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The Hindu :

German national Sitar Reich has enjoyed her India experience, more so because she has many friends here

AMAZEDBy the numerous cultures and traditions the country offers

For Sitar Reich, India was always a familiar place as she has been travelling to the country ever since she was five years old. “Though I settled down only last year, I have travelled to India frequently. Most of my friends are also from India. I have always felt at home in this country,” she says.

Reich divides her time between Bangalore and Pondicherry, and is also enrolled for an online German education programme.

“Since I have been to the country before and have a huge group of friends in this part of the planet, I have enjoyed a distinct Indian experience. I have never felt out of place and have enjoyed my stint a great deal. I hardly miss my life in Germany.”

She adds, “The advent of globalisation has made the world a small place. I miss some elements of German food, which is very specific to the region. However, I can easily get most of the ingredients required for a nice European meal.”

“This is not to suggest that I do not enjoy Indian food. Every once in a while, I do dig into Indian food. I love the paneer and tandoor preparations, since they are tangy and different. I do not mind the spice levels too much.”

Sitar, like numerous other expats, is a fan of the vibrancy and diversity of the country, though she has not been to the north of the country yet.

“I travel a lot between Bangalore and Pondicherry. Despite the frequent trips, I am still amazed by the numerous cultures, traditions etc. I would like to explore the north as well, when I get the time to undertake the trip.”

Bangalore, Sitar feels, is a fast-growing cosmopolitan metropolis that will be able to score…More

The Hindu : NEETI SARKAR

Photo: V. Sreenivasa MurthyWINDOW SHOPPING And tracking fashion; it’s serious study, you know!

What’s to love: The location. It is but a stone’s throw away from the institute. Students come here to eat either at KFC, Shanti Sagar, Woody’s or Subway on days they don’t bring lunch from home. Also, they come to shop here for just about anything, be it equipment required for a class or to simply while away time window shopping. Since they happen to be in the area itself, the students find themselves at an advantage when the stores on Commercial Street announce their sales! Also, this is where these fashion-conscious students spot the trends that are in and those that ought to be forgotten.

Whether it is to get a piercing done or to collect clothes from the tailor, the students of this college have enough and more reasons to come here on a daily basis.

What’s not to: It gets very crowded especially in the evenings and during the festive season. Also, since this is an off-campus hangout, when the students don’t have much time on hand or when they are preoccupied with college work and assignments, they don’t get to hang out here.

Alternative: Kamat Hotel for the crunchy dosas and the scrumptious dahi vadas.

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The Hindu :

With a host of awards in his plate, young chef Sreeram T.D. feels that the restaurant industry has a fascinating future

Perfect recipe Chef Sreeram (right) with Sanjeev Kapoor at an invitation to prepare three of his exclusive dishes

For a young man who escaped ragging at college by cooking Chinese food for his seniors and being nicknamed ‘junior chef’ 31-year-old, Chef Sreeram T.D. has come a long way.

After being adjudged the 2nd best Asian Chef at Malaysia in 2005 for FHM competition, sponsored by Nestle and other bigwigs of the global food industry. Later in 2008 he bagged the gold medal for Hot Cooking – Fish class and bronze medal for Hot Cooking – Chicken class at the Kerala Culinary Premiere Challenge-2008 conducted at Kochi in which experienced chefs from five-star hotels contested. He says, “I attribute these awards to my deep passion for cooking.”

Born in a family of hoteliers, from Kochi, cookery flows through his veins. His late grand father, T. N. Narayanan owned the Kerala Bhavan and Madras Café since 1948. It was thus natural that from the age of ten Sreeram found himself helping his mother in the kitchen. Madras Café had to wind up prematurely as Sreeram’s father T.N. Devraj succumbed to an illness. Sree Ram donned the mantle of his father and grand father’s profession. “Growing up without a father was difficult. I would have loved to learn the ropes from my father. But I always feel his guiding presence,” he says. He discontinued his BBA course to pursue his dream of becoming a chef by flying abroad for a certificate in culinary skills from KDU College- Malaysia. Beginning his career as Sous Chef and Banquet Chef at Holiday Villa, Subang, Malaysia’s five-star hotel chain, Sreeram popularised Indian cuisine.

