or PR status

girl, Australian citizen, working in the .Australian public service on good salary.

Please send bio darn/particulars to fordsyd88@gmaiJ.com. Professional march preferred from Australian Citizen or PR status

Well-settled/professional alliance invited for 40-year-old, 165cm, beautiful, fair,

Well-settled/professional alliance invited for 40 year-old, 165cm, beautiful, fair, never-married. Masters in IT, Punjabi Arora girl. She is India-born, Australian citizen, family orientated, working as an IT professional in M C in Sydney. Please contact with recent photo: sydgirl09@gmail.com

never-married, Masters in IT, Punjabi Arora girl. She is India-born Australian citizen, family orientated, working as an IT professional in l\1lNC in Sydney. Please contact with recent photo: sydgir109@gmail.com

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NATIONAL EDITION

APRIL (1) 2015 41

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H e co m b i n es bo t h A s t ro l o g y a n d n u m e ro l o g y t o n1 a ke a c c u rate p red i ct i o n by h o r osco p e , pa l m i s t ry, H a n d r e a d i ng , fa c e re a d i n g , d a te of b i r t h a n d s u g g es t . H e \JVi l l p red i c t p a st , p re se n t & fut u re a n d w i l l p rov i d e y o u w i t h s u g g e s t i o n s .

Too m a n y peo p l e h ave s u ffe r e d at th e h a n d s of t h e w r o n g r n fo r m a t i o n b e i n g p re s e n t e d . H e h a s b e e n a b I e t o ove r t u r n a 1 1

of t h e s e i nj u st i c e s a n d t u r n e d i t a l l a r o u n d wit h t r u e l i g ht o f t h e a n g e l i c rea l m .

Solutio1n offered by him: Definitel1y help you in finding the 1 re im e,d ies for problem s re l ated1 to:

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FORETELL

TPRrn1cT10Ns i:oR APRIL �y NANCY JADE ALTMEA

ARIES tvlarc h 21 - April 19

LIBRA Sep 23 - Oct 22

TAURUS April 20 - tvlay 20

SCO RPIO Oct 23 - Nov 21

G E M I N I tvl ay 21 - J u ne 20

SAG ITTARIUS Nov 22 - Dec 21

CANCER J u ne 21 - J u l y 20

CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 19

LEO J u l y 21 - Aug 22

AQUARIUS Jan 20 - !=eb 18

VIRGO Aug 23 - Sep 22

PISCES !=eb 19 - tvl a rch 20

This month you will be concentrating o n the relationship area of your life. Things may have been a little stressful last month, but you will be planning some special nights in or out. Children may cause you some concern, as there may be some issues that need your attention. Plan ahead with any business ideas, there will be paperwork that needs your attention. The cards are indicating a time when you will be thinking about re-decorating.

Love i s i n the air for you this month and you will want to take your romantic interest to the next level. You are feeling sexy and full of passion. This is also a wonderful time to spend time and energy on your career. You will be rewarded and recognised for your efforts.

The cards are showing that you will do best to avoid excessive drinking and heavy foods. A positive time with financial stability and progression.

This month you will be looking at a clear out. There will be a feeling of wanting to throw out the old and bring in the new. You will be making some major plans around your property and there could be some things that need your attention. Your partner may not be feeling too well, and the cards are indicating a time when you will be planning a relaxing get away. Your finances are also improving later this month.

There may be some conflict in the relationship area of your life this month. Reconnect with your partner and spend some quality time together. Passion and renewal is needed. Work will be a little demanding and your colleagues may also be slightly irritating.

There are some who are trying too hard to please your bosses.

There could be an increase in finances and a promotion. An eye check is needed so make a booking.

This month you will be planning some parties and reunions with friends you have not seen for some time. Work will be stressful you will be required to work overtime and will also be working to deadlines. The cards are indicating that you need to stay clear of any confrontations or conflicts in the workplace. There will be some family matters that need your attention. You may feel a little fatigued and stressed out.

