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Banoongi main Mrs India…
At 35, there are a few ladies who dare to dream, to accomplish their past aspirations and re-live their lives. City-based Neetu Narula, mother of a seven-year-old boy, a radiologist who is practising at Sri Guru Harkrishan Sahib Hospital, Sohana, a painter and, above all, a homemaker is one of those few women who decide to fulfill their forgotten dreams. In Mumbai these days, Neetu has become one of the final 16 participants of the Gladrags Mrs India contest. And how she reached there was not a pre-planned thought, but a decision taken on the spur of the moment. Tells her husband Manpal Narula, “Neetu was fascinated about participating in a beauty pageant, but her only brush with modelling was for the DSOI May Queen. But considering her love for the ramp, we encouraged her to participate and filled her form and sent it to Mumbai. She was selected on this basis and was later called for auditions and now she is among the 16 finalists (as per the latest news).” Well that’s some news, really.
Ask him about the family support and he says, “My father was the one who encouraged her the most and considering the hard work she does, she deserves what she wants in her life.” Considering her work and home schedule, we ask how does she keep fit. “Though her work keeps her occupied 24/7, she manages to keep fit by swimming, yoga and she is also a salsa dancer. So, was there any training that she too before leaving, “It was hardly a week back that we got to know about her participation and no, she hasn’t undergone any training.” Ask him what if she wins, “She goes to participate in the Mrs World contest.” Well, that’s some strapping hubby support. Real hai!
Well, considering the love for reality shows, the Gladrags Mrs India show has also been converted into a reality show. This will be a seven-episode show and the series will not be aired live and the contestants will be given complete privacy at night. Eliminations would happen every week and the contestants would be judged on the basis of their overall personality. |
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Queen bhi!
Celebrating the goodness of Honey, Tuesday saw the Khadi & Village Industries Commission (KVIC) kickstart various awareness activities to popularize honey as a wellness food supplement. Marking this as a Honey week the event is being supported by Honey Hut-22 Chandigarh, Mani Gramodyog Samiti, Bassi Pathana, Kashmir apiary, Doraha and Regional Centre for Entrepreneurship Development (RCRD) Chandigarh.
Reetu Kapoor, World Honey Queen award winner entrepreneur said, “Honey is really good for health in many ways and we want that people should include honey based products in their daily food routine.” Dr N.S Tomar, state director (Punjab & Chandigarh), KVIC said, “We have planned several activities for schools, under which drawing competitions, slogan writing contests and essay competitions will be held in around 20 city schools. Around 15 awareness programmes will be held at Punjab University campus, group housing societies and few ladies clubs also, where apart from distribution of awareness literature we would focus on honey as a product ‘beyond medicine’. Women would be asked to submit their honey-based recipes for prizes.” Prof L R Verma, former vice chancellor, HP University and Geetika Singh, honey expert, associated with Kashmir Apiary Doraha, one of the larges producer, processor and exporters of honey in the country were also present on the occasion. Honey products will be displayed at various locations in the city at Sector 22, 8, 9, 10 on November 17, 18, 19 and 20 respectively. The awareness stalls will be put at Sukhna Lake on November 21 and 22, while a stall will be placed at Sector 44 on the final day of the week. The Honey Hut, first of its kind outlet in the city located at Sector 22, which serves hot and cold drinks like tea and coffee, besides various types of eatables prepared with honey, has also announced discounts during the Honey Week. A 15 per cent discount is being offered on eatables and 10 per cent on honey products. |
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Artiste always
