Naperville IL: Directed by Supna Chaudhari Jain, Avegh dance troupe presented “The Making Of A Bahu”, a journey of loss and recovery of identity on September 9 and 10. Aavegh took the more than 300 people in the audience on a journey familiar to many Indian women: growing up to be educated and independent and suddenly transitioning to the submissive role of daughter-in-law once married.

The show was an effort to explore issues like the expected role of daughters-in-law and its consequences, as well as the role of society and women in  perpetuating these expectations and what could be done to change the dialogue.

The dances depicted various phases of a woman’s journey from being a little girl to a daughter-in-law, a wife and a mother.  Each segment was complemented with original artwork and quotes from Indian women interviewed as part of research conducted by Jain, the artistic director who is the Instructor of Communication at North Central College, and Mara K. Berkland, professor of communication at North Central College. Their research is entitled “Making of the Hollow Bahu: The Web of Influence on Bahu Disempowerment.”

The dance program was followed by an invigorating and sometimes passionate exchange of dialogue between the researchers and the audience who expressed their thoughts and impressions on the dances, artwork, and research and on what can be done to change the dialogue.

“The concept of marriage as presented in Bollywood movies and soap operas versus the real-life marriage differ in many ways both good and bad,” said one of the attendees, adding, “While it’s easy to think it’s no longer the case, the status quo towards women today is still flawed.”

Proceeds from this production will be donated to Aavegh’s local nonprofit partner Bridge Communities. The mission of Bridge Communities is to transition homeless families to self-sufficiency by working with partners to provide mentoring, housing, and supportive services. The adopted families are usually homeless mothers and their children who have been victims of domestic violence or poverty.

Aavegh has been helping local and worldwide nonprofits since 2005, according to the organization.

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Talking to reporters on the tarmac of a New Jersey airport as he left his golf club in Bedminster, President Donald Trump insisted Sunday that his barrage of tweets about protests in the NFL were simply a defense of patriotism.

“This has nothing to do with race,” he said. “I’ve never said anything about race. This has nothing to do with race or anything else. This has to do with respect for our country, and respect for our flag.”

And, of course, race.

It’s somehow become trite to note the difference in Trump’s tone when criticizing the NFL protests, in which a number of players have chosen to sit or kneel during the national anthem, and his tone when discussing the protests in Charlottesville last month. But it’s still worth noting.

Trump was slow to condemn the white supremacists and overt Nazi sympathizers who crept from the shadows to defend a Confederate statue in Charlottesville. The president eventually offered a forceful condemnation, read from prepared remarks – that he then undercut the next day in a press conference by saying that “many fine people” had joined the racists and Nazis at that protest.

The NFL protests? Anyone engaging in them was a “son of bitch” who should be fired, he said at a rally in Alabama. On Sunday, he retweeted a call for a boycott of the NFL, along with a number of other complaints. That the participants in the NFL protests happened to be black and that Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors (who Trump disinvited from the White House on Saturday) is, too, was cited as evidence that Trump was more aggravated at black protesters than white ones.

Whether that’s the case doesn’t really matter. What matters is the reason for those protests. They are one of the endpoints of a years-long racial divide that Trump leveraged explicitly as part of his 2016 campaign.

As you no doubt are aware, the demonstrations by NFL players (which expanded outward more rapidly after Trump’s rebukes) originated with former 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. He began to kneel during the national anthem at games as a way of drawing attention to incidents in which black Americans were targeted and sometimes killed by law enforcement officials. It’s not, as some have argued, a protest against the anthem itself. It’s a continuation of the argument that powers the Black Lives Matter movement: that there is a systemic problem in how police officers treat black suspects.

The Black Lives Matter movement itself originated in 2013, after the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the killing of Trayvon Martin in Florida. It surged to prominence after the killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and Eric Garner on Staten Island, both at the hands of police in 2014.

Views of the movement quickly became sharply polarized. Gallup has tracked increasing concern about race relations in the United States that began at about the point that Black Lives Matter began drawing attention to police killings – and began emerging as a focal point of conservative frustration at criticism of police.

In August, after the incidents in Charlottesville, a poll conducted by NPR, PBS NewsHour and Marist asked Americans whether they agreed or disagreed with a number of movements and ideologies. More than half of Republicans and those who supported Trump said they disagreed with the ideology of Black Lives Matter. Specifically, 64 percent of Republicans and 68 percent of Trump supporters said they mostly disagreed with Black Lives Matter. By contrast, 70 percent of Republicans and 68 percent of Trump supporters – the same number – said they mostly disagreed with the beliefs of white nationalists.

Trump’s campaign stoked Republican frustration at Black Lives Matter, racial tensions and a black president who was seen as hostile to police officers. In addition to his explicit racial arguments (starting with his disparagement of immigrants from Mexico), Trump repeatedly insisted that he would stand behind and defend America’s police – leveraging hostility to Black Lives Matter for his own purposes.

At the same time, Trump warned of spiking crime rates, at one point retweeting a racially loaded – and wildly inaccurate – image arguing that most white people who were murdered were victims of black people. By August 2016, after the Republican convention, a Post-ABC poll found that 60 percent of Americans thought Trump was biased against women and minorities – including 20 percent of people who planned to vote for him. In August of this year, Fox News asked a similar question, with more than half of the country and 15 percent of Republicans saying he doesn’t respect racial minorities.

Studies both before and after the election showed that Trump’s attitudes on race helped his candidacy, rather than hurt it. In March 2016, The Post found that racial anxiety was helping to fuel Trump’s primary bid. Racial attitudes were a “major factor” in why less-well-educated whites backed his candidacy so strongly, another report conducted after the election found. Exit polling showed that voters most worried about the economy more heavily favored Hillary Clinton. Trump’s voters were twice as likely to say that whites face a lot of discrimination as they were to say that black people did.

In short: Trump’s candidacy emerged at a moment that racial tension was high, and he, far more than his competitors in the primary or general election, embraced and championed that tension. As president, he’s repeatedly championed the needs of his base, and a continued embrace of racial politics – as seen in his taking sides against the NFL protests – fits that pattern neatly.

It’s important to remember, too, that the increase in political polarization can’t help but itself reinforce racial divides in a negative way, and vice versa. Most black Americans are Democrats. Most Republicans are white. Any number of political issues overlap with racial issues in uncomfortable ways, including the NFL players’ kneeling. A protest by mostly black athletes about an issue central to black political concerns that’s opposed by mostly white Americans as being an affront to their perception of American patriotism is about both politics and race, necessarily.

Trump’s entire campaign was about race, explicitly – whether he realizes it or not. So, too, was his fervent insistence about the NFL over the weekend. If he truly doesn’t realize that (which is certainly debatable), it shows a remarkable lack of awareness of the nuance that drives much of our politics at the moment.

Even if Trump weren’t involved, it would be tough to extricate race from the protests. With him involved, it’s impossible.

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WASHINGTON – Sens. Bill Cassidy, R-La., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., will serve up a new version of their bill overhauling Obamacare on Monday, even as the whole grand effort appears headed for a meltdown. The new version still kind of looks the same as the old one. But it apportions bigger slices of federal health spending to the states of key senators who were leaning against — or outright opposed — to the original bill, endangering its success.

