Author: The Metrognome

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Cinema@100

‘There is more sleaze in Parliament than in Bollywood’

Author, lawyer and former diplomat Bhaichand Patel speaks on his fasination for Bollywood, acting in films and cinema’s leading ladies.
by Humra Quraishi

Bhaichand_PatelBhaichand Patel is a Fiji national who lives in New Delhi. This former lawyer-turned-UN diplomat is today better known as an author and editor. He has edited two books – Chasing the Good Life – On Being Single and Bollywood’s Top Twenty; Superstars of Indian Cinema. He had previously written a non-fiction book, Happy Hours, The Penguin Book of Cocktails and recently launched his very first novel, Mothers, Lovers and Other Strangers, which is set in Mumbai and Bollywood.

These are excerpts from an email interview:

Your home has photographs of some of the leading heroines of yesteryears. Also, a year back, you edited a volume on Bollywood. Very recently you launched your debut novel, Mothers, Lovers and Other Strangers which has Bollywood in the background. Why this fascination for the film industry?

I grew up in a small town on an island in the middle of nowhere, Fiji. The only recreation available to us as children were sports and the movies. At one time, I saw three or four films a week, both Bollywood and Hollywood. I fell in love with Madhubala at the onset of puberty. Movies have always fascinated me. I am somewhat of an authority on Hindi films made in the 1940s and 1950s. My previous book was on twenty top stars of Bollywood, beginning with KL Saigal and ending with Kareena Kapoor.

Who are your closest friends in the film industry?

I am close to the Samarth family. While I did not know Nutan, I knew her mother Shobhana Samarth and her sister, Tanuja, is a close friend. I have known Kajol from the time she was sitting in a corner doing her homework. I was touched that she (Kajol) came all the way to Delhi for a few hours to launch my last book.

Shyam Benegal, Kumar Sahani, Mani Kaul and Saaed Mirza are filmmakers of my age group. We used to hang out together in our younger days. I knew Salim Khan, father of Salman Kajol, Bhaichand Patel, Minu TalwarKhan, when he was a struggling young actor, fresh from Indore. Later he became a successful script writer as part of the Salim-Javed team.

I have many journalist friends in Mumbai who write on Bollywood. When I practiced law in Bombay we had people like Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand and Meena Kumari as our clients.

If you are offered a film role today, say the role of a father, would you take it?

I am so desperate to act, I am willing to dress in women’s clothes and do a belly dance if a filmmaker asks me to do that to get a role. It won’t happen. I can’t act to save my life! The role of the heroine’s father would be a godsend, especially if I get to cuddle her!

There is a dark side to the film industry. Comment.

Some of the nicest people I know work in the film industry. It is the only industry where your caste, religion or background does not matter. If you have talent as an actor, director, musician, or technician you will succeed. As an actor in a lead role it helps to have good looks. But looks alone won’t take you far. If you are not talented, no amount of strong connections will help you.

Bollywood's top 20Of course there is a dark side. There is sleaze in Bollywood, like everywhere else. I don’t think there is more sleaze in Bollywood than in our Parliament. There is, of course, the infamous casting couch where actors, male and female, have to sleep with someone to get a role. But most actors don’t indulge in that.

While the superstars are paid crores of rupees, the vast majority in the industry are paid a pittance, sometimes not at all. It is not easy to succeed in Bollywood with so much competition from so much talent. My novel, Mothers, Lovers and Other Strangers, draws on the darker side of Bollywood.

What are your thoughts on actor Jiah Khan’s suicide and Suraj Pancholi’s involvement in the issue?

Jiah’s tragic death is a good example of the pitfalls of the industry. She was lucky in that she got the lead role in her very first film. That too, opposite Amitabh Bachchan! Afterwards, it was downhill all the way for the poor girl. There are hundreds out there like her, hanging on for a chance to get a break and they never get it. They are sometimes too ashamed to return to the small towns they came from. They often end up in pathetic situations. Sometimes it ends even more tragically, as was the case with Jiah. We only look at the leading lady in the front, and forget about the boys and girls behind her in the chorus. Sometimes I wonder what kind of lives they live, how much they earn.