“In the movie East is East, George Khan has two lives, one in England, and the other one in Pakistan. It is the often hilarious and sometimes painful story of what happens when two cultures collide within one. The sequel West Is West, for which I am shooting in Chandigarh and nearby areas, is about George Khan coming to his wife and two daughters in Pakistan, and how with the help of a sufi peer he manages to get his younger son (from the second marriage) married and returns to England. In a way, George Khan’s life completes a full circle.” ….Life completes a full circle. The words have a much higher spiritual connotation. How well they summarise George Khan’s journey, as much they sum up the arduous yet fruitful journey of the man who plays the character - Om Puri. Unutterable fulfillments, subtle smile of contentment; only the heart can describe everything, and actor Om Puri decides to do the same. This chat is straight from his heart. To begin with…
The journey for the actor began from a small town of Sanaur, Punjab. Schooling at Khalsa College, a stint in theatre with Harpal Tiwana, entry into that time lesser- known National School of Drama (NSD), exposure to world cinema in the Film Institute, and finally making it to Mumbai in 1976, Om Puri culls out pages from his struggling years. “I didn’t look like an actor, and I was definitely not an obvious film personality. So, I had to face my share of my difficulties. I would teach in an acting studio, of and on do dubbing and did short roles in three films,” says Om Puri, sipping tea, and enjoying the sun appears from behind the fog. “ Then I formed, Majma, my own theatre group, which kept my sanity. Govind Nihalani noticed me during one of the stage shows and offered me Aakrosh. My work was appreciated and I went on to do Ardh Satya in 1983, which changed things for me. The difficult days were almost over, but not the journey. It was the beginning,” adds Om Puri, who is not surprised to have made it this far, despite his unconventional looks. Something is better than nothing:
“Honestly, I didn’t think I would make it this far,” offers the actor, “At the same time, I am not astonished. I’ve worked sincerely for it. I never dreamt of anything big for myself. I took each day as it came. I was glad that I met the right kind of people like Naseeruddin Shah, who encouraged me to join The Film Institute. The NSDians were not considered ‘good enough’ at that time, it was only after a few movies that the audiences started recognising NSD actors,” smiles Om Puri. So much has changed and yet so little. He looks at the newspapers lying in front of him Winds of change
As per the actor, who is amongst the first batch of actors to do crossover movies, arts cinema movement has definitely taken a back seat. “Arts, is an expensive medium, and there is a limited audience for it as well. The whole DVD culture has also affected the film industry, shares Om Puri. “Directors like Shyam Benegal, Madhur Bhandarkar, Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Ashutosh Gowariker, Mani Ratnam, A.R. Rahman, Raj Kumar Santoshi, Prakash Jha, Vishal Bhardwaj are making good films influenced by art.” “Commercial cinema has its own limitations to exploit, as they work under a fixed format. Which means there are not many good roles for character artists,” he shares. Actors too want to make money to maintain a degree of status and reputation.” Unburdened and light, Om Puri wears a satisfying expression. “I am sure that three dozen of my movies will be a part of the archives,” he throws his head back in a throaty laugh. Miles to go before I sleep…
Thirtytwo years in Mumbai, but given a choice Om Puri wants to live in a small city. All said and done, we are talking to a man who has no regrets with life. And he certainly, has no big dreams too. “ I keep giving my best. People on the streets adore and respect me, which is inspiring in more than one way. I don’t dream of big cars, bungalows. Yes, I want my family to lead a secure life, for which I save money. I have no liking for five-star hotels. Give me substance, and I am game. I have friends who have stood by me through thick and thin. And all these years, I have maintained my dignity (He says the media has a knack of smelling controversies, but he has never even given them grit),” he winds up, hoping we will throw one last volley, which is the talk of the town. jasmine@tribunemail.com Book bytes
“I wanted to be honest, and wanted to share my strong and weak points. My career, childhood, things which people can identify with. So, I am certainly not happy how the book (Unlikely Hero: Om Puri) is being talked about in a sensational manner,” winds up Om Puri. |
