Category Archives: Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Nawazuddin Siddiqui to endorse Spice Stellar 506 smartphone

May 12, 2014Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economympositiveone@gmail.com

Nwazuddin Siddiqui was initially hesitant and nervous about the brand engagement. ( Source: Varinder Chawla )

Bollywood actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui has signed up for an ad featuring the introduction of a new smartphone Spice Stellar 506 into the market.

Along with the ad, the cell phone company will also showcase a digital film showcasing how smartphone technology is changing lives of the youth of India today.

‘The Lunchbox’ actor was initially hesitant and nervous about the brand engagement. But apparently, after a sit-down with the team and understanding the campaign’s objective, Nawazuddin felt more at ease.

“The film resonates with my own life journey and my belief that the size of one’s dreams isn’t defined by the size of one’s town. Shooting the film was a nostalgic trip down memory lane. When I was growing up I’d trek miles, in the same manner as shown in the film, and finally reach the city exhausted. But as soon as I saw the cinema theatre all my exhaustion would just vanish and everything would be worth it,” said the actor.

The ad will feature Nawazuddin’s life of struggle, deprived of comfort and luxury and has been shot in the town where Nawazuddin spent most of his time growing up.

source: http://www.indianexpress.com / The Indian Express / Home> Entertainment> Bollywood / by Express News Service – Mumbai / May 12th, 2014

Salome Roy Kapoor visits Hyderabad to make it a fashion hub

May 12, 2014Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & EconomyAyesha Azara Mujahid, Deccan Institute of Design (DID), Lakhotia Institute of Fashion Design, Mohd. Azhar Mujahidmpositiveone@gmail.com

Miss India (1972) and mother-in-law of actress Vidya Balan, Salome Roy Kapoor. (Photo: PTI/File)

Hyderabad:

Thursday evening saw a gathering of people who one would assume were strangers; but in real life they have known each other for as long as they can remember.

Miss India (1972) and mother-in-law of actress Vidya Balan, Salome Roy Kapoor, designer James Ferreira, make-up artist Cory Walia, jewellery designer Suhani Pittie, fashion designer Shravan Naresh, Shilpa Reddy and others were present at the launch of the Deccan Institute of Design (DID), which they will be part of when it starts operations.

“I last came to Hyderabad many, many years back. I used to be a model and we had come to the city for a show,” says Salome, who dances, choreographs, directs plays, fashion shows and also conducts grooming classes. Her role as a visiting professor would be to conduct grooming sessions, which include deportment, etiquette, table manners, body language etc.

Salome’s sons — Siddharth, Kunaal and Aditya — are all connected with Bollywood and talking about the latest addition to her family from the industry, Vidya Balan, she says, “Vidya is down-to-earth and a lovely daughter-in-law. There have been times when people have tried to get in touch with Vidya through me regarding some event or something else, but I have never encouraged that. She has a busy schedule and I can’t interfere.”

Salome has known the “talented James” (Ferreira) for over 40 years, having also been the one to give him his first break. “It was right after college and I was very nervous, but she saw my work and pretty much gave me my first job,” says James, who is also the creative head of the institute.

DID is an institute by Mohd. Azhar Mujahid and Ayesha Azara Mujahid of the Lakhotia Institute of Fashion Design. Talking about the institute, James says, “Our (institute’s) aim is to make Hyderabad the fashion capital of South India. Not only is Hyderabad the most happening place down South, but it also has the most number of affluent people. We are going to take people back to the roots.

There are 108 ways of wearing a sari, 45 ways of wearing a turban and 60 styles for wearing a dhoti; but in this fast-food age, we have not given our Indian traditions much importance and we hope to change that.”

source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Nation> Current Affairs / by ADC / May 03rd, 2014

Tindipotha gastronomic delight from a food truck

May 10, 2014Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Community Involvement / Social Issues, NRI's / PIO's, Travel & Tourismmpositiveone@gmail.com

by Phalgunn Maharishi

The residents of Mysore, especially in the neighbourhoods of Bannimantap and Rajeev Nagar are now familiar with a big truck parked on the roadside near JSS Dental College with shining lights and people surrounding it eating costly food. But wait a minute! Costly food in a big truck? Well, it seems to be costly as the big truck sells fresh American-Mexican food but that’s not really costly. “A Mysorean can now fill his stomach with some classy food for just Rs. 80 on an average,” said Syed Manju while speaking about his big boy “Tindipotha.”