I think it is unfair to blame Suraj Pancholi for what happened to Jiah. He was nowhere near her when she killed herself. Of course they broke up and she must have been emotionally upset. It happens all the time in relationships. Did Suraj have any inkling that she would commit suicide? Did he instigate her to commit suicide? Why blame him for something she did on her own free will? If she could not cope with a broken relationship why blame him?

(Pictures courtesy Bhaichand Patel, victoriamixon.com, www.exoticindiaart.com)

Categories
Wellness

Pepper season

Apart from enhancing the flavour of our food, black pepper can cure vitiligo, aid digestion and even lessen joint pain.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

It’s dark and so beautiful, you’ll wonder why it only plays a supporting role in your life, that too, only in your food preparations. We’re talking about black pepper – the fruit of the black pepper plant from the piperaceae family. In our country, it is native to the state of Kerala. Piperine, a chemical present in it, gives it a nutritional punch and its spicy bite.

Why use black pepper in cooking?
It is an anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory agent, and its nutritive value is preserved even after the cooking process is complete. It not only enhances the flavour of our food, it also aids in the absorption of nutrients in the blood. It is best used whole, instead of in a powder form. However, it should not be used in high amounts, because it may cause irritation of the gut. Excess pepper may also cause sneezing.

What does it contain?
Black_pepper fruitBlack pepper is a good source of Vitamins C and K, potassium, dietary fibre, iron and manganese. The good news is that all of it is useful, even the outer skin of the peppercorn. It is known to have a ‘scavenging’ quality once ingested, which accounts for its purifying and healing properties; this has implications for several medical disorders, especially those that see a rise in free radicals (such as injuries and diseases like cancer).

Digestion woes? Zap them with black pepper. Piperine increases the secretion of hydrochloric acid in the stomach, which in turn, contributes to a smoother digestive process. Black pepper also reduces intestinal bloat and gas, and flatulence after meals. Since it causes sweating, it aids in the removal of toxins through sweat.

Vitiligo cure: Do you suffer from vitiligo or leukoderma? Does your skin have the tendency to develop light patches, owing to a loss or deficiency of pigment? Black pepper has been used in Ayurvedic medicine for years to treat these specific conditions. Black pepper is used in Ayurvedic oils and ointments as an external applicator to induce the increased production of melanin. This cure finds its place in Allopathy, too, where an ointment or paste containing black pepper is first applied over the affected area of the skin before it is given a UV light treatment.

Vitamin C power: Its Vitamin C content makes black pepper a potent force in treating cough, cold, sinusitis and congestion. It is also a good anti-black pepper powderbacterial, thus helping treat constipation and diarrhoea. When boiled with a neutral oil as a base, or simply crushed and used over a painful tooth, it is known to alleviate the pain associated with dental problems. Additionally, it provides localised relief from insect bites. When used in oil massage, it is known to lessen joint pains.

Excellent antioxidant: Black pepper shows tremendous promise in fighting free radicals in the body. It seeks out free radicals and minimises the damage caused by them. This has huge implications in the treatment of such diseases as cancer, especially skin cancer.

Fat loss: Black pepper assists in the faster breakdown of fat cells. This helps the body respond faster to exercise and a controlled diet, thus resulting in weight loss. Additionally, it boosts metabolism and attacks belly fat. Naturopaths insist on black pepper being added to the diet of obese patients. Apart from providing these benefits, black pepper also causes sweating and urination, for the removal of toxins. It is also good for the heart, since it helps in the clean-up of arteries and in purifying blood.

Alleviates depression: Piperine is known to act on the central nervous system. The stimulation it provides acts like an anti-depressant. In turn, this improves cognitive capacity and function.