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Alternative allure
Creativity requires no prerequisites. It gives us ample freedom to come up with anything innovative. It doesn't bind us to use definite material. In fact, creativity comes out the best, when done with the readily available material, something that students of Jewellery Design and Technology Institute, Sector 35 have come up with. They haven't used any costly material or precious stones (as the usual requirements of designer jewellery are) to make jewellery. "Instead, students have used threads, bangles, brass wood and wires to create jewellery pieces like pendants, neck pieces, earrings and rings," says Ritu Malik, CEO, JDTI. Imagination goes a step further with Sukriti Jain, designing pendants with coconut shell. "Shells were grinded into different suitable shapes and then polished. Golden colour wires are used to render a funky touch to the jewellery," informs Sukriti. Neckpieces and earrings made of broken bangles by Sveytaa Bhardwaj is another interesting piece of work, "The broken bangles were joined by heating and melting glass." Out of the total 40 jewellery pieces on display, the designs of many were inspired from traditional crafts of India. Sabika Sadhana, Pratibha Tyagi and Richa Singh have used wood and silver for rings and neckpieces. "The collection is inspired from the woodwork done in Saharanpur. One of our guest faculty came down from the city just to teach us how we can use wood in jewellery." The wood craving is intricately done for the neckpieces, with silver added to it. Bidri work from Karnataka has also been done on certain neckpieces. Suchitra Dalal, a faculty at the institute says, "The traditional crafts work has been interpreted and then hand crafted in a different way on jewellery." Other traditional works that have served as an inspiration are paper mache from Kashmir, dhokra and filgree from Orissa and glasswork from Firozabad. Suchitra adds, "Experimenting with various crafts helped student explore new possibilities of jewellery designing. This also serves as a medium for us to propagate the artwork, which is a part of our culture. Besides using metals for making and designing jewellery, students have discovered various alternative options to design jewellery. Tea coasters with Madhubani artwork replicated on them were another attraction here. — Ashima Sehajpal
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Taste for tiny tots
Children's deteriorating food habits are a cause of collective parental concern. With a steady growth on the graph indicating a rise in the health problems, stemming from low physical activity and faulty food habits among children a drastic step needs to be taken to curb the growing pediatric health disorders. Arney's Backyard, a unique and tested model that engages children in the process of promoting healthy child development runs such Nutrition Intervention programmes in schools on a once-a-week nutrition trial for students. The sheer concern and responsibility towards all students brought Small Wonders to engage Arney's Backyard for improving and instilling healthy eating habits and improving their general well being. Earlier on Diwali, students were taught how to make chocolate healthier while making the edible Nutri-Diya's. This week, Arney's Backyard together with Small Wonders brought the 500 students to collectively learn the benefits of bringing and eating healthy tiffins to school through a very interesting activity of "Making the longest Healthy Centipede" with chapatti and veggie rolls. Carrot and beans sticks made the centipede's legs. "Children are not willing to eat their meals brought from home, there is a lot of food wastage from their tiffin leftovers. The last meal eaten is dinner and tiffin becomes the most important meal for every child. Keeping all this in mind, a need to revolutionise and reinforce the importance of eating healthy tiffins was felt. This activity collectively brought together the entire school children who learnt this concept through fun," says Aditi Mehrotra, diet consultant and Nutrition and health educator and the brains behind Arney's Backyard. "Foods we will expose and introduce our children to right in their infancy go a long way in deciding their overall growth and development. Our modern diet contains too much sugar, fat, salt, refined flour, processed foods and food additives, adds Aditi.
