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Everybody lovesVandemataram,except some

fringe religiouslymotivated

extremists. It hasits own place inIndian psyche ---like a mantra,sacred, touchingthe soul. But JanaGana has a mindand body stirringeffect that cannever besupplanted.

NGI KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE |MAY 2012

Composed more than a centuryago, the Indian national an-them epitomizes the unity indiversity of one of the most an-

cient civilizations in the world. There is acontroversial ring to this song as well.Many still think it was written in praiseof George V, the then king of England,the colonial power that ruled over thenation. History suggests that the doyenof Bengali literature Gurudev RabindraNath Tagore was asked to pen a song forGeorge V.

Tagore, who went on to win theNobel prize for literature in 1913, in-stead listened to his inner voice andwrote Jana Gana Mana that was sung atthe event welcoming the Britishmonarch in 1911.

Later, it became known that Tagorehimself had put it on record that it wasnot composed for George, but for hisbeloved motherland.

Controversy could have ended there,but perhaps it is a healthy debate, sinceTagore himself said, someday we may re-consider writing a new song befitting thenation. Perhaps, it was prophetic and100 years hence, India and Indians arestill besotted with the song that has be-come embedded in their psyche.

Everybody loves Vandemataram, ex-cept some fringe religiously motivatedextremists. It has its own place in Indianpsyche --- like a mantra, sacred, touch-ing the soul. But Jana Gana has a mindand body stirring effect that can neverbe supplanted.

However, the song harks back to Pun-jab and Sindh of yore – most of whichare now part of Pakistan that was sepa-rated at our liberated birth, thanks toour colonial powers’ engineered Parti-tion.

But the next two states in the song –Gujarat and Maharashtra --- remain themain engines for India’s developmentand growth.

The world is going through trauma ofthe recession. In many developed na-tions, including the US, Greece, and evenin the Netherlands, the number of hun-gry people is huge and in some countriesit is still growing. On the other hand,when Britain handed the reign over tothe Indians, they sucked out a greatamount of physical wealth out of the na-tion and the country was economically

ruined. Several decades of protectedeconomy allowed a tardy progress, butthe bottom of the pyramid grew. `Liber-alization’ of the 1990s and opening upthe economic barriers has created com-petition, inflow of investments, enhanc-ing quality and productivity of thenation. India is one of the fastest grow-ing economies of the world today, and atleast half a dozen states in the country isshowing a double-digit GDP growth.

Traditionally, Maharashtra has beenthe hub of both industries and educa-tion, as evident in Mumbai and Pune, re-spectively. Today the state’s economy isgrowing at a clip near 10%. It alone pro-vides nearly 40% of national revenueand 15% of industrial output. However,the growth must remain and there areplenty of opportunities for furthergrowth of the state.

Gujarat, now under the leadership ofcharismatic Narendra Modi, has main-tained a growth rate of around 10% foralmost a decade after less than 4% in theprevious decade. It proves one thing: de-termination and inclusive growth is re-lated to the will of the leadership.Recently, TIME magazine and other inter-national media are lavishing bountifulpraise on the state and its leader, thanksto Modi’s attitude to truly follow ‘ThinkGlobally and Act Locally’ concept. Hope-fully, other states will play catch up withModi’s Gujarat and improve the lives ofthe bottom of the pyramid in all sectorsincluding employment, education, healthand living standards taking advantage oflatest technological advancements.

Uttarakhand, Bihar, Tamil Nadu,Haryana and Karnataka have showngreat progress in GDP growth. However,time has come for other states to emu-late Gujarat.

And in all these, global Indians areplaying a major role by bringing invest-ment, technology and new businesses.The trend is good, but certainly not goodenough. So, global Indians, whatever isyour way of saluting mother India, be it‘Jaya He’, ‘Vande Mataram’ or ‘Jay Ho’time is nigh to help your beloved moth-erland, India, rise to its rightful placethat will do good for the people of theworld at large. Besides, even one personlifted up from medieval living conditionsanywhere in the world will uplift thespirit of the global village.

edito

rial Tagore’s patriotism

lives on

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EDITORIAL1 Tagore’s patriotism lives on4 Asian Century: Cautious Optimism

GUJARAT7 ‘Gujarat... it hardly feels like India’14 Bapu's janambhoomi spawns

entrepreneurial spirit

INTERVIEW16 Shilpa sathi powering Bengal’s

industrial dreams17 Hard-selling Mumbai’s tourism

potential18 Shyam Bhatia's Museum of Dreams

MIDDLE EEAST20 CSR holds key to 21st century business22 Golden Peacock Awards for CSR &

Philanthropy presented in the UAE24 Changes in the Global Economy ‒

How Can India Evolve as a Leader?

PROFILE26 Newsmakers28 Newsbin

NRI JJUNCTION30 ‘Indian Diaspora Engagement Meet’

in East Africa

CONTENTS 02

07

16

18


HISTORY32 ‘How Indian social system shaped

nation’s history

SOCIETY38 Reality bites of Maya Nagri

ART40 Where art is a way of life

INDIANAMA42 Male narratives in Hindi serials

TRAVELOGUE44 Spoilt for getaway choices46 The Deccan Odyssey

MUSIC50 The Classical And

The Contemporary

CINEMA54 Silver Screen @100

03 CONTENTS

38

42

4450

46

With the American econ-omy still stuttering andeurozone is in deep fis-cal distress, the centre

of gravity of global power and busi-ness is shifting eastward towardsAsia. Here, there is, in varying de-grees, growth and prospect of moregrowth. More importantly, there ishope, something which is in shortsupply, in many parts of the rest ofthe world.

Ten years ago, the three largesteconomies -- the US, the EU andJapan --- accounted for two-thirds ofthe global economy. Today, it is lessthan half. By 2020, China will be thelargest economy, says an IMF study.By 2030, India and China will be alarger economy together than the USand the EU combined. Now, for thefirst time, Asia-Pacific has more bil-lionaires than Europe.

However, interestingly, economy isnot the only index of power today.Any nation that claims a stake for fu-ture generations must strike a bal-ance between the demands ofdevelopment and the power of tech-nology keeping in mind the people’swelfare and the nature. This is wherethe key to global power of tomorrowlies.

For example, scams and scandalshave become synonymous with thosein power in India over the last twoyears. Indian needed a redeemer andit happened in the shape of a diminu-tive Gandhian called Anna Hazare. Hewas the Citizen Rearmed who shookthe nation. And he pitted the powerof hunger against the hunger forpower. The difference between In-dian and China is that an Anna couldnot have happened there. China, thefastest growing large economy of theworld, still evokes as much admira-tion as fear. It inspires as well as in-timidates. China’s bigger struggle iswithin, and this determines its un-easy relationship with the rest of theworld.

Another significant aspect of theAsian reality today is that there iswar, peace, and the large space in be-tween, called the ‘fog of war’. Afterthe First and Second World Wars, and

then the Cold War, Asia is now thetheatre of the fourth war -- the Waron terror. If a war starts with Irannow, the entire region --- from theNile to the Ganges -- will be up inflames. Asia is also developing intothe world’s ‘nuclear crescent’: fromIsrael, Iran, Pakistan, India, China,North Korea and all the way Russia.

The road towards an Asian centuryis strewn with daunting policy, insti-tutional and governance challenges.Effective measures to combat corrup-tion remain central, thanks to thefailure of good governance, of trans-parency, and of accountability meansgrowing cynicism towards democraticrule. Also, in our times, many essen-tial freedoms are in danger of defeatin many Asian states. Often thethreat to freedom of speech is the vi-olence of the intolerant, and thatneed not be from the State alone.Need for electoral, administrative, ju-dicial reforms et al is an essential as-pect of Indian and many other Asiandemocracies.

Also, Asian Capitalism needs tohave a different face. In the wake ofthe virtual collapse of the Americanbanking system and the crisis in Eu-rope, the need to re-invent Capital-ism, ensuring corporate socialresponsibility, putting people andplanet before greed, and ensuring in-clusive growth and affirmative action,have all become essential aspects ofAsian Capitalism.

And all of this will need a game-changing role of technology. Today,technology is moving ideas and cul-tures across borders and World WideWeb is bringing people in Asia closertogether, and has contributed to theArab Spring as well. The Web revolu-tion depends on putting people atthe centre, especially in rural areas.Stressing the importance of commu-nity initiatives, one can prove how In-dian farmers are succeeding toreverse the price drop of agriculturalproduce in some markets. At least,the beginning of immense possibili-ties is done. E-commerce in India hashit $6 billion mark, and is on cruisecontrol as compared to West Asia andChina.

Prof Ujjwal K Chowdhury Managing Editor

Dean, Whistling Woods InternationalSchool of Communication, Mumbai

email: [email protected]

edito

rial Asian Century:

Cautious Optimism

The difference between Indian andChina is that an Annacould not have happened there.China, the fastestgrowing large economy of the

world, still evokes asmuch admiration asfear. It inspires as well as intimidates.



Sick of procras�na�on and poli�calopposi�on in West Bengal, the TataGroup decided to shi� to Gujarat.For years the group could not getgoing at Singur whereas at Sanand itgot the land in three days, somethingof folklore in the industrial circles ofIndia. The first micro car rolled out ofthe facility within months. Im-pressed, Ford, Maru� Suzuki andPeugeot decided to set shop in Gu-jarat, and they get the land neededin weeks. General Motors were al-

ready there.And, now Nis-san has con-cluded thatthis is thestate to dobusinesswith. “Youare stupid,if you arenot inGujarat,”saidTataGroupchair-man

RatanTata while announc-

ing the shi�ing of the Nanoplant shed, stock and personnel toGujarat. Indeed, none wants to lookstupid, it seems.

Congress is vehemently opposedto the ruling BJP and its poster boyCM Narendra Modi’s poli�cal and so-cial outlook, but its own think-tankRajiv Gandhi Founda�on had ratedGujarat, under him, among thestates that offered the highest de-gree of most economic freedom.That Bibek Debroy lost his job in thethink-tank only goes to show howpe�y rivalry has made India’s growthmarch a circus of too many poli�calpygmies under the canopy.

“So many things work properly in

Gujarat that it hardly feels like India... Chinese-style, big-�cket projectsare part of Gujarat’s formula, includ-ing refineries and ports, but so arenetworks of smaller firms and for-eign companies which have nowachieved cri�cal mass in industriessuch as cars and pharmaceu�cals.The state government uses the usualtricks to try jumpstart growth, in-cluding special economic zones. Butmore important, it has provided thebog-standard things that businessespray for across India but o�en do notget – less onerous labour laws, pass-able roads, reliable electricity and ef-fec�ve bureaucracy,” wrote TheEconomist in July, 2011. DescribingGujarat as India’s Guangdong, themagazine said that the state offers aglimpse of a possible industrial fu-ture for India.

5% OF POPULATION, 22% OF EXPORTSGujarat accounts for just 5% ofIndia’s popula�on, but has a massive16% share of the country’s industrialproduc�on and an even more im-pressive 22% of exports. So manythings indeed work exceedingly wellin Gujarat. So much so that theUnion looks up to it, along with a fewstates like Maharashtra and Kar-nataka, to power India’s growthstory. Over the years the PlanningCommission has given Gujarat agrowth target higher than the rest ofIndia. And Gujarat has achieved it.

At the mee�ng to finalize thestate’s plan size this financial year,the Planning Commission praisedGujarat’s development plans andprojected a growth rate of 11.2% asagainst the na�on’s 8-9 %.

The commission increased Gu-jarat’s plan size for the current finan-cial year 2011-2012 by 26.67% to Rs380 billion, which is higher than Rs371.52 billion originally decided.Planning Commission deputy chair-man Montek Singh Ahluwalia andother members of the panel praisedGujarat’s development models,

‘GUJARAT… IT HARDLYFEELS LIKE INDIA’

‘You are stupid if you are not in Gujarat,’ Tata GroupChairman Ratan Tata had famously said, while announcing the shifting of the Nano plant to thestate. Going by the rush of investors to the state, itseems none wants to be left behind, write Prof PPravin SSheth and Dr PPradeep MMallik

GUJARAT 06

strategies for financial management, GDP andper capita growth rates, besides other achieve-ments. Apprecia�ng the Planning Commis-sion’s gesture, Modi assured it that Gujaratwould jus�fy the hike in its annual plan size.He also exuded confidence that the statewould achieve the 11.2% growth rate duringthe current fiscal as mandated. The CM saidthe increased layout will help Gujarat launchprojects like Rs 147 crore for scien�fic man-agement of animal husbandry and improvingthe ca�le breed, star�ng next genera�on dayschools in tribal areas on the lines of ‘ashramshalas’ bringing boys from nearby areas inmini-buses, connec�ng remotest areas in theDangs and Dahod with roads and drinkingwater facility, augmen�ng drip irriga�on andupgrading health and hygienic facili�es in 159municipali�es.

Efficient conserva�on and management ofwater have been a con�nuing challenge forGujarat’s agriculture as only a quarter of itsland is irrigated. The Plan panel has been quitesuppor�ve of the state and this is evident fromthe push three major programmes receivedsince 2000: watershed development, Jal Kran�and micro-irriga�on.

Watershed development programmeadded about 100,000 hectares every year. By2009, nearly 2000 projects covering 2 millionhectares had been completed and 900,000hectares more were under execu�on. JalKran� programme ensured rain water did notrun away into the sea. Instead it got trapped incheck dams, recharged wells and revived vil-lage ponds. Micro-irriga�on through drips andsprinklers spearheaded by Gujarat Green Rev-olu�on Company helped cover about 200,000hectares, benefi�ng almost equal number offarmers.

Gujarat has set high benchmarks for the

12th Five-Year Plan in Human DevelopmentIndex (HDI), management of water resources,urban infrastructure, environment, solidwastes and waste water, besides desalina�onplants to be run on solar power. On the socialfront, too, Gujarat has included 225,000 chil-dren from the religious minority communi�esfor pre-matricula�on scholarships meant fortribal, dalit and other backward classes. Mi-nority popula�on in Gujarat is 9.6%, but itsschool enrolment is 8.5% excluding madrasas.

Gujarat has implemented ‘Sarva ShikshaAbhiyan’ since 2003, has appointed 145,000teachers, built 19,000 classrooms and spent awhopping Rs 160 billion, but has not receivedcorresponding funds from the federal govern-ment. Under the Rights to Educa�on Act, Gu-jarat has appointed close to 90,000 teachersand built 80,000 classrooms at an addi�onalburden of Rs 80 billion. More than 90% of pri-vate schools in Gujarat running on PPP modelget government grants, for which the Centrehas allocated just 1% fund under Na�onal Sec-ondary School Abhiyan. The Centre has maderelevant laws, but le� the onus of financingand implemen�ng the projects on Gujarat.

The Centre adopted some of the successstories of Gujarat such as decentraliza�on ofadministra�on up to taluka level (ATVT), the Rs50-billion ‘Mission Mangalam’ project for200,000 sakhi mandals (women’s self-helpgroups), and se�ng new benchmarks inpoverty allevia�ons, empowerment of peoplefor the larger benefit of the na�on.

PRAISE FROM EX�PREZ KALAM TO SCJUDGESApprecia�on from all quarters have come forGujarat from all quarters: UNESCO, formerPresident A P J Abdul Kalam, the SupremeCourt and high courts, CM’s poli�cal oppo-

nents, independent think-tanks, news maga-zines, visi�ng experts and industrialists. Let uslook at some of these.

We may begin with what has become per-haps the most sensi�ve concern in the countrytoday when it comes for facilita�ng industrial-iza�on. Land acquisi�on is an emo�ve subjectacross the na�on, something that forced TataGroup to eject itself from West Bengal andplant its micro car project at Sanand in Gu-jarat, notwithstanding the Land Acquisi�onAct. The Supreme Court praised Modi govern-ment’s handling of the issue, and asked otherstates to learn from it.

Forcible acquisi�on of land has turned the 117-year-old Act into a “fraud”, the Supreme Court hadsaid in September, 2011, as reported in the maga-zine, Business World. While calling the piece of leg-isla�on a handiwork of “sick” minds with noconcern for welfare of the poor, the apex courtpraised the Gujarat government saying no case offarmers or the poor being uprooted from theirland had come to the Court from the state.

“The Act has become a fraud. It seems to havebeen devised by people with a sick mind who hadscant regard for the welfare of the common man.It is �me the Act is scrapped,” a bench of Jus�ces GS Singhvi and H L Da�u observed, while hearingpe��ons by farmers from Hapur in U�ar Pradeshwho had lost 82 acres to a leather industrial com-plex.

The Supreme Court compared states where“forcible acquisi�on” using an emergency clauseunder the Act had almost become a norm to Gu-jarat. “But there is one state from where we do notreceive any such complaints. Look at Ahmedabadwhich is developing but there are no complaintsfrom that place. They have the same officers of thesame cadre as in the rest of the country,” the courtsaid, adding officers from other states can trainunder their Gujarat counterparts.


07 GUJARAT

Carnival at Kankaria where a lakefront of international standard has been developed

5% OF POPULATION, 22% OF EXPORTSGujarat accounts for just 5% ofIndia’s population, but has a massive 16% share of the country’s industrial productionand an even more impressive 22%of exports. So many things indeedwork exceedingly well in Gujarat.So much so that the Union looksup to it, along with a few stateslike Maharashtra and Karnataka,to power India’s growth story.Over the years the Planning Commission has given Gujarat agrowth target higher than the restof India. And Gujarat has achieved it.


The court even directly addressed Addi�onalSolicitor General Harin Rawal, who hails fromGujarat, to say that the law officer would“vouch” for the court’s remarks about hisstate’s policy on land acquisi�on.

POWER GENERATION GROWS, FARM PRO�DUCE INCREASESA�er land the other infrastructure that indus-try looks for is electricity and road network.On the power front, the achievement hasbeen lauded by the then Union finance minis-ter P Chidambaram, who incidentally happensto be from Congress and a staunch ideologicalopponent of BJP. In May 2008, he said, “Gu-jarat has shown us the way on how to fixpower (problem) for agriculture.”

Revamping water management and exten-sion services apart, Gujarat governmentachieved a major breakthrough in rural electri-fica�on. Launched in 2003, Jyo�gram Yojanaensured 100% electrifica�on of the state’s vil-lages and reasonably regular supply in threeyears. The scheme included a crucial compo-nent of power supply for groundwater man-agement with eight hours a day of powermade available. Economists a�ribute Gujarat’sdouble digit growth to some of these majorini�a�ves on the supply side.

While industry has received arguably apreferen�al treatment, agriculture has not

been ignored. Planning Commission’s figurescited earlier speak for themselves. FormerPresident A P J Abdul Kalam has hailed highagriculture growth that Gujarat has achievedin the past six years. The state has registered asustained agricultural growth of 7% to 9% overthe past six years --- far ahead of country’s na-�onal average growth of just about 2.5% to3%, Dr Kalam told a farmers’ meet organisedat Bas� in U�ar Pradesh in February, 2011. DrKalam’s statement was based on the findingsof the researchers at the Indian Ins�tute ofManagement (IIM), Ahmedabad, who told himthat “unparalleled growth rate was achievedby the Gujarat government through schemesunder public-private partnership and ini�a�onof several innova�ve programmes.”

According to Dr Kalam, “Firstly, they (Gu-jarat) created a dedicated power grid for agri-culture to ensure uninterrupted 24-hoursupply to the rural areas where revolu�onarysteps were taken to improve upon the irriga-�ons systems whereby 20,000 hectares ofnon-irrigated land was turned into a rich agri-cultural area.... The message I wish to conveyis that when there is commi�ed leadershipwith a vision and ability to bring all the stake-holders together... the produc�vity increase infood produc�on can be achieved.”

Incidentally, interlinking of rivers or inter-basin transfer of water has to a certain extent

helped irrigate the un-irrigated land to someextent in a largely water-deficient state. DrKalam has eulogized the state for its effort atno less a forum than IIM-A. The “People’sPresident” while talking to the students on thecampus in September, 2008, said, “Thereshould be a programme for interlinking ofwater bodies at state level across the na�on.Every state should interlink its water bodies.Once this goal is achieved, there can be a na-�onwide interlinking program.” When stu-dents told him about Gujarat’s Sardar SarovarProject, the Narmada’s successful interlinkingwith the Sabarma� and of different lakes inAhmedabad, Dr Kalam exclaimed, “Very good... There should be a research on good prac-�ces and such prac�ces should be publishedfor wider reach.”

PDS SYSTEM COULD BE MODEL FOR INDIA:SCThe Supreme Court had commended comput-erized public distribu�on system in Gujarat(and Chha�sgarh, too), saying that it could bethe model for India.

Other welfare measures, especially chil-dren’s and pregnant women’s health, expan-sion of knowledge in rural areas, too haveelicited admira�on. UNICEF has picked up Gu-jarat’s scheme for pregnant women, as re-ported by The Times of India in January, 2009.

GUJARAT 08

A view of Kite festival


“The Gujarat government’s ini�a�ve (Chiran-jeevi Yojana) is a departure from previousprac�ce as it takes sole responsibility for thereimbursement of private health-careproviders, rather than relying on intermediarypar�es such as insurers,” the UNICEF in its re-port ‘State of World Children 2009’ stated.

Another area in which Gujarat has beenhailed is taking help of technology to spreadknowledge. Incidentally it is again a Unionminister who has commended the effort.Speaking at a programme in Ahmedabad inJuly, 2011, Union law minister Veerappa Moilypraised Modi for his effort to make available e-library at even taluka level. Moily said that theCentre had plans on the same line and a na-�onwide e-library was going to be introducedon August 15.

Praising the Gujarat state judiciary for itsini�a�ves and achievements, Moily added,“I’ve come here to learn from you.” Moily saidhe would circulate Gujarat High Court’s mis-sion mode programme to reduce pendency ofcases to the other high courts as well.

Technology has also been used to take gov-ernance to the doorstep of the people. DrKalam has been special reference to this in hisspeeches as this has also brought transparencyin the system. He thinks lack of transparency iscoming in the way of development reachingvillages, and cited as a model ‘Krushi Mahot-

sav’ being implemented by the Gujarat govern-ment to ensure that the rural sector reaps thebenefits of growth. Nearly 100,000 govern-ment officials, from the CM to taluka-levelstaff, agriculture scien�sts and other stake-holders spend a month in rural areas demon-stra�ng the best of technologies to farmers.

“Such ini�a�ves indicate a strong adminis-tra�on will to ensure development reaches therural sector. Krushi Mahotsav tours all 18,600villages of the state, providing informa�on andcounseling on soil health, organic farming,technology inputs, irriga�on, etc, besides in-fusing a new spirit of change and mass mobili-sa�on,” he said, delivering the UPSC lecture on‘Governance and Public Service’ in December,2011.

SOCIAL SECTOR REMAINS AN AREA OFCONCERNGujarat s�ll has a long way to go. Despite im-pressive growth, the state has to cover a lot ofground, especially on the social front as somesurveys have revealed. The state has far tooo�en thumped its chest and individual poli�-cians have mouthed some parochial state-ments. Can there be a ‘Republic of Gujarat’?Well, no. The state also has to hasten to com-plete the Narmada project in which the peoplehave invested physically, emo�onally and fi-nancially. They have been terribly let down bythe successive administra�ons. The poli�calwind blowing across in northern India may re-vive the old aspira�on of some of separatestates of Kutch and Saurashtra. The poli�caland social leadership has to ensure the stateremains united. The image of cops has suf-

fered a blow like in no other state and it is asubject of concern

Taking rapid strides in industrial develop-ment, the state has to cover a lot of ground,especially on the social front as some surveyshave revealed. Gujarat lags many states whichin the past have been condemned as “BI-MARU”. (BIMARU stands for Bihar, MadhyaPradesh, Rajasthan and U�ar Pradesh, theterm when read as an acronym means “sick” inHindi).