If you read the updated bill, which was leaked Sunday night to The Washington Post and other news outlets, it’s pretty clear which senators Cassidy and Graham are playing to. A state-by-state summary claims Alaska would get 3 percent more funding, Arizona would get 15 percent more funding and Maine would get 43 percent more funding from 2020 and 2026 compared to current law.

Senators from all three of those states – Lisa Murkowski, John McCain and Susan Collins – had backed away from the bill in recent days. McCain indicated on Friday he’d oppose the bill because it wasn’t going through regular order, while Collins and Murkowski said they want to better understand how it would affect their own states.

With Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., still insisting he won’t back the bill, nabbing two of those three senators is crucial. Senate Republicans have just five days left to pass a measure repealing and replacing big parts of the Affordable Care Act. Their opportunity runs out on Oct. 1, when the budget reconciliation bill around which they’d based their entire strategy expires.

Acutely aware of the stakes, Senate GOP leadership and the White House are engaged in an all-in effort to rally the votes. But it’s far from clear that they can get all but two Republicans to swallow this latest Cassidy-Graham iteration.

The plan was distributed among Republicans late Sunday. Aides to Murkowski and Collins did not immediately comment. Some Republicans close to the process have long counted Collins as an eventual “no,” predicting that little could be done to the bill to change her mind. On Sunday night, some were once again privately pessimistic the changes would convince her to vote yes.

McCain is unlikely to bite. Even if the Senate Finance Committee considers Cassidy-Graham 2.0 in its high-profile health-care hearing Monday afternoon, there wouldn’t be nearly enough time for the Congressional Budget Office to score it before a vote this week. Lawmakers do expect an analysis from the CBO Monday, but it will be based on the first version of Cassidy-Graham. And that’s a far cry from the “regular order” McCain has called for.

But Cassidy and Graham, who have argued that Republicans must pass a bill repealing much of the Affordable Care Act or face serious retribution from their core voters in next year’s midterms, are pressing forward. They will present their new bill as more equally distributing federal health-care spending among the states, so that no one state faces a big funding cliff.

The duo is still taking the same basic approach to revamping the ACA: The bill gathers its subsidies for private coverage and its Medicaid expansion, lumps together all of that spending, cuts it somewhat, and redistributes it to states in the form of block grants.

Under the first Cassidy-Graham bill, that would have resulted in a median change of 11 percent less funding for states that expanded Medicaid and 12 percent more for states that didn’t, according to an analysis by the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation. But there was a wide variation in the block grant funding; Mississippi would get 148 percent more relative to current law, while New York would get 35 percent less from the federal government, Kaiser had estimated.

The new version doesn’t change the total sum of money the federal government would spend on the block grants from 2020 to 2026. Instead, it tries to smooth out the formula in what its sponsors hope is an effort to put states on a more equal footing. But the new version also creates some winners and losers: South Dakota would see the largest funding increase (88 percent) while Oregon would lose the most federal funding (17 percent).

–Let’s look at Alaska and Maine. Kaiser had estimated the first version of Cassidy-Graham would result in 8 percent less block grant funding for Alaska; Republicans claim that under their latest bill Alaska would get 3 percent more. Kaiser had also estimated that Maine would get 8 percent more under the initial measure; it would get 43 percent more under the revised version of the bill, according to the GOP documents.

But let’s also throw in an important caveat here: The estimates that Cassidy and Graham will publicly release Monday make some assumptions that independent analysts say are rather disingenuous.

For one thing, the state funding estimates don’t take into consideration the bill’s additional cuts to regular Medicaid spending. If those cuts were considered, it would be clear that states like Alaska and West Virginia would still be losing out on federal funds overall. And the GOP estimates also assume that states would slash their own funding for coverage and then factor that into the final number as “state savings.”

Of course, opponents of Cassidy-Graham noted these things — and kept sharply criticizing the bill overall — Sunday night and into the early morning hours. Reporters also pointed out how the Republican estimates could be misleading:

From the Wall Street Journal’s Michelle Hackman who tweeted:

”

The Graham-Cassidy state-by-state numbers folks are citing tonight

1) were produced by HHS

2) do not factor in significant medicaid cuts”

From the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities’s Jason Leibenluft who tweeted:

“Seriously, folks: these #’s floating around don’t even include the cap to Medicaid program (was $1 trillion cut from ’20-’36 in prior draft)”

Will this latest Obamacare repeal recipe rise – or burn again? Keep your eyes on the oven.

—

The new Cassidy-Graham bill also makes a play for the votes of Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Mike Lee of Utah by giving states more ability to duck federal insurance regulations. States could potentially lift existing caps on out-of-pocket costs, allowing insurers to offer leaner insurance policies that appeal to healthier consumers who want lower monthly premiums.

However, the Senate parliamentarian may rule that lifting ACA regulations in this manner isn’t closely enough tied to federal health spending to go in the budget reconciliation vehicle Republicans are using.

Furthermore, many are skeptical that someone like Cruz, who has made repealing Obamacare a key part of his entire Senate term, would be the vote to sink the whole thing. But Cruz made a threat in that direction Sunday, when he said at the Texas Tribune Festival that Cassidy and Graham don’t have his vote, or Lee’s either.

— In a popularity contest with Obamacare, the Cassidy-Graham health-care bill would lose, big time. That’s according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll released Friday finding that roughly twice as many people strongly prefer current law to the GOP plan, 42 to 22 percent.

These aren’t necessarily gut reflexes, either, because the poll described three aspects of Cassidy-Graham to voters before asking what they prefer: its elimination of the requirement for nearly all Americans to have health insurance, the phasing out of federal funds to help lower- and moderate-income people buy health insurance, and letting states replace federal rules on health coverage with their own rules.

A few more takeaways from the poll:

–Fifty-six percent of respondents said they prefer the Affordable Care Act to Cassidy-Graham; 33 percent said they prefer Cassidy-Graham over the ACA.

–There’s a strong partisan divide; 85 percent of Democrats said they prefer the ACA to the GOP plan; 66 percent of Republicans said they prefer the GOP plan.

–Among independents, 54 percent said they prefer the ACA while 35 percent said they prefer Cassidy-Graham.

Sunday night, President Trump left open the possibility that Cassidy-Graham might not be successful despite likely plans to vote on it this week (McConnell folks have said Wednesday is the target), my colleague Abby Phillip reports.

“Eventually we’ll win, whether it’s now or later,” Trump said as he prepared to board Air Force One to return to Washington after spending the weekend at his golf resort in Bedminster, New Jersey.

Trump lamented that Republicans still have reservations on health-care even though the bill “happens to be particularly good” for their states.

“I’ve been watching for seven years as the Republicans have been saying repeal and replace,” he said. “My primary focus, I must tell you – and has been from the beginning as you can imagine – is taxes…I believe we will be successful in the largest tax cut in our country’s history.”

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NEW DELHI – Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set up a economic advisory council, the government said on Monday, as concerns grow about a slowdown in Asia’s third largest economy.

The new council, headed by Bibek Debroy, a member of Modi’s federal think tank Niti Aayog, will address “issues of macroeconomic importance” and present its views to the prime minister, the government statement said.

A few quarters ago, India was the world’s fastest growing major economy.

But data showed last month that India’s economic growth had slowed to a three-year low, prompting many economists to revise down estimates for the fiscal year ending in March 2018.

The figures piled pressure on Modi, who was widely criticised by the opposition for a decision last year to scrap high-value banknotes.

