rPBd sydney-2013 ConneCting for a shared futurenriachievers.in/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Dec2013.pdffamous Golden Temple of Amritsar, the Harmandir Sahib. Our new additions from the

ÁèÌð ãñ´ àææÙ âð ©

December 2013 ` 50

volume 2 issue 3

ConneCting for a shared future

rPBd sydney-2013

NRI ACHIEVERSÁèÌð ãñ´ àææÙ âð

december 2013 http://www.nriachievers.in4

Feedback

Happy anniversary

Please accept my heartiest congratulations on a successful publica-tion and one year of your sustained efforts. I have just returned from Australia (the Sydney RPBD) and liked your issue focus on Australia. I also liked the column in Hindi (Australian D'affairs write up), myself being a strong advocate of Hindi in the NRI com-munity. I would like to share with you and your readers that I had in fact presented a session on Hindi Language at the Sydney PBD. I could not write to you in detail as I am overseas again. I can talk on Skype and tell you more about my experience if you like.

Suman Kapoor, New Zealand

L et t e r s M at t e r

improvement in tHe content

NRI Achievers is doing really good work. The November issue which focuses on Australia gives a crystal clear overlook of the country. I would like to say that the magazine has shown very good progress in the content and its flow. I would however suggest that the NRI achiever's team consider adding an interview section on the NRI corporate, businessmen & professionals communities. I would even rec-ommend adding stories featuring emotional connect of the NRI's with their homeland. I wish good luck to NRI achievers and hope to see some new sections in the magazine.

Vasant Amrapurkar , Mumbai

Good researcH work

Honestly I'm reading your magazine for the first time, but I find it so interesting that I will be following it regularly every month from now onwards. Though all your sections are very interesting and unique, I like your Heritage section the most. The article on Qutb Minar, the world’s tallest brick minaret was really worth reading. Until today, I have only read and heard that the Minarah was built by Qutubud-din Aibak. It was through your magazine that I came to know that it was actually built by Mamluk Sultan

Altamash (Iltutmish) and not Qutubud-din Aibak. I would like to thank your team for giving such valuable information and bringing to light the true history of the our precious historical assets. It was a good research work. Please keep on providing such valuable information in the future too. I wish NRI Acheivers all the best for the future.

Longjam Dineshwori, Manipur

really extensive work

It's truly heartening to see someone putting to-gether such an extensive work for NRIs and I am glad you consider my inputs valuable. I just have one feedback - the design of your magazine can be made much tighter. In my opinion, the design is currently not in tandem with the magazine and is not doing much to heighten the impact of your content. For instance, in the page with the editor's note, the colour selection and the layout do not let the eye focus on anything on the page. Instead, I would instantly flip to the next page. There are similar points throughout the magazine that if acted upon can considerably improve its overall impact. I hope you take all of these inputs as posi-tive feedback! Let me know if I can be of assistance in any other way.

Garima Sharma, The Times of India


http://www.nriachievers.in 5december 2013

Feedback

waitinG for tHe next issue…

Good work! Very happy to see the November Issue. Good to see that the team is develop-ing good relations with NRIs and foreign corporates and organizations. Glad to see the magazine regularly covering informative and detailed activities of NRI personalities and news and events related to NRIs/PIOs. I came to know about the regional PBD through your magazine. It sounds very interesting. Eagerly waiting for the next issue, good luck!

Gulneet Kaur, New Delhi

like tHe HeritaGe section

I have just gone through the November issue of the magazine and find it quite interesting, especially the article in the heri-tage section the most. Because I like to read such stories where I get to know about our heritage culture and historical facts about it. Now, I am looking forward to read more articles in this section in next issue. Cheers!

Moksha Gupta, Aligarh

welcome astroloGy & vastu

Dear Editor, I was missing something on astrology/numerology/vastu/ etc. After going through this issue I felt a bit relaxed to find the same. Hope you will provide informative material for the readers like me who believe these sciences. By the way If I send them my horoscope will they respond as you have given their mail ids or should I send to you. Please reply.

Animesh Kumar Shukla, Varanasi

conGradulations

Thank you so much for sending your magazine. I've gone through the Nov. issue of the magazine

and let me congratulate you on your fine work. My wife writes on history and culture besides other topics, and I am sure she will be able to contribute positively to your magazine.

Rajender Pal Singh, IPS, New Delhi

nostalGia in my Heart !

Many thanks for sending along a complementary elec-tronic copy of your brief account of NRI achievements. Indeed it’s a magnificent read which brought about nostalgia in my heart. To all NRI's like us who left their motherland long before it appears to be a must read document but it would be a good idea to devote a chapter solely on the accomplishments of the NRI's. Please do not hesitate if we could offer you any help.Thanks again and continue with your benevolent job.

Prof. (Dr.) Pinaki S. Bhadury, Canada

CHIEF PATRONAJAY SINGH(Former High Commissioner, Fiji)EDITORRAJEEV GUPTACHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICERB.K.AGGARWAL ADVISORVINOD BANSALSUSHIL TAYALCONSULTING EDITORCHAKRAVARTHI SUCHINDRANBUREAU HEADJYOTHI VENKATESH (MUMBAI)BUREAUSANJAY KUMAR (EUROPE)VINOD GOEL (NEW YORK, USA)AJAY AGGARWAL (U K)DHEERAJ DUBEY (FIJI & MAURITIUS)PHOTO EDITORAJAY SOODSENIOR PHOTOGRAPHERRAJEEV TYAGI LEGAL CONSULTANTDR. RAJA VOHRAmANAGER-mARKETING (DELHI/NCR)SHYAMALmANAGER-mARKETING (mUmBAI)BHARAT SINGALOVERSEAS CO-ORDINATORRAJKUMAR YADAVNORTH INDIA CO-ORDINATORMOHAN MEHRASOUTH INDIA CO-ORDINATORR SHAKTIVEL (CHALLENGE)ART DIRECTORAR. VIVEK KHURANACHIEF GRAPHIC DESIGNERMONIKAGENERAL mANAGER (CIRCULATION)S.P. PANDEYDIGITAL STRATEGISTSUCHIWEB DEVELOPERRAKESH RAHUL

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EDITOR: RAJEEV GUPTA

@ ALL RIGHTS RESERVEDVIEWS EXPRESSED IN THE ARTICLES ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHORS, & NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS THOSE OF NRI ACHIEVERS OR ITS EDITORS.ALL DISPUTES ARE SUBJECT TOEXCLUSIVE JURISDICTION OFCOMPETENT COURT & FORUM IN DELHI.

Cover Photo: Ajay Sood

RNI No. DELBIL/2012/45826ÁèÌð ãñ´ àææÙ âð INSIDE

COVER FEATURE

14DOssiER: KUHADAs ViVEKANANDA: PiONEERiNG ANCEsTRY TOURisM 10

GlObAl EVENTs: OZ iNDiANs COME OF AGE 12

WEllNEss: HERbs THAT HEAl: FiVE COMMON POWER-HEAlERs 32

REAl EsTATE & PROPERTY: REiT-THE NEW iNVEsTMENT AVENUE 36

VAsTU: VAsTU COMPliANT ENTRANCE : iNViTE GOOD lUCK 38

silVER sCREEN "JACKPOT'S A CON-GAmE THAT JUST BEGINS WHEN YOU THINK IT ENDS" SACHIIN JOSHI

TRAVElOGUE DISCOVERING KOCHI DURING ONAm

26

42

HERiTAGE TEmPLE OF GOLD AND FOLKLORE

44

RPbD sYDNEY-2013CONNECTiNG FOR A

sHARED FUTURE - iNDiAN DiAsPORA, iNDiA & THE PACiFiC

Since our November issue, India has been serenely coasting through this extended festival season which began with Diwali last month, and much water has flown under the bridge. The nation is agog with the whistle-stop rallies and tours of the po-

litical persona of all hues, even as the election fever hots up, with sev-eral states going to the polls this coming month. What with a general parliamentary election also looming large on the horizon in 2014, the whole country is abuzz with electioneering, opinion polls, and what not, not to mention several sensational skeletons tumbling out of the most unlikely of cupboards. All this hullobullo has sort of overshad-owed some other eventful happenings that can have a bearing on this land of a Billion and more, like the Regional PBD that just concluded in Australia. Nevertheless, it's an exciting time to be in, and we at NRI Achievers have tried to walk a tightrome, steering away from politi-cal issues and controversies, and staying with the mainstream of our mandated contextual framework.

The 7th Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2013 that took place in Sydney over three days during 10-12 November this year, with it's cen-tral theme, "Connecting for a Shared Future - The Indian Diaspora, India & The Pacific," is the focal theme of our cover story this month, and we bring you fleeting glimpses of the several activities that took place during the RPBD this time down under. We also bring you a curtain-raiser on the upcoming big event on the Pravasi calender, the 12th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, India's flagship annual event for its Disa-pora, which this time round, will take place in country's capital, New Delhi, during january 2014.

And then of course, our regular segments are all there for you to browse through, ranging from news culled from the worlds of busi-ness, sports, cinema, heritage, culture and architecture, and yes, our ubiquitous travelogue that is the favourite of many of you, which takes you to littoral Kochi in God's own country. Heritage takes you on a time-warp to dwell a bit on the elusive details of the building of the famous Golden Temple of Amritsar, the Harmandir Sahib. Our new additions from the last issue, the two columns on Vastu & Astrology, have been welcomed by many, and continue, not to mention our regu-lar takes on real estate and property, health and wellness, and similar.

We are sure you will like our presentation and portrayal of the Diaspora world and the mother land in this evolving mix of content, and as ever, we welcome your feedback on what you like. So do share with us your wish-list on what more you would like us to feature in this magazine of yours.

A PRODIGAL OPPORTUNITY FOR CHANGE

Editorial


december 2013 7

[email protected]

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News & Views

Sikhism is a religion founded by Guru Nanak Dev Ji 544 years ago with over 26 million followers worldwide. It is ranked as the world’s fifth largest religion. The 2013 awards is a precursor to the event in 2014 which marks two important an-niversaries: the first being the 160th an-niversary of the first Sikh arriving in the United Kingdom in 1854 and secondly 2014 marks the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of the First World War where several thousands of Sikh soldiers fought for Britain on the front line. The fourth annual Sikh Awards took place last month at a glittering ceremony at the Hilton Hotel, London. The Awards recognise the pivotal contributions made

by the Sikh community across a variety of fields, from business to sport and en-tertainment, with nominations and win-ners coming in from across the world. The event saw 750 guests, from interna-tional dignitaries to public figures, com-

munity heroes, sports stars and celebri-ties. Another highlight of the event was the launch of the second edition of The Sikh 100 Power List, detailing the most prominent Sikhs globally. The Sikh Awards were founded by Navdeep Singh. Speaking about the event he said: ‘The Sikh Awards are now in their fourth suc-cessful year. We started the awards as a means to honour and celebrate the enor-mous achievements of the hard-working, dedicated and successful Sikh commu-nity both in the UK and globally. We never imagined that it would become so successful and would indeed become a focal point on the international social calendar each year.

