The Indian May/June 2016

The Indian, May/June 2016 - Serving One to Serve Thousands

Vol. XLII No.10

Vol. XLII No. 10

May/June 2016

COVER STORY: 9

Serving One To Serve Thousands FEATURES:

12 When Diaspora In Distress! Minister Swaraj To Prompt Rescue!

18 Appoint Two NRIs To India's Upper House - Praful Patel 22 How Moni Varma Made It! 26 Keep Your Eyes Healthy Subscription Rate For 12 Issues:

27 Top Honours For Indian Flavours 35 Celebrate Life, Celebrate Death - Osho 38 AAI Approves Flight Landing In Shirdi 46 Roti Vs. Rice REGULARS: 7

Samaiki

13 Letter From London - Indians Provide Lifeline For U.K.’s Health Service 34 My India 39 Gems - Importance Of Prayer And Gratitude 42 Zodiac 47 Home Sweet Home 48 Khana Khazana - Simple Summer Snacks 50 Indians Abroad SUPPLEMENTS: 19 The Young Executive Group Presents ‘The Winning Post’ 24 Diamonds Are Forever For The Executive Group (TEG) Members 30 Maha Shivratri Celebration At The Happy Valley Hindu Mandir Cover: Serving One To Serve Thousands Printed by: Bynock Printing & Design Company Room L, 8/Fl., Block 2, Kwun Tong Industrial Ctr., 460 - 470 Kwun Tong Road, Kwun Tong.

Tel: 2320 8322 Fax: 2327 9644 Website: www.bynock.com.hk The Indian, May/June 2016

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YAGYA FOR HONG KONG Hong Kong is a financial center. Any adverse happening can affect the prosperity of Hong Kong. The recent happenings around the globe, politically as well as financially, have created a downward trend in Hong Kong commercially. The learned people feel that negative cosmic forces are causing the upheaval.

As per our religious beliefs, it is essential to conduct spiritual offerings to God in the form of 'Yagya' (prayers of fire sacrifice) to neutralize the negative influences of planets and enhance positivity.

During the SARS calamity in Hong Kong, the Hindu Association held a Havan and Yagya at the Hindu Temple, Happy Valley. Among the participants was Ms. Rita Fan, the then President of LegCo. To offset the current crisis, the Hindu community of Hong Kong jointly with the Kowloon Hindu Mandir (temple) and Hong Kong Hindu Temple held a Maha Yagya at India Club in May 2016. The organizer of the Maha Yagya was one of the community’s leaders, Mr. Notan Tolani.

Five learned priests conducted the Yagya according to ancient traditional prayers around the sacred fire called Havan.

It is believed and hoped that such Yagya offerings will have a positive influence on the cosmic energies and benefit Hong Kong tremendously.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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COVER STORY

Serving One to Serve Thousands

By Simrita Kaur Ahluwalia

A single person motivates his family and commun tty commun community y to to help hel h p thousands he tth tho ho ho ousand ousands us nds in n distress distr d sttrress ss Here is a poignant story of the airlift of Indians from Kuwait from 13 August to 20 October 1990 after the Invasion of Kuwait. Air India helped evacuate 111,000 people by air and another 500 people were sent on ship. The operation was carried out during the Persian Gulf War in 1990 to evacuate Indian expatriates from Kuwait.

A new Bollywood movie ‘Airlift’ shows ws ho Akshay Kumar as Ranjit Katyal who by became a hero to 170,000 Indians by ia helping them to return home. Air India ld holds the Guinness Book of World ed Records for the most people evacuated by a civil airline as a result of this effort.

This true story is about ordinary people like you and me, and a powerful four-letter word: Seva! Or Service.

Only eight, a little girl held her father's protective hand and walked to Sahar International Airport [today Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA)]. She was too young to understand the meaning of war or what was going on.

Her father made her sit on a stool next to a big vessel of hot tea (outside the exit door of the airport terminal), and instructed her to give two biscuits to every person who came to drink tea.

That was her task for the day. A bit shy, a bit nervous, the little girl spent the day following instructions of her dad. She was not alone. Her mother, her sisters, The Indian, May/June May/ y June 2016

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COVER STORY her grandmother and a couple of family lyy ng g friends were also at the airport, rushing in and out of the terminal. There were a th h whole lot of people, strangers, with ef, expressions that reflected fear, relief, he e hunger, sadness and loss, all at the ck same time. They had just landed back ng in their own country, with nothing g: (no material belongings) and yet everything: ed a hope to be reunited with their loved fe. e ones and to restart their journey of life. ng Everyday, the number of flights landing le at the airport, increased. The people ess, onboard had foregone their homes, ed properties, left behind their hard earned ve savings in Kuwait and managed to save a ay their skins at whatever cost. They may ad never have seen another dawn, had they not escaped in the nick of time.

who started filling out the forms for them. Some of them did not even have a coin to insert in the public call booth.

The grandmother of the family set up a counter providing them with one rupee coins, which they used to call their loved ones. The railways set up a counter to issue tickets for them for the journey to their hometown – but they were short-staffed. So, the mother and father and several volunteers manned these counters. Even more heart-rending: there were many body bags flown in, but no one to claim them. So, ambulances and private vehicles were organised.

Mobilising A Community: Meanwhile, the langar started by the girl's father was growing into a movement. The committees of Sikh gurdwaras, taxi drivers (who were working at the airport), friends and many others joined and upped the scale of the langar as more and more evacuees started landing into the city.

Moved by this, many more people came forward with financial assistance, but the father took their help only in kind.

Seva was the only commodity required.

That little girl was me. The father was my wonderful dad. My sisters vividly remember going up to the tarmac of the airport and receiving these soul-weary people. Some, upon landing, kissed the ground as soon as they stepped on Indian soil, others could not even cry because of sheer relief. Volunteers still remember serving at the guru ka langar.

The Lesson Of Seva: The little girl's father was so moved byy h the plight of these evacuees that he ot wanted to help, but knew he could not d, do it alone. His family was by his side. And, st what he did not realise was the biggest rs, s, lesson he gave to his three daughters, of teaching them the true meaning of ok the word seva – selfless service. He took ru special permission to organise a guru a) ka langar (like the ones at a Gurudwara) ed at the airport. But soon, he realised h. that providing food was not enough. ld d Many evacuees were labourers who could ut not read or write, let alone fill out ue e the immigration forms. To their rescue ly, ly came the women of the Ahluwalia family, The Indian, May/June May/ y June 2016

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COVER STORY Mom recollects the long days volunteering ng ut along with the customs officials, filling out he immigration forms and manning the e railway counters, issuing tickets. As for me in (daddy's little girl), the day used to begin he and end with the task of serving the two biscuits to everyone who walked by er. that door – that is really all I remember. ue But what I will never forget is the true ro, meaning of seva that my father, my hero, my angel taught me without uttering a word, but only through his actions!

The Sisters:

The Cast And Crew Of The e Mission:

The Younger Sister:

Father: Rajinder Singh Ahluwalia (Founder & ess, Chairman of Mukat Group of Companies, n, Mukat Educational Trust). He was 41 then, ng ng running a steel pipe manufacturing he e business in Mumbai. He sponsored the or airport camp and also arranged for ess 3-4 buses everyday to transport refugees as to railway stations, bus stands, etc. He was nd d a vegetarian, teetotaller, fit, handsome and a spiritual man. He passed away after a heart attack one day in his office at 54.

Mom: Sandeep Kaur Ahluwalia, an inspiration for or the late Mr. Ahluwalia, resides in Mumbai..

Grandma: Gurdev Kaur was a doting grandparent to to the three girls. She passed away in 2003.

The Indian, May/June May/ y June 2016

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We are the three proud daughters of Ahluwalia. The story of Airlift brought back memories of our story during the Kuwait-Iraq war.

The Eldest Sister: Mandeep Ahluwalia Pahwa – currently looks after his business (Mukat Pipes Limited). She is also the President of Mukat Educational Trust which runs Mukat Public School in Rajpura, Punjab.

Capt. Manpreet Kaur Ahluwalia was 14 when the airport movement started.

During the time spent at the tarmac, she was very inspired watching planes land and take off. Today, she is one of the senior-most commanders at Jet Airways.

Daddy's Little Girl!: I, Simrita Kaur Ahluwalia: CEO HDFC Education and Development Services Pvt. Ltd. (a 100% subsidiary of HDFC Ltd.), which is setting up HDFC schools.

Submitted by Kul Bhushan

WHEN DIASPORA IN DISTRESS! MINISTER SWARAJ TO PROMPT RESCUE! When overseasIndiansare in trouble, they contact India’sExternal AffairsMinistry on the mobile or the net for urgent rescue, writesKul Bhushan.

Every night,

When a person pleads for urgent help, the Minister takes up the matter with the nearest mission to gear into action. A deadline is set and if the matter is not resolved, the complaint moves to a higher level with colour coding until it becomes red. With social media, mobile app and a site, the ministry responds The latest is the homecoming of a to distress pleas from anywhere Sushma Swaraj. young Sikh woman and her and at all times. Another site, eight-year old daughter stuck in a www.emigrate.gov.in provides full information to refugee camp in Germany after her in-laws duped workers who want to emigrate. her into going abroad. The woman made a Soon after Prime Minister Modi took office in video plea for urgent help on 2nd February and May 2014, the first rescue mission for around Sushma Swaraj sprung into instant action so she 100,000 Indians started from Ukraine in June 2014. landed in Delhi within 48 hours.