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Touch, see and buy
Kohler launched its second showroom in Chandigarh and unveiled its expansion plans in Punjab. The Kohler store which adds to the line of more than 85 exclusive showrooms in India was inaugurated by Sharad Mathur, managing director, Kohler India Corp. Pvt. Ltd. The company's aggressive expansion plan is quite evident with a target of 100 showrooms in India by the end of fiscal year 2009. "As the first planned city of India, Chandigarh is known internationally for its urban planning and has the highest per capita income in the country which makes it a potential market for our luxury products. We are confident that our products will gain more popularity and the customers will have more choice with the launch of our second showroom in Chandigarh." said Sharad. Showcasing a comprehensive merchandise the products displayed include toilets (two-piece, one-piece, wall-mount); lavatories (vessels, pedestal, self-rimming, under counter, vanity-top, semi-recessed); faucets; baths; whirlpools and showers etc. One of the exciting and interactive features of the store is the number of products that are completely functional. Customers can see the pulsating spray of WaterTile™ bodysprays in the performance showering area of the showroom or place their hands in the ove bubblebath™ and feel the sensations of the air jets in their fingertips. The Kohler showroom has been designed so that people can see, touch and feel before they buy. The brand Kohler has grown in India since the launch of its bathroom products in 2006. Though known as a luxury brand across the globe, Kohler has made considerable inroads into the homes of the growing Indian middle class through its strategic price points and wide array of bathroom products. Driven by the mission of enhancing the level of gracious living for people, it has been very well accepted by the Indian consumers for their design, innovation and craftsmanship. Kohler's contribution in the sanitary ware market in India is remarkable with the brand attracting customer both in the commercial and residential space
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Right note
Aren't you eager to know what all our freedom fighters read to feel inspired? And what gave them courage to raise their voice against injustice? Lala Lajpat Rai Bhavan library has put on display books that were read by martyrs like Lala Lajpat Rai and Bhagat Singh (that formed the base of their ideology). The 200 books on display here include Mother by Maxim Gorky, Das Capitol by Karl Marx, God and the State, Les miserables. Some rare books are also put on display here, which are written by Lala Lajpat Rai. His contribution comes in the form of 200 hand written documents, various editorials, books written by him, Young India, History of Arya Samaj, Tarun Bharat and Tareeq-e-Hind, written in Urdu. One can also find here books written on these great men by various authors. On display till November30.
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Reason for revelry
Birthdays have always been special, but how do our youngsters make them more special. We check out… Nidhi Arora Have you ever wondered why there is the custom of celebrating birthdays? Why are birthdays so special? Why is there an added amount of thrill and enthusiasm associated with these? Why is one so keen on doing something ‘noble and auspicious’ only on birthdays? Why does a girl complain if her boyfriend doesn’t gift her something special on the day? And this complaint further raises a lot of questions. Says Jatin Dua, 25, a software consultant at Headstrong, “This is a very important day because this is when the batteries of the organism are recharged, when we weigh our accomplishments and also understand what we mean to others. Visiting a temple is the first thing I do on my birthday. For there’s a sort of special relevance attached to doing so on this day.” Tamanna, 24, a journalist, says that birthdays of her near ones, too, mean a lot to her and she loves giving and receiving surprises on birthdays. She says that she doesn’t forget to visit an orphanage on her birthday. She takes clothes, fruits and food for kids and celebrates the day with them. “It’s not just about partying with friends, rather about reaching out and making it special for those who never get a chance to celebrate these joys. That makes my day special,” smiles Tamanna. Neha Arora, 27, manager, sales, Max New York Life Insurance, Jalandhar, says, “For the past six years I have been planting a sapling every year on my birthday. Spending quality time with family and friends along with doing this make the day meaningful for me.” For Deeksha Bisht, 23, a media professional in Chandigarh, birthday is just like any other day. Deeksha says, “I’ve got a different take altogether on the concept of celebrating birthdays with fervour. I naively ponder the ‘comings and goings’ of the past year on my birthday.” “This is not the only day for doing something great or telling others that you love them. My viewpoint is quite deformed but that’s the way it is,” Deeksha adds. Kewal Krishan Arora, 57, who runs a restaurant in Jalandhar, says, “I prefer celebrating birthdays with lot of excitement. More than mine, I feel happy about my wife’s and kids’ birthdays, thus, I cook something for the poor/needy on their birthdays.” Times have changed and so the ways and trends. Boozing n clubbing have replaced ‘hawans and daans’. Customs and rituals have become merrymaking in modern times. Boyfriends/girlfriends have brought down the significance of being with the family on such occasions. Nonetheless, many still believe in doing righteous things to make their birthdays significant and momentous. Valentines day, Father’s day, Friendship’s day… these will eventually come and go and so will their relevance but birthdays were, are and will always be special. From an astrological point of view too it is unwise not to take this day seriously. Says Rashmi Sharma, an astrologer, “Each year on the birthday, the Sun is in the position it was at the time one was born. That can be on the same day when you were born, a day earlier or later, and at that precise moment the astrologic New Year begins. It lasts until the next return of the Sun, that is, until the next birthday.” Madan Gupta Spatu, city-based astrologer, says that the position of planets at the time one was born determines the entire course of the next year, thus, it is important to spend it in the best possible way. Be happy, be content and be with the people you love. Energies are exchanged at that moment and the new cycle begins.” He adds that birthdays are meant to do positive things so that the coming year be auspicious. In the former times, each family had a “kulpurohit” to prepare the varshfal (annual statement of future) of all family members. Also, there was a tradition called “sapnaja” i.e. donating seven types of cereals equivalent to the weight of the birthday person. Though beliefs have changed today, the astrological relevance of celebrating birthdays remains the same.
