Friday, May 06 2016 | Vol. 35, No. 19
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Movie Review
BAAGHI
Indo American erican News
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Power Packed Show of Lladro’s Collection @ Karat 22
Chanakya
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Rajender Singh from Star Promotions with Manoj Joshi as Chanakya.
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COMMUNITY BY VANSHIKA VIPIN STAFFORD: On Sunday, May 1, the curtain went up for the Historical Hit ‘Chanakya’, at the Stafford Civic Center. The play, with Manoj Joshi as the protagonist, is a modest attempt to read glorious pages from India’s past. Star Promotions, Rajender Singh, a legendary show promoter presented the show to the Houston audience. He is also the national promoter of the USA tour of this play. The tour, which will last for about a month, is another success story for Rajender, after last year’s hit ‘Mera Who Matlab Nahi Tha’ starring Anupam Kher and Neena Gupta. Such was the success of ‘Mera Who Matlab Nahi Tha’ that everyone really looked forward to ‘Chanakya’. Chanakya was a great statesman, a political strategist and the one who created a nation out of squabbling kingdoms. Chanakya endeavored to present an opportunity for introspection towards the society and the leaders of the society, to proclaim that the Nation is supreme and selfless love for the nation is the only virtuous selfishness and that Family, Friends and Fortune, all are secondary. Veteran actor Manoj Joshi has successfully completed over 950 shows of this historical hit by priming the audience with a meaningful experience. ‘Chanakya’, the play has been instrumental to recognize sonata form, going to the heights of an emotional roller coaster and leading to droves of raving fans. Joshi, who has been doing this play for the last 26 years, had put in close to four years on research prior to starting this. Joshi has also given some amazing performances
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Chanakya Captivates Houston Audience
in about 100 movies and numerous serials. Some of his notable performance in Bollywood were in the movies Hulchul, Sarfarosh, Devdas, Page 3, Phir Hera Pheri, Guru, Khatta Meetha, Dabangg 2, apart from many more. The play started off with Joshi, who was dressed as the character Chanakya, introducing himself. Addressing the mobile phones as the ‘rakshasas’ (devils) of the present day, he requested the audiences to put their phones on a silent mode. The play resumed and so did the powerful performances of each of its actors. Based on the life and teachings of Chanakya, Joshi played the role to perfection on how Chanakya through his masterful strokes of politics helped establishment of Chandragupta Maurya’s rule in Magadha. The
play also underlined the important point that the marginalized
tribal’s had played an important role in the place. The story flowed
seamlessly through the journey of this great visionary and statesman, who used his intelligence to make Chandragupta Maurya the king of India, while facing and fighting against all odds. The play is an effort to praise the celestial soul known as Kautilya Chanakya and try to bring his divine work to the citizens of India. A portion of the play highlighted Chanakya’s praise for the intellect of Alexander (addressed as Alic Sunder in the play) while another part flashed some of the examples from Mahabharata, especially to have the audience note certain teachings. While some of the examples cited made the audience ponder over, the others had them in splits. The show was about 120 minutes long (with a break) and not even a single moment was dull. The power packed performance was an instant hit given the fact that loud nationalism is the flavor of the season. Manoj Joshi, who has already won several accolades for this show, was felicitated in the end to a standing ovation. Rajender Singh and Star Promotions are soon coming up with the most awaited ‘Dream Team” show. The show stars some of the top of the line Bollywood stars like Jacqueline Fernandes, Aditya Kapoor, Karan Johar, Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, Siddharth, Badshah and Parineeti Chopra. The show will be held on August 12, at the Toyota Centre, Houston @ 9PM. Tickets for the show are on sale now. For sponsorships call 281-2224500 or log on to www.starpromotioninc.com.
Women Show the Way to Save Mothers and Families BY JAWAHAR MALHOTRA
And that was the start of the program for the Save A Mother Gala that was held last Sunday afternoon, May 1 at the Noah’s of Sugar Land Events center on Creek Bend Drive, in the shadow of the Flour Daniel complex. A hallmark of the SAM galas is the theme matching the table decorations and the guests dressing along in step too. Sure enough, the theme of this year’s gala was Spring Into Action and the tables were labeled by names of flowers with an appropriate floral arrange-
SUGAR LAND: The surprise
hit of the gala turned out to be the musical performance by a 14 year-old who is the daughter of one of the co-gala chair, Seema Kachru. Ishya Kachru, a 9th grader at Elkins High School, belted out the hit song “Rolling in the Deep Sea” by Adele, reaching both the high and low notes with the deep, strong, resonating voice of a much older woman. She had the whole house up on their feet, stomping, whistling and clapping along with the beat.
The Board of the Save A Mother poses at the Annual Gala last Sunday, May 1 at the Noah Events Center.
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May 06, 2016 5 COMMUNITY Lladro’s Spring Collection Unfolds at Karat 22 Jewelers BY VANSHIKA VIPIN HOUSTON: Karat 22 Jewelers, one of the prominent leaders in the high end Jewelry and 22 Karat gold business, along with Lladro, the illustrious world-renowned creator of fine porcelain art, organized a painter event on April 26, to celebrate the launch of Lladro’s new spring collection along with an exclusive painting demonstration. Karat 22 Jewelers, the largest retailer of Lladro, hosted the event at their premises located on 5623 Hillcorft Street, Houston. A hearty, hospitable welcome awaited the guests at the entrance of the store, where the owners Aku and Meena Patel, their son Anant and his wife Girija greeted everyone. A surprise was in store for everyone who walked in as they were requested to sign in for a raffle draw. That served as a perfect icebreaker and instantly put a smile on everyone’s faces. The delighted guests were then served with horderves and
champagne. The guests then went on to meet and interact with local connoisseurs and the perfect hosts for the evening. As they walked around the marvelous store, they couldn’t but notice the
From left: Meena Patel, Girija & Anant Patel, their daughter Ishwari sitting with the artist Rosa Lopez, and Aku Patel. Photos: Harshh Mahadeshawar & Vanshika Vipin
fine pieces of stunning Jewelry along with some of the smolderingly sensual Lladro figurines. On display were some of the remarkable and enticing creations, in an imperceptible Rosa Lopez, an experienced painter from The City of Porcelain in Valencia, Spain.
