Author Archives: A N N A

A Baby with any other name would smell as sweet.

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One of my most popular blog posts ever dealt with the…um…”unique” names that Malayalee parents bestow on their helpless offspring. Most bloggers get a large number of hits via Google searches for all sorts of random things; HERstory is visited daily by people who wish to marvel at the ad hoc list of contrived and tortured nomenclature I compiled during one ennui-laced jaunt through Friendster.

I think I might have to amend the list:

Tsunamis are associated with death and destruction. But that has not stopped a couple in Kerala’s Alappuzha district from naming their new-born baby girl after the killer waves.
Kutten and Priyanka of Valiyazheekal in the district, where several people have been killed by the disaster, named their child Tsunami following her miraculous escape from the killer waves.
Priyanka and her daughter were rescued by a relative.

I have no words.

Okay, that’s a lie. I have a few. I guess they can call her…”Tsu”? As a nickname?

Oh, it’s all so wrong…

Via Rediff.

:+:

Update!

Sepia Mutiny reader “JK” points us to an article where “Kutten”, Baby Tsunami’s father, states that he did nothing as foolish as naming his kid after the worst natural disaster in years. Apparently the kid is named “Nakshatra”. So Baby Nakshatra’s Daddy didn’t do it, got that? Yeah, me neither. 😉

Next time, just stick to liquor.

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Not_the_lion_king It’s not often that one hears of a government which is mandating an animal’s extinction; then again, India is and has always been a nation of exceptions. Her Central Zoo Authority (CZA) has decided that it is last call for the “cocktail lion”, a hybrid composed of Asian and African lion genes. All 300 of the mixed cats remaining in zoos and safari parks will be sterilised and allowed to die out, since Indian laws and traditions forbid killing them.

The authorities say the hybrid lions have weakened the blood pool of India’s lions and have turned out to be mangy, emaciated and suffering from mental and physical defects…Critics say that the breeding programmes across India were largely unsupervised over the years.
The end result has been a large increase in “cocktail” lions that have been interbred and are genetically weak. The hybrid animals bear characteristics of both species, but are low on immunity and prone to disease. Some are reported to be suffering from tuberculosis.

Zookeepers first experimented with “cocktails” by cross-breeding their Asiatic lions with African lions who were travelling the country in circuses. At places like Chhatbir Zoo in the Punjab, almost 100 of the cats were created during an era when no thought was given to genetics or preserving certain bloodlines. Zookeepers were focused on the short-term; they bred as many animals as possible, to improve exhibitions. Unfortunately, their careless efforts created the exact opposite result;

The (Chhatbir) zoo’s once healthy pride of lions is now no more than a motley collection of disease-prone animals barely able to stand up.
According to zookeepers, almost 45 lions have died over the past three years. “We lost 13 cubs in one go,” remembers wildlife warden Neeraj Gupta. Almost all the deaths occurred because the animals suffered from severe immune deficiency which slows down or prevents healing whenever the animals fall sick or are hurt.
…While the zookeepers do their utmost to treat the animals and keep them as comfortable as possible, there is little they can do for those born paralysed or for others whose open wounds refuse to heal.

. .

BBC NEWS: Feeble roar of the hybrid lions Continue reading →

Seeing this makes me NOT want to be your Warrior Princess…

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Raj_of_troy

The December 27, 2004 issue of In Touch magazine has a very special picture of our beloved, much-blogged-about-here, erstwhile-Apprentice candidate, Raj Bhakta. Page 53 of the fluffy publication features Raj sans bowtie…hell, sans PANTS in a tribute (?) of sorts to Brad Pitt’s Achilles character in the film “Troy”.

“It’s better than being Pee-Wee Herman,” says Raj of his attire, which he describes as “humbling”. Though he’s gained a reputation as a ladies’ man, Raj isn’t convinced that dressing like a Greed God will improve his chances with the opposite sex. “But,” he says, “the closer you’re associated with Brad Pitt, the better.”

Stick with the unique neckwear and natty red trousers, Raj, PLEASE…for the sake of my crush, I implore you… 😉

Sepia Mutiny: Raj, Raj and more Raj…

Rest in Peace, Mr. Rao.

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PV Narasimha Rao, who served as Prime Minister of India from 1991-1996 after the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, had a heart attack two weeks ago; He died today at age 83.

PV Narasimha Rao was the first Indian leader outside the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty to complete a full five-year term.
But his tenure was marred by the destruction of an ancient mosque in the city of Ayodhya by Hindu nationalists in 1992.
The demolition of the mosque led to widespread riots between Hindus and Muslims across India in which several thousand people were killed. Bitter religious divisions exist to this day.
Mr Rao also has the unwelcome distinction of being the first Indian prime minister to be convicted of corruption.

His conviction was later overturned. Rao is also remembered for his economic policies;

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who served as Mr Rao’s finance minister, said he would be remembered as the father of India’s economic reforms.
Mr Singh, an economist, was brought into politics by Mr Rao to tackle a balance of payments crisis.
They are credited with opening up the Indian economy, now one of the world’s fastest growing, after years of socialist controls.

BBC NEWS: Ex-Indian PM Narasimha Rao dies

CNN International: Former India PM Rao dead at 83

“Temptation” Island

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Thanks to “offensive” timing (and who knows why else), it’s a tragedy, not a reality show.

