WEEKLY MAGAZINE, FEBRUARY 24, 2013Free with your copy of Hindustan Times

VIR SANGHVIThe new order

SANJOY NARAYANKeller Williams: Piano man

RAJIV MAKHNIOne tablet, five ways

SEEMA GOSWAMI In person is more personalindulge

Norah Jones opensup about her music,lyrics and her famous family in anexclusive interviewwith Karsh Kale

FEBRUARY 24, 2013

by Rachel LopezBrunch Opinion Front Row

■ Anyone who’s had their heart broken and feelsworse after listening to Adele. The BBC said it, and

we agree: Norah Jones makes breakups soundgood.■ Lana Del Rey. The young lady needs to learnhow to sound numb without sounding dumb. ■ The ‘Indian’ guy from Goodness Gracious Me.Remember, he thought everything awesome

HAD to have an Indian connection? Well, we’retaking credit for at least half of Jones’s talent.■ Kids learning to play the piano. Beta, Jones practiseslike a maniac to produce music that sounds deceptive-ly simple. Easy doesn’t mean lazy!■ Reality singing contest hopefuls, so theycan learn how to keep it real. Jones’svoice is simple and pure, but that kind ofeasiness takes years of control and practice.

by Parul Khanna, Abhijit Patnaik, Rachel Lopez Oscar Special

Today is movie marathon day!

EDITORIAL: Poonam Saxena (Editor), Aasheesh Sharma, Tavishi PaitandyRastogi, Rachel Lopez, Mignonne Dsouza, Veenu Singh, Parul Khanna, Yashica Dutt, Amrah Ashraf, Saudamini Jain, Shreya Sethuraman, Manit Moorjani

4 B R E A K FA ST O F C H A M P I O N S

We have a goodfeeling about Kai Po Che

hindustantimes.com/brunch

by Amrah Ashraf

DESIGN: Ashutosh Sapru (NationalEditor, Design), Monica Gupta, SwatiChakrabarti, Rakesh Kumar, Ashish Singh

Drop us a line at: brunchletters@hindustantimes.com or to 18-20 KasturbaGandhi Marg, New Delhi 110001

Tomorrow are the Oscars. Some of us – the ones who spent the last few weeks watch-ing the year’s best films – will wake up in the morning to cheer for our favourites. Some(who believe that Gangs of Wasseypur and Paan Singh Tomar deserve more talktime)will cluck disapprovingly. For the rest, here’s a primer to the films nominated in theBest Film category for the 85th Academy Awards. Because whether you like it ornot, your family, friends and colleagues will be obsessed with the Oscars for thenext two weeks. This will help you hold your own.

The journey of a boy on alifeboat with a Bengal tigerfor company

The amazing cinematography,Irrfan Khan

Loo break: You need to read the book to completely get it.

What is it about? Seeti (whistle) moments

Cover Design: MONICA GUPTA

Could this be the next 3 Idiots? We don’tknow yet, but it’s got potential.

The men: Sushant Singh Rajput is nolonger the soppy Manav from PavitraRishta. He’s ripped (gorgeously oiled),sports a stubble and those piercingeyes… And look, babyface Amit Sadh finally grew up! Let’s not forget Raj Kumar Yadav. He may not have the abs,but he sure has our attention.

The music: Amit Trivedi and SwanandKirkire have got it right, again! Listen toMaanjha and tell me if I am wrong.

The movie: Abhishek Kapoor’s secondmovie after Rock On! is about cricket, religion, politics and love – what’s not tolove? It even manages to make ChetanBhagat look good.

A top CIA ‘exfil’ guy sets upa bogus film shoot in Tehranto rescue six Americandiplomats

BenAffleck isthe rabrion jalebi

All of it forTarantino fans – lots of aesthetically shotblood

Loo break: A few clichéd scenes, but what the hell, we enjoyed them anyway.

ARGO

In the antebellum years, afreed slave sets out to res-cue his wife from a planta-tion owner, with the help ofa German bounty hunter

Loo break: Leonardo DiCaprio is just average, and so is Thandie Newton.

DJAN

GOUN

CHAI

NED

When Pat wakes his parentsin the middle of the night to tell them how bleak Hemingway is

Pat has bipolar disorder – hemoves in with his parents.Tiffany is a nymphomaniac.Romance with a twist!

Loo break: You’re just waiting throughout the film for them to do it!

SILV

ERLI

NING

SPL

AYBO

OK

The actual mission to killOsama, and when the bombgoes off at the CIA site

A CIA agent’s decade-longeffort to hunt down OsamaBin Laden

Loo break: The films screams, loud and clear, ‘We Americans are justso cool’. Also, it feels like a documentary.

ZERO

DARK

THIR

TY

The opening scene – in a battlefield, Lincoln talking tosoldiers – is probably fictitious, but sets the mood

PresidentLincoln’sstruggle toabolish slavery

Loo break: Zilch. Pee before you start watching.

LINC

OLN

The beautiful EmmanuelleRiva, the 85-year-old star;and Isabelle Huppert, whoplays the daughter

A poignant taleof love betweenan ageing Frenchcouple

Loo break: A few difficult-to-watch scenes, like when the husband literally hasto take his stricken wife to the loo, but captivating nonetheless.

AMOU

R

Incredible momentsduring and right afterthe hurricane and new-comer Quvenzhané

Wallis’ screamingscenes

A hard drinker livingin a collapsing shackwith his 6-year-olddaughter, Hushpuppy,in Bayou territory

BEAS

TS O

F TH

ESO

UTHE

RNW

ILD

Anne Hathaway doing I Dreamed A Dreamand all those sweepingshots of Paris

A thief, a policeman, abad haircut, death, love,songs and revolution in18th century France

Loo break: Half the songs are dull. Unlike Chicago and Sweeney Todd, there isvery little spoken word, and most songs are shot in close-up, without choreography. And Sacha Baron Cohen is just no fun

LES

MIS

ÉRA-

BLES

We’re uploading the stories in BrunchQ. So if youdidn’t buy the last issue, you can just log on to hindustantimes.com/brunch.While you’re online, follow @HTBrunch onTwitter. On Facebook, we’re quoting ourfavourite books – so,like Hindustan TimesBrunch and then likeour posts. Oh, andwe’re reviewing restau-rants on Tumblr – it’shtbrunch.tumblr.com.

This week, on the Web

LIFE

OFPI

by Saudamini Jain

■ Borrowing his leather jacket■ Toasting with cough syrup■ Hrithik dancing■ College debating■ Mad Men reruns (Season 6is six weeks away!)

■ “It could be swine flu,you know” ■ Appraisal forms■ Fussing over Katju■ Soggy croutons■ Cake as a birthday present

On The Brunch Radar

Loo break: Scenes in the post-hurricane medical camp are a bit stretched.

Photos: THINKSTOCK

Champagne’s a sparkling, crisp liquid gold that’salready the best that money can buy. So how doyou make it even more special? Simple. You getDouglas Ankrah. Well, that’s what we did for thelast issue of BrunchQ. The cocktail supremo gaveus a bunch of recipes. Old Cuban is on his listof favourite drinks to make. It’s also theBrunch drink of the week. OLD CUBANIngredients: 30-40ml Havana Club Rum; 2 bar spoons caster sugar; 8 leaves freshmint; 10ml sugar syrup; 15ml freshlypressed lime juiceGlassware: Champagne flute Method: Shake all ingredients for about 2-3minutes, allowing the fresh mint to bruise.

Then, fill the rest of the glass withchilled champagne.Garnish: Fresh mint coated with caster sugar!

For more champagne cocktail recipes, log on to:

Be Your Own Bartender

Five people who should totallyattend the Norah Jones concert

LOVE IT

SHOVE IT

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FEBRUARY 24, 2013

6 TRAVEL

The OneThing YouMust Do

IDID LEARN a thing or threeabout life on my trip to lush, spec-tacular, beautiful New Zealand.And I finally realised what they say

about travel truly opening up yourmind. The country is such a revela-tion that my fellow travellers and Ihad to coin a new term to describeevery new place we’d visit. We could-n’t parrot, ‘it’s beautiful, it’s beau-tiful’ each time our jawsdropped. It is commonknowledge that this iswhere Lord of The Ringsand The Hobbit were shot(and it is as beautiful as itlooks on-screen). The manwho directed these movies,Peter Jackson, is also from here.

New Zealand is the land of sheepand wool (there are six sheep to oneperson) and the country’s rolling hills,clear blue skies, glaciers, lakes, moun-tains and clean air are as raw andunspoilt as any land with humanhabitation can be. People love cricket

and are mad about rugby too. Theday I landed, their team, the AllBlacks, had lost a match. So therewas a feeling of ‘we lost’ in the air.

New Zealand is so remote, it wasone of the last lands to be settled by

humans (hence the name). Thecountry is divided into North

Island and South Islandand 70 per cent of itsinhabitants are Europeanand the rest, indigenousMaoris and Polynesians.

