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Over the
rainbow for the pot of gold
Crowning
colours Life
beyond cancer
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Over the rainbow for the pot of gold
About a decade back he eked out a living by selling goods on the pavement. Today, he’s a business magnate of repute, says
Randeep Wadehra
His
journey from being a
pushcart-hawker (thela-wala) to Mercedes Benz is the stuff
fairy tales are made of. Overcoming heavy odds – that often sap the
spirit of lesser mortals – he vanquished the dark spectre of
permanent penury to carve out a niche under the sun. A head for
business mingled with chutzpah and a bit of luck propelled him to the
threshold of becoming a new-age tycoon. Just sample the sea change
Manoj Arora’s life has undergone in the past decade or so. Till
about 1994 he was a pheriwala (hawker) who used to sell clothes
on a pavement outside a gurdwara in Daun. His greatest dream was to
own a two-wheeler. His father used to hawk fountain pens outside
district courts in Lucknow, Varanasi, Rishikesh and other mofussil
towns. Obviously Manoj had no resources for getting education. He, at
33, is barely literate enough to sign his name today. His application
for a loan of Rs 5000 meant for those living below the poverty line
was rejected by the manager of a public sector bank. He seemed
destined to a lifetime of drudgery. But then came a twist in his
tale. An acquaintance wanted to sell his plot of land. Manoj knew
somebody who wanted to buy property in the same area. He acted as an
honest broker and was pleasantly surprised when he was given Rs 10,000
as brokerage. This set him thinking. He sold off whatever jewellery
his family had and invested the entire proceeds in real estate
business. One thing led to another and soon he became a ‘coloniser’.
Today, he has several business interests apart from real estate. He is
into producing movies and television shows, runs a hotel in Mussourie,
a hotel management institute in Mohali and a charitable school in Dera
Bassi. He is an example to those who think fortunes can be made only
by slaving in the West. Now Manoj has plans to visit Australia to
explore the possibility of setting up gas stations. How does he
manage his various ventures? He replies that he is lucky he has
support of his family and friends who are better educated but he likes
to rely on his business acumen. His reaction to the change in his
fortune? While attributing success to divine will, he does acknowledge
that people’s attitude changes with the change in one’s fortunes.
Bank managers show him the regard reserved for valued customers. Now
whenever he buys a new vehicle, and he has quite a few, the same is
delivered at his workplace or home even before the relevant paperwork
is done. Of course, he regrets being uneducated, and that’s why he
has admitted his children to top public schools. They say one can’t
make millions without tax evasion. Does he pay his taxes? He laughs
while asserting that he pays his taxes honestly. For the year ending
March 31, 2006, he paid Rs 15,50,000 as income tax. Not bad for the
one time phariwala, huh? Truth, as the clich goes, is stranger
than fiction. Manoj Arora’s rags -to-riches saga is indeed an
amazing truth.
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Anjana Sarin tells you how to tint your hair
Tints may fade but do not wash out. On the minus side,
they leave the hair drier and more porous. The roots needa to be re-tinted
regularly as the hair grows. Ideally, re-tinting should be done without
overlapping the already tinted hair to minimise the drying effect. The
tinting technique can cover whites in the hair or lift the natural colour
and is great for achieving vibrant colours. There are three techniques—highlight,
lowlight, underlight—by which you can tint your hair. Highlight:
This is used to lighten the hair and extends from the front and top of your
hair to the crown of your head (about ear-level). When your hair requires
varying shades, the stylist may use two or three colours to get the
particular shade. Lowlight: This tint extends all the way down to
your hair. This tinting is ideal if you often wear your hair up as lowlights
tend to deepen and intensify the hair colour. Underlight: This is
the art of placing vertical lines of a lighter pigment beneath darker,
natural strands of hair. This form adds a second and third layer of colour,
and promotes separation of layers. Your hairstylist, with her or his
experience should be able to tell you what looks natural for your hair. But
as a rule, it is correct to use a shade that is four shades lighter or
darker than your own hair colour. It is very essential that your special
highlights complement your natural hair colour or the colour in which you
have dyed your hair. Your hairstylist might decide to use both highlights
as well lowlights to add light and depth to your hair. Irrespective of the
