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Reel coach Shahrukh has ignited their imagination & the Chak De song is the city women hockey team’s newest anthem Time: 4 a.m. Date: One of the 365 days Venue: Sector 18 stadium 16 girls, 10 rounds of the ground, 50 push-ups, 20 minutes of stepping and stretching, 60 minutes of kicking, stopping and passing, 22 hours a day. And then the battle begins. Friends turn to foes. A warm hug into a shove. Several scoops, flicks, pushes, hits and centre passes later, the women in blue are just getting started. So, while girls their age indulge in aroma facials, manicures and designer outfits, the idea of falling flat on the ground saving or scoring a goal is what keeps them going. Tomboys, rowdy, loud — these girls are happy to be sportswomen. Talk to them about the forthcoming Chak De India and ask them to imagine SRK as coach and the unruly players, for a very brief moment, let the girl in them take the forefront. “Who wouldn’t like to jog with Shahrukh at Sukhna?” they chuckle. We catch up with the young, feisty girls as they sweat and toil to manoeuvre the ball into the opponent’s net. “It’s time hockey has a brand ambassador. And, if the movie can make Shahrukh as one, then can we ask for more,” chorus the girls. Smiles goalkeeper Navneet, “Forget one World Cup, I would give in my best to grab many trophies in a row for him.” Playing for five years now, she smiles, “But I am not sure if I would like to share my coach’s attention with the rest of the team.” Chips in Jaspreet, position right half, “It is a tough game. Perhaps his presence will ease pressure.” Jaspreet played the senior national this March. But, why a male coach? “The game is all about discipline and one gets a little free and frank with a female coach,” they confess. For four years, the girls have been training under S.K. Goswami, who has to her credit 12 wins in national tournaments and has been a coach for 20 years. On a serious note, the girls say they need much more than a good-looking coach. The problems are many — the Sector 42 turf has no slot for girl players, the game needs to be promoted at the national level, parents should be educated on the importance of sports, schools need to support students who take up sports and much more. “The game lacks glamour, and if SRK can add that to the game, then nothing like that,” they echo. “Each time we watch snapshots of the movie, we get goose bumps,” they giggle. And, not surprising they have been humming the Chak De song as their anthem. And if you thought all girls are happy with King Khan as coach, you are mistaken. Rajrani, position centre half, would rather strike the ball with Salman. Neelam, an inter-college player, says she loves Shahrukh as an actor but not as coach. They tell us that Mahima Chaudhury, too, was seen as the brand ambassador for the game a few years back. And while they may disagree on the star coach, the team speaks unanimously on one issue — be it Shahrukh or Goswami, nothing and nobody can alter their love for the game. “Once in the field, it is the fighting spirit that matters,” they tell. Whether the movie scores at the box office or not is not their concern. “It is a matter of pride and honour that a movie is being made on the subject. It is a good way to let the people peep into our strict schedule and the struggle that goes behind winning,” says Ramandeep Kaur, a state-level player. “But, it would have been nice if real players had been chosen for the reel,” feels the team. In fact, the team did bump into the Yash Raj crew on a star hunt at the Jabalpur nationals this year. Say the girls, “They should have come to Punjab for the perfect cast. Who can beat the soni Punjabans when it comes to beauty, vigour and talent?” Well, we agree. And, while SRK will be off to Australia to promote the flick and Yash Raj Films will be dealing with controversies, our girl brigade says they will be there to catch the first day, first show.
