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What’s cooking?
It’s a reality check. What women activists couldn’t do in all these years of struggle for equality, the Masterchef franchise’s Australia and Indian version have; at least for women in India. It motivated men to step inside the kitchen and dabble with cooking. Even a recent British study by an appliance range, Luce by Hotpoint, suggests the same: “An increasing number of men are cooking themselves.” Bearing witness are men chefs, who get enquiries from their amateur counterparts on how to gain perfection in the kitchen and they are more than happy to guide!
Cooking is not considered drudgery anymore; instead it is referred to as a cathartic experience. “Once men enter the kitchen to rustle up something, they realise the fact even better,” shares Joe Bath, who was seen in the first edition of MasterChef India and now runs a restaurant. More than cooking regular food, it’s making exotic dishes that interest men. “It’s not aloo gobhi or dal tadka on their menu; an Italian dish or an Oriental delicacy would fare any day better on their preference list. All that still comes under the domain of women. They are keen on experimenting with new flavours, spices and even kitchen equipment.” It surprises Chef Pallav of JW Marriott to see the newly developed interest of men in cooking. The queries flow-in from his guests, who want to know, “Almost everything about every cuisine.” From the ingredients of a dish, the way it’s cooked, appropriate temperature to get the desired results; other secret recipes to history behind their origin…men come up with various questions. “A lot of it comes after watching MasterChef. They do refer to the show very often,” says the chef. The fact that most of the cookery shows and food reviewers are also men inspires them to take up the job at home. A lot of help comes from modern kitchen appliances, which have made cooking simpler. As Joe adds, “Chopping, blending, grilling, barbeque…there is an appliance for everything and this too has generated men’s interest in cooking. If not anything else, they love to barbeque food, which tastes well and is easy to make.” All said and done, men’s contribution in the home kitchen is still questionable. Kitchens of most of the five-star hotels might have men chefs, but the scenario is completely opposite when it comes to kitchens at home. Celebrity chef Kunal Kapur says that in India, men have always been cooking but it was something that they never boasted of. “A lot has changed post MasterChef, as men want to take up cooking as a hobby. However, to mark their presence inside the kitchen just as their better halves do, will still take some time.” In metros the roles of men and women have swapped to some extent but in small towns, it’s still the same, “Men will go out to work, women will take care of the household chores — once this perception is done away with, more men will be seen turning chefs at home.” Even aloo gobhi from their hands won’t be a far-fetched dream then! ashima@tribunemail.com
Show time
MasterChef Australia MasterChef India Sanjeev Kapoor’s Kitchen Nigella’s Kitchen Turban Tadka
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Comic timing
It’s the brightest shade of pink that Marcia Williams, author and illustrator of the book The Elephant’s Friend and Other Tales from Ancient India picked for the cover page. The index is in bright orange. Turn to any page, a deluge of colours take the shape of various animals to tell stories of India.
Not that Marcia’s earlier books are in shades of grey, but this is for the first time after 20 years and 25 books that she has used colours this liberally. “I attended Indian weddings, saw miniature paintings and enjoyed festivals of India — colours were the common factor,” says the author, who was at the British Library in Chandigarh on Tuesday. For her book, she pulled out stories from the three main books of Indian folk tales — Hitopadesha, Jataka and Panchtantra — and presented them as comic strips. “That helps bring children closer to their culture.” Comparing the Indian folk tales to those in Egypt, Greece and Arabic, she says versions of the same story are different in different regions. “It’s like Chinese whisper. As a story travels from one part of India to another, there are subtle changes.” The treatment she has given to the stories is very modern. The illustrations she has designed explain the plot of the story and the text supports the cause well. “Unlike what people believe, text is more difficult to compile than making drawings. It is the text that lays the foundation of the story; it has to be concise, yet make sure that children don’t miss out on any important aspect of the story.” Travelling around the world infuses confidence in Marcia to turn folk tales of various countries into comic books. Besides these, she has also given Shakespeare’s plays, Charles Dickens’s stories and extracts from Bible in comic form. It’s certainly not an easy job; a year’s thorough research precedes the book she next has plans to write about. “Shakespeare’s works were the toughest one to change since they were in the form of plays, which need to be performed to be understood.” In that case, she makes an addition of a side-strip, which she calls ‘the side text’. “It is about the reaction of the audience to a particular scene or dialogue. When the target readership is children, I ensure that they grasp what is being said completely.” There is no denying the fact that there is a potential clientele of adults as well — the adult comic books are there. Marcia switches to these from time to time and next on her agenda is a comic book on Pride and Prejudice, which she believes will be read in all countries. “The story has a universal appeal.” On the same note, she hopes that this book will be able to take Indian folk tales to people around the world. “There are gods, demigods, animals, human beings, super-heroes that make for the protagonists of the Indian tales, which is enough to make a story sound interesting.” And it is colours that do justice to the colourful stories of India!