“A common complaint in Malaysia was that Indian food was colourless, just brown. Malaysians always made their food…More

The Hindu :

As he prepares for the Commonwealth Games, champion shooter Vikram Bhatnagar takes time out to share some diet secrets

PHOTO: SHANKER CHAKRAVARTYProtein-rich Vikram Bhatnagar’s food choice for a mind-sport

It is difficult to imagine that a shooter could be vegetarian. So when Commonwealth Games’ silver medallist and national double trap champion Vikram Bhatnagar says he is vegetarian on Mondays and Tuesdays, it comes as a pleasant surprise. Settling for a quick bite at Kaffa restaurant in Delhi, Vikram agrees that traditionally, shooting owes its roots to bloodlust and military sports, but his case is different. Vikram, son of an educationist, took to shooting when he was in his late 20s. “Shooting is one of the most expensive sports. So mostly sons of marksmen and army officers opt for the sport — or your father should fund you.” He didn’t want to go for the last option. “I decided to go for shooting only when I became independent.” Ordering a tandoori platter, Vikram delves deeper.“See, this is the most objective sport. Here, no influence can work. Either you have hit the bull’s eye or not. The results are self-explanatory.” Taking a bite of paneer tikka, Vikram analyses the demands of the game. “As it is a mind sport and the brain is one of the most calorie-hungry organs of the body, two-three days before the event I take a carbohydrate and protein-rich diet. I avoid Chinese food because it contains monosodium glutamate. It is said to affect beta receptors which help in maintaining concentration.”

Talking of Chinese food makes Vikram recalls his experience in China, when during the Navratras his friends made him visit a restaurant. . “We were expected to pick an animal of their choice and hand it over to the chef. “Such concepts create revulsion to non-vegetarian food,” says Vikram, digging deep into the greenery of vegetarian momos. Not a frequent…More

The Hindu :

A buffet at Pride Hotel is light as a phulka yet loaded with rich dishes

WIDE SPREAD The choice on the buffet is endless

Pride Hotel is a business hotel located bang in the middle of the city on Richmond Road. The 24-hour café at the hotel dishes out many delicacies, including a buffet spread for lunch and dinner.

Business executives file past, engrossed in small discussions at the lunch buffet spread, which the chef informs us, is changed every day. “It is very important to keep changing the buffet menu to ensure that the guests are not bored with the same food.”

The menu is fairly exhaustive, starting with the regular soups and salads and also featuring noodles, stir vegetables, pulavs etc.

We attack the light potato and leek soup, which is warm and light, quite perfect for the weather and the tummy.

The corn noodles and stir vegetable combination is sampled next. The stir veggies, a combination of mushrooms, broccoli and a host of other vegetables cooked in a brown tangy sauce is excellent and enhances the taste of the noodles, which is fairly ordinary.

If you are vegetarian, the stir vegetables are a definite must try at the restaurant.

We sample the vegetarian pulav and the raan nawabi, a mutton leg marinated and served after being kept in the tandoor. We enjoyed the pulav also, but not being a great fan of pepper, hoped that we would not bite into the many peppercorns that were present in the plate. The gravy is rich, the meat is very soft and the preparation tastes brilliant. The dish is fairly high on oil, but the taste and juicy meat more than make up for the indulgence.

The paneer khurchan, a combination of bell peppers and cottage cheese in tomato onion gravy tastes great with fluffy phulkas or naan. The phulkas are the best part of the meal. They are…More

The Hindu :

PHOTOS: By AuthorOLD WORLD CHARMAt the Flying Tiger Adventure Camp

FLYING TIGER ADVENTURE CAMP

DAGSHAI CANTT., SOLAN

D agshai. A dot of a lush town coned in a scenic Himalayan range. Silence rules its lanes, quaint is its setting. Old fashioned bungalows, a Raj-era jail and a cemetery; its tombs covered with pine needles. There’s a clutch of rickety shops strung together in a row, and, yes, a pretty elfin-size post office too. And, like any other small town, everyone seems to know everyone here.

Typically, nothing much happens in Dagshai. Time here is torpid — ideal for a city slicker to cool heels. Young Tiger Singh’s sprawling family house, an old Raj bungalow, stands on the town’s Charing Cross road, on a slope, way down the main road. A gravelly path opens out to a rambling patch overlooking the hills. There sits the bungalow with a cluster of lush trees and a jumble of multi-hued dahlia flowers.

The place has a huge playground, hammocks are strung on trees here and there. So are chairs and tables at quiet corners of the property, perfect to sit with a book, sipping red wine even as the soothing sunrays work on your back. Dog lovers would like to know that Tiger has two friendly dogs — Tequila and Whisky, always game for play.

The bungalow also has a room with a TV, its mud walls covered with photos of Bob Marley and an interesting lamp with a shade made from used beer bottles, among other curios. An alumnus of Lawrence School, Sanawar, and a trained pilot, Tiger might organise a barbeque night for you, on the house!

