‘Chia’t your way to health

Come summer and the Indian households shall be seen hoarding the tiny black marvel –basil or chia seeds or ‘sabja’, as it’s fondly called in our homes. Sabja is an ingredient used in the Indian kitchens during summer in refreshments such as falooda, sherbet etc. When the weather outside is sweltering, sabja comes to our rescue as it provides a cooling effect to our digestive system and helps relieve indigestion.

Even though they are underrated as a nutritious food in India, these unsung heroes have found their mention in international lists of healthiest foods.

Here’s why these little champs should be a part of your daily diet:

Ward off that extra weight

Studies have found that chia seeds aid in weight loss as they reduce food cravings. They also make you feel full faster which means no loading up on extra calories. This is because of an amino acid, tryptophan, found in chia seeds, that also helps regulate appetite, sleep and improve mood.

OMG! Omega-3!!!

Omega-3 fatty acids play a vital role in maintaining brain health as wells as protecting against inflammation such as arthritis and also help in preventing heart disease. It’s also credited for maintaining cell membrane by protecting the skin and providing it with moisture. Chia seeds are the richest plant source of Omega-3 and hence are a beauty food too.

The Protein Punch

You’re a vegetarian and worried about your protein intake? The superhero chia is your life-saviour as it’s one of the greatest sources of protein. Even greater news is that they don’t have cholesterol.

Fab Fibre

Fibre is crucial for one’s digestive health and chia seeds are full of fibre as only a 28-gram serving of these seeds contain 11 gram of dietary fibre which equals to one third of the recommended daily intake for adults.

Brawny Bones and Tougher Teeth

Chia seeds are loaded with calcium which in turn helps in maintaining bone and oral health and preventing osteoporosis.

Do away with Diabetes

Few researches have indicated that chia seeds slow down digestion and can control blood sugar. This makes it a potential natural treatment for diabetics.

So what are you waiting for? Stock up on these little wonders and improve your health and change your life!

Tangerine treat for your lips

The sun is at its brightest these days, leaving behind a trail of orange tint at dawn as well as dusk. Puckering up your pretty pout with that tangerine tint would be such a cool idea. After all, orange is the new black. In this case, the new 'red'.

Deepika Padukone exudes sexiness in this orange lip colour

Touted as one of the brightest and sensational lip colours, the tangerine pop has surprisingly managed to suit every skin tone. The colour has made its presence felt at the recently concluded Lakme Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2014.

Nargis Fakhri adorning a bright orange shade at LFW 2014

Carrying this colour could be quite tricky. Choosing the right shade to match your skin tone is the key to achieve a chic look effortlessly. If you have pale skin with yellow undertones, go for bright orange. Neon orange best suits golden complexions or paler skin tones.  Sheer and Coral orange complement every skin tone. True orange gives that immediate pop of colour on pale looking skin. If you are dusky, reddish orange is the best for you.

Rihanna sporting a reddish orange lippie

Some of the best orange lipsticks available in the Indian market are listed below.

1.       Colorbar Velvet Matte Lipstick Obsessed Orange (Rs. 275)

2.       MAC Morange (Rs.990)

3.       MAC Neon Orange (Rs. 990)

4.       Chambor Powder Matte Lipstick Orange Flambe (Rs.450)

5.       Maybelline Color Sensational Bold Matte MAT 2 (Rs.375)

6.       VOV Orange Affair (Rs.199)

7.       Revlon ColorBurst Matte Balm Audacious (Rs. 800)

Go, pop up bright this summer.

Welcome the King of Erotica

He entertained you with his crass punchlines; he blowed your mind when he walked shirtless with that hot bod on a sunny beach; he’s taught you to ward off those itchy flakes while grooving to a desi tune. Meet the new-age, metrosexual man – Ranveer Singh. He is fearless, shameless.

Mr. Singh now has taken up the noble cause of educating Indian men to have great sex without any hesitance; the umbrella will take care of everything, he suggests. Durex India and Ranveer want men to celebrate sex. They are screaming out loud : ‘Do The Rex’, after that libidinous intercourse. They have translated the elation a man gets after a great intercourse into a dance step ‘Do The Rex’.

                                                'Do The Rex' ad film featuring Ranveer Singh

With such a scorching ad, there is no denying that Ranveer actually personifies sexiness. He truly defines metrosexuality – the man who’s not afraid of taking risks; the man who doesn’t hide his erotic desires.

