Thursday, November 14, 2013

Miss India Earth 2013- Shobhita Dhulipalia, supports the ‘Unilever Pureit ‘Protecting Lives Program’

Pureit, world’s largest selling water purifier brand from Hindustan Unilever Ltd has associated with Miss India Earth 2013, Shobhita Dhulipalia to spread awareness about the importance of safe drinking water under its ‘Unilever Pureit Protecting Lives Program’. Integrated Village Development Program (IVDP) is Pureit’s key NGO partner in Tamil Nadu’s Krishnagiri district, where Shobhita spent a few days with the villagers to promote the cause of “Safe Drinking Water”. During her stay at Krishnagiri, Shobhita spoke to the villagers about the need for safe drinking water and also helped install Pureit water purifiers in many households in Thopdikupam village in Krishnagiri district.

Commenting on the initiative, Shobhita said, “I feel proud to be associated with ‘Unilever Pureit Protecting Lives Program’, a unique initiative that provides Pureit water purifiers to the poor through micro-financing, making safe drinking water a reality to these villagers through small installments. Besides providing safe drinking water, the program also creates job opportunities for the locals. Winning the Miss Earth crown will give me a global platform to reach out to NGOs around the world and mobilize support for the cause of ‘Safe Drinking Water’. With this initiative, together we can eradicate water borne diseases and look forward to a safer and healthier Earth. Thanks to Pureit & IVDP, I was able to educate villagers about the significance of safe drinking water and convince them to invest in a water purifier.”

Commenting on the impact of the Unilever Pureit Protecting Lives Program, IVDP Founder and Magsaysay Awardee- Mr. Kulandei Francis said, “United Nations had announced that everyone should get access to safe drinking water and that is when we decided to partner with Unilever Pureit to protect the lives of our people. Pureit is an ideal solution for us as it does not require electricity or running water; is extremely affordable and safe. Under this program, today over 95,000 households of IVDP members have access to safe drinking water through Pureit.”


“Every year, 2 million children around the world die of water borne diseases with 400,000 of these deaths occurring in India alone. Providing safe drinking water can save these lives. We are pleased that Shobhita has joined hands with ‘Unilever Pureit Protecting Lives Program’ which aims at making safe drinking water accessible to one and all,” said Mr. Badri Narayanan, GM (Water) at Hindustan Unilever.

Power packed action with Shaolin Masters hits on Movies Now this November

Movies Now, this month is all about the Shaolin way of spell binding action to defeat your enemy!  This blockbuster genre, which is a favorite among viewers, is back to mesmerize with a stellar line up of the best of Shaolin.

Known for its stunts, action and innumerable fist fights, this incredibly popular genre enthralls one and all! Unlimited in possibilities and quick paced, the blockbusters are designed to keep your eyes as active as your mind. Every Monday- Thursday at 9pm, the Shaolin Masters will feature genres heavyweights like Bruce Lee, Donnie Yen, Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Angela Mao and many more in a star-studded affair certain to please their fans.Catch the Kung Fu Legends in 16 crazy blockbusters, 4 of which will be showcased on Movies Now, the number one destination for this genre, for the very first time!

Get ready  as the stalwarts of the martial arts not only defend themselves and strike back but capture your eye-balls like never before. This season will not only amplify the action, but will be lethal! Enjoy the daily dose of thrilling action you need with the Shaolin Masters. Don’t miss Karate Kid,  Incredible Kung Fu Mission, Fight the fight, Disciples of 36th Chamber,  Drunken Master 2, Hero, IP man 2, Rumble in the Bronx and many more  only on Movies Now.

Get ready for the deadly dose of action with Shaolin Masters on Movies Now! 

Varun Dhawan takes credit for launching Arjun Kapoor! Talks about friendship, relationships and the nuances that make him a GeNext star

Having king of comedies – director David Dhawan as a father did not make life easy for Varun Dhawan. A self-proclaimed entertainer from childhood, Varun ended up dancing at various family functions though his interest lied in wrestling at that point in time! This week he talks about his experiences and life’s valuable lessons on zoOm’s new show GeNext- The Future of Bollywood!

