Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Mumbai local train stunts

Mumbai local train stunts



Contrary to the complaint lodged, the Dadar railway police on Friday revealed that the two college students who had died near Kurla on February 8 were killed while performing stunts on a running local train.
Friends of the deceased had earlier lodged a complaint with the Dadar railway police, stating that one of the duo was thrown out of the running train when an unidentified commuter kicked him in the abdomen.The other died at a hospital in Kurla. Mumbai railway police commissioner TA Chavan said that the friends also gave misleading information to their parents, fearing that they would be scolded.
The incident took place on February 8 around 8.20pm. They had boarded a train for Kurla. The deceased were identified as Salman Khan, 17, who died at Bhabha Hospital in Kurla, and Farooq Shah, 22, who succumbed to his injuries at Sion Hospital.
To verify the allegation made by their friend Farhan Ansari, 17, the railway police questioned 18 witnesses, including commuters and railway workers who had helped shift Shah to Sion Hospital.
Investigations revealed that that both kicked each other as part of a stunt. Shah lost his balance after kicking Khan and fell out of the train near Matunga.Khan also received a kick in the abdomen. He was admitted to Bhabha Hospital and died on February 9, said senior police inspector Shivaji Shinde of the Dadar railway police.

Monday, August 29, 2011

Avoid showing too much interest in your ex-boyfriend’s dog


My live in boyfriend and I have broken up and he has left. Some of his belongings are here along
with his puppy. I love this dog and have been looking after him. Can I keep him?
This is a question that needs a psychiatrist. I say you should keep the dog. But if you show too much
interest, and your exboyfriend is in a mean mood he might try to punish you by taking away the animal. He is obviously not interested in him or he would not leave him behind. Play it cool and offer to keep the dog as it
is a serious responsibility. If push comes to shove, offer to buy him.

A woman gave my fiveyear old daughter a puppy. We have had him for a month.  Now she says she
wants him back. My daughter is extremely upset and I am afraid that I’m going to lose my temper. What is the law in this case ?
Do they have any paperwork to show the dog is theirs? Have you taken the dog to a vet?  Even if they
gave the dog to you, if they never said anything about wanting it back or you housing it for a specific time period you are the legal owners.

My dog was attacked two days ago by another dog on a leash. Mine slipped the leash and ran over to him to make friends and was savaged.  Can I at least make the owner pay the vet’s bill?
While this is a very unfortunate thing to happen, there really isn’t anything you can do as your dog was off the leash while the other dog was on it. Your dog should have been on a leash. The other owner was responsible by keeping their dog on the leash. You weren’t.  My friends own a hair salon and they take their
small dog over there due to the long hours away from home. I was wondering if it’s acceptable to have their pet with them. Their pet is clean, well kept and well behaved.  Personally I think it’s a great idea. Animals are
like family and in many parts of the world, work places encourage employees to bring their pets to work because it cuts out sick time and days away from work. As long as the dog is clean and the customers are treating the dog with the respect that every living creatures deserves, then I think it is great! Sounds like they
are taking excellent care of their dog, rather than leaving him at home to bark and be lonely.

Beijing's unopened secret gift package to Nepal

Beijing's unopened secret gift package to Nepal
Claude Arpi

You may think that Communists are atheists. You are wrong. They have recently become great experts in religious matters, including 'soul' reincarnations and reestablishing Buddhist institutions.
Last year, Beijing announced some new regulations to select what they call 'Living Buddhas'. Termed Management Measures for the Reincarnation of Living Buddhas in Tibetan Buddhism, it proclaimed that "the reincarnation of Living Buddhas shall not be interfered or dominated by any organisation or individual abroad (read the Dalai Lama) … the reincarnation of living Buddhas should fulfill the application and approval procedures."
In other words, the Party is the only legitimate body to select the reincarnations of diseased Tibetan Lamas. Amazing! In fact, there is nothing really new in the Chinese rulers' attitude: during the nineteenth century, the Chinese ambassadors in Lhasa knew the trick well: 'Control the reincarnation system; you will control the country!' The Ninth to Twelfth Dalai Lamas died mysteriously before attaining majority. Chinese-controlled puppet regents could manage the interregnum.
Closer in time, a few days after criticising the Party at a public function in Shigatse in 1989 (in the presence of the then Tibet party secretary, Hu Jintao), the Panchen Lama 'passed away'. The Party could not accept to lose control over the courageous Lama.
In India, left-minded people have also become great experts in Buddhist philosophy. Last year, Dr Amartya Sen made a rather surprising statement: when asked about the omission of the Dalai Lama's name from the Nalanda University project, the Nobel Economics Laureate said that "religious studies could be imparted without involvement of religious leaders."
This seems out of tune with the spirit of the ancient Indian viharas. In the 1960s in Europe, when the first Buddhist Lamas were engaged as lecturers, they were told to interpret Buddhism not as an insider, but an outsider. It is probably what Dr Sen meant when he spoke about the Dalai Lama: "Being religiously active may not be the same as (being) an appropriate person for religious studies."
Dr Sen should try to find out why the Indian viharas attracted so many scholars and students from Korea, Japan, China, Tibet, Indonesia, Persia or Greece, at least till the day they were looted by Muslim invaders in 1193.
Simply because the teachers, the gurus taught what they had practiced and experienced. Unfortunately, Dr Sen probably wants to recreate a new Santiniketan, an academic institution without its original spirit.
Interestingly in December 2010, during his visit to India, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao gave a large contribution to Nalanda University. This could explain Dr Sen's reaction. The joint communiqué issued by the prime ministers of India and China mentions: "China welcomed India's efforts to revive the Nalanda University. Both sides appreciated the work of the Nalanda Mentor Group and the progress made so far. India welcomed China's contribution of US dollars 1 million for the Nalanda University." And much more funds are expected from China through a consortium based in Singapore. Beijing seems keen to develop other religious places. Take Lumbini, the birth place of the Buddha in Nepal.
Surendra Devkota wrote in The Himalayan Times: "Comrade Prachanda of the Maoist party seems in a mission of transformation from an atheist to a monk. Thanks to the Chinese donation of $3 billion to Hong Kong-based quasi-government NGO - Asia Pacific Exchange and Cooperation Foundation (APECF)".
Further, this organisation signed a deal with the UN Industrial Development Organisation to develop Lumbini, the birth place of the Buddha located a few kilometers from the Indian border.
The Nepali newspaper reminds its readers that "when the Taliban government in March 2001 destroyed the two massive and ancient Buddha statues dating back to the second century AD, in Afghanistan's central province of Bamiyan, the Maoists celebrated!"
Till recently the Maoists were better known for their hardcore atheism than their religious propensity, but times are changing. Fortunately, a fortnight after the APECF announced its plan for a virtual takeover of Lumbini, Nepal rejected the deal: "Nepal is the actual stakeholder… how can we own a deal struck in a third country without the formal consent of the actual stakeholder? said Modraj Dottel, spokesperson of Nepal's culture ministry. It is in this atmosphere that Zhou Yongkang, a member of the all-powerful Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China, one of the nine bosses of the Middle Kingdom, arrived in Kathmandu on August 16. Before his arrival, reports mentioned that Zhou Yongkang had a 'secret gift package' in his luggage.
Was it connected with the Maoist 'revival' of Buddhism? We will not know because Zhou's visit did not go as per the planned script, since the Nepali prime minister had resigned a few days before Zhou's arrival and no 'gift' could be presented.

