DURGOTSAV 2015 Juhu Cultural Association our perspectives in pursuit of cultural excellence J uhu Cultural Association ( JCA) was founded in the year 2000 by Shri Jaganmoy Mitra (Sursgar Jagmohan). A doyen of Indian music, Sursagar Jagmohan’s vision was to establish a forum to sustain and promote the rich cultural tradition of India in which people could participate and contribute to the creation of a better and more humane society in line with the values that our culture represents. JCA has grown considerably in stature in the sixteen years of its existence. It tries to bring together like-minded people who believe in an equitable society and tries to contribute to the welfare and happiness of all sections of society. JCA feels honoured and privileged to be associated with the Mumbai chapters of Bharat Sevashram Sangha and its home for cancer patients, and Pranab Kanya Sangha, a home for destitute girls. JCA is also inspired by the blessings of the revered spiritual leaders associated with the Ramakrishna Mission and is thankful to Swami Sarvalokananda for his continued blessings and support. JCA believes and identifies with the common theme running through the thoughts and philosophies of enlightened souls; the oneness of the human race and being human is the highest form of spiritual expression. JCA looks back with a sense of pride in the efforts it has made to contribute towards a better and equitable society with emphasis on helping the needy and less fortunate amongst us. In the year 2009, JCA donated an ambulance to Bharat Sevashram Sangha and in 2010 it committed to bear the cost of education for destitute girls from Pranab Kanya Sangha, Nallasopara for one full academic year. While the ambulance provides Bharat Sevashram Sangha with a key resource to help medically needy people, the initiative to bear the cost of education of destitute girls, provides a platform for the development of the girls in the efforts of Pranab Kanya Sangha to support them to be able stand up on their own feet. We also wish to place on record our sincere gratitude to Shri Shekhar Sen for staging the highly acclaimed “Mono Act” musical plays “Vivekananda – the making of a revolutionary saint” and “Sanmati – the Gift of Wisdom”, which helped JCA in garnering the required funds. e two plays, inspired by the lives, teachings and memories of Kabir, Vivekananda, Tulsi, Saheb and Gandhi, bring forth not only the messages of each of these saintly personalities but also drive home the greatest universal truths – Realize yourself and you would realize the source of Universe;
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Juhu Cultural Association our perspectives in pursuit of cultural excellence
Juhu Cultural Association ( JCA) was founded in the year 2000 by Shri Jaganmoy
Mitra (Sursgar Jagmohan). A doyen of Indian music, Sursagar Jagmohan’s vision was to establish a forum to sustain and promote the rich cultural tradition of India in which people could participate and contribute to the creation of a better and more humane society in line with the values that our culture represents. JCA has grown considerably in stature in the sixteen years of its existence. It tries to bring together like-minded people who believe in an equitable society and tries to contribute to the welfare and happiness of all sections of society.
JCA feels honoured and privileged to be associated with the Mumbai chapters of Bharat Sevashram Sangha and its home for cancer patients, and Pranab Kanya Sangha, a home for destitute girls. JCA is also inspired by the blessings of the revered spiritual leaders associated with the Ramakrishna Mission and is thankful to Swami Sarvalokananda for his continued blessings and support.
JCA believes and identifies with the common theme running through the thoughts and philosophies of enlightened souls; the oneness of the human race and being human is the highest form of spiritual expression.
JCA looks back with a sense of pride in the
efforts it has made to contribute towards a
better and equitable society with emphasis
on helping the needy and less fortunate
amongst us. In the year 2009, JCA donated an
ambulance to Bharat Sevashram Sangha and in
2010 it committed to bear the cost of education
for destitute girls from Pranab Kanya Sangha,
Nallasopara for one full academic year. While
the ambulance provides Bharat Sevashram
Sangha with a key resource to help medically
needy people, the initiative to bear the cost of
education of destitute girls, provides a platform
for the development of the girls in the efforts
of Pranab Kanya Sangha to support them to be
able stand up on their own feet. We also wish
to place on record our sincere gratitude to Shri
Shekhar Sen for staging the highly acclaimed
“Mono Act” musical plays “Vivekananda – the
making of a revolutionary saint” and “Sanmati
– the Gift of Wisdom”, which helped JCA in
garnering the required funds. The two plays,
inspired by the lives, teachings and memories of
Kabir, Vivekananda, Tulsi, Saheb and Gandhi,
bring forth not only the messages of each of
these saintly personalities but also drive home
the greatest universal truths – Realize yourself
and you would realize the source of Universe;
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empower yourself and you would empower mankind; enrich yourself and you would enrich all of creation.
JCA celebrates the Durga Puja every year. This festival marking the triumph of good over evil captures the joyous spirit of harmony and togetherness coupled with the devotion to excellence and commitment. JCA also facilitates the participation of destitute girls from Pranab Kanya Sangha and cancer patients from Bharat Sevashram Sangha in the festivities and in the Bhog offering at least on one of the days of the four day event. The Durga Puja festival organized by JCA, is reputed for its homely environment and the hospitality it extends to devotees who visit the Puja premises. Numerous devotees who have partaken in the Bhog have conveyed that the affection and love with which Bhog is served to one and all is unrivalled and creates an atmosphere of joy and gaiety set in a serenely spiritual background. JCA conveys
its thanks to them and extends its invitation to them once again for Durga Puja 2015.
In the year 2011, JCA inaugurated a Library in memory of late founder President Shri Jaganmoy Mitra (Sursagar Jagmohan). Sursagar Jaganmoy Mitra Memorial Library will primarily cater to the literary and cultural needs of its members.
JCA organises various cultural functions like Varshamangal (Welcoming of the rain), Rabindrajayanti (The birthday of Kaviguru Rabindranath), Poila Boishakh (Bengali New Year) regularly. These activities help every one, especially the younger generation, to stay connected to ourcultural roots and traditions.
We welcome everyone, members and non-members alike, to JCA’s website (www.jca.co.in). The site provides a bird’s eye view of JCA, its missions, its accomplishments and its activities.
The gorgeous 2015 cover was illustrated by Anushua Sinha aka Brinda to her family which includes JCA. She is studying architecture (B.Arch) and equally passionate about design. She and her friends have recently started a design company, "INKCEPTION" .
This is what Brinda has to say
" I enjoyed designing the cover of this year's souvenir a lot. A big thank you to everyone for providing me with the opportunity to do so. I wish all of you a very happy Durga Puja!!!
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Juhu Sarbojanin Durgotsav 2015 Juhu Cultural Association (16th Year)
(A Social, Cultural and Philanthropic Organistion) Estd 2000 Regd. No. F 24344 (Mum) Regd. Office: C-95, Shatadal Society, Azad Lane, Andheri (W), Mumbai – 400 058.
MAHA PANCHAMI, Sunday, October 18Anandamela 8.00 pm
MAHA SHASHTI, Monday, October 19Maha Shasti Puja 9.00 amBodhan, Amantran, Adhibas 6.00 pm to 7.30 pmCultural Programme 8.00 pm
Sursagar Jagmohan was born in a family of zamindars. He had a keen ear for music since an early age. He trained in vocal Hindustani classical music under the tutelage of great masters. He was bestowed the rare tile of “Sursagar” in 1945. Though trained in classical music, Shri Jagmohan won critical acclaim for his rendition of modern Bengali songs and Hindi “Geet” a genre of which he was the initiator. He had the good fortune of recording his first few Rabindra Sangeet songs under the direct guidance of Gurudev Tagore and revolutionary poet Kazi Nazrul Islam. Besides being a popular singer of both film and non-film songs in Hindi and Bengali, he served on the advisory panel of The Central Board of Film Certification. He was also actively engaged in social service and was one of the honorary founder members of Giants International. He was honoured with the Padmashri in 1999.
