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The Hindu : During the last fortnight, a few Queenslanders were selling their land to Indian travel agents. The Australian delegation, which included members of Tourism Queensland and stakeholders in the tourism industry there, conducted workshops in New Delhi,Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Chennai, aimed at increasing tourist traffic from India.Already, Indian tourists display a preference for this “Sunshine State of Australia”. According to the Tourism Forecasting Council, Australia, 50 per cent of the Indians vacationing in Australia visit Queensland, primarily for any or all of these reasons – the Gold Coast, Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef. Paul Buggy, regional director, Tourism Queensland, says a 17 per cent increase in the number of Indian tourists to Queensland every year, till 2016, has been forecast. For the workshop in Chennai, Buggy was accompanied by 13 tourism operators, who work in different parts of Queensland and offer different sets of services. These operators went from table to table to interact with travel agents from the city. Working closely with the trade industry is one of the five strategies. The others are: “telling the media about it, creating links on websites, talking directly to the consumers and working with the airways”. Buggy says advertisements have been avoided because of their prohibitive costs.The campaignCalled ‘Fun, Family, Queensland’, the title of the campaign reveals an interest in tourists travelling with their families. Buggy says youngsters in India’s IT sector, who have large incomes, constitute a major target group. Local travel agents are expected to put packages together for such groups.Some of the places with which they have to work out packages are: the Green Island (located in the Great Barrier Reef), Outer Barrier Reef, Tjapukai (for anyone who wants to understand aboriginal culture), the area from Mungalli Falls on the Atherton Tablelands to Palm Cove (for someone who craves an Australian outback experience), Cairns, Palm Cove and Port Douglas.Some of the websites offering…More

The Hindu : Seamy side upFilmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar is all set to turn his searchlight on the world of fashion, writes MINI ANTHIKAD-CHHIBBERPHOTO: MURALI KUMAR K.HARD HITTING Madhur Bhandarkar likes to show it as it isMadhur Bhandarkar is all about the gritty side of life — be it the life of bar girls or the sordid underbelly of the air-kissing glitterati. His latest film, “Fashion” finds the director turning the heat on the world of haute couture.“I have had to face some criticism,” the filmmaker comments, of his dwelling on the grime behind the glitter. “But bouquets and brickbats are part of any creative person’s life. Now I have this image. Like the other day, I had gone to the hospital to visit my friend’s father. The doctors were all hovering around me asking if everything was alright because they thought I was making a film on hospitals!”Madhur says he researches his movies thoroughly. “Journalists loved Konkana’s character in ‘Page 3’.” And when you demand why he went in for the stereotyping of crime reporting as the serious kind of reporting, Madhur dives under the “it is not a documentary” cover.“Fashion” is the director’s most ambitious project yet, in terms of scale. “While my palate usually favours the greys and blacks, if the movie is going to be about fashion, it needs to be opulent. The budget is about Rs. 18 crore. There are 11 ramp sequences. I have experts in field as consultants from Rita Dhondi to Lubna Adams and Wendell Rodricks. But though the sets are high on glitz and glamour, the characters, dialogues and situations are within the parameters of reality.”The inspirationTalking of the inspiration for the film, which stars Priyanka Chopra and Kangana Ranaut among others, Madhur says: “I made ‘Traffic Signal’ as I wanted to break from the high life of ‘Page 3’ and ‘Corporate’. After ‘Traffic Signal’ I wanted to move away…More

