Something for the winged variety

Vishwajeet Naik has set a perfect example by putting up water feeders for thirsty birds in his garden. As many as 16 varieties of birds visit his garden now

The mercury is rising like never before. While we humans might sit under the fan and sip on some juice, our winged friends have to suffer the sun helplessly.

Birds feel very thirsty due to the heat and their options of water such as the dew drops or ponds and streams of clear water are scarcely available in a city like Pune. Water feeders, which can be installed in a balcony or a garden, can act as a saviour for these thirsty birds. Vishwajeet Naik--a wildlife photographer and a painter has installed six such water feeders in his one and half acre garden at his residence in Camp.

"Every bird has a specific timing for drinking water or visiting a water-body," says Naik, who has also installed over 200 artificial boxes for the birds. He adds that the Indian myna visits the water-body all over the day, while pigeons flock around in the evening and the kites come around in the afternoon. "Small birds generally drink the water drops on the leaves of trees. Birds such as the tailor bird, Ashy Prinae, sun bird, white eye and bul bul come to my garden to drink water," says Naik, who has taken guidance regarding birds from his father and well-known ornithologist Satyasheel Naik.

Naik advises the use of a one to one-and-a-half inch deep tray made of cement to be used as a water feeder. "Birds not only come to drink water but also to have a bath. So the feeder should be deep enough," he says. He says that the water should be changed preferably everyday or at least three times a week.

"People who want to create such a facility for birds in their balconies can use saucers to store water," he says. The water feeders at the Naiks' residence have been made of mud with lotus and gappi fish in it. "White breasted kingfishers also flock my garden due to the fish," he says.

"During summer, many birds have their breeding season, so these boxes help in nesting and breeding," says Naik adding that the artificial boxes in his garden have seen 70 per cent occupancy.

(Pic courtesy: Vishwajeet Naik)

Time to hit the panic button

Taking up hobbies and making 'real' friends are the solutions to let go the addiction to social networking sites

From just pinging your friends online to being a part of e-campaigns to playing network games, the social networking sites have come a long way. Posting and commenting on pictures and status messages, is a common feature. But what if the dependency on these sites gets a bit too much and the only person who can help you out is a shrink?

Psychiatrist, Dr Suparna Telang says that many people look at such sites as an escape mechanism from the real world they live in. "First, people get curious about these sites, then they enjoy the variety of interaction they have to offer and subsequently, get dependent on these," she says. She adds that getting addicted to these sites is a sign that the person is not satisfied with his/her daily work and family life and doesn't have good friends to share stuff with.

Priyam Kabra, 26, a brand manager, was addicted to the popular social networking sites- Facebook and Orkut. "I would scrap my friends, update my statuses and comment on photos everyday. I had started liking my online life," she says. But when the sites were blocked in her office, she used to feel depressed at the thought of not being able to network online. "I used to feel depressed and left out when my friends would discuss Facebook. It took a few weeks to realise that it was good in a way, as my dependency on these sites lessened," says Priyam, who has stopped 'Facebooking' now.

Telang says that it can be considered as a good sign when people who are addicted to these sites, themselves decide to give them up. "Any type of emotional dependence is not good. One needs to nurture 'real' friends and take up worthwhile hobbies," she says. In case of Chanda Paliwal, 23, a housewife, pressure from the friends' side made her join Orkut. "I got hooked to it in no time. But then, I decided to keep away from Orkut and instead started calling up and meeting my friends," says Chanda, who originally hails from Rajasthan and now believes in calling up friends.

"If one is happy with his/her family and friends, there is no need for such crutches," says Dr Telang.

Myths about potatoes busted

Stop munching those potato fries, and start consuming them in boiled and baked form

Potato has always been tagged as the most 'fattening' food item on the plate and for years, there has been a misconception that potatoes make one fat. But studies have shown that it is not potato the villain, but the way we prepare it, which determines whether it is fattening or not.

Having carried out a revealing research, Suman Kumar Pandey, director of the Central Potato Research Institute (CPRI) in Shimla informs, "It is believed that potatoes are fattening, but in reality, potatoes contain less than 0.1% fat and are cholesterol free." He adds that potato absorbs considerable quantity of fat while frying. It is this added fat that could cause obesity if consumed in large quantities. Therefore, by itself, potato is not a fattening vegetable, however, preparing and serving potatoes with high-fat ingredients raises the caloric value of the dish.

