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Duty bound
Crib, criticise, castigate, all the time. It's so easy, convenient; all it takes is picking up the negatives of society.
Choice is ample; condemn corruption, crime, poverty, poor sanitation, infrastructure, bureaucratic complacency…. just the sole condition applies - Criticise only if you have lived up to your Fundamental Duties, fulfilled responsibilities towards the society and acted as mature citizens. Tough condition! This Republic Day, deriving inspiration from these few who have done their bit before taking the next step, might be of some help. Forest crusader
Instead of criticising the system, Madhu
Sarin, an environmentalist, took up the cause of tribals living in the forests of the country. She along with like-minded people supported the Forest Rights Act. "The battle is half won. The act has been passed, but is yet to be implemented. It will give authority to forest inhabitants to live peacefully and in harmony with nature," she says. She has also worked avidly for the cause of a pollution-free environment. A social activist, Madhu believes Fundamental Duties can only be performed if one has access to fundamental rights. "We can't expect people living in deplorable conditions to bother about environment or to even have the slightest idea about the ideals that inspired the freedom struggle," she adds. Book them
During the last 20 years, Yuv Satta's priority to help the underprivileged hasn't changed. Their latest contribution to the society is in the form of
Kitabghar, a library for the children of Bapu Dham. "There are 2,500 books in the library, which have been donated by people and various
organisations. The library was built with an aim to help children develop reading habits," says Parmod Sharma, coordinator of Yuv
Satta. The NGO has also come up with Peace Clubs, a campaign that they have taken to 100 schools in various cities. "The campaign aims at inculcating moral and social values in students, irrespective of their social status," he adds. Snake charmer
During the past three years, Nikhil Sangar has rescued and rehabilitated 1,200 snakes, 58 sambhars and many other animals, which strayed into human territory. His NGO, Wildlife Conservation Society believes: "Every organism is vital to maintain the ecological balance." Nikhil took upon the cause after realising that, "There are several organisations working for the welfare of people, but none for animals." A duty of a different sort! Learn more
Aged 24, holder of a management degree, almost two years of work experience with DEL…till the profile changed. Isha Kakaria now runs an NGO,
Tamanna, which has its centre in Nayagaon. "We focus on imparting education to children. Instead of teaching them, we arrange for scholarships for students who want to study beyond the primary level," informs
Isha. The NGO, with 43 volunteers, also holds monthly events like blood donation camps or lectures on women empowerment. "It's difficult to bring about immediate changes, but consistent efforts over the period of time will definitely yield results," she adds.
ashima@tribunemail.com |
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Fun Republic
Fundamentally speaking, we know about the duties, it's rights we care for. Articles, Amendments, Directive Principles of State Policy…just not fun! Isn't it about We the People? So relax, take a deep breath, wake up late and do scores of other things everyone does to celebrate our Constitution coming into force. After all, it is one of the three national holidays. And here's how we soak up the patriotic spirit.
The retailers are out doling discounts; some even 60 per cent in commemoration of the number of years of our Republic. Winter Wonder, lifestyle exhibition, even had Republic Day for a theme. "We all celebrate
Holi, Diwali and other festivals but don't do anything on Republic Day. At the exhibition, there were on-the-spot questions and prizes given to people," says Bindra of the Dream Weddings, the organiser for the event. Any excuse for getting acquainted with the day, the legacy, history in all its glory? Don't bother, if the window décor is the reason for being able to recall the colours on the flag. Laughs Sumedha
Sachdeva, B.Com student, MCM College, "To be honest, I take it easy on the day, get up late but it's certainly not right." Not right, never mind. As long as the ulterior motives to look forward to the day keep pouring in. She adds, "There are actually huge discounts given out specially for the day. I do go out and make the most of it. I love shopping. So more reasons, the merrier." Meanwhile, some nightclub marketing team might come up with the Republic Day dance party. Or, a multi-cuisine restaurant might serve salad in tricolors just for today. So what, if everyone's spaced out about the tableaux going on parade? Student searching for sale, extended Sunday, corporate looking for a holiday, or just another day; to each of his own! For a street child, it's yet another survival exercise. Shares
Sonu, selling flags at Phase-7 light points, "We don't do anything, we just sell them." And, does he know today is Republic Day? "I know today is January 26 and today we sell the flag, that's it." That's it. Dare anyone object? It's a sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic and we're Indians, incredible and innovative.