The policy meant to flush out money hidden from the taxman ended up wiping out about 86 percent of currency in circulation, hitting consumer demand in an economy where most people are paid in – and buy what they need with – cash.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley held meetings with cabinet colleagues and other government officials earlier this month and on Monday said the government was planning measures to revive growth.

Some economists have called for expansionary fiscal policy to stimulate consumer demand in India.

The government is considering a plan to loosen its fiscal deficit target to let it spend up to $7.7 billion more to halt the slowdown, sources told Reuters last week.

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Chevrolet’s talent team provides job-finding advice and tips as well as ways to use your vehicle to help while searching for jobs.

Whether you’re a recent grad in pursuit of your first job, looking to make the next move in your career or searching for a way to change career paths, one thing is certain: job hunting takes some serious work! And while there are many tips out there that are important for success – we thought it would be interesting to explore an unexpected tool in your arsenal: your car.

Here are 5 tips from the talent team at Chevy to help you nail the job hunt –utilizing your job finding best friend – your car!

1. Keep hard copies or digital presentations of your resume and cover letter in your car. That way, you always have them on hand for any situation or last-minute opportunity.
· Bonus tips:
· Keep your resume traditional. Don’t use fancy artwork unless it’s an art or design portfolio. Use traditional resume paper.
· Study the job posting. The answers to your interview are all there in the job posting. Highlight what you have done that addresses that. Use their wording when describing those skills.

2. Keep a spare interview outfit. Keeping a spare interview outfit in your car can help alleviate the stress of unexpected spills or wrinkles and to help keep you looking polished if you need to head straight to an interview from your current job. Bonus tip:
· Dress code: Even though it might be a casual business setting, always wear business formal for an interview. Wear a suit and tie and no dark jeans. Make sure your suit is a dark color – navy, black or gray. Keep an extra shirt, pair of shoes or suit top in your trunk.

3. Organize your car into a remote office. Vehicles like the Chevrolet Trax now offer 4G LTE Wi-Fi, and affordable unlimited data plans ($20/month through AT&T) to help keep you connected, so you can stay on top of your search and emails no matter where you are. That means you can also send a thank you email immediately following your interview! Bonus tip:
· Ask for business cards and send thank you emails from your car following your interview when information is top of mind. Follow up with a personalized hand written note from home.

4. Listen to a power playlist, a podcast or set a reminder that you’re going to nail it. With AppleCarPlay/Android Auto available in the Chevy Trax, you can easily sync your phone to play a favorite power playlist or inspirational podcast to help get you energized and focused before an interview. You can set location alerts so when you arrive to your destination to remind you to spit out your gum, check your teeth and remind you you’re a rock star who’s going to nail this interview.
Bonus tip: Pay special attention to not using slang words during your interview. Realize that when you go into an interview, the interviewer is thinking about how you will represent yourself as a member of their company. While it’s important to be yourself, it’s critical to read a room and ensure you are mirroring those in the room.

5. Arrive on time. It’s critical to arrive to an interview early. Vehicles like the Chevy Trax, that have AppleCarPlay/Android Auto or OnStar navigation, allow you to program important destinations and integrate with apps like Waze to alert you of traffic back-ups and provide alternate routes to get you there on time.

In addition to the above, GM engineer, Alberto Rodriguez, provides additional tips to help you stand out during interviews:

1. Clean up your online presence. Use formal pictures, delete party pictures, bad language, etc.
2. Be confident but not overly confident. Be grateful. The interviewer has taken an hour out of their schedule to talk to you. Thank them and recognize their investment.
3. Mention your challenges but… don’t make them the focus of your interview. Are you a first-generation student? Were you raised in a single parent home? Have you overcome other major challenges? Indeed, mention them but do not use them as a pity point. You want to sound resilient but not like your struggles might hold you back.

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The City University of New York, which serves more than 272,000 degree-seeking students, is offering its thousands of undocumented student recipients of DACA status, the hundreds of dollars they need to apply for renewing their status.  The acronym DACA refers to President Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, which allowed youth who arrived in the U.S. as children with their undocumented parents, a path to permanent legal residency and potential citizenship.

As the “Dreamers” (DACA youth) on  campus face the strict Oct. 5 deadline to apply for renewal of their DACA immigration status,  CUNY will have the $495 application fee covered when they attend the CUNY Citizenship Now! DACA renewal events. That’s thanks to a partnership with the New Economy Project and support from other philanthropic organizations, a Sept. 21 press release from CUNY said.

The Project, which has operated a DACA loan fund since 2012, is now paying the fees outright for New York City applicants who meet income guidelines or face financial hardship. Non-CUNY students who live in New York City and meet income guidelines will also have the fee paid; others can secure an interest-free loan, regardless of income.

The Project contacted CUNY Citizenship Now! to attend most of the events and cut the $495 application checks for Dreamers who meet the Project’s income and residency eligibility requirements. CUNY student dreamers who do not meet the New Economy Project’s requirements will still receive their application fee checks via alternate non-profit funders, the press release said.

The checks will be made out to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and as grants do not have to be paid back.

“CUNY has provided a bridge to the middle class and beyond to generations of immigrant New Yorkers,” Chancellor James B. Milliken is quoted saying in the press release. “Given the current political climate, and the fear and uncertainty it has created in immigrant communities, we are doing all we can to support the thousands of CUNY DACA students. CUNY, in fact, is doing more to support Dreamers than any college or university system in the country,” Milliken contends.

The Trump administration announced earlier this month that it was ending DACA and barring new applications, and that anyone whose Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals work authorization was to expire between Sept. 5, this year, and March 5, 2018, will have to renew by Oct. 5 to keep their status. Since then, donors, organizations and others in New York City and around the country have stepped in to provide funds to help Dreamers with the renewal fee.

At the CUNY Citizenship Now! Renewal and Screening Clinics, the New Economy Project will provide the $495 fee grants to eligible New York City Dreamers whose household incomes range from no more than $30,150 for one person to a $71,950 cap for a five-person household, or who face other financial hardship. Those exceeding the income thresholds or who do not live in NYC will be assisted at the clinic events in applying online for grants which can also be delivered quickly. Interest-free loans to cover the cost of the application fee are available to anyone in NYC, regardless of income.

A CUNY Citizenship Now! DACA Renewal and Screening Clinics – are being held at following locations —

Tuesday, Sept. 26, City College, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Tuesday, Sept. 26, Hostos Community College, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Wednesday, Sept. 27, CUNY School of Professional Studies, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Thursday, Sept. 28, Medgar Evers College, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

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ROSEMONT, IL

Several hundred people attended the 3rd Annual Business Convention and Gala hosted by the Chicago Chapter of Global Organization for People of India Origin (GOPIO) Sept. 17 at Hyatt Hotel, in Rosemont.

Elected officials and community leaders from Chicagoland as well as corporate executives, government officials, and representatives from non-profit organizations gathered to network and promote their common Indian cultural heritage. The annual gala was supported by several Indian community leaders, cultural organizations, and business leaders,

“We had an amazing event and great business conference, attended by several business owners and CEOs,” Gladson Varghese, chairman of GOPIO, told Desi Talk after the event. “It was an honor to present the award to Lovely Varughese by State Representative Linda Chapa LaVia. Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi made an excellent speech. Overall it went very well,” Gladson Varghese added, The conference ended with a colorful entertainment provided by International Indian Icon’s state-level participants.

