Author: The Metrognome

Categories
Event

National Scrabble Championship comes to Mumbai

Are you a fan of the word game Scrabble? Register for this event and have the time of your life!
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

If you’re a fan of words and love to play Scrabble, you really should check this out – a national scrabble competition!

Fans of word game Scrabble are invited to participate in an engaging battle of words spread over three days this month. The Bayer Group in India, in association with The Mumbai Scrabble Club and Scrabble Association of India, will hosting the Bayer National Scrabble Championship 2013 at Willingdon Catholic Gymkhana on May 24, 25 and 26, 2013. T

The tournament consists of 26 rounds and will follow the Australian draw format for the first 13 rounds, followed by King of the hill format for the remaining 13 rounds. There are two divisions – Premier (SAI rating 1250 and above) and Open (SAI rating below 1250 and unrated players). The words source is Collins Scrabble Words 2012.

The Championship, in short:

– To be held from 9 am to 7 pm, on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, ie May 24, 25 and 26, at Willingdon Catholic Gymkhana, near Khar subway, Santacruz west.

– Players with SAI rating between 1000 to 1250 can opt to play in the Premier division. If the number of players is odd in the premier division then the highest rated player in the open division would fill in the last slot of the premier division.

– The winner would qualify to represent India at WSC 2013.

– Participants are requested to bring their own scrabble board, tiles and clock to the venue.

– Participants reaching the venue after 9.30 am would not be allowed to participate in the tournament.

– Register in advance to participate. Register on mumbaiscrabbleclub@hotmail.com or mumbaiscrabble@gmail.com, or call Ramachandran on 9892471327 or Bhushan Pradhan on 022-27721317 to register.

– Registration fees are Rs 1500 for SAI Members and Rs 1700 for Non-SAI Members, and includes lunch, tea  and snacks for all three days of the tournament.

(Picture courtesy scrabblehelp.biz)

Categories
Big story

State to get Olympic Bhavan

All-in-one facility for Olympics training will see sportspersons from each district representating their area;there will be competitions, meets at Balewadi.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Maharashtra State has produced such Olympians as swimmer Veerdhaval Khadye and ace hockey player Dhanraj Pillay, but for a State producing scores of talented sportspeople every year in all disciplines, there is still a paucity of proper training guidelines and facilities that can create more Olympians from the State.

In response to this, Maharashtra’s Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has decided to erect an all-in-one ‘Olympic Bhavan’ in Maharashtra, where all associations and activities affiliated to the Maharashtra Olympic Association (MOA) will come under one roof. The Bhavan will house administrative amenities related to sports, as well as provide for quality training facilities. Sports associations from all districts are to be equally represented to the MOA.

Meanwhile, Pawar, who also heads the MOA, has announced that sporting competitions, training camps and coaching camps can happen at Pune’s Balewadi Sports Complex at nominal rates.

(Pictures courtesy businessweek.com, zeenewsindia.com)

Categories
Do

Never too old to sketch

That’s what drives the landscape and portrait sketching workshops for adults at the NGMA, with some Rabindranath Tagore thrown in.
by Medha Kulkarni

Summer time is vacation time. There are a plethora of all kinds of workshops and events for children. But what about the adults? Why isn’t there ever a hobby class or summer workshop for adults?

This summer, the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) is set to right this wrong by organising workshops specifically for adults. As a part of The Last Harvest exhibition curated by noted art historian Prof R Sivakumar to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Tagore on May 8, 2012, the workshops aim to provide a hands-on, practical insight into Rabindranath Tagore’s style of painting and his use of mediums and their execution.

The workshops start with a tour of the exhibition, and a discussion on the works before splitting into two separate art workshops. The portrait-sketching workshop will be conducted by Parul V Mehta and the landscape sketching one will be conducted by Geeta Kapadia. Both Mehta and Kapadia are practising artists and have exhibited in galleries in India and abroad.
The interactive sketching workshops will open up a new avenue through which Tagore’s works can be studied while highlighting the importance of portraiture and landscapes in his works. Aside from the sketching lesson, participants will also gain a detailed understanding of Tagore’s humanistic qualities and his various achievements in the field of arts in India and internationally, juxtaposed with little-known facts about his personal life and family, glimpses of which can be seen in the works.

The workshops will be held at the NGMA every Wednesday from May 8, 2013 to June 5, 2013 from 11 am to 1 pm. The workshop is free and open to all although seating is limited (20 people per session) so it’s best to register beforehand. You can email Parul at parulvmehta@gmail.com to register. All sketching materials will be provided to the participants.

 

Categories
Film

‘Jalpari’ wins at Dadasaheb Phalke Film Festival

Nila Madhab Panda’s second children’s film after the critically-acclaimed ‘I Am Kalam’ wins three awards at fest, including Best Film.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

The Dadasaheb Phalke Film Festival 2013 was concluded recently, and one film that won in three separate categories was Jalpari – The Desert Mermaid.

This film is Nila Madhab Panda’s second outing after the critically-acclaimed I Am Kalam three years ago. Jalpari was one of hundreds of films nominated from across the world, and it won awards for Best Film (for producer Sushilkumar Agrawal), Best Screenplay (for Deepak Venkateshan) and Best Child Actress (for Leher Khan).

The Film Festival was held in Noida recently. After the win, Sushilkumar said, “It’s an honour to receive awards in three different categories for our film. These awards are a measure of appreciation and an encouragement for us to continue making and supporting content-oriented cinema. I always believed in its subject, powerful performances and treatment, which I knew had the potential to compete and also win. It’s celebration time for us.”