 (Pictures courtesy R Boroujerdi, commons.wikimedia.org, www.indian-spices-exporters.com, hawaiiplantdisease.net)

Categories
Event

‘Kaka’ immortalised in brass, statue at Bandra Bandstand soon

Rajesh Khanna statue unveiled over the weekend; will soon be installed at Bandra Bandstand with those of other film legends.
by Salil Jayakar

Regarded by his fans as Bollywood’s first superstar with several back-to-back silver jubilee hits to his name, legendary actor Rajesh Khanna died in July last year. But his memory will live on…

UTU Stars ‘Walk of the Stars’ is installing his statue at Bandra’s Bandstand promenade. Khanna’s brass statue – in which he is seen holding balloons in his right hand – shows him in one of this iconic poses from the 1971 hit Anand. The statue was unveiled by his wife Dimple Kapadia, daughter Twinkle Khanna and son-in-law Akshay Kumar over the weekend, on August 10, a little over a month after the actor’s first death anniversary.

rajesh khanna statuePresent at the unveiling were some of Khanna’s leading ladies from the 70s – Asha Parekh, Zeenat Aman and Hema Malini – and colleagues and friends including Sanjay Khan, Shammiji, Rishi and Randhir Kapoor, Anju Mahendru, Jackie Shroff, Rakesh Roshan, Jeetendra, Honey Irani, Poonam Sinha, Mithun Chakraborty and Jeetendra. While Bollywood’s younger generation was notably absent, Farhan and Adhuna Akhtar and Zoya Akhtar were present.

Estranged wife Dimple seemed visibly emotional at the unveiling and said, “He left us, and Indian cinema, with many wonderful memories and an unmatched legacy. The quintessential Hindi film hero with a magnetic personality, he won the love and adoration of millions in India and overseas. This statue by UTV Stars will continue his charismatic connect with his fans.”

The statue will be installed at a later date at the Bandra Bandstand promenade along with those of Raj Kapoor, Dev Anand, Shammi Kapoor and Yash Chopra.

(Pictures courtesy UTV Stars)

Categories
Trends

More women are buying jewellery online

Ease of shopping, higher spending power and a plethora of options has helped many women increasingly shop for jewellery online.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Kavita Prabhu (26) leads a very hectic life – she works six days a week at her agency’s client servicing department, and has to travel a lot for work. She has hardly any time or energy left on her one weekly holiday to budge out of her house. “I can barely make a parlour visit once every two weeks,” she says. She can’t even remember the last time she checked out a Plain gold jewellery clothes sale.

So there’s one thing Kavita does to save on time – shop online. Recently, she had to make some quick purchases for an engagement party. “I bought clothes, shoes, and the best thing of all, a pair of dainty gold earrings. I wouldn’t have had the time to go to an actual store to pick these things up,” she says.

Like Kavita, Mumbai’s Mohana Shetty (34) has also taken to online shopping, and she is especially hooked on to jewellery shopping. “To tell you the truth, I love shopping alone, and I hate having an assistant breathe down my neck when I’m trying to select an item of jewellery,” the mother-of-two and Goregoan resident says. “A friend told me about shopping for jewellery online, and I love browsing so many designs at my ease and making the purchase without a fuss.”

Why shop online for jewellery?

According to an April 2013 report by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IMAI), jewellery, personal and healthcare accessories have a 3.7 per cent market share at Rs 240 crore out of a total e-tailing market size of Rs 6,454 crore in January-December 2012. The e-tailing market for jewellery, especially costume and office wear jewellery, is only set to grow.

Says Gaurav Singh Kushwaha, Founder, bluestone.com, “We have observed an increase in the number of transactions made by women over the past one year. Jewellery is not an impulse purchase category and women like to take their time to select the right product and design before making their purchase. Online stores provide them the ease of browsing over days without compelling them to make a decision immediately. This comfort is absent in the offline jewellery buying space which becomes a reason for women to shop for jewellery online.

jewellery set“Secondly, industry-wide, more numbers of women have started to transact in the online space due to the ease of getting a credit card. As women have become much more independent and have started earning big bucks, banks have taken special measures to cater to their financial needs.” Naturally, this makes it easier for women to spend more and get the jewellery they want. Kushwaha says that though most women buy traditional jewellery online, the workwear jewellery space is also on the rise.

Says Preeti Shankar (27), “I once had a very bad experience with an online portal, so I am very sceptical about making expensive purchases online.” Preeti’s concern is echoed by a lot of other potential customers, who fear a lack of security for their transaction, and worse, not liking the jewellery they bought. “Sometimes some products look better in pictures, but when you touch them and see them, they may not look so nice,” Preeti says.