Syed Manju previously held the position of an Area Manager handling Public Relations and Marketing for 28 years in Costco, USA, the Number 3 retailer in the world which directly competes with Walmart, before heading towards Mysore to come up with his dream boy. “I had a passion towards cooking due to which I quit the job and came to Mysore with an interest in doing something unique, something which never existed here. That’s when Tindipotha was born,” commented Syed Manju while speaking about how it all started. The ecstatic and energetic Syed Manju keeps travelling back and forth between Mysore and Bellingham (90 miles north of Seattle in the United States) where his wife (Diane Houston), little girl Zara (16) and a little boy Iyan (14) lives.

Originally born in Channapatna and brought up in Mandya, Syed Manju is a self made man. He studied B.Sc and Diploma in Film Acting. He soon landed into Kannada Film Industry during his late 20s by directing films like Neenakkaga and Kanoonige Sawaal after which he travelled to USA for a trip to stay with his brothers and sisters for a while. Manju said, “Don’t ask me how, but I got my green card over there” with a wink and also added, “I never wanted to be there forever. Infact I had plans of directing more films in Kannada, but my fate made me stay there,” with a sweet smile. The last film produced by Manju was Appaji starring late Dr. Vishnuvardhan in the lead role released in 1996.

Coming back to Tindipotha, it all started roughly an year ago when Syed Manju and his brother Rafi Manju bought an old truck and got it rebuilt in Mandya to bring the new fancy boy to the streets of Mysore. “I was scared in the beginning. It was something new, something which the Mysoreans never experienced before. A new food to a new market. We had to prepare American-Mexican style foods with the ingredients available in Mysore and it didn’t seem easy for us in the beginning. But we did it and still doing it. It’s been an year and we are doing good,” said Syed Manju while speaking about Tindipotha.

Tindipotha has recently transformed itself from being just a food truck into a youth junction where we can find college going kids spending their cool evenings eating the sizzling new dishes like Nachos, Chicken Melt, Roti Lapat, Gilli Chicken, Turpi Chicken, Rollito, Apple Dream, Lava Pie, and many more summing up to over twenty different types of food.

“My brother Rafi Manju manages the front end and cash while my nephew Syed Umair Manju is our grill master. He even looks after the crew. Farhan, the cousin of Umair, assists the crew inside out and Tausif does all the deep fry and plating. Siddique and Atiq have been newly added to the crew and are learning ropes. Tausif, Siddique and Atiq are all family friends. We are all family and its a family business. The whole crew, except me and my brother, are college going kids,” said Syed Manju while introducing the team of Tindipotha.

People love the food. We had an interactive session with some regular customers of Tindipotha who expressed their hearts out. Bashar and Abdur Razzak, who stay in Bannimantap said, “This is really nice. It’s different than what we find elsewhere. We don’t find such tasty food at any other place, especially the Nachos! We come here for Nachos,” when asked to express how they feel about Tindipotha. Areb and his friends Mohammed Fahad and Rakshad, who come all the way from Bangalore just to eat at Tindipotha, said that they still haven’t yet got over the taste of Chicken Melt. The trio commented, “Its been a year and we still come here to eat the same thing,” with a laugh. Dental students Alley and Ahmad, who are from Iran visit Tindipotha atleast twice a week and mentioned that they love the tasty food and also the hospitality given to them by Syed Manju and his crew.

