BinBrain.com Success

Who equals Pete Sampras ??

2009-06-12T12:37:00.000-07:00

Absolutely no doubt and even proud to say "Roger Federer", as I'm a big fan. Federer is a Swiss professional World No. 1 ranked tennis player, a position he held for a record of 237 consecutive weeks. Federer is considered by many to be the greatest player of all time. Federer holds numerous records in men's singles, including 14 Grand Slam titles- 3 Australian Open, 1 French Open, 5 Wimbledon, 5 US Open-, equalling the all-time record set by Pete Sampras.

Federer was born on August 8, 1981, in Binningen, near Basel, to Swiss national Robert Federer and South Africa-born Lynette Durand. He started playing tennis at the age of six. By the age of fourteen, Federer had learnt to get his serve over the net and he had become Switzerland's top junior (under-18s) player. Then Roger moved on to the main tour. He ended his first year on the tour as the youngest player in the top 100. By 2003, Federer had established a reputation as the most talented player to consistently choke on the big stage - spectacularly so.

Roger Federer's game is based around his big forehand, which is one of the best shots in tennis. His game's pretty one-dimensional, really. Without the forehand, he'd be nothing. You could just hit to his right hand side and you'd win every point. I'd like to see him hit a backhand winner from there. So a forehand less Federer would be useless. Though capable of overwhelming most of his opponents, Roger prefers to pick their games apart—sometimes exposing their weaknesses, sometimes finding ways to use their own strengths against them. These cat-and-mouse games used to be his undoing, but he has perfected his craft, and now it his opponents who look helpless at times, not him.

Federer established the Roger Federer Foundation in 2003 to help disadvantaged people and to promote sports to youth. He was appointed a Goodwill Ambassador of UNICEF in 2006. Since then, he has visited South Africa and Tamil Nadu, one of the worst tsunami-affected areas in India. He has also appeared in UNICEF public messages to raise public awareness of AIDS.

The Success Gandhi !!!!!

2009-05-16T10:00:00.000-07:00

Sonia Gandhi is the President of the Indian National Congress and the widow of former Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi. She also serves as the Chairperson of the ruling United Progressive Alliance in the Lok Sabha and the leader of the Congress Parliamentary Party.

16 th May of 2009 is an important day in the history of India and the Indian National Congress. This is the day in which the Congress Party won back to the reign of India for a second term under the mystical leadership of Mrs Sonia Gandhi. It is referred as history because only the first prime minister of India Mr Jawaharlal Nehru could win a consecutive election for a second term in the Indian political history. The full credit of this victory goes to the vibrant leadership of Mrs Gandhi. After the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi the congress party was actually facing the problem of a charismatic leader to lead the party and it was about to vanish from the Indian political stream. It was in this period Mrs Gandhi came out with a bold decision to take the leadership of Congress party as a mission. In the beginning no one thought that the she can bring back the congress party to the driving seat of Indian politics. But she has done it.

Sonia Gandhi born in Lusiana, Italy on 9 December 1946. While studying English at the University of Cambridge, Sonia met Rajiv Gandhi, a mechanical engineering student and son of Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. The couple married in 1968. In 1980 his brother, Sanjay, died, and Rajiv subsequently entered the political arena. When Indira Gandhi was assassinated in 1984, Rajiv was named prime minister. Though Sonia campaigned for Rajiv, she chose to remain in the background, studying art restoration and working to preserve India’s artistic treasures.

When Rajiv was assassinated in 1991, Sonia was seen by many as the natural heir to the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty, and she was offered the leadership of the Congress Party. She rejected the offer and refused to discuss politics publicly. In 1993, however, she visited Rajiv’s former constituency in Amethi, Uttar Pradesh, and was greeted by cheering crowds. She subsequently traveled throughout the country on behalf of trusts and committees devoted to Indian public life.

1998 Gandhi agreed to become president of the then-struggling Congress Party. Her initial efforts were overshadowed by the party’s loss to the Bharatiya Janata Party in the following election. Following a nationwide campaign that targeted struggling farmers and the unemployed, the Congress Party won the 2004 election but failed to secure an absolute majority. The party subsequently formed a new coalition called the United Progressive Alliance (UPA). Gandhi, however, chose not to head the government as prime minister, because her foreign birth had become a politically controversial issue. Instead, she invited the economist Manmohan Singh to serve as prime minister. Her only son, Rahul Gandhi, was also a prominent politician.

IPL a success cricket model !!

2009-05-04T09:09:00.000-07:00

IPL- Indial Premier League is a Twenty20 cricket competition created by the Board of Control for Cricket in India. It is now the most watched domestic Twenty20 competition in the world. The first season of the Indian Premier League commenced on 18 April 2008, and ended on 1 June 2008 with the victory of the Rajasthan Royals against Chennai Super Kings. As the second season of the IPL coincided with Indian general elections, the Indian Government refused to commit security by Indian paramilitary forces. As a result, the BCCI decided to host the second season of the league in South Africa.

Most teams at IPL are in the names of famous Indian cities. Now there are eight teams for the IPL tounament. They are Kings XI Punjab, Chennai Super Kings, Deccan Chargers, Rajasthan Royals, Kolkata Knight Riders, Delhi Daredevils, Bangalore Royal Challengers and Mumbai Indians.

The victory of present IPL Champion was in an exceptional way. In the begining of the tournament no one imagined a chance for the Rajasthan Royals, but they really became the black horses of IPL.

After 44 days of mind-boggling action and a no-holds-barred feud among eight fierce franchisees, Rajasthan Royals pipped Chennai Super Kings by three wickets in the thrilling grand finale to lift the inaugural Indian Premier League.

Chasing Super Kings' modest total of 163 for five, the Royals rode on a brilliant all-round display by Yusuf Pathan, who took three wickets and top-scored with a 39-ball 56 to overhaul the score off the last ball after needing eight from the last over. The winners received the top prize of $1.2 million and a glittering gem-laden trophy while the runners-up won $600,000.

Bollywood Sensation

2009-03-20T07:46:00.000-07:00

Do you know Hrithik Roshan? Definitely 'yes' , if you are an Indian. If you are ignorant about Hrithik, please don't miss to enjoy the following films like Krrish, Dhoom II, Jodha Akbar, Kaho Na Pyar Hai etc. He was a sensation in the Indian film industry when his first film Kaho Na Pyar Hai was released. Lakhs and Lakhs of Indian youth irrespective of language became the deep fans of this handsome actor. But unfortunately after this big success he was a total failure and unlucky figure to Bollywood for the coming three years. Then after three years of agony and failure it was the character of a nineteen year old boy with a ten year old boys mind in the film Koi... Mil Gaya which gave a breakthrough to Hrithik. With the success of this film Hrithik was recognized as a talented actor among the bollywood stars.

Hrithik Roshan is an Indian actor working in Bollywood. He was born in January 10, 1974. His father, film director Rakesh Roshan, is the son of music director Roshan, while his mother, Pinky, is the daughter of veteran producer and director J. Om Prakash. The well-known music director Rajesh Roshan is his uncle. In short he is from a legendary family. Though from a such a blessed family, don't think that he was brought up as an actor very easily with the support all these people. His family never thought that he would become an actor because he was physically very weak and had severe disc problems.

In an interview given to an English magazine Hrithik told " my doctor told me that i could never be an actor - i could never dance, I could never jog, never run, never do any of things that a film actor does. He even advised me to change my career plans." From this period of agony it was his effort and self confidence that helped him to be a successful actor later.

Hrithik is married to Sussanne Khan on December 20, 2000, daughter of Sanjay Khan. The couple have two kids,both boys, one by the name of Hrehaan(28 March 2006) and the other named Hridhaan(May 1, 2008). Hrithik was born with two thumbs on his right hand that are partially fused together; this is considered by some to be a lucky sign.

Lets have a glance @ some of Hrithik's blockbusters.

Kaho Na Pyar Hai

Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai is a 2000 Bollywood movie directed by Rakesh Roshan. The movie stars Amisha Patel, Anupam Kher, and Hrithik Roshan in a dual role. This movie was Hrithik Roshan and Amisha Patel's debut and made Hrithik into an overnight superstar in Bollywood.

Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham

Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham is a Bollywood film released in India and countries with large NRI populations on December 14, 2001. It features Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Shahrukh Khan, Kajol, Hrithik Roshan, Kareena Kapoor and Rani Mukerji in a guest appearance.

Koī...Mil Gaya

Koī...Mil Gaya is a 2003 Bollywood science fiction film, directed by Rakesh Roshan , starring Rekha, Hrithik Roshan and Preity Zinta, and released on August 8, 2003. Koi... Mil Gaya itself is said to have inspired an Indonesian television series Si Yoyo, which also features a miraculous alien visitor.

Krrish

Krrish is a Bollywood science fiction superhero film directed by Rakesh Roshan. Released on June 23, 2006, the film is a sequel to Koi... Mil Gaya and the second part of the Koi... Mil Gaya series. It is considered the first major superhero movie to be produced in Bollywood since Shekhar Kapoor's Mr. India (1987). The movie stars Hrithik Roshan, Priyanka Chopra, Rekha and Naseeruddin Shah, while Preity Zinta also makes a special appearance.