Another 7,500 were rescued from Iraq within a few This is the latest rescue mission in a long list days. The mission in Yemen for 7,500 Indians and of emergency evacuations, both individual and 2,000 others was more dramatic and dangerous. en masse. During a recent speech, the minister said that she gets regular appeals for help from overseas Indians, including women in the Gulf.

Many women workers have their passports impounded by their employers and are mistreated.

The minister’s first response is to inform the nearest Indian mission to fly her to India after an emergency certificate is issued by the mission in lieu of a passport to enable travel to India.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj checks her Twitter and other social media accounts for about an hour. That is how she has proved to be an action oriented minister to solve urgent problems of the Indian diaspora members in distress.

She keeps in touch with the distressed Indians on social media giving information on the progress of the rescue operation and with their family in India.

During this, she gets details, starting with the mobile number of ‘the agent’ who sent the worker abroad. In most cases, these are fly-by-night operators not registered with the government.

So she informs the state government about this ‘agent’ to check the registration. If the agent is not registered, then legal action is started.

The Indian, May/June 2016

Gurpreet Kaur rescued from the German refugee camp.

The big problem is when overseas Indians do not follow advisories from the Indian government to leave their countries of residence in turmoil. Even after 3,500 had been brought back, Indians in Libya ignored repeated advisories and a few landed in dire straits.

Overseas Indians can count on prompt and effective help from India when in dire straits.

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Thousands of Indian medicos work in the UK’s National Health Service.

Spread all over England, Wales and Scotland, they are part of a vibrant chain that keeps this country healthy.

Our London Editor SHAMLAL PURI follows their unique success story.

INDIANS PROVIDE LIFELINE FOR UK’S HEALTH SERVICE Manibhai Patel remembers the

Neelu is one of the thousands of Indian nurses who form part of Britain’s National Health Service (NHS) set up 68 years ago.

day when after arriving in Britain from his village in Gujarat to meet his engineer son, he was admitted to a hospital suffering from chest pains.

These nurses, doctors and other medical staff are the unsung heroes and heroines of U.K.’s multi-billion pounds health sector providing a vital service.

Asians within the NHS took up roles within nursing, midwifery, hospital kitchens, administrators, NHS managers and consultants.

The majority however became doctors, GPs, dentists and pharmacists.

There is a history of Asians working in the U.K. In 1945 - three years before the NHS was launched with an annual budget of £437 million - there were around 1,000 Asian doctors in the U.K., including 200 in London. Their numbers swelled with the birth of the NHS.

Dr. Ravi Rajakariar is a well-known NHS Renal Medicine Consultant.

Mumbai-born ward nurse Neelu Shah greeted him in Gujarati while on her rounds, because he could not speak a word of English. He was also pleasantly surprised when during his ten-day stay, instead of English food, he was given a choice of Hindu vegetarian meals.

The Indian, May/June 2016

A recent Runnymede Trust report, Nurturing the Nation, records the valuable Asian contribution to the NHS since 1948.

It is the world’s largest publicly funded health service based on the ideal that good healthcare should be available to all.

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Early Indian pioneers included Dr. Akbar Mohamed who first recognised hypertension as a primary condition in the 1800s; Dr. Sukhsagar Datta, a GP in Bristol; Dr. Harbans Gulati and Dr. Chuni Lal Katial who visualised the NHS ten years before its inception by setting the London-based Finsbury Health Centre, creating a centralised local health service.

Dr. Tariq Khan, Consultant Podiatrist at Royal London Hospital for Integrated Medicine.

Many doctors arrived in the U.K. to study, but stayed on. During the 1947 partition, they sought openings with the NHS.

The NHS relies on medicos from the Indian subcontinent and the Commonwealth.

The unique healthcare system’s success is recognised by their contribution and today they are its mainstay.

Many are specialised in geriatric, genitourinary medicine, general psychiatric and those with learning disabilities.

Others are consultants, dentists, bilingual speech therapists, midwives, auxiliaries and social workers.

The NHS has 660,000 nurses of which 90,000 are from abroad.

In its early years, the NHS recruited nurses from the Caribbean. Pioneers include Trinidadian Indian Rangena Tilkaram. Asian descent nurses from Malaysia and Mauritius also joined those from India. Today there are over 40,000 Indian nurses and allied staff.

They got jobs because English doctors shunned certain specialities and refused to be posted to isolated parts of England.

Dr. Satinder Lal, 90, is one of the earliest Asians to work in the NHS. Armed with his MBBS Degree, he came from Punjab in 1952, joining as a junior doctor. He became a Registrar at Hammersmith Hospital, rising to Consultant Physician in respiratory medicine in Bury. He worked for 40 years.

Kenya-born Kuldip Kaur Bharj, a career nurse, who now teaches midwifery at Leeds University is among the many successful Asian NHS nurses.

Another Kenyan-born nurse Indra Raniga of Leicester says working with the NHS was a rewarding experience.

“Working with the NHS, I have gained a lot of experience and skills,” says Indra, a qualified Registered General Nurse who arrived here in 1975.

The General Medical Council, which helps protect patients and improve medical practice in the U.K., says there were 267,323 registered doctors in 2014. Of these, 25,018 were Indians. Additionally, 31,524 British-born Indians are also among the doctors practising in the U.K. The Indian, May/June 2016

Pharmacist Ms. Praksha Karsan is among a growing number of Asian pharmacologists handling NHS patients.

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Accident and Emergency departments are important elements in the NHS, providing a vital life-saving service.

Dr. M. Tariq Khan, a leading and internationally reputed Consultant Podiatrist at the Royal London Hospital for Integrated Medicine, is known for his contribution to Integrated Medicine using Homeopathic treatments.

He says a debate is raging on the general resentment among NHS doctors on the use of Allopathic and Homeopathic treatments.

When British doctors had deserted the NHS in 1960s, migrating abroad for better-paid jobs, Indians stepped in. English doctors and nurses are still relocating abroad for greener pastures.

The NHS is cash starved - a constant gripe among professionals. Its budget in 2012/13 was around £108.9 billion which was inadequate. It has plummeted even further to £106.5 billion in 2016-17 as the Government is constantly making cutbacks, resulting in closures of facilities to save money.

Ideally, the NHS needs over £30 billion extra to help it function smoothly.

“I think there is great disparity over the subject, we find many doctors and patients greatly appreciate the availability of Homeopathy and other complementary integrated medical approaches. But sceptics are very strong in trying to stop the provision of these therapies on the NHS even though good evidence based success is present.”

Despite the cutbacks, Indian medicos are still chasing NHS jobs, filling vacancies to provide much-needed medical care. NHS is happy as they get trained professionals at cut price.

GPs earned a reputation for their hard work, often running surgeries single-handed in rural areas, troubled inner-cities and Britain’s run-down parts.

Now, there is a dilemma facing the NHS. Researchers Aneez Ismail and Donald Taylor identified their concerns. A majority of Asian GPs working in the 1960s and 70s to fill crucial shortages have either retired or are about to retire, leaving vacancies for younger doctors which British medicos are reluctant to fill, hitting local communities.

The Indian, May/June 2016

A typical Hindu vegetarian meal menu in an NHS Hospital.

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There are many Asian success stories in the NHS. Kolkata-born Consultant Arup Banerjee who studied at the Calcutta Medical College initially came to the UK with his wife in 1960 to gain MRCP qualifications, but stayed on holding several jobs, including a Senior Registrar in Portsmouth.

He was then appointed a Consultant in elderly medicine at Bolton General Hospital where he also conducted vital research.

He later became Bolton Medical Trust’s Medical Director.

Asians like essential facilities engineer Pradip Parmar from Guys and St. Thomas’ hospitals provide back-stage services to the NHS.

“I see a large variety of Dermatology and Orthopaedic foot conditions, which range from corns, verruca’s, bunions, plantar fasciitis, heel pain, Morton neuroma, Fungal nail and skin conditions, genetic rare conditions like kerataderma and Epidermolysis Bullosa.”

Internationally acclaimed clinician Prof. Nilesh Samani, Professor of Cardiology, was honoured by the Queen with a Knighthood in 2015 for his services to Medicine and Medical Research.

Dr. Khan believes there will be wider acceptance of Homeopathic treatments in future. “I think they will probably see as part of an integrated treatment management, so patients will receive a combination of treatments with Homeopathy as part of the management of the condition rather than a standalone.”

Even though retired, he is active as the Clinical Director of Elderly Services in the Wigan and Leigh NHS Trust. He is the President of the British Geriatrics Society and holds several positions in the British Medical Association, NHS Management and Royal College of Physicians. He was honoured by the Queen with an OBE. Pathologist Manju Bhavnani’s rise to a consultant in Wigan is a heart-warming story of an Indian doctor who rose from a House Officer in Taunton and Bristol to Wigan where she operated clinical haematology service, giving technical advice to GPs and NHS doctors on blood samples.

She developed Chemotherapy services locally and is a specialist and researcher in Haematological Cancer. She was also awarded an OBE for Services to Medicine.

Dr. Kamini Gadhok (second right), CEO of Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists is among few top notch Indian NHS professionals.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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dentist and Dr. Muhammad Yunus Khan, a Consultant at the Royal London Hospital.

Newly-arrived Asian medicos were then often confronted by racism, bullying and isolation by white colleagues. Many could not adapt to the unpredictable British weather.

An Asian doctor makes a point about unfair working hours for doctors at the Royal College of General Practitioners meeting in London.

Dr. Khan recalls, “I remember my late father having great deal of problems with both bullying and racism in the 1980s.”

Dr. Ravi Rajakariar, MRCP, is an eminent Consultant Nephrologist and Consultant in Renal Medicine at Barts and London NHS Trust based at the Royal London Hospital.