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Glow Green The
dream-like ambience of your living room, illuminated by a string of strategically fitted electric bulbs, will not prick your conscience any more. All you have to do is replace them with compact fluorescent lamps, commonly know as CFLs. And the motivation to do so is aplenty. Not only has the Chandigarh Administration initiated a process of replacing incandescent bulbs with CFLs in 500 sample households, there is a local chapter of Greenpeace, an environment related voluntary organisation, which is motivating people to do so. And, they have started an online petition to the Union power minister demanding a ban on bulbs. The volunteers of Greenpeace have already collected 5,000 signatures, online and off-line, in support of their demand. “It’s not that people of the city are not aware about the benefits of CFLs. They are. At least 50 per cent of the residents have either already switched over to CFLs or aware about its power saving quality. Now we are trying to sensitise all stratas of the society,” says Bipin Singh Rajput, key donor co-ordinator of Greenpeace. The campaign was kicked off on April 18 in the city. A lot of things have happened since then—like the Union Power Ministry taking an interest in the matter and 10 per cent reduction on Vat on CFLs which benefits the buyer by Rs 10 and also a declaration by the Punjab government on May 24 to replace all bulbs with CFLs. And the high point came from the Bureau of Energy Efficiency, which is giving a matching grant for ‘Mission CFL’ that will reduce the cost of a CFL to Rs 15, which now costs about Rs 90. And the good news for power savers is that not just that the longitivity of a CFL is about three years but it consumes only 20 per cent of what a bulb would normally consume. It releases little carbon dioxide, which according to an estimate would reduce CO2 emissions by 55 million tons annually. “The campaign is on and by 2008, we are planning to collect 1 million signatures nation-wide and will continue to hammer it to the authorities to ban bulbs completely,” says Bipin. And if you are the one who do not like to get involved with bureaucratic red tapism or scientific jargons, Greenpeace gives you an option to voice your opinion through art. All one has to do to express it through either a painting, photograph, sculpture or animation with ‘Ban the Bulb’ on it and send it to sservice@in.greenpeace.org, and you stand to win a dozen CFLs other than a special citation. Now, that’s what we call a win-win situation!
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It’s rich, it’s Rajasthani “ Talking to Life Style, Khan admits he has performed in 25 countries. Interestingly, he never went to a school or had any formal education. He is proud to be an Angina, a wandering musical community—the hardworking Rajasthanis who work hard in the scorching heat and enjoy life by singing and dancing in their free time, says the maestro. “Our music is passed on to the generation next and I inherited it from my father and guru Sadi Khan Mangniyar,” he says. The eight members of his troupe come his family and close relations. All members had given performances abroad. Vocalist Savan Khan has just performed in Tokyo while Zamil Khan returned last week after a performance in a folk festival in Austria and Italy. “We have preserved the traditional purity of pure sufi and folk music. The western audience had evinced keen interest in our music and especially the instruments like Khamaicha (close to Sarangi), Algoja and Murla (Flute) and Morchang, which is a rarity in the region,” he says. According to Khan though Rajasthan has a rich folk tradition of music like Langhas, Bhopas, Kalbeliyas but the process of urbanisation over the years has brought some change in the cultural scenario and folk music is loosing its luster and patronage from people. At this rate our rich folk music and dance will soon be a thing of the past,” Ustad Gafoor Khan chips in.
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Actor
Matt Damon says the role of screen spy Jason Bourne, which he plays in The Bourne Identity, has saved his film career.He insists that he was on the verge being sidelined after his films All The Pretty Horses and The Legend of Bagger Vance bombed. The star asserts had he not been offered Bourne’s character at that time, his whole career would have been over. “Jason Bourne saved my life. The weekend The Bourne Identity opened in 2001 I was doing a play in London’s West End and I hadn’t had a film offer in six months because I’d had a couple of movies tank,” he said. Damon says that, initially, there was word in the industry that the first Bourne flick could also flop, but contrary to that belief it won him 20 to 30 film offers. “The word was that the first Bourne movie was also going badly, because it had been delayed so long and had so many rounds of re-shooting. “So I went from my final night of doing This Is Our Youth on the Friday, to the Sunday when I had 20 to 30 movie offers, just based on the opening weekend of The Bourne Identity,” he adds.