Dhoom 2

Dhoom 2 is the second installment in the Dhoom series. It stars Hrithik Roshan, Aishwarya Rai, Abhishek Bachchan and Bipasha Basu. The movie is a sequel to the 2004 hit, Dhoom. The film was released on November 24, 2006. This movie has been dubbed into Telugu and Tamil; those versions were released on the same day as the Hindi version.

Jodhaa-Akbar

Jodhaa-Akbar is a sixteenth century love story, and an Indian epic film released on February 15, 2008. It is directed and produced by Ashutosh Gowariker, the director of the Academy Award-nominated Lagaan (2001). It stars Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in lead roles.

A Successful Actor.....

2009-03-10T01:43:00.000-07:00

Mammooty is a very famous film actor from Kerala, India. He has won the National Award for the Best Actor three times and state awards five times. Nation has honored him by giving Padma Shri in 1998 . The first feature that everyone notice about Mammootty is that he is very handsome. Though 56 now, he still looks as a man around 35 to 40 years old. He is working hard to keep his body fit and fine. I remember that once he said in an interview given to a television channel “I’m jealous to the youth because they are youth,” He is so much ambitious to be always young and fit.

Personally I’m a fan of Mammooty. In my village people have their own political view only from an age of adolescence, but from very young stage itself a child is becoming a fan of Mammootty or Mohanlal, one yet another great film artist from kerala. No Malayalee is seen in Kerala as not a fan of either Mammootty or Mohanlal, I think.

The most important films that I remember when I speak about Mammootty are, Oru CBI Diary Kuruppu, Mrugaya, New Delhi, Nirakoottu, Dani, Ambedkar, Ponthan Mada etc etc.

Some people always compare Mammoootty with the famous Bollywood actor Amithabh Bacchan and call Mammootty as Bachan of Malayalam. Once Mr M T Vasudevan, a great writer and Film Critic of India, especially Kerala opposed this view and said “I would never say that Mammootty as keala Bacchan , but I will call him only as Mammootty of Malayalam.” No one can never ever become like Mammootty , because he is such a unique character and blessing to Malyalee.

A R Rahman and Resul Pukutty and Slumdog Millionaire in Oscar

2009-02-22T19:51:00.000-08:00

A R Rahman has won Oscars for his music composition in Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire.

Allah Rakkha Rahman ((born January 6, 1967 as A. S. Dileep Kumar in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India), is an Academy Award winning Indian Muslim film composer, record producer and musician. His work has garnered considerable acclaim and a large global fanbase since his film scoring career began in the early 1990s, and has won four National Film Awards,Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Golden Globe and Satellite Award for his work.

Resul Pookutty has won an Oscar for sound mixing in the rags-to-riches award winning film "Slumdog Millionaire".

In the village of Vilakupara, about 50 km from the Kerala capital, everyone is elated at Resul`s success. His elder brother Byju Pookutty told reporters: "Ours is a typical rural village and it was only last month that our village council gave a reception after he won the British awards and people here came to know what he was doing."

"Our father wanted Resul to be a doctor but he could not clear the entrance examination for medicine. Our father was very particular that Resul become a doctor because his brother`s son was one. But Resul`s destiny was different," said Byju, who is 38 and a businessman.

Slumdog Millionaire Makes History

Slumdog Millionaire makes history at Kodak by winning eight Oscar awards . Set and filmed in India, Slumdog Millionaire tells the story of a young man from the slums of Mumbai who appears on the Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? and exceeds people's expectations, arousing the suspicions of the game show host and of law enforcement officials.

Slumdog Millionaire was nominated for ten Academy Awards and won eight, the most of any film that year, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Sound Mixing, Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, and Best Original Song. It also won five Critics' Choice Awards, four Golden Globes, and seven BAFTA Awards, including Best Film.

MAHATMA GANDHI

2009-02-10T07:28:00.000-08:00

"Gandhi ( held no political office. Yet he could arouse the conscience of an entire subcontinent! A lean, frail, ‘half-naked fakir’ – armed with a wooden staff and simple dignity of a human being, he fought against the greatest empire, the world has known. It was just the moral grandeur of his soul which enabled him to fight against brute power, in any form, even vanquish it. "Generations to come will scarce believe that such a one as this in flesh and blood walked upon this earth", said Professor Einstein of him.

On 30 January 1948 on his way to prayers Gandhi was assassinated, killed by three bullets in his abdomen and chest. The young assassin was a fanatical Hindu who among others had been inflamed by Gandhi’s efforts to bring reconciliation between Hindus and Muslims in riot-torn independent India. With those three bullets came the bitter fruit of the murder of an important political leader. India and the world were saddened. Political leaders and ordinary people alike felt a personal loss.

Significance of Gandhi (Some unusual views....)

Does Gandhi still have any political significance? Now, with the passing of years and the opportunity for a more distant perspective, how is Gandhi to be evaluated?

For a Westerner poses special problems in such an evaluation. Often his eccentricities get in the way so that it is difficult to get beyond them, or to take other aspects of his life seriously. Even for religious people in the West, his constant use of religious terminology and theological language in explanation or justification of a social or political act or policy more often confuses than clarifies.

The homage which most pay to him by calling him “Mahatma” - the great-souled one - usually becomes a kind of vaccination against taking him seriously. As a Mahatma, he can be revered while being placed in that special category of saints, prophets and holy men whose lives and actions are believed to be largely irrelevant to ordinary men.

“I claim”, he once wrote, “to be no more than an average man with less than average ability”. Indeed, in important respects this was probably true.

He was not pleased at the homage given him, although he cherished the affection of people where it was genuine. “My Mahatmaship is worthless”, he once wrote “I have become literally sick of the adoration of the unthinking multitude.” “I lay no claim to superhuman powers. I want none. I wear the same corruptible flesh that the weakest of my fellow-beings wears, and am, therefore, as liable to err as any.”

There are further difficulties in evaluating Gandhi. These include widespread misrepresentations of Gandhi and his political opinions. For example, it is widely claimed that Gandhi approved of Indian military action in Kashmir, that he would have approved of the Indian invasion of Goa, and even that he would have supported the present nuclear weapons program.

Gandhi's thinking, as constantly developing, and early in his career he did give certain qualified support to war. But at the end of his life this had altered. But this did not mean he favoured passivity. Thus, while believing the Allies to be the better side in the Second World War, he did not support the war. Similarly in Kashmir, while believing the Pakistanis to be the aggressors, and while believing that India must act, he did not favour military action.

As we shall note later in more detail, it was Gandhi's primary contribution, not only to argue for, but to develop practically non-violent means of struggle in politics for those situations in which war and other types of political violence were usually used. His work here was pioneering, and sometimes inadequate, but it was sufficient to put him outside the traditional categories. Gandhi was neither a conscientious objector nor a supporter of violence in politics. He was an experimenter in the development of “war without violence”.

A final confusion handicaps our attempt to evaluate Gandhi. His politics are sometimes assumed to be identical with those of the independent Indian Government under Nehru. Although Nehru has long had a very deep regard for Gandhi, and although Gandhi cooperated with the Indian National Congress in the long struggle for independence, the policies which Gandhi favoured are not necessarily those of the Congress government today.

Gandhi had opposed partition into Pakistan and India. Congress leaders had accepted it. His plea for non-violent resistance in Kashmir with non-violent assistance from India was ignored. Gandhi had dreamt that a free India would be able to defend her freedom without military means. Yet in the provisional government before independence, and in the fully independent government, military expenditure and influence increased, while Gandhi warned of the danger of military rule and of India’s possible future threat to world peace. Her freedom could be defended non-violently, Gandhi insisted, just as by non-violent means the great British Empire had been forced to withdraw.

A. R. Rahman a Music Millionaire

2009-01-28T08:53:00.000-08:00

A R Rahman is the first Indian to get three Oscar nominations for his works in British-Indian movie Slumdog Millionaire which also got the nod in seven other categories, including best film and best director. Rahman was nominated for best original score while both Jai Ho and O Saya were shortlisted for the best original song. The film also won nominations in cinematography, sound mixing, sound editing and film editing.

Music maestro A R Rahman created history by becoming the first Indian to win Golden Globe award for his music score for 'Slumdog Millionaire' at the prestigious award ceremony on Monday. Rahman's song 'Jai Ho,' penned by lyricist Gulzar, has won the coveted prize of Best Original Music Score at the Golden Globes. The film which depicts the story of a Mumbai underdog's rags-to-riches run, is on a winning spree and has so far bagged three Golden Globe awards – Best Original Music

'Slumdog' is based on a novel by Indian diplomat Vikas Swarup and stars Bollywood actors Anil Kapoor and Irrfan Khan in lead among others. The film has been shot at various locations in Mumbai, including the railway Victoria Terminus, which was targeted by terrorists on November 26, last year. Boyle's feel-good film depicts the moving story of a slum dweller Jamaal, who goes on to win USD 20 million on Indian reality show 'Who Wants to Be A Millionaire?' in a bid to win his love back.

A R Rahman ........

Born A.S. Dileep Kumar on January 6th, 1966, in Madras, India, Allah Rakha Rahman was exposed to music from the time he was a child, entered in classical piano studies by his parents at the age of four. At 16, he quit school and was following in his father's footsteps ,K.A. Sekhar a successful film musician, working full-time as a session musician on soundtracks under the popular South Indian composer Illaiyaraja. In 1989 Rahman planted the first seeds of his film career. That year, he began acquiring the equipment and organizing the sound library for his Panchathan Record Inn. When Sharada Trilok's ad for Leo Coffee (for which Rahman penned the music) won her an award, she introduced the young composer to her cousin, Mani Ratnam. Impressed with his work, the director signed Rahman to compose the music for K. Balachander's 1992 film Roja.