manpriya@tribunemail.com |
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Heroes to the core
Gurdas Maan
Proud to be Indian I relate most to Shaheed Udham Singh My pick
Gavie Chahal
A strange feeling of strength My pick
To be hanged till death'. Manoj Kumar from the movie Shaheed stands smiling on the gallows, shares notes with his friends before breaking into the legendary song mera rang de basanti chola, maye rang de.
Lodged in a cell, tortured and beaten mercilessly, Ajay Devgan in the The Legend of Bhagat Singh launches the much-publicised revolution; soldiers brave the battle of Longewala under the leadership of Sunny Deol in Bollywood blockbuster Border; Gurdas Maan, a man with no prejudices based on religion, caste and creed gives the goras a piece of mind in Shaheed Udham Singh…the outburst of patriotic feelings in the dialogues, the spirit of nationalism evoked in the action scenes, the soul stirring music…the fascination for patriotic themes in Hindi cinema has grown with time and assumed a larger canvas, which is supported by a better and advanced technical knowhow. As for the actors, who researched and got under the skin of the characters based on the legendary heroes, it was a moment of great honour, satisfaction and pride. And this Republic Day, actors from the city and around share their patriotic feelings. Sonu Sood
A lifetime experience Manav Vij
A great role jasmine@tribunemail.com
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Modelled on famous Mount Rushmore that has granite sculptures of American presidents Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt and Lincoln, this tableaux has 3D portraits of eminent artists Rabindra Nath Tagore, Raja Ravi Verma, Jamini Roy, Amrita Shergill and Manjit Bawa. “The tractor portion of the tableaux has kisan as the symbol of prosperity on the earth while the trolley shows great Himalayas and the artists who stand as tall as the Himalayas in the art world,” says DS Kapoor, principal of the college. An idea initiated by Kapoor, is an effort to project the value of artists who by their intuitive power surpass the domains of logic to create forms that bring beauty, pleasure and divinity to this earth. A group of dedicated students and faculty worked day and night on the tableaux. “It’s a great learning opportunity,” says Ajay Kalwaniya, a second year student. “It’s one experience to get immersed in creative form,” shares Sanjeev, third year student of the college. The tableau finds its proud place in the Republic Day parade. — Mona
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It’s time for net‘vertising’
So, if yours is an enterprise that sells designer kurtas, you can throw a name on Orkut, “Design me Desi’ and let it garner a huge fan following till it actually becomes a community with 900 members. Or if you are a geek and have a knack for scientific discoveries, a community called ‘Whacked Out Trade’ will do the needful. Sweet gulaab jamuns, gooey cakes, designer clothes, business ventures…social networking sites are increasingly becoming a single platform for mass advertising and publicity. “Social media is fast gaining prominence in a weird world,” says Nikos Kardassis, acting CEO, Jet Airways, which has announced a social media customer connect initiative for its multiple stakeholders. Jet Airways has created communities on Facebook and Twitter, with an objective of reaching a larger cross-section of its customers and keeping them informed on a real-time basis. Adds Nikos, “Our presence on Facebook and Twitter will also help in generating important feedback that will help us improve the overall experience for our guests.” Ditto for budding designers who have their own dedicated communities on social networking sites. A good business proposition! Agrees Harleen Kohli, Sukriti Minhas, Shreya Katani, the brains behind Just Khaadi, a community of like-minded people and designers who find Khaadi a fashionable and comfortable garment. “A business venture survives only on advertising and extensive marketing, which of course requires an investment as well,” shares the trio, adding that social networking sites are the best way to publicise a trade or a business venture. Apart from personal ventures, known and established business houses like Nike, Cadbury’s, Hero Honda, Nokia have communities that share information on and about everything on them. We just found Orkut, Facebook have more to them than the ‘connecting to old and new friends’ angle! Ekroop Kaur Brar, a mechanical engineering student, is a member of ‘Shoe String’ community, a podium for all major players in sports shoe houses. “The community is a collective effort of people gung-ho on sports shoes. They dump information regarding the big companies in this field, which is doing more than good for the companies.” jasmine@tribunemail.com |