The Indian Consulate in Chicago was represented by Consul D. B. Bhati who gave the inaugural address, commending the business conference as a first step to bring Indian business owners under one umbrella, Indian Americans should expand their businesses to India as well, since India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world, he said.

Rep. Krishnamoorthi, D-Illinois, the keynote speaker of the evening, congratulated GOPIO’s Chicago leadership for hosting the event and assured those present of his support in creating a business environment that would help grow Indian businesses, especially startup companies. State Rep. Linda Chapa LaVia said that businesses are failing mainly because of lack of proper direction and paucity of required funding to launch new technology products. Mayor Mickey Straub noted that GOPIO Chicago had created a platform for Indian business owners to network and grow.

Several awards were presented during the event. The Businessman of the Year award went to K.K. Reddy, CEO of H.R. Pundit Corporation. The Community Leader of the Year was Dr. Bharat Barai and the Student of the Year award went to Payal Patel. Raja Krishnamoorthi presented the leadership award to Gladson Varghese; LaVia presented the Mother’s Rights Award to Lovely Varughese; Community Service award was given to Consul Bhati; and Zahid Hameed received the Humanitarian award.

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Indian pianist and musician, Karan Joseph, who graduated from Berklee College of Music in Boston, committed suicide by jumping off of the 12th floor from his friend, Rishi Shah’s apartment in Bandra, Mumbai.

According to his father, Thomas Joseph, Karan moved from Bangalore to Mumbai and had been living with Shah for a month.

A Hindustan Times reports states that Karan had been out partying the night before and was texting his friends asking for help.

“The friends (Shah and Suzana Uusmaa) in the statement said that the three met in the night and were listening to music and eating food the whole night. But later at around 3 a.m., Karan got a call and left the house for a while and later came back at around 7 a.m.,” said police.

According to the police, since the time he came in, Karan looked depressed and was just sitting at the window looking at the view and when both of his friends asked him what was wrong, he refused to answer; instead he just jumped from the window, ending his life.

According to a NDTV report, Shah told the police, “On Sept. 9, Karan came to my house around 7-7:30 a.m. At the time, my friend Suzana and I were at home. She was asleep. At around 8 a.m., she woke up and came outside. We were all listening to songs and chatting. Following that, Karan told me that the night before, he was at a party at Tej Brar’s residence with a friend, where Sohel and Varun and 10 to 15 more friends were present. Karan said his friends at the party were upset with him but he didn’t give any reason. I told him not to take these things seriously, just avoid whatever happened and enjoy the music. After that, my cook gave us three glasses of juice. Then, when I saw Karan, he was seated at the window and had one leg down. Before I could think or do anything, he jumped.”

But the Mumbai Mirror suggests something different by looking at Karan’s Facebook account, they determined that he was being bullied and that too by Shah, who is an Indian-American entrepreneur and the CEO and publisher of Crossbones Media that publishes RAVE, a magazine that promotes homegrown music.

“We suspect Shah has accessed Karan’s phone and he had also sent several messages from Karan’s phone to Karan’s mother Tina praising himself. Everyone in the music industry knows how Shah behaves with people. He had even bullied Karan in a video posted on Facebook which was criticized by all artistes in the industry. Karan was shy by nature and knew his piano well,” said Clayton Hogermeer, one of Karan’s friends.

Police have also learnt that Karan had been to another friend’s house earlier, in Bandra itself and are investigating the reason for what could have lead to the incident, although no suicide note was left by the musician.

It has been said that he has died of multiple fractures and a post mortem has also identified no evidence of assault.

“We have handed the body to the family who carried a prayer meeting at St. Andrews Church in Bandra West and later cremated him at Shivaji Park crematorium,” said a police officer.

Several people from the music industry and his friends gathered to pay him last respects however, Shah was not an attendee.

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Giani Gurbachan Singh, the current Jathedar of the Akal Takhat and the spiritual leader of the Sikh religion, visited the United States Military Academy at West Point on Sept. 11, he is the first Sikh spiritual leader to ever visit any U.S. military installation.

On his visit Sing met Brigadier General Steve Gilliland, the Commandant of West Point and the ranking officer in the charge of student body, known as the Corps of Cadets and First Captain Simone Askew, the highest ranked cadet at the academy and the first African-American female to hold such a position.

The Jathedar’s visit was particularly significant in light of the recent policy changes adopted by the U.S. Army to permit permanent religious accommodations to the Army’s uniform and grooming standards, enabling soldiers and cadets to wear turbans and maintain beards to keep up with their faith and also expressed his gratitude to General Gilland and the U.S. Army for working with the first two Sikh cadets who joined the Corps of Cadets with accommodations granted under the new policy.

The historic visit to West Point was facilitated by Lieutenant Colonel Kamal Singh Kalsi, who was the first Sikh to receive a religious accommodation in the Army after his decade-long effort.

Today, there are over forty practicing Sikhs soldiers proudly serving in the U.S. Army, donning their religiously-mandated turbans and beards while maintaining good order and discipline.

Sikhs have faced hate crimes, bullying and job discrimination in the wake of 9/11.

As the founder of Sikh American Veteran’s Alliance (SAVA), LTC Kalsi states, “this visit helps to push back against discrimination by promoting Sikh military service in one of our nation’s oldest and most revered institutions.”

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Indian American Mohinvei Singh, 68, died in a house fire in Queens on Sunday, Sept. 24, at the corner of 97th Avenue near 107th Street, in Ozone Park.

According to the New York Daily News, Singh went to the basement after he saw smoke coming into his first-floor bedroom and “never came back.”

Singh’s son, Belkarn Singh, who also woke up to a smoke filled bedroom, went to go looking for his dad but “he couldn’t find him,” said Raman Deol, Singh’s son-in-law, who was forced to give up his search amid the choking smoke.

Sandeep Kaur, a second-floor tenant of the three-story home, also awoke to find thick smoke flooding the hallways.

“I went to the kitchen to check the stove, but I couldn’t turn on the light. None of the power was on. My first thought was to get out of the house. I didn’t have a chance to grab my shoes.”

Residents who lived upstairs told the New York Daily News that they saw sparks flying outside.

“We saw sparkling on the electric pole and then a flash come from our AC. I saw the sparks outside and we came running out,” said Harish Kumari, who lives on the third floor with two of his cousins.

The fire began in the home’s basement breaker box at around 2:30 a.m. and was brought under control at 3:40 a.m.

Deol recalled his father-in-law as a kind, hard-working man who supported many relatives and friends when they moved to the city.

Singh arrived from Punjab, India, more than 30 years ago and drove cabs for two decades.

“He worked overtime and helped four of his brothers immigrate here to the United States. He helped his friends get jobs in gas stations, in construction and driving cabs. He was a helpful, peaceful man,” Deol said.

“It’s so sad. He got trapped in the basement,” Melanie Ramadhin, a neighbor, told the New York Post.

Another neighbor said three unrelated Sikh families from India had been living in the home before it burned down.

Singh is survived by his wife Jasbeer Kaur, two daughters, son and four young grandchildren.

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NEW DELHI – India and the U.S. on Tuesday discussed deepening defense ties and enhancing trade and technology cooperation, with Washington expressing interest in expanding maritime security engagement amid China’s growing aggression in South China sea.

US Defense Secretary James Mattis, the first high-ranking official of the Trump Administration to visit India, met Defense Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and held talks with her in the South Block.

