In contemporary cinema, rape as a ploy to draw audience has faded into obscurity, which is a good thing. It would be better if the mainstream cinema handles the subject with more sensitivity to highlight the violence and crime against women, and the role of law-makers, police and courts positively, writes Shoma A. Chatterji. The gang-rape of a young Dalit girl in UP’s Hathras preceded and followed by several rapes of little girls by their cousins, of a teenager by an uncle, a student by her tutor, throw up the ironical reality of contemporary Hindi cinema where rape as a…
Author: oiop
The composer of ‘Guzra hua zamana”, S Mohinder, created a niche for himself in the galaxy of greats with songs that stood competition with the best.Raju Korti pays tribute to the genius, whose tunes were simple, hummable and yet very catchy. The golden period of film music between 1950 and 1970 has a number of icons dotting its desktop. In this galaxy of myriad geniuses one name that will remain incommoded under the superincumbent weight of some maestros who won a much wider acclaim will be that of Sardar Mohinder Singh Sarna, popularly known in the fraternity as S Mohinder.…
(Audio: 12-CD Set. Run Time: 15 Hours) Author : Jeffrey D Sach Foreword: Ban Ki-Moon Read by Bob Souer Tantor Media Inc., Price: US$27.83 Jeffrey D Sachs, professor-economist-author-advisor would consider the usefulness of this labour of love of his narrated by Bob Souer in his crystal-clear voice, as a whole as his greatest reward. The gist – making economics happen in a socially-inclusive and environmentally-friendly manner. He combines his erudition, experience and understanding to help you understand the ‘quo vadis of sustainable development’. He is able to communicate with listeners effectively by providing anecdotes and analogies. Looking beyond numbers Numbers and…
A saxophone wizard (1949-2019) It was a chance visit to the Mysore Palace at the age of eight that kindled in a young Kadri Gopalnath an abiding interest in the musical instrument, the saxophone that was being played by the Palace Band. He pursued his passion right through life, earning name and fame and plaudits galore for adapting the saxophone, an instrument most suited for jazz music, to Carnatic music. Kadri Gopalnath was born in a village named Sajeepa Mandi in the Bantwal district in Karnataka on the 6 of December 1949. His father Thaniyappa was a nadaswaram vidwan of…
The quintessential entertainer (1946 – 2020) A voice that mesmerised millions of music lovers across the globe for over five decades fell silent with the passing away of reputed playback singer, S P Balasubrahmanyam on the 25 September 2020. SPB to his legion of fans, and Balu to his friends and the film fraternity waged a relentless battle against the dreaded coronavirus for nearly a couple of months before succumbing to post-Covid complications. Sripathi Panditaradhyula Balasubrahmanyam was born on 4 June 1946 in a village named Konetammapetta near Nellore in Andhra Pradesh. SPB developed an interest in music at a…
India’s pioneer botanist (1897 – 1984) Dr. E.K. Janaki Ammal was the first Indian woman botanist who worked on plant breeding, cytogenetics of a range of plants and phytogeography. She is credited with putting sweetness into India’s sugarcane varieties. Janaki was born in then Thallassery, Kerala on 4 November 1897. Her father, Dewan Bahadur E.K. Krishnan, a sub-judge in the then Madras Presidency, a man with a keen interest in the natural sciences, corresponded regularly with scholars and maintained descriptive notes about his developing garden. He also wrote two books on birds in the North Malabar region of India. It was in this environment that Ammal found…
The small mountain state of Sikkim in the North East is a favourite tourist destination for its breathtaking beauty of the Himalayas, its exotic flora and fauna and the many monasteries. Kanchengjunga, the patron goddess of the state and the third highest mountain in the world can be best viewed from Pelling, a lesser known destination, a five-hour drive from Gangtok city. Text : Katie Photographs : Internet Heat! Sweltering, muggy heat and no respite; sweaty, sticky and sun-burnt is the fate of the Mumbaikar for most of the year. Respite comes only from air-conditioning. So one remains cooped up…
He is a gifted singer with a dual voice. His cherubic countenance perpetually sports a million dollar smile. For more than a decade, he has performed semi classical and light music with elan. During the time of music videos in Indian television content, a video ‘Aisa Bhi Kabhi Hota Hain’ surprised viewers as the young singer had this unique ability to switch male and female voices, with both tuned to perfection. Mumbai-based artiste Sairam S. Iyer in conversation with A.Radhakrishnan on music and his special talent as a singer. How would you describe yourself? I am quite an easy-going person,…
Mind-body concepts have not only re-emerged in the 21st century, they have also established themselves as much as they were set forth by our ancients — Plato, Aristotle, Galen, and Paracelsus — who suggested that health is a balance of the body, mind and spirit and that illness is as much caused by emotional factors as much as disease. Dr. Rajgopal Nidamboor gives us a lowdown on the broad domain of complementary and alternative therapies available to us, today. When Bernie Siegel, MD, the renowned paediatric surgeon and best-selling author of Love, Medicine and Miracles, documented his medical experiences he…
Optimal health in Ayurveda focuses not only on physical wellness, but also mental and spiritual well-being, says Ambika P. Nayak. Ayurveda is gaining global attention and fame today, not only for its herbal wonders, but also for its preventative finesse. Realistically speaking, Ayurveda is beyond herbal shampoos, soaps and oil massages. It is a way of life. Apart from treating disease and preventing illness, certain timeless, also fundamental aspects, such as post-illness care and recovery, are also an essential part of Ayurveda. Yathaa pinde tathaa brahmaande, yathaa brahmaande tathaa pinde — this is the concept of the macrocosm and microcosm.…