range of colors, from Lladro’s new spring collection. The guests were presented with the glorious history of the Spanish brand, right from the 1950’s when three brother’s, Juan, Jose and Vicente Lladro made their first creations inspired by an experimental vocation in a Moorish furnace built in their own home in Almassera. This gripping presentation embarked upon their
journey of their brand through the consolidation, the expansion, the innovation, the perfection, the new paths and the new classics. Lladro Communications Manager, Cristina Egido conducted this fascinating presentation. Christina charmingly engaged with the audiences while introducing the dazzling and enticing pieces of art. After which she happily answered the queries of the collectors as well as the new
customers. This special event included a live demonstration by Rosa Lopez, an experienced painter from The City of Porcelain in Valencia, Spain, where all the artistic creations are bought to life. Every Lladro piece of work is the result of a laborious artistic process. Sculptors follow their own inspiration but also perform a meticulous process of research and documentation. Rosa thoroughly demonstrated how each Lladro piece, which begins with an artistic inspiration, is carved with delicate motifs and carefully painted. Her selection for the day was The Goddess Sri Lakshmi, a figurine that’s part of the spring release. It was a period of visual fixation for everyone present there, seeing Rosa mix various fragments, liquid porcelain paste, colors and luster to obtain the desired figurine. Most of the attendees were mesmerized during the two hours, as they could see a marvelous piece of art being born. Such was impact of this magnetized session that the guests could not wait to meet and greet Rosa and take pictures with her. They were indeed glad to have met the lady who has been the creative backbone of several of the phenomenal figurines. Anant Patel signed off to the beautiful evening by thanking everyone personally. More about Karat 22 Jewelers: Karat 22 J ewelersis one of the prominent leaders in the high-end diamond Jewelry and 22 karat gold business. Their store was founded in 1984 in Houston, and since then the store has grown multi-fold, to carry one of the widest assortments of Diamond Jewelry, Precious and Semi Precious stone Jewelry, 22 karat gold Jewelry, a wide array of loose diamonds and semi precious gemstones along with the world’s best Swiss watches. They are the authorized dealers for Rolex and are now introducing Tag. They are one of the exclusive retailers in the world to carry the most spectacular piece ever undertaken by Lladro, The Queen of the Nile. This High Porcelain is a limited edition of 100 units that took more than five years to develop due to its technical and artistic complexity. For further information on Lladro, visit www.lladro.com and for Karat 22 Jewelers visit Website: www.karat22.com
Indo American News (ISSN 887-5936) is published weekly every Friday (for a subscription of $40 per year) by IndoAmerican News Inc., 7457 Harwin Dr., Suite 262, Houston, TX 77036., tel: 713-789-6397, fax:713-789-6399, email: indoamericannews@yahoo.com. Periodical postage paid at Houston, Texas. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to Indo American News,7457 Harwin Dr., Suite 262, Houston, TX 77036 INDO-AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 06, 2016 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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COMMUNITY
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Women Show the Way to Save Mothers and Families CONTINUED FROM PAGE
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Ishya Kachru, a 14 year-old 9th grader at Elkins High School, belted out the hit song “Rolling in the Deep Sea” by Adele. Photos: Bijay Dixit
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ment as the centerpiece. The guests too were dressed in Spring colors, and weaved off to a reception area to the right for the social hour and appetizers and then walked across the lobby to the banquet room. The emcee for the Gala was Puneet Freibott and the Gala chair Hema Prasad spoke about her recent visit to her hometown of Nizamabad, in Telegana State and discovering that it is the site of the third and latest SAM center. The other two are Amethi in Uttar Pradesh, site of the first SAM center and Jampur in Karnataka. Board member Rupa Iyer, who is the Associate Dean of Research and Graduate Studies at the College of Technology at the University of Houston, gave a short presentation entitled Developing Sustainable Health Solutions which focused on the mission of SAM in India. Since its first pilot program in 2008, SAM has worked to empower maternal healthcare and reduce infant mortality; the new programs that have been started focus on population stabilization and TB control. Iyer explained that the structure was simple, with a project manager, accountant and field officers, all dealing with field facilitators. The results speak for themselves, with SAM working in 500 villages, through 25,000 volunteers and infant mortality reduced by 90 percent. Iyer shared her own experience of hav-
ing an operation to cut open her stomach and have half her uterus and still being able to deliver three sons. “But here in the US, I had knowledgeable medical people and access to good healthcare,” she emphasized, adding she wanted to provide the same to village women in India, “and that’s why SAM is important to me.” Following up on a strategy that was employed in the Gala last year, Prasad threw out the challenge to raise $10,000 in ten minutes and let the people fill out pledge cards. Sure enough, within 6 minutes, they raised $11,300 from the roomful of guests, and adding that to the other pledges and donation, SAM raised over $60,000. With that over and dinner served, the night belonged to songs from Bollywood by Dipayan Bhattacharya who does a fantastic imitation of Kishore Kumar and his songs and Payel Mitra, a professional singer who was a participant in the 2010 edition of Zee TV’s popular show Sa Re Ga Ma and also won the NABC Idol in 2015. The appetizers and dinner for the evening were catered by Bombay Brasserie and the sound system was by Krishna Sounds whose owner Darshak Thacker was on hand for the sound system. And Bijay Dixit, the official photographer for SAM, helped by his daughter Vidha, took studio pictures of the guests, ready to be framed and given as they left the event.
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Darshak Thacker of Krishan Sounds handled the sound system for the event. INDO-AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 06, 2016 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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COMMUNITY Oath Ceremony 2016:
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South Asian Chamber of Commerce
GAURI SIDDHIVINAYAK TEMPLE
For Any Ceremony Contact Pradip Pandya 832 466 9868 Email: pradippandya2000@yahoo.com
Shri Lakshmi Puja Hindu Wedding Markand Puja Engagement Shri Ganpati Puja Simant Laghu Rudra Vastu Shanti Mundan Sanskar Navchandi Puja Shanti Havan Shri Gayatri Havan Shri Satyanarayan Puja The SACC Board 2016
BY VANSHIKA VIPIN
Sugar Land Ballroom
HOUSTON: The South Asian
Chamber of Commerce (SACC) held an Oath Ceremony Dinner of the elected board members for the year 2016, on Thursday, April 28. It was held at The Taj, Westheimer Rd, between 6.30 to 8.30 pm. The SACC Board comprises of The Chairman: Nomaan Husain, President: Malik Jamal, Vice President: Sohail Hassan, Secretary: Shenila Naseem, Treasurer: Maryum Khan, Sarah Ali, Sangeeta Dua, Amyn Gillani, Roy Joseph, Prasad Kalva, Tania Kanga, Dr. Noreen Khan-Mayberry, Omar Khawaja, Yunus Langha, Munira Panjwani, Saira Wahab, and Shaukat Zakaria. The SACC Directors represent a cross spectrum of businesses and professional backgrounds across the Industry genres of Legal, Medical, Multimedia, Real estate and Energy. This helps the SACC’s commitment to bridge the capital and talent in the South Asian community with the broader Houston business and philanthropic community. The event was attended by some of the high profile and established identities of Houston including the Advisory Board member of SACC and a well-known Houstonian Ghulam Bombaywalla. Due to prior commitments, the Board Chairman Nomaan Husain and Board Director Munira Panjwani could not be present at the event. Malik Jamal, President, welcomed everyone with a warm introduction to the respected board members and the Honorable Harris County Judge, Ravi Sandill. He spoke about the upcoming events that SACC has to offer and he thanked the Houston media for their support. Judge Sandill, who administered the oath, is the first ever District Court Judge in Texas, of a South Asian decent, and the only South Asian elected countywide in Harris County. Malik then requested Judge Sandill to administer the oath,
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and it was indeed a moment to witness the Board of Directors take their oath of office. This ceremony was followed by dinner and a networking session between the who’s who of the industry. The Taj, owned by Mr. & Mrs. Farooq Khan provided a perfect venue for the ceremony. The event was sponsored by Discount power and Dr. Monira Hamid-Kundi. More about SAAC: The SACC was founded in 1993, by a team of dedicated professionals, representing the South Asian countries Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. SACC membership includes professionals and entrepreneurs from small & mid-sized businesses, to large corporations. The SACC Directors represent a
broad spectrum of South Asian cultures. They donate their valuable time and efforts to enable SACC members, professionals and businesses grow by virtue of networking and learning. For upcoming events and for membership information visit www.sacchouston.org or email at info@sacchouston.org
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Contact: Gopal Aggarwal
832-539-1589
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COMMUNITY
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Doctors Take a Break. An IDeA Worth Pursuing!
The Board of the IDA poses at the Annual Gala last Saturday, April 30 at Bayou City Events Center. Photos: Nik Nikam
The three recipients of the IDA scholarship awards from left, Sharon Zhao, Pooja Agrawal and Simiran Rahman flanked by the IDA selection committee.
IDA President Dr. Subodh Chauhan presents the Lifetime Achievement Award to Dr. K.T. Shah as incoming IDA president.