GLOBAL AnnuAL SIKH EXCELLEnCE AWARD CEREMOnY In LOnDOn

Three persons of Indian-origin are among the 50 richest people in Africa, according to a list released by Forbes magazine. Vimal Shah, Sudhir Rupare-lia and Naushad Merali figure in the list which has been topped by Aliko Dan-gote, who has a networth of US$ 20.8 billion and is the largest cement manu-facturer in sub-Saharan Africa. Shah is a newcomer on the list and ranks 18, with a networth of US$ 1.6 billion as of November 2013. Ruparelia ranks 24 on the list and has a networth of US$ 1.1 billion. The 57-year-old chairs the Ruparelia Group, a Ugandan property and banking conglomerate that owns hundreds of Ugandan properties, hotels and a chain of commercial banks.

nOW InDIAnS In AFRICA'S TOP 50 RICHEST LIST: FORBES

¥ŽÎé„æ Øæ×èÙ ¥ŽÎéÜ »Øê× ·¤ô ×æÜÎèß ·Ô¤ ÀÆð ÚUæcÅþÂçÌ ·¤æ ÂÎ âõ´Âæ »Øæ ãñ. §â·Ô¤ âæÍ ãè Îðàæ ×ð´ Îô âæÜ âð ÁæÚUè ÚUæÁÙèçÌ·¤ »çÌÚUôÏ ¹ˆ× ãô »Øæ, çÁâ·Ô¤ ·¤æÚU‡æ Îðàæ ·Ô¤ ¥´ÌÚUÚUæcÅþèØ ÌõÚU ÂÚU ¥Ü»-ÍÜ» ÂÇ¸Ùð ·¤æ ¹ÌÚUæ ÂñÎæ ãô »Øæ Íæ. ÌæÙæàææã ×æ×êÙ ¥ŽÎéÜ »Øê× ·Ô¤ âõÌðÜð Öæ§ü Øæ×èÙ ·¤ô â´âÎ ·Ô¤ çßàæðá â˜æ ×ð´ àæÂÍ çÎÜæ§ü »§ü. ©‹ãð´ wv ÌôÂô´ ·¤è âÜæ×è Îè »§ü. ×ôã�×Î Á×èÜ ·¤ô ©ÂÚUæcÅþÂçÌ ÂÎ ·¤è àæÂÍ çÎÜæØè »§ü. zy ßáèüØ Øæ×èÙ ¥ÍüàææS˜æè ãñ´. ÚUæcÅþÂçÌ ÂÎ ·Ô¤ çÜ° ×æÜÎèß ×ð´ ãé° ÎêâÚUð ¿ÚU‡æ ·Ô¤ ×ÌÎæÙ ×ð´ Âýô»ýðçâß ÂæÅUèü ¥æòÈ¤ ×æÜÎèß (ÂèÂè°×) ·Ô¤ ·ñ´¤çÇÇðÅU Øæ×èÙ ·¤ô zv.x~ È¤èâÎè ¥õÚU çßÂÿæè ÙðÌæ ÌÍæ Âêßü ÚUæcÅþÂçÌ ×ôã�×Î ÙàæèÎ ·¤ô y}.{v È¤èâÎè ßôÅU ç×Üð. Øæ×èÙ Ùð ¥ÂÙð Öæá‡æ ·Ô¤ ÎõÚUæÙ ·¤ãæ ç·¤ ßã ×àæãêÚU ÂØüÅUÙ SÍÜ ×æÜÎèß ·Ô¤ ÂýßðàæmæÚU ·¤è çãÈ¤æÁÌ ·¤ÚUð´»ð. ©‹ãô´Ùð ·¤ãæ ç·¤ ×ñ´ ×æÜÎèß ·¤ô ÿæð˜æ ·¤æ âÕâð âéÚUçÿæÌ ¥õÚU âÕâð çß·¤çâÌ Îðàæ ÕÙæÙð ·¤è ·¤ôçàæàæ ·¤M¤´»æ. ã× ÿæð˜æ ·Ô¤ Îðàæô´ ·Ô¤ âæÍ ¥‘Àð ÂÇ¸ôâè ßæÜð â´Õ´Ï ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´»ð. àæÂÍ »ýã‡æ â×æÚUôã ×ð´ Îðàæ ·Ô¤ Îô Âêßü ÚUæcÅþÂçÌ ÙàæèÎ ¥õÚU ×æ×êÙ Öè ©ÂçSÍÌ ÍðÐ ¥æÂ ·¤ô ÕÌæ Îð´ ç·¤ Øæ×èÙ Ùð ¿éÙæß Âý¿æÚU ·Ô¤ ÎõÚUæÙ ¥æÏæ ßðÌÙ ÜðÙð ·¤æ ßæÎæ ç·¤Øæ Íæ. ÚUæcÅþÂçÌ ¿éÙæß ×ð´ ×ôã�×Î ÙàæèÎ ·¤ô ÂÚUæçÁÌ ·¤ÚUÙð ßæÜð zy ßáèüØ Øæ×èÙ Ùð ·¤ãæ ç·¤ ßã ¥ÂÙð ¹éÎ ·Ô¤ ƒæÚU ×ð´ ÚUãÙæ Ââ´Î ·¤ÚUð´»ð ¥õÚU ÚUæcÅþÂçÌ ·¤ô ç×ÜÙð ßæÜð ßðÌÙ ·¤æ ¥æÏæ çãSâæ Üð´»ð. ×æÜÎèß ·¤è ¥ÍüÃØßSÍæ §â ßQ¤ ¥‘Àð ÎõÚUð âð Ùãè´ »éÁÚU ÚUãè ãñ.

×æÜÎèß ×ð´ »çÌÚUôÏ ¹ˆ×, Øæ×èÙ ÕÙð Ù° ÚUæcÅþÂçÌ

According to recent data released by 'Health Poverty Action' (HPA), there are now 25,295 doctors who have trained and qualified in India who are treating patients in the United Kingdom. This essentially means that one in every ten doctors practising in the UK at present is from India. Indians thus are today making up the highest number of foreign healthcare staff in the UK. About one third of all doctors registered with the General Medical Council (GMC) have been trained abroad, and more than a quarter were trained outside Europe. HPA says that by 2020, the European Union will face a shortage of around 970,000 health-care workers. This would include a shortage of

230,000 doctors, 150,000 dentists, pharmacists and physiotherapists, and 590,000 nurses. India has only one doctor for every 1,700 people, ac-cording to the country's Planning Commission. A recent Planning Commission report had said that India is short of 600,000 doctors, 1,000,000 nurses and 2,000,000 dental surgeons. Indian doctors, however, form 5% of the medical work-force in developed countries. Almost 60,000 In-dian physicians are working in countries like the US, the UK, Canada and Australia alone.

OnE In TEn DOCTORS PRACTISInG In THE uK IS An InDIAn



News & Views

Barack Obama extended best wishes to Sikhs on the occasion of the 544th birth anniversary of Sikh's first master Guru Nanak Dev. A statement issued from the US president's office sent through an email reads: "I want to extend my best wishes to all our Sikh friends across the US and around the world, who observed the anniversary of the birth of Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the first Sikh Guru. Here in the US, we're grateful to the many Sikh Americans who give life to these values and enrich our country every day, reminding us that these shared princi-ples are not only at the heart of the Sikh faith, they are central to who we are as Americans".

OBAMA GREETS SIKHS On GuRu nAnAK'S AnnIVERSARY

A young Indian-American activist-aca-demic is poised to become the first recog-nized socialist to be elected to a public office in the United States, where the term socialism and socialist are treated with deep suspicion and disdain. Kshama Sa-want, a Pune-born leftist who studied en-gineering in Mumbai and economics in the US is leading her Democratic Party rival Richard Conlin by a narrow margin of about 400 votes for a seat in the Seattle City Council. As of this writing, the official result will be known only end-November when all the votes are counted. Sawant, who has been an activist in the Occupy Wall Street movement, is a candidate of the Socialist Alternative in a city that is renowned for its progressive politics. ''It was evident that people yearned for a pro-gressive voice,'' Sawant said.

InDIAn ACTIVIST POISED TO BE FIRST EVER ELECTED

SOCIALIST In uS

InDIAn STuDEnT-COunT In uS FALLS AS CHInA'S RISES

US President Barack Obama has announced his intention to nominate Indian-American Dr. Vivek Hallegere Murthy as his next Surgeon General. Co-Founder and President of Doctors for America, Dr. Murthy is a Hospital Attending Physician and Instructor in Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital at Harvard Medical School. "I am confident that these outstand-ing individuals will greatly serve the American people in their new roles and I look forward to working with them in the months and years to come," Obama said in a statement. The move has been hailed by the influential Indian-American phy-sician community. In 2011, Murthy was appointed as a mem-ber of the Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative & Public Health. He has been the co-founder and chairman of the board of TrialNetworks, formerly known as Epernicus, since 2007.

InDIAn-AMERICAn TO BE OBAMA'S SuRGEOn GEnERAL

The Government of Kerala recently an-nounced a whole slew of schemes for return-ees from Saudi Arabia, including subsidies on both capital and interest for short and long-term loans. Saudi Arabia has begun imple-menting Nitaqat, a programme of Saudisation introduced by that country's Ministry of La-bour, which requires all firms employing more than 10 people set aside posts for local people and reduce dependence on foreign workers. A four-month grace period for foreign work-ers to get proper documents in case they de-sired to continue working in that country ended on November third. Kerala Chief Min-ister Oommen Chandy said his government would take up the matter with cash-rich Ker-alite businessmen in the Middle East, to see if they might be able to accommodate those from the state who are now forced to leave Saudi Arabia on account of the new law.

KERALA GOVT. LAunCHES SCHEMES FOR SAuDI RETuRnEES

NRI Achievers Desk

The population of Indian students in the United States has dropped, going down to less than 100,000 even as the American education business continued to expand on the strength of growing interest from China, which now has 235,000 students in the US. According to the 2013 Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange, a 3.5% decrease in student enrolment from India in 2012-2013 (on top a 4% decline the previous year), has brought the Indian student-count in the US to 96,754, after more than 15 years of growth that began revers-ing for the first time in 2011. On the other hand, China, which was displaced by India as the biggest source of foreign students for a few years at the turn of the century, has surged ahead, registering a 21.4% increase in 2012-2013 over its count of 194,000 stu-dents in US educational institutions the previous year. Saudi Arabia with 45,000 students has a 30% increase over the previous year, and is the other big driver of the 7% overall growth of foreign students in the US — now numbering nearly 820,000. Foreign stu-dents account for little less than 4% of the 21 million students enrolled in US higher education. Students from China, India, and South Korea now represent nearly 50% of the total number of international students in the US. After these three, no country represents more than 5% of the total.



Dossier

PIONEERING ANCESTRY TOURISMKUHADAS VIVEKANANDA

Kuhadas Vivekananda, a resident of Sydney, is an entrepreneur of Indian Origin settled in Australia. As Chairman & Managing Director of Alankit As-signments (Singapore) Pte Ltd, he is the head hon-

cho of an enterprise that offers services to the Indian Di-aspora, in the form of facilitating express processing of their applications for Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI), and also has a role to play in an initiative launched by the Min-istry of Overseas Indian Affairs called “Tracing Indian Roots”. The company is incorporated in Singapore.

Kuhadas was a delegate at the recently concluded Region-al Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (RPBD) Sydney 2013, which took place between the 9th and 11th of November this year. Kuhadas Vivekananda has a passionate and avid interest in Diaspora traffic, and is currently involved in Indian Diaspo-ra studies with a focus on Ancestry Tourism for Indian Di-aspora resident globally. To this effort he brings to the table his rich knowledge of cultural heritage, and expertise in the field of Tourism in the Indian subcontinent. He is also a known authority on the era of British occupation of India starting from the time of the British Raj starting from the early 19th century till 1947.

According to Kuhadas, Australia and the Pacific Region have the potential to become a vibrant Diaspora connect to Mother

India, with a pulsating amalgam of emotional connections with the motherland, and the potential and ability to promote two-way mutually beneficial economic traffic. Now in the regional PBD, it was self-evident that the wholehearted support of the Australian Government, and the large levels of participation by their Ministers in the RPBD was reflective of their desire and commitment to facilitate and enable this connect, that could result in a more vibrant and meaningful relationship.

Furthermore, it is being recognised that communities of both nations could be connected through multiple channels of Art, Culture, History, Heritage, Tourism, Academic-scholar ex-change programmes, Youth festivals and literary festivals, to name just a few. The historical common denominator of Brit-ish Colonization and Rule, the common factor of the English language, and myriad other similarities between both countries, one an island continent and the other a subcontinent, makes great fertile soil to root these initiatives in.

All the more so, enhancing people to people contact will be just a first step in creating a conducive ambience for the sharing of each others experiences and knowledge banks, which can also go a long way in bridging the divide between the overseas Indians and those in mainland India.

NRI Achievers Bureau



OZ INDIANS COME OF AGE

Overseas Indians are now truly anchored well economically in their respective host countries, but yet still firmly rooted in the hoary cultural traditions of the homeland they hark from. In Australia and the Pacific, they seem to have come of age well, and dominate Australia's multicultural society, as was echoed by Queensland's Multicultural Affairs Minister at the last stop Down Under by the Indian Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi, even as he concluded his 6-day visit to Oceania for the 7th Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (RPBD) held in Sydney earlier this month. K.N. Gupta, a doyen of Indian journalism and an active advocate of India's Diaspora community, shares his experience.

Following on the heels of the RPBD 2013 that was held between No-vember 10-12 at the Sydney Con-vention & Exhibition Centre, Vay-

alar Ravi received a rousing reception from the Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) International and the Federation of Indian Communities in Queensland (FICQ) on November 13th in Brisbane, near the famous Gold Coast. Nearly 150 leaders and representatives from at least 15 Indian community or-ganizations led by GOPIO had gathered along with several Australian politicians, for a gala event hosted to felicitate Ravi. 50,000 Indian origin persons live in the

province of Queensland alone, out of a total of the nearly 500,000 Indian residents in Australia. The Australian government sees Indians as the fastest growing ethnic migrant community, and have now taken to teaching Hindi and Punjabi in schools, with the languages even being offered as degree courses in three major Australian universities. During the RPBD 2013, first Indian origin MP Hon. Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi, former Prime Minister of Fiji Ma-hendra Singh Choudhary, and several Australian Premiers, Federal Ministers and MPs had participated, all of whom had lauded the Indian government and the Indian community for giving a fillip to

bilateral and regional relations through the conferences.