You seem to be worrying about things for no reason and the month will start with a lot of stress and tension. There is some great news with regard to your work/business, and you will definitely be making progress with regard to projects and business associates.

Relationships will need some tender, loving care so make sure you take some time out together and plan a short family break The cards indicate the purchase of a new car.

NATIONAL EDITION

This month you will be busy communicating with your friends and relatives. You seem to be buzzing around like a social butterfly. There will be some lovely quality time spent with your loved ones. Life has been treating you well lately and you are feeling quite happy in your current situation. The cards are indicating that you may be looking to make some investments. You will need to make some wise decisions regarding the future.

This month you will be sorting out your work situation. There will be some important decisions to make around what you want to do and there is some confusion around where you are currently. The cards are indicating a time when you will be changing your mind quite a lot You will get some good news about study and courses.

You will be trying to save money. You are also keen to find a new partner.

You need to keep your appetite under control, as you will be quite tempted by the advances of members ofthe opposite sex. At work there may be some interesting llalsons and encounters. There are some department changes and you may be offered an opportunity to progress in your job. Finances will be stable and you will be able to save and make some large purchases. Support your partner who may be feeling unwell and stressed.

This month you will be feeling hot and sexy. Your mind will be dizzy with love and pleasure. You will meet some interesting people and you may even start a relationship with someone who you meet by chance. There will be some family responsibility that needs attention. Property matters and paperwork need to be kept up to date. There will be some plans to travel. Finances will be getting better, but watch your spending.

Your partner may be feeling restless and want to make some changes in their career. Children will be the apple of your eye this month as they produce some excellent results at school.There will be some proud moments and prizes. Make sure your car has had a full service as there seem to be a few problems with tyres. The cards are indicating you will plan to make some improvements in your garden area.

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This month you will be trying to sort out some planning and building regulations for a property. You may have to go through some questions that will be taxing and stressful. There will be some interest in another property purchase too.Work will be interesting as there will be some employees leaving soon. Your health needs to be looked after as you have been suffering from a lot of stress lately.

Start walking regularly.

APRIL 0) 2015 43

TME TAWAIF GOES TO TME BEER BAR BARKHAA

STARRING: Sara Loren, Taha Shah, Puneet lssar, Priyanshu Chatterjee DIRECTOR: Shadaab Mirza

P

akeezah goes to the beer bar. Or some such tagline would serve this fairly watchable melodrama's purposes.

Melodrama as a genre in Indian cinema has gone out of vogue. Debuta.nt dfrector Shadaab ·M]rza weaves an emotional yarn about a girl's journey from the pristine Himachal hinterland into a beer bar run by an incredibly benign South Indian man who could be one of those caring madams in the films about fallen women set in kotbas.

To his credit, the director doesn't over-romanticise the bar gid Bai:khaa's tmnultuous life story, at least not initially when she is shown to be quite a tease.

The scenes showing the rich pampered lawyer's besorred son Jatin (Taha Shah, stiff and not just in the upper-lip) frequenting the bar to dart lovelorn looks at his object of adoration are met wid1 a disarming mix of amusement and annoyance by Barkhaa.

The scenes featuring the mismatched couple's tragic game of seduction in the bar are effective in putting across a sense of incredulity about the cruel jokes played by destiny especially in movies about ... well, d1e cruel jokes played by destiny.

A large part of die film's effectiveness depends on lead actress Sara Loren, who is emotively motivated, understands the camera and the power of heightened emotions expressed on screen, and is powerfully empowered to convey a weald1 of emotions through her eyes and voice.

But the film 's finest performances comes from Ashiesh Roy as the level beaded unbelievably kind bar owner. Roy in1parts a naniral ease to his over-sweetened part in

a fiJm where everybody strains to make an impact.

Regrettably, Loren's strong performance is saddJed with bizarre coincidences and unconvincing twists and turns in the narration which plot to diminish her screen presence.

The story rends to veer dangerously close to the d1eatrical, especially after mid­ point when the proceedings begin to veer absurdly close to the outrageous.

