Friday, October 31, 2008

Chennai News 95

CHENNAI NEWS
(NEWS OF CHENNAI AND TAMILNADU BY ENVERNATHAN)
Volume 95 (Deepavali Special 2008)

Enver’s Rambling.

Whenever Deepavali comes around it reminds me of an incident that happened to me many years ago. I must have been around 15 years old. I lived in Lorne Street in the town area of Durban near the Shah Jehan cinema which stood in the corner of Lorne and Grey streets. I remember my friends and me bursting crackers in the evening when one of them suggested that we go to the movies. The Shah Jahan had just been renovated and they were showing a western. I don’t remember the name but I am sure it was a Charlton Heston movie. So we stopped bursting crackers and I put my share in my pocket as I did not want to go home. I knew once I was seen by my father there was no way I would be able to get out of the house for a second time. We were really enjoying the movie from our balcony seats when some idiot threw a bunch of lighted crackers to the section below. I remember thinking to myself how stupid the guy was for doing such act. Any how because there was such a commotion from the people below they stopped the screening and decided to search all the people upstairs. So I thought well now the guy was really going to get it. However they did not apprehend anyone and the search came very close to us. It then dawned on me and I froze as I had crackers in my pocket. Off course I was searched and they cried out “We got him”. They wanted to take me to their office downstairs. Now anyone who knows the happenings of the Shah Jahan in those days would know that the one place you did not want to be taken to was their office. The last guy I knew came out without two front teeth. So, on the top of my voice, I put up an argument that it was not me and even tried to prove with some nifty “ballistic” angles that the crackers could have not come from my seating position. Luckily I was backed up by most of the people seated around me and with the crowd becoming restless to see the movie they let me go after confiscating all my crackers. I honestly tell you I don’t remember the rest of the movie as I was in shock.

Just who is a Tamil. The reason I ask this is that many people seem to be very confused about this. Tamil is a language which however has a distinct culture. It is not a religion like some people assume. Here we have Tamils who are Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Jain and Buddhists and I dare say many atheists. This does not seem to happen in South Africa where many non Hindus Tamils seem to think that they are not Tamil. Maybe it is time to invite all Tamils irrespective of their religious inclinations under the banner of a united Tamil fraternity. Please don’t misunderstand this as a call for new Tamil organisation. For me the SATF (with its provincial affiliates) is the main Tamil organisation of South Africa. All other Tamil organisations should be affiliated to it. In this way we have one strong mouthpiece for the Tamil people.

The Sydenham Tamil Society which has its cultural roots in the late 60’s will be having its first fundraising dinner dance on 20th December at Howard College. Besides the Tamil Koothu (dance) they have lined up a Karaoke competition. There will also be lots of prizes to be won. I will give you more news about this in the next CN. However you can mail their PRO Miss Sivani Naidoo at sivaninaidoo@gmail.com

For those of you who have access NDTV please make a point of watching the documentary called Our Family by Professor Anjali Monteiro and Professor
K.P. Jayasankar. The documentary is based on my sister-in-law Pritham’s one women play Nirvanam (liberation) referring to the act of liberating oneself from the male body and transforming oneself to a female. It documents the lives of three generations of people referred to as Aravanies in Tamilnadu and Higras in the North. The narration is done by Pritham in Tamil with English subtitles. It will be telecasted on Sunday Nov 2 at 9.30 to 10.30 am SA time.

Congratulation to Mala Lutchmanan on the release of the following:
1. The Skandha Sashti Kavacham (book & cd)
2. Learn Tamil - A beginner's guide - vol 1
3. Learn Tamil - vol 2

