‘Since I was nine years old, I wanted to make a movie on Jinn’
By Ras Siddiqui, TwoCircles.net,
“In the Beginning, three were created. Man made of clay. Angels made of light. And a Third made of fire.” These form the elemental core of Jinn, a movie written and directed by Ajmal Zaheer Ahmad, an American of South-Asian origin with a passion for imagery. Jinn is slated to hit the screens on the first Friday of April, 2014 when it will attempt to capture viewer our imagination and the attention of a worldwide audience. Starring Dominic Rains, Serinda Swan, Ray Park, William Atherton and Faran Tahir, the movie highlights man’s meeting with that elusive third race “born of smokeless fire”, a rare encounter. “Similar to humans in many ways, the Jinn lived invisibly among us and only under dire or unusual circumstances were our paths ever meant to cross.”
Would have loved to shoot in Pakistan: ‘Filmistaan’ director
By Natalia Ningthoujam,
New Delhi : Lack of resources and complications related to filming in Pakistan kept first-time director Nitin Kakkar away from shooting his...
States asked to organise events to mark 60th I Day
By IANS
New Delhi : The central government Friday asked states to organise commemorative functions at the grassroots level to mark the 150th anniversary of the country's first war of Independence and the 60th anniversary of Independence in order to familiarise the youth with history.
New Delhi : The central government Friday asked states to organise commemorative functions at the grassroots level to mark the 150th anniversary of the country's first war of Independence and the 60th anniversary of Independence in order to familiarise the youth with history.
Delhi boy pens a book at 15
By IANS
New Delhi : Looks can be deceptive. That is what one realises on meeting 15-year-old Ronen Chatterjee who is one of the youngest Indian authors of English fiction.
Ronen is the author of "Fire Within", a book that traces the fictional story of three generations of the Roys -- Rohan, his son Rohit and his grandson Raj and their fascination, addiction and dedication towards tennis.
"I started writing the book at 13 and since it is released on my 15th birthday it feels like going back to my roots," Ronen said at the launch of his book Tuesday.
Rahman to perform at Indian & American Achiever Awards
By IANS
New York : Renowned film music composer A.R. Rahman will present the national anthem of India Thursday at the inaugural CineMaya Media Group Indian & American Achiever Awards at the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts in Washington D.C.
"It is my great honour to be able to sing 'Jana Gana Mana', during the 60th Year of independence celebrations in the heart of the US Capital," Rahman said in a press statement.
Indo-Bangladesh music fusion in Dhaka
By IANS
Dhaka : Bangladeshi singer James combined with India's Partha Sarathi Chatterjee to stage a fusion music concert here, blending North Indian Ragas with Western classical, rock n'roll, jazz and Bengali folk tunes.
Music lovers here rocked to James's "Bheegi Bheegi" number from the Hindi film "Gangster" and lots of songs from Bollywood and other genres at the evening organised by the Indian High Commission in association with Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy.
Peruvian archaeologists find 1,200-year-old mummies
By Xinhua
Lima : Archaeologists in Peru have found 40 mummies dating from the 1,200-year-old Chachapoyas culture in the Amazon fortress of Kuelap, project leader Alfredo Narvaez said.
He told reporters Wednesday that the mummies were discovered alongside Inca pottery, and that they showed signs of being affected by a fire in the archaeological complex, some 1,409 km northeast of the nation's capital.
With 200,000 English titles, it’s a book mall!
By Mukta K. Gupta, IANS
Mysore : So you thought the book-reading habit was on the decline? A bookstore that has opened here with over 200,000 titles in English and 80,000 in the local Kannada language is set to prove you wrong.
Sapna Book House, a multi-level 18,000 sq ft fully air-conditioned mall in Devraja Mohalla of Mysore city of Karnataka, in southern India, claims to be the largest book showroom in the country.
Indian-origin author short-listed for Canadian literary prize
Toronto, Oct 10 (IANS) A Canadian author of Indian origin is among five novelists who have been short-listed for this year's prestigious Scotiabank Giller Prize.
M.G. Vassanji, who has won the Giller Prize twice before -- in 1994 and again in 2003 -- has been short-listed for his work "The Assassin's Song", which chronicles the clash of modernity and tradition in India.
Vibrant arts of Kashmir enchant Delhiites
By IANS
New Delhi : The reverberating voices of singers rendering soulful Sufiana songs and graceful movements of women in bright-hued kaftans performing varied folk dances - all this and more were part of the Jammu and Kashmir cultural festival here that left audiences mesmerised.
The two-day fest showcased the rich and colourful traditions of Jammu and Kashmir Wednesday and Thursday, with pretty girls dressed in the most vibrant outfits dancing to melodious folk tunes and men playing soulful and foot-tapping music.
Children’s drawing contest to spotlight young Russians’ image of India
By RIA Novosti
Moscow : The publishers of Russia's oldest humour magazine for children have announced a contest for the best drawing about India.
"The contest is being held as part of the Year of Russia in India and is devoted to Russia's participation as a guest of honour at the 18th New Delhi World Book Fair," the head of the Vesyolye Kartinki Publishing House, Irina Deshkova, told RIA Novosti in an interview.
Russian extravaganza enthrals at historic Purana Quila
By IANS
New Delhi : The serene and picturesque Purana Quila here provided the perfect backdrop to the spectacular Russian cultural festival that unfolded with all its magnificent components - orchestra, ballet and acrobatics - at the inauguration of the Year of Russia in India Tuesday.
