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The Hindu : SUDHINDR.A.B.

Kids get to relish the intricacies of ragas, and express their appreciation of classical music

Leaving everyone spellbound: And soothing the senses.

The students of Rashtriya Military School had a great opportunity to listen to some melodious renditions from well-known artistes recently at a programme organised in the school auditorium. Flautist Pandit Ronu Majumdar gave a performance that left the students spellbound.

Pandit Ronu Majumdar was accompanied by Pandit Udey on tabla. The mesmerizing performance lasted more than an hour and the Pandit played many ragas. He also spoke about Indian classical music and its significance.Serene and tranquil

“When we listened to him with closed eyes, it gave us feelings of serenity and tranquility. It was something which touched both my spirit and soul. We got to know how a raga’ (Megh) could really attract clouds,” said cadet Nitish Kumar. “In the end, all of us sang the National Anthem, while he rendered it on the flute. We were filled with unfathomable sadness when he went away and the programme came to an end. It was an unforgettable experience and, the music soothed our senses,” said cadet Nibir Mannaf. “Rag Megh and Rag Bhairavi touched my heart. It was refreshing to listen to his rendering,” said cadet Utpal Suman.

The entire school joined him when he rendered “Sare Jahan se achcha”. Col. P. K. Sharma, principal of RMS said that the musical programme was very calming to the minds of his students and hoped to conduct more such programmes. “Art has many objectives, some of which are entertainment, intellectual stimulation and aesthetic pleasure. All forms of art have a role to play. However, most forms of art today are increasingly moving towards entertainment. For intellectual stimulation, you require a certain degree of patience and faith to experience and these two qualities are at a premium in society today. Performing arts and fine arts help…More

The Hindu : y>BBC journalists will board the India Election Train and cover Indian elections for viewers across the globe

Entertainment giant The Slumdog Millionaire effect

To cover the Indian general elections, BBC has commissioned an “India election train”. From April 25 to May 13, reporters from the BBC’s global news division will travel through India by train, investigating what Indians want from their general election and the key themes surrounding it.

Reporters from BBC World Service English, BBC Hindi, BBC Urdu, BBC Tamil, BBC Bengali, BBC Somali, BBC Swahili, BBC World News television, Arabic TV, Persian TV and BBC.Com/news will board the train and travel the length and breadth of the country. The journalists will broadcast stories to the world, across radio, TV and online.

The BBC has worked with Indian Railways to design a timetable for the project and the train will travel along the following route: Dehli-Ahmedabad-Mumbai-Hyderabad-Bhubaneswar-Kolkata-Patna- Allahabad-Delhi.

With the team visiting major population centres, as well as contrasting provincial towns and rural areas, the BBC’s global audience will get to hear the views of a wide range of Indian voters.

Online users will be able to track the journey of the train through a special interactive map and a daily blog available on the BBC’s India Election webpagewww.bbc.com/india.

BBC reporters will investigate a variety of topics throughout their journey, with a key one being India’s response to the current economic crisis.

Security will also be addressed, since following the Mumbai bombings it has become an important issue for many Indians. Other themes to be covered are the workings of the world’s largest democracy, India’s rich/poor divide, the role of religion and prominence of the entertainment industry, with recent successes including, “Slumdog Millionaire”.

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The Hindu :

Enjoy puppetry and sumptuous North Indian cuisine at the puppetry festival of Chaarcoals, the terrace restaurant at Hotel Regaalis

Photo: Murali Kumar K.TRADITIONAL Complementing the mood of the festival there are preparations from rural India

It was Anarkali who made the first impression. Dressed in a flamboyant pink ghaghra choli and matching jewellery, she appeared on the stage, suspended and controlled by a number of strings, and danced merrily to the tunes of “Kajra Re”.

Praveen Bhat, the man who controlled every move of this cute little puppet behind the screen, calls her Aishwarya Rai Bachchan.

There is philosophy jaadugar, joker, Meena Kumari and Maharana pratap (a pair of stand alone puppets, who are silent spectators to the fun), who are set to perform at the ongoing puppet festival at Chaarcoals, the terrace restaurant at Hotel Regaalis till April 19.

The face of a puppet is hand carved out of mango wood and the body is shaped with clothes. Basic strings for operation are attached to the head, back, hands and above the knee to control the movement of the arms and the legs.

“We use paints to decorate the face and design their clothes, embellishments and jewellery in our village in Rajasthan,” says the artist. He has been practising puppetry for over a decade and has performed across various places in the South and the North.

“Children find it entertaining as we include a lot of Bollywood numbers. Now, we get opportunities to perform at weddings, hotels and parties,” he adds.

Along with song and dance, the puppet show will also take the children through stories highlighting classical and modern puppetry, and folk tales.

It was quite amusing to watch a moustached jaadugar puppet perform a Prabhu Deva act for the “Muqabla” number (head and body separated and suspended in mid-air). The puppets also danced to Punjabi numbers and the popular snake-charmer dance.

