Bollywood Cinema and its influence on diaspora of nonresident South Asian Population

(Paper presented at panel discussion on cultural impact of popular Bollywood cinema on South Asian diaspora world wide specifically nonresident South Asians. The discussion was part of the Literary Arts segment of the "Festival of South Asia" in Toronto) 

A thought - The evolution of literature and languages of ethnic descent and the changing environment.

Meena Chopra

By Meena Chopra

The essence of a language lies in its literary merits which influence and impact its literature and literary capabilities. One wonders that what are these literary merits and from where and how do they surface. Any literary work, poetry or prose, which represents the high quality of artistic merit will create a standard and an immovable and everlasting place for itself in that particular language.

Chitrakoot - an unexplored destination in India, immortalized by the magical myth from epic Ramayana

StarBuzzOnline.com

By
Meena Chopra

The ancient town of Chitrakoot lies in the historical Chitrakoot region, which is divided between the present-day Indian states of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. It is known for a number of temples and sites mentioned in Hindu scriptures. Chitrakoot means the 'Hill of many wonders'. Situated in the northern spurs of the Vindhyas, Chitrakoot gives an enchanting feeling to travellers with its natural forests, gurgling streams and beautiful falls.
According to the Hindu epic Ramayana, Lord Rama spent the first 11 years of his exile along with his wife Sita and brother Lakshman in Chitrakoot. As per Hindu mythology, Chitrakoot was also the home of the great sage Atri and Sati Anusuya. It was at Chitrakoot that the trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh took birth as Soma (the Moon), Dattatreya and Durvasa as the children of Sage Atri and Sati Anusuya. 

Dr. Jyotsna Suri,
CMD Lalit Suri Hospitality Group

After exploring the legacy of Khajuraho's art, its manifestation of the essence of the philosophy of Indian aesthetics along with the history of Chandela dynasty with its unexplored dimensions,  Dr. Jyotsna Suri, CMD Lalit Suri Hospitality Group was eager to go beyond, explore and revive the magical mythological mystery and the ancient history surrounding the land of Chitrakoot. "An ancient township which is 144 kilometers away from Khajuraho yet remained undiscovered in spite of the fact that Lord Rama spent eleven and a half years of his 14 years of exile there," says Dr. Suri. 

Totally enamored by the rich cultural heritage of the area, a full campaign was initiated by the Lalit Suri Hospitality Group which was initiated and led by Dr, Jyotsna Suri. Chief Minister of U.P Mr. Akhilesh Yadav fully supported and welcomed the initiative of the group to develop this region in bringing it to the world's tourist map. Chief Minister Yadav believes that Chitrakoot has a huge tourist potential.

The distance of 144 kilometers Khajuraho to Chitrakoot was covered in 9 days by 100 cyclists in "Chalo Chitrakoot Abhiyan", who passed through 73 villages of that area which is rich with ancient history, culture and the mystical myths. "Lalit Ramayana Festival" was also started depicting many episodes of epic Ramayana.    

Dr. Jyotsna Suri has been committed in  promoting Indian tourism – both nationally and internationally. She has been the Chairperson of FICCI Tourism Committee for the last six years. Under her leadership, FICCI introduced ‘The Great India Travel Bazaar’ in 2008 and ‘The Great Domestic Tourism Bazaar’ in 2011 – two keenly awaited events in the tourism sector facilitating tourism business interactions. The group is committed in developing new destinations in India. 

Bharat Hotels Limited is the largest privately owned hospitality group in India, having more than 20 years of experience in offering limitless hospitality. After having successfully launched and operated 9 hotels in India, including the one launched in 2009, Bharat Hotels Limited has more than 9 hotels lined up for launch during next two years. The existing operational hotels combined with the upcoming hotels give Bharat Hotel Limited a total inventory of over 3600 rooms in India and abroad.

Art and its incredible effects on mind - An insight by Meena Chopra

Starry Night by Van Gogh

Author: Meena Chopra
Art House for Kids-Art as healer has always improved the quality of life and mind giving a third dimension to the human personality in many ways. Art is a beautiful thing to be enjoyed, and knowing the powers it can have on the human mind is certainly an added bonus.

Music, dance, painting and other forms of art have shown to have an incredibly significant and positive effect on children and adults both.. 

