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Oxford English High School, Nagarabhavi, conducted its graduation ceremony recently.

Amidst the flood lights, camera lights, gaiety and grandeur of the ambience surrounding them, the students of Std. X bid goodbye to their Alma Mater and expressed their gratitude to their mentors and the management.

Medals and certificates were given to the outgoing students.

M.C.Ravindra Nath, chairman of the institution, B.R.Supreeth, secretary, the prinicipal H. N. Usha andl the teaching staff were present.

(Input by Sudhindr.A.B.)

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The Hindu : SUDHINDR.A.B

Can employability and inspiration go together? According to this contest, yes…

When innovation rules:The winners of the IAFA; (below) Child Jury performing.

Bangalore students were given a unique opportunity to delve into their lateral skills and digi-shoot innovative ad-films for public service, environment, and futuristic sci-fi and enter into the IAFA contest (Iceplex Ad Film Award) which was organised by the Ryan Group of Institutions.

An edge

It was a setting for children to explore their creativity and help give their education a special edge. They learnt a skill that can be translated into not only employability but also a means of delving into the exciting world of media-magic.

At a glittering ceremony held in Mumbai, the young directors of the nominated ad-films from all over India, took part in the grand finale which was overseen by a jury comprising eminent members like Bhawna Somaiya, Ila Arun, Manmohan Shetty, Bhimsen Joshi, and Johnny Lever. Ryan International School, Kundalahalli, won the “cool-school” award for maximum participation and submission of films. The students were nominated in all categories and four students won prizes in various categories.

Novel idea

However, the most interesting winner was Rahul Singh, whose environment ad-film showed a student, who, on finding the Chemistry laboratory running short of acid, uses rain water to complete his experiment. The film caught the fancy of the viewers and was adjudged the most popular ad-film via on-line voting.

He will now be going to China and will help conceptualise an ad film on tourism in China.

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The Hindu :

Benjamin Beirs skilfully moved from Spanish and German compositions to jam with Carnatic musicians

Photo: Sampath Kumar G.P.VERSATILEBen Beirs

A s part of the 13th East West Encounter 2010, the Bangalore School of Music presented the popular American classical guitarist Benjamin (Ben) Beirs at The Alliance Française recently.

The young prodigy is a celebrated composer and singer, often described as a truly gifted musician. Having performed at numerous concerts across the world, he is a passionate believer in music’s power to heal and touch people’s lives. The latter half of the evening saw him play alongside Indian musicians such as flautist Amith Nadig, tabla player Muthu Kumar and ghata player Karthik Mani.

The musical fiesta began with Spanish composer Joaquín Rodrigo Vidre’s “Three Spanish Pieces”. Ben effortlessly rendered the three works — Fandango, Passacaglia and Zapateado in virtuosic profligacy.

Ben’s fingers deftly raced across the fret-board of his classical guitar exuding excitement as he went on to play Jewish-Italian composer Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s “Tarantella”, Op. 87b. The neo-romantic piece, written by one of guitar music’s most profound contributors, flowed stimulatingly, emphasising the intense musicality that Ben is reputed for.

Johann Sebastian Bach’s Suite No. 1 for lute in E minor, BWV 996 followed. Ben recreated the maestro’s musical proficiency playing three movements from the piece.

Throughout the recital, Ben had the audience in splits with his humorous one-liners. During the second half, he cast a mystic spell with his own composition “Awakened Awareness”. Mellifluously tinged with Eastern tones, the Buddhism-inspired creation enchanted the listeners with cathartic harmony and progressions.

Having studied with one of the world’s leading guitar artiste Roland Dyens, Ben found it apt to play one of the Tunisian-French composer’s magnum opus, “Libra Sonatine”. Written in three movements — India, Largo and Fuoco — the piece expressed a rapturous experience of the subcontinent’s colours, smells and tastes. Executing with both intensity and control, Ben took the audience…More

The Hindu : y>

Dr. Mini Vasudevan

People who have adopted female pups have all unanimously agreed that when it comes to affection, females are as good as their male counterparts. A female dog is also as loyal and territorial as a male. Unfortunately, due to social conditioning and lack of awareness, people prefer only male dogs resulting in females in a litter getting abandoned and left to die mercilessly on the streets due to starvation or by getting run over by speeding vehicles. Those that survive breed unchecked, adding to the ever growing street dog population.

The primary reason that people don’t prefer female dogs is the inconvenience that they have to go through when the females come on heat twice a year and the males in the surrounding area getting attracted to them, usually resulting in aggression and fights. Protecting a female from getting pregnant becomes an added burden. All these problems are easily avoidable. Spaying a female dog around the first heat cycle takes care of all these issues completely. Females don’t come on heat after spaying and the chances of males getting attracted, and the female conceiving, are completely eliminated.