TAPATI ROY (Ex- President)30th September 1939 - 22nd June 2006
SHAILESH MUKHERJEE(Ex- Vice President)
21th July 1952 - 15th May 2007
KALYAN DASGUPTA30th August 1942 - 25th May 2001
SUBRATA GUHA31st January 1946 - 5th Novermber 2003
WE REMEMBER YOU...
TAPATI ROY (Ex- President)30th September 1939 - 22nd June 2006
SHAILESH MUKHERJEE(Ex- Vice President)
21th July 1952 - 15th May 2007
KALYAN DASGUPTA30th August 1942 - 25th May 2001
SUBRATA GUHA31st January 1946 - 5th Novermber 2003
WE REMEMBER YOU...
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From the President’s Desk...
Dear Friends
Namaskar
There is joy and palpable excitement in the air, as we prepare to welcome the primordial embodiment of Shakti, Mother Goddess Shree Durga, during the auspicious Navratri.
Today the world is torn by strife, Man has turned against Man and humanity is on the crossroads, as apathy reigns supreme.
On an optimistic note, the good outnumbers the evil forces many times over. Hence, let us celebrate the goodness of Mankind and invoke the spirit of shakti to muster the strength to overcome the negative forces in and around us, and make a difference.
I take this opportunity to thank all our benefactors, who, with their munificence helped us to fulfill our commitment towards social causes and also extend a warm welcome to one and all, to join us in the sublime celebration of our Sarvajanik Shree Durga Puja 2015.
As ‘Juhu Sarbojanin Durgotsav’ enters its sixteenth year, we at the Juhu Cultural Association have the privilege of looking back at our journey so far. And this journey has been a nostalgic and humbling experience for all of us.
All these years we have tried our best to contribute to philanthropic causes and promote cultural activities. We have done this within our limited resources and are always working together and putting in efforts to build on these initiatives of ours.
I take this opportunity to thank all our patrons who have made it possible for us to continue with these activities. And at the same breath request them for more support and encouragement. Without them we can never live our dreams and continually be more meaningful and material in our effort.
This is also an opportunity for me to pay my homage to our founder Sursagar Jaganmoy Mitra, who is the guiding force for all such activities we under take.
As we get ready to celebrate our biggest festival of the year, I recount some of the unique features of our ‘Durgostav’
The Puja is celebrated in a traditional manner and following the strict timelines of the almanac. This completely managed by the ladies of the Association.
Serve bhog to all present at the venue. An activity where all members take turn in serving.
Show tremendous team work by the seniors and juniors who produce and participate in the inhouse cultural programme. This year we will show case the talent of both the senior and junior members in the fields of music, dance and drama.
Arrange for external cultural programme which show cases our rich cultural tradition. This year we are show casing Bengali folk music and Bengali contemporary music through these programmes.
I welcome all our patrons and members to enjoy and celebrate ‘Durgostav’ with us and make it a grand success.
Last, but not the least, I thank the members of the Association who have made this festival a success year after year.
I pray to ‘Ma Durga’ to bless us all so that we have a peaceful and prosperous year ahead.
There is always a constant tug of war between the sublime and evil thoughts, between the positivity and negativity in us all throughout the year.. The divine forces in our mind are the good, kind and noble thoughts represented by GODDESS DURGA while the evil in us is represented by the DEMON or ASURA who gets ultimately exterminated at the end of the war to continue to keep our life kicking alive and our beautiful world sustaining smilingly in the long run. This is the underlying message of DURGA PUJA event which we , the members of JUHU CULTURAL ASSOCIATION, celebrate every autumn in the joyful company of you all.
A very hearty and warm welcome to you gratefully in this year's PUJA.
We are confident of your continued support, sponsorship, participation and encouragement in our combined prayer to DURGA MATA to fight against all evils including diseases, deprivation, dirtiness, illiteracy and all other such dreaded evils collectively. Let us once again strive with all our might to share and spread compassion, charity and love to our ill-fed, illiterate brethren and sisters as we have been doing for the last 15 years through the celebration of DURGAPUJA and other activities.
D.R Gangopadhyay
Chief Advisor
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1) Sonar Kella – The Majestic Jaisalmer Fort (also known as the Golden Fort), made out of unique yellow sandstone, is a World Heritage Site. A pride for all Indians, especially Bengalis. Re-nowned film maker and writer Satyajit Ray wrote ‘Sonar Kella (The Golden Fortress)’, a detective novel, based on this fort and later filmed some parts of the movie in Jaisalmer. The film became a classic and a large number of tourists from around the world visit this fort to experience the world that Ray portrayed in the movie.
It is said, that once when Satyajit Ray visited the city during one of his location searches, he saw the rays of the early morning sun falling upon the majestic fort, giving it a golden glow. This inspired him to write his novel, keeping the golden fort as the central theme. Currently, the fort is occupied by the local residents, who carry the heritage and who have made the de-sert city as their home. It is interesting to take a walk along the alleys within the fort to get a feel of how life must have been here centuries back into the history.
2) Thrilling Desert Safari - Whether you decide to explore the sandy terrain on a camel’s back or glide through the high sand dunes in a jeep, the thrill of a desert safari in the Thar Desert
eight reasons why you must make a trip to the desert City Jaisalmer By ranjana Chakrabarti
is simply spectacular. The shifting white sand dunes, located close to the village Sam, are a sight that should not be missed.
3) Relish the Rajasthani cuisine - Famous for its refreshingly different kind of cuisine, be sure to explore some really unique flavours in Ra-jasthani food. A must-have dish is the famous ‘Dal Baati Churma’. Trust me, when you are served with that hot, freshly baked Baati, along with sizzling ghee and other side items, you will want to forget all your diet just to dig into this legendary delicacy. There are several other in-teresting dishes like ‘Ker Sangri’ (desert beans and capers) and ‘Laal Maas’ (red meat).
4) Pristine Gadisar Lake – This lake was originally a rain water conservation lake which was built in the 14th century by Maharawal Gadsi Singh to meet the water requirements of this arid re-gion. Presently the lake is no longer used for the purpose it was built for, but still retains a lot of rain water. The Gadisar Lake can be visited any time of the day, though it is best to go early in the morning and watch the sun rise.
The local people at Gadisar sell bread to feed the hungry catfish in the lake. You can also en-joy a boat ride on this green lake. If you happen to visit the Gadisar Lake in the winter, then you will be surprised and treated to a sight of vari-ous migratory birds that come from the nearby Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary.
5) Rich Culture –The Desert Culture Centre is a museum located near the Gadisar Lake which preserves the culture, heritage, history, tra-ditional art and music of the region, since its inception in 1997. It was established by N.K Sharma, a teacher, historian and author of
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“The Golden City”, a famous book on Jaisalmer. He had also helped out Satyajit Ray, during shooting of ‘Sonar Kella’. Sitting at the reception of the museum, this old person has plenty of stories to narrate about the golden past of this city.
6) Entertaining puppet shows - If you are in Jaisalmer, you simply not miss an opportunity of watching a puppet show narrating Rajasthani folk stories through song and dance. Several places, hotels and the Desert Cul-ture Centre organize puppet shows. What’s more, you can always buy a puppet from the puppeteers after their performance, to bring back home as a souvenir.
7) Seems familiar! – As you walk down the streets of Jaisalmer, having a look at the various pal-aces and forts with their rich architecture, you may start finding them a bit familiar. That is because Jaisalmer has been the favoured shooting location for several movies, television shows, etc. It would be interesting to know for all the Bollywood movie fans that movies like ‘Sarfa-rosh’, ‘Hum Dil De Chuka Sanam’, ‘Tashan’ and many more have been shot in Jaisalmer.
