Ergo December 16

A BYTE OF LIFE

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

INTO THE BLUE Zayed