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A merican Idol will return for its ninth season with a two-night premiere featuring extraordinary talent and new auditions. Catch the new season from January 15 at 8 p.m. and January 16 at 8.30 p.m. on Star World.

While Ryan Seacrest hosts the auditions, judges Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Kara DioGuardi will be joined by many guest judges – Victoria Beckham, Mary J. Blige, Kristin Chenoweth, Neil Patrick Harris, Joe Jonas, Avril Lavigne, Katy Perry and Shania Twain . Simon Cowell also recently announced that this would be his final season as a judge on American Idol after which he will move on to produce the American version of X-Files.

Participants who pass the auditions phase go along the “Hollywood Round”. Once in Hollywood, stand-up comedienne Ellen DeGeneres joins Simon, Randy and Kara as they continue to winnow down the competitors to a select group of performers who will get to sing their hearts out each week in front of a studio audience and television viewers.

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Even as the reality shows are making news for all the wrong reasons, Star Plus and Miditech combine again after “Perfect Bride” to create what they call the biggest of them all. Inspired by the legendary tale of Shravan Kumar, “Mahayatra” will take you through the journey of 12 contestants as they compete to make their parents reach the ultimate dham (pilgrimage).

The show promises to offer a unique experience of spirituality, adventure and fun.

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The Hindu :

The training regime Speed Kids will help in gauging a child’s aptitude in sport

Nurturing young talent The programme aims at scientifically spotting potential sportspersons

Does your child have the talent to become a good sportsperson?

Is there any right way to spot his talent in a particular sport?

Any attempt to answer these questions is fairly difficult. We often tend to judge the child’s ability by our own expectations, and not following any scientific parameters.

To correct this anomaly and to put talented children on the correct path, as far as sports is concerned, Krishna Bhupathi, the ace tennis coach who shaped the journey of his son Mahesh, together with Shayamal Vallabjee, noted South African physio, have now formulated an unique programme ‘Speed Kids’.

It is a multi-pronged training programme for children between four and seven years. It aims at the building a strong foundation in the initial phases of athletic development in children and enhance basic skills needed in all sports. The programme will adapt a set of specific drills to help the children attain a certain level of proficiency in the game and maintain good fitness levels.

Krishna Bhupathi says, “The programme will help us in discovering the aptitude of the child in two to three years.”

Vallabhjee, who has served as a trainer with the Indian hockey team, cricket squad and Mahesh Bhupathi, has created a functional concept.

He quips, “We take the children step by step through the programme, make them understand the biomechanics of the body, footwork, speed and agility. We also put them through ‘Kid Yoga’ exercises that helps improve their physical and mental fitness.”

Swimming forms an integral part of the programme as Bhuapthi and Vallabhjee believe that it aids the development of the lung capacity of the trainees.

As far as inputs for basic training in sports go, most of them come from established stars like Prakash Padukone, Ashwini Nachappa, Ashish Ballal…More

The Hindu :

William Bissell, Managing Director, Fabindia, talks about plans for Fabindia in its 50th year

Later this year Fabindia will turn fifty. For a company that has given Indian textiles, arts and crafts a contemporary look, Fabindia is credited with highlighting the beauty and eminence of our very own rural arts and crafts. Started by an American, John Bissell, it is his son and the present Managing Director of the company, William Bissell, who is carrying forward and expanding the business which began as a small export unit in Delhi. Today this lifestyle retail brand has 111 stores in the country mapping 40 cities. In the Kochi with his extended family for a private function, William recalls his several visits to Kerala as a child. Learning the ropes of the business from his father, “not so much in retail,” he states that his father’s contribution was in the idea of inclusive growth, something which has now taken shape as an artisans’ cooperative, the Community Owned Company model (COC), which today forms the backbone of Fabindia’s supply chain.

One of his main contributions has been diversification of the company into many other products.

“We work as a group. I am just the face of it. We have strengthened our garment line and successively introduced furniture, organic foods, personal care and jewellery as our products.”

On going into organic products William believes that the market for organic products is tiny, which is a disappointment but on the other hand he says he gets text messages from his regular clients that a certain product is over! – implying that there are customers who have converted to using organic products in their lifestyle – that is encouraging!

He has observed that mainly it is the nuclear family that buys organic products and people who have a certain sensitization towards the issue.

On competition

To stay ahead in the race amidst rising competition is…More

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Bernett Orlando, the youngest Rubik’s Cube world champion, on how it all falls into place

Photo:CHILD’S PLAY Bernett Orlando

How do you solve a 3×3x3 Rubik’s Cube, blindfolded, in nine seconds? With squirrels, goats, sticks and gates.

At least, that’s how Bernett Orlando, the youngest to win a Rubik’s Cube World Championship, does it. He was all of 11 years when he beat 363 contestants from around the world, solving a 5×5x5 cube blindfolded in 55 minutes. In fact, he was the only one who finished the cube!