8) Suitable for all Budgets – From luxurious five-star hotels and resorts, to medium sized hotels, Jaisalmer is home to hotels suiting all budgets. In fact, there are more than 50 hotels inside the Sonar Kella ( Jaisalmer Fort) itself ! There are also several pocket friendly options like temporary room rentals inside the fort, given by the local residents of the city. Apart from these, there is a wide array of desert camps to choose from as well during camping seasons.
All-in-all, Jaisalmer is a city that you must visit once, to connect with India’s rich heritage and culture. The locals of the city claim that Christmas vacation is the best time to visit the desert city, as there are a variety of activities that take place around that time of the year.
It is indeed, a golden city!
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People often say they want to lose weight. On standing on a weighing scale they almost cry out once they see their weight, which does not conform to the weight they would like to have. “Weight of a body” can be a few different things. For example… water, glycogen, muscle or fat, bones, organs etc.. in reality however, what most of us want to lose is fat, NOT muscle.
Muscle the most precious tissue of your body. It increases strength and functionality and gives shape to your body. The associated benefits are, it helps in increasing immunity, hair and skin health. It is anti- ageing: prevents degeneration. Most important of all - Muscles are the most metabolically active tissue of your body. To increase metabolism one has to build up muscle mass and once that process starts, he or she can start losing body fat at a much faster rate.
mEtaBoLiSm
It is the energy utilization for all the physiological functions of the body. The rate at which the energy is required for these functions at rest is called the Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) of the body. More the BMR higher is the fat burn.
Now, despite whatever you may have heard before about how to lose fat, the truth is that there is just one major requirement… a caloric deficit.
When that caloric deficit is present, your body is forced to find some alternative source of energy on your body to burn instead. Ideally, this would ONLY be your stored body fat. However, it can also be your pretty lean muscle tissue.
Sure, you might want your body to just burn body fat and not muscle, but your body doesn’t really care about what you want. It just knows that in order for it to survive and function under the current conditions, it will need to pull stored energy from somewhere. And that can mean fat, muscle or a combination of both.
Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to do everything you can to improve the fat: muscle loss
Weight Loss vs. Fat Loss: it’s not The Same Thing!Deepa Nandy Consulting Nutritionist
ratio as much as possible and basically signal your body to maintain ALL of your muscle and ONLY burn body fat. But the question is… how?
By: Exercise, Nutrition and Rest and Recovery (Tripod of Fitness)
ExErCiSE
Weight training is based on the principle of progressive overload. And now here is the single most important training requirement for anyone who wants to lose fat without losing muscle. Simply put, the primary training stimulus required for maintaining muscle is maintaining your current levels of strength.
To get gradually getting stronger by progressive overload is what signals your body to begin the muscle building process.
When an overload is placed on a muscle group, the muscle tissues are broken and damaged at a microscopic level. This breakdown initiates an adaptive response of accelerated muscle repair through protein synthesis so as to adapt to the stress that was given by resistance training. Hence the muscle cells increase in size and increase the metabolism of the body.
If that signal goes away, your body’s need to keep your muscle tissue in good shape goes away right along with it.
nutrition
Nutrition provides all the raw materials required for muscle tissue repair and growth. With a correct balance of macronutrients (Protein, Carbohydrates and Fats) the body can adapt to the metabolic stress of resistance that your body undergoes in all walks of life.
rest and recovery
Ample time is required for recovery of the body. This happens during the rest period with minimum 8 hours of sleep and not over training.
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The Agarwals (also spelt as Agrawal, Agrawala, Agarwala, Aggarwal) are a prosperous Indian business community who can be found across the length and breadth of India though the community was originally concentrated in the northern Indian states of Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh. The Agrawals, who belong to the Vaishya community, are found in almost every part of India. They are also known as Banias because of their occupation While the Agarwals are related and akin to other communities like the Maheshwaris, Khandelwals, and Oswals, they are different from them in their origins and in their history.
Most Agarwals follow Hinduism, although some are Jains. The texts and legends of the Agarwal community trace the origin of Agarwals to the legendary King Agrasena (Maharaj Agrasen) of the Solar Dynasty who adopted Vanika dharma. Literally, Agarwal means the "children of Agrasena" or the "people of Agroha", a city in ancient Kuru Panchala, near Hissar in Haryana region said to be founded by Agrasena.
It is believed that King Agrasen married Madhavi, daughter of King Kumud of Nagaloka (Snake Kingdom). Thus Agarwals are the progeny of Madhavi and that is why they worship Nagas (snakes) and consider them to be their maternal uncles. The kingdom of Agrasen flourished and extended from the Himalayas, Punjab, the valley of Yamuna, and the Mewar region. Agra continued to be a prominent place being the capital of the southern part of the kingdom. The other important regions were Gurgaon (ancient Gaudagrama), the goddess mother of this place is revered by Agarwals; Meerut, Rohtak, Hansi, Panipat, Karnal, and Kotkangra. Agarwals have always known to be among the most respectable
CommunitieS - the AgArWALSAshok roy Chowdhry
and enterprising of the mercantile tribes. Two of Emperor Akbar's famous ministers are said to have been Agrawals, viz. Todarmal, who introduced a system for assessment of land, and Madhushah, who introduced 'Madhushahi' pice.
Maharaj Agrasen divided his kingdom among his 18 children, resulting in eighteen Agarwal gotras. Often, the number of gotras is stated to be seventeen or rather seventeen and a half. Some sources attributed the half gotra to an illegitimate offspring. Another version suggests that Maharaj Agrasen proceeded to conduct 18 mahayajnas. During one such yajna, Maharaj Agrasen noticed that a horse that had been brought to be sacrificed was trying hard to get away from the sacrificial altar. Seeing this, Maharaj Agrasen was filled with compassion for the animal and the idea of Ahimsa engaged his mind. Therefore, he put a brake to his eighteenth yajna, announcing that no sacrifices will be made in his kingdom in the name of yajnas. Thus, the eighteenth yajna wasn't completed and Agrasena had performed seventeen and a half yajnas. The gods appeared before him and blessed him with seventeen and a half gotras. In the later part of his life, Agrasena nominated his eldest son Vibhu to the throne and took up Vanaprastha ashram.
The eighteen gotras of the Agarwals are:1. Airan (also Aeron)2. Bansal3. Bhandal4. Bindal or Vindal5. Dharan or Deran6. Garg or Gargeya7. Goyal, Goel or Goenka8. Goyan or Gangal9. Jindal
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10. Kansal11. Kuchhal or Kuchchal12. Madhukul or Mudgal13. Mangal14. Mittal15. Nangal or Nagal16. Singhal or Singla17. Tayal18. Tingal or Tunghal
Maharaj Agrasen started a severe (penance) to propitiate God in the city of Kashi. Shiva, pleased with the penance, advised him to propitiate Goddess Mahalakshmi. Maharaj Agrasen started meditating again on Mahalakshmi, who appeared before him and blessed him. She urged him, a Kshatriya, to take up the Vaishya tradition of business for the sake of the prosperity of his people. She asked him to establish a new kingdom, and promised that she would bless his descendants with prosperity. She also told him that there will not be any paucity of wealth and prosperity in his kingdom.
Agrasena traveled all over India with his queen to select a place for a new kingdom. At one point during his travels, he found a few tiger cubs and wolf cubs playing together. To Maharaj Agrasen and Queen Madhavi, this was an auspicious indication that the area was veerabhoomi (land of the brave) and they decided to found their new kingdom at that location. The place was named Agroha. Agroha is situated near present day Hissar in Haryana. Presently Agroha is developing as Agarwal's holy station, having a Big Temple of Agrasen & Vaishnav Devi.