Later, the two addressed a joint media conference where Mattis said the focus was on enhancing the defense relations between the two countries, with the U.S. viewing India as a regional stabilizer.

In an apparent reference to China, which has disputes with its maritime neighbors in the South China sea, both India and the U.S. favored maintaining an “open, just and rules-based order”.

“A peaceful and prosperous future in the Indo-Pacific region is based on a strong rules-based international order and a shared commitment to international law, peaceful resolution of disputes and respect for territorial integrity,” Mattis said.

Sharing his concerns, Sitharaman said: “We also believe that disputes should be resolved through peaceful means and in accordance with the universally recognized principles of international law. I am happy to note that Secretary Mattis reaffirmed the U.S. position in support of these principles.

“I also welcome his reiteration of the U.S. commitment to work with India in ensuring maritime security in the lndo-Pacific and as first responder to HADR (Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief) situations,” she said.

She said the two discussed issues relating to maritime security in the Indian Ocean and the broader Asia-Pacific Region as well as regional connectivity. “India supports the freedom of navigation, over-flight and unimpeded lawful commerce.”

Their statements came amid China’s growing aggression in the South China sea and its growing presence in the Indian Ocean.

Mattis said the U.S. valued India’s leadership across the Indo-Pacific.

“India has vital role to play in supporting South East Asia’s Regional Institutions – particularly ASEAN – and in building partner capacity across the region. We appreciate India’s leadership in the Indian Ocean and we seek to work together to build a resilient regional architecture,” Mattis said.

Declaring that expanding maritime engagement was one of his top priorities, the Defense Secretary said the U.S.-India Malabar naval exercise with Japan was an example of the deepening cooperation.

“I look forward to opportunities to increase our engagements based on shared maritime objectives and explore new exercises,” he said.

The U.S. expressed interest in deepening the trade and technology collaborations under the Make in India framework.

Sitharaman said India and the U.S. have “agreed that the full implementation of the understanding reached following the announcement by the US last year recognizing India as a Major Defense Partner”.

She said India and the US have agreed they need to expand on the progress already made by encouraging co-production and co-development efforts.

“I reiterated India’s deep interest in enhancing defense manufacturing in India under Prime Minister’s Make-in-India program,” she said.

Mattis said the US looked forward to sharing “some of our most advanced defense technologies through the Defense Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI)”.

He said the aim of his visit was to promote “pragmatic progress” between the two countries.

“US-India defence cooperation has steadily expanded in recent years, underpinned by a strategic convergence between our two countries based on common objectives and goals in the region,” he said.

On Pyongyang, Mattis appreciated India’s effort along with the international community to increase pressure against North Korea over its “dangerous and destabilising behaviour”.

Answering a question, Mattis said US wanted to resolve the North Korea issue through diplomatic means.

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Senate Republicans spent the last few weeks making one last desperate push to repeal Obamacare.

But as they neared a final deadline, it became clear: They were never really all that close.

Sen. Susan Collins said Monday the bill would cause too many Americans to lose insurance, while Rand Paul said it preserved too many of the federal subsidies for health care — even after the bill’s authors made a spate of last-minute changes to win them over. Their opposition followed John McCain’s declaration last week that it was too hasty and partisan, as the GOP raced to meet a Sept. 30 deadline.

Their firm stances against it — each for a very different reason — underscore the difficulty Republicans face in trying to make dramatic changes to the 2010 Affordable Care Act. Even though most Republicans relish replacing President Barack Obama’s signature achievement with something less costly and more flexible, doing so is all but impossible with wafer-thin control of one of the chambers.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell still has to decide whether to put Republicans through the spectacle of one more vote on a bill to repeal Obamacare that is doomed.

Republicans, who hold 52 seats in the chamber, are scheduled to meet for a closed-door lunch Tuesday where they are expected to discuss the next steps. They could also make another run at repeal later in the year when they try to enact a GOP tax overhaul, but that could prove even more challenging.

The bill’s backers weren’t quite ready to admit defeat. “It’s OK to vote, it’s OK to fall short,” Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said during a CNN health-care debate Monday night. “We’re going to press on.”

But health insurers now face the prospect of deciding what insurance plans to offer in the individual Obamacare markets for 2018, and how much to charge, with little certainty over how the Trump administration will run the law. The deadline for insurers in many states to sign agreements to offer coverage in the marketplace is later this week. The companies and their industry groups have warned that the uncertainty will lead to much higher premiums.

In Senate Health Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander’s home state of Tennessee, for instance, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee is raising Obamacare premiums by 21 percent on average. The insurer has said that if Washington committed to supporting the law, it wouldn’t have needed to increase premiums much at all.

In the short term, the top priority for insurers is for Congress to signal that the subsidies known as cost-sharing reductions will continue. In the longer term, the companies have said that a government backstop for high-cost customers, known as reinsurance, would also help stabilize the market.

Alexander had been negotiating a bipartisan deal with the top Democrat on his panel, Patty Murray of Washington, to stabilize the Obamacare markets, but said last week that the negotiations had failed. Those talks could be revived again, although such a measure still faces significant obstacles in the House.

The companies have also pushed for a repeal of a tax on health insurers that was enacted as part of Obamacare. And they want Obamacare’s requirement that all people have insurance coverage or pay a fine to be enforced, at least until Congress comes up with a replacement.

The sudden attention earlier this month to the plan authored by Graham and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana gave some Republicans hope that they could reverse the party’s embarrassing defeat in July, when an Obamacare replacement failed on a 49-51 Senate vote.

The party’s desire to deliver on seven years of promises to repeal the health-care law had many Republicans ready to back a measure they didn’t understand and was still changing. Neither the lack of a detailed analysis from the Congressional Budget Office about its effects or the surprisingly unified opposition of groups representing the nation’s doctors, hospitals or insurers appear to deter most of them.

But the three senators who effectively killed the bill made clear they were nowhere near ready to back it.

Collins, a moderate Republican from Maine who struck the fatal blow Monday evening, issued a blistering statement outlining “three major problems,” including provisions that would weaken protections for people with pre-existing conditions and reducing the number of people who have health coverage.

“It makes sweeping cuts and changes in the Medicaid program which is a vital program for our low-income, vulnerable citizens including disabled children and low-income seniors,” she told reporters.

Paul, a conservative from Kentucky, rejected it for almost the opposite reason.

“It’s fake repeal” that keeps 90 percent of the taxes, he told reporters Monday. “This is not the promise we made.”

He said he was willing to compromise, but that such a deal would mean stripping out the plan to use block grants to help states fund health coverage — a central element of the Graham-Cassidy bill.

The third hard “no” came from McCain, the Arizona Republican recently diagnosed with brain cancer. He said Friday that the rushed, partisan process made it impossible for him in “good conscience” to back the measure.

“I would consider supporting legislation similar to that offered by my friends Senators Graham and Cassidy were it the product of extensive hearings, debate and amendment,” he said in a statement. “But that has not been the case.”

Acrimony over the new Senate GOP proposal was apparent in the hours preceding Collins’s announcement.

A Senate Finance Committee hearing on the measure, planned before McCain’s announced opposition to help lure him, had to be temporarily recessed Monday when protesters shouted down Graham and Cassidy when they tried to testify.

Protesters snaked down the corridor outside the room, many in wheelchairs and shouting, “No cuts to Medicaid! Save our liberty!”

