Issue No.144 I August 2013

EDITORIAL

The Independence Day flag hoisting ceremony threatened to get derailed by dark clouds and drizzle. However, the rain stayed away and with light breeze wafting across the badminton court, it was really pleasant. At the appointed hour there were only a handful of people. The crowd soon swelled up and the flag was hoisted by Dhruv and Samarth, the youngest children capable of pulling the chord. The singing of the National Anthem was spontaneous and unanimous. This was followed by singing of patriotic songs by Devyani, Adwita, Mani, Shaswat, Tanvi, Sahana, Radhika and Sivashri who were trained by Subhada. Another round of songs was sung by Shreeya, Shreeja, Aditi and Poorvaja under the tutelage of Kalyani. After that the adults led by Gomathi, Bhavani, Seema, Radhika, Sudha, Bharti, Jayashree, Poornima, Deepak, Ram, Murali sang with gusto and joie de vivre. The balloons filled by Mr. Nathani, Aditi and Poorvaja decorated the badminton court. There was a minor scare, though, on the eve of Independence Day as the flag of previous years was missing. Mr. P. K. K. Nair stepped in and got somebody to head to Sadar Bazaar and get the flag. He showed up in the morning with the flag and sundry other tricolour articles. This was perhaps the Independence Day with the largest attendance ever and everybody had a jolly good time. Bhavani proposed a kite flying competition but there didn’t seem to be many takers. You may see the photos on the Yamuna Photo Album.

Most people fall for the faux charms of the fairness creams peddled in the marketplace. Recent clinical and empirical studies have shown that these creams have such dangerous compounds in their composition that prolonged usage could result in patchy skin, heart problems and even skin cancer.  Our obsession with fairness as a yardstick for attractiveness is what has driven cosmetic companies to up their ante to promote their brand of fairness cream, in what can be described as a multi-crore market. Woe betide, we may be seeing the demise of the dusky beauty or the swarthy male equivalent, if the claims of the cosmetic companies were true. Happily for us, that is not going to happen and we will continue to be blessed with people of different hues.

The handing over of fancy wheels to their spoilt brats by politicians and businessmen has caused a lot of accidents on the roads. One unfortunate Yamuna resident will live to tell the tale.. At three in the morning when most sane people would be resting their tired limbs and catching up on their sleep, two brothers, drunk to the gills, sped down the road in front of Yamuna as though it was a Formula 1 racetrack. One of them was driving an Audi and other a Toyota Freelander and they crashed into each other, lost control and one of the offending vehicles careened into a parked car of a resident, pushing it into the gutter in the process. The mangled mass will require serious money to make it look like a car again. The hapless resident is at her wits end while the brats get ready for their next expedition.

Janmashtami or Gokulashtami celebrates the birth of Lord Krishna - and celebrate it we did at Yamuna, with all the enthusiasm of a child let loose at Disneyworld. The choreographers, Radhika, Subadha and Netra worked tirelessly with the children for several days to put up a fabulous show. We had record attendance, thanks to the sequences being filmed by Sandhya Kumar and her crew who flew in from Bombay for the event. It is so nice to know that even decades after leaving, Yamuna ex-residents should have such a strong and nostalgic bond with the colony to come back and make a film.

As usual, the show started late. The more than half hour delay was a new low for Yamuna. Not that it mattered, as the assembled crowd lapped it all up because the show had all the elements of a being a super hit. The colourful costumes, the professional choreographing, catchy music and great stage presence of the kids made for a fine evening of entertainment. Nachiket’s opening act was canned as he came down with a bout of laryngitis. Instead, the opening act featured Sahana Iyer, Aaria  Anirudh Verma and Radhika Venkataraman celebrating the birth of Lord Krishna based on 'Govinda jaya jaya Gopal jaya jaya' through Odissi dance composed and choreographed by Radhika Samson to some inspiring music by a British rock band. This was followed with another superb Odissi dance recital set to Pandit Ravishankar’s "Oh Krishna, where are you," by the same trio. It was amazing how Radhika Samson could mould these children to do complex classical dance in such a short time. Another Radhika choreographed item, "Jai Radhe, Jai Krishna, Jai Vrindavan" enacted by Sahana, Vanshika, Aditi, Bhavna, Anjali, Devyani, Dhanya and Anushka had the audience cheering lustily.

Subhada, a talented musician with pedigree, got her wards Advita, Devyani, Shaswath, Sahana Savarkar, Tanvi, Sivasree and Mani to sing a Meera bhajan, “Chakar rakho ji”, followed by a Guruvayurappan song (“Thechi mandaram”) and ending with another bhajan (“Nanda nandana radhe sham”). Subhada's training and the children's talent made this mellifluous rendition very pleasing. 

This paved the way to Netra choreographed "Woh Kisna hai" featuring Aparna Menon, Samiksha, Tanvi, Sahana, Anushka and Kiana followed by an adrenaline pumping all time favourite "Govinda a la re" enacted by Aryan, Shantanu,, Mani and Abhishek which had the audience clapping to the beat. The grand finale was the dandia dance done by the adults featuring Meera, Bharti, Seema, Bhavani, Anuradha Nair, Sudha, Gomathi, Deepak, Srikumar Madhu, Kunal and Abhilash It was indeed refreshing to see adults volunteer to do a dance number. It did not seem like they were making an effort as they were sporting a smile whilst dancing. The joy was infectious.