Adopt a female mongrel pup and by spaying her on time, have a healthy, affectionate and loyal companion for life. At the same time, you will fulfil a social obligation of checking the street dog population explosion.

To adopt a female puppy, contact CUPA at 22947300 / 01.

(The writer is the founder of the Humane Animal Society, Coimbatore- www.hasindia.org )* * *

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Hero of the week

Neelima’s hero is her husband Somashankar who rescued a kitten that was stuck on their window sill. When the panicked kitten refused to get into a bag that was lowered in its direction, Somashankar jumped on the window sill (despite the risk as they were on the first floor), grabbed the kitten and climbed back…More

The Hindu : MINI ANTHIKAD-CHHIBBER

Director Mira Nair tells MINI ANTHIKAD-CHHIBBER what drew her to Amelia, and the fine art of translating books onto the big screen

Amelia’s story Hilary Swank and Richard Gere in the movie

Celebrated filmmaker Mira Nair has turned her lens on one of America’s greatest icons, Amelia Earhart, the first aviatrix to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, with the bio-pic “Amelia”.

Ask the director of fascinating films such as “Salaam Bombay” and “Monsoon Wedding” why she chose a bio-pic, and crackling over telephone lines from the Big Apple comes Mira’s “Why not?”

Dream on

She elaborates: “Mostly because I was intrigued by Amelia’s humility — an unusual trait in Americans, especially for someone who has achieved so much. I was also fascinated by how a small-town girl could dream such an extraordinary dream. Amelia had a sense of fun and lived beyond herself. She was an activist with a world view. I felt a strange affinity for Amelia, as I too come from a small town, Rourkela, and her dreams to experience the bigger world were my dreams too.”

“Amelia” is Mira’s third period film after “Kama Sutra” and “Vanity Fair”. “Those were completely different periods! And, I do not set out to make a period film; the subject matter has to interest me. For instance, I did ‘Vanity Fair’ because I love Thackeray and the story of a girl on the wrong side of the tracks making it, and also because it was an interesting period in history. A time of great intersection between the colonisers and colonised.”

“Amelia” is set in the roaring Twenties and Thirties, and Mira says: “I love the music, the fashion and the inherent modernity of Amelia.” To the fear of the story getting lost in the period details, Mira says: “A historical film is just set in a particular period. You should be able to embrace the settings…More

The Hindu : y>Kinnari Kudla argues that TV is not all evil in its influence. It also educates

TV has become a part and parcel of our daily dose of entertainment. It is considered one of the basic commodities.

As a teenager, I am fascinated by TV, the mindless soaps and reality shows. With more than a 100 channels, showcasing everything from daily soaps, news, sports, documentaries, TV has something for everybody. The argument that the presence of 100 odd channels has dented the image of television as a medium of entertainment is also flawed, as TV helps in enhancing the intellectual capacity of many people.

Often, children aged six to nine, watch cartoons and are hooked to Pogo, Cartoon Network and the Disney channel. But, they move on to watch teen soaps such as Hannah Montana and educational shows.

In the late teens most of us are hooked on to romantic comedies and reality shows like “Roadies” and “Splitsvilla”. As we grow older, we tend to watch news and sports channels more frequently. Thus, having multiple channels is necessary to ensure that everyone gets an opportunity to watch the channel of their choice.

Many teenagers are hooked to TV, due to the lack of human interaction at home, bought about by the fact that both parents are often working.

TV has also played a part in promoting education over the years. It’s not all about serials and reality shows; it often creates awareness about many major issues and helps us realise the consequences of issues such as global warming. It has also raised its voice against malpractices such as child marriage, female infanticide, violation of human rights etc.

TV serves as an excellent medium for all these purposes. We must appreciate the good things the medium has bought for us, instead of being concerned only about its supposed ill effects.

Do you have anything to say? About the state of the…More

The Hindu :

Mohit Takalkar says his play Yellow Orange Sunshine is inspired by his roots and not borrowed sensibilities

Mohit Takalkar’s “Yellow Orange Sunshine” is not exactly a sunny script. It opens at Varanasi’s burning ghats and makes one wonder if the playwright is giving us the message that our deeds, no matter how innocently committed, will come back to haunt us. Or is it something like “that which I feared most has come upon me”?

Takalkar says poignantly, “I don’t know…I feel it is more like ‘that which I loved/desired most has come upon me’ I guess. I was going through a phase when everything I loved and cherished crumbled to pieces. Then I feared loving anything for a long time. I believed life played cruel games. We sometimes mark our belongings and feel secure that whatever happens God won’t tamper with these few things… and one day we wake up to find we have been defeated in this hope.”

So the theme of this play, the first from his pen, is obviously not chosen for its mystique. On the contrary, Takalkar points out, “It’s sad that what we write off as contemporary is already passé in the western world. I never could write independently. So it was better to base the play in my roots rather than building it on borrowed sensibilities.”