Balkrishna Industries, a leading player in off-highway tyre (OHT) solutions, is set to benefit from steady demand for its niche products

Balkrishna, a good specialty-tyre bet


Balkrishna Industries, a leading player in off-highway tyre (OHT) solutions, is set to benefit from steady demand for its niche products with capacity expansion providing for strong revenue growth and easing rubber prices aiding its operating margins.
Business: Balkrishna Industries, a flagship of Siyaram Poddar Group, is engaged in manufacturing and sales of off highway specialty tyres, tubes and tyre flaps. The company is a pure-play OHT producer having a product portfolio of over 1,900 stock-keeping units that find application in niche segments such as agriculture, forestry, mining, construction, material handling, golf, lawn and gardens and sports. The company has three manufacturing plants in India with the current installed production capacity of 126,000 metric tonne (mt). It derives almost 90% of its standalone revenues from exports as it has strong presence in over 120 countries across America, Europe, Asia Pacific and the rest of world (ROW).
The company sells almost 80% of tyres under its own brand through its network of about 200 distributors catering to replacement market while almost 14% of revenues in fiscal 2011 came from sales to original equipment manufacturers such as Volvo, John Deere, Bomag, JCB and Ferrari.
It is also supplier to leading global tyre manufacturers with almost 6% of revenues coming from 'off-take sales'.
Investment rationale: Balkrishna is one of the few specialised pure-play OHT manufacturers with strong research and development capabilities and diversified product portfolio, catering to low volume, high variety applications. It derives close to 65% revenues from agricultural segment while off the road tyres (earthmoving) segment and ATV tyres contribute 30% & 5% to sales, respectively. The company, being largest manufacturer of full range of radial tractor tyres, would benefit from replacement demand in Europe and Americas and growing trend of mechanisation in developing countries.
Balkrishna would also benefit from increased focus on mining and infrastructure development in developing regions that would drive demand for off the road tyres for earthmoving and construction equipment.
The company enjoys low-cost advantage over its global strong competitors such as Bridgestone, Michelin and Titan International and has shown a 30% compounded annual growth in revenues over last five years. Balkrishna would benefit from steady replacement demand and continued focus on core infrastructure and mining sectors even in case of slowdown in automobiles.
The company is increasing its focus on Russian and CIS market to further increase its revenues. It would also benefit from expansion that will almost double its installed capacity in two years.
The company has undertaken brownfield expansion for increasing capacity to produce premium products like agri radials and OTR radials that command better margins. This would increase its existing installed capacity to 140,000 mtpa by September 2011.
Balkrishna has also taken up greenfield expansion project at Bhuj that is expected to increase the capacities by further 90,000 mtpa by September 2012.
The company's current order book of close to 65,000 mt provides volume visibility for the next six months and with additional capacities coming on line, the company would be able to overcome capacity constraints currently faced in the wake of steady demand for its products.
On the input side, prices of natural rubber that constitute almost 47% to raw material volumes seem to be peaking out and this would help to improve its operating margins over next few quarters.
Concerns: Any adverse movement in prices of major raw materials like natural rubber and crude-based derivatives would impact its margins. However, the company has room to pass on some of these additional costs through price hikes to its customers.
Also, with majority of its sales coming from exports, the company faces foreign exchange currency fluctuation risk. Any delays in capacity expansion plans would also affect expected production volumes.
Valuations: Driven by stable volume growth from original equipment manufacturers and replacement market along with increased capacities coming on line, the revenues are expected to grow at a CAGR of over 22% over FY11-13 while the net profits are expected to rise at similar pace during this period.
At current market price of `167, Balkrishna Industries trades at 6.52 times its expected earnings per share in fiscal 2012 and 5.57 times its expected fiscal 2013 earnings. Investors can consider the stock on declines to get decent returns from medium- to long-term perspective.
Disclaimer: The writer does not hold any shares in the company

Should one worry about the gold metal glitter?

Should one worry about the glitter?


Gold crossed the US$1800 per ounce level in international markets on 11 August 2011. In India, it crossed an all time high mark of Rs.27,000 per 10 gm. Ever since it crossed the $900 mark in international markets, there have been cynics who have predicted the fall of gold prices. At the same time, there have been strong supporters of gold who have been stating that gold prices would continue to soar. This was more so after the economic meltdown in 2008, when confidence in all global currencies began to ebb. And it was more pronounced when the US Treasury Paper was downgraded (by Standard & Poor, one of the top three rating companies in the world).
So is gold becoming an asset bubble? Or has it become the last form of currency that is independent of sovereign ratings? Maybe both. To understand what the prospects of gold are likely to be, and also to ascertain what the Indian government's policies towards this yellow metal should be, DNA called in a panel of experts who discussed issues relating to gold. The panel comprised (in alphabetical order) Sanjiv Arole, independent precious metals analyst; Ketan B Kothari, senior vice-president, RiddiSiddhi Bullions Ltd; Chirag Mehta, Fund Manager, Commodities (including Gold), Quantum Asset Management Company Pvt Ltd; Madan Sabnavis, chief economist, CARE Ratings; Bhavesh Sonawala, director, National Refinery Pvt Ltd; and Bhargav Vaidya, Advisor commodities and director, Bombay Bullion Association.
Given below are edited excerpts from that discussion that was moderated by R.N. Bhaskar.
DNA: Gold prices are at an all time high. What's happening? Why is it happening? Can we have your views?

Sonawala: Gold is a hedge against inflation. It is a fungible asset. During any crisis, gold will always be of great help.

Arole: The genesis of this bull rally goes back to 2001. That is when gold was at its lowest levels - at around $255 per ounce. There was supply side ambiguity, the central banks were selling gold, causing all countries to hammer out an agreement limiting central bank cumulative sales to 2,000 tonnes over a 5 year period (the 1999 agreement that restricted sale of gold by Central Banks to 400 tonnes per annum). Moreover, large scale hedging activity meant that there was excess supply of gold.
Soon, hedging gave way to dehedging and one of the major supply components got converted into demand. As a result, there were no more surprises on the supply side.
One could now factor in the supply given that mine supply began to plateau out and scrap supply declined from Asian countries. Gold was ready for higher prices. So when the economic downturn took place, gold was ready to climb.
Compared to other markets, there is not much money flowing into gold. Gold attracts only a small percentage of funds from global investors. But it is a major index of confidence or the lack of it in other assets and currencies. When other assets and currencies weaken, gold is the last refuge.
But I don't think anyone should try to forecast the gold price. The best consultants have been proved wrong, time and again.

Vaidya: People invest in gold when they do not trust any other financial system. Ultimately, all currency in your pocket is basically an acknowledged IOU guaranteed by governments. So the only asset, which is not someone else's liability is gold. And when we do not trust financial systems, the role of gold becomes extraordinary. As long as financial systems do not cool off, gold will continue to gain in importance.
I am more worried if economic fundamentals start falling into place. If financial systems cool down, we will have a correction.

Mehta: If you add all allocations of financial assets to gold, the amounts are minuscule today. That is why it is wrong to describe gold as an asset bubble. And unless and until there is change in the government or the Central bank, gold prices will stay elevated.

Sabnavis: There are two sets of issues I would like to bring up.
Today, if we are looking at the markets as a whole, there is a lot of uncertainty in the stock markets. So if I'm going to put my money somewhere as an investor, gold makes sense. So that is as far as investors are concerned.
Second is the entire concept of downgrading in the US. I think that is very significant because if you look at most Central Banks in the world, they are actually holding their foreign reserves, partly in the form of US dollars. Now today if I say that the US dollar is not as strong as it used to be and also that the Euro is on a shaky wicket, China is something I do not trust, people are talking maybe of Canada or Switzerland for providing the kind of safety anchor for Central Banks, but they are too small to actually matter. They do not have that kind of currency floating around in the world, which could be bought. So under these circumstances, there would be a tendency for Central Banks to look at buying more gold, increasing their gold reserves.
So these two factors put together are going to contribute to upward pressure on the price of gold. But what is going to be more interesting and fascinating in the coming days is the kind of volatility we will see in prices. Because when the dollar weakens, people go for gold, when it strengthens, people move away from it. If you ask me is the dollar going to strengthen or weaken, honestly I do not know. We have some very good reasons for believing that the dollar should weaken because the US government has to take certain steps, the Euro governments have to take steps. So one can't really say whether the dollar will strengthen or weaken vis-à-vis the Euro. As long as we have this kind of uncertainty, gold will continue to be a volatile asset.
DNA: In the West, gold jewellery sales have outstripped fresh gold purchases. Is the same thing happening in India today?

