Yearly Archives: 2007

Autism Etiquette

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By Nandini Minocha

rishabh.JPGA very odd title for an article isn’t it? I guess it’s not something most people think about. Unfortunately it is something that affects me and my life profoundly.
As a parent of an autistic child, I am often faced with situations where well meaning people around me flounder when they encounter certain types of behavior peculiar to the special needs world. So here is my little primer for all you wonderful people out there who would like to approach my world with sensitivity and kindness.

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Helping the environment – the Social Way

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By Vidya Pradhan
socialwaylogo.jpgNita Goyal of Tavant Technologies imagines the following Socratic dialogue between the Average John, Jaani or Janardhan and an environmentalist.

•    AJ: You keep on asking us to do more and more – first it was recycling and cutting up the plastic holding the 6-pack, then turning off the water while brushing teeth. I am even thinking of buying a HYBRID SUV. But you guys are still not satisfied. Why can’t I just live my life in peace? When will it end?

Narika – live violence free

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By Vidya Pradhan

narika2Kiranjit Ahluwalia (see our ‘Provoked’ review) had had access to the people at Narika, perhaps the movie could have stayed in the realm of fiction. Unfortunately stories like hers are far too common and all we can do is be grateful that Narika and other such organizations are around to offer a helping hand to victims of domestic violence. Continue reading →

Just like starting over…..

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By Rohini Mohan

I recently saw an ad inviting people to be featured on a reality TV show called ‘Radical Sabbatical’.  Here’s how it reads: ‘Are you a successful realtor leaving your career in order to open a surf shop? Are you a lawyer leaving your practice to become a professional poker player? If so, we want to document your transition toward a life you are passionate about.’

It got me thinking. Research leads me to believe that ‘Radical Sabbaticals’ are not all that uncommon. Ordinary people leading ordinary lives realize that something essential was lost in the years of mind numbing routine. The rat race, the corporate ladder, running away from the stick, racing toward the carrot, whether you are a student or a full time parent or a professional, it can get daunting, frustrating and most of all boring. A certain complacency creeps into your life, you find yourself cutting corners, losing your edge, slowly burning out.

The man with the golden voice

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By Rohini Mohan

A slightly nasal but melodious voice follows me whenever I walk down memory lane; a security blanket that envelops me in its comforting embrace. Manna De, Asha, Talat, Hemant Kumar, Lata, Geeta Dutt, Rafi, Kishore- I grew up with all of them, but none made an impact as much as Mukesh, the man with the golden voice.

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A piece of our Indian childhood

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logo.jpgLet’s admit it – most of our knowledge of Indian mythology comes from Amar Chitra Kathas. And even here, 7000 miles away from home, most of us have a couple of those comics stashed away in our bookshelves. Indian books are our link to our childhood, a sometimes tenuous link with our culture that we would like to hold on to and pass on to our kids. Desi Knowledge, the brainchild of Monica Khosla, is one such company which aims to help us do just that. Continue reading →

Provoked – 'There are some things worse than prison

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By Rohini Mohan
‘Provoked’ is the story of soft spoken Kiranjit Ahluwalia who accompanies her Asian- British husband to England, a young bride at the cusp of a new life, with hopes of continuing her education, becoming a mother, maturing as a woman. Alone in a strange country, with below par English speaking skills, she finds herself at the mercy of her new husband, Deepak, a Dr Jekyll, Mr. Hyde kind of character.

It's Different

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By Vidya Pradhan
With the kind of Indian population we have in the Bay Area, I half-expect to hear the shehnai strains from Vividh Bharati when I turn the radio on during the morning commute. So it was with very pleasant surprise that I discovered ‘It’s Different’, a radio program that airs 6-9 a.m. on Wednesdays on the Stanford FM station KZSU 90.1.

Tam Bram I am!

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By Rohini Mohan
I was raised for the most part in Madras (which I can never bring myself to call Chennai), and am as Tamilian as they come. But it was not until I went to Delhi to study that I realized that not only am I an Illad, which is BITS Pilani jargon for anyone from Chennai, but also a Tam Bram, short for Tamilian Brahmin, deserving of my own peculiar little niche. My irreverent peers who neither knew of nor cared for any form of political correctness mercilessly branded every rookie who walked in the door, slotting us by our accents, our body language and our other idiosyncrasies. It was all one grand joke, but as I thought about it, I figured there is logic to the stereotyping. I shall proceed to unveil some unique Tam Bram attributes as gently as I can, but this is not for the overly sensitive or easily offended, so caveat lector….    

Tara Rum Pum – Bollywood takes on NASCAR

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By Rohini Mohan
A rags to riches to rags to riches story full of clichés and homilies, Tara Rum Pum is the latest offering from Yash Raj films. Directed by Siddharth Anand of ‘Salaam Namaste’ fame, TRP is a pretty forgettable tale of a race car tire changer RV (Saif Khan) who becomes a champion race car driver, marries Radhika (Rani Mukherjee) and has two kids who, believe it or not, are christened Champ and Princess.

The dream family lives a dream life in a dream house but due to a major accident on the race track they are banished to a classic pokey New York one roomer in “cabbie alley”. The parents tell the kids that the whole “poverty” thing is not actually happening; it is part of a reality show to inspire them to “don’t worry and to be happy”. (an unhappy lift from ‘Life is beautiful’). What happens next is entirely predictable even to very young kids who have watched the Disney movie ‘Cars’.