Times have changed now, he says, as Asian doctors form the backbone of the success of the NHS and racism and bullying are only in isolated cases. “Today, it is quite easy for Asians to progress. Their selection is based more on professional skills than colour,” he says.

Indians settled in the Commonwealth started arriving in the UK in the 1960 and 70s.

Their children took up medicine and joined the NHS. Important migrations included the 1968 Kenya exodus and the 1972 expulsion of Ugandan Asians when thousands of British citizens settled here. Their children became medical professionals and eminent doctors in the NHS.

Prof. Dilip Nathwani, Director of Medical Education in the National Health Service Scotland, has been honoured with an OBE for services to Treatment of Infectious Diseases.

Prof. Iqbal Singh, General Medical Council Equality and Diversity Committee chairman, says, “The NHS owes an everlasting debt of gratitude to Asian doctors who have been its backbone and have helped to build the NHS, delivering care in areas that have been hard to reach and working in ‘Cinderella’ specialities where it was difficult to attract local graduates. The NHS will always be grateful to these doctors for the care provided to patients in vulnerable groups.”

NHS staff protesting over planned Government cuts.

Kiran Patel is one such medico. The son of a Kenyan Indian who worked in a steel factory in West Bromwich, Kiran went to Cambridge University where he obtained his qualifications. He is now a Consultant Cardiologist and the Associate Medical Director at Heart of England NHS Trust.

Britain acknowledges that had it not been for the contribution and involvement of Asian doctors and nurses, the much-envied NHS would have long collapsed.

Other prominent Asians who have made their mark include Kenya-born Dr. Vinod Devalia, a Consultant Haematologist in Wales who has worked with double Nobel prize Winner Fred Sanger; Dr. Rashmikant Shah, an NHS The Indian, May/June 2016

- shamlalpuri@gmail.com Photos: Shamlal Puri 17

APPOINT TWO NRIS TO INDIA'S UPPER HOUSE - PRAFUL PATEL By Kul Bhushan The Indian diaspora should have at least two representations in the Rajya Sabha, the House of Elders in the Indian Parliament, says Praful Patel, a long standing leader of British Asians.

The Congress government had appointed an advisory committee of distinguished NRIs for consultation, advice and proposals. During its annual meetings, a number of suggestions were made, but there was no major impact as their recommendations were not made public, says Patel.

When these meetings took place, how many members took part and what they contributed was not publicized to the diaspora, Patel complains.

Patel believes that with the considerable emphasis on the diaspora by Prime Minister Narendra Modi ever since he took office, a continued input from NRIs to the national debate and matters of their concerns is now necessary and important.

“As far as my memory serves right, there were two NRI members appointed to Rajya Sabha under the President's quota by the late Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru,” said Patel in a written interview to The Indian Diaspora. “Two members served for six years. I am not aware if further appointments were made, but the precedent does exist that the President can appoint 12 members to the Rajya Sabha, which he does.

From this quota, he could appoint two NRI members every term.”

“Billions of US$ are invested and deposited in India by NRIs ($70 billion to India in 2014). On three occasions in the nineties, the NRIs came to the rescue of the Indian government when they badly needed foreign exchange.

But who cares? The Indian establishment is doing lip service to NRIs since the early eighties. Please look at China’s example and all that India needs to do is to replicate the Chinese example of how Overseas Chinese have become a part of People's Republic of China. Now NRIs have got new and increased importance by PM Modi.

Why only give just two NRIs Rajya Sabha seats; they should actually think of appointing 10 NRIs from different regions of the world and from all fields of expertise.”

How can NRI representatives in the Rajya Sabha contribute to public debate on Indian issues and especially those that concern NRIs? “An NRI Consultative Committee was set up by the late Rajiv Gandhi in the mid-eighties which existed for six years of which I was a member. The then Reserve Bank governor, Manmohan Singh (who later became Prime Minister), brought about huge reforms in the investment policies relating to NRIs. This committee had 36 members representing NRIs from various regions, apex Indian trade and industry bodies and the government.

It did some valuable work.”

“If the current government decides to appoint NRI representatives in Rajya Sabha,” said Patel, “then such appointees should be non-partisan and their roles should be same as current 12 appointees of the President.”

The Indian, May/June 2016

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The Young Executive Group Presents ‘The Winning Post’ President Vinod Mahtani, Vice President Roshan Melwani, together with Sunil Balani, Lavi Khemaney, Amit Hira, and other phenomenal Committee Members arranged a series of games with a racing theme which, when combined with the sensational music and delicious Chinese cuisine at the Grand Ballroom of the Four Seasons Hotel, amounted to a wonderful afternoon for members of the Young Executive Group Hong Kong. Here are some priceless moments…

wife Saloni with Amishi Sani, Rina Wadhwani, Resham Narain Buxani Family - Vishal, Mahesh, Naina Vice President Roshan and his sheena. and Gita Bharwaney. and Karina.

President Vinod and his wife Pra

Roshan & Sherina Kirpalani, Bharti & Sunil Uttamchandani, Ashok & Monica Kirpalani and Malina & Arun Kirpalani.

Harry & Roshni Mohinani, Roshan Melwani and Kishore Samtani.

The Indian, May/June 2016

Nanik & Meera Daswani.

Gobind Shahani, Ramesh Ahuja, Manohar Chugh, Chandru Mirchandani and Surender Kirpalani.

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Meera Daswani, Sarina Kundamal, Monisha Butani, Reema Mulchand Shanky Nanik, Anil Gangwani, Manu Chulani and Sanjay Makhija. and Angeli Butani.

From L to R: Sunil & Ritu Hemnani, Gope & Meera (Lavina) Melwani, Varsha & Chatru Gulab Misha Khemaney presenting the Best Dressed and Shanu & Vinod Bahrunani. couple prize to Ashok & Monica Kirpalani.

Selina Gidwani presenting the Amishi Sani, Malina Kirpalani, Seema Mahtani, Saloni Melwani, Kanchan Madnani, Angeli Butani, Best Dressed man prize to Manisha Gangwani, Bharti Uttamchandani, Anmol Makhija, Shyla Motwani and Selina Gidwani.

Vishal Daswani.

Geeta Mahbubani presen ting the Best Dressed lady prize to Am ishi Sani.

Seated – Gobind & Kavita Lalwani and Prabha & Lachu Vaswani. Standing are Chandru & Mala Mirchandani.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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Jyoti Nandwani, Rekha Chugh, Alka Shamdasani and Menka Kirpalani.

Raj Sital, Danny Thakur, Vijay Khatwani and Manu Lahori.

The charming members of YEG‌

The Indian, May/June 2016

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How Moni Varma Made It!

By Laura Onita

MONI VARMA always dreamt of

becoming a millionaire, but he had no idea that his fortune would be built on rice.

“I didn’t want to sell rice — I wanted to work in the steel industry,” said Varma, who arrived in Britain from Malawi as a 33-year-old in 1982.

In his homeland, he had helped to run a company that made steel products, but when a relative asked him to import basmati rice to Britain, he saw an opportunity he could not ignore.

Duties on milled white rice imported into Europe were £400 a tonne, while for unmilled brown rice, they were £200. Varma thought there were profits to be made by importing unrefined rice and milling it himself. “I did some sums on the back of an envelope and thought it was worth going for.”

His hunch was right. Today, Veetee Rice, which he launched in 1987, has sales of £72m and profits that top £3m. Varma, whose fortune is estimated at £215m, is ranked 450th on The Sunday Times Rich List. There are more than 200 staff at Veetee’s head office in Rochester, Kent.

The company mills and packs rice for household names such as Marks & Spencer and Tesco. All the own-brand rice on the shelves of Waitrose, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons also come from Veetee.

Rice has become more popular as tastes in Britain have changed. “It used to be fish and chips [but now] curry and other rice dishes have become a great part of British cuisine,” said Varma. He has never turned to outside investors, having started the company with £135,000 of his savings and bank loans.

The youngest of eight children, Varma was born in India, where his parents were on holiday. He was brought up in Nyasaland, which became Malawi, by his mother, a housewife, and his father, an electrical engineer.

When Varma left school in 1968, he planned to move to Britain to study law, but he was offered a job as a salesman for Gestetner, the copying machine maker.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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The money was good, so his academic aspirations went out of the window.

“I earned about £150 a month, which was a lot at the time. I found it easy to make money,” he said.

After 11 months, Varma left the job and set up a business with a friend to sell barbed wire. They expanded it into a steel supplier before Malawi’s then president, Hastings Banda, bought the company in 1980. “They expected me to stay on and work as an employee, but I just couldn’t,” said Varma, who had made plans to move to Britain with his wife.

They bought a flat in Ealing, west London, with money from his previous venture and he set up a trading company to buy and sell steel. However, he was soon distracted by rice.

“I don’t regret my decision. Both industries are equally problematic.

Every commodity has its cycle — it goes up and down,” said Varma, who also runs Veetee Foods, a sister company he started in 2005, which sells rice dishes ready to heat and eat. It posted revenues of £18m for 2014.

He had no problems pitching to large companies. “I dealt with big projects in Malawi. I wasn’t daunted by opening the doors of Tesco or Sainsbury’s,” he said.

Today his business has two factories in Britain and one in India.

Varma has plans for a £25m factory in North Carolina to help Veetee win more business from American supermarket chains. It is already supplying 7,500 outlets, including Walmart, which bring in sales of £6m.

Whether his bold ambitions for a new site pay off is open to question, he said.

“I don’t have a guarantee it will succeed.”

