Yearly Archives: 2007

Vibha – volunteering for hope

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By Rohini Mohan
There is an image from back home that is really hard to get rid of. A little girl, scraggly, matted hair, bloated but empty belly, tear stained dirty face, knocking doggedly on my car window, begging for a few paisa to buy her next meal. I sit in air conditioned comfort, my thoughts miles away, while my driver shoos her off with a few harsh words. For me, she exists in a parallel universe, this little creature. I see her, but not really- having chosen subliminally to blot out the acute discomfort caused by her presence.

Showbiz India's Reshma Dordi

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By Vidya Pradhan

Reshma Dordi is the host and producer of the popular weekly Bollywood program ' Showbiz India'. WNI caught up with her when she was in town showing her support for Ruchika, an organisation that supports schools for homeless children in India.

Gorgeous and gracious, Reshma spent a few minutes talking about her career track and plans for the future of her successful show.

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Tennis Ball Cricket – for the fun of the game

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By Vidya Pradhan

If the recent World Cup debacle has completely turned you off Indian cricket, here is a way to recapture some of the simple joy that the game has brought us over the years. Remember the fun of ‘galli’ cricket? A few kids, a cardboard sheet with three lines drawn on it, a narrow alley and a tennis ball; that’s all it took for an afternoon of uncomplicated masti. That’s the spirit that the Tennis Ball Cricket Association(TCA) has been trying to bring to the Bay Area and the weekend Kapil Dev’s in all of us.

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Container gardening 1- Nature in a nutshell

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By Laxmi Natarajan
Summer is here and is a good time to start sprucing up the decks and yards, add color and fun to your living environment, both outdoors and indoors.  Container gardening is an easy way to get an instant garden and provides immense gratification for very little effort. Container gardens are to a landscape what paintings are to a home. They add to the character, personality and the pizzazz in your garden or home. They are portable, flexible, easy to change and experiment with and very rewarding.
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Cheeni Kum – watchable

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By Vidya Pradhan
Finally, a Bollywood comedy for grownups! Ad film director R. Balki brings the same slick approach to the story of a May-December romance, though in this case the December may be quite a few years apart.

Amitabh Bachchan is the high-strung, temperamental and arrogant chef/owner of an exclusive Indian restaurant in London, who has the unlikely name of Buddha. He meets his match in more ways than one in one of his disgruntled customers, Nina, played by Tabu. The story follows the arc of their unlikely romance and all the chaos that ensues when the news is broken to Nina’s father, who happens to be younger than her suitor.
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Joost -Internet TV for real

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  By Basab Pradhan

I got an invite for Joost and tried it out yesterday. It rocked.

Joost, for those who haven’t heard about it yet, is basically internet TV. Full screen, high(er) quality, mainstream TV content streamed to your computer over broad band. The guys behind it are Janus Friis and Niklas Zennström, the same duo that did Kazaa and Skype. With their backgrounds you have to take Joost seriously.

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Kahani – Once upon a time

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By Vidya Pradhan

“Hey, here is a story about a girl who would rather read comic books than practice piano,” I said, hiding a grin. “Let me see, let me see,” said my 11-year old son, who is definitely guilty of the same behavior. He grabbed the magazine out of my hands. By the end of the evening the glossy pages were sticky with jam and milk and decorated in curry colors. Such is the power of Kahani .

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The compassion of the long-distance runner – Team Asha

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By Vidya Pradhan

At 39, the mid-life clock was ticking for Anu Singh. She wanted to do something challenging and significant in her life and also benefit others in some way. When a friend suggested joining the Team Asha marathon program, Anu was intrigued but doubtful. She had never run for more than two minutes without huffing and puffing. 26.2 miles seemed like a daunting, if not impossible, goal.

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