“We wanted to popularise a traditional…More

The Hindu : y>Don’t let the heat beat you. Give your wardrobe the season’s makeover, writes NEETI SARKAR

Photo: V. GanesanLOOK COOL Check out the season’s hottest clothes

Okay so it is that time of the year again when the scorching heat starts getting to you. This also implies it is time to check if your wardrobe contains everything you ought to possess in keeping with the latest summer trends.

Well, you needn’t really worry about the ongoing economic slowdown, say designers because this season calls for low-maintenance fashion and if you are the type that isn’t particularly brand conscious and wouldn’t mind a bit of pavement shopping, it is not going to be very hard for you to furnish your wardrobe with the season’s hottest!What’s in

Dresses are totally in! There’s no way you could do without them this summer. However, make sure the dress you buy is comfortable, in terms of style as well as fabric. Knee length and mid thigh dresses are doing the rounds on the fashion circuit. Go in for A-line and straight shifts.

Not so extravagant and voluminous balloon dresses are quite the hit. Off shoulders and one shoulder dresses are selling like hot cakes. For a more ethnic look, you could consider the kaftan style.

Skirts, as always, are popular. “Short and sweet is how it is meant to be,” says Ameetha Mathew, a fashion designer. However, for a formal day at work, one could opt for a high waist, knee-length pencil skirt. For those who dare, shorts are a good option.

As far as trousers go, high waist pants are taking the fashion world by storm. Harem pants seem to continue to be a favourite. When it comes to tops, stylists tell us that bordered halters and broad V-neck tops are the way to go. Also blousons or tunics paired with a pair of tights are an alternative you might consider.Colour palette<p…More

The Hindu : y>

Photo: R. AshokStretching it Young ‘uns can do a spot of yoga at summer camps

Sri Sringeri Math Shankarapuram, Basvangudi, will organise a summer camp for children aged eight and 12. Classes begin on April 20. Call: 98862- 66555.

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Lumbini Gardens will organise a summer camp for children and adults from April 13 to June 12. Activities include swimming, karate, yoga and meditation. Call: 32997009/ 93410-31409.

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Mandhara will conduct a summer camp for children aged five and 10 and for those above 10 years in April. Activities include spray painting, vegetable painting, candle painting, tie and dye work, pencil shading and flower making. Call 26508694/ 98860-21136.

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The institute of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineers will organise a summer camp in electronics for school children in classes nine and X. Call: 23337231/ 2333113 or visitwww.ieteblr.org

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Bangalore University will organise a summer camp for school children aged 10 and 15.

The personality development camp will train students in group discussion, to develop a healthy lifestyle and to cope with stress through yoga, pranayama and meditation.

The venue is Yoga Centre, Jnana Bharathi campus and the timing if from 10.30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Call: 22961147/ 94495-19631.

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The Hindu : y>Don’t get misled by fad diets that discourage carbohydrate consumption

Photo: K. ANANTHANCHOOSE GOOD CARBS Bread is also high in starch

Fad diets argue that carbohydrates are not essential nutrients as the body can obtain all its energy from protein and fats.

Beware! The brain and neurons cannot burn fat and need glucose for energy; the body can make some glucose from a few of the amino acids in protein and also from the glycerol backbone in triglycerides (fat).

However, such conversions are not cost effective. Do not be misled by fad diets with blanket pronouncements on the dangers of carbohydrates. As with fats, it is the type of carbohydrate that is most important.

Carbohydrates require less water to digest than proteins or fats and are the most common source of energy in living things.

They provide the body with fuel it needs for physical activity and for proper organ function, and are an important part of a healthy diet.Two types

There are two major types of carbohydrates in foods: simple and complex.

Simple carbohydrates: Also called simple sugars, these are found in refined sugars, like the white sugar you’d find in a sugar bowl. Simple sugars are also found in nutritious foods such as fruit and milk.

It’s better to get your simple sugars from foods like fruit and milk because they contain vitamins, fibre, and important nutrients like calcium.

Complex carbohydrates: Also called starches, are found in grain products such as bread, crackers, pasta and rice.

As with simple sugars, some complex carbohydrate foods are better choices than others.

Whole or unrefined grains are preferable over processed, refined grains.

Whole or unrefined grains contain important vitamins and minerals, apart from fibre, which helps the digestive system work well.

Fibre also helps you feel full, so you are less likely to over eat these foods.

So which type of carbs should you eat? The FAO and WHO jointly recommend that national dietary guidelines set…More

The Hindu : y>

Crossword and Toto Funds the Arts are having a book reading by Srinath Perur and Janani Ambikapathy.

Srinath Perur’s writings — essays, book reviews, short fiction — have won prizes in the Sunday Herald short story contest (2007) and the Goethe-Institut’s Dubasch contest (2008). He is currently working on a collection of linked stories set in the Bangalore of the 1980s.

Janani Ambikapathy studied creative writing at the University of East Anglia (UEA) and has been published in the UEA anthology. She has worked as a freelance writer, documentary editor and an actor.She plans to live and write in Bangalore.