The Brisbane Indian community event was held at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT), and was symbolic of the Indian community's tremendous ac-complishments in their relatively new mi-grant host-countries. The Emcee was the Deputy Vice Chancellor of the University, Prof. Arun Sharma, and among the at-tendees were the richest Indian in Aus-tralia, Maha Sinnathamby, and the first highest-serving Australian bureaucrat of Indian Origin, Jim Varghese. The event was organised through GOPIO Interna-tional Executive Council Member Munish

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Gupta who divides his time shuttling between Los Angeles and Delhi, and Prof. Prasad Yarlagadda, a well known sci-entist at QUT and a respected community leader. Shyam Das, President of the GOPIO Queensland chapter, wel-comed Vaylar Ravi and thanked Gupta for facilitating the visit of the Minister and the event. Dr. Naidu Bodapa-ti, President FICQ Queens-land, after introducing the Minister, presented a request on behalf of more than 30 community associations to grant a full Consulate Gen-eral status to Brisbane, instead of the current Honorary Con-sul representing the government of India in probably the third fastest growing In-dian community hub of Oceania.

Vayalar Ravi and his Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA), and High Commis-sion of India gave the event due recognition with the presence of Manoj Kumar, Joint Secretary of MOIA, Subbarayudu, Consul General of India based in Perth, and Kumar, First Secretary from the High Commission of India in Canberra. Senior Kerala Govern-ment Minister Hon. K.C. Joseph was an invited dignitary. Five Malayalee commu-nity organizations came together to provide mementos to Minister Ravi and Minister Joseph for visiting Brisbane.

Two senior Members of Parliament from Queensland, Anthony Shorten and Freya Ostapovitch, were present through-out the 3-hour ceremony and addressed the gathering. It was clear that the Minis-ters and MPs from Australia were recog-nizing the coming of age of the Indian community and underlining Australia's unequivocal support for more migration, more students from India, and trade with India. The Deputy Premier of Queensland had just a day earlier addressed the RPBD 2013 closing ceremony in Sydney, and the Premier had sent a special emissary and message to the event in Brisbane as the Premier was traveling. Asked if they could afford to ignore the issues and concerns of the sizable Indian community in Queens-land or Australia, MP Shorten said he would simply say that Australia loves the growing Indian community which has served to be a bridge with India.

A jubilant Indian Minister Vayalar Ravi soaked in all the introductions and accolades he received from his own peo-ple now settled in Australia, New Zea-land and Fiji, and the praise bestowed upon him by the Queensland MPs, by graciously assuring to do all that his gov-ernment and he can for the Pravasi Bharatiyas. Overseas Indians make India proud, he said, while complimenting the high class and well attended event at the QUT 12th floor 360 degree conference dining venue with a breathtaking view of Parliament on one side, and the Brisbane river on the other. Ravi counted his Min-istry's accomplishments for Overseas

Indians and said the government would do more to make it easier for NRIs and PIOs to visit India, study in India, work in India, find their roots in India and now invest and bring their countries of residence closer to India. He invited In-dians in Oceania to attend the next an-nual Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (PBD) to be staged between January 7-9, 2014 in New Delhi, of which the first day is being dedicated for the first ever time for inter-action between youth from India and the Diaspora.

Munish Gupta, as the facilitator, thanked the Queensland Indian com-munity, the Queensland Government, and the High Commission of India for an impeccable event, and thanked the

Minister for taking a day out for the benefit of the Brisbane Indian commu-nity that oft felt ignored. In finally mak-ing the community rise in standing ovation for Minister Ravi, Gupta un-derlined that the presence of local In-dians from literally every walk of life represented that the Indian Diaspora was now fully assimilated in their coun-try of residence, and ready to take on roles and challenges even in the polity of Australia.

The author is Director of Government Liaison, GOPIO International, and a

proactive writer on Overseas Indian affairs



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december 201314

Phot

o: A

jay

Sood



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NRI ACHIEVERSÁèÌð ãñ´ àææÙ âð 15december 2013

RPBD SYDNEY-2013CoNNECtiNg foR a ShaRED futuRE -

iNDiaN DiaSPoRa, iNDia & thE PaCifiC

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With a view to connect the vast Indian Diaspora and other parts of Pacific region with India, the Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas was organized and took place in Sydney during 10-12 November 2013. The theme of the convention was 'Connecting for a Shared Future - The Indian Diaspora, India and the Pacific.' Participants came from the many States and Territories of Australia, as also from some neighbour-ing countries including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Manila, Hong Kong, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand, Fiji and the Pacific Islands. The programme for the convention featured discussions on varying as-pects of India's relationship with Australia and countries of the region, and took into its ambit natural resources, energy, infrastructure, agri-culture, manufacturing, skills and education, languages, and women in business and culture. Our Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs Vay-alar Ravi and the New South Wales Premier Barry O'Farrell formally inaugurated the convention by lighting a ceremonial lamp. A book, 'Mosaic of Faith', was also launched by Ravi on the first day of the con-vention. Speakers at the convention included Ministers and dignitaries from Australia and India, prominent members of the Indian commu-nity, Australian and Indian business representatives and academicians. We bring you here a compilation of reports...

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Despite participation at the convention being rather low at 500~600 delegates given the Diaspora of this region number more than half a million, it could still be labelled as a reason-ably successful event, as the initiative has succeeded in spark-ing interest and kindling the flames of emotional connect

within some opinion leaders among the said Diaspora at least. Many a topic was dwelled upon, and many a relationship has been formed during this 3-day long event at the Convention Centre in Darling Harbour, which was well-attended by representatives from both governments Australian and Indian, not to mention a wide spectrum of representation from busi-ness from both sides.

Delegates got the opportunity to be enthralled by the mellifluous melo-dies of santoor maestro Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, vocalist Meena Pandit, and many others including Shyamak Davar's well known dance troupe from Bollywood. While almost 100,000 people of Indian origin do walk the streets of Sydney every day as permanent or temporary residents, as students and as tourists even, most of them seemed to be oblivious and unaware of the deliberations and programmes going on at Sydney city’s Convention & Exhibition Centre, where a mere 500 plus attendees, a mere drop in the ocean that is the Indian Diaspora which numbers beyond the 500,000 mark in the Oceania region alone, were at the Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2013, busy in sessions debating and discussing key issues that confront the overseas Indian ... how NRIs and PIOs could engage with India, what business opportunities are there, how bilateral cooperation can optimise resource use, access to skills, improve infrastructure, enhance education, etc., and how engagement through culture can benefit the In-dian Diaspora in the pacific and the home country to boot.

There were also sessions that focussed upon ‘Sharing Experiences,’ to do with ‘Success Stories,’ about 'Science, Scientists and Academia, and even topics that touched upon the ‘Power of Media in the Asian Century', 'India Australia Strategic Partnership,’ and the ‘Pleasures and Pitfalls of doing Business in India’. Given the concurrent and overlapping nature of the sessions, there is no gainsaying that it more than difficulty for par-ticipants to attend or do justice to all the sessions, yet one saw a beehive of activity as delegates rushed from one venue or auditorium to another, trying catch up on as many topics of particular interest and concern to them as possible.

And while doing all this, also manage to squeeze in the time to quickly do some 'pait-pooja' by grabbing a bite and sip a drink or bite into a piece of fruit, find the elbow room to do some meaningful networking, meet new people and make friends, do some shop-talk with peers from other

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countries and exchange business cards, or even make a fleeting visit to the main au-ditorium, where a veritable cultural feast was being laid out, what with live bhar-athanatyam recitals, performances by bol-lywood and folk dancers, a sarod concer-to, a vocal recital, and even an enlighten-ing spiritual talk by a Swami from the Sydney Vedanta Centre. In this context, Vayalar Ravi, the Indian Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs, was to be much appreciated, applauded and credited for making more than a sincere attempt to do justice to as many of the concurrent, oft hotly and rather intensely discussed ses-sions as possible by randomly visiting them, sitting for a time patiently and qui-etly at the very back, listening in carefully to grasp and capture the gist of the debate or discussion, and leaving moderation to the capable hands of domain experts.

One of our own contributors, Munish Gupta - journalist, media entrepreneur and GOPIO activist, who has many a PBD and regional conclaves under his belt, averred that "the session on language was quite unique, and nothing like any I have seen in any PBD so far.” Panelists had talked about the lurking threat to their na-tive languages they facing as they assimi-late themselves into host-societies, and the practical difficulties in propagating these Indian languages, including Hindi, in Aus-tralia. they spoke about how learning mother-tongues could serve to connect Diaspora young to the cultural underpin-nings of their parents, and how they could help youth in accessing paying jobs. Dif-ficulties faced by teachers involved in lan-guage teaching in Australia were also touched upon. However, this relatively open-ended session did have its failings, maybe due to a lack of skillful moderation that could have tempered the open-ended nature of the session with a judicious en-forcement of time-slots, as the warning-bell interrupted many a speaker who over-shot the allotted 3 minutes. All said and done, the session was a well attended and thought provoking one, which went on way beyond its allotted time by a good half-hour.

Yet another lively and rather intriguing session where there were some slips be-tween cups and lips was the one that dealt with ‘Power of Media in the Asian Cen-tury’ – chaired and moderated by Sushi Das, who is Opinions Editor of 'The Age.'

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While her moderation here was impec-cable with her keeing the objective firmly in focus and nudging panelists and par-ticipants to keep to the track, the session had little to no discussion on the power of print in influencing the local scenario. Panelists for this session were however drawn from a wide cross-section, from the domains of Broadcast Television, Film, Radio and Print, who did discuss and de-bate the onslaught of technology and its impact on media, authenticity and verifi-cation of stories in reporting, in the cur-rent context of this 24-by-7 churning out news in today's information-overloaded world. Strains of Alwin Toffler's 'Future shock' ? Data piracy, copy paste journal-ism, Social Media journalism all found mention and were addressed in various measure.

Affording honour to those who have made it big in life was the thematic focus of another session, the one that focused on 'Success Stories.' This was chaired and moderated by Neville Roach. Participants got a glimpse into the lives and mindsets of two successful people, who have carved a niche for themselves Down Under. Maha Sinnathamby, said to be the richest Indian in Australia, who is building the largest city in Queensland, rumoured in fact to be the largest one the world, was one case in study. Having acquired thousands of hectares for this path-breaking pet-project, Sinnathamby claims the backing of five Premiers and two Prime Ministers, and even goes as far as to say that, ‘the govern-ment here loves me.’ Sinnathamby's advice to the Diaspora was that we need not nec-

essarily label ourselves as 'Indian,' but in-stead assimilate into the society we live in yet at the same time keep our cultural val-ues and heritage alive at home. Citing the example of Mohandas karamchand Gan-dhi, he averred that though the things that great man has left behind may or may not be worth even a AU$, his legacy to the world community has an ever-enduring character to it, with its simple message of ‘non-violence’ and ‘peaceful resistance.’

The other case in study was the one nar-rated to the audience by Brian Hayes, QC, Advisor to the South Australian Premier. Ascribing his success to his parents efforts (his Goan mother had worked as a secre-tary to put him through a good school), and striking a chord to the universal In-

dian mindset by stressing the importance of education, he was eloquent in his nar-rative. Speaking of racism and racist intol-erance that is manifesting itself in many parts of the world today, he said: “Although I did not face racism due to the elite sort of profession I was in, at times my chil-dren, one darker than the other due to mixed skin colour, ask me ‘who am I?” during a moment of reflection. “Opportu-nities presented to me in life would not have ensued if my roots were not from India, and my early childhood of 11 years that I spent there.”

Coming now to core economics and trade, there was a session that had as it's topic, ‘Bilateral Business Opportunities in Resources,’ which saw participation from several domain experts from the natural resources sector who have acquired coal mines in Queensland. The keynote ad-dress was delivered Jeyakumar Janakraj, CEO of Adani Mining Brisbane. Jeyaku-mar began with profiling his company and its agenda, its objective, and the econom-ics of it all. he spoke about problems and prospects, and issues they are facing in set-ting up the project at Carmichael Point, QLD. It was interesting to note that they have had to create their own railway line in order to cart the mined coal right up to Abbott Point, the most northerly deepwa-ter coal port operated and managed by the company in Australia, so that the coal may then be shipped to India's largest private port and special economic zone at Mun-dra in the Gulf of Kutch in Gujarat State,

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also operated and managed by Adani, from whence the coal gets transhipped for delivery to Haryana and Punjab. Frankly, the logistics prove quite mind-boggling, and the Adani Group employs more than 10,000 people in Australia to keep the lo-gistics and work on the project right on track.

“India's GDP is directly linked to En-ergy growth and demand, and with power plants in India starving for coal, Austral-ian coal is indispensable for India to cater to it's increasing energy requirements and meeting the rising demand for power and fuel consumption,” says Jeyakumar, while naming figures in the trillions and pre-senting statistical data via graphs to bol-ster his analysis. Yes, the figures were in-deed mind-boggling. And apropos, as a matter of disclosure, the dinners served at the RPBD were by the way courtesy Ada-ni Mining.

