Asian Lite News Archive

Category: Lite Blogs

  • Bhangra for Leicester Tigers

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    Bhangra Dancers to entertain the crowd at Leicester Tigers vs. Northampton Saints Dance group from West Midlands ‘Gabhru Panjab De Bhangra Dancers’ (GPD) were invited to perform in front of a crowd of 24,000 at the Leicester Tigers vs. Northampton Saints game and launch the Leicester Tigers Foundation’s new ‘Nach Nach Tigers’ program  at Welford Road stadium. GPD…

  • Husain paintings on display in London

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    Works of India’s ‘Barefoot Picasso’ will be displayed at Grosvenor Vadehra in London   Grosvenor Vadehra in London to showcase M. F. Husain, Paintings and Drawings: Works from a Private Collection. The exhibition opens with a private reception on Friday May 22ndand runs until Tuesday June 9th. There is also another late night event at the Gallery on Friday 5th…

  • India’s Smart Cities must be safe,habitable and smart

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    By Sanjiv Kataria Each time there is a mention of Smart Cities in India, I get concerned about the safety of women because there is a surfeit of news stemming from the vulnerability of women in our cities. A few incidents that shook India recently, include: * A police officer attacks an allegedly errant scooter-riding…

  • ARUNA SHANBAUG: AND WILL TOMORROW COME

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    BY BIKRAM VOHRA Have you heard of Aruna Shanbaug? Probably not. But you should… for she epitomizes the visceral fear that the devil wins some battles. To even begin to understand her plight you have to first get over your own sense of helplessness and sheer horror. In 1973 she was a nurse in Mumbai’s…

  • HCL launches TalentCare

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    HCL has launched HCL Talent-Care to bridge the gap between the available and required talent pool in verticals like information technology, banking, insurance and healthcare. HCL is also banking on the acquisition route to fill future gaps in its content, technology solutions and staffing expertise. “We will be open to acquisitions in the staffing space…

  • India to create EU-model virtual university

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    In collaboration with King’s College London and the University of Bologna, Italy, four Indian unis will create EQUAL – a ‘virtual university’ Four Indian varsities will launch pilot open online courses by the beginning of next year to spearhead a major ‘virtual university’ concept funded by the European Union, officials said here. Called Project EQUAL (Enhancing…

  • GALLERY: Rains Hit Bengaluru

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    Bengaluru, the capital city of Karnataka, welcomes the Monsoon rains. Even though the rains hamper the normal routine, Kannadigas  dare the rains to continue life as usual

  • Splashing colours in Kashmir

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    Splash of colour, culture brightens Srinagar’s walls…writes Sheikh Qayoom & Waseem Shah   Inspired by internationally-known Kashmiri artist Masood Hussain, a group of students is painting murals on the walls of Srinagar to bring alive the region’s culture and splash colours on the local environment. “Hussain is our friend, philosopher and guide in this small effort,” Sofi…

  • How to conquer the sugar cravings?

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    Excessive sugar cravings are a sign that your body is deficient in trace minerals like zinc, magnesium, chromium and vanadium that are involved in glucose metabolism. Increase the intake of yoghurt, chickpeas, almonds, oatmeal, asparagus, cheese, brewer’s yeast, whole grains, mushrooms, soy beans, spinach, oat bran and brown rice to address the root cause of…

  • Moo-ving series of cow-on-the-run tales

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     Everyone is health-aware these days. Last weekend, a colleague lifted his T-shirt to show off his six-pack abs, or abdomen muscles. I told him that I only had one ab but it was a biggie…writes Nury Vittachi in his The Funny Side column for Asian Lite, UK’s  best newspaper for British Asians A rural friend was worried…

  • Modi vs Manmohan

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    Modi’s foreign trips (53 days) are not very different from his predecessor Dr Manmohan Singh, who spent 47 of 365 days in 12 countries during the first year of the second term of the United Progressive Alliance, or UPA-II (and 30 days during UPA-I) Prime Minister Narendra Modi is executing his “fast-track diplomacy” -as his…

  • Inspector Chen and his cases

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    Vikas Datta follow up the Chinese Puzzles -Qiu Xiaolong’s Inspector Chen and his cases “When I am satisfied questions of state security are not involved, then you begin,” a secret police operative tells homicide investigator Arkady Renko in Martin Cruz Smith’s “Gorky Park”, stressing order, not justice – the basic objective of policing not only in authoritarian…

  • SPECIAL: Shia community in India

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    Centrality of Lucknow in world’s Shia culture…writes Saeed Naqvi  Last year, addressing a group of foreign policy analysts in New Delhi, the ambassador of Iran to India, Gholamreza Ansari, made an important admission. He admitted that Ayatullah Ruhollah Khomeini, leader of Iran’s Islamic Revolution, came from an important family of divines from Kuntoor, in the…

  • Can women take smart decisions?

