Power to all our friends
NGOs formed by students get dormant after the initial burst of enthusiasm. What they need is a booster dose
Who doesn't have teething troubles? Are the student NGOs any different? The bad part is they haven't continued in fifth gear. The better part is they're ignited, charged up and driven enough to cruise through speed-breakers. The best part is they want to keep up, continue, rather accelerate the good work…

                                                            Environment Saviors

Lighting up lives
Deepalaya, a non-profit organisation, supports the overall development of underprivileged children, their families and communities
Education is the tool that empowers the marginalised to make informed choices, resist oppression, claim rights and expand their opportunities— T.K. Mathew
They set out on a noble mission. They kept their aim high, achieved it and are going strong. T.K. Mathew, secretary and chief executive of Deepalaya - 'the house of light' - a non-profit organisation that supports the overall development of underprivileged children, their families and communities, shares how, along with two office-bearers of Marthoma church, they began the journey.

Classical treat
The First Haryana Contemporary Art Exhibition begins
If it wasn't for cultural heritage, we would be as good as aliens. Everything regarding us or on us would have been an issue for debate, contemplation and comprehension. Thank god, heritage makes us what we are! One such event that would showcase our rich cultural heritage is the First Haryana Contemporary Art Exhibition.

Let the child choose 
Parents often guide the career choices of their wards, which not only builds up stress but can also lead to rebellion
Parents often have high expectations from their children insofar as careers are concerned and this sets up a classic situation of stress and early burnout. More often than not, it leaves little space for the child to explore, assess and choose. "Parental expectations can work both ways, positive as well as negative," says Ranjay Vardhan, a city-based sociologist. "With small families now, where there are not more than two children in a particular household, the stress levels on them increases manifold," he adds.

Worked up!
Workplace woes impact personal life
Workplace woes do impact personal life because half the people regularly bring them home, according to a new study. Researchers measured the extent to which work was interfering with personal time using data from a national survey of 1,800 American workers.
Scott Schieman, a sociology professor at the University of Toronto (UT), and his co-authors Melissa Milkie (University of Maryland) and doctoral student Paul Glavin (UT) based their findings on the survey. 

BOND WAGON
Their best bond
Relationship: Mother-daughter
Time together: 21 years
Same-to-same: Fond of shopping for clothes and accessories; the duo hunts every possible place in their city Patiala.

Fair tales
Women are more likely than men to pick up books tales of rape, murder and serial killers, a new study has found. Many people might assume that men, being the more aggressive sex, would be most likely to find such gory topics interesting. However, it's the fairer sex that finds such books appealing and what makes these books appealing to women are relevant in terms of preventing or surviving a crime.

Renee Writes
Reach out with love
I am 29 and I have realised that I am going through life with a chip on my shoulder. I view everything in life from a negative perspective. Whatever the situation I am in, I never seem to be happy. I realised this the other day when I was having lunch with a friend and we were discussing something I was unhappy about, the lunch place. Then looking back, I realised that I never seem to enjoy any situation. I am always looking at what could have been instead of what is. I am always miserable. I have just been through a bad marriage where my husband made a fool of me. I feel my one bad choice in life has left a very unshakeable impression on me. How can I change myself? I need help.

Relatively speaking
Great expectations
Parents today invariably decide the career of their children at the time of his or her birth. With each passing year, many strings of expectations are interwoven into this dream. And when the child reaches an age where he or she wants to pick a particular career, the parents' choice is more often than not thrust on them. But parents should keep an open mind and decide after assessing the interests of the child before guiding him or her. Force or manipulation should not be used in such cases.

