Girls just wanna have fun!
Offering plenty in form of fun, early closing hours and no men, ladies are living their Cinderella dream on a Wednesday night
They party hard and wild, minus the guys and at some of the hottest spots. And when it comes to having an evening of fun, women know how and where of it. Well, no prizes for guessing who's cashing on the concept— it’s various pubs and bars scattered around the city. Offering plenty in form of fun, early closing hours and only girl's, ladies are living out their Cinderella dream.

But(t) naturally
Our city men prefer curves to size zero
Vital stats: Absolutely vital a knowledge for men to have about their lady (we never said that the importance of knowing it dips with other ladies). Probably the second thing men notice in a woman after her face (given a choice, preference would change any time, any day) and given a choice even matrimonial ads that usually begin with the fair, slim beautiful, would read thus, "Seeking a girl with AB-CD-EF, fair, beautiful….", the rest of the credentials will vary as per suitability." So what does men want, a size zero or meandering curves? We thought of becoming their voice and asked them to have their pick. And, the gentlemen proudly pronounced, with just the sole condition, "Anonymity. Please assure me that you won't mention my name," only to leave us zapped.

Treading carefully
Swine flu is making its presence felt in the psyche of students
Balmy winter afternoons, fancy cars and jeeps parked lazily at the Stu C, hot cups of coffee to go with a mini thali. A diligent exchange of library notes, and a quiet conversation taking place between a pretty girl and a spiky-haired dude. Life on the campus is on the usual move, save for the rumours floating in the air for some days now. The swine flu scare, and its devilish tendency to attack unexpectedly! And now, it has made it to the most talked about things list on the campus as well. How, where, when, what if, what to do, just in case, which medicine, how many recent cases…anything and everything regarding the swine flu is being discussed at length. On a practical footing, we see how the students are dealing with the scare.

Dhol wajda
Rock is fine, but nothing can beat the sound of dhol
Rock night, celebrity deejays, Punjabi singers, and stand-up comedians, give the university crowd the best. But, when it comes to a cultural fest, nothing but the traditional flavour that goes down well with them. Whether it is a Haryanavi dance from Kurukshetra University, a Rajasthani performance or the beats of dhol, the energy of the bhangra and the magic of jhumar, traditional dance forms have always ruled the roost at these fests. A head banging, pulsating performance from the Rock band are apetitisers, real fun begins with the traditional live performances. The aahoo, aahoo, eyha, eyha, the crowd goes ecstatic, girls and boys alike. So, what is it about the dhol, the bholis, the jhumar that evokes such jubilation?

A virtual lull
When the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks happened last year, the tremors also shook the virtual world. Filled with rage and a passion to set things right, people, especially youngsters, used the web world to create discussion forums and pledged not to let the carnage be forgotten. A year later, most of these groups have fizzled out. The entries are months old, and the discussions, if at all, are on random topics. Take the example of one such group created on the popular social networking site, Facebook. "Mumbai Terror Attacks: I condemn it" was created soon after the terror siege of the country's business capital on the night of Nov 26, 2008. The three-day mayhem by 10 terrorists left 166 dead and 244 injured.

Lodge in
Kashmir emerges as a career destination for youngsters
"Earlier situation in Kashmir was bad and there was no scope in tourism as not many people used to come here. But now the entire hotel industry has changed as the situation has improved here. Now there is no militancy here and no militant activity takes place.

The German Connection
Barbara Hoegner brings Berlin a step closer to City Beautiful
It wasn't planned or deliberate. Actually, it took Barbara Hoegner, the photographer from Germany, by surprise when she saw pictures of Chandigarh and Le Corbusier building in Berlin juxtaposed. She photographed Le Corbusier's work in Chandigarh in 2005 that was later put up on display in Berlin. In 2008, she clicked Le Corbusier building in Berlin and held an exhibition of the photographs.

Remembering Surinder
Dolly Guleria pays tribute to her mother on her eightieth birth anniversary
"Jeene ke zamaane mein toh sab jeete hein/ Jo mar ke jiye , jahan mein naam uska hai.. rightly relates to the melody queen Surinder Kaur who strode like colossal on the firmament of filmy and Punjabi folk music. Endowed with mellifluous voice she was a singer par excellence and merged as a legend in her lifetime. Born on November 25, 1929 at Lahore, Surinder Kaur while in her teens gave a vocal recital at the Lahore radio, which was highly appreciated and she never looked back there after. However the spirit, the flow of cultural nuances as cultivated by the legend in her gayaki with ethical standards have been maintained, fairly preserved, nourished and propagated by her daughter, Dolly Guleria, a folk and Sufi music maestro.

The heat is on
If we talk of the winter and home, the mind immediately races towards the much-needed accessory for those foggy days and chilly nights — heaters, blowers and those elegant fireplaces. Though a fireplace is particularly associated with life in the hills, one can always add that touch of romance in plains too. If your house doesn't have a pre-fixed fireplace, you can still experience the warmth and the ambiance with a fake one. These alternatives to wood-burning fireplaces are less expensive and much easier to install. Moving away from gas to electric ones, people now are going for even gel-fueled fireplaces for their convenience and style.