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The Hindu : y>Catch Akshay Kumar on a breathtaking twist in the air

ON LIFE Action and adventure

Staying true to his daredevil image, actor Akshay Kumar in his next Thums Up ad will be seen indulging in an extreme sport of ‘Parkour’. Popularised by the French, it means art of moving. The action hero will top it up with breathtaking stunts on a Hayabusa Motorbike.

The ad has been shot in Kuala Lumpur by Malaysian Director Farouk Aljoffery.

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The Hindu : y>

Red Bull is organising a Street Style Football competition to search for the best freestyle footballer in the world.

Venue: St. Joseph’s Boys High School

Date: February 20

Time: 2 p.m.

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The Hindu :

Katherine Rustumji has been witness to the transformation of the city

Photo: V. Sreenivasa MurthyPOINT OF DIFFERENCE Unlike other cities, Bangalore is not chauvinistic says Katherine

She wanted her children to learn more about Indian culture and experience it first hand. This decision brought Katherine Rustumji to Bangalore from England in 1992. “It was a massive cultural shock. India has changed so much over the past couple of decades that I feel I have landed in another country. We spent much time in getting telephone lines sorted out, running after fax machine vendors, adjusting with the cultural changes etc. Over the years, we have managed to assimilate well into society.”

She adds: “Present day Bangalore has grown before my eyes. When I came here, it was a small town, waking up to the IT boom. It has become a major cosmopolitan centre now, attracting people from across the world. It has been a good change, though it has brought with it the menace of high pollution levels, traffic snarls etc in its wake. Once the infrastructure is spruced up, it will become a truly global city.”

Katherine is the CEO of Kara4kids, an institute that offers extended pre-school and day-care centre for children up to six years of age. “One of my children has special needs. While taking care of him, I decided to start this small institute. It has been great fun.”

The language barrier has never been an issue for Katherine. “I do follow some basic Kannada and Hindi. You can manage with English rather easily. Unlike some other cities, regional chauvinism is absent in the city.”

As for cricket, Katherine felt that Yorkshire had the most passionate fan following in the game, till she came to India. “Cricket is a religion; it is much more than just a sport here. It is like the manner in which football is followed back home. Cricket…More

The Hindu : y>

Kallur Mahalaxmi Tabla Vidyala is celebrating its silver jubilee with a morning music concert with a tabla solo by Vijay Ghate from Pune and a vocal recital by Prasanna Gudi.

Venue: J.S.S. Auditorium, 8th Block Jayanagar

Date: February 21

Time: 9 a.m.

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The Hindu : y>

A key part of the traditional British Sunday meal along with roast beef and roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding combines eggs, flour, milk (and a little salt) to make a thick, creamy batter, which is baked in the oven till it rises, and turns golden brown. It is traditionally baked in baking tins (or individual biscuit tins) which has been greased with very hot fat or beef lard.

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The Hindu :

LAZY GAZE

ALUVA, NEAR KOCHI

USP: Chill zone

In these days of increasing work pressure, doing nothing has become a human necessity. And Lazy Gaze, a cosy hideout tucked away in the town of Aluva, provides exactly that ambience.

Located on the banks of River Periyar, this is a clean, affordable place. There are just two independent rooms, a spacious common space, manicured lawns and, of course, the river flowing right in front of you.

The rooms are well-ventilated and neatly furnished, and there’s a kitchenette for those who find cooking a great way to get back in the groove after lazing around.

There is no in-house cook; however, Lazy Gaze has an arrangement with a few good restaurants from where guests can order food. Once you plonk on the bed,you gradually begin to soak in the silence and beauty of the place.

Through the French windows, gaze lazily at the river gliding along, the occasional boatman … anything that catches your eye. The chugging of a train on the faraway bridge echoes noisily, sometimes jolting you from this reverie.

There are no ‘must-do things’ here. The whole place has been structured to provide absolute relaxation.

Of course, for those who still need to be on their legs, a drive to nearby Kodanad, the elephant training camp, Cherai Beach or the historic village of Chendamangalam are good outings.

The promoters also have a tie-up with a couple of boatmen who can ferry you along the river.

K. PRADEEP

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The Hindu :

Suja Zachariah shares some traditional Syrian Christian recipes

Tradition on a platter Suja Zachariah with the delectable spread

Steamed rice flour dumplings resembling white grapes swimming in a pool of white concoction is pidi, a Syrian Christian specialty. And, the delicious combo that goes with it is kozhi varatharachathu (spiced chicken with broiled coconut). There is kappa bonda – tapioca cutlets stuffed with chammanthi (chutney), paani and pazham – banana slices doused in a heady syrup of toddy and sugar, and more.

These are just some of the traditional Syrian Christian recipes recreated by Suja Zachariah for the ongoing Achayan Festival at Karavalli, The Taj Gateway.

The housewife from Paroor, a Syrian Christian belt in Kollam, is all smiles when she gets talking about the regional cuisine, which she describes as a spicy fare.

“The food is cooked in coconut oil and we use only small red onions (not the big ones).” Zachariah owes her cooking skills to her mother-in-law.