Potato is a low energy food. It is not an outstanding source of energy, but is a very good source of high quality protein. "If potatoes are consumed in good quantity and on a regular basis, they could contribute considerably to our dietary fibre intake," says Pandey. Important minerals and trace elements such as phosphorus and iron are present in potato.

City-based clinical nutritionist and dietician, Aarati Pillai says, "Potatoes are a good source of starch. Boiled potatoes have enough starch and energy that is present in two chapattis." Instead of having fried potatoes in the diet, boiled and roasted potatoes should be included. "The intake of potatoes should be balanced with other vegetables," she says.

Pillai suggests that chopped potatoes if soaked in water for sometime and then baked in oven, sprinkled with salt and pepper can make a healthy mid-day snack. When on a fast, instead of frying potatoes, they can be boiled and sprinkled with masala and eaten with chutney. Potatoes can be added in a vegetable salad alongwith curd, honey, salt and pepper.

"Potatoes are also one of the best-tolerated foods in the world, which is good news for many people who suffer from food-related allergies," says Pandey.

So now while cooking, don't freak out at the mention of potato, but instead, prepare it in a healthier way.

What's your dialogue?

From famous film dialogues to witty one-liners, dialogues as caller tunes are increasingly being preferred by people

Have you ever heard a Yenna rascala, mind it, I say! from the popular film Quickgun Murugan or a Kishore Kumar mimicry when you called up someone? The trend of dialogue caller tunes or hello tunes as they are called, is fast catching up in the city. People are trying their best to catch attention by using weird and funky dialogues to entertain their callers.

Agnelo Nobbay, 22, a customer relations executive, had set a caller tune which said, 'The person you are trying to urgently reach is sipping tender coconut sitting on the beach', which suggested that the person does not like to be disturbed. Nobbay says, "I wanted something different to be set as my caller tune. As I don't like being disturbed by people every now and then, I chose this caller tune to put my message through in a subtle and funny way." He adds that initially people liked the tune and kept on calling him, but later on many complained as they got irritated listening to the same thing and asked him to change it. "As I am a customer relations manager now, I had to change my caller tune, as it could impart a wrong message to my clients," says Nobbay with a smile.

Some others, on a serious note, like to put some points across through serious dialogues related to topics such as patriotism and so on. Abhijeet Chowdhary, director with Swatantra Films says, "As I direct plays on serious topics such as education and RTI, I use a caller tune which makes people aware of their responsibilities towards the nation."

Preeti Sagar, a student, likes the ringtone her friend has used, which has some hilarious dialogues from the film Quickgun Murugan. "Instead of listening to the boring tring-tring, its better that such dialogues keep me entertained."

Pushpa Chauhan, a senior consultant uses a dialogue from the movie- Jab We Met. "The dialogue is very hilarious and goes something like Kide padenge tere upar. But as some may consider it indecent, I use this tune only for some close friends of mine," says Chauhan.

Be it the evergreen Gabbar Singh dialogues from Sholay or mimicry of famous comedians such as Om Prakash or Mehmood, the trend of caller dialogues is here to stay!

Maestro takes up cudgels for rudraveena

When you enter Pandit Hindraj alias Digambar Shivaram Divekar's home in Tulshibaug, the first thing you notice is the peculiar string instrument that rests in his drawing room. The rudra veena, one of the most ancient musical instruments, is on the way to its decline.

Pandit Divekar is one of the few maestros of the musical instrument in the country. He recently returned from a 15-day Europe tour. He visited Germany, France, Sweden, Portugal, Spain and Holland, where people showed a lot of interest in the instrument.

The rudra veena saw a decline after the 19th century and other string instruments such as the sitar and veena gained popularity. "The rudra veena produces a low frequency sound and the vibrations go on for 16 seconds. The microphone doesn't catch these low frequency vibrations," said Pandit Divekar, while explaining the reason of the decline of this instrument. He adds that earlier there weren't any sophisticated instruments to amplify the sound. But now, with the new technology, there are chances of revival of the rudra veena.

The instrument has a long tubular body made of wood or bamboo. Two large-sized round resonators made of dried and hollowed gourds are attached under the tube. Twenty-four brass-fitted raised wooden frets are fixed on the tube with the help of wax. The instrument, which was played in the durbars of various rajas and maharajas in the 19th century, has a peacock decoration on it. "The peacock's sound range completed the whole octave of music. Hence, the peacock has a lot of importance in music," said Pandit Divekar.

Panditji has been touring in India and abroad to increase awareness about rudra veena. He started travelling abroad in 1979 and has toured across Australia and Europe. "I have many foreigners coming to me to learn the rudra veena. But unfortunately, in our country, there isn't much awareness and scope to learn it and keep the tradition alive," he said.