Cold winds were blowing through the evening but as the artistes, nearly 300 of them, came up on stage one by one and enthralled the audiences with their performances, the winter chill seemed to simply melt away.
‘Payment in Kind’ programme gives Mexico worthy art
By DPA
Mexico City : In 1957, painter David Alfaro Siqueiros proposed that artists in Mexico be allowed to pay taxes with their work. Half a century later, this idea has given rise to one of the world's most important collections of contemporary art.
The unprecedented programme, Pago en Especie (Payment in Kind), went into force in 1975 through a presidential decree, but it received the support of the artists Raul Anguiano, Luis Nishizawa and Adolfo Best Maugard who donated works to get it going.
China’s Forbidden City to be renovated before Olympics
By Xinhua
Beijing : A wide-ranging facelift of China's famed Forbidden City will be completed ahead of Olympics after over five years of repairing, a spokesman with the historical site said Wednesday.
"Repair work will end before August, when people will see an enlarged open area of the palace," Palace Museum spokesman Feng Nai'en told reporters.
A 1,000-sq meter area in the palace will be opened for tourists for the first time this year, for an exhibition of imperial horse-drawn vehicles, said Feng.
Shivaji monument in Arabian Sea
By IANS,
Mumbai : An imposing statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji will come up one kilometre away in the Arabian Sea in the bay between Malabar Hill and Nariman Point in south Mumbai.
The decision to install the statue at this site, along with other tourist attractions, was taken at a high-level meeting presided over by Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh Monday.
The statue will be visible from the entire "Queen's Necklace" - the Marine Drive - the promenade from Nariman Point to Malabar Hill.
Souza, Mehta top Christie’s Indian modern art sale
By IANS,
London : Works of Francis Newton Souza and Tyeb Mehta were the highlights of the Christie's sale of contemporary Indian art here, which also included works from Tina Ambani's Mumbai-based Harmony Art Foundation.
Souza's 1955 work "Birth" sold for 1,273,250 pounds ($2.5 million) as against an estimate of 600,000-800,000 pounds while Mehta's 1984 untitled (Figure on Rickshaw) went for 982,050 pounds as against an estimate of 300,000-500,000 pounds.
Ministry of Sound to perform in India
By IANS,
Mumbai : Ministry of Sound, the London nightclub that has grown into an internationally renowned music and dance band, will perform in India next month.
Fans of the band will get to rock to its music in Hyderabad, Kolkata and New Delhi July 2, 4 and 5, respectively. Indian music and lifestyle channel Vh1 has organised the tour.
Two top DJs of Ministry of Sound, Paul Jackson and Scott Simmons, will accompany the troupe, according to a Vh1 press note.
Three Muslim women in Man Asia long list
Three Muslim women in Man Asia long list
New Delhi: Three Muslim women found themselves among the 21 selected for Man Asia Literary Prize. The long list of 21 unpublished works includes work from Anjum Hasan, Daisey Hasan, and Salma.
The 2008 Man Asian Literary Prize long list was chosen from submissions received from all over Asia. The largest single group of submissions was from India, followed by the Philippines.
A short list of five works will be announced in October 2008 and winner awarded in November.
Funeral rites under way for dissident writer Solzhenitsyn
By DPA,
Moscow : The funeral was held for dissident Soviet writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn Wednesday ahead of his burial at Moscow's 16th century Donskoy Monastery.
Several hundred people crowded the vaulted church where white-gowned priests chanted and swung thuribles, or incense-burners, over his open coffin.
Solzhenitsyn, remembered as Russia's moral conscience for his unflinching exposes on the horrors of the Soviet prison camps, died Sunday aged 89.
Jethro Tull, Anoushka Shankar send message of hope through music
By IANS,
New Delhi : Jethro Tull, one of the world's best western music bands from Britain, and sitar exponent Anoushka Shankar Saturday sent out a message of hope to terror-ravaged India saying if London could withstand the blitz during World War II and the underground train bombings three years ago, India should be able to do the same.
They will perform in the capital Sunday at the Pragati Maidan as part of a five-city live tour presented by Seagram.
Artists can play major role in peace process: Pakistani painter
By Xinhua,
New Delhi : Artists' voices can be both provocative as well as healing and since they represent the people at large they can play a major role in the peace process between India and Pakistan, says Pakistani painter and human rights activist Salima Hashmi.
‘Punjabi music is popular across the world’
By IANS,
Chandigarh : Punjabi has made its presence felt in every corner of the world, says Britain-based music composer Rajinder Singh Rai aka Punjabi MC, who uses a lot of Punjabi folk and bhangra in his fusion music.
Rai, who visited Chandigarh to promote his new album "Indian Timing", told IANS: "Punjabi has become a cosmopolitan language that has made its presence felt in every corner of the world. Even my new album 'Indian Timing' features international artistes like Jay-Z and Ofra Haza. In fact, no Bollywood movie is complete without a Punjabi song."
Open minds to classical arts through school curricula: Shovana Narayan
By Madhusree Chatterjee, ANS,
New Delhi : Indian dances are not attracting sufficient audiences due to "closed minds" and "non-exposure", says veteran Kathak exponent Shovana Narayan. The danseuse feels classical arts should be included in school curricula to increase aesthetic appreciation.