If it does, he could be prepared to accept one of the many offers he has had to let go of his venture. “I will sell the company at some stage, maybe when I have the factory up and running,” said Varma, 66. It seems he will have no problem securing funds for ambitious plans if he needs them. “Right now the banks are chasing us for whatever we want to do next.”

He expects revenues to remain the same for the next financial year because of volatile commodity prices. “This year prices are down 20%, so turnover will be impacted,” said Varma, who plans a £1.7m marketing campaign next year.

He lives with his wife between homes in Middlesex and Mayfair. They have two children, Priya, 32, and Rajiv, 30, who works at Veetee as deputy chairman.

Varma’s advice to budding entrepreneurs is to take risks. “There’s no such thing as smooth sailing in business,” he said. “If you want to start your own venture, go right ahead. You will prevail if you use your common sense and persevere.

There’s always a risk in everything you do.”

The Indian, May/June 2016

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DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER FOR THE EXECUTIVE GROUP (TEG) MEMBERS The T he T TEG EG C Committee ommitttee aarranged rranged aan n eexquisite xquisite V Valentines alentiines ffunction uncction at at tthe he A Aberdeen berdeen M Marina arina C Club. lub. D Dressed ressed tto o tthe he ttheme hem me aand nd d dazzling azzling iin n diamonds, members and their guests enjoyed an evening of amore and musical entertainment from Rimi Nique.

President Deepak Budhrani and his ace Executive Committee.

tnani, Shirley Budhrani, L to R: Roshini Sujanani, Rani Lakhani, Sham & Anjali Ratnani, Priya Bharwani, Anjali Ra Khatwani.

Anil & Manisha Gangwani and Daisy & Kishore Samtani.

Chitra Tolani and Priyam

Some of the dazzling ladies!

The Indian, May/June 2016

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Picture perfect party people!

Notan & Deepa Tolani.

Manu & Resham Melwan i.

Gary & Viju Purswani.

Ramesh & Sangeeta Ahuja.

Kamal & Gary Harilela.

Ishwar & Hinu Daswani.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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Keep Your

Here are some foods that will help protect your eyes‌

Eyes Healthy

Spinach:

Loaded with vitamin C, beta carotene and large amounts of lutein and zeaxanthin, spinach contains nutrients that absorb 40 to 90% of blue light intensity and as a result, acts like sunscreen for your eyes. Have it as a side vegetable with dinner or sautĂŠ it in an omelet.

Carrots:

Rich in beta carotene, an antioxidant that helps reduce the risk of macular degeneration and cataracts, carrots are the most recommended for improving your eyesight. Have them raw as a part of your veggie salad or with a curd dip.

Eggs:

According to experts, the egg yolk is a prime source of lutein and zeaxanthin, as well as zinc, that also helps reduce your macular degeneration risk.

Almonds:

Research suggests that almonds are filled with vitamin E which slows macular degeneration.

A handful of almonds are said to provide about half of your daily dose of vitamin E.

Sweet

Potatoes:

Containing beta carotene, sweet potatoes help promote healthy vision and also help the eyes to adjust to low levels of light at night, according to studies.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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TOP P HONOURS FO FOR INDIAN FLAVOURS RS

By Indira Kannan Kann Vikram Vij and his wife Meeru Dhalwala are serving se up India ndia on a pla platter in Vancouver. Their flagship agship Vij's is a hit with w locals and celebrities alike.

One evening last summer,

an Indian party of eight showed up at Vij's in Vancouver, possibly the best-known Indian restaurant in Canada. The restaurant has a strict No Reservations policy, so the party waited, with their fellow diners, for a table. Once they were seated, Vikram Vij, undoubtedly the best-known Indian chef and restaurateur in Canada, mentally put down the party for a $40 bottle of wine.

When the leader of the party ordered a $250 bottle, Vij was flabbergasted. "I was totally surprised that an Indian would order a 250-dollar bottle of wine," he said in an interview.

A certified sommelier and wine enthusiast himself, he went across to talk to the The Indian, May/June 2016

Vij replied, and was told it was Satya Nadella, the India-born CEO of Seattle-based tech giant Microsoft. His family had been on a visit to the ski resort town of Whistler near Vancouver and had sought out Vij's for dinner en route.

patron, delighted to find him knowledgeable and equally enthusiastic about wines.

Later, another regular customer, a tech industry executive who often drove across the border from neighboring Seattle in the United States, asked Vij if he knew who he had been chatting with. No idea, 27

But then, celebrities from any field are not unusual at Vij's.

It has played host to Canada's former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. Hollywood star Harrison Ford drops in whenever he is in town, as do Indo-Canadian director Deepa Mehta, British actor John Cleese and many other Hollywood celebrities.

Vij recalls a visit by American businesswoman and lifestyle coach Martha Stewart.

"Someone told me Martha Stewart was giving a speech

and she asked if there's one restaurant I should visit in Vancouver, where should I go, and everybody said Vij's.

And when she walked in that night, everybody looked to see if I had given her a table ahead of anyone and the fact that I did not change my principles of making everybody wait for a table if there's no room. That was another big factor for me."

It's been a long journey for Vij, 50, who nearly had to close down his then 14-seat restaurant a few months after it opened in September 1994, because his landlord could not tolerate the unfamiliar aromas of Indian spices.

Vij's moved in May to open at a bigger location in Vancouver.

It is the flagship of a group owned and managed by Vij and his wife Meeru Dhalwala.

The business includes three other restaurants, a food truck, packaged foods and cookbooks.

Vij is also a television celebrity, with appearances on popular Canadian shows like Top Chef Canada, Chopped Canada, Recipe to Riches.

The Indian, May/June 2016

Vij's, which had been steadily gaining fans with its focus on modern Indian cuisine, vaulted to the big league in 2003 after Mark Bittman, a celebrated food writer for The New York Times, declared in the newspaper that Vij's was "easily among the finest Indian restaurants in the world". "If anything is offered in fenugreek cream or sweet potato curry, grab it.

Try the buffalo meat in spicy raw sugar curry with cold pea and fennel salad," he added.

For Vij and Dhalwala, the accolades were a vindication of their approach to Indian food. "Vikram and I said our food needs to be on par in terms of respect and creativity with French food, Italian food, Pacific Northwestern food and we did not want what we were so proud of in our culture to be presented as cheap buffet ethnic. We're not cheap, buffet people. At home, Indians eat the freshest of all fresh ingredients," says Dhalwala.

Vij, who was born in Amritsar and grew up in Delhi and Mumbai, left India at 19 to study hotel 28

management in Austria.

He was working as a cook at an Austrian restaurant when his chef told him a customer wanted something spicy.

Vij walked to his room nearby, retrieved his cache of masalas, and whipped up a spicy dish. The customer was the general manager of the famous Banff Springs luxury hotel in Alberta's Banff National Park, and once home, mailed Vij a visa and a one-way ticket to Canada.

After a three-year stint at the Banff Springs, Vij decided to move to sunny Vancouver to start his own restaurant.

It wasn't exactly a strategically-thought-out decision, Vij says. "I had been living in Banff for so long, I had always lived in cold, cold conditions ever since I left India, and I wanted a little more tropical place.

Plus, I also realised there were at least 300,000 Indians who lived here which was a bonus for me," recounts Vij. Weeks after opening Vij's, he found a helping hand in his wife Dhalwala, who grew up in the U.S. While waiting for her work permit,

she decided to help out by washing dishes and making masala chai. Soon she was hooked and began experimenting with recipes, even though she had little experience and Vij was the trained chef. "I use the knife like a home cook and cook through smell and colours," says Dhalwala. Today, she runs the kitchen at Vij's and their next-door cafe Rangoli, while Vij manages the front of the house.

He also independently handles the restaurant My Shanti, while Dhalwala travels to Seattle for 2-3 days every week to manage Shanik. Vij no longer cooks in the restaurant kitchens unless there is an emergency, but he has not forgotten his trade. Dhalwala creates the recipes, but says every item on their menus is a joint project: "Our biggest success is the lamb popsicle dish.

I came up with the recipe, but it was Vikram who said, 'I like the idea of eating the lamb on the bone like this, like a popsicle.' And he showed each customer how to eat it."

The Indian, May/June 2016

Vij says he travels to India nearly every year as part of a continuing education in Indian cooking. Hyderabad and Amritsar are favourite food haunts. Dhalwala notes their menus are completely Indian. "My food is not fusion food, it's true, hard core Indian in terms of the spices that I use. I'm not using basil or oregano or anything like that," she says.

As the face of his restaurant empire, Vij has single-handedly promoted Indian cuisine in Canada.

In its very first year, Vij's was named the best Asian restaurant in Vancouver.

Vij refused to accept it.

"I said I am honoured, but you need to go figure out how big Asia is," he recalls.

The next year, the categories changed to Best Indian, Best Chinese, and the like.

Vij and Dhalwala have two daughters, Nanaki, a university student, and Shanik, who is in high school.

While their Seattle restaurant is named after their younger daughter, Dhalwala says they avoided naming an eatery after Nanaki as "Bibi Nanaki 29

is the sister of Guru Nanak and we thought if we're going to serve meat at a restaurant it's disrespectful to name it Nanaki."

Dhalwala recalls an argument with an angry Indian customer who emailed asking, "How dare you call yourself an Indian restaurant and serve beef?" "I emailed back, saying it's not a Hindu restaurant, it's an Indian restaurant and in India, there are Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Hindus and atheists."

Vij wants to open an Indian charcuterie called Mian Bawarchi, which was his grandmother's childhood nickname for the aspiring chef. Despite stellar reviews and several honours over the years, he insists, "you're only as good as the last dish that came out of your kitchen." There, the Vij's empire is on pretty solid ground.