Yet, there is a semblance of sincerity in d1e way the life of bar dancer is humanised without making her look angelic.

The fiJm refuses co glamorise and caricamrise the bar dancer the way Farah Khan did in Happy Ne,v YeCll: At d1e same time, d1e narrat v i e won't tolerate a bar dancer being dubbed a prostitute.

There's a moment of terrific awakening where Asbiesb Roy's bat owner's character lashes out at someone who tries to buy d1e heroine's sexual favours for a night.

Eventually Barkhaa's world begins co fall apart. The same, unfortunately is true of the film.

But in taking the life of a ta1JJt1if from om of the ornate kotha into the harsh glare of the beer bar, Barkhaa succeeds in portraying a cinematic journey worth undertaking.

There is also a .reformist zea.l in the script d1at B.R. Chopra would have approved of in the way the film's hero insists on marrying a bar girl who is a mother of a little girl.

If only real life had such solutions to offer distressed women and victims of social hypocrisy.

Barkhaa rains down a rhapsody of drama and romance. A heart-wanning at times, touching tale of an innocent girl's journey into the world of deceit, compromise and corruption, it echoes Ra Kapoor's Ra111 Teri j

Ganga ,\{aili and Kamal Amrohi's Pakeezah in ilie way the respectable genteel upper class is shown co exploit women of meagre means.

Sara Loren is no Jv[eena Kurnari. But she kills me part much better man Mandakini in

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Liverpoolc1 Y<:Oll1ct

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44 APRIL (1) 2015

Raj Kapoor's fevered fable.

Breasts are left behind. This Ganga is not 111aili. Just maligned.

SUBHASH K. JHA

DEPUTY MAYOR

GUS BALLOOT

It is with great humility I take on the role of Deputy Mayor for Liverpool City Council. I wish to firstly, thank my fellow Councillors for entrusting me with this important role. I also thank Peter Ristevski for his work in the role as the previous Deputy Mayor and congratulate him on his achievements. I look forward to working with my fellow Councillors and the community in taking our great city to even greater heights and am excited by what the future holds for our community.

Great news for residents as Council recently commenced construction on the final stage ofthe $21 million upgradeto Kurrajong Road.The upgradeswill seethe road extended from Kookaburra Road North to Sarah Hollands Drive. This complex and significant project will include the construction of a four-lane urban road between Kookaburra Road North and Sarah Hollands Drive, a 75-metre long concrete bridge over Cabramatta Creek, installation ofmajor storm water management systems plus streetscaping including landscaping, shared paths and street lighting. Once finished, the extension of Kurrajong Road and the associated works will provide direct east-west links between the Hume Highway, Casula and Cowpasture Road in Carnes Hill, greatly improving traffic access and conditions.

Construction ofthe final stage of Kurrajong Road is expected to finish by the end of201 5.

GUS BALLOOT Deputy Mayor

email : cllrball oot@I iverpool .nsw.gov.au

For more information please visit www.liverpool.nsw.qov.au or phone 1300 36 2170

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APRIL (1) 2015 45

So you've all seen My Choice , Homi Adajania's film about women's empowerment, starring the beautiful Deepika Padukone, for Vogue magazine's social initiative on women. You've shared it on Facebook and Twitter (no doubt with the message "So inspiring!" or"Go Deepika!" or some such), impressed with the slickly produced black-and-white two­ minute production that tells us that women have choices.

And now, you find yourself believing the non-believers.

Is a woman's choice only about body size, wearing skirts, coming home at 4am, and sexual and reproductive decisions?

What about rape, female foeticide, domestic violence, workplace harassment, pay gap, the intrusive male gaze or all those other issues that a woman has to deal with ever y day?

A man, making a film on women's empowerment? And a magazine that commodities women, making a statement on empowerment?

Strange choices indeed . . .