"There are several issues in terms of audience attendance. There is a mindset in the 'none' or 'never' attending viewers that classical dance is beyond understanding. They seem to have a closed mind to it," Narayan told IANS in an interview here ahead of World Dance Day Wednesday.
Largest Indian contemporary art exhibition opens in Austria
By Mehru Jaffer, IANS,
Vienna : As the largest exhibition of contemporary Indian art to open in the Austrian capital in recent times, "Chalo! India" is certainly making visitors more and more curious about the South Asian giant.
"India's impressive economic progress has spurred interest in the artistic developments of the country as well," said professor Karlheinz Essl, founder of the Essl Museum of contemporary art.
Indian comedian makes Pakistanis laugh
By IANS,
Karachi : Indian stand-up comedian Sanjay Rajoura had Pakistanis in splits as he cracked jokes on India's obsession with Sachin Tendulkar and how to win friendship of female students.
Indian cine buffs to savour Israeli movies
By IANS
New Delhi : Indian moviegoers will have an opportunity to enjoy eight top Israeli films during a four-day Israeli film festival, which begins in the Indian capital Monday.
Ramachandra Guha, Hosseini emerge as favourites again
By IANS
New Delhi : Ramachandra Guha and Khaled Hosseini continue to be hot reader favourites this week with their respective books "India After Gandhi" and "A Thousand Splendid Suns" topping the best-selling lists yet again.
Catwalk shifts to Pragati Maidan for fashion week
By IANS
New Delhi : To contain the continually swelling fashion fete of India - the Wills lifestyle Fashion Week (WIFW) - the Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI) has this time moved to a bigger venue, the Pragati Maidan.
The tenth edition of the spring-summer WIFW 2008 is scheduled here for Sep 5-9.
Terror attack at Pakistan Potter launch foiled
By DPA
Islamabad : Pakistani police defused a car bomb outside a shopping centre in Karachi hours before the scheduled launch of the latest Harry Potter book there, officials said Saturday.
"We got to know about the bomb on Friday night when an anonymous caller warned us that it was planted in a car parked outside the Park Tower, "Senior Superintendent Police Azad Khan told DPA.
"The bomb contained 10 kgs of RDX, connected to a remote controlled detonator," he said.
Abe to stop by and renew family bonds in Kolkata
By Avijit Chatterjee, IANS
Kolkata : Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will play the role of a dutiful grandson when he visits Kolkata Thursday to record his gratitude to the family of Radhabinod Pal, the lone Indian judge at the war crimes tribunal led by Allies that indicted Japan after World War II.
It was Pal's carefully crafted argument that led to the acquittal of Abe's grandfather Kishi Nobuske, who was detained by the 11-member war tribunal. Nobuske went on to become prime minister of Japan in 1957.
Soon, Wagner soirees in the Gulf
By DPA
Dresden (Germany) : Operas by German composer Richard Wagner (1813-1883) may become regular events in the Gulf, according to the secretary of the Abu Dhabi Wagner Society, Ronald Perlwitz.
The Society is sponsoring a March 8 concert by the Saxon State Orchestra of Dresden in the Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi to introduce Gulf audiences to live Wagner music.
Perlwitz believes Arab audiences' special affinity for Wagner comes from the close bond between music and text in his works.
It’s wah ustad! at the Gwalior Heritage Festival
By Azera Rahman, IANS
Gwalior : For the people of Gwalior it was an evening to remember as sarod maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan and his two sons gave a bravura performance with fusion band Advaita and the Ananda Shankar dance troupe adding to the magic.
Amjad Ali Khan and his two sons, Amaan Ali Khan and Ayaan Ali Khan, gave a spell binding performance on the second day of the Gwalior Heritage festival Saturday evening.
The trio literally lighted up the stage as they walked down the bridge to the stage set amid a pond at the picturesque Moti Mahal palace.
Lahiri’s new book zooms to No.1 in NYT bestseller list
By IANS
New York : Indian American Jhumpa Lahiri's new book "Unaccustomed Earth", which has been receiving rave reviews in the US press, has zoomed to the top in New York Times' list of best-selling fiction within two weeks of its April 1 launch.
The book, New York-based Lahiri's second collection of short stories, debuts at No. 1 slot in the list to appear in the Times on April 20, a paper's blog said Thursday.
Tamils ignore government fiat, celebrate New Year
By IANS,
Chennai : Even as several major temples "obeyed" the diktat of the Tamil Nadu government and avoided special worship, the laity here celebrated Tamil New Year with usual gaiety Sunday.
Just as the biggest Hindu Shiva temple in Mylapore area here allowed people to offer special prayers, the famed Vishnu shrine at Srirangam, 300 km south of Chennai and considered a "heaven on earth", celebrated the occasion with pomp.
The Meenakshi Amman temple at Madurai, 400 km south of here, steered clear of controversy and avoided any special prayer.
Sand artist Sudarsan wins Berlin contest, creates record
By IANS,
Bhubaneswar : Sand artist Sudarsan Patnaik has become the first Indian to win a world championship held in Berlin for his sculpture on global warming. His victory will see his name entering the record books again.
Patnaik, who figured in the Limca Book of Records in the 2006, 2007 and 2008 editions for his work, will also find place in the 2009 edition for winning the United Sand Festivals (USF) World Double Championship held June 5.