Rahman's score, a colorful, uncluttered combination of pop, rock, reggae, and his country's traditional music, reshaped the genre, winning him three awards for Best Music Director. Roja became the equivalent of an Indian crossover success. Originally filmed in South Indian Tamil, it was re-dubbed in Hindi, the language of North India's famous film center "Bollywood." His star on the rise, Rahman proceeded to compose music for six films in 1993 and nine in 1994 including the score for Ratnam's Bombay (1995), the story of a Hindu/Muslim marriage in a time of heated relations between the two cultures.

Rahman's score displayed a characteristic (and appropriate) disregard for the confines of culture, be they Eastern or Western, once again mixing traditional and modern elements. Bombay was hugely successful and the movie's theme was featured on Talvin Singh's Soundz of the Asian Underground compilation. Rahman became the first Indian artist to sign with Sony Music, negotiating a three-year contract in 1997. His premier release for the label, Vande Mataram , was a tribute to India, commemorating 50 years of the country's independence. The album reached record stores in 28 countries on August 15th of that year. Rahman finally seemed poised on the brink of the international success he desired. Performances were booked in Europe, Canada, and the United States during the final years of the century and a session was arranged with singer David Byrne . Andrew Lloyd Webber chose Rahman to compose the music for his Bombay Dreams, a musical based on the "Bollywood" film industry.

Chess = Viswanathan Anand

2009-01-12T02:10:00.000-08:00

Viswanathan Anand (born 11 December 1969) is an Indian chess grandmaster and the current World Chess Champion.Anand won the FIDE World Chess Championship in 2000, at a time when the world title was split. He became the undisputed World Champion in 2007 and defended his title against Vladimir Kramnik in 2008. Anand is one of four players in history to break the 2800 mark on the FIDE rating list. He was at the top of the world rankings five out of six times, from April 2007 to July 2008.

He was taught to play chess by his mother. In his own words, "I started when I was six. My mother taught me how to play. In fact, my mother used to do a lot for my chess. We moved to the Philippines shortly afterward. I joined the club in India and we moved to the Philippines for a year. And there they had a TV program that was on in the afternoon, one to two or something like that, when I was in school. So she would write down all the games that they showed and the puzzles, and in the evening we solved them together. Of course my mother and her family used to play some chess, and she used to play her younger brother, so she had some background in chess, but she never went to a club or anything like that. So we solved all these puzzles and sent in our answers together. And they gave the prize of a book to the winner. And over the course of many months, I won so many prizes. At one point they just said take all the books you want, but don't send in any more entries."

Anand’s mother says that he has always had a photographic memory. She recalls how as a child of two he would pick up his favourite records and remember the songs in each to play on his father’s radiogram. He was a brilliant student throughout, and is a B.Com with honours from Loyola College in Chennai.

Anand was six years old when he first visited the Tal Chess Club in Chennai. Manuel Aaron, India’s first International Master would regularly play there and would hold classes for the members, basing his lessons on the tactics of the Soviet Grandmasters. Aaron says, Anand would regularly interrupt him and suggest alternative moves. “I looked upon him as a big nuisance because he wouldn’t allow me to complete my lectures.” Anand beat the legendary Aaron when he was only 13.

He has won the Arjuna Award and the Padma Shri, perhaps the youngest to do so. He has also been conferred with the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award. Anand, who lives with his wife Aruna in Spain’s Collado Mediano, is known as the ‘lightning kid’ on the Chess circuit. The standard time allotted to a Chess game is 120 minutes for 40 moves. He makes those moves in just half an hour! This nerve-wracking speed puts a lot of pressure on his opponents. Soviet Grandmaster Tukmanov once said of his lightning fast game, “ People play that fast in Coffee Shops!” He likes action films and loves Rock music.

INDIA IS PROUD OF PARVATHY

2008-12-14T05:26:00.000-08:00

India's Parvathy Omanakuttan finished as the first runner up in the Miss World Beauty contest 2008 at Johannesburg and Russia's Ksenya Sukhinova was crowned Miss World after beating scores of international beauties Second runner up was Gabriel Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago.

Parvathy Omanakuttan represented India in the 58th Miss World Final which was held at Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa on December 13, and was crowned at the Miss World Grand Finale as the first runner up. She was also the second runner up of Miss World Top Model contest held on 3 December 2008. She was one among the top 10 Finalists of Miss World 2008 Beach Beauty contest She was crowned "Pantaloons Femina Miss India World 2008" in Mumbai on 5 April 2008.

Miss World is the original and most popular beauty pageant in the world. Each year young women from every country compete in front of over a billion television viewers. Judges determine which contestant has the winning combination of beauty, glamour, poise and intelligence - all the ingredients needed to be crowned as Miss World.

21-year-old Parvathy, who hails from Kottayam in Kerala, narrowly missed out on joining five Indian glamour queens Reita Faria (1966), Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan (1994), Diana Hayden(1997), Yukta Mookhey (1999) and Priyanka Chopra (2000) who had won the title.

Parvathy Omanakuttan was born on 13th July 1987, is 5 ' 8.5" tall and has "vital" measurements of 32-27-36. She is originally from Changanacherry-Kottayam, Kerala and now lives in Mumbai, Her hobbies include: Listening to music, dancing, glass painting, reading, playing basketball and badminton.

At the Grand Finale, Parvathy does a graceful 'namastey' to the crowd that cheers. This is showcasing India and its culture to the world in the best manner possible. As to the reply to the question - "What being in South Africa meant to her ?", she replied confidently that it was like home to her. She drew comparison to the fact the people of South Africa was extremely hospitable like the Indians and also that both the nations have given such respected leaders like Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi who have influenced the lives of millions. Also she added that both the nations shared such a wonderful diverse culture that made them both similar.

Jackie Chan

2008-12-13T09:26:00.000-08:00

Jackie Chan is one of my favorite universal actor. He is blessed with some rare talents to entertain people. Though his films are categorized as action films , they are least violent and more funny.

Jackie Chan was born in Victoria Peak, Hong Kong to Charles and Lee-Lee Chan, on 7 April 1954. He is an actor, action choreographer, film director, producer, martial artist, comedian, screenwriter, entrepreneur, singer and stunt performer from Hong Kong. Chan is one of the best-known names worldwide in the areas of kung fu and action films.

In his films, he is known for his acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, use of improvised weapons and innovative stunts. Jackie Chan has been acting since the 1970s and has appeared in over 100 films. Chan has received stars on the Hong Kong Avenue of Stars and the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

In the early 1970s Chan commenced his movie career and interestingly he appeared in very minor roles in two films starring then rising martial arts superstar Bruce Lee, Jing wu men (1972) aka "Fist of Fury" aka "The Chinese Connection" and the Warner Bros. production Enter the Dragon (1973). Not long after Lee's untimely death, Chan was often cast in films cashing in on the success of Bruce Lee by utilizing words like "fist", "fury" or "dragon" in their US release titles.

Over the next few years, Jackie worked as a stunt man, but when the Hong Kong movie industry began to fail, he was forced to go to Australia to live with his parents. He worked in a restaurant and on a construction site. It was there that he got the name "Jackie." A worker named Jack had trouble pronouncing "Kong-sang" and started calling Jackie "little Jack." That soon became “Jackie” and the name stuck. The construction work was difficult and boring.

His salvation came in the form of a telegram from a man named Willie Chan. Willie Chan worked in the Hong Kong movie industry and was looking for someone to star in a new movie being made by Lo Wei, a famous Hong Kong producer/director. Soon Jackie was on his way back to Hong Kong to star in "New Fist of Fury." It was 1976 and Jackie Chan was 21 years old. To this day Jackie is quick to point out that he owes his success to Willie.

However, the movies that Jackie made for Lo Wei were not very successful. The problem was that Jackie's talents were not being used properly. It was only when Jackie was able to contribute his own ideas that he became a star. He brought humor to martial arts movies; his first success was "Snake in Eagle's Shadow." This was followed by "Drunken Master" and Jackie's first ever directing job, "Fearless Hyena." All were big hits. Jackie was becoming a huge success in Asia.

Unfortunately, it would be many years before the same could be said of his popularity in America. After a series of lukewarm receptions in the U.S., mostly due to miscasting, Jackie left the States and focused his attention on making movies in Hong Kong. It would be 10 years before he returned to make Rumble in the Bronx, the movie that introduced Jackie to American audiences and secured him a place in their hearts and their box office. Rumble was followed by the Rush Hour and Shanghai Noon series which put Jackie on the Hollywood A List.

Jackie's lifelong devotion to fitness has served him well as he continues to do stunt work and action sequences in his films. In recent years, Jackie's focus has shifted and he is trying new genres of film – fantasy, drama, romance – and is spending more and more time on his charity work. He takes his work as Ambassador for UNICEF/UNAIDS very seriously and spends all his spare time working tirelessly for children, the elderly, and those in need.

He continues to make films in Hong Kong, including the blockbuster drama New Police Story in 2004. Jackie has been married to Lin Feng-Jiao since 1982 and has a son, actor-singer Jaycee Chan. To learn more about Jackie you can read his biography, I Am Jackie Chan.

