Category Archives: Features

Tulika – feeding minds is important too

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By Vidya Pradhan

Bay Area residents are quite familiar with Ray Mitra – if not personally then through the terrific Bollywood parties and cultural events his non-profit organization Induz organizes. Induz's mission has always been to use events to generate funds for deserving non-profits within the community and back in India. A significant part of the proceeds is donated to organizations like Sankara, Bring-a- Book Foundation and CRY. “Our tag line used to be ‘Great events, greater causes’,” says Ray.

After planning several successful events, it started bothering Ray that he and his fellow organizers could not see the use the funds generated were being put to. The non-profits supported by Induz were working in the necessary fields of health and education of underprivileged people and children in India, but Ray wondered if anything was being done to give these children exposure to the healing power of art and music. “Studies have shown that involving kids in art at a young age improves focus and concentration,” says Ray, who belongs to a family steeped in both performance and graphic art, “and it made sense for me to start a venture that would pay attention to this neglected area.” Continue reading →

The Support System

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By Isheeta Sanghi

I read The Namesake when I was in my first year of college. It was a very delicate time in my life, as it is in the life of any college going student. I was separated from my parents, not simply by state borders but by countries and oceans. College is a very important time in life because we can reflect, and really think about what it is that we want for ourselves and our future. After reading The Namesake, however,  I didn’t think so much about myself relating to the character depicted by Kal Penn in the celluloid version of the story, but rather I thought more about Ashima and her story, and how I could relate all of her experiences to what my Mother must have experienced, moving to a different country after marriage.

Though my Mom grew up in the metropolitan city of Delhi, and had elder sisters who were married, two of whom had already made the journey westward, and was well educated, the fact remains that when someone is taken out from their natural surroundings naturally life becomes tough. I don’t know much about my Mothers past, but what I do know is that I could picture her standing by the stove cooking beef for the first time in her life, crying because she had grown up in a vegetarian household, and had to bear a smell that was devastating to her. I could picture her standing innocently by a street light not knowing that in order for her to cross the road she had to press the button on the pole. I had a sinking feeling in my heart throughout the book because Jhumpa Lahiri has so beautifully depicted those emotions that I’m positive had been felt by my own Mother. Continue reading →

The Return of the Pishvee

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By Aarti Johri 

First things first, what is a pishvee? A pishvee, in Marathi, is nothing but a square piece of coarse cotton cloth, or jute, stitched together with a foot long handle, and slung on the shoulder. In other words, it is nothing but a re-useable, definitely re-cycleable bag that reduces the use of innumerable plastic or paper bags. In the city of Pune, where I grew up, it is slung carelessly over the shoulder of every housewife as she does her daily purchases. It is seen on bike riders, on overfull buses, on scooters, and in the energy efficient but pollution causing auto-rickshaws. I would dare to guess that even in the air-conditioned “Marutis” and “Toyota Quallises”, somewhere amongst the fancy Shopper’s Stop and Bombay Store paper  or plastic bags, there lies a folded “pishvee” made of humble cloth. Continue reading →

What’s your father’s name, and what blood type are you?

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By Isheeta Sanghi

College in India is something that would never enter the mind of an Indian American. Because really, that’s why our parents moved to the States, (besides the whole ‘chasing the American dream’, that is). My parents moved to California for that, well that and the great weather in Sunny San Diego. The thought of college in India sounded twisted to me; it was like some sort of joke that just wasn’t funny at all. When my Dad drove me out to the Integrated Institute of Learning Management in Delhi I remember just thinking about the my situation in total disillusionment and disbelief. I kept telling myself that it wasn’t happening, that I was going to go back to the States and finish my degree, that my parents were just tricking me trying to see how hard they could push me into saying that I wanted to stay. Continue reading →

The Great Mathematics Experiment: What Are Your Alternatives?