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It’s classy!
It’s the time for embroidery, ornate fabrics and bling as it’s the wedding season but mind you, it’s chic and classy versus loud and overdone! Having moved away from heavy bridal-wear to versatile and chic style of clothing (especially for the reception and cocktail function), there are many options available for the bride and groom now.
“Cocktail dresses, gowns and skirts are one of the great options in wedding-wear these days,” says Vipin, a stylist from Gorma designs in Sector 19. He adds, “Gowns and skirts are in vogue for the brides and for the grooms its Jodhpuri pants, achkan-style coats and Pathani-style kurta pyjama with an ornate half-jacket. Rich fabrics like silk, brocade and ikkat are being used as the most popular choice and for the work, it goes from embroidery to zari and tilla.” “While every wedding season has some surprises in store, this time it’s more about traditional cuts with contemporary styling,” says Rajneesh Jain from Meena Bazaar. He adds, “Colourful cocktail dresses, skirts in rich fabrics like velvet, crepe, brocade or silk or stretch satin or even rich tapestries translate well for the bride. As for the groom, it is velvet coats, bundhgala with glittering hem and cuffs; dhoti salwars, Nehru collar jacket and Jodhpuri pants.” While it’s the play of fabrics and stylised cuts that are in this season, it’s also the colours that play a bright role. Deep shades like green, orange, yellow, purple, electric blue and magenta have a bigger say. “Velvet is very big this bridal season, and its skirts with corsets and tube-blouses in alternate wear for the brides. But these skirts come without dupattas, so it is more of a semi-formal wear and fit for functions like cocktail and mehendi. Tail shirts, flowing stuff and layering too is quite in,” says Seema Sharma from Impressions in Sector 19. Well, with so many options available, it is time you experimented with your looks!
Tip Time
A body that lacks natural curves can be helped with bright colours and bold patterns that provide an ultimate feminine presence. To balance a top-heavy figure, consider flattering neckline for a full bust like the V-neck. Dark colours can make you look slimmer. When wearing a bright colour dress, make sure you do not team it up with loud or overdone footwear.
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Dressed to kill!
It is high-time Nia Sharma, popularly known as Manvi from Ek Hazaaron Main Meri Behna Hain, finds a stylist for herself. The actress, who also won an award at the Indian Television Academy Awards 2012 function, defiantly dressed to kill not someone with her looks but the entire concept of red carpet and a gala swanky award function! Nia wore a red full-length dress that looked more like a sleeping gown. Moreover, the dress looked very shabby as it seemed to be hanging on her skinny body.
This is not all that was wrong with her dressing, her makeup was extremely loud and her hair made it sure that she had come to the award function straight from her bed! With a disastrous evening for the onlookers, we hope that our leading lady decides to do some damage control next time.
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Angry moment
In the upcoming episodes of Veera, Ratan will get upset with Bansuri’s taunt and angry with Ranveer, who will argue with his mother (Ratan) and in frustration she will slap him. She will tell him that his father is not going to come back.
Disheartened, Ranvir will leave the house with Veera and go to Kartaar to request him to get his father back. Later, Ratan will apologise to Ranvir for slapping him.
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Repeat telecast
Saif Ali Khan He is also one of the few lucky people that Imtiaz Ali has worked with twice. And he has done four movies with Deepika Padukone. Romantic comedies are his forte and lucky genre and he is lucky he still gets to play such young roles! Race 2 is set to be a big hit as well!
She is the only heroine to have worked with Saif Ali Khan in four films now. More importantly, she worked in Imtiaz Ali's Love Aaj Kal. He doesn't repeat his actors but she was also part of Cocktail, written by him and she was the first actor approached by the writer-director. She might also do Imtiaz's directorial next.
She is working with all the top Khans one after another. So far, Jab Tak Hai Jaan and Ek Tha Tiger have done exceptionally well and Dhoom 3 is going to be a blockbuster too and she is paired opposite Aamir Khan! She became Yash Chopra's last ideal heroine with Jab Tak Hai
Jaan. She is lucky because she has got to work with Aamir Khan in two back-to-back movies, 3 Idiots and Talaash!