This newbie has managed to grab eyeballs with his sincere performance in Student Of the Year and is cashing in on all the adulation coming his way. However, unlike his image of a dedicated and sincere student on-screen, this star kid lived life on the edge in his teens. From getting caught while cheating in the exam to wiping out the scores from his answer sheet with white ink, Varun was never a teacher’s pet let alone be student of the year!

Varun may have been a star child but he had to slog it out with the rest of the lot in college to bag his first ever role as a watchman! Humbled with the fan following, this actor has served his term as a director as well and claims to have originally launched Arjun Kapoor in a short film called The White Mountain in college. Don’t miss Arjun revealing the tricks his mentor taught him while shooting this movie on a meager budget of Rs. 5000/-

Catch Varun spill the beans on his most embarrassing moments in Nottingham, England when the actor was busted while trying to practice dialogues and entertaining himself in his room only on zoOm this Monday!

If you ever wondered what the true equation was between Alia and Varun, watch the actor speak up on his relationship with her and his first crush only on zoOm. Catch Sana Khan, Alia Bhatt, Sidharth Malhotra, Kajol, Karan Johar and Uncle Manish Malhotra share some intimate details about the actor this Monday night!


Tune in to GeNext, The Future of Bollywood - Monday, 18th Nov 2013 at 8pm only on zoOm - India’s No. 1 Bollywood channel.

The much awaited Tata Literature Live! The Mumbai LitFest 2013 is finally here

Over the next four days, over 120 stalwarts and enthusiasts will converge at the National Centre for Performing Arts (NCPA), India's premier cultural institution, to savour Mumbai’s most awaited literary festival, which includes Tata Literature Live! First Book Award and Landmark Literature Live! Lifetime Achievement Award.

The shortlist for the Tata Literature Live! First Book Award, an award instituted to honor promising talent in the field of literature, was announced today. This year, the award will be given for two In the fiction category, the shortlisted authors are Chetan Raj Shrestha, a 34 year old architect from Sikkim, Gangtok, for his book, ‘The King’s Harvest’; Shovan Chowdhury, a Delhi-based amateur humorist, for ‘The Competent Authority; and Srikumar Sen, ex-journalist from The Times for the Non-fiction category shortlist comprises Ananya Vajpeyi, a senior fellow with the American Institute of Indian Studies, for her book, ‘Righteous Republic’; Saba Naqvi, political editor of Outlook magazine, for ‘In Good Faith’; and Peter Smetacek, an authority on Indian butterflies and moths, Veteran author Mark Tully, social commentator Santosh Desai, senior journalist Dileep Padgaonkar, COO, Landmark, Ashutosh Pandey and Festival Director, Anil Dharker are the jury for this award.

Amish Tripathi, the bestselling author of the Shiva Trilogy, Festival Director, Anil Dharker, Dr. Mukund Rajan, Brand Custodian and Chief Ethics Officer of Tata Sons, and Khushroo Suntook, Chairman, NCPA, unveiled the brochure of the festival, at a press briefing today, heralding the start of Gracing the event, this year, are writers and thinkers like Sir Nicholas Hytner, Nik Gowing, Ian Jack, Farrukh Dhondy, Francesca Segal, Amitava Kumar, Charles Correa, Prof Rohit Deshpande, Girish Karnad, Lord Meghnad Desai, Ravi Venkatesan, James Astill, Sir Mark An interesting event to watch out for is an exhibition of unique cricket memorabilia by Boria Majumdar that will coincide with Sachin Tendulkar’s participation in his career’s 200th and last Test.