U.S. Capitol Police said late Monday night that more than 180 protesters were arrested.

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SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – San Juan’s mayor urged the United States on Tuesday to prioritize “people above debt” as it helps rebuild from the devastation of Hurricane Maria, after President Donald Trump said that the island’s crippling debt “must be dealt with.”

Maria slammed into the U.S. territory of 3.4 million people last week as the most powerful hurricane to Puerto Rico in almost 90 years, destroying homes and infrastructure, including knocking out power across the island. Puerto Rico, which has struggled for years economically, filed the biggest government bankruptcy in U.S. history earlier this year.

“You don’t put debt above people, you put people above debt,” San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz told CNN in an interview. “There is a moral imperative … When someone is in need, when someone is in dire need, when someone is in a life or death situation, there is a human, moral imperative to deal with that situation before dealing with anything else.”

She spoke a day after Trump said the island’s $72 billion in debt needs to be addressed.

“Puerto Rico, which was already suffering from broken infrastructure & massive debt, is in deep trouble,” Trump said in a series of Twitter posts on Monday. “It’s (sic) old electrical grid, which was in terrible shape, was devastated. Much of the Island was destroyed, with billions of dollars owed to Wall Street and the banks which, sadly, must be dealt with.”

Puerto Rico’s government asked a judge on Monday for up to four extra weeks to meet key deadlines in its bankruptcy case.

Many structures on the island, including hospitals, remain badly damaged and flooded, with clean drinking water hard to find in some areas. Few planes have been able to land or take off from damaged airports.

Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossello has called for federal aid to flow quickly to the island.

“Given Puerto Rico’s fragile economic recovery prior to the storms, we ask the Trump Administration and U.S. Congress to take swift action to help Puerto Rico rebuild,” Rossello said in a statement on Monday.

Critics have said the Trump administration is not acting fast enough, with some saying that although Puerto Rico is not a state, its people are U.S. citizens and should be treated fairly. The island is a U.S. commonwealth and its inhabitants do not have a vote in presidential elections or full representation in Congress.

Among those critics is singer Marc Anthony, whose family is from Puerto Rico. In a strongly-worded Twitter post on Monday, Anthony said Trump should stop dwelling on a controversy involving National Football League players and the national anthem and, “Do something about our people in need in #PuertoRico. We are American citizens too.”

White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders denied the administration had been slow to respond, telling reporters on Monday the administration was engaged in fact-finding to assess how much help was needed.

“The federal response has been anything but slow,” she said at a daily briefing. “In fact, there’s been an unprecedented push through of billions of dollars in federal assistance that the administration has fought for.”

The storm has posed a major challenge for the island’s electricity utility, PREPA, which declared bankruptcy in July after accumulating a $9 billion debt and years of underinvestment.

Six days after the storm hit, officials were still taking stock of what was expected to be a months-long effort to rebuild the power system, meaning many people will be without electricity for an extended period.

Rossello has imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew following the storm.

Maria was located about 190 miles (305 km) southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, at 8 a.m. ET (1200 GMT) Tuesday, with maximum sustained winds of 75 miles per hour (120 kph), the National Hurricane Center said. It was expected to lose force and become a tropical storm over the next day as it headed north in the Atlantic Ocean.

Forecast tracks showed it headed away from the U.S. mainland over the next few days.

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FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida – An Indian American doctor couple has pledged $200 million to a Florida university to advance healthcare in the state and internationally to undeserved communities in India and Africa.

Zambia-born India-educated cardiologist Dr. Kiran C. Patel and his wife, pediatrician Dr. Pallavi Patel announced the single largest donation made by an Indian American individual or family in the US at a press event here Monday.

The largest philanthropic gift in the history of Nova Southeastern University (NSU) in the US will significantly expand its programs in osteopathic medicine and healthcare sciences.

The commitment from the Patel Family Foundation includes a $50 million gift and an additional $150 million real estate and facility investment in a future 325,000 square-foot medical education complex in Tampa Bay, about 400 km from here in Clearwater.

With the Patels’ gift, NSU has renamed two of its colleges as Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Osteopathic Medicine and Dr. Pallavi Patel College of Healthcare Scieces.

“I feel that it is more important than ever to advance the current state of health care,” said Kiran Patel.

“It is rare for someone to have the opportunity to impact the world in this way, and, as an immigrant to the United States, I am particularly honored to be able to make a difference in people’s lives around the world,” he said.

“This partnership will benefit thousands of patients, students and doctors,” added Dr. Pallavi Patel.

“Over the next 20 years, NSU will train thousands of new doctors and other health care professionals who will directly touch millions of lives, making a real difference.”

Patel’s gift will provide support for equipment and the hiring of additional faculty and staff in the Tampa Bay area, as well as an endowment to sustain the operation of the college’s new location besides an endowed scholarship fund for students.

The Patels’ goal is to be involved in the training and education of generations of physicians and other healthcare providers who will serve in areas with the greatest need across the country and worldwide.

As a result of the Patel Family Foundation’s commitment, beginning in fall of 2019, NSU has applied for a class of 150 osteopathic medicine students to be taught on Florida’s west coast at the new NSU Tampa Bay Regional Campus in Clearwater.

Meanwhile 230 new osteopathic medicine students will continue to begin their studies each year at NSU’s Fort Lauderdale/Davie campus.

“This partnership will benefit thousands of patients, students and doctors,” added Dr. Pallavi Patel. “Over the next 20 years, NSU will train thousands of new doctors and other health care professionals who will directly touch millions of lives, making a real difference.”

“This is indeed a landmark day and the historic day for NSU and the Patel family,” said NSU President Dr. George Hanbury, announcing the gift.

“This gift and financial commitment from our innovative and visionary donor-couple will allow NSU to help fill the growing need for physicians and health care professionals, particularly in undeserved, multicultural and international communities,” said NSU Chancellor of the Health Professions Division and Interim Chief Operating Officer, Fred Lippman.

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An Indian American couple in Houston, Texas, Amit Bhandari and Arpita Brahmbhatt Bhandari, have donated $250,000 to Mayor Sylvester Turner for the Greater Houston Community Foundation, a Hurricane Harvey relief fund, at a privately held event on Sept. 24.

Bhandari is the owner and CEO of the BioUrja Group, an energy and agricultural commodity trading company based out of Houston with offices around the world.

The Indian-American community has united in raising funds for the victims of Hurricane Harvey, the storm that brought 40 to 64.58 inches of rain over a four-day period and killed over 70 people, displacing more than 30,000 people and prompting more than 17,000 rescues.

Turner appreciated the Indian-Americans for their generosity and voluntary aid toward Hurricane Harvey relief. “

The contributions of the Indian-American community did not just start with Hurricane Harvey. They have been contributing to this city for a long, long time. The Indian community is vital to the city and helps make Houston the great city that it is,” he said.

“I want to thank the Indian-Americans for what you have done prior to Hurricane Harvey. I want to thank you for what you are doing now, and I want thank you for what you will be doing to help rebuild this great city. We will rebuild, we will be stronger, more resilient, and better prepared for next time around,” he added.

Bhandari mentioned that volunteers from the community helped rescue 700 people and that the community in Houston also contributed $1.5 million to many charitable organizations associated with the Hurricane Harvey relief.

A newly developed mobile app titled ‘DisasterConnect,’ was also presented to Turner at the event.

