For a Bollywood buff this could be a good mind game. Jot down names of once Bollywood hotties like Mandakini, Reena Roy, Neelam, Farah, Sonam, Bindu, Meenakshi Seshadri, and then try to stretch your imagination as to where they are right now, what they are doing and why do we see less and less of them on the silver screen. (This exercise is only for Bollywood fans, for nobody else would want to invest time on this issue!) Chances are you will not go too far save for some answers - they are probably too old to face the screen, they are not getting meaty roles (this could be 'the' probability), or they are married into some well-known business family that does not believe in all the glamour and glitz.

Know more The name sounds very Punjabi. It is. But Naveen comes from Assam and never thought of making it big in Bollywood. "Stay ing in Assam I could never have made a career, so I moved to Delhi, and god knows how I landed in Mumbai assisting Anand Mahendroo," he says. "Theatre was something I always wanted to do. In 2006, I got an opportunity and grabbed it right away. The three actors of the play have sung the songs in their own voice

Last and could be the least, they are comfortable in their own skin and don't long for that limelight. To them, 'fame' is a state of mind, an uncertain thing bound with time. So, when we met up with the stars of Hindi play 'Aasmaan Se Gire Khajoor Pe Atke', Padmini Kohlapure, Shakti Kapoor and Naveen Bawa, one can only wonder…do they not miss the archlights, the paraphernalia and all that fan frenzy?

What if there were no computers to memorise gigabytes of facts? Centuries down the line, people would have had an account of the present just like we had through sculptural remains of Harappa and Mohenjodaro.

The difference, of course, will be in the material used. For now, there is more than mere, clay, stone, plaster of paris and metal. And to discover these, all that's required is creative vision. Just as Vishal Bhatnagar, a professional sculptor has. He has worked in every medium to make sculptures and is now adding to the list with rubber and silicon, which aren't as easy to use as the usual material. "First of all, silicon isn't readily available in India. It was entirely imported from Germany until recently. Now, it can be bought from only one retail store in Delhi. Earlier, silicon in India was only used by dentists to make dentures," says Vishal.

The challenge with silicon is that it doesn't allow a lot of experimentation with colour. "Only two colours can be used with silicon - white and green - or it can be used as it is, in transparent form." A major limitation of using silicon is rigidity of time. "Optimal temperature is imperative to maintain silicon's liquid form. Whatever quantity of silicon is needed for a sculpture, it has to be used in an hour's time." He adds that once a form in silicon is complete, it is difficult to mould the shape by adding more silicon.

"Silicon doesn't grip silicon well, but it's still a modern day's sculptor's favourite raw material. It's easy to mould and takes any shape easily." Vishal is presently experimenting with silicon to sculpt the figures of his subject - Vedic symbols. "The immediate ones are Brahmasutra and Trishakti. It takes around 20 days to complete a symbol."

Parul Dar, a College of Arts student, divides sculpture- making into two categories. "First is sculpting the existing objects around you and second is rendering shapes to subjective issues like thoughts, emotions, feelings. The latter is certainly difficult," she says.

But she has managed to sculpt emotions of a pregnant woman using aluminium wires. "It becomes even more difficult to give shape to certain emotions that are difficult to express in words in the first place. Also, it's hard for artists to relate to them, but the versatility of aluminium wires made it possible."

Having also made sculptures in the usual material like clay and plaster of paris, she understands their limitation, "With both of them, remoulding becomes difficult. Once they take shape, it takes a long time to change them. Factors like water, clay and plaster of paris ratios have to be taken care of." Parul is also doing a lot of mesh work.

Charanjit Singh, an artist and lecturer in Government College of Art, believes in using household material for his sculptures. "Artists often talk about reaching out to the society, but how is it possible when the material used is inaccessible to people." Therefore, he has used dust-pans, plastic packings, steering wheel, cycle seats…to make sculptures. Instead of placing them at the galleries, he prefers city cafes. "Again the intention is to reach out to as many people as possible. Also the stuff put into use is ordinary, which people can experiment with." To further simplify the work, he has used spray colours rather than mixing them with clay. "Spray colours will be convenient for people." Because all one needs to dso is press the nozzle!

ashima@tribunemail.com

Thirteen students of the Chitkara Institute of Engineering & Technology are having sleepless nights these days. Reason? They are eagerly waiting for the day they will land in Kaula Lumpur to participate in the Shell Eco Marathon Asia - a competition where budding engineers showcase various car designs. For the competition, to be held from July 8-10, faculty member Ravinder Pal Singh will be accompanying the team.