Your choice

GUSI-IING ABOUT AGASI-IE ON INDIAN LINK RADIO

H

e's a psychiatrist by profession, and also a well-known actor in India's 'thinking' cinema and theatrical circles (Nishant, Gandhi, Gangaajal). He's also had success in your regular commercial fillums (Trimurti, Oil Aashna

Hai, Jism2).

Yet, thespian Dr Mohan Agashe revealed on Indian Link Radio recently, that he takes it with a grain of salt when people come up to him with the drab one­ liner, "Aapko kahin dekha ha/ (Seen you somewhere)''.

"Some actors are overshadowed by their stardom, while some let the character take over," Dr Agashe said with characteristic humility and much wisdom.

In a leisurely chat with broadcaster Priyanka Tater live in the studio, he spoke articulately about the business of films, the 'psychology' of films, and his experiences with the greats and the not-so-greats of cinema. He also spoke of his latest work, the critically acclaimed and award winning Marathi film Astu (So be it) based on Alzheimer's disease which he screened for a select audience in Sydney.

While he cleverly side-stepped queries about his time working with the 'stars' (because what happens on set, stays on set!), he was more than happy to juxtapose his experience working with"Manik Da" aka Satyajit Ray on the one hand and Subhash Ghai on the other.

Way back in 1980, while at work on the Doordarshan telefilm Sadgati based on Munshi Premchand's book, veteran director Manik Da, Dr Agashe revealed, would have every scene sketched out in detail on paper. Fifteen years later, you would assume, things would have been even more systematic. But no! Working on Trimurti, all Mohan got from director Subhash Ghai, was a verbal description of the scene, forget about the script!

And yes, this one definitely ought to be shared: Mohanji once arrived on set at 9.30am as instructed, only to start work a full twelve hours later at 9.30pm, because "Ghai sahab scene likh rahey they!"

Nevertheless, Dr Agashe made it clear that though meaningful cinema is like a nutritious diet ensuring a person's creative and mental wellbeing, "Bollywood potboilers" are equally needed, for some spice and fun in life.

His own Marathi film Astu dares to deal with the subject of Alzheimer's, in a heart-wrenching story of a daughter and her father (played by Mohan) who suffers from the disease.

"If you love your parents, then this is a film for you," Dr Agashe said of the film.

"Dr Agashe literally swept me off my feet;' Priyanka said later. "The artist in him refused to take a backseat, as his histrionics were in full play off-air, while the songs were playing. He was tapping his feet, shaking his head and shoulders, rolling his eyes and enjoying every bit of the music:• Of course his expert eye kept a close watch on Priyanka as she deftly handled the listeners' questions and kept the pace of the interview going.

And when he passed 'judgment' on his interviewer - "Seasoned ho," - she knew she would value it for a very long time.

46 APRIL 0) 2015

Odd couple

Deepika Padukone and Varun Dhawan?

Strange choice . . . Oops, sorry for repeating ourselves here!

The two, it is rumoured, will feature in the Hindi adaptation of popular tear­ jerker The Fault in Our Stars, made by, surprise surprise, Homi Adajania again!

"I don't think it is an unusual pair;• Homi said recently."lt's a fresh pairing... both actors are young and I think there is a nice organic balance between the two:• Whatever that means.

In any case, the film-maker continued, the film is still in the scripting stage, and he will only finalise the cast when the final draft is ready. The story is only based on the famous Hollywood production, with a fresh script by Dinesh Vijan.

"It is not going to go out before next October, so it is premature to discuss (casting) now;· he said.

After that initial scepticism he's probably rushing back to the drawing board to rethink his, er, choices (someone please stop us from using that term again and again when it comes to Homi!)

Not hurting religious sentiments

There have been reports that the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) invited religious leaders for the screening of Dharam Sankat Mein, a move that the film's lead actors Paresh Rawal and Naseruddin Shah say is absurd.

The Board's reasoning seems to be that if the religious leaders (including a Muslim maulvi and a Hindu pandit) give the film a "clean chit"before certification, it would save them and the fi lm-makers from controversies later.