Though, as I was informedby my Brazilian guide (there

are many South Americans, especially Brazilians and Asians settled there too), there are hardlyany pure-bred Maoris left, becauseEuropeans and Maoris intermarried.It’s similar to big cities like Delhi, verycosmopolitan. People are proud oftheir roots, and are happy here.

… is visit New Zealand. Its beauty is awe-inspiring, the energy infectious. Andthere’s something for everyone!by Parul Khanna

One of every six New Zealandersstays in Auckland (it is moreheavily populated than the capi-

tal Wellington). It frequently figuresin the top 10 most livable cities in theworld. That statistic didn’t surpriseme. With undulating hills, the sea onthree sides, posh bars and cafés, wideroads, a thriving culinary culture(name a cuisine and you’ll find arestaurant) and ample opportunityfor everyone to indulge in some sportor the other, it’s a great mix of calm ofpastoral spaces with the glamour andenergy of urban living.

As offices shut, you can see peo-ple jogging along the harbourfront(a popular fad is to run barefoot), orwalking and cycling. On holidays,Aucklanders take off to the sea; theysurf, kayak or swim (on rare goodsummer days). The three places Iate in Auckland didn’t disappoint.At Kermadec (a posh place next tothe harbour), I had a gigantic oysterplatter and it was amazingly fresh.Depot, a bistro run bycelebrity chef Al Brown,was buzzy, and spe-cialised in Kiwianafare. It serves greatbite-sized platters. AtSPQR, in upmarket,artsy Ponsonby Road,we spotted a few KiwiTV actors. We exploredthe street lined with eclec-tic bookshops, home stores (thecity is an architect’s delight), oldrecord shops and antique stores

A pleasant walk later, I was takento the iconic Sky Tower. It is 192metres high and is the pride ofAuckland. You can see it from every-where and you can see the entire cityand its neighbouring islands from it.A must-visit is Kelly Tarlton’s aquari-um, where you can get up close andpersonal with penguins. It was also

fun watching sharks and other fishfrom the moving walkway.

We saved the best for last: a 35-minute ferry ride to Waiheke Island.Its permanent population is around8,000, but it is a weekend destinationfor Aucklanders and the richest peo-

ple of the country have beau-tiful houses here over-

looking the sea. Itsvine-covered hills dipdown to the beaches.A wine tasting ses-sion at Mudbrick – a

boutique restaurant-cum-winery, with an

unbelievable view of thehills and sea – was an

interesting experience. It’s apopular place for destination wed-dings. A good way to come toWaiheke is by ferry or boat (one outof every eight people in Aucklandown a boat) or helicopter. While inMudrick, I saw four men having anextended lunch and drink session,with their helicopter parked a fewmetres away. A game of archery andlaser clay bird shooting followed.After a heady tasting session (of boutique wines and locally-brewedbeer), we were ferried back toAuckland.

WE’LL DRINK TO THATThe beaches of Waiheke island arejust a ferry ride away from Auckland

Auckland rocks

GO WITH THE FLOWAuckland is a great mix of greenspaces and the energy of urban living

JumpFrom the Auckland

bridge, or the Nevis plat-form in Queenstown (at 134

metres, the third highest jumpin the world) or from the

Kawarau river bridge, also inQueenstown (one of thesafest skydiving spots

in the world)

RideIf there’s any-

where in the worldyou can ride a horse

and feel free (like theyshow in the

movies), it ishere

GET THE BIG CITY FEELGood food, great locales, activities forchildren – Auckland has it all

The OneThing YouMust Do

… is visit New Zealand. Its beauty is awe-inspiring, the energy infectious. Andthere’s something for everyone!by Parul Khanna

Phot

o: T

HINK

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8 TRAVEL

FEBRUARY 24, 2013

“They say New Zealand is beautiful... because after 22 hours on a plane any landmass would be beautiful – Lewis Black, comedian

The first thing that hits you onentering Rotorua is the stink ofeggs gone bad. The next thing

you notice are parks with mini-craters spewing clouds of steam.Rotorua is home to many lakes andhas live fields of geothermal activity(you see sulphur and steam escapingfrom holes in the ground). The sul-phur explains the smell. But thatdoesn’t deter people from visitingthis popular tourist destination.

The drive fromAuckland to Rotoruawas a delight.Summer rain, accom-panied by TheBeatles on the carstereo, Murakami forcompany, with spectacu-lar views of green hills,swaying grass, and imposingmountains speckled with sheep mademe wish the journey wouldn’t end.Waitomo Caves on the way is a must-stop. The limestone caves in themidst of a thick forest feel alive, with

streams inside, lit up by thousands ofglowworms. Despite being claustro-phobic, I couldn’t give this a miss andso went in. A narrow staircase leadsto a cathedral-like area with a highceiling (a popular place for weddings).People love getting married in inter-esting locations in New Zealand. Youare transported in a boat and rowedto a pitch dark place (I was praying

all through) and just when I wasgoing to cry out, I saw lights

in the water. Looking up, Isaw thousands of glow-

worms. Next, we went to

Matamata, a privatefarm, part of whichwas used by Peter

Jackson for the sets forthe Lord Of The Rings and

The Hobbit trilogies. The Hobbiton Village is a pret-

ty, fairy tale-like place that instantlytransports you to the movie. Thereare little Hobbit homes, some withsmall doors, pots and pans and littleniches. Our guide was Ian Brodie, a

celebrity writer and photographer ofthe bestselling Lord Of The RingsLocation Guidebook. After a nice walk,we ended up in the Shire’s Rest Café(you can have a wedding here too),drinking locally-brewed beer in frontof a fireplace, with a Hobbiton catcurled up at our feet.

In Rotorua, taking a leisurely dipin a hot pool is a must-do. ThePolynesian spa we went to had poolswith temperatures up to 52 degrees.The temperature takes a little timeto get used to but once you dip in, it

starts to sootheyour body.

Rotorua has mountain biking trailsrunning past lakes and into forests.My guide said I could become verygood at it (after I came hurtling downa slope). At Te WhakarewarewaValley, it was unnerving to be 50metres away from a live, steam-emit-ting geyser. I had the Maori Hangidinner, which is vegetables steamedusing hot earth. Those who dig farmlife can watch the sheep show (the children are going to love this),feed the ostriches and emus andAngus cattle (which may soon be onyour table).

Queenstown’s beauty is very rawand New Zealanders make sureit stays that way. For the first 15

minutes, all I did was stare. And, forthe next four days, I explored everylittle part of the town by foot. I rannext to the lake, into the forest. I ranwithout a care, because nobodystares or watches. In New Zealand,there are walking and biking trailseverywhere, even in the midst ofbreathtakingly beautiful glacialmountains in Fiordland. Queenstownis arguably the

adventure capital of the world. I wasa little nervous about the 45-metrejump from the Kawarau Bridge. It ishere that entrepreneur AJ Hackettstarted the first commercial bungeein the world. With Tom Petty’s FreeFalling playing in the backgound, Iwaited for my turn. But as I lookeddown, I froze. Every self-preservingcell in my body was telling me to runaway. But I shut my eyes and jumped.All I heard was screaming. Wait, thatwas me screaming.

The rush was astounding and myheart shifted from its original place;but I learnt a life lesson. It is okay tobe fearful of the unknown, but it’simportant to get over those fears. Sojump from a bridge or plane. You’llbe surprised at how it will changeyou – for the better.

Unlike bungee jumping, theprospect of skydiving was not asnerve-wracking. We boarded a tinyplane (that seats 12 to 16 people). Iwas going to jump from 15,000 ft,strapped to an instructor who haddone hundreds of such jumps.During the 60-second freefall, therewas an indescribable adrenalinerush. Then, as the parachute opened,

everything went silent. I floateddown, past white cotton wool clouds.Then I hit the ground. I am glad I didboth the jumps. Adventure sportsceptics say it’s a death wish; enthusi-asts counter, “It’s a life wish. Thebody and heart never feel more alive”.

parul.khanna@hindustantimes.comThe writer’s trip was sponsored by

Tourism New Zealand

Sauna-hopping in Rotorua

Queenstown’s adrenaline rush

ExploreGo on jeep safaris,

zip through rainforests,go kayaking and sailing in

the country’s lakes and sea,go rock climbing or swim in

caves. Some travel operatorseven take you deep into the

rainforests for anextreme survival

course

DON’T SHY FROM THE SHIREThe Lord Of The Rings and The Hobbittrilogies were shot in Hobbiton Village

GET ADVENTUROUS AND HIGHKawarau river bridge in Queenstownfeatures a 45-metre bungee jump

TRAVEL INFOCurrency: New Zealand dollar (1 NZ$ = R45 approx.) Getting there: Malaysia Airlines fliesto NZ six times a week. A 5 hr 30 minflight to Kuala Lumpur, and then a10 hr 15 min to Auckland. Check other airlines for options too. Best time to go: Their summer (December- February) is the besttime, but if you are fond of wintersports, go during June-August.Travelling around: ‘Naked’ buses (socalled because they are cheap),cars, taxis and planes can be hired.Shopping: It’s not really a shoppingdestination. Look for Maori craftsFor more info:www.newzealand.com/in

BikeGo mountain biking,up beautiful hills and

then down to blue lakes

Walk, walk, walkThere are walking tracks in

forests (in Rotorua andQueenstown), and inremote mountains in

Milford Sound

PEDALHARDQueenstownis a perfectcycling destination

MORE ON THE WEBFor more pictures and the skydiving video, log on to hindustantimes.com/brunch

FEBRUARY 24, 2013

SHE REUNITED with her father, the sitarmaestro Ravi Shankar, only at the age of 18.Still, Norah Jones stood alongside her half-sister Anoushka Shankar on February 9

as they accepted the Lifetime Achievement Grammyaward conferred posthumously on their father, whopassed away in December.