Panditji's grandfather Chintoba Divekar was a noted theatre artiste and his disciples included Deenanath Mangeshkar and Lata Mangeshkar. His father Shivaram Divekar alias Hindgandharva was a noted rudra veena player and Pandit Divekar started learning the instrument from him at the age of eight.

The rudra veena has been associated to Lord Shiva and therefore during the Mughal rule, its name changed to been. Pandit Divekar has been trying hard to revive this instrument in the mainstream music scenario.

He said that universities should introduce this instrument in their curriculum and youth groups should also try and promote it. "I am doing my bit by teaching the instrument and I have also started a website to create awareness on a worldwide level," he said. He added that due to websites such as YouTube, he can add his videos and create awareness among young people.

"Various ragas, bandish and teen taals can be played on the rudra veena. It creates a heavenly voice. It has been appreciated by Europeans and I have had a few Swiss and Portuguese students studying the instrument under me," he said. He added that as the instrument is on a decline, there aren't many craftsmen making it.

"I use the rudra veena which my father used and it is 118 years old. In Maharashtra, the rudra veena is made only in Miraj," he said. Pandit Divekar feels that if the rudra veena is promoted at music festivals such as Pune Festivals or the Sawai Gandharva, it will help in its revival. This mother of all string instruments needs to be nurtured and cherished.

Mirza ki Marzi ;)

Kahani mein twist: Sania Mirza is going to marry Pak cricketer Shoaib Malik.

This story has created quite a hoo-hallah in the media and among political parties. TV channels have gone to the extent of giving headlines such as 'Mirza ki Marzi', 'Kya Sania Banegi Pak ki dulhan...' and so on. People are discussing whether Sania will play for India or for Pakistan, where will she stay, what will she eat, blah blah blah....

After hearing all this, one Marathi poem comes to my mind... It goes: 'Tyane Prem kela.... Tine Prem Kela.... Mi mhanto Tumcha kay gela?' (He loved her... she loved him... I say... Whats your problem ;). What if Sania plays for Pak? Big deal, as if she is a great player. Let them do what they want. Who are we to interfere? Let Shoaib marry ten girls and then marry Sania, if she doesnt have a problem, what is your problem?

There are some really weird groups on Facebook: Welcome to Pakistan, Sania Bhabhi... then comes : IPL REJECTED 11 PAK1STANI PLAYERS AND SANIA MIRZA REJECTED WHOLE IND1A and another says : you Pakistan for taking Sania Mirza, Now Please take Rakhi Sawant also :)

Grow up people!!

Nice spice!

If Indian food is defined by the heady flavours of spices, then why should the all-time favourite ice cream be left out? That's the idea behind these spice ice creams that Puneites can now treat themselves to. From nutmeg, black pepper to cardamom and cloves, there are many different ice cream flavours on offer at the recently launched Zaika Spice Cream on FC Road.

"Traditionally, ice creams are made using fruits, vanilla or chocolate. The Indian spices are usually not used to make ice creams," says owner Siddharth Shirole. The parlour has 16 different types of plain spice ice creams and spice and fruit combination ice creams such as, black pepper, chakriphool, cinnamon, nutmeg-coconut, strawberry-cinnamon, clove-cinnamon-honey and apple-cinnamon.

Such different flavours of ice creams do invoke a sense of curiosity in people. Vikram Karve, food blogger says that Pune being a city of foodies, people do love to try innovative flavours. Talking about such unconventional ice cream flavours, Karve says, "I like the green chilly ice cream at Bachelorr's near Girgaum Chowpatty in Mumbai." He adds that flavours such as paan-ice cream in Kolkata and ginger lemon ice cream in Mumbai have gained tremendous popularity.

"The colour of such unconventional ice creams needs to be appealing. Also, care should be taken that there isn't an overdose of the flavour or it may be too much for people to handle," says Karve. Such unconventional flavours do not last for long, but if they appeal to the people, they may last longer. "If such ice creams are priced at a low rate, people will not hesitate and try them out," says Karve.

One can make such innovative ice creams at home too by altering some ingredients. For example, to make honey ice cream with cloves and cinnamon, one needs to infuse a small amount of clove and cinnamon powder in the milk for an hour. This milk can then be used to prepare honey ice cream, which will ensure a hint of these spices in the final product.

The next time you are in a mood to experiment, try these flavours to add spice to your life, literally.