BY JAWAHAR MALHOTRA
HOUSTON: Just as he was clos-
ing up and perhaps unintentionally, though he couldn’t have pulled it off better if he had tried, Subodh Chauhan had the loudest laughs of the evening and maybe spilled the beans of the state of some doctors. He had just gone through to introduce the rest of his Board: VP and incoming president Manish Gandhi, Prasun Jalal, Swati Joglekar, Jignesh Shah, Apurva Pancholy, Ashima Chauhan, Nilesh Patel and Bharat Pothuri. “Hard working alcoholics doctors …….”, he corrected himself “… workaholic doctors …” but the rest of the words “…..need to have fun too.” were drowned out by the laughter as some tittered “well, the truth is out now”!
other than Dr. K.T. Shah who has been the rock behind the Indian Doctors Charity Clinic where he has worked almost entirely solely – except for a small nursing staff and occasional doctors who volunteer – for the past ten years till his legs gave out on him. Now confined to a wheelchair, he is still vigorous in his support for charitable work. He said that the IDCC work was “the most satisfying experience” for him, and described the other charitable care giving he did in his native Gujarat, India for the past 30 years. He was also the philantrophic firebrand who almost single handedly and with dogged determination brought in the Indian NGO Akshaya Patra to the Houston community. It recently held a fundraiser last October after a gap of two years. The emcee for the evening was Malika Ghei, a young woman who came to the US when she was 3 with her parents, but nonetheless surprisingly has good fluency in Hindi, and was part of the trio that sang Bollywood Oldies for entertainment over the course of the evening. As emcee, she CONTINUED ON PAGE
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A man of few words, Chauhan, the outgoing president of the Indian Doctor’s Association, chuckled at the miscue, and acknowledged special guests and the evening’s highlights. The occasion was the IDA’s annual gala, held this year at the Bayou City Events Center on Knight Road south of the Astrodome on Saturday, April 30. He appreciated the new website that was developed by Anand Chauhan (he later performed onstage) and added that he wanted to “we see our organization getting more participants and younger physicians in future.” He turned the mic over to Manish Gandhi who then introduced the recipient of the IDA Lifetime Achievement Award. It was none
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COMMUNITY
Doctors Take a Break. CONTINUED FROM PAGE
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was composed and poised as she stepped through the program “and great in her first emceeing role”, said a delighted event planner Therese Cole-Hubbs of Electric Karma International who helped organize the event. The trio who serenaded the audience with energetic lead electric guitar playing by Anand Chauhan (who is always itching to play a riff) and Farhan Ahmed on acoustic guitar who joined in to sing Darshak and Mona Thacker of Krishna Sounds did the duets with Malika. Offstage, sound and lighting for the event across on the dance floor, four young women from the Taal Dance Compa- sound system was by Krishna Sounds whose ny performed a well-choreographed fusion owners Darshak and Mona Thacker were composition set to the music of heavy dhols the executive directors for the AV system, stage lighting and color LED lights. And, and vocal taals. The Gala paused for a minute as the IDA not to be overlooked, Dr. Nik Nikam, whose handed out scholarships to three well de- passion for media has turned him into a raserving young high schoolers who scored dio and social media entrepreneur, was presmagnificently in academics and showed a ent at yet another function taking countless bright future. “These kids are the future. En- pictures for his Facebook page (www.facecouraging them at this critical time will give book.com/NIK-NIKAM-Network-NNN). outsize rewards,” said Dr. Chauhan. These were Pooja Agrawal who has an incredible 6.857 GPA at Cypress Ridge High School; Simiran Rahman of the Ft. Bend Medical Academy at Hightower High School and Sharon Zhao who wants to get a doctorate in industrial engineering. They received checks for $2,500 and a certificate from the IDA. The appetizers and dinner for the evening were catered by Bombay Brasserie and the
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COMMUNITY
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Sikh Community Welcomes Bhai Baldev Singh Vadala
Bhai Baldev Singh Vadala (center) singing Gurbani along with his fellow team member (left). Bhai Rajinder Pal Singh with the SNC played the table at a satsang held at the SNC Gurdwara on Thursday, April 28.
BY KULDIP SINGH
HOUSTON: Texan Sikhs gave a
warm welcome to Bhai Baldev Singh Vadala, the founder of the Sikh Sadbhawana (Cooperative) Dal and organizer of the Gurdwara Management Sudhaar (Improvement) movement that has spread across North India. He has been in the US for the past month and is expected to visit other Gurdwaras in other cities over the next two months. The Management Board and members of the Sikh National Center of Houston were so impressed with his oratory address and discourses on being a Sikh that they offered him full support for his future activities in North America. Vadala is one of best known Guru Kirtnia in the Sikh community. He has recited the Gurbani at the Holy Golden Temple in Amritsar for almost 15 years. When he observed some irregularities and corruption among the leaders who manage the Shromni Gurdwara Perbandhak Committee, he pointed it out to the rest of the management. After no action was taken, he protested and brought it out through the media. As a result, he was released from his duties of Hazoori Ragi at Hariminder Sahib and transferred to Gurdwara Sahib in Zeend, Haryana. According to some reports, he and his team members
were not paid their wages for six months. Vadala alleged that the SGPC appointed an additional Secretary, Harcharan Singh, in addition to 35 such other individuals already in the management and that the SGPC was paying a huge sum of Rs. 5 lakhs ($7,690) per month. This new person’s salary is 10 times more than that of the other secretaries. In addition, the SGPC pays Rs. 10 lakhs ($15,380) per month for the services of a chartered accountant, although many well-known accountants have offered their services for free. Vadala has complained and made the GMS aware of brought these irregularities. Vadala recalled how in the past, Gurdwara Nankana Sahib (now in Pakistan) was captured by Mahant Narian Das who considered it as his family property. In 1921, Bhai Lachman Singh and his team of Sikhs liberated the Gurdwara from Narian Das’ clutches. A peaceful march was organized by Bhai Lachman Singh and his team of 158 Sikh’s, all of whom were first killed and then chopped to small pieces so no one could recognize their bodies. This was done by Mahant Narian Das and his hired gundas (thugs) within the Gurdawara Nankana Sahib Complex. On the day after the liberation of Gurdawara Nankana Sahib, the
SGPC was formed by the Sikh Gurdwara Act of 1925. Vadala said that today again, the SGPC management is in the hands of the Badal family with the same intentions as Mahant Narianu Soach as they are a well-organized team of crooks, who, along with their agents, are draining millions from the Gurdwara funds into their own pockets. Vadala related several such incidents, one of them in which the family’s agents created a need to purchase a house near Gurdwara Anandpur Sahib. They purchased the house for Rs.76 lakhs ($116,920) in their personal name and then later sold it to the SGPC for Rs. 2.76 crores ($425,000). When this was pointed out to the SGPC, the agents of the present Narianu Soach group terminated the services of Vadala and his team members. Vadala said that the Sikhs have three main bodies in India: the SGPC for Management of Historical Gurdwaras; the Sromani Akali Dal, a political wing of the Sikhs and the Board of the Akaal Thakht. A Muslim follower donated some land to Gurdwara Sahib, through a Miri-Piri Trust formed for that property and managed by the same Narianu Soach. On March 31 this year, SGPC agents gave Rs. 106 crores ($16.3 million) to this trust run by the Narianu’s Soach family for management of SGPC. Even after the Sikh community protested, the SGPC gave another Rs. 5 crores ($769,000). The management boards of all the Gurdwaras in Austin, San Antonio and Dallas supported the noble task started by Bhai Baldev Singh Vadala. Houston’s Sikh National Center offered Vadala to open up the North American Headquarters’ of the Sikh Sadbhawana (Cooperative) Dal at their location and committed full economic, management, media and communication support. Professor Sampuran Singh, Secretary of the SNC expressed the need for all North American Sikhs and Gurdwaras to form a chapter of the Sikh Sadbhawana (Cooperative) Dal and work under the guidance of Vadala.