The Hindu : At Thani Illam, a homestay in Thottuva, near Perumbavoor, tourists have to adhere to the traditional ethos of the hosts. “But they simply love it,” say T. S. Parameswaran, a retired schoolmaster and S. Saradammal, his wife, also a retiredState Government employee. Eco-friendly Thani Illam was the winner of the most innovative project award from the Government of Kerala in 2002 and it is part of the Government’s Gruhastali project of the Department of Tourism for conservation of heritage buildings.Yes, it is a heritage building and the ancestral home of the late Malayattoor Ramakrishnan, novelist-bureaucrat-film director. The couple bought it in 1994 and renovated it without losing its character, later. In a room, cool with the old cement floor, the wooden ceiling and a huge bed, there is a round pillar in the middle. “This is the room where Malayattoor used to entertain his friends like lyricist Vayalar.” Modernity screams out only from the bathrooms which ‘have been built to satisfy tourism norms’.Their son Santhosh and his family stay with them. There are only two rooms which have been kept apart for tourists. It was here that Malayattoor wrote his famous book, “Verukal”, says Saradammal pointing to the yard. There, as if to drive home that point, is a huge uprooted root-base of an old tree displayed in the front yard. “We just thought it would be a poetic gesture and kept it there,” she adds. One of the rooms is atop the garage in a separate block. This was actually transplanted from Kottayam.“We got a portion of our grandparents’ house at Kottayam, which is more than 500 years old. This room is called the Kulappura,” says Parameswaram.It is tea time and hot boiled bananas are served to an English guest, with diamond cuts. There are fresh organic plantains from the garden too. Only vegetarian fare, what the family eats, is given to guests. “No…More

The Hindu : Musical Tapestries from Portugal” by the gifted Eurico Pereira set the tune of the first concert of the 11th East West Music and Dance Encounter by the Bangalore School of Music at the Alliance Francaise.Organised by Dockers San Francisco, Fundacao Oriente Haywards Black and Radio Indigo 91.9 FM, the curtain-raiser unfurled a rich tapestry of music from the western European country.Twenty-eight-year-old Eurico Pereira enthralled the audience with his intricate music — performing “small pieces, each very different from each other, coming from different countries and having different styles” in the first half of the performance. Clad in a red shirt, the demonstrative musician performed with the guitar perfectly nestled on his knee.Eurico was simply a genius – having played the instrument since he was nine, he studied at the National Conservatoire at Lisbon and the University of Evora, before being awarded a scholarship at the Royal Academy of Music in London.With just a lone spotlight shining on him in the dark hall, Eurico performed a bout of compositions on the guitar which seemed to be the very core of his musical self. Performing the Venezuelan Antonio Lauro’s “Valse (Waltz) Venezuelano No. 3”, the composer’s most famous work, Eurico’s intonating rendition straddled the space between mirthful and solemn. Mexican composer Manuel Maria Ponce’s “Three Preludios” were brimming with rhythm – from being delightful, light, playful and coaxing, the music let you drift away.British composer William Walton’ “Bagatelles” was more animated, characterised by notes ranging from sensuous to short, staccato. It was like ripples in a lake snaking their way through to form veins and lines; and Eurico’s performance was sustained and well-constructed.Playing Bohemian baroque lute player Jan Antonin Losy from Prague saw Eurico breathing, soaking and luxuriating in the Italian and French fusion music. “Beethoven of the Guitar”, Spanish Fernando Sor’s “Little Stories from Opus 31” was tuneful and soothing, with a very serious, piano sound…More

The Hindu : Discovery Channel will screen “Discovery Atlas: Brazil Revealed” where the entire story of the Rio Carnival will be revealed just as it takes place in Brazil from February 2 to 5.The episode will present the entire history of the festival, dispel myths and narrate interesting stories around the carnival. Some less-known facts of the carnival that will be shown in the episode include: Few people outside Brazil realize that the focus of carnival is an organised competition. The 75,000 spectators that fill the stadium are not just here for the show; they are here to cheer for their team. In 1984 the carnival found its permanent home, the Sambadrome. The Sambadrome is a large structure, which includes several buildings that make a circular open area in the middle. In the off season, the buildings of the Sambadrome are used as classrooms for the local public schools.Watch the Rio Carnival, which is considered as the biggest party on earth and the ultimate expression of what it is to be Brazilian on “Discovery Atlas: Brazil Revealed” will be telecast tonight on Discovery Channel at 8 p.m….More