Maha Shivratri Celebration At The Happy Valley Hindu Mandir Shivratri

session starts, followed by arti and Shiva Bhandara.

is one of the most important festivals in the Indian Calendar, even surpassing Diwali.

Devotees line up in hundreds to perform water and milk abhishek on Shiv linga.

Sometimes the line of devotees is so long that it takes between half an hour to an hour in the queue.

A miracle happened around the Shiva Murti some time ago. A water pipe was installed in front of the Shiva statue to carry the Abhishek water for disposal.

The pipe was covered with cement plaster.

No design or colour was applied on the cement. However, a design depicting Lord Shiva's snake looking exactly the same as the skin of a snake has appeared on the cement plaster. Thus the message from Shiva is sound and clear. He is saying I am "chetan" not "Jar". He is very much there in the temple. If you have faith in Him, all your desires will be fulfilled. The design on the cement plaster is indeed a MIRACLE.

Approximately a thousand devotees come during the morning session for abhishek. The temple door which opens every day at eight in the morning is opened specially at seven for the benefit of the devotees.

Shivratri is not the birthday of Lord Shiva.

Shiva is eternal. He is neither born nor dies like the other avatars. He Himself is God Almighty. Shivratri is the day of His marriage.

This year was no exception. Devotees turned out in large numbers throughout the day on 7th March to celebrate Shivratri at the Hindu Temple in Happy Valley.

The evening session of Shivratri starts at 7 p.m. with the Tamil community offering special prayers, Sanskrit and Tamil recitation. The ceremony is conducted by Priest Venkat, who is one of the members of the Tamil community settled in Hong Kong. After the chanting of prayers for one hour, the bhajan

The Indian, May/June 2016

Here are some of the memorable moments of the important day in our Hindu calendar.

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Photos: Roma Melwani The Indian, May/June 2016

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My

India

Loving couple, Miru & Hiro Lalwani, celebrated their Golden Anniversary at Royalista Royali o sta Indian Restaurant in Andherii Andheri.

(L to R) – Extended Family By Love: puri and Daughter-in-law Jaanam Mir Bel lannii ella ena He h wit lu, her mom-in-law Sha visiting froom and sister Poonam Karnani, Gibraltar.

Blessings Galore Yearly From The Tulsiani’s Penthouse With Family And Friends: (L to R) - Sapna Bharwani, Tulsiani daughter-in-law Pooja, son Santosh, young Jia, abundant parents and hosts Prakash & Anu Tulsiani,Vanisha & Gulu Harjani (crouching), and guests Varkha & Dayal Alwani of St. Maarten.

Family Gathering: A wonderful family gathering took place after a long time at the Bombay Gurdwara Chembur. This was to welcome Suresh & Lesley Sippy from U.K. and Ramesh H. Sippy from Hong Kong. Pictured with them are Deepak Sippy, Gaby Sippy, Rachna Sippy from Africa, Harish Sippy, Nita Sippy, Janya Sippy, Gehna Sippy, Lata Bhavnani, Kishore Bhavnani, Chacho Ram Sippy, Chachi Sunita Sippy, Sippy, Anil Gidwani, Vinod Gidwani and Neeta M. Lala.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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Celebrate Life, Celebrate Death - Osho

Celebrating life is easy but celebrating death?

Not any more!

By Swami Anand Kul Bhushan When renowned Indian classical dancer,

That is the best time to celebrate, and the last time to celebrate. And celebrating death will help you to understand that there is nothing in life to be afraid of. If death is a celebration, then what else can be a cause of fear? And if you can celebrate death, you have attained a maturity. It is possible only to those who live life as a rejoicing, a constant celebration. Then death is not the termination, but only a small incident of changing your clothes, your house, and your body. But you remain exactly the same forever -- nothing changes in your intrinsic being. From eternity to eternity, you are exactly the same.” (From Personality to Individuality, Chapter #12)

Mrinalini Sarabhai, died at the age of 97 on 21st January 2016, her equally renowned daughter, Malika Sarabhai, and classical dancer burst into a spontaneous dance to offer her an appropriate farewell. Earlier, Malika shared the news on Facebook as she wrote, “My mother Mrinalini Sarabhai has just left for her eternal dance.”

The news, and especially the farewell dance, made front page news in India for two reasons: Mrinalini was a much loved and honoured cultural ambassador of India for decades; and two, her death became a celebration. Just like Osho says, “Celebrate every moment, because this may be the last moment. But while celebrating, don't forget that death is coming. Remember it.

Remembering should not become an obsession; remembrance should become a celebration.” (Come Follow To You, Vol 2, Chapter #2)

Death is celebrated in many cultures.

In Africa, all relatives of the departed persons dress in their best clothes for the burial, singing songs and dancing in farewell.

Some tribes have a week-long singing, dancing and feasting session. In Punjab, North India, when an old person, say above 80 years, dies, a brass band plays religious tunes as the body is taken for the last rites. Dry fruits and sweets are thrown over the body and picked by youngsters who want to live as long.

Yes, Osho urges everyone to celebrate life.

That’s fine with us, but celebrating death is very difficult to swallow. And yet, Osho prods us.

“We celebrate, because there is no death, says Osho, “Either the man is going into a new house -- a good time to celebrate -- or the man is going into the eternal existence.

The Indian, May/June 2016

Some Indians in Western countries write down their pet music and songs 35

Fond Farewell Dance: Malika Sarabhai dances spontaneously before her mother Mrinalini’s final journey in Ahmedabad recently.

Courtesy: Teleguflame.net

Osho tells the story of three Chinese mystics known as ‘Laughing Saints’. They went from village to village; standing in the centre and laughing and dancing. Soon a crowd would gather and later, everyone would start laughing and dancing as well. That would change the quality of the village.

to be played, favourite dishes to be served and their type of decoration for final departure ceremonies. They do not want long faces and weeping, but a happy farewell.

Another idea is to get their tributes written by their friends and relatives in advance, say at their 75th or 80th birthday, so that they can read them before they pass away.

These tributes are bound in a book and read at the final farewell.

Then, in one village, one of the three died.

The villagers gathered to see how they would laugh when they should weep.

But the two were laughing and dancing!

The villagers were shocked.

‘Times of India’ ran an article, ‘Good Mourning, India’, on how Indian society is changing to celebrate death instead of sorrowing with many examples. Offering a happy and fond final farewell to grandparents is acceptable, but it becomes heart wrenching when someone in his/her peak of life dies suddenly. No worry.

When a 26-year old died of leukemia, his family celebrated - screened a short film on his life, read out his poem and spread his ashes in their orchard in the Himalayas.

The Indian, May/June 2016

They said, “You don't know what has happened! All three of us were always thinking of who was going to die first.

This man has won; we are defeated.

The whole life we laughed with him.

How can we give him the last send off with anything else? We have to laugh, we have to enjoy, and we have to celebrate.

This is the only farewell that is possible for the man who has laughed his whole life.

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killed death. But start it, give it a try. There is nothing to lose. But people are so foolish that even when there is nothing to lose, they won't give it a try. What is there to lose?”

And if we don't laugh, he will laugh at us and he will think, "You fools! So you have fallen again into the trap? We don't see that he is dead. How can laughter die, how can life die?””

“If you are sad, then I say celebrate, dance, sing. What are you to lose? At the most, sadness will be lost, nothing else. But you think it is impossible. And the very idea that it is impossible will not allow you to give it a try. And I say it is one of the easiest things in the world, because energy is neutral.

The same energy becomes sadness; the same energy becomes anger; the same energy becomes sexuality; the same energy becomes compassion; the same energy becomes meditation. Energy is one.

You don't have many types of energies.

You don't have many separate pockets of energy where this energy is labelled 'sadness' and this energy is labelled 'happiness'. Energies are not pigeon-holed, they are not separated. There exists no watertight compartment in you. You are simply one. This one energy becomes sadness, this one energy becomes anger.

It is up to you.”

Then the body was to be burned, and the village people said, “We will give him a bath as the ritual prescribes." But those two friends said, “No, our friend has said, "Don't perform any ritual and don't change my clothes and don't give me a bath. You just put me as I am on the burning pyre." So we have to follow his instructions.”

And then, suddenly, there was a great happening. When the body was put on the fire, that old man had played the last trick.

He had hidden many fireworks under his clothes, and suddenly there was Diwali!

The whole village started laughing.

These two mad friends were dancing, and then the whole village started dancing.

It was not a death, it was a new life.

Osho says, “No death is death, because every death opens a new door -- it is a beginning. There is no end to life; there is always a new beginning, a resurrection.”

“One has to learn the secret, the art of how to transform energies. You simply give a direction and the same energy starts moving. And when there is a possibility of transforming anger into bliss, greed into compassion, and jealousy into love... you don't know what you are losing. You don't know what you are missing.

You are missing the whole point of being here in this universe. Give it a try,” says Osho. (Yoga: The Alpha and the Omega, Vol 4, Chapter #10)

“If you change your sadness to celebration, then you will also be capable of changing your death into resurrection. So learn the art while there is still time. Don't let death come before you have learned the secret alchemy of changing baser metals into higher metals. Because if you can change sadness, you can change death. If you can be celebrating unconditionally, when death comes, you will be able to laugh, you will be able to celebrate, and you will go happy. And when you can go celebrating, death cannot kill you. Rather, on the contrary, you have The Indian, May/June 2016

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AAI APPROVES FLIGHT LANDING IN SHIRDI

By Sumita Sarkar

The much-discussed Shirdi airport will be operational in a

few months with the Airports Authority of India (AAI) giving its green signal, when the first flight landed at the airport from Mumbai.