Despite impressive growth, Gujarat has notbeen able to reduce malnourishment levels,while U�ar Pradesh and Bihar, among themost backward in the country, have done bet-ter in improving the lot of their marginalizeddalits and tribals. These are some of the con-clusions of the India Human Development Re-port 2011 released by the government inOctober, 2011.

The report said high rates of child malnutri-�on were a major concern for the country. Itsaid Gujarat was among the worst performers,with 69.7% kids up to age 5 being anaemic and44.6% suffering from malnutri�on, provingthat high growth was no guarantor of improve-ment in health.

Complimen�ng Bihar CM Ni�sh Kumar andUP CM Mayawa�, the report said, “It is worthci�ng the progress achieved by two of the eco-nomically backward states of U�ar Pradeshand Bihar.”

The country witnessed an improvement inspreading educa�on but its record on sanita-�on and nutri�on remained dismal. Quo�ng astudy of 2010 on UP, the report said, “Withhigh GDP and per capita growth rates in recentyears, even dalits have come to share the 'newprosperity'. They can now be equal to the'general' category people.”

Santosh Mehrotra, director-general of theIndian Applied Manpower Research and thereport’s lead author, said the country wasmoving towards social inclusion, with social in-dicators of Dalits, tribals and Muslims showingvast improvement. He also said there hadbeen a marked improvement in the perform-ance of poorer states, indica�ng greater socialinclusion. The author was not happy with Gu-jarat and Karnataka’s performance.

“High incidence of malnutri�on among chil-dren is found among poor states. However,Gujarat, with a rela�vely high per capita in-come, witnessed a higher incidence of childmalnutri�on,” the report read.

Union Minister Jairam Ramesh terms it“retroga�on” in social development indices.He rightly points out, “Economic developmentdoes not guarantee human development. Itdoes not automa�cally guarantee social devel-opment. A more disturbing fact is that actuallyeconomic development may lead to retroga�onof social indices,” he told the gathering of envi-ronmentalists and intellectuals on the occasionof the release of the Human Development Re-port, 2011.

09 GUJARAT

According to Dr Kalam, “Firstly,they (Gujarat) created a dedicated power grid for agriculture to ensure uninterrupted 24-hour supplyto the rural areas where revolutionary steps were takento improve upon the irrigationssystems whereby 20,000hectares of non-irrigated landwas turned into a rich agricultural area.... The message I wish to convey isthat when there is committedleadership with a vision andability to bring all the stake-holders together... the productivity increase in foodproduction can be achieved.”

GUJARAT 10of the release of the Human Development Re-port, 2011.

The emphasis on hi-tech development proj-ects and high profile Vibrant Gujarat does notimpress the farmers and the marginalised folkswho feel a sense of rela�ve depriva�on thanksto SEZ-driven prosperity of the corporateworld. Unless this development model deliversat the grass roots, no poli�cal party can expectsupport of the people at the bo�om of thepyramid. Gujarat needs to blend dominant de-velopment model and inclusive developmentthat empowers the marginalised mass.

`SOCIAL SECTOR INITIATIVES RESULTS INDUE COURSE’Prof Bakul Dholakia, ex-director of IIM-Ahmed-abad, points out that Gujarat has taken a lot ofini�a�ves on social sector, the results of whichwill bear fruit in the next few years consideringsuch efforts take �me to show, some�me adecade or even more.

Going by the growth rate of the economy,Gujarat has the capacity to lead the countryfaster out of the economic slowdown. Indiahas been growing at a fast rate in the last cou-ple of years. The faster you grow, the more youget hit by the slowdown. Under the circum-stances, Gujarat can exercise the pull factor.

Investment is the key to recovery. While theinvestment climate of India is not as good as itused to be a few months ago, Gujarat con�n-ues to be an a�rac�ve des�na�on. Besides,Gujarat is a leader in terms of savings. Theeconomic scenario of Gujarat should not faltersince the state government is striving hard tocreate enabling condi�ons.

The economic well being has an impact onthe educa�on sector. Entrepreneurs in Gujarathave been philanthropic and the awareness of

social responsibility among the top entrepre-neurs has always been high. This is a welcomesign. The collapse of the stock market hasbeen a dampener as the entrepreneurs fromthe state have relied on the market to tap re-sources more than their counterparts else-where in the country. Yet, their willingness tosupport the cause of educa�on is remarkable.The easiest thing for them to do in these �meswould have been to cut down on expenditureon educa�on, but they have not done so.

“What we require at this stage is a policyframework that essen�ally keeps the places ofhigher educa�on free of regula�ons. Winds ofchange are sweeping our country. We haveopened the door for all sectors but s�ll follow-ing closed door policy as far as educa�on isconcerned. We want private educa�on systemto perform like private sector, but impose on itthe restric�ons of government sector.... Weneed quality educa�on but pu�ng up 10structures is not going to solve the problem.What goes on in those structures is impor-tant,” he wrote.

Prof Dholakia feels that development in thestate is on auto pilot now. “I have had the op-portunity to witness all the four Vibrant Gu-jarat summits. Drawing an analogy, I think theinaugural summit of 2003 was like an aircra�travelling a distance on the runway. In the nextbiannual summit Gujarat sort of took off andin 2007 the state was airborne.

“The summit of 2009 has pushed Gujaratinto a different plane. It’s an orbital jump. Acommitment to invest $240 billion (about Rs12 lakh crore) is phenomenal. Mind you, it is ashade less than the Gross Domes�c Product ofIndia (a li�le more than $1 trillion),” he toldone of these authors.

The purpose of any journey is to travel the

distance. You can say the journey of “globalGujarat” has just begun. The 8,000-odd MoUssigned will give the state the required heightto travel any distance. The opportunity is thereto gain any speed one wants. Tail wind isfavourable and should propel the state faster.

Sure, there will be air pockets and resultantturbulence. But the captain is skilled andknowledgeable and has the ability to manoeu-vre the aircra� out of the trouble. The wholepoint is that it is a long journey, and Gujaratand its people have to be prepared for thelong haul as the journey is never complete ifyou haven’t travelled the distance.

There has been some cri�cism in the pastof the gap between the intent expressed bythe entrepreneurs and the actual investmentmade. But let us realise that conversion per-centage is rising and the trend is likely to con-�nue. There are reasons to believe that it willrise from sharply now on.

VIBRANT SUMMITS BRING IN BIG BILLPROJECTSIndustrialists from India and abroad have com-mi�ed billions of dollars amid global economicmeltdown. This gives us a lot of op�mism. Butthat is not the only reason.

Expec�ng the proposed investment to takeplace in a year will be foolhardy. Some projectstake two years to go on steam while some takefive years. If we take an average of three tofour years, we can expect $60 billion to $80billion to be infused in the state’s economy an-nually over the next three to four years. Be-sides, the impact of the MoUs signed in 2007will be seen in 2010-11. We will see the cumu-la�ve impact in 2011-12.

Mind you, these investments are largelyinto private sector and are in addi�on to the

CM Narendra Modi and ex Dy-PM LK Advani taking a boatride on the riverfront being developed


(Excerpted from the book ‘Happening State Gujarat: A live case of can-doism’ by Prof Pravin Sheth and Dr Pradeep Mallik. For a copy of the book,write to [email protected])

11 GUJARAT

planned investment into public sector. To-gether they will create more than 2.5 millionjobs.

While the common people think that theball is in Modi’s court, the economist feels it isactually in the court of the industrialists whohave signed the MoUs. What makes me gungho about the whole affair is the publicity thatthe latest edi�on of Vibrant Gujarat received inIndia and abroad. Newspapers from the US,the UK, Japan and many other countries re-ported the investment feast, especially be-cause it was taking place in the backdrop ofrecession.

The Modi government has done its part,that of giving the entrepreneurs a pla�orm toassess the state and then make a commit-ment. Hence the commitment has come a�erthey have made their assessment. Stakehold-ers from across the world will ques�on theseindustrialists if they do not fulfill their commit-ment. It is their credibility not that of the stategovernment, that is at stake now.

Something remarkable that happened atthe Vibrant Gujarat Summit-2011 was the em-phasis that small and medium enterprises andquality control in this sector received. Thestate government has enabled the SMEs toenter into �e-ups for import of technologythat will enable them to a�ain zero defectproducts. Even if our SMEs can bring down

their defect level to 2-3%, it will spell nothingless than a miracle for the state’s economy.

Not just other states of India, but the en�reworld will come to them to source their com-ponents. Defect is a cost on the producer, butit translates into a bigger cost for the procureras his produc�on is stalled and installed capac-ity goes unu�lized. I hope the SMEs make themost of the opportunity thrown open forthem. Their success will make them a depend-able supplier and Gujarat can emerge as theoutsourcing hub for the world.

Social sector, too, got its due this �me.“Many projects are already in the works andyou will see the results very soon.... The invest-ment in social sector has truly laid the founda-�on for the all-round development of Gujarat.In fact, quite a lot has happed in the last two-three years but data are yet to be capturedand hence they do not get reflected. By 2011-12 you won’t hear Gujarat fares poorly in thesocial sector, especially educa�on and health-care,” Prof Dholakia was quoted as saying.

Those living in Gujarat can be proud of theirstate. It is so very sa�sfying to hear president,judiciary, prime minister, ministers, people’srepresenta�ves, industrialists and civil societyheap praise on the progress that the state hasmade and the environment that it offers to en-trepreneurs. They have sort of become thebrand ambassadors of Gujarat. It is now for

the people to determine the distance that theywant to cover. The aircra� has a�ained theheight of 35,000 feet. People in Gujarat candetermine the speed, too.

The wind is blowing in such diverse areas asindustry, agriculture, educa�on (experimentswith open book examina�on), democracy (e-vo�ng and compulsory vo�ng), e-governance,etc. The challenges are the discontent over in-discriminate mushrooming of special eco-nomic zones and reaching the benefits ofSardar Sarovar Narmada dam to the peoplewho have invested their passion and money inits construc�on.

The good news is that Gujara� diaspora isflourishing and is eager to contribute to their‘janmabhoomi’ or ‘vatan’ while con�nuing toserve their ‘karmabhoomi’. Gujara� diasporahas never hesitated in contribu�ng to their ‘ma-trubhoomi’. A�er making it big in their ‘karmab-hoomi’, NRGs are now at the stage of life wheremany of them cherish giving back to their home-land. They want to make significant contribu�onto technological as well as social developmentprocess back home. The state and federal gov-ernments should make their return or s�nt inGujarat hassle-free and despite the aberrantblood-le�ng of 2002 and wild provoca�on,there are people in several pockets across thestate who have stuck to ‘sarva dharma samab-hav’ as taught by Mahatma Gandhi.

People having a dekko on 3d photogallery during Kite festival


GUJARAT 14


THE WORD ‘NO’ WAS NOT INHIS DICTIONARY:

DHIRUBHAI AMBANIThe benchmark that almostevery aspiring small-�me Indianbusinessman aims at is noneother than the rags-to-richestycoon Dhirubhai Ambani. Bornin Chorwad, he started his en-trepreneurial career by selling‘Bhajias’ to the visitors at theMount Girnar on weekends tomake extra money and give itto his mother.

A�er shi�ing to Aden,Yemen, Dhirubhai started workas a petrol sta�on a�endantbefore taking up a clerical posi-�on for an oil company thatwas the sole distributor of Shellproducts there. He sought hisfortune through such humblebeginnings and rose to findIndia’s largest empire.

He returned to India in 1958with Rs 50,000 and set up a tex-�le trading company. Assistedby his sons, he rewrote India’scorporate history. The tradinghouse Reliance CommercialCorpora�on was set up in asmall room with one table andthree chairs. The tex�le brandthat he established, Vimal,flourished and remains ahousehold name in India today.

Over the �me the businessdiversified into the core special-iza�on of petrochemicals withaddi�onal interests in telecom-munica�ons, informa�on tech-nology, energy, power, retail,tex�les, infrastructure services,capital markets, and logis�cs.Since then there was no lookingback and Dhirubhai receivedseveral honors like Man of theCentury, One of the Most Pow-erful people in Asia, first Indianto be listed by Forbes as the138th Richest Person of thesaid year and many more.

Dhirubhai always followedthese words: “Think big, thinkfast and think ahead. Ideas areno one’s monopoly. Ourdreams have to be bigger. Ourambi�ons higher. Our commit-ment deeper. And our effortsgreater. This is my dream forReliance and for India.”

THE DAREDEVIL WHODREAMT:

DR. VIKRAM SARABHAIFather of the Indian Space Pro-gram is not the only a�ribu�onthat this famous scien�st fromGujarat has. Dr. Vikram Sarab-hai, born in Ahmedabad, was arare combina�on of talents anddreams. Dr. Vikram Sarabhaiwas a crea�ve scien�st, a suc-cessful and forward looking in-dustrialist, an innovator of thehighest order, a great ins�tu-�on builder, an educa�onistwith a difference, a connois-seur of arts, an entrepreneur ofsocial change, a pioneeringmanagement educator andmore.

Dr. Sarabhai believed sci-ence and technology could helpcreate a modern India. He wasa man with a mission and todayAhmedabad and the en�re Gu-jarat enjoys the benefits of hisvision. He played a major rolein the se�ng up of the IndianIns�tute of Management,Ahmedabad and AhmedabadTex�le Industry's Research As-socia�on (ATIRA).

Further, he started convert-ing the range and breath of hisinterests into ins�tu�ons.Darpan Academy of PerformingArts, Space Applica�on Centre,Community Science Centre,Centre for Environmental Plan-ning and Technology (CEPT),Blind Men’s Associa�on andothers are his gi�s to Gujarat.The list of his achievements isnever ending as Sarabhai alsopioneered the rocket technol-ogy, Satellite TV Broadcas�ngand Pharmaceu�cal Industry inIndia.

BORN TO SERVE:ELABEN BHATT

A hard-core follower of theGandhian philosophy, Elaben isone of the most remarkableforces for empowerment at thegrass root level. She has dedi-cated her life for the develop-ment of women andimprovement of the quality oflife of India’s poor and mostoppressed sec�on of people.The so� voiced, simple, co�on-saree clad Elaben has beentrue to the spirit of her countryand her inspira�on, MahatmaGandhi.

Elaben started her career asan English teacher at the SNDTUniversity in Mumbai. Butlater, in 1955, she shi�ed tothe Tex�le Labor Associa�on’s(TLA) legal department,founded by Gandhiji at Ahmed-abad. While working here, atthe women’s wing, she foundthat women were doing manylabor-intensive tasks needed intex�le produc�on, as well as inother fields of work. However,as workers, they were invisible.This thought lead to SEWA -Self Employed Women’s Asso-cia�on. With the co-opera�onof Arvind Buch, the then Presi-dent of TLA, SEWA was born in1972 with Buch as the Presi-dent and she herself as theGeneral-Secretary. Today, it isone of the best grassroots pro-grams for women in the world.SEWA has also become amodel for micro-finance pro-grams that other parts of theworld can follow.

Elaben has always said,“There are risks in every ac-�on. Every success has theseed of some failure. But itdoes not ma�er. It is how yougo about it. That is the realchallenge.”

Gujarat means businessand business meansGujarat – This is a wellestablished fact by now.Gujaratis have beengreat traders since timeimmemorial. Diversefields, differentpersonalities, the stateremains the same! Be itMahatma Gandhi,Sardar Patel or MorarjiDesai in politics,businessmen like theAmbanis, Tatas orAdanis, in the field ofsocial service people likeElaben Bhatt, MallikaSarabhai or when itcomes to science andtechnology names likeVikram Sarabhai andSam Pitroda are in thelead. Aditi Rindani findsout a few eminentmovers and shakers ofthe state. These andmany more are thenames that madeGujarat anentrepreneurial iconand these continuouslyprovide inspiration toall, those who want towrite a new story, whowant to give upeverything for a dream!

BAPU'S JJANAMBHOOMI SSPAWNS ENTREPRENEURIAL SSPIRIT

15 GUJARAT


THE SOAPS TO SOFTWARE MAN :

AZIM PREMJIA man of power and strength,Azim Premji is a business ty-coon, philanthropist and thechairman of Wipro Limited, agroup company that holdsWipro Technologies, India'sthird largest so�ware develop-ment company.

At the age of 21, Premji wasforced to leave his studies inElectrical Engineering fromStanford University, California,USA to take over the familybusiness when his father sud-denly died in 1966. He, how-ever, a�er a gap of 30 years,completed the engineering de-gree in 1999.

Wipro grew from a com-pany of US $2.5 million to agiant of $1.4 billion under AzimPremji's leadership. When hetook the lead, the companydealt in hydrogenated cookingfats and later diversified tobakery fats, ethnic ingredientbased toiletries, hair caresoaps, baby toiletries, ligh�ngproducts and hydraulic cylin-ders. Therea�er Premji made afocused shi� from soaps toso�ware. Wipro was the pio-neer in providing integratedbusiness, technology andprocess solu�ons on a globaldelivery pla�orm.

A�er all the success, beingone of the richest men ofIndia, Premji is a media-shyperson who lets his work do allthe talking.

MILKY WAY: DR. VERGHESE KURIAN

It is said that the difference be-tween a winner and a loser isthat a winner tries ‘one more�me’. Fed up with the Govern-ment Creamery that had nochallenges, in dusty Anand,Verghese Kurian had almostthrown up his hands. It wasMay in 1949. Around the same�me, a small co-opera�vedairy named Kaira District Co-opera�ve Milk Producers’Union (KDCMPUL) was figh�ngfor freedom from the PolsonDairy, which was privatelyowned. Young Kurian volun-teered to help this dairy set upa processing plant. This markedthe birth of AMUL; and therewas no turning back!

Verghese Kurian is creditedwith the �tle of ‘Father of MilkRevolu�on. Also called the‘Milkman of India’, he set up anarmy of milk producers, whichstands over 9-million strongtoday. He ushered in a conceptof co-opera�ves where dairyfarmers could own and man-age profitable agri-business en-terprises with their produce,however small it may be. He isalso the brain behind thelargest dairy development pro-gram of the world - Opera�onFlood. Opera�on Flood ranunder Kurian's leadership in 3phases for 26 years. Also, he isthe architect of the AnandModel of Co-opera�ve DairyDevelopment and hence theengineer of White Revolu�onin India.

Such was the success of theorganiza�on, known as AMULthat the then Prime MinisterShri Lal Bahadur Shastri de-cided to replicate the model.Under the leadership of Vergh-ese Kurian, the Na�onal DairyDevelopment Board (NDDB)was created in 1965.

India that faced the scarcityof milk in the ‘50s and ‘60s wasturned to a land of surplus inthe ‘70s. Around 10-milliongrassroots milk producerswalked the path of prosperity.Today, India has the largest cat-tle popula�on in the world. Ithas overtaken the US and hasbecome the largest producerof milk in the world.

Every morning when theproducers must be walking tolocal milk collec�on centerswith their pots full of milk,they would be blessing Kurianwith their true hearts. And itwould surely be the happiesthour of Kurian’s day!

THE DEFINITION OF ENTERPRISE REWRITTEN: DR. KARSANBHAI PATEL

Karsanbhai Patel - the man whosha�ered all the business theo-ries, to rewrite new ones. He isthe legendary behind thehugely successful brand, Nirma.

Karsanbhai started Nirma asan a�er-office business in thebackyard of his house in 1969.The name came from hisdaughter Nirupama’s name.Nirma was a benchmark.Karsanbhai offered a productthat had all the good quali�esone can ever think of. Phos-phate free detergents, whichwere environment friendly,were delivered by Karsanbhaihimself at the doorstep, on hisbicycle. They were sold for Rs. 3per kg, which was one-third ofthe then least priced populardetergents. Also, the story ofNirma has become a classicmarke�ng case study.Karsanbhai iden�fied a massivemarket segment that was starv-ing for a good-quality detergentat an affordable price.

The company that started asa one-man-army, today em-ploys more than 15000 people,has a turnover of more than $500 million, sales as high as800000 tonnes and the man’snet worth as per Forbes in2005 was $ 640 million.

In the words of Karsanbhai,“The lack of any precedent inmy family made my venturefraught with fear of failure. Butfarmers from North Gujarat areknown for their spirit of enter-prise.”

THE BRAIN BEHIND THATTELEPHONE:

DR. SAM PITRODASam Pitroda, the name can bebe�er jus�fied by the tele-phones that we use easily allacross India. He is the manbehind the telecom revolu�onin India and specifically, theomnipresent, yellow-signedPublic Call Offices (PCO) thatquickly brought cheap andeasy domes�c and interna-�onal public telephones allover the country. Spendingfour decades in the world oftelecommunica�ons, Sam'semphasis was on accessibilityrather than density.

While the best brains ofthe world were busy solvingproblems of the rich, Samtook up a mission for themasses of a developing coun-try that would not count formuch in the world economy.Sam dreamt a dream of fixingone of the many problemsthat plagued India - an infra-structure of 2 million tele-phones for a popula�on of750 million was woefully inad-equate – and he resolved tosolve this.

Sam Pitroda is widely re-garded as one of the earliestpioneers of hand-held com-pu�ng because of his inven-�on of the Electronic Diary in1975.

Sam is an inventor, entre-preneur and policymaker.With many designa�ons andresponsibili�es in his basket,the secret of Sam’s success isthat he believes that workingfrom the top down was essen-�al for a country like Indiawith its 400 million illiterateci�zens. When your mission isto make a difference to theworld rather than make a per-sonal gain, you can drawcourage from outside aseveryone seeks to help youachieve that mission.

INTERVIEW 16

Industry minister of West Bengal Partha Chat-terjee has shown great leadership in a short�me a�er the Trinamool Congress-led govern-

ment was formed in the state about a year agoto untangle the mess le� behind by the Le�Front’s 34-year uninterrupted rule. Cha�erjee isworking hard to help boost industrial ac�vi�es inthe state by facilita�ng congenial work environ-ment and opportuni�es for all poten�al busi-nesses and investors alike.

The new government of West Bengal underthe leadership of Mamata Banerjee is op�mis�cand has taken several measures for proper in-dustrializa�on, where the charisma�c Cha�erjeehas a stellar role to play.

What is your most significant achievement sofar in terms of making industrial developmentin the state?It is not only an announcement. There was a 99page-long document required to start a businessand �me limit was 315 days to start a business inWest Bengal. We crunched this document toseven pages, and opened a single window sys-tem called ‘Shilpa Sathi’ that is fully func�onal.

When it comesto a�rac�ngforeign in-vestmentshow openis yourgovern-ment in ex-tendingwelcome tocapi-

talist countries like the USA which has been inthe bad books of the previous Le� govern-ment?We are open to industrial investment whether itis USA and the UK. Industry should have a goodquality and good reputa�on and we are open toall the areas where they are interested in termsof infrastructure, industry, informa�on technol-ogy, basically it is the USA who has also comebut the point is that is they are coming to Indiaper se. Now, I requested them to come to Bengaland do business in such a fashion both the coun-try and the state as well as our country gets thebenefit out of it.