On the second day of the RPBD, the Australian Federal Minister for Trade

Hon. Andrew Robb, addressed the gath-ered guests during lunch. Taking the ex-ample of Silicon Valley in the USA, he underscored the role of Indians as a potent and powerful force of globalization. Talk-ing about how the rich experience and acumen of the Indian Diaspora could well prove to be a major factor in facilitating the globalisation, prosperity and promo-tion of peace in Australia-India bilateral relations, he iterated that migration was a powerful force of globalization and that the AU$ 10 Billion worth of inflow from India last year was only just a recent phe-nomenon which Australia is yet to take advantage of. "Australia is unashamedly interested in globalization and the eco-nomic benefits it brings through perma-nent and skilled migration," he opined, and then on a humorous note, quipped that "Australia needs to import few Indian cricketers urgently."

Cricket apart, the Indian Diaspora's value-systems and their hard-working na-

Photo: Ajay Sood

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ture, family-centric outlook and civic sense also drew an accolade from the min-ister. That the Indian community in Aus-tralia is the fastest growing migrant-com-munity, the second largest intake of stu-dents in Australian Educational Institu-tions being Indian, the Punjabi language growing by 200 percent and the Hindu religion getting to become the fastest growing religion Down Under are all in-dications then that commonalities exist, he said. “We share security and terrorism concerns and should maximise our com-mon good with people to people links by broadening the base of our relationship and help strengthen it further. We need to have Free Trade Agreements with India as we are doing with Korea, Japan, Indonesia, and China. And soon, we want to reintro-duce the 'Colombo Plan' for study and scholarship, thus helping to make a vital link with the Indians here,” he added accompanied by applause.

Almost every other influential speaker echoed these selfsame thoughts of Andrew Robb and the words of Vayalar Ravi, Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs, who said, “India seeks to enlarge its political, economic and security space in our relationship with other countries. There has been a significant expansion of trade and investment between India and Australia. The comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement negotiations which we have embarked upon will strengthen institutional

connectivity and accelerate the rapid ex-pansion of our commercial ties. Australian companies need to focus their attention on specific sectors in the Indian economy as the government plans to double infra-structure investment to US$ 1 Trillion over the next 5 years. The goal is for an-nual infrastructure expenditure to reach 10 % of GDP by 2017.” Here it is worth noting that yet another MOU was also signed between the Overseas Indian Fa-cilitation Centre (OIFC) and the Austral-ia India Business Council, to foster better understanding between Australians and Indians.

And to the local Indian community Vayalar Ravi had this to say: “Whether you wish to share your knowledge, technology and skills, whether your enterprise takes

you to the cities or your compassion brings you to a remote village, I as-sure you of our continu-ing effort to support your endeavours.” He further added, “I am also sure that the MOU on Cooperation in Student Mobility and Welfare be-tween India and Aus-tralia will contribute positively to the welfare of Indian students in Australia.”

In conclusion, looking at the entire three-day extraveganza in pensive retrospect, the RPBD

had targeted for a 1000 delegates harking from various domains of Diaspora exper-tise, but ultimately managed to garner just a mite more than half-of-that, with dele-gates just short of 600 registering for the event, that number including the panelists and invitees and the guests as well. De-spite this lower than expected level of at-tendance, one could say that the RPBD was well neigh close to a large measure of success, what with three State Premiers and two Federal Ministers from Australia; and Union Minister Vayalar Ravi accom-panied by Suresh Shetty, Minister of Pro-tocol and Health, Maharashtra State and K. C. Joseph, Minister for Rural Develop-ment, Planning and Culture, Kerala State, and their quiet presence along with top bureaucrats and eminent persona from India all did make up for the thinner than

Photo: Ajay Sood

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odd people of Indian origin resident in Sydney itself in particular, just went about their daily lives and chores without giving a whit or maybe even knowing that a Re-gional PBD had ever happened right in their midst. People who were pulled in to the committees from the local Indian com-munities did not and possibly were not able to carry or sell the conference to the general public or perhaps the PBD did not use local media effectively enough to its benefit. Or was it due to Sydney having just spent a whole ton of moolah on a Shahrukh Khan show with 11,500 seats sold, while PBD struggled to pull in even enough numbers to achieve a participation profile of a 1000 people for a 3-day event replete with classical concerts, three lunches and two gala dinners, bollywood stars and dance extraveganzas and what have you. Or could it be that the general Indian mi-grant is far too busy eking out a livlihood to bother too much about helping ‘strengthen relationships’ between India and Australia, as NRIs are least on their minds. Maybe the presence of grassroots NRIs and open interactions with them would have fuelled the topics of discussion onto avenues very different from the ones that were embarked upon ... All said and done, as a footnote, the conference did end up as a symphony of views, and if the dia-logues that took place do bring about positive change and help in creating a bet-ter understanding and relationship be-tween the two countries, time can tell.

VINOD KUMAR SHARMA

A Writer And does Community Service

First ‘Study India Programme’ (SIP) was launched for the first time from 25.09.2012 to 23.10.2012 in Symbiosis University, Pune, Maharashtra with participation of 9 youths of Indian origin from four countries like Trini-dad & Tobago, Malaysia, Fiji and South Africa. Like KIP, SIP has immense po-tential of connecting youth Indian Di-aspora with India through the channel of educational institutions.

It enables overseas Indian youth in the age-group of 18-26 years to un-dergo short term course for 4 weeks in an Indian University to familiarize them with the history, heritage, art, culture, socio-political, economic developments etc. of India. The focus of the programme is on academic orientation and research. Cost of boarding, lodging, local transporta-tion & course fee during the pro-gramme to be borne by GOI. 90% of the cost of air-ticket by economy class is borne by GOI. Gratis Visas by In-dian Mission are granted to the par-ticipants.

2nd SIP is in progress in Symbiosis University, Pune, Maharashtra with participation of 14 youths of Indian origin.

KNoW goa PRogRaMME (KgP)The Government of Goa, Department of NRI Affairs, also organizes Know Goa Programme(KGP) on the model of KIP programme of MOIA. The Ministry also hosts overseas youth participants of Know Goa Programme for their Delhi and Agra part for five days. Know Goa Programme is organ-ized by the Government of Goa for NRI/PIO youths (in the age group of 18-28 years) whose forefathers have migrated from Goa and are presently residing overseas. Five such pro-grammes have been organized from 2008 to 2012 during the month of De-cember. During 6th Know Goa Pro-gramme, a delegation of 14 Diaspora Youths from Australia, Canada, Kenya, Tanzania and U.K. are visiting Delhi from 5th to 8th December, 2013.

DR. M.K. PANDey

StuDY iNDia PRogRaMME (SiP)

expected attendance, as did the depth and intensity of the debates and discussions during the myriad sessions.

As the PBD came to an end, the Minis-ter for Overseas Indian Affairs Valayar Ravi reiterated that the Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas was primarily an initia-tive to recognise the 450,000 people of Indian origin in Australia and those in New Zealand and Fiji. “India is keen to harness the growing power of its Diaspo-ra, their contribution to the homeland and the progressing ties with Australia as fostered by strong trade and investment links,” he said. The Minister also assured overseas Indians that the Government of India would continue to look out for and serve the interests of the growing Indian Diaspora that today exceeds 25 million around the world. "I am very enthused with the participation and I hope to take back a lot of shared experiences that will help enhance the engagement with over-seas Indians," he said. Indian High Com-missioner for Australia Biren Nanda said: "Participation in the event was from all states and territories of Australia and from neighbouring countries including New Zealand and Fiji, attracting about 500 plus delegates from the Asia Pacific region." Though the convention was appreciated by many participants as a positive initia-tive for the Indian Diaspora living in the region, some attendees did criticise the registration fee of AU$ 425 and the event being held on working days.

Fact of the matter was, the vast majority of almost 500,000 strong Australia-resident NRIs and PIOs in general, and the 100,000

Photo: Ajay Sood

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the announcement of the 12th edition of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) convention to be held in Delhi from 7th to 9th January 2014 was made by Vay-

alar Ravi, Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs, Govt of India, New Delhi, re-cently. The minister said that Pravasi Bharatiya divas (PBD) is celebrated on 9th January every year to mark the con-tribution of overseas Indian community to India, since it was on this day in 1915 that Mahatma Gandhi, the father of the nation, himself a Pravasi, returned to In-dia from South Africa to lead India’s free-dom struggle, to change the lives of In-dians forever. The theme of the forth-coming PBD Convention is "Engaging Diaspora - Connecting across Genera-tions”. The minister informed that one of the focus areas of this PBD is to organize a Youth PBD on 7th January 2014 and open new horizons of a strong network of young overseas Indians to contribute to India's engagement with youth in all sectors.

The ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports will be the partner ministry for the event. It is in the fitness of things

therefore, that there is a focus on youth PBD during the 12th edition of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, to be held in Delhi this time. The Minister high-lighted the fact that Youth is an engine that drives the nation, and if we are to propel India to greater heights, we need to harness this energy. The Prime Min-ister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh, will inaugurate the event. The President

of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee, will deliver the valedictory address on 9th January and confer the Pravasi Bharati-ya Samman Award. In the session fo-cused on youth on 7th January, 2014, there will be a main session on “Aspira-tion of Diaspora Youth” followed by a concurrent session on "Sharing A Com-mon Heritage", "The Emotional Con-nect", "Young Achievers" and on "Emerging India In A Dynamically Changing World”.

On 8th & 9th January 2014, there will be a Plenary Session on "India’s Growth & Development Agenda", "India’s Soft Pow-er", and “Investment Opportunities In The States”. There will be concurrent exhibi-tions showcased with participation from State Governments, the Indian Corporate community, Financial Institutions, NGOs and other sectors. FICCI is the event manager for the high profile event. It is expected that participation is likely to be over 2000 delegates from our heterogene-ous and diverse overseas Indian commu-nity spread across the globe.


NEW DElhi to hoSt PRaVaSi BhaRatiYa DiVaS 2014

Special Feature



MEllifluouS PaNDit ShiVKuMaR ShaRMa

Writing about music and concerts for a lay audience is a mite difficult, to say the least. Because the written word oft fails to do

justice to the melody of the music, the mas-tery of the musician, and the rich tonality of the renditions. So we do what is second best here, by bringing you the thoughts of the per-former, who in this case is none other than the internationally acclaimed master of the Santoor, Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma.

Shivkumar Sharma was born on January 13, 1938, in Jammu. The instrument he plays is called the Santoor, a folk instrument from Kashmir. The son of singer Uma Dutt Sharma, he started learning vocal music and tabla from his father at the tender age of just five. Uma Dutt Sharma had done quite a bit of research on the santoor, and was also very desirous that his son should be one of the first musicians to play Indian classical music on the santoor. In tune with his father's wishes, Shivkumar Shar-

As part of the recently concluded Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas that took place at Sydney, Austral-ia between the 10th and 12th of November this year, a cultural feast was also organized and laid out at the Sydney city’s Convention & Ex-hibition Centre for the participants to immerse themselves and revel in, after they have spend the day wading through the weighty dis-cussions and debates that formed the bulk of the activities during the various sessions during the three hectic days. One of the key per-formances during these three days was the 45-minute concerto deliv-ered with aplomb by the world re-nowned Santoor maestro Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, who was ac-companied in his recitals by Yogesh Shamsi on the Tabla, and Dilip Kale on the Tanpura. Vignettes:



ma began training on the santoor when he was barely 13, and made his father's dream come true. His first public performance was in Bom-bay in the year 1955. Shivkumar Sharma is the master instrumentalist of the Santoor, and is widely credited with making the Santoor a popular Classical Instrument in modern times. Pt. Shivkumar Sharma is the recipient of nu-merous national and international awards, including an honorary citizenship of the city of Baltimore, USA, in 1985, the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1986, the Padma Shri in 1991, and the Padma Vibhushan in 2001.

At Sydney during the regional PBD, Pt. Shivkumar Sharma enthralled his audiences on the 10th of November 2013 with his 45 minutes of magic with the Santoor. Pt. Sharma played Raga Jhanghoti, Raga Pahari, and sev-eral other compositions like Thumri and Da-dara too on the occasion. Talking to the audi-ence during and after his performance, he told

them that he was not merely a santoor player, but a representative of the centuries old tradi-tion of classical music of India. He shared with them how live performances are neither planned nor orchestrated or rehearsed, but instead is a natural and spontaneous flow from the performer to the viewers and listeners. He outlined how audiences ought to immerse themselves into this spontaneous outpouring of melody, connect with the music and enjoy the harmony that it brings to them.