The app help victims and donors make direct contact with each other to streamline relief efforts and was created under the direction of Gaurav Khandelwal, CEO of ChaiOne, a Houston-based developer of mobile apps.

The Consul General of India in Houston, Dr. Anupam Ray also thanked the Indian-American community for their efforts.

“Your generosity makes India proud. A community is great if it rises above its suffering. Through your contributions toward Hurricane Harvey relief, you’ve demonstrated that as a community, you’ve risen above your sufferings.” he said.

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NEW YORK

India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj unveiled a new magazine ‘US-India Global Review’, published by the New York-based Parikh Foundation for India’s Global Development, at a private meeting, held at the New York Palace hotel, on Sunday, September 24.

The publisher of the magazine, Dr. Sudhir Parikh, a well-known allergist and entrepreneur in the New York City Tristate area who received a Padma Shri in 2010, and is also the founder and chairman of Parikh Worldwide Media – the top Indian American-focused news publishing house in the United States, was present with his wife, Dr. Sudha Parikh, along with Ambassador Sandeep Chakravorty, the Consul General of India in New York, at the unveiling of the magazine by Swaraj, who was in New York City to attend the United Nations General Assembly meet.

Swaraj gave her blessings for the magazine. She appreciated the content of the debut issue, which focused on India’s relations not only with the US, but its growing influence and outreach globally, including on India’s defence personnel, and contribution to the United Nations’ peacekeeping front.

US-India Global Review is a quarterly magazine. Copies of it will be distributed to select government offices, officials and ministers in India, and Indian diplomatic missions and embassies around the world, apart from some administration officials, members on Capitol Hill, and think tanks in the US. The magazine will also soon be available as an e-magazine.

The Parikh Foundation for India’s Global Development will eventually expand its operations to a full-fledged think tank focused on US-India polity issues. A seminar will be held next year focusing on some of those core issues, with panel discussions by eminent experts.

Parikh reiterated what he said, at a recent meet held in Watchung, New Jersey, to welcome Chakravorty and Deputy Chief Mission in the Indian Embassy in Washington, D.C., Ambassador Santosh Jha: the need to put Indo-US ties in perspective, for politicians and policy makers, in India and the US.

“The aim of the Parikh Foundation for India’s Global Development is to ensure the initiatives of the Indian government, its efforts to expand bilateral ties, is put in perspective,” he said. “We intend to have regularly top experts – policymakers, politicians, intellectuals, to participate in this endeavor,” he added.

Parikh also expressed his confidence that even if there is change of guard in administration, either in India or the US, bilateral ties between the two countries will remain strong.

“Close ties between India and the U.S. will be a defining relationship in the 21st century,” he said.

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MUMBAI

“Newton”, a Hindi film set against the backdrop of elections in the world’s largest democracy, was on Friday announced as India’s official entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars 2018. The film’s team says it’s an encouragement for filmmakers who are willing to take risks.

“Newton”, directed by Amit V. Masurkar and starring the stellar Rajkummar Rao, was chosen from among 26 titles from different languages by a 14-member jury appointed by the Film Federation of India (FFI).

“It was a unanimous decision. Titles like ‘Dangal’ and ‘Mukti Bhavan’ were part of the list,” Supran Sen, secretary general of FFI, told IANS.

“Newton”, which released on Friday, revolves around a young government clerk who is sent on election duty to a Maoist-controlled town and how the ideological struggle puts him in an awkward situation. It was shot in the interiors of Chhattisgarh.

Masurkar feels honoured that a story rooted in the country’s political system was chosen.

So far, “Mother India”, “Salaam Bombay!” and “Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India” are the only Indian films that made it to the top five in the Best Foreign Language Film category at the Academy Awards, but none have won the honour.

How is team “Newton” planning its Oscar journey considering Indian films never make it beyond the entry gate?

“For now, the fact that ‘Newton’ has been selected as India’s official entry is in itself a big deal for me. I’m still trying to process that information. It’s still to sink in. Whether we make it to the shortlist or win or not are thoughts that are far away from my head right now,” Masurkar said.

He hopes the movie “will bring attention to the need to strengthen democracy in our country”.

The excitement and contentment in National Award winning actor Rajkummar’s voice was palpable as he shared his excitement.

“It feels amazing and brilliant that a film like ‘Newton’, which is unique and special for all of us, and which we have made with so much honesty and purity, without keeping any of those commercial thing in mind about what works and what sells, gets this. We just had to tell a simple, honest story and I am glad that it’s resonating with everyone.

“The kind of response that we are getting from the critics, and now the fact that it makes it as India’s official entry to the Oscars, it’s huge.”

The film fraternity, including names like Paresh Rawal, Anil Kapoor, Karan Johar, Manoj Bajpayee, Bhumi Pednekar, Ayushmann Khurrana and Dia Mirza, also praised the FFI’s decision.

Acclaimed actor Pankaj Tripathi, who features in “Newton”, believes this choice would encourage the entire film fraternity to support good content cinema and filmmakers.

“It’s something to be proud of as we have a thousand number of films coming out each year and out of that number, our film gets an entry. The entry is making us feel proud, so the win (if it happens) will have an amazing impact on the entire film fraternity.

“‘Newton’ is a film which will reflect real India and it is not at all a biased project,” he said.

Meanwhile, actress Anjali Patil said: “The hard work of our entire team has borne fruit.”

Filmmaker Hansal Mehta, who has worked closely with Rajkummar in films like “Shahid” and “Aligarh”, also hailed “Newton” as the best choice.

“‘Newton’ is India’s entry to the Oscars. The best choice in years by the federation,” Mehta tweeted, adding: “If films like ‘A Separation’ and ‘Children of Heaven’ made it to the Oscar nominations, so can ‘Newton’. It is our best shot. Manish Mundra go for it!”

The film is produced by Manish Mundra of Drishyam Films, the company best known for backing critically-acclaimed projects such as “Masaan” and “Umrika”.

Mundra said that “for the news to be announced on the day of the theatrical release of ‘Newton’ across India — the stars are truly aligning for us”.

The 90th Academy Awards are scheduled for March 4, 2018 in Los Angeles.

IANS

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Advait Chandan has spent the last seven years managing Aamir Khan. And watching one of Bollywood’s biggest stars at such close quarters, he says, gave him an invaluable insight into the art of film-making.

Chandan’s directorial debut, “Secret Superstar”, is the story of a how a young Muslim girl whose conservative father does not want her pursuing a music career finds fame on the internet. The film, which also has Khan playing a rap singer, releases this Diwali. Chandan spoke to Reuters about the film and what he learned from Aamir Khan.

Q: How did you come up with the idea of “Secret Superstar”?

A: I was writing an urban romcom at one point. I have always been writing, even when there was no producer, even when I was in school. Even today, I have an unfinished version of a Hindi adaptation of “Casper” in my laptop – nothing that’s ever been worth giving to anyone. But when I was working with Aamir Sir on “Satyamev Jayate”, there was a woman called Shanno in one episode whose daughter told her, “I will work as a maid so that you can go and learn driving and earn a living.” Shanno became a driver and that is how she now takes care of her family. That is when I realised that my idea of a hero was really narrow. Shanno’s daughter is the real hero here. The definition of a hero for me and what I was writing about, it totally changed at that moment.