While speaking about the unpredictability of such food business in a city like Mysore, Syed Manju said, “Usually weekends are the busiest days for us, yet we can never predict. Sometimes customers ask me, which is the best dish prepared here! Well, I tell them to close their eyes and put their finger on the menu and we will serve it. If they don’t like the food, let them not pay us but if they like it, they need to pay us double.” He also added, “We are different from other eating places in the city saying that we smile at our customers which we can never find in any other hotels in Mysore. We also appreciate each and every customer, thank them and enquire in person whether they liked the dish. The food is also custom made for every single customer according to his likes and dislikes and we keep changing the taste one plate at a time.”

Tindipotha is for sure a place to be cherished and one of its kind in Mysore. It’s both vegetarian and non-vegetarian food truck with some tasty healthy and classy American-Mexican food at low prices. Do you want to try some different custom made food? Just head towards Tindipotha in Bannimantap near JSS Dental College between 7 pm and 11 pm any day! For more details, type in TINDIPOTHA in facebook and you will get the fan page.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles / May 04th, 2014

Bangalore boys come first in aero competition

May 7, 2014Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Education, Science & Technologympositiveone@gmail.com

Bangalore :

Bangalore, the aviation capital of India, has often had its young opting for careers in aerospace, many displaying their skills at various forums. Two teams from Bangalore only reaffirmed this fact by bagging the first two places at the recently concluded (April 12) Boeing India-IIT national-level aeromodelling competition.

The four Bangalore boys — three from ASC College of Engineering, and one from BMS — competed against 560 participants to clench the contest.

At one point, Tabrez Nadvi Anser, Pavan MJ, and Vignesh Arul of ASC College, who bagged the first place, stared at a missed opportunity. “Selection for the finals was to happen at four zones, IIT Madras (South), IIT Kharagpur (East), IIT Bombay (West), and IIT Kanpur (North). Unfortunately, we couldn’t enter the zonal-level competition at IIT Chennai, as it coincided with our semester exams. We finally got permission to participate from the East zone, and our college helped us with the funding,” Tabrez told TOI.

In the zonal round, Pavan said, the team focused on design and building of the remote control (RC) aircraft, keeping in mind the ability to glide. “We did not buy a ready-made aircraft,” Tabrez added.

Having qualified for the finals with 12 other teams from various zones, the four shifted their focus to flying and acrobatic flying, as per the problem statement given by the organizers. They built a depron-made 3D RC aircraft which performed all manoeuvres as planned. “Eventually, we won because of our strategy which was duly acknowledged by the jury,” Tabrez said.

While team ASC was busy clearing hurdles at the zonal levels, Mohammed Shadman Alam was steering a solo show. “While other teams had at least two participants, with the upper limit set at four per team, Alam did everything alone,” said one of the organizers.

At the end, the battle was between the two Bangalore teams, and Alam came second. “Going alone has its perks. I could conceive and design what I wanted, and also perform manoeuvres I liked. Also, if something were to go wrong, the blame would be all mine, and so was it with the credit,” he said.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Bangalore / by Chethan Kumar, TNN / April 30th, 2014

MELANGE : Royal treat for bibliophiles

May 5, 2014Amazing Feats, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Education, Travel & Tourism, World Opinionmpositiveone@gmail.com

Books restored from different Asaf Jahi dynasties are in the Chowmahallah Palace library./ Photos: Nagara Gopal / The Hindu

The Mehtab Mahal library at Chowmahalla Palace throws open a treasure trove from the Nizam’s era

The Nizams, it turns out, had an eye for everything exquisite. From the jewellery they wore to the silks that adorned their wardrobe, the cars they rode in, and the cuisine they partook, everything simply spelt royalty. While these indicate their lavish lifestyle, their interest in books and literature is less known.

Throwing light on their urge to discover and relate to the world around is the Royal Library in Chowmahalla Palace; its collection of books includes The Life of Samuel Johnson, History of Don Quixote, John F Kennedy – Portrait of a President, Glimpses of India,The Princes of India and an array of Encyclopaedias and much more .

Situated in the Mehtab Mahal of the Chowmahalla, the Royal Library houses more than 10,000 books and “is a haven for researchers and book lovers.”

The library that was thrown open to book lovers last year has been digitized recently, not only to help book lovers but also ensure safety of the royal treasure.

