Events 
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Death makes an Entrance
For a long time, the Indian community in the US was a young one, with news of academic success, then co-curricular activities and later extra-curricular activities - spelling bees and the like - dominating. As it matures into a population with an aging component, we have a new dimension, death.
In this issue we mourn the passing of two individuals, one (Ali Akbar Khan) a legend in the musical universe, the other (Rajeev Motwani) less widely known but a household name among venture capitalists and hi-tech hubs in the Bay Area.
We have articles by people who have directly known both individuals:
Bala, who writes on Khansahib, is himself a musical prodigy with a deep knowledge and skill in Indian classical music that spans the mandolin, sarod, tabla, and Hindustani vocal.
Ramneek Bhasin is a Bay Area technologist active in TiE and a personal and professional acquaintance of Rajeev Motwani.
In Quotes
"If you practice for ten years, you may begin to please yourself, after 20 years you may become a performer and please the audience, after 30 years you may please even your guru. But you must practice for many more years before you finally become a true artist."
--Ali Akbar Khan | Bhairavi for a Legend
Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, whose name was synonymous with the Sarod, and whom Yehudi Menuhin once called an 'absolute genius' and 'greatest musician in the world', died last week, a reminder that even living legends are mortal. All we can do is hang on to the wonder of seeing and hearing them, CS Balasubramanian (Bala) did more than just listen to the maestro, he became a student and an acquaintance of Khansahib. His impressions. More...
Revolution in more than one Hue
The week has been full of pictures and news of crowds in Iran demanding annulment of the recent election. Jawed Naqvi on the shifting sands of judgement, where yesterday's extremists are portrayed as today's moderates, even democrats. More...
The Age of the Aam Crorepati
"The rich just keep getting richer" has long been a familiar lament. Award-winning journalist and author P. Sainath explores how American and Indian politicians have cemented this perception in recent years while the common man struggles to survive the global recession. More...
Mots Juste
Imagine if you had been at the founding of Google. And while you're at it, also imagine that you had a big hand in fostering the idea of PayPal. IIT Kanpur alumnus and Stanford University professor Rajeev Motwani, who died earlier this month, could claim to have done both. But as friend and collegemate Ramneek Bhasin recalls, Mots helped legions of others in their technical quests, with great effect but without fuss or publicity. More...
Workers Rights?...Yeah Right!
Author Joe Bageant reminisces about growing up the son of a union member. His look at unions and the strength they put behind worker's rights calls to mind the days of raising wages and stability in middle class American history. Acknowledging the thugs and crime that was part and parcel of the unions of the 50s, Bageant reminds us that the current controllers of American workers rights are no more ethical, and definitely not championing the rights of the little guy. More...
The Thais Have It
To the average Indian, Thailand is just another third-world country, to some minds merely an ancient colony of India and no more than a cultural adjunct. Not so, says Aakar Patel. The Thais are streets ahead of Indians in civic sense, good citizenship, and general attitudes to living. Citing various examples, he brings to earth the Indian hubris that turns justifiable pride in a democracy that stands tall into a snobbishness that looks down on the other countries around it. More...
Fear of Flying Explained
Thousands more people are killed every year in car crashes than in plane crashes, yet many people are much more anxious about flying than they are driving. Funny man Melvin Durai explores some reasons behind these hi-flying fears. More...
New Bats for Andy
Analyst Anushrut has figured out how to save Cricket Australia, and revolutionize the game of cricket at the same time. He's been thinking of how bats are made and has a plan to help Andrew Symond's hitting -- and make the game more fun -- for spectators and players both. His idea could send several sports reeling. More...
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Movies 
There are currently no Indian movies playing in New York. Updates...
Chilli Questions
The name Anandita Dutt Tumaly may not mean anything to you, but the Guinness Book of World Records people think she's hot. Literally.
Some weeks back she entered their hallowed register by eating 51 peppers in two minutes. And this after first rubbing the same pepper into her eyes. Watch it here.
Hot stuff indeed!
But all this begs the question: Which is the hottest chilli pepper? Are people from India capable of eating the hottest chillies, or are there others who can lay claim to that title? Well, a report in Science Daily gives it to the Assamese chilli, Bhut Jolokia. This champion came in at 1 million Scoville Heat Units (SHU), easily beating the previous record holder, Red Red Savina, which at a mere 577000 SHU's, could not make the cut.
Giduism Today
- Seat Belts are not as confining as wheelchairs.
- Money will buy a fine dog, but only kindness will make him wag his tail.
- A good time to keep your mouth shut is when you’re in deep water.
- There are no new sins; the old ones just get more publicity.
- Business conventions are important because they demonstrate how many people a company can operate without.
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