Pt. Sharma, taking the example of a chef, illustrated how we as the consumers of good food have no need to be a chef ourselves, and so with Indian classical music, one doesn't need to be an expert in order to enjoy the music. Citing the evergreen nature of Indian music, he averred that it was also evernew. Listening to the same raga would on each occasion evoke a different kind of emotion, and bring about a different kind of experi-

ence, he said. Talking about Indian classical in general, he had this to say: “According to me, Indian classical music is not only just for entertainment, it is much more beyond that. Spirituality and Indian classical music are but two sides of the same coin. In India, the ori-gin of Indian classical music was in the spir-itual traditions of the country. Music that creates spiritual bliss for the performer and is shared by the listeners is the essence of this art form even today. It was my lifelong dream to play such kind of music which will make the listeners forget to clap; which will make them slient. My dream came true, when once I played one raga, and the listeners sat im-mersed deep into meditation and I experi-enced a state of thoughtlessness. This silence was so nourishing, so fulfilling, there was no need to play anything else.”

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Heritage

TEMPLE OF GOLD AND FOLKLOREThere is an old story still narrated in

the villages of Punjab, that there was once a water pond which turned black crows into white swans after they bathed in it. A poor man suf-

fering from leprosy saw this, and turned into a completely healed handsome man after taking a dip in that pond. Some old villagers connect this interesting story with the “Dukh Bhanjani Beri”, from where the sarovar (the holy water pond) of Sri Harmandir Sahib, Amritsar, was dug up. There is a point at the sarovar of the famous Sikh Golden Temple, where people come to take a dip to get relieved from pain and diseases. No historical evidence exists to support this story, but the faith and belief of the disciples is stronger than any folklore. However, there are more stories associated with it, as different sects and communities narrate them in different manner.

Bhai Jetha, a simple hawker who used to sell food items outside the court of the third Sikh Guru, was one day called inside by the Guru, who offered him his daughter's hand in mar-riage. Bhai Jetha accepted the proposal as his Guru’s command, and ended up a disciple of

Guru Amar Das Ji. He dedicated himself to the community, and the Guru was so happy with his service that he not only rechristened him “Ram Das”, he also offered the holy seat of Sikhism to him. Bhai Jetha thus became the fourth Sikh Guru, Sri Guru Ram Das Ji, and worked unceasingly for the welfare of his dis-ciples. He built a ‘Sarovar’ (Holy Pond) in mid-dle of a forest, which soon came to be regarded as the holiest of holy waters by the Sikh Com-munity. When Mughal Emperor Akbar the great, visited the third Sikh Guru Sri Guru Amar Das Ji, he was so impressed by his lifestyle and teachings that he offered Jagir to him. This was a common practice among the rulers of India to offer land to nobles whenever they were happy with them. Following the tradition, Jagir was offered to the Sikh Guru which included the area around the Sarovar he built, and the reve-nues generated from there by the emperor. Guru Ram Das Ji then took it upon himself to enlarge the holy pond, and with time people started settling around it. The small township became popular by the name “Guru ka Chak” or “Chak Ramdas” or “Ramdaspura”.

Guru Ram Das Ji’s son Sri Guru Arjan Dev

Ji, the fifth guru of Sikhs, decided to build a place of worship in the middle of this holy pond. So the water was first drained out and a foundation stone was laid. Popular belief has it that Baba Sain Mir Mohammed Sahib (also known as Sain Mian Mir), the famous sufi mys-tic of the Qadri order from Lahore, came to lay the foundation stone, symbolizing harmony among religions. Sain Mian Mir always had good and cordial relations with the Sikh Gurus, and finds multiple mentions in Sikh history. Popularly, Sain Mian Mir is known as the spir-itual mentor to Prince Dara Shikoh, son of Em-peror Shah Jahan, who was later assassinated at his own brother Aurangzeb’s behest during a fight for succession to the throne. Sain Mian Mir was invited by the 5th Guru for the founda-tion laying ceremony, and was then requested to lay the first brick for this temple, which till day epitomises communal harmony.

This incident of the foundation being laid by Sain Mir was first narrated by Maulvi Ghulam Muhaiyuddin, who changed his name to Butay Shah when he was hired by the British to write Sikh History. He wrote a book in Persian called “Tawarikh-i-Punjab”, which got mired in myriad



Did You Know?

renowned historians of modern times who have been dig-ging into this aspect of Sikh history in their researches also all mention the Sikh Guru. The controversy becomes more intriguing as Giani Gian Singh, one of the most authentic writers of Sikh History, writes in “Sri Gur Panth Prakash” that Sain Mian Mir laid the foundation stone. But he does so in the third edition, and not in the first two editions of this famous encyclopaedia of Sikhism. Another popular ver-sion that comes from folklore has it that after the foundation stone was laid, a mason accidently displaced the brick. When Guru Arjan saw this, he prophesized that the foundation will be laid again in the near future. This prophecy was seen as fulfilled when in mid-18th century, as Jahan Khan, one of Abdali’s generals from Afghanistan, attacked the city and destroyed this temple, which was then rebuilt from founda-tion up in 1764 by Sardar Jassa Singh Ahluwalia, exactly 160 years after its first opening in 1604 by Guru Arjan Dev Ji. A controversies and faced strong criticism opposition from the

Sikh community even before it was completed in 1848 AD. A Famous Sikh scholar of 19th century, Bhai Rattan

Singh Bhangoo, then approached Captain Murray, the brit-ish officer who had commissioned the work, and attempt-ed to convince him that Butay Shah would not do justice to Sikh History, given the religious schisms that separated Islam and Sikhism. Bhai Rattan Singh then penned his own version of Sikh History entitled “Pracheen Panth Pra-kash” and gave it to Murray. The officer accepted it, but also took the work of Maulvi Butay Shah. Later it comes to light that all govt. records are perforce based on infor-mation put forth by Butay Shah in his book. Sohan Lal Suri in his book “Umda-Tu-Tawarikh” (1885), also men-tions Sain Mian Mir as the one who laid the foundation stone of Harimandir Sahib. On the other hand, many Sikh scholars aver that it was Guru Arjan Dev Ji himself who laid the foundation stone.

Kavi Santokh Singh concurs with this in his “Sri Gur Pratap Suraj Granth” (early 1800), while many other

Few years later, Maharaja Ranjit Singh of Punjab covered the upper storeys of the temple with Gold, which exists till date. With time, as the gold wears off, sheets are re-placed and the older metal sheets are secured in a ware-house.

The Harmandir Sahib, aka Golden Temple, aka Sri Durbar Sahib changed the way temples were built. Instead of building it on a higher mound with a main entrance, it was built in the lower area and with four entrances, so it can be opened to all directions and to all religions. More buildings came up around it and each of them has its own religious significance. While learned historians keep de-bating on the myriad folklore associated with this Sikh Temple, the fact remains that every day more than 100,000 disciples visit this holy shrine, and many more watch the ceremonies live on various channels that broad-cast the temple proceedings daily.

vikramjit singh rooprai

The writer is a self-made IT entrepreneur, who is also a passionate heritage & history buff



BRITISH PM DAVID CAMERON MEETS MANMOHAN SINGH

OBAMA SAYS THANKS TO LAKSHMI MITTAL

UK Premier David Cameron met his Indian coun-terpart Dr. Manmohan Singh during his visit to

Delhi ahead of the Commonwealth summit in Sri Lan-ka. Cameron tweeted that the two leaders had made "extraordinary progress" on trade and investment since his first visit in 2010. Ahead of the meeting, Cameron had said he aimed to "cement a Britain as India's part-ner of choice". It is the prime minister's third visit to the country since taking office. He said that the UK is starting to "reap the benefits" of his push to secure a healthy trade relationship with India, and sought to reassure Indian nationals about his drive to cut immi-gration to the UK. He took pains to counter the "myth" that the immigration crackdown was "freezing out" new arrivals from the sub-continent, but he did accept that there was a "challenge" to persuade people that the UK remains "open for business". Cameron's party includes Conservative MP Priti Patel, whom he has appointed "Indian Diaspora Champion" with a remit to improve the government's links with British Indians.

US President Barack Obama has thanked London-based Indian steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal for investing in America and creating jobs in the country. “I want to thank your CEO, Lakshmi Mit-

tal, for investing in America and in the Cleveland area,” Obama said during his visit to the ArcelorMit-tal Cleveland Steel Factory in Cleveland, Ohio. This year alone, the company has invested US$ 70 million resulting in the creation of 150 new jobs, Mittal said. “It’s a great honour for all of us at Arce-lorMittal Cleveland to welcome President Obama here. We’ve been making steel in Cleveland for one hundred years,” Mittal said in his welcome address. Mittal said that in the coming years, “we will help our automotive customers meet the demanding fuel-efficiency standards that will be required in the run up to 2025.” In his remarks, Obama praised ArcelorMittal for turning around the factory which was almost shut down during the economic recession at the beginning of his career. “Today, the steel you make in Cleveland is some of the strongest you’ll find anywhere in the world. It’s one of the most productive plants in the world. Best workers in the world,” said the US President. “What’s remarkable is, when you think about it, go back to where this plant was just a few years ago, the economy was in free fall, auto industry on the brink of collapse, and that meant demand for steel had dried up.

AZIM PREMJI TOPS INDIAN PHILANTHROPISTS LIST

Wipro chief and IT tycoon Azim Premji tops the list of Indian

philanthropists, with donations amounting to INR 8,000 Crore in the past year, followed by HCL chairman Shiv Nadar, according to China-based Hurun Report Inc's India Phi-lanthropy List 2013. The study ranked 31 Indians who donated more than INR 10 Crore cash or cash equivalent during the fiscal year ended March 31, 2013.

VOLVO INDIA TO SPEED UP DELIVERIESLuxury carmaker Volvo Auto India has begun deliv-eries of the next generation S60 sedan and XC60 sports utility vehicle in Hyderabad in November. The Indian unit of the Sweden-based automobile giant hopes to bring down the waiting pe-

riod for the V40 Cross Country car launched earlier this year as well. Tomas Ernberg, Managing Director, said: “Volvo is working on bringing down the delivery period for the V40 Cross Country, which has been a hit across the globe and in India since its launch. This new offering has become a segment leader in several markets and we hope it will be able to do so in India.” He also opened a new Volvo Retail Experience con-cept store in India. Volvo India was confident that it would be success-ful in increasing its market share in India. “We expect to touch a sales volume of about 20,000 cars by 2020 garnering a market share of about 15 per cent. We expect to cross the 1,000-car mark this year,” he said. The new generation cars, priced at INR 31 Lakh and 42.5 Lakh respec-tively, ex-showroom, are being offered with modern diesel engines.

Business Buzz



Business Buzz

RATAN TATA IS TENDULKAR OF CORPO-RATE INDIA, SAYS CHIDAMBARAM

Praising industrialist Ratan Tata, Finance Minister P Chidambaram has described

him as the Sachin Tendulkar of corporate India. With a large gathering of corporate leaders in attendance at the function in Mumbai even as the master blaster played his last test match at the nearby Wankhede Stadium, the Finance Minister said, "Ratan (Tata) is as big a draw as Sachin." Among those honouring the legendary entrepreneur were ONGC chief Sudhir Vas-udeva, Kris Gopalakrishnan of Infosys, ITC's Y V Deveshwar, Azim Premji of Wipro, Rahul Bajaj, Adi Godrej and S Ramadorai of TCS. Ra-tan Tata said he was humbled by the honour and recalled how late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi had appreciated the role of the Confederation of Indian Industry in transforming the country. "I admire Ratan for his frugality ... I admire him for his few words, for creating millions of jobs in the country and thousands abroad ... and I admire Ratan for drawing a sane line between corporate management and control.

BMW TO MASS PRODUCE CAR MADE FROM CARBON FIBRE

Bayerische Motoren Werke's (BMW) bid to save its cars

from potential extinction starts with hundreds of thousands of fine white strands snaking up-wards in a production hall in ru-ral Washington. Looped through an almost mile-long course, what looks like the world's thinnest rice noodles will be stretched, toasted and eventually scorched black to create carbon fibre — a material thinner than human hair

and yet tougher than steel. BMW will use the sleek, black filaments for the passenger frame of the i3 electric car, which goes on sale at dealers in Germany recently and around the world in the coming months. It's the first effort to mass produce a car made largely from carbon fibre and represents the biggest shift in automobile pro-duction since at least the 1980s when the first all-aluminum car frames were made.

Dubai has now emerged as a favourite residential

destination for India’s super rich. 9% of the 141 persons, each with over US$ 300 million (INR 1,890 Crore) in assets, now reside in the Gulf emirate, up from just one person last year, according to the China-based Hurun India Rich List 2013. The Dubai-based Indian millionaires include Micky Jagtiani of the Landmark Group, Ravi Pillai of the Ravi Pillai Group, the Chhabria fam-ily of the Jumbo Group, Sunny Varkey of Gems Education, Tony Jashanmal of the Jashanmal Group and Joy Alukas of Joyalukas Jewellery. Yogesh Mehta of Petrochem ME, Rizan Sajan of Danube Group, Deepak Babani of Eros, Azad Moopen of DM Healthcare, Ramesh S Ramakrishnan of the Transworld Group, Santosh Joseph of Dubai Pearl and Lachmandas Pa-garani of the Al Maya Group are also on the list of Indian millionaires living in Dubai. On the other side, the share of India's super rich living in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore has dwindled by 3 to 7 per cent, accord-ing to the list.