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Bhai Vadala after the Gurbani with (from left) Gurcharan Singh Bhar, this reporter, Kuldip Singh and Gursharan Singh. Photos: Jawahar Malhotra INDO-AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 06, 2016 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
18 May 06, 2016 Driverless Cars ... in India? Google, Ford Motor, Volvo Cars, and ride-sharing servic-
es Uber and Lyft have formed a coalition to help speed up self-driving cars to the market. The Self-Driving Coalition for Safer Streets says that it will work with policymakers, regulators and the public to realise the safety benefits of self-driving cars. The latter are considered safer and could become ubiquitous in the near future. That would be a huge boon to the public. According to the National Crime Records Bureau in India, road accidents claimed more than 16 lives every hour on an average in 2014. But safety is only one aspect of the issue. Driverless cars are already driving massive disruptions in the automobile industry. With tech companies such as Google and even Apple getting into the car manufacturing game, the automobile industry as we know it may cease to exist. Take for example Tesla, which is focussed on manufacturing electric cars. Its sister company SpaceX makes space rockets. All of these changes portend three stages that will completely transform the way people get around. First, taxi-hailing and ride-sharing services are already challenging the need for private cars – a trend which is likely to become increasingly prominent. Second, electric cars are slated to become progressively affordable, faster and more practical. This will also have the added benefit of drastically reducing air pollution. And third, driverless cars will make driving obsolete much like smartphones have replaced traditional cameras. Of course, before one can actually order a ride on a driverless car through a smartphone cities themselves have to become smart. Which brings us back to India and its potholed roads that are a challenge even for the best of drivers. Satellites may guide driverless cars, but what should one do if bovine livestock decide to block the highway? In that sense, can Google cars really compete with India’s bullock carts? Times of India
Reader Feedback Like that Asimov story - the driverless car in India will not be able to move - stuck between moving forward on the command from its owner and a contradictory command from it’s programming to not hurt any human; it will stay still. Mani Driverless vehicles will be stopped by our cops for RC book and they lose their income as the driverless cars can’t see cops. Appa Durai I agree that satellites may guide driver-less cars, but what should one do if bovine livestock decide to block the highway? H. K. Satija
EDITORIAL/COMMENTARY We Indians Should Tip More
BY MANU JOSEPH
One summer in Chennai, when
I was eighteen, I sold Funskool Toys door-to-door. (Circumstances). My assignment was to walk down the roads of a fancy area of the city carrying a massive bag and ring doorbells. Somewhat new to poverty I prepared myself for humiliation. But I was stunned by the world of strangers and the persistence of kindness even though I was not a good salesman of board games and I did not sell a lot. People drew me into their homes, offered water, even juices and junk. Girls made eye-contact. Housewives in nighties, with towels over the breasts, spoke so kindly the boy misunderstood. Old men spoke about education and the future of the nation. One man challenged me to a chess match on the terrace; if he lost he would buy. A boy in the school uniform of Don Bosco answered the door and when his mother refused to let me in, he said, “I’m so so so sorry.” Even today I wish him well. You, too, but he especially. For an adolescent writer who was then sponging off high moral ground, social inequality and hyperbolic nihilism for material, the experience deprived me of a strand of profitable bitterness. The world was not a cruel place. If you don’t include Pomeranians. We have an opportunity today to convey such a myth or reality to millions of young men and women who have been dealt a lousy hand in a treacherous nation. Through kindness, yes, but tips chiefly. Not only in restaurants but in other places, like our own homes. With the whole warehouse of goods now coming home on the arms of the poor there is much we can do with money that would otherwise stay in the desk drawer. We can push billions of rupees into the economic system even as we convey to the bitter men and women who are not like us: That we are not so bad; you don’t have to count on crooked politicians alone. In actuality, forget tipping, Indian consumers are plain villain-
ous. According to an Amazon employee, who explained why Amazon and Flipkart do not deliver in Noida anymore (goods that are worth above a certain amount), “Our delivery boys were locked up in bathrooms, some beaten up for the most silly reasons ever — ‘give me my change of Rs 2, the POS (point-of-sale) not working, the order was late…’” Also, people in Noida, and other places, too, exhibited the tendency to order an iPhone, claim it was a Nokia, and return a piece of brick or biscuit packets in the box instead of the phone. And, several people ordered cash-on-delivery just for fun. It appears that it would be hard t convert India into a tipping nation, but the effort would be worth it and it would be an exquisite political act. There is a moment in the television series, ‘Wonder Years’ when at the door of an intoxicated man’s home stands a food-delivery boy with diminishing hopes of getting a tip. “I wish I could give you something more meaningful,” the doped man says, “like a sunny day, or a rainbow, but all I got is this — money.” You may have guessed the expression on the boy’s face. Cash would do. Cash is good. An economic behaviour is usually not rational, it is a habit. The reason why in many societies, people tip only waiters but not other professionals who perform as much or far greater service, like shop assistants. Actually, as Mr Pink pointed out in Reservoir Dogs, even McDonald’s employees are not tipped. “…you don’t see anyone tip them, do ya? Why not?, they’re serving you food. But no, society says don’t tip these guys over here, but tip these guys over here.” But even in other types of restaurants, where the idea of tipping is deeply set, Indians give grudgingly and poorly when service charge is not included in the bill. The organised foodservice business in India is estimated to be about Rs 3 trillion. Most of Indian online commerce concerns travel, but online retail is worth thou-
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sands of crores and is growing fast, and about 80% of it, it is believed, is executed through cashon-delivery. If Indians start tipping as though it is a religious duty it would infuse a reasonable amount of idle cash into the economic system and may even contribute to the goodwill between the republic of the middleclass and that of the poor. A truly courageous reformer, which eliminates most politicians, would coax Indians to tip more instead of giving money to god who puts it in dumb fixed-deposits. Tipping also includes asking taxi-drivers to keep the change. And letting the unsung inventor of surge-pricing, the Indian autodriver, overcharge you within reasonable limits. Indians in the capitalist system who earn more and more through diligence or charlatan ways, and pay more and more direct taxes, indirect taxes and cesses, are greater philanthropists than 30-year-old communist student leaders whose hearts bleed for the poor. Even so, there are moral reasons why we should do more. Most of the upper classes are beneficiaries of inequality, which begins in the maternity ward. The losers are the ones on the other end of cash-on-delivery. Also, we are beneficiaries of the most ludicrous business model in the history of capitalism. The deep discounts that e-commerce marketplaces offer us are financed by billionaires betting with the money of other billionaires and millionaires. But the wages of the delivery workforce has not risen substantially because India has so many doomed youth. That fortunate Indians must tip those who perform mundane services can be a reformist political movement on the lines of Modi’s ‘Clean India’. It is most suited for Arvind Kejriwal. His core constituency of worker bees would love him more. If his campaign would annoy the elite, it would reassure him that he has probably done something right. Manu Joseph is a journalist and the author of the novel, The Illicit Happiness of Other People
COMMUNITY
May 06, 2016
HOUSTON: JVB Houston orga- 2-day Silent Preksha Meditation nized a 2- day Preksha Meditation camp on 23 and 24 ofApril from 9am5pm inside its unique Pyramid hall under the spiritual guidance of Samani Vikas Pragyaji, Samani Shukla Pragyaji, Samani Rohit Pragyaji and Samani Maryada Pragyaji. 55 participants came along to experience the power of Preksha Meditation in a unique camp with a powerful theme of “The Art and Science of Self Discovery.” The objective of this camp was to foster the healthy Spiritual, Intellectual, and Physical wellbeing of its participants from varied backgrounds in the calm & blissful surroundings of Preksha Center. The camp was inaugurated by Samani Vikas Pragyaji with a melodious Preksha geet. A vow of silence & to follow a strict discipline during the duration of the camp was mentioned by Samani Shukla Pragyaji. Samani Maryada Pragyaji conducted the first morning session on Pranayam and it was followed by a lecture on ‘Preksha Meditation: Why to do’ by Samani Shukla Pragyaji. She explained the significance of Preksha Meditation in a spiritual as well as scientific perspective. Samani Vikas Pargyaji led the practice of four steps of Preksha Meditation and the practice of Kayotsarga. After lunch, the afternoon session started with Aahar-yog Sadhana for healthy digestive system. Samani Rohit Pragyaji delivered the lecture on ‘Preksha Meditation: How to do’ in which she explained the importance and practical aspect of four steps of Preksha Meditation. She also held the practice of Antaryatra- Internal trip, a special technique of Preksha Meditation. The day was called off by the practice of Mantra Meditation by Samani Shukla Pragayji. Next day, the morning routine started again with the Preksha geet along with the practice of inner silence. Kokila Shah directed a powerful Yoga session followed by a lecture of Samani Shukla Pragyaji on ‘Preksha Meditation: Technique of ColorPerception’. She explained the impact of color on Physical, Mental and Emotional health with the practical exercise of Leshya Dhyan - Color mediation conducted by Samani Vikas Pragyaji. The open discussion session headed by Samani Shukla Pragyaji and Samani Rohit Pragyaji aimed at exploring the detail ideas about Preksha Meditation by answer-