Doyen of the modern cricketing world

2008-11-14T07:16:00.000-08:00

A little after 2 30pm on October 17, the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium in Mohali was engulfed in fireworks as a country of a billion and more people celebrated yet another record by Sachin Tendulkar, arguably the best batsman in the modern era.

When Tendulkar glided a Peter Siddle delivery and ran three runs on the first day of the second Test match between India and Australia in Mohali, he overtook West Indian batting legend Brian Lara to become the highest run scorer in the history of Test matches. As soon as Tendulkar took the third run, the spectators at Mohali stood as one to applaud the ‘Liitle Master’ as the Australian players then took the opportunity to congratulate India’s finest batsman.

Tendulkar had taken quite a while to overtake Lara, and the relief was evident on his face as he looked up to the skies and took a moment to savour the historic feat before he got back to the business of focussing on the match to rescue India after the home team lost three quick wickets before the tea session on the first day. The most interesting aspect of Tendulkar’s innings in Mohali on October 17 was the ease with which he played his shots after getting the record.

Tendulkar, who scored 88 in India’s first innings total of 469 all out at Mohali, also became the first batsman to score 12,000 runs in Test cricket, and also featured in a crucial partnership with Sourav Ganguly which went a long way to help his team reach the total and put pressure on Australia. In fact, it would not be an exaggeration to say that Tendulkar after he got the record to the time he was dismissed took everyone, including himself back in time, as he played some trademark shots with the confidence of old. And, though he was unable to score his 40th Test century, Tendulkar’s form certainly augurs well for India, but is bad news for the Aussies as well as the other international teams.

Tendulkar has now got all the major batting records in international cricket – most runs in Test and one-day cricket as well as the most number of centuries in those two formats of the game. Apart from the number of runs he has scored, Tendulkar has been a colossus in the international cricketing arena as he has optimised his inherent talent to win the respect of not only fans and cricketing experts, but also his peers. It is not easy to shoulder the burden of the expectations of a billion plus people, but Tendulkar has done that admirably more often than not in the last 19 years.

Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar , born April 24, 1973 in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, is an Indian cricketer widely regarded as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket. In 2002, Wisden ranked him the second greatest Test batsman of all time next only to Sir Donald Bradman, and the second greatest one-day international batsman of all time next only to Sir Viv Richards.

September 2007, Shane Warne, the world-record breaking Australian leg spinner, rated Sachin Tendulkar as the greatest player he has played with or against. Sachin Tendulkar was the only player of the current generation to be included in Bradman's Eleven, the dream team of Sir Donald Bradman, published in his biography . He is sometimes referred to as the Little Master or the Master Blaster.

OBAMA The new face of America

2008-11-05T07:35:00.000-08:00

Democrat Barack Hussein Obama has been elected the first African-American president of the United States in a contest that shattered racial barriers.

With polls now closed, the 47-year-old first-term senator from Illinois has captured the key states of Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Colorado and California. Those wins, combined with a slew of other states, have given him 338 electoral votes so far, more than enough to defeat Republican rival John McCain.

Obama is the first African American, to be elected as President of the United States, was also the first African American to be nominated for President by a major U.S. political party. A graduate of Columbia University and Harvard Law School, he became the first African American to serve as president of the Harvard Law Review. Obama worked as a community organizer and practiced as a civil rights attorney before serving three terms in the Illinois Senate from 1997 to 2004.

Barack Obama was born August 4, 1961 in Honolulu, Hawaii, to Barack Hussein Obama Sr. and Ann Dunham. His parents met in 1960 while attending the University of Hawaii at Manoa, where his father was a foreign student. The couple married February 2, 1961; they separated when Obama was two years old and subsequently divorced in 1964.

Obama met his wife, Michelle Robinson, in June 1989 when he was employed as a summer associate at the Chicago law firm of Sidley Austin. Assigned for three months as Obama's adviser at the firm, Robinson joined him at group social functions, but declined his initial offers to date. They began dating later that summer, became engaged in 1991, and were married on October 3, 1992. The couple's first daughter, Malia Ann, was born in 1998, followed by a second daughter, Natasha ("Sasha"), in 2001.

An Elephant's Tale

2008-10-26T23:46:00.000-07:00

Jumbo is undoubtedly the best-known Elephant that ever lived. The giant elephant's name has spawned the common word "jumbo" as meaning large in size. In 1861 he was captured as a baby in Ethiopia. At that time he was only 3 1/2 feet tall.

Jumbo was shipped to Paris where he remained in the Zoological Gardens for three years. He was then transferred to the London Zoological Gardens, and was used for a riding animal, countless numbers of children riding on his back. He became very popular with the boys and girls of England. He was in London seventeen years, growing all the time, until he was so big that P.T. Barnum, American circus man, became interested. He paid $10,000 for the great creature, and brought him to the United States in 1882. As you can imagine, the children of England were filled with sorrow when their friend sailed away. When Barnum had offered to buy Jumbo, 100,000 school children wrote to Queen Victoria begging her not to sell him.

Barnum had paid $10,000 for Jumbo the elephant. He spent another $20,000 for the logistical nightmare of getting his new pet to America. If anyone doubted the showman's brilliance, it was only for a moment: In his first ten days with the circus menagerie, Jumbo brought in $30,000; during the first year, he earned $1.5 million.

In the United States and Canada, Jumbo was placed on exhibition, and he became very famous.The defining moment of Jumbo the elephant's life was his untimely death at the age of 24. On September 15, 1885, as the traveling circus was loading the menagerie onto trains in St. Thomas, Ontario, the tragedy occurred. A portion of the fence that ran along the railyard tracks had been removed, allowing the parading animals to descend a small hill and board the cars. Jumbo and the baby clown elephant, Tom Thumb, were ambling toward their "Palace Car" when an unscheduled express freight train roared toward the entourage. Seeing that Jumbo and Tom Thumb were in danger, Scotty , trainer, scrambled down the adjacent embankment and shouted a warning.

St. Thomas is where Jumbo died. So they put a big statue up to him there. It's big. The statue is in a small roadside park in the town. It's open all the time. There's a big plaque that talks about Jumbo. St. Thomas is just south of London Ontario.

In Barnum's vivid rendering of the tale--told numerous times with equally numerous embellishments--Jumbo sacrificed his own life to save the baby elephant. Jumbo swung around, wrapped his long trunk around Tom Thumb, and hurled him 20 yards away, with a force that cost the calf a broken hind leg, but saved his life. With no hope of his own salvation, Jumbo took the locomotive head on, trumpeting the ensuing onslaught.

Jumbo's skeleton was donated to the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. The elephant's heart was sold to Cornell University. Jumbo's hide was stuffed and traveled with Barnum's circus for a number of years. In 1889, Barnum donated the stuffed Jumbo to Tufts University, where it was displayed until destroyed by a fire in 1975. Jumbo's tail, which survived the fire, is kept in the University archives. The great elephant's ashes are kept in a 14-ounce Peter Pan Crunchy Peanut Butter jar in the office of the Tufts athletic director. A statue of "Jumbo" was purchased from an amusement park and placed on the Tufts campus after the fire, however this statue erroneously depicts an Asian elephant, not an African elephant. In honour of Barnum's donation of the elephant's hide and more than $50,000, Jumbo became the university's mascot, and remains such to this day.

India's Tennis Sensation - Sania Mirza

2008-10-21T08:04:00.000-07:00

Sania Mirza (born November 15, 1986) is an Indian tennis player. Mirza is the highest ranked female tennis player ever from India, with a career high ranking of 27 in singles and 18 in doubles. . She holds the distinction of being the first Indian woman to be seeded in a Grand Slam tennis tournament.

Mirza was born to a sports journalist Imran Mirza and Nasima in Mumbai. She was brought up in Hyderabad. Mirza he began playing tennis at the age of six, turning professional in 2003. She was trained by her father, as well as her other family members and was sponsored by the industrialist GV Krishna Reddy. She went to Nasr school in Hyderabad.

Career

Mirza won the 2003 Wimbledon Championships Girls' Doubles title, teaming up with Alisa Kleybanova of Russia.Earlier in 2005, she had become the first Indian woman to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam tournament at the 2005 U.S. Open, defeating Mashona Washington, Maria Elena Camerin and Marion Bartoli. In 2004, she finished runner up at the Asian Tennis Championship.

In 2005, Mirza reached the third round of the Australian Open, losing to eventual champion Serena Williams. On February 12, 2005, she became the first Indian woman to win a WTA singles title, defeating Alyona Bondarenko of Ukraine in the Hyderabad Open Finals. As of September 2006, Mirza has notched up three top 10 wins; against Svetlana Kuznetsova, Nadia Petrova and Martina Hingis. At the 2006 Doha Asian Games, Mirza won the silver in the women's singles category and the gold in the mixed doubles partnering Leander Paes. She was also part of the Indian women's team that won the silver in the team event.

Mirza had the best results of her career during the 2007 summer hardcourt season, finishing eighth in the 2007 U.S. Open Series standings. She reached the final of the Bank of the West Classic and won the doubles event with Shahar Pe'er, and reached the quarterfinals of the Tier 1 Acura Classic.

At the 2007 U.S. Open, she reached the third round before losing to Anna Chakvetadze for the third time in recent weeks. She fared much better in the doubles, reaching the quarterfinals in mixed with her partner Mahesh Bhupathi and the quarterfinals in the women's doubles with Bethanie Mattek, including an impressive win over number two seeds Lisa Raymond and Samantha Stosur.

