Author: The Metrognome

Categories
Beauty

Make your own beauty products

Did you know that you can make body scrubs, lip balms, and even hair spray at home? We explain how.
by Ankita Pathak

You need a variety of cosmetics for several needs, but what you probably didn’t know is that you can make most products at home! From hair and skin treatments to makeup, perfume, teeth and nail whitening – there are so many great products to make and use!  And who says you need to spend a lot?  Some of the ingredients you need may already be lying around your house. So let’s get started on making your own beauty stash!

Tinted lip balmTinted Lip Balm

You will need:

Blob of lipstick

Vitamin E capsule

½ tsp Vaseline

¼ tsp glycerin

Essential oils

Empty syringe

1 empty pot container

In a bowl, place Vaseline, Vitamin E, glycerin and lipstick on a double boiler to blend. After the mixture melts together, remove from heat and add a drop of your favorite essential oil to it. Fill your lip pot with the ready mixture using the disposable syringe. Voila! You have your very own lip stain!

Lip and body scrub

You will need:

2 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp oats and chocolate powderbody scrub

2 tbsp olive oil and honey

1 empty jar

Take a glass jar and start by mixing the oats, honey and chocolate powder. Oats act as an exfoliant and honey helps in moisturising. Add sugar and olive oil to soak all the ingredients and let the mixture sit for two hours. Use the scrub mixture on lips and body to remove any dead skin.

Eye makeup remover

You will need: 2 tbsp white mustard oil or 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil.

Dab a cotton ball into the oil to remove eye make-up and waterproof mascara. Rinse face with cold water. This homemade eye makeup remover will work in a pinch if you run out of your normal brand. It’s also a great way to save money instead of using expensive makeup removers.

Eyeshadow primer

Eyeshadow primerYou will need:

½ tsp natural chap stick

1 tsp cornstarch

1 ½ tsp liquid foundation

Container

Get a clean container or use a sample jar but you could also use an old eye shadow pot. Run the chap stick under warm water for a minute before you add it to the mixture. Put all the ingredients in container and mix well. Use the primer as an eye shadow base to make your eye make-up last longer.

Hairspray

You will need:

1 lemon

300 ml water

2 tbsp vodka

Place the lemon (chopped into pieces) into a saucepan with the water. Bring it to a boil, then cover and simmer until the lemon softens. Strain and then leave to sit until it’s completely cooled. Transfer the liquid into a sterilised spray bottle. Next, add the vodka then give it a quick shake.

Glitter nail polish    Glitter nail polish

You will need:

Transparent nail paint

Paper cone/ funnel

Glitter powder of your choice

Start by emptying a small amount of the clear polish in to the garbage, you will need space for the glitter.  Pour a small amount of glitter at a time with the help of a paper funnel, keep pouring until you achieve the glittered look you want.  Once you’ve put all the glitter in the bottle, shake it vigorously to get the glitter and polish to mix.

Blackhead removal solution

You will need:

1 lemon

1 tbsp honey

Rub the lemon dipped in honey on face, emphasise the black heads prone areas like nose, chin etc. Leave the lemon and honey mixture on your face for about five minutes, then wash it with cold water. You will see the results immediately. Additionally, lemon juice will also fade other marks/spots on the face and honey will moisturise.

Tan remover

You will need:

1 tomato

Sugar

Buttermilk

Apply squashed tomato juice with 6 spoons of buttermilk and sugar on the sunburn affected areas to cure them quickly. Tomato helps in lightening skin and buttermilk helps in moisturising. Do this repeatedly for a week and notice the difference.

Have you made any beauty products at home? Tell us about them in the comments section below.

(Pictures courtesy talkingpretty.com, makeup.me.uk, www.fashiondivadesign.com, www.fashionncare.com)

Categories
Achieve

Navin Kundra sings for British Royalty, Bollywood next?