DUBAI IS A NEW HUB FOR INDIA’S SUPER-RICH

Aiming at a higher market share, leading personal computer maker

Lenovo has launched its new Yoga Tab-let priced between Rs 22,999 to Rs 28,999, for the 20.3 cm and 25.4 cm models, respectively, a company offi-cials said. The Tab has been ergonom-ically designed to provide a longer and

more comfortable Tablet viewing experience. “Increasing market share with launch of new products is our ambition, but a lot depends on how the market takes our new products ... let’s wait and see how the market responds to it ...,” Lenovo India Director (Consumer Business) Shailendra Katyal said. “Two years ago we had about 8~10 per cent market share in the consumer PC busi-ness, and we have moved to 13% during the whole of last year.

LENOVO LAUNCHES YOGA TABLET







Wellness

FIVE COMMON POWER-HEALERSHERBS THAT HEALIn a return to tradition, many societies today are going back to traditional herbal and ayurvedic rem-edies, as they are increasingly getting popular along with allopathic medicines, and statistics reveal that 4 out of every 5 Indians look to and rely on traditional medicines. No wonder then that the con-ventional concoction of honey, ginger and tulsi (basil) leaves is on their revival path in many an Indi-an household as a remedy for cough and cold, in preference over that ubiquitous cough syrup. Though most herbs are known to be effective as conventional medicines, there are those few special ones that can give you an extra health bonus. We look at some here.

ALOE VERAPopular as a skin-balm-additive and anti-acne product, Aloe vera is today become the single largest herbal component that has maximum applications in cosmetics and beauty products. The high value of this suc-culent green plant is evident from the fact that this has been in use for many many centuries in several cultures, of Greece, in India, Egypt, China and Japan for different medicinal purposes. Power-packed with over 75 active ingredients ranging from en-zymes, sugars, fatty acids, vitamins, miner-als and with antiseptic and healing proper-ties, aloe vera restores lost elasticity of skin, makes it less wrinkled and even protects the skin from the ill-effects of radiation. Being an amazing antiseptic, aloe vera also helps speed up the healing of wounds. This plant is also effective in flushing out toxins and toxic waste from the body. Furthermore, it acts as a great laxative by increasing intes-tinal water, mucus secretion and intestinal



Wellness

peristalsis. The ability of aloe vera to regen-erate cells makes it a great anti-wrinkle agent that also reduces stretch marks and scars, and speeds up the healing of pimples and acne. Though internal dosage of aloe vera requires prior consent of a doctor or a herbalist, topical application of aloe vera is extremely safe and effective. People with sensitive skin should do a patch test before proceeding with topical application.

TULSI (HOLY BASIL)Tulsi, known as the holy basil in lands abroad, is a plant that is considered sacred in certain traditions. It has fragrant leaves known to aid digestive function. A simple 100 mg per kilo of body weight consump-tion of tulsi leaves is thought to reduce

any deep attention to its medicinal value. People having cold and cough can benefit by consuming a teaspoon of honey with a pinch of turmeric powder. A substance called curcumin, which is an important part of turmeric, has wonderful antispas-modic and anti-inflammatory properties that are useful in the treatment of arthritis. Turmeric is also said to be an effective naturally-occuring mild antibiotic.

GARLICA pungent, flavoursome herb belonging to the onion family, garlic has a variety of medicinal uses and its application dates back to ancient Egypt. Indians are said to be at a much lesser risk of developing colon and cervical cancer, due to their liberal use of garlic, spices and condi-ments in their food preparation. Garlic in particular, is extremely beneficial in that and it helps prevent grave ailments like high blood pressure, gastric cancer and high blood cholesterol. A recent

acid-secretion and protect the mucous membrane of the stomach wonderfully. Another bonus — it also heals ulcers ef-fectively. Tulsi leaves are loaded with phy-tochemicals that possess strong antiviral, antibacterial, antioxidant and immunity-enhancing properties that make a body strong and fit to fight different ailments. Its use has also been renowned for cold and cough, as it helps mobilize the mucus and induce its expulsion from the body. Tulsi capsules are easily available today at Ayurvedic and Siddha stores. You can also gargle with a glass of water boiled with tulsi leaves for sore-throat relief.

TURMERICTurmeric needs absolutely no introduction to Indian households. This yellow-colored root of the turmeric plant is first dried, powdered and then used for a variety of purposes including flavoring, colouring and as a stimulant. However, due to its very ubiquity very few people have really paid

study conducted by the Tagore Medical College at Udaipur revealed that regular garlic consumption by heart patients re-sulted in a significant improvement of their condition, and that they experi-enced a significant drop in their blood pressure rates, thus resulting in reduced chances of mortality. Heart patients often suffer from angina (chest pain), which is possible to control by regular intake of garlic. You can’t really go wrong with this versatile herb. Add it to your soups and gravies; it adds flavor and boosts the health of your heart too.

FENUGREEKAn Asian herb with aromatic seeds, fenu-greek has been used since long to counter appetite-loss, reduce blood-sugar levels, and to aid healing of ulcers and boils. A clinical study conducted by the Gandhi Medical College in Hyderabad has found that the cholesterol levels of patients who were given 25 gms of powdered fenugreek seeds before meals everyday were signifi-cantly lower than those who weren’t given fenugreek. Needless to say, fenugreek is an all-rounder, and is recommended for pa-tients with diabetes, high blood pressure and cholesterol problems.

Stella GeorGe

The author is an educationist and a pedagog, who also is a keen advocate of

natural remedies, organic food and a holistic approach to medicine, wellness and health,

divides her time between teaching children in school and writing on matters related to

health and wellness once in a while



SACHIN R. TENDULKAR

ODE TO A DEMI-GOD...Sportsmen come and sportsmen go,

some are good, few get to be among the best, and then there are those who go beyond the rest. Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Michael

Schumacher, Carl Lewis, Usain Bolt, Roger Fedrer and their ilk are some of the golden people who did not just perform extraordi-nary feats in their domains, but have shown us another dimension to sports – a touch of class. These golden heroes perform to the best of their ability throughout the long

course of their careers. Among these tower-ing beacons of world sports stands a minis-cule Indian, 5 foot 5 inches tall, a cricketing giant who has tormented bowlers from across the globe, and has got to be a living legend. The great Shane Warne says he has had night-mares of him getting smacked for sixes by this little master. The Little Master, as he is fa-mously known, also has the largest fan-fol-lowing across all borders. He is madly loved, or I should say worshipped, by at least one billion people of the second most populous

nation of the world. This little master is ... Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar.

Each and every time the maestro went in to bat for his 663 matches it was a special oc-casion for him. Sachin was so competent and masterful in his game that in his prime, his batting was more theatrical and we spectators always knew that something more was com-ing. Sachin looks like the conductor of a musical orchestra while batting, using his genius to hit the ball with his bat to the per-fect symphony of sound for cricketing fans



Sports

just as a Mozart concerto would be for music lovers. He was a magician, a showman who always knew what he was doing, and was al-ways thinking 2 steps ahead of the others on the field.

Playing to one's full potential for 24 long years at a stretch is in itself an extraordinary feat, and there is this one thing Tendulkar has faced that probably no other sportsperson in their long or short careers would have faced. This was the pressure of not just failing or losing the game, but also the pressure to meet the spiralling expectations of a massively cricket-frenzied nation. A country where life slows down and stops when the maestro comes in to bat, expecting him, and only him, to win the game. And if he fails, or gets out,

TV sets are switched off, grounds go half empty, productivity at workplaces reaches a nadir. It is said that Sachin impacts even the US economy ... read what Barack Obama had to say: “I don't know about cricket, but still I watch cricket to see Sachin play. Not be-cause I love his play but because I want to know the reasons why my country's produc-tion goes down by 5 percent when he's bat-ting ...”

This enormous pressure Tendulkar has had to deal with day-in and day-out is quite be-yond the understanding of us mere mortals, and only the proclaimed demi-god in him could have handled this every waking day for 24 long years. Many may demur to name him a demi-god, but what Aussie cricketer Matty Hayden had to say sort of underlines the way the international cricketing fraternity regards the great man: “I have seen God, he bats at number 4 for India in Tests.”

A hundred international 100s, highest run-getter in tests & ODIs, highest 100s in tests and ODIs ... his list of records is long indeed. And these are no mere numbers, but a reflec-tion of what a player he has been. These stats reflect the quality and the sheer talent he pos-sessed, the heights of competency he had achieved, and what a complete player he was. This was even noticed by the best-ever bats-man known to the game of cricket, Sir Don Bardman: “I saw him playing on television and was struck by his technique, so I asked my wife to come look. Now I never saw my-self play, but I feel that this player is playing much the same as I used to play, and she looked at him and said, yes”. These are not the only words that describe the greatness of Sachin as a cricketer or a batsman. The great Brian Lara said: "The only batsman I would love to watch by paying for the tickets myself and sitting in the stands just to watch him is none other than Sachin Tendulkar," and "Sachin is a genius. I'm a mere mortal". Above statements by such cricketing legends just go to show how highly rated and regarded this son of India is across the world of cricket. Sachin-fanatics are not just limited to the cricketing fraternity. Bollywood Badshah Shahrukh has this incident to narrate when he was asked who according to him the big-gest celebrity was: “There was this big party where stars from Bollywood and cricket were invited. Suddenly, there was a big noise, all wanted to see approaching Amitabh Bach-chan. Then Sachin entered the hall, and Am-itabh ji was leading the queue to get a hold of the genius ...”

Paens about Sachin's greatness and all that he has done in his career can go on forever and ever, but have we ever thought how he has returned the love and affection showered on him by the millions across the world? Of course it goes without gainsaying that Sachin always gave his 100% on the field, but that was just one way of returning the favour. The other way he has reciprocated is by respect and humility. One of the most humble beings we could stumble across, he is a sportsman who has never let his fame or wealth over-shadow his performance. Sachin's humility is epitomised by his being so down to earth, be-ing close to his friends, and in continuing to be the person he always was. This humility is not just limited to him but also to his family members, who have never sashayed about their super-star husband or father. His son Arjun was the ball-boy sitting with his friends while his dad was playing his 200th test match.

The respect Sachin showed all throughout his career to his team mates, to his fans, to the ex-cricketers and to everyone he encountered is an admirable way of leading by example. Take his speech after his last test in Mumbai, where he thanked everyone big and small who had played any kind of role in his long career. He thanked career his parents, his family, his friends, his teammates, even his physios and doctors, and the spontaneity with which he did so showed his genuineness expressly.

Sachin imparted grace, humility, excel-lence, hard work, passion, patriotism, respect, diligence, purpose, direction, focus, hope, belief, concentration, perfection, attention to detail, balance, team work, honour, improvi-sation, failure, sacrifice, honesty, assertiveness - the list of life's-lessons unknowingly to me and a million others through his years on the field and off it.

Now that the curtain has come down on such an illustrious career, its time to reflect and ruminate on this long journey of a life-time just by saying: “Allright, you may have retired and left the field for the final time but the echos of Sachin! ... Sachin! will echo around the grounds long after you are gone, as there was, and there will be, only one Sachin.

Anshul GuptA

The author is a software engineer by profession. A passionate and avid sports en-thusiast, who follows a wide swath of sports,

ranging from Cricket, Football, Hockey, NBA, Tennis and more.

Photo: Rajeev Tyagi



Real Estate & Property

With the floating of draft norms for listing Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), SEBI has revived a 5-year-old proposal, paving the way for opening new avenues for retail investors to safe and transparent investment in real estate, while at the same time providing a life-line to fund- starved developers, Vinod Behl writes...

REIT - THE NEW INVESTMENT AVENUE

Currently, due to prohibitive prop-erty prices, a large number of re-tail investors cannot afford to in-vest in real estate. Even close-

ended real estate funds presently in op-eration with an investment cap of INR One Crore are beyond the reach of a large majority of ordinary investors. Moreover, they are apprehensive of investing in re-alty, due to low transparency and fears about the safety of investments in view of increasingly large number of delivery de-faults. Retail investors are highly conscious about the safety of their capital over capi-tal appreciation and attractive returns.

However, with REITs the safety of their investments could be ensured, as unlike physical real estate transactions REIT transactions will be regulated. Also, the REIT rules that prescribe 90 percent in-vestment in completed projects and 75 percent in leased income-generating prop-erties provide a safety net to investors, who will be insulated from the malprac-tices associated with real estate transac-tions. And REITs are investor-friendly as unlike physical real estate which lacks li-quidity, investment in REITs is liquid and exit is as easy as in capital markets.