The Hindu : The wedding season is fast approaching and it is time to whip out the silks. Even better, it is a great excuse to buy new ones, specially if you are one that thrives on the lustre and lure of silk. Connoisseurs of silk are bound to be impressed by the exclusive coming together of so many traditional varieties at one venue.The National Handloom Development Corporation Limited provides the perfect excuse this time around. The NHDC, on behalf of the Ministry of Textiles, has organised “Silk Fab 2008”.The expo has silk products from 15 States, with the participation of more than 80 handloom production units, out of which some are the Primary Handloom Weavers Cooperative Societies. Silk saris, dress materials and furnishings are on offer.Great startThe silk expo is off to a great start, with an average of more than Rs. 10 lakh in sales, everyday. Each of the stalls have been making between Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 60,000, each day and more than a 1,000 people have been pouring in each day. M.R.S. Raghavan, Deputy Manager, NHDC Bangalore, believes that things can only get better from this point. “Sales are bound to increase over the weekend, as more people will come. We all hope that Silk Fab attains its target of Rs. five crore,” he said.The exhibition has a wide range of silk saris, like gadwals, Dharmawarams and Pochampallys from Andhra Pradesh, Kanjchivaram silks from Tamil Nadu, moonga silk from Assam, Rajasthan’s bandhej, balucharis and tangails from West Bengal, tussar, Madhubanis and kantha from Bihar, tribal works and Kosa silk from Chattisgarh, jamdanis and jamawars from UP, Paithanis and Pune saris from Maharashtra, Gathjoras and Patolas of Gujarat, bomkais and Sambhalpuris from Orissa, printed silk saris and dress materials from Jammu and Kashmir, kasuti embroidery work, Chintamani silks and the state’s famed Bangalore silk from Karnataka, and many more diverse varieties from across the country.Sanjay…More

The Hindu : When I told my mother that I was quitting a lucrative bank job to work in the village, she was horrified,” recalled Bunker Roy at the beginning of his talk on ‘Demystifying Professionalism: the Gandhian Approach’. “She did not speak to me for years.” This was way back in the 1970s. Today, Roy can justifiably be proud of his decision. The Social Work and Research Centre – more famously known as the Barefoot College – he founded in 1972 in Tilonia, a nondescript village in Rajasthan, has gained national and international recognition. Its astounding success in identifying poor rural jobless and unemployable youth, and training them to be ‘barefoot’ engineers, teachers, communicators, architects, and IT professionals has been a role model to others.Going far beyond the confines of Rajasthan, the Barefoot College has worked in several places from Ladakh to Kerala and even in villages of other countries, including Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Bhutan, Senegal and Sierra Leone.The College’s achievements range from making holistic community development involving all age groups and social sectors; use of rain water for irrigation, recharging of ground water and providing quality water for human and animal consumption; creating employment opportunities for rural men and women; setting up night schools; using solar energy to electrify homes of hundreds of villages; provision of new markets for rural artisans, to establishing women’s pressure group to fight for minimum wages.Focus on poor“We have never believed in paper qualifications,” asserted Roy. “The College does not take students who have a paper degree and diploma; in fact it could be a disqualification if they had one! We place our trust in the power of traditional knowledge, skills and experience of ordinary people, very poor, illiterate rural folk living in remote, inaccessible villages of this country, or for that matter anywhere in the world.”Having lived for more than three decades in villages, Roy has realized that imparting skills people…More