According to legend, Agroha became a prosperous city and a hundred thousand traders lived in the city during its heyday. An insolvent community man as well as an immigrant wishing to settle in the city would be given a rupee and a brick by each inhabitant of the city. Thus, he would have a hundred thousand bricks to build a house for himself, and a hundred thousand rupees to start a new business. Gradually, the city of Agroha declined and was
finally destroyed in a huge fire. The residents of Agroha i.e. the Agarwals moved out of Agroha and spread to other parts of India.
The Agarwal merchant Nattal Sahu, and the Agarwal poet Vibudh Shridhar lived during the reign of the Tomara King Anangapal of Yoginipur (now Mehrauli, near Delhi).
In 1354, Firuz Shah Tughluq had started the construction of a new city near Agroha, called Hisar-e-Feroza ("the fort of Firuz"). Most of the raw material for building the town was brought from Agroha. The town later came to be called Hissar. Hissar became a major center of the Agarwal community. Later, during the Mughal rule and during the British East India Company administration, some Agarwals migrated to Bihar and Calcutta. They became the major component of the people commonly referred to as the Marwaris.
According to the legend, the Agarwal community developed twenty rules of conduct. Those who followed all the twenty rules were called Bisa Agrawal, those who followed only ten rules were called Dassa Agarwals and those who followed only five were called Punja Agrawals.
In his book Agarwalon ki Utpatti, Bhartendu Harishchandra, himself an Agarwal, categorised Agarwals in four branches according to their places or inhabitation:1. Marwaris
2. Deswal
3. Easterners
4. Westerners
Several large business organizations were founded by members of the Agarwal community - such as Bharti Airtel, ArcelorMittal, and The Times Group. Well known Agarwals include Lala Lajpat Rai, Sir Ganga Ram, Lakshmi Mittal, Sunil Bharati Mittal, Anil Agarwal, O. P. Jindal, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, Bharatendu Harishchandra etc.
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We had heard a lot about this temple site from our friends, as well as seen pictures on various TV p r o g r a m m e s , which whetted our appetite. Travel from Mumbai can be either via
Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur or Singapore depending on the airline selected. The actual location of this set of temples is in a city named Siem Reap. Siem Reap is a small tourist town, well organized to receive thousands of tourists and yet retain its ethnicity. There are regular flights to Siem Reap from all the 3 cities mentioned.
Angkor literally means “Holy City “in the Khmer language. These temples were built between 9th and 14th century AD by Khmer kings who followed Hinduism. At that time, Angkor was the capital of the Khmer kingdom .The names of the kings – Jayavarman, Yasovarman, and Suryavarman etc. seem to suggest a linkage with the Tripura area of India. Our famous music director and singer Sachin Dev Varman belonged to the Royal family of Tripura.
travel to Angkor Wat, Cambodia February 2015By Pradeep mukherjee
Buddhism moved into Cambodia in early 15th century, mainly through invasions from Siam (now Thailand). The capital moved from Angkor to Phnom Penh. These temples slowly lost their importance, and got covered by dense forests which blocked out all the light.
Later, several explorers and missionaries from Europe mentioned about the Angkor temples from time to time, but few actually ventured there. Henri Mouhot, a French explorer, first entered these portals in 1860 and wrote about his discovery of Angkor Wat. The tourist potential of this amazing place was developed after the fading away of the Communist regime in 1970s.
These are probably the oldest Hindu Temples in existence today. The minimum time required is 4 days (3 nights’ stay necessary). Some of the most interesting places here are:
Angkor Thom – built late 12th century under king Jayavarman II. This is a moat-surrounded city of old, and has the king’s temple Bayon and the Royal Palace. Bayon has 37 towers, all with the face of the king sculpted in all sides – as if watching over the population.
Angkor Wat – built mid-12th century under king Suryavarman II. This is the temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu. A pre-sunrise visit (around 4.30/5.00 am) is strongly recommended to get a glimpse of the sun rising from behind the temples. Sculptures on the walls depict many scenes from Ramayana and Mahabharata.
Banteay Srey – built late 10th century under king Rajendravarman. Very intricate carvings of women’s faces with adornments of jewellery and hair styles.
Ta Prohm – built Mid-12th century under king Jayavarman II. An old set of temples, but the most interesting aspect is the existence of large trees within
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the walls of this temple. These have intentionally been left partially unrestored, so that visitors can see how much the forests had actually taken over.
Baphuon - Mid 11th century under king Udayadityavarman. This has a large statue of the reclining Buddha on one side, which was added in the 16th century. The front has the “Terrace of the Elephants” built in late 12th century.
A few interesting observations:
In Siem Reap, the US Dollar is an accepted currency for daily needs. You can pay the auto driver in USD and receive back change also in USD.
Food and drinks are very reasonably priced. In an average restaurant in the city Centre, we could have dinner for 2 in 8 dollars.
All temples require tickets for entry. The whole system is meticulously monitored and honestly paid for.
This trip should be done at a relatively younger age. All temples require a lot of climbing up and down over large stone steps.
We stayed in a small jungle type cottage hotel with a total 8 rooms. The hospitality was excellent and
breakfast sumptuous. The hotel helped us to hire one tuk-tuk (auto) to be with us from morning till night on all days – from airport to airport.
We had left our cell phones off during this entire trip. Hence there was no call, sms, whatsapp or email to break our focus. We survived the 7 day trip without any mental trauma.
We travelled via Bangkok, and therefore also covered many places there. However, these are well known and need to mention here.
The last observation:
On our return leg, we were in Bangkok on Feb. 14, Valentine’s Day. We stayed just across from the Erawan temple –where the recent bomb explosion took place. In the evening till late, there must have been thousands of couples of all ages in the courtyard of the Central Mall. However, not more than 10% were actually talking to each other. Every other couple was busy looking at his or her cell phone, either receiving or sending messages.
What is the future of the human race – or will we learn to live with gadgets having artificial intelligence?
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As my flight landed in Bengaluru Airport a day before the TCS World 10K marathon, I was pleasantly surprised to hear the air hostess announce the outside temperature as 26 degrees. Leaving my city Mumbai , hot & humid at a sweltering 35 degrees and landing at Bengaluru was a happy relief. As if there was more happiness in store, I met with frequent bouts of rainfall as I entered the city.
TCS World 10k
The Kanteerava Stadium officials and the organisers of the TCS World 10K must have spent sleepless night in their effort to pump out water from the stadium (which I heard was waterlogged following the downpour) and make it ready for hosting the marathon.
Next day morning, while the country was getting ready to deal with another hot summer day, Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru was ready to welcome over 25000 running enthusiasts with the perfect weather condition, conducive formarathon running.
All runners entered the stadium through various gates as per their line up section and assembled in galleries acting as the holding area for the race. I joined all others in my holding area, in a short warm-up session organised before the race. As the clock ticked towards 6 am, the gates were opened and the runners scrambled to get to the start line on the eight lane 400m synthetic tracks of the stadium. I touched the synthetic tracks with my fingers, as a mixed feeling of joy and achievement ran in my mind for being able to run on it for the first time in my life. My timing certificate of the Pune International Marathon 2014 granted me eligibility to start the marathon from priority line up section B, behind probably a thousand odd runners. I found myself surrounded by runners wearing colourful branded
tCS World 10k: The Story of a runnerBy Shubhodip mukhopadhyay
sportswear, with serious faces, determined to better their timings. The race started sharp at 6 am.
