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The Hindu : Bhubaneshwar may not be the first city to draw the tourist’s attention but this sleepy capital of Orissa is a gateway to many beautiful spots on the eastern Indian coastline including Chilka, the largest saltwater lake in India are familiar names.Chilka lake is home to the Nalaban bird sanctuary and the best season to visit is between October and March when migratory birds arrive from as far as Siberia.One winter morning, our family of six and the driver set off for the town of Barkul, which is situated on the lake. It’s a smooth drive but the scenery is nothing to write home about. Red earth and scrub mark the flat, unaccented land, and every rare hill has been turned into an ugly quarry spewing grey stone. Occasional cashew groves break the tedium and would probably be a pretty sight in the flowering season. The last stretchhowever, was horrifying.We jolted our way to Panthanivas, a lodge run by the Orissa Tourism Development Corporation (OTDC).The old hotel has had a few cottages tacked on in an attempt to appeal to the more discerning tourist. These look exactly like water towers with their legs cut off and an unfinished tower standing next to them added to the illusion. The cottages, supposedly three to four years old, gleam on the outside but the inside tell a different story.Badly bleached sheets barely cover the stained mattresses and there are exposed wires that I warn the children against. The plumbing is suspect. When was the last time any maintenance was done? Compensation arrived in the form of excellent food as we ravenously tucked into snacks and dinner after our two-hour drive.Oriyas have a reputation for being good cooks and the chef at the restaurant of the lodge lived up to this as we savoured some of the best vegetable pakoras I have ever eaten. The lake virtually laps on the…More

The Hindu : Sameera Reddy just can’t help stop grinning these days. “I am so lucky. I really didn’t expect it. My message box is full of compliments. After such an awesome response, I called up Abbas-Mustan and thanked them profusely. They havechanged my image and given me a new life in Bollywood. You know, I am flooded with comedy roles now…”Sameera can barely hide her excitement about her role of Mini, a foolish secretary to detective Robert D’Costa (Anil Kapoor) in the recently released “Race.” The role, as many know, is a take on the landmark tele-serial of 1980s Karamchand in which the detective was played by Pankaj Kapur and the secretary Kitty by Sushmita Mukherjee. With her deadpan expression, Sameera who refuses to pay heed to her boss’s advances, has bowled over the audiences.Another comedyAnd in this week’s release, “One Two Three, Sameera plays a comic role again. In this film on three mistaken identities by Ashwini Dhir, she plays Laila who, to pay back her loans, tries to sell her vintage car to one Laxminarayan (played by Paresh Rawal) who actually comes to collect lingerie samples from her mistaking her for a lingerie designer.Looking for “something different from a sex symbol image” Sameera immediately agreed when she was offered a comedy. Says Sameera, still basking under her new-found success, “The release of ‘One Two Three’ soon after ‘Race’ has come as a blessing in disguise. I believe this film would also be a stepping stone in establishing me as a comedienne. Though I always wanted to do comedy Ididn’t know if I would be able to deliver. The best part is that Paresh Rawal is my co-star. He taught me the comic timing. Ashwini is also a hard taskmaster. He didn’t give up until he got the shot right. For instance, he made me do several retakes in a scene where I con Laxminarayan to…More

The Hindu : Travel dealCasa Retreat Pvt. Ltd., offers facilities such as a one-stop-shop for all your holiday requirements.This year Casa Retreat is organising the Summer Special 2008, where it has introduced international packages at the following destinations — Singapore and Dubai, Malaysia and Srilanka, Bangkok and Maldives, Nepal and Mauritius. Within the country the holiday destinations offered are Jaipur, Udaipur, Shimla and Manali in the north and in the south it is Kerala.For details contact 41127527 or visitwww.casaretreat.com….More

The Hindu : BeatstreetBhram (An Illusion)Times Music, CD Rs. 125Pavan Kaul’s Bhram An Illusion sounds like a threat at the outset, and quite proves itself to be so, over the course of its six tracks. With music by Pritam and the new Bollywood director duo Siddharth-Suhas, it reinforces the adage that three is definitely a crowd.“Jaane kaisa hai tu” is a peppy number very typical of Shaan, very Indipop and raasta sort of song. The album is so average, I cannot imagine it’s from the same Pritam who did the stunning Life in a Metro. Of course it would be convenient to blame the failure of the album on Siddharth-Suhas. Pritam does only the opening track and then winds up the tail end of it, with the last track.The grunting and groaning “I am a bad boy” is so off putting with lousy lyrics matched with equally pathetic singing. The essential Punjaabi gaana comes in the form of “Meri akhiyaan” from Richa Sharma. Again nothing impressive — neither banking on a complete folk form, neither rising above the average neo-twist. “Teri aankhon ki narmi” has the irritating “Shana na na na” refrain which is so arcane and done to death and has Siddharth-Suhas themselves crooning it. The guitar work is great, though, and therefore completely wasted on an inconsequential track like this. Lyrics for both this and “I am a bad boy” by Kumaar are dismal. “Lagdaa na lagdaa”, even with Kay Kay’s voice and some good string work trying to rescue it, doesn’t make any impact.Sonu Nigam is brought in to croon the soft rock ballad “Jaane kyun tanha ho gaye”.Ironically, the one good track is apparently a take off on Gautam Chatterjee’s Bengali song “Ghare Pheraar Gaan”. It sort of makes up for the sins of the rest of the songs.No new ideas or music here. Music remains an illusion in itself.BHUMIKA K.Avial,Phat Phish Records,CD, Rs….More