length of your hair and your hairstyle, highlights can be used to enhance
your look. Short or shoulder length hair looks best with chunky highlights
that draw attention to the face. But if you have a layered haircut then it
will be necessary to emphasise the layers and ensure that the finer
highlights are in the correct place. Then the question comes of persons
with very long hair. It is possible here also for the stylist to ensure that
the highlights give a sun-drenched look. If your skin is fair then you can
go in for lighter colours and if it is on the darker side then darker
colours. In the case of almost all Indian women, the hair is black and hence
the stylist will have to bleach it first before colouring it. Instead of
going to the hairstylist, you can do it yourself at home. But ensure that
you follow the instructions correctly. Tints and bleaches are colourant
chemicals which react with the cortex or main body of the hair and must be
used with great care to avoid serious damage. Generally, if you are tinting
hair lighter than the natural colour, a greater volume or more concentrated
solution of hydrogen peroxide is used. If tinting darker and to cover grey
hair, less peroxide or a lower volume of peroxide may be used. Your
stylist will do the allergy check before she starts the tinting job. But if
you do it at home then do a small patch test, by mixing a very small portion
of the tint with peroxide and apply it to your skin, either behind the ear
or inside the elbow. Wash it off after half an hour. Check the area again
after two days and if there is any sign of skin soreness, keep off
tints. You can proceed with the tinting if the allergy reaction is not
there. But without the supervision of the stylist, your highlights might be
localised at particular areas like the crown only. This will necessitate
your touching up the highlight frequently. To prevent this, it is advisable
to use shampoos and conditioners specially prescribed for coloured
hair. With regular re-tinting, the hair can be kept of the same colour for
as long as required. — MF
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Life beyond cancer The courage and
determination the assistant news editor at Doordarshan in Delhi displayed
since she was declared a victim of cancer in 1998 makes her come across as a
never-say-die woman. Despite losing her breasts as well as her brother and
mother to cancer, Anuradha stands unfazed. "Now I know everything
about cancer, about the disease, its treatment, the medicines and side
effects. So I share my information with other women patients and try to make
them courageous," said Anuradha. "Most women feel shattered when
they get their breasts removed. They think that is the only symbol of their
femininity. I tell them to treat it like any other organ," said the
woman, originally a resident of Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh. Anuradha is
back at work at Doordarshan’s headquarters here, as normal as ever. She
smiles a lot, and her colleagues are proud of her. Her trauma began in May
1998, at age 30, when she discovered to her horror that she had cancer in
her left breast. Within months she underwent surgery. But even as she began
to limp back to life came twin disasters: her mother died of cancer in 2000
and doctors found the disease had spread to Anuradha’s other breast too.
More surgery followed last year, and Anuradha lost the second breast
too. The journalist in her made Anuradha sum up her struggle in an
autobiographical book in Hindi called Indradhanush ke Peeche Peeche
(Chasing the Rainbow), which become a bestseller in no time. Students of
Jamia Millia University made a 20-minute short film Bhor (Dawn) on
her, and it won raving reviews. A leading publisher is now planning to
translate her book into English. Anuradha has a single mission now: to
create awareness about cancer, especially breast cancer. "It was a
very painful experience," she says of her ordeal with cancer.
"During my treatment in the first phase, my white blood cell count fell
drastically. I was kept in isolation. I could not even meet my
son. "Then I had a relatively easy life for six years. But when I
discovered lumps in my second breast, I felt disappointed because it had
happened to me despite the utmost care I had taken. "But my family’s
wholehearted support put me back on track," Anuradha said. She still
shudders while recalling the pain she put up with because of chemotherapy.
Today, backed by some NGOs, she organises special camps and kitty parties
where she talks to women about the dangers from cancer. The disease and its
strenuous treatment effected many changes in the once petite form. Her hair
turned curly and then, with the treatment, straightened out again. She has
since gained weight. Anuradha is thankful to her son Arindam and husband
Dileep Chandramandal, a senior producer with CNBC news channel, for standing
by her. "My son," she says with pride, "never irritated me.