At least two people have been killed and 18 others injured in an explosion at a concert by an Indian Bollywood star in Colombo.
Police said a hand-grenade ripped through the front stands as Shahrukh Khan ended his performance on Saturday.

The grenade exploded in the audience’s VIP section, killing a woman and a child. Also injured? 18 show attendees, six of them critically. All of the affected were Sri Lankan.

The show, called Temptation 2004 and featuring a host of Indian film stars, was billed as Sri Lanka’s biggest musical event of the year, with 10,000 people reported to have attended.
Buddhist monks had planned a peaceful protest during the performance, but they called it off after receiving a written apology from Mr Khan about the bad timing of the concert.

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The sin of Skin

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Apparently, starring in XXX flicks in India can land you in a heap o’ trouble: Anara

Nov 4: A local beauty queen was on Thursday arrested and five others booked for being allegedly involved in flesh trade and production of pornographic CDs in Jammu, police said.
The city police registered an FIR against six persons, including Miss Jammu Anara Gupta and five others for offences under the cinematography, immoral trafficking and information technology acts, they said.

Like in America, notoriety can bring opportunity:

Former Miss Jammu Anara Gupta, currently at the centre of a pornography scam uncovered by the Jammu and Kashmir police, is being wooed by Bollywood producers to appear in their films.
Anara, who was crowned Miss Jammu in 2001, had dreams about making it big in the Hindi film industry. But the 18-year-old’s world came crashing down after police arrested her for appearing in pornographic films that she says she was forced into doing…
State Times, one of Jammu’s leading newspapers, carried a front-page story saying Anara was being flooded with requests to appear in films.

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Star 98.7, Home of comedic crap

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SM reader Janani rightly calls out some jerk who works at Star 98.7 in Los Angeles, via blog:

To Whom it May Concern:
I am a 2nd-generation East Indian American, and two nights ago, around 8-9 PM, I heard your nighttime deejay do a skit with a man pretending to be from India, named “Swami.”
…having your AMERICAN actor pretend (terribly, i might add) to be a man from India, complete with an exaggerated accent and a bumbling personality, turns the Asian immigrant into someone who should be LAUGHED AT. This is a sentiment that I would have expected 20 years ago – in fact, these are the same jokes I heard as a child on the school playground – but not now, when the Indian population has worked hard to earn a legitimate place in America’s ALLEGEDLY multicultural society. And FYI – Swami isn’t actually a name, but a title given to Indian spiritual leaders. So thanks for debasing Indian spirituality at the same time.
I don’t really expect anyone to read this, and if you do, I don’t know if you’ll understand my disgust or take the time to respond. But as someone actually invested in the idea of the United States as a land of opportunity for EVERYONE, I was severely disappointed that even in this small skit, your station revealed that society’s acceptance of all creeds, races, colors is often merely a facade. A parting shot of advice: if you can’t treat a culture or ethnicity with some degree of sensitivity, keep your mouths shut. We’ll all appreciate that much more.

So I went to Star 98.7’s site, and I was charmed by their openness to feedback:

If you have comments or suggestions we’d like to hear them…. so drop us a snail mail or email to share your thoughts with us.
BUSINESS LINE 818-559-2252
starprogramming@ClearChannel.com

Also, one of their main advertisers is Sona Med Spas & Laser Centers…which is run by one Dr. H. Shah. Interesting. If I were Dr. Shah, I’d be making a phone call…

I love watching movies on tiny screens. Not.

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So my favourite MC leaves me a message about this article from ABC News…apparently an Indian cell phone company is going to broadcast a new Bollywood phil-im in its entirety, for free. On their customer’s mobiles. (Well, the customers who dished $270 for a phone that can stream video…)

“Rok Sako To Rok Lo,” or “Stop, If You Can,” will be available to Bharti Tele-Ventures customers in 11 Indian cities, provided their phones have the supporting technology, said Atul Bindal, a director at India’s second-largest cellular service provider.

They are boldly and potentially annoyingly going where no company has gone before:

Bharti Tele-Ventures Ltd. will be “the first cellular service in the world to premiere a full-length movie on mobile phones,” Bindal said. “I am certain that this service will add a whole new dimension to the concept of mobile-based entertainment.”

“Rok Sako To Rok Lo” stars Sunny Deol (pictured)…and no one else, meaning the film’s other actors aren’t well-known, exciting or important. 😉 Directed by Arindam Chaudhary, the teen flick will debut on cell phones Thursday, and be released to regular old theaters Friday.

Don’t everybody try and drain your cell phone batteries at once:

A maximum of 200 people will be able to connect and watch the movie simultaneously, and the movie cannot be copied or replayed.

If this novel experiment in using mobile phones for something other than, oh, talking, is successful, Bharti Tele-Ventures Ltd. may air other phil-ims, for a phee. 😉

Better living through Technology

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…actually, scratch the “better”…I’m just happy about the living part. We exist in amazing times, and for that I am constantly grateful and humbled. Why am I blathering all new-agey? I’m just pondering the healing powers of the Internet, that’s all.

Nepalese_miracle

Few thought this little boy would survive after he was bitten by a snake in Nepal.
His parents consulted a Shaman who bound the boy’s leg so tightly with a tourniquet it went gangrenous.
When doctors eventually saw him they were at a loss to know how to save him. The bandage had been on for 25 days and his leg was hanging off.
Everyone was resigned to him dying.

Everyone except Lord and Lady Swinfen. The peer and his wife run a phenomenal charity that “virtually” saved the child’s life. Continue reading →