Also, I was working on “Satyamev Jayate” on the research, the prep and all of it. That was all exposure for me. There was another episode where this kid said he watched videos on YouTube and became a golf champion. He’s the son of a milkman and he watched golf lessons on YouTube. I feel like the middle class is really getting affected by the internet. I never went to film school, but I can sit here and watch a lesson on Stanley Kubrick’s camera movements, for example. The internet is empowering the middle class in a way that really needed to be captured on film. That was the umbrella idea – a mother and daughter in middle-class, small-town India getting empowered by this amazing tool that is giving platform to talent.

Q: But social media fame is also fleeting, isn’t it?

A: Sure, but this isn’t just really about fame. It’s about being allowed to dream. I am not saying I will be a successful film-maker, but my parents allowed me to pursue it. There was no stopping me from wanting it. That, I feel is the zeitgeist for this generation… Today, kids are (sure that) they are going to be film-makers. They are already vloggers and all that. They are going to do what they are going to do.

Q: Isn’t that confidence also coming from a place of privilege?

A: It is… it is… and… yeah… I get what you are saying. But it also depends on how they are using that privilege. Look at Ira, for example, Aamir Sir’s daughter, or when I hung out with Victor’s (Film-maker Vijay Krishna Acharya) daughter, or my cousin Tanya. I feel like they are using this quite responsibly. At least the people I know.

Q: Did you consult Aamir Khan while writing the script?

A: I consulted Kiran (Kiran Rao, Khan’s wife and film-maker). AK (Khan) had no idea that I had a script. With writing comes a huge dose of self-doubt. I enjoyed the process, but I didn’t know if it was worth anyone else’s time. When I pitched it to Kiran, she really tripped hard on it. She validated it for me. She made suggestions and finally told me that I should just go ahead and write a full script.

Q: Was it hard to find time, given that you were also managing Aamir Khan?

A: The good thing about that was that if I got done a little early one day, I knew if I didn’t write that day, I would never get the chance again. If you have the whole day to yourself, you think, “Main kabhi bhi likh loonga (I can write any time)”. For a long while, I would have no time to myself. Then suddenly, we would be on a flight to New York and I had an 18-hour window in which I could write. That pressure actually makes you write.

Q: What’s the one thing you’ve learned from Aamir Khan about film-making?

A: Something he told me on the morning of my shoot. He said, “Till you get what you want, just stay at it. The minute you get it, don’t waste your time. Move on.”

REUTERS

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Indian American entrepreneur Mahesh Patel has started a nanotechnology company called ShayoNano in Stafford, Texas and has produced his first 300-pound batch of a nanomaterial which will be used to enhance the efficiency of common paint.

Patel’s idea of creating ShayoNano was conceived in 2007 when an economic development arm of the Singaporean government invited him to relocate to the small island city-state where, with investor funding, he built a lab and spent nine years developing products based on nanotechnology.

“They had good faith in us, and they kept investing money,” Patel told the Huston Chronicle, eventually aiming to open a facility somewhere in the United States.

So alone in a rental car, Patel drove from Austin, Texas to Miami, Florida, meeting with economic development offices along the way in search of a place to settle down finally coming upon Huston, Texas.

He then got a temporary spot downtown in the Houston Technology Center, a startup incubator, in 2015, and moved to a small office in Stafford by the end of that year.

“A little town like Stafford doesn’t get nanotechnology very often,” said Patti Worfe, economic development director for the city of Stafford. “We’re very excited.”

The custom production hardware began arriving in Stafford in May, and the operation came on line late July.

Inside the facility, innumerable pipes and cables connect an array of shimmering pressurized vats which are each linked to a touch screen and can produce up to five tons of product per day.

ShayoNano has a handful of patented products developed in its lab. One material captures carbon emissions; others capture impurities in water, extract beta-carotene from palm oil, absorb oil from water, prevent paper from burning or protect plastic from ultraviolet rays.

The first product off the production line is dubbed SmartHide, a lower-cost substitute for titanium dioxide, a crucial component of paint, which boosts opacity and other qualities and was sold to a small-scale paint manufacturer.

Patel told the Huston Chronicle that larger producers have already expressed interest but that would require a larger batch of product which his facility is unable to provide.

Since ShayoNano moved into its small Stafford office, it has been working with the city to find space for a much larger production facility – 100,000 square feet or larger.

“We continue to look for a substantially bigger building for them,” Worfe said. “If the production on this product really takes off, they could start needing additional space very quickly.”

Patel got started his journey in nanoscience more than two decades ago when, as a second-year chemical engineering student at a university in Mumbai in 1992, he won a prize for making a working prototype of a fuel cell.

Nanotechnology has been under development in its modern form for more than 30 years and although it has been working so far, experts in the field says that it still has a long way to go before it actually hits its prime time.

“I think that the real opportunity for nanotech has not been realized yet,” said Lisa Friedersdorf, director of the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office. “We’re starting to see things moving in that direction, but we certainly are not done yet.”

Houston laboratories have played a crucial role in the early development of nanomaterials and although the city has struggled to nurture a tech scene, the nano still hasn’t taken off as a handful of startup companies have given up due to exhausted investor funding while a few have remained inbetween.

“I don’t know exactly why it hasn’t taken off,” said Nick Tillman, director of energy acceleration at the Houston Technology Center. “It definitely has local promise. That would be something to set Houston apart.”

Decades ago, technology evolved dramatically when scientists learned to engineer on the microscale to produce microchips, so the Nanoscale is a thousand times smaller and it represents a realm where many substances are in atomic or molecular form, by engineering particles on the nanoscale, scientists can design attributes of the bulk material.

“Nanotechnology is waiting for a success story, that would be the kind of story we’ll create in the next years,” said Patel who hopes to succeed in an area where others have failed.

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On the last day of the United Nations General Assembly sessions in New York, Indian-American Congressman Ami Bera, D-California, and Rep. Frank Pallone, D-NJ, on Sept. 26, introduced legislation on Capitol Hill, supporting India’s bid for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council. The resolution has seven original cosponsors, and would put the U.S. House of Representatives officially on record in support of India’s effort.

Bera is the vice ranking member, second in the minority party hierarchy, on the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the longest serving Indian-American in Congress. Rep. Pallone the founder of the longstanding Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans,

“The five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council reflect the world as it was 60 years ago, and it’s time we recognize India’s role increasing global prosperity,” Bera is quoted saying in a press release. “Securing a permanent spot for India on the UN Security Council would strengthen democracy around the world,” Bera added.

Furthermore, Bera said that India plays a critical role as a strategic partner for the United States and is a pillar of stability in South Asia. “As the world’s oldest democracy and the world’s largest democracy, the United States and India share common values and a growing partnership on many fronts, especially defense cooperation,” Bera added.

Pallone noted that he represents one of the largest Indian-American constituencies in Congress, and “strongly” support India’s bid for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.

“At a time when international relations are being redefined, we should acknowledge and empower those nations that share our enduring core values. It’s in the interests of the United States and the world to have a U.N. Security Council whose members combine military strength with respect for democracy and pluralism, and an appreciation of the dangers posed by rogue states and terrorist groups,” Pallone said, adding, “India belongs on the U.N. Security Council and it is imperative that Congress makes this clear to the Trump administration and the world. ”

The U.N. has grown from 51 member nations at its inception to nearly 200 today. There are currently five permanent members of the Security Council, including the United States, United Kingdom, Russia, China, and France.

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