An artist’s muse Diary to remember Nightingale and Gabambo have launched a series of diaries and other stationery with pictures of Jab Tak Hai Jaan and other Yash Chopra classic movies. So get your hands on one! Also, Jab Tak Hai Jaan got a standing ovation at the Doha Tribeca Film Festival. Aamir’s tribute to Raj Khosla Aamir Khan has just found out that director Raj Khosla used to stay in one of the rooms in the house in which he resides. That room serves as a guest room. Raj Khosla made suspense movies like CID and Woh Kaun Thi and Aamir feels Talaash is a tribute to the director who made very good suspense films.
Catching up at Disneyland Farah Khan was busy shooting continuously for commercials and choreographing Dabangg 2 song. The actress was missing her kids throughout her schedule. Finally she's got some time to spend at home with her family. Being the perfect husband, Shirish Kunder had an idea and decided to take the family for a holiday. Now, the two are in Hong Kong for a holiday. They took their kids Diva, Anya and Czar to Disneyland. We wish them more of such times!
Sunny Leone is not doing Singh Sahib The Great with Sunny Deol because she wanted more money than was offered to her. So, she bowed out of the movie. She was paid Rs 1 crore for her debut film and has a plum deal with another company.
Neha Sharma is shooting a movie in Dubai with Vivek Oberoi. She had to bear the brunt of a nasty weather spell on the sand dunes of Dubai and got tanned. She is sensitive to harsh heat but waited outdoors with the rest of the cast and crew.
Nargis Fakhri finally has another film. She has been signed on for Madras Cafe produced by John Abraham and directed by Shoojit Sircar. She plays a foreign journalist in it. The movie is based on the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi and named Madras Cafe because the plan was hatched in a cafe down South.
Four heroines for Ranbir For quite some time, there were talks that UTV Motion Pictures and director Anurag Basu were hobnobbing with the idea of roping in Ranbir Kapoor to play a lead in his ambitious Kishore Kumar biopic. The heroines will be selected depending on which portions of the singer-actor’s life the director chooses to cover. If the film is made about the singer’s entire life, then there will be four stories as Kishore Kumar had four wives. Tentatively titled Kishore, the film is currently in its scripting stage. “Anurag wants this project to be as close to reality as possible. As the script is still underway, a lot of details of the singer-musician-filmmaker need to be taken into consideration when writing the script as he was a legend,” said a source. The film will go on the floors late next year.
Asin’s wish Asin insisted that she wanted to be part of the item song Balma in the movie Khiladi 786. She wanted to dance with Claudia Ciesla and Akshay Kumar and got her way too!
Aamir hits the water
Aamir, who plays inspector Shekhawat, will be seen doing an underwater sequence. This sequence required Aamir to do under water swimming and it was shot extensively in London. Undoubtedly, swimming is something that takes a lot of time, it requires hardcore practice and dedication towards learning something completely new. Director Reema Kagti, who was present during Aamir Khan's training was quite impressed. "Aamir, I have to tell you I'm very impressed with your swimming," she was heard saying at the shoot. In fact, the entire crew was surprised to see that Aamir had picked up the swimming so soon. Aamir’s trainer David helped him throughout the learning process. While he learned primary swimming from Mickey Mehta, Aamir says, "Actually Dave helped me prepare for the underwater sequence, he helped me with breathing exercises which increased my lung power.”
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The year ahead
If your birthday is November 28...
Now you have the opportunity to fulfill your desires and reach your aims. Nothing is impossible, as inside you there is great strength and you are fully aware of this. But avoid over-confidence or arrogance, and be sure you are always in the right. You'll be freed from a situation, which has caused you distress. You'll be very attentive to things that seem significant and try to take the right measures to improve your relationship. The year 2013 starts out slowly, giving you a chance to catch your breath. You are about to enter into one of the most important periods of your career; so take the opportunity to unwind during the first 10 days of December. If you want to go on a vacation, even overseas, proceed at that time as it is unlikely you would have a chance to take time off after that. In formulating your career strategy, your outlook would be remarkably strong for most of the coming eight months, although not as strong from January 23 to April 13. During that phase, your progress may stall and you may have to tweak your tactics. While you have a competitive advantage in mid-June, give your career a big push now. In July you can be exacting, domineering and inconsiderate at the work place; and boastful, extravagant in personal life. Some Sagittarians risk becoming playboys, wasting their lives away in frivolous pursuits; others can develop religious fanaticism or else turn into hypocrites, their inner prudishness disguised by an outward appearance of joviality. Another side of the religiosity, which is a danger in you, can be superstition. Those born after 1980 should cast aside stubbornness and listen to the opinions of others before rejecting them. Otherwise, they will regret their actions. There could be some financial crunch in August 2013. However, you would be able to take control over the situation if you choose to be frugal for the time being. Sudden travel plans may take some of you abroad on a special assignment or for job opportunities. Mood: Quite aware Compatible signs: Taurus, Virgo Lucky colours: Orange, Purple Lucky days: Monday and Wednesday. Lucky numbers: 2, 10, 19, 21, 100.