President Patil to inaugurate Surajkund crafts fair
By IANS,
Chandigarh : The celebration of traditional Indian handicrafts will begin Feb 1 next year when the Surajkund crafts fair gets underway in Haryana.
President Pratibha Patil will inaugurate the 2009 edition of the Surajkund fair, Haryana's Minister for Tourism and Forests Kiran Chaudhary said here Tuesday.
Surajkund is located in the Aravalli range, about 10 km from south Delhi on the highway to Agra.
Art market looking up – India Art Summit proves it
By Madhusree Chatterjee, IANS,
New Delhi : After a year that saw a price drop of at least 30 percent across all segments of modern and contemporary art and a purge of inferior products, the Indian art market is looking up again, say organisers of the India Art Summit 2009 in a post-fair review.
According to Neha Kirpal, associate director of the India Art Summit, galleries raked in nearly Rs.26 crore ($5.2 million) from sales --about 50 percent of the Rs.50 crore worth of art on offer. The footfalls, said Kirpal, stood at 5,000 on day one and touched 40,000 by the last day.
Potter mania strikes at dawn
By IANS
New Delhi : Snaking queues, excited faces and an electric atmosphere. For the thousands of Potter fans across the country the moment they have been long waiting for has finally arrived - "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", the seventh edition of the Harry Potter series, has been released early Saturday morning.
Book shops opened at 6.30 a.m. to cash in on the Potter mania as parents and children lined up to buy what its author J.K. Rowling said was the final edition of the Potter series.
Kerala plans grand shopping festival in December
By IANS
Thiruvananthapuram : A 46-day Grand Kerala Shopping Festival (GKSF) will open Dec 1, at 14 district headquarters across the state, to attract foreign tourists and buyers.
The state tourism department, which made the announcement here Wednesday, said Finance Minister Thomas Isaac mooted the plan during the assembly's budget session early this year.
Pune Festival kicks off Sep 21
By IANS
Pune : The four-day Pune Festival, considered to be the mother all arts and culture festivals in Maharashtra, will start Sep 21 with a series of events and performances from eminent artists, including Pandit Jasraj, Hema Malini and Mallika Sarabhai.
"This year the festival will be inaugurated by Union Power Minister Sushil kumar Shinde," Sabina Sanghvi, vice-chairperson of the festival committee, said at a press conference here Friday.
New Yorkers sample Indian song and dance – and cricket cheer too
By Parveen Chopra
New York, Sep 25 (IANS) Spoilt for choice, New Yorkers are getting their fill of India's culture, fashion and food at multiple city venues thanks to the Incredible India@60 festival.
Bryant Park in the heart of Manhattan is now a convenient arena to begin experiencing India.
It's Monday, day two of the five-day event. The programme opens with a performance by Langa and Maniar folk singers from Rajasthan at noon. Among the 200 onlookers were Kamraj and Jayanti, a young couple from Puducherry, who happen to just walk in.
Write more cookery books in Hindi: Sheila Dikshit
By IANS
New Delhi : More cookery books should be written in Hindi to enable these reach a wider audience, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit suggested Thursday.
"I am very happy that authors are trying to teach the art of cooking, not only cooking but cooking good and healthy food to live a healthy life," Dikshit said here at the lunch of "Everyday Healthy Cooking" by debutant author Meenakshi Kumari.
Story of ‘Spy Princess’ hits bookstores in paperback version
By IANS
New Delhi : Indian history abounds in lores of brave women who sacrificed themselves to protect the honour of the country, clan, family and personal dignity. But rarely has a woman of Indian origin defended a foreign country and allowed herself to be tortured and shot to death by enemy forces - not out of compulsion, but out of choice.
Malaysian artistes fear curbs in opposition-ruled states
By IANS
Kuala Lumpur : The Malaysian Artistes' Association (Karyawan) has expressed fear for the local arts and entertainment industry following the formation of new governments in five states by opposition parties perceived as conservative.
Democratic Action Party (DAP), Parti Keadalan Rakyat (PKR) and the Islamist party PAS wrested control of five states in this month's general election, also winning an unprecedented 82 seats in parliament.
Advani bestselling author again with Jhumpa Lahiri
By IANS,
New Delhi : BJP leader L.K. Advani's autobiography retains its hold over readers in the capital as does Jhumpa Lahiri whose "Unaccustomed Earth" is number one in the fiction bestseller list.
The top 10 in the non-fiction and fiction lists are:
Non-Fiction
1. "My Country, My Life"
Author : L.K. Advani
Publisher : Rupa & Co.
Price : Rs.595.00
2. "The Secret"
Author : Rhonda Byrne
Publisher : Simon & Schuster
Price : Rs.550.00
3. "Common Wealth : Economics for a Crowded Planet"
Author : Jeffrey Sachs
Publisher : Allen Lane Penguin
Price : Rs.695.00
Over 7, 000 poets from 22 countries to take part in the contest in...
By WAM,
Abu Dhabi : The organisers of the Prince of Poets Contest, have received 7, 000 entries from 22 countries when the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage announced receiving entries for the second edition of the poets competition in 2008.
The closing date for receiving the applications was April 13.
Tagore is read much less nowadays: actor Soumitra Chatterjee
By Madhusree Chatterjee, IANS,
New Delhi : Veteran Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee believes that Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore is very much a part of our present, but he is being read much less these days.