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With the Sweep Panorama technology, the camera can continuously shoot at a high speed, and then seamlessly stitch the images together with automatic position adjustment to create one stunning panoramic image in as fast as 3 seconds. Available in wide and ultra-wide options, the camera can take panoramic shots of up to 270 degrees. Panorama settings can be selected from the menu while shooting in the swing direction (up/down/right/left) and image size (two different sizes). The end results are extremely natural looking photos of just about any subject or scene. Double ‘anti-blur’ solution also helps reduce camera shake blur for telephoto shots. Capture more of the scene in landscape or group portraits with the 24mm wide angle. Wide angle is especially useful in small rooms, where you can’t get far enough back from your subjects to capture them all. An additional smile shutter feature automatically detects and captures smiling faces and is easy to activate with the Smile Shutter setting on the control button. Users can prioritise adults or children and indicate the degree of Smile Detection Sensitivity to capture desired smiles perfectly. The W series range starts from Rs 8,990 and will be available at Sony Center stores and retail partners across the country. This new Cyber-shot is available in exciting colors in Silver, Black, Pink, Green, Blue and Gold.
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It’s the limit
No matter how many friends you have on social networking websites like ‘Facebook’ or ‘Orkut’, the human brain is capable of handling up to a maximum of 150 pals only, a new study has claimed. Researchers at Oxford University have found that while popular social networking sites allow people to maintain more relationships, the number of meaningful friendships is more or less the same as it has been throughout history. The researchers, led by led by Robin Dunbar, have developed a theory known as “Dunbar’s number” in the nineties which claimed that the size of our neocortex — the part of the brain used for conscious thought and language — limits us to managing social circles of around 150 friends. They derived the limit from studying social groupings in a variety of societies — from neolithic villages to modern office environments, and found people tended to self-organise in groups of 150 as social cohesion begins to deteriorate as groups become larger. The researchers are now studying the social networking websites to see if the Facebook effect has stretched the size of social groupings. Preliminary results suggest it has not. “The interesting thing is that you can have 1,500 friends but when you actually look at traffic on sites, you see people maintain the same inner circle of around 150 people that we observe in the real world. “People obviously like the kudos of having hundreds of friends but the reality is that they’re unlikely to be bigger than anyone else’s. — PTI
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Geek speak
Since every computer consumes different power levels, it is hard to say which UPS is the right one for your computer or server. Typically, you will find 300 to 700 Volt Ampere UPSs in the store. They have 300VA or something like that written on the box. It does not matter which one you buy. The 700 VA UPS will last at least twice as long as the 300 VA UPS if the power fails. This could mean that your computer may keep running for 20 minutes rather than 10 minutes. Just realise that these UPSs you buy at the store are the cheap stuff; they are so-called standby UPSs. If the power from the outlet becomes too dirty, it will switch over to battery power. Some computer power supplies or motherboards cannot even handle the 5 milliseconds of no power when the switch activates. For people with such finicky computers it is better to go for a so-called continuous UPS. These UPSs are more expensive, but the computer is always feeding from the battery and the outlet is just constantly recharging the battery. Server rooms and any high availability hardware should always run on a continuous UPS. PS: Never plug a laser printer into a UPS. The fuser, a component that fuses the toner onto the paper, needs so much power at once that it overburdens a UPS. Always plug a laser printer directly into the outlet of the
wall. amitpalsinghgrewal@gmail.com
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Over the last few years the mobile and wireless market has been one of the fastest growing markets and is still growing at a rapid pace. Mobile phones have become an essential communication tool for almost every individual. The advent of Mobile VAS has taken telecommunication to next level by providing easy accessible and cost-effective services to mobile users. With unlimited mobile Internet and bundling of various SMS VAS, services will certainly help the Mobile VAS industry to zoom ahead. To meet the market requirement and mobile operators ’ needs better, mBit Infotech a pioneer in VAS Services has introduced its offerings with a difference. mBit Infotech is a joint venture between VASSoft.net (the IT division of Himenviro group India) and mBit Pte. Ltd. (Managed and controlled by mTouche Technology Bhd). VASSoft has the experience and the vision to understand the requirements of content owners, publishers and aggregators and hence, would like to provide a new value addition to the content processing chain as a whole.