The plotline of Dharam SankatMein revolves around Hindu man Dharampal (Paresh) who goes through an identity crisis when he discovers he was adopted as a child and born to a Muslim family.

Naseeruddin Shah, who will be seen

as a guru of a spiritual organisation in the upcoming satirical comedy, says no religion or group will find anything objectionable in the film as"whatever is shown in it is factual and correct''.

"We have taken care of sentiments of all the religions and groups. We are not mocking religion in the film but the people who have made religion a source of their business;• the actor clarified.

An official Hindi adaptation of British satire The Infidel, the film also stars Annu Kapoor.

Directed by Fuwad Khan, Dharam Sankat Mein is slated for release on April 10.

Naseeruddin may pen tell-all on Bollywood

After his memoir And Then One Day, which has been very well-received by critics and public alike, veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah is now all set to do an encore - this time an unflinchingly honest expose of people in the film industry.

"I do think the most interesting phase of my life has been covered. The rest is smooth-sailing. Now what I can do is a treatise on my experiences in the film industry. I don't think that's a bad idea;• said Naseeruddin.

"There are many things that I do want to say about the film industry. I might write it in the third-person. Then I'd have the right to be more candid without being diplomatic or hurting egos,"he added.

The 65-year-old says he never expected the first part to be so well­ received.

"I thought they'd be extremely skeptical about an actor trying to write.

I never thought the book would sell as much as it did in my country, or that the Indian critics would be anything but condescending towards it:' Not that this actor-extraordinaire ever doubted his writing abilities.

"I knew thatthose who cared to read through my account would like it.

Constructing sentences properly and writing essays have been my strong points right from school days. I did know I had a certain ability with words. So I knew

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DEEPIKA PADU KONE besides Kalki and directed by Shonali Bose, Margarita is the poignant portrayal of a rebellious young woman with cerebral palsy who leaves her home in India to study in New York, unexpectedly falls in love and embarks on an exhilarating journey of self-discovery.

"When Shonali (Bose) e -mailed me the script, I immediately wrote back to tell her that I loved it;' Kalki said recently. "It scared the hell out of me that she could even think that I could do this!"

ShonaIi says she picked Kalki for this special role because she is a "risk taker and willing to push herself''.

One of the industry's most powerful couples Aamir Khan and Kiran Rao have got behind the film to ensure it gets a good screening country-wide. The pair have often helped support small budget films like this one that are pushing the boundaries of cinema in contemporary India, in the process giving the industry

I wouldn't get whipped by the critics:' Hmm, an expose on the workings of the industry, coming from an art-house bigwig. Cab we expect some pole-khole type material?

Certain films need support more than business

Another art-house type personality has been in the news recently, and not just for her upcoming divorce from director Anurag Kashyap.

Kalki Koechlin's new film Margarita With A Straw is set for a nation-wide release after doing the film-festival circuit.

It won an award at the Toronto International Film Festival last year and also earned Kalki the Best Actress Award at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival.

It has also been selected to open the New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF) on May 4, Starring Revathi and Sayani Gupta

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WI-IO WORE IT BETTER?

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• •

.. .• .• • • •

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Malaika Arora Khan or Marion Cottillard in Christian Dior?

Share your views with us on our Facebook page /lndianLinkAustralia

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some much-needed international exposure.

Kalki declared at the trailer launch that such support matters more to her than box office collections or the stamping of her film as a hit or a flop.

Meanwhile, the acclaimed Bengali director rues how mainstream Hindi film-makers do not show a willingness to move beyond the tried and tested.

"We have such talented actors in the industry here but our directors and producers do not give them the challenges that they are up for;'the seven-time National Award winner said.

To see if Kalki has risen to the challenge, we'll have to wait until the film releases on April 17.

WhatTweety Bird told us this week

Match the stars to their tweets: Farah Khan, Sonam Kapoor, Amitabh Bachchan, Salman Khan, Nargis Fakhri, Ranveer Singh, Karan Johar, Shilpa Shetty, Priyanka Chopra.