"It is inescapable. For a Bengali, getting away from Tagore is very difficult because his works reflect a gamut of creative experiences. You listen to his songs every day in some form or the other," Chatterjee told IANS in an interview here.
Tamil Nadu lawyers protest heritage building demolition
By IANS,
Salem (Tamil Nadu) : Two lawyers Wednesday said they would move the Madras High Court to prosecute the Tamil Nadu government for alleged contempt of court following partial demolition of a heritage building.
State government officials demolished part of the 140-year-old collectorate here violating a stay order granted by a division bench of the high court comprising justices A.K. Ganguly and Ibrahim Khalifullah against the demolition, lawyers D. Damayanthi and N. Hari Babu told reporters here.
Porcelain: Fusing three art forms through the language of dance
By IANS,
New Delhi : What happens when three genres of art - visual, performing and audio - come together? A new language encompassing art in its totality is created.
New Delhi, July 28 (IANS) What happens when three genres of art - visual, performing and audio - come together? A new language encompassing art in its totality is created.
Scottish team in Kolkata to restore 200-year-old cemetery
By IANS,
Kolkata : An eight-member team of conservationists from Scotland has flown into this city to restore its 200-year-old Scottish Cemetery, a relic of British rule, with at least 1,800 graves.
The team from the Scottish Heritage Society, which arrived here Sunday night, is led by Edinburgh-based conservation architect James Simpson.
The conservationists are in the country at the behest of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (Intach), the Kolkata Scottish Heritage Trust and the Church of North India (CNI), which administers Protestant churches.
To preserve heritage, government planning special centre
By IANS,
New Delhi : The government is planning to set up a Centre for Management of Cultural Resources and also a network of Indian Institutes of Art and Culture on the lines of the IITs to safeguard India's rich heritage, Tourism and Culture Minister Ambika Soni said here Tuesday.
Speaking at the Asian Regional Cooperation Conference on heritage conservation and tourism here organised by INTACH (Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage) Tuesday, Soni said an integrated approach is required for a successful movement of heritage preservation and promotion.
Poetry was my lifeline all along: Gulzar
By IANS,
New Delhi: He is equally known for his directorial ventures as he is praised for his poems and lyrics but lyricist-director Gulzar says he cut down on wielding the megaphone due to his love for poetry and books.
‘The Hurt Locker’ an uncomfortable reminder of how little humans have evolved
By Mayank Chhaya, IANS,
If the largely fictional archetypal caveman can be dated back to the Neanderthal 30,000 years ago, then the movie "The Hurt Locker" is an embarrassing reminder about how little the human race has traveled since then.
‘Mighty Heart’ Irrfan on cloud nine
By Subhash K. Jha
IANSMumbai : The screening of Michael Winterbottom's "A Mighty Heart" at Cannes Film Festival was an emotional experience for Irrfan Khan who plays the head of a Pakistani counter-terrorism unit in the film.
Tyeb trumps Saffronart auction with $987,000
By IANS
Mumbai : Mumbai-based artist Tyeb Mehta's work Kali sold for a hefty $987,000 at the Saffrontart Online Auction of modern Indian artworks.
Portugal becomes world’s seventh oldest nation
By Xinhua
Lisbon : Portugal has become the world's seventh oldest nation due to a falling birth rate and a rising proportion of senior citizens, the country's National Statistical Agency has said.
On average, a Portuguese woman has 1.36 children during her fertile years, down from the previous 1.41, the agency said in its latest report Wednesday.
The birth rate has been falling for 20 years. If the trend continues as it is, the nation will lose a quarter of its population by 2050, and will have a net population of 7.5 million people, according to the report.
Potter mania strikes at dawn
By IANS
New Delhi : Snaking queues, excited faces and an electric atmosphere. For the thousands of Potter fans across the country the moment they have been long waiting for has finally arrived - "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", the seventh edition of the Harry Potter series, has been released early Saturday morning.
Book shops opened at 6.30 a.m. to cash in on the Potter mania as parents and children lined up to buy what its author J.K. Rowling said was the final edition of the Potter series.
Unique exhibition cast in stainless steel
By IANS
New Delhi : Steel is generally perceived as a metal meant for industry rather than sculpture, but a unique exhibition in the capital will strive to change that by showcasing life-sized and larger than life figurines -- all made of pure stainless steel.
Saptarishi, as the exhibition is called, will see the works of seven artistes from across the country who have been working for this show for the past three months.
Publisher, newscaster Tejeshwar Singh dead
By IANS
New Delhi : Tejeshwar Singh, publisher, theatre actor and television news reader, whose deep baritone demanded compelling attention from the viewer, died in Mussoorie Friday night of a sudden heart attack.
He was in his early sixties. Singh founded the Sage Publications (India) in 1981 and nurtured it into a prominent publishing house within a decade.
Former union minister P.C. Chunder dead
By IANS
Kolkata : Eminent academician, Congress leader and former union education minister Pratap Chandra Chunder died in a city hospital Tuesday afternoon. He was 88.
Chunder was ailing for sometime. He is survived by wife Leena Chunder, four sons and grandchildren. Chunder served as education and social welfare minister in the Morarji Desai ministry between 1977 and 1979.