Aware of the “colours, smells, sounds and atmospheres” that are part of Indian mythology and culture, he says, “This provided a canvas which could be painted vividly with a strong visual treatment. This also leaves a lot of empty space for the director and the actors.”

Takalkar, himself a director, actor and a film editor, must have his own ideas of how to produce the play. “I see plenty of blank spaces in the script,” he remarks. “The director will have to fill them with his imagination and colours.” Though the relationship between…More

The Hindu :

This fortnight at indiaplaza.in

Sleepless in Seattle (1993)

Cast: Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan, Bill Pullman, Rosie O’ Donnell, Rob Reiner, David Hyde Pierce

Director: Nora Ephron

Screenwriter: Jeff Arch, Nora Ephron, Audrey Gochenour

Director of photography: Sven Nykvist

Composer: Marc Shaiman

Price: Rs. 599

T his is the movie that started it all — the ultimate chick flick. For the generation that was young and restless in the nervous Nineties, this movie was the balm for all singleton woes. “Sleepless in Seattle” is fascinating because it is perhaps the first to reference iconic films — not as a spoof but as an affectionate homage. The Deborah Kerr-Cary Grant 1957 weepie, “An Affair to Remember,” is a running motif through the film including the climax, as is the cult classic, the Humphrey Bogart – Ingrid Bergman starrer “Casablanca” (1942).

The movie tells the story of a Chicago architect, Sam Baldwin, who loses his wife to cancer. Devastated, he moves with his eight-year-old son, Jonah, to Seattle to make a fresh start. Sam, however, is still unable to get over his wife’s death.

On Christmas Eve, Jonah persuades a very reluctant Sam to get on national radio and talk about his loss. Women across the length and breadth of the United States empathise with Sam and letters of support, encouragement and proposals pour in.

Annie Reed, a journalist from Baltimore is one of the women moved by Sam’s story. She is engaged to a nice man, Walter, but she feels a connection with Sam. The film follows rom com conventions including a meeting in the airport, crossed letters, the almost-wedding, the other woman who is so definitely wrong, well-loved romantic songs from the movies and of course the ultimate romantic meeting on the top of the Empire State Building.

Nora Ephron, who directed the film, went on to direct other rom coms such as “You’ve Got Mail” and she also wrote that other favourite…More

The Hindu : y>

Role play The I Can Be range allows girls to imagine themselves in different careers

For more than five decades, Barbie has inspired girls to play out their dreams and aspirations by giving them the opportunity to try on different personalities, careers, and explore a world of infinite possibilities without ever having to leave home.

With more than 124 careers already on her resume – spanning from nurse to rock star, veterinarian to aerobics instructor, pilot to police officer – Barbie has served as a role model for girls across the world.

In 2010, Barbie takes up a host of aspirational and culturally relevant avatars with the introduction of Barbie I Can Be range. .The dolls allows in this range allow girls to “try on” and imagine themselves in different roles and careers. Each toy is also equipped with a special code that unlocks online games specific to that particular theme on www.barbie.com. The Doll assortment is available for Rs. 599

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The Hindu :

Eating and drinking the right food helps you beat the summer heat

Beat the heat With some refreshing water

Summer is here. And the weather forecast says we are headed for hotter days. While sun screen lotions and umbrellas protect the skin, how do we protect the body? Excessive heat, say dieticians, can upset the body, causing irritability, sleep-related problems and exhaustion among other things. Food and drink, they say, have a role in helping you keep cool during summer.

Dehydration

While drinking enough water seems intuitive, when it becomes an afterthought, people working outdoors or exercising can become dehydrated, often without realising it. “Signs of dehydration are tiredness, dull skin, sunken eyes, parched lips and even headaches. So make sure you have two to three litres of water a day,” says Mini Mary Prakash, registered dietician at PRS Hospital.

Children, says Mini, often suffer from dehydration as they play in the sun. Signs of dehydration in children, she says, are irritability, lethargy, dry mouth and lips, crying sans tears, body aches, sunken eyes, loss of appetite, vomiting and less urine. To prevent dehydration in children make sure they have plenty of fluids all day.

When at home give them water or juices every half an hour and don’t stop them from drinking water while having meals. Also, make sure they carry a bottle of water when they go out. Although fruit juices are recommended, avoid adding too much sugar. “Add honey, instead,” say Prateeba and Nithya, dieticians at SP Fort Hospital. Alcohol is a strict no-no. Drink more and eat healthy is the advice of Leena Saju, diet consultant and nutritionist at KIMS Hospital.

Start your day with a big juicy summer fruit such as oranges, watermelons and mangoes, she says. Opt for rice preparation rather than wheat as wheat requires more water for digestion. Include more vegetables and raw fruits in your diet. Diabetics should…More