Few months ago while a�ending a seminar on“Japanese Investment in Eastern India: Trends& Prospects” you had said your governmentwould provide a hassle-free business environ-ment, competent industrial policy, low labourcost and large talent pool to Japanese invest-ment in the state. Has there been any posi�veresponse from Japan?

Japanese response is good and posi�ve theyhave come with 35 delegates to visit the Mit-subishi project. I personally met with the Con-sulate General of Japan and had a longdiscussion with him on what ways Japan andBengal can co-operate and bring investment andbusiness to our state.

The number of Japanese companies opera�ngin India almost doubled between 2007 and2010, but the picture is not rosy for Bengal. Anyplans to improve the scenario on this front?It is not correct that they have come only be-tween 2007 and 2010. A lot of proposals arecoming from Japan now, as I said 35 industrialunit captains are coming to judge the real posi-�on of our state, we have assured them hassle-free services we have assured them whatever

possible from the side of the government wewill do. They have requested us to improvethe road condi�ons from Midnapore to Hal-dia which we have done and they are

pleased. So there is hardly any scope fordispleasure with the new governmentunder the chief ministership of Ms Ma-mata Banerjee.

One of the major charges againstthe Le� Front government has been

that it had failed to develop indus-tries in the state. Integral to thesecharges was that the Le� Front it-self engineered violent trade unionmovement genera�ng industrialunrest and situa�on uncongenial

to industrial progress. How will theMamata Banerjee government pro-

vide a different industrial climate and in the lasttwo decades West Bengal had a slow rate of in-dustrializa�on. What is your government’sroadmap to increase this rate?

This is correct; the main charge against thepast government --- three and half decades runby the le� front. It is true that they have 4,710industrial approvals but they have only imple-mented 1,110. It is a dismal posi�on; we are asof now a�er few months running we have imple-mented over 100 industrial proposals not onlyindustries have shown interest but investmentproposals worth 90,000 core and there would bejob opportunity of direct 125, 000 and indirectanother 2,00,000 so we are very much sincereabout the outcome what we have discussed withthe investors, and pave the way for the invest-ment and to see how best they can adjust withthe new climate.

We have made a check list as a break fromthe past: They area) 3/4 years bank statement and trail of accountsof the investors.b) Profit and loss account of the investor com-panyc) Nature of their business.d) Kind of business they want to do in Bengal.e) Land requirement for the investor firm.f) Timeframe to implement the businessg) And what is the type/amount of investment

If we find them all sa�sfactory, the businesscan start within a short �me. Also we want toknow what kind of manpower these businessesrequire so that government can prepare to trainor develop skills. We want employable employ-ees and make them employable through skill de-velopment.

One of the reasons why investors avoid WestBengal is because labor disputes, strikes andgeneral lockouts are very common here. Howcan this percep�on are changed?Absolutely correct but we have assured to all theinvestors there will be no labor disputes; labordisputes starts with a wrong feeling. If the Gov-ernment is mum on something that is goingwrong in the industrial front or in the labourfront then everybody takes advantage of the sit-ua�on. Our Government is very open, sayingthat the industry should not follow any an�-labour policy, rather sees that industry is a placeof earning and should not disturb, we are creat-ing administra�on to act accordingly. So we arevery pro people pro-labour, at the same �me thepeople should realize that industry must prevailotherwise there earnings will stop, at the same�me, the owners or the investors must knowthat is the law of the land that cannot be vio-lated.

Shilpa Sathi powering Bengal’s industrial dreamsKanchan BBanerjee, editor-in-chief of NGI Magazine, speaks to popular West Bengal industryminister Partha Chatterjee to get a sense of his strategies to industrialise the state that lostout for the past three and half decades, thanks to the Left Front’s misrule

Partha Chatterjee


In Mumbai’s travel, service and hotel industry,Ashwini Kakkar is a name to reckon with. Manys�ll remember him as the erstwhile MD ofThomas Cook India even a�er four years ofbeing at the helm of affairs at Mercury Travelsfrom Oberoi Group of Hotels.

Mercury Travels, a premier travel companyin India, has been catering to the mid andhigh-end luxury segments for the past 60years. Kakkar bought a 74.9% stake in MercuryTravels from the Oberoi Group of Hotels (apart of the East India Hotels). It was a ratherchallenging assignment for Kakkar to take on aventure that was accumula�ng losses forabout 11 years. But, the veteran industryhand, who knows the pulse of the service andtravel industry, has turned around the venturein about four years.

“This year we have clocked a profit of Rs 10crore. We invested more than Rs 35 crore intraining, technology and se�ng up of officesacross the world, “says a confident Kakkar.

As we caught up with Kakkar at the NewOberoi Hotel in south Mumbai, he recountedhis four-year-old journey with Mercury Travels.“Last four years have gone into consolidatedthe losses, inves�ng in technology. We haveexpanded in more than 60 countries acrossthe world. So, you will see in us in New York,London, Frankfurt and many other places. As acompany we have also tried to leverage India'sso�ware strengths to build strong technologypla�orms for web, call centre and m-com-merce interfaces to ensure Customer Rela�onsManagement (CRM) and superior service de-livery. Earlier, Mercury Travels was only fo-cused on hotels, but now we are a full-lineservice industry company.”

Talking about the Mumbai terror a�acksand how the company survived it, he explains,“The service industry was hit in south Mumbaia�er the terror a�acks. We had to work onchanging the percep�ons of business travelerscoming to Mumbai. Also, at that point wewere in a revamp mode and what helped uswas being associated with the Oberoi Group ofHotels. Our best trained workforce in the serv-ice industry and my team from Thomas Cookactually made it all happen.”

What sets Mercury Travels apart is that itcaters only to the high-end clients and has thelikes of Mukesh Ambani, Sachin Tendulkar andSushmita Sen on the list. The firm also servicessmall groups of people who want to do thingstheir way.

Kakkar says, “We actually show them the

places and take care of them. Our customer orclient is a foreign traveler, and we do h/his i�n-erary depending on what s/he wants. Rightfrom doing h/his passport, visa, planningtravel, stay and in all this the minute detailsand wish list of the client plays a crucial part.”

Kakkar, who has also long been associatedwith the Travel Agents Associa�on of India(TAAI), is also a global director of United Feder-a�on of Travel Agents' Associa�ons (UFTAA)for many years. He has been instrumental inpromo�ng Mumbai as a tourist des�na�on formany business travelers.

“I believe that Mumbai itself is a great des-�na�on for travelers within India and foreigntourists... We have the best of hotels includingthe Oberoi and the Taj. The best part is it issurrounded by ocean. Hundreds of mul�-cui-sine restaurants, road side dhabas to kulfis,thalis along night life that can be comparedwith the best in the world make Mumbai arocking metropolis with op�ons galore for sea-soned and discerning traveling. Bollywoodadds to the glamour quo�ent. “

“I think a lot can be done with the Film Cityand its pris�ne surroundings which can be pro-moted like the Hollywood studios. The Gate-way of India fes�val does manage to a�racttourists here, but I think we s�ll need to pack-age the city as a whole. Our great fes�vals likethe Ganesha Utsav, and cultural and music fes-�vals in Pune also a�ract tourists. The poten-�al is immense. However, we need to spreadthe message of Athithi Devo Bhavo as well” hesigns off.

17 INTERVIEW

Hard-selling Mumbai’s tourism potentialSeema PPherwani in conversation with Ashwini Kakkar, the face behind the megapolis’ travel, service and hotel industry

It was a rather challenging assignment for Kakkar to

take on a venture that was accumulating losses forabout 11 years. But, the

veteran industry hand, whoknows the pulse of the

service and travel industry,has turned around the

venture in about four years.


INTERVIEW 18


Cricket is a passion for the majority of Indians.But one Indian has taken his passion for thegame to a whole new level. Shyam Bha�a'sCricket Museum is an elegant ode to a gamethat has enthralled Indians for years. Thecricket enthusiasts of the NGI team were in-vited to visit the museum and talk with ShyamBha�a about his love for the game.

Born in undivided India in 1942, Bha�agrew up in Ajmer and played first-class cricketfor Rajasthan and Saurashtra, before movingto Dubai in 1965. In 1979, Bha�a started hisown company, Alam Steel Ltd., which has con-sistently been one of the top 20 steel distribu-�on companies in the GCC. He con�nued toplay cricket �ll a back injury ended his bowlingcareer.

An unassuming gentleman, Bha�a isyounger and healthier-looking than his agemight suggest. He meets us in front of the mu-seum, coffee in hand. A signpost with namesof interna�onal grounds adds a whimsicaltouch to the otherwise natural surroundings.An ar�ficial cricket pitch acts as a welcomemat.

A collec�on of 180 bats greets us as wewalk in, all of them autographed by cricke�nglegends, young and old. Bha�a directs our at-ten�on to a selec�on of bats. "Nowhere elsewill you see (bats with) an ac�on photographof the player, full profile of the player and au-tograph. Nowhere," he informs us.

He then draws our a�en�on to the pillars ofthe museum, each dedicated to a Test playingna�on. The front of each pillar holds a placardwith the cricket history of the na�on, on theright face of the pillar are the captains' records(these records are updated every year on

March 30), and on the le� side is the team'srecord against other countries (also updatedannually). These records were included in themuseum from the start. The inaugura�on ofthe museum was on April 18, 2010. Bha�a de-signed the place himself, but had a consultantfor the ligh�ng. The roof consists of etchedglass panels depic�ng ba�ers and bowlers inac�on. As Bha�a says, "The ICC (Interna�onalCricket Council), themselves said, 'this is thebest cricket museum in the world'."

The wall space above the air-condi�oningvent is covered with framed illustra�ons of var-ious cricketers such as Australia's AdamGilchrist, South Africa's Shaun Pollock, NewZealand's Daniel Ve�ori and many of India'sgreats, such as Sachin Tendulkar, Ravi Shastriand Sunil Gavaskar. All the illustra�ons aredone by South African ar�st, Richie Ryall.

Two glass display showcases in the centreof the room contain signed helmets, caps, asigned shirt given to Bha�a by ArjunaRanatunga, former Sri Lankan captain, a hel-met with the signatures of all the ICC World XIplayers from 2005, a plate commemora�ngSachin Tendulkar's 100th Test, miniature bats,also signed and replica cricket balls. Bha�a hasduplicates of some autographed items, andthese he gives away to charity for auc�on.

Two of the more unique items in the dis-plays are a copy of his first book, Portraits ofthe Game, and an old brochure. The copy ofthe book contains a message from illustratorRichie Ryall, collaborator, Kishore Bhimani, aswell as a signed illustra�on by India's leg-endary premier ar�st M. F. Hussain, of a bats-man playing a glorious square cut shot. Thebrochure is from 1935, commemora�ng the

first ever India-Australia series played in Indiain 1932. It contains details about the playerswho par�cipated in that series.

Bha�a exudes with pride as he talks abouthis charity, Cricket for Care. Started in 2004,the charity donates cricket bags to underprivi-leged children and disadvantaged schoolsworldwide. Each bag contains four sets ofcricket gear, including bats, balls, pads, thigh-guards, arm guards, gloves and helmets. Forthe first �me in 2012, Cricket for Care has do-nated to Japan, to the tsunami-hit areas. Theother countries that have received dona�onsin the past are Sri Lanka, Nepal, Afghanistan,Zimbabwe, Thailand, and of course, India(Jaipur, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Rajkot). Forhis con�nued contribu�on to the game, Bha�ahas received many awards, which are dis-played in a cabinet adjacent to the Cricket forCare corner.

We pause to peruse the museum's exten-sive compila�on of recorded matches. The mu-seum's AV system can store up to 500matches, and we are given a preview of thefirst Test match of the Ashes series in 1958-59,between Australia and England, at the Bris-bane Cricket Ground, Australia. Despite beingin black and white, the quality of the video issurprisingly clear. We move onto the World Cupfinal in 1983, between India and the West In-dies, in which India empha�cally won. Since twoof our team were born a�er this event, we areenlightened about the celebra�ons and the ju-bila�on that followed India's historic victory.

A�er revelling in past glories, Bha�a amazesus with a couple of his books from the museumlibrary – The Cricket Field, 3rd Edi�on, by JP,published in 1859, and Frederick Gayle's The

MUSEUM OOF DDREAMSShyam Bhatia's Ronita MMohan has all praise for Shyam Bhatia's cricketmuseum, she walks in and brings the inside story

19


Game of Cricket, published in 1887.Bha�a ins�tuted a cricket award in 1999 to

recognise the work of local cricketers. "Theawards idea came to me one day when... wesaid there's no recognised award for cricket …in this part of the world. So, I started givingawards to local cricketers. First, it was inDubai, for two-three years. Then, we startedgiving (awards) to umpires - umpires should berecognised. I was the first one, I think, in theworld, to award the umpires. Then, I thoughtto myself, the children receiving these awardsfrom us - it doesn't mean anything. Okay, theyget the recogni�on, they get some cash. But ifthey get the same award from some legend,that guy will keep that photograph; show it tohis children, his grandchildren. So, as (Arjuna)Ranatunga said rightly, he does not rememberhis last one-day score, or where he scored it.But he remembers the first �me, in his life-�me, when he got an award... and who gavehim the award. So I started invi�ng legends."Bha�a elucidates this point by telling us that atthe awards ceremony everyone is happy;everyone is par�cipa�ng.

The first 'legend' who presented at theawards was Clive Lloyd – he is a par�cularfavourite of Bha�a's and crops up o�en in ourconversa�on and in the museum. Lloyd wasfollowed by Sunil Gavaskar , Imran Khan, for-mer Pakistan captain, West Indian tearaway,Michael Holding, Indian captain and all-rounder, Ravi Shastri, Australian captain, IanChappell, Pakistan pacer, Wasim Akram, Eng-land all-rounder, Andrew Flintoff and WorldCup-winning captain, Kapil Dev.

We finally come to the concep�on of themuseum. Bha�a talks about his cricke�ngdays, playing first-class cricket in India and theUAE. He tells us that he published his book be-fore star�ng the museum. "I wrote a bookfirst. I had no idea how to write the book. Idon't sell that book, it's only for charity. Then,(the) book did very well and I was collec�ngmoney, because even though I didn't want tosell, a lot of companies were buying (the book)as corporate gi�s." Portraits of the Game wasreleased with great determina�on and perse-verance in 2003 to coincide with the 2003World Cup, where India reached the final. Ittook two years to collect the thoughts of allthe players, past and present, to include in thebook and its successor, Portraits of the GameII.

"Then I started my charity. But I wanted todo something more for cricket. Then I thoughtof a cricket museum. It took me two years tobuild (the museum)." With an already exis�ngstore of photo albums and memorabilia, com-bined with some fascina�ng cricket trivia, Bha-�a was able to produce a journey throughcricke�ng history.

We are shown photo albums from the 1983World Cup celebra�ons and there is muchamusement as we see how young the playerslooked and compare them to the way theylook in the photo album for the 25th anniver-sary celebra�ons held in the Long Room at

Lord's. Bha�a has plenty of pictures of visitsfrom various cricketers, especially Indianteams, over the years. "Whenever India camehere (to Dubai), they would have lunch at myhouse."

He also has pictures of the first ICC Awards,held in 2004; the first Twenty20 World Cup vic-tory for India; celebra�ons of Tendulkar'sbirthday and photographs of the Cricket Clubof India felicita�ng Bha�a as an honorary life-member.

None of this would have been possiblewithout the help of his wife, Vimla, whoworked hard on Portraits of the Game and thisproject as well. His son, an avid sportsman, isalso very enthusias�c about the museum.

Bha�a takes us downstairs, a more in�-mate, personalised area of the museum. Onthe way down, he points out a sec�on dedi-cated to the late Rajsingh Dungarpur, a first-class player, President of CCI and Chairman ofSelec�on Commi�ee and manager for India.

A massive mural of Bha�a's dream Test andODI XI covers most of the wall on the landing.Legends such as Tendulkar, Shane Warne,Brian Lara, Sir Viv Richards, Mu�ah Muralitha-ran and Adam Gilchrist are included in bothlists.

The walls are lined with photographs of theinaugura�on of the museum as well as pic-tures of the various famous visitors. There isalso a placard of triple-centurions through theyears. This area will be going through a greatdeal of revamping as Bha�a plans to includesec�ons on the Women's Cricket World Cup,UAE cricket, a history of Test cricket from 1876and an umpires' corner.

It was evident from the collection in hismuseum that Bhatia favoured the more tradi-tional formats of the game over the recent in-novation of Twenty20 cricket. We asked himfor his thoughts on the shortened format. "Itis entertainment," he says. "It will give a liftto the cricket." However, he also believes thatthe advent of Twenty20 cricket will cause thedecline of Test cricket because, even though

the number of Tests ending with results hasincreased, the technical efficiency of playershas decreased.

His views on the Indian Premier Leagueare even harsher. "The IPL will continue (be-cause) it is very good entertainment to thepeople. But somehow it is damaging thecricket because before, the cricketers weredying to play for their states and then in theIndian colours; for their country. Now, thaturge is not the same there . They all want toplay the IPL. There could come a time when a(first-class player) finds some excuse not toplay in the Ranji Trophy (the domestic tourna-ment) because he doesn't want to get injured(before the IPL)."

Bhatia also states that, to play in the IPL, aplayer does not require much technical abilityand hence in the future, we are unlikely tosee quality players like Tendulkar, RahulDravid and VVS Laxman.

We move on to betting in cricket. An im-portant point Bhatia makes about betting isthat it is legal in other countries, and in othersports, without affecting players, and hencethere is no harm in legalising it in India, pro-vided the players stay out of it. "What'swrong (with legalising betting)? How does itharm the game?" Bhatia asks rhetorically. Hefeels that players and officials shouldn't betaking bribes as cricket is their profession. "Itall depends on the integrity of the players."

As we leave, Bhatia tells us that hisfavourite corner in the museum has framedillustrations of his two favourite players in thevarious categories of cricket, as well as hisBradman collection. We ask him about hisfirst autograph, but Bhatia apologeticallyreplies that he can't remember. He does,however, remember the first cricketer he in-vited to his home – Sunil Gavaskar AjitWadekar. And the first overseas player? –Clive Lloyd, of course.

We part ways, thoroughly enriched andamazed by Bhatia's immense passion for thegentleman's game.

Some of Richie Ryall's illustrations in the museum photo by Monita Mohan

INTERVIEW

Corporate social responsibility (CSR), oncean obscure term that businesses could ig-nore, has emerged as the key phrase in

business repertoire. CSR, in the 21st Century,can make or mar a business.

And that was the thrust of the discussion atthe 7th Dubai Global Conven�on, organised bythe Ins�tute of Directors (IOD) at InterCon�-nental Hotel on April 25 and 26, where over 60speakers from diverse fields in India andabroad were invited.

Actually, the conven�on began on April 24,with a road trip to Masdar City in Abu Dhabi,billed as a Carbon-Neutral Eco City because itrelies en�rely on solar and renewable energysources. The trip was followed by a cruise din-ner.

Making Corporate Social Responsibility anAc�onable Business Agenda was the �tle ofthe conven�on. On April 25, Saleh Janeeh,chairman, Dubai Quality Group, one of thesponsors for the event, kicked off the pro-gramme with his welcome speech. SheikhAhmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum was also pres-ent for the inaugura�on.

The Ins�tute of Directors, India, (IOD) is an“independent non-profit network of directors”,said the President of IOD, Lt Gen Ahluwalia.“Over the last two decades, CSR has evolved

from simple philanthropic ac�vity to integrat-ing business interests with the community inwhich it operates, exhibi�ng social, environ-mental and ethically responsible behaviour ingovernance... and long-term sustainability,” heexplained.

Lt Gen Ahluwalia advocated the need to in-tegrate CSR in a company’s business model aswell as the importance of building partner-ships with NGOs. He emphasised that CSR wasnot to be seen as a public rela�ons exercise.

A special address was given by Ahmad AlMohairi, the CEO of Community DevelopmentAuthority, Government of Dubai. He said thathelping a community was not enough, but em-powering a community to serve itself made aworld of difference.

The Ambassador of India to the UnitedArab Emirates, Kapanaiah Lokesh made a dis-�nc�on between a developing economy, suchas India, and the Western society’s “money fornothing” culture.

Sunil A. Misser, CEO of AccountAbility, UK,spoke on The Future of Corporate Responsibil-ity. Misser said that predic�ng the future was arisky business. “Business as usual is not thenorm anymore”. In this century, ac�on is moreimportant.

Dr Bhaskar Cha�erjee, IAS, DG & CEO of the

first Indian Ins�tute of Corporate Affairs, spokeabout Genera�ng Business Value through CSR:Myth or Reality. Cha�erjee’s no�on was thatCSR could be viewed as a vehicle by which cor-porates and government could work together.He also believed that CSR was intrinsic to theDNA of the company as well as na�onal devel-opment.

The session on Transparency and Accounta-bility for Effec�ve CSR was chaired by M GGeorge Muthoot, chairman of the MuthootGroup. “How the business is conducted hasbecome as important as what the business isabout,” said Manoj Sonawala, GM, corporate& company secretary of Tata Services Ltd.

Phyllis Boardman, MD of PB Energy Solu-�ons Ltd; gave a brief introduc�on about the‘Green Deal’ and how it would encourage allUK businesses to focus on CSR.

Sanjay Anand, chairperson of SOX and GRCIns�tute, GRC Group, USA, explained that GRCmeant Governance, Risk Management andControls and that GRC enabled social responsi-bili�es. He also gave the reasons to be op�-mis�c and pessimis�c about repor�ng CSR, thelack of regula�on being the main cause of pes-simism.

Dr K K Upadhyay, Team Leader at FICCI,enumerated that bigger businesses tended to

Ronita MMohan reports on 7th Dubai Global Convention, organised by the Institute of Directors(IOD) at InterContinental Hotel on April 25 and 26, where over 60 speakers from diverse fields inIndia and abroad were invited to speak about the new buzzword in business lexicon

MIDDLE EAST 20

CSR HOLDS KEY TO 21ST CENTURY BUSINESS


NGI Middle East publisher, K Sudhakar Murthy and NGI Business Development Manager, Varsha Sirnanisharing pleasantries with H E Sheikh

Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum

include a CSR agenda whereas down the lad-der, smaller companies did not.

Stuart Dunlop, Head of ME, ACCA Global,UK, illuminated the audience with the variousmethods and strategies companies could useto evaluate and measure their CSR.

Professor Colin Coulson-Thomas from theUniversity of Greenwich, UK, differen�ated be-tween high performance organisa�ons, whichgenerally could accomplish a long list of CSRac�vi�es, and low-performance organisa�onswho fail to incorporate CSR in their policies.

Harpreet A. De Singh, Head of CorporateQuality, Safety and EMS, Air India, spoke aboutAir India’s surprise when they realised thatthey had always been performing CSR, evenwithout realising it. “For years, we kept imple-men�ng ac�vi�es but it was never really docu-mented.” She also felt that without measuringsuch ac�vi�es, they could not hope to findtheir mistakes or areas that required improve-ment.

Mohini Daljeet Singh, Chief Execu�ve ofMax India Founda�on, the Social Arm of theMax India Group, spoke about the philan-thropic work of her company. A short videoalso accompanied her speech.

Aparna Mahajan, Director, Resource Mobi-liza�on and Partnerships, IRRAD, spoke aboutIRRAD’s experiences in India as well as high-ligh�ng the future of CSR, while emphasisingsynergis�c partnerships as a core componentof good CSR.