She represented India at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, in the women's singles and doubles events.

Success Points

The 5ft. 7in sexy looking Sania Mirza is having a large fan following ind India. She was awarded the Arjuna award in tennis for the year 2004. She has defeated two top 10 players, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Nadia Petrova too. Sania won the Wimbledon Championships Girls' Doubles title in 2003, teaming up with Alisa Kleybanova of Russia.

Through a wild card entry to the 2005 Australian Open and created history by becoming the first Indian woman to enter the third round of a Grand Slam tournament. She lost in the 3rd round to Serena Williams. She became the first Indian woman to win a WTA singles title defeating Alyona Bondarenko of Ukraine in the Hyderabad Open Finals on February 12, 2005.

Sexy Sania Mirza has jumped 13 places to be ranked 53rd in the women's singles international tennis rankings released recently. Sania Mirza, who will open her Australian Open campaign against Ukranian Olva Savchuk, made it to the semi-finals of the recently concluded Moorilla Open International tournament in Hobart.

En route to her semi-final, where she lost to Russian Anna Chakvetadze, she defeated world no. 29 Maria Kirilenko of Russia, Romina Oprandi of Italy and her doubles partner Alicia Molik of Australia.The semi-final appearance helped Sania garner 431 points to once again get closer to the top-50 on the ranking ladder.

Sania Mirza Included in Top Ten Beauties

Chineese official Xinhua News Agency has included Sania Mirza among the world's all -time Top Tennis Beauties. She is 10th in the list by Xinhua News Agency. Other famous players were Maria Sharapova and former tennis player Gabriela Sabatini. Sania Mirza, currently ranked 66 in the world, was shown wearing a traditional Indian dress as well as donning a skimpy tennis attire. This photo is shot during a Grand Slam Championship.

The Top Ten list is as follows:

Gabriela Sabatini,
Chris Evert,
Steffi Graf,
Anna Kournikova,
Martina Hingis,
Daniela Hantuchova,
Mary Pierce,
Maria Sharapova,
Justine Henin-Hardenne
and Sania Mirza.

Michael Phelps

2008-08-22T23:51:00.000-07:00

Michael Fred Phelps, born June 30, 1985, is an American swimmer. He is a 14-time Olympic gold medalist and he currently holds seven world records in swimming. Phelps holds the record for the most gold medals won at a single Olympics with the eight golds he won at the 2008 Olympic Games. With this record, he surpassed Mark Spitz, who was also a swimmer and had held the previous gold medal total with the seven that he won at the 1972 Olympic Games.

Overall, Phelps has won 16 Olympic medals: six gold and two bronze at Athens in 2004, and eight gold at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Out of his eight gold medals from Beijing, five were won in individual events, tying the record for individual gold medals at a single Games originally set by Eric Heiden in the 1980 Winter Olympics and equaled by Vitaly Scherbo at the 1992 Summer Games. Phelps ranks second in total career Olympic medals, after Soviet gymnast Larissa Latynina, who won a total of 18 medals (nine gold) spanning three Olympic Games.

Physique and lifestyle

Five physical attributes particularly suit Phelps to swimming: his long, thin torso (low drag in the water), arms which span 6 feet 7 inches (201 cm) (long, powerful, propulsive "paddles") disproportionate to his height of 6 feet 4 inches (193 cm), relatively short legs (lower drag, and perhaps the speed enhancement of a hydrofoil), coupled to size 14 feet (providing the effect of flippers) by hypermobile ankles he can extend beyond the pointe of a ballet dancer, enabling him to whip his feet (as if they were fins, for maximum thrust through [if not over] the water).

In a front page illustrated article profiling Phelps on the eve of the 2008 Summer Olympics, The Baltimore Sun described the hometown swimmer as "a solitary man" with a "rigid focus" at the pool prior to a race, but afterwards "a man incredibly invested in the success of the people he cares about". Bowman told a Sun interviewer, "He's unbelievably kind-hearted", recounting Phelps's interaction with young children after practices.

According to an article in The Guardian, Phelps eats around 12,000 kcal each day, or about five times more than the average adult male.
Throughout the 2008 Olympics, Phelps was questioned by the press if perhaps his feats were "too good to be true", a reference to unsupported rumors that Phelps may be taking performance enhancing drugs. In response, Phelps noted that he had signed up for Project Believe, a project by the United States Anti-Doping Agency in which U.S. Olympians can volunteer to be tested in excess of the World Anti-Doping Agency guidelines.

Ever Individual Gold Medal !!!!!!!

2008-08-11T06:26:00.000-07:00

Abhinav Bindra gave India its first gold medal at the Beijing Olympics when he won the 10 metres air rifle event on Monday morning. The 25-year-old Indian shooting ace, who qualified in fourth place for the final, finished with an overall score of (596+104.5) 700.5 in a thrilling finale which went right down to the last shot.

Bindra's historic feat makes him India's first individual gold medallist, bettering the silver medal feat of double trap shooter Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore in Athens 2004. India's last gold medal at an Olympics came in 1980 when the hockey team emerged triumphant in Moscow. This is the first ever gold medal for India in the history Olympics.

Abhinav Bindra comes from an affluent Sikh family, belonging to the Punjabi Khatri clan. His parents are Dr A S Bindra and Babli Bindra. He studied at the Doon School, Dehradun till 10th standard and then left for St. Stephens school, Chandigarh to pursue shooting. Abhinav Bindra potential talent was first spotted by his first coach Lt. Col. J.S. Dhillon. Abhinav Bindra was the youngest Indian participant at the 2000 Olympic Games. He scored 590 placing him 11th in the qualification round, and did not qualify for the finals (only the top 8 compete in the finals).

John Paul II

2008-07-19T07:34:00.000-07:00

John Paul II ( Karol Józef Wojtyła) reigned as the 264th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church and Sovereign of the State of the Vatican City from 16 October 1978, until his death, almost 27 years later. His was the second-longest pontificate after Pius IX's 32-year reign. He has been the only Polish pope, and was the first non-Italian pope since the Dutch Adrian VI in the 1520s.

John Paul II was Pope during a period in which the Catholic Church's influence declined in developed countries but expanded in the Third World. During his reign, the pope traveled extensively, visiting over 100 countries, more than any of his predecessors. He remains one of the most-traveled world leaders in history. He was fluent in numerous languages: his native Polish and also Italian, French, German, English, Spanish, Croatian, Portuguese, Russian and Latin. As part of his special emphasis on the universal call to holiness, he canonized a great number of people.

He beatified 1,340 people , more people than any previous pope. The Vatican asserts he canonized more people than the combined tally of his predecessors during the last five centuries, and from a far greater variety of cultures. Whether he had canonized more saints than all previous popes put together, as is sometimes also claimed, is difficult to prove, as the records of many early canonizations are incomplete, missing, or inaccurate. However, it is known that his abolition of the office of Promotor Fidei ("Promoter of the Faith") streamlined the process.

Karol Józef Wojtyła was born on 18 May 1920 in the Polish town of Wadowice and was the youngest of three children of Karol Wojtyła and Emilia Kaczorowska. His mother died on April 13, 1929, when he was just nine years old, and his father supported him so that he could study. His brother, who worked as a doctor, died when Wojtyła was twelve. He lost everyone in his family - a sister, brother, mother, and father - before he became a priest. His youth was marked by extensive contacts with the then thriving Jewish community of Wadowice. He played sports during his youth, and was particularly interested in football (soccer) as a goalkeeper.

In 1942 he entered the underground seminary run by the Archbishop of Kraków, Cardinal Adam Stefan Sapieha. Karol Wojtyła was ordained a priest on 1 November 1946, by Cardinal Sapieha. Not long after, he was sent to study theology at the Pontifical Athenaeum of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome, Italy, commonly known as the Angelicum, where he earned a licentiate and later a doctorate in sacred theology. This doctorate, the first of two, was based on the Latin dissertation Doctrina de fide apud S. Ioannem a Cruce (The Doctrine of Faith According to Saint John of the Cross). Even though his doctoral work was unanimously approved in June 1948, he was denied the degree because he could not afford to print the text of his dissertation (an Angelicum rule). In December of that year, a revised text of his dissertation was approved by the theological faculty of Jagiellonian University in Kraków, and Wojtyła was finally awarded the degree.

On 4 July 1958 Pope Pius XII named him titular bishop of Ombi and auxiliary to Archbishop Baziak, apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of Kraków. He was consecrated to the Episcopate by Arcbishop Baziak on September 28, 1958. At 38 Karol Wojtyła was the youngest bishop in Poland. Pope John Paul II recounts in his book Rise, Let us be on our Way how he entered a room a full of priests, after news had been received of his appointment as auxiliary Bishop, when Archbishop Baziak called out "Habemus papam" ("We have a Pope"). Baziak died in June 1962 and on July 16 Karol Wojtyła was elected as Vicar Capitular, or temporary administrator, of the Archdiocese until an Archbishop could be appointed.

In August 1978 following Paul's death, he voted in the Papal conclave that elected Pope John Paul I, who at 65 was considered young by papal standards. However, John Paul I was in poor health and he died after only 33 days as pope, thereby precipitating another conclave.