“It’s called the Journey System,” the 14-year-old says, solemnly. “You memorise the position of the squares and the colours using landmarks around you.” The adults around him look completely flummoxed. “For instance,” he patiently continues, “if there’s a yellow and a red square next to each other, for me it signifies a squirrel; yellow-orange is a goat; red-blue is a leaf and so on. Now you just need to remember these objects in a certain order.”

That sounds ever so simple. Only there are 4.32 x 10 raised to 27 ways of arranging a simple 3×3x3 cube.

The grown-ups start to look worried again. Bernett smiles. “It is also about making decisions in a split second, and remembering the choices you have.”

Studying in the St. James Matriculation School in Thiruchirapalli, all of Bernett’s achievements have been in the Open Category — including the world championship, 26 Indian records and six Asian records — which means, he competed with people of all ages, and won.

He can memorise a pack of cards in three minutes, 160 random numbers in five minutes and 300 binary digits in five minutesIt all began when Bernett started training under his father, John Louis, learning memory and retention skills. Now, he accompanies his father on his workshops around the world, besides teaching memory-building techniques in more than 500 schools in the country.

Head bent, his fingers…More

The Hindu :

Shun body-hugging blouses, endlessly-high heels, tent-like totes, cheap shades and metallic accessories. Being in good shape is more important than being ‘in’

PHOTO: AFPNOT A HIGH Watch what your foot wears

“A mother came to see me about her daughter,” says Raji Venkatesh, specialist in women’s ailments. “The mother suspected that the daughter, an undergraduate student, was anorexic, and was worried about the girl’s dipping academic performance.” The daughter met the doctor a month later, and opened up, when she found the doctor willing to listen. Turned out she was in a crowd that worshipped “thin”. “She said she wasn’t hungry, and needed a reason to eat,” says Dr. Raji. “I prescribed a fruit / veggie placebo. She’s now met 60 per cent of her diet needs.”

Fashion makes demands, but danger lurks behind many of them. “An anorexic diet is dangerous,” says Chandra Swaminathan, nutrition expert. “Body muscles need adequate protein. Without them, you reduce body function that results in fatigue.” Any extreme behaviour for slimming will lead to depression, says Dr. Raji.

Fashion consciousness is one thing, but obsession? Some teens eat just spoonfuls; some cut down on the intake; others start an eat-throw up cycle. Lack of balanced nutrition affects concentration. A gnawing stomach hinders ability to plot a graph, write an analytical essay, remember dates in history.

Bulimia is an extreme case. There are other everyday ways in which we chisel away our health, following fashion dictates. Do you carry a heavily-stuffed huge tote bag? Then, you’re also lugging a sure way to aching back and shoulders. Physiotherapists suggest that you switch to a backpack to spread the weight. Won’t give up the tote? Shift it between shoulders.

If you walk in those high heels, you invite a different set of troubles. “At a fashion show, I watched in alarm as a model in high heels and a clumsily-worn sari almost trip…More

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Even as football in Karnataka is on the upswing following a recent string of victories, administrators need to back the available talent

IN THE THICK OF ACTION Karnataka’s football teams have been on a winning spree, thanks to some freshly emerging talent

Karnataka football seems to be in the process of effecting a turnaround at all levels of the sport. Recently, the under-16 team finished runners up in the Mir Iqbal Hussein trophy sub junior National championship. The State under-19 team bagged the Dr. B.C. Roy trophy in the 46th junior National football championship held at Mandya recently.

The success of these youngsters should induce the Karnataka State Football Association to invest a lot more into youth development programmes. The emergence of the FIFA Goal Project at the football stadium and the all-purpose turf that will be laid by FIFA soon are positive signs.

However, a lot more needs to be done. The concept of shifting the junior Nationals to a district like Mandya, which boasts a strong football base, was a good move. However, the low turn-out in most matches dented the purpose.

The three-week-long preparation camp under coaches J. L. Andrew and Sarvanan may not have been an ideal one, especially when one compares the preparations that the teams from Jharkhand, Manipur and Mizoram underwent. The emergence of football academies in many States in the north and the strong presence of the Tata Football Academy in Jharkhand played a vital role in the performances of those teams. Meanwhile, traditionally strong units like Goa, Kerala, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh faded away in the early stages.

West Bengal and Tamil Nadu made it to the quarter-finals, but were beaten by lesser known outfits.

Coming back to Karnataka’s performance, in Vinoth Kumar, who scored four goals in the championship, Karnataka has discovered a striker for the future. His use of his physical structure to get the better of…More

The Hindu : MURALI H.R.

Nobel laureate Venkataraman Ramakrishnan, who is passionate about cycling, tells MURALI H.R. of Ride-A-Cycle Foundation that he supports their cause

Photo: (left) Murali Kumar K.COMMITMENT Venkatraman Ramakrishnan never bought himself a car

A fter Venkatraman Ramakrishnan won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry last year, chemistry became way cool. Another thing which became hip is of course cycling. The Nobel Laureate’s candid confession of never having owned a car came as a happy surprise to all those who trying to ease our hideously choked roads of gas guzzlers and get Bangaloreans to adopt the cycle as a green means of commuting.