U K Chaudhury, Past President, ICSI, out-lined the ways CSR could enhance businessvalue – 1) belief in the concept, 2) need forregula�ons, 3) choosing correctly between vol-untary or mandatory CSR, 4) execu�ng CSR ac-cording to the needs around the companyitself, 5) the company being popular amongconsumers and public.

‘Social Innova�on – The Driver of EconomicGrowth’ was moderated by Keshav R. Mu-rugesh, Group Chief Execu�ve Officer, WNSGlobal Service. The first speaker was AbhaNegi, Sr GM – Group Corporate Communica-�ons & CSR, Jindal SAW Ltd. Negi’s speech wasbased on accessible structure. She pointed outthat the stage could only be reached via stairs,thus, a disabled person would not be able toget onto the stage.

Ibrahim Al Ansari, CEO of Dubai First, feltthat society wasn’t always looking for financialcontribu�ons. Instead, honest and meaningfulsupport would enhance society further.

Chris�na Pereira, Vice President, HappyWorld, Aegis Ltd., agreed with the otherspeakers of the day that CSR had to be alignedwith the corporate formula.

KPMG’s Head of Global Centre of Excel-lence for Climate Change & Sustainability,Barend van Bergen enumerated the changinga�tude to businesses, saying that “peoplelook to business for solu�ons”.

Neetu Goel, Manager, Founda�on forMSME Clusters presented her company as a

case study for environmental responsibili�es.She highlighted the various issues facingMSMEs and the strategies involved in tacklingthem.

CSR Policy, Guidelines and Repor�ng, is afact-based topic. Chairperson Andrew Robin-son, a partner of KPMG in Dubai, explainedthe repor�ng techniques like ISO 26000, SA8000, AA 1000, Global Compact, DJSI andMDG.

Ranjit Singh, Assistant General Manager,CSR, Maru� Suzuki, defined the stakeholdersof companies as “individuals or groups im-pacted by company and who can impact thecompany”.

J Sundharesan, a company secretary, high-lighted the need for accountability, repor�ngand transparency to accompany any act ofCSR.

Jon Long from the Interna�onal CricketCouncil spoke of the small budget they had forCSR. However, by joining with UNICEF and UN-AIDS, as well as ensuring their adver�serscomplied with their policies, the ICC built theirCSR further. Long also men�oned the ICC’s ad-herence to the ISO 26000 regula�ons.

The last keynote session of the first day in-cluded a short talk by John Peter about the up-

coming Rio+20 summit, followed by AdrianAlsop, Director for Research and Interna�onalStrategy, ESRC, who spoke about Women andthe Boardroom. He repeatedly stated the im-portance of diversity in boardrooms, stressingthat it impacted posi�vely on performance.

The second day of the conference beganwith CSR case study presenta�ons. MARG Lim-ited, NATCO Pharma Ltd., SanDisk Corpora�on,Vodafone, Samsung, Schneider, NTPC, ICICILombard, Steria India Founda�on, Lanco In-fratech, State Bank of India and Oil India allmade presenta�ons on their CSR ac�vi�es.

Jaydeep N Shah, President of ICAI , chairedthe session on Strategic Corporate Social Re-sponsibility: Crea�ng Shared Value. Ritu Jhin-gon, GM, CSR, CAIRN, showed a moving videoof the work that CAIRN were doing in Indiathat brought tears to Hardicon Ltd’s MD RajeevArora’s eyes.

The Valedictory Session was begun byPradeep Chaturvedi, VP of IOD, who gave ashort summary of all the recommenda�onsgiven during the conference.

The chief guest, Sanjay Verma, Consul Gen-eral of India in Dubai, gave a historical and cul-tural context for CSR.

A closing address from the Chairman, LtGen Surinder Nath, was followed by a specialaddress by Professor Ujjwal K Chowdhury,Dean of Whistling Woods and Managing Editorof New Global Indian. Chowdhury focussed onthe media’s lack of interest in CSR. He under-lined the need to pool human and technicalresources to create an integrated CSR medium.

21 MIDDLE EAST

“Over the last two decades, CSR has evolved from simple philanthropic activity to integrating business interestswith the community in which itoperates, exhibiting social, environmental and ethically responsible behaviour in governance... and long-termsustainability,” explained Lt Gen Ahluwalia.

NGI KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE |MAY 2012H E Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum

taking a sneak peek on NGI magazine

MIDDLE EAST 22


The proceedings of the Dubai Global Conven�on 2012 concluded on Thursday, April26, 2012, which ran for 2 days and includedthe presenta�on of the Golden PeacockAwards for CSR and Philanthropy. The presen-ta�on was held on the sidelines of the 7th In-terna�onal Conference on SocialResponsibility, organized by the Ins�tute of Di-rectors-India (IOD) in associa�on with DubaiQuality Group (DQG).

The awards ceremony took place onWednesday, April 25, 2012, at the InterCon�-nental hotel, Dubai Fes�val City.

H.E. Juma Al Majid, Founder and Chairmanof Juma Al Majid Group of Companies, andH.E. Eng. Fa�ma Obaid Al Jaber, COO of AlJaber Group and Chairperson of the Execu�veBoard of Abu Dhabi Business Women Council,were conferred the IOD 'Dis�nguished Fellow'Award, which is IOD's highest accolade. Dis�n-guished Fellow Awards are awarded annuallyto members who have sustained a prominentand dis�nguished career as a director; or whohave given outstanding par�cipa�on and serv-ices to the IOD, or eminent or special contribu-�ons to the community or business andamongst the earlier recipients was FormerPresident Abdul Kalam of India.

The Golden Peacock Awards for CSR & Phi-lanthropy for 2012 were presented by H.E. MrJuma Al Majid , Jus�ce M. N. Venkatachaliah,Chairman of the IOD Advisory Council and for-

mer Chief Jus�ce of Supreme Court of India ,Mr. Saleh Janeeh, DQG Chairman , Lt GenJS.Ahluwalia , President of IOD and Dr. AbdulRahman Al-Awar , Director General of FederalAuthority for Human Resources , Abu Dhabi.

There were 2 categories of Golden PeacockAwards – 24 Organiza�ons from various sec-tors of Indian industries from Steel , Banking ,Pharmaceu�cals , IT , BPO , Oil & Gas , Energy ,Insurance and Social Sectors received the Na-�onal awards and included among others –DP World , Dubai ; State Bank of India ,Muthoot Group ,Cairn India , Max India Foun-da�ons ,Vodafone , Schneider Corpora�on ,NTPC , ICICI Lombard , Samsung , Reliance ,Jindal Steel , Natco Pharma , Mazagaon Dock ,Lanco Infratech , Marg Limited , Tata Interac�ve.

Global Peacock Awards were also conferredon Interna�onal companies – San Disk Corpo-ra�on , USA ;Doha Bank , Qatar ; Avea , Turkey;& WNS Global Services , India .

Mr. Saleh Janeeh said that the fact thatDubai hosts and organizes this global mo�va-�onal annual award was very important forthe prac�se and future of business in the UAE.He pointed out the importance of the GoldenPeacock Award for CSR and Philanthropy,which, he said, raises the prospects of ambi-�on and crea�vity, and provides businessper-sons with the opportunity to examine carefullyand benefit from the experience, exper�se

and poten�al of the winners. The meet fo-cuses on the most important features of pro-fessional, commercial and economicexcellence from the poin�ng of view of im-proving social responsibility, he added. He saidit was everyone's duty in the business world tobring forward best prac�ces in all aspects oflife, since business is no longer separated fromother affairs of life.

As per Jus�ce Venkatchalliah, Chairman ofthe IOD Advisory Council and former Chief Jus-�ce of Supreme Court of India, that the an-nouncement of the Golden Peacock Awardsthrough the 7th Interna�onal Conference onSocial Responsibility hosted by IOD & DQG inDubai, comes in the context of honouring theefforts of companies, organiza�ons and indi-viduals in the UAE, at both trade and economiclevels and in social responsibility and philan-thropy aspects. He noted that an award of thissize and interna�onal rank adds to the ambi-�on of companies and organiza�ons in theUAE, and infuses a heightened spirit of compe-��on and innova�on.

The award, seeks to promote these fea-tures in service of supreme social quali�es andare confident that the winners of this awarddeserve this honour, and many others as welldeserve it. It is also deserved by those whopay importance to the social aspect in theirvarious businesses and ini�a�ves, he said,men�oning that future years will see more of

GOLDEN PPEACOCK AAWARDS for CSR & Philanthropy presented in the UAE

Winners of the Golden Peacock Award for CSR and Philanthropy

23 MIDDLE EAST


this important and cri�cal feature coming tothe fore.

The Golden Peacock Awards are now re-garded as the holy grail of corporate excel-lence awards in quality, corporate governance,corporate social responsibility, innova�on,training, environment management, ecologicaland business leadership. They provide not onlyworldwide recogni�on and pres�ge, but alsoprovide a compe��ve advantage in drivingbusiness in a tumultuous world.

The awards are in two categories: Na�onalAwards and Global Awards. The Na�onal An-nual Awards are: the Golden Peacock Environ-ment Management Award (GPEMA), theGolden Peacock Eco-Innova�on Award(GPEIA), the Golden Peacock Occupa�onalHealth and Safety Award (GPOHSA), theGolden Peacock HR Excellence Award(GPHREA), the Golden Peacock Award for Ex-cellence in Corporate Governance (GPAEGG),the Golden Peacock Innova�on ManagementAward (GPIMA), the Golden Peacock Award forClimate Security (GPACS), the Golden PeacockAward for Sustainability (GPAS), the GoldenPeacock Na�onal Quality Award (GPNQA), theGolden Peacock Na�onal Training Award(GPNTA), the Golden Peacock Innova�ve Prod-uct/Service Award (GPIPSA), and the GoldenPeacock Award for Corporate Social Responsi-bility (GPACSR). The Global Annual Awards are:the Golden Peacock Global Award for Excel-lence in Corporate Governance (GPGAECG),the Golden Peacock Global Award for Corpo-rate Social Responsibility (GPGACSR), and theGolden Peacock Global Award for Sustainabil-ity (GPGAS).

The Golden Peacock Award is the onlyaward which has me�culously defined andtransparent selec�on process and is deter-mined by a highly detailed and independentassessment process. Among other things, itbuilds brand equity. Award winners are eligibleto use the Golden Peacock Award logo for oneyear on all promo�onal literature. It givesworldwide recogni�on and preparing for ithelps to inspire and align the en�re workforcein an organiza�on. Applying for it rapidly accel-erates the pace of improvement in businessmanagement systems, and even if one doesnot win the award, the feedback from the self-assessment criteria gives a detailed input tothe strategic planning process and helps inachieving world-class status.

Public and private sector units, NGOs, self-accoun�ng ins�tu�ons and business units, re-search organiza�ons, government,manufacturing or service sectors, are eligibleto apply for the award. Leadership awards aredetermined through nomina�on only. All en-tries are treated in strict confidence and theen�re evalua�on process is totally confiden-�al.

The panel of judges consists of the GlobalChairman Dr. Ola Ullsten, former Prime Minis-ter of Sweden; the Na�onal Chairman Jus�ceP. N. Bhagwa�, former Chief Jus�ce SupremeCourt of India; Vice Chairman Lt. Gen. SurinderNath, PVSM, AVSM (retd.), former Chairman,UPSC, and the Director General is Dr. A. N. Sak-sena, former Financial Advisor for Ministry ofPetroleum & Natural Gas, Government ofIndia.

(from left): H.E. Juma Al-Majid, Dr. Abdul Rahman Al-Awar, Saleh Janeeh, SunilBahri, IOD President Lt Gen J S Ahluwalia, Maryam Al-Thani Al-Falasi

ABOUT DUBAI QUALITYGROUP:

In line with H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Mak-toum’s vision of developing UAE as a centre ofexcellence, the Dubai QualityGroup was set up as a non-profitorganization by the Dubai De-partment of Economic Develop-ment, under the patronage ofH.H. Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed AlMaktoum. Formed in February1994, DQG has since grown toinclude more than 75,000 indi-viduals representing over 380prominent organizations fromboth the private and the publicsectors. The Group offers manyprograms throughout the yearwith the objective of improvingQuality of Service among itsmember organizations. It organ-izes various activities aimed atdeveloping the professional andmanagerial expertise of thebusiness community. With itsclose links with professionalbodies and institutes, at bothlocal and international levels, itprovides an excellent environ-ment for professionals to meetand exchange ideas, informationand expertise for mutual bene-fit. For more details, log on toDQG website at: www.dqg.org

MIDDLE EAST 24


"God sent economists to the planet to make as-trologers look respectable," said John K. Gal-braith, noted economist. His Excellency SanjayVerma, Consul-General of India in the UAE,quoted these words as he addressed the Ins�-tute of Chartered Accountants of India, DubaiChapter's 30th Annual Interna�onal Confer-ence. The topic for discussion was "The GlobalEconomy… Poised for a Paradigm Shi�?” Giventhe current economic climate, it seemed a�mely and appropriate subject.

"The chartered accountant is a very silentworker; a lot of people talk about the manydoctors working in this country; how many en-gineers working in this country; but peopledon't talk about so many chartered account-ants working in this [UAE] country," said IndianAmbassador to the UAE, H E M. K. Lokesh.

Sheikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan,Minister of Higher Educa�on and Scien�fic Re-search said, "Accoun�ng laid down the back-ground of our economy." They are "pillars ofsupport". In the global climate that we are fac-ing today, the integrity of the accoun�ng pro-fession is paramount. Even if the globaleconomic condi�ons are in flux, accountancymust be stable.

Sheikh Nahyan had strong views about theaccoun�ng profession. He stated that account-ancy prac�ces must always be transparent andaccessible, and that this profession must al-ways a�ract high calibre persons with integrity,

objec�vity and competency.M. K. Lokesh agreed. "Indian chartered ac-

countants are recognised worldwide as beingamong the best and the brightest in the profes-sion." However, he pointed out “...ethical stan-dards are essen�al... to the development of theprofession."

In the larger scheme of things, accountantsare s�ll four years behind. "It [the paradigmshi� of the global economy] is not poised; it'shappened," said Abdul Kadir Hussain, CFA,Chief Execu�ve, Mashreq Capital, DIFC body ofMashreq Bank, as is evidenced by the fact thatHussain is a Pakistan-born, US-trained, Europeand Asia experienced individual speaking at aconference to Indians in the Middle East.

Professor Ujjwal K. Chowdhury, Dean,School of Communica�ons at Whistling WoodsInterna�onal, Mumbai and Managing Editor ofNew Global Indian, expanded on the globalchallenges of today: decline or stagnancy ingrowth-rates of developed na�ons, rise ofBRICS na�ons in contrast to the financial strug-gles of the Euro zone, high unemploymentrates around the world and Occupy Move-ments taking place in several Western ci�es.

The reac�on to economic crises haschanged over the decades. In the 1987 stockmarket crash in the United States, Asia sufferedbadly and recovered much slower than the USdid. As Hussain allegorically put it, in thosedays "the US sneeze[d], the world [caught] a

cold." The same, however, could not be saidabout the Asian crisis in 1998 - the US cameout of that unscathed, they did not even feel it.

The 2008 crash was again US-centric. Thetransmission was global and instantaneous. Butthe recovery of emerging economies was al-most instantaneous as well. Hong Kong, Hus-sain informed the audience, recovered be�erthan the US.

More proof of the change in global econ-omy is apparent from the fact that nowadayspeople keep an eye on the Chinese stock ex-change and the Reserve Bank of India. Onlywhen the yen is on par with the dollar willthere be an indica�on of a complete shi� in theglobal economy.

In the 21st century, HE Sanjay Vermapointed out, there is no "full-spectrum" globalauthority. There is no clear-cut developed anddeveloping society. The BRICS na�ons (Brazil,Russia, India, China and South Africa) con-tribute 50% of the global wealth. India is at athreshold, he insisted. The country can developand innovate.

India being a younger na�on, the aspira�onvalues are increasing. India is the most diversecountry in the world, and its foreign endeav-ours have never been violent. But, unfortu-nately, this approach has led to India beingperceived as a so� na�on. India has to alter itsglobal image, Verma stated.

Dr. Sanjiv R. Das, Professor of Finance at

CHANGES IIN TTHE GGLOBAL EECONOMY How can India evolve as a Leader?

Monita MMohan reports on the two-day deliberations held by senior professionals from all over theworld at the 30th Annual International Conference of the UAE Chapter of the Indian Institute of

Chartered Accountants

(L-R): CA. Harikishan, CA. Pankaj, CA. Rishi, CA. Nimish Makvana, CA. S. Venkatesh, CA. JaydeepShah, CA. Subodh Agrawal, Vice President, CA. Karuna, CA. James Mathew, CA. Stany, CA. Krishnan.

25 MIDDLE EAST


Santa Clara University, US spoke on "GlobalDebt Restructuring: The Case of Paradigm Shi�in Distressed Mortgage Debt". His focus was onthe housing market in the United States ofAmerica.

Dr. Das' argument was that the falling hous-ing prices were a global problem. The bankswere implemen�ng an incorrect model on in-stalments - leading to foreclosures. Accordingto his research and mathema�cal models, debtrestructuring is op�mal for both lenders and in-vestors.

The "incorrigible op�mist", Harish Salve,CA., Senior Advocate, Supreme Court, Indiaspoke on the subject of Democracy andGrowth. Sir Winston Churchill had predictedanarchy in the independent Indian state, but aspointed out by Salve, anarchy exists all over theworld - the London riots in 2011 busted themyth of a serene West; the Arab Spring in theMiddle East is also proof of anarchy.

India's experiment with democracy is verysuccessful. India has a robust free press - it is"noisy and irresponsible", but those are a�rib-utes that Salve says he prefers over a "silentand responsible" press that is "just the master'svoice". However, as noted by Professor Chowd-hury, the media plays an important role in rep-resen�ng the image of a country. The nega�venews stories that are usually generated aboutthe Indian sub-con�nent by the worldwidepress fail to accurately portray the huge stridesthat India has made in development. Proof ofglobal economic change will be seen when themedia focuses on the posi�ves.

Another posi�ve that Salve observed aboutIndia, is the robust Indian judiciary, which evenhas the power to prosecute poli�cians. Lookingat the big picture, the poli�cal governance inIndia is in the hands of the people - the govern-ment is changed by the public ballot. This is an-other strong piece of evidence in favour ofIndia's democracy.

To ensure the growth of the na�on andhence lead to an economic shi�, innova�onmust be encouraged, and money needs to beput into the crea�on of innovators. Salve saidthat though corrup�on was rampant in India, itwas no different from other countries that alsosuffer from corrup�on. But in today's world,corrup�on has a ques�on mark next to it, dueto the degree of transparency in India.

However, for India to really move forwardand grow, "we need less governments andmore governance."

Piyush Goyal, Member of Parliament, RajyaSabha presented a step-by-step "TransformingIndia" campaign. To reform India, the countryshould focus on par�cular sectors - 1) Educa-�on, 2) Urbanisa�on, 3) Transporta�on andConnec�vity, 4) Rural Empowerment, 5) EnergySecurity, and 6) Manufacturing. Developing —these areas would truly shi� the global econ-omy in India's favour.

He suggested three ways to achieve thetransforma�on - 1) reinven�on of the govern-ment 2) build a trus�ng na�on and 3) empow-ering the people and communi�es of people.

Only in a crisis, he stated, does a country'speople stand up.

Dr. Faisal Devji from Oxford University,United Kingdom, a follower of MahatmaGandhi's prac�ces, addressed the fact that theparadigm shi� had taken place before, in the19th and early 20th centuries. That shi� how-ever was more on a moral front.

Gandhi's commentary on the Bhagwad Gitain the early 20th century emphasised the Indi-vidual's (or Corporate's) du�es rather than onthe Human Rights given by the government —this was an essen�al change and shi� in think-ing.

Dr. Devji referred to another of Gandhi'sideologies, which is relevant to present-dayIndia — simply joining the proverbial clubwould not benefit the country, in fact, it wouldlead to sacrifices. India has to offer the worldsomething, he explained. That shi� in thinkingis becoming more and more prevalent intoday's world.

Sheikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of HigherEducation and Scientific Research with other digniteries

Prof Ujjwal K Chowdhury getting a token of appreciationfrom CA. James Ravi, Regional Director – Middle East.

India's experiment with democracyis very successful. India has a ro-bust free press - it is "noisy and ir-responsible", but those areattributes that Salve says heprefers over a "silent and responsi-ble" press that is "just the master'svoice". However, as noted by Pro-fessor Chowdhury, the media playsan important role in representingthe image of a country. The nega-tive news stories that are usuallygenerated about the Indian sub-continent by the worldwide pressfail to accurately portray the hugestrides that India has made in de-velopment. Proof of global eco-nomic change will be seen whenthe media focuses on the positives.

26PROFILE


Indian-born KamaljitBawa elected to pres-tigious US academyTIndian-born KamaljitSingh Bawa, a dis�n-guished professor of biol-ogy at the University ofMassachuse�s, Boston,has been elected a mem-ber of the pres�giousAmerican Academy of Artsand Sciences. Bawa,founder and president ofBangalore based AshokaTrust for Ecology and theEnvironment (ATREE), willjoin the academy Oct 6with some of the worlds'most influen�al ar�sts,scien�sts, scholars, au-thors and leaders. The an-nouncement of Bawa'selec�on came as he wasreceiving the GunnerusSustainability Award theworld's first major awardfor sustainability, awardedby the Royal NorwegianSociety of Sciences andLe�ers, for the impact hisresearch has had on thesustainability of globalbiodiversity.

Indian-American linguist wins US academic awardAn Indian American pro-fessor, Dr Mohammad Ja-hangeer Warsi, has beenselected as a 2011-2012recipient of the James E.McLeod Faculty Recogni-�on Award by the stu-dents of WashingtonUniversity in St. Louis,Missouri. Previously calledthe Faculty Awards, thisyear the ArtSci Council de-cided to rename the eventin honour of one of theirbiggest supporters JamesE. McLeod. Warsi, a goldmedallist linguist from Ali-garh Muslim Universityand a West Bengal Acad-emy award holder, will re-ceive the honour April 16at a Recogni�on Cere-mony hosted by theSchool Council, the under-graduate organiza�on andexecu�ve governing bodyfor the College of Arts &Sciences.

Indian-origin educator named UNESCO goodwillambassadorIndian-origin entrepre-neur and educator SunnyVarkey has been named asa goodwill ambassador bythe United Na�ons' edu-ca�onal and culturalagency in recogni�on ofhis contribu�on in thefield of educa�on. Varkey,founder and chairman ofDubai-based GEMS Educa-�on, one of the largestprivate school operators inthe world, would be theGoodwill Ambassador forEduca�on Partnerships forUN Educa�onal, Scien�ficand Cultural Organisa�on(UNESCO). The son of In-dian expatriates whomoved to Dubai in 1959,Varkey took over the man-agement of his parents'school in 1980 and trans-formed the family- run in-s�tu�on into amul�na�onal company.GEMS Educa�on today ed-ucates more than 100,000students from more than150 na�onali�es.

KAMALJIT BAWA

DR MOHAMMAD JAHANGEER WARSI

SUNNY VARKEY

MasterCard's AjayBanga to head US-India Business CouncilAjay Banga, president &CEO of MasterCardWorldwide, has beenelected next chairman ofthe US-India BusinessCouncil (USIBC), a tradeassocia�on made of 350top American and Indiancompanies. Banga, whobecame the presidentand CEO of global pay-ments and technologycompany in July, 2010,takes over from Harold"Terry" McGraw III, presi-dent, chairman, and CEOof The McGraw-Hill Com-panies. Banga currentlyserves on the board ofKra� Foods and is a mem-ber of such pres�giousgroups as the Council onForeign Rela�ons, theBusiness Roundtable, andthe Foreign Policy Associ-a�on.