My son as well as husband gave me strength and inspiration I badly
needed." — IANS
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K.S. Bains on Gurdwara Damdama Sahib, built in memory of Guru Gobind Singh. This is the eighth of the nine-part series on important Sikh shrines in Delhi Following
the death of Aurangzeb, Prince Muazzam declared himself emperor and assumed
the title of Bahadur Shah. Prince Alam Shah had also declared himself
commander of the armed forces. The decisive battle between the two took
place in Jajuan, near Agra, on June 10, 1707, where Bahadur Shah emerged
victorious. Guru Gobind Singh had actively involved himself planning the
strategy of the battle. After the battle, the emperor went to Agra and Guru
Gobind Singh returned to Delhi, and spent leisure time there till the rainy
season ended. At this point of time, the Mughal emperor and the Guru
shared an amicable relationship. However, in spite of this, the Guru chose
not to visit the emperor in Red Fort, as that would have required observing
the court etiquette and Sikhs had been forbidden from bowing before the
emperor. It is at the site of Gurdwara Damdama Sahib that the emperor and
the Guru had a number of meetings. It seems that some broad understanding
had been reached between the emperor and the Guru for punishing Vazir Khan,
the viceroy of Sirhind, at whose instance two younger sons of the
Guru had been bricked alive at Fatehgarh Sahib. The relationship between the
Guru and the emperor was cordial and the meetings were held in a relaxed
atmosphere. They both used to entertain each other here with martial
sports. Soldiers from both Sikh and Mughal armies would show their prowess
in horsemanship, personal combat and the like. The Yamuna bed at that time
extended right up to the spot where the horses and elephants of the Mughal
army used to exercise. There also used to be stray cattle grazing there.
Once the Guru pointed at one of the elephants of the Mughal army and
remarked in a lighter vein that it looked more like a jhota
(buffalo). The emperor, however, remarked that it was a fine animal. The
Guru again remarked that a bull could take it on. The sakhis have it
that the Guru patted a bull before a fight ensued between it and the
elephant. At the end of it, the elephant had retreated. Gurdwara Damdama
Sahib is situated near Humayun’s Tomb. The area, steeped in history, has a
nice ambience. The gurdwara, though not very big, is a fine building in
white marble. The ground floor has a square langar hall with an
arcaded verandah on its four sides. On top of the hall is the gurdwara. With
the arcaded verandah below the gurdwara, the building appears to be
floating. The main hall has a beautiful chajja on all four sides.
There are four domes in each of the four corners and four typical Sikh domes
placed on a rectangular base in the centre of each side. The main dome of
the gurdwara is on top of a two-storeyed high platform. Each level has a
number of domes and arches. These together with chajjas and cupolas
create a beautiful interplay of shapes and sizes. The fa`E7ade on all four
sides is the same and rather simple in design. There is a wide parikrama around
the gurdwara. The flight of steps that leads up to the gurdwara is very
impressive. There are two landings which enhance the beauty of the approach.
The metallic handrails are rather simple. Had these been of the same pattern
as that of the parapet of the parikrama, the unity of design would have
greatly enhanced the overall beauty of the gurdwara. This is one of the few
gurdwaras which has a garden around it. The lawns are well laid out and
there are a number of flowerbeds. There are a few khajjur trees here
which indicate that Muslim armies must have camped here. The Sikhs
celebrate Holi as Hola Mohalla. In Anandpur Sahib, Hola Mohalla is
celebrated on the day following Holi. However, at Gurdwara Damdama Sahib
Hola Mohalla is observed on the same day as Holi. The probable reason for
observing Hola Mohalla festivities could be the fact that the Guru had spent
a pleasant time here. Nihangs also visit the gurdwara on this occasion. They
go in a procession from Gurdwara Damdama Sahib to Gurdwara Bangla Sahib.
Many jathas of Dhadis come here on that day and recite waran
(songs recalling heroic deeds performed by Sikhs under trying conditions).
Apart from the gurdwara’s own langar, a number of Sikh organisations serve
langar from morning till evening. |
S