The Hindu : Animal Planet introduces a parallel 24-hour Hindi feed which includes a range of India-centric programmes from April 1.In an attempt to allow viewers to navigate the channel better, Animal Planet introduces well-defined time bands.The four one-hour long time-bands introduced are “Safari” (Monday-Saturday, 8 p.m.), “Masters of the Jungle” (Monday-Saturday, 9 p.m.), “Animal Planet Week” (Monday-Sunday, 10 p.m.) and “Wild Encounters” (Monday-Sunday, 11 p.m.).“Safari” details the lifecycle of plant and animal lives; viewers will get to see the great Savannah to the picturesque landscapes of the Himalayas. It includes programmes on climate and its impact on flora and fauna.“Masters of the Jungle” is a tribute to the bravest of wildlife enthusiasts who dare for a cause. From David Attenborough to crocodile man Steve Irwin, their styles differ but they all endeavour to explain some of the most complex animal behaviour and dispel the myths about some of the most feared animals.Viewers are also taken on a tour of the great works done by Lyndal Davis and Jane Goodall. “Animal Planet Week” will have a different theme each week such as Animal Face-Off Week, Planet Action Week and Big Cat Dairy Week.“Wild Encounters” will give viewers a chance to witness close encounters of the predator and its prey, shot around the world.Some of the India-centric programmes to be presented in the coming months include “Riding the Cobra Express with Jeff Corwin”, “Tigers of the Sunderbans”, “Ghost of the Ganges”, “When Bamboo Flowers” and “In Search of King Cobra.”…More

The Hindu : Times are changing these days and so are styles. Their clothes, cars, accessories are all stylish, so why not their kitchens too? That’s right, kitchens with granite slabs with humble steel vessels are passé. These are the times of co-ordinated kitchens with sleek counters, and matching pots and pans and cutlery.It is okay if you have an old fashioned kitchen. But are you game to get it replaced with a brand new, stylish, modular kitchen that oozes style and functions better than the old one?TTK Prestige has launched its modular kitchen boutique in Koramangala. As you walk in you see pictures of a very happy couple smiling and cooking together. And there is no sign of oil or smoke. Probably, these kitchens are more suited for microwave cooking, you think. But, no, they are made for the Indian style of cooking, says Vinaya J., the Boutique Manager.“Each and every design is made to suit the Indian weather, and is quite low on maintenance. Once the customer decides on the style and we get the measurements of the space for the kitchen, then we will also train them on how to maintain these products,” she adds. The boutique offers a stylish display of various designs of modular kitchens. Each one gives you an idea of how the kitchen looks with its well-co-ordinated accessories, curtains and dining tables. If some are dominated by blues, then there are kitchens designed with a low-level dining space with lacy curtains near the dining area. “But the accessories do not come with the kitchen,” says Vinaya.The kitchens come in the following options — Jacaranda (made from medium density fibre and boiling-water resistant ply), Magnolia (completely made from solid wood), Iris (offers a wide range of shutter profiles), Daffodil (with lacquer finish).Each section offers a wide range of colour options and designs too. “Very few people go in for a kitchen with…More

The Hindu : It is our second sight-seeing trip to America. ‘Enough of the Statue of Liberty, Niagara Falls, Capitol Hill and Washington Memorial’, my wife grumbles, ‘Why not something not many back home have seen or even heard of’?Okay. Then let it be the Redwood Forests of northern California, home to arguably the largest chunk of primordial uncut redwood treesin the world, we decide. Excitement mounts as we learn that the redwoods are taller than any living thing and can be as old as 2000 years!Drive throughThe five-hour drive on Highway 101 from San Francisco to the Redwood country unfolds stunning imagesrolling parklands, wineries, cows grazing on hill slopes, setting sun and so on. Giant trees, on the one side, and meandering streams in the valley below, on the other, vie for attention.On the way, we see a signpost ‘Welcome to Legget, home of the world famous drive-through tree’ and decide to take a dekko. Suddenly, we find cars inching slowly towards what looks like a narrow underpass.A closer look leaves you speechless. The cars are moving on, yes, right through a giant redwood. “Oh. This is amazing. I cannot believe it”, gasps my granddaughter.The grandeur and enormity of the tree sinks in only after we get off the car and survey it. You may crane your neck until it twists, yet you will never see the tree’s crown. Rising 315 feet into the sky with a base diameter of 21 feet, Chandelier tree has a 6 x 9 feet opening cut by its owners in 1930s. The opening is large enough for a standard car to pass through easily, as did our Toyota Sienna.Motorists line up to enjoy the thrill of the drive-through experience. The tree derives its name from its shape. Starting at a height of 100 feet, it shoots off branches — far bigger than the trunks of full-grown trees, at different levels, giving…More