Understanding this trend, several online jewellery stores try to remove all obstacles in the purchasing process, so that the Ringscustomer feels assured. “We have to appreciate the concerns and challenges that jewellery as a category poses for the customer. We address the trust issue by making the ordering process smooth,” Kushwaha says. Another step in this process is the handing over of a certificate that clearly discloses the details of any item it accompanies, providing confidence for both buyer and seller.

If you are disbelieving of claims from online shopping portals about stores letting customers try on jewellery at home before buying it, you can breathe easy: reputed online jewellery stores make good on these claims. While they will not only offer you the chance to try the jewellery out before buying it, they will also allow you to return it in a certain amount of time with a refund.

How to make a good jewellery purchase online
– Browse only reputed sites.
– Compare prices of items on different sites.
– Look for user testimonials on the site.
– Ask for recommendations from women who’ve shopped for jewellery online. From them, you can find out how their overall experience with a particular portal was.Bangle
– Don’t be afraid to ask questions and clear doubts. Most reputed online stores will put you in touch with a customer care executive to answer questions.
– Research the overall purchasing process. Some sites promise a full refund on exchange of the purchased item within 30 days, but you may find that they refund only a part of the money, as per prevalent market rates.
– Find out about the portal’s money-back policy, exchange policy, try-before-purchase policy and whether a shipment charge is included in the price of the product.
– On purchase, check for BIS certifications for gold jewellery and certifications from third parties such as GIA for studded jewellery.
– Ask if the portal also has a physical store in your area so you can see the jewellery before you make the purchase.

(Pictures courtesy ripplelinks.com and bluestone.com. Pictures used for representational purpose only)

Categories
Overdose

As the new work week begins…

…ask yourself if the approval and validation you seek must come from others, such as your boss, or from yourself.
Jatin Sharmaby Jatin Sharma

As we start a new week of running in our respective corporate races, there is one thought that passes through my mind. Each and every one of us is, these days, pondering over just one question: “Am I doing good in my life? Am I being awesome?”

We seldom ask ourselves questions whose answers don’t lie with us. We always give the authority to other people about how good we are. We always look forward to acceptance from other people, and because of that, end up not living out our dreams. We fail to realise that the dreams we all want to live are our own exclusive dreams, that can be seen only through our lives. The corporate race that we want to win is our race, a race we want to run alone.

All of our actions and all of our work in the corporate scenario is aimed at pleasing the hierarchy. And that’s why most of us are reconciled to mediocrity, because in this whole game of pleasing others, we fail and forget to please ourselves. We fail to realise that it doesn’t really matter if they think we won, what matters is whether we think we won. The race is our race, where we are competing with ourselves.

Most of the times people look for others’ approval after completing a task, whereas the truth is that even we can answer that question post finishing a task. We know when something is not as we wished for. We know when something is outstanding, and we know when something is just about average. But sometimes, due to our laziness or the fear of coming out of our comfort zones, we let the mediocrity in us pass to another level, so that we can ‘finish’ our task and head home. Again, we wanted someone to approve it, and if the boss approves it, it automatically becomes ‘good’.

But did we ever fall in to the habit of raising our standards by not presenting something to our boss when we have not liked it ourselves? Have we ever fallen in to a habit where we don’tthe power of dreams give others the power to judge us, but empowered ourselves to judge? Have we ever fallen in to a thought process where we are not motivated by other people’s praises but let self satisfaction be the driving factor?

Excellence is not achieved in a day. Excellence is achieved by competing with ourselves daily. Excellence is achieved by practice, the practice of defeating ourselves every day. Excellence is something where we can humiliate ourselves and tell ourselves that this was not a good idea. Excellence is not giving power to others but finding it within ourselves.

If we all have this excellence instilled in our thoughts, no one can beat us. Every day would be an awesome day where we would be reporting only to ourselves. Where our salary would not be playing on our minds, but the urge to do more would torment us to do better. Where going to the office every day would mean being a part of an exciting adventure that leads us to explore and challenge ourselves and liberate our souls.