Sonawala: Since 2002 to the year 2005, we saw large volumes of scrap coming in from the local public, because they had never seen gold prices moving up so much. And they thought they could make good money out of it. Now, after seeing the world scenario and how the world financial systems are, many people have stopped selling.
Since 2007, scrap sales have gone down by almost 15-20% every year in India. In fact, those who have sold their jewellery during 2004-2007, have now started buying bullion as investment, but not jewellery. Because in jewellery there is a carat loss and making charges, while in bullion there is hardly a 2-5% buying and selling difference. We are basically smelters, assayers, refiners and making bullion bars and coins. Today the maximum money for us comes in the form of selling bullion. We have good sales in coins. There is good corporate and investor demand.
But the refining refining business is going down significantly because people want to keep gold with themselves in whatever form they have right now. There are other reasons as well.
DNA: Do people trust physical gold more than ETFs even though ETFs are backed by physical gold?

Mehta: Perception is changing in a big way today. People are coming to recognize that ETFs are as good as gold as each unit is backed by physical gold. Being a new instrument it takes time to gain acceptability. People are accustomed to the touch and feel of gold. But that is changing in a large way because the premiums that physical gold carry differ. It is an unorganized market where the premiums vary from place to place and there are concerns about the purity. Compared to all this, gold ETFs are a better option.

Vaidya: The main issue in India is that the ETF size per unit is much smaller than the US or any other place. Take all the ETFs together, still physical gold is a bigger market. One reason could be is because people buy gold for their children as an investment. But we cannot invest in the name of your child in an ETF. They say you do not have a Demat account in his name. You do not have a PAN number in his name. An ETF is the most efficient way of buying.
Then again, I may have a kg of gold and go to the NSE [National Stock Exchange's commodity exchange or NCDEX]. Can I tell the NSE, "Here is a kg of gold. Can you give me jewellery instead?" It cannot because the legalities need to be in place.
Sabnavis: Is ETF creating an artificial demand?

Vaidya: ETF is not creating an artificial demand but the futures in gold can create an artificial demand. ETF is creating an additional gold stock.
In the past, when I purchased physical gold from a bank, the bank was free to use the gold whichever way it wanted. Now, when people started losing confidence in the banking system, they requested the gold to be allocated [separately with a trustee]. Once it is allocated it doesn't enter into any of the bank's assets directly and that is the biggest shift in demand.

Arole: But to make an ETF possible you need a Demat Account, a PAN Card and legal money.

Vaidya: If you look at entire India, 80% of the population, mostly rural folk, they are the biggest honest followers of gold. The farmer has no black money as his income is tax-free. And since he has no demat or PAN, he purchases physical gold with cash. I think that is what the finance minister meant when, on the floor of the house, he said, I am trying to make this as an investment model for a normal Indian.
DNA: Madan, as an economist, how do you view gold? India is one of the largest markets for gold deposits in private hands. Does it not make sense for a government to put that gold into productive use in whatever scheme, because gold as a collateral lowers the rate of interest for a government?

Sabnavis: Gold should be looked at a different kind of asset. If anyone is buying it, it is for personal reasons. So putting it all to productive use is not something that is practically feasible. I don't think it happens anywhere. It's like saying I have all the buildings in say the whole of Manhattan, you sell them and you pay off the debt of the US. Indian households are not going to part with their gold to say convert it into cash so that it will help the general good.
DNA: What about gold bonds? The government gets to use gold as a collateral and bring down its interest burden.

Kothari: This is the reason we had launched a product recently called Bullion Plus Plus. The clients don't only get to hold their gold and silver bars but they also have an option to earn a lease income. So what happens is that say for example there is an investor who wanted to have exposure to gold and silver rates, he wants to have physical bars which he wants to take out later on for a wedding or something, but at the same time there are jewelers who have to invest their capital in procuring gold, which is so expensive, here they have an option to take it on lease. So it is a win-win situation where they try and match the borrowers and the lenders. So the lenders are these investors who are earning that lease income also as an exposure to gold and silver and you have the jewelers and bullion dealers who wish to borrow at a lower rate to invest in their capital, which is at a higher cost.
So in this case there is a custodian to be involved and of course there are security agencies like Brinks and all and the borrower always has to give a bank guarantee in case he has to take the gold bars. So it is very similar to how a borrower will take a gold loan from a bank but here the gold is owned the investor and the investor is earning as well as the borrower. It works. It's a relatively newer process. We are targeting 1 tonne of gold in the next one year.

Vaidya: Also what I feel is that the government should recognize that because there is so much investment happening in gold, they should bring about tax laws in such a way that investment is attracted towards gold so that gold can also be put to productive use. For example, in the UK, thought here is a 20% VAT on bullion bars, there is none if it is stored and kept in bank vaults. So if it's lying in a London vault and you are an investor in the UK and you just want to sell it back, you will not lose out on the VAT because you will just want to have exposure to the gold bars.
DNA: This is what I mean. If you can get this kind of scheme done and you bring gold into productive use; if it remains in the vault; you can use that as a collateral or a sort of guarantee. It would further encourage gold as an investment.

Vaidya: In India too, as of today they have removed the VAT on bullion. But the VAT on jewellery remains. But I would still recommend gold as a currency. This is because if it is a currency, all our state governments and local governments cannot put VAT or octroi on it. We always had foreign exchange usage tax. So legally you can tax anything but currency. Gold would be able to move freely within the country without additional tax of any sort. And it will continue to enjoy the respect of being an investment instrument.

Kothari: Its investment value in India is well established. For instance, in 1960 when the rupee was barely Rs.3 against the US dollar, gold was trading at 35 USD per ounce. Today, when rupee is at 45.10 to a dollar, gold crossed $1800 an ounce yesterday [10 August 2011]. In dollar terms, gold appreciated 51 times. But in rupee terms it appreciated over 700 times [One Troy Ounce is 31.1 grammes]. At 1960 prices, 10 grammes of gold would have been worth $11.6, or Rs.35. The market price of Rs.27,000 per 10 grammes has been divided by this price]. So Indians investing in gold in India have benefited more than those investing in gold in say the US.
So is gold not a currency which is gives you a hedge against all the other currencies and inflation and everything?

Vaidya: When Ketan said 35 dollars, one should remember that till 1969 the Brettonwoods agreement was still in place. Gold was a commitment by the US government to exchange dollars to gold at 35 dollars.

Arole:In fact, 13 states in the US are in the process of treating gold as a currency. I think Ohio has already passed the legislation.
DNA: Do you think the government needs to modify its policies related to gold? If yes, what are the measures you suggest, both as trade and as investments and as economists.

Vaidya: I would look at one product to be introduced, which is more friendly to agriculture than to gold, which is 'options'. This is a time when maybe the industry needs options like no other time. It allows a safety net of an exit price.
If I am a jeweler who starts a shop today, I am really worried about investing money in gold at this price and worry about what will happen tomorrow. But I have made my plan of 20 shops coming up down the road. What do I do? I don't want to take a gold loan, because technically if I borrow gold with a 100% cash margin, Options would help me to hedge in case the price goes down.