Art therapy has been used to awaken the senses of underprivileged children through both the viewing and creating of art by them.Through their artistic endeavours they subconsciously associate themselves with their past. The memories come more freely since they are not elicited by direct objects, but indirect thought instead. 

Sun Flower by Van Gogh

Due to many past experiences many children begin to develop nervousness, anxiety, sleeping excessive or too little, a lack of verbal, social and language skills. Many times depending on the color within a piece, or may be some other quality of the artwork, different emotions can be evoked by the observer unknowingly. Awakening of the senses through experimentation with the different types of art these children experience an untapped emotional world within themselves and with this association with their own inner being, they are able to show increased abilities in their cognitive, motor and social skills. 

Many of the most famous pieces in the Pop art movement have utilized popular advertisements that could be easily tied to past memories. Pop art is known very well for its use of bright, vibrant colors. 

Piccaso - Woman with Fan

Pop art is specifically tied to nostalgic thoughts and associations since many of these works utilize old comics, food wrappers, advertisements and other types of found art that people may recognize from past events in their lives.  Pop art is especial useful in helping evoke past memories and gain insight through the use of bright colors. Nostalgic undertones emotions and feelings surrounding past events can be easily conjured up through the study of Pop art.

According to a 2010 study conducted by researchers at the Emory University School of Medicine, viewing paintings as opposed to photographs of similar objects evoked more of a sense of reward within the brain. Participants in the study were shown pieces from different artists such as Van Gogh and Picasso, and then they were showed photographs that depicted very similar objects. When they studied the brains of the participants through imaging technology, the ventrial striatum, which is part of the reward system, became more strongly activated when the participant saw a painting rather then a photograph of a similar object. Even if only momentarily, the memories they experience have shown to increase positive moods and improve their quality of life.

Pop art, for example, impacts different people in different ways. Clearly different aspects of art and the participation in the arts can have a profound and positive effect on the human mind. Most forms of art are able to impact the human mind in one way or another.With its strong ties to commercial consumerism and found art, it is easy to evoke emotion in someone when utilizing the properties of Pop art. But Pop art is not the only type of art that can be used to help stimulate areas of the brain and help in the process of resolving issues. 

Beatles

Bright yellows often evoke a feeling of happiness, which is a very common color in Pop art pieces. For example, if someone is dealing with a childhood trauma, memories from childhood can help them figure out exactly what happened and how to move past it.

Utilizing pop art to delve into past memories can be very therapeutic for many different reasons. Alzheimer's patients are often involved in music therapy, which has shown to help them recover and reconnect with past memories therefore acting as a healer and giving a positive impact to the mind towards their improvement and well being .  

What is most important is to explore the impact art has on the human mind and figure out how to positively harness the impact and minimize any negativity.

 StarBuzz, Toronto

Promenade Gallery at Lake shore Mississauga opens with Art Exhibition 'TREKS AND TRAILS" of Asma Mahmood

StarBuzz Weekly, Toronto- A treat to the eyes and the mind,  an art exhibition 'TREKS AND TRAILS" of Asma Mahmood opened on the 28th June 2012 with a grand opening of Promenade Gallery on Lake Shore road Mississauga. Asma is the Artistic director of this newly opened Art Gallery. 


"Couple of years ago a package of old letters and cards was accidentally destroyed. That package held great importance for me. As I found out about that loss, I tried to think of ways to recreate the feeling of those letters. Surprisingly three writers of those letters turned out to be an inspiration for the current exhibition.
This Exhibition is a tribute to my father who taught me to enjoy everything in life as an adventure. One Who made me unafraid and appreciative of new ideas .He taught me to draw . It is a memory of his letters to me that he wrote over the years to teach me, strengthen me and just to let me know how much he loved me. He took me to these mountains when I was just a child. He taught me to dream." Says Asma. What a beautiful thought!

Promenade gallery is an artist studio and a private commercial art gallery. Gallery space is approx 850 Sq feet of floor and wall space and up for rental at various rates for artists.
Artist who rent the gallery space are encouraged to use the gallery as artist studio /gallery for display. The gallery encourages artists to mount solo shows .