The Hindu : Papads and pickles, gooseberry and aloe vera in every conceivable form, brought from Rajasthan to Andhra Pradesh reign at this year’s khadi exhibition. I’m not kidding. Going by the sales at the annual khadi and cottage industry productsexhibition organised by the Khadi and Gramodyog Mandali, people are flocking to stalls that offer free samples. You can taste anything from microwavable papads, dried fruits, saffron and spices and masala chillies from Kashmir to Horanadu, kardantu from Gokak and Belgaum, colourful and pungent churnas (digestives) and saunfs to fried goodies in large plastic containers. And many religiously stocked up on their fiery Andhra pickle or north Karnataka’s range of chutney pudis.That’s not to say that there’s nothing more than food to this annual exhibition. It’s a good place to head to if you are looking for anything ranging from embroidered khadi tops, smart wrap-around khadi skirts, and cool khadi kurtas and shirts for the upcoming summer, specially the white airy variety (yes, the kind politicians wear!). Cuts and finishes have definitely improved, though there’s enough room for more. And of course, saris in great abundance.Even as stall owners complained that real business was happening only over the weekends (and that’s when fresh stocks would arrive), shoppers went about picking up towels, bags and purses, readymade garments, dress materials, jewellery, fabric and carpets, and knick-knacks.With most khadi-making units and co-operatives organised state-wise, Jammu and Kashmir and Karnataka seem to have the largest presence. There’s also a small representation from the north-eastern states.Straw, grass and cane products, jute products and all kinds of wooden furniture as well as terracotta, caps and masks made from lavancha roots, jostle for space in this melee where you will also find tons of bling and one-gram gold jewellery! (I wonder what the latter bit has to do with khadi and village industries but they have such a large presence they can’t be ignored.)…More

The Hindu : The road comes to an endOCCASION In this final RLT, Soma Basu recalls the thrills and travails of exploring a hundred less-travelled roadsLast week I wrote my 100th RLT (Kurangani) with a mind filled with mixed emotions. During four years of travelling across the Southern districts of Tamil Nadu and fringes of Kerala,I have realisedtravel writing is not easy. For, the sky will always be azure, rolling hills verdant and forests emerald.The vast emptiness of the pristine white sand on the beaches and the infiniteblue sea is not easy to describe otherwise. But then the limited vocabulary was never a deterrent.The objective always was to dig out exotic spots may be few knew about and fewer perhaps cared to visit. And now there can’t be a better moment, completion of hundred articles, to windup the column.Several sweet and some not-so-pleasant memories will always remain etched. Poring over maps for hours and friendly suggestions even from strangers led me to several perfectly created places for the column such as the Cardamom Hills, Thengapattinam, Manora, Chunnambar, Valinokkam, Govindapperi, Kumbhavarutty, Kiliyur, Kuttikanam, Mannavannur, Ambanaad and many more.“Have you really been to all these places? Are they as beautiful as they look in your photographs?” From cynicism and suspicion to appreciation, they have all come my way and even earned me the nickname “RLT Soma”.What started as an innocuous decision about a travel column in November 2003 turned into quite a haul week after week over the years for the MetroPlus team. When I made my debut with Karaikudi’s majestic banglas, trepidation overshadowed enchantment. I was neither a travel writer nor a professional trekker and had no knowledge of Tamil (having come straight from Hindi heartland of Delhi). But all through I banked on my boss’s precious words: “Your personal experience will drive your narrative. What you see, smell, hear and taste will make your copy interesting.” To the…More

The Hindu : Beijing Mein Cheering’ is the 2008 mantra for McDonald’s, the official restaurant partner for Beijing Olympics. To encourage the spirit of Olympics, McDonald’s is running a promotion where one lucky child will get a chance to go to Beijing Olympics with their guardian and cheer for India.With every purchase of a Happy Meal in addition to your favourite toy you will also get a trivia card that highlights a sport like athletics, shooting, hockey, archery, tennis and an Olympic ring.Olympic fans need to collect five rings and present them at McDonald’s restaurant between March 1 and 31 to win an assured gift and a chance to be the lucky one to go to Beijing Olympics. During this promotion, Atom and Winx toys are available with Happy Meals till February 10, followed by Hello Kitty and roundabout toys.Those who favour McDonald’s regular meals need not feel left out from the Olympics promotion as they too get a trivia card on purchase of a meal and they can collect three cards to grab an absolutely free meal during their next visit. This offer is on at all McDonald’s restaurants till February 29 and the final winner will be chosen through a lucky draw in April….More