Sabnavis: I agree as far as hedging is concerned. I feel that looking at the commodities and futures market, getting in institutional players, giving them a restriction to trade only in gold markets, since agriculture is the one that has created problems [the government has often banned futures in agricultural commodities], definitely help to make the market more robust. Getting the FIIs, mutual funds, etc to trade only in gold is a very good idea.
DNA: Bhavesh, can we know more about your refining capacity?.

Sonawala: Well the refining capacity right now, at the Indian level, we are just operational at 20-30%. And the government must encourage getting gold Doray [semi processed gold ore] from other parts of the world so that we can get gold at a cheaper rate after refining it in India. Gold Doray is raw gold, which needs to be refined and converted into 995/999.

Vaidya: It is processed ore. Gold is often found at 15 grams per tonne. It is then processed at the mine. And the Doray that is allowed to be imported into India should have a gold content of 80% at the very minimum.
DNA: What about certified gold coins.

Kothari: It is quite strange but coins manufactured in India attract an excise duty of 1%. And after that you pay VAT, and of course these coins are manufactured out of gold bars, which is where you have already paid customs duty.
And if I just go and import coins from international markets, I just have pay import duty and VAT. So you are actually putting the domestic industry at a disadvantage. Imported coins are cheaper than domestic ones. There are no restrictions on imported coins.
Sadly, if there is no brand name I can sell without excise. First you are encouraging imported coins and secondly you are encouraging non-branded coins [which are often substandard]. No logic.
You are therefore encouraging substandard material to come in.

Sonawalai: None of the imported coins, or even banks, guarantee buybacks. Banks are not allowed to buy back. We buy back our coins and bars. But if we put our name there it invites 1% excise. How do we sell our coins?

Arole: If there is hallmark, or there are quality conscious people, they should get a favourable treatment from the government. The government needs to encourage standard materials.

Kothari: In fact, the government's tax structure has actually incentivised the import of the 100 gramme bar. As a result the 10 tola [the traditional Indian standard] bar has vanished from the market. India was a ten tola market some years ago and today it has totally become a 100 gram market. Benefiting overseas producers, not Indian refiners.

Sonawala: A lot of gold coming to the market has iridium [a radioactive substance] as an alloy that looks like genuine gold, but is not.

Mehta: Moreover the government should take care of the SEBI vs FMC [Sebi is the regulator for stock markets and mutual funds while the Forward Markets Commission is in charge of commodity markets. There is ambiguity about gold and silver being a commodity] The silver ETF is not seeing the light of day.

Vaidya: The government has put in some sort of a requirement, a value addition clause. What we are saying is that if you want the trade to flourish, free two-way trade should exist.

Kothari: The industry needs a GST [a nationwide uniform General Sales Tax]. It needs a common single regulator. We need certain policies like the waiving of excise duty on domestically produced and certified gold. And you need silver exports and silver ETFs. These are the major things we need.
DNA: Do you think the government should introduce any urgent measures in view of this panic that is taking place in gold prices?

Everyone [in a chorus] No. Let the markets decide. They will take care of themselves.

Sunday, August 28, 2011

IMRAN KHAN The actor talks about which star he'd have wanted to dance at his wedding



IMRAN KHAN The actor talks about which star he'd have wanted to dance at his wedding and what makes Uranus his favourite planet apart from Earth



When he's not making girls across the country swoon with those puppy- dog eyes, chocolate-box looks and a lean, muscular body (that suddenly sprouted six-pack abs midway through his three-year-old Bollywood career ­ and made even more girls swoon!), Imran Khan is presumably filing PILs against loony laws that make it illegal for people below 25 to drink. And while we're still reeling from his power-packed performance in Delhi Belly, he's going to be back in less than a fortnight in Mere Brother Ki Dulhan along with the pretty Katrina Kaif THE LAST MOVIE THAT MADE YOU CRY?
THE ANIMATED FILM, UP. IT WAS SO TOUCHING! YOUR FIRST KISS WAS...
AS PERFECT AS IT COULD HAVE BEEN... DAMN GOOD! WHAT MAKES YOUR DAY?
NOT HAVING ANYTHING TO DO.

One word that describes you best?
Omniscient.
Which superhero would you like to be and why?
Batman. He doesn't have any super powers; he's self-taught.
If a traffic constable hauled you up, what would you do?
I'd say (in a thick Delhi accent) Jaanta nahi main kaun hoon?
What makes you feel sexy?
A fresh shave.
You get high on...
Watching movies. I try and watch one every day.
The colour `pink' for you is...
Umm... women's underwear?
A place where you would like to be lost for a month?
Any place with a beach. I'm quite the beach bum.
A tune you can't get out of your head?
Bhaag DK Bose, what else?
What did you do with your first paycheque?
I bought my mom a TV.
The one law you would break if you could get away with it?
Speed limits. I LOVE driving! Do you love Luv Storys?
Yeah, I do! But I prefer to act in them.
Choose: Air India or Indian Railways?
Indian Railways. I took an Air India flight to Delhi a couple of months ago, and it was horrible! If you could have chosen your own name, what would you have chosen?
Thor! No, I'm just kidding, that's a terrible name! What is the weirdest thing that ever went into your mouth?
A kind of play-slime that I was trying to convince my friend was chewing gum.
You are late for work and all the roads are jammed. Choose a mode of transport: a cycle, a horse or a skateboard. Why?
A horse. That's because I like to travel in style.
Earth's crowded and chock full of trash. Choose another planet.
Uranus. It allows for a lot of puns! If you could have had a star perform at your wedding, who would it have been and why?
Salman Khan, because he's AWESOME! What screws up your day?
Having too much to do! If you were the last person left on earth, what would you do?
I would settle down with my DVD player and watch everything ever made!

Home interior decoration












TRES CHIC: Black lacquer lamp from Christopher Guy.
From: International Furniture Brands, The Gallery on MG, 13 MG Road, Delhi PRICE: On request L AMPS and chandeliers are not just accessories anymore. They provide glamour and style and can even change the way a room looks. While crystal is still in, Swarovski is on the decline. Lamps made of Murano glass are quite in vogue. Even lacquer is in and works well in colours like white, black and grey. RAZZLE DAZZLE: Crystal chandelier from Fendi Casa.
From: International Furniture Brands, The Gallery on MG, 13 MG Road, Delhi PRICE: On request inlay & overlay QUILTED GLORY: Antonesia, glossy wooden panels combined with quilting.
From: Stanley Boutique, Main Road, Kirti Nagar, Delhi PRICE: R7 lakh for the entire collection I NLAY work is very in, with materials like mother of pearl and gold leaf being used. Even overlaid layering of coloured stones or semi-precious stones are in vogue. Both techniques are being used on dining tables, centre tables and even in entrance foyer.s INTRICATE: Wooden table with bubble wrap veneer work.
From: Home Et Tu, Gallery on MG Road PRICE: R75,000 jaali work SHADES AND SHADOWS: Laser-cut lampshade in leatheride and acrylic.
From: Home Et Tu, Gallery on MG Road, Delhi PRICE: R8,000 SOCIAL NETWORK: Malacca lamp made of steel and fabric.