REITs (which are an extension of Mu-tual Funds) will facilitate retail investors to buy listed units like stock market shares. And REITs will be investing directly in income-generating assets or through SPVs, and investors can reap the benefit of regular returns on investment.

Besides investors, REITs are equally beneficial for the real estate sector, as they will provide an excellent platform to cash-strapped developers to generate funds without development risks, especially those who are sitting over good income-generating assets. The extent of business opportunity may be gauged from the fact that 400 million square feet of commercial

office and mall properties are currently available in the market. And to make most of this opportunity, developers like Pars-vnath have already announced their plans to list their income-generating assets as REITs to raise money.

Due to their high liquidity and easy exit options, REITs come as a good business opportunity for PE funds as well, who are sitting on huge resources but are reluctant to deploy them as exits are a question-mark. But now with REITs, they might be amenable to put in more money, in turn helping developers who are struggling to cope with liquidity crunches. Already, leading PE funds like Blackstone, Xander, Tata Realty & Infrastructure, and Kotak Realty have made public their plans to launch REITs. It is an equally big oppor-tunity for funds-turned developers.

But then high taxation regimes in the form of capital-gains tax, tax on rental in-

come and price appreciation, divi-sion and distribution tax, and se-curities transaction tax , will cast their long shadows over REITs, which in their present form might lose much of their sheen as an at-tractive investment option. SEBI has however proposed to amend norms to make REITs more tax-friendly. Industry bodies are also recommending a single-point tax structure - be it at the asset level or at the distribution level. But in view of the upcoming general elec-tions in the country, the final guidelines for REITs may not come before Q2, 2014, and it may take more than a year before REITs be-come fully operational.

Apart from tax-related issues, regulatory concerns also need to be addressed before REITs are launched. In the past, several com-

panies that raised funds through REITs on the London Stock Exchange, saw their stock prices crashing due to defaults in the delivery of real estate projects and invest-ment mismatches. So, considering the risks involved in real estate investment due to lack of transparency and regulatory mech-anisms, the government needs to come up with all necessary safeguards to ensure the safety of investments. And it will indeed be a wise move if the Real Estate Regula-tory Bill is implemented before the launch of REITs, for them to realize their full po-tential in spurring capital inflows and in-vestor confidence for the speedy and sus-tained growth of real estate.

The author is a senior media professional, with long-standing experience in the real estate

sector. He is Editor, Realty Plus - a leading real estate monthly. He may be reached at

[email protected]

Photo: Ajay Sood



Vastu

VASTU COMPLIANT ENTRANCE INVITE GOOD LUCKIn Indian cultures, people have the tradition of following vas-tu rules since times immemorial, and even today, those who are building their own houses were and still are very careful in the planning of their living spaces. Especially, they used to give the topmost priority to the placement of the entrance to their premises. Still you can see auspicious signs, symbols and animals at the entrances to old buildings. These symbols and signs were not only meant for decoration, but also have some other significance, and that is nothing else but vastu. Ph

oto:

Suc

hi

The Entry portal matters a lot for any kind of construction, whether it be residential or commercial. The entrance is the 'face'

of a building. Just as our face gives others an idea about our inner qualities, so the entrance puts into evidence the lifestyle of the members living in the house. Therefore, we should be very careful with the placement of the entrance to our home. A large majority of the people do not know much about vastu, or for that matter anything at all about it, but they still consider the direction, or facing of the site, when they go to buy a plot, or if they already own some land, then when they embark upon construct-ing a house over there.

Even those who do not know about vastu, are aware that north and east directions are good for making an entrance of the house. But if we follow vastu rules even south and south-west directions can be equally beneficial for inhabitants. The Entrance indicates inflow or entry of positive energy. If positive energy flows in through the entrance, it will bless the inmates with health, wealth and peace. That’s why this much importance is given to the placement of the entrance in vastu.

A professional vastu consultant will sug-gest the best possible placement of the en-trance only after proper zoning of the eight cardinal directions. A total of 32 positions have been mentioned in eight cardinal di-rections and 20 out of these are represent-ed by different deities. Among these only 11 positions are auspicious for an entrance. The auspicious position for entrances are as follows- 3 positions towards north-east to east, towards south to south-east 3 posi-

tions, 3 positions in west and 2 in north. You may raise a question here – what is the

method for a common man to know the ideal position for the entrance? My friends, your date of birth alone is enough to know the best auspicious position for the entrance to your house. A professional vastu consultant can calculate it for you based upon that one datum. And for this you can take help of a profes-sional vastu consultant.

Here are some useful suggestions for an

ideal entrance: Gates should be avoided in South-West. Gates should not be at the extreme cor-ners. Every plot should have two gates for entry, one big gate for vehicles and one smaller gate for people. The entrance to the house should be in di-rect approach to the main gate. Avoid big trees in front of the gate. Big trees produce chaya vedh, which is not good for residents. Avoid any ditch in front of the gate and even in the pathway leading to front gate.

No open well should be in front of the gate. There should be no decaying, rundown or dilapidated structure in front of the gate. There should be no pole of any sort in front of the gate. Never place a mirror facing the main en-trance inside the house. It can reflect the posi-tive energy straight out of the house. If you are struggling with over expenses then it is advised to place feng shui coins near the entrance. It will help in controlling the outgo. If the main gate is on the east and north sides it leads to prosperity and fame. If there are gates on the east and west sides leads to happiness and riches. If the gates are on the north and west sides it only brings wealth. They also increase an individual`s interest in the spiritual aspects. If there is a gate only in the east direction it leads to overall prosperity. A northern gate symbolizes material com-forts. As per vastu if the gate is in the west side then there will be a considerable profit in busi-ness. But this profit is short-term. After some years a slump will be experienced. Remember to avoid the south-west gate completely. Under no conditions should the gate be built on this side. It leads to hazards and difficulties.

Naresh siNgalApart from vastu, he is also a well-known

exponent of Feng Shui and Pyramidology. You can contact him at:

[email protected]



Metaphysical Musings

JYOTISH SHASTRA And SIGnIFICAnCE OF GEMSGemstones have always been part

and parcel of astrological reme-dies in both the Indian and west-ern streams of the discipline, and

they play a rather significant role in the mitigative nature of remedies proposed by astrology. Gemstones are also said to act much like a lens focusing cosmic powers and positive planetary energy to the benefit of the wearer. These simple and beautiful gifts of nature are employed by adept astrologers with a good knowledge of gemology to ad-dress various problems faced by us, be they mental, physical, or financial.

Indian, or 'Vedic' astrology is an ancient scientific construct that emerged many thou-sands of years ago. The Rishis (Seers) of that time extended their cognition towards the macrocosm, and visualised the connections that link the celestial orbs and our human bodies, the microcosm. They deduced how the motion of planets and their positions vis-a-vis each other can impact upon us during our lifetimes, just as the waxing and vaning phases of our moon pushes and pulls at our oceans and seas.

All planets and stars in our universe are representative of specific energies, and do in fact pulsate with magnetic, electric and oth-er fields of cosmic radiation. And astrology holds that each celestial orb generates a par-ticular energy and emits it, which has its own, distinctive colour signature. The trans-mission of these rays through space, accom-panied by the energy-giving properties of heat, magnetism and electricity, has the po-tential to influence the lives of living things in myriad ways.

Horoscopes are nothing more than a map-ping of the location and position of various planets at the time of a person's birth, a task that comes easily to any adept Astrologer trained in the discipline. Once charted, it can be seen from it which planets are well posi-tioned, which are unfavorable, and which may tend give mixed results. Thus, depart-ing from the maxim that every person's life is a result of a cosmic design, this planetary configuration that occurs in the sky at the time of our birth, is ascribed to be an end-result of our past 'karma' - activities and ac-

tions we undertook during previous lives. According to our vedic astrology, karma is by no means unchangeable, and so can be manipulated for the better. There are several ways to effect a balance, or enhance our planetary karma. These include meditation (the most appropriate balancing method), physical postures (Yoga), medicine (Ayurve-da), the wearing of gemstones, colour ther-apy, prayers and rituals, the consumption of specific herbs and food items, and the adher-ence to certain architectural principles (Sthapathya Veda).

Indian astrology deals with seven visible planets and two invisible ones, namely: the Sun, the Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, and Saturn, along with the two lunar nodes, Rahu (the ascending lunar node) and Ketu (the descending lunar node). These nodes are the two intersection points of the solar and lunar planes as can be seen from the earth. Associated with these nine celes-tial bodies are days of the week, different parts of the human body, and different met-als. Nine astrological gemstones are also associated with these planets as well, which are:Sun > Ruby. Moon > Pearl. Mars > Red Cor-al. Mercury > Emerald. Jupiter > Yellow Sap-phire. Venus > Diamond. Saturn > Blue Sap-phire. Rahu > Hessonite garnet Ketu > Cat's Eye ChrysoBerylThis is no hocus pocus, but based upon a solid scientific basis that underpins plane-tary gemology. Studies investigating spe-cifically this aspect have actually confirmed the fact that the cosmic color spectrums that emanate from different planets are identical to the color spectrums of the correspondent gems. A correspondent gem thus would act like a valve regulating the play of its planet's cosmic energies on the human wearing it, and create specific effects of absorption and reflection of the rays and vibrations. The gem acts as a filter and produces positive or neg-ative effects, depending on the need of the body. Just like crystals used in radio tech-nology are the fundamental constituents of transmitting, receiving and transforming invisible energy into sound, thus do the crys-talline nature of these gemstones attract and

condense the cosmic, planetary energies that incessantly bombard us, and transform them for beneficial use by our human physiology. So one of the ways in which we can come to terms with our karma, and to some extent ameliorate, shape and adapt it, is by keeping the right gemstones in close contact with our body, so that profound and significant changes can be wrought over time to ease our lives in this here-and-the-now.

To conclude, it is now in our modern times more than any other era in history that the knowledge and technology of natural gem-stones has reached a zenith, making available to us a subtle, cognitive science that has the potential to fulfil at least in part mankind’s yearning for a life free from problems and negativity. So go on, do not look askance but accept it that natural gemstones that demand no special efforts from you except wear them can help transform our lives radically.

A word of caution though. Inappropriate and incorrectly charged gemstones can do more harm than good. So it is necessary to consult an adept, and choose one that is best suited to our natures and needs lest they worsen things. Consult a good astrologer/gemologist in order to arrive at the right gem, the proper weight, shape and size of the stone, and the correct mantra for the par-ticular stone to get beneficial results.

Sarita GuptaYou can send your queries/questions

at her mail ID: [email protected] and you can also visit her website: www.bestastrologysolutions.com

Phot

o: A

jay

Sood



Cineppets

Choreographer Rajeev Khinchi is all set to direct Kate Winslet, and is very ecstatic about it. The movie, THE GOLDEN SPARROW, is an Indo-Western flick that will have many Bollywood and Hollywood actresses. Says Khinchi, “It will be an out-and-out Punjabi number, where Katy will be seen shaking her legs to the choreographer`s moves. It`s one highly anticipated movie, and will go on the floors next year. I was in LA a

couple of weeks ago to discuss the contract and everything was finalized there. The movie also features an Indian actress but we will unveil her later”. Khinchi has won many prestigious hon-ours like Rashtirya Rajiv Gandhi Award, Lions Gold Award, and Dada Saheb Acknowledged Artist`s Award in India. Overseas Awards in-clude the Entertainer Award in Vegas, Honours from Macy`s, Miss USA-India, America`s big-gest universities like Howard, Yale and Choate school. Khinchi has already worked with big names in tinsel-town like Amitabh Bachchan, Salman Khan, Hrithik Roshan, and Aishwarya Rai to name a few, and though he specializes in both Bollywood and jazz dance numbers, he prefers Bollywood dances over others.

CHOREOGRAPHER RAJIV KHINCHI TO DIRECT KATE WINSLET FOR

PUNJABI NUMBER

Actor turned Director Deepak Tijori turns villain for Devang Dholakia’s latest venture TINA & LOLO starring Sunny Leo-ne and Karishma Tanna! Devang wanted a very strong evil character for this first of its kind of film without any heroes and says, “My girls are my heroes and so when we were look-ing for a new suave villain, I thought of Deepak Tijori, he fit the bill perfectly.” Deepak is excited about his role and has lost oodles of weight to look the perfect debonair villain in front of Sunny Leone, as there was also a look test which he had especially undergone and has even coiffured his hair to present

that salt & pepper look! Deepak said, “I was looking at doing work as an actor again, and I felt good when Devang offered me this film, especially the icing on the cake was Sunny. Devang had an image of this character, and yes, most actors do have a problem in going grey on screen, but I was looking for a change and once we did the makeup test, we were sure, this salt and pepper beard is a welcome change”

DEEPAK TIJORI TURNS VILLIAN IN TINA & LOLO

While her mother veteran actress Sharmila Tagore was the first one to don a two piece in the film AN EVENING IN PARIS, almost four decades later Soha is now following her mother’s footsteps, and will be seen in a bikini in her forthcoming film MR. JOE B CARVALHO which also stars Arshad Warsi and Javed Jaffrey. This is for the first time that Soha Ali Khan will be seen in a bikini in her nine year old film career. Though she is playing a role of a police officer, the audiences would get to see her in several different ava-tars like a cabaret dancer, an apsara, in a Can Can and also performing some dare-devil stunts all by herself. Produced by Bhola Ram Malviya & Shital Malviya, the film directed by Samir Ti-wari releases on 3rd January, 2014.