The eternal favourite, Samarth as Krishna, was hoisted on his dad's shoulder to break open the dahi handi, but his efforts went in vain. Mr. Muscle (Deepak Varma), then took on the task, but even after raining several blows on the clay handi with a coconut, the pot held on with pride. Finally, it seemed prudent to remove the shards from the cracks to prise open the pot, which yours truly did.

All in all, it was an enjoyable evening of fun and entertainment. Ramanan, with the assistance of Netra, Soumya, Medha and the children made a very interesting floor decoration. Kasu's snacks corner had its busy moments. Mr. Thangathurai and his wife Meenakshi distributed laddoos to the audience and Mrs. Govil handed over a packet of eclairs to be distributed to the children. It was very gratifying to see the support of Yamuna residents for the event.

We have received a communication from the Office of the Chairman of the Wards Committee, South Delhi Municipal Corporation stating that IGL will start the gas pipeline work in Yamuna in October 2013. Hopefully, this will put to end the speculation about if and whether we would get piped gas for cooking. This communication has been put up on the Notice Board.

Onam is celebrated in all Kerala households in the month of Chingam, when it marks the homecoming of mythical King Mahabali who ruled Kerala in a benevolent and just manner. This year, Thiruvonam falls on16th September, 2013. To usher in the spirit of Onam, a feast is being organised on Saturday, 14th September, 2013 at either the badminton court or Community Hall from 7.30 pm. Residents are requested to participate in making the pookolam. Those residents who are interested in the feast are requested to buy the coupons from the Society office for Rs. 225 per person latest by the 10^th September, 2013. Attendance in traditional attire would be desirable.

OBITUARY

Thangammal (C-003), mother of Mr. B.M.S. Murthy, B.M. Krishnan and B.M. Sundaresan (all members of Yamuna) left for her heavenly abode on 26th August, 2013 at the ripe age of 101 years. She would have turned 102 in September, 2013. She was very active for her age with a sharp intellect and was the boss of the house. Her departure has left a void in the lives of all the family members and made Yamuna poorer of sage counselling. Yamuna residents sincerely convey their condolence to the bereaved family.

SNIPPETS

After a long hiatus of nearly four years, D-001 finally has an occupant. Mr. Amit Kumar Jain has moved into the flat. Mr. Jain is in multi product business with factories in Assam. He grows aromatic grass and extracts citronella oil which keeps mosquitoes and other pests at bay. He also has a silk weaving outfit for saris and fabrics. His mother, Madhu Jain, is a designer of International fame. His wife, Nikita Jain designs and sells costume jewellery. They have two daughters named Swarashi and Prisha who are 7 years and 4 years old respectively. Interactions with Mr. Jain have revealed that he is a very gregarious person. Due to his business interests in Assam he would be shuttling between Gauhati and Delhi. He plans to move his family to Delhi at the beginning of the next academic year. He can be reached on 09864021892. This family will definitely add to the cultural diversity of the colony.

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Srilakshmi Mani of B-201 has been selected as Head Girl of Birla Vidya Niketan. She must have displayed tremendous all round talent to be chosen as the Head Girl, which is an honour given to only one girl in the school. Coming on top of her superb academic performance, Srilakshmi is sure to grow to great heights (pun intended).

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Mr. Talwelkar and family of C-206 are relocating to Mumbai after a fairly lengthy stint in Yamuna. Their children, Anish and Juilee, were enthusiastic participants in eco-drives and cultural activities in the colony. We wish them the very best in their new abode.

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Abhirami Prakasan of B-303, who has been hitting a million balls in pursuit of tennis fame got her place under the sun when she won the Girls Under-14 IATA talent series title organised by DLTA at the R. K. Stadium, a site of many Davis Cup battles. It may not be Wimbledon yet, but it certainly paves the way for the pinnacle of tennis glory.

MIRTH CORNER

‘Desi English’ ranges from outrageous to endearingly funny expressions. Some delightful examples:

Leave Applications: 
Infosys , Bangalore : An employee applied for leave as follows:
'Since I have to go to village to sell my land along with my wife, please sanction me one-week leave.'

Oracle Bangalore: From an employee who was performing the 'mundan' ceremony of his 10 year old son: “As I want to shave my son's head , please leave me for two days..'

 Another gem from CDAC: Leave letter from an employee who was performing his daughter's wedding: 'as I am marrying my daughter , please grant a week's leave..'

From H.A.L. Administration Dept: 'As my mother-in-law has expired and I am only one responsible for it, please grant me 10 days leave.'

 Another employee applied for half day leave as follows: 'Since I've to go to the cremation ground at 10 a.m. and I may not return, please grant me half day casual leave'

  'I am suffering from fever, please declare one-day holiday.' 

'My wife is suffering from sickness and as I am her only husband at home I may be granted leave'.

 A leave letter to the headmaster: 'As I am studying in this school I am suffering from headache. I request you to leave me today' 

 Another leave letter written to the headmaster: 'As my headache is paining  please grant me leave for the day.'

 Covering notes: 

'I am enclosed herewith...' 

 Another one: 'Dear Sir: with reference to the above, please refer to my below...'

                                                                                                                                                     
Letter writing: 'I am well here and hope you are also in the same well.' 

Job application: 'This has reference to your advertisement calling for a ' Typist and an Accountant - Male or Female'... As I am both for the past several years and I can handle both with good experience , I am applying for the post.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS FOR SEPTEMBER, 2013

DATE	EVENT	TIME	VENUE
14.9.2013	POOKOLAM AND ONAM FEAST	7.30 PM	BADMINTON COURT
22.9.2013	AGM	9.30 AM	COMMUNITY HALL