The move indicates just how far she’s come in herher musical and personal life. She was born GeethaliNorah Jones Shankar in New York City on March 30,1979, as a result of Ravi Shankar’s nine-year relation-ship with New York concert producer Sue Jones. Shegrew up in Texas, growing close to her mum but see-ing her father only a few times a year till she was nine.

Always interested in music, Norah played her firstgig at 16, in a Dallas coffee shop where she performedI’ll Be Seeing You. By 2001, she was signed on by BlueNote Records, but nowhere near as famous as RaviShankar. “At the time I was scraping a living by play-ing gigs for change in New York’s Greenwich Village,”she said in an interview to The Daily Mail, London.

Then, Norah released her debut album ComeAway With Me, in 2002. To say that the album didwell is an understatement. Norah was nominated foreight Grammy awards, winning five. But she did notenjoy the time at all. “If there’s one period of my life Iwouldn’t wish to return to, it’s that time,” said thedeterminedly low-key singer in the same interview.“Being pulled in so many different directions wasunbearably stressful.”

Norah continued to produce albums: Feels LikeHome (2004) earned her three Grammy nominations,and one win. She also made her acting debut withWong Kar Wai’s 2007 film My Blueberry Nights.

Her album Not Too Late (2007) was produced byLee Alexander, her boyfriend at the time. Theirbreakup resulted in The Fall (2009), for which someof the songs were written in Delhi, while Norah wasvisiting her father and the family.

Norah and Anoushka collaborated with Indianmusician Karsh Kale on a song titled Easy in 2007.The sisters’ relationship now is on an even keel,Norah has said that Anoushka once even tried toteach her the sitar. Now out with Little BrokenHearts, Norah is also finally at ease discussing herfamous father and said to the Grammy audience: “Wereally miss him. He lived and breathed music.”

Come away with Norah Jones,the daughter of Ravi Shankar,as she performs for the firsttime in the country this month

“Coming to Indiais bittersweet”

10 COVER STORY

FEBRUARY 24, 2013

I’ve always felt that the musicwe grow up with plays a hugerole on the music we make asadults. What music made thebiggest impression on you as achild?Probably the music of Ray Charles,Aretha Franklin, Willie Nelson… stufflike that. I didn’t get into jazz untilhigh school and then that played ahuge role in the music that has influ-enced me. And then in college, I gotinto Bob Dylan and Neil Young andJoni Mitchell and all that stuff, so definitely all that kind of music.

With your music, it never feelslike you’re just making stuff up.How much of your own life is inyour sound and your lyrics?It’s always hit and miss. It’s a littlebit of this and a little bit of that. Ithink an honest lyric is the best lyricbut it doesn’t have to be completelyautobiographical, to be honest. Itjust has to be heartfelt. Definitely, alot of my songs are autobiographi-cal, and a lot of them have poeticlicence. That’s the best part aboutsongwriting – you’re not writing anautobiography, you’re trying tomake the most interesting song orstory, so there are a lot of bends inthere that aren’t necessarily true tolife; and I think that’s what makesmore interesting songs.

For Indians around the world,your success brings a sense ofpride. Has your connection toIndia, its music and its culture,evolved over the years?It’s definitely evolved over the years.I grew up with less knowledge of itand over the years, going to visit,getting to know my family, I havemore knowledge of it now. I thinkit’s very sweet that people feel asense of pride because of my nation-ality. And I’m excited to come to

India and sort of feel that kinshipwith the audience. I hope that wehave a good time, you know. It’s veryinteresting to me and it’s also justan interesting thing about me per-sonally – my background and myhistory, and my family history andall that – it’s a bit of an interestingfamily story, so for me it’s going tobe fun to be in India.

What was it like finally workingwith Anoushka? Was the factthat you were sisters help bridgethe gap between your disparatemusic styles? You’re workingwith Anoushka on her nextalbum too...It was really fun. We actually did itagain this month and it was muchmore intense – it was more involvedthis time, so it was really nice. Yeah,I think being sisters, that’s thewhole reason we’re working togeth-er even though we admire eachother’s music – sort of wanting towork together is partly becausewe’re family. It was really fun, and Ithink it brings us closer – I under-

stand where she’s coming from andshe understands where I’m comingfrom, even though we play very different styles, and so it’s nice.

Working with you and Anoushka, I remember being most impressedwith how well you knew your wayaround the recording process.What is your history with studiosas a recording artist? I think I just picked things up on theway. I mean, I learned from every-one I’ve worked with. I know in thestudio, I get really tired easily, so forme, I know myself, it’s best to workfast and just get it done, and thenyou can enjoy lunch and hangingout in the studio. That’s my prefer-ence always – to not mess aroundtoo much. But I’ve learned fromeveryone I’ve worked with, from allthe great engineers to the otherartists I’ve collaborated with. Iknow what I like, and I know whatI don’t like sonically as well –sometimes it’s hard to put thatinto words, but you learn the ter-minology over the years.

How do you feel about your first tour in India?I’m excited to come. It’s also bitter-sweet because my dad just passedaway. I’ve never played in India, sothat’s one reason to do it, and alsomy dad has always wanted me toplay there. It’s always just been amatter of timing, and adding on totours. It’s just never worked out inthe past. I’m usually so tired by theend of the tour that I never want toadd the faraway places because I’dbe tired. This time I planned it awhile ago and my dad was reallyasking me to do it, and I thought itwould be nice for him and nice forme. So it’s very sad that he’s gonenow, but I know he was very excitedthat I was going to be playing inIndia, so that’s a nice thing.

Norah Jones will kick off her three-citytour with a headlining performance at ASummer’s Day in Mumbai on March 3 atthe Turf Club, Mahalaxmi; in New Delhi

on March 5 and 6 at the Siri FortAuditorium; and Bangalore on March 8

at Nice Grounds.

“I got stood up by the letter Y, he was hanging around with his X” – Norah Jones

K

twitter.com/HTBrunch

NOTES FROM OUR FATHER

Anoushka Shankar (right) and Norah

Jones accepted the Lifetime Achievement

Award for their father, Ravi Shankar, at the

55th Annual Grammy Awards Special

Merit Awards Ceremony on February 9

In all kinds of ways. I love to cook, I loveto hang out, I love to go on walks, I loveto listen to music. I have this violin thata fan gave me a long time ago from

Korea – a beautiful instrument that theymade, and I've been learning how toplay country fiddle on it, and that’s beenkind of a fun random thing.

How sheunwinds

JOURNEYTHROUGH MUSIC1996: Norah Jones wins the DownBeat Student Music Awards forbest jazz vocalist. Next year, sheearns the second best jazz vocalist award.

She starts writing songs and appears regularly with the trip-hop electronica band, Wax Poetic.

2000: She assembles her owngroup with Jesse Harris, LeeAlexander and Dan Rieser. Thegroup goes on to record a handfulof demos for Blue Note Recordsand on the strength of theserecordings, Norah is signed by ajazz label the next year.

2002: Norah Jones debuts with ComeAway With Me,which goes multi-platinum, selling 18million copies andwinning Jones fiveGrammy trophies.

2004: Jones releases her follow-upalbum, the very country Feels LikeHome. The album sells more thanone million copies in its first weekin the US.

2006: Jones launchesher next album, NotToo Late, which debuts at No 1 onthe Billboard 200.

2009: Her next studioalbum, The Fall, is hersecond lowest first weekfor a Jones album after ComeAway with Me.

2010: Jones does vocals for Danger Mouse’s (aka Brian Burton) project, Rome.

2012: Burton then returns thefavour by producing and co-writ-ing the songs on Jones’ fifth studio album, Little BrokenHearts. The album does not dowell commercially, but is appreciated by music critics.

Karsh Kale interviews Norah Jonesarsh Kale, the Indian-American musician, producer and compos-er, is the first person to work with both Anoushka Shankar and Norah Jones when they collaborated on his 2007 albumBreathing Under Water. Kale, who has worked across such dis-parate genres as electronic fusion, Indian classical, rock, hip hopand Indian folk, gets the singer to open up, musician-to-musician

Photo: GETTY IMAGES

11

Brian Burton with Norah Jones

12 COVER STORY hindustantimes.com/brunch

“Nobody can tell you you’re wrong for writing a song about how you feel – even if you don’t really feel that way” – Norah Jones

FEBRUARY 24, 2013

IREMEMBER TALKINGabout collaborating withNorah with her sisterAnoushka as we made plans

for our Breathing Under Wateralbum. This collaboration had beenin the works for a long time, butnothing had happened yet becausethey operate in such different musi-cal spheres. This album howeverwas already throwing me in differ-ent situations, working with artistssuch as Shankar Mahadevan,Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, SunidhiChauhan, Salim Merchant, Sting,Ravi Shankar and a host of greatartists from around the world, sothis proved to be the perfect oppor-tunity. Anoushka and I had workedon an instrumental piece that wehad titled Mercedez (a workingtitle) that we had put aside for amoment. This was going to be thepiece of music that we would bringto Norah. At the time, there seemedto be a lot of press focusing on thefamily story and trying to stir upsome drama, so there were manyreasons why this collaborationneeded to work.