— ANI
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Kids planet Bringing new designs for all ages of consumers, FnS International Pvt Ltd, has launched the kiddies’ range to add splendour to their present cutlery collection. Designed specially for kids, this range includes a three-piece cutlery set of a dinner fork, a dinner spoon and a dinner knife, offered in two very distinctive designs. One is the animal series and the other the alphabet series. Priced at Rs 245, the range is available in modern stores like Lifestyle, Shoppers Stop, Ebony, @Home, THS, The Next Shop, Home Town, Landmark, Pyramids and Vivid, across 30 metro and mini-metro cities including traditional outlets in all major towns. Technology After its extremely successful launch of Kisan ATMs, AGS Infotech has announced the launch of another Wincor Nixdorf product— the ProCash 4000—a compact cash deposit system for self service transactions. The ProCash 4000 focuses on functions for the standard self-service cash business. The system is able to validate up to 120 different banknote denominations, and is ideal for bulk deposits. It uses the revolutionary Long-Edge insertion technology that reduces the chances of note jams and can be upgraded to re-cycling cash. The system has an attractive design, and user-friendly operations coupled with outstanding ergonomics. Beauty Get ready for a healthy and happy skin this season as Avon introduces a fresh new nourishing range— Avon Naturals Nourishing. The range is infused with the goodness of Almond Oil, known to be an excellent source of vitamins, minerals and amino acids that help replenish skin’s lost moisture. By maintaining skin’s natural moisture balance, it leaves your face naturally soft and supple. The range is bringing Naturals Nourishing Daily Cleanser (50ml for Rs 30), Naturals Nourishing Wash-off Creamy Mask (50gm for Rs 50), Naturals Instant Nourishing Day Lotion (50ml Introductory for Rs 45) and Naturals Instant Nourishing Cream (25gm for Rs 30). Skin solutions Are you afraid of travelling and becoming sun burnt in summer season? Well, you don’t need to worry anymore. For, Nature’s Essence, a leading brand in cosmetic industry, has launched its revolutionary product, Lacto Tan Clear, a sure shot solution to get the skin rid of accumulated sunburn and tan. Lacto Tan Clear is your perfect ‘After Sun Tan Removal Solution’. Priced at Rs 60 for 40 gms and Rs125 for 100 gms, it ensures that the ageing process and patchiness of the skin doesn’t settle onto your skin. Enriched with natural milk, honey and geranium oil, the product ensures that skin is totally tan free.
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Get money smart How do you define a gentleman? A man, who opens the door for his lady, pulls up a chair and picks up the bill while on a date? Not any longer. In the gender-less society we are living now, the concept of chivalry is done with—by mutual consent of course! So picking up the tab on the first date is not a sign of one’s masculinity anymore. Nor is waiting for the man to open the door a sign of a lady. But as our society goes through the transitional phase from being the purely traditional to being the corporate culture-dominated, we are still prone to making financial faux pas. And if it is of any consolation, a study conducted by a credit monitoring service— CreditExpert in London, finds out that in six out of nine regular financial situations, the Britons are failing to employ correct money etiquette. And when it comes to the first date, the study found out that less than half of the 1,500 consumers polled employed knew what to do. Of course we learn from other’s mistakes. So we contact Suruchi Jhunjhunwala, who is a grooming expert in the city, to help us misguided souls. After a few brainstorming sessions, we come up with a module which will guide us on the financial path, right from a first date to married life and domesticity.
Who should pay on a first date? Though the general perception is that the man is supposed to pick up the bill, it is not relevant in today’s world where a man and woman are earning equally. So the correct etiquette is, whoever invites should pay. But the matter does not rest here. Many a time embarrassing situation arises as the waiter presents the bill to the man only. So with changing trends, waiters too have to understand. The thumb rule is whoever asks for the bill, should be presented with the bill.
While having dinner with a group of friends, what should one do? Go Dutch, unless of course it is an invitation by one of the group member. Slitting the money into equal amounts works out fine for all. This process is also called the Captain’s Way.
