The waft of breezy music blowing soft across the borders of lingo refreshing you like the zephyr over the Bavarian Alps; so many Germans breezing in to greet the guests with hugs and embraces; excited beads bursting at the brims of sparkling mugs rocking aromatic beer; and pickled vegetables pampering the taste buds…. It is a scene straight out of a German flick. Only there are no cameras and no actors, just action and celebrations.

Right guys, it is drink, dine and merriment time at the Taj Chandigarh with a host of imported golden brews and German band heralding prime time celebrations just to commemorate the world cup soccer fever, of course in style and glamour.

What? Scrumptious snacks spiced and smoked over beech and juniper wood, invigorating golden elixir waltzing inside the gleaming tumblers and melodious notes flowing out of accordion in Chandigarh to celebrate the world cup that too in Germany? If you are finding it all too confusing, the organizers have the answers right here on a platter just to satisfy your appetite.

“While Germany plays host to the world cup, the Central Marketing Organisation of German Agriculture Industries (CMA), along with German food and drink companies, Lufthansa and Taj Hotels have all tied up to give the food lovers here a taste of Germany,” says one of the organizers. “Germans love food and soccer! We are basically presenting the blend of two to the Indian consumers.”

Sounds interesting! Italian defender Marco Materazzi will dribble the ball in Germany and the reverberations will be felt here in Chandigarh. Great, isn’t it? Folks, sitting here in the air-conditioned comfort of a hotel hall, you just cannot ask for more.

Folks, if you still haven’t tasted action, along with some nice lip-smacking dishes and cool music, do not worry. You still have time. For, the “Taste of Germany 2006” event is scheduled to continue till July 9 in nine cities across India

So just hop into your jaunty car and reach the hotel. As soon as you push your way through the impressive glass doors, you will find pretty girls in immaculate white dress waiting for you with mugs of beer — Germany’s number one drink for over 1000 years. For those not drowned in country’s beer culture, there are over 5000 varieties brewed in 1500 breweries.

Back to the celebrations of life and world cup — step ahead and you will find 20 German companies together with a common goal of displaying impressive range of food products. All this, while over 30 national teams are hitting the ball to glory, and supremacy!

While enhancing the suppleness of the physical body, the asana or postures also contribute to clear subtle nerves in the body called the nadis. This process is further refined and speeded up by pranayama techniques. Imprints, that resemble knots occur on this network of nadis and restrain the prana or energy to flow smoothly. These areas in the body then become centres of disease, which manifest in the physical body after a while. The imprints could be carried forward from past life, or manifest due to present life social conditioning, upbringing, emotional trauma, stubborn mindset or mental perversions. Since yoga is a process of refinement, correct practice starts a powerful cleansing that moves deeper and deeper in its effect on the practitioner.

As the practitioner with self discipline and constant effort carries on the practice along with physical well being a fine tuning of these psychic nerves takes place. The ensuing feeling of bliss and calm can only be experienced not explained. As a result of this externally, the yogi starts glowing with an almost other worldly light and becomes vibrant and sensitive to surrounding mental, emotional and astral frequencies.

This process of refinement and cleansing of the nadis called nadi shodan should be an integral part of any yoga practice. Since the final aim in yoga is union in Samadhi, during which the yogi experiences what may be described as a surcharge of energy it becomes imperative that the nerves that have to carry this surcharge be without any restrictive knots. The dedicated practice of pranayama and special kundalini yoga given by the master leads unerringly to the activating of the bio electric force present in every human being called the Kundalini energy. When finally this dormant energy is activated it flows up the spine and makes its way through subtle nadi network that is now free of any debris. “The evolution of the human soul progresses rapidly as the light sound vibration called the Kundalini energy moves upwards and activates the dormant centres of the brain. It is the birthright of every human being to access this divine energy that lies coiled at the base of the spine and realise themselves as divine,” says Himalayan master Yogiraj Siddhanath

Last week we talked about your personalised and favorite areas, made so with your own special additions. How about the “wee” ones, the children and teenagers in the family? We often take their existence and behaviour for granted without realising they need space and to be far from us! Hard to swallow? Of course!- but look back and remember those moments when you hid with a book in the loo, climbed a tree or hung out with a friend, all in the interest of escape from prying aunts, critical grandparents and nagging parents. If your memory goes that far back, then it is time to take action.