Group Director of AlMaya Group, KamalVachani was awardedFace of the YearKamal Vachani, Group Di-rector, Al Maya Group wasawarded Face of the Yearaward by Masala Awards2011 at a large gathering at-tended this mega event,which was held at a gli�er-ing ceremony in Dubai.Kamal Vachani name wasselected by a panel ofjudges of Masala Awards2011. Kamal Vachani is alsoa very socially ac�ve per-son. The ceremony was at-tended by VIPs, leadingbusinessmen, socialized andother dignitaries and bolly-wood stars. Kamal Vachaniis also Hon. Regional Direc-tor of Electronics and Com-puter So�ware ExportPromo�on Council (ESC).

AJAY BANGA

KAMAL VACHANI

NGINEWSMAKERS Mritunjay

Kumar profiles achievers fromthe NRI and PIOcommunity.

Rohit JJain takes a sneak peekon the NRIs’ engagement invarious fields

NEWSBIN

NEWSBIN 28

Indian student wins Space Lab Asia Pacific contest

N R I

Indian student Sachin Kukke has wonYouTube Space Lab 2012 contest forthe Asia Pacific region and is one ofthe six global winners of the competi-tion.

In a meeting with Indian Ambassa-dor to the US Nirupama Rao, Sachinshared his experience of conceptualiz-ing and carrying out innovative scien-tific experiments.

At the meeting, Sachin, a student ofmechanical engineering at the BMSCollege for Engineering in Bangalore,was accompanied by Lee Hunter, headof brand marketing for YouTube, andClaudio Lilienfeld, senior policy man-ager for Asia Pacific at Google.

Congratulating Sachin on his highly

commendable achievement, Rao saidthat in India - a country engaged inrapid economic development - "stu-dents like Sachin symbolise the hopesand the potential of a dynamic, resur-gent India and it's young population".

She encouraged Sachin to pursuehis goals and interests in the special-ized area of aerospace engineeringand wished him the very best for theyears ahead.

Sachin's experiment explores trans-fer of heat in ferro fluid - a special liq-uid that gets magnetised whensubjected to a magnetic field. Thestudy can benefit development of ad-vanced cooling and heat transfer sys-tems.


Six Indian-Americans win fellowshipsSix Indian Americans are among 30 immigrants and children of immigrantsfrom 20 countries who have won 2012 Paul and Daisy Soros New AmericanFellowships to pursue advanced degrees.

Each award provides up to $90,000 in tuition and support for two years ofgraduate study in the US in any field.

Immigrants to the US from Hungary, Paul and Daisy Soros set up the pro-gramme to honour contributions by immigrants to the US.

Twenty20 Cricket - Pro Arch Trophy

The Arch Trophy tournament, firstconceived by former Englandcricketer, James Kirtley, his busi-

ness partner, Roger Myall, Director ofMKK Sports in UK, with the owner ofSports Arabia, Matthew Jackson, hascontinued to grow in stature, extend-ing its invitation to counties such asSussex, Essex, Somerset, Lancashire,Yorkshire, Surrey and Middlesex. A FlyEmirates XI has also been included inthe tournament to encourage local tal-ent. Since 2011 the MaryleboneCricket Club (MCC) XI is part of thecompetition and this year saw the in-clusion of former India Captains,Sourav Ganguly, (Dada to his peersand fans), and the recently retiredRahul “The Wall” Dravid, among oth-ers. Team captain Mark Ramprakash,or Ramps as he is called, said that hewas very happy to have Dravid andGanguly in the side.

Held in late March, the Twenty20’ssecond semis had MCC XI meetingLancashire; although the last outingfor MCC XI in 2011 tournament was afailure, this year, expectations wereup with the team boasting of not one,but two of India’s biggest names.Hundreds of people crowded aroundto watch their heroes battle it out inthe sun. Temperatures rose to nearlyforty degrees but nothing seemed todeter the crowd’s or the players’ de-termination. During the games, sev-eral international players came out forautograph sessions. Despite the sear-ing heat, the crowd patiently awaitedtheir idols, Dravid and Ganguly. Sev-

eral fans had queued up last year tomeet Dada, but had missed him.These fans awaited their idol this year,many of whom split up into groups, soone group could meet Dravid, whilethe other kept their place in the line forDada. Many spoke reverentially oftheir ‘God’ Dravid and exchanged sto-ries of the matches they had watched.Of course, the hot topic was India’s re-cent poor form and what improve-ments could be made to the team.Unfortunately, the organisers missed atrick by sending the players out to theautograph zone for only ten minutes,thus, disappointing many eager fans.Though the crowd was somewhatupset about this missed opportunity,they still gathered anxiously for thematch. As the MCC team came out topractice, avid fans lined up near thepavilion, screaming Dada’s name inunison. Dada graciously acknowl-edged his fans with a wave and asmile that sent them into paroxysms ofpleasure.

A 10-year-old Indian boy in theUnited Arab Emirates ( UAE) is doinghis own bit to save the environment.Every day, he makes paper bags anddistributes them to supermarkets,

stores and malls. Abdul Muqeet started

his project when he wasonly eight. Abdul's fa-ther explained to himthe negative impact thenon-biodegradable plas-tic bags have on nature.This led Abdul to thinkabout eco-friendly ideas-- what he could do per-sonally and how hecould get other peopleto act, the Gulf News re-ported.

Every day afterschool, Abdul began making bagsfrom old newspapers. In two years,he has made and distributed about4,500 bags to supermarkets, storesand malls.

New York Film Academy alumni, pro-ducer/director Rohit Gupta's award-sweeper films have once againturned heads by winning the top tenmost popular awards at the presti-gious 28th Goldie Film Awards 2012in Florida.

Life! Camera Action... (drama- fea-ture) triumphed at the 28th GoldieFilm Awards 2012 and left manyjaws dropped by winning nine mostpopular and festival's special Boardof Directors awards - 'The GrandGoldie Award' for the 'Best Innova-tive Feature Film', 'Best Director',

'Best Actress' (Dipti Mehta), 'BestCinematography', 'Best SupportingActor' (Shaheed Woods), 'Best Song',Chalte Jaana Hain - Have to keepwalking, (sung by KK, written byRohit Gupta, music by Manoj Singh),'Best Production Design' (RaviKumar R), 'Best Editing' & 'BestScreenplay' (Amanda Sodhi & RohitGupta). Additionally 'Another Day An-other Life' (Gupta's 4 minutes film)also walked away with the 'GrandGoldie Best Short Film' at the awardsceremony.

29 NEWSBIN

Indian boy in UAE helps save environment

Singapore's former president S R Nathanhas been conferred with the prestigiousPravasi Bharatiya Samman, the highest hon-our accorded to people of Indian-origin over-sees. Nathan was presented with the award byUnion Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs,Vayalar Ravi, himself at a function there. Theaward honours individuals who have madeoutstanding contributions in their chosenfield. "This medal is a recognition of Singapore-ans of Indian origin and it's not only for me,it's for all other Singaporeans of Indian ori-gin," Nathan was quoted as saying in a re-

port by Channel News Asia said. Vayalar Ravi made the trip to Singapore es-pecially to present the award to Nathan, asthe former president was unable to receivethe award in January, when it was given out,said the Channel report. Nathan, 87, is a Singaporean of Tamil de-scent. He was the sixth president of Singa-pore from 1999 to 2011. "I hope this relationship between India andSingapore, which we have all worked to-wards, will be strengthened from time totime and that this bond that has been estab-lished between us for cultural reasons willbe preserved." Nathan said.

Pravasi Bharatiya Samman for former Singapore president


Rohit Gupta's films sweep top ten prestigious awards

Nine Indian Americans in Forbes 'Midas 100'

Nine Indian Americans have made it to the list of 100 dealmakers with"Midas Touch" compiled by the Forbes Magazine.

The Forbes list comprises of venture capitalists who had made investmentsin start-up companies and then sold off their stakes with handsome gains.Aneel Bhusri the co-CEO of Workday -- a cloud-based financials and humanresources software company was ranked 25th in the list. Bhusri is accompa-nied by 8 other persons of Indian origin on the list, including Navin Chaddha(46th) -- an IIT graduate who heads India investments of Mayfield Fund-andwell-known venture capitalist Vinod Khosla (34th). Others on the list includeRob Chandra (28th), Sameer Gandhi (33rd), Neeraj Agrawal (36th), Ajay Agar-wal (95th), Asheem Chandna (96th) and Subrata Mitra (99th).

The Global Indian Business Meet, 2012An Initiative of the NGI Foundation

Date: September, 20-23, 2012, Venue: Marriott Marquis,

Times Square, Manhattan, NYCTheme: Doing Business in Challenging Times - the Indian Way.Global Networking for Entrepreneurship and Inclusive Growth.

GLOBAL INDIAN BUSINESS MEET

2012

G BMImpacting Business Worldwide

September 20-23, 2012, New York, USA

A must attend business event for entrepreneurs, business leaders & investors to develop strategies in times of

economic slowdown

A tribute to Swami Vivekananda

on his 150th birth Anniversary

‘As you have come into this world,

leave some mark behind’

�

bringing together Indian origin CEOs and heads of businesses from around the world, leaders from various Indian, North American and other states & cities along with Entrepreneurs and Investors.

� Largest ever India-focused global business platform with participation of the Indian Diaspora from more than 25 countries in the centre of global business, New York City.

� A global platform for forward-thinking Indians living all overthe globe, connecting them to generate resources, interactions,visibility, branding, networking, technology & knowledge share, business partnerships, new ideas and investment opportunities.

� Impacting global business, and thereby human development, by taking the best Indian run enterprises and the new resurgent India to the world, thus chartering new avenues for investment, partnership, entrepreneurship and building sustainable growth models.

The Global Indian Business Meet is the first ever global meet

What is GIBM

GIBM Mission

Some of the dignitaries expected to grace the event


2012



Pranab Mukherjee John Bryson Anand Sharma Andrew Cuomo

Kiran Mazumdar Shaw

Ajay Banga

Ratan Tata Narayan Murthy

Padmasree WarriorAjit Manocha

Naveen Jindal

Vikram Pandit

Tarun Khanna Vivek WadhwaLord Meghnad Desai Debashish Chatterjee

Sam Pitroda Rajiv Kumar Muthu Raman Karan Bilimoria

1. Being part of a new vision.

2. Sharing and being part of a global partnership platform.

3. Networking with successful global Business & Technology Leaders, Politicians & Investors.

4. Forming Strategic Alliances and Partnerships;Global Investment Opportunities - M&As /JVs etc.

5. Platform to show-case products, services, new business andinvestment opportunities.

6. Exploring new business ideas, models, strategies and ways toconduct business during an economic downturn.

7. Understanding the best global practices in Trade,Research & Development and Consulting

(applicable for SMEs).

8. Exploring new opportunities in various Indian, North American, Caribbean countries, states and cities.

9. Taking advantage of the phenomenal Indian Growth Storyand the Opportunities ahead amid continuing global slowdown.

10. Meeting peers from across the globe, present your leadership, share, learn and network.


2012



10

REASONS

FOR YOU

TO BE A

PART OF

THIS

EVENT!

“Directly or indirectly he haspowerfully influenced the India oftoday… builder of modern India.”

“..no better use can be made of asceticism, science and the good name of our common country; and I know not who could make a more fitting general of such a campaign than Vivekananda. Do you think you would care to apply yourself to the mission of galvanizing into life of our ancient traditions in this respect?”Letter of Jamshedji N. Tata (Founder of Tata Group of Industries), 23rdNovember 1898.

“Can Man control [the ] grandest, most awe inspiring of all processes in nature?...If he could do this, he would have powers almost unlimited and supernatural... He could cause planes to collide and produce his suns and stars, his heat and light. He could originate and develop life in all its infinite forms....[Such powers] would place him beside his creator, make him fulfill his ultimate destiny.”

Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, FirstPrime Minister of India.

Birth of Tata Industries and Indian Institute of Science followed after their meeting.

A clarion call by scientist Nikola Tesla for the ultimate innovation to solve the challenges of humanity who was distinctly influenced by Vivekananda, whose countrymen gave the number system and much more to the world.

A TRIBUTE

TO

SWAMI VIVEKANANDA

ON HIS 150th BIRTH

ANNIVERSARY.


2012



Thursday - September 20

Friday - 21st September

Saturday - 22nd September

Sunday - 23rd September

� Private Dinner (by invitation only) with Dignitaries and Speakers.� Entertainment: Indian Classical Music.

� Keynote Address by Indian Finance Minister, Shri. Pranab Mukherjee.� Special Address by US Secretary of Commerce, Mr. John Bryson.� Panels, discussions and interactions of top Business Leaders with the delegates.

� Panel of Chief Ministers/State Government Senior Representatives. � Cocktails & Dinner followed by world class dance & entertainment!

� Inaugural Plenary Session: Theme: Incubating a world of Entrepreneurship - A Summit on Entrepreneurial Excellence.� Panels, Interactive Discussions and Hands-on learning sessions.� Pitching Session: Entrepreneurs' presentation, highly rated business plans before Business leaders and Investors for support.� Discussions with domain experts on practical subject matters among Entrepreneurs, Business Leaders, Bankers, Academics, Venture Capitalists & Financial Consultants.

� Investors' Summit Inaugural Plenary Session.� Discussions/Panels.

� Opportunities in various Indian states, regions and cities including select SEZs seeking investors.� Partnership opportunities among various states and cities around the world.

Partnership opportunities among various states and cities around the world.

� Business Tie-ups� Financing Entrepreneurs�Businesses and Business models of future�Transfer of Technologies

� Cocktail & Dinner� NGI Excellence Awards� Entertainment: Bollywood/World Music Show

� Entrepreneurs' Sessions� State Sessions�Networking Forums

– Entrepreneurship & Investment: Plenary Session

Business Leaders' Summit

India Business Summit Inauguration

Entrepreneurs' Summit

Investors' Summit

India Business Summit

Partnership Summit

Networking Forums

Evening Program

Closing Session


2012



GIBM

2012

PROGRAM

SCHEDULE

Business Leaders' Summit

Entrepreneurs' Summit

Investors' Summit


Partnership Summit

Business Leaders’ Summit

Entrepreneurs’ Summit

Investors’ Summit


Partnership Summit

Fully dedicated day for the business leaders. First time for many global Indian origin business leaders to meet, discuss, support and network.

For current and future Entrepreneurs - Inspiration, motivation, mentoring from successful leaders as well as supported by investors. Major networking opportunity.

Full one day exchange of notes and partnerships among Venture Capitalists, Angel investors and business leaders.

First time in the US – multiple Indian state & private entities to interact with businesses, knowledge-expertsand investors.

Another first time effort to connect with various state-city-region to state-city-region partnerships in all areas including business, technology and education.

GLOBAL

INDIAN

BUSINESS

MEET

UNIQUENESS


2012



VENUE & ACCOMODATION

ABOUT THE ORGANIZERS

Located in the heart of the Times Square and theBroadway theater district, Marriot Marquis atManhattan, New York, is an ideal locale for weekendgetaways and family and business events. Completewith well-appointed rooms and suites, high-speedelevators, famed Marriott service, creativecatering and a variety of ballrooms, restaurants, and lounges, the one-stop address has several spin-offs: Fifth Avenue shopping, Radio City Music Hall, Rockefeller Center, NBC Studios and the Central Park. It is also close to other Big Apple touristy attractions like Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the UN and Madison Square Garden.

New Global Indian Foundation(NGIF - USA and India):The NGI Foundation was established in 2010 to take up projects that impact societies by augmenting the empowerment of young minds. Center for Development and Policy Studies (CDPS)and NGI Entrepreneurship Development Project was launched in India in 2011 to identify, train, and support large number of potential young entrepreneurs. CDPS plans to work with various states in India in the areas of Environment, Water, Health, Education and many more. Similar projects are being planned by NGIF in other parts of the world.

GIBM 2012 is being organized by the New GlobalIndian Foundation in association with numerousIndian, American and other global organizations.Indian origin global business leaders, entrepreneurs, investors, and Indian governments (both the Centre and the states) along with many associations and groups are coming together for three days to offer the following:

To Inspire and StrategizeTo Plan and Give DirectionTo Explore New OpportunitiesTo Network and Support


2012



Contact Information

Kanchan Banerjee 001-617-306-6609 (USA)[email protected]

Prof Ujjwal K Chowdhury +91-9373311239 (India)[email protected]

K Sudhakar Murthy 00971506545894 (Dubai)[email protected]

Deepak Choudhary +91-9821899753 (India)[email protected]

[email protected]: www.gibm2012.org

First Floor, D1/4,Aacharya Niketan, Mayur Vihar Phase - 1, New Delhi 110091

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We invite you to be a part of this historic meetand seek your support in the form of participation and sponsorships.


2012



An Initiative of NGI Foundation

www.gibm2012.org

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NRI JUNCTION 30


The ‘Indian Diaspora Engagement Meet’ forOverseas Indians, held on 13th April 2012, inNairobi, Kenya for the East African region, wasinaugurated by Parvez Dewan, Secretary, Min-istry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA), Gov-ernment of India, and Chairman, OverseasIndian Facilita�on Centre (OIFC). The Meet wasorganized by the Ministry of Overseas IndianAffairs (MOIA) through Overseas Indian Facili-ta�on Centre (OIFC), in associa�on with theHigh Commission of India, Kenya and the Con-federa�on of Indian Industry (CII).

Addressing the delegates, Parvez Dewansaid that India was keen to connect with its di-aspora in Kenya and other East African coun-tries, economically, both within Kenya and inIndia. He emphasized that the meet was aimedat providing a pla�orm to the diaspora toshare their ideas, sugges�ons and concerns.He men�oned “we are here not so much toask you to invest in India but to sit with youand work how India can engage with its dias-pora in Kenya and East Africa and on the eco-nomic front. Moreover, how can India help theIndian diaspora and other Kenyans and EastAfricans who wish to realize their dreams to bepart of the India-Growth Story.”

Hon’ble Minister for Foreign Affairs ofKenya, Prof. Sam Ongeri, joined during theBusiness Session of the “Indian Diaspora En-gagement Meet”. With an academic back-ground from India, Prof. Ongeri is wellacquainted with the Indian Market and high-lighted the tremendous scope prevalent in themanufacturing sector for India to engage withKenya. This area in Kenya could provide em-ployment to the youth in Kenya which cons�-tutes nearly 50% of the unemployment figure.

Speaking at the inaugural, Sibabrata Tri-pathi, High Commissioner of India to Kenyasaid that Kenya epitomizes all that is good inthe Indian diaspora overseas. While the num-ber is not large in Kenya itself, the total in theEast Africa region is substan�al.

Other speakers at the inaugural Sessionwere Dr. Manu Chandaria, Pravasi Bhara�ya

Samman Awardee and Chairman, Comcra�Group; Vimal Shah, Vice Chairman, Kenya Pri-vate Sector Alliance and CEO, BIDCO Kenya andProf. Kenneth Ombongi, Chairman, Kenya-India Friendship Associa�on who shared theirvaluable remarks on the Meet. Eminent Indianbusinessman Dr. Manu Chandaria invited In-dian companies to explore the open market inEast Africa and enjoy the opportunity of hugebusinesses and emulate the diaspora. VimalShah men�oned about “Vision 2030” and howeffec�vely 70% of the Kenyan popula�on whoare below 30 years, can be employed in vari-ous sectors with investments and develop-ment.

The inaugural was followed by the BusinessSession which included discussions and pre-senta�ons on MOIA by Vinay Sahni, Joint Sec-retary, MOIA and on Overseas IndianFacilita�on Centre by Ms Sujata Sudarshan,CEO, OIFC. Other prominent speakers in thesession were T. Ramamurthy, Regional Director– Strategy & Opera�ons, Nakuma� HoldingsLtd.; Julius K. Korir. Ac�ng Managing Director,Kenya Investment Authority; Deepak Sharma,Senior Vice President – NRI Banking & Remit-tance, Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd; Nikhil Hira,Senior Partner, Deloi�e & Touche; Dr.Markandey Rai, President, GOPIO Kenya Chap-ter; Naresh Kumar Leekha, Ex-ecu�ve Director, Tata AfricaHoldings (Kenya) Ltd.;M.N.Sarma, Managing Direc-tor, KenIndia Assurance Ltd.

The speakers men�onedabout increasing visibility ofIndians in Kenya. They alsospoke on training pro-grammes / exchange pro-grammes and related capacitybuilding required in the vari-ous sectors like healthcare,culture and educa�on. Theyalso pointed out that goodwillbetween the countries willdevelop with more Indian in-

vestment, vibrancy, communica�on and net-working.

The meet was a�ended by delegates con-sis�ng primarily of senior and influen�al Dias-pora community members, High Net-worthIndividuals (HNIs) and small and mid-sized in-vestors, of Indian origin, residing in EastAfrican countries.

The session concluded with an ac�ve inter-ac�on between the panel members and theaudience. The main emphasis during the dis-cussions was on the willingness and poten�alof the Indian Diaspora in ge�ng economicallyengaged with India and crea�ng synergy be-tween the two economies and social develop-ment. OIFC assured to con�nue its interac�onwith the delegates, who a�ended the Meet.This will help strengthen the interface andreach out of the Diaspora with India.

The following day, the OIFC organized aRound Table meet with select senior diasporamembers and government officials to deliber-ate on the way forward to enhance economiclinkages between the two countries.

OIFC will con�nue to organize similar “In-dian Diaspora Engagement Meets’ in otherparts of the world, with high Diaspora popula-�on, to expand the economic linkages be-tween the Global Indians and India.

‘Indian Diaspora Engagement Meet’ in East Africa

Parvez Dewan, Secretary, Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA), Government of India andChairman, OIFC inaugurating “Indian Diaspora Engagement Meet in East Africa, 13 April 2012Nairobi, Kenya”, (L-R) along with Prof. Kenneth S. Ombongi, Chairman Kenya-India FriendshipAssociation; Sibabrata Tripathi, High Commissioner of India to Kenya; Pravasi Bharatiya Sammanawardee, Dr. Manu Chandaria, Chairman, Comcraft Group and Vimal Shah, Vice Chairman, KenyaPrivate Sector Alliance and CEO, BIDCO Kenya

Amb. Prof. Samson K Ongeri, Minister of Foreign Affairs,Government of Republic of Kenya speaking at the Business Sessionof the “Indian Diaspora Engagement Meet”, along with (L-R) VinaySahni, Joint Secretary (DS), MOIA, Government of India; Vimal Shah,Vice Chairman, Kenya Private Sector Alliance and CEO, BIDCOKenya; Tanmaya Lal, Deputy High Commissioner, High Commissionof India, Nairobi; Parvez Dewan, Secretary, MOIA, Government ofIndia and Dr. Manu Chandaria, Chairman, Comcraft Group

Overseas Indian FacilitationCentre (OIFC) chronicles theoutcome of recently held‘Indian Daispora EngagementMeet’ in Nairobi, Kenya.