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    Can women take smart decisions? Asks Amit Dasgupta  If you were asked to respond “Yes/No” to the above question, there is every likelihood that, apart from some good humoured jokes about women and decision making, your response would emphatically be in the affirmative. The uncomfortable fact is that you probably believe that women are incapable of…

  • Why the Communists still remain a force in India

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    By Amulya Ganguli  Seven years after the deed was done, the new Communist Party of India-Marxist general secretary, Sitaram Yechury, has confessed that his party made a mistake by withdrawing support from the Manmohan Singh government on the India-US nuclear deal in 2008. It was in that very year, however, that the prescient Nobel laureate,…

  • Modi yet to address any core issues: Govindacharya

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    By Brajendra Nath Singh    As Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government completes one year in office, he is under a strident attack from the opposition parties. But he has not been spared from within. Critical voices within his party and the sangh parivar have begun to raise their decibel level. One such critic is former Bharatiya…

  • SHAKEN WITH IGNORANCE

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    BY BIKRAM VOHRA Has anyone read anything scientific about how far seismographic knowledge has progressed and why it is given so low a priority seeing as how earthquakes could destroy the planet before the drones take off. Look. I am ready to admit it. My house is in Delhi and my sister lives on the…

  • ‘Love Hormone’ helps men shed some flab

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    Does oxytocin, better known as the ‘love hormone’, have an effect on our metabolism too? Yes, says a new study that establishes how it helps men ward off obesity. Oxytocin is released whenever we cuddle or kiss. Then, when we have sex and have an orgasm, even more oxytocin is released. The study found that…

  • How to conquer those sugar cravings

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    By Amar Chandel What can be almost as strong, if not even stronger than hunger pangs, is sugar craving. One goes almost berserk when it strikes and one is willing to throw all dietary discipline out of the window for the sake of those sweet treats. Take heart. There are a few simple little techniques…

  • Katrina Hits Cannes Shores

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    Bollywood star Katrina Kaif dons ravishing red for Cannes appearance It was red all the way when, for her second appearance on the Cannes International Film Festival red carpet, Indian actress Katrina Kaif chose a ravishing red Elie Saab gown matched with red lips. Highlighting her eyes in tones of taupe while lining them with a…

  • REVIEW: Al Pacino rocks in Danny Collins

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    Danny Collins’ – intense and emotionally charged…writes Troy Ribeiro for Asian Lite, UK’s best newspaper for British Asians  Film: “Danny Collins”; Cast: Al Pacino, Jennifer Garner, Annette Bening, Bobby Cannavale, Christopher Plummer, Josh Peck, Michael Caine, Melisa Benoist and Giselle Eisenberg; Director: Dan Fogelman; Rating: ***1/2 Released under the PVR Director’s Rare banner, writer Dan Fogelman’s maiden…

  • ISRAEL – Identity Crisis

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    By Alon Ben-Meir  Natanyahu’s new government is neither by nor for the people The political horse-trading in Israel seen over the past eight weeks, which went down to the wire to form a new government, was, in the main, a struggle over who would get what position, regardless of their qualifications and irrespective of what…

  • Indian TV shows now look fresh

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    By Sandeep Sharma Old characters become ‘older’, new characters add a fresh charm and a twist in the storyline refreshes viewers’ interest – the small screen’s time-tested ‘leap’ formula has returned with shows like “Comedy Nights With Kapil”, “Bharat Ka Veer Mahaputra – Maharana Pratap” and “Diya Aur Baati Hum”. Once popular with TV tsarina…

  • SAJID JAVID: FUTURE BRIGHT

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    Sajid Javid, the rising star of British politics, has humble origins. Son of a bus driver from now notorious Rochdale, Javid will tick all the boxes for a success story. He left a lucrative job in the finance sector to pursue a career in politics. Prime Minister David Cameron may be predicting the future of Javid,…