The sturdiest, leafiest tree in the garden is ideal for a tree house. Three or four feet off the ground, (too much height can cause injuries) about six square feet in area, made of rough, discarded planks and doors, with a water proof roof. Build it around the trunk to add stability. Let the apple of your eyes help the carpenter create it. The children can paint it too. Put extra nails near the roof for them to hang old bed sheets and curtains. Throw in an old mattress and cushions and the home away from home is ready. What is the purpose of such an exercise? Picnics, reading space, independence, initiative, creative thinking, courage when getting used to the dark - they can camp out at night! - caring and sharing and an introduction to house keeping.

If a tree house is a daunting project, how about a hedged in area, under a shady tree with a small cemented, shallow pond surrounded by old toys? The pond should not be more than eight inches deep for obvious reasons. Let the child replenish the water whenever required.

Soon frogs and mosquito larvae will be the occupants, leading to an elementary study in Biology! As frogs and tadpoles love the insects, malaria should not be a problem. If the toys are in bad shape, get a bag of cement and mix it with sand. Put old doll heads and animals over bottles, cover with the cement and fix these around the pond. Use bottle caps as buttons embedded in the wet mixture.

If your child is above six years of age, dress her in your old shirt, give her rubber washing gloves and ask her to create her own fairyland. Add cars and garages, wood and brick ramps and discarded pots and you have happy, occupied children who will be out of your hair for hours! The purpose of this exercise? Creativity with a capital “C” and a new life span for the favourite toys that no child wants to part with.

Apart from the ideas mentioned above, old tyres can be hung from trees, as can rope ladders and wind chimes. Throw in a discarded parachute or shamiana and your child will have privacy and fun some thing all children hanker after.

For the hot summer, Forrest Essentials has launched a summer range of hydrating products that are meant to rejuvenate tired and dehydrated skin. This range of skin and spa care products luxuriously buffs and softens the skin to give it a soft sheen and unrivalled smoothness.

Hydrating Sea Salt Crystal Rose Bath Scrub is the ultimate spa skin polish for smoothness and dazzling radiance. Real cane sugar crystals soaked in a sparkling blend of citrus oils with pure tamarind pulp, gives the Hand and Body Cane Sugar and Tamarind Sparkling Body Polish a therapeutic dimension to the body polish.

The story of a special child called Arzoo and her sensitive teacher Lalita Yadav reminds one of Rani Mukherji and Amitabh Bachchan in Black, says Harvinder Khetal

“Only a miracle can cure your daughter,” told the doctor to the parents after the umpteenth battery of tests. Ever since, the god-fearing and religious-minded parents have been showering love on the little girl, hoping for a marvel. In fact, for the father, Raj Kumar, who has a hobby of visiting places of pilgrimage, his pastime has acquired a new dimension: that of praying specially for Arzoo.

Undaunted by the taunts and torturous comments of people (all behind their backs, of course), the working parents continued to look out for a good day care centre for their beloved Arzoo. When they came across one in Panchkula about one-and-a-half years ago, Raj Kumar was skeptical.

But he began noticing a dramatic improvement in Arzoo’s personality. Oh! It was delightful. Her loosening up, no more of cowering in fear in front of strangers. In fact, even daring to hug a completely new guest in the house…. The little things that kids do for the “first time” that light up the eyes of parents. Even though in Arzoo’s case the responses were coming a bit late in life. She is almost 10.

The child has not only been toilet trained but she can now also change her dress and plays with crèche mates, she claps and dances in a social environment, she is not scared to meet new people and has begun articulating her thoughts and needs and responding to people. Ordinary enough things, but no less than a milestone for those who have known Arzoo.

“Nothing gives me more joy than to see my daughter getting well, to see her laugh and play and be attuned to the world as other kids,” he says, while inaudibly wishing for his hope to be realised.

Finding a good crèche for children is a big relief for working parents. They can go about their job and daily chores with the mind at peace only if they are assured about the well-being of their children back in the play school. It is here that the role of the teacher in charge of the toddlers comes into play. She can fill the child’s life with laughter and warmth with her care and love or leave the child scarred with indifference or strict admonitions.

More so, if the child is special, like Arzoo. Ever since Arzoo was put in the care of Lalita Yadav of the Crèche Centre in Sector 11, Panchkula, the girl seems to have blossomed incredibly. With a subtle combination of love and scolding, Lalita Madam has succeeded in achieving where others failed.

How did she do it? “I treated her like a normal child. If I have to reprimand her for a mistake, I immediately make up by loving her so that she is not put off. Now she obeys me and has picked up a number of skills, like playing the dholki,” says Lalita in a modest manner, mingled with pride for her ward.

“I realise that the parents repose a lot of faith in the crèche staff when they leave their beloved children with us. We have to live up to their expectations and kids just need a loving atmosphere to blossom,” she adds with the wisdom of expertise of dealing with toddlers for 10 years.