I already knew from my experi-ence with the family that all was

good in the world of the Shankars,but the press didn’t want to hearthat. I was initially a bit apprehen-sive about this collaboration asNorah came off to me like a bit of asnob, refusing to allow our camerasto be in the studio (we were filming

the making of the album) etc. Ithought she might prove to be diffi-cult to work with, you know, a newdiva on the scene making demands.

However my experience wasquite the opposite. We went toNorah’s home then in the East

Village of Manhattan to see what wecould do. A couple of hours and a fewcups of coffee later, we already had asong. Anoushka had penned somelyrics a few nights before and we hada structure and a musical space tostart from, so the piece just flowedout. A couple of hours later we had apiece titled Easy.

The next day, we went to RightTrack Studio in Manhattan to laydown the track. I have always beencautious of artists who have gottentoo much too soon, and an artistwho upon releasing her first albumreceived 8 Grammys made me a bitwary of the experience, but working

with Norah proved to be somethingelse. Not only did she have an amaz-ing command of her craft as asinger, but she seemed to knowexactly what and how she wanted toaccomplish this in the studio.

I remember being very impressedwith how well she was able to make ithappen, record harmonies, piano andall with such ease and grace. I haveworked with countless singers in myday but the experience with Norahseemed to set a benchmark for futurecollaborations. She deserves all theaccolades as she continues to pushthe boundaries of her own artistry.

brunchletters@hindustantimes.com

Norah and me, off the recordA couple of hoursand some coffee...that’s all Anoushka,Norah and I neededto compose Easy,says Karsh Kale

I was initially a bit apprehensive about this collaboration as Norah came offto me like a bit of a snob, refusing our cameras to be in the studio etc.

I alreadyknew from

myexperience

with thefamily that all

was good inthe world of

the Shankars,but the pressdidn’t want to

hear thatPhoto: ANJA MATTHES

Karsh Kale

MORE MUSIC ON THE WEBFor pictures and links to videosof Norah Jones, log on to hindustantimes.com/brunchWhile you’re at it, check out ourGrandpa’s Guide to Electronic Music, too!

EDUCATIONISTS WITH A DIFFERENCE

The advent of online educa-tional innovations has beenvery impactful. What is itsfuture?

Online education is graduallybeing accepted as an alternatemedium of study for many stu-dents and the demand has beengrowing exponentially. In a countrylike India where there is hugedemand and supply gap, virtuallearning is the way to go at all lev-els. India is standing at a crucialjuncture where half the populationis below 35 years of age. We can-not afford to ruin their lives bymerely stating problems facing oursystem. In short span of time andwithout much investment, we cantake education to masses at effec-tive prices. Why can’t we have anational online library which canbe accessed by one and all? Whycan’t we have lectures of

renowned professors and teachersposted online? If we want to pro-vide access to education on largescale at effective price, online edu-cation is the answer. This modelhas a great future as it crosses allbarriers like location, budget, lackof quality faculty and infrastructure.With the advent of IT, the distancelearning programme has becomemore sought after by means ofinternet, audio-video conferencingand online interaction in India.

What are the probable challenges in success ofonline education?

Lack of awareness amongst stu-dents and parents is a major hur-dle. The mindset has to bechanged. The acceptance level ofonline education has to go up asthere is no compromise on educa-tion. There are various meansthrough which quality and stan-

dard in distance education can bemaintained. The competent facultycan telecast or broadcast their lec-tures to students staying in anypart of the world. In fact, at times, itis more rigorous than the tradition-al mode. It is a well-acceptedmodel worldwide.

What management pro-grammes are offered byIMT-CDL?

IMT-CDL offers a wide spectrumof management and informationtechnology programmes. The cur-riculum is constantly updated to bein touch with the dynamic globaland Indian environment. The two-year online PGDM through the dis-tance mode is specially designedto equip the students with compre-hensive management education.Our one-year online PGDM for

Online Education is the new mantra for MBA

FEBRUARY 24, 2013

PROMOTION

The online education model is the only practical solution to meet the growing educational needs of India says Dr. ArunMohan Sherry, Director, Institute of Management Technology's (IMT) Centre for Distance Learning (CDL). According tohim, it offers multiple benefits in comparison to traditional college education for a number of reasons — cost, conven-ience and efficiency. Dr. Sherry, who is a Ph.D. as well an M.Sc. (Gold Medalist) and M.Tech. (Computer Science, IITKharagpur) has tirelessly worked to put adequate processes so that the quality of education offered through distancemode can be as good, even better than regular full time education. In an exclusive interview to HT Brunch Dr. Sherrytalks about the future and new trends of online education. Excerpts

DDrr.. AArruunn MMoohhaann SShheerrrryyDirector, Institute of

Management Technology - Centre for Distance Learning CONTINUED ON PAGE 16

Education plays an impor-tant role in the life of everyperson because to put itsimple words —

‘Knowledge is Power’. It’s thepower to make one’s destiny andto be what you want to be.Education gives the youth thepower to explore their potential tothe fullest. It helps to lay a strongfoundation for the development ofadult life, guide them to take cor-rect decisions, how to react in dif-ferent situations, develop perspec-tives, build opinions, convert infor-mation into knowledge, opencareer opportunities, plan for thefuture and take right steps in thatdirection. Therefore, education isnot just restricted to lessons taughtin the classroom but in life as well.

When Benjamin Franklin said,“Genius without education is likesilver in the mine”, he was right foreducation not only nurtures andcultivates talent but showcases itfor the world to witness. A nationwith an educated youths thus hasthe potential to grow into an eco-nomic powerhouse and foster thetrue meaning of equality andsocialism.

Today, the country’s educationsector is buzzing with new ideas,concepts and thoughts. Despitethe fact that a lot more needs to bedone before every child getsaccess to primary educationhe/she should be provided with aconducive environment in whichthey become educated individuals.

It is in this context that one

needs to bring to the fore the lead-ers of Indian education systemwho have taken upon themselvesthe task of bringing a new wave of

development and growth in educa-tion sector. They are working hardto do innovations and bring newerideas into the sphere.

14

Ways to impart quality educationPoonam Sharma, is the Group Director of Accurate Group of Institutions, Greater Noida.She has been honoured with numerous awards — Woman Leader in India Award-2010,Edupreneur of the Year Award-2010, Glory of India Gold Medal award-2011, WomenAchiever Award 2011 — to name a few. She has been recently awarded Women Leader inEducation Award 2011. Full of energy, commitment and dedication Sharma aims to takeAIMT to the highest level of education

The economic meltdown inlast decade has madeglobal leaders restless andthey are busy in discover-

ing means to improve economiccondition of their country.Obviously this has introduced a lotof changes in the market dynamicsas well as economic policies glob-ally. This has also led to metamor-phic change in the managementeducation. The pedagogy hither topracticed and methodologiesadopted has not been able toaddress the problems of the finan-cial world.

The greatest challenge whichthe industry had been facing inrecent past is how to embrace thedynamic changes. The businessenvironment is in constant flux and

companies must accept the newrealities. The backdrop of suchchanges has catalysed a reasses-ment of traditional managementconcepts and practices.

If we look at the history, in pasttwo decades there has been aremarkable growth in managementeducation due to contribution ofprivate sector. Today nearly 80 percent of management institutes arein the private sectors. It is neces-sary to first define the aims andobjective and then revamp theentire concept, content, purposeand pattern of management edu-cation. The important areas forimprovements are course curricu-lum, pedagogy, faculty develop-ment programmes, developmentof cases and teaching notes, good

library, state of the art computingfacilities, research, consulting,industry database, industry inter-face, adequate infrastructural facili-ties, quality placement, entrepre-neurship development, justificationof student's expectation, ethicalvalues and sound governance.

The mushrooming of the B-Schools sans quality has addedonly the numbers without churningout any strategic leaders who canleverage the pace of sustainabledevelopment. Here comes the roleof a faculty member. As a mentor itis the duty of faculty members todesign and deliver course contentthat shall not only make student

learn theories but at the sametime inculcates the leadershipquality.

To make India an intellectualcapital of the world, manage-

ment education should not onlyaim to meet the needs of the stu-dents but it also should match theexpectations of the whole commu-nity. For this business schoolsshould focus on educational pro-gramme as well as the all arounddevelopment of the students.