The idea of the library is to protect and preserve the valuable collection of the Asaf Jahi kings. The collection mostly belonged to the Mir Mahboob Ali Khan (VI Nizam), Mir Osman Ali Khan (VII Nizam) and Nizam Mukarram Jah. The books have been sourced from different Asaf Jahi palaces like the Nazri Bagh, Chiran Palace and Chowmahalla to be housed in the Royal Library here.

The books thus collected were sorted and segregated into various categories.

Books restored from different Asaf Jahi dynasties are in the Chowmahallah Palace library./ The Hindu

“A lot of work went into making them ready to be put in the cases for readers to read them in the library. Various professionals worked to clean, bind and make the books fit for reading. We have applied all preservation techniques, including fumigation, to protect the books,” informs G. Kishan Rao. He adds, “The collection of books range from history, literature, poetry, philosophy, geography, culture and religion. This library also houses the exclusive collection of Qurans by the Nizams which was inaugurated recently.” A few books also hint at the Nizam’s passion to learn languages. The number of English books is close to 3000, followed by Urdu, Persian and Arabic.

“There is also a good number of Persian manuscripts containing the firmans issued by the Asaf Jahis as well as several volumes of Mir Osman Ali Khan’s poetry,” informs the librarian. Qurans of different sizes are in the process of being restored and will find place in the library after that.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus / by Prabalika M. Borah / Hyderabad – April 25th, 2014

Mosque with a Spanish touch

April 28, 2014Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Leaders, Travel & Tourismmpositiveone@gmail.com

While the neighbouring region is resplendent with the remnants of the glorious Vijayanagar empire in Hampi, adjacent to it are the vestiges of the Bahmani Sultanate.

The Jama Masjid, the great mosque inside the Gulbarga Fort is a testimony to this.

One of its kind

From an architectural viewpoint, the Mosque is considered unique in South Asia for its form and structure. The material used is lime and brick.

The arches of Jama Masjid are similar to the interiors of Spanish Mosque of Hyderabad.

These are the only two mosques in India which have the similarity in interiors of the Great Cathedral–Mosque of Cordoba in Spain.

The Jama Masjid was built by Muhammad Shah I (1358-75) to commemorate Gulbarga as the capital of the Bahmani Sultanate.

The Bahmani dynasty was founded by Ala al-Din Hasan Bahman Shah, a Bahmin’s servant at the court of Muhammad bin Tughluq. The Bahmanis established themselves in Gulbarga once the Delhi Sultanate began losing its hold.

The Jama Masjid does not have minarets. But the mosque built inside the Fort is unique because of a huge dome and many smaller ones which adds to its grandeur.

It was built in 1367 AD, by a Spanish architect, with arched doorways on the same lines as that of the Great Cathedral–Mosque of Cordoba in Spain. It has a large dome on the west side and middle-size domes at the four corners of the mosque, making it a beautiful sight to behold. Instead of having a courtyard, it has 63 small domes in line in the central area.

The main entrance is at the north side and has a higher arch-shaped gate than the other sides.

The mosque has a natural lighting system. Instead of solid outer walls, there are open arcades to allow light that would generally be filtered in from a courtyard.

In the west prayer room, pillars are painted in white with no decoration.

In addition, wide spans of these pillars’ supporting large arches create a majestic atmosphere.

The floor measures 216 feet by 177 feet (66 by 54 m) with widely arched enclosures defining the perimeter. The west bay is spacious and covered in the centre with a high dome, which is surrounded by twelve smaller domes. This high central dome is given even greater prominence by being slightly larger and because it is placed on an arcade, forming a square cloister that rises above the smaller domes. It has a capacity to accommodate 2,000 persons.