Moerover, the success of Lalita with a similar child, Kitty, who has now even started going to school, has given hope to Arzoo’s parents too of seeing her go to a school.

“These are little tasks for a normal child. But for us they are nothing short of a miracle,” says the proud father while giving all credit to Lalita Madam. On the other hand, Lalita modestly credits it to compassion and love that one should feel for a child as also to the support of her husband in her endeavour.

In fact, she had to take exceptional permission from the authorities to admit Arzoo as this model crèche is not for special children.

Run by the Haryana State Council for Child Welfare (HSCCW), the crèche has 20 children of the 0-10 age group. Along with a help provided by the department, it is kept neat and clean by the two women staffers who also have the onerous task of keeping the children fed and entertained with games and toys.

The HSCCW is running 291 creche centres through the Indian Council for Child Welfare, New Delhi. The children get the facilities of day care and nutrition. They also run a number of Bal Bhavans, anganwadi workers’ training centres, de-addiction-cum-rehabilitation centres, special schools for mentally retarded children and welfare projects for street working kids. They organise painting contests for the kids and give away bravery awards on Children’s Day. The parents of the children too stand to benefit at the their family counselling centres.

Age is no bar when it comes to talent. Here’s a 21-year-old Mohali lad who proves this. He is yet to complete his graduation, but he has been teaching stage-acting to the students of Yadvindra Public School since the past three years. He is Zubin Mehta.

Zubin has been associated with theatre since the past 10 years and has worked with city based theatre personalities like Umesh Kant and Gursharan Singh. He is also associated with Sarghikala Kendra, a Mohali-based theatre group.

Zubin has acted in plays like Samp Seedi, Gagan Damama Bajeya, Raja resham lal ke naye kapde and many others.

Not only this, he has co-ordinated a performance oriented theatre workshop in Doon International School and another similar workshop in Delhi Public School too.

Currently, he is undertaking a 15-day acting workshop for kids above seven years of age. The workshop is going on in Bal Bhavan, Mohali where he is teaching the fundamentals of acting like voice training, lingoes and body language.

He says, “A few of the students were shy to begin with. I made them play a game where they were to imagine themselves to be wild animals in a jungle. They enjoyed it and opened up afterwards.”

He feels that nowadays parents are more aware and making their child to participate in such workshops as these are one of the excellent options for the all-round development of the child. Things were not as easy in his time.

Theatre for him is something that relates him with the masses directly. “Acting is not being emotional, but being able to express emotions,” he says.

And guess what teaching kids has been beneficial for him too for “children have these strange ways of educating adults and spending so much time in their company has educated me as well”.

A ‘Home sweet home’ is everyone’s dream. And to convert it into reality, one puts in the best of his efforts. But the fruits of his dream turn sour when this much-cherished possession poses troubles to his prosperity and then he wonders where did he go wrong? The answer to the question lies in vaastu shastra, says Architect Mayank Barjataya, a trained building biologist from Pune, who visited Chandigarh recently.

While practicing architecture, he couldn’t ignore the unhealthiness residing in his creations and decided to find a solution to this problem. He then went to France and Germany to study this field. Explaining about vaastu he says, “It is not about rectifying concrete structures but refers to the orientation of an individual’s physical energy with that of his environment. The human energy field is divided into four zones- mental, vital, physical and psychic axes, whereas three energy fields affect human process cycle- cosmic, global and geopathic. Disharmony between the two forces gives rise to problems.”

To bring the forces into perfect balance, Mayank uses scientific instruments such as lecher antenna. It measures the vibrations of energy meridians (charkas) of an individual and the readings on the scale not only help him identify the problem but also find a solution to it without even visiting the premises.

Rectifying the building’s structure by breaking and rebuilding is not what he recommends. “Destruction brings negativity. One should always install some instrument to drive away the negative energy like copper Swastika, or wooden pyramid.” A nine-directional energy plate can be used by everyone to shield negativity as vaastu balances nine directions and five elements. While talking about the difference between Feng Shui and vaastu, he asserts that feng shui is subjective to religion while vaastu is not. “It is a building science suitable for everyone around the globe,” he says.

Even health ailments can be treated through it as the disorientation of energy affects the immune system.

Currently Mayank is working on the concept of Indian Green. It is a consensus based standard for developing high performance, sustainable buildings. He defines I-green = Vedic Vastu Shastra norms + Bau-biology principles.

So there is someone who works to make homes and work environment better and sweeter. 