Voting in the second conclave was divided between two particularly strong candidates: Giuseppe Siri, the Archbishop of Genoa; and Giovanni Benelli, the Archbishop of Florence and a close associate of Pope John Paul I. In early ballots, Benelli came within nine votes of victory. However, Wojtyła secured election as a compromise candidate, in part through the support of Franz Cardinal König and others who had previously supported Cardinal Siri.

He became the 264th Pope according to the chronological List of popes. At only 58 years of age, he was the youngest pope elected since Pope Pius IX in 1846. Like his immediate predecessor, Pope John Paul II dispensed with the traditional Papal coronation and instead received ecclesiastical investiture with the simplified Papal inauguration on 22 October 1978. During his inauguration, when the cardinals were to kneel before him to take their vows and kiss his ring, he stood up as the Polish prelate Stefan Cardinal Wyszynski knelt down, stopped him from kissing the ring and hugged him (SABC2 "The Greatest souls" documentary 2005). As Bishop of Rome he took possession of his Cathedral Church, the Basilica of St. John Lateran, on 12 November 1978.

Dhirubhai Ambani

2008-06-19T10:34:00.000-07:00

Dhirajlal Hirachand Ambani was an Indian rags-to-riches business tycoon who founded Reliance Industries in Mumbai with his cousin. Many people consider Ambani's phenomenal rise to be an example of crony capitalism and the result of proximity to the ruling politicians because it was achieved through preferential treatment given to him in a highly repressive business environment. Ambani took his company (Reliance) public in 1977, and by 2007 the combined fortune of the family (sons Anil & Mukesh) was 100 billion dollars, making the Ambanis one of the richest families in the world.

Dhirubhai Ambani was born on 28 December 1932, at Chorwad, Junagadh (now the state of Gujarat, India) to Hirachand Gordhanbhai Ambani and Jamnaben in a Modh Bania family of very moderate means. Although he was born in Gujarat, he is of Sindhi descent, which is a socio-ethnic group that belonged to Sindh, a former area of Northwest India that now belongs to Pakistan after the Partition. He was the second son of a school teacher. Dhirubhai Ambani is said to have started his entrepreneurial career by selling "pakora" to pilgrims in Mount Girnar over the weekends. When he was 16 years old, he moved to Aden, Yemen. He worked with A. Besse & Co. for a salary of Rs.300. Two years later, A. Besse & Co. became the distributors for Shell products, and Dhirubhai was promoted to manage the company’s filling station at the port of Aden.

He was married to Kokilaben and had two sons, Mukesh Ambani and Anil Ambani and two daughters, Nina Kothari and Deepti Salgaocar

In 1962, Dhirubhai returned to India and started the Reliance Commercial Corporation with a capital of Rs.15,000.00. The primary business of Reliance Commercial Corporation was to import polyester yarn and export spices.

The business was setup in partnership with Champaklal Damani, his second cousin, who used to be with him in Aden, Yemen. The first office of the Reliance Commercial Corporation was set up at the Narsinathan Street in Masjid Bunder. It was a 350 sq ft. room with a telephone, one table and three chairs. Initially, they had two assistants to help them with their business. In 1965, Champaklal Damani and Dhirubhai Ambani ended their partnership and Dhirubhai started on his own. It is believed that both had different temperaments and a different take on how to conduct business. While Mr. Damani was a cautious trader and did not believe in building yarn inventories, Dhirubhai was a known risk taker and he considered that building inventories, anticipating a price rise, and making profits thnd Estate in Bhuleshwar, Mumbai. In 1968, he moved to an upmarket apartment at Altamount Road in South Mumbai. Ambani's net worth was estimated at about Rs.1 million by late 1960s.

Sensing a good opportunity in the textile business, Dhirubhai started his first textile mill at Naroda, in Ahmedabad in the year 1966. Textiles were manufactured using polyester fibre yarn. Dhirubhai started the brand "Vimal", which was named after his elder brother Ramaniklal Ambani's son, Vimal Ambani. Extensive marketing of the brand "Vimal" in the interiors of India made it a household name. Franchise retail outlets were started and they used to sell "only Vimal" brand of textiles. In the year 1975, a Technical team from the World Bank visited the Reliance Textiles' Manufacturing unit. This unit has the rare distinction of being certified as "excellent even by developed country standards" during that period.

ABDUL KALAM

2008-06-09T08:27:00.000-07:00

Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam (Abul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam) , was the eleventh President of India, serving from 2002 to 2007. Due to his unconventional working style, he is also popularly known as the People's President. Before his term as India's president, he distinguished himself as engineering visionary and was awarded India's highest civilian honour Bharat Ratna in 1997 for his work with DRDO and his role as scientific advisor to the Indian government. He is popularly known as the Missile Man of India for his work and is considered a progressive mentor, innovator and visionary in India.

APJ Abdul Kalam was born in 1931 in a middle-class family in Rameshwaram, Tamil Nadu, a town well-known for its Hindu shrines. His mother tongue is Tamil. His father, a devout Muslim, owned boats which he rented out to local fishermen and was a good friend of Hindu religious leaders and the school teachers at Rameshwaram. Kalam grew up in an intimate relationship with nature, and he says in Wings of Fire that he never could imagine that water could be so powerful a destroying force as that he witnessed when he was six. That was in 1934 when a cyclonic storm swept away the Pamban bridge and a trainload of passengers with it and also Kalam's native village, Dhanushkodi.

Kalam observes strict personal discipline, vegetarianism, teetotalism and celibacy. He is a lover of natural beauty. Kalam is a scholar of Thirukkural; in most of his speeches, he quotes at least one kural. Kalam has written several inspirational books, most notably his autobiography Wings of Fire, aimed at motivating Indian youth.

Kalam's probable views on certain issues have been espoused by him in his book India 2020 where he strongly advocates an action plan to develop India into a knowledge superpower and into a developed nation by the year 2020. Kalam is credited with the view that India ought to take a more assertive stance in international relations; he regards his work on India's nuclear weapons program as a way to assert India's place as a future superpower.

Kalam continues to take an active interest in other developments in the field of science and technology as well. He has proposed a research programme for developing bio-implants. He is a supporter of Open source software over proprietary solutions and believes that the use of open source software on a large scale will bring more people the benefits of information technology.

Success Stories - Abraham Lincoln

2008-05-21T09:15:00.000-07:00

Abraham Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, to Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Hanks, two uneducated farmers. When Lincoln was nine, his mother, then thirty-four years old, died of milk sickness. Soon afterwards, his father remarried to Sarah Bush Johnston. Lincoln was affectionate toward his stepmother, whom he would call "Mother" for the rest of his life, but he was distant from his father. Lincoln's formal education consisted of about 18 months of schooling, but he was largely self-educated and an avid reader. He was also a talented local wrestler and skilled with an axe. Lincoln avoided hunting and fishing because he did not like killing animals, even for food. He was unusually tall, as well as strong. Lincoln began his political career in 1832, at age 23, with an unsuccessful campaign for the Illinois General Assembly, as a member of the Whig Party. In 1834, he won election to the state legislature, and, after coming across the Commentaries on the Laws of England, began to teach himself law. Admitted to the bar in 1837, he moved to Springfield, Illinois, that same year and began to practice law with John T. Stuart. With a reputation as a formidable adversary during cross-examinations and in his closing arguments, Lincoln became one of the most respected and successful lawyers in Illinois and grew steadily more prosperous. On November 4, 1842 Lincoln married Mary Todd, daughter of a prominent slave-owning family from Kentucky. The couple had four sons. Robert Todd Lincoln was born in Springfield, Illinois on 1 August 1843. Their only child to survive into adulthood, young Robert attended Phillips Exeter Academy and Harvard College. A Whig and an admirer of party leader Henry Clay, Lincoln was elected to a term in the U.S. House of Representatives in 1846. On November 6, 1860, Lincoln was elected as the 16th President of the United States, beating Democrat Stephen A. Douglas, John C. Breckinridge of the Southern Democrats, and John Bell of the new Constitutional Union Party. He was the first Republican president, winning entirely on the strength of his support in the North: he was not even on the ballot in nine states in the South, and won only 2 of 996 counties in the other Southern states.

IGNOU

2008-05-07T08:20:00.000-07:00

The Indira Gandhi National Open University was established by an Act of Parliament in 1985. Today it serves the educational aspirations of about 1.5 million students in India and 35 countries abroad through 11 Schools of Studies and an elaborate network of 58 regional centres , 7 sub- regional centres , 1400 study centres, and 41 overseas centres. The University is making all efforts to take higher education to the doorsteps of the hitherto unreached. As of now, we cater to about 10% of all students enrolled in higher education in the country are enrolled with IGNOU.

Apart from teaching and research, extension and training form the mainstay of its academic activities. It also acts as a national resource centre; and more importantly, functions as an apex body to promote and maintain standards of distance education. The University has its presence in 35 countries. The Commonwealth of Learning has recognised it as one of its centres of excellence. It also has the unique privilege of hosting the Secretariats of SAARC Consortium of Open Distance Learning (SACODiL) approved by Heads of Govts. of SAARC Nations and Global Mega Universities Network (GMUNET) initially promoted by UNESCO.The vision statement of the university reads as:

Indira Gandhi National Open University, the National Resource Centre for Open and Distance Learning with international recognition and presence, shall provide seamless access to sustainable and learner-centric quality education, skill upgradation and training to all by using innovative technologies and methodologies and ensuring convergence of existing systems for massive human resource required for promoting integrated national development and global understanding.