From: Renovation Factory, Khan Market, Delhi PRICE: R9,250 J AALI work is quite the rage these days and can be seen in a variety of products as well as materials. It is being used in screens, in wood, in wrought iron and even steel. You can have trays, lamps and tables in this style. CRISS-CROSS: Leaf jaali champagne mirror tray.
From: Address Home, N-3, Greater Kailash-I, Delhi PRICE: R1,700 SIMPLY STRIKING: Pure leather tiles in a green mosaic pattern.
From: The FCML Store PRICE: R3,500 onwards per sq. ft wall decor W ALLS can give you that element of surprise and act as scene stealers too. You can use a variety of colours and materials to get the texture you want. Tiles, laminates, textures...
you really have no limits here.
RICH LOOK: Paisley patterned laminates.
From: Greenply Stores PRICE: R500 onwards per laminate MIX 'N' MATCH: Centre table with crystal legs, metal and mirror jaali top, semiprecious overlay and hand cut mirror tile border.
From: Beyond Designs, 1A, Masjid Moth, Neeti Bagh, Delhi PRICE: R1.5 lakh (approx)

Keeping your home fresh and sparkling needn't be an endless chore




Keeping your home fresh and sparkling needn't be an endless chore by Yashica Dutt
It F `THE Grinch Who Stole the Weekend' were ever to make it o the screen, you wouldn't have to go far looking for the greedy green monster ­ just look under your carpet. Dirt grimy, greasy, slimy dust patiently piles up the entire week, waiting in shady corners and lurking under beds only so it can ruin that precious weekend.
Even if you are fortunate enough to have a maid (or several), you'll know that dust has a way of sneaking onto shelves, collecting on fans and accumulating in kitchen cabinets just to torment you. To break this vicious cycle, we asked experts to help us with tips that will make daily cleaning seem bearable.
KITCHEN SECRETS The most used room in the house; the kitchen is most likely to be the dirtiest too. But tackling this room need not be a mammoth task.Manisha Amol, vice president, marketing, Modicare Limited, advises, “Plan your cleaning routine the night before. If the menu is planned beforehand, then pre-cooking preparations can be done the previous night. This will help create less mess in the morning.“
Also, induction plates can be a great alternative to gas cylinders.
“These plates are useful for a quick meal or fuss-free cooking,“ explains Meenu Tognatta, executive housekeeper, ITC Maurya, Delhi. “Dishwashers are handy too, especially because they solve the problems of cleaning and storage,“ she adds.
Mona Sharma, advisor, housekeeping, The Suryaa, Delhi, advises cleaning one shelf at a time. “As and when you pull down jars to use condiments, clean the shelf,“ she says. “All it takes is a swipe of the duster and if done daily, the dust does not form a thick layer.“
Sharma also advises cleaning utensils soon after using them. “It's better if you clean up straight after cooking rather than leave utensils and cutlery in the sink for the next day since stains tend to get harder with time.“
When it comes to the fridge, Meenu Tognatta suggests buying only as much stock as is needed. “If stored for more than a week, food not only loses its nutritive value but also rots faster,“ she explains.
LIVING ROOM With footfalls from the entire household, this room is not only vulnerable to dust but also bacteria and grime.
So create a niche outside the main entrance where family and guests can remove their footwear to avoid getting dirt inside the house, suggests Meenu Tognatta. “It's not only hygienic but also prevents stains on the floor,“ she says.
Make decluttering your mantra. “Books accumulate maximum dust and take the longest to clean. So if you have books that are a one-time read, donate them to schools or public libraries,“ says Mona Sharma.
Manisha Amol has the same advice to offer about your closet. “An easy way to declutter is to donate old toys, clothes and other items to needy people,“ she explains.
Don't place all your crystal and silver on display. While they'll do little to add to your status, they'll certainly do worse for your cleaning routine, say the experts. “Keep your shelves and table tops as empty as possible. And if there are some items that you'd like to display, soak them in a mixture of warm water and ammonia once every fortnight to have them glistening for longer,“ says Meenu Tognatta. “Also, you can also save a lot of stress by choosing dark furniture with light upholstery, instead of the other way around.“ BATHROOM BLUES This room alone decides the cleanliness pedigree of the entire house.
Naturally, with all that water and humidity, it gets dirty a lot.
Hard water stains and grimy tiles can be tackled effectively. “Hang an old wash towel next to the basin and wipe it dry every time it's used. Do the same with the floor using a broom or a plastic wiper. That way you keep hard water stains away in the least possible time,“ says Mona Sharma. “You can use home remedies like vinegar, lemon, bleach and baking soda to tackle all stains effectively rather than depending on market cleaners and decloggers.“
Separate footwear for the bathroom for different members of the house helps maintain sanity as well, suggests Tanuja Kangabam, spa manager, Seven Seas Evania Spa.
“Keep an extra pair for guests as well, as that keeps germs from entering and thus prevents the growth of mold and fungus,“ she says.
THE FINAL SOLUTION The weekend becomes a beast of burden only because the entire responsibility of cleaning rests on a couple of hours. Expanding the schedule over the entire week could make for more pleasant weekends.
“Clean a few minutes each day. Stay on top of the mess to stay in control of the mess. Instead of having a cleaning marathon to make the whole house sparkle, spend a few minutes each day tidying up. Your home will always be spotless,“ says Manisha Amol. “Carry a broom or a duster as you pass from one room to the other and just clean the corner that you see, right then. It'll ease things a lot,“ says Mona Sharma.

The fabrics you use at home can add to your level of comfort




The fabrics you use at home can add to your level of comfort by Veenu Singh
GETTING THROUGH the many months of the year when it isn't winter can be tough. But there is a joy in these more uncomfortable times as well. For instance, a change in your personal wardrobe ­ that's always fun.
And there's bound to be a change in your home's wardrobe too ­ just as much fun.Out go heavy curtains, bedspreads, furnishings and what-nots.
In comes pretty frippery that is a joy to dress your home up with.
Soft, floral prints. Neutral and pastel shades. Whites, blinding whites.
Wild Indian colours ­ pinks, reds, oranges, yellows, greens. Soft cottons. Delicate chanderis and muls.
Glorious linen.
“Most of the year, people prefer colours and fabrics that are light and breezy and easy on the eye,“ says Prableen Sabhaney, spokesperson for textile specialist Fabindia.
“That's why our furnishings are made of fabrics like chanderi and mul that are colourful, soft, light and help to keep the glare of the sun out of the home.“
Linen is also a great fabric for this time of year, says Neha Jalan, designer at home décor brand Onset. “In fact, linen has a richer feel than cotton and it can be used all across your home, from curtains to furnishings,“ she explains. “Use sheer or lightweight linen for curtains and a thicker linen for sofas.
And colours like off-white, white, grey and taupe (silver grey) work well.“ If you must use polyester, she adds, restrict it to bedcovers and cushions, and keep the colours soft or neutral.
While fabrics like organic cotton and linen reflect heat and help keep your rooms cool, says Beenu Bawa, marketing director at the home décor store Good Earth, the use of colour is the most basic way to make your home feel airy and spacious, adds Simone Arora, creative head, D'Decor Home Fabrics.
The kinds of prints you use also help create a feeling of openness, she explains. “Soft floral prints on cotton or linen for curtains, balanced with plains and stripes on upholstery and cushions, would impart a lively yet cool `country' look for the warmer months,“ says Arora.
And texture, rather than overt ornamentation, is what keeps the atmosphere light, adds Jalan of Onset. Which is why Fabindia uses chikankari and appliqué work on its furnishing fabrics, says Sabhaney.
The big trend this year, however, is floral prints. Says Rajesh Mahajan, MD of the furnishing brand Maspar, “A blend of floral prints with textured weaves or bold stripes gives a fresher and cooler look to your home.“
veenus@hindustantimes.com 1 BRIGHTEN UP: Silk cotton chanderi curtains and cushion covers from Fabindia. R1,530 per curtain 2 SPRING GARDEN: Vanilla-fresh green and orange red cushions from Maspar, R395 each 3 PRETTY BASIC: Cuhions in organic cotton from Good Earth, R1,850 each 4 GO TRADITIONAL: Cushions in cotton with computerised ikat embroidery from She Home,R800-R2,500 each 5 KEEP COOL: Dulux Weathershield Sunreflect brings the temperature down by five degrees.
6 AIR DRY: LG's L-energia Plus air conditioner, R35.000 onwards

The most incredible bargain gadgets in the world

Best deals in the world of technology!