SOHA ALI KHAN DONS A BIKINI FOR MR. JOE B CARVALHO

MuMbai bureau



Silver Screen

"JACKPOT'S A CON-GAME THAT JUST BEGINS WHEN YOU THINK IT ENDS" SACHIIN JOSHISachiin J Joshi is now back with his third film, JACKPOT THE FULL JHOL. An exciting comic-thriller set in Goa, the film is directed by Kaizad Gustad, will see Sachiin share screen-space with Naseeruddin Shah and Sunny Leone. Interestingly, Sachiin, who had taken Sunny as the brand ambassador for his energy drink XXX, has cast her in a challenging role in the film that promises to showcase Sunny’s histrionics as much as her glam-our quotient if not more. We catch up with the actor who has managed to get that perfect V shaped hot-bod by spending his leisure at the gym, working out rigorously between shoots, and helming his company Viiking Ven-tures. Though almost on a 24/7 work schedule for two months, juggling between entrepreneurship and histrion-ics, Sachiin is energy personified. Excerpts from a tete-a-tete with the man of the moment, Sachiin J Joshi…

JACKPOT is a fast-paced rollercoaster full-jhol thriller film, set in the world of casino boats and gambling in Goa, star-ring Naseeruddin Shah, Sunny Leone and Sachiin Joshi. Produced by Viiking En-tertainment and Media, written and di-rected by Kaizad Gustad.You are doing the film JACKPOT. In your last film, MUMBAI MIRROR, your character was very different from your role in this film. So how would you de-scribe your role in this movie?

With every film, you learn and grow as an actor. And each film uncovers newer shades. In JACKPOT, I play Francis, a very smart yet simple man, who wears his heart on his sleeve. Yet, there is much more to his persona than what meets the eye. I loved the narration of Kaizad Gus-tad. He is known for his stylization of characters and this film is a thriller with its own quirky comic moments. You will love Francis for his earthiness and his street-smart attitude.You're working with Naseeruddin Shah in this movie. How does it feel to work with an established and critically ac-claimed actor like him?

It is a honour to share screen space with Naseer ji. It also goads you to work hard-er, as you have to match scenes and wits with him in JACKPOT. He has an amaz-ing sense of humour and he is an institu-tion. You learn so much … Each of us in the film have a style, a character and a journey. We pit wits against one another and it is a con-game that just begins when you think it ends … it isn’t easy pitting wits with Naseer saab. You have to work



Silver Screen

really hard to try and measure up to him on camera as you look up to him off cam-era in each frame. And in this challenge lies the fun.Your wife, Raina, is former model and actor Urvasi Sharma. Do you two discuss your future projects?

My wife Raina is my backbone. She is my producer. It is due to her and my team

that I can afford to be just an actor on the sets without production hassles. She is a wonderful person and when one is at peace, the world is beautiful.Would we ever see you two share screen-space together?

Not immediately no. But sometime in the future, maybe. You recently celebrated your birthday. What

was the best part of that celebration?Birthday is a day when wishes keep

pouring in. And every friend is like a bou-quet adding fragrance to your life. The best part of the celebration was the cake my wife wrote on for me. Literally, it was a letter inscribed on a cake. It was the best gift to me from a woman who is my gift from God.

“I GO BY MY OWN GUT-INSTINCT” NASEERUDDIN SHAH

“The reason I agreed to work in Gustad’s film is that I liked the script when Kaizad narrated it to me. I had earlier worked with him in his film BOMBAY BOYS and hence I knew that he is capable of making a good film, though I did turn down his offer to cast me in BOOM, because I did not like the role that he had of-fered me in that film,” continues Nasser when we ensconce ourselves in his vanity van.

The role that Naseer turned down in BOOM was eventually played by none other than Amitabh Bachchan. That film had also marked the debut of Katrina Kaif in Bolly-wood. “I go by my own gut-instinct when I read a script, try to visualize the role that I am offered, and then take a call whether to do the role or not, as an actor. When Kaizad came to me with the offer to cast me in JACKPOT, I read the script and decided to take up the role, because it was interesting. I enjoy play-ing the role of the conman, a twisted charac-ter. And I enjoy playing twisted characters, which offer me an immense scope to perform, because I feel that it is very boring to play the good guy in film after film, besides the fact that it is fun to play roles which are different...”

Naseer confesses that his performance in Kaizad’s BOMBAY BOYS remains one of his

Naseer is quite happy with the way his role has shaped in producer-actor Sachiin Joshi's JACKPOT directed by Kaizad Gustad. “The film is about a heist, directed by Kaizad Gustad with whom I had earlier acted in BOM-BAY BOYS,” quips Naseeruddin Shah when I meet him in Goa for this interview on-location. Nasseruddin Shah, who will complete forty years as an actor next year, is wholly in his elements when I meet him after the pack-up for the day at the location shooting of the film ...

finest ones till date. “I like Kaizad’s idea of tell-ing a script in reverse. I play the role of a char-acter referred to as Boss in JACKPOT.

It is like the combination of every Boss character that I have seen over the years in films. It is an over-the-top character, which I play in a broad and vulgar way.”

Naseer adds that he is happy to be a part of JACKPOT, which is his way of paying a big tribute to all the villains in Bollywood, right from Ajit to Madan Puri and Kader Khan to Pran and Jeevan Uncle. They weren’t just good actors but were committed to their work. Pransaab was thankful for the kind of work that he had got in films. I have never met in my life a person like him who is genuinely humble. They always reported on time on the sets, and used to make it a point to sit on the sets throughout the day when the shooting was on.”

Naseer reiterates that the roles being played by Sachiin Joshi and Sunny Leone in JACK-POT are tailor-made for them, written spe-cifically keeping them in mind. And I am having a blast shooting for the film in which Sachiin, Bharat, Sunny and I con the people all the time in the picturesque locations of Goa in the film.”

Right now, besides being a part of the play

A WALK IN THE WOODS being directed by his wife Ratna Pathak Shah, Naseer is also having films like DEDH ISHQIYA (the script of which he says is better and funnier than even ISHQIA), BLUE BERRY HUNT, THE COFFIN MAKER, Anjan Dutt’s MICHAEL for producer Anurag Kashyap, and Judhajit Sircar’s film about a female boxer, in which he is doing a two day role because he knows Jud-hajit from the time he was an assistant to Vidhu Vinod Chopra.

Naseer is also all set to act in Kundan Shah’s sequel to his own acclaimed hit JAANE BHI DO YAARO in which he will reprise his role in the original along with Rajesh Puri, Satish Shah and Pankaj Kapoor. “Rajesh Puri who played the role of a journalist in JAANE BHI DO YAARO will now play the role of the Prime Minister in the film in which Satish Shah, whose character dies in the original, will take on a different role. Kundan is also trying to rope in Irrfan Khan for the film,” shares Naseer.

Jyothi VenkateshThe writer is a well-known and established film critic.



Travelogue

DISCOVERING KOCHI DURING ONAM

Kochi (anglicised name: Cochin) is now an inclusive name for various towns, including the district of Ernakulam. It is an important port city of Kerala. Though the newer parts of Kochi are like any other bustling metropolitan city, my wanderings in the time-warped Fort Kochi reminded me of the time I had

spent in Ubud, Bali or in Montmartre, Paris. Like Ubud or Montmartre, Fort Kochi also has the visibly overpowering presence of arts and artists. Since the entire state is coastal and is perennially damp, the moss and algae-covered walls of the main square here are no deterrent for the artists. They charge on regardless, and cover these walls with their awe-inspiring art.

The entire area exudes an aura of medievalism and Europe – quaint cafés; streets lined with thick, solid, aged trees; ancient churches; and stunning-ly green creepers adorning the walls. Boutique hotels and elegant eateries doubling up as art galleries, now also dot these streets, which were once just a peaceful abode of affluent natives.

While many a Bollywood producer has preferred the narrow lanes of Bunol or Saint-Paul-de-Vence for their song-and-dance sequences, I chanced upon an ad-agency shoot complete with its own Bollywood star (Ranbir Kapoor and his air-conditioned caravan), in these narrow streets replete with character. Intelligent decision, I must say. Why spend a fortune when you can get a similar or a better locale closer home.

It wasn't my first visit to the city. I had been here many times earlier, but for work. This time the agenda was purely photography. The city confused me a bit, the culture seemed an amalgamation. Upon doing some reading, I realised that the city was an amalgamation of Portuguese, Dutch and British influences. If you look around carefully, these influences will leap out at you. Interestingly, you’ll also find houses where instead of cars, boats will be parked outside. And the local transport would include ferries along

Photos & Text: Ajay Sood



Travelogue

with buses. You will also spot well-maintained waterfront cafés with pleasing views.

And that is not all. The city is the home to the oldest church in the country. St. Francis Church in Fort Kochi was built in 1503. This church was the original 'final rest-ing place' of Vasco da Gama when he died in 1524, till his body was finally taken back to Portugal fourteen years later. A stone's throw away is Santa Cruz Basilica, another church from the same era (built in 1505). Close by, within the same precinct, a set of period buildings house the Indo-Portuguese Museum and the Bishop's house.

When I planned a trip to Kochi, my friend Chanchal, who was hosting me there, suggested that I should visit when the Onam festivities were on. Typically, these fes-tivities last around 10 days. I took his suggestion, and though it rained quite frequently during my visit, the visual delight called Kochi managed to keep my mood and morale on a high.

The big day during Onam festivities is 'Thiruvonam'. Legend has it that Mahabali, the Asura King who was tricked by God Vishnu to go underground (Paataal) since gods were jealous of an Asura king making his people and subjects prosperous, comes back on this day to meet his subjects. The various activities that mark Onam celebrations are an elephant procession, floral decorations (floral rangoli or pookalam), temple Kathakali performances, boat races, the traditional nine-



course strictly vegetarian Onam feast or Ona-sadya, and Pulikali (Puli = Tiger; Kali = Play).

With a bit of time juggling and commutes to nearby places, I managed to catch most of these activities. Though the big boat races are consid-ered to be the ones in Kottayam, Aranmula and Alappuzha, I caught one in Kumarakom, just 62 kms from Kochi. For me, a first time viewer, the entire atmosphere was electric. The backwater stream was lined with people, many small boats were flitting around near the banks to catch a better glimpse of the action, couple of decked up boats ferried the officials and other VIPs around, loudspeakers were blaring with an on-going commentary in Malayalam, and the biggest ex-citement of all was the presence of a 'Chundan Vallam' - the longest of the snake boats which is normally rowed by 101 oarsmen. Overall, a de-light for the senses, I would say.

My host had organised an elaborate spread (Sadya) for lunch on Thiruvonam. The follow-ing day, I made my way to Andhakaranazhi (an estuary in Chertala Taluka), and subsequently to Cherai Beach not far from Kodungallur (an-glicised name: Cranganore). The beachfront now boasts a few luxury properties hosting vis-iting tourists. Along the way, I came across the largest number of Chinese nets I had seen in-stalled in a single location.

I wrapped up my visit with a short trip to Thrissur (74 kms). This was to experience the celebration called Pulikali. There are Pulikali teams that represent various localities. Through elaborate make-up and masks, the members of the teams are made to look like tigers. These teams then dance their way through various routes, congregating in the city centre, where the entire city assembles. A jury judges them and gives them prizes – based on the ovation and reception they are accorded by the crowds gathered in the city centre. The make-up of each of these participants takes up to 3 days. To say the least, the sight was colourful and chaotic, yet culturally rich.

A vacation to this city is surely recommended as it offers long stretches of clean beaches, mod-estly priced exotic food, a vibrant cultural visu-al extravaganza, and some great heritage places that definitely merit a visit. You'll find few other places that offer such diverse, yet rich, experi-ence.

The writer is an accomplished and avid travel photographer, relishing equally the challenges

in capturing cityscapes and landscapes, heritage and architecture, wildlife and citylife,

street and people.

Travelogue

Postal regd No. dN/297/2013-2015date of Publication: 5th of every Monthdate of Posting: 8th & 9th of every Month rNI No. delBIl/2012/45826

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