Camp at JVB Houston
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HOUSTON:When Brian Greene,
the CEO of the Houston Food Bank, took the time out of his busy day to talk to us about leadership, it was an unforgettable experience. It is very rare when CEOs take time out of their busy day to talk to a group of people especially a group with so many youth.Our program, the Youth Leadership Development Program of Houston, is dedicated to helping all juniors and seniors in the program thoroughly develop leadership skills and gain attributes used by accom-
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ing the queries of participants. The participants also explained how the short practice of Aahar yoga, BhedVigyan and Mantra Mediation helped them revitalize their energy. In Closing, Samani Vikas Pragyaji paid her heartfelt thanks to the Samani Shukla Pragyaji and Samani Rohit Pragyaji who came all the way from Miami to share their knowledge of Preksha Meditation. She also appreciated the efforts of all the attendees and the event organizers to make this camp a great success. Alok Jain, Amit Bagga, Kajal Jain and Rohit Jain shared their experience. Seema Jain, the current president of JVB Center also gave the vote of thanks especially to her core team - Gaurav Jhaveri, Vice President & the Camp Coordinator, Sudhir Daga (Vice President), Amit Sacheti (Secretary), Kirthi Jain (Treasurer) and Hasmukh & Meena Shah (Facility Coordinators) for their commendable support and dedication to make this a successful event. She paid her gratitude to all the Samanijis, and applauded all the attendees for their
cooperation and enthusiasm. All the participants followed the strict discipline of inner silence throughout the camp. They found this camp a great medium of selfdiscipline and spiritual upliftment. They showed their interest to have more of such camps for the benefit of community at large. JVB Preksha Center conducts monthly Preksha Meditation Workshop from 9am- 12pm on every 2nd Saturday of the month. It aims for the practice of purifying our emotions, consciousness and realizing our own self. Mediation augurs attitudinal change, behavioral modification and integrated development of one’s personality. Started in 1970, Preksha Meditation is the result of the untiring efforts of Gandhipati Tulsi and Acharya Shri Mahapragya. This workshop is for everyone, irrespective of his or her race, religion, language, color, gender or belief and is offered free of charge. For more info, please visit www. Jvbhouston.org or email at info@ jvbhouston.org. Call @ 281-596-9642.
Leadership is About Changing the World BY CHETAN RAGUTHU
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19
plished and well developed leaders around the world. The final session for this year took place at the Houston Food Bank Conference Room on Saturday April 23. The session was so much more than a talk about leadership. Greene talked to us about the various aspects of his job and the leadership roles he is in during the daily operations of Houston Food Bank. He oversees the control operations and delegates different tasks to the dedicated team at the Houston Food Bank. The chief officers are Stan Edde, Beth Tanner, Amy Ragan, Matthew Toomes, and
Betsy Ballard. Together this team runs all the operations under the Houston Food Bank. This team has accomplished a great deal in the past few years. The Houston Food Bank alone provides over 74 million meals a year. In such a large organization, a lot of planning, teamwork, and effective leadership is required. In our seminar, we learned about the changes Greene has experienced as CEO of the Houston Food Bank. His vision was simple when he started: CONTINUED ON PAGE
20
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COMMUNITY
Paint & Wine Workshop at India House
HOUSTON: “The purpose ofArt is
washing the dust of daily life of our souls” Pablo Picasso India House, a regular and popular venue of varied cultural and social events, hosted a Paint & Wine Workshop on Saturday, April 23 which was conducted by renowned local artist Gopaal Seyn. It was a fun filled evening where people came together from all walks of life to spend a fruitful evening socializing and creating an artwork from scratch. India House Executive Director Vipin Kumar welcomed all participants on behalf of India House with a promise to bring many more such events to India House in near future. He then introduced Gopaal Seyn to the guests and requested him to give some glimpses of his artistic career. In his own words, “Art relaxes the tired mind and takes out the daily grind from life as we all know that it could throw a curved ball at us in an instant. So we all need a break to do something that we have never done before.” Paint & Wine Workshop was an art entertainment created for individuals without any artistic background. Most of the participants commented that they had never painted on a canvas in their life, but at the end of the class they were happy campers
proudly signing on the canvas that they had created. This was a step by step painting session where Gopaal, assisted by his wife Lali, guided the participants through the night’s featured painting. They were provided canvas, paint, brushes, munchies and Wine. At the end of the session each participant was able to create his/her own masterpiece and was allowed to take it with them to cherish the memories for ever. For details of India House activities and programs visit www.indiahouseinc.org or contact vipin@ indiahouseinc.org or call 713-929-1900
Leadership CONTINUED FROM PAGE
19
“end hunger.” He continuously worked to make sure everything was running smoothly. Along the way, he realized things had been relatively the same since he started. Everything was running great, but there was something missing. He realized change was missing from the overall picture. Leadership is about about dealing with and bring YLDP class of 2016 with Houston Food Bank CEO Brian Greene positive change. Management is need both a strong leader who is a It is not enough to be able to lead a about keeping things in order and visionary and a strong manager, who group of people towards a vision, working productively and effiwill be able to implement the plan for because sometimes consistency is ciently. While everything was orthe vision. needed not change. The lesson we all derly, there were things that could The blend of both is what makes learned is simple: the most effective be done and results to be achieved. great leaders today. In every strong administration is a blend of a great In the everyorganization or company, this trend is leader and a great manager. day world, we evident in the executive management.
INDO-AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 06, 2016 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
COMMUNITY
May 06, 2016
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Masala Radio Sizzles the Summer Sale at Exclusive Furniture BY ROHIT RAO
R
ICHMOND: For the last 17 years, the team at Exclusive Furniture has been providing Houstonians with great furniture at even greater prices. Founded by Sam Zavery, Exclusive Furniture has grown from a single store in the Almeda Mall to 6 independent locations all over Houston. Last Sunday, Exclusive Furniture rocked an awesome pre Mother’s Day Sale on Sunday May 1. The one day sales event took place at the new Exclusive Furniture Richmond mega showroom at the intersection of West BelfortAvenue and the Grand Parkway. Confetti and hundreds of balloons brought the classy Exclusive Furniture showroom to vibrant life with vibrant decorations. Masala Radio’s lead Radio Jockey, Sunil Thakkar, emceed the Bollywood Theatrics. Sunil T and the multicultural Bollywood dancers from Holding Space unexpectedly turned the furniture shopping experience into a Bollywood party. Shoppers enjoyed complimentary samosas, wine, and chai while browsing the expansive showroom, also getting free Henna tattoos by Ashu Henna Art and rocking with DJ Rishi Nayak. The gloomy weather couldn’t dampen anyone’s spirits; the Exclusive and Masala crew were just as excited to greet every guest and put on a good show as the audience was to
have a great time while getting some amazing deals. Zavery was on hand to close the final negotiations to prove Exclusive Furniture really is “where low prices live!” Masala Radio specializes in open houses and grand openings with everything from DJ, decorations, tents, and Indian-themed wind dancers. Exclusive Furniture offers a wide range of furniture to suit every décor, and invites shoppers to enjoy several amenities including a fully stocked drinks area, arcade and play place for kids, and individual design consultants to provide complete customer satisfaction. Exclusive Furniture Richmond is located at 21018 W Bellfort St, Richmond, TX 77406, phone # 713-244-5000.