Date: 2 November 2008
Venue: SABC, 100 Old Fort Road, Durban
Time: 4pm

The Pravasi Bharathi Divas is a meeting held every year by the Indian government for Indians living out side India. Although held mostly in Delhi this year it is Chennai that will be hosting this colourful and interesting event for the very first time. It will be held from January 7th to 9th at the Chennai Trade Centre. For more information you can log onto www.pbdindia.org and can register for the event. However check with me for accommodation as I am sure I can get it at a better rate or advise you to book with them if I can’t. However some of the hotels on the list are not worth the price so I will tell you which to avoid.
As a prelude to this meeting you can attend the first World Tamil Economic Conference and Tamil Diaspora Meet also in Chennai from 5th to 7th January at the Taj Coromandal Hotel. For more information you can log onto www.economic-conference.com and register here. I will give you more news of tours that I have planned before and after these two meetings. Don’t hesitate to contact me for more information.
8th November- SAMARPANAM- an offering of DevotionBharat Natyam production joining the celebration of Verushka’s dance school in India, Bharata Kalanjali turning 40 years and my esteemed Guru, Shri VP Dhananjayan turns 70 and my 10 year anniversary of her arrangetarm.A joyous celebration of the life and legacy of 'The Dhananjayans'
THEKWINI COLLEGE, DA'INTREE AVENUE 8TH NOVEMBER 2008 6.30PM TICKETS: R50 & R30
12TH November- SAI NATYA. a dance collaboration with six dance schools and accompanied by Karthigasen Pillay. A humble offering of Dance to Bhagavan Sri Satya Sai Baba.Contact: Verushka 0833600037 / 031-4036469

It is not everyday you get something for nothing. You can earn points by using this search engine which can be exchanged for presents. To subscribe go to the website http://scour.com/invite/envernathan/

I have finally registered my website www.envernathan.com I am now in the process of developing this site. If you can help me please do so.
Some of you who visited India a few years ago promised me space on your server. I did not follow it up at that time but now that I have a web domain I will need that promised space. Please mail me.

To read the back issues of Chennai News log onto http://envernathan.blogspot.com

One of our groups in Facebook is called Learn and Teach Tamil. (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=6084403897) This was started on 1st December. This is an interactive site for people who want to learn Tamil and also for people who want to teach. As it is aimed at adults we are using the English font. Please join in to get involved. Kamesh has prepared some lessons, which I will share with you. However to get really involved on a daily basis it will be better to join the group.

For those of you who are interested in Tamil movies you can join the group Tamil Movie Club. (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=6526801521). You can join in some lively discussions on all aspects of Tamil cinema.
Tamil Eisteddfod Group. (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=7818284447) This is a place for all of you who ever took part in an eisteddfod whether as a participant, administrator, Adjudicator or the audience. The rule of the group is that you must introduce yourself. Hopefully we will have a collection of experiences that will inspire others to take part.
The latest addition is the Chennai Super Kings (IPL). This is off course for all supporters of the Chennai Super Kings 20/20 cricket team. http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=18926205926
For those of you who are looking for a Tamil word processor then you should look at the Azhagi software. You can get a free basic copy by downloading from the site www.azhagi.com

My son Kamesh has his own blog site, which can be accessed at http://kameshgovender.blogspot.com/. It is quite interesting and he loves putting pictures etc in it.
Film scene

The two main Deepavali releases have been Ajiths Aegan and Bharath’s Seval. After years of rivalry between the big stars this years Deepavali offering has been described a one day match between India and Bangladesh.

Aegan which stars Ajith, Nayanthara, Navdeep, Pia, Jayaram and Suhasini is a mixture of comedy, romance and action. The movie is directed by dance master Raju Sundram (Brother of Prabhu Deva). The storyline has shades of Main Hoon Na as this move was also inspired by ‘Back to School’ and others of this type.
Siva (Ajith) is an undercover cop. He is used by his father who is the police commissioner (Naser) in very sensitive cases. The righthand man of the city’s notorious don (Suman) wants to give himself up to the police. However the gang comes to know and his attempt is compromised and he escapes. Naser asks his son to apprehend him. They know that his daughter (Pia) studies in Ooty and Siva goes there as an older student who is resuming his studies after a long break. He takes along a fellow policeman played by Haniffa who provides much of the light relief with his naivety and innocence. Ajith not usually know for comedy also gives us some funny moments as he tries to befriend Pia and her boyfriend (Navdeep). He gamely allows himself to be a butt of the jokes even mentioning his flabby stomach. Siva also sees professor Maliga (Nayanthara) and it is love at first sight much to her exasperations. However it does not take her long to fall under his spell. Nayanthara looks slim and trim as she pesues a more sensual image. Gone is the lovely chubbiness that she had in Chandramukhi. Mention must be made of the antics of Principle Jayaram and his office boy Sathyam who will have you in stiches even when overacting a bit.
Anyway after saving Pia from being kidnapped he becomes friends with the students which allows him to apprehend Pia’s father. He finds out that Navjeeth is actually his younger “brother”. Siva was adopted by Naser and Suhashini who later split when the younger son is born. Anyways all ends well.