As Prince Charles and Duchess Camilla tour South Asia, singer Navin Kundra shares the excitement of singing for British Royalty.
by Salil Jayakar

British singer and songwriter Navin Kundra is a huge name in the UK – his remarkable career thus far includes performing with (and in front of) the Who’s Who of the Indian and international music scene, setting a Guinness Book Record by raising £10,000 for the British Asian Trust, and most recently, performing for Charles, Prince of Wales and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall at the St James Palace on October 24, 2013.

It was about this latest performance for the British Royals that Salil Jayakar spoke to Navin about. Excerpts from the interview:

Salil Jayakar (SJ): Performing for the Royals… what was the experience like?

Navin Kundra with Royals 3Navin Kundra (NK): It was a dream come true! Being invited by the President of the British Asian Trust to perform for Royalty is just one of those things that you never expect to happen to you, and it happened to me. Definitely the biggest highlight of my career so far! It was a stunning experience and one which I will treasure for the rest of my life. Yes, I was extremely nervous.  I think anyone would be, and perhaps more so because I knew I was going to be singing in Hindi and Punjabi which are languages they aren’t most familiar with.

SJ: How did the opportunity come about?

NK: In 2011, I was invited to become a celebrity ambassador for the British Asian Trust (BAT), a charitable Trust founded by HRH The Prince Of Wales. That year I helped the Trust raise £10,000 by breaking a Guinness World Record for the biggest Bollywood dance to my song ‘Mehbooba’. Ahead of their tour of South Asia, the Royals held a reception party at St James’s Palace and the President of the Trust asked if I would perform for them.  My first reaction was, ‘Is this for real?’

Then the President casually added, “Navin, I don’t mean to add any pressure but last year the Royals did a tour of Australia and we got Kylie Minogue to perform at their pre-tour reception party…” Yes… I felt the pressure at that point, but I also knew that an opportunity like this only ever comes round once in a lifetime so I said yes as I jumped up and down with excitement!

SJ: You asked Prince Charles to call the Duchess of Cornwall ‘Mehbooba’. Were you worried at all about how they’d react?

NK: (Laughs) This was not at all planned so I had no time to think about how they would react. It was completely spontaneous and happened because I saw that they were enjoying my Navin Kundra with Royals 1performance and responding positively to the music, particularly during my rendition of the Kishore Kumar classic, ‘O Mere Dil Ke Chain’.  I chose that song because it is a Bollywood classic, and as the first British Asian artist to sing in St James’s Palace, I was representing both my South Asian and British roots so I wanted my performance to capture the versatility and riches of our culture and music, too.

After that song I offered to add to Prince Charles’ Hindi vocabulary saying it would help him whilst on tour. Indeed, everyone at The Palace burst into laughter when I said the word ‘Mehbooba’, and when Prince Charles said the word back with perfect pronunciation, everyone cheered (see pic on right).

SJ: What did the Royals say to you post the performance?

NK: They were very complimentary and told me that I have a stunning voice and enjoyed my music. They then asked me what ‘Mehbooba’ meant to which I replied ‘beloved’. I could see the relief on the Royal couple’s faces after I told them the English translation and I joked, “See… it’s not as bad as it sounds!”  They were very charming, thanked me for entertaining them and their guests, said they hoped to see me perform again and wished me good luck for my career. A few days ago I received a ‘thank you’ letter from them, which is now my prized possession!

Watch ‘Mehbooba’ here:

 

SJ: Many British Asians have made their mark in Bollywood over the years. Do you have any Bollywood aspirations?

NK: Bollywood is one of the biggest foundations of my music base and I would love to work in the industry and have my music featured in the movies. If I was to get the right opportunity, I would definitely take it up and am confident that I can bring a new fresh sound and voice to the scene. I plan to visit Mumbai in early December this year, so watch this space.

SJ: Famous last words…

NK: ‘Dare to begin’ because I am living proof [of the fact] that anything is possible. Five years ago, I never thought that I would have the opportunity to represent South Asians all over the world and sing for Royalty, I never thought that I would achieve six number one singles and break a Guinness World Record, or that I would be awarded the 2013 ‘Entertainer of the Year’ in the Houses of Parliament. All of this has happened because I took those first steps towards building on my dream and anyone can do it.