To observe the centenary of the Nobel Prize to Rabindranath Tagore, the festival will proudly launch Harvard professor Sugata Bose’s new translation of Gitanjali. Psychoanalyst Sudhir Kakar’s book, Young Tagore, will also be released on the occasion. In keeping with the festival’s tradition, there will be a special honour for outstanding contribution to the Indian literary scene. This year’s recipient, Khushwant Singh, will be felicitated with the Landmark Literature Live! Lifetime Achievement Award. In light of his accomplishments, Khushwant Singh was a natural choice for the award this year.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Mukund Rajan said, “The Tata group is delighted to present the Tata Literature Live! The Mumbai LitFest 2013 – a platform that offers India’s literature enthusiasts an opportunity to experience diverse literature from across the globe. The festival has a fabulous line-up of writers, thinkers and artists who will stimulate intellectual dialogue through debates, panel discussions and performances.

The Tata group has been a patron of art and culture from its inception and Tata Literature Live! The Mumbai LitFest is a manifestation of the same heritage. Through this initiative, the group endeavours to promote the cause of Literature and give a boost to the literary culture in the country across all age groups, especially among the younger generation. In the festival, platforms like Tata Literature Live! First Book Award have been developed to discover and encourage new talent thus pushing the boundaries of creativity. We wish the shortlisted candidates the very best of luck.”

Anil Dharker says: "Tata Literature Live! The Mumbai LitFest, is not only Mumbai`s own international literary festival, it is now recognised internationally as one of our country`s very best litfests. As always it will feature literature in all its forms, presented by the liveliest minds, with engaging interaction between audiences and participants. The line-up is exciting; entry is free, so anyone who loves words and ideas should block these four days.”

Amish Tripathi said, “Exchanging ideas and perspectives with fellow authors, writers, readers and artists from around the world is an inimitable experience indeed. To prospects of interacting with fellow literary enthusiasts at a platform like the Tata Literature Live! The Mumbai LitFest is exciting. I am really looking forward to this and will be happy to be a part of it.”

Khushroo Suntook mentioned, “The NCPA continues to be happy to be associated with Tata Literature Live, which has now become a part of Mumbai’s cultural calendar. It is also delighted to make its spaces available to the many intellectually stimulating discussions that emanate from these meetings. This year, once again a fine array of writers and thinkers will participate and I am sure that Mumbaikars are in for stimulating four days.”

Tata Literature Live! The Mumbai LitFest will present all four verticals of literature - fiction, non-fiction, poetry and plays. Each day will see engaging panel discussions; book launches and conversations between eminent authors, publishers and literary agents; poetry readings; and engrossing talks and lectures by eminent experts.

Among the performances will be: Martin Kiszko’s ‘More Green Poems for a Blue Planet’; Alyque Padamsee’s ‘Arthur Miller: An Actor's Godsend’ and Antigone’s ‘A Stage Reading’. Naseeruddin Shah will present extracts from Sadat Hasan Manto’s stories. Among the plays will be a play for National Children’s Day, Mr. Jeejeeboy and the Birds; the sensation from the Edinburgh Festival, The Price of Everything; the much acclaimed Holocaust love story from Britain, The Tin Ring; The Killing of Dussasana, an incredible blend of Spanish Flamenco and Kathakali; the Mumbai premiere of an acclaimed play from Chennai, How to Skin a Giraffe and a unique show designed around music, literature and Sufi music provided by Ahmedabad’s renowned Deewana group.

Tata Literature Live! The Mumbai LitFest will present for the first time an art and photography exhibition which investigates the relationship between literature and art by inviting artists to create art works inspired by Khushwant Singh’s autobiography, Truth, Love and a Little Malice. On display will be paintings and photographs from illustrious artists like Amit Ambalal, Anjolie Ela Menon, Arpana Caur, Raghu Rai, Clare Arni, Desmond Lazaro, Gigi Scaria and many other eminent artists.

Tata Literature Live! has grown exponentially in terms of depth, quality and popularity on a year-on-year basis. It has become immensely popular in Mumbai because it looks at literature in a manner that complements the spirit of Mumbai: lively, energetic, free-wheeling and cosmopolitan.

The festival will be free and on a first-come, first-served basis. More details about entry are available on the festival website, www.tatalitlive.in