Around 6:02 am, I could finally cross the start line jogging slowly on the synthetic tracks of Kaanteerava Stadium. As expected, I could hardly make space for myself , as I ran slow, out of the stadium through a narrow lane to Kasturba road to find cheering crowds on both sides with placards, shouting and clapping. Running slowly on the road with an alert mind, and taking care not to bump into a fellow
runner, I found a group of dancers shaking a leg to the latest Bollywood songs. As it happens in any major marathon in the country, the first 2 kms became a big challenge to run due to the huge rush. I tried to dribble past fellow runners and ran on the foot path next to the road for some distance in an attempt to increase my pace. A group of Bhangra dancers danced enthusiastically on a makeshift dais next to the road. I found a few runners taking out a few seconds to give them company and again join back the race.
While crossing the 3 km mark near the Manekshaw parade ground, I got a taste of how this marathon has taken the shape of a national event when I
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heard runners cheering each other saying “come on Hyderabad runners”, “ come on Delhi runners”.
Around the 5 Km mark, people were trying to motivate runners with their pep talks. I started increasing my pace on Cubbon road. I could feel the effort and started breathing deeper and faster to keep up with my body’s demands. I entered Queens road. My body started feeling the pain. My mind started directing me to slow down, which I did not want to. I thought of diverting my mind from running and started reading the IPL banners in front of Chinnaswamy Cricketstadium, while maintaining the same pace. But then, the speakers came alive with the popular song “Pink” by Aerosmith. Probably it acted as a performance enhancer, as I threw out the thought of slowing down, kept the same speed and entered Dr. Ambedkar Road. This road welcomed us with loud cheering crowds on both sides. Some of them held placards with strong motivating messages. A few of them held placards with funny lines. Funny enough to make you laugh even while you are on the run. One such placard caught my eyes which read “This is a lot of work for a Free Banana!”. The picturesque Vidhan
Soudha came to my right and the High Court on to my left. What a wonderful experience it was to freely run past such famous landmarks without the fear of traffic knocking me down!
I entered Cubbon Park. My previous visits to Bengaluru had never brought me to this park, making me unaware of it’s beauty. While I ran inside the park, my eyes admired every bit of this goldmine of greenery, amidst cheering morning walkers. I ran out of Cubbon park as I crossed the 9 km mark and entered Kasturba road. Another km to go, I thought to myself. As was planned earlier, I ran it in a steady controlled pace.
As I crossed the finishing line, I felt happy to be a proud finisher of this wonderfully organised popular 10K marathon. I mentally thanked the weather, the cheering crowds, Aerosmith and the organizers for making me feel so special! You have to finish a challenging race this to appreciate the joys of rest and that free banana. Thank you Bengaluru!
As published in www.sportsrediscovered.com
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As we move through the passage of life, we garner a rich basket of experiences and till the last moments, we look forward to a future. There are memories and baggage from the past and the future is full of expectations and apprehensions. The one thing that is constant is the present – that very moment that we all live in. Life is a procession of moments that we are present in. Yet…
When we look at a small child, she is perhaps struggling to put that red cherry in her mouth. Or she is perhaps chasing the ball that is rolling away from her. May be she doesn’t like your face and starts bawling. What is she really doing? She is just living in her present. At that moment of her life she is not thinking of how she perhaps choked on her milk the previous day, nor is she bothered about what new toy her mom is going to get her the next day!
When kids are playing a game of cricket in the small spaces in a Mumbai building, how quickly do they frame the rules of the game? Once the game is over, rules are gone too! And the next day they frame something else. The past doesn’t matter to them nor does the future. Kids really enjoy life and aren’t they powerful? They do what they want, till someone tries to ‘guide’ them from their past or from their expectations of a ‘future’.
As we grow we lose that power to live in the present. Our present is impacted by a constant chatter in our minds about images and instances from our past and dreams and hypothesis about the future. Our listening is impacted. During an early morning jog on the road, instead of soaking in the beautiful breaking of dawn when the metropolis reluctantly shakes off its lethargy, the mind is constantly on chatter – about the review meeting later in office, about the exam that the kid is not adequately prepared for, or about the politics that has left a scar. The mind is not still;
The Presentarnab Banerjee
it is not in the present. It’s not that the surroundings only matter. That mind could behave exactly in the same way even if you are trekking up the Himalayas. The chatter in the mind shuts out the view of the beautiful alpine vegetation, the sound of the crickets, the chirping of the birds. The beautiful orchestra of nature passes by, without entering our consciousness. We miss the beauty of the present.
While at the review meeting in the office, the past discussions frame the pre-conceived answers in the mind. We stop listening to our colleagues. We are eager to answer, to speak, and to air our views. We miss what’s going on at the present. The past relation with a colleague shapes the behavior and we act from our past, pouring more energy into what’s already has been shaped. We miss new opportunities at the present. The fear of disapproval may shut out mouths. We may be worried about the future. We get conditioned and build stress. We miss the opportunity to contribute at the present.
We eat our meals with one hand on the smartphone button and eyes on Arnab Goswami. The goodness of the food, the beautiful taste, passes over the taste buds unconsciously. The nutrients pass through without any realization. We miss being in the present.
Just being in the present is an opportunity that we all have. At every moment. It makes us powerful like the small kid. It makes us independent of the past. And it releases us from the clutches of the future. We live in a beautiful world, full of beautiful people. We shall enjoy all relationships fabulously by just being in the present, if there is no past and no future as well!
By being in the present – only in the present, we can be powerful.
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The three jewels of Andalusia aloke & rupa De
A trip to the Iberian Peninsula usually means trips to Madrid, or to the Catalonian capital Barcelona or sunning on the beaches of the Balearic Islands of Mallorca, Menorca and Ibiza. But there are eight provinces in the south, Andalusia, where the treasures of Spain are to be seen.
Stretching from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean Andalusias three cities Cordoba, Granada and Seville are where the most impressive ancient monuments are to be found; beautiful mosques converted to cathedrals, ancient forts Alcazars converted to forts cum palaces for the Spanish Catholic kings.
The Iberian Peninsula has been subject to several foreign invasions. Steeped in history it was first occupied by the Romans in 218 BC who in their own style influenced the region by building cites with forts, theatres and temples. With the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century, the Visigoths invaded and occupied the region. Their reign was short lived and the Moslem rulers of North Africa, the Moors, invaded and became rulers of southern Spain in the 8th century. They were the rulers of this territory for more than 400 years. With Cordoba as their capital, the Muslim reign called Al Andalus, occupied and built their Alcazars and Mosques over the Roman ruins in their own grand style. In
the 12th century, the Christians united under King Fernando and Queen Isabelle, invaded and drove out the Moors from Southern Spain. The early Christian Kings and then the Hapsburg rulers rebuilt these monuments in their own style; thus Alcazars became forts and the grand Mosques the Cathedrals.
The grand monuments you see in Cordoba, Granada and Seville are spectacular because of their unique combination of Muslim and Christian architecture.
The finest Moorish buildings of Al Andalusa are in
their capital Cordoba, famous for its mosque cum cathedral Mesquita. This grand structure is in part a large Mosque, Medina Azahara, and in part a magnificent cathedral. The other, even more famous, is Alhambra in Granada.
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Cordoba’s Grand Mosque with over eight hundred red and beige pillars embodied the power of Islam on the Iberian Peninsula. The mosque was built in the eighth century by the Muslim invaders on the ruins of the ancient church San Vincente Basilica built by the Visigoths. It went through four stages of construction over many centuries, blending many architectural forms, to make it the most important sanctuary of western Islam. Though inspired by the Mosque of Damascus, a strong Christian and Hispanic influence can be perceived.
The most lavish additions were made in the 10th century extending the courtyard, the prayer hall which included the richly ornamented Mihrab the prayer niche, and the exquisitely engraved Masquara. The original minaret was also built during this era.
The Christian transformation came when King Ferdinand III re-conquered Cordoba in the 13th century.
