The Sunday school
"I want to become an astronaut," says a regular Class X student, an expected answer to an inevitable question. "But what are you doing about it today?" asks Anurag Kashyap. "I go to coaching classes," says the boy. "But you should be buying a telescope instead," it's Anurag again. And, that provided the stimulus to all the aspiring doctors, engineers and astronauts of tomorrow at the Dikshant International School, Zirakpur, in an interactive session with the Bollywood director.

Students of Dikshant International School in a creative interaction with Anurag Kashyap

Class apart 
For singer KK, there are no alternatives to good singing
It was a mere fluke. We called up at Hotel Mountview reception and asked them to connect to KK, who was in town to perform at Chandigarh Carnival. KK answered the call and after some persuading he was ready for the interview. We don't mean to say we were smart, but KK was humble, as usual. After a hectic journey and a live performance scheduled for the Sunday evening, the celebrated singer talked at length about his singing, ambitions and personal life, the reason we used the adjective genuinely--humble. Not a single Page 3 party, no film premier or awards ceremony, KK hasn't attended any in all these years. Hasn't caught glamour infection, has no plans to break records, more surprisingly he hasn't even judged a single reality show till date or given much TV interviews.

No bikini babe this!
VJ-turned-actor Shenaz Treasurywala, who plays a simple, sweet girl in forthcoming flick Radio, says she has rejected quite a few roles requiring her to wear bikinis and do item numbers...not that she doesn't wear swimsuits in real life. "I did reject quite a few offers that required me to wear a bikini and do item numbers. That is not where I want to go with my career. Also, there are lots of bikini and item girls out there. They are fabulous at what they do; I don't judge them at all. But then I don't want to join them or compete with them," Shenaz says. "I'll do what the role requires me to do. I am professional. As long as it's required and the film really needs it. It should not be there just to sell tickets but to tell a story.

Whiter than white

Bollywood actors Abhishek Bachchan (L) and his wife Aishwarya Rai Bachchan pose for a photograph during the unveiling ceremony of Madhushala (the house of wine), a book of poems by late writer Harivansh Rai Bachchan, in Mumbai. REUTERS/Manav Manglani

Kind gesture
Proceeds from Rajneeti go to charity
Prakash Jha has completed the shooting of his film Raajneeti, a multistarrer in which Bollywood beauty Katrina Kaif will be seen the avatar of a politician. And the proceeds of the movie will go to charity.

Shammi better than SRK
Shammi is a born dancer, says Asha Parekh
Veteran actress Asha Parekh prefers yesteryear's heartthrob Shammi Kapoor over Bollywood Baadshah Shahrukh Khan when it comes to dancing. Parekh said that Kapoor, who was his first co-star in 1959 Dil Deke Dekho, continues to be her favourite actor till date.

Border beckons
Suniel recalls his role in olive green
Bollywood actor Suniel Shetty felt great when defence personnel called him as one among them, thanks to his memorable role in famous Director J P Dutta's movie Border.

Fair is foul, and foul is fair
Shakespeare's Macbeth has attracted innumerable presentations on stage, films, television, opera and books over the centuries. Students of the Department of Indian theatre are all set to present their version of it to the city audience.

Power on Wheels
Fiat Diesel Drives India continued its seventh leg by leaving the evergreen city of Chandigarh to head on towards Palampur, Narkanda and Dhanaulti. Having gotten the chance to experience the mesmerising Punjab countryside, the four Fiat MULTIJET beauties took on the looming mountains and deep valleys of the North. The route for this leg was amongst the most scenic in India and is sure to get the participants in jubilant and excited spirits. The seventh leg started from New Delhi on November 27 and will return to New Delhi on December1.

Mirror image
Art-N-Glass Inc marked its entry in the region by opening its exclusive showroom in Chandigarh on Sunday. The new outlet in Manimajra is also the first Art-N-Glass Inc exclusive studio showroom up north of New Delhi. The new studio offers total glass solutions to architects, interior decorators, Corporates and connoisseur homemakers. Wide and comprehensive ranges of world class glass furniture, sanitation, decorative items, interior decorative solutions and glass exterior glazing solutions will be provided at the new outlet.

Classic creation
The Indian classical music, in fact, is a wonder of spontaneous musical improvisations born out of the artiste's mind and perception originating in an innate feeling but expressed through creative measures and techniques. Going by this belief the acclaimed musicians have brought innovative changes in their singing style or musical instruments they play. While Sitar maestro Pandit Debu Choudhry switched on a seventeen-fret sitar from the conventional one, Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt improvised his Hawaian guitar christening it mohan veena.

Spice up
Beauty & bride
A salon makeover for brides has become popular in India. It includes top-to-toe grooming, along with skin and hair care. As for bridal make-up, it has become a specialised skill, combining tradition with modern make-up techniques. So has bridal hairstyling. The entire bridal-care programme can spread over a week, or longer, culminating in the actual make-up, hairstyling and 'dressing-up' in the bridal attire, on the wedding day itself.

Tasty bytes
Why certain food stimulates us and others don't?
Liquor, beer, wine and the likes quite unnecessarily share a bad reputation (we don't mean they are good either). This is not to tell you how harmful alcohol is for us as we have had enough studies suggesting the same. Harmful for health, nil nutritional value and the strongest justification to abhor alcohol is that it's addictive. But on a pragmatic note, we realised, alcohol is not the only one which is addictive. There are more, some of them being more addictive than the often-blamed alcohol. What else makes people gulp down 20 cups of tea in a day? Or, coffee for that matter?

Not so perfect
It's unhealthy to have excessively high standards when organising things
Planning the perfect evening with friends might leave you all drained out- what with those customised invitations, looking for appetizer plates with matching serving platters and table decor. At times, a relaxed and imperfect approach towards organising small get-togethers can be a better way to relish time with friends and family.Here are some ways to banish your quest for perfection during the holidays: Learn to distinguish between healthy high standards and perfectionism.

Scent-imental
The next time you show up for a job interview or for a date, ensure that you have taken care of your body odour or else be prepared to face the consequences.

Body wise
Brain gain 
For years many exercise enthusiasts have believed that exercise positively affects the brain as well as the body. But while it seemed logical that an active lifestyle would help the brain, its scientific evidence was lacking. But now new research suggests that working out does benefit the brain. Physical exercise encourages a normal brain to function at its optimum level. The brain is a part of the human body, which is made up of cells, nourished by a rich network of blood vessels, and its health is closely related to the overall health of your heart and circulatory system. So therefore cardiovascular fitness is important for optimum brain functioning.