The reading will be held on April 15, 6.45 p.m. at Crossword Bookstore, Residency Road. Call 2552411-15.

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The Hindu : y>Subash Balakrishnan reminisces the India Coffee House

It was on a Sunday, February 22, when I first learnt that the India Coffee House on MG Road was going to be closed. Even as I searched the Net for more information, I realised that I was rather late in being informed that one of my favourite spots in Bangalore was closing down. My dad introduced me to the Coffee house during a visit to M.G. Road and it remained one of my favourite places in Bangalore. My wife knew that every visit of mine to M.G. Road will be incomplete without a cup of coffee from the coffee house. During my college days, this place was referred to as “Tharavaad”, which translates to “Ancestral Family Home”.

Most of my pocket money was spent at the coffee house. An extra cup of coffee or a shared plate of omelette or cutlets was always welcome and so was a range of discussions from the new girl in the campus to the latest in film music.

Times changed. Hectic work schedules reduced the frequency of visits further, and the coffee house became the subject of endless nostalgia trips with friends. Once the smoking ban was put in place, my wife began to accompany me to the coffee house occasionally. Once, my Dad and I tried eating the Masala Dosa with a fork and knife and managed quite well. Shopping at MG Road was incomplete without the coffee. One of the writers had mentioned about the stains on the coffee cups and the smell of charcoal in the coffee. We learnt to put up with all that.The waiters were notenthusiastic but who cares, we liked the place, we liked the coffee and we liked it that no one ever asked us to get up and leave. The place will be missed by all those people who start their day…More

The Hindu :

Sajid Nadiadwala splurges on Kambhakkht Ishq and says that his Hollywood-style film demands it

Visual feast Sajid Nadiadwala with Sylvester Stallone.

Almost every film-maker dreams of working with Hollywood stars at least once in a lifetime. A few go through the rigmarole of approaching agents to pitch their films and fewer succeed. Producer Sajid Nadiadwala is happy he is one of the lucky few. “Dreaming of signing Hollywood stars for “Kambhakkht Ishq” wasn’t tough, but executing it was,” admits Sajid. He spent six months talking to agents, discussing the film, the script and their roles.

Wanting Sylvester Stallone, Brandon Routh, Kylie Minogue and Denise Richards in his film meant sending them the script in advance. “Once the contract is signed, we can change nothing. Not just the dialogues, details of how many photographs can be revealed to the press, the footage to be shown in trailers… everything is sacrosanct,” says Sajid. With the Hindi film industry waking up to contracts, he sees such agreements becoming a possibility soon.

“KI” is scheduled to release on May 29, but right now the release date is in a limbo, thanks to the ongoing tussle between Producers’ Council and multiplex owners. “We are hopeful things will be sorted out in a couple of weeks,” he maintains.

In times of meltdown when every other production house is cutting corners, Nadiadwala is on a splurge fest. A-list stars apart, he doesn’t mind buying a dress worth Rs. 8 lakh from Paris to be worn by Kareena Kapoor for a song.

“The film is set in Hollywood and demands a big budget. If I’d set my film in a rural area, I wouldn’t be doing all this,” he defends and then adds, “I am a gold medallist in economics and I have a way with numbers. In our company, we don’t have many overheads; so we do take care of costs.”

Akshay Kumar…More

The Hindu :

This fortnight at seventymm.com

Casablanca (1942)

Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid, Claude Rains, Dooley Wilson, Conrad Veidt Director: Michael Curtiz Screenwriter: Julius J. Epstein, Philip G. Epstein, Howard Koch (from the pla

Even as the imperious Lauren Bacall introduces this film talking about “the magic of Bogey and Bergman,” you know you are in for a slice of cinema history. “Casablanca”, released in 1942, won three Oscars (best film, best director and best writing) apart from making it to practically every best cinema list.

In the excellent “You Must Remember This: A Tribute to Casablanca”, writer Julius Epstein talks about how the film was made at the height of the studio system when a movie would be made every week which translates to an incredible 50 films a year. Epstein comments, “When we were making ‘Casablanca’, it was just another movie, one of the fifty.”

The movie which was shot on the studio back lot with a cut out plane and midgets playing mechanics to keep the sense of perspective, conclusively proves that pouring money on screen in the form of special effects, star salaries or hype does not translate into a classic.

“Casablanca”, like Howard Koch, the writer who stepped in when the Epstein brothers went to Washington to help with the war effort, “was a picture the world needed to see.”

It was the height of the Second World War and patriotic feeling was running high. Here was a movie that combined a heart-breaking love story, crackling, smart dialogue, an edge-of-the-seat thriller, colourful characters, excellent music and honest-to-goodness patriotism to serve up a delicious movie-going experience.

Set in Casablanca, where the refugees of the world converge desperately looking for passage out, the movie tells the story of Richard “Rick” Blaine, a cynical American with the legendary heart of gold. Rick runs a popular café, which is the meeting ground of every kind…More