A part of the mosque was modified to accommodate the cathedral; the main chapel built in the 16th century was an ingenious integration of Muslim architecture within the gothic, renaissance and baroque creations. The Muslim courtyard was remodelled and the palm trees replaced by orange trees. The present day tower was built over the original minaret.
This cathedral built alongside an old Caliphate Mosque is a world heritage site visited by thousands of tourist every year. Unless seen it is hard to believe the sheer size of this mosque cum cathedral.
Nestling in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, Granada has often been described by the Moorish poets as a “pearl set in emeralds”. Occupied by the Moors in the 8th century, its golden era came during the rule of the Nasrid dynasty in the 13th century. It is during their rule that they completed the Nazaries Palace which is the showpiece of the famous Alcazar Alhambra of Granada. And Alhambra is one of the great treasures of Spain.
The Alhambra is located on a strategic point, with a view over the whole city. There were buildings already on that site before the Muslims arrived. The complex is surrounded by ramparts and has an irregular shape.
There was the Alcazaba, a fortress, dating back from the 9th century, which suffered damage due to wars that destroyed the Caliphate of Cordoba, to which Granada then belonged. It was not until the arrival of the first king of the Nasrid dynasty, in the 13th century, that the royal residence was established in the Alhambra. This event marked the beginning of the Alhambra's most glorious period.
The Nasrid Kings were responsible for most of the constructions of the Alhambra that we can still admire today. From the improvements of the Alcazaba and the palaces, to the Patio of the Lions (Patio de los Leones) and its annexed rooms, including the extension of the area within the ramparts, the Justice Gate, the extension and decoration of the towers, and the building of the Baths.
The Nasrid dynasty, at the zenith of their power, created a paradise on earth. Its delicate craftsmanship still dazzles the eye. A magical use of space, light, and water with intricate engravings characterises this most sensual piece of architecture. The Alhambra was built with its own special type of columns, which is not used in any other building. It includes some of the typical elements of the Andalusian architecture, such as the horseshoe arch with square wide frame which envelopes the arch. Every single space is covered with decorations; walls covered with beautiful and extremely rich ceramics
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and plasterwork with the coverings having wooden frames that have been exquisitely carved.
After the conquest of Granada in the 15th century by the catholic monarchs, Charles V ordered the demolition of a part of this complex in order to build the palace which still bears his name.
It is now one of Spain's major tourist attractions, exhibiting the country's most significant and well known Islamic architecture, together with 16th century Christian building and garden interventions. Alhambra is a world heritage site and the inspiration for many songs and stories.
The last but not the least, the Royal Alcázar of Seville is the royal palace in Seville, again built by the Moorish Muslim kings. The palace is renowned as one of the most beautiful in Spain, and regarded as one of the most outstanding examples of Islamic architecture found on the Iberian Peninsula. The upper levels of the Alcázar are still used by the royal
family as the official Seville residence and it is the oldest royal palace still in use in Europe. It has also been declared a world heritage site.
Our short sojourn in Andulusia was not only immensely enjoyable but extremely enlightening, for it revealed that all religions, however diverse, have survived in the same environment without any conflict. The words of our guide in Seville only epitomises this observation when he said “I am Spanish by birth, my nose is Jewish, my face Islamic but I am a Catholic.”
our young achievers
arkav Banerjee s/o Swati and Arnab Banerjee
completed his HSC and is now studying Electronics and Communications engineering at NMIMS's Mukesh Patel school of Technology Management & Engineering
Our juniour members are moving ahead
rajoshi ray d/o Anindita and Abhik Ray
passed ISC board (science) from Lilavati Bai Podar school this year scoring 96.20 percent.
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I wish to become a person who can spread peace and happiness.
I wish to become my daddy’s little girl who can do well in everything in her life.
I wish to become my mother’s daughter who is inspired by her and make her proud.
I wish to become my sister’s best friend who can follow her footsteps.
I wish to become a person who can spread the word DREAM.
I wish to be a girl who can fulfill other’s dreams.
I wish to be myself !
i wish to become a…Anjisha Banerjee
Namaste! I am a girl from India. Originally from Kolkata but born and brought up in Mumbai. Here the smoke of the chimneys make us turn our heads away and the sky makes us cry. The stars that belong to us are ashamed to look in our eyes, thus hiding themselves in cloaks of smoke. It feels like nature is a little child acting at its worst. During my field trip in year &, I had the opportunity to feel and know nature at its best. Have you ever yearned to feel the power if greenness of the surrounding and blueness of the sky above and below? Then my friends, come, come with me visiting Kerala. Where lies Gods own country.
One bright sunny morning my year and I left for our field trip to Kerala. We would be staying in a camp so near to the forest that you could see elephants on the other side of the river on sunny afternoons of summer. On the way to the camp all I saw from my bus was a portrait drawn by me of a lively village. Green grass, blue sky, brown hills, people farming and unpolluted air. That day I was treated as the queen of green, I knew the blue and also frowned at the brown. We were soon at the camp and our daily instruction were to wake up at 6am.
Knowing nature at its bestihina Das
But, me being juvenile couldn’t go to sleep! Much less could wake up at such a late hour in the day! I crept off from my tent at 4 am and that when I knew heaven. The sky was pink in morning light. The birds sang for me (or so it seemed), the river was calm and welcoming and best of all coffee was ready to be sipped! I sat in the lawn with coffee filling my mind and the scene filling the rest. It felt like just minutes had passed when suddenly I felt a bump on my shoulder. My friends had come looking for me! They said that I had been gone for 2 hours! Thats just the first morning.
The rest of the days passed with discovering rubber plants. Spotting birds and tasting spices. Alas! Now I am back in my confined home where the smoke of the chimneys make us turn our heads away and the sky makes us cry. The stars that belong to us are ashamed to look in our eyes, thus hiding themselves in cloaks of smoke! It is indeed nature at its worst behaviour. Waiting to be scolded by her mom to change its ways.
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I still remember my first day of college. I was standing outside staring at a big white banner that said WELCOME TO MANIPAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY in bold red letters.
There was something surging inside me. Fear, anticipation, excitement? I didn’t know. It was a whole new world, a world of possibilities, ideas, outcomes.
There can be two things that happens to you in the first few days of college. Either you roam around alone, discover the place bit by bit, observe people, things, and add a new friend to your list every day.
Or, you make a whole new group of friends, on day 1 itself, out of sheer luck, or by being at the right place at the right time.
I still remember the first day I met my friends, in the middle of the food court while I was shouting for spoons and one good soul decided to help me out and that marked off the beginning of our friendship.
One shall find people from all parts of the country, from different religious, social and cultural background, so at some point of time, one has to step out of their comfort zone and mix with others.
One shall meet people from all walks of life, some “brilliant ones”, some “selfish ones”,kind-hearted,helpfulones,some spiteful ones, and you have to deal with them all. Because at the end of the day there will be no going back home to escape such people which is also the “harsh” reality of life, our elders always tell us about.
Hostel life is something, that is new to me. A month of it has left me with a mixture of emotions. It gives a sense of independence, a sense of responsibility for my actions, my nature, my habits and at the same
my College Diaries Sayani Sarkar
time, even now when I step inside my hostel room, it feels unreal. It feels as if I don’t belong here, as if I am here for a short vacation which is soon to get over and then I shall go back home, to where I actually belong.
At night, things become a mad frenzy with hungry floor mates knocking at your door, begging for food, or skipping breakfast in the morning and then making instant coffee which doesn’t taste like coffee in the least. Things like washing and ironing clothes gain more priority than studying. Not to mention those late night loud music parties and horror movie nights, and then all the girls sleeping in one room, half of them on the floor.