And their concept car - Stealth 2 - will be competing with the designs of 90 teams from as many as 12 countries. For animation, modelling and analysis of the project, the team used Autodesk Inventor Professional 2010, world's leading software for 2D and 3D designs.

Says Deepankar Bhattacharya, Head, Education, Autodesk India and SAARC, "The best way to motivate students is to make them aware of the latest technology. They can access softwares only after proper knowledge of how these are applied. Our main aim is to create next generation engineers and designers." He adds, "We hope that in the near future formal animation courses will be introduced in our education system right from the school level."

Cut to the competition. It will be held in two parts - 'The Autodesk Innovative Car Design Challenge' and 'Sustainability Mobility Challenge'. During the latter, the car that runs the maximum distance using limited amount of fuel will be awarded. This aims at encouraging students to leverage the power of 3D technology, which will help reduce the reliance on physical prototypes over the numerous digital prototypes.

Shares Manish Gupta, fourth-year mechanical branch student, "We are expecting the car to cover 1.6 kms in 23 minutes. Third-year student Tarun Gupta will be driving it. A Honda GX 35, 35 cc engine, which delivers 1.3 bph at 70,000 rpm, powers it. The body of the car is made up of three-mm thick carbonate sheets with an aluminum frame with a gross weight of 45 kg. The total cost of the car is Rs 1.8 lakh and we expect it to have a mileage of over 200 kms. In addition to the sponsorships, we also pooled in money for our project."

This is the fourth time a team from Chitkara is participating in such an event. Says Wing Cdr RS Gill, Director Administration, Punjab campus, "It is a moment of pride for us. The hardwork of the students and faculty will definitely be rewarded."

Meanwhile, the captain of the team, Manish, was awarded a trophy by Madhu Chitkara, General Secretary, Chitkara Educational Trust. Praising their efforts, she says, "It was quite a challenge for us during our initial attempt in 2006, but this year we are confident that our students will come out with flying colours."

The general belief that the open air theatre at Kalagram is only for hosting mega-star shows is erroneous, as performances in Indian classical dance are becoming frequent here. Two weeks ago, well-known Bharatnatyam dance exponent Suchitra Mitra gave a performance here much to the delight of the audience, especially slum children. Encouraged by the audience response, she held the concluding ceremony of her 20-day 'Padam' workshop (otherwise held at Chandigarh) here at the Kalagram in association with NZCC Patiala.

He claims to have Martin Scorcese among his fans and is on the wish list of Sean Penn's agent, so when asked about a comparison to Bollywood's kisser boy Emraan Hashmi, thanks to the 32 lip locks in his upcoming film, actor Prashant Narayanan asks, "Who's Emraan Hashmi?" Narayanan, who grabbed headlines thanks to the erotic content of his upcoming film Mr Singh Mrs Mehta, says that he does not want the kisser tag.

"I never heard of Emraan Hashmi before people started asking me if I am the next Emraan Hashmi. I have not seen any of his films. As far as the kisser tag is concerned, I don't want the tag and I did not sign the film hoping for it. May be it worked for Emraan, but I don't want it," said the actor.

Narayanan, who is a well-established name in the independent cinema circuit thanks to films like Chhal and The White Elephant, is a self-confessed "mad man" and says that he does not care about stereotypes or niches.

"I don't want to create a niche for myself because I dream of becoming the most versatile actor in the industry. I have done commercial stuff as well as films shot on digital cameras in trains and on the street. My next film has not one kissing scene by the way," said the 37-year-old actor.

From Academy Award winning German director Florian Gallenberger's film Shadows of Time'to Bombil and Beatrice which was premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, the actor has an impressive resume, beginning from the days he was a assistant director to Govind Nihalani.

Narayanan, who was born in Kerala, studied in Delhi and moved to Mumbai in the 90s to become an ad film producer, finds the number game about kisses very funny.