Photos: Aniket Raj Photography
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Mama’s Punjabi Recipes T
Plain Paranthas (Wheat Pancrusted Flatbread)
his was the first recipe I wrote for this column almost four years ago. Since then, I have paid attention to the types of homemade paranthas I have had occasion to eat and try, both in the US and in India and I have been surprised to see that only a very few come close to the type of paranthas that are truly the Old World Punjabi style. I am giving this recipe again, with added details, so that people my make these paranthas in the way they are best enjoyed. The paranthas that I Iearnt to make as a teenager and young woman before I got married in Lyallpur had to have some very special features to be called worthy of our ancestral home and the Punjabi tradition. They had to be big – usually 8 to 10 inches round. Then, they had to have the right consistency to be firm, but not hard, to be able to scoop out curry, daal (curried lentils), raita (blended yogurt and garnishing) and subzis (vegetables). The paranthas had to be prepared with some ghee (clarified butter), though now people use oil. And finally, they had to have a crispy, browned top skin. But, I have noticed with some regret that many of the paranthas that claim to be Punjabi style are lacking in many areas, especially when they are the stuffed type. Most paranthas are too hard, don’t have a crispy outer skin and the plain ones do not fluff up. Many of the stuffed ones are made with potatoes, but these are often quite soft (indicating too much water in the dough) and stay flat, indicating that the potatoes are kneaded into the dough and not stuffed in. This is quite true either in India or the US, so making a good parantha is somewhat of a dying art. The secret is the atta and the making of the dough by hand, so that you can estimate if the dough is too wet or dry. And rolling the atta into a round pancake requires the right amount of flour and pressure so that there aren’t uneven spots. The final step is in cooking it over the tava (flat plate) so that the parantha can fluff up, rather than be pushed down against the tava. I have seen many women press down with a spatula but this only makes the bread stick together. Ingredients: 500gm atta (unbleached wheat flour). Makes 10 paranthas ½ cup tael (vegetable or olive oil) 2 cups thanda pani (cold water)
Directions: 1. Pour the flour in a wide mouthed bowl. Form a small crater and slowly pour the water in while kneading the dough with your hand till it becomes a nice, tender but firm ball, but make sure it is not thin or stingy to when pulled. Add a teaspoon of oil and knead in some more. 2. Dab the surface of the ball with a little water to keep it moist, cover the bowl and set aside for an hour. You can then place it in the fridge for longer duration. If the dough is too hard, the parantha will also be hard. 3. Make dough into small paade (balls) and then roll out into a Punjabi parantha size of 8 to 10 inch circle. (You can make them smaller, but Punjabis eat their paranthas big) 4. Put a small dab of oil on a hot tava (hotplate or skillet) and place the flattened dough on. When it puffs a
bit and turn color, turn the pancake over. Put another dab of oil on the tava and then turn it over again till it is fully cooked. Do NOT keep pressing dough on the pancake as this will only make the dough stick together. A well-made parantha will actually puff up! Shakuntla Malhotra is a skilled cook of Punjabi dishes made in the old-fashioned style that she learnt as a young woman in her ancestral home in Lyallpur (since renamed Faisalabad), India before it became part of Pakistan after the Partition in 1947. People have often admired her cooking for its simplicity and taste that comes with each mouthful. Even in her mid-eighties, she continues to cook daily and agreed to share some of her delectable Punjabi recipes.
MAMA’S TIP MAKING THE OF THE WEEK
ATTA DOU TASTY PARANT GH FOR HAS Making atta for pa rant
has is an easy task, details that will help but there are a few to make sure that th ey come out soft bu Use cold water for t firm. kneading the flour: warm water will m dough thinner. To ake the o much water will also make the doug and difficult to h m h thin ake into balls and roll out. Grease yo before pinching of ur hands f the dough. Pinch off a liberal amount to make a 1.5 to 2 of dough inch ball about . W hen rolling it out, m pancake about 1/8t ake the h of an inch thick. You can even expa dough by using bo nd the th hands, like in m aking a pizza crus t.
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ENTERTAINMENT:REVIEWS/NEWS ENTERTAINMENT:REVIEWS/NEWS
23
The Man Who Knew Infinity BY REAGAN GAVIN RASQUINHA
S
BY MOHAR BASU
Story: Ronnie (Tiger Shroff) and
Siya (Shraddha Kapoor) are born rebels who fall in love amidst the refreshing green forests and serene lakes. Their love story is picture-perfect until Raghav (Sudheer Babu) is smitten by Siya. He feels his fieriness has found a fitting match. The men unleash the brutal side and battle it out to win their lady love. Review: It would’ve been more appropriate to let the film’s tagline read - Rebels without a cause. “Baaghi bano par ek maqsad ke liye,” says a Kalaripayattu guru to Tiger in the film. But the ‘maqsad’ doesn’t make its way into the screenplay. The film is singularly dull and devoid of logic with nearly no spark between the leads. Shraddha and Tiger are earnest and director Sabbir Khan’s efforts show, but the focus is not on
Baaghi making a good film. Just winsome action suffices for the makers. It is difficult to root for the characters even as the actors score. Tiger’s back flips may make you cheer and his stunts have gotten dishier since Heropanti, but that’s about it. He does his best to bring forth the rage of an impassioned lover but clearly he romances Kalaripayattu more than Shraddha. His stunts are more sensuous than his kisses. As Tiger lures us with his badass moves, Shraddha looks luminous in every frame and takes us by surprise when she slays professional fighters. But their love story never rings true. Unspooling over a string of melodious songs, they get little scope to conjure up an affair to remember. Her giggles and his impish smile, their rain dances and cute pecks are effective but don’t go a
Rabindranath Tagore May 7, 1861
Pooja Bedi May 11, 1970
long way in benefiting the plot. This is by no means a terrible film but the actioner, that attempts to find support in a threadbare story, is far from riveting. The screenplay fails validate the cause of their rebellion. Baaghi blooms only during the fights but by the time the clock ticks towards the climax, you are exhausted. How much can you hoot for broken necks and crushed bones? You could try finding thrill in Tiger’s kicks but the film has nothing more to offer. -indiatimes.com
tory: Srinivasa Ramanujan had the extraordinary ability to conjure up very complex and groundbreaking mathematical concepts seemingly out of thin air. And all of that, despite not having any formal training in the subject. He hailed from a humble background, and was nurtured and mentored to greatness by another brilliant mathematician, G H Hardy. This is Ramanujan’s story. Review: The biggest challenge Matthew Brown could have faced when making this film might have been making math look interesting enough on screen to keep viewers hooked. But he manages to do so, thanks to Patel’s fairly straightforward portrayal of the brilliant Ramanujan. That, and the stately Jeremy Irons, who gives Hardy oodles of wit and panache. In fact, more than just a staid version one man’s life, The Man Who Knew Infinity is also about the meeting of two minds - Hardy and Ramanujan. Ramanujan’s Madras phase is portrayed somewhat briskly, with the rest of the film dealing with his life in England. Ramanujan’s wife (Bhise) is
INDO-AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 06, 2016 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
shown to be devoted and caring. The person is a counterfoil to his world of numbers and theoretical mathematics. In order to make his passion accessible to her, he compares math to art. But bigger things are in store for him. After landing a job as an accountant, Ramanujan’s boss convinces him to think beyond the shores of India. So when he takes a shot in the dark by sending Hardy a thick notebook filled with his work, the latter is impressed enough to get him on a ship and over to Trinity College. While hugely impressed by his genius, Hardy insists that Ramanujan supply proofs for his work. A deconstruction of his findings, as to Hardy’s mind, groundbreaking theoretical mathematics isn’t just pulled out from a hat. After all, Hardy wonders, where on earth do those formulas come from? The period detailing - be it a rustic locale or sophisticated surroundings - is quite superb. Brown also tries to give the story an emotional touch, to good effect. And in fact, it is this which makes this film both enjoyable and gripping. -indiatimes.com