There is a famous saying that goes here in MIT,“people join engineering to discover their interests.”That is what the clubs are here for.
Starting from technical, to health ones, to cultural ones, to philosophical, literary etc etc. There is something for everyone, so one gets ample of chances to “discover themselves” as they say.You think you possess a rare talent? There will be hundreds of them out there to prove you wrong, which is good because then it makes you want to work harder to attain excellence. One is not encouraged to join just what he is good at, but what he is not. What he has never one, what he fears to do. Because one should have a taste of everything in life, whether good or bad.
It’s a race against time. From the time you wake up, to the time you go back to sleep, you are always running. You don’t have time even to die. It’s either a club rehearsal, or gym or group studying at the library or just hanging out with friends. Sometime you’d wish that you could buy time. But from where? Time flies so fast that one week seems just a day. It gets over just at the blink of an eye.
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Just yesterday, I went to the library to study with full dedication and I fell asleep until a few people woke me up and harshly told me that “library is for studying, not sleeping.”We sat in the middle of the road, singing crazy Bollywood songs, and creeping out every single passer-by .Going to the beach, or to night clubs, or out for dinners and then getting freaked out by the huge bills, sharing it with friends, are all signs of the fact that you are in college.
There will be good days and there will be bad days. There will be days of frustration when you would want to pull out your hair, there would be days of depression when you would just want to cry, moments of weakness, embarrassments, outcomes of wrong decision etc etc. But there is one thing that you always have to remember when you are in a campus based college that, you are responsible for your own actions. You do a mistake, you can’t go and hide under a rock forever. You want to cry, you can’t go and cry on your mother’s lap. You are confused? There won’ t be anyone to clear it for you.
College life changes you in a way you have never imagined. “Expect the unexpected”. You begin to do things, that are way out of your comfort zone, things that you would never have done back at home, and each time you try something new, you change. You get rid of one fear in your life. You strike off one thing from your “never done” or “can’t do “list.
I had never been a part of a drama team. Despite knowing for sure that I would be humiliated and bullied during auditions, I decided to take the risk, and yes it was humiliating, for the seniors don’t let go of an opportunity to ,as they call it “juniors ki lena.”, but the exhilarating feel, when I got in, made up for all the humiliation. It’s all about stepping out of your comfort zone and “manning up.”Too much of thinking spoils the thing for us, so one more thing that college life teaches us is impulsiveness.
Another aspect of college life, that cannot be ignored at any cost is the food. Nothing can be compared to “ghar ka khana”, starts making more sense with each and every passing day.
So when you go back home during vacations, all that you do is experience your ma ke haatho ka jadoo,and sleep.
Manipal is an institute of the south. The food here, is a lot better as compared to other institutions, but there is nothing like what our mother cooks, or what is found in the streets of our cities like Mumbai or Kolkata and definitely not Delhi. There is a saying here ,that “We students don’t pity the food here because of the fact that it’s not north Indian, we pity them at their pathetic attempt at making north Indian food.”
To survive here, one has to occasionally skip a few meals here and there, and eat out. Because ,we as college students are always hungry. Whether it’s two in the morning or an hour later after lunch, whether it’s in the middle of a biology class or in the middle of a deep talk with our love partners.
As time passes, one starts gaining their priorities. Decisions become harder. Days become shorter, time-management skills require a bit of modifying, your initial friends dissolve in the sea of students, replaced by new ones.
College life is a lot different from school life. It is not just about studying, it is about becoming what you have always envied in others. It’s about striking off everything in your “never done” or “can’t do” list, it’s about being a complete different person, a person that cannot be recognized by the people who knew you before. It’s about a whole new level of fun, a whole new level of independence, a world of alienation that is addictive, yet challenging at every aspect of life.
Here is one song for every college student, that is more meaningful that anything in life, “saari umra hum, maar maar ke ji liye, ek paal toh abh hame, jeene do, jeene do,…..give me some sunshine, give me some rain, give me anotehr chance, i wanna grow up once again.”
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One can argue that there is no certainty in the world. Everything is relative. Yes it is true, that over the ages it has been seen that definitions of right and wrong are relative. What is right today maybe wrong tomorrow and what is right for one person may be wrong for another. But then who decides what is right and what is wrong? An individual. Each individual thinks for himself or herself and decides what is right or wrong for him/her. It is the individual’s mind which makes the choices.
If one day one individual decides that the choices he/she makes are the best and coerces others to believe in his beliefs of right and wrong, he/she is creating a certitude for others. But then what gives anyone the right to create certitude for others? Who decides whose definition of right is better?
It is true that reality is a matter of perception and that one person’s reality is another person’s illusion. A person who thinks that he/she has a right to create an illusion for another is taking away the right of the other individual to think and perceive.
If the only certitude in the world is the human mind making its choices then it does become a sin to change that certitude for others.
Here one might argue that even parents try to enforce their thoughts, opinions and beliefs on the mind of the child and in a way mould the choices the child makes. But the reason we do not see the action of the parents as a sin is because the parents do not bind the child within the confines of their belief. They allow the child to be free, to meet others, to gain new experiences and at the end the child does come up with subjective preferences.
The Choice of illusionArpita Chaudhuri
Many would say that if an illusion can continue forever they would prefer that to reality.
Think of two people who decide that they want their child to be brought up in an illusion and never know pain. They build a house which has all the amenities in place and there is a way to keep replenishing the same in the house without anybody actually entering the place. As soon as the child is born, the parents put the child in the house where she is taken care of by robots. The parents do not meet the child ever because they fear that in case the child starts loving them and in case they die the child will experience grief and pain. No visitors are allowed in the house, there are no books, no television, in fact no contact with the outside world.
The child can never leave the house because it is sealed. The child grows up in the house, all she knows about the world is the existence of those objects present in the house and the robots. The house assures permanent contenment. How many of us would want to be that child?
Yes the child is not facing the sad reality but the crux of the matter is that the child is trapped.
Creating a happy world of illusion is not wrong in itself, in fact it can be considered to be a very noble act, but forcing people into that world is wrong.
The human mind has a right to make choices. The definition of happiness is not the same for everyone. Some find happiness in stability, some find happiness in change, some find happiness in challenge...
Donation to Pranab Kanya Sangha Charity through “Bengali Corner”
Cancer Patients partaking Bhog
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Rohit Sarkar
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Recipe
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INGREDIENT:
1KG – boneless meat, 4-5tbs – olive oil, a fistful of dried rosemary, 3 whole onions, 4 sliced onions, 3tsp – ground pepper, juice of 3 lemons, salt to taste, wheat flour – make dough for sealing.
METHOD:
Rub the inside of an earthen handi with some oil. Also rub the mutton with 3 to 4 tbsp. of oil. Put the mutton in the handi and add the rosemary. Now add
all the ingredients and mix well. Cover tightly with lid and seal with dough. Cook on low temperature for 4hr. or till done.
Serve hot from handi. Eat with pav, naan or roti.
hAnDi meAtUrmi Mukhopadhyay
a. hole in the Bread
ingredients
- Multigrain bread/ whole wheat bread / regular white bread (Better with larger sized breads)
- Eggs
- Butter
- Mustard sauce or chilli sauce (optional)
- Pepper or chives
method
- First, take out the breads and keep them on a flat surface. Now place the sharp edged glass at the centre of the bread, to cut out a circular piece of the bread, so that it creates a hole at the centre of the bread.
- Now take a frying pan and drop in some butter. Keep till it starts sizzling.
- Place the hollow bread over the frying pan. Toss until both sides are gentle golden.
Funky and easy-to-make Breakfasts by Kaushiki Chakrabarti
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- Take an egg. Crack the egg right into the hole of the bread, such that it falls completely into the circle. You will basically be making a ‘sunny-side-up’ within the circular hollow of the bread.