In the Durex ad, he exclaims an exuberant ‘Give it to me’, with those oragasmic sounds. He shared a raunchy yet passionate kiss with Deepika Padukone in ‘Ramleela’, which made us crave to have one with our partner or may be with Ranveer himself. He doesn’t mind doing racy photo shoots, the one he did for GQ magazine. He flaunts his PDA (public display of affection) with his alleged lady love Deepika like a (desperate) sweetheart. Whatever he does, he always looks titillating, never cheap or vulgar.

                               Ranveer and Deepika in the ‘Ang laga de’ song from Ramleela

                                             Ranveer Singh in the September '13 issue of GQ

He’s a dapper gentleman and at the same time, blatantly displays his outlandish dressing; yet he manages to look so sexy. He’s the guy whom you love and loathe, but can’t let him go. He’s the one you take to your home, not to meet your parents, but when there’s no one at home.

                         Ranveer Singh in a wolf print suit on the Star World show ‘The Front Row’

Call him brazen or simply adorable, he’s irresistible anyway!

From ‘Aam’ to ‘Khaas’ to ‘Nautankibaaz’

The records were broken. A debutant outdoes the government of 15 years. It was a new dawn for the common man, they said.

Braving the Delhi cold in an oversized sweater, a muffler tied around his head and a Gandhi topi that read ‘Main hoon Aam Aadmi’, Arvind Kejriwal rose as a hero and the sole saviour  of the common man when he was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Delhi in December, 2013.

An erstwhile government officer and an IITian, Kejriwal’s claim to fame and power is the result of his dharnas which he’s been holding right from the days when together with Anna Hazare, he launched a campaign against corruption for the Jan Lokpal Bill to be passed.

The anti-corruption movement started with a furore in many parts of the country but was a massive hit in the national capital. Anna’s long awaited dream finally came true on 18^th December 2013 when the Centre passed the Lokpal Bill.

Hazare, from the beginning, had no political aspirations hence he distanced himself from Kejriwal when he formed the ‘Aam Aadmi Party’ in 2012.

Formerly criticized by many political outfits, Kejriwal’s party, acronymed as AAP, has carved a niche for itself in the Indian politics. In the 2013 Delhi Assembly elections, AAP outnumbered the then reigning government of Congress but lagged behind BJP, who had the highest number of seats.

Inspite of shouting anti-Congress slogans before and during the elections, the AAP formed the government in Delhi in coalition with Congress. This raised many eyebrows but the party was clear on its agenda, that is, to work for the interests of the ‘aam aadmi’ and that the party cannot be taken granted by the Congress.

After assuming office, Kejriwal took up the job of catering to the needs of the public. For the same, he announced to provide them with free water and electricity. He kept his promise and Delhi households now can have 20 kilolitres of free water a month. Also, he announced a Rs. 220 crore subsidy to slash the consumer’s power bill by half for up to 400 units.

Till this point, everything seemed alright. But what stuck as an eyesore for many people is the fact that their beloved ‘aam’ leader was gradually becoming a ‘dramebaaz’.

He rejected the government bungalow, reserved for the CM of Delhi; even declined the two duplex flats that were offered to him. He garnered the tile of being a ‘show-off’ for this act of his. Many events followed which questioned his governance in Delhi.

Very recently, AAP member and Delhi’s Law minister Somnath Bharti raided the residence of African nationals in the Khirkee extension, accusing them of drug and sex trafficking. He had approached the Delhi police to do so but they denied stating that they lacked a warrant. Somnath’s allegations turned out to be false. The four women he caught alleged that the mob led by Somnath threatened and molested them. Somnath terms these allegations untrue.

There was a lot of pressure on Kejriwal to sack Somnath from the party for his vigilantism. But Mr. Kejriwal turned the tables and rather sat on a dharna and demanded the suspension of the police officers who refused to conduct the raid. May be for Kejriwal, his party members and himself are always right. Apna kaam banta, bhaad mein jaaye janta - these words are always on his mind it seems.

It’s appalling for the common man to learn that the leader they had elected has been misusing his power and has inclined towards people who’ve indirectly promoted racism.

