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A
diplomat’s diary
Maintaining diplomatic
links with China has always been a tightrope walk for Indian leaders
and diplomats. K. Natwar Singh
shares the highs and lows of his experiences with China in his book My
China Diary. Excerpts:
IF
I were asked to name one achievement in my 50 years’ involvement in
foreign affairs and diplomacy, I would, with pride, point to the
breakthrough in Sino-Indian relations in December 1988. Prime Minister
Rajiv Gandhi’s visit was a landmark event, with wide ramifications.
Rajiv Gandhi appointed me as Minister of State for External Affairs in
October 1986. Within three weeks of taking over, I arrived at certain
conclusions.
Rajiv’s meeting with
Deng Xiaoping
MUCH
excitement in the Indian delegation. Meeting with Deng Xiaoping fixed
at 10:30 am at the Great Hall of the People. Deng appeared wearing a
grey Mao suit. His opening words were, ‘I welcome you, my young
friend. This is your first journey to China.’
Images
of the Valley
Rare photographs
depicting life in Kashmir since the mid-19th century will be on
display this summer, reports Ehsan
Fazili
A
rare collection of more than 3,500 rare photographs depicting the life
of people, places, rulers, traders and landscapes of Kashmir over a
period of 100 years between 1850s and 1950s will be soon on display.
The collection, known as ‘Nostalgic Kashmir,’ will become a
reality due to the efforts of Wasim Showkat Wani, a young hotelier in
the Nehru Park area, near Dal Lake, who has collected these over a
period of nine years through personal collections, museums and other
sources, both local and outsiders.
In quest of art
Nonika
Singh on D C Bhattacharyya, who is being honoured by the Asiatic Society of Kolkata
for his contribution to art history
IF you have the
questions, I have the answers", says eminent art historian D. C.
Bhattacharyya. In fact, it is this quest to know the answers that put
him on the path of research some 50 years ago leading to a momentous
odyssey en route which he has contributed to the Dictionary of World
Art, besides having penned 15 books and more than 100 articles in
leading national and international journals.
Ladder to stars
Built by Sawai Jai Singh
of Jaipur, Jantar Mantars have accurately predicted the position of
stars for almost three centuries besides serving as giant masonry
clocks that follow the movements of the sun and the moon, writes Mukesh
Khosla
Oracles and astrologers
have often said that human beings have cosmic origins and their
destiny is inextricably linked to stars. Even in the modern world many
believe that planets influence a person’s fate. The science of the
zodiac is based on this premise.
Year of
the women
Sansar Chandra
takes a look at the new Samvatsara-2066 that starts on March 27
THE new Samvatsara-2066
will start this week. Although the new Vikrama year will start
at 9.35 p.m. on Thursday (March 26), but according to our astrological
code, the first bright lunar day (Chaitra Shukla Pratipada) has
to operate at sunrise to be designated as Samvatsara day. So Friday,
March 27, corresponding with Chaitra 14th will be the new Samvatsara
Day.
FTII
is a golden jubilee hit
The Film and TV
Institute of India at Pune, which will soon enter its 50th year, has
nurtured hundreds of artistes, writes Rajendra
Rajan after a visit to India’s premier film institute
BUT
for his desire to attain excellence in sound mixing, Resul Pookutty
would not have enrolled in the Sound Engineering Course at the Film
and TV Institute of India some years back. He failed in the first
attempt, kept on reading books on sound engineering and passed in the
next attempt. Today, Pookutty is an Oscar winner. He picked up the
Academy Award for sound mixing in Slumdog Millionaire.
society
Kantha
on modern
wear
Stitch needlework, or kantha,
once confined to rural households of West Bengal, has been revived by
entrepreneur Shamlu Dudeja, who has introduced the art on saris and
even western wear. Today she has over 800 women in employment, and her
clothes with kantha designs are retailed in outlets all over the
world, writes Ajitha
Menon
AS a girl of nine,
Shamlu Dudeja remembers embroidering paisleys on tea-pot covers under
the tutelage of a Bengali crafts teacher in Delhi. Little did she
realise then that this running stitch needlework, or kantha as
it is popularly known in West Bengal, would become her weapon for
empowering women.
I won’t starve to be a
size
zero
Sreya Basu
You had four flops last
year (Love Story 2050, God Tussi Great Ho, Chamku, Dostana).
Still you began 2009 with winning an award for Fashion. Shall
we call it luck or confidence?
Both. I am on cloud 9 to
have begun the year winning the Star Screen Awards Best Actress for Fashion.
In fact, I have become greedy after this award. Now I would like to
win all the awards of this season.
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