HISTORY 32


It is assumed that it is known to most hownega�ve impact casteism has on Indian soci-ety, polity and economy in recent past. A size-able sec�on of the popula�on is s�ll exposedto abuse and discrimina�on. The effects arealso felt abroad at �mes. However, educa�onand awareness has significantly increased, In-dian government has taken many measures,including reserva�on in educa�on, jobs andpoli�cal posi�ons. Significant improvementshave happened since India shook of theBri�sh yoke from her neck. But there is s�ll along way to go to fully solve the challenges re-lated to caste issues. A�er all, this social prob-lems were developed over centuries andcannot be wished away so fast in an ancientand complex society like India.

On the other hand, many so-called ‘upper-class’ people in India today has complaints ofreverse discrimina�on and disadvantages dueto the ‘quota-raj’, or reserva�on for minori�eshas gone to some extreme to deprive theother groups, even though they may not beeconomically or poli�cally privileged.

However, scholars like K S Lal believed thatthe worse form of discrimina�on in the nameof caste was not in existence before the in-vaders and colonial powers held sway.

He and other scholars suggest that therewas li�le evidence to show that the lowerclasses suffered from the tyranny of the Hinduupper classes in the medieval period. Accord-ing to him, if that was true then the backwardclasses would have joined hands with theMuslim invaders to take revenge against theupper caste. But Lal noted a contrarian view:“Throughout the medieval period, the lowercastes fought shoulder to shoulder with theupper castes and against the foreign invadersand tyrannical rulers.”

He explained: “Backward classes and forestdwellers went on growing under Muslim pres-sure. Their numbers and nomenclatures haveproliferated. Muslim rule spread all over thecountry. Resistance to it by Hindus also re-mained widespread. Jungles aboundedthroughout the vast land and fight into themwas the safest safeguard. That is why theSC/ST people are found in every state in largenumbers. During the medieval period, theyears and centuries of oppression, they livedalmost like wild beasts (remember Rana

Pratap’s life?) in impoverished huts in forestvillages, segregated and isolated, suffering andstruggling. But by se�ling in the forests thesefreedom fighters of medieval India were en-abled to preserve their religion and their cul-ture. As we put the record straight, we findthat the small and sca�ered class of trainedand tradi�onal Hindu warriors, mostly Ra-jputs, stood exhausted by the �me of theMughal invasion, having fought the earlier in-vaders at every step for well-nigh centuriesfrom the middle of the seventh to the end ofthe 15th. The leadership of Hindu resistanceto Muslim rule therea�er was provided bywhat are termed the Backward Castes and theDalits in present-day India. These classes hadfought earlier under the leadership of RajputRajas and zamindars. Now they took up theleadership on themselves, and ba�led withthe Mughal regime �ll the la�er stood shat-tered by the middle of the eighteenth century.It is a different story that in the process thebackward castes and the dalits suffered griev-ously and found themselves in a bad shape bythe �me the Islamic nightmare was over. Thatstory has yet to be put together from indige-nous annals which historians have neglectedso far. This study is only a beginning, based forthe most part on medieval Muslim chroni-cles.”

Many scholars believe that the caste ex-ploita�on may have been the result of rigidityof the Hindu caste social system which wasdeveloped as a result of moral degenera�onof the Hindus a�er losing poli�cal power for along �me. Evidence supports that before theIslamic invasions, the Hindu social system didnot have the rigid discriminatory rules whichwere developed a�er this.

But if we pause and analyze a dark part ofIndian history we will see how the Indian so-cial system actually helped saving India fromsinking into dark medieval ages ruled by reli-gious fana�cs. Here are few observa�ons onhow the so-called caste system helped Indiato protect from total socio-poli�cal-culturalannihila�on by foreign forces. In fact, the ref-erence to the word caste here actually is forthe ja� system.

According to many, the ja� system was piv-otal to the survival of the Indian na�on. InSwami Vivekananda’s words, “Caste is an im-

perfect ins�tu�on no doubt. But if it had notbeen for caste, you would have had no San-skrit books to study. This caste made walls,around which all sorts of invasions rolled andsurged but found it impossible to break-through.”

India always had a strong well-trainedworld-class army under various kings andkingdoms. However, there were �mes whenin-figh�ng and lack of unity paved the way forthe invasions. K S Lal in his book ‘Growth ofScheduled Tribes and Castes in MedievalIndia’ writes:

“Hindus suffered repeated defeats on theba�lefield because due to a weak state sys-tem, their armies were ill-organized and ill-equipped as compared to the Muslim statesystem which was highly militarized andgeared to total war. Hindus would have beenwiped out if their social system had been asweak as their state system.”

Scholars observe, that almost all countrieslost their past culture and heritage altogethera�er the crusades and invasions. India wasspecifically targeted by Islamic invasions, wasruled by Islamic rulers for about 1,000 years,many of whom were religious fana�cs. Yet,India retained her ancient culture and her-itage and a pluralis�c society; many a�ributethis to India’s ja� system.

Scholar Ram Swarup wrote: “With the ad-vent of Islam the Hindu society came undergreat pressure; it faced the problem of sur-vival. When the poli�cal power failed, castes

How Indian social system shaped nation’s historyIn this series, Kanchan BBanerjee attempts to find the origin of casteism in India along with Hinduism’s concept of varna classification and ostracism. He explores how the original varna system had an evolutionary plan embedded in it as expressed by various Indian thinkers and inwhat ways many modern thinkers’ works, especially in the fields of developmental psychology, are following a similar pattern to classify socio-psycho evolution of people and societies

“Caste is an imperfect institutionno doubt. But if it had not beenfor caste, you would have hadno Sanskrit books to study. Thiscaste made walls, around whichall sorts of invasions rolled andsurged butfound it impossi-ble to break-through.”- SwamiVivekananda

33 HISTORY


took over; they became defense shields andprovided resistance passive and ac�ve. “

According to K S Lal, “So well coalescedwas the Hindu social structure that it not onlysaved India from the fate of countries likeIran, Iraq, Syria and Egypt when they con-fronted the Islamic onslaught, but did not restcontent �ll it had supplanted the Muslim po-li�cal power in the land even thought it took athousand years to do so. Hindus had sufferedonly a military defeat against Muslim invaders.It was not a collapse of the Hindu social sys-tem.”

The maximum accomplishments in scienceand philosophy happened in India when therewas absolute freedom of expression. But withthe advent of Islamic invasions, things wentdown the hill. The tradi�onal scholars andthinkers, the Brahmins were butchered orcaptured and the rest withdrew them fromthe arena of knowledge sector. Finally theyhad no choice but to remain happy occupyingthemselves in the preserva�on of the sacredtexts and the prac�ce of rituals. India’s Bhak�movement was not as prominent as it becamea�er the Muslim period. Though a greatmovement, it has a painful history behind.

In a shocking revela�on SwamiVivekananda had to say this about the adventof the Bhak� tradi�ons that Dr Arun Shouriequoted: “The aim of the Bhak� movementwas not just an ecumenical one of picking thebest in all tradi�ons. The aim, the Swami says,was to prevent wholesale conversion toIslam.”

"The movements in northern India duringthe Mohammedan period are characterizedby their uniform a�empt to hold the massesback from joining the religion of the con-querors, which brought in its train social andspiritual equality for all... The friars of the or-ders founded by Ramananda, Kabir, Dadu,Chaitanya, or Nanak were all agreed inpreaching the equality of man, however dif-fering from each other in philosophy. Theirenergy was for the most part spent in check-ing the rapid conquest of Islam among themasses, and they had very little left to givebirth to new thoughts and aspirations.Though evidently successful in their purposeof keeping the masses within the fold of theold religion, and tempering the fanaticism ofthe Mohammedans, they were more apolo-gists, struggling to obtain permission to live."

Same can be said about the British rulerswho had deployed numerous missionary proj-ects for spreading Christianity and protectionof their interest in India.

Dharampal wrote in ‘Rediscovering India’,“For the British, as perhaps for some othersbefore them, caste has been a great obstacle,in fact, an unmitigated evil not because theBritish believed in casteless-ness or sub-scribed to non-hierarchical system but be-

cause it stood in the way of their breaking In-dian society, hindered the process of atomiza-tion, and made the task of conquest andgovernance more difficult”.

Scholar Koenrad Elst goes little more indepth. He wrote, “Christian and Muslim mis-sionaries found it very difficult to lure Hindusaway from their communities. Sometimescastes were collectively converted to Islam,and Pope Gregory XV (1621-23) decreed thatthe missionaries could tolerate caste distinc-tion among Christian converts; but by andlarge, caste remained an effective hurdle tothe destruction of Hinduism through conver-sion. That is why the missionaries started at-tacking the institution of caste and inparticular the Brahmin caste. This propa-ganda has bloomed into a full-fledged anti-Brahminism, the Indian equivalent ofanti-Semitism. Every caste had a large meas-ure of autonomy, with its own judiciary, du-ties and privileges, and often its owntemples. Inter-caste affairs were settled atthe village council by consensus; even thelowest caste had veto power. This autonomyof intermediate levels of society is the an-tithesis of the totalitarian society in which theindividual stands helpless before the all-pow-erful state. This decentralized structure ofcivil society and of the Hindu religious com-monwealth has been crucial to the survival ofHinduism under Muslim rule. Whereas Bud-dhism was swept away as soon as its monas-teries were destroyed, Hinduism retreatedinto its caste structure and weathered thestorm.

He explained, “Abbe Dubois, a French mis-sionary, was one of the most influential Euro-

pean travelers. Dubois had difficulty in con-verting Hindus to Christianity. He attributedthis difficulty to the Hindu caste prejudices.Hindus are addicted to their superstitions andprejudices born of caste affiliation. Nobodycan change them. His book Hindu Manners,Customs and Ceremonies (1816) became theofficial gospel of the East India Company.Christian missionaries in general were frus-trated in getting Hindus to convert to Christi-anity. All the abuse was heaped on theinstitution of caste and on crafty Brahminswho kept the masses duped.”

Hence, it is clear that mainstream Indianhistory has shied away from doing properanalysis of causes and effects of the Indiancaste system. It is well-known that Indian po-litical system influences Indian history tilldate where in the name of ‘social-harmony’and political correctness, many times factsare swept under the carpet. Now, India is ma-tured enough to take up these uneasy factsand embarrassing truths so that truth pre-vails. After all, the national motto is‘Satyameva Jayate’, or truth alone triumphs.

Mainstream Indian history hasshied away from doing properanalysis of causes and effects ofthe Indian caste system. How-ever, India is matured enoughto take up these uneasy factsand embarrassing truths so thattruth prevails.

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SOCIETY 38


Reality bites of Maya NagriMonica MMurthy empathizes with the struggle of newcomers in Mumbai’s fledgling entertainment industry, and how thenew-age convergence is helping the small-town youngsterswith dreams in their eyes to overcome odds

The Maya Nagri has aunique quality that con�n-ues to a�ract youngsters

from all over India who comehere with big dreams. The citymay offer great opportuni�es,but the path to success is o�enstrewn with arduous struggle.Mumbai, the business capitalof India, is home to around 13million, and the popula�on hasgrown rapidly in the last 20years. It is one of the largestci�es of India as far as popula-�on, business and trade ac�vi-�es are concerned.

From trade to other formsof career like ac�ng, singing,dancing, film-making andmodeling there are manyopenings where the youthwant to create a mark. Theshows aired on TV like IndianIdol, Dance India Dance andseveral others a�ract manyfrom the hinterland.

These are a vivid exampleof people coming here andstruggling to get fame and ac-colades. If one catches a localtrain in Mumbai, various facetsof life and people struggling toachieve their goals can be ob-served from close quarters.

They are in various agegroups like school studentstravelling far to get good edu-ca�on and be like their coun-terparts studying in pres�giousins�tu�ons like Bombay Scot-�sh and Bombay Cambridge.There are students who havecome from other parts of Indiato pursue professional courses.

Struggle is inevitable inMumbai, and the harsh dailyreality is reflected in theadage: Those who can live inMumbai can live anywhere inthe world.

Various ins�tutes acrossthe megapolis offer a slew ofprofessional courses like theXavier’s Ins�tute Mass Com-munica�on for media studies,Whistling Woods Interna�onalfor ac�ng, film-making, MBA,direc�on and IIT-Powai for agamut of technical profes-sional courses.

Despite gradua�ng fromthese reputed ins�tu�ons, suc-cess is never guaranteed. Takethe case of Bollywood, wherestrugglers dot the industrylandscape. Di�o, for the flour-ishing small screen industry

and the convergence of mediaand films holds out promisefor aspiring youngsters fromacross India.

Aquib Nadeem, a studentfrom Nagpur and an ardent fanof Hrithik Roshan, is seeking anac�ng career in Bollywood,and has joined WhistlingWoods Interna�onal to realizehis dreams. Despite s�ff oppo-si�on from his kin to join thefledgling make-believe film in-dustry, he is working hard toovercome all odds. He has al-ready bagged a modeling as-signment with Ricon Buildersand is looking forward for agood start in films alongsideparallel work in ad shoots.

A struggling TV serial actorAnurag Sharma from the soapPavitra Rishta sums up themood of his ilk. “TV serial ac-tors are insecure because workis fickle and we have to de-pend on other source of in-come.”

People who start their ca-reer in Mumbai have to gothrough a prolonged strugglelike staying in places wherethere are no proper civicameni�es like water, electricityetc. Rents are also prohibi�velyexpensive.

The struggle apart, the glit-ter of success has made manyan ardent admirer of Mumbai.Take the case of Ashim Sen, adirector of TV shows andevents, and has been workingrigorously for the past 30years. ‘If one works here, bigbucks are there to be made,”he says.

Be that as it may, push andpull is the hallmark of the en-tertainment industry. No won-der, the industry insiders’ nearand dear ones have it easy.While, for a fresher, it’s ex-tremely difficult to make it onsheer talent.

However, several trainingschools and newer opportuni-�es, online discussion forumsand groups are the best plat-form for newcomers to launchthemselves into the industry.

With the growing popula-�on and increasing compe�-�on, the fight to get to the topwould con�nue, where strug-gle remains a necessary ingre-dient in carving out a place foran outsider in Mumbai.

ART 40

Gujarat in western India has many reasons tocelebrate, a land with unparalleled spirit, andalways on the move. Tradi�onal in its roots yetone of the most forward socie�es of the coun-try, Gujarat is a happy blend of both. And, atrip down memory lane reveals that the an-cient art form and tradi�ons are running in thear�sans’ veins.

Art and cra�s are inseparable with Gujaratsince the �me of the nomadic men and thecave age. Over the years, some of the artswere abandoned; some were made more cre-a�ve, while some were perceived as a part ofthe tradi�onal cultural fabric.

Gujarat offers innumerable opportuni�esto peep into its art and culture. For instance,the state offers the best on three importantbasic aspects of human life like ro�, kapda aurmakaan. When it comes to the household u�li-�es needed to earn a living, there is terraco�aart, po�ery, beadwork, metal utensils and theextraordinary Namda art. Besides, it has alegacy of weaving, handicra�s, embroideries,block prin�ng and exquisite saris like Patolaand Bandhani. Pithora pain�ngs and intricatewoodcarving only heighten the interiors of ahouse.

AURA OF LIFE ON WALLSCave pain�ngs were a way of life thousands ofyears ago, and Pithora pain�ngs are rooted inthis glorious tradi�on. This is the most preva-lent and characteris�c art tradi�on of theRathwa community of central Gujarat. Thoughthe Pithora pain�ngs are crude, this crudity

only adds to their beauty and simplicity. Onlymen are allowed to pursue this art form. Mostof the Indian arts have some legends a�achedto its origin. Pithora pain�ngs are no excep-�ons. These pain�ngs are made to appeaseGods or for a wish to be granted. The headpriest is summoned and the problems are nar-rated. Then a�er the priest offers the solu�on,the rituals of pain�ngs start. Animis�c figureslike bull, horses, birds and �gers are an insepa-rable part of each Pithora pain�ng. However,in these changing �mes, airplanes, trains, carsand other such modern things are an integralpart of the recurring mo�fs. The pain�ngsflood three walls of the house and the mainwall of the verandah that divides it from thekitchen is called the Pithoro. While thepainters hone their cra�, others sing, dance,drink and feast.

IN TATTERSTerraco�a can be called a type of clay model-ing. Terra is ‘Earth Soil’ in La�nand ‘Co�a’ stands for statuein Italian. It is believed thatthe Rathwas and the Bhilsof Gujarat are blessed withthis art form. Terraco�a isoriginally a female cre-a�on. When the men ofthe family were busyhun�ng, farming or asmall scale business, thewomen engaged them-selves in making ar�cles out

of clay. At a later stage, the womenfolk startedtransla�ng their imagina�ons into the work ofart.

An apt amount of refined clay is the primeelement of terraco�a. This clay is dried andthen cast, molded or hand worked into a desiredshape. The drying needs to be thorough. The ma-terial is then put into a furnace or on top of acombus�ble pit and fired. A�er firing, the pit orthe furnace is then covered with sand to cool. Ter-raco�a changes a�er the firing. The most com-mon colors are orange, brown or orange �ngedred due to the iron content in the common clay.

The figures include horses, cows, bulls, buf-faloes, elephants, replicas of insects that destroycrops and also human beings. The horse is consid-ered the most auspicious of these clay figures andoffered quite regularly atthe shrines. Gujaratis also known forDhabu, a terraco�aart that is domeshaped houses

offered to thespirits of the

dead.

WHERE AART IIS AA WWAY OOF LLIFEAditi RRindani reports about the passionate Gujarati artisans, whose skill sets transcend commercialgains and now the onus is on us to conserve the pristine art for posterity



41 ART

GET TIED, DON’T LET IT DIEGujarat is known as Manchester of the East. Ithas been involved in tex�les since centuries.Almost all parts of the state have a uniquestyle of tex�le, weaving and embroidery. Onesuch art that is almost synonymous to the her-itage of Gujara� tex�les is the Patola sari ofPatan. Even before the inven�on of machines,this cra� was developed with the help of in-sight and strength. It is believed that Patolasdate back to the 4th century AD, and the artoriginated in Patan, north Gujarat.

The word Patola comes from the term‘Pa�’ that means a silk cloth in Tamil andMalayalam. The style of Patola that is weavedin Patan is called ‘Double-Ikat’ (Ikat is a Bahasaword).

The Patolas are produced for thousands ofyears by the same process. No technician or in-ven�on of machines can make a 1% modifica-�on in the technique and the process ofpreparing a Patola since it is such a specializedskill. The peculiar way of preparing the warpand we� used in Patolas, gives it an appear-ance of double cloth though it is single withthe same colors in par�cular design on boththe sides.

Owning a Patola is a priceless experince.The process of coloring the threads takesnearly 75 days, followed by three-four monthsby four-five ar�sans to weave just one sari. Aweaver can weave only five-sixinches within

a day. A�er working for 10-12 hours a day, noholidays and a group working together, it takesalmost one and half year to complete a Patolasari.

‘Chhellaji re mare hatu Patan thi Patolamongha laavjo…’ is a very famous folk-song inwhich a wife puts forward her demand for anexpensive Patola to her husband. Just like thepopularity of the song, the fame and charm ofPatolas is unrivalled even today.

THE WOODEN BLEND OF CULTUREWood carvings in Gujarat enjoy a unique qual-ity, thanks to blend of two cultures: Islam andHinduism. The cra�smen did a wonderful jobthrough expression of their personal feelingsand understanding of the world around them.Wood carving here is not limited to the publicarchitecture but is visible in the havelis andprivate houses of the ancient �mes. TheNawab's Palace in Palanpur and intricatejharokhas (windows) carved out of wood orhavelis (mansions) in Vaso with their wealth ofwooden architectural details are some of theexamples of wood carving tradi�on in Gujarat.

Wood was never a locally available mate-rial and was always imported into Gujarat fromdifferent �mber producing regions. But today,Gujarat is among the only three regions ofIndia where precious wood-work has s�ll sur-

vived. These three regions are the Hi-malayan region par�cularly Nepal, partsof south India and Gujarat. The wood-carver community of Gujarat is knownas the Mewara Mistris, who work inrural and urbanareas. Be it thecan�levered bal-conies, majes�c

doors, idols of dei�es, toys, blocks for prin�ng,cradles, cup-boards, swings or jewellery boxes,Gujarat has it all.

FELT AND FELTED HOSPITALITYGujarat is the land of warmth and hospitality.It is full of rituals and customs, one such cus-tom is si�ng on the floor. Be it for the purposeof having meals, socializing or performance ofsome ritual. And what can be a be�er treatthan a hand-made rug to form the floor cover-ing. A Namda carpet is one of the known floorcoverings made from hand-made woolensheets and are decorated with tradi�onal em-broidery and appliqué designs.

Namda is an Urdu word, a Kashmiri styledcarpet adopted by the felt ar�sans of Kutch.Earlier, these ar�sans used to put together ani-mal saddles for royal families. The Pinjara com-munity of Gujarat is known to prac�ce theNamda art and later they are being known asthe Namdagar as well.

Namda is a felted tex�le product. It ismade from sheets of beaten wool. It appliesnon-woven techniques of fel�ng to createthese sheets. Layers of compressed wool arethen stuck together with natural gum. A�erbeing completed, embroidery is executed inwoolen yarn. Namda is an all-purpose ar�cle,indispensable for daily life. It can be used as afloor bed, pillow, dining table, wall hanging,sofa throws or even corner mats. Namda prod-ucts are in high demand in cold countries asthey work as insulators.

Gujarat offers innumerable opportunities to peepinto its art and culture. For instance, the state

offers the best on three important basic aspectsof human life like roti, kapda aur makaan.

Gujarat is known as Manchester of the East. Ithas been involved in textiles since centuries.

Almost all parts of the state have a unique styleof textile, weaving and embroidery.

INDIANAMA 42

In my last ar�cle I talked about the emergingfeminine narra�ves in Hindi serials. In thisissue, I shi� the focus to the male narra�ves.

1. There is a great deal of emo�onal stress intheir lives but there is no precedence abouthow they should deal with it. As a result eachman making his own path to navigatethrough this emo�onal maze. The father fig-ure archetype ge�ng a bit diffused.

It is interes�ng to note that the male pro-tagonist from the popular serial Bade AccheLagte Hai is called Ram. If we take a page out ofthe epic Ramayana we find that Ram was theperson who leaves his own kingdom just to keephis father’s words.

Ram was all about following the rules andwe find that even in this serial our hero is a per-son who will go to any lengths to listen to thewishes of his step mom without ques�oning theveracity of her decisions. He struggles to findthe right balance between affec�on for his momand sister and his wife Priya and is o�en fraughtwith stress and anguish atthe slightest hint of inbalance in his affec-�on towards all 3women in his life.

It is worth no�ngthat the character ofRam in this serial isfundamentally con-ceptualized as a veryemo�onal person al-though his expres-sions of love andaffec�on are verystoic in keeping

with his status and role in life. It appears to mir-ror the duality that is increasingly beginning tocharacterize the urban male’s personain India.On one hand is the pressure to climb to the topof the professional ladder faster than ever be-fore and on the other is an evolving defini�on ofmale hood transi�oning from provider to quasinurturer.

In Indian mythology Ram is considered asone of the avatars of Vishnu and the modernday representa�on of this persona too tries toembody this sense of ‘Godliness’ in his ac�onsthough his human frail�es also come through.

Even when we look at a more tradi�onalcharacteriza�on such as Basant in Balika Vadhuwe find him trying to reach out to his veryyoung wife and understand her point of views.The process itself is so alien to him that it leadsto a lot of inner conflict and confusion The dis-cussions between the two that are triggered bythe very hurt and abuse that he causes her itselfbecomes a point of reflec�on for him and weare witness to his inner dialogues that vacillatebetween being a male in a tradi�onal sensewhere his wish is his spouses command andbeing a more caring and nurturing husband whotakes into considera�on everyone’s wishes be-fore taking any decision.