The six-seater chartered plane of Bombay Flying Club took off from Juhu in Mumbai at 8.30 am and landed at the Shirdi airport in 45 minutes. The airport is located in Kakdi village, about 100 km from Shirdi on a 1,100-acre plot.

The AAI inspected the landing and the airport facilities.

The state government is also trying to start the air services to Dubai and Singapore from Shirdi in the first phase, informed the airport development company.

The total cost of the airport is Rs. 300 crore and till date Rs. 200 crore has been used. The state government has recently approved of the remaining Rs. 100 crore, which will be used for constructing the compound wall of the airport and the connecting roads.

"Sai Baba devotees from Dubai and Singapore had asked for the air services to Shirdi. Hence, the government is trying to start the services in the first phase itself. Besides, air services will be provided to Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai and Ahmedabad as well," said Vishwas Patil, executive director of the airport development company.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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A

Saint once said that only by doing regular spiritual practice (sadhana), one could realise God. Prayer is a simple tool to achieve this. He gave the example of obtaining butter from milk. Knowledge that milk contains butter is easy to acquire, but the process of obtaining it involves a long process. Sadhana is akin to obtaining butter from milk.

Prayers with expectation of worldly benefit are generally said by people in the initial stages of their spiritual journey. Such prayers end up using our spiritual energy which has been gained through spiritual practice attained either from this birth or earlier births.

A disadvantage of this type of prayer is that one remains trapped in worldly desires, instead of surrendering to God’s Will and learning to rely on Him to provide as per our need.

A Japanese scientist, Dr. Masaru Imoto, studied the effect of prayer, chanting etc. on water and food. He also photographed these changes and concluded that these have an exceptionally positive effect on water and food. Our body consists of 72% water; therefore, prayers have a beneficial effect on our health.

Prayer for spiritual growth or nishkam sadhana Seekers who are serious about their spiritual journey and have the desire to go beyond the cycles of birth and death and achieve Moksha or Final Liberation, make this type of prayer. In such prayers, there is a pleading to be able to utilise this human birth to the fullest, to give one the strength and courage to face any adversity caused due to destiny, to increase the quality of one's spiritual practice and to make faster spiritual progress towards Final Liberation.

The word prãrthanã is derived from two words, meaning, pleading fervently. It is asking God for something with intense yearning. Prayer includes respect, love, pleading and faith. This article is dedicated to increasing our motivation to pray frequently and sincerely.

Types of Prayer

Such prayers give the seeker the benefit of being graced with spiritual progress, as well as one's material need being taken care of as per the requirement.

Prayer with worldly expectation or sakam sadhana This type of prayer is done with some worldly expectation. Examples of these are:

Benefits of Prayer: • Improves spiritual practice: Prayer impacts our spiritual practice at three levels, viz. action, thought and attitude.

• For fulfilling one's desires, such as marriage, a job, a child, etc.

• Recovery from illness, wanting happiness, etc.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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• Action: All actions that are preceded by prayer for spiritual benefit are performed with spiritual emotion or bhav; hence fewer errors are committed. Thus, by praying, various actions in one’s spiritual practice (e.g. chanting, company of the Absolute Truth (satsang), service unto the Absolute Truth (satseva), etc.) occur as per the way God or one's Guru would like them to happen.

done through him, a seemingly impossible task is easily accomplished by the Guru’s grace.

• Receiving forgiveness for mistakes: Having committed a mistake, if one feels remorseful and makes a prayer and surrenders unto God or the Guru, then one is forgiven.

• Reducing the ego: While praying, we plead and surrender before God; wherein with this surrender, pride is abandoned and we humbly admit our faults and mistakes. This too immensely helps to reduce the ego.

• Thought: So long as the mind is active, thoughts will continue. They pose an obstacle to the dissolution of the mind.

Useless, negative, unnecessary thoughts cause wastage of energy. Prayer prevents this waste and reduces worry, while enhancing contemplation.

• Increase in faith: When a prayer gets answered, faith in God or the Guru increases. Faith and spiritual emotion are the only currency on our spiritual journey.

• Attitude: A prayer done with spiritual emotion initiates contemplation within a seeker, and this assists in becoming introverted.

Gratitude In current times, on an average, 65% of events happen as per destiny, while 35% happen as per our wilful action. As we evolve spiritually, we begin to feel God’s presence in our lives; then we experience His grace and that everything is happening as per His wish.

• Enhances the potency of chanting God’s Name: A seeker chants the name of God with the aim of realising Him. Only if the chanting is accompanied by intense motivation for God realisation and spiritual emotion, will the Name be effective. One Saint would be so engrossed in chanting, that He would become oblivious to the world. Repeated prayers about being graced with quality chanting, along with chanting the Name of God, helps in generation of spiritual emotion and makes our chanting reach God.

A true seeker develops a learning attitude in all situations, good or bad. From various life situations, he becomes aware of his defects and qualities so that he can shed his personality defects and have a greater awareness of his qualities. He perceives that God is helping him through all situations to enhance his seeker-ship. Accordingly, he feels gratitude to God in all situations. In most cases, this gratitude is directed to one’s spiritual guide or Guru. To grow spiritually,

• Divine help in spiritual practice: When a seeker sincerely prays to God to get anything pertaining to his spiritual practice The Indian, May/June 2016

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Importance of Gratitude

a seeker needs to rise above emotions (both positive and negative) and to develop spiritual emotion, which is experiencing God’s presence everywhere. Gratitude helps to increase spiritual emotion.

Over a period of time by repeatedly expressing gratitude and through spiritual growth, a seeker develops the spiritual emotion of gratitude as one constantly realizes that ‘God is the Doer, I am nobody’.

Once this state is attained, the subtle-ego starts reducing. He starts appreciating his limitations and lack of capacity; hence in any difficult situation, he humbly surrenders before God and only then does any action.

This is called ‘surrender to God’. When a seeker starts surrendering to God, in each and every incident in life, his spiritual emotion of surrender increases. God promptly fulfils his prayers made with spiritual emotion, like, ‘God please look after my spiritual growth', 'Please remove my personality defects and ego', 'Let me be worthy to receive Your grace', 'You only guide me’. A seeker having the spiritual emotion of gratitude and surrender reaches closer to the feet of God in his spiritual journey.

God bestows everything that is required, i.e. spiritual experiences, guidance and knowledge to such a seeker, even without asking.

Superficial gratitude and the spiritual emotion of gratitude Gratitude expressed only in words, is superficial. In the initial stages of one’s spiritual practice, one has to make an effort to express gratitude to God. Paying gratitude comes from the heart, when we can clearly see Divine intervention in our lives. This may be in the case of a loved one getting miraculously cured after doctors have given up hope, after intense prayer.

As we immerse ourselves more and more into spiritual practice, we open up a whole new world that was up to now veiled from us. We get spiritual experiences and these spiritual experiences are God’s way of talking to us.

There are myriad small pleasant coincidences in our lives, where we slowly but surely, feel God’s guiding hand in our lives. Gratitude begins to build for even the smaller events in our life and the constant Divine help and encouragement we are receiving in our spiritual practice. When we feel gratitude and express gratitude repeatedly, throughout the course of the day, we gradually develop the spiritual emotion of gratitude. Then there is continuous realization before, during and after an action that ‘everything happens as per God’s wish’; hence one’s gratitude is continuous and is reflected in every action, movement and thought.

The Indian, May/June 2016

We sincerely hope that you will start your spiritual practice, increase your prayers and develop gratitude with spiritual emotion for getting closer to the Divine.

For more information on Prayer & Gratitude, please visit www.ssrf.org

Compiled by: Ms. Anu Pursram 41

21 MARCH – 20 0 APRIL Make efforts to achieve success. Understand the activities of your opponents. Income will increase. Take up important projects in the latter half of the month.

21 APRIIL – 21 MAY Y Take proper precautions to ensure that pressures at work do not hamper with your health. Interference from relatives may prove troublesome.

22 MAY – 21 JUNE The proportion of your income and expenditure will be well balanced this month. You may have to take some tough decision for the well-being of your family.

22 JUN NE – 22 JULY Though your expenses may shoot up, they will be within the limit. A current project will gain momentum. Do not accept greater responsibilities in the second half of the month.

23 JULY – 22 AUGUST T You have great support of the sun this month. You may get recognition and honor in the political-social field. Artists may find fame.

23 AUGU UST – 23 SEPT TEMBER You may be troubled by some domestic problems. However, you will be greatly supported by beneficial financial dealings.

March/April 2016 The Indian, May/June 2016

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24 SEPTEM MBER – 23 OCTO OBER Do not waste your time and energy in arguments. Women should take care of their precious items when travelling.

24 OCT TOBER – 22 NOVEMB BER It may be difficult for you to get mental peace. Maintain a positive approach. Do not cross your limits in your professional life.

23 NO OVEMBER – 21 DECE EMBER Your good relations with seniors will be beneficial. Stay away from conflicts. Make decisions calmly and thoughtfully.

22 DEC CEMBER – 20 JA ANUARY See to it that people close to you do not misunderstand your behavior. Take future planning rather than financial gain into consideration.

21 1 JANU UARY – 19 FEBRUARY Do not get upset or disturbed. A neutral approach may prove to be better for you. Pay attention to details when undertaking financial deals.

20 FEBRUARY – 20 MARCH Dealings related to immovable property will be successful. A new platform may be available to artists. Maintain your daily routine.

March/April 2016 The Indian, May/June 2016

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21 MARCH – 20 0 APRIL Your confidence and progress will be enhanced this month. You will get the expected co-operation from your friends. Keep an eye on your expenditure so that you are not stressed due to additional expenses.