The Hindu : For those who have grown up in Mysore, the grand old city forms a significant component of the unconscious. The kings, queens, the palace, the grandeur, the festivity… the ever-so-many stories that we listened to in our growing up years, left us in awe as well as a sense of intrigue for the royalty of Mysore: the Wadiyars. It was not only a political capital (remember Gandhiji’s remarks about the Mysore State being so prosperous that it doesn’t need to worry about Independence), but also a cultural capital. Art and literature had never seen more patronage.It takes perseverance of another kind to chase these fascinating stories and turn it into a well-researched document of the times. Vikram Sampath, a graduate from BITS Pilani, has realised this daunting task. “I must have been a boy of 12 when the ‘Mysore bug’ bit me for the first time. The provocation was the tele serial, ‘The Sword of Tipu Sultan’, aired on national television those days.” The protests that followed over the way the royalty was portrayed was something that led Vikram – already tanked up on many, many stories that his grandma had told him – to read up on Mysore history.For Vikram, it did start of as “child-like” curiosity, but eventually developed into a serious pursuit. However, in this journey from curiosity to quest, the book was never on his mind. It came much later. But all along, what disturbed him immensely was the manner in which “the veil of time and the kind of historical documents that existed had slowly blurred the facts.” It’s a matter of great coincidence that history of Mysore has been at the centre of controversy even in the recent times. One can recall the extended, virulent debates in newspapers over Hyder and Tipu, with rightwing writers maligning them. Books with various ideological hues followed, but what came in the guise…More

The Hindu : Baker’s Factory at Total, a hypermarket chain on Sarjapur Road has a state-of-the-art bakery section that prepares fresh products for you on the spot. With a vast range of over 400 bakery and 500 confectionery products to choose from, the “Total experience” is certainly unparalleled.Total’s bakery product range includes health breads, sandwich breads, specialty breads and other bread products, croissants, Danish, mousse, desserts, health cookies, dry fruit cookies, exotic chocolates and lots more.The broad product categories include cakes made to order in 20 minutes, fresh cakes and bread like pastries, specialty cakes, wedding cakes, petit fours, gingerbread houses, holiday items, cakes – whole or by the slice, fresh bread, birthday cakes, pound cakes, brownies, homemade candy, giant cinnamon rolls and more. There are also wide varieties of biscuit flavours like chocolate, butter-scotch, coconut, tutti-frutti , coffee and more. Cookies of flavours like almond and date, chocolate chip, cappuccino, coconut, cashew, raisins’ and the Indian toastThe third Total hypermarket is at Sarjapur Road, next to the Springfields apartments, the other two are operational in Mysore Road and Madiwala….More

The Hindu : One more International Women’s Day has come and gone. Proudly we hailed it as the day of the new, empowered woman. Train tickets and baggage tags exhorted us to “celebrate her life”. Meetings, seminars and cultural fests filled theair, T.V. channels spun out colourful “She” and “Magalir” gyaan. A walkathon bannered issues that hinder the growth of women on the global platform. Never mind that all the 300 walkers were girls.A tech firm gifted its ‘potential women staff’ — some 1200 hand-picked engineering students — a two-day package of tour, stay, fun and soft-skill lessons on its swanky campuses across states. It was to give them “a perspective on the implications and importance of being employed.” We’ll assume the girls had a good look at the implications. One university presented its female population with a gender budget — for more women-friendly spaces in the university (why?). The web world hinted at job portals for women.Now for the hard news. Girls from small towns get labelled BTMs (behenji-turned-mods) by big-town bullies. “I wouldn’t want to be seen with a behenji unless she makes efforts to be ‘up to the mark’,” said one. A Delhi police booklet helpfully warns women students from the northeast, “Revealing dress to be avoided, avoid lonely road/by-lane when dressed scantily, dress according to sensitivity of the local population.”That child molestation is high among the “local population” is just a piece of junk news. Pre-natal sex determination, selective abortion and female foeticide go on among educated, urban, well-to-do classes. An Oxford University study shows Indian women in U.K. too abort daughters. Oh, uh, sorry, I’m off to a Women’s Day binge. Catch up with it later.In an interview, a top MNC executive advised women “to demand your rights”, but admitted she would have to start her own business and “create her own rules.” Her creative skills are accepted as top rate but “my…More