A family member said the body of the veteran politician and educationist will be brought to his central Kolkata home. His last rites will be performed Wednesday.
Government finalises draft on Sethusamudram affidavit
By IANS
New Delhi : The cabinet Thursday gave the go-ahead to a draft affidavit on the Sethusamudram shipping canal project to be filed in the Supreme Court where critics have challenged the scheme.
The decision was taken at the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA). The government is expected to submit the affidavit next week.
This was CCPA's second meeting this week to finalise its stand on the draft affidavit. Last year, the government withdrew its affidavit after a row because it was seen challenging the existence of Hindu god Ram.
Pandit Ravi Shankar toasts latest celebrity in brood
By Madhusree Chatterjee, IANS
New Delhi : At 88, sitar maestro Pandit Ravi Shankar is beset with several tasks - writing a new concerto for daughter Anoushka, adding a new chapter to his autobiography, an impending trip to California and toasting wife Sukanya's US-based sister who is a first-time novelist.
And now, Indian etiquette classes in London
By IANS,
London : Kissing Indian women goodbye is out for young British businessmen and professionals flying out to India to explore new job opportunities.
And visitors should be mindful of something that every Indian knows - their hosts are terrible at timekeeping.
These pointers to how to go about your business in India are part of etiquette classes being offered by the UK India Business Council (UKIBC) - the British government's lead organisation supporting the promotion of bilateral trade, business and investment.
Taoists launch drive to debunk misconceptions
By DPA,
Singapore : Taoists are launching a drive to debunk misconceptions that their religion is based largely on superstition, after a poll showed many young followers are switching to Christianity, leaders of the faith said Tuesday.
An exhibition containing nearly 400 books in 36 languages will include the works of Taoist sage Lao Zi, known as Dao De Jing, and materials from 10 other major religions in Singapore.
"There have been misconceptions that Taoism is a religion based on superstitious beliefs," The Straits Times quoted Tan Thiam Lye, Taoism Federation chairman, as saying.
Ranjit Singh’s bust sells for $192,000 in London
By Dipankar De Sarkar, IANS,
London : Far more important and wealthy than his son in real life, a marble bust of Maharaja Ranjit Singh has fetched only a fraction of the price a sculpture of Duleep Singh commanded last year.
Ranjit Singh's stunning milk-white bust, made in India around 1900 by an unknown sculptor, was estimated to sell for 50,000-70,000 pounds ($87,000-$122,000) at Bonhams' Indian and Islamic sale Monday but went for 110,400 pounds ($192,000).
Cuba sees boom in blind musicians
By IANS,
Havana : Cuba has witnessed an increase in the number of amateur blind musicians as a result of the facilities offered to the visually challenged by the music teaching institutions in the country, the Cuban news agency Prensa Latina reported.
Carlos Ramirez, a professor who is himself blind, said that music was among the most practised art by the blind in Cuba, though theatre and literature were not far behind.
Tagore paintings ‘a huge draw’ in South Korea
By IANS,
New Delhi : An exhibition of 49 original paintings of Rabindranath Tagore now on display in the South Korean capital are drawing hundreds every day.
Picasso works stolen from diplomat’s home in Austria
By IANS
Vienna : A pencil drawing by Spanish artist Pablo Picasso valued at some $250,000 was stolen in Austria from the private collection of a Russian diplomat, Spanish news agency EFE said quoting the police.
Osian aims to recreate cinematic culture
By IANS
New Delhi : Aiming to recreate cinematic culture in the country, the 9th Osian's-Cinefan Festival of Asian and Arab Cinema - a new name for the capital's prestigious film fest - will focus on Japanese films with a tribute to Kenji Mizoguchi.
Catwalk shifts to Pragati Maidan for fashion week
By IANS
New Delhi : To contain the continually swelling fashion fete of India - the Wills lifestyle Fashion Week (WIFW) - the Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI) has this time moved to a bigger venue, the Pragati Maidan.
The tenth edition of the spring-summer WIFW 2008 is scheduled here for Sep 5-9.
Penguin India gets new chief; Hachette to set up India chapter
By IANS
New Delhi : Mike Bryan will be the new CEO and president of Penguin India from Sep 1, the publishing house announced Wednesday. The current Penguin India chief, Thomas Abraham, is leaving to start the India publishing operations of the Hachette Livre UK.
Bryan has been with Penguin for 27 years, most recently as international sales and marketing director in Britain and the US. His team managed the sales of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" in a majority of export markets.
New Delhi : Mike Bryan will be the new CEO and president of Penguin India from Sep 1, the publishing house announced Wednesday. The current Penguin India chief, Thomas Abraham, is leaving to start the India publishing operations of the Hachette Livre UK.
Bryan has been with Penguin for 27 years, most recently as international sales and marketing director in Britain and the US. His team managed the sales of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" in a majority of export markets.
‘Sikhs Unlimited’: London to LA via Punjab
By Jaideep Sarin, IANS
Chandigarh : At a time when the Sikh diaspora is set to complete a century of existence in the West, many of them settling to the riches of their adopted countries and thousands more aspiring to be part of those 'greener pastures', a book by a Punjab-based citrus farmer has attempted to chronicle the extraordinary lives of some of these enterprising Sikh men and women.
First time author Khushwant Singh, 35, got the inspiration to write a book from his famous literary namesake in India during a meeting in 2004.