“I learnt everything about cooking from her. Our tharavad is 200 years old and during perunaal, all the family come together and prepare the traditional recipes at home,” she adds.

One such special food is puliappam, prepared during festive occasions such as Christmas and Easter. A Jewish adaptation, it is prepared with rice flour, urad dhal and yeast and has a three-hour deadline to ferment. “After the midnight mass, we head straight to the kitchen to scoop the fermented layer and start baking it,” she adds. Small onions are fried in coconut oil, to which the layer is added and baked with heat from top and bottom.

As for the recipe, she goes by her 26 years of experience in cooking. “I don’t refer to any cookbooks. It is cooking from the heart. I won’t be able to give you the number of measurement cups or the gms of ingredients for any recipe, because we don’t follow anything…More

The Hindu :

Ashok Kumar, Dharmendra, Sharmila Tagore, Sanjeev Kumar, Dina Pathak, Baby Sarika

IncorruptibleDharmendra and Sanjeev Kumar played their parts with rare honesty in Satyakam

A classic film in its own right for Rajinder Singh Bedi’s profound dialogue, Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s deft direction and Dharmendra’s sterling performance before he got caught in the web of the ‘he man’ image. The weak points — mediocre lyrics and lacklustre music.

The film opens with Sanjeev Kumar’s voiceover describing the plight of the mythical Satyakamjabala who takes on his mother’s name because of his questionable fatherhood. While the drama begins in 1946, the narrative actually takes place in post-Independence India.

When Satyapriya’s (Dharmendra) mother dies in childbirth, and his father becomes a sanyasi, he is raised in an ashram by his grandfather, Satyadarshan Acharya (Ashok Kumar), a staunch nationalist and a Sanskrit scholar.

While studying engineering he befriends classmate Narendra Sharma (Sanjeev Kumar). Satyapriya finds a job in United Paper Mill in a princely state soon after Independence, but is soon disillusioned. While struggling between his ideals and conscience, he meets Ranjana (Sharmila Tagore), daughter of a prostitute, who is pregnant after a criminal assault. Satyapriya marries Ranjana and soon a son, Kabul (Baby Sarika) is born.

Satyapriya’s grandfather’s refusal to accept his family compels him to move from one town to another.

Destiny lands him a job where he has to work under Narendra’s supervision. Narendra has learnt the hard way that to succeed and survive one has to make adjustments.

The guilt of failure becomes Satyapriya’s driving force until he succumbs to cancer. He is racked by guilt that he had failed to be Ranjana’s saviour, because even though he had married her, he hadn’t got over the fact of her victimisation. He tries to redeem himself, in the end of the film.

Directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee for producer Sher Jung Singh Punchhe, from a story by Narayan Sanyal with screenplay by Bimal…More

The Hindu : y>An exhibition and discussion on dwellings

Goethe-Institut/Max Mueller Bhavan organises an exhibition titled “+91 Residences In India – Contemporary Indian Houses”, presented by InCITE in association with the Goethe-Institut/Max Mueller Bhavan from February 20 to March 6. There will be a two-day design workshop on “An investigation into housing” by German architects from the firm “and8” on February 20 and 21. For registration, call: 2671360/61/62/80

On February 27, there is a discussion with Bangalore architects on “Building Dwelling Thinking — a polemic on housing” at 6.30 p.m.

The venue for all the events is Goethe-Institut/Max Mueller Bhavan. Call: 2520 5305/6/7/8 or visit www.goethe.de/bangalore or www.incite.co.in

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The Hindu :

Here’s how to beat adrenal fatigue and find your groove

REST AND RECUPERATENutrition and progressive relaxation help

Adrenal fatigue is a common and growing problem of modern life. Sadly, it is largely unrecognised by the medical establishment.

This has left millions with an untreated problem that interferes not only with their ability to function but also with their capacity to enjoy life. It is difficult to assess exactly how much money is lost by corporations due to worker absenteeism, poor or clouded decision-making, alcoholism, drug abuse, nervous breakdowns, burnout, employee conflict, acute and chronic illness, loss of employees, and a host of other problems that stem from the effects of over-stressed adrenal glands.

It is also not possible to estimate the personal cost to people who have had to switch to a lower- paying job to avoid a total collapse, or to the chronically ill who just do not have the energy to get back on their feet.

People with adrenal fatigue are much more likely to develop a host of other common diseases and syndromes in which fatigue is one of the primary symptoms.

Adrenal fatigue is not a readily identifiable entity such as measles or a growth on the tip of your finger.

People with adrenal fatigue may not have any obvious signs of physical illness, yet they are not well and live life feeling grey.

They often use coffee, colas and other stimulants to keep them going.

The adrenals also have an effect on mental health. People with adrenal fatigue show a tendency toward increased fears, anxiety and depression, have intervals of confusion, increased difficulty in concentrating, and less acute memory recall. They often have less tolerance and are easily frustrated.

When the adrenals are not secreting the proper amount of hormones, insomnia is one of the likely outcomes.

As the condition worsens, it lays the foundation for other seemingly unrelated conditions such as frequent respiratory infections, allergies,…More