• 943 B Lakeshore Road East

• Mississauga, Ontario

          promenadeart@gmail.com

Bonnie Crombie – A New Energy in the City of Mississauga in a Talk with Meena Chopra

Bonnie Crombie – Councillor Ward 5, Mississauga

In a Talk with Meena Chopra

StarBuzz Weekly, Toronto-Meena Chopra: How does it feel to be a Councillor after being a Member of Parliament?
Bonnie Crombie: You know that is an excellent question. People have been asking me that and truly I think that being a councilor I deal with those issues that effects people in their daily lives, it’s the meat and potatoes of their daily lives. You know I got asked once when I was door knocking as a federal member what have you done for me directly to impact my life? Well I said that I spoke out in parliament for you, to help keep your taxes low and to deal with foreign relations and on visas and have given visas: he says no, no I haven’t needed a visa for my family so tell me what have you done for me? Then I said well, I did not build your community centre your city councilor did and he said ‘thank you very much’ and closed the door. So now I am here to say that I am going to build the community centre for people, dealing with issues like snow removal, waste disposal, where fences are permitted to be built, traffic safety, community safety – these are the issues that effect peoples lives directly every day and these are the issues I will be dealing with and to help people in their daily lives and help build vibrant communities.

City Councillor Bonnie Crombie with Meena Chopra of StarBuzz

StarBuzz Weekly, Toronto-

Experiencing a dream vacation in the dream city of Stratford in Ontario - By Meena Chopra.



Shakespearean Gardens in Stratford, Ontario



 Costume warehouse for theatre

Stratford Summer Music

City Hall, the architectural pleasure

StarBuzz Weekly, Toronto-Glorious sunshine of the summer and the beautiful lush green landscapes surrounding the Avon River welcomed us at Stratford,  Ontario.

All of us are familiar with Mary Poppins and her journey to a beautiful dreamland when she pops and goes inside a painting with some children.  It was the same experience arriving at Stratford which is one of the most beautiful parts of Ontario, nay, the world. I felt as if I also popped into the painting of Stratford.

 “Unofficial ambassadors of Stratford”

the Swans on Avon river 

Arts and theatre have always been my intense passions but after reaching there I realised that this city offered much more than just the theatre which was my prime focus for coming here.

Tango Cafe & Grill

My first destination was the sprawling Shakespearean Gardens on the river side with beautiful flower beds and gazebos. A bust of Shakespeare in the centre of the garden gives it a distinctive character. From here we walked to the famous ‘Festival Theatre” to watch the “Merry Wives of Windsor” by Shakespeare.  The walk along the river side was most relaxing with feeding the the “unofficial ambassadors of Stratford” the Swans and also the ducks. The feed is available at the information centre of Stratford tourism. Information centre is located right on the corner of the river with all the readily available information about Stratford and its activities.

Tia's Choice: Ottawa, A Magical Experience for Travellers

The exotic nightlife at ByWard Market in Ottawa


Shopping at ByWard Market

 

StarBuzz Weekly, Toronto -When the sun goes down the spirits are up in Ottawa even on a tiring day of sight seeing the city, then its exotic nightlife spreads over the city. The name that comes first to the mind is the very special "ByWard Market". 

It  is one of Ottawa's oldest neighbourhoods and also functions as its entertainment district. While visiting Ottawa one would never want miss the unique experience that this entertainment district offers  with its warm and welcoming  over 100 food and drink options in just a four-block-square area. Whether it's fine dining, a good diner, a cosy bistro, or a romantic cafe, one can find it in "this very special market." One could walk around and choose to explore the various options. With world class live music and a glass of your favourite wine followed by tantalising food makes your evening just perfect and refreshing.

Established by Lt-Col. John By in 1826, the ByWard Market is one of Canada's oldest and largest public markets. The legendary builder of the Rideau Canal, Colonel By laid out the street plan of the Market, designating George Street and York Street to be extra wide to accommodate the public market and gathering place.

Bollywood Cinema Showcards Show opens at ROM.