"I am sure I had more than 34 kisses in the film, I was not counting though you see. The film takes a very honest look at infidelity and the kisses were not forced into the script for shock value or to create controversy," he said.

Narayanan plays painter Ashwin Mehta in the film directed by debutante Pravesh Bharadwaj, which revolves around the relationship between him and Neera Singh, played by British-Indian actress Aruna Shields. The two find that their spouses are having an affair. Drawn together by shame and anger, they find comfort in their growing friendship as Neera becomes Ashwin's muse and lover.

The 'piece-de-resistance' of the movie, which has already grabbed headlines, is a scene where Ashwin paints Neera in the nude.

"It is an intense scene and everyone on set was tense about it. Some of the scenes that I had with both Aruna and Lucy, ran into many takes because both of them don't understand a word of Hindi." Mr Singh Mrs Mehta releases on 
June 25. — PTI

Pakistani singer Ali Zafar, who makes his Bollywood debut as an actor with Tere Bin Laden, was initially apprehensive about taking up the film fearing that it would hurt the sentiments of people.

"When I received the offer I was apprehensive, as the title of the film goes Tere Bin Laden. But when I read the script I found it was a comedy. It is a satire and does not hurt anyone's ideology."

"The idea excited me and the script was hilarious. It was fun to do this film," he added.

The pop singer and actor, who has delivered hit numbers like Sajania and Masty, is playing a journalist in the Abhishek Sharma-directed movie. "I play a journalist from Pakistan, who is desperate to migrate to the US. He fails to get there because of visa problems post 9/11. So he decides to produce a fake video of Osama Bin Laden to attract attention, but lands in trouble," Zafar said.

The 30-year-old versatile artist prefers doing "intelligent cinema" and likes the work of Bollywood actors Akshay Kumar and Govinda.

"I like the work of Akshay Kumar and Govinda, their comic timing is superb. With regards to films, ‘I love the Munnabhai series”, My Name is Khan and Rajneeti," he said.

Besides acting in the film, Zafar, also known as 'Prince of Pop' in Pakistan, has also lent his voice to two songs. "I have sung two songs in the film - I love Amrika and Ullu da pattha, Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy have given fabulous music (in the film)," he said.

Tere Bin Laden is set for a worldwide release on July 16. — PTI

Hollywood superstar Angelina Jolie visited Haiti at the weekend to meet with Haitian and United Nation officials about the situation in the earthquake-stricken Caribbean nation. The Wanted star, who is the Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, flew to meet with authorities about how things have been improving since the two devastating national disasters in January.

The 35-year-old actress' visit was kept top-secret, after Jolie requested that her trip remain a low-key matter. Since the earthquakes hit Haiti earlier this year, the actress has made several trips overseas where she met with orphans and other victims and refugees.

Last week, Jolie visited refugee children in northern Ecuador to draw attention to the plight of thousands who fled the conflict in Colombia to start a new life on the other side of the Ecuadorian-Colombian border. - — PTI 

Hollywood star Robert Downey Jr has been presented with the Gene Siskel Film Center's Renaissance Award for his versatility as an actor. The Iron Man star received the gong at a gala reception in Chicago on Saturday in recognition of his contribution to cinema.

The organisation said they gave the 45-year-old actor the accolade because he is one of the "most respected and versatile actors of his generation." Reflecting on his career, Downey, who has a history of alcohol and drug addiction, pointed out Tropic Thunder, Sherlock Holmes and Iron Man as his favourite movies of his own.

"Those three movies are the most representative of my work. I'm just glad that I didn't cheese out and phone in a performance on films that did so well," said Downey. The actor also admitted he has finally moved on from the addiction struggles that blighted his career between 1996 and 2003.

"I don't really think about it much anymore. I used to think, 'Everywhere I look, there are all of these issues. I need some dope,' But having a gargantuan hangover is not a great feeling," he said. --PTI

Hollywood actor Orlando Bloom and Victoria's Secret lingerie model Miranda Kerr are engaged to be married. The Pirates of the Caribbean star, 32, quietly began dating the Australian brunette, 26, in 2007. They were reported to have briefly separated for a time in 2008 before reconciling.