Once in a while, the world of technology throws up some pretty amazing bargains. Keep your eyes peeled ­ or simply read on! PLAY IT UP! At current prices, the PlayStation 3 is the most incredible bargain in the world
APRETTY GOOD Tablet, great smartphones, a very well revamped webOS backed by the number one PC company in the world. And then, 40 days later, they abandon the product. Yes, HP's Personal Systems Group makes personal computers, Notebooks, mobile devices, Tablets, software and accessories and they are the world number one with 18.9 per cent of the total market, ahead of Dell and Acer. And this company has abandoned a brilliant product within days! Abandoned, chickened out, deserted, discarded, discontinued, ditched, withdrawn, yielded!While there are many reasons why HP would do this (some official, some unofficial and fodder for another column), that's not what this is all about. It's the amazing bargains that unusual situations like these throw up. The 16 GB HP Touchpad was sold in a fire sale for $99 (yup, a whole freaking state-of-the-art Tablet for about R4,500) and the 32 GB one for just $149. The webOS-based brilliant smartphones went for a fraction of the price too, as did the accessories.
At $99, it's hard to find a single product in the entire technology industry that offers a better deal for customers. And bargains like this can only exist in the world of technology. Let's take a look at what represents the best tech bang for the buck currently. HP TOUCHPAD There's really nothing wrong with it. It's a great piece of hardware; it has a fantastic screen; the OS is superior to most; the app store, while limited, has most critical ones in place (Facebook, Twitter, Skype, Angry Birds, etc); and you can use it as a video conference device, as a Web browser, as an ebook reader and for movies and music. You can also use it as a weather station and an Internet-enabled alarm clock. HP may not support it fully and new apps may not come in now, but at 99 bucks, this is a no-brainer. SONY PLAYSTATION 3 This little dynamo of convergence of many technologies has seen another price drop and is now marked at $249 ­ and look at what you get for that! It's a very good Blu-Ray player; it's a fantastic gaming console (and with the add-on Move accessory, it's awesome); it's a networkenabled media streaming player; it's an online player dream machine and it looks bloody good. Get the PS3 and you've got the most incredible bargain entertainment device in the world. SAMSUNG GALAXY S1 AND THE IPHONE 3GS The self-inflicted cycle of taking out new versions of a product faster than the speed of light has thrown up a very interesting market for consumers. The Galaxy S1 and the iPhone 3Gs were arguably the two best smartphones in the world. And they were updated quick and fast.
Prices of the previous iterations fell deep. Today you can pick up a iPhone 3GS for about R19,000 (and get all that money back on a discounted talk plan). And while it's tough to get a Galaxy S1, they sell for as little as R16,000. These are solid phones; they have great features, awesome hardware and have nothing wrong with them. All they have is a next generation big brother at twice the price! BLU-RAY PLAYERS AND A SECRET WEAPON How much does a DVD player with whizbang features from a good brand cost? About R5,000. How much does a state-of-the-art Blu-Ray player with features that can shame a DVD player, HDMI-out and a super high resolution 1080p picture cost? About R7,000. I find the resistance to Blu-Ray players in India quite silly. The device pricing is at an all-time low. If you're wondering where to get the Blu-Ray movies from, here's a secret: Subscribe to a Blu-Ray library (there are many in India now) and you get to keep movies for as long as 15 days and pay as low as R60 per movie. And to think you've been wasting time with a DVD player! If you own a good HDTV, you owe yourself and your TV a Blu-Ray player to discover what real razor sharp HD movie viewing is all about.
THE COMMODITY Here's another secret. A 32-inch LCD TV is not a TV! Not anymore.
It's a commodity! Most brands need to be in the market as it's a big one. But the competition is now so intense and the prices so low that most don't make too much money off this category. They need great numbers and they need to churn them out at a very fast pace. Take advantage of that. If you haven't upgraded to a flat screen or need a smaller screen in another room, then this is the way to go. Prices at sale and festival time drop as low as R16,000 for a 32-incher. Pick them up before the brands wake up and change this anomaly. There are many other such techbang devices. Keep your eyes and ears peeled for when such quantum shifts take place and throw up some true bargains of an insane technology world. It's the only world where you can pick up a dream machine at a dream price!
By the way, I got myself a $99 HP Touchpad. It's the greatest Web-enabled, Internet radio-capable weather machine and alarm clock I've ever owned :)

Biryani is a symbol of a country that takes differences and divergences and then merges them into one India

It is a symbol of a country that takes differences and merges them into one India



It is found nearly everywhere. Biryani is a symbol of a country that takes differences and divergences and then merges them into one India
EVERY INDIAN knows that dal is not a single dish. Yes, it is always made from lentils but that is about all the various dals of India have in common. A person with no experience of Indian cuisine would, if he was simultaneously served the black dal of the Punjab, the sambhar of Udupi and the cholar dal of Bengal, not immediately realise that all three were lentil preparations of the same general category.But, even though we accept that dal is the name we give to a family of dishes, rather than a single dish, we have difficulty in arriving at the same conclusion when it comes to biryani. In our minds, we still think of biryani as being a single dish.
Few Indian menus would ever describe a dish as “dal“. We would usually feel the need to add a descriptor of some sort: “Ma ki dal“ or “Cholar dal“ or of course, sambhar, because we know that these are entirely different dishes. (And rajma would not even be described as a dal.) Even when two dals are made from the same lentil ­ say sambhar and the classic Gujarati dal both of which use tuvar ­ we recognise that they are different dishes and describe them as such.
In the case of biryani, however, no such distinctions are made.
The most you'll get is a description of the meat used for the dish (“Chicken Biryani“ or “Mutton Biryani“ etc.) and just perhaps, some meaningless descriptor (“Nawabi Biryani“).
And yet, as most of us intuitively recognise, biryani is as much a family of dishes as dal. Yes, all biryani should have rice (just as dals use lentils) but once you get beyond that basic criterion, the situation becomes immensely complicated. Even in North India, the biryani of Delhi is totally different from the biryani of Bhopal which is different from the biryani of UP (assuming that there is such a thing ­ the biryanis of Lucknow and Rampur are different styles).
Outside of North India, the divergences increase. Of the famous restaurant biryanis, the Hyderabad version (especially the Kacha biryani) is the South Indian version that usually makes it to the menus in the rest of India. But even within Hyderabad, you will find an Andhra-style biryani which is a spicy, more robust, food-of-thecommon-people dish than the courtly and elegant Hyderabadi biryani.
There are many other classic South Indian biryanis, some made with local varieties of rice, not the long-grained basmati-style rice of court biryanis. The delicious biryani of Calicut has as much in common with a Lucknawi biryani as an appam has with a butter SOMEWHAT SIMILAR You can see some traces ­ vulgarised and mutated, admittedly ­ of the Gujarati biryani in popular Bombay biryani restaurants (Delhi Darbar, Jaffer Bhai etc.) LOCAL FARE Some classic South Indian biryanis are made with local varieties of rice, not the long-grained basmati-style rice

Your house can become the home of your dreams if you only keep these basics in mind