Seval (Roster) stars Bharath, new girl Poonam, Simran, Krishna and the veteran Rajesh. Bharath is a village ruffian who spends most of time pursuing all the wrong deeds much to the disgust of his father. The family grows flowers for a living which they sell to all the people in their little town. Bharath somehow manages to pledge their farm after a bout of gambling which further infuriates his father. However when Bharath sees Parijatham who is the daughter of the local brahim priest, he falls in love with her and slowly changes his ways. Vadivel is his cousin and besides the comedy plays a very pivotal part in the movie. Simran makes a comeback in movies as the elder sister of Pari and revels in the comedy parts. However when she is diagnosed with cancer and is on her deathbed, she asks her younger sister to marry her husband so that her child could be brought up by her. Siva spends most of the time protecting the honour of Pari who because of her beauty is eyed by the lecherous the village leader. This is a real family drama with lots of sentiment and lots of subplots. However director Hari is a past master in keeping everything together and making sure all the characters have a meaningful role. The movie is also a continuation of the evolvement of Bharath as an actor. Newcomer Poonam makes a good impression and is sure to bag many more roles. Definitely a movie for the family as it has something for everyone.
Four Tamil movies have made it to the prestigious International Film Festival of India which is run by the Department of Information and Broadcasting. The festival is being held at Goa from Nov 22 to Dec 2. The movies are Kanchivaram in the Indian Panorama and Billa, Kallori and Muthal Muthal Muthal Vaaram selected in the regional section. However the Tamil Film Industry is furious that movies like Anjaathey and Subramaniapuram which were both critically acclaimed and huge box office hits were ignored. They question how a remake like Billa and the little seen movie M3V were chosen instead.

Music Scene

The music CD of Silambarasan’s latest movie Silambaattam has 5 songs with music by Yuvan Shankar Raja. The first song is Silambaatam by Shankar Mahadevan and is a fast paced folk song with brilliant percussion.
The second song is a daban koothu rap song Nallamdhana by Silambarasan, Earl and Suzie Q. The Tamil lyrics are by Gangai Amaran and the English lyrics by Suzie Q and Earl. The song is very good and the Sivamani on the drums is excellent.
Machaan Machaan is a beautiful duet by Illiaraja and Belashende. Illayaraja will surprise with how young he sounds. The backup music especially the guitar by Amal Raj is really good. Vechikkava is a remix that sounds very similar o the original with a few changes. However the trumpet work is really catchy. The song is song by Silambarasan and Suchimitra.
Where is the Party is a fast paced folk song that seems to be inspired by one of Pushpa Kandasamy’s folk tunes. I think this one will do well in SA as it is easy to sing along the English parts. This is sung by Mukesh and Priyadharshini and the words are by Simbu himself.