Written by Poonam Sharma

PROMOTION

executive is quite popular. We havehost of specialised courses incyber law and security, businessadministration, financial manage-ment, etc. We do offer Ph.D pro-grammes.

What are the advantages astudent gets?

IMT-CDL believes that it is offer-ing programmes that are at parwith the best programmes. We usea unique combination of distanceeducation, e-learning and personalcontact programmes to create a

hybrid learning environment forstudents. Using e-Learning plat-form, we offer our students a richdigital library with which theyaccess top international journals,books, recorded classroom teach-ing material and a lot more. IMT-CDL organises personal contactprogrammes where classes areheld at IMT campus and otherlocations to aid personal interac-tion. Its course curriculum andcontents are updated every sixmonths which keeps the contentsfresh. Its exams are held by UPSC

which conducts exams for civilservices also. IMT-CDL has corpo-rate tie-ups with Airtel, IBM,Infosys, ONGC, Royal Bank ofScotland, Genpact, etc.

Please tell us somethingabout Executive Programmeoffered at IMT-CDL and howare you managing quality ofeducation here?

PGDM (Executive) is poweredentirely by online multimedia fordelivery. The programme is inten-

sive on industry interaction, deliv-ered entirely online and usesmultimedia tools like extensivewebinars and video conferencingby industry experts and faculty, forimpactful delivery.

IMT-CDL is the only distancelearning organisation that has adedicated full-time faculty. Apartfrom the 35 faculty members IMT-CDL has a group of experts in theform of visiting faculty, alumni andindustry representatives.

As told toRai Umraopati Ray

PPoooonnaamm SShhaarrmmaaGroup Director,

Accurate Group of Institutions

FEBRUARY 24, 2013

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 14

16

What are the new trends inthe Indian education sector?

This is an interesting phase ofIndian education. Some of the newtrends in Indian education arePublic-Private Partnership (PPP),focus on quality education andimpetus being given to researchand development. According tome, the relevance of PPP modelwould grow in times to come. Indiais targeting to take its GER (grossenrollment ratio) to 30 per cent ofstudents in 18 to 25 years of age,who go for higher education. Somore new universities and insti-tutes need to be constructed, nur-tured and promoted. A higherenrollment ratio resulting inenhancement of human capitalcorresponds to an increase in thenational wealth. Educationdemands quality orientation. Goodacademic institutions are built upby good faculty. This throws up anadditional challenge of attractingthe best brains, to academics.

What are the challenges forhigher education?

There is a crunch of quality fac-

ulty members. We need teacherswho are credible and capable totransform students from one levelto the next level of excellence.Teachers are agents of makingthat transformational change.Raising quality faculty is a seriouschallenge. Presently, there is noaccountability on part of teachers.Only a handful of teachers arededicated and passionate aboutteaching. There is little focus onresearch activities. For a high qual-ity teaching, we need best brainsto join the profession. Unless anduntil we take up this challenge,there will be no progress.

How can technology play anintegral role?

Technology will no doubt play amajor role in times to come. Thegovernment is also of the view thatinformation and communicationtechnology (ICT) can be used tomitigate the crunch of quality facul-ty members. Under the NationalMission of Education through ICT,the government is going pumparound over Rs 20,000 crore in12th Five Year Plan and is going to

develop the course in the form ofvideo-clips, animations, probablequestions and then self-evaluationby students. ICT will deliver thecourse content, best curriculum,and quality inputs in an effectiveway. It is one of the best interven-tions for enhancing quality ofteaching. ICT has also popularisedthe distance mode of education.Through video-conferencing stu-dents can interact with professors,virtually making it as real as a realclassroom. Distance education,enabled with ICT, can reach out tolot of people even in remote andinaccessible areas of the country.ICT enabled learning will emergeas the largest mode of educationin the future. If we make these pro-grammes popular among students,then the roles of teachers will dras-tically change. Their role will not beof information providers, but that offacilitators and mentors.

What are your future plansfor GGSIU?

Our vision is to turn GGSIPUinto a world-class university wherethere would be a conglomeration

of students and faculty membersfrom various places to generatenew knowledge and at the sametime creating an environmentwhere confluence of ideas wouldtake place. We want to take thisinstitution to the next level bybringing in more quality, newerinnovations, focus on industry-ori-ented professional education andenhancing our research activities. Iam happy to share new develop-ments like establishing Centre ofExcellence in PharmaceuticalTechnology, initiating new researchactivities in basic and applied sci-ences, bio sciences and IT andtaking the number of Ph.D seats to75 to 80 from next academic ses-sion. Our east campus at SurajmalVihar is under construction wherewe plan to launch design coursesin streams like architecture, manu-facturing, instrumental science,textile etc. My immediate focus isto bring quality faculty members ofnational and international repute toour university.

As told to Rai Umraopati Ray

Transforming education system

PROMOTION

PPrrooff.. ((DDrr)) DDiilliipp KK.. BBaannddyyooppaaddhhyyaayyVice Chancellor,

Guru Govind SinghIndraprastha University

A great scholar, academician and administrator, Prof. (Dr) Dilip K. Bandyopadhyay, ViceChancellor of Guru Govind Singh Indraprastha University, Delhi is a leader in India’smanagement education community in modern times. Prof. Bandyopadhyay has spent 36years of his career doing what he does best: Inspiring students, academia, corporate /non-corporate heads and policy makers to raise their excellence to the next level. HTBrunch spoke to the veteran educationist on the future of higher education in India, hisplans for the university and much more. Excerpts

FEBRUARY 24, 201318

IT WAS while they were showing me to mytable at Madras’ The Flying Elephant, thatthe thought struck me: has anyone noticedhow much restaurants seem to be changing

in India? The Flying Elephant is probably a breakthrough for restau-rants in India – more about that later – but the magnificence of itsconception is just one more example of how Indian hoteliers andrestaurateurs are throwing away all the stereotypes and openingrestaurants that are much more dramatic than ever before.

The changes manifest themselves in several ways: décor, cui-sine, ambience, ambition and size. There were, broadly, two stagesin the development of restaurants in India. In the first stage, thebest restaurants tended to be located outside of hotels. Each cityhad its own restaurant district: Bombay’s Churchgate Street, Delhi’sConnaught Place, Calcutta’s Park Street etc., and the bulk of therestaurants were either Chinese (sort of Cantonese, in that era)or multi-cuisine (lots of Punjabi-type food plus what passed forbasic Continental) – the sort of cuisine epitomised by Gaylord, SkyRoom and other such Sixties hotspots.

Then came the invasion of the five-star hotels. Unlike hotels inmost other countries, Indian hotels became food hubs for non-hotel guests to the extent that some earned as much money fromtheir restaurants as they did from the rooms. Hotel coffee shopskilled off the lure of old stand-alone multi-cuisine places and eachnew hotel prided itself on the authenticity of its specialty restau-

rants: French, Italian, Thai, Spanish, Korean,American or whatever.

And that is how the balance remained till aboutfive years ago: the top specialty restaurants werein the hotels while the stand-alones tended to besecond-rate places, reminders of a bygone age.

But all of that is now changing. For a start, thestand-alone sector is vibrant, thriving and ready togive the hotels a run for their money. The mosttalked-about restaurants in Bombay, these days,tend to be places outside the hotels: Yauatcha, The

Table, Ellipsis, Umame, Café Zoe, Hakkasan, etc. In Delhi, the mallshave opened up real-estate possibilities and stand-alone restaura-teurs have rushed in with sophisticated products: Mamagoto, Amici,Izakaya, etc. Some of these restaurants beat the hotels at their owngame: it is hard to eat South Indian food that is as good as the foodat Zambar (in the Vasant Kunj Ambience mall) at any hotel in Delhi.

The second interesting change is that the multi-cuisine restau-rant has now made a comeback. The Oberoi in Delhi launched thetrend with 360° in the space previously occupied by the high-end,very French La Rochelle and has followed it up with the excellent361° at the Gurgaon property. But now, everyone is doing it. Set’zis probably Delhi’s best and most successful stand-alone restau-rant and much of its popularity is based on its seven kitchens, eachof which serves a different cuisine. I’ve never eaten well at Spectra,the Gurgaon Leela’s version of a Set’z-type restaurant, but the ideais the same: high quality multi-cuisine. And it seems to be doingwell so perhaps I’ve just been unlucky.

Even the stand-alone cafés are multi-cuisine. The excellent CaféDiva menu in Delhi pairs Sindhi curry with pizzas. On TheWaterfront (also in Delhi) is happy enough serving duck confit orThai red curry, depending on what guests feel like eating. Umamein Bombay manages to put high-quality soup-filled dim sum on thesame menu as sashimi. The advantage of multi-cuisine restaurantsis that three people at the same table can order three differentcuisines so nobody has to make any cuisine decisions while choos-ing the restaurant. Instead you choose the restaurant for itself.