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Spade work
As the plant bear fruit it also puts forth fresh growth that is needed to support the development of fruit and maintaining its potential size and quality. Left to grow next year without removing the extra load it tells upon the fruit quality and quantity as the size is drastically reduced. The quality of the fruit with respect to colour is also affected as the fruit does not receive proper light and air. The fruiting area also shifts away from the reach as the fruiting areas extend far above on uncut growth. There is more of the bird damage too and the gardener is left with almost nothing and whatever is left is of poor taste and colour. So, carry out pruning as recommended for different types. In the pictures carried with the column you would see Phalsa, a forgotten fruit. You would see two pruned shrubs with an unpruned shrub in between. The bearing takes place on the current year growth. So, wherever it is pruned it will give growth and that will bear fruit. This particular shrub puts forth a few feet of new growth each year so it is must to prune it like that. In a layman’s language remove any growth, one meter from the ground. In case of mulberry too the principal of bearing is same, but the difference is in the plant as it is a tree. The pruning in that case is also drastic but it is on the branches emerging from the main trunk that are headed back leaving two to three feet. In case of other plants like peach, plum etc the method is different. It is also very important to give the plant a proper shape in the initial years, the training. This is done keeping the plant in a balance by encouraging side branches on all sides moving spirally upward about the centre of the plant. First principal of pruning is to remove all the dead, drying, injured or diseased branches. This will give you an easy view of the plant. In plum the growth is not as much as in peach. So not much pruning is done. Those branches that are crisscrossing in the middle or interfering with each other are removed. In case of peach no branch should be pruned at the terminal. Whereas the basic pruning principals are the same, the pencil thick twigs should be thinned by removing them from the base thus reducing number of twigs on a branch. There should be (in layman’s language) a distance of at least six inches between the two twigs. satishnarula@yahoo.co.in
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Blame it on Kukunoor
The actor who walked the ramp for designer Neeta Lulla during the launch of Aza, the couture store, blamed the weight loss on director Nagesh Kukunoor. "I personally like a bit more meat on myself, I am all for the voluptuous look. But Nagesh Kukunoor with whom I was shooting Yeh Honsla made me work so hard that I lost all the weight," Sameera said. The 27-year-old actor will be seen in a deglamourised role in the film where she plays a woman living in a small hamlet in Rajasthan whose life changes when she learns how to use a camera. The film was shot over a period of three months in the desert state and the rigorous schedule made Sameera lose her famous curves. "Nagesh is an amazing director and also a hard taskmaster. The three months I was shooting, he made me work real hard and did not even allow me to have my phone near me," said the actor. — PTI
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Kya Mausam hai!