Ride-A-Cycle Foundation is one such trying to encourage cycling in the city. The members of the foundation spoke with Ramakrishnan when he was in Bangalore last week. The committed cyclists of Bangalore made him a part of their fraternity by gifting him with two cycle bells which he liked immensely. Excerpts from an exhaustive interview:

I have little knowledge about chemistry and biology that you are so well versed with. As cyclists, we are always looking out for someone who is passionate about cycling. Our interest in you arose not because of your love of science, but because you do not “own a car”. In fact, many of my friends were shocked to learn this. In our country you are respected only if you own a car. Cycling is perceived as a means of transport of the poorWhy did you not own a car?

Venkatraman Ramakrishnan : It is one of the worst things in India. I don’t own a car for variety of reasons. I enjoy cycling and it is environmental friendly. I get to exercise everyday regardless of whether I take time out to exercise or not. . At the end of the day, when you get home, you feel relaxed. It is a great lifestyle.

When I grew up in Baroda, I…More

The Hindu :

A docudrama on Gemini Ganesan

FILM GIANT Venkatesan’s documentary spans the life of the legend

M. Venkatesan didn’t know about The New York Times, until someone asked him to do a documentary for them, on Tamil Nadu’s jallikattu. He produced and directed a four-and-a-half hour documentary titled, “Madurai Jallikattu – Bull Fighting in India” (2007). The video featured the travel section of the paper’s website. If he had known about the stature of the paper he would have billed them more, he says. A product of the L.V. Prasad Film and Television Academy, Venkatesan has now directed a film on the life of Gemini Ganesan. Produced by Gemini’s daughter Dr. Kamala Selvaraj’s Alamelu Creations, the documentary “Kaadhal Mannan- The King of Romance” spans the life of the legend, from his humble beginnings in Pudukottai of the 1920s to the glitz of Gemini Studios in the 1940s.

The movie, which has been shot on Super 35mm film format, will be released in Tamil, Telugu and English, says the director. The music is by Kalaimamani V. Thayanban. Three actors play Gemini of ages six, 13 and his early 20s. The actors, Nitish, Vignesh and Srinivas respectively, are all debutants.

Venkatesan’s earlier documentaries, “Kshama” (2007) on Gandhi’s childhood and “Chennai Footpath” (2006) on the city’s pavement dwellers, won accolades in India and abroad. The film runs like a feature to the point where Gemini becomes a star. It then follows in the documentary format.

The director has interviewed many people associated with Gemini, including Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, Kamal Haasan, Sivakumar, Srinivasa ‘Cho’ Ramaswamy, Sathyaraj, Prabhu, Sivaji Ganesan, Charuhasan, Sowcar Janaki, Anjali Devi, Saroja Devi and K.R. Vijaya. “Nagesh passed away just two days before I could interview him,” adds Venkatesan.

It is a war against time to document our film heritage, the history of an industry which stands on the shoulders of giants who dominated the social and…More

The Hindu :

Why didn’t the Indian players make a mark at the recent Chennai Open?

PHOTO: R. RAGUTHE FUTURE LOOKS BRIGHT Somdev Devvarman and (in the foreground) Sanam Singh at the Chennai Open

With a trickle of marquee players at the Chennai Open, Indian hopes were always going to be given the short shrift.

The draw that pit Somdev Devvarman, the highest ranked Indian in the fray, in the same quarter as Carlos Moya, Janko Tipsarevic and Rainer Schuettler, pegged his chances of repeating the run he enjoyed last year, in the region of the statistically imponderable.

Yuki Bhambri, highly thought of in the junior circuit but yet to cut his teeth with the men, and Prakash Amritraj, 26 and currently sitting at 200 in the world rankings, brought up the flanks.

Bhambri lost out in the final round of qualifying for the singles event, but partnering Moya, kept the crowd’s interest flickering with a quarter-final exit in the doubles. Amritraj came through the qualifiers with a typical blow hot-blow cold routine that saw him pound in aces and serve three feet wide in the same game.

The run of three matches “gave me a good work out. My game got better with each qualifying round. It is nice practice before the main event,” he said.

The predictable lack of consistency saw him crash out in the first round, which left Somdev the only Indian in the singles draw. Somdev, through to the second round after a straight-sets defeat of Rainer Schuettler, went down tamely to eventual semi-finalist Tipsarevic.

“There is a reason he is ranked quite high. I didn’t get my serves in as much as I would have liked. More than my game falling apart, he played well,” he said after the encounter.

“Where to from here” asked a journalist, and Somdev, in a tone poised somewhere between jest and genuine irritation said, “Excuse me, I am not done…More