Events
‘Bharata Natyam – The First Knowledgeable Step’ which contains a general knowledge of understanding and performing the correct steps in Bharatha Natyam.
According to Krish Swamivel this is the first time most of adavus are being presented in this extremely useful format, and I am sure this will be found indispensable by the dance students, dancers and dance lovers.
Enquiries: Krish Swamivel @ 083 778 7083 or 031 403 7083 Introductory offer @ R89 only

Those of you in Capetown and surrounding areas are invited to attend the Opening of BUDDHIPRIYA (Bestower of Knowledge) ACTIVITY & LEARNING CENTRE

Venue: Sri Siva Aalayam Hall
Date: Saturday 1st November 2008
Time: 2:30pm
Kindly RSVP for purpose of refreshments Curly Valoo - 072 149 2191, Kubeshini Govender - 078 312 5488, Premie Pillay - 082 674 2567



The Sideman Tamil Society has successfully started their yoga classes last week with 9 participants and from what I heard they really enjoyed it. So if you want to join them then better contact them fast as they want to take a limited number

Notice Board – Please mail me if you want to put your organisation on this notice board. However I need a mail from the principal organiser so that information is accurate.

The Sydenham Tamil Society has started singing and harmonium classes under the tutorage of Mr Kumaresan Chetty every Wednesday at 6 pm. Yoga classes also on Tuesdays. For more information contact their PRO Miss Sivani Naidoo sivaninaidoo@gmail.com.

Sri Saradha Institute of Arts and Culture (Free Tuition in Tamil, Music
& Dance)
Saturday 9.00 - 11.00 at Ganesha Temple - Cnr of Palmview Dr &
CrestBrook - Phoenix
Contact Suja or Kovilan Muthumanikam on 083 742 8508 for more details

Manormani Dance Academy. A school of Bharatha Natyam and Folk Dance.
Saturday 9.00 – 12.00 at Umgeni Road Temple. 13.30 – 16.30 ABH – Chathsworth.
Tuesday 15-30 – 17.00 Stanmore Regional Hall.
Wednesday 17.30 – 19.00 Mount View Civic Hall.
For further details contact Mrs Govender on 031-5053379

Hindu Cultural League - Music and Dance Academy
Offers the following classes on Saturdays in the disciplines of Music, Dance and Language: Bharata Natyam, Tabla, Harmonium, Tamil, and Karnatic Vocal Classes & Folk & Contemporary Dance. Children and adults, from beginners to advanced are welcome.
Classes are held at the H. A. Jack Primary School, Cnr Jauncey & Preston Roads, Abbottsford (close to Melrose Temple). Johannesburg. For more information in respect of times, cost and other information, contact
Rueben 072 709 5991, Thirumala 082 563 4439, Don 082 787 2056 or Inbam 083 262 6511 or email info@hcl.co.za Visit our website www.hcl.co.za

Sahaja Yoga, the following numbers could be used: Durban - 031-400 4703, PMburg - 033-391 3557, Johannesburg - 011-864 3410, Cape Town 021-713 2463alternatively, you could visit www.sahajayoga.org for more info or e-mail lincoln.pillay@bcx.co.za.

Natya Ananda - Academy of Fine ArtsMonday: Asherville 4-7.30Friday: Phoenix 4-7Saturday: Chatsworth unit 1. 8 - 1pmContact: 0833600037 / 031-4036469verushkamood@hotmail.com / natyavp@redbean.co.za

Classified Section.

I have 1 mrithangam at R1200 (18”) and a naal also R1200 to 1 mrithangam at R1900 (22”) and a kuchi mrithangam for R2100 (24”). Two double reed harmoniums at R1800 each. A scale change at R5000 and a Paul and Co at R7000. Electronic srudi box at R650. Please contact me if you need any. Dance bells – 5 lines at R160 and 6 lines at R180. Mallipoo - Double R20 a metre. Dance sets from R400 (stones) to R1200 (temple set). I also have a Sachin Tendulkar’s MRF cricket bat for R600. I just remembered that I have a beautiful coat style leather jacket for sale at just R650. However this for a really big size guy and is a XXL.

South Africa: Contact Mrs. K. Govender, 30 Eskdale Road, Sydenham, Durban, 4091. Tel. 031-2086929.

Mauritius: Contact Mr. Balakrishna Tandrayan, 8 Sun Yat Sen Street, Port Louis, Tel. 2423404. Fax. 2413299. (Sorry this is for people from Mauritius)

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