That same year, Bloom flew to her hometown Sydney, Australia, to meet her parents. He said that with their busy schedules, it hasn't always been easy to be together.

"Miranda and I spend so much time apart, she's working hard, I'm working hard, so we have to grab time together whenever we can," he said in 2009. "A weekend here, a weekend there. We are just enjoying our time together now."

After marriage, Miranda would prefer to have a quiet family life. "I've always wanted kids, so someday, eventually, yes, it will happen. My ideal situation would be to live on a farm in a solar-powered house with a hammock and a vegetable patch. When this is all over, that's where I'll be," she said. Bloom, who previously dated Superman Returns actress Kate Bosworth, reportedly proposed twice before, but the model was said to be reluctant to make the union official. —IANS

Hollywood superstar Johnny Depp is so obsessed with soccer that he has installed television sets throughout the set of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides so he can keep up-to-date with the ongoing World Cup.

The 47-year-old actor, who reprises his role as Captain Jack Sparrow in the fourth instalment of the swashbuckling Disney franchise, is a keen soccer fan and was determined that he and his co-stars tournament while working on the movie.

"There are TVs all over the set and regular breaks for big games during the World Cup. Johnny likes his soccer and with so many Brits on the cast and crew it wouldn't be fair to have them miss the action," said a source.

Depp star is not the only celebrity taking a keen interest in the World Cup, which is taking place in South Africa.

Last week, The Wedding Planner star Matthew McConaughey expressed his intentions to travel to watch the tournament if his home nation progresses further than the group stages of the competition. "If the US get to play Brazil, I'll be there," he said. — PTI

Even Beatles broke up! The decision to disband Deep Purple was fallout of many reasons. The Bee Gees, originally the singing trio of brothers, gave in too. Was it because of internal conflicts that Soundgarden parted ways? Spice girls, Backstreet Boys…of course, it wasn't a single event that led to the disintegration, or the never ending hiatus, but a long transition of actions including the cessation of touring. There's invariably a breakthrough album leading to mainstream success, then it's peak-phase, finally it's change the paths and part ways!

Roulette pick any influential or musical groups in history, after reaching the peak of musical charts, the rising bar graph fragments. City-based rock bands have similar if not the same stories to share. Parents, placements, pressures, career paths being some of the substitute factors.

Did anybody say, differences in artistic visions, rules the list of reasons. "One of the reasons we survived was that one person in a band took decisions," opines Nirdosh Sobti, from the De Innovatives, one of the few bands to have survived, since it was formed way back in 2004. He adds, "Ideally a band should go with only one sound, which is very important. But there's always a conflict as to such matters, which is why college bands aren't regarded as professionals." Yet another instance of personal ego getting the better of things.

"Each college band has to struggle through ego problems. Who decides the play list is yet another issue."

If not the internal pressures, it's the external factors; something's got to give. More than anything it's a musical chair of members entering and exiting. "We were initially three members when we formed the band around two years back, but we were not getting along well, so one person quit and it was just the two of us left and currently we're inactive on the music scene," shares Puneet Tandon of rap crew F-Luxx. He adds, "We might get back also but as of now we're inactive." A situation where one member quits and may be there's no band left to quit. Says Nirdosh, "We were second year students of CCET-26, when the band was formed. Initially, there were twelve to thirteen people, then some quit in the earlier stages due parental pressure. Right now, we're six members." He adds, "It was like someone or the other leaving or joining every two three months. So that the band doesn't suffer, I asked my sister, a music student, to be the bass guitarist."

Therein comes the P-Factor, parents, placements, pressures…"We cannot make it as our careers and parents just won't allow you to pursue music more than as a hobby. Moreover, even in the group, music tastes differ, the band invariably disintegrates after one or two years," shares Gagandeep Singh of heavy metal band, GOD. He adds, "We all were DAV college students when we formed the band, initially four people. We played Metallica, Iron Maiden covers, performed in rock idols." Then the professions took the better of the passions. "We formed the band around three years ago, were active for two years, then I quit after the final year and I guess the band has a different name now."