You don’t need to have a huge record label behind you, tonnes of financing or be related to the industry you want to break into, you just need laser focus – and that applies to any industry, not just music or entertainment.

Navin Kundra’s new single ‘PA NA NA’ releases on November 7, 2013 and is available to download on iTunes and other digital stores. For more on Navin, check out his digital presence at www.navin-online.com or visit his FB page at www.facebook.com/navinfanpage or tweet to him @NavinKundra.

(Pictures courtesy Navin Kundra)

Categories
Trends

Four Campa Cola residents go on hunger strike

Campa Cola building society is about a week from demolition; residents want CM Prithviraj Chavan to intervene in the matter.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

With just one week to go before the demolition of their homes, four Campa Cola residents today went on an indefinite hunger strike till Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan intervenes to save them from being homeless.

The Campa Cola demolition issue is about to take centrestage once again as the demolition date nears. The apartments were constructed on land leased to Pure Drinks Ltd in 1955, which was permitted by the BMC in 1980 to develop it for residential purposes. Without getting the plans approved, Pure Drinks, along with builders Yusuf Patel, BK Gupta and PSB Construction Co. erected seven buildings, two of which were high-rise buildings of 17 and 20 stories. During the construction period, the authorities issued notices to the builders to stop work. The builders were fined and they paid the penalty and resumed work. After the construction was completed nobody prevented the buyers from occupying their apartments or the buildings from forming co-operative housing societies.

Four Campa Cola residents go on hunger strike

Unaware of these violations, the residents bought the apartments believing that they would get the occupation certificates in due course, as was the norm 25 years ago. Since 2005 the residents have been in litigation with B.M.C. trying to defend their homes and save their families from being thrown on the streets.

The four residents who are on hunger strike are Kamal Parikh, (42), Surendra Kumar Daga (49), Vinaychand Hirawat (67) and Kapoorchand Daga (67). The residents have also requested CM Chavan to intervene in the matter and come up with a solution to save the homes and lives of hundreds of residents.

Vinaychand Hirawat said, “So far the Chief Minister has been very cooperative with us and everyone here is expecting a positive response from him. We have taken this drastic step as we do not have much time and we don’t know what lies in store for us. As days are passing by, our fear and heartbeats are rising. We are unable to sleep and neither we are able to concentrate on our daily routine work. This is our last attempt to save our homes.”

Apart from these four residents who are on a hunger strike, other residents are planning a one day relay hunger strike.

Categories
Learn

Insure your relationship

City-based breakup helpline ‘insures’ your relationship during troubled times for a fee; a counsellor will set you right in days.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Whenever there’s trouble brewing in our relationship, all we want is something to make it work and set it right again. If you’re really invested in the relationship, you want to repair the cracks in it before everything goes awry.

The city-based Breakup Helpline, founded a year ago by four Mumbai residents to help people across the country tide over the heartbreak of a breakup, is now going a step ahead in its initiatives. The Helpline is now offering ‘insurance’ for a limited period, during which a counsellor will help you resolve your relationship blues.

The Breakup Helpline is the world’s first website offering help during the breakup phase. “We inevitably have ego issues with our partner, fights when we are together and the question eventually pops up in our minds: ‘Is the relationship worth it?'”, says Ankit (in pic onAnkit from the Breakup Helpline left), one of the founders of the helpline. “Sometimes, at that point of time, you don’t really have the power to think straight. Suddenly you begin to act suspicious, come up with imaginary situations and block your mind with stupid thoughts. So we thought, why not bring you Breakup Insurance? We help you protect your relationship and guide you to do the logical thing.”