What also emerges through the characteriza-�on is the fact that the men are very clear aboutwhom they do not want to emulate but posi�verole models are nebulous. As a result there is aconscious effort to do the right thing as much as

possible and in the process become the Rightone (husband, brother, son, boss) to be embod-ied.

Basant’s younger brothera Bhairon is theepitome of the new age progressive man. Henot only stands against the regressive thinkingof his mother but also cuts off all rela�on withhis only son when he abandons his wife Anandi.All this obviously creates a lot of emo�onal tur-moil but he remains true to his mission of get-�ng jus�ce for his daughter in law. He becomesa father figure to Anandi and encourages her tofind her own voice and sta�on in life.

Jagya his only son is shown as being tornbetween his 2nd wife Gauri and his �es with hisformer family who has disowned him. Not onlyhas the family disowned the son but also ini�-ated the divorce proceedings.

A common theme that appears to emergeacross all these narra�ves is the focus on conse-quences of ac�ons. A great amount of footage isspent on showing the inner dialogues almosthin�ng at the plight of the men torn betweenwhat they have done and what they shouldhave done.

2. The father figure archetype is shown more inits autocra�c avatar rather than its benevolentvariant. Thus there is an inherent value judg-ment in this characteriza�on that appears tomold the viewers’ preferences against them.

But for every trace of the new age man wesee we also see many molded in the older para-digms. So you find Shankar Dayalthe grand oldpatriarch in Navya scheming against his grand-son’s wife to ensure that his word stays as thelast word on anything in the household.In Pra�-gya Sajjan Singh’s second marriage is a shortlived one and his crude ways are constantlychallenged by his daughter in law and his son Kr-ishna .

In Dil Se Di Dua Swabhagyava� Bhava, Virajis a psychopath husband who resorts to domes-�c violence and extreme measures to keep hiswife in his control. It is heartening to note tonote that in response to an interac�ve contestmost viewers felt that that Janvi should not staywith Viraj but instead fight back and teach him alesson

3. There are many firsts in the emerging malenarra�ves-

a. A clarion call to love over social restric�ons:In Kuch To Log Kahenge we find that Dr.Ashutosh is almost 2 decades older than Nidhi.While he goes through an ini�al period of tur-moil and guilt about being in a rela�onship witha girl young enough to be his daughter, he

MALE NARRATIVES IN HINDI SERIALSThe emerging male narrative appears to be in a flux. The diffusion of male patriarchappears to coincide with the rise of women power on TV. Shreyanka BBasu writes a series on people, consumer, culture and everything that is Indian at heart

Powerhouse Performances: Jagya, Ram Kapoor and Sajjan Singh from daily soaps Balika vadhu,

Bade ache lagte hain and Pratigya respectively


43 INDIANAMA

finally accepts the same as being pre-ordained.Not only that we find that Nidhi’s father ColonelVerma too gives his blessing to the union signi-fying a clarion call to love over social restric-�ons. This is clearly a new roadmap and onethat only has a future but very li�le past to referback to.b. Acceptance of girl’s past: In Parichay bothKunal and Siddhi have a past that is known toeach other and in spite of the same the focus ison moving on rather than ge�ng caught in thedebris of the past. In another narra�ve inParichay itself we find Lavina’s husband accept-ing her in spite of knowing that at the �me ofmarriage she is in love with another man. InShubh Vivah the focus is on remarriage and ac-ceptance of the wife’s kid from earlier marriage.While the remarriage angle may not be revolu-�onary the child lednarra�ves ap-pear to putgreaterfocus onthe fact thatthis is trulyan accept-ance ofthe

woman’s past. Even in Na Bole Tum Na MaineKuch Kaha we find Suhita who is a du�fuldaughter-in-law and a single mother of two kidswho goes out of her way for her family andMohan who is a self-centered bachelor whodoes not believe in the values that Suhitastands for over �me ge�ng close to each other.

c. Infidelity as an overt primary narra�ve: InKya Hua Tera Waada Mona’s husband is havingan affair with his boss who is also his ex-girl-friend. In Parichay Gaurav is two �ming Seemawith his hot new girlfriend. In Balika VadhuJagya gets involved in a second rela�onshiponce he comes to Mumbai and finally marrieshis girlfriend Gauri and leaves Anandi his childbride.

The emerging male narra�ve appears to bein a flux. While there are cues that there is anew age man out there his own coming of ageis fraught with emo�onal tension. He is rightnow a niche rather than a mass phenomenonbut his appeal with the ladies is instant anddeep rooted. The diffu-sion of the malepatriarch ap-pears tocoincidewith therise ofwomen

power on TV. So we find many feisty femalecharacters such as Dadisa in Balika Vadhu, Am-maji in Na Aana Is Desh mein Laado, Imar� Deviin Kairi Rishta Kha�a Meetha, Mataji in SasuralSimar Ka, Naani Ma in Saas Bina Sasuraal al-most taking on the space of conscience keeperof the family and mak-ing great inroadsinto being the lit-eral head of thefamily . Whetherthis is a harbin-ger of things tocome, only timewill tell.

(The author isa market researchprofessional, inter-net addict andpassionateteacher)

A common theme that appears toemerge across all these narratives is

the focus on consequences ofactions. A great amount of

footage is spent on showingthe inner dialogues almosthinting at the plight of themen torn between whatthey have done and whatthey should have done.

Hero No 1: (L-R) Viraj, Pradeep, Kunal and Dr Ashtosh,male protagonists of their respective serials


TRAVELOGUE 44


Spoilt forgetawaychoicesMaharashtra offers something for everyone.From historic forts, virgin beaches, verdanthill-sta�ons, heritage caves, monuments toreligious shrines and wild life sanctuaries forinveterate travellers.

Maharashtra which is among the largeststates of the country is also a land of breath-taking beauty, historical legacy, ac�on and ad-venture. It offers virgin beaches, worldheritage sites, mammoth fortresses, fes�valsand a dash of night life in metros like Mumbaiand Pune. Perhaps, no Indian state can boastof such diversity. There is no end to thethemes because of the state’s natural physicalfeatures. Sample this, the Konkan is a 700-kmnarrow coastal strip, do�ed with 350 forts,27 wild life sanctuaries, World Heritage siteslike Ajanta and Ellora in Aurangabad, hill sta-�ons, numerous Na�onal Parks and religiousshrines like Ashtavinayaka and Shirdi, theabode of the Sai Baba.

“The diversity is our strength as well asour problem in some ways. Like, when wethink of Kerala we only think of backwaters orGoa is synonymous with beaches. Otherstates like Rajasthan and Sikkim too havetheir own carved-out branding. There is a sin-gular pa�ernhere andthese

states depend on tourism as their main indus-try, so tourists con�nue to flock there,” saysKishore Gadre, GM, Maharashtra Tourism De-velopment Corpora�on Ltd (MTDC),

He adds, “So, we have a peculiar situa�onhere. Although, Maharashtra has the highestnumber of `des�na�on travelers’ because ofits other industries. They come here for busi-ness but are not really tourists so, this worksin our favour as they do come here exploringa few des�na�ons.”

Over the past few months, there has beenhec�c ac�vity at MTDC which is looking at po-si�oning the state differently.

‘We realized, it’s all about the right posi-�oning and knowledge management. Since,we have something for all kind of tourists andacross all age groups; we are promo�ng thestate in four different themes or clusters. Ourmain themes are beaches, forts and heritagesites, Wildlife sanctuaries and adventuresports,” explains Gadre.

Here’s a lowdown of each of the themesto plan an i�nerary be�er:

BEACHESThe most famous is the Ganpa�pule beach in

Ratnagiri district. Known for its prominentSwayambhu Ganpa� temple, the beach thathas a laidback and spiritual feel to it hasshimmering blue waters with powdery goldensands. Some other prominent beaches on theRatnagiri coast are Murud ahead of Dapoli re-

plete with sea gulls, eagles and even turtles.Guhanagar near Chiplun is largely empty andalso offers some breathtaking scenic views.

Tarkali is known as the queen beach ofSindhudurg. It is also a des�na�on for scubadiving and snorkeling. Besides the Sindhudurgfort, the place also is known for its lip-smack-ing Malvani food and rich seafood delicacies.

The famous hamlet Harihareshwar, whichis also known as the `Kashi of the South’, is lo-cated In the Raigad region. The beach line hasvarious temples that draw devotees. Some ofthe other beau�ful beaches where MTDC cot-tages are also available are Vengurla,Kunkeshwar, Bhogve, Anjarle, Vlneshwar, Di-veagar and Shrivardhan.

FORTSWrapped in the mystery of �me, the forts arethe secret storytellers of the famous emperorShivaji; who was also a great fort builder.Raigad, or king of Forts, Murud Janjira, thegrandiose fort of Sindhudurg or the marinefort Vijayadurga are the must-visit des�na-�ons.

Besides, there is the Pratapgad fort, Loha-gad or iron Fort and Shivneri near Pune aregood weekend getaways. Panhala Fort is situ-ated in one of the largest forests of the Dec-can region. Torna fort has gained prominenceas a trekkers' paradise during monsoons.

Some of the other forts are Sinhagad,Kandhar, and Vasai and Jaigad. Gavilgad, lo-

Seema PPherwani gives a lowdown of options galore in Maharashtra for an inveterate traveler

Kundalika River

45 TRAVELOGUE


cated near Chikhaldara hill sta�on, hasbeau�ful carved idols and wall carvings indifferent scripts, Vijaydurg is one of thestrongest marine forts on the west coast ofIndia and was also known as the `EasternGibraltar’ as it was impregnable for a long�me.

WILD LIFE SANCTUARIESFor nature lovers there’s a stunning varietyof wildlife in the state. One can spot majes-�c �gers, gawa, bison, neelgai, wild deer,sambhar and many species of birds and in-sects. And there are op�ons galore in jeepride, night safari, climbing up the watchtowers. One of the best known �ger re-serves, The Tadoba-Andhari Reserve isknown as the `Jewel of Vidharba’ since ithas the highest �ger popula�on. Featuredin the epic of Mahabharata, Chikhaldara isthe only hill resort and situated at an al�-tude of 1,118m. The Melghat Tiger reservein Amrava� district is dry and deciduous.Then there is the Pench Na�onal Park,which has 33 species of mammals, 164species of birds, 50 species of fish. Some ofthe other popular ones are the Bhi-mashankar Sanctuary, Bor, Bhamragarh,Navegaon and Chaprala Wildlife Sanctuary.There are numerous bird sanctuaries likeNagzira, Nandur Madhmeshwar, Jayakwadiand the Karnala.

ADVENTURE TOURISMThe best �me to enjoy adventuresports in Maharashtra like scuba div-ing, snorkeling at Tarkali off the ArabianSea are between November and February.Besides, there is Sargassum forest coralsunderwater seascape to explore betweenOctober and March.

White water ra�ing at the gushing wa-ters of the Kundalika River is a hot favouritewith youngsters. Kundalika is located abouttwo hours away from Mumbai and Pune,and best suited for a day or two stay.

The lake district of Kamshet, near Lon-avala, offers paragliding along with a three-day course on how to soar to the skies. Theflying season is between November andJune. For parasailing and windsurfing fans,Pune is the place to be. And, the best spotsin Pune are Pawna, Panshet, Mulshi andKhadakwasla.

Also, soak in the magic around the Lonarcrater in Buldhana, walk through theplateau of flowers in Kaas, offer prayers atShirdi and visit the Ajanta and Elloracaves in Aurangabad.

Raigad Fort

Tadoba-Andhari Reserve

Swayambhu Ganpati temple


If you sign up for this one, it’s an experiencethat will stay with you forever. Launchedabout seven years ago, Deccan Odyssey, aluxury train, takes you on a heritage tourthrough the majes�c Kingdom of theMarathas. Built on the lines of the Blue Trainof South Africa, The Orient Express of Eu-rope and the Eastern and Oriental of SouthEast Asia, the royal train offers you a week-long sojourn.

A royal journey is through some of thebest places in Maharashtra like Mumbai,Sindhudurg, Tarkarli, Goa, Kolhapur, Au-rangabad, Ellora, Ajanta and Nasik. The ob-jec�ve of running "The Deccan Odyssey"train is primarily to showcase the best oftourism assets of Maharashtra like pris�nebeauty of Konkan coast, the art, the culture,the heritage (including world heritage sitesof Ajanta -Ellora) of Maharashtra as well asMaharashtra's local arts, cra�s and cuisine.

The Maharashtra Tourism DevelopmentCorpora�on (MTDC) Ltd is running the trainin associa�on with Indian Railways and Min-istry of Tourism. A sheer delight, everythingin the train reflects the ways of Indian Roy-alty. The plush interiors, delicious cuisineand great sites to see make the journeymemorable. This luxurious train transportsits guests on a remarkable sojourn of a landshining in legends’ grandeur, serenebeaches, magnificent forts and palaces andexperiencing divine tales etched in colossalrocks.

Tourists from the United Kingdom, Singa-pore, Germany, France and Australia make abeeline for the odyssey. The MTDC is also

trying to promote the luxury product to In-dians. About four to five trips are plannedduring the year.

Day 1 Board the train in the evening at the Chha-trapa� Shivaji Terminus, a world heritagesite. This is undoubtedly one of the famousGothic buildings, and an integral part ofMumbai's skyline

Day 2Next day the train chugs in to the �p of theKonkan coast, Kudal railway sta�on. A luxuryAC bus transfers you to Malvan Je�y fromthe sta�on. From here a boat rides to un-conquered Ocean Fort of Sindhudurg. Walkon two-mile long rampart walls and watchbreathtaking view of the vast open sea as itfires a volley of spray 30 � below.

From here head out to Tarkarli, a virginbeach at the confluence of river Karli andArabian Sea. A hard day at the sea is immi-nent, so rest at the Tarkarli Beach Resort's'Konkani' style co�ages is soothing. It’s aperfect place to enjoy the mouth-watering'Malvani' cuisine and then unwind. In the af-ternoon depart for Kudal railway sta�on,and on the way visit Dhamapur, a village sit-uated on the banks of the lake. Dinner isserved on board.

Day 3 Goa is an exo�c des�na�on frequented bytourists from all corners of the globe. An-cient churches and elegant mansions,splashed with colour of bougainvillea. You

The Deccan OdysseyA week-long sojourn on this royal travel will take you throughthe majestic state of Maharashtra, writes Seema PPherwani

TRAVELOGUE 46

47 TRAVELOGUE


can start the tripwith Old Goa.Take a walk amidthe ruins of St Au-gus�ne Church,once largest cathe-dral in Goa. Basilicaof Bom Jesus, a16th CenturyChurch, where themortal remains of St.Francis Xavier is en-shrined. Se Cathedraland the Church of StFrancis of Assissi thatbegan as a mosque,but now is an archaeo-logical museum forGoan an�ques. Take awalk through Fontan-has, the La�n quartersat Panjim, and a shortwalk though Panjim, thecapital of Goa. One cando some shopping to carry memories of thisbeau�ful state. It's �me for a�ernoon finger-licking Goan delicacies onboard. In the evening,proceed to beach-front hotel for cultural pro-gram me and dinner.

Day 4 In the morning alight at Vasco sta�on and boardthe bus to visit Mangeshi, a Hindu temple ofLord Shiva revealing typical architecture of oldtemples and the Safa Masjid. It is a prominent Is-lamic shrine in Ponda, commonly regarded thecitadel of Hindu pilgrimages in Goa, and wasbuilt in 1560 by Ibrahim Adil Shah, the Sultan ofBijapur. From here proceed to one of the biggestand finest spice farms in the Country a "SahakariSpice Farm" at Ponda village. Situated amongthe lush green surroundings of Ponda, it is very

popular among in-terna�onaltourists. Visitorsare tradi�onallywelcomed at theentrance. A�erbrief halt in therestaurant forwelcome drinkand snacks, aguided tour ofthe farm starts.This organicspice farm hasvariety of

herbal andmedicinaltrees. A typicalGoan lunch isserved here.Next stop: Oneof the finest her-itage houses of16th centuryknown as"Menezes Bra-ganza House". It isone of the last re-maining structuresthat date back tothe pre-Portugueseera in Goa.

The architectureand the interiors ofthe house make you

feel as if you are going back in history. It is one ofthe oldest heritage houses of Goa. This has beenthe tradi�onal family home of the Braganzas formany than four centuries. The lady of the house,Mrs Braganza, an octogenarian, s�ll lives in thehouse and takes the visitors to a tour of thehouse herself. Then proceed to Madgaon railwaysta�on to board the train for Kolhapur. Enjoy thedinner onboard.

Day 5 You are in Kolhapur, a city with mythical past.The Hindu era lasted �ll 1347, followed by theMuslim rule which was from 1347-1700. The

magnificent temples ofKolhapur were built dur-ing the glorious periodsof the Satavahana kingsand the Shilaharas. TheMarathas controlledthis area from 1700 to1849. In 1849, theBri�sh took over andChhatrapa� Sahu Ma-haraj was declared asthe ruler of Kolhapur.First stop is at NewPalace, this architec-tural marvel knownas the Chhatrapa�Shahu Museum.The museumhouses rare paint-ings and ar�factsused by the royalfamily. Royalweapons and atableau depict-ing court life ofthe last century

create an aristocra�c ambience.

The itinerary is as follows: Day 1 - MumbaiDay 2: Sindhudurg Nagri-Sind-hudurg Fort-Tarkarl Beach-Dhama-pur villageDay 3: (Goa) Visit to St. AugustineChurch, Basilica of Bom JesusChurch, Se Cathedral Church, StFrancis of Assissi, a Museum ofGoan antiques and visit to Fontan-has the Latin Quarters at Panjim.Day 4: (Vasco, Goa) Visit toMangeshi, a Hindu Temple; theSafa Masjid a prominent IslamicShrine, Sahakari Spice Farm,Menezes Braganza House at Chan-dor village.Day 5: Kolhapur- New Palace, Mu-seum, Bhavani Mandap Maha-laxmi Temple, Shalini Palace.Day 6: Aurangabad, Daulatabad,Ellora Caves, Bibi-ka-MaqbaraDay 7: Ajanta Caves /Nashik

Kolhapur New Palace

Safa Masjid

Sahakari Spice Farm

TRAVELOGUE 48

Next is Bhawani Mandap (The Town Hall). An-�ques found during the excava�ons at Brahma-giri, old sculptures, filigree work in sandalwood and ivory, old coins and pain�ngs of mas-ter ar�sts of the region are all displayed here.Move on to see an exquisitely carved Maha-laxmi Temple,here you learn how the demonKolhasura was destroyed by Goddess Maha-laxmi and then proceed to Shalini Palace toenjoy tradi�onal Mar�al Art locally known as“Mardani Khel” and cultural programme. Col-lect some great mementos from an array ofhandicra� stalls. At noon board the train at Kol-hapur sta�on. Enjoy the lunch and leisure �meonboard as the train moves on for next des�-na�on. Dinner is also onboard.

Day 6 Travelling along the rolling hills and picturesqueruins of the past, you travel way back in �me toAurangabad. Founded by Aurangzeb, Au-rangabad's heritageis rich and di-versified.

A�erbreakfast inthe train, a lux-ury coach takesyou to the ma-jes�c fortress ofDaulatabad.Visit world fa-mous ElloraCaves. ThisWorld HeritageSite's 34 brilliantlycarved rock-cuttemples representBuddhist, Jain andHindu faiths. Thecaves include 'viha-ras' (monasteries)and 'chaityas'(chapels) where themonks worshipped.The Hindu caves lie inthe centre of thegroup. The most fa-mous of them being the Kailasanatha Temple(8th century). It is the most magnificent of allthe rock-cut structures at Ellora. Completelyopen to the elements, it is the only buildingthat was begun from the top. The Jain caves,less grand in comparison to the others, arerichly carved with lotus, elephant, lions and'�rthankaras' of Lord Mahavira. They offer anaura of peace and simplicity. Come back to Au-rangabad for lunch at the 5 star hotel. Post-lunch, visit Bibi-ka-Maqbara, a replica of TajMaha and symptoma�c of the grand Mughularchitecture. Enjoy shopping for Paithani, Him-roo, Bidriwork from showrooms for a perfectmemorabilia.

Day 7 Seventh day bringsyou to Jalgaon rail-way sta�on. A�er aroyal breakfast, de-part for T-Junc�onin a luxury AC bus.Board the eco-friendly bus to sur-round yourself bydrama�c views ofthe Waghora Val-ley, the hideoutof the

Ajanta Caves.Older than theEllora caves,these caves oncelost to the world,were discoveredby accident in1819, by a partyof Bri�sh officerson a hun�ng expe-di�on.

At Ajanta, 'Bod-hisa�va Padma-pani', 'Boddhisa�vaAvalokitesvara'. 'TheBirth of the Buddha'and 'The Thousand

Buddhas' is among the finest murals and sculp-tures ever found. The pain�ngs on the ceiling,par�cularly the elephant sca�ering the lotus,charging bull, the black princess and the row ofdancers with musicians mesmerize touristsfrom all over the world.

A�er a quick shopping break for ar�factsand souvenirs, head back to o Jalgaon railwaysta�on. Mouthwatering lunch awaits onboardas you reach Nashik, from where travel by ACbus to Panchava� Ghat, a holy land of KumbhMela, a pilgrim fair held once in every 12 years.

Visit Kala Ram Templebuilt in 1794 and feelblessed.

Finally, when youhead back to theNashik, it's �me forthe Deccan Odysseyto get you back toMumbai, the busi-ness capital of India.Enjoy the breakfaston board as the sunrises over the com-mercial capital ofIndia. Alight at theChhatrapa� ShivajiTerminus in the-morning enrichedwith the richlegacy of thisland.

Sahakari Spice Farm

St. Augustine'sRoman Catholic

Church

Shalini Palace


MUSIC 50


Kavita, Dr L Subramaniam, Ambi and BinduPhoto: Dr L Subramaniam

51 MUSIC


One of the most famous families of Indian clas-sical music – Dr L Subramaniam, hislovely wifeKavita and their very cool son Ambi share theirthoughts on the concert that blew peopleaway with the intensity of the music. Dr Subra-maniamsaid, “It was a very memorable experi-ence for me. I was asked by one of thegreatest Indian composers Maestro Pyarelal,who has composed thousands of hit songs inBollywood, to be featured as a soloist in hiscomposi�on. It was a wonderful experienceworking with him and the rest of the AbsoluteEnsemble, conducted by Maestro Jarvi. Hegave me space for me to be crea�ve and im-provise, through which I was able to expressmyself. ”

Being a much sought a�er musician withseveral collabora�ons to his credit as well aswri�ng his own orchestral composi�onsfor or-chestras such as the NY Philharmonic and Lon-don Philharmonic, Dr Subramaniam has hadthe privilege of performing with great musi-cians like Lord Yehudi and Stephane Grapelli,who have performed his composi�ons, but thisperformance , he says, was “special becausethis is the first �me that I have performed themusic of another composer, and I am ex-tremely happy to work with Pyarelalji.”