The interior of the mosque has a span of arches, which turned out rather appealing and were used in many other Deccan buildings. The arches here are supported on short imposts. These unconventional ‘stretched’ arches later became a characteristic of Deccan architecture.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Supplements> Spectrum / Sumitra Malipatil, DHNS / April 22nd, 2014

Low quality Omani Frankincense just as good as high quality variety : Study

April 28, 2014Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Science & Technology, World OpinionDr Hisham Abdul - Sultan Qaboos University., Dr Hisham Abdul Khader, Dr Hisham Abdul Khader - Professor of Chemistrympositiveone@gmail.com

Muscat :

People generally go by sellers’ claims on the quality of Omani frankincense. However, a Sultan Qaboos University study has found that there is nothing such as ‘high quality’ or ‘low quality’ frankincense – all varieties are equally good and have the same antibacterial properties.

Commonly known as frankincense worldwide and luban in Jebeli and Dhofari Arabic, the resin is an extract of the Boswellia Sacra tree and has various medicinal and aromatherapy applications.

Omani frankincense is commercially available in four grades under the names hoojri, najdi, shathari and shaabi, based on four geographic locations in Dhofar from where the resins are harvested.

“Our study has found that hoojri – the first grade luban – and shaabi – the fourth grade luban – which greatly differed in price, closely resembled each other in essential oil composition, yield and physiochemical characteristics, except colour and texture,” said Dr Hisham Abdul Khader, associate professor of chemistry in the College of Sciences at Sultan Qaboos University.

The market price of the four grades varies considerably according to their colour, clump size and texture. Resin value is determined not only by fragrance but also by colour and clump size, with lighter colours and larger clumps being priced higher.

Hoojri, a first grade resin, which has the lightest colour and a large clump size, is collected from trees in the north of the Samhan mountains in Dhofar, and costs RO32 per kg. Najdi, a second grade resin with a pale yellow colour, is collected from a plateau behind the Dhofar mountains and costs around RO26 per kg.

Shathari, a third grade resin which is darker in colour and collected from the northwest of Dhofar, costs RO12 per kg while shaabi, a fourth grade luban of a darker colour that is collected from valleys, costs RO6 per kg.

Khader said, “As per our study, hoojri, the first grade luban, had the highest oil content of 8.5 per cent whereas the yield of the second and third grade samples – najdi and shathari – were 5.5 and five per cent respectively.

“The oil yield of the fourth grade shaabi was seven per cent, which was higher than that of the second and third grade and closer to that of the first grade, thereby indicating an inconsistency between the oil yield and grade.”

Titled ‘Composition and antibacterial activity of the essential oils of four commercial grades of Omani luban, the oleo gum resin of Boswellia Sacra flueck’, the study also tested frankincense oil for effectiveness of its anti-bacterial properties.

“All four grades were tested for their anti-bacterial properties and showed pronounced activity against a panel of bacteria. The oil killed all the bacteria irrespective of the grade it belonged to, in varying extent. The antibacterial activity of the oils suggests their potential use in food preservation,” Khader said.

“If you go to Salalah, you will notice that the prices are different. The best variety is sold for around RO36 while the lowest grade is sold for RO6. So this study is an eye opener. It will be of use to industries who have so far gone in for the high quality luban. They can now get the same benefits from a less expensive and low quality luban.”

Salim al Saidi, K B Ramesh Kumar, Nallusamy Sivakumar and Salma al Kindy also participated in the study.

source: http://www.muscatdaily.com / MuscatDaily.com / Home / Muscat Daily Staff Writer / December 30th, 2012

Region’s earliest interface with Islam was here

April 27, 2014Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Travel & Tourism, World Opinionmpositiveone@gmail.com

Madurai :

The wide Kazimar Street, which branches off from the busy TPK Road near Periyar Bus stand, is one of the oldest settlements of Muslims in Madurai. Historical legends state that Hazrat Kazi Syed Tajuddin came to Madurai from Oman in the 13th century and established the Kazimar Big Mosque on a land given to him by a Pandya monarch.

Till date, the descendants of Syed Tajuddin, who is believed to be a descendant of Prophet Mohammed, live on the Kazimar Street. They are hereditarily elected as the town kazis.