Sonakshi Sinha, daughter of actor Shatrughan Sinha, will play the lead opposite Shahid Kapoor in his father's directorial venture, replacing Kareena Kapoor. Sonakshi who is presently busy shooting her maiden movie Dabangg with Salman Khan, has been signed on to play the lead opposite the heartthrob in Pankaj Kapoor's Mausam. The film's producer Sheetal Talwar met Sonakshi and her mother Poonam Sinha at their Mumbai residence earlier this week to sign her for the movie. "Sheetal thinks Sonakshi reminds of the young Rekha. Me and my husband respect Pankaj Kapoor and are happy that our daughter has got an opportunity to work with Shahid Kapoor," Poonam Sinha said. Pankaj Kapoor had written the role keeping Kareena in mind during the time when the actress was going strong with Shahid but after their breakup, he had started looking for a fresh face. "Me and Poonam are meticulously screening the offers for Sonakshi. She will do only those movies which portray women in a dignified manner," said Shatrughan. The statuesque Sonakshi, lost a reported 30 kgs to fulfil her ambition to become an actress and her brother Luv Sinha is also all set to make his silver screen debut with Sadiyan. — PTI
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Memorable moment
"It's a real honour and a wonderful feeling. It's a big one. It's a very emotional moment for everybody in my family. It was same for my friends and whole team of Rock On! as well," Rampal said. Asked about his wife Mehr Jesia's reaction, he said, " I won't tell you whether she cried or not, but definitely she became very, very emotional." The story of Rock On! is about five band stars as once-aspiring musicians who chucked up their dream of taking their band professional. But a chance reunion ten years later inspires them to consider returning for one last gig. Farhan Akhtar, Arjun Rampal, Purab Kohli and Luke Kenny played the lead roles in the film. Rampal celebrated the occasion with the team of Rock on! at his house. "We are going to party tonight at my house. We are going to start now, as a part of celebration," said Rampal. The actor, who has recently opened up a restro-bar named LAP Lounge And Party in Delhi as joint venture with Restaurateur AD Singh, is going to celebrate there too, very soon. "I am looking forward to celebrate in LAP soon," said Rampal. — IANS
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What an idea!
Bollywood actor-director Jugal Hansraj, whose Roadside Romeo was adjudged the best animation film at the 56th National Film Awards Saturday, says producer director Aditya Chopra gave him the idea to write and direct an animation film. "I have written the story and directed the film, but the idea that I should write an animation film and direct it was given to me by Adi (Aditya). He encouraged me to write and direct the animation film. He wanted to produce it," Jugal said. Jugal said he feels happy and honoured to receive the award not only for himself but also for his team members. "I am very, very happy and very, very honoured. Not only for me but also for the whole team. A lot of people have spent lot of time and effort to make this film happen. The effort has been recognized so it's a big thing for all of us," Jugal said. It is the story of a cute pet dog, Romeo, who was leading a happy life until the family decides to move. They abandon him on the mean streets of Mumbai. Romeo faces the hardship of a stray dog but with time, he adapts to the roadside life style, finds love and settles into a normal life. Jugal has several other plots for an animation film ready and is just waiting for an opportunity to start doing a film on any one of them. "I have a few ideas in my mind but I am waiting for an opportunity. If I get the right opportunity I will make animation film on them," he said. — IANS
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Dibyojyoti BaksiBollywood director Dibakar Banerjee says the camera plays a dynamic role in his forthcoming Love, Sex Aur Dhoka (LSD), which is about stories behind sensational headlines. And he is certain the content of the movie and the filmmaking technique will surprise audiences. "The medium and the technique in the film are as important as the content. That is what will take the audience totally by surprise because they are not used to seeing a film being made this way," said Banerjee. "LSD is made with a digital camera and the way camera behaves makes it very different from the other Indian or international cinema. The concept is very new and it will hit the audience right in the beginning. And if the audience can get over that shock in the first 5 or 10 minutes, after that the content will keep them occupied. You will feel the presence of the camera as a dynamic character within the film and not as a recorder of the scenes. It's very dynamic.” There are no known names in the film. Banerjee says he roped in non-actors to give it a real feel. "To make it 'real' I have used all non-actors because the premise of the film is that it's not a film - it's stolen, found or accidentally acquired footages collected from various parts of the country." Asked if he has borrowed the idea from some real incidents, he said: "I don't think fiction is ever free of reality. Whatever is happening around impacts me. And things that happened around us has generated the fiction for the film. You can say that it is in the twilight zone between reality and fiction.” Banerjee's last two films were Khosla Ka Ghosla and Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!. —IANS
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Fun loving and free spirited, that is how Mani Thakur describes herself. This 22-year-old girl from Mohali has a never say die spirit in life. Mani has done graduation from Government College for Girls, Chandigarh. Good at mimicry, just before she was to leave for the show her grandmother passed away and she was in two minds. However, her brother, knowing how keen she is to marry Rahul, encouraged her to participate in the show. And now we have our girl participating in Rahul Dulhaniya Le Jayega. — TNS
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"I have grown up with a burning desire to be a
fauji, and serve the nation. I have been able to live this dream through my songs, lyrics, movies and poetry, which nurture the patriotic feelings of audiences and rock my soul. I strongly feel that we need to remember and acknowledge the sacrifices made by our freedom
fighters."