Ambi, ( who plays the violin in the footstepsof his father) talked about his part in the en-semble”Firstly I would like to men�on that itwas a tremendous honour performing withone of the greatest composers India has pro-duced, Maestro Pyarelalji. Working with theAbsolute ensemble, conducted by Maestro

Jarvi, was both a lot of fun and a lot of hardwork! The ensemble had many wonderful mu-sicians and wonderful people. I would say thebest part of working with them was the dedi-ca�on and hard work each one of themshowed in the 2 days we had for rehearsals.Working with Pyarelalji and performing forthese kinds of special concerts help me growas a musician.”

For Kavita Krishnamurthy, seasoned musi-cian and award winning Bollywood playbacksinger, it was a very different and exci�ng expe-rience, she said. “ It was really nice to performwith those musicians. They were a mix of theBollywood musicians who performed on theactual song recordings (like Mr. India in 1986)and younger musicians from western world. Itgoes to show that music is understood acrosscountries and genera�ons, and there is amee�ng point for people of different cul-tures.”

All three of them agreed that the “showstopper” piece of the concert, Swar Gunjan, aspecial composi�on by Pyarelal ji, was themost magical moment of that night. Dr L Sub-ramaniam describing the composi�on in hisown words said, “ As a composi�on, SwarGunjan had a very characteris�c Indian ele-ment blended with Western wri�ng andglobal tonali�es, with a sec�on of trade-offsbetween instruments. It also had a beau�fulchroma�c sec�on that led to the finale, whichwas a recapitula�on of the main mo�ve. Forme, the special moment undoubtedly was theaudience response to the piece.” Ambi, get-

�ng emo�onal about the piece, added, “At theend of the piece Swar Gunjan, Pyarelalji im-mediately came up on stage and hugged myfather. I went to touch his feet, and he imme-diately gave me a big smile, hugged me andthanked me for performing his piece. Suchsimplicity from such a legend was incrediblymoving and inspiring.” Krishnamurthy tookpride in the fact that her husband was part ofsuch an incredible composi�on.

Talking about Dubai as a stage for worldmusic and for such inspiring performances,Ambi, for whom this was a debut public per-formancesaid, “Dubai is such a wonderfulplace. It's always challenging and inspiring toperform in a place that has experienced thebest cultural experiences the world has tooffer. In a way, Dubai audiences are very opento innova�ons and new kinds of music.” Krish-namurthy, who recalled first performing inDubai in 1979 with the legendary Manna Deysaid that Dubai’s audiences are known fortheir ability to enjoy different kinds of musicand are always enthusias�c and welcoming!Dr Subramaniam added that playing in Dubaiwas really the equivalent of playing for thewhole world as with its several hundred na-�onali�es it is truly a cosmopolitan blend ofthe east and west.“Added to that the ambi-ence was very picturesque; it was an open-airtheatre with beau�ful lit-up water fountains.There was also a very apprecia�ve audience.It's always a pleasure to perform in such envi-ronments as you are inspired to give your bestperformance”.

Absolute India has been an absolute and unqualified success. Never before haveDubai’s music lovers been treated to such a rare ensemble music concert, withseveral big international names coming together on one platform to provide a

truly uplifting experience. Maestro Pyarelal, Maestro Kristjan Jarvi, the stalwart ofCarnatic music Dr L Subramaniam, the young upcoming violinist Ambi, the

achingly beautiful voice of Kavita Krishnamurthy and the joi de vivre ofSonu Nigam and a host of very talented musicians came together as oneensemble to create a magical night of unique soundscapes that will be

etched in people’s memories for many years.NGI’s Neetha Raman caught up with the star performers of the

ensemble after the concert and here is the buzz

THECLASSICAL ANDTHECONTEMPORARY

MUSIC 52Dr L Subramaniam shares his views onIndian classical music with NGI

Is there a growing interest worldwidefor Indian classical music?There is definitely an expanding fan-base for Indian classical music. In thelast year, I've performed tradi�onal Car-na�c music in the USA, Canada, Algeria,Nigeria, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Singaporeand Australia. I've had the pleasure ofperforming at the United Na�ons, NewYork, the Kennedy Centre in New York,the Na�onal Centre for Performing Artsin China and for a 35,000 strong audi-ence in Stanley Park, Vancouver. Thereis a strong interest in Indian classicalmusic in every part of the world. Peopleare par�cularly interested in the violin,ini�ally a Western instrument adaptedto Indian classical music, now an inte-gral part of every form of music in theworld.

Most classical music is considered "elit-ist". How do you engage today's youthwith Indian classical music? Youthtoday have short a�en�on spans, aremore into contemporary music, andare increasingly pre-occupied withtechno-gizmos. Where does classicalmusic find its place in today's younggenera�on?Any music presented in the right waycan appeal to any audience. Music canbe appreciated on mul�ple levels, likemelodic, harmonic, technical, intellec-tual, emo�onal, rhythmic and spiritualin various combina�ons. When a lis-tener has an open mind, the music willdefinitely have its impact. Classicalmusic has survived all these years inspite of changing trends and ideas- Istrongly believe that it will always haveit's place and a devoted audience. Therewill always be an audience for classicalmusic presented in theright way.

Kavita Krishnamurthy Subramaniam talks abouther collabora�ons, the vision for her music schoolin Bangalore, India and what captures audienceinterest:

In recent years, you have moved away from Bol-lywood and its music to exploring other areasand pushing boundaries. Please share some ofthese experiences for our readers.I feel blessed to have been able to go wherevermy music has taken me. It has been very exci�ngto come out of the comfort zone of being an es-tablished, recognised Bollywood singer and tryingmany different things. I have been able to collab-orate with Jazz legends like Al Jarreau, StanleyClarke and George Duke, I have been able to be apart of Global Fusion concerts with flamenco gui-tarists and African kora players and I have beenable to perform as a soloist with western orches-tras. Being the first Bollywood singer to do thesethings has been an honour for me. I feel it's veryimportant to keep exploring and innova�ng andtrying new things. One should never stagnate.

What do you think will keep today's interna-�onal youth engaged in Indian classical music?Does it need a twist or a spin to it for younger, in-terna�onal audiences or can it retain its purityand yet manage to capture their a�en�on?There will always be a specific niche audience for-classical music - people who want to learn it, peo-ple who want to listen to it. I find it hearteningwhen children come up to my son Ambi at con-certs and say that they are inspired by him andwant to learn classical music. We have many chil-dren at our school who want to learn classicalmusic. Having said that, I think fusion and globalfusion are very a�rac�ve to global audiences. Itshowcases the strong roots in classical musicwhile s�ll being able to connect with any lis-tener.

Please tell us aboutyour music schoolin Bangalore.We started the school in 2007, and ithas been doing really well. My daugh-ter Bindu (a singer/songwriter/lawyer)is the dean, and runs the school. In ad-di�on to teaching Indian and west-ern classical music, we are crea�nga centre for global fusion music. Wewant youngsters to know thatthey can go a step further andtake their music directly to aninterna�onal pla�orm. Wehave big dreams for theSubrama-

niamAcademy of

Performing Arts,or SaPa as it is called.

The very talented Ambi, successor to therich heritage of three genera�ons of In-dian classical music, is candid with NGIabout his lineage and talks about whatworks for today’s youth:

Do you consider your illustrious lineagean advantage or a disadvantage as aperformer? How do you deal with com-parisons that would invariably arise es-pecially when you have chosen thesame instrument as your father?I would definitely say it's an advantage.I've been lucky enough to train underthe "God of Indian Violin" from a veryyoung age, and have been sharing thestage with him from the �me I was 13. Inmany ways, I have had a musical educa-�on that most people can only dream of.Considering that, I think it's fair that au-diences hold me to a different standard.

Being compared with him mo�vatesme to work harder and push myself totry and accomplish as much as I can. It'sincredible what he has done for Indianmusic and the violin, and I'm proud to beassociated with it in whatever way possi-ble.

As a young musician, what kind ofmusic do you think will engage today'syouth, anywhere in the world?I think younger audiences today allaround the world are extremely openand are constantly interested in experi-encingsomething new. As a violinist andcomposer, it's always important to keep

that in mind. Having said that, it'simportantas a musician to find yourown voice and express your-self.



Air dashing back to the United States a�ertaking several bows on stage for a magnifi-cent performance , Jarvi took �me off from hisbusy schedule to do an “e-interview” with NGIon his experience of conduc�ng the AbsoluteIndia show at Dubai.

Is this your first ever collabora�on with anIndian musician and having Indian ar�stsperform in the ensemble?I personally have worked closely with Indian-Bri�sh composer Ni�n Sawhney and the Lon-don Symphony Orchestra, and I also touredwith the same orchestra to India last year.This is the first �me that Absolute Ensemblehas worked with Indian musicians.

How different was this collabora�on from allthe others that you have done? What werethe highlights of the collabora�on?This was a really new experience for me. Ihad to be very pa�ent in many ways. Wai�ngfor the music to be chosen or arranged for myensemble. I had to have faith that it would allwork out ok in the end. And working with theMaestro (Pyarelal) was exhilara�ng for me.

The day of the concert was intense and Ihad to improvise a bit to be sure that wewould finish the concert on �me. We madesome changes in the program order on the

spot. This was demanding, and fresh and keptme on my toes!

One of the highlights was my visit to theMaestro Sharma's home in India. He is truly amaster composer and so talented but easy towork with. There is a lot of joy and his wife isvery quiet but sharp.

What would you say is the most dis�nc�vefeature of Indian music?Obviously the non-Western instruments. Thevariety of sounds achieved, one flute playercarried 100 different flutes with him, the per-cussion instruments are also new to Westernears.

Music has no boundaries, and cuts acrossage, race, gender and geography. However,do you think that music in its pure, classicalform can engage today's young audiences?Or do they need to hear it in a differentform?I think that the classical musicians and the musicneed to be adapted to younger audiences. Tasteschange and we have to be in touch with what isin their ears. In general, they seem to be themost open-minded genera�on. They are used tobeing exposed to a vast spectrum of styles, andthrough movies and other means they have a lotof experience with classical music.

Was this your first show in Dubai? What doyou think of Dubai, as a city, and your experi-ence of the audience you performed for?Dubai is amazing. Like Vegas maybe, but likenowhere else in the world. The audiences ar-rived late. That was a bit odd for me, butthey loved the show. That was great.

Describe the show stopper piece SwarGunjanMaestro Sharma really wanted to write anew piece that would blend our ensem-bles of eastern and western musicians. Heis a master and the work is so good. Wehad to work very hard to get it right. But Iknow it was his dream to make this piecework. And I think we just got started withthe first premiere in Dubai. The next timewe play this it will be even more exciting.

For you, what was the best part of theconcert?Just watching the bands play together. Myensemble with the musicians from India.It was so exciting for me as a conductor.Such an unusual setting and project.

I know we have a future with this proj-ect and will develop it further as we gainmore experience working together.

INTERVIEWWITH KRISTJAN JARVI

53 MUSIC

Photo: Kristjan Jarvi

CINEMA 54

Time has come to raise a toast to Indian celluloid that’s a cen-tury-old. It’s a moment of great national pride and glory for allcinema lovers. Significantly, completion of 10 decades of moviesis creating a buzz in the land of cineastes.

LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION!It was an era where working in cinema was a taboo, where a manwith vision and courage made it possible. Mumbai’s affluentcrowd had no idea of witnessing something ground-breaking.Minus sound everything was perfectly set on April 21, 1913, atOlympia theatre where Dadasaheb Phalke premieredthe first ever full-length film, Raja Harishchandra. Asilent movie based on the legend of King Harishchan-dra, enumerated in the Ramayana and Mahabharata, itwas released on May 3, 1913.

Indian film industry that Dadasaheb gave birth to in-advertently with his first film enters its centenary year,India is ready to pay an abiding tribute to the date heimmortalized with the first public screening of themaiden full-length Indian feature film. In a nation, wheremore than 1,000 films are made every year, in multiplelanguages, when we celebrate a century of filmmaking ex-cellence, how do we define Indian cinema?

Indian cinema encompasses regional films (Tamil, Telugu,Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Oriya, Bengali, Gujarati, Bho-jpuri, Punjabi etc) but the larger stake comprise of Hindi film in-dustry. Larger than life movie sets for candy floss romancessalted with lavish song-dance sequences shot in exo�c locales,spunky underworld flicks, bone-�ckling comedies, well-cra�ed off-beat cinemas, jaw-dropping ac�on capers to social melodramas and��lla�ng stories -- the Indian movies have just about touched everygenre of entertainment.

Everything is so fascina�ng here, from top grosser blockbustersto mul�plex movies tailor-made for overseas Indians, to colourfulcrossover films with NRI connect high on emo�onal content to tugat the heartstrings of homesick Indian diaspora, the pla�er is dy-namic and diverse.

FRATERNITY ACTIONHere's an ode to every individual who strives to make that virtualspace seem to be a part of our daily lives. A documentary is beingmade as a tribute to celebra�ng the 100 years of cinema, four dis-�nguished filmmakers Karan Johar, Anurag Kashyap, Zoya Akhtarand Dibakar Banerjee will be making 20-minute short films eachbased on Bollywood. The four documentaries are being madeunder the banner of Flying Turtle Films which will give varied tasteunder one maincourse and will be later clubbed and released as an80-minute documentary film, �tled 'Bombay Talkies'.

According to a leading film website, Zoya's documentary hasplanned is �tled Sheila Ki Jawaani and narrates the story of ayoung boy and his obsession with the song Sheila Ki Jawaani. The

film will unfold the tales of all the popular item numbers

and howpeppy

andraunchy

songshave

becomeover the

century. Zoya'sfilm features Kat-

rina Kaif and also anin-depth interview with

Ranveer Singh. WhileAnurag's film un�tled

yet, but it is con-firmed that

Priyanka Choprawill be a partof it. Karan

Johar andDibakar haven't started work on their

projects yet.

GOVERNMENT ACTIONFrom this year onwards, the Na�onal Film Awards will be

given away on May 3 every year. At the 59th Na�onal FilmAwards ceremony in New Delhi, Ambika Soni, minister for Informa-�on and Broadcas�ng, said, "There are a few interes�ng projectsto commemorate the centenary of Indian cinema. We are planningto open a museum of Indian cinema. The museum will be in Mum-bai, in the heritage building of Gulshan Mahal. It will be ready be-fore May 2013."

The museum will showcase the history of the industry andits global impact. It will be a storehouse of information, arti-facts, equipments like cameras, editing and recording ma-chines, projectors, costumes, photographs and other material.The properties, dresses, sets, tapes, vintage equipment,posters, copies of important films, prints, promotionalleaflets, developing equipment books, biographies, soundtracks, trailers, transparencies, cinema magazines and statis-tics covering film distribution are also expected to be dis-played in a chronological manner.

‘CLIMAX’ ACTIONLet the festivities begin. The journey from silent films to con-temporary cinema has been amazing and that becomes a partof our heritage. From producers to directors, from exhibitorsto distributors, from actors to villains, from musicians to tech-nicians all are basking in glory of magical century of Bolly-wood. The Indian film industry will celebrate 100 years of itsexistence in 2013. The Indian cinema story continues… The In-dian film industry continues unabated.

Silver Screen@ 100


Mritunjay KKumar digs out the hundredyear old legacy of a hindi feature film and salutes Indian cinema by taking you through the memory lane

55 CINEMA


To commemorate this momentous occasion, it wasnecessary to find out a few minutiae of making ofthe first Indian feature filmThe film revolves around the noble and righteous king, Harishchandra, who first sacrifices hiskingdom, followed by his wife and eventually his children to honour his promise to the sageVishwamitra. Though, in the end, pleased by his high morals, the Gods are pleased and re-store his former glory, and further bestow him with divine blessings. The film had an all-malecast because no woman was available to play any of the female leads. The reel was 3,700 feet long and had a runtime of 40 minutes.Phalke was greatly influenced by the style of painter Raja Ravi Verma in the making of this film. It was first shown in public on May 3,1913 at Mumbai's Coronation Cinema, Narayan Choyal, Girgaon. Due to the film's massive success, Phalke had to make more printsfor rural areas as well. He was established as a producer and later came to be known as 'The father of Indian cinema.'His wife,Saraswati Phalke, was also actively involved behind the scenes. She single-handedly managed food for the cast and crew, which com-prised over 500 people and also in several production works. The original film was in four reels. The National Film Archive of Indiahas only the first and last reels, though some film historians believe they belong to a 1917 remake of the film, by the same name.

FIRST TALKIE FILMIndian film industry has waited for almost 18 years to get the firstsound film Alam Ara. It was directed by Ardeshir Irani, Alam Ara debuted at the Majestic Cinema in Mumbai (then Bombay) on 14 March1931. The first Indian talkie was so popular that "police aid had to besummoned to control the crowds." The movie also set the trend for Friday release in Indian film industry.

FIRST COLOUR FILMKisan Kanya was a 1937 Hindi feature film which was directed by MotiB. Gidvani and produced by Ardeshir Irani of Imperial Pictures wasIndia's first indigenously made colour film. However, V. Shantaram hadearlier produced a Marathi film Sairandhri (1933) which had scenes incolor. However, the film was processed and printed in Germany; KisanKanya was, therefore, India's first indigenously made color film.

GLOBAL RECOGNITION TO INDIAN CINEMAIt was Satyjeet Ray’s Pather Panchali (1955), who gave Indian Cinema to global recognition. Pather Panchali won ‘Best Human Document’ atthe 1956 Cannes Film Festival, establishing Satyajit Ray as a major international filmmaker. Pather Panchali is today considered one of the greatest films ever made and won over 17 awards.

FIRST 3D FILMChhota Chetan is a 1998 Hindi movie directed by Jijo Punnoose. It wasdubbed from the 1984 Malayalam movie, My Dear Kuttichathan —which was India's first 3-D film Chota Chetan was the first feature filmto introduce DTS for a stereoscopic 3D feature film. The film was madeunder the banner of Navodaya Films.The film also won the President'sGold Medal.

FIRST SCIENCE FICTION FILMKaadu (The Jungle), a Tamil-American co-production was the first Science fiction film in India and in Tamil Nadu. Then Mr India (1987)came and became first science fiction film of Hindi film Industry. Thismovie ranks amongst the Top 25 ‘Must See Bollywood Films’ in Indiatimes Movies. Mr. India brought the idea of science fiction to thegeneral people in India followed by Koi Mil Gaya and others.

Energy, Infrastructure and ProjectsThe Trilegal Energy, Infrastructure and Projects Bulletin is a periodic up-date on recent developments in energy, infrastructure and projects lawand policy in India.

The Public Procurement Bill, 2012The Ministry of Finance has issued a Draft Public Procurement Bill,2012 (Bill) to regulate all major procurements by the Government ofIndia (GoI) by ensuring transparency, fair and equitable treatment ofbidders and enhancing efficiency and in the procurement process. Theterm 'procurement' under the Bill means the acquisition of works,goods or services, including award of public private partnership, by aprocuring entity (i.e. any department/public sector enterprise of theGoI, company with 51% GoI shareholding, statutory bodies, etc.).

The Bill proposes to set up a Portal to serve as a one-stop gateway to allrequisite information on procurement to the stakeholders. Amongother things, the Portal is required to provide information on pre-quali-fication documents, bidder registration documents, list of bidders, de-tails of successful bidders, etc.

The various procurement methods that a procuring entity can opt forunder the Bill are: (i) open competitive bidding; (ii) restrictive bidding;(iii) two-stage bidding; (iv) single source procurement; (v) electronic re-verse auctions; (vi) request for quotations; (vii) spot purchase; or (viii)any other method notified by the GoI. The open competitive bidding isto be the most preferred method of procurement and can also be fol-lowed in case of two-stage bidding and electronic reverse auctions. Re-stricted bidding may be opted when the subject matter of procurementcan be supplied by a limited number of bidders or if the same is timeand cost effective. Single source procurement may be opted whenthere is just a single supplier or there is an urgent need for the subjectmatter and engaging other methods would be impractical. A procuringentity may solicit bids by electronic reverse auction when there is acompetitive market of bidders. Request for quotation and spot pur-chase may be adopted only for procurement below a certain value forreadily available commercial-off-the-shelf goods. The Bill does notallow for price negotiation by a procuring entity with a bidder.

The procuring entity must evaluate bids on the basis of price, cost ofoperating, professional and technical competence of the bidder. A bid isto be considered as the successful bid if price being the only criteria –the lowest bid price; if price and other award criteria – the most advan-tageous bid ascertained on the basis of criteria and procedures for eval-uating bid; when there are no financial criteria – the mostadvantageous bid based on non-financial criteria.

The Bill also provides for a grievance redressal mechanism for bidders(i.e.an independent procurement redressal committee chaired by a re-tired High Court judge to review grievances) and penalizes any gratifica-tion received by public servants during procurement as well as anyillegality committed by any company.

The Cabinet has recently given the go-ahead for the Bill which is ex-pected to be passed in the current session of Parliament.

Recent Developments

Review of Electricity RegulatorsThe Ministry of Power (MoP) has set up a panel to look into proposalsand examine the performance of the Central Electricity Regulatory

Commission (CERC) and State Regulatory Commissions. The mandate ofthe panel is to examine and make recommendations on proposedamendments to the Electricity Act, 2003. Under the present law, theelectricity regulator is only accountable to the legislature. According tothe MoP proposal, the performance of the CERC should be reviewed bya six member Committee chaired by a Planning Commission Member(Energy).

Proposal for private players for CIL miningThe Ministry of Coal, according to media reports is working on a modelagreement on mining, development and operations in which the pri-vate sector entity would undertake mining operations, while the own-ership and sale of coal would lie with Coal India Limited (CIL). Presently,the Government is facing pressure to meet the growing demand forcoal and would like to develop coal mining operations through a publicprivate partnership (PPP) model to help it meet higher coal demandsthrough a transparent framework. The Government has already issueda Presidential directive to CIL to enter into fuel supply pacts with powerproducers for a minimum assured supply.

New royalty rates for coal and ligniteThe Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs recently approved newroyalty rates for coal and lignite. Under the new regime the royaltyrates on coal are 14% and that on lignite are 6%. The new regime ofroyalty rates will not apply to the state of West Bengal unless the StateGovernment withdraws cesses. The revision in rates is expected to pro-vide states with a boost in income earned by mining, production andsales of coal and lignite.

National Electricity FundThe Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved setting up aNational Electricity Fund (Interest Subsidy Scheme) to provide interestsubsidy to both public and private State power utilities to improve thedistribution network. Under the Scheme interest subsidy is to be pro-vided on loans taken by private and public utilities in the distributionsector for non-Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana and the non-Restructured Accelerated Power Development and Reforms Program.The Rural Electrification Corporation is the nodal agency which will im-plement the program under the guidance of a Steering Committee con-stituted for the Scheme.

New renewable energy policy for West BengalThe West Bengal State Government (State) has drafted a policy on re-newable energy that is awaiting approval by the Cabinet. The policy willhave guidelines for co-generation and power generation from differentrenewable sources. At present, renewable energy accounts for 2.5% ofthe total consumption in West Bengal. According to media reports, thenew renewable energy policy is expected to boost the State’s positionas a renewable energy hub.

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The contents of this alert are intended for informational purposes onlyand are not in the nature of a legal opinion. Readers are encouraged toseek legal counsel prior to acting upon any of the information providedherein. The text of this alert is the copyright of Trilegal and may not becirculated, reproduced or otherwise used without the prior permissionof its originator. Allen & Overy owns the copyright in the template de-sign and typographical arrangement.


NGI Knowledge Exchange RNI TC No. MAH ENG 12553/13/1/2010- TC Decl. No. SDM/Pune/SR/138/2010

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