Syed Ahja Mueenudeen, the current town kazi, said that the Kazimar Big Mosque, which was constructed by Tajuddin as a thatched structure initially, was the first place of worship for Muslims in Madurai. The street has had Muslims settlement for over 700 years, he said. Thus, Islam arrived in Madurai even before Malik Kafur’s invasion of Madurai in the 14th century.

History professor R Venkataraman opines King Maravarman Sundarapandian might have been the contemporary of Tajuddin. Even before the advent of Islam, Arabs maintained trade links with South India, especially for the pearls Madurai Pandya Kingdom was famous for. “Sufis, Muslim saints, started coming to Tamil Nadu by 900 AD. The entry of Islam to the region was peaceful as Sufis conceived God as love,” he said.

The short-lived Madurai Sultanate and Islamic influence did have their impact on the city, especially on warfare and town planning. “Muslim rulers introduced arch construction they learnt from the Romans. It changed the style of architecture here in a significant way,” Venkataraman remarked.

The Big Mosque, which is an architectural attraction, accommodates Madurai Maqbara which is the dargah of sufi saints Hazrat Meer Ahamad Ibrahim, Hazrat Meer Amjad Ibrahim and Hazrat Syed Abdus Salaam Ibrahim Rahmatullahi Alaihim.

Syed Ali Hussaini, the renowned Chennai-based stunt artist, is originally from Kazimar Street. Recalling the legend of Tajuddin, he said: “It is believed that Tajuddin came from Arabia to Kerala and reached Madurai where he established a mosque. He became popular for divine healing powers. The Pandya king was irked with his fame, but Tajuddin cured the king himself when he suffered from a stomach ailment. The king gave away a land for mosque in gratitude,” he said. “Even today Tajuddin’s descendents, numbering more than 2,000, are annually given a customary nominal share of the income from the waqf lands originally donated by the king,” he added.

Till the 1980s, the residents of the street were engaged in rearing horses, rams, cocks and pigeons. “People were crazy about horses and many raised them. Rekla or bull cart race and pigeon racing were popular when I grew up in the area in the 1960s,” Hussaini recalled.

However, the face of the area has changed since then with many moving out for education and jobs, he said.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Madurai / by J. Arockiaraj, TNN / April 27th, 2014

Remembering a titan of Hyderabad’s heritage

April 27, 2014Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Leaders, Travel & Tourism, World Opinionmpositiveone@gmail.com

He played cricket and football for St Stephen’s Delhi with distinction. He did his masters in English as well as Arabic and he topped Punjab University in Persian. And if you are to name a saviour of the cave art of Ajanta and Ellora it is him: Ghulam Yazdani, a Padma Bhushan awardee as well as a recipient of OBE (Order of British Empire).

As the Archaeology Department of Andhra Pradesh marks its 100 years the coming Friday, it is time to remember the man who created the department out of nothing.

If Hyderabad has a vestige of its heritage left, it is thanks to him. Deputed to Hyderabad as a Superintendent in 1914, he brought with him his expertise, energy and accountability. Not for him the claptrap of archaeology department doing the job of cataloguing and executing conservation work, Yazdani was a hands on man who got a road laid between Hyderabad and Bidar to protect the Bahamani heritage of Bidar and also between Toli Masjid and Golconda.

A man of sharp wit, he dismisses the decorative motifs of Toli Masjid as: “The impression made by such buildings overloaded with decorations is like the impression left by the ostentatious and lavish display of personal adornment, generally favoured by lowly persons suddenly become rich.”

For the restoration of the Ellora cave art, he tried to get Luigi Cavenaghi, the man linked to restoration of Leonardo’s Last Supper, to work on the paintings. Unfortunately, he could get only Lorenzo Cecconi, who applied shellac on the paintings, ruining them further. Ghulam Yazdani published a series of photographs and reproductions of the cave art with his explanations.

And by the way, Ghulam Yazdani’s salary was ` 560 per month. And just recently, the Archeology Department found it fit to name its museum after YS Rajasekhara Reddy!

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Life & Style> People / by Serish Nanisetti, TNN / April 21st, 2014