- Wait till the bottom of the egg gets cooked and integrates well into the centre of the bread.
- Once the egg is done, you can take the combo out of the frying pan. Sprinkle some chives or pepper over the egg.
- Smear some mustard sauce or chilli sauce along the edge of the hollow or just have it plain – as you like it!
- You can utilise the circular pieces of bread that were cut out, by frying until crispy brown and serve along with the dish.
- Voila! Serve hot!
B. Sausage Bagel Sandwich
ingredients
-Bagels – These round donut-like breads are found in various varieties like multigrain, cheese, jalapeno and onions, etc.
- Chicken sausages
- Iceberg Lettuce
- Tomatoes
- Sliced olives
- Cheese slice
- Mustard sauce
- Eggs – scrambled / Boiled and sliced (optional)
Method
- Cut your bagel into two halves, to form two semi circles. Now cut each semi-circular bread horizontally, in order to help you make the dish like a sandwich. You will now have four pieces from one bread.
- Add a small amount of butter in the frying pan to gently toss the bagels until slightly crispy.
- Take the chicken sausages and cut in horizontal halves. You should be able to get a half cylinder type piece, which has one side flat and the other side rounded.
- Now place the sausages in boiling water. Boil until sausage skin begins to crumble.
- Apply mustard sauce on the inner bases of the pieces of the bagel.
- Place lettuce over the two pieces of the base bread. Place cheese slice, followed by tomato slices and sliced olives, on the lettuce. Lastly, place the sausage pieces.
- You can add scrambled eggs or sliced pieces of boiled eggs, if you wish so.
- Cover with the two remaining breads in order to make a sandwich.
- Keep the entire bagel sandwich back on the frying pan for a minute over a low flame.
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With Best Compliments From !
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The cultural activities of Juhu Cultural Association begins with the Agomoni Gaan, to welcome Goddess Durga. The term agomoni comes from the word 'agaman' which in Sanskrit, Bengali and many other Indian languages means to approach or to come. Since these songs herald the the coming of mother Durga they are known as Agomoni. These songs are also an ultimate triumph of devotion and bhakti and contains elements of Hindustani classical, padavali kirtan and Bengali folk .
CuLturAL ProgrAmme highLightS 2015Maha Shasti 19th October 2015, Monday
Folk music is diverse because of India's vast cultural diversity. Though it might be started with devotional songs later it covered each & every part of contemporary human life including psychology, philosophy, anatomy (Deha-Tatva), socio-economic condition, love, day to day living etc. and in many of them you will find deep insight into life. There are numerous eminent bards/saints or fakirs who had contributed a lot in this field. Bengal has huge variety of folk song depicting different culture,tradition,rituals and beliefs. Baul, Bhatiyali, Bhawaiya,Jhumur to name a few.But many of them have originated in current Bangladesh pre independence. Some songs belong to the saints,some are sung by fishermen,oarsmen. Some song celebrates functions like marriage and somewhere the lady of the house complains about her husband.
The members of Juhu Cultural Association will present some such folk songs to celebratethe simplicity of life in this complex world.
There's power in women being women. There's a role for men, but we don't have to be men, because we're women. And that's what we bring forth in this year's Pujo. A women only family comedy "Pranay Bibhrat", or, tumult in marriage.
The plot dates back to the 1980s - a decade since the Bangladesh freedom war. It revolves around the then society of Bengal and depicts how some intimate human relationships can also be impacted by prying and intrusive behavior of relatively unimportant members surrounding the family.
Lily and Nirmal are a middle-class couple, married for 10 years. They still don’t have a child, a stigma, that everyone believes to be the root cause of problems in their relationships. Lily has been brought up under strict control by her influential mother, Sushama Samaddar. Sushama believes that just like her, every wife must dictate the terms in the marriage from the very first day. Even after 10 years of marriage, Lily has not been able to break free from the iron clutches of her mother and leaves her own household to take shelter under her mother at the drop of a hat. This provokes the two old-time house maids, Basanti and Piyali to fabricate their own versions of the marital issues between Lily and Nirmal and sow the seed of suspicion that Nirmal has an extra marital affair.
And as if that is not enough, there is an ever inquisitive neighbour, Bairagi pishi, who while maintaining a divine demeanor, tries every opportunity to draw out all and any information which can create new controversies and conflict. The story has many twists and turns ending with a complete anti-climax which is the high point of the drama.
This 45 minute episode of enthralling, interesting and compelling story-telling brings out the importance of communication and trust in any relationship and how the lack of them can strain even the closest of bonds.
Shakti is a dance drama based on the concept of power. Shakti is an eternal, supreme power and omniscient energy. It is connected with and identical to the power of the great Hindu triad – Bramha, Vishnu and Maheshwara. Shakti is the personification of divine feminine creative power in hinduism. Shakti embodies the active feminine energy of Shiva and is identified as Tripura Sundari or Parvati besides Adi Parashakti.
Shakti is the primordial cosmic energy and represents the dynamic forces that are thought to move through the entire universe. It implies power, ability, capacity, strength, prowess in every imaginable form. The power of education and literature, the strength of revolutionaries, the determination of a sportsman to win, the fine power of artists – all are manifestation of Shakti, which is vital to progress.
Watch what happens when the Gods are forced to come down to earth! Maa Durga takes her kids to her parent's place for the very first time. Be a part of an exiting adventure as the gods discover that there is indeed a world of difference between the two worlds. The Junior JCA members show off their skills
Ekta DeoManjusha YadavSudatta GuhaMahua DuttaguptaDeepa NandyBhaswati DuttaDebjani BanerjeeSuklima Roy
Concept & Direction – Suklima Roy, Debjani Banerjee
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Durga Stuti - DanCE rECitaLby Ipshita Chakraborty and Devika Erande
An evening with Swapan Basu
an EVEning By SwaPan BaSuFar from the madding crowd into the openness of nature the name of Swapan Basu becomes almost synonymous with the idyllic folk tunes of eastern India. An icon in the fields of folk music, Swapan Basu has become a name by himself and is held solely responsible for making the vivacious folk tunes of rural India touch a million hearts of the urban India and far abroad. A masters from the Rabindra Bharati University in the vocal folk music in 1984, he began his career much earlier to that and since then has been charming his listeners with the vibrant, melodious and unanimous folk tunes that were always there-unnoticed and unidentified.
Listening to Swapan Basu's song is an experience. He is not merely a folk singer but an Ethno-musicologist and folk song interpreter. He has travelled to remote villages of India to collect songs from different ethnic groups and tribals. He has inhaled their language, pronounciation and melody. The government of India has acknowledged his contribution and awarded him the National Scholarship in folk music from Ministry of Education in 1981; The Research Fellowship in Ethno-musicology from Anthropological Survey of India in 1984; and the National Fellowship as an outstanding performer in the performing arts from Human Resource Development of India, in 1987.
Maha Ashtami 21st October 2015, Wednesday
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Maha Navami 22st October 2015, WednesdayJoJo nitE
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acknowledgements
1. Indian Medical Association – Mumbai West
2. Juhu Police Station
3. Mumbai Police (Traffic)
4. Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation
5. Maharastra Home Guards
6. Mumbai Fire Brigade
7. 3 R Advertising
8. AEGON Religare Life Insurance Co.Ltd.
9. Sri Amit Pal (Pratima)
10. ANB Consulting Pvt Ltd
11 Sri Ashok M Vithlani - M/s Shubham Decorators (Pandal)
We the Durga Puja Committee members wish to offer our sincere thanks to the following individuals and organizations who have given us every possible support to make our efforts successful.
