|
|
The fading moments of Mughal glory
and the tragedy that followed the 
First War of Independence in 1857
have been
revived in public memory as the campaign to bring back the
mortal
remains of the last Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar is set afloat
Bahadur Shah
Zafar
Will
exile end?
Nirupama Dutt
The
lament of the last of the proud Mughal emperors, Bahadur Shah
Zafar, remains ever alive in the collective consciousness of the
subcontinent in which the emperor who was also a poet cried out of his
misfortune at not being able to avail of the two yards of land in his
beloved country: Kitna hai badnaseeb Zafar dafn ke liye/Do gaz
zameen bhi na mili koo-e-yaar mein. These two lines are embedded
in the Indian psyche are indeed a part of popular culture. This
couplet still has the power to sadden the human heart to let out a
helpless grieved sigh.
Autumn of an Emperor: Oil painting of Bahadur Shah Zafar by Austrian artist August Schoefft now in the Lahore Museum collection
ARTS
'ART & SOUL
Celebrating
a life
A recent exhibition on Anasuya
Sarabhai, popularly known as Motaben, paid a tribute to the courageous
woman, who worked selflessly for the uplift of the less fortunate
B.N.Goswamy
The
exhibition I saw recently at the India International Centre in
Delhi — moving in content, elegant in presentation — was a tribute
to the one person who lived her life by the above-cited words: Anasuya
Sarabhai. In many ways, it could be seen as an act of homage of one
icon — Ela Bhatt, founder of that great voluntary organisation, SEWA
— to another, for Elaben has always seen herself as someone who has
followed in the achingly simple but distinguished footsteps of Anasuya
Sarabhai. Each of them adopted and fought for causes, each of them in
her own fashion.
broad
brush
FITNESS
Refine your ways,
not your food
Processed foods and products made
from maida are bad for our health. These permit us to become
overfed and under-nourished because these provide empty calories
It
appears that most of us live to eat. A client once said that
after a nerve-wrecking day at the office, the only way he could let
off the steam is by eating a mouth watering pani puri or a
juicy Frankfurter or some spicy bhel or may be a pastry.
Health Capsules
Society
Mountains are
terrestrial too
Rain-ravaged Uttarakhand is an
example of the consequences of tampering with nature and forests
Deepak Rikhye
An
ancient Chinese saying has prophetic undertones. "If you
cheat the earth, the earth will cheat you". Recent reports have
described rain-ravaged Uttarakhand, as "rain fury". The
devastation has been tragic. Almost all hill stations have become an
ideal destination for anyone wanting to escape the heat during a
summer season. Each hill station is now confronted with a situation
never envisaged before. The after-effects of an increase in tourists
has created a desideratum within that hill station. Accommodation in
the form of hotels and homes have to be increased. If there is no
space available within the hill station, buildings and allied
development move to the suburbs.
TRAVEL
The charm and attractions of
Mussoorie are still undiminished despite the recent disaster in
Uttarakhand
The magic of
high living
Hugh and Colleen Gantzer
This
morning, a cloud breezed through our front door. We live two km
up in the sky and clouds are our companions. Particularly now when
rain drizzles like a silver shower and a visitor from Chandigarh was
delighted with something we take for granted. He said "Imagine
wearing a sweater in July! Wonderful!" Then he and his family
drifted out of their room, shopping, snacking ... we have a
particularly friendly bhutta-wala ... and breathing in our
oak-filtered, mist-moistened, mountain-cooled air. Our mountains are
young and, like all infants, they throw occasional tantrums which hurt
those near and dear to them. But no one disowns an infant because of a
tantrum. And we thank our mountains that, recently, they have not been
upset.
Globetrotting
ENTERTAINMENT
Gulabi
Gang
— A different story
Nishtha Jain’s documentary on
Gulabi Gang traces the journey of its founder Sampat Pal. The film
shows how an individual’s crusade turned into a veritable movement
by women against gender violence, and caste oppression
Shoma A. Chatterji
Gulabi
Gang is a documentary
film made by Nishtha Jain, who has honed her skills in making
meaningful documentaries often centered on women and which win awards
or gain recognition. The film won Best Film Award in Muhr Asia Africa
documentary section at the 9th Dubai Film Festival, which happens to
be one of the many awards it has been collecting at different
festivals across the world. Jain received a $25,000 grant from the
Sundance Documentary Film Program.
I
am not pretentious
There is something about PC. Be
it her films or her singles, whatever she touches, becomes a hit
Sreya Basu
Now that your
international single Exotic - featuring American rapper Pitbull
is topping music charts worldwide, tell us what makes you exotic?
I think every part of me is exotic.
television
|