The food here is mostly Indian — tasty home-made fare. And yes, Flying Tiger Adventure Camp would be incomplete without its friendly and efficient staff.

SANGEETA BAROOAH PISHAROTY

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The Hindu :

Here’s how to protect your back from injury and stress

POSTURE IS EVERYTHINGBad seating can strain the back muscles

I have often come across people complaining of back pain — not only the old, but even the young. However, it is not something to be taken lightly. Lower back pain may radiate down to the back of the thigh and in some cases to the calves and the feet. Most of us suffer the pain silently and do nothing about it. Those who do so should stop and think. Low back pain can be acute lasting for three to four weeks, or chronic lasting for more than 12 weeks.

Causes

Poor posture

Stooped or bent posture can cause a lot of damage. Many of us stand and sit in poor postures. If this is corrected, your back pain will reduce a great deal.

Habitual bad posture can cause enough damage to the structure and the musculature of the spine. The reason why older people stoop is not because they are getting older but because of poor posture; this holds good for youngsters too.

Incorrect lifting techniques

Very few ensure that the back is straight when they lifting things. Those who lift weights with rounded backs are at bigger risk of back injuries. The pressure on the intervertebral discs is much higher when heavy objects are lifted with a bent back.

Prolonged sitting

Those who have sedentary jobs have a tendency to develop back ache. Sitting posture is critical for those who have backaches.

Over training

Exercise enthusiasts in quest of the perfect body, tend to do many exercises which are orthopaedically unsafe and not necessary; they need to consult a professional on what is good and not good for them.

Car seating

Many cars do not give adequate lumbar support. Bad seating can cause strain to the muscles, ligaments and discs of the back.

Prevention

Standing and sitting erect is very important: if your chair does…More

The Hindu :

Nargis, Sunil Dutt, Raaj Kumar, Rajendra Kumar, Kanhaiyalal

Mehboob Khan was a big film man. He was fairly prolific, having directed 25 films in about 27 years. He had this unusual knack for reserving the best for a winner. He did it for “Aurat” in 1940. Then “Andaz” in 1949, “Aan” in early 1950s, followed by “Mother India” in 1957. In fact, Mehboob knew a winner when he had one. And in “Mother India” he clearly notched up one: the film, reflecting the odds and aspirations of an emerging nation, went on to be the biggest grosser at the box office until K. Asif’s “Mughal-e-Azam” rewrote records in 1960.

The film turned out to be more than just a box office success story. In fact, “Mother India” continues to be a benchmark for serious Hindi filmmakers to this day. Relating the story of a dogged woman faced with adversity on all fronts, including poverty, possible widowhood, the film was able to blend the colours of patriotism with romance and good old valour with the problems of development in an emerging nation. Of course, there was the evil moneylender too as the symbol of all that is wrong with rural India.

The film was nominated for the Academy Award as the best film in foreign language category besides winning five Filmfare awards. Though widely regarded as Nargis’s success saga — every heroine in subsequent years wanted to do a “Mother India” — Mehboob deserves a lot of credit for giving the film a contemporary touch without making it too politically expedient. Beginning with the banner, the director’s left-of-the-centre leanings come to the fore right through. For instance, the opening sequence with the water canal reaching the village was a stunning advertisement for socialism. The State forces were all right, the private ones all wrong: the State provided the water, the rich usurped the land…More

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Pizza Hut has launched 30 new menu items that includes seven sautéed pastas, four exciting starters, five desserts, twelve refreshing drinks and two new pizzas.

It has also introduced Tuscani Pastas, a range of premium sautéed pastas starting at Rs.99 with options in the fusion and international categories. To quench your thirst, try out drinks such as Grape Sangria Cooler and Iced Teas. Pizza Hut also offers tempting vegetarian and non-vegetarian starters including Barbeque Chicken Wings, Potato Wedges, Nachos ‘n’ Salsa etc. For desserts, you could take a pick from Chocolate Symphony, Honey Crunch Classic etc.

The a la carte meal for two starts from Rs. 375.

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The Hindu : y>

Most of the actors love to Google themselves to see what their fans and critics think but Sarah Jessica Parker has no time for it. She says she has never looked herself up on the Internet and probably never will. “I definitely don’t read anything: I don’t read blogs, don’t surf the web, don’t look for comments on myself, don’t Google myself — never have and never will. I can’t really pay attention to all the chat about me — that may or may not exist, positive or negative. I just don’t see that that’s really a valuable use of my time.”

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