The film is centred around the travails of a girl child in a rural setup where female foeticide is rampant, and also stars Tannishtha Chatterjee, Parvin Dabas and Rajendra Gupta. “After receiving critical acclaim at international festivals, I am super ecstatic on receiving a triple triumph at India’s most honoured film festival for for my second film. Dadasaheb’s work, his history has been a source of inspiration and encourages me to make such movies,” added Nila Madhab Panda on receiving the award.

(Pictures courtesy www.indianexpress.com, jaiarjun.blogspot.com)

Categories
Achieve

A record-making wall

Tata Housing’s ‘Mumbai Wallbook’ initiative makes it to Limca Book of Records for the lengthiest wall painting activity in Mumbai.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Tata Housing Development Company Limited recently made it to the Limca Book of Records 2013 for ‘Mumbai Wallbook’, the lengthiest wall painting activity held in Mumbai on May 20, 2012. This first of its kind initiative was based on the theme ‘Design Your Dream City’ and it saw 556 artists coming together, on one platform, to design their dream for the city.  Over 15,000 Likes and conversations were generated on Tata Housing’s Facebook page a week prior to the event, and other social media platforms successfully engaged enthusiasts that ensured high footfalls at the venue.

The huge success of ‘Mumbai Wallbook’ led Tata Housing to believe that such mass participation was rarely witnessed in the public fora in Mumbai, and motivated them to enter the activity in the Book of Records.

Hundreds of Mumbaikars registered for the ‘Mumbai Wallbook’ to redecorate the defaced city walls and illustrate them with graphic visualisations of their dream city. The depictions were quintessentially Mumbai in spirit. The paintings sent out strong social messages with themes of an ideal Mumbai, the increasing requirement of open green public space, anti-crime, anti-corruption, eco-awareness, non-violence, Bollywood frenzy and Lord Ganesha’s portrait beautifying the walls along the Tulsi Pipe Road in central Mumbai. The entire length of the two-kilometre painted wall extends over three suburban train stations and is an arterial link road to the city centre.

The success of the wallbook in Mumbai prompted Tata Housing to host a similar event in the national capital called the ‘Delhi WallBook’, which, the company claims, also did well. Nearly 500 artists participated at the Delhi event.

Commenting on the achievement, Rajeeb Dash, Head of Marketing at Tata Housing said, “It is an honour to be a part of the Limca Book of Records this year. Our ‘Mumbai Wallbook’ initiative was an engaging project with Mumbaikars giving them an opportunity to express their thoughts in their creative best and we were overwhelmed with the enthusiastic response from artists. The event resulted in an astonishing turnout of citizens who desire a better Mumbai and were ready to demonstrate their views through their artistic skills. This national recognition of our support for art and culture is encouraging, and this is truly reflective of our endeavour to inspire life through art. We plan to take The Wallbook initiative across to other cities of India as well.”

The Mumbai WallBook was a joint initiative between Tata Housing and Brand Promotions India Pvt. Ltd. to bring professional, amateur and budding artists on the same platform to showcase their skills and create a record for the longest wall painting by maximum artists.

(Pictures courtesy Tata Housing)

Categories
Tech

The best phones under Rs 15,000

Want a new phone on a budget? Here’s a list of phones that fulfill all needs without pinching your pocket.
by Manik Kakra

Phones have become one of those integral gizmos of our daily life. We need them when we are alone, when at work, when partying – just about everywhere, at all times. We all want a good phone that can fulfill our needs, and here are out top picks of phones that don’t worry your wallet but give you the bang for the bucks.

Nokia Asha 501; to go on sale next month, expected price Rs. 6,300 

This S40 phone is a very smart feature phone. It is made for people who don’t want full functionality of smartphones, but who still want to stay connected. Whether it’s Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp (coming soon), or just to make or receive calls, this phone has got all bases coveed. What’s more, MTNL and Airtel users get free access to Facebook from their phone, thanks to Nokia’s partnership with Facebook.

Nokia Lumia 520, approx Rs. 9,500
This phone is the cheapest Windows Phone 8 device available in the market. It is a great-looking device that comes with a decent 4-inch screen, 5 Mp camera, 512 MB RAM, and WP8 OS that works just fine on it. People looking for their first smartphone without spending a lot should definitely consider this Nokia offering.

Sony Xperia E (approx Rs 9,900)
The Xperia E boasts a 3.5-inch screen, and comes with Android 4.1. It is a very nice-looking phone which comes with a 3.2 MP camera, WiFi, Bluetooth, DLNA, and microUSB. It comes in a number of colour options, too – pink, blue, and black.

Micromax Canvas HD, approx Rs. 14,500
Micromax has been getting a lot of attention in the phone industry, of late. The company has been busy launching one Android phone after another. The Canvas HD (in pic on left) seems to be the best out of their lot. This phone sports a 5-inch HD screen, an 8 MP rear camera, and the phone runs on Android 4.1.2. This phone seems like a value for money option, and has got received very well in the market so far.

LG Optimus L5 II, approx Rs. 10,000
The Optimus L5II is an Android 4.1 phone that sports a 4-inch screen, and features a 5 MP camera, WiFi, Bluetooth, and microUSB. It is a good option for people looking for an Android device that doesn’t feel too old for its Android version and is within their not-so-high budget at the same time.

Did Manik miss out any smart, budget phones in this piece? Write to him in the comments section below.

(Pictures courtesy chatinbook.info, www.fonearena.com)

Exit mobile version