How real is this?
Reality shows will now preach morality and then sell it
It is a truth universally acknowledged that reality shows are mean, cruel, and dangerously adventurous. Name a single reality show that hasn't lived up to the image and we bet it must have died an untimely death! But then even death is worth a million bucks when its television. The reason, there is soon going to be a reality show where people will volunteer to get mummified. Weird? Preposterous? No. That's just television.
                                                                      Mahayatra—Rishton Ka Anokha Safar

Of human bondage
An exhibition by Pradip Kumar Sau showcases the unending materialistic pursuits of man
The same old issue has been taken up for the same old reason - human beings have become so materialistic that they lose out on the little pleasures of life. All 15 paintings by Pradip Kumar Sau, on display at the Art Folio-9, have a human face, a triangle and many human figures. The three features are enough to send across the message strongly - the face is expressionless; the triangle depicts the pinnacle of success that all aim at while human figures, drawn as a swarm of bees, portray how everyone is chasing worldly pleasures.

Movies & more
Airtel digital TV, the DTH service from Bharti Airtel, announced the television premiere of two Punjabi blockbuster films on its PPV (Pay per View) on the occasion of Lohri. Jag Jeondeyan De Mele and Heer Ranjha starring actor and singer Harbhajan Mann. These movies are being released within months of their theatrical launch on Thursday, January 14 at Rs 35 each. Airtel digital TV also announced that select lucky customers who book the movies in the first three days will receive free music CDs of Heer Ranjha.

Cheer for children
A toy library opens in Panchkula
Does your child get bored of the same toys everyday? Well, they now have a reason to rejoice as Juju Beans Toy Library has opened in Sector 8, Panchkula. Wondering what, according to owners, Vani and Sameer Seth, "It provides ample choice of hundreds of toys, games, books, educational kits, interactive CDs and VCDs, computer games and outdoor games on rental basis to kids of age group new born to 12 yrs."

Sach ka samna
Rann does not show media in bad light, says Ramu
Ram Gopal Varma says his upcoming film Rann, about a television baron played by Amitabh Bachchan, exposes the true colours of media but does not portray it in bad light.Verma, popularly known as RGV, says that his latest venture is not about media-bashing because it is not a singular entity, but a system. "I expose the media by showing its true colours...the pressures, problems and complexities in running a 24 hour news channel," Varma said.

Piggy picks
Bollywood’s number game is too fickle, says Priyanka Chopra
Priyanka Chopra was marching towards the top with back-to-back hits Dostana and Fashion in 2008. Last year her Kaminey succeeded and if What's Your Raashee? had worked, she would have certainly come closer to being number one. But the actor refuses to get drawn into the numbers game. "When a couple of my films would succeed at the box office, then people would start commenting 'Oh yes, you are at the number one spot'. But one flop later they may end up stating arrey, yeh spot toh thoda hil gaya," Priyanka said.

In a new avatar
Is Krrish's sequel feasible after Avatar?
It looks like James Cameron's Avatar has affected Bollywood in unexpected ways. Director Rakesh Roshan is having second thoughts about making the sequel to Krrish after watching the Hollywood sci-fi saga. However, he thinks it is possible to create effects on par with Hollywood."I saw the film (Avatar) in Los Angeles. And it certainly made me sit up and re-think about Krrish. But I don't think it is impossible to create effects on par with Hollywood. We need to budget the sequel intelligently," he said.

Ek garam chai ka pyala ho…

Actor Aamir Khan at a press conference of Tata Tea in Mumbai. Photo Shashank Parade

Like father, like son
Shaking a leg with Mithun was great, says son Mimoh
Mimoh, son of veteran Bollywood actor and dancing star of the 80s, Mithun Chakravarthy, says shaking a leg with his father on screen was a great experience. "In my upcoming movie Spaghetti 24X7, I not only share the screen space with my father, but also have a dance sequence with him," Mimoh said.

Break ke baad
 Fresh after a break, Tanushree has three movies in her kitty
Bollywood actor Tanushree Datta, who did not have a single release in 2009, says the decision was deliberate as she needed a break, and it has not affected her career at all. "After my debut in 2005, I had done almost 15 films till 2008, with Saas Bahu and Sensex being the last. Hence, I thought it was time to slow down," Tanushree Datta, fresh after a self-imposed year-long hibernation, said. "I needed time to take a break and think about my career and come back with a better perspective," she said.