Mama bear, cubs out for a walk in Srinagar park
F. Ahmed
Srinagar, Sep 13 (IANS) A mother bear and her two cubs strayed into a park in the heart of this tourist city Thursday, attracting hundreds of curious people as wildlife officials tried to catch the animals and take them back to the forest.
Officials of the local Wildlife Protection Department were trying to shoo the bears out of the bushes located close to Boulevard Road in the densely populated Gagribal area of the city, 4 km from the city centre Lal Chowk. The bears had ambled in from the forest early Thursday.
Focus on Shaan as Kolkata set to host music carnival
By IANS
Kolkata : Bollywood playback singer Shaan is all set to entertain the music lovers of Kolkata at a daylong music festival to be held here Sunday.
Gaan Mela, a famous musical extravaganza, to be held at Nicco Park Sunday, will feature Kolkata's own man with the golden voice Shaan besides versatile singer Pratik Choudhury and a whole array of Bengali bands, from Fossils, Lakkhichhara and Bhoomi to Cactus.
Private telecom service provider Tata Indicom is organising this special musical event.
An absorbing partition saga through eyes of an American
By M.R. Narayan Swamy, IANS
Book: "An American Witness to India's Partition"; Author: Phillips Talbot; Publisher: Sage Publications
Exposure makes Indian art prices gallop in global mart
By Madhusree Chatterjee, IANS,
New Delhi : The price curve of Indian art is shooting north in the global market because of "increased consciousness" about it, say experts.
This has been brought about by greater visibility of art and artists from the country and easy access to relevant information about Indian art from the internet, they say.
"Indian art is becoming a part of international consciousness, why is why we have seen a spectacular growth in this field," Yamini Mehta, director of modern and contemporary Indian art at the London-based Christie's, told IANS on e-mail.
Solzhenitsyn graphically portrayed Stalinist terror
By DPA,
Moscow : Alexander Solzhenitsyn, one of the Soviet era's most celebrated dissident writers who died at the age of 89, had been exiled from the Soviet Union for his graphic portrayals of life in the labour camps.
The world famous writer and historian, who won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1970, had not been seen in public for months, and had reportedly been seriously ill for months. He died following a stroke, according to unconfirmed information.
Sculptor builds his 38th Taj Mahal in Amsterdam
By IANS,
Amsterdam : Sudarshan Pattnaik, an acclaimed Indian artist, is building a sand Taj Mahal in this city of tulips - his 38th and biggest - in his quest to make such replicas in 100 places around the world.
Here for the three-week-long Amsterdam India Festival, he began carving Nov 7 and hopes to complete the Taj Mahal replica Wednesday. He is sculpting it in front of the Rijksmuseum.
Third edition of India Art Summit in January 2011
By IANS,
New Delhi : Art lovers will have to wait till Jan 23-26 next year for the next edition of the India Art Summit, which will open six months behind schedule.
The last two editions of the summit opened Aug 19.
Announcing the dates, the organisers of India Art Summit Monday said the registration process is underway and galleries and art houses from across the world can apply for exhibition space.
Notice to Nafisa Ali on Husain painting quashed
By IANS
New Delhi : The Delhi High Court Tuesday suspended the operation of a show cause notice issued by a subordinate court here against social activist Nafisa Ali for allegedly purchasing a controversial painting by noted painter M.F. Husain.
Sports is chauvinistic, but I’ve changed mindsets: Mandira
By Prithwish Ganguly, IANS
New Delhi : TV anchor Mandira Bedi, who brought noodle strap blouses into serious cricket talk, says much of the controversy she attracts has to do with her being a woman in the male-dominated world of sports.
Doris Lessing wins Nobel literature prize
By Xinhua
Stockholm : British writer Doris Lessing won the 2007 Nobel Prize in literature, the Swedish Academy announced Thursday.
The Academy cited Lessing as "that epicist of the female experience who with skepticism, fire and visionary power has subjected a divided civilization to scrutiny."
This was the fourth of the prestigious Nobel prizes handed out this year, with awards in chemistry, physics and medicine given away in the past three days.
Filmmakers compete to show Muslim life, experience in the US
By Heather Yamourm, KUNA,
Washington : US filmmakers use experience to bridge the cross-cultural divide, and to breakdown stereotypes, by offering a unique window into the lives of American Muslims, and a chance to win USD 50,000 in prizes.
The "One Nation, Many Voices" online film contest, which kicked off this month, asks filmmakers to create a short video that "reflects the American Muslim experience" and is open to any US citizen, regardless of race or religion.
Indian works to comment on social issues in Christie’s sale
By IANS,
New Delhi : Leading auction house Christie's will offer an exclusive selection of works by contemporary artists like Subodh Gupta, Jitish Kallat, T.V. Santosh and Thukral and Tagra in its autumn sale in Hong Kong Nov 30-Dec 1.
Most of the works are comments or reactions to burning issues like migration, economic boom, wealth imbalance, social change, terrorism and violence that the artists have experienced near home in India.
Potter’s spell breaks sales records
By IANS
New Delhi : The 'P' phenomenon sure has it's grip strong over India, like elsewhere. Just 12 hours after the seventh book of the Harry Potter series was released Saturday, it sold 170,000 copies in the country, making it one of the fastest selling books on the first day of its release in all time.