Curator Deepali Dewan with Showcards acquired from Art Collector Bobby Kohli of New Delhi for Royal Ontario Museum 

Indian Film Art from the 1950s  to 1980s StarBuzz Weekly, Toronto-
An excellent show of Bollywood cinema Showcards opened at ROM on June 11 and is on view till October 2, 2011. Exhibition is showing the Indian Film Advertising Art from 1950s to th1980s.  The exhibition features over 120 works including showcards from the private collection of Angela Hartwick and a selection of posters, lobby cards and film booklets from Rom’s permanent collection.
The installation has   been patterned chronologically.  The interesting thing is that it traces down the aesthetic and thematic evolution of Bollywood graphic design as seen in its advertising since its inception till early 1990s.

"Con Man" Akshay Kumar in Toronto for the promotion of "Tees Maar Khan" - An Exclusive Chat & Slide Show

StarBuzz Weekly, Toronto-17th December 2010 - Bollywood Super Star Akshay Kumar was in Toronto to promote his forth coming film "Tees Maar Khan" and had an exclusive chat with the media at Hotel Fairmount Royal York in Toronto.

Super Star with series of hits behind him who is also an ambassador of Canadian Tourism to India was extremely excited about the release of his latest film in Canada in which he is playing a role of a Con Man. Opposite him is Katrina Kaif as the female lead.

Nav Bhatia of Nav Bhatia Entertainment
welcoming Akshay Kumar

When asked, how did he get this role from the director Farah Khan, the actor revealed, " Farah rang him up early in the morning at 6:30 am and asked him to act in her forthcoming film and it was an immediate yes. ". Perhaps he is the only actor who is up so early in the morning and that is why he got the role" he added jokingly. Talking about Farahan Khan he said, " She is unbelievably energetic and hard working with a power of atleast 10 men in her. She is demanding and perfectionist and that is the reason she is at the top.It was enjoyable working with her."

When asked what kind of Akshay Kumar are we going to see in "Tees Maar Khan" he replied enthusiastically, "A Con Man. and An Entertainer", "and as it is a comedy film and all will be in fits of laughter when they see the film. There are many dialogues in the film that are very original, written by Shirish Kunder which would be remembered by people always." He added further.

When asked why should we love this Con Man , he said, " The character is like half Robin hood and you are going love him. He is different because here Tees Maar Khan though he robs the rich but does not give to the poor ".

Akshay loves the beauty of Canada and he calls it a heaven. "Canadian people are very friendly and the landscape of Canada is outstandingly beautiful.", he says. He visits Canada at least once in two or three months.

He has been fond of Sanjeev Kumar and the veteran comedian Mehmood from yester years. "He loved his roles in Sangharsh and Janwar", he added.
Film is being released 17th December 2010. Organized by Nav Bhatia Entertainment.

A StarBuzz Exclusive
-Meena Chopra
-Pics by Ben Girn for StarBuzz

Raj Babbar in Toronto - An exclusive talk with StarBuzz

Raj Babbar, the Bollywood Star and an active politician was in Toronto last week for Parvasi Award Nite. StarBuzz had a chance to meet him at the Radisson Plaza in Mississauga and had a chat with him, during the press conference organized by South Asian Press Club of Canada. Raj Babbar started his film career in a very successful negative character role in B.R. Chopra's film 'Insaaf Ka Tarazu', eventually turned into one of the most wanted protoganists of the Bollywood industry in the 80's.

Sonakshi Sinha, Salman Khan's new leading lady

STAR
of the week
Sonakshi Sinha

Sonakshi Sinha is an Indian actress and Model.

Sonakshi has two brothers, Luv Sinha and Kussh Sinha and is the daughter of Indian veteran actor Shatrughan Sinha and actress Poonam Sinha. Sonakshi started her career as a model, and walked the ramp at the Lakme Fashion week in 2008 and then again in Lakme Fashion week 2009.

She worked hard to reduce her weight by 30 pounds to become model. Now she is playing the lead role in Dabangg opposite Salman Khan.

An actress to be watched, 23 year old Sonakshi has done her fashion designing from SNDT Mumbai, India. The entire industry knows that she is the apple of her dad, Shatrughan Sinha’s eye and she has his backing and guidance in everything she does.

-StarBuzz weekly, Toronto

Avinash Pasricha’s dance photography, a treat for Canadians. -By Meena Chopra (Author & Artist)

Santosh Pasricha, Avinash Pasricha and Lata Pada after the
presentation at Sampradaya Dance Creations

The world renowned icon of dance photography Avinash Pasricha from India was in Toronto and gave an exquisite presentation of his life time works on Sunday 26th Sept. as part of "Culture Days", at Sampradaya Dance Creations in Mississauga, run by well known Indo-Canadian classical dancer Lata Pada. The presentation was given to a select audience and was indeed a treat for Canadians.