Have a happy Monday.

Jatin Sharma is a media professional who does not want to grow up, because if he grows up, he will be like everybody else.

(Pictures courtesy successfulworkplace.com)

Categories
Swaad 'Anu'saar

Break an egg

Parsis add eggs to any preparation, and the proof is not just in the pudding, but in all their food.
anurita guptaby Anurita Patel

Is there an evil you want to ward off? Are you welcoming a bride in your house? Go ahead, break an egg, break an egg!

Yes, that’s a true blue Parsi. There is no community more colourful than the bawas when it comes to doing things differently. By virtue of being married to a Parsi, I have been subject to a whole bunch of antics and of course, the legendary bawa fixation with food. They take it so seriously, that you may catch a bawa talking about the motti motti kolmi he enjoyed at Gambhar last weekend in Alibaug while he is already sitting at the dining table enjoying a feast!  Parsis can talk about food, food and more food even while eating (or even after) food!

In short, never mess with a Parsi’s food. They are specifically very particular about two food items – fish and eggs. Like my dad-in-law says, you should always have fish only in the months that have ‘R’ in their names. So since we are in August, we shall avoid the fish and move on to their next big fixation – eggs.

Did you know that an egg is the bawa equivalent of the auspicious coconut in Hindu customs? My grandmother took great umbrage at one of our many wedding rituals, when my mother-in-law took an egg around my head and broke it on the floor 🙂 However, coming back to this divine ball of health, wealth and prosperity taking the paramount place in Parsi cuisine, let us take a look at all that they love in eggs and how it is made.

The Parsi Akoori. The pride and joy of every bawa breakfast table, the akoori is special because it is the Parsi Parsi akooriversion of the English scrambled eggs, albeit with a lot of masala. All you need to do is add a sprinkle of cumin and a teaspoon of ginger garlic paste to asli ghee. Then sauté thinly chopped onion in ghee until it is red, and add the chopped tomato to it. Once it’s nicely bhunao’d, add all the dry masalas, including a dash of cinnamon. Right at the end, add the glorious eggs and stir.

The trick here is to keep it at the same consistency as scrambled eggs. Like I said, the akoori is such a hot favourite that I have seen people in my family eat it religiously every day for breakfast.

 ‘Everything’ per eeda (egg). There is no vegetable or food item on the planet that cannot have an egg broken on it, as per the Parsis! To their credit, they can make absolutely anything taste delicious with an egg in it. The famous bheeda per eeda is nothing but egg on okra. Simply make the okra sabzi and then break an egg or two on top of it. Cover the pan with a lid for a minute or so. Open to see if the yolk is set. Once done, sprinkle some coriander and voila, bheeda per eeda is ready.

The other hot favourites are wafer per eedu, malai per eedu, vaingnu (brinjal) per eedu, tamota (tomato) per eedu, kheema per eedu and goor (mutton marrow) per eedu. Basically anything and everything per eedu is the bawa specialty.

lagan nu custardLagan nu custard. No Parsi wedding is ever complete without the lagan nu custard. The Parsis always have a sit down dinner at their special occasions. The food is served on a banana leaf and along with saas in machhi and sali margi, there is the famous lagan nu custard for the sweet dish. It is a baked custard made with eggs, semolina and condensed milk. Milk, sugar and condensed milk are boiled in a kadhai and then the semolina is added to it. It is left to simmer for 20 minutes so that the mixture becomes thick and creamy. Then, some cardamom powder and nutmeg powder is added to it. Now, another mixture of eggs in another bowl with vanilla essence is made and added to the cooled down semolina mix. It is then baked for an hour or so until set.

So while the actual recipes can be acquired from many of your bawa friends or family, the main ingredient clearly is egg and of course, love. So the next time a bawa invites you to a brunch party saying ‘Jamva chalo Ji’ you know what to look forward to! After all, ‘Sunday hove ke Monday, dar roj khawaanu eedu!’

Anurita Gupta is a media professional who is passionate about two things – food and radio. Her love for all things food makes her a foodie with a cause.

(Pictures courtesy paleoaholic.com, www.cookveg.co.uk, www.flickr.com)

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