What if you are dining with your senior? It is wrong for a junior to expect his senior to pay for an outing. It has to be mutual.
What if one of the group members is unemployed? Though most of us think that the bill should be split between all members with the unemployed person paying less, the correct way is the friends who are earning should pay for the one who isn’t.
What are the right financial etiquettes for spouses? A man should not be too inquisitive about how his wife spends or vice versa. Unless of course it is a major decision, like buying of an expensive consumer item (that costs above Rs 5,000). But the important thing is that anyone who is earning should save 10 per cent of his or her total income.
What to do when a close friend asks for a loan and you cannot spare the money? Politely say no if you cannot afford to lend. But do not say yes and then back out later for it will be a breach of trust.
A friend borrows some expensive item from you and when he or she returns it is no longer in working condition. What should one do? One should politely inform the person about its condition. If telling him directly is difficult, then send an SMS. The tips may not be adequate to bail you out from all kind of sticky situations, but they are definitely an eye-opener, that streamlines the thought process. Here is one more valuable tip from Suruchi to lovebirds, specially the girls who think they should compensate for outings, gifts and eating outs by giving him some expensive gifts, which in most of the cases turns out to be of no use—to be practical. Share the financial burden right from the beginning. For when it comes to romance vs money, the latter will always prevail! parbina@tribunemail.com
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Necking fashion Yup, youngsters still consider these too flimsy to be worn alone but they’ve found a way out! Just in case you still have not been able to comprehend the style statement, go to the varsity or the college campuses. You will find so many gals coolly exposing themselves to the heat of fashion within the limits of graciousness by donning the halters under the protection of a shirt or a tee-shirt. “This season’s fashion verdict is clear,” says Shveta Shourie, a US-based fashion designer with operations in India. “Halter-neck tops may have been sentenced to hang by the neck, but they are far from dead. With gals devising a new way of throwing a shirt over them, halter-necks are rising from the ashes of disdain to climb up the popularity scale.” Describing the arrangement as “perfect”, she smiles: “You see, the merger allows you to look chic! And, you can wear the stuff, you would think twice before donning solo to the college campus. No wonder, the youngsters are necking the fashion in a big way.” Still doubting the stuff’s popularity? Drive down to fashion houses and garment stores across the city. You will find these backless tops with neck hoops dazzling onlookers into buying them. You can either pick up a nice cotton shirt and a halter-neck top to complete the alluring ensemble, or go in for tops pre-attached with halters. The choice is yours entirely. City student Neha Rana has picked up two halter-necks in baby pink and pulpy orange for teaming them up with immaculate white shirts. “Oh, they look cool,” is all the under-grad says with a merry smile playing on her lips. Gals, you too can have your pick. The price depends upon the stuff, and the place where you buy it. You can, in fact, take home a halter-neck top by paying as little as Rs 104 if you pick it up from an export surplus garment house like Just Casuals, Sector 9. So, what are you waiting for? The ensemble looks great and even the disciplinarians won’t be horror-struck by the attitude you display while sashaying down the ramp of fame. Happy halter-necking! saurabh@tribunemail.com
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Savour
imperial delicacies from the land of nawabs at the Lucknawi food festival at Grill-8. The fiesta starting from Saturday promises to bake steaming-hot excitement by blending the right amount of exotic spices, dry fruit and nuts through traditional cooking methods. “Taste it and let the charm linger on,” says proprietor Varun Kohli. The fare is prepared by Lucknow-based chefs Mohammad Imam and Shadul, along with their ensemble. The whiff of excitement is unmistakable. As you step down to the basement, the aroma of spring chicken marinated overnight will lure you. The tang mingles with a hint of black pepper and other exotic spices. If you are hot for the stuff, order Galouti, mutton shanks cooked with raw papaya and golden brown onions. So, for once, forget counting those loathsome calories and enjoy the delectable cuisine at leisure. Go