21 APRIL – 21 MAY Y

Understand that every person that comes into your contact may not be good hearted. Judge the person perfectly before handing over any financial responsibility. Income will be good. Do not be careless when doing work related to government office.

22 MAY – 21 JU UNE You may find out that someone is trying to spread rumors about you.

Face situations with patience and a calm mind. You will be able to spend satisfactorily for the family due to an increase in income.

22 JUN NE – 22 JULY Planet Jupiter is in a favorable position. Though expenses increase, you should not worry. You will need to resolve matters with compassion and understanding.

23 JULY – 22 AUGUST T Take up new projects and new plans to execute in during this happy and enthusiastic period. The graph of your progress will rise well. You have to be cautious in the latter half of the month.

23 AUGU UST – 23 3 SEPTEMBER You will be able to realize your dreams with the help of hard work, persistence and honesty. Your financial gains will be better.

Old dealings related to immovable property will be resolved.

March/April 2016 The Indian, May/June 2016

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24 SEPTEMBE ER – 23 3 OCT TOBER

You need to understand the reason when things do not work out as expected. Do not mix issues and lose your temper on the wrong thing. Work will gain momentum. Work related to government office will be successful.

24 OCTOBER – 22 NOVEM MBER R

Though this month will lead you to expected success, you will have to work hard for it. Be cautious in work related to government office.

You may have some health issues related to acidity.

23 NO OVEMBE ER – 21 DECE EMBER

You may have to wait for some time till your new ideas and plans can be executed in your field of work. It may be tough to balance income and expenditure. Avoid the temptation to make fast money.

Some may have stomach related problems.

22 DEC CEMBER – 20 JA ANUARY

This period is favorable for you. However, you will have to be very careful regarding financial dealings. Seek the advice of experts.

Do not ignore the health issue of the elders at home.

21 1 JANU UARY – 19 FEBRUARY

Stay away from mixing friendship and financial practical dealings together. Your work will be greatly appreciated by your seniors.

Keep an eye on your opponents, competitors and rivals.

20 FEBRUARY – 20 0 MARCH H

The final victory will surely be yours, but you have to take it patiently for the time being. Do not use your veto in family matters. You will be successful in getting government work done.

- Jayendra Salgaonkar March/April 2016 The Indian, May/June 2016

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Roti Vs. Rice

The nutritional conflict between rice and roti is age-old, as primary staples of every Indian cuisine. White rice and wheat chapattis are both infused with considerable amounts of protein, calorie, fat, as well as fibre.

This overlap makes it tougher to choose just one as an accompaniment with your meals. The health-conscious can take a sigh of relief with this list of effective benefits of the two.

For a lighter meal… Choose rice!

Boiled white rice is easier to chew and digest as it is low in fibres.

For those with issues of diarrhoea, colitis, an upset stomach or morning sickness, rice is a favourable choice. If you are suffering from chronic gastrointestinal distress, rice is recommended for you.

For muscle growth… Choose roti!

Rotis is the best food accompaniment for vegan and vegetarian bodybuilders. At home, you can mix variants of whole grains to harness the benefits of calcium and other minerals.

Wheat chapattis made of whole grain consist of complex carbohydrates that boost your energy.

For those with a heart condition… Choose rice!

For you to keep your heart healthy, the consumption of rice is vital. Brown, as well as white rice, is full of fibres and high in magnesium, niacin, phosphorus that can prevent heart problems. Rice helps you lower bad cholesterol levels.

To feel fuller…Choose roti!

Weight watchers who want the feeling of satiety for a longer period should include rotis in their meal. Wheat rotis take longer to digest which helps maintain blood sugar levels.

This quality also makes it a good alternative for diabetic individuals. Wheat rotis are nutritious and contain vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6 and B9 that help in keeping you strong.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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Caramelize Onions Quickly…

• Caramelize onions very quickly by cooking them in a dry nonstick sauté pan over medium-high heat. They will caramelize beautifully in a lot less time than with traditional methods.

• Store spices in a cool, dark place, not above your stove.

Humidity, light and heat will cause herbs and spices to lose their flavor.

• After working with garlic, rub your hands vigorously on your stainless steel sink for 30 seconds before washing them. It will remove the odor.

• When you deep-fry, hold each piece of food with long tongs as you add it to the oil. Hold it just below the oil's surface for five seconds before releasing it. This will seal the exterior and stop it from sticking to the pot or the other food.

• Instead of placing a chicken on a roasting rack, cut thick slices of onion, put them in an oiled pan, then place the chicken on top. The onion will absorb the chicken juices.

After roasting, let the chicken The Indian, May/June 2016

rest while you make a sauce with the onions by adding a little stock or water to the pan and cooking it for about 3 minutes on high heat.

• Do not use oil in the water when boiling pasta. It will keep the sauce from sticking to the cooked pasta.

• For safety, put a wine cork on the tip of a knife before putting the knife in a drawer.

• Smash garlic cloves inside a resealable plastic bag with the back of a knife. That way, your cutting board and knife will not smell.

• Invest in a bottle of high-quality olive oil. Just a small drizzle can really bring out the flavor of pizza, mozzarella, pasta, fish and meat.

• Plunge vegetables in ice water after blanching them so they maintain a bright color.

• Do not overcrowd the pan when you are sautéing, it will make your food steam instead.

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• Fresh basil keeps much better and longer at room temperature with the stems in water.

• When making mashed potatoes, after you drain the potatoes, return them to the hot pan, cover tightly and let steam for 5 minutes. This allows the potatoes to dry out so they will mash to a beautiful texture and soak up the butter and cream more easily.

• If you do not have time to brine your chicken, use this simple trick: Heavily salt the chicken (inside and out) about an hour before you cook it.

Then pat it dry and roast.

This ensures crispy skin and juicy meat.

• Make sure the handle of your sauté pan is turned away from you so you do not hit it and knock it off the stove.

It happens all the time.

• When baking cookies, be sure your dough is thoroughly chilled when it goes on your baking pan. This will allow the leavening ingredients to work before the butter flattens out and your cookies lose their textural distinctions.

Simple SSimmpple Simp plle Summer Sum SSu umme um mmer eerr Snacks SSnna nac nacks aack ccks kkss Fish F Fi ish sh Tac a acos cos c os with os w wiiith ittth h Summ mme m mer Salsa S Sal Sals al s sa a Summer

Grrill Grilled G riililllllle rille le ed d Ratatouille R Ra Rata ata ttatouille attou touil o illlllle Boat Bo ats ts Boats

Ingre ngredients: ng redient ients: s: 1 po pound ound halibut halibu orr oth other er m me meaty aty whitee fifish ffis fille fillets ets JJuice of 2 liimes mes 1 11 oun unccce can caa whole whho whol hole le toma omat aatilillo llos, loss, ddrained ra ned 4 small zucchini ucchini - peele peeled peeled, seeded seede ded ed and cut cu int into small sm mall cubes cuubees 1/4 cupp ch chopped hopp pped ped ci cilant cilantro leaves avees and stems ms 2 1/ 1/22 teaspoons sppoo coarse co saltlt, pllus moree too ta tasste ste 8 6-inch corn tortillas 2 tablespoons chili powder 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste aste 1 ta tabl bles espo poon on ext xtra ra-vir virgi ginn ol oliv ivee oi oill 1 avocado, peeled and thinly sliced

Ingredients: Ingredient Ing red edi ts edie 2 zuucchini, cch ch i, halveedd len engt gthw hwisisee 3 tablespoons tables blles espo spoons poonss extra ex virgin olive oil 1 onion, nion,, cho chopped chhopppped 2 cloves garlic, ic grated g 1 eg eggp gpla lant nt, cu cube bedd 2 tomatoes, chopped 1/4 cup chopped parsley Saltlt and pep Sa eppe perr 1/33 cu 1/ cupp sh shre redd dded ed moz ozza zare rellllaa ch chee eese se

Method: Preheat the oven to 225 degrees . Place the fish in a medium bowl and drizzle with half of the lime juice. Cover and refrigerate for 15 minutes. Using ng your y hands, squeeze the juice and flesh from the tomatillos, omatillos, attiillos i os, one o at a time, into a medium bowl; discard the he skins. skkins. ns. Mash Ma th M the toma to matitillllos oss witithh a fo fork rk. Ad Addd th thee zu zucc cchhini, h ni ni,i, the h remainin remain ma nin ing ngg lime juice, ce, the th cilant cilantro and 2 teaspoons onss of the he salt he sa andd toss. Spread pread the he tort to torti tortillas tillllaa on 2 ba bbaki baking aakin king ng ssheets heet he et and ets nd wa warm m in the oven en for about abo 10 minutes. m nutes es. In a small sm mall bowl, b combine combbine the chilili powder,, cayenne cayen caye ne pepper ppepperr and 1/2 /2 teaspoon te teasp a pooonn of o thee sa th salt. Re Remove emovve the ffifish i h frfrom rom m the lim lime imee juic juice, ce, pat p dry ry and coover over with the spi spice pice rub. ub. Heat H the ooli olive oi oilil inn a larg la large ge noons onstick tick skillet illet over o er medium m medium di m heat h and cook cookk the tthhe fisish, about abo boou 4m minutes minuutes onn each side. sid side de.. Break Bre Break the fishh into i to bite-size bitte- piece pieces aand nd sea season ason too tastee wi with ssalt. alt.t. Arrang Arrange th the fish in i the th ttortillas tort illas as w with som some of o the salsa alsaa and avocado a o slices. ssl