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Astro turf
ARIES: New people whom you meet will be rather exciting. Remember resolutions about diet and nutrition. Health problems will slow you down. Travel is not favoured. Tarot message: Make compromises outside and come to terms within yourself.
Lucky colour: Purple. Magic number: 36 TAURUS:
Love life is sparklingly beautiful. Get into your hobbies or a favourite sport for mental and physical stimulation. A friend might try to talk you into doing something you would rather not do. Say no. Tarot message: Do not expect too much from others. Lucky colour: White. Magic number: 50 GEMINI: A piece of good news arriving by mail or phone will cheer you up. Household affairs continue smoothly. Bizfolk: do not invest your money in hastily concluded deals. Tarot message: Lack of confidence or lack of caution can leave you in losses; so be confident. Lucky colour: Forest-green. Magic number: 35 CANCER: Make more of an effort to attain and maintain harmony. Communication on the job can assume greater importance, but you do need to be careful that you do not get caught up in red-tape. Tarot message: Don’t do anything at the cost of health. Lucky colour: Aqua. Magic number: 59 LEO:
Not a good day for shopping. There can be a small get-together at home. A promotion to a management position might trigger self-doubt. Be conscious of your self-speak. A level of anxiety could interfere with your sense of well-being. Tarot message: Don't take hasty decisions. Lucky colour: Crimson. Magic number: 33 VIRGO: Take things step-by-step. Sportsmen: sincerity is the key to success. Speculate only if you are ready to lose money. Anything you have done wrong or in a slipshod fashion can be exposed to the public. Tarot message: Don’t waste an opportunity by being rash. Magic number: 25
LIBRA: Working women: take complete rest today. Students: bury your nose in books. Be logical in your thoughts. A change of plans can throw you into turmoil. Don’t expect people to make compromises and you won’t be let down. Tarot message: Learn from past experiences. Lucky colour: Peach. Magic number: 25 SCORPIO: Push routine to one side. You might fall madly in love during travel or while at a conference. Drive carefully. Partnership issues are likely to surface. Tarot message: Be determined and increase your self-confidence, which will be on trial.Lucky colour: Mauve. Magic number: 31 SAGITTARIUS:
Auspicious day for purchasing ornaments Hasty actions can lead to situations best avoided. Keep your wits about you and try to pause if agitated. This will allow your mind the chance to catch up with your emotions and stay on track. Tarot message: Be articulate. Lucky colour: Yellow. Magic number: 42 CAPRICORN: There will be opportunities to show off your artistic flair. Loved ones will do what they can to help solve family financial problems. Once you get going, the pace will pick up considerably. Tarot message: Dare to accomplish long-term tasks. Lucky colour: Red. Magic number: 52 AQUARIUS: The card Six of Wands emphasises fun, frolics and accelerated social activities. Your effort will not go unnoticed by superiors. Love letter and other heartening communications are promised. Tarot message: Do not swing away from your course. Lucky colour: Orange. PISCES: Today love and travel figure prominently. You can put yourself in line for a promotion or salary increase. Strong feelings can overwhelm you and distort your sense of perspective. Tarot message: Don’t reveal your plan of action to anyone. Magic number: 63
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There are some actors and directors who do not repeat their co-stars and cast. We bring you exceptions of the lucky ones!
Deepika Padukone
Katrina Kaif
Kareena Kapoor 
Randeep Hooda received a gift of paintings from one of his fans who is a painter. She has painted different characters and looks of the actor in different movies. She has even posted them online for others to see. The actor is flattered and touched.
Sunny ditches Sunny
Weather issue
Nargis in
The latest we hear is that Ranbir has been signed for the film. The hunt is now on for four heroines who would reprise the roles of the legendary singer’s wives namely Ruma Guha Thakurota, Madhubala, Yogita Bali and Leena Chandavarkar.
Aamir Khan, who didn't know swimming at all, has finally learned swimming for his upcoming suspense drama film Talaash. That's not it, he even had to learn underwater swimming, which is more difficult than regular swimming.
You share your birthday with Esha Gupta (November 28, 1985), who is a Bollywood actress. A model, Esha stood third in the Femina Miss India contest in 2007 and went to compete in the Miss India International competition. She appeared in Kingfisher Swimsuit Calendar in 2010. In 2012, she was signed by Mahesh Bhatt for a three-film contract with Vishesh Films and made her screen debut in Kunal Deshmukh's Jannat 2. This was followed by Vikram Bhatt's Raaz 3 as well as Prakash Jha's Chakravyuh.