in for Murg Pasanda or else Banno Kebabs, the latter is a dish of boneless chicken, sprinkled with black pepper and dipped in rich gravy. Another must have is mutton-seekh parantha. Prepared in a customary manner, chicken keema is cooked in a ginger-garlic paste and then rolled in a parantha before consigned to the oven. Cooking the stuff delicately at high temperature helps in retaining the flavour. It’s served with the tehzeeb that’s suggestive of stately splendor of the bygone era. A word of caution here. As some of the dishes on offer in the festival-special menu card can be real spicy. To know the majestic secret behind the good food, ask Shadul. The twenty-something chef says, “Spices, particularly black pepper and garam masala, play a key role in Lucknawi dishes. The amount has to be just right to enjoy the delicacies,” he asserts. So folks, get down to the delicious business of enjoying some royal foodstuff. — S. M. On till August 4
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This monsoon, get rid of excess oil Pammy Kaul So
many of us have oily skin and can’t seem to find the best way to care for it. The reason being, everybody’s chemical make up is different. What pleases ones skin might not work for the other. Oily skin can be a real nuisance in hot and humid weather. It sure can be a task to keep it free of traces of oil and bumps that appear when sebaceous gland is overactive and produces ample of sebum. An important part of keeping oily skin under control is to keep the top-most layer of your skin free of debris and oil. It is also important not to over strip the skin and to keep away from harsh chemicals that can excite the oil glands. Exfoliation could be your strongest weapon in weather like this. By adding exfoliation to your skin care regimen, you open pores and remove toxins from the skins surface allowing the skin to breathe more naturally. Also fine lines will become less visible with regular exfoliation lending your skin a healthy glow. These two steps are extremely important in alleviating oily skin. Remember to be gentle with your skin and do not over-exfoliate as it can lead to cracked skin and broken capillaries just beneath the surface. Always dampen your skin for that slick, smooth surface or else your skin can be pulled and damaged.
I have oily skin and pimples on my face. I was told to use products with salicylic acid on my face. Is that right? — Pooja,via e-mail Yes, salicylic is used in topical treatments and does help variety of skin conditions like acne, seborrheic dermatitis. Both are closely associated with skin’s oil production and blockages that arise from overproduction of natural oils. The acid is an active ingredient in many different compounds like creams, gels, liquids etc. It is very important to follow instructions, pay attention to the warning labels and discontinue if it irritates your skin. When using chemicals on oily skin, do not exfoliate
or use toners, any compounds which contain peeling agents. Also to stay away from products which dry the skin and stay away from medicated cosmetics. Oily skin can be an aggravating part of your life, but if you care for it, it will care for you. (This column appears fortnightly) Pammy Kaul is a UK-based beauty therapist. E-mail your queries to lifestyletribune@gmail.com or write to Tips that work
Always exfoliate your face in front of the mirror, which allows you to see when you are being rough and unkind to the skin. Always pat a good moisturiser for oily skin applied on wet/damp skin to seal water into the layers of the skin which helps the moisture content and allow your skin to slow its oil production. Mix oat flour with 2 tablespoons powdered milk and one tablespoon lemon juice to make a smooth paste, let it sit on your face until dry, rinsing finally with warm water. Baby powder and cornstarch mixed can be used for your oily facial zones. Baking soda provides gentle exfoliation and kills bacteria at the same time. Oatmeal exfoliation can be very soothing to your skin when used with honey as the base on face for moisturising properties. Squeeze a fresh lemon and apply the juice with a cotton ball, let it sit for couple of minutes before cleansing.
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Health tip of the day
Emotional relaxation can be achieved by listening to music, drink favourite beverages
etc. — Dr Ravinder Chadha |
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Cheerful halter-necks — cut to reveal a derring-do attitude — are emerging victorious in the neck-and-neck race for supremacy with spaghetti and tube tops. Once strictly labelled party wear, our fashionistas-in-the-making are showing these off with panache — concealing them partially, and tactically, under tees.