24 May 06, 2016 IPL 16: Yusuf, Russell Power Knight Riders to Scorching Win
SPORTS
India Hockey Ready to Reverse London Losses
NEW
DELHI: Indian hockey captain Sardar Singh said that his team has been improving in olkata Knight Riders 189 the last two years and is on right for 5 (Yusuf 60*, Russell track to make amends of the 2012 39, Chahal 2-27) beat Royal London Olympics debacle in Rio Challengers Bangalore 185 Games later this year. for 7 (Rahul 52, Kohli 52, Indian men’s hockey team finMorkel 2-28, Chawla 2-32) ished 12th and last in the London by five wickets Olympics but Sardar said that the Andre Russell and Yusuf team would produce a vastly imPathan are among the most proved show this time in Rio. powerful strikers of the ball “After winning the gold in 2014 in world cricket. The ChinAsian Games, the team has imnaswamy Stadium is among proved a lot in the last one and the world’s smaller grounds, half years. This time in Rio, we and contains one of its flatter will do a lot better than our disappitches. pointing show in London,” Sardar The ingredients came tosaid at the sidelines of an event gether spectacularly as Kolto announce Bollywood superstar kata Knight Riders’ Nos. 5 Salman Khan as Goodwill Amand 6 defied a steep asking bassador of the Indian contingent rate and put on 96 runs in 44 at Rio Olympics. balls to power their side to “Our target is to win a medal a five-wicket win, with five in Rio. In any case, you will see balls remaining, over Royal a vastly improved show in Rio,” Challengers Bangalore. he said. Bowling first, Knight RidAsked about the preparations ers’ had kept Royal Challengof the team in the run-up to Rio, ers quiet for 17 overs, despite Andre Russell plays a pull shot, Royal Challengers Bangalore v Kolkata Knight Riders, IPL 2016, Sardar said, “We are on the right half-centuries from KL Rahul Bangalore, May 2, 2016 track as far as preparations are and Virat Kohli. Shane Watconcerned. We are getting the it was just under 12 an over for a whipped Aaron to the midwicket erplay, denying them both room son, Sachin Baby and Stuart international matches also. The Binny then plundered 54 off the considerable length of time: they boundary, and Russell mishit an- and leverage. national camp is beginning from Rahul gave Royal Challengers last three overs to lift Royal Chal- needed 110 off 58 balls. Though it other six - it only just cleared the Sunday again after a gap and the was still a good pitch for batting, cover boundary - as Knight Riders impetus, taking on the spinners, lengers to 185. coach and management are workand using the sweep - regular, slog Kohli later contended that his it was offering the quicks spongy took 16 runs from the 16th over. ing to rectify whatever chinks and Watson came on to bowl the and reverse - for two fours and a side’s total was about 10 above bounce if they bent their backs, drawbacks we have in the team par. But given Royal Challengers’ and the spinners a fair amount of 17th. Usually the most reliable of six off Sunil Narine. But just when before Rio. Royal Challengers’ bowlers, he Royal Challengers were shifting bowling strength - or lack thereof, grip. ndian men’s hockey team was on In the first two full overs with sent down two length balls first gear, Piyush Chawla dismissed particularly with Chris Gayle’s Wednesday handed a tough group return forcing them to leave out Russell and Yusuf Pathan at the up - the first on the stumps and Rahul and AB de Villiers in the for the Rio Olympic Games as it Kane Richardson - and Knight crease, they hit a six each, but the second wide of off - and Yusuf space of 16 balls. Kohli joined has been pooled with defending Riders’ batting depth, they might were also beaten by Varun Aaron’s heaved them away to the mid- them in the 17th over, picking out champions Germany, European bounce and Yuzvendra Chahal’s wicket and extra cover boundaries. sweeper cover immediately after have needed 10 runs more. champions Netherlands and PanRoyal Challengers’ bowling turn. This still looked like any- A bouncer followed, and Yusuf got Gautam Gambhir had dropped American Games champions Arjust enough bat on his pull to fetch him at point; Royal Challengers held up well initially, with Binny’s one’s game. gentina in the six-team Pool B. The defining moment came in the ball from outside off stump and seemed in danger of falling short outswing removing his Karnataka Indian team will open its camof 160. team-mate Robin Uthappa in the the 14th over, when Chahal left find the square leg boundary. paign against first-time qualifiers Then another length ball, and But Knight Riders’ quicks strugfirst over, and Yuzvendra Cha- Russell stranded five feet down the Ireland on the August 6. Team’s hal producing a ripping legbreak pitch. Just like Russell, Rahul was Yusuf easily cleared long-on. gled in the slog overs. Umesh first real test will come against to bowl the leaden-footed Chris beaten by the lack of turn, and the When he edged the last ball of the Yadav lost his radar completely, Germany on August 8 before they Lynn. When Gautam Gambhir and ball shot away for four byes. Two over to the third man boundary, sending down two high full-tosses clash with Argentina (August 9), Manish Pandey fell within eight balls later, a quickish slider down the game was over - Knight Riders in the 17th, and ended with figures the Netherlands (August 11) and of 0 for 56 in four overs, with 41 balls of each other, either side of the leg side shot past Rahul before now only needed 23 off 18. Canada (August 12). Knight Riders had recalled coming off his last two overs. Rusthe 10-over mark, Knight Riders he could react, and ran away for The top four teams from each Morne Morkel to their side, and sell gave away 13 in the 19th. In five wides. were falling behind rapidly. pool will qualify for the knock-out Russell mishit, slogged, and flat- he quickly discovered tennis-ball all, Watson, Baby and Binny hit Knight Riders know they can stage, beginning August 14. score two runs a ball with Russell batted Tabraiz Shamsi’s left-arm bounce to dismiss the returning seven fours and three sixes in the On the women’s side, India are and Yusuf at the crease, and their wristspin for six, six and four in the Gayle. Bowling largely back of a last three overs. in a group featuring the Argentina Karthik Krishnaswamy is a seasking rate was just under 12 an next over, and Knight Riders now length, Morkel and Russell kept and Australia and will take on Jaover when they came together. But needed 63 off the last five. Yusuf Kohli and Rahul quiet in the Pow- nior sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo pan on August 7. BY KARTHIK KRISHNASWAMY
K
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May 06, 2016
Canadian Firm to Sell Canned Air in India at Rs 12.50 Per Breath
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Boost for Make in India:
First Scorpene-Class Submarine Starts Sea Trial BY ANIL PADMANABHAN
‘Kalvari’ (Tiger Shark), the first of
Just how much is a breath of fresh
air worth? For people in New Delhi, ranked number one on a WHO list of cities with the foulest air, it may seem priceless. But a Canadian company thinks the price is about Rs 12.50 per breath. The start-up Vitality Air, based in Edmonton in the western province of Alberta, plans to start selling canned natural air from the Canadian Rockies to Indian consumers this May. The company made plenty of headlines in Canada in 2015 after it launched its product in China, where smog levels in Beijing and other big cities make for a close parallel to Delhi. Vitality Air’s founder Moses Lam said: “It started as a novelty back in the summer of last year. There were forest fires in Calgary and with all the smoke, people started using our product.”The former mortgage banker wanted to “do something disruptive” and the obvious model was the ubiquitous bottled mineral water. Meanwhile, people from China started purchasing the canisters online and many suggested that what worked for smoke could apply to smog. Lam found a distributor in China and now covers seven cities, including Beijing and Shanghai, and has shipped nearly 12,000 pieces to that country. The product consists of com-