  • Tribal politics dogs Guyana

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    By Dr Gitanjali Persaud I do not live in Guyana anymore. Whatever happens in Guyana is irrelevant to the life I am currently leading. Yet, my heart fears for the people of Guyana and the choices they are faced with. Especially the people of Indian descent who are more vulnerable to being mislead. I was…

  • ‘Biopic on braveheart Neerja Bhanot well researched’

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    By Jaideep Sarin   She was just 22 when she sacrificed her life to save a group of American children aboard a Pan Am flight that had been hijacked on the ground at Karachi. Now, the family of Chandigarh girl Neerja Bhanot, the seniormost cabin crew member on the flight and who is being immortalised in…

  • Indian talent sweeps global TV

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    By Sugandha Rawal  The overseas small screen is calling for Bollywood talent. From Priyanka Chopra, Nimrat Kaur and Tina Desai to veterans like Anupam Kher and Shabana Azmi – Indian actors are landing plum roles in international TV shows. And they’re truly loving it. After creating waves globally with her singing talent, former Miss World…

  • LOOKING FOR A JOB?

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    BY BIKRAM VOHRA Sometimes I get the feeling that job ads are more soaked with human emotions than the news columns. There is prejudice for one, heaps of it. If you are over 35 you need not apply. What is this fascination with the figure 35? As if at 36 a person crumples like soggy…

  • Greenpeace on the chopping block in India

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    By Sajai Jose   As Greenpeace India struggles to stay afloat, the real reason why the government wants to shut down the global environmental NGO hasn’t got much attention: Coal, the single biggest source of primary energy in India, is at the heart of the Narendra Modi government’s ambitious plans to ramp up industrial production in the country. A…

  • Turning Chinese conflict into compromise

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    By Tarun Vijay Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s China visit has come at a time when his government is completing his first year in power and global strategic equations are fast rearranging. At a time when India’s economy is gaining strength and global economists are hailing Modi’s one year in power as the best India has…

  • ‘Indian diaspora should move beyond culture’

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    By Paras Ramoutar  The Indian diaspora must move beyond culture, heritage and traditions into present day areas of sustainable development, according to a well-known academic here. Clement Sankat, principal of the St. Augustine Campus, University of the West Indies, said at the opening ceremony of the International Indian Diaspora Conference at the university on Tuesday…

  • Gav Sadhra, Shreya unveil Judai

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    RISING STAR GAV SADHRA TEAMS UP WITH BOLLYWOOD SINGING SENSATION SHREYA GHOSHAL! May 14th see’s the release date of JUDAI, The new single by UK newcomer Gav Sadhra which features the Bollywood singing sensation Shreya Ghoshal, it’s a tune that will be buzzing around your head for a long while! The song has been produced by one of…

  • Tories to steal Labour agenda

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    Cameron unveils plans for a parliament of “blue-collar Conservatism”…writes Kaliph Anaz for Asian Lite, UK’s No 1 newspaper for British Asians Prime Minister David Cameron told the first all-Tory cabinet meeting for 18 years that they must focus on “bread and butter” ways of improving people’s lives. The Conservatives won a 12-seat majority in the…

  • Hanged activist indicts MQM chief

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    Saulat Ali Khan, alias Saulat Mirza, admitted to carrying out several political assassinations of rival party leaders and government officials as well as attacks on security forces on orders from the MQM leadership, in particular London-based party chief Altaf Hussain   Pakistan’s most famous death-row inmate was executed on Tuesday in the high-security Machh jail…

  • Missing Bangla leader surfaces in Meghalaya

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    Missing Bangladesh ex-minister Salahuddin Ahmed was spotted in Meghalaya  Salahuddin Ahmed, a former Bangladesh minister and joint secretary general and spokesman of the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), who went missing over two months ago in Dhaka, has now been found in Shillong, capital of the northeastern state of Meghalaya. Ahmed, who identified himself as…

  • Earthquakes and their impact

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    By Ramesh Singh A big earthquake in Assam and in the Himalayan region was expected ever since I was a geophysics student at Banaras Hindu University during 1974-1976. At that time, funding agencies spent money for routine observations of various parameters in the wake of a major earthquake. In the past, a few major earthquakes…

  • India shouldn’t give in to anti-GM dissent

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    By Vivian Fernandes  With the European Union expected to approve import of 17 more genetically-modified food products by the end of May, opponents in India like Greenpeace will have a weaker case to stall permission for commercial cultivation of GM crops. But they are unlikely to give up their resistance. Unless the courts come to…