In order to fulfil the vision of democratising higher education and providing access to all segments of people, the University

* imparts education and knowledge through various flexible means suited to the open and distance education mode, including information and communication technologies;

* provides higher education and training to large sections of population, particularly the disadvantaged segments of the society;

* promotes national integration and the integrated development of human personality;

* encourages, co-ordinates and assists open universities and distance learning systems to improve standards in such systems.

Admissions to various programmes of the University are open as per the academic calendar. These announcements are widely published through national and regional media. Forms are available at Regional Centres.

* For Management Programmes admission announcements are issued twice a year March/April and September/October. Entrance Tests are held twice a year on the first Sunday of February and on the first Sunday of August.
* For BA (Bachelor of Arts), B.Com(Bachelor of Commerce), B.Sc(Bachelor of Science), BCA (Bachelor of Computer Applications), BTS(Bachelor of Tourism Studies), MA(English), MA(Hindi) admission announcements are issued in May/June session for July session
* Admission to Bachelor of Education(B.Ed) Bachelor of Information Technology(BIT) Advanced Diploma in Information Technology(ADIT) programmes are available through a national entrance test, which is conducted on the first Sunday of August. Advertisement inviting applications for the entrance test is usually issued in April/May
* For Commonwealth Executive Master of Business Adminstration(CEMBA) and Commonwealth Executive Master of Public Administration(CEMPA) the advertisements are issued in April and October every year for the entrance tests to be held in May and November for July and January Session respectively.
* For Bachelor's Preparatory Programme and all Certificate Programmes (Except Certificate in Rural Surgery(CRS) and Certificate in Teaching of Primary School Mathematics(CTPM) there is walk-in-admissions throughout the year. Application forms submitted between 01 June and 30 November will be considered for January session while applications received between 01 December and 31 May will be considered for July session.
* For Doctoral programmes, application forms submitted between 01 April and 30 September are considered for January session while applications received between 01 October and 31 March are considered for July session
* For all other programmes admission announcements are issued in May/June and the last date for submission of filled-in application forms is 15 September. The academic session starts from 01 January.

Kerala Kalamandalam

2008-04-23T08:59:00.000-07:00

Kerala Kalamandalam is a major center for learning Indian Performing Arts especially those that developed in the Indian state of Kerala. It is situated in the village of Cheruthuruthy in Thrissur district near the banks of Bharathapuzha River.

It was founded in 1930 by late poet Vallathol Narayana Menon and Manakkulam Mukunda Raja. Kalamandalam imparts training in classical dance and theatre formsKathakali, Mohiniyattam, Kudiyattam, Thullal,Kuchipudi,Bharatanatyam,Nangiar Koothu, and traditional orchestraPanchavadyam.Training is also given in various percussion instruments like Chenda,Maddalam,and Mizhavu. Kalamandalam follows the Gurukula system of education, the ancient Indian education system.

In the turn of the century, it was the whims and fancies of feudal chieftains and temple committees that controlled ancient art forms like Koodiyattam and Kathakali. Mohiniyattam, the graceful dance , had fallen into disrepute.From the modest contributions of an art loving public and money collected through lotteries, Kerala Kalamandalam was born in November 1930, in Kunnamkulam and later shifted to a village called Cheruthuruthy, nestled on the banks of the Nila, the cradle of Keralan culture.

Kalamandalam was conceived in the Gurukula Sampradaya, an ancient tradition of residential schooling where students stayed with the teachers, sharing the same atmosphere and learning from them the nuances of the great arts. Eminent masters were brought to Kalamandalam. Training sessions, which started in the morning, extended till late in the night.

The changes brought by Kalamandalam in Kerala’s social and cultural ethos is indeed noteworthy. It sought to democratize high art in a caste ridden society, where the practice of classical arts was the privilege of only the so called upper castes.

In the first half of this century the 2000 years old ancient art form of Kootiyattom was relegated to Koothambalams in a few great temples. From a stifling environment of caste restrictions, Koothambalam today has been revitalized and accessible to all. Today UNESCO has honored Kootiyattom as being part of a living World Heritage.

Admission

In April-May every year Kalamandalam notifies in the leading Malayalam newspapers details of admission to students in the various courses offered here. Every year we receive hundreds of applications from young aspirants for admission to different courses. We have constituted an Interview Board consisting of experts in each art- discipline and members of the Governing Council. Eligible applicants will be requested to appear for an interview at Kalamandalam by the end of May. The Board will judge the aptitude of each applicant and would consider previous training if any he / she has in the art-discipline concerned. Applicants belonging to families practising traditional arts my possibly get preference. For areas of acting/dancing, sense of rhythm, physical appearance and histrionic taste are the criteria for selection. For vocalists and percussionists, sense of rhythm, voice-culture and previous training are the most desirable qualities for selection. Students admitted to various courses have to join the A.H.S.L.C. (Art High School Leaving Certificate Course). The upper-age limit for admission is thirteen. Each student is allowed to choose only one art-discipline for intensive training. Together with theoretical and practical training in the performing art concerned he / she has to learn scholastic subjects in the school. Those who pass the three-year A.H.S.L.C. Course can join the Plus Two Course and then for the B.A. Degree in Performing Arts. Kalamandalam introduced High School education for its students in 1990. The new system harmonized academic-study and training in performing arts. Till then all the students who joined for regular courses were awarded Diploma and Post – Diploma. In the present setup, the Diploma Course is retained to enable talented aspirants undergo training in various art- subjects.

Courses Offered

KATHAKALI VESHAM- REGULAR KALARI KATHAKALI VESHAM- THEKKAN KALARI (South School) KATHAKALI MUSIC-REGULAR KALARI KATHAKALI MUSIC- THEKKAN KALARI KATHAKALI CHENDA- REGULAR KALARI KATHAKALI CHENDA - THEKKAN KALARI KATHAKALI MADDALAM KATHAKALI CHUTTY - REGULAR KALARI KATHAKALI CHUTTY - THEKKAN KALARI MOHINIYATTAM KUTIYATTAM

Contact:

Kerala Kalamandalam Deemed University for Art and Culture Cheruthuruthy – 679 531 via Thrissur, Kerala, India Telephone: 91+ 4884 262418, 262526, Fax: 91- 4884 - 262019

www.kalamandalam.org
Email: info@kalamandalam.org

JAWAHARLAL NEHRU UNIVERSITY

2008-04-11T06:56:00.000-07:00

It's my pleasure to write about Jawaharlal Nehru University, widely known as JNU. I hope this article may help those who are in search of excellent Asian universities for higher studies and research.

JNU is located in the southern part of New Delhi, Capital of India. and is well connected by road from the three main Railway Stations, i.e. New delhi and Delhi and Nizammudin railway station as well as the Inter-state Bus Terminus of Delhi. It is also a short distance away from the Indira Gandhi International Airport. In short JNU is easily accessible from anywhere in the world.

The very Nehruvian objectives embedded in the founding of the University, national integration, social justice, secularism, the democratic way of life, international understanding and scientific approach to the problems of society had built into it constant and energetic endeavour to renew knowledge through self-questioning.

The excellent teacher-student ratio at 1:10,Several Centres in these Schools have been declared by the UGC to be Centres of 'Excellence'. These are Centre for Historical Studies, Centre for the Study of Social Systems, Centre for Political Studies, Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, Centre for the Study of Regional Development, all in the School of Social Sciences. In addition three Science Schools--School of Physical Sciences, School of Life Sciences and School of Environmental Sciences have also received the UGC recognition as Centers for Excellence.

Leading Faculties in JNU

The University includes the following Schools of inter-disciplinary research and teaching besides some Special Centres of Study:

1.School of International Studies

2.School of Language, Literature and Culture Studies

3.School of Social Sciences

4.School of Arts and Aesthetics

5.School of Life Sciences

6.School of Environmental Sciences

7.School of Computer and Systems Sciences

8.School of Physical Sciences

9.School of Information Technology

10.School of Biotechnology

11.Centre for Molecular Medicine

12.Centre for Sanskrit Studies

13.Centre for the Study of Law and Governance

The Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) attracts students from all over the country and abroad, and from diverse strata of society. JNU has come to be deemed the best University in the nation today and is among the better- known Universities of the world. In the academic year 2001-2002, JNU had 186 foreign students from 34 countries from all over the world, a fair chunk of them coming from South- East Asia, Central Asia, Africa, Europe and the USA. Also, it conducted Language and Culture classes free of charge for JNU students, which included Thai Boxing, Japanese, German, English and Hindi classes conducted by FSA members and Indian students. A Delhi sight-seeing tour was organised as well as a trip to Agra.

Financial Aid

JNU Facilitates their students with different Financial Aid Programs

Scholarships

A limited number of Merit-cum-means scholarships are available for the deserving and meritorious students whose parent's/guardian's monthly income does not exceed Rs. 25,000/- per annum or as may be laid down from time to time in case of students of the IVth year of the 5-year Integrated M.A. programme/2-year M.A./M.Sc. Programmes.The value of these scholarships is Rs. 300/- p.m. for resident students and Rs. 120/- p.m. for non-resident students. The payment of scholarships will be governed by the rules in force in the University from time to time.

Note : The term 'income' shall mean Basic pay, DA, CCA, all allowances, honorarium, bonus, special pay etc.(excluding HRA) after allowing standard deduction in the case of salaried persons and entire gross income in the case of non-salaried class without any standard deduction.