A New Delhi resident Paricha is perhaps the only one in India who has seen almost all the classical dancers and musicians so closely through his lens and it is a privilege of every dancer and a musician to be photographed by him.,



Avinash Pasricha

Avinash Pasricha has been into fine art photography since 1960 and has been working on assignments since then. He belongs to a family of photographers and was the photo editor of SPAN magazine from 1960 to 1997. His photographs have been widely published in National Geographic and Life and he also made audio-visuals on Indian dance forms and on renowned musicians Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, Begum Akhtar and Kumar Gandharva.He has co-authored several books on Indian dance including Odissi, Kathak and Kuchipudi, Rhythm in Joy, Pandit Kumar Gandharva, Pandit Birju Maharaj, Kumar Gandharva, Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra and many more.

In a question answer session when asked by the dancer Lata Pada that has he ever photographed a dancer without the gear and glamour of dance and the stage, in her natural self as a person, or at the time when she/he is rehearsing, he answered that he had essentially been working on assignments and never got the opportunity to do so but why not now starting with Lata Pada. To him it is not so much the gear and the glamour of the dancer that matters as much as the moods and the expressions and the window to this are the eyes of the artist.

For his profession of fine art photography he said “I call it meditation. I enjoy it as much as the dancer might be enjoying that moment of creativity.”He gets totally engulfed in that moment.

About the training in photography He said, “There you can learn the techniques, which ofcourse is necessary but to be a photographer you have to learn to SEE to capture the moment and this comes through commitment and experience and that is what gives substance to the art.”

He said, “He loved Toronto and found it to be beautiful and is enjoying every moment of this beauty”

-By Meena Chopra (Poet & Artist)

-StarBuzz weekly, Toronto

Mandu, a unique travel destination in MP India

My impressions of Mandu
-Meena chopra
-StarBuzz weekly, Toronto

Mandu, Madhya Pradesh
Jahaz Mahal.Mandu, or Mandavgarh, is a ruined city in the Dhar district in the Malwa region of western Madhya Pradesh state, central India. The distance between Dhar & Mandu is about 35 km. In the 11th century, Mandu was the sub division of the Tarangagadh or Taranga kingdom . This fortress town on a rocky outcrop about 100 km (60 miles) from Indore is celebrated for its fine architecture. Mandu celebrates in stone the life and love of the poet-prince Baz Bahadur for his consort, Rani Roopmati. The balladeers of Malwa still sing of the romance of these royal lovers. High on the crest of a hill, Rani Roopmati's pavilion gazes down at Baz Bahadur's palace, a magnificent expression of Afghan architecture.

-From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Michael Douglas battles with throat cancer, stage 4

Michael Douglas the Academy Award winning actor is fighting  with throat cancer, stage 4. He says "It was caused because of excessive drinking and smoking". Still in high spirits and inspiring he says "there are 80% chances of  a full recovery ", speaking on an optimistic note. Douglas was diagnosed with a cancer three weeks ago,  as after a biopsy the doctors found a tumor of a size of a walnut inside him.

Commonwealth games Delhi India 2010 theme song by A.R. Rahman

A.R. Rahman is again in limelight and created a song for 2010 Commonwealth Games going to be held in India in October in new Delhi. The Theme Song -SWAGATHAM (Welcome)" will be part of the opening ceremony and the games.

" Lot of great things are happening and lot of people are working hard to bring these games together." He says, " The song is about energy about the spirit and not giving up" Rahman says in a press conference.

Rahman is also the lead singer in the song. He sang the musical composition at a glittering function at Gurgaon. It is a mix of both HINDI and ENGLISH languages.

“I wrote the first line six months back and kept tweaking it till I finally finished it last night (Friday). It is definitely an honour to compose the official theme song, which is in the spirit of the Commonwealth Games,” said Rahman.

The 2010 Common Wealth Game (CWG) theme song, 'Swagatham', composed by Oscar winner AR Rahman was realesed in Gurgaon on Saturday 28.08.2010
_ Tia Virdi


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