Paintings at antique shop 27 years after theft
By DPA
Bamberg : Four masterpieces by painter Lucas Cranach, the Elder (1472-1553) have been discovered in a German antique shop, 27 years after thieves ripped them from a church in communist-run East Germany.
The foldout pictures on wood, each about 1 metre tall, depict the birth of Saint John the Baptist.
The set would be worth several hundred thousand euros, art experts said. The thieves who took the paintings from the Lutheran church at Klieken near Wittenberg in 1980 were never caught.
Bamberg : Four masterpieces by painter Lucas Cranach, the Elder (1472-1553) have been discovered in a German antique shop, 27 years after thieves ripped them from a church in communist-run East Germany.
The foldout pictures on wood, each about 1 metre tall, depict the birth of Saint John the Baptist.
The set would be worth several hundred thousand euros, art experts said. The thieves who took the paintings from the Lutheran church at Klieken near Wittenberg in 1980 were never caught.
Feast awaits book lovers at World Book Fair
By IANS
New Delhi : Book lovers from across India will get an opportunity to browse through millions of books and broaden their horizon of knowledge at the 18th New Delhi World Book Fair beginning Feb 2.
Organised by National Book Trust (NBT), an autonomous organisation under the Human Resource Development (HRD) ministry, the nine-day knowledge extravaganza would be held at Pragati Maidan.
Rs 50 crore movie on life and times of St Thomas in multiple languages
By NNN-PTI,
Chennai, India : A film is to be made on the life and times of St Thomas, one of principal disciples of Lord Jesus, a noble missionary, involving about 25 foreign and local artistes, as well as actors from Hollywood.
The movie, to be produced by city-based St Thomas Apostle of India Trust at a budget of Rs 50 crore, would be made in Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu, Hindi and in many other foreign languages, film project coordinator Paulraj Lourdusamy told PTI here on Saturday. One Crore: ten million.
‘Hindustani classical influenced by Persian music’
By Madhusree Chatterjee, IANS,
New Delhi : For centuries, musical legacies have crossed geographical boundaries, says world music guru Laurent Aubert, citing how Hindustani classical got its Persian influence and how the Beatles opened the window to Indian notes.
Aubert, curator of the Geneva Ethnographic Museum and the director of the Ateliers d'ethnomusicologie, says global migration has changed the tenor of music irrevocably.The Ateliers d'ethnomusicologie is an institute dedicated to the dissemination of world music.
Pakistan-India content exchange will push connect: Veteran Pakistani actress
By Radhika Bhirani,
New Delhi : She grew up watching the films of Bollywood's late ethereal beauty Madhubala, has enjoyed new wave Indian gems like...
Ramachandra Guha, Mohsin Hamid top authors of the week
By IANS
New Delhi : Ramachandra Guha's take on "India after Gandhi" takes over from the enormously popular "The Last Mughal" as non-fiction favourite this week, while Mohsin Hamid's "The Reluctant Fundamentalist" continues as top fiction book.
Wagners wrangle over who is to take over at Bayreuth
By DPA
Berlin : The position is not yet vacant, but the Wagner family has stepped up its manoeuvring over who is to take over as Bayreuth Festival founded by Richard Wagner in the late 19th century.
The issue of the succession to 88-year-old Wolfgang, the composer's grandson who has been at the helm of the festival since 1951, has been a matter of controversy, conjecture and often some unseemly familial infighting for a number of years now.
M.F Husain’s son finds his directorial debut accident-prone
By Subhash K. Jha, IANS,
Mumbai : The director broke his wrist, the lead actress burnt herself and the hero badly injured his back - renowned painter M.F. Husain's son Owais is shaken by a series of accidents on the sets of his directorial debut and says the film can be termed as the most accident-prone ever made.
"I didn't know I broke my wrist until it got swollen like a dolphin out of the water," Owais, whose fractured hand is tucked away in a sling, told IANS.
Turn these pages for some water wisdom
By Papri Sri Raman, IANS
Book: "Towards Water Wisdom - Limits, Justice, Harmony"; Author: Ramaswamy R. Iyer; Publisher: Sage Publications, India; Price: Rs.350.
In the 21st century world, water is the most contentious of elements, its ownership more disputed than land and space.
The laws regarding water are less clear than those on land and space. For land, territories can be established and rights claimed. For space, technology determines ownership.
Padma Vibhushan for singing legend Asha Bhonsle
By IANS
New Delhi : Gifted with one of the most versatile voices in the industry, Asha Bhonsle has sung every genre of song, be it pop, club mixes, romantic numbers, bhajans and ghazals.
Now the singing legend is all set to receive India's second highest civilian honour Padma Vibhushan Award for her contribution to the field of cinema.
Buyers of Indian art may get choosy in New York
By Uma Nair, IANS
New Delhi : Will a whiff of caution touch the season's first Indian contemporary art auctions beginning September in New York?
A dealer in Manhattan, who wishes to remain anonymous, prophesies that art prices will decline as a result of losses by hedge funds and other large contemporary art collectors in New York.
Social Media got brighter with Munawwar Rana’s Muhajir Nama
By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
Mumbai: Who would not be familiar with Munawwar Rana’s name? Munawwar Rana, whose poetry is the place where a mother, surrounded by the fence of mundaneness, breathes freely. Munawwar Rana, for whom the way to heaven is not above skies but at the feet of mother.