Your house can become the home of your dreams if you only keep these basics in mind by Sarita Handa
YOUR HOME is your life.
Whether it's an apartment or a mansion, it can become your dream home. But before you start decorating your house, you must have an understanding of who you are and what you want from your life. You should also know what your family wants from their home.
The idea is to become your own client, for whom you can step into the role of an interior designer, and then you are likely to stay focused on your priorities and budget. 1 The beginning: You can't have it all. Designing a house is like getting dressed every morning. You can love a dozen different styles, but you can't wear them all. With an array of products that create different style statements, it's important to stay focused on your needs and avoid losing your way.
2 Get started by listing the number of people who will be living in the house and what their specific needs and expectations from the space will be. Once you have listed these specifications, you need to prioritise, according to the budget available.
3 Simple is good. Keep your spaces as simple as possible. As soon as you walk in, you should be struck by the `wow factor' and the rooms should speak for themselves. Scale is a key to the success of your style. Avoid clutter and try using fewer things for greater impact. For instance, paintings or objects in different sizes can be displayed together for a greater visual impact. Don't group objects of the same size in any part of your house.
4 Rugs and carpets also offer the potential to give warmth, richness and substance to your living environment. Whether contemporary or traditional, choose carpets that go well with your décor. A smooth carpet has an architectural quality, while a shaggy pile contrasts brilliantly with ultra-modern pieces of furniture. Rugs and carpets are also a good choice when you want to muffle sound. You can also use brightly coloured kilims or flat woven rugs for casual living. 5 Change will prevent your rooms from looking stale.Cushions are available in varied colours and textures. These transform your interiors instantly, from a winter to summer or formal to informal look. 6 Walls can add texture and create scene setters. They are about creating surprises ­ paint them in deep colours and hang artworks or place sculptures against them for special effects.
Hang paintings at eye level. A living room looks warm with family pictures on the wall. These add-ons are the best way to express your personality in your home, so select your display with great care.
7 Curtains and blinds need to be considered not only for their impact on a room, but as a link to what is outside the window.
Use a window treatment that encourages light. The atmosphere should feel natural and healthy. Try different looks for different seasons.
In summer, hang heavy curtains to block the sunshine. In winter, use sheer curtains, open the windows and enjoy the inside-outside feel.
8 Play with fabrics. Fabrics are the core of every decorating scheme. Trust your instincts while choosing your fabrics. For windows, use light drapery that allows light to filter through.
For bedding, use plenty of pillows. You can use different sizes of pillows ­ two big squares, two rectangles and then two or three small different sizes to enhance your sleeping space.
9 Natural light plays an important role in keeping you cheerful.
Good lighting can have a direct influence on the mood of a room.
You can have various light sources and create pools of light exactly where you want them. Lamps can also be used as objects or artworks. Soft lighting with scented flowers and candles can add a romantic and relaxing touch to your interiors.
10 Go green. A spot of greenery in your living space can add freshness and create a pleasant feel. Indoor plants can add functional and aesthetic appeal. To pep up a corner, you can arrange plants according to their height in multiple semicircles, creating an interesting visual effect. Interesting little ornaments like masks and big planters can be added to liven up the space further.

YOU HAVE TO SEPARATE YOUR PROFESSIONAL LIFE FROM YOUR DOMESTIC ONE




Planning to work from home? Set up a professional corner office for yourself by Praveen Rawal YOU HAVE TO SEPARATE YOUR PROFESSIONAL LIFE FROM YOUR DOMESTIC ONE
ONE BIG fallout of working flexi-hours, working freelance or setting up a business from your home is the need for a workplace in your house. Designing this workplace according to your needs and comfort helps the cause a great deal.
Today, there is a major shift from a study place doubling up as a workspace, to creating a trendy, functional, stylish and visually pleasing workplace in your home.Workspaces don't utilise a large area in your house. However, smaller by itself isn't better. It's just smaller.
Your workspace should be multipurpose and user-adjustable, so it can be used by two or more people, at least some of the time.
If it's designed aesthetically and elegantly, a workspace can be a value addition to your home décor. Today, workspace designers are constantly emerging with pioneering and innovative designs to blend home offices into the aesthetic décor of your room.
Along with elegance and effective space utilisation, emphasis is also laid on designing the workplace area to be spacious. A spacious workspace helps increase your efficiency and productivity.
Storage areas and cable channels are also extremely essential factors to take into consideration while designing a workplace at home. Smartly designed storage places and cable channels promote freedom of movement and provide you with a larger area to function and to avoid misplacing work matter. You also need space to place your personal gizmos and trophies in your workplace, even if this workplace is at home.
Ideally, your home workplace should provide privacy with open and covered storage for concentrated work. An open bench style layout promotes space for meetings. But it should also optimise privacy, work surfaces and personal storage and support teamwork. So a modular system allows a mix and match of storage units that support the work surface, while internal cable channels route power and data to the work surface and a smart portable screen provides privacy.
In other furnishings, you'd need a height-adjustable desk to be able to move freely and comfortably while working. And since this is a home office, where you may occasionally need to meet clients, a small lounge area may make sense.
You must consider chairs as well ­ a dining table chair (the obvious choice for many people) may not be the best thing to sit on while you work. So think ergonomics. Your chair should be able to adjust to the movements of your back, arms, body and change shape to mimic and support the movement of your spine.
You may think that none of this is necessary, but it is. A specially created workplace, when that workplace is at home, promotes efficiency by helping you separate your domestic life from your professional life. And a trendy design that's both functional and aesthetic helps focus your mind on work.

These days, people are keen on styling and beautifying every part of their home; wall clocks too are very much a part of home decor

Time dons designer wear
These days, people are keen on styling and beautifying every part of their home; wall clocks too are very much a part of home decor
Ever realised how wall clocks have changed over the times? Not very long ago, people did not mind having a simple clock on the wall at home and all that mattered was how clear and bold the numbers on it were and whether or not they were able to see time clearly. But today, with changing times, people are keen on styling and beautifying every part of their homes, in the most creative manner. This eventually leads them to buy a wall clock that matches the colour of the wall. In most stores, you will find a wide range of clocks available that keep in mind people's increasing demand for getting something stylish and classy. Be it radium clocks or ones with cartoon/funny characters on it, stores offer a great variety as well.Nerul resident Manali Patil says that she recently got a clock with radium in it. The reason for this was her in-laws were keen on having a wall clock in their room in which they could see the time clearly in the night time as well. "My mother-in-law insisted that if I get a clock for their room, it had to be one with radium on it. I went to a watch store and picked up a real classy-looking clock for around
Rs1,400. I did not mind paying a little extra for this good-looking wall clock."
Pallavi Jambh, another housewife from Koparkhairane, said she was keen on getting a fancy, brightly-coloured wall clock for her kid's bedroom. "Everything in my little one's bedroom was done brilliantly, so I was keen on getting a clock in her room to match the green and yellow paints on the wall. Besides my son was extremely excited at looking at the clock mainly because it had some cartoon characters on it," says Mitra.
Even though old-style wall clocks occupy a huge space, they are quite in vogue these days. But the thing that matters most as far as these wall clocks are concerned is that one needs to allot it a lot of space in the house. "Although I like the old-style clocks, their prices are very high and they take up a lot of space too. I still remember a particular clock in a person's home which I had seen a few years ago. The clock had small frames all over it wherein one could fit tiny family pictures," says Panvel resisdent Ekta Bhaskar. "These days there are many people who are demanding the grandfather clocks. There is a specific store in the suburbs called the East India Company where these clocks are manufactured. These clocks have an hourly chimes in it, so after every hour there is a loud ring in the room."
"For children's rooms, people generally prefer the cuckoo wall clock where after every hour the cuckoo comes out and informs the person about the time," says interior designer Priya Gurnani who has her own firm called Priya Gurnani Interiors in Sanpada. So, next time when you decide to purchase a wall clock for your home, see to it that you buy something so exclusive and chic that people want to look at time repeatedly because of it!