pressed air, breathed in through a mask, and comes in two flavours — Banff and Lake Louise. Banff in Alberta is a national park and a popular resort. “It’s close to Edmonton to start with, and it’s actually a natural treasure of Canada, it portrays fresh air,” Lam said. That air is made available in 3-litre and 8-litre cans, with twin-packs costing between Rs 1,450 and Rs 2,800. How they collect the air is a “trade secret” but it’s a “giant vacuum” process. “We suck up all the air in Banff, about 150,000 litres every time and it takes about 40 hours,” Lam said. He’s confident Indians may be in the market for clean, crisp Canadian air. “The pollution in India is more than in China, we expect it to be our largest market.” Taking charge of India operations is Vancouver-based Justin Dhaliwal, who said 100 bottles have arrived there and they’ll be testmarketing it soon, beginning with sending samples to the Canadian high commission in New Delhi and setting up kiosks in malls while raising social media visibility. Lam said their experience in China showed that users included pregnant mothers, corporate executives, and even students preparing for examinations. Now, they’re waiting with bated breath to see if the concept takes off in India. hindustantimes.com
the six French Scorpene class submarines being built at the Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders for the Indian navy, went to sea for the first time on Sunday. The submarine sailed out at about 10 am under her own propulsion for her first sea trial, off the Mumbai coast. During the sortie, a number of number of preliminary tests on the propulsion system, auxiliary equipment and systems, navigation aids, communication equipment and steering gear were performed, the official said, adding various standard operating procedures were also validated for this new class of submarines before she returned to harbour in the evening. Over the next few months, the submarine will undergo a barrage of sea, surface, diving, weapons, noise trials, etc testing her to the extremes of its intended operating envelop. Later, she will be commissioned into the Indian Navy, giving a major boost to the ‘Make In India’ initiative of the government. She is part of the ongoing project for constructing six Scorpene class submarines, in collaboration with DCNS of France, which will include transfer of technology to MDL. In April 2015, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had directed that all-out efforts be made to complete the project on schedule after which teams from MDL, Indian Navy and DCNS worked round-the-clock on it. The submarine was undocked on pontoon on April 6, 2015 in Parrikkar’s presence, underwent vacuum tests and battery loading at Naval Dockyard before returning to the MDL for completion of the basin
India began sea trials on Sunday for the first of six Scorpene-class military submarines being built under its project P75, marking the last step before it is incorporated into the Indian Navy fleet
trials and harbour acceptance trials phase. The state-of-art features of Scorpene include suerpior stealth to launch a crippling attack on enemies with precision-guided weaponry, including torpedoes, tube-launched anti-ship missiles both underwater and on surface. The Scorpene submarines are designed to operate in all areas including the tropics, and encompass all means and communications to ensure interoperability with other components of a Naval Task Force. They can undertake multifarious missions like anti-surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare, intelligence gathering, mine laying, area surveillance, etc. The submarine class are built from special steel capable of withstanding high-yield stress with high tensile strength that allows them to bear high hydrostatic force and enable deep diving for enhanced stealth. She was built according to modular construction principle, which divides it into a number of sections and building them in parallel. The complexity of the task can be
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gauged from the fact that it involves laying around 60 km cables and 11 km pipes in extremely congested and limited spaces inside the submarine. The Scorpene is equipped with weapons launching tubes (WLT), and its weapons can be easily reloaded at sea with special handling and loading equipment. The array of weapons and complex sensors fitted on board the Scorpene are managed by a high technology combat management system. India joined the elite submarine building nations on February 7, 1992 with the commissioning of the first indigenously-built sub, INS Shalki at the MDL. It is still in service. The MDL has constructed different types of warships including Leander and Godavari class frigates, Khukri class corvettes, Delhi and Kolkata class destroyers, Shivalik class stealth frigates, 1241 RE Missiles boats, Shalki class subs, P-15B class destroyers, the first of which was launched in April 2015, and the P-17A class stealth frigates, a followup on the P-17 stealth frigates. hindustantimes.com
26 May 06, 2016
COMMUNITY
Ekal Vidyalaya: Engaging High School and College Students
HOUSTON: The Houston chapter
of Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation was a notable presence at two recent youth cultural events in the Houston Metro area. The first of these events, called the Global Issues Summit (GIS), took place on Saturday, April 16, at the famed Clements High School, in Sugar Land. This event was hosted by the Fort Bend ISD’s Global Studies Academy and was anchored on five elements – People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace, and Partnership. The event focus was on “Turning Awareness into Action” with regards to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Naren Chavda, the Houston Chapter President, and Vivek Pradhan, the Houston Chapter Public Relations Officer, addressed a group of over 700 high school students in the audience on Ekal and its recent offshoot, HFRI, or Health Foundation for Rural India, under the banner of Partnership subtheme. Chavda and Pradhan talked about the broader Ekal mission, the Ekal Abhiyan, which whilst being anchored in education, has expanded Ekal activities to vocational training, health literacy, and related holistic development and empowerment initiatives. Both presentations helped link the Ekal mission and activities with more than 60% of the UN SDGs. GIS organizers presented Ekal with a plaque, in recognition of participation and service Ekal provides through its mission.
The presentations were very well received by the audience – as was exemplified by the significant number of students from the audience visiting the Ekal booth during the breaks, asking questions and wanting to learn more about Ekal model, its replicability, and also potential volunteering opportunities – both here locally, in Houston, and in India. Bharti Chavda, Ashok Danda, and Pankaj Desai answered questions and provided more information about Ekal to students visiting the Ekal booth. Students also expressed interest in the HFRI’s Medical Internship Initiative (MII), the first of which was launched successfully – with nine premedical students from top colleges around the United States attending the 12day “camp” in Ranchi, India, earlier this year. The second event took place on last Saturday, April 23, at the University of Houston’s Cullen Theater, and was attended by Desai (Houston Chapter’s Vice President) and Pradhan. It was the national dance competition hosted annually by RAAS All-Stars. This was a culmination of a nationwide competition that brought together the top eight performing teams from the colleges all across the country for the grand finale of the competition. Ekal is a proud sponsor of the RAAS All-Stars, and extends our warm wishes, sincere appreciation, and felicitation to RAAS All-Stars for hosting this energetic
Clements Global Studies Academy recognized Ekal Vidyalaya with a plaque
and fun-filled national cultural event Students engaging in conversations with volunteers at Ekal booth every year. At the outset of the three hour long competitive performances, Ekal video played and enthralled the audience with how far Ekal had come in the past 25 plus years since its inception, here in Houston. Pradhan provided a brief overview of Ekal Abhiyan, and reminded the strong 1000+ in audience, mostly the college students, that Ekal mission continues to expand, as more needs to be done, to educate and empower those in the remotest villages of India, 2016 RAAS All-Stars Championship event kicked off to much fanfare – and that this will need the with all 8 teams being introduced to audience youth enthusiasm to sustain visit www.ekal.org and click on Who the volunteer base, to endure this by Ekal booth at the RAAS event. noble mission. Desai addressed the For more information about the We Are or What We Do, or contact questions and provided additional in- Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation, please us at ekalusa@ekal.org. formation to the people who stopped
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May 06, 2016
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