For a fee of Rs 1,000, the troubled person will get a unique ‘key’ that can be used for seven days. During that time, a counsellor will be available at all times to help out during the rough phase. “You have to register on our helpline and say that you want breakup insurance,” Ankit explains. “Once the package fee is paid, the person gets unbiased, round-the-clock advice on setting things right.”

For more details, email ankitanubhav@gmail.com or call +91-98338 31984.

(Pictures courtesy www.sheknows.com, newindianexpress.com)

Categories
Wellness

Take steps to control diabetes

Diabetes is the fastest growing long term disease that affects millions of people worldwide. Here’s how you recognise the symptoms.
by Deepa Mistry

Diabetes is a condition where the amount of glucose in your blood is too high because the body cannot process it properly. This is because your pancreas does not produce any insulin, or not enough, to help glucose enter your body’s cells – or the insulin that is produced does not work properly (known as insulin resistance). The term diabetes is the shortened version of the full name ‘diabetes mellitus’.

‘Diabetes mellitus’ is derived from the Greek word ‘diabetes’ meaning ‘siphon’ – to pass through and the Latin word ‘mellitus’ meaning ‘honeyed’ or ‘sweet’. This is because in diabetes, excess sugar is found in the blood as well as in the urine. It was known in the 17th century as the “pissing evil”.

diabetes careThere are two types of diabetes – Type 1 and type 2. Type 1 diabetes is called insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus and occurs at a younger age or childhood. In these patients there is complete lack of the hormone insulin that mandates external administration of the hormone regularly as treatment. Worryingly, many patients around the world and in our country are increasingly finding themselves in this category. Around 75 per cent of sufferers have type 2 diabetes mellitus. The reasons for this are poor nutrition, rising stress levels, an improper metabolism and lack of fitness.

Studies show diabetes is classed as a metabolism disorder. Metabolism refers to the way our bodies use digested food for energy and growth. Diabetes specialist Dr Runwal says, “Even though it is caused due to various reasons, one being hereditary, but the changing lifestyles and stressful lives that youngsters live in results in most of the patients being aged 25 and above are being detected with it at such an early age. It’s very essential to follow a healthy diet and exercising daily is a must. Diabetes is linked with many complications and people who suffer from it must be very careful with their eating and drinking habits.”

Type 2 diabetes was earlier termed non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) or maturity-onset diabetes mellitus. In this, not enough insulin is produced or the insulin that is made by the body is insufficient to meet the needs of the body. Obesity or being overweight predisposes to type 2 diabetes. Gestational diabetes occurs in pregnant women who have never had the disease before but who have high blood sugar levels during pregnancy. Gestational diabetes affects about 4 per cent of all pregnant women. After childbirth the mother may go on to develop type 2 diabetes.

The problem with the disease is that it causes complications in other parts of the body.

  • Eye complications – glaucoma, cataracts, diabetic retinopathy.
  • Foot complications – neuropathy, ulcers, and sometimes gangrene which may require the foot to be amputated.diabetes mellitus
  • Skin complications – people with diabetes are more susceptible to skin infections and skin disorders
  • Heart problems – such as ischemic heart disease, when the blood supply to the heart muscle is diminished
  • Hypertension – common in people with the disease, which can raise the risk of kidney disease, eye problems, heart attack and stroke.
  • Mental health – uncontrolled diabetes raises the risk of suffering from depression, anxiety and some other mental disorders
  • Hearing loss – patients have a higher risk of developing hearing problems
  • Gum disease – there is a much higher prevalence of gum disease among diabetes patients
  • Gastroparesis – the muscles of the stomach stop working properly
  • Neuropathy – diabetic neuropathy is a type of nerve damage which can lead to several different problems.
  • Nephropathy – uncontrolled blood pressure can lead to kidney disease
  • PAD (peripheral arterial disease) – symptoms may include pain in the leg, tingling and sometimes problems walking properly
  • Stroke – if blood pressure, cholesterol levels, and blood glucose levels are not controlled, the risk of stroke increases significantly
  • Erectile dysfunction – male impotence.
  • Infections – people with badly controlled diabetes are much more susceptible to infections
  • Healing of wounds – cuts and lesions take much longer to heal.