The third interesting trend is that top-end restaurants are big-ger, more glamorous and much more ambitious than ever before.The massive Hakkasan in Bombay channels the glitzy cool of theLondon original. Its sister restaurant Yauatcha in Bandra-Kurlain Bombay looks even better than the original model: the LondonYauatcha. In Delhi, Megu’s Buddha Room, with its stunning décor,is easily the most glamorous Japanese restaurant in India. Le Cirque takes over an entire floor of the Leela Palace with manyelegant, clubby rooms that – remarkably enough – have turned the

Vir Sanghvi

rude fo

od

20 indulge

FEBRUARY 24, 2013

THE GAMECHANGERS

With so manysophisticatedrestaurantsthat recreatethe world experienceopening here, India ischangingvery quickly

It is hard to eatSouth Indian

food that is asgood as the

food at Zambar(in the Vasant

Kunj Ambiencemall) at any

hotel in Delhi

MORE ON THE WEBFor more RUDE FOODcolumns by VirSanghvi, log on tohindustantimes.com/brunch

conventional wisdom on its head and proved that European food,even at top prices, can find an audience in India –if it’s done right.

But many of the greatest advances in restau-rant conception are coming from outside Bombayand Delhi. When the ITC Gardenia opened Edo (inBangalore) with its elegant stone-and-wood designby Japan’s Super Potato, it was a sign that India’srestaurant scene was now in tune with the rest ofthe world. Edo opened before David Bouley’s much-praised Brushstroke Kaiseki restaurant in NewYork and yet, anyone who goes to that hip NYChangout will recognise the style: Super Potatobrought those innovations to Bangalore before tak-ing them to New York.

Strangely enough, it is Madras, regarded bypeople in Bombay and Delhi as a sleepy unsophisticated back-water, that may be at the forefront of India’s high-end restaurantboom. Ottimo, the Italian restaurant at the ITC Grand Chola,differs dramatically in its conception from every other Italianrestaurant in India in the sense that it is built around a largestate-of-the-art open kitchen (it is called cucina rather than atrattoria) and the chefs are the stars of the show.

ITC had not opened the Madras Pan Asian when I last visitedthe Grand Chola but Vikramjit Roy, the hyper-talented Japanesechef who ITC stole from Delhi’s Wasabi, showed me around. Thetwo-level restaurant is a quantum leap for the Pan Asian concept,with a stunning Japanese restaurant-within-a-restaurant, a Chinesecuisine area that has a style of its own, a sleek champagne loungeupstairs next to a chef’s studio kitchen and a visually dramatic stair-case on which an Asian (but naturally!) singer will be stationed.

In hotel circles, it is well known that ITC is eager to break newground and innovate, so the real surprise will not be the GrandChola’s remarkable restaurants but the amazing The Flying Elephantat the new Park Hyatt, right opposite the Grand Chola. (“Theyhave ITC One rooms but we have ITC View rooms”, a manager atthe Park Hyatt joked.)

The hotel is smallish (200 rooms), elegant and personalisedbut I suspect that it will soon be famous all over India becauseof the magnificence of The Flying Elephant. Conceived with greatpassion by former drama student Amit Mahtaney, whose fami-ly owns the hotel, the restaurant is pure theatre, spread acrossfive levels with a warm, living roomy area (complete with booksfrom Mahtaney’s own collection) that plays retro music and lookson to a New York-style bar which serves cocktails from America’sspeakeasies in the Prohibition era. (With some nice service touch-es including martinis shaken at your table).

There’s a grill area where I had some moist and flavourful satay.Another area has a pizza oven and more seating. Other sectionsinclude a private dining area called The Bedroom on the top floor.All over the many different levels are little private corners so you

can either enjoy the buzz or have a more intimateexperience. The mix of Hyatt expertise andMahtaney’s drama degree has obviously worked –the restaurant is Mezza9 (at Singapore’s GrandHyatt) two generations on. It is the same generalidea but with much more advanced and contem-porary execution.

Mahtaney’s mother was brought up in Indonesiaso that probably explains the Indonesian disheson the menu (I had a first-rate rendang) but there’soutstanding European cuisine as well. (Multi-cui-sine really is today’s Big Thing!) The pastry chefdoes adult sundaes along with such classic dessertsas a Baked Alaska. (He is French so he calls itBombe Alaska though, given that the executive

chef Stig Drageide is Norwegian, they should have called itOmelette Norvégienne!

Like Setz or 360°, the great thing about The Flying Elephant isthat you can come in for a slap-up haute cuisine meal and spendmany thousands. Or you can just order a beer and a pizza and getaway with paying much less. Either way, they promise, you’ll getexactly the same treatment.

Would something like The Flying Elephant have been possibleeven five years ago? I doubt it. Many factors have contributed tothe changes: the emergence of the new middle class, which is will-ing to spend money on eating out, the availability of retail space atnew malls, the boom in hotels, the entry of so many foreign chainsand the investments made by virtual outsiders to the restaurantand hotel scene purely out of passion. For instance, Kishore Bajajwho owns the Indian Hakkasans and Yauatchas (the big openingof the year will be Yauatcha in Delhi’s Ambience Mall in a few months)made his money in tailoring and real estate, not hospitality. VijayMahtaney, father of Amit, and the chairman of the company thatowns the Madras Park Hyatt, was the founder of ColorPlus and isone of India’s more successful garment exporters. One reason whyso many sophisticated restaurants are opening is because richIndians who have travelled the world now want to recreate thatexperience and quality in their own neighbourhoods.

India is changing very quickly. And the restaurant scene ismoving even faster.

The magnificentFlying Elephant

in Madras is probably a

a breakthroughfor restaurants

in India

FEBRUARY 24, 2013

THE CURTAIN RISESThe Flying Elephant (left and above) at the Park Hyatt, Madras, conceived with great passion by former drama student Amit Mahtaney, is pure theatre, spread across five levels

ON THE WORLD MAPWhen the ITC Gardenia opened Edo (in Bangalore) with its elegantstone-and-wood design by Japan’s Super Potato, it was a sign that India’s restaurant scene was now in tune with the rest of the world

IT’S A STUNNERIn Delhi, Megu’s BuddhaRoom, with its stunning décor,is easily the most glamorousJapanese restaurant in India

IN GOOD TASTE The massive Hakkasan inBombay channels the glitzycool of the London original

21

MULTI-TASKING MENUUmame in Bombay puts high-quality soup-filled dim sum onthe same menu as sashimi

IT’S THE hottest category in the world!Everyone wants a tablet, but which one?Thankfully, the difference between most

tablets is fading. Almost all of them come withgreat processors, ever-improving battery life,fantastic form factors and amazing apps and util-ities. The big question that remains is, what sizescreen is best? And that is becoming an increas-ingly baffling and a very confounding question!

Most people will break down tablet screen sizesinto three: 7-inch, 8-inch and 10-inch. That would

be mistake number one. If you are really seri-ous about buying a tablet and

getting the perfect onesuited for your tasks –

the tablet screen-sizebreakdown is actually five size cat-

egories. Let me take you through all of them.

WHEN I GROW UP I WANT TO BE...When phablets came, people snickered and

laughed. Today, millions of phabletsales later, they are all

wiping the egg off theirfaces! Phablets areincreasingly gettingthe most attentionand innovation in the field. But canthey play the role of a tablet? In

their current iteration– no way, as a tablet is

much more than just alarger screen smartphone. But future phablets are starting tolook amazingly good. At 6.1 inches, full 1920x1080 HDscreens, almost zero bezel around the display, 8 coreprocessors, additional whiz-bang graphic processors,battery life better than any smartphone and enhancedfunctionality, including intelligent stylus features – thisis going to be the personal tablet of choice.Pros and cons: You’ll be able to do anything you do witha normal-sized tablet, except that you’ll be squinting alittle. And you can’t use it as a sharing device. It’s yoursand yours alone.

THE TIPPING POINT EFFECTThe 7-inchers came in as the poor man’s tablet but haveeventually become the reason tablet sales rocketed. Lowprices, underpowered, resistive screens, suicidal batterylife – they still sold like hot cakes. That’s because they havemany compelling reasons going for them. Easy to hold in onehand, fits your palm, easy to carry, can be pocketed, perfect fitfor a bag, thin and light and very aggressive pricing. In fact, thepricing on these is almost comical now and will only get moreamazing with Google, Asus and Acer going all out in this space.The next generation will have great processing power, higherresolution screens and even lower prices – always a good combination. Pros and cons: Better as e-readers, good for quick browsing,great for social networking; but completely suck when you wantto watch a special-effects movie or play a graphic-intensive game.And forget about making presentations on this one. It may notbe around for too long.

IF YOU BUILD IT, THEY WILL COMEThis is that strange screen size that shouldn’thave worked – and yet may well become the cat-egory killer – 7.9 or 8 inches is the future. Why?Well, the screen-size ratio works better for mostthings you’ll do on a tablet – it gives you just thatmuch more screen space so that you don’t squintand more importantly, Apple makes the iPad Miniin this size and is selling sackloads of them, thusothers have to follow. Lots of action here as Applewill bring in a retina display in the iPad Mini 2,most 7-inch tablets will move to this size in thefuture with similar specs and prices here againwill spiral downwards. Pros and cons: It doesn’t really fit your palm well,but as most are super-thin you can still manage.Games and movies fit perfectly on this and the bat-tery life is better here. It also breaks up the con-founding clutter of the 7-inch tablet market andthat is a big deal.