  • Building the pillars of good governance

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    By Shrimoyee Bhattacharya and Sujaya Rathi  The second budget of the Narendra Modi government has been presented. The Smart Cities programme and 500 habitations under the National Urban Rejuvenation Mission (NURM) together have been allocated Rs. 6,000 crore (approximately $1 billion). This is more than one third of the total allocation under the Ministry of…

  • ‘Yoga life’s pleasant experience’

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    In another curtain-raiser event ahead to the first International Day of Yoga on June 21, Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev, an Indian mystic and humanitarian, stressed the relevance of yoga in today’s world saying it helps make life a pleasant experience. “While we may be the generation that enjoys most comforts and conveniences, we are not necessarily…

  • From boardroom to a farmland

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    Salim David hung up his corporate boots to be a farmer near Hyderabad in South India. He grows organic vegetables, roses, and livestock. He is sharing his experiments with Asian Lite readers Spending nights at a farm, one can hear the stillness, smell the freshness in the air and marvel at the clear skies. City…

  • What Ails Indian Healthcare?

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    Amit Kapoor exploring the strength and challenges of India’s healthcare system One of the biggest challenges India faces and will continue to face in the forthcoming decades is in the context of healthcare. It would include issues like health accessibility, infant mortality rates, the stunted growth of children because of ill health, maternal health, disease…

  • Journalism as literature

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    Vikas Datta looks into the writings of Ryszard Kapuscinski Journalism, or especially news reporting, is a rather ephemeral form of literary expression, concerned as it is with bare facts of a developing situation in a terse and concise style. But there are practitioners of the craft whose reportage is no less a work of literature…

  • WHO WAS NURULLAH MEHBOOB SHAIKH?

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    BY BIKRAM VOHRA Everyone is behaving as if Indian justice has been served unfairly for the first time. It has always been elitist. That is the core of an adversarial system. The better your lawyer the better your chances. OJ Simpson. Oscar Pistorius. Salman Khan. Justice is blind. Justice is selective and if there are…

  • Modi and Manmohan index

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      The economy rebounded; exports and imports declined, foreign-exchange reserves grew; coal production, electricity generation and petroleum consumption rose, non-performing assets (NPAs) in banking soared. There are great similarities between Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first year in office – which he completes on May 26 – and the corresponding first year of his predecessor, Manmohan…

  • Search for Rani Jhansi’s stolen insignia

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    By Saeed Naqvi  On March 10, 2014, President Pranab Mukherjee had promised a Citizens Group for 1857 that he would obtain from the government details on how India’s First War of Independence will be commemorated. A change of government may have delayed the inquiries Rashtrapati Bhavan intended to make. Meanwhile, another anniversary will have gone…

  • Twitter can find you a better job

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    Twitter can help more job-seekers than any other traditional platform if it incorporates a formal job board, say experts. The number of Twitter users has grown more rapidly than LinkedIn and Facebook in 2014, according to a study by the Pew Research Centre. It showed that Twitter has more job openings than other social media…

  • Recharged Rahul Fuels Hopes

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    Rahul’s resurgence signals willingness to take on mantle…writes  Trina Joshi for Asian lite, UK’s No 1 newspaper British Asians With a string of salvos fired at the Modi government since his return from a sabbatical, a combative Rahul Gandhi is being seen among his party leaders as a force behind “turning the tide” for a…

  • US Experts Restore Ray’s Apu Trilogy

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        Restoring Ray’s masterpiece that put Indian cinema on the world map “was challenging at every stage”, Peter Becker, president of the Criterion Collection and partner in Janus Films, a leading distributor of classic foreign films…told Arun Kumar Working frame by frame for over a thousand hours in a labour of love spread over…

  • RSS, Sage Narad & Positive journalism

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    India’s right-wing RSS is using the image of Sage Narad, India’s first journo, to promote ‘positive journalism’…writes  Mayabhushan Nagvenkar  Narad, an ancient Indian sage who appears prominently in the Ramayana and was known for disseminating relevant information, spreading gossip and carrying tales that often led to fights, has been projected wrongly and should be held…

  • Stolen George Cross returned to widow

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    “Now I will die in peace,” said octogenarian Brahmi Devi, widow of an Indian soldier, Naik Kirpa Ram, whose posthumously-awarded George Cross bravery medal was “stolen” 13-year-ago from Himachal Pradesh and has now been retrieved by the British authorities. The British High Commission in Delhi, which retrieved the medal from an auction house, will return…