The Indian, May/June 2016

Method thod od d: Scoo Sc oopp balls oo bal ba alls of fle lesssh fro rom m th thee ce cent nter er of th thee zu zucc cchi hini ni to create cr eate ate bboats; oats oa tts;; re reser reserve the flesh balls. Preheat a grill to medium-high. m med dium-h um-high high. Heat H 1 tbsp. extra virgin in olivee ooilill in a large ski sk killlet kil let ov over er m med edi ediu dium di ium m he heat; heat at;t; aadd dd th thee onion onion on nioonn and a d cookk for 5 min minutes. m utess. Stirir in the th garl gga garlic arlic ic an and cook ook forr 1 m minut minute. in Add thhe re the rema mainin maining ning ingg 2 tbsp. tb p. extra exxtrtraa virgi ginn olive olilive ve oil, o l, thee eg eggp gpla lant nt and zucchini zuucchinni balls; b cover cov over and cook coook for 8 minutes. m minuteess. Add the ttomatoes oomaato t es and annd cook, coookkk, stirring, st g,, unt stirring until the mixture xture is thick hickk, about ab out 5 m minutes. minuuttes. te Stir SStiir in in the the he parsl pparsley; sl y; sea season on with wit saltt annd pepp ppe eppper er.r. Fill FFill the he zu zuuc ucch chhini ini n shells shel sh ellsls w with itith th tth the he he rratatou atatoouille oui uilllle le, e, spppr prin rink nkl ke kle with ith the he cheesee andd grill, g covered, cover ered red,, ov ove overr m medium-high edi ed ediu diumm hi higgh unt uuntilill thhe cch the che he hee eese iiss m eese meltllted mel me ted ed and n thhee sshells shhe hellllss are are sslslilightly ig y sof soften ofteene of ened ned. d.

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POWERING PERFORMANCE

Official partner of Manchester United

China - Guangzhou

By Juhi Daswani

HOLI CELEBRATION IN GUANGZHOU An extravagant Holi lunch with outstanding performances by the GZ ladies at Crowne Plaza.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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The Indian, May/June 2016

51

H ong Kong

Group 8 celebrated their 30th Anniversary at the Kowloon Cricket Club. The Group’s wonderful members include (seated from left): Kishu Chotrani, Murli Mahtani, Lal Khemchandani, Andy Nankani, Ishu Mahibubani, Lachu Balani and Ramesh Sippy. Standing are Meghna Chotrani, Asha Mahtani, Poonam Khemchandani, Shobha Sippy, President Meena Balani, Sharmila Mahibubani and Neeta Nankani.

Kishore Samtani, Dino Gidwani and Viju Sital.

Gary & Loretta Sharma.

The Indian, May/June 2016

Mira Mahtani, Kavita Mahtani, Rachna Fabiani from Madrid and Monica Kirpalani.

Prem & Nomitha Melwani.

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Ram Tolani with Sandra Lo

gan.

Shanky Nanik and his good friend Sunil Balani.

Lavi Khemaney and Sanjay Makhija.

Kishoo Melwani, Ashok Uttamchandani and Dilip Bharvani.

Arjan Kirpalani, Suresh

Narain and Raj Sital.

Bhagwan & Shobha Khemlani.

Vishal Daswani, Sunil Detaramani and Kunal Chandiramani.

Gurmit Singh, Ranoo Wasan and Rani Singh.

The Indian, May/June 2016

Kamal Fabiani and Asho k Kirpalani.

Gul Badlani, Vijay Harjani and Pitu Melwani.

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Friday Club ladies of Hong Kong enjoying themselves during their lunch gathering at Wagyu Lounge.

The Indian, May/June 2016

0

By Nishat Toorabally

Warm Welcome For Ambassador Chinoy And His Lovely Wife With the start of spring, when nature is at its best. New life is budding and new friendships and new relations are springing, our Indian ambassador came to build close ties and bond with the Indian community in Kansai.

Speech by Ambassador Chinoy.

It was a very special occasion indeed and a great honor to all the members of the three institutes, Indian Chamber of Commerce, Japan, Indian Social Society and India Club to host a welcome dinner party for Ambassador Sujan Chinoy and his wife Mrs. Vidhya at Indian Social Society.

The Ambassador's speech had fresh, new ideas, reminding the new generation how much easier it will be now to do business and build deeper relations with Japan than it had been for the older generation, because countries all around the world now has an eye on India’s economic potential, age old culture and customs, and not to forget the cheap labor with no exception of Japan.

The head of each institution also gave a welcome speech, a toast and a vote of thanks.

This was their first get together with the Indian community and everyone was thrilled to meet them. We hope it will be the first of many more to come.

ing a y and Mrs. Chinoy enjoy Ambassador Sujan Chino talk over dinner.

The Indian, May/June 2016

Mrs. Chinoy receiving the bouquet from Mrs. Lalwani.

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From Left: Mr. Kuckreja, Mr. Mirpuri, Mr. Chaudhari, Mr. Bandopadhaya, Mr. Sethi, Mr. Kalani, Mr. Juneja, Ambassador Shri Sujan Chinoy, Mrs. Chinoy, Mr. Sharma, Mr. Panda, Mr. Toorabally, Consul General Changsan and Mrs. Changsan.

L to R: Mr. Johnny Lalwani, Mr. Ram Kalani, Consul General Armstrong Changsan, Mr. Kamal Mirpuri, Mr. Fazil Toorabally and Mr. Sandip Shah.

From Left: Saroj, Sabita, Margaret, Priya, Vidhya, Nalini, Kavita, Nishat, Nita, Poonam and Avina.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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Spain - Madr id

By Vinita Hingorani

WELCOME TO MADRID Vinnita Hingooranni hoosted a lovely lunnch at Cafe Saigon to welcome her beaautiful daugghteer--in-laaw Sanngeeta. Th The charming ladiess of Madrid enjoyedd spending the afteernoon with the sppecial hostess andd her family - Lolitaa, Will, Noah, Rahul and Jeetuu Hinggoranii. Herre aree the memorable snaps.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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The Indian, May/June 2016

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IIFA AWARDS BRING EXCITEMENT TO MADRID Thee Indian an Th nd Spanish crow wd of Maadrid full of exciiteement and en nth husiasm m in an nticipaation of thee IIFA award ds which will be held there in n June.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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U.A.E .

Mr. Kamal Vachani visited the office of H.E. Mr. Sami Al Qamzi, Director General, Department of Economic Development, Government of Dubai.

Mr. Kamal Vachani welcoming Mr. Alastair Long, Deputy Consul General, British Embassy Dubai, on behalf of Al Maya Group.

Mr. Kamal Vachani paid a courtesy call on Mr. Mohammad Ali Al Kamali, Deputy CEO, Dubai Exports at his office recently.

On behalf of regional representation of Electronics and Computer Software Export Promotion Council (ESC), Mr. Kamal Vachani, Hon. Regional Director of ESC, called on Mr. Kalraj Mishra, Hon’ble Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Government of India, who was on a visit to Dubai.

During the interaction, Mr. Kamal Vachani, briefed the Minister on the activities of regional representation of Electronics and Computer Software Export Council (ESC), sponsored by the Government of India. Hon. Minister appreciated the efforts taken by Mr. Kamal Vachani in promoting India’s IT exports to the Middle East, particularly to the U.A.E. Mr. Vachani has been representing this Council in the UAE and Middle East since 1999 and since he has taken over as Regional Director, the exports of IT and related services have grown multifold. Mr. Kamal Vachani is also President – Dubai Chapter of Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO).

The Indian, May/June 2016

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U.K.

New Acquisition For The Hinduja Group The Hinduja Group has formally acquired the historic 1,100-room Old War Office building in central London, once occupied by Britain's war-time prime minister Winston Churchill, which will now be restored and re-developed into a five-star hotel and residential apartments.

The heritage building at 57, Whitehall, close to the British Parliament and the Prime Minister's residence, covers 580,000 square feet spread over seven floors, connected by more than three kilometres of corridors.

At a ceremony held recently, the key of the building was formally handed over to G.P. Hinduja, Co-Chairman of the Hinduja Group, his brother P.P. Hinduja, Chairman of the Hinduja Group in Europe and their Spanish partner Juan-Miguel Villar-Mir, Chairman of the Villar-Mir and OHL Group.

The building, bought for an undisclosed sum, will be restored and redeveloped into a five-star hotel and apartments. It will also feature a series of private-function rooms, as well as a spa and fitness facility.

The building was sold on a 250-year lease arrangement to the companies following a competitive marketing process, the U.K. Defence Ministry had said.

The Hindujas, Britain's wealthiest people, acquired the building in partnership with Spanish industrial company Obrascon Huarte Lain Desarrollos (OHLD).

"With our Spanish partners, we have a unique vision for the Old War Office - our ambitious plans will give it a new lease of life and add a glittering new jewel to London's crown," G.P. Hinduja said.

Noting that Winston Churchill would approve of what "we have done to his old office", G.P. Hinduja said, "the work we will do with the Old War Office is our way of giving something back to this country."

"In keeping with the dynamic spirit of London, we want to give this building a new lease of life, while remaining conscious of its unique heritage," said P.P. Hinduja.

"We have a new vision for the Old War Office and will work meticulously to restore the distinctive and historic fabric of the building and convert it into a distinguished hotel and luxury residences, bringing a further dimension to this prominent Whitehall landmark," he added.

Indian High Commissioner to the U.K. Navtej Singh Sarna, Former National Security Adviser of India and former Governor of West Bengal M.K. Narayanan, leading NRI hotelier and Chairman of the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan U.K. Joginder Sanger, and Sanjiv Chadha of the State Bank of India who are funding the project, were also present at the occasion.

The Indian, May/June 2016

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