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Team spirit
Thapar University, Patiala, has been actively involved in strengthening the foundation of Research & Development in the University. Over the years, it has provided an extensive platform for students to showcase their potential and have inspired them to match up to international standards in their skills. Some of the recent accomplishments of Thapar University would include recognition at the ‘Unmanned Aerial Vehicle’ contest organised by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) at Kolar near Bangalore. A team of five students including Surjeet Singh and Ashish Tanwer from the Electronic and Communication Engineering department at Thapar University overcame stiff competition from 270 institutions from across the country. The team received a cash prize of Rs 3 lakh for successfully building a Deployable Low Cost Outdoor Surveillance System with Remote Access to Sensor Imagery. The prizes were awarded by Professor R. Narsimha, Chairman of Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore, and former Director of NAL. The UAV competition was conceptualised as a platform for engineering students from all over India to showcase their engineering skills. Participants were required to conceive, design and develop a prototype of a low-cost airbone system housing a sensor for carrying out outdoor surveillance. The challenge was to make the unmanned aircraft fly at a height of 30 to 50 feet above the ground and cover a distance of 100 metres, and to relay information to a ground visual monitoring system for at least two minutes. The model designed by the Thapar University team flew for 25 minutes at a height of 50 to 80 metres with continuous transmission to the ground station. The Medium Altitude Low Endurance UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) is equipped with real time computer vision, data communication link, and Ground Station for Automated Image. This remotely controlled aircraft is best suited for missions that are dangerous to pilot and aircraft or those requiring longer durations than are humanly possible. Another historic achievement for the students at Thapar University was its participation in the prestigious Formula Electric and Hybrid Italy (EHI), a collegiate design competition sponsored by the Associazione Tecnica Dell’ Automobile, Italy and funded by Fiat Group, Micovett Technologies and Commune de Roma at the Santa Maria de Galleria circuit in Rome. The TUFHT team was the only team from Asia to have participated in the competition and also had the honour of being India’s first team to build a racing car. The 2009 team was dominated by senior Mechanical Engineering students under team leader Devabrata S. Ray who together with other team members and the faculty stood third in the general presentation and engineering Design presentation out of 14 teams. The team was extensively supported by the University and other large industry partners such as Avantha Group, Bhushan Group, BPTP constructions, JK Tyres, Veethree, Green Planet India, Starwire India ltd Green Auto Solutions and Dalmia Cements. Thapar University Formula Hybrid Racing Team aims at innovating for the future through passion and dedication while creating a prosperous society that respects the environment. For the team it is not just about participating in international competitions, but aiming at developing technologies for the world as well. Also, due to current industry trends towards alternative sources and the energy crisis, it is an opportune time for the team to be a part of this rapidly evolving field and keeping up at the same time with Thapar University’s plans of becoming the most environment-friendly university in India.
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