Kejriwal has also launched a nationwide drive, wherein one can become a member of the Aam Aadmi Party. This drive, named as ‘Main Bhi Aam Aadmi’, hopes to reach out to the people residing in Delhi as well as other parts of the country by rendering them free membership. AAP urged the people to register online, through messages or email, to be a part of the ‘change’.

Yet again, even this move had many loopholes which resulted in many fake registrations, including the likes of ‘Narendra Modi’, ‘Rahul Gandhi’ and even Hollywood actor ‘Angeline Jolie’. AAP says that is has scrutinized and removed the illegal registrations but only the test of time would reveal the ‘real’ supporters of the party.

Even after being the national capital, Delhi’s image is blemished in the international arena as women’s safety has become a major issue following the Nirbhaya rape and murder case, Gudiya rape case and very recently, the gang-rape of a 51 year old Danish woman shamed the city.

It would be a herculean task for Kejriwal to reinstate the faith of women in this metro city. What shall he do to ensure the safety of women in the city as the CM is the question of the hour.

Ever since Kejriwal took to the office, many eyebrows were raised questioning his ability to govern citing the lack of experience his party members and he has. These doubts did not prove futile as the Kejriwal government failed to impress the Delhi people as their expectations and demands were not met.

The biggest blot on the AAP government came when Union Home Minster Sushilkumar Shinde called Mr. Kejriwal ‘Veda Mukhyamantri’, which means ‘Mad Chief Minister’ as Shinde thinks Kejriwal is being ‘ignorant’ in running the affairs of the government.

Even TV sensation Rakhi Sawant was compared to Kejriwal by Shiv Sena stating that Sawant can govern better than him. Sawant too ridiculed him by calling him an ‘item boy’.

In the long run, Kejriwal’s credibility and reliability as the CM of an already troubled state is the real test of his capability of governance. Certainly, this is the time when he keeps aside his ‘dharnas’ and get into some real action.

India needs to be decisive

The recent deaths of five Indian soldiers in an ambush killing carried out by Pakistani troops, along the Line of Control (LoC) at Poonch in Jammu and Kashmir has sparked a lot of rage and displeasure among the people of the country. With such kind of heinous killings led by the troops coming from across the border, any sort of good relation between India and Pakistan has now become skeptical.

After Nawaz Sharif was once again sworn in as the Prime Minister of Pakistan, he spoke about picking up threads and resuming ties with India. If the sources are anything to go by, Sharif is keen on reviving the K-plan or Kashmir-plan.

Post-independence, there is a struggle between India and Pakistan regarding Kashmir. During the 90s, when Nawaz Sharif was Pakistan PM, India and Pakistan were in a war-like situation which finally led to the Kargil War of 1999. India emerged victorious, but since then, the bilateral ties have been soured.

Kashmir is often regarded as a troubled Indian state, the advantage of which Pakistan tries to take. There are often reports of internal conflict in Kashmir, most of which happen due to the presence of Indian Army in the state. People in Kashmir feel insecure as the Indian Army enjoys a lot of freedom over there and the army men being aggressive in nature, open fire at any one and at any time if they smell any conspiracy or witness any kind of protests or riots whatsoever. This has led to a state of unrest in the Kashmir valley.

The state of destabilization in Kashmir and the Indian army being pre-occupied with the duty of internal securities has added fuel to Sharif’s K-plan. The recent attacks on the LoC, ceasefire violations and infiltrations prove that Sharif’s K-plan has come into action.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Nawaz Sharif are slated to meet at United Nations’ General Assembly meeting at New York next month. It’s expected that there shall be peace talks between the two countries and both shall try to improve the bilateral ties. Nothing on the ‘Kashmir issue’ has been talked about yet.

On the Pakistani side, the blame of infiltrations and ceasefire violations has been pinned on Indian army and government. The Pakistan National Assembly and Punjab Provincial Assembly have accused India for hostile actions on the LoC. But even after this resolution, Sharif has declared that the meeting with Indian PM Manmohan Singh at New York in September will not be in jeopardy.

India needs to act very decisively and diplomatically, if it has to establish good relations with Pakistan. While doing so, it has to safeguard the interests of its countrymen and maintain peace and order in the country. A careful plan needs to be chalked out for Kashmir.

Good governance is a key to sound economy

India’s economy is crumbling by the day. The Indian currency, rupee, has hit a record low of 65 against the U.S. dollar in the past few days and the plunge continues to the extent that Deutsche Bank has claimed that rupee may tumble to as low as 70 in the coming months.