"Bye bye NYC .. Mumbai calling.. Yay! Can't wait to be home!!" ''AnAirbus crashes.... cricket match hysteria...nations award celebrations! Life is truly a pendulum oscillating between Khushi and Gham...."

"OKAAAYYY ! 74 million on twitter !! 20million on FB ... 3 million on Blog .. 40 MILLION here I COME!!!!

BADDDOOOOMMBA !!!!"

'Travelling home wt m e was Aryan khan.

Gauri n @iamsrk take a bow, what a well brought up gentleman he is, waitd 4 my bags n escorted me 2 my car" "Video from Bajrangi Bhaijaan shoots" ''At the #FeminaMisslndia2075 as ajudge:) Wearing MonishaJaising, earrings farah Khan and rings roots atelier" "In case you missed it-my 'Amazeballs Bollywood Rewind';) .... enjoy!"

"As per media, apparently a dinner crowd of 8 at a pizza place is the same as a 'quiet dinner at aplush sobo hotel."'

"Hey guys I'm on the cover of the April issue of @vogueindia! Catch my exclusive interview..."

Now you Bollywood junkies out there (you know who you are), this should be easy for you.

APRIL (1) 2015 47

BACKCHAT

The world's worst police? Check out these worrying and disgraceful tales

I

really hate that Eminem song that uses a police siren as an instrument Every time it's on the car radio I have a heart attack. Why are the police foUowing me and why can't ] see them?

Hoc Tip: Make sure you look wildly off your head in your driver's licence photo so that when traffic cops stop you and check it, the real-life you looks comparatively calm and sober.

Police are on my mind after I saw a news item about cops who raided a brothel and found four colleagues using ic.

The really bad thing was that the embarrassed officers were supposed co be on an important assignment taking a murderer from jail co a cli.nic and back.

The realJy, really bad thing was that during the arrests, murderer Baiju Yadav slipped away into the nearb)' rownship (this happened in West Bengal, lndia).

The really, really, really bad thing was that the murderer voluntarily returned to the prison that night and cold police bosses that he was a good guy who hadn't wanted ro go co the brothel but the nasty cops forced him to. \X'hen a convicted murderer is telling people that in his opinion you and your mates are seriously bad dudes, your reputations are pretty much shot.

1 was speaking with some friends and told d1em that this was d1e worst "bad cops" tale I had heard for a while, but d1ey all cried to rop ic.

The American said diat New York judges were so horrified by the corruption of bad cop L ouis Eppolito chat he was jailed for "life plus 100 years", so technically speaking jailers will have to keep his corpse behind bars for a cenmry. Imagine the conversation in, say, the year 2100. "\Xfho's in cell nine?" "Eppolito's skeleton.

He's a bit on the quiet side."

The American also cold me about a US policeman named Jonathan Garcia who used to sell drugs while in uniform. Wonder what his standard line was? "Come om wirn your hands up and check out these items available at a low,

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The Hong Kong police force is angelically pure now but used co be bad. One Comrnissioner of Police was officiaUy described as "an excellent law enforcement officer", che only stain on his copybook being that he ran a string of brothels in die street ne.xr co police HQ. In l 971, Hong Kong civil servants decided to check out the personal property acquired by a suspiciously Aashy police sergeant named Hon Sum: they found he had a fortune in the bank, two limousines and 49 homes.

Being a male-doi:ninated group,

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our conversation quickly escalated into a "my officials are corrupter than yours" contest The mainland Chinese representative, who always has co be number one in any discussion, held up corrupt official Lai Changxing who stole a world-beating $10 billion, but he was beaten by lndonesia's Suharto, with an estimated cake of more than $15 billion.

Meanwhile, if police DO stop you for speeding, l can certify d1at attempts to talk your way out of trouble with science don't work: "If we factor in tl1e 1,600 km/h speed of the earth's rotation, we're all speeding, right?"

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