Check out the makhar trends for Ganpati

Check out the makhar trends for Ganpati
This Ganpati, there's a host of new designs and colours for makhar. We take you on a tour of the ones we liked

The countdown for Ganpati has almost come to an end, and everyone's busy preparing for the festival. When bringing home Lord Ganesha, lots of things need to be done, and one of them is selecting a makhar.
It comes across to most families as the most interesting activity as a part of the pre-Ganpati preparations. Family members sit together and decide the place at which the sthapana of the Lord will be done. Then they discuss the colour, size, shape and design ideas for the makhar.

Here's a little help for you to choose from a variety of makhars in the market. 
Temple Makhars: The usual temple-type makhars are the hot favourites. Even though these have been used extensively and explored in all formats, these makhars are chosen by most Maharshtrians. The traditional idea is that the lord sits in a temple, which is why most devotees prefer having a temple-shaped makhar at their place. 
Rituraj Khona, a salesman from a stationary shop selling makhars in Sanpada said, "The size of this makhar depends on the idol, which ranges from one-five feet for a home-based Ganpati. Made with thermocol and supported by hardboard, these temples are decorated with various colours, especially pink, blue, orange and accessioned with gold and silver shimmer." The prices for the temple-shaped makhar start from Rs200 and go up to Rs2,500. 
Ganpati Singhasan: This is another makhar style that's quite famous, but it is used by a limited number of people. This year, there have been several innovations to the singhasan-style makhar, with designs that are similar to singhasans of some well-known places and people. "You can choose from a number of singhasans, like the Balasaheb Thackeray's singhasan, Lalbaugcha Raja singhasan, Indra Singhasan, etc.," informed Pankaj Thakur, a makhar-seller from Nerul.
"People love to buy the single piece singhasan-type makhars. They are more solidly built than the designer ones. They have broader bottoms and hence hold the idol better than the other fancy makhars." 
This year, there have been some new designs such as a bed of hibiscus or a seat made out of hibiscus flowers and leaves. They look extremely beautiful — with the flowers and leaves cut with sharp borders that surround the idol space. 
"The range for this starts from Rs325 and the biggest one costs Rs1,500. However since this one doesn't have a solid geometric shape, the biggest makhar is only upto 3 feet in height," mentioned a shopkeeper at Krishna Book Centre in Kharghar. There are some more makhars at this store where the main seat has been adorned with two white swans on both sides. Both these makhars look very delicately-worked and elegant, and something new that you can find this year's makhar market. 
Jhoola-type makhar: It is another fancy makhar that has hit the markets this Ganpati festival. "The swing looks beautiful and similar to the one on which Lord Krishna is seated. The price of the makhar is Rs3,200 and it is in great demand. We have sold all pieces, except one. Lots of people have enquired about it," said Jeevanbhai, from Student's Book Store in Vashi.
"However some of the most authentic makhars are found in APMC market in Vashi and the Janta Market in Nerul, where you can avail the best quality, design and prices of makhar at these places. We always buy it from APMC market and they come out to be very good since they have a lot of variety there," said Pritam Bhumralkar, a resident of Vashi.

'We have stopped collecting donations'


'We have stopped collecting donations'
Col Shivraj

Everybody has been glued to the TV from the day when the Anna campaign started. In order to get a feel of the happening on the ground I visited Ramlila. More specifically I wanted to make some contribution (financially) to the cause.
I approached the volunteer at the counter (there are two/three huge counters and help desks set up by the India Against Corruption volunteers.). "But Sir, we are not taking any donations." I was shocked and informed him that I am not paying by cash as I have brought my cheque book. (They are extremely meticulous in maintaining their accounts. I had experienced this when I had visited their fast site at Jantar Mantar in April. Even if somebody gave them Rs10, they would insist on giving a receipt with details of address, phone no. etc. This had caused long queues. They know that the crooks in the government offices are just waiting to pounce on them with allegations of irregularities in accounts). "Sir, we are not accepting even cheques now. We have stopped collecting donations."
I pulled out my copy of a newspaper of the day and showed them the report where it said that they had a special cell for collecting donations. "We know it Sir, but thanks to generous people like you, we have collected enough money for our needs for the time being and since last night, we have stopped taking any more money."
In more than 65 years of my existence, this was the first time I was coming across an NGO/ institution/ movement which was not taking money. I am more used to their pestering.
Just to double check, I approached a few other volunteers at different desks and I received a same response. But doesn't an ongoing movement like this constantly need funds? The response was that they will restart the collection drive in that situation. But for the time being, they had enough for their needs. "Besides Sir, most of the activities that you see here on a large scale, e.g. water, tea, food distribution etc. are being organised by individuals/organisations. We are not doing anything on that front."
Talking of volunteers, they are so young and well educated. Replace their "India Against Corruption" T-shirts with normal office attire and you will see they fit into finest of the companies. Many of them indeed are from very professional organisations. Clearly overworked, they presented such a dedicated face. Not a single case of losing temper, at least as long as I was there. Some were not even getting time to sip a cup of tea. The relief on getting a chance to do so was so palpable on their face. There must have been more than a hundred of them there. They are the true heroes and heroines of India.
When you looked at your eye level, one can see a sea of humanity, tricolours fluttering, massive and un-coordinated slogans, but when you will look down, you will feel sick. Muddy and uneven grounds with pools of stagnant water every few steps. So difficult to walk around; often one needs to jump around. This was Ramlila ground, where every year, Ramlila celebrations take place on a large scale and any. of political rallies take place every alternate week, so to speak. Could the municipal corporation of Delhi not pave it all these years?
No more questions but only one answer, I am proud to be with Anna.
— Col Shivraj

Chhota Bheem is no doubt the first truly successful original Indian cartoon series


chhota bheem comes of age





If you thought that the most popular cartoon character on Indian television was from Disney, think again. Because a chubby, little boy in a dhoti from an imaginary Indian village called Dholakpur, has caught the fancy of kids all over India. Chhota Bheem is no doubt the first truly successful original Indian cartoon series that has seen the kind of popularity that has so far been accorded only to Disney and Hanna Barbera cartoons.
I've never quite understood why children adore Chhota Bheem so much. But then again, I can't fathom what is so appealing about the strange-looking characters in the wildly popular Japanese series Shinchan and Doraemon either. Animation purists can complain all they want about the character design and production quality but there is no denying that the makers of Chhota Bheem have managed to get something right with the show and hit pay dirt. The Animation Society of India invited Chhota Bheem's producer and director Rajiv Chilaka to speak about creating, protecting and most importantly, monetising Intellectual Property (IP) at Anifest India 2011.
Anifest India is a three day animation festival in Mumbai that attracts aspiring and practising animators from across the country. So, it was the ideal setting to find out how Chhota Bheem managed to breach the stronghold of foreign cartoon shows on Indian television. The floundering animation industry needs success stories to inject confidence into animators and producers alike. While the artists seek recognition and appreciation for their work, the producers need the reassurance that they have a commercial success in their hands.
Rajiv admits that he and his team took a big risk, placing all their eggs in one basket by going after IP rather than take a service model approach like most of his peers, despite all the odds being stacked against them. Their focus was 2D animation during a time when 3D was the rage, their theme was not mythological, and the styling of the characters was completely Indian. But they adapted their weakness and made it their USP, relying on typical Indian humour and easily identifiable situations. In Chhota Bheem, the protagonist is a child with exceptional physical strength supported by quirky characters, simple plot lines, silly gags and tongue-in-cheek dialogues. The show that launched in 2008 has just crossed 121 episodes. If even a couple of other studios manage to replicate this success, there is still hope for Indian animation.