But the situation is not as worse as the way it was in 2011. In the year 2011, the rupee went from  44.80 to 54.20 in a few months. This means that the rupee almost fell down to over 20 percent against the dollar in a matter of few months; whereas, this time around, the decline in rupee is around only 10 percent (from June till now).

There was no hue and cry back then.  But the gloom and doom overspread in the media and public debate in the country over the plummet in the rupee is hard to justify. World Bank chief economist Kaushik Basu who is also a former chief economic adviser to the Indian government said on this issue that the current situation is not as nearly as bad as very often being reflected in the headlines.

The fear which has grown into the minds of the people regarding the fall of rupee is mainly due to lack of confidence in the government. The economy is crashing down, the market is terribly unstable and the government has done little to improvise the situation.

The scenario relating to economy hasn’t changed much in the past few months.  Food inflation is high,  the current account deficit (CAD) is widening, Gross domestic product (GDP) growth is low, imports are ballooning, the bulk of mega projects are yet to take off or are moving slowly.

The main problem with Indian economy is that our imports are way more than our exports, due to which the current account deficit has been burgeoning day by day. In such case, the weakening of rupee should be perceived as a great opportunity to produce those goods in the country which are now being imported. This shall be achieved by strengthening the manufacturing sector.

The government has a decisive role to play in boosting the economy. The RBI and the Finance Ministry lack co-ordination which has led to further disintegration of the economy. Recently, Finance Minister blamed the RBI for the predicament of the economy due to its tight monetary policy (high interest rates). RBI governor D. Subbarao backlashed at Chidambaram saying that the RBI is as committed to growth as it is to controlling inflation.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asserted that there is no throwback to the 1991 economic crisis, even if rupee is plunging. But back in 1991, due to the introduction of the ‘Foreign Economic Policy’, there was a way out of the catastrophe then.

Kaushik Basu has said that there is no substitute for ‘good governance, improved bureaucratic efficiency and better business ethos to drive growth’. Hence, in order to regain people’s faith in the system, the government needs to take stern steps and decisions and devise plans and policies accordingly. All hopes are pinned on Raghuram Rajan to revive the economy, when he joins office as the RBI governor next month.

‘Youth leaders are just for namesake’

Abdul Siddiqui is a Media student and a youth leader of Congress in Bhiwandi. In a no-holds- barred conversation, he gives an insight of his life as a youth leader and discusses few important things about the upcoming elections.

Describe your role as a youth leader.

The concept ‘youth leaders’ is a sham. They are just for namesake. We just have a nominal position. There is no participation from our side. The party leaders and members don’t involve us in any legal or authoritarian matters.  During festive celebrations or rallies, we are summoned and we just stand as showpieces. We aren’t involved in any activities of the party. Moreover, the youth leaders and members are necessarily sons/relatives of party leaders and members. It’s just that they want to remain in public eye, hence the formation of youth and student unions.

What are the prospects of Congress in the upcoming elections?

Nothing has been decided as such. Most probably, Mr. Manmohan Singh would be the Prime Ministerial candidate.We are putting our best foot forward to emerge as a winner in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

Due to so much of propaganda of Narendra Modi, does Congress feels the pressure?

Definitely not! BJP and Narendra Modi are on a self-promotion spree. Due to so much propaganda of Narendra Modi, many of their party leaders are apprehended. That’s evident as recently Nitish Kumar stepped out of NDA. Due to too much endorsement of Narendra Modi, BJP is digging its own grave and definitely, Congress will take advantage of this.

Describe the situation in Bhiwandi constituency.

The main problem with Bhiwandi constituency is that there is no co-ordination between the MPs and local leaders. MPs loathe local leaders. Both of them try to pull each other’s legs.  If the statistics are anything to go by, none of the Congress person of Bhiwandi  has become a Mayor yet. Due to so much differences between the two, the local people have to suffer because their issues aren’t addressed.

If in the upcoming elections, Congress emerges as winner in your constituency, what would be the future strategies and plans?
Right now, our plan of action and strategy is to invoke people’s trust in us.  Bhiwandi is an upcoming city and we shall try our best to better the conditions here. We resolve to provide good education facilities, build better roads and create an environment of peace and harmony.