THE KING IS DEAD, LONG LIVE THE KINGThe 9.7 or 10-incher is what started the whole thingoff. It’s still a great choice, but may not be the wayto go if you’re a new tablet buyer. Why do I saythat? Well, the best tablet is a tablet that is alwayswith you when you need one – and this isn’t theeasiest one to carry. While you do see people walk-

ing around with one encased in an ugly, thick, padded cover evenat parties – it’s just not practical in the long run. While it’s earlydays yet – expect this category to wean off eventually. Pros and cons: This is still the best for movies, games, presenta-tions as well as sharing – but you’ll do it mostly in your home andnot on the move. A 10-inch tablet will become the choice of cor-

porates as well as the screen you’ll snap off an ultrabookhybrid, while consumers will move to the 8-inch model.

THE FUTURE, NOWThe most exciting space in tablets may well be one thatmost people haven’t experienced as yet. I call this the FamilyTablet or Desktop Tablet. This will be around 27 to 32 inch-es, will be an all-in-one PC, will run about three hours onbattery, can be propped up straight and used as a desktopwith a wireless keyboard and mouse, or flattened and puton a table or even stand for the whole family to play gamesand use apps customised for it (think Microsoft Surfacefor 1/10th the price), can be used in the family room for TVand movies (they’ll come with fantastic premium audio andgraphics) and will also be a gaming and presentation machinepar excellence.

Pros and cons: It’s all good and it’s what every family will own soon.You’ll see major action from Lenovo, Asus and HP in this area.

Like I said right in the beginning, tablets are the hot-ticket itemof this decade and they are coming out to get you from five differ-ent directions. Never has size mattered more! Well, that may notbe entirely true, but then that’s a whole different column.

Rajiv Makhni is managing editor, Technology, NDTV, and the anchor of Gadget Guru,Cell Guru and Newsnet 3

FEBRUARY 24, 2013

Rajiv Makhni

22 indulge

SIZE MATTERS

techilicious

A LOT OF ACTIONThe iPad Mini doesn’t fityour palm well, but the battery life is better MORE ON THE WEB

For previous columns by Rajiv Makhni, log on to hindustantimes.com/brunchFollow Rajiv on Twitter at twitter.com/RajivMakhni

Tablets arethe hottestsellers of thisdecade. Butis there anideal screensize?

MR BIG The Samsung GALAXY Tab 10.1 has a large screen

HAPPINESS IS A TABLE PCThe Lenovo IdeaCentreHorizon Table PC is an inno-vative Windows 8 device

facebook.com/hindustantimesbrunch

IN YOUR POCKETAcer’s Iconia B1 7-inch tablet is

decently priced forbudget buyers

AS I WRITE this, with a cup of coffee nextto the keyboard, I have on my computer’sspeakers Keller Williams playing 10 songs

with minimal accompaniment – just a piano. It’sthe perfect audio complement to a sunny morn-ing in Feb when it’s not yet as hot as Delhi can getnor too chilly.

I’ll get to the 10 songs he’s playing, but the factthat Williams is playing just a piano is somewhatof a rarity. Keller Williams is often known as a one-man band, a very apt name for him because he’susually – in live performances as well as for hisstudio albums – unaccompanied by anyone else.

Williams uses something known as ‘live phraselooping’ to make it seem as if a full-fledged bandis playing with him. He uses instruments such asdrum machines and synthesisers, but also a vintage electronic music device known as thetheremin, which is operated without any physi-cal contact but via two antennae that can respondto the movement of a musician’s hands. But moreimportantly, Williams plays guitars, percussion,bass, in addition to the synths, drum machines and so on, andmanages to sound as if he is playing all of these at the same time.

Very roughly, live phrase looping works this way: the musicianplays a riff on some instrument; it is recorded; and played backwith a delay. You can layer as many riffs or tunes or melodies inthis manner and play them back. The skill and expertise withwhich a musician uses the technique of live looping determinesthe final output. Williams, on his studio albums as well as live, isa highly skilled looper.

One major characteristic of Williams’ music is his ability tofuse different genres – bluegrass, rock, folk, reggae, jazz, you

name it. Besides the plethora of instruments,Williams uses his voice in innovative ways, andhas a distinctive performance and singing style.A third thing about Williams is the names hechooses for his albums – they are always one-wordtitles. So, his catalogue has albums titled Freek,Buzz, Spun, Breathe, Loop, Laugh, Dance, Home,Stage, Grass, Dream, Odd, Thief, Pick and so on.

The album I’m listening to right now is calledKeys (probably because it has, uncharacteristical-

ly for Williams, just a piano as an instrument) and, as I mentioned,it has 10 songs. And now, here’s the thing: All the 10 songs are cov-ers of songs by The Grateful Dead. Songs that every Deadheadknows but each one stripped down to the barest minimum – playedon the piano and sung in Williams’ unique style.

On Keys, Williams plays 10 Dead songs, none of them tunes thatare minimalistic in their original forms. Most Deadheads knowhow complex Terrapin Station is. On Keys, Williams manages toturn it into a spare yet beautiful song without fooling around toomuch with the original tune. He does that with the others too. So,when on a sunny Feb (or any other month) morning, you spin Keysand listen to Williams doing his version of He’s Gone, Can’t ComeDown, Brokedown Palace, Wharf Rat, Attics of My Life, Althea, BirdSong, Row Jimmy and Touch of Grey, you can’t have a better sound-track to accompany whatever you choose to do on a sunny morn-ing (as long as your range of choices excludes work!).

On his website, Williams says, “It’s no secret I have an unhealthyfascination with The Grateful Dead. Whenever I sit down at thepiano it seems the only thing that comes out are Jerry (Garcia)ballads. Even though these songs are not all Jerry ballads, I havesort of made them that way.” He admits to have taken some lib-erties with the lyrics but then with a band that always took lib-erties with its own music, I don’t think that matters much.

I’m grateful for having heard Keys because it renews my inter-est in Williams’ music and his back catalogue. I’d been quiteobsessed with his stuff till around the early 2000s and then, Ihad moved on. Now, I’ve rummaged in my stash of old albumsand found my copies of Breathe and Loop and Freek and Stage.I’ve rediscovered Keller Williams and am enjoying those albums,especially Loop and Stage, which are live albums; Stage being adouble live.

GRATEFUL DEADHEADSAll the 10 songs on Keysare sung in Williams’unique style

AmericanmusicianKellerWilliams,often knownas a one-man band,surprisesfans by playing onlyGratefulDead coverson the pianoin his new album, Keys

THE JUKEBOX

The fourth and latest full-length album

from one of myfavourite bands ishere. FrightenedRabbit are a Scottishindie band that hailfrom Selkirk and their new album is calledPedestrian Verse. Frightened Rabbit makenervous, moody music that’s a compelling lis-ten and Pedestrian Verse doesn’t disappoint.The thick Scottish brogue that marks front-man and singer Scott Hutchinson’s Englishdoesn’t hurt either. It never does, and neverdid even on the band’s last four full-lengths:Sing The Greys, The Midnight Organ Fight,Quietly Now! and The Winter of Mixed Drinks.

MORE ON THE WEBTo give feedback, stream or download the music mentionedin this column, go to http://blogs.hindustantimes.com/downloadcentral; follow argus48 on Twitter

SanjoyNarayan

THE MINIMALISTDEADHEAD

Photo: GETTY IMAGES

24 indulge hindustantimes.com/brunch

FEBRUARY 24, 2013

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entral

EARLY DAY ELECTRONICABesides drum machines and synthesisers, one of theinstruments Williams uses is the theremin – a vintageelectronic music device which responds to the movement of a musician’s hands

OKAY, BE honest now. How many of you usea mobile phone or a laptop to communicatewith people in the same house? Do you text

your spouse to say that dinner is ready when he orshe is just a room away? Do you BBM your kids totell them that they are getting late for school andneed to step on it? Do you phone your household

help from the bedroom to ask them to lay outbreakfast? I have to plead guilty to the last. Iknow it is a bit shaming, but I find that switch-

ing on my mobile and calling on the landline toask for coffee and toast gives me an extra 10 min-utes in bed. And on some days, that can make allthe difference.

The reason I am asking you these intrusive questions thisSunday morning is because a recent survey conducted by aBritish company found that as many 45 per cent of the respon-dents admitted to using mobile devices to communicate withfamily members even when they were all in the same house. AndI am guessing – thanks to an entirely unscientific and unrepre-sentative survey conducted among my friends – that it is muchthe same in India.

Kids instant message their moms to find out what’s for dinner.Moms text their kids to remind them that there’s tennis after schoolthat day. Husbands BBM wives to tell them they are running late(and vice versa).