Let Italian cuisine not be mistaken as just fast food. We can now taste the authentic traditional food of Italy here in our town, says Gayatri Rajwade

From seekh kebabs to shish kebabs the epicurean pleasures travel across the Punjabi palate to Mediterranean sun-drenched cuisine at Whispering Willows—the quaint and charming, grassy and leafy country retreat at Zirakpur—serving up a reviving reverie of food.

Sifting some happy moments from the colourful mish-mash of childhood memories, one comes across a lot. Flashes of playing cricket with friends, biking expeditions, delightful school picnics and ofcourse, eating till the belly would almost burst. And when it came to eating with friends, there were many treats that the humble road sellers frequenting one’s home street would provide.

The most endearing, if not most popular, among these was gulping a frizzy mass of fluff cotton, sugary sweet and deeply coloured. With its size almost bigger than the average human head, this fascinating mass of coloured cotton, would melt-in-the-mouth, mingle with saliva and become sticky!

And no prizes for guessing this one. For, think food that fascinated most during childhood and what pops up in the mind is the cotton candy or candy floss, as its now called. Sold at circuses, fairs and other jovial events, this sweet and sticky candy often arouses a lot of interest when watched being made. Though generally rich pink in colour, its also available in purple, lemon, orange and blue.

Fondly called budhhi mai da jhatta (an old woman’s uncombed hair), the candyfloss has again shot back into prominence in its branded avtaar. Called Kotton Kandy, this high profile cotton candy has been launched by Kreative Food Solutions. Sold at Rs. 25 per piece (as against the Rs. 5 per helping from the rehriwala candy man) this sweety delight is available at Wah Dilli and Fun Republic.

So how’s the branded cousin different from yesterday’s humble Buddhi mai da jhatta. Explains Navpreet Singh, proprietor Kreative Food Solutions, “Our Kotton Kandy is very hygienic, besides being available in four different colours, that correspond with the four flavours in which we’ve launched our Kotton Kandy—Strawberry, Orange, chocholate and green apple. We also have a candy tree, wherein we hang 20 Kandies at a time and kids get fascinated and pluck them, while parents get embarrassed and rush to pay, “ he laughs.

No wonder, kids are loving every part of these Kotton Kandies. After all, doesn’t childhood seem incomplete with out them?

A lot many of us change our eating behavior in summer. The warmer weather puts us in the mood for salads and lighter meals. Some of us also lighten our calorie counts to lose those few extra kilos that built up over a long winter.

It is too hot to eat out in summers. So, one has to find other alternatives. Nothing provides more respite than homely food, prepared and served differently.

The grandmother’s abode is a place everyone looks forward to- the summer holidays, sunny picnics and to die for food. It is in the vein of a reimbursement, for all the drudgery one has gone through in the foregoing days. But, what about the unlucky chaps who are devoid of this peerless souvenir? They can tag along this piece:

A lot many of us change our eating behavior in summer. The warmer weather puts us in the mood for salads and lighter meals. Some of us also lighten our calorie counts to lose those few extra kilos that built up over a long winter.

Now, the problem embarks on regarding which foodstuffs should be consumed and which should be given a backseat for the time being. The seasonal fruits and vegetables must be incorporated in the daily regime. One can always depend on Aam ka panna, lassi and most vitally, the nimbu paani.

As the saying goes, ‘‘ Roz piyo dudh, dahi te lassi, na lage garmi na pave susti’’

Try staying away from eating out and lay preference on ghar ka khana. Have a cool drink eveytime you set your feet inside the house, but keep way back from cold drinks. Do not skip meals, particularly the first meal of the day- Breakfast. Include lots of green and leafy options to your food. Take in chutneys made from coriander, tomatoes or mint with you meals, this will not only help beat the heat but also keep the digestive system clean.

Try raitas of lauki or alu, you can also have cucumber and curd salads. Lessen the use of onions and garlic and cook food in light oil. Rice can be ignored and one can have khicharis instead. Intake of spices, specifically chillies should be lessened.

‘‘ When one has to beat the heat, one should avoid spicy treat.’’

For lighter and healthier summer meals, one can:

• Try eating berries. Apart from being delicious, they are healthy as well.

• Try some low fat, pea and mint soup that can be served hot or cold.

• A spinach and strawberry salad is loaded with vitamins.

In summers, try to shun fried and fast foods.

You might remember what your mother’s said about having a light dinner to have pleasant dreams, when you were small.

Well, this does hold true, as we have a troubled sleep if we consume a heavy dinner. Take a small stroll after dinner for a good and hearty sleep.

All said and done, one keynote for staying fit in summers, ‘‘ Don’ t indulge in overloading your system and have lots of fluids.’’