"I played Rajbir in the daily soap Mohe Rang De, a krantikari who realises what the British government was up to. I had severe backache on the first day of my shoot, but the minute I was on the sets for a scene that involved action, I felt no pain. I felt absolutely fine till the last day of the shoot. Till date, I haven't been able to understand what happened? Was it something to do with Bhagat Singh's soul helping me? I don't know."
Close to their souls
This Republic Day, the Government College of Art-10 has chosen the theme of Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan, Jai Kalakaar for their tableaux.
Fully Falto, Muscle Men, Drycleaners Paradise, Go Bangalore, Sweet & Salty, Aamchi Mumbai, Naukri Dey Do Baba, Read Reebok, You Weird, I Like It, So Weird….if you are wondering about the permutations and combinations, then you quickly need to retrace your memory to ‘the one’ thing that is driving the world - social networking sites - the best, easiest and cheapest way of advertising.
Capture the entire Marine Drive in Mumbai or the never-ending Himalayan mountain ranges as you simply press the shutter button and sweep the camera in the desired direction. With the new Cyber-shot W Series camera, you can click breath-taking shots that never ever seemed to fit in the frame.
Like humans, all electronic gadgets require continuous flow of energy to function…in our case it is the blood, for gadgets it is electricity! And just as impure blood harms us, impure electricity harms gadgets. Always keep in mind that electricity from the normal house wall outlet is dirty. Ideally, it should come out of the wall at an exact voltage and frequency. Technically it is possible to have clean power out of an outlet, but financially most people as well as businessmen just do not want to pay the price! Vacuum cleaners, fans, air-conditioners, TVs, printers and light bulbs work just fine with dirty electricity. Computers, on the other hand, are much more finicky about their electricity needs. Some of the spikes or brownouts are just a tad too much. When that happens, the computer starts misbehaving - It goes off to sleep; it shuts down instantly; it corrupts a file or two; goes into hibernation; burns out an electronic component. The consequences may be noticeable right away or appear at a later date; but they are never good. At home or at work, a computer should always be on a UPS. Laptops have their own UPS and are excluded from this requirement; they have a battery built in.
UPS is a battery pack that constantly monitors electricity from the outlet. When it exceeds preset thresholds, such as too little power or too much power, the UPS kicks in and takes over. Now, a surge protector is not the same thing as the UPS. It only protects from high power such as surges or spikes while UPS protects from too little power or too much. This is important for a computer, which needs relatively clean power to function properly. The return on investment for a UPS is good. Just consider the hassle and price of corrupted files and you will realise that every computer must have a UPS and every server an even bigger one!
On to a new port
Normally when we advise the gardeners to prune their deciduous plants, they hesitate. The apprehension being, by cutting we will remove the fruit bearing area. Let me help you shed your fear. There is nothing of the sort in fact the pruning helps improve fruiting both quantitatively and qualitatively.
She was one of the few Bollywood actors who maintained their curves during the onslaught of the 'size zero' trend, but Sameera Reddy surprised onlookers when she turned up at a recent event looking svelte as never before.
Bollywood actor Arjun Rampal, who has been declared the best supporting actor at the 56th National Film Awards for his performance in Abhishek Kapoor's coming-of-age film Rock On!, says that it was a very emotional moment for his family.