A limited number of Ford Foundation Scholarships of the value of Rs. 500/- per month are available for students of the M.A. Programme of the School of International Studies. The Scholarships will be awarded purely on merit subject to the provison that at least half of them will go to female students.

Admission Procedure

Every year foreign students are admitted to various programmes of study under the following categories

(a) Self-financing Students

(b) Under the Cultural Exchange Fellowship Programme of Govt. of India.

(c) As Casual Scholars to audit the courses (not leading to award of any degree)

Foreign students seeking admission in any of the categories under (a) and (b) above will have to satisfy the minimum eligibility criteria for admission to the various programmes of study as prescribed by the University.

All foreign students who are in India are required to appear in the Entrance Examination which will be conducted by the University in the third week of May every year at various Centres all over the country.

Tution Fee

Foreign students admitted to various programmes of study including casual students are required to pay fees and incidental charges as per following rates in US Dollars or in Indian currency as per prevalent exchange rates :

1. Tuition Fee and Other Fees per Semester for courses in Science Disciplines US$ 750

2. Tuition Fee and other Fees per Semester for courses in Humanities & Social Sciences US$ 500

3. Incidental charges per semester US $ 100

Semester fee from foreign nationals is accepted either in foreign currency i.e. in US$ or in equivalent Indian rupees. The exchange rate for accepting fees from foreign nationals has been accepted as the buying rate prevalent on the first day or registration in each semester. The Finance Branch of the University notifies the rate of conversion of the US$ into Indian rupees applicable for each semester. Refunds, if any, will be in Indian Currency. However, the decision of the University in the matter will be final.

Time Table For Admission

1. Last date of receipt of completed Application Form 1st April

2. Deadline for registration of candidates selected for admission to various programmes 14th August

Semesters and Vacations

1. Monsoon Semester : 22nd July to 5th December

2. Winter Semester : 6th January to 12th May

3. Winter Break : 6th December to 5th January

4. Summer Vacation : 13th May to 21st July

Hostel Facilities

JNU which is basically a residential University, endeavours to provide residence to almost all outstation students. There are 16 hostels which can accommodate about 4600 students.

The messes in the hostels are highly subsidised as students do not have to pay for the services of cooks, helpers, sanitation and other staff that have been provided to the hostels. The provision of three meals in each hostel is on "no profit no loss" basis. The actual running of the mess is controlled by the mess committee elected by the students themselves.

Hostels charges are nominal. Each hostel is provided with indoor and outdoor facilities for games and sports. Recreation facilities like T.V. sets and some musical instruments are also provided.

Private housing facility is available around JNU Campus. However, the University does not provide any specific information or suggestion regarding private accommodation.

There is also a Foreign Students' Association in the University under the general supervision of a Foreign Students' Advisor.

The University hostel system includes 10 Hostels for Boys and Girls and one complex accommodating married students and one complex is coming up shortly for post Doctoral Fellows. These are spacious, well furnished hostels. Apart from hygienic foods, hostels provides recreational facilities includes TVs, indoor games, health Club, and PCOs etc. Each hostel has its live-in wardens, a member of faculty who administers the hostels.

Important Telephone Numbers

1. Foreign Students Advisor - 26704215

2. Dean of Students - 26742523

3. Director of Admissions - 26704054

4. Dy. Registrar (Admissions) - 26742617

5. Public Relations Officer - 26704046

Prof. Sushama jain is the advisor of the Foreign Students' Affairs. Contact advisor_fsa@mail.jnu.ac.in for queries.

For more inquiries, contact dr_admissions@mail.jnu.ac.in

Photography

2008-03-26T06:21:00.000-07:00

Photography is a unique and creative medium of self-expression. It is an art form requiring aesthetic sense as well as technical expertise. A hobby that can be made profitable by going professional by the talented.
The word "photography" comes from the French photographie which is based on the Greek words phos ("light"), and graphis ("stylus", "paintbrush") or graphê ("representation by means of lines" or "drawing"), together meaning "drawing with light." Traditionally, the product of photography has been called a photograph, commonly shortened to photo. With the explosion of the communication network, the growth of advertising and media and the fashion boom, and digital photography, it has now become a profession with great commercial value. Photos are an essential part in both print and electronic media. So this is an area offering great scope for those who have an interest and attributes needed to be a professional. Being a creative medium, photography requires more of inherent talent for success than formal training. However training hones the inherent skills and help to shine in this competitive field with various specializations like portraiture, fashion and advertising photography, journalistic photography, wildlife and outdoors photography etc. Creating a commercial quality photograph requires the skill for choosing and presenting a subject in a way to achieve the maximum effect with the appropriate equipment. One should have a definite know how of the angle, lighting and the latest equipments and technology to make a name in the field.

Eligibility :

There are no specific academic requirements for full time courses in photography, however, candidates who have cleared the 10+2 exam are eligible for the diploma/certificate courses in photography.

Job Prospects & Career Options:

Job Prospects

One of the most exciting aspects of photography is the variety of jobs available in the field, ranging from highly specialized, technical work to jobs that require creativity and Visual literacy. One can begin your career as an assistant of a senior or professional photographer, so that he/she can grasp the finer points of photography. Photographers can specialize in areas such as portrait, commercial and industrial, advertising, scientific, fashion, news, wildlife photography etc. They have the option to either take up jobs with news papers, magazines, advertising agencies, government agencies, industrial houses or work as free lancers. The government employs photographers on a regular pay scale to do general photography documentation, for covering day-to-day events and functions and for making photo features and captioning. Fashion photographers can find employment with fashion houses, designers, fashion journals and news papers.

Career Options

Press photographers are also known as photojournalists. Press photographers supply pictures to the national and local press, and must be versatile with an ability to photograph all kinds of subjects. They must have journalistic instincts, know what makes a good news picture, be able to write accurate captions, work well with reporters, be quick and often work under difficult conditions.

Feature photography essentially involves telling a story in pictures and therefore requires knowledge of the subject. Feature Photographers cover an entire theme or subject with a set of photographs. The work is varied, and leads to assignments at any time and in any place-photographing people at home, or life in foreign parts, or schools at work, anything that makes a story. Photographers specialise in the photography of wildlife, sports travel, environment etc. They may work with news reporters or work as free-lancers and take independent assignments on environment, wild life etc.

Editorial Photographers work normally for magazines and periodicals, nearly always as freelancers. The main task of an editorial photographer is to pictorially illustrate what is written in the article or report. Work can be varied, depending on the article or report, which needs illustration.

Commercial/ Industrial photographer takes pictures of merchandise, exteriors and interiors of factories, and machinery both indoors and outdoors to be used for company brochures, annual reports, and in advertising and selling. An industrial photographer's main emphasis is on taking pictures for a single company or firm. The main intention is to make the company's factory, machines or products look good.

Portrait / wedding photographers: They take pictures of individuals or small groups. Portrait subjects like pets, children, families, weddings, functions and activities of sports and social clubs. However, there is an increasing demand for portraits in the home, garden or workplace, especially in the case of children's portraits. Portrait photographers may work for a studio or be self-employed.

Advertising photographs are either taken by the photographic departments of advertising agencies, by photographic studios, or by freelance photographers. A large number of photographers do catalogue work, while some studios specialize in 'mail order' photography. This is the best paid and most competitive branch; success in this sphere depends entirely on ability, efficiency and the right personality. Advertising photographers are usually provided with instructions as to what exactly has to be photographed. However they are also expected to suggest their own ideas for new angles.

Fashion photography as a career developed recently in India. It is an extremely creative and well paid profession. Most fashion photography is done by specialist studios or freelancers who are commissioned by fashion houses or advertising agencies. They usually work under the direction of a fashion expert. The bulk of fashion photography is carried out in either Mumbai or Delhi and involves by highly sophisticated and well-equipped studios by freelancers who are commissioned by fashion houses of advertising agencies. They can also find employment with fashion houses, designers, fashion journals and news papers.

Fine arts photographers sell their photographs as fine artwork. In addition to technical proficiency, fine arts photographers need artistic talent and creativity.

Digital photography involves the use of a digital camera. The images are captured on a disk, floppy or directly on to the computer. In conventional methods of photography the images were captured on film which had to be processed and then scanned with the help of a scanner onto the computer for any further changes or effects that the image may need. Digital photography saves time and money that goes into scanning images. Digital photography is used largely in the media, as digital images can be stored easily and conveyed quickly over long distances.

Nature and Wildlife Photography involves taking photographs of animals, birds, plants and landscapes. While photos of rare species are in great demand, nature photographs are also widely used as pictures for calendars or covers. Romantic sunsets, flowers, trees, lakes and waterfalls, etc, all make interesting subjects for a nature photographer.

Forensic Photography : A crime scene must be photographed from every angle clearly to show detail, with the emphasis on accurately recording the size and distance of objects. They can find employment with law enforcement agencies, police, legal system and in the investigative services of the government and also private detective agencies.

Freelancing has been the most popular career choice among photographers. Photographers who want to be self-employed need to have business management skills. They must have good communication, problem solving skills, and be able to work independently. They can do freelancing in any of the above fields.

Remuneration :

Photographers can start working as assistants to senior photographers, in which capacity they are paid around Rs. 3,500 - 6,000. Yourearnings can go up to 25,000, depending upon the designation and the organisation likewise and maybe more once you have established yourself as a freelancer.