As for the parents, there's almost always a similar story, the rest is history! Says Puneet, "One cannot always disobey the parents also, nor do the parents give in. During the first two years of college, they were like they let us do whatever we wanted. But later, there's a lot of pressure of career and other things." Adds Nirdosh, "The pressure's everywhere. Your folks always want you to be either a doctor or an engineer, never a musician. Good results make a difference. With me it was different, I was extremely passionate about music since childhood." The group has now relocated to Mumbai to pursue their interest head on, a decision that can be possible with a tiny fraction of the group musical ventures pursued in the first year of college.

Many come together, just as many part ways, decimal few survive while some remain suspended and after a while head to reunion gigs, or take time out and produce music whenever possible. Just as with the band ATM. Opines Vilphin Vincent, the lead vocalist, student, Indo Global Colleges, "My drummer was in UK all this while, and I was in Mumbai for six months. But we'll be getting back together shortly and do a reunion gig. Our main problem is everyone's going different places, my guitarist was in Trivandrum, one in Pune, but whenever we have the time, we do a reunion kind of thing."

He adds, "There are bands that go play outside India, we plan to do that too. If there's a very big show coming up, might take time out from our jobs and come together for a while."

A feat in itself and quite remarkable if achieved. For in India, the words mainstream and music don't really go together. He adds, "Music in itself is a very uncertain thing, you may become really rich, famous and then you may not be selling any music." Add to it the India factor. Opines Puneet, "Indian music industry is still struggling, hip hop and rock as genres aren't still mainstream. Even being in commercial music, doesn't make the scene any better. For you cannot say, I'll be a musician and then settle down." Guess that sums up the scenario.

manpriya@tribunemail.com

Teenagers' primary objective is to finish their studies and leave home, according to two researchers from the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC). The study on the relationship between teenagers' goals and antisocial behaviour also revealed that the most antisocial among such teenagers place greater importance on popularity with others.

"The goals that teenagers place most importance on are to do with leaving home, work and education, in other words they are related to finishing their studies and academic achievements", said Laura Lopez Romero, co-author of the study with Estrella Romero and a researcher at the USC. "Antisocial goals are to deceive, steal or bypass rules and laws, but not as a means to an end, rather as an end in themselves. In other words, taking part in this kind of behaviour is a goal in itself for adolescents, because it allows them to achieve social recognition and to establish an identity and antisocial reputation, which gives them a certain level of popularity with others", said Lopez Romero. The objective of the research was to study how teenagers' goals were structured, and the relationship between these and antisocial behaviour.

It was based on questionnaires handed out to a sample of 488 participants, aged between 12 and 18, at six public schools in Galicia. The students had to state the importance they placed on each goal, using a scale of six options. "Then we analysed the young people's involvement in antisocial behaviour," the expert pointed out. The study is based on these data. The researchers also studied the role of gender in the relationship between goals and antisocial behaviour.

Out of the teenagers interviewed, 233 were boys and 254 were girls. "We observed very classic differences between the two groups. The girls placed more importance on goals related to education and interpersonal-family aspects, while the boys set targets that were more antisocial or related to sporting achievements", explained Lopez Romero.

The only factor without any difference between the two was their goal of leaving home. "Both groups were the same in terms of their aspirations about gaining autonomy and freedom," said the expert. The study was published in the Spanish Journal of Psychology. — ANI

Nearly half of American adults are just as likely as teenagers to text while driving, even in the midst of heavy traffic, according to a new study on the dangerous habit. The report found nearly half -- or 47 per cent -- of adult texters say they have sent or received text messages from mobile phones while driving.

Of all adults, including those who do not text, 27 per cent said that they had sent text messages from behind the wheel, according to the report titled "Adults and Cell Phone Distractions" by the Pew Research Center's Internet and American Life Project. About the same amount of all driving-age teens -- 26 per cent -- said they had done so; a news channel quoted the report as saying. "It is just as hard for adults as it for teenagers to resist chatting with friends and sending off that quick text even in the midst of heavy traffic," Lee Rainie, director of Pew's Internet & American Life Project, said in a statement.

The new information might come as a surprise to adults, especially parents who are concerned about their kids texting while driving. "Adults may be the ones sounding the alarm on the dangers of distracted driving, but they don't always set the best example themselves," Mary Madden, a senior research specialist at Pew, said.

The teens surveyed were not embarrassed to say they had texted while driving. — PTI