Sometimes there are good reasons for using this method of com-munication. If you text or email your husband that he needs to pickup the dry cleaning on the way home, there is a greater chance thathe will remember to do so. And if he forgets you will have writtenevidence that you did remind him to do that and that he forgot. Notonly will this save you an endless argument on the lines of ‘Yes, Idid tell you’ ‘No, you didn’t’, it will also help to conclusively estab-

lish that it was HIS fault. (Of course this will leadto endless whining about how ‘everything’ seemsto be his fault; but you are probably used to that.)

So yes, it’s always good to have a record of stufflike that. Ditto, what time the PTA meeting is;which weekend has been blocked off for a visit tothe in-laws; whose turn it is to pick up the kidsfrom school; when the credit card payment fallsdue. Using text messaging or email to discussstuff like this makes sense.

And who can deny that the day gets a little brighterwhen you see a message from your significant otherin your inbox with the tagline ‘I love you’ or even‘Miss you’. A missive like that can make even themost dreary work meeting easier to get through.

But that said, there is a lot of stuff that we real-ly should be saying face-to-face – and we simplydon’t. And however much we may regret it, thereis simply no denying that non-verbal communica-tion is on the rise. What’s more, every generationseems to be as guilty as the next. A few years ago,I would berate my young nieces and nephews forinstant messaging their friends rather than simplypicking up the phone and talking to them. Now Ifind myself texting or BBM-ing my friends, withwhom I would have had long phone conversationsin more low-tech times.

So, why exactly are we so leery about having areal conversation these days? Partly it is that wedon’t want to seem intrusive. Everyone has busylives and we don’t want to call and make a nuisanceof ourselves. It’s much easier to respond to a textthan a phone call, we tell ourselves, as we put off

a nice, long chat yet again. But at least part of the problem is thatwe simply don’t want to invest the time and effort required to havea proper heart-to-heart with those we love. We’d much ratherexchange a line or two on the phone or via email than participatein a meaningful exchange.

But when we cease to have conversations, we miss out on muchmore than we realise. Effectively, we are raising a generation thatis incapable of picking up on verbal cues and micro-expressionsbecause of the lack of face-time in their lives. We are creating aworld in which emoticons are replacing emotions; and where humaninterface is being nudged out by hyper-connectivity. And in theprocess, we are all becoming a little less human ourselves.

So, the next time you have something to say to those whom youlove and cherish, just say it. Don’t email, text, BBM or instant mes-sage. Pick up the phone and talk.

Sometimes it is nicer to hear a human voice than a ping thatannounces the arrival of yet another email. And it’s always betterto exchange smiles with someone (or just hear a smile in their voic-es) rather than see a smiley in their text messages.

SeemaGoswami

26

spectator

twitter.com/HTBrunchindulge

LET’STALK...

Photos: THINKSTOCK

Text messages and emails are all very well; but they are no substitute for a real conversation

We arecreating aworld inwhich

emoticonsare

replacingemotions

MORE ON THE WEBFor more SPECTATORcolumns by SeemaGoswami, log on to hindustantimes.com/Brunch Follow her on Twitterat twitter.com/seemagoswamiWrite to her atseema_ht@rediffmail.com

27hindustantimes.com/brunch WELLNESS

FEBRUARY 24, 2013

THE URGE to stay young foreverhas fascinated people for along time around the world .

Literature from ancient cultures –from Indian and Chinese to Greekand Roman – mentions healers who specialised in creating the rightherbal blends to maintain the youthand vitality of royalty.

To retain a youthful appearanceand strength even as your biologicalclock ticks on, ayurveda recom-mends a number of herbs, diets,treatments and lifestyle corrections.These include the right nutrition,detoxification and balancing the doshas(prakriti imbalances).Also, ayurveda offers anumber of valuable herbsthat help you feel goodand look young. BALANCING THE DOSHASIn our day-to-day lives, we eat,drink and consume a number oftoxins that go into our body and create free radicals that destroy thecellular function and accelerate the ageing process.

To detoxify and balance thedoshas, the recommended treat-ments in ayurveda involve herbalmedicines along with vasti, bodymassage with medicated oils, steamand shirodhara, etc. LIFESTYLE CORRECTIONSIt essentially involves catching upon your sleep and exercise. This iscritical because sleep deficiency byitself can lead to accelerated age-ing. Exercises give you a firm, tonedbody, which is important to maintain a youthful appearance andbody posture.HYDRATE, HYDRATEHydrating the body and the skin isan important aspect of stayingyouthful. While skin hydration

involves a fair amount of moisturis-ing and skincare, physical hydrationinvolves shunning dehydratingagents such as alcohol, strong tea/coffee and drinking enough water.MAGIC HERBSSeveral common ayurvedic herbsand rasayans (pathway of theessence of plants) can help yourejuvenate your body and mind andstay youthful. Amla: The paste, frequently used inchyavanprash form, has a number

of herbs including amla that destroys toxins and helps

the body challenge cell-damaging toxins.

Ashwagandha: It is fullof antioxidants that

fight free radicals andalso assist cells tomaintain their optimal

function. It is alsogood for reducinginflammation inthe joints and awonderful agentwhich reverses thedamage caused bystress to the cells.Shatavri: Imbal-

ances in female hormones can leadto accelerated ageing that mani-fests itself in the skin, hair, jointsand as rising fatigue. This herb is wonderful for its hormone-balanc-ing qualities. Yashtimadhu (licorice): Theherb is really good for theliver (the seat of cleansing,detoxification and diges-tion). It has propertiesthat help protect theliver, promotes regeneration ofhealthy cells andshield cells from abnormal growth.

Guduchi: As wego about ourdaily routine,many of the cells and tissuesare in a state of continualbreakdown and regeneration.Consuming healthy herbssuch as guduchi ensures thatthe regeneration process isnot marred by any mutation. Moosali: Not to be confusedwith muesli, the breakfast cereal, this is particularly useful as an aphrodisiac.

ask@drshikha.com

SHIKHA SHARMA

STAY YOUNG, DON’TSTAY HUNGRYGetting a herbal detox can help you in your quest for eternal youth

MIND BODY SOUL

MORE ON THE WEBTo read more columns by Dr Shikha Sharma and other wellness stories, log on to hindustantimes.com/brunch

DRINK UPHydrate withlots of waterrather thanstrong tea orcoffee

Phot

os: T

HINK

STOC

K

SHIELD ITLicoriceprotectsthe liverand regen-erateshealthycells

FIGHTINGFITAmla helpsthe bodyfight and destroy cell-damagingtoxins

If you weren’t an actress, what wouldyou have been?A businesswoman.The sexiest actors in Bollywood.Hrithik Roshan and FarhanAkhtar. One director you want to work with. Sanjay Leela Bhansali. He creates a dream world.Your favourite co-star for a danceshow.Hussain, the gypsy prince,from Zangoora.The best thing about your sister, Nigar Khan.She’s not just a great sister, butalso my closest friend. She’salways been there for me.Bollywood’s most romantic pair.Amitabh [Bachchan] andRekha. Nothing beats their on-screen chemistry.Three cosmetics or skincare productsyou can’t do without.Mascara, eyebrow filler and agood lip colour.What is the best thing about workingin a musical?I get to live my dream and entertain a new live audience each time.An item number you would love to do.Pyaar do pyaar lo from

Jaanbaaz (1986).A rumour you’d like to start.

I hate rumours.The street food you

love to eat.Dahi batatapuri.

You have five minutes to pack, whatwill you take?Clothes, toiletries, lots of money, family pics and mymobile.The gadget you love to flaunt orwant to own.I’m not a gadget person. I’mtechnologically challenged.Your dream destination.Prague.Who is your 3am friend?My best friend, PreetiSimoes.The last three things you do before you go to sleep.Offer namaaz, watch TV and drink green tea.The last time you had a bad hair day.I go through so many bad hair days. You destress by…Travelling.What is your mantra for success?Happiness leads to successand not vice versa. I try to behappy and content in every-thing I’m blessed with, and inturn I get positive results in allthat I work hard for.One thing you want to change aboutyourself.I need to give myself sometime. My life is too hectic right now.The last line of your autobiography would read…She lived.

PERSONAL AGENDA28

HIGH POINT OF YOUR LIFE Jhalak Dhikla Jaa. My life has changed since

LOW POINT OF YOUR LIFE I don’t remember any

SCHOOL/COLLEGEMount Carmel Convent School, Pune

BIRTHDAYAugust 23

SUN SIGNLeo

PLACE OF BIRTHBombay

HOMETOWNPune

FIRSTBREAK Winning theMiss India InternationalTitle (2002)

FEBRUARY 24, 2013

Actress

CURRENTLY DOINGPlaying Lacchi in the Bollywood musical atKingdom of Dreams

Gauahar Khan

5

A DESSERTTHAT

DESCRIBESYOU?

Any chocolate

pastry.Sinful, yettempting

Photo: Thinkstock

Dil To Pagal Hai (1997)Andaz Apna Apna (1994)Hum Aapke Hai Koun..! (1994)Bombay (1995)Barfi! (2012)

Dil To Pagal Hai (1997)Andaz Apna Apna (1994)Hum Aapke Hai Koun..! (1994)Bombay (1995)Barfi! (2012)

movies that moved me

—Interviewed by Veenu Singh