Don’t invite diabetes, start taking care of yourself today. Follow a simple diet daily, exercise and practice yoga to keep your body fit. A lot of people believe the disease is caused due to excess eating of sweets or you will get it if you are overweight/obese. This is false; it is caused when their immune system has destroyed the insulin-producing beta cells. A diet high in calories, which can make people overweight/obese, raises the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, especially if there is a history of this disease in the family.

Diabetes is serious – two thirds of patients die prematurely from stroke or heart disease. The life expectancy of a person with diabetes is from five to ten years shorter than other people’s. Many times we ignore minor symptoms, but always remember ‘prevention is better than cure.’ It’s never too late to visit your nearest doctor and get yourself examined.

Sources: Medical News Today, Diabetes- UK care. 

(Pictures courtesy tudiabetesmellitus.com, 036e79b.netsolhost.com, www.modernfamilyideas.com)

Categories
Read

‘I wish I’d written more against Right-wing fascists…’

Writer and former journalist Khushwant Singh talks about his newest book and the one regret of his long writing life.
by Humra Quraishi

Khushwant Singh has always been a writer for all seasons. His acerbic wit and sometimes, hilariously accurate descriptions of the country’s people, its politics and overall persona have been both the subject of several important pieces of writings and books, and touchpoints for debate on the current state of affairs in India.

Singh is now close to 99 years old, but he is nowhere done. He recently released his latest book, The Good, The Bad And The Ridiculous (Rupa Publications), a collection of 35 of India’s most interesting personalities.

khushwant singh The book starts with this introduction: “I have never been a very tactful person. I have never been discreet either. I am a voyeur and a gossip. I am also very opinionated. These are good qualities to have if your aim is to be a writer who is read. I have met a good number of this subcontinent’s most famous (or infamous) and interesting people. I have also suffered famous bores, and sometimes been rewarded with behaviour so ridiculous that it becomes compelling…”

In these 35 profiles, as in all his writings, there is a mix of the absolutely serious with stuff that would make you laugh out loud. He still remembers the blackheads on the tip of Amrita Sher Gil’s nose, and he still remembers Begum Para from Dilip Kumar’s erstwhile clan (and other ‘loud’ remembrances of her), and he can still recount all those  moves that made model-dancer Protima Bedi one of the movers and shakers of the day.

He writes on dacoit-turned-politician Phoolan Devi, and how her life wasn’t just a blur of knives and guns but he presents actual back stories that help the reader understand how Phoolan became a dacoit. In all the profiles, I noticed that the journalist in him has got to the very root of each of the characters he has written about. It is this journalistic training that prompts him to examine why Balwant Gargi committed adultery so blatantly.

Why is this book important? Khushwant is perhaps the only surviving journalist-writer of this subcontinent who has seen history in the making over almost 100 years now. He was born in Undivided Punjab in 1915 in the village Hadali, which is now in Pakistan. He has witnessed the Partition and the subsequent aftermath. He has seen the major turning points in the country’s past and recent history.

His long association, both personal and professional, with the country’s history comes out through his detailed chronicles of the long list of personalities he has chronicled. When I ask him about the book, his replies are as blunt as always. “I regret one thing. I wish I’d written much more against the fundoos…the Right-wing fascists who are hell bent on causing divisions [in society]. These fundoos are a serious threat. I could have written much more against their fascist and divisive policies. In recent times, I have been writing against Narendra Modi, LK Advani because of the communal poisoning they have unleashed in the country.”

He elaborates on Advani thus: “I shun people who are at the forefront of communalism, and this includes the likes of LK Advani. He has done grievous harm to our efforts to create a truly secular India. I have no regret over his discomfiture and eventual fadeout from national politics – it will be as comic a tragedy as any we have witnessed in recent times.”

(Pictures courtesy www.thehindu.com, www.siliconindia.com)

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