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By Enakshi Choudhuri

(Continuing a discussion on Integrated Math ) 

In the past month I have had the opportunity to delve a little further into the realm of fuzzy math. I must say, I have yet to meet a parent who thinks that the integrated math curriculum is the next best thing since disposable diapers. On talking to parents the common refrain that I heard repeatedly is that supplementing math education is not an option, it is a necessity whether the child attends the local public school or the toniest private school in town. So, in this post, I thought I would touch upon some of the more common options for supplemental math instruction that are available to parents. Continue reading →

GluTV – Indian TV channels online

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By Vidya Pradhan 

Is there a market that will pay to watch Indian TV online? That is the crux of the problem S.G. Sangameswara( Sangam) and his team at GluTV are trying to figure out.

Despite the popularity of online videos on sites such as YouTube, television online is still a nascent idea, thanks to the stranglehold that networks impose on their content. Some shows are available, but watching on the computer is as much a matter of surfing between channels as it is on the television. A few players like Hulu, Joost and Miro have attempted to jump start the idea of the aggregated provider but apart from Hulu, which offers shows from Fox and NBC, the content is hardly mainstream. Continue reading →

Greening your daily commute

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By P.R. Ganapathy 

On my ride to work recently, I heard an NPR interview on the subject of fuel conservation. The experts on the panel offered some tips for improving fuel efficiency while driving, and so I decided to try them out. Like most people out there, when fuel climbs to $4.87 a gallon I can't change my car to a Prius; I'm just going to have to do more with less.

Here are some of the suggestions they offered, and my experience trying them out. Continue reading →

Surviving the steel cables of Half Dome

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By Jaya Murthy 

When they hit a midlife crisis, men buy cars; women hike!

At my 43rd birthday this February, Meena, another 40+ friend asked "So what are we going to do different this year? Let's climb Half Dome!" The rest of us, who have run no marathons, half marathons, triathlons or bike races, looked at her like she was nuts and told her so. That evening we laughed it off as an impossibly high goal and forgot all about it.

The Prep

But my friend persisted. And before we knew it, a bunch of us, convinced we were absolutely crazy, were shivering at the base of Mission Peak(MP) in Fremont on a freezing March morning in the pitch dark at 5:30 a.m. It was a nose-numbing 38 degrees Fahrenheit. Huffing and puffing, with some motivational spiel and lots of chattering, we made it up the boring switchbacks to the top of MP. The 360 degree views of the Bay Area communities, the water and its bridges and the verdant hillsides made the climb worthwhile. The near 4-mile hike did leave our untested muscles achy and tired the next day. Continue reading →

Chai with Manjula

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By Vidya Pradhan

Manjula Gupta is no stranger to philanthropy. Once a software entrepreneur in the valley, she became involved with the American India Foundation (AIF) in its nascent years. As a volunteer Chair for the India Community Center, she worked to bring the community together by starting programs such as the weekly karaoke club. In the course of her varied experiences, she tapped into the rich vein of philanthropy that runs through the successful Indian American community in the Bay Area. “There are so many Indian Americans doing amazing work,” she says. “I found that there was a need to give them a platform.”
When the mayor of Milpitas approached her to start a community based program, she found her calling. “Chai with Manjula”, a TV show focusing on Indian American good Samaritans, now airs in 11 cities throughout the area.( More cities are being added.) Continue reading →

Reducing your ecological footprint

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Sharanya Krishna Prasad 

Sharanya Krishna Prasad has been committed to environmental and animal causes since her early years. She is originally from Madras in south-eastern India, where as a student she volunteered with various community-based organizations that spread awareness on issues such as wildlife conservation and protecting Madras’ beaches from pollution. The more she learned from these experiences, the more simple yet effective lifestyle changes she chose to make for the sake of the planet and all its inhabitants. 

There are many simple changes everyone can make in their daily lives. It is not as hard or expensive as it may seem. I am listing all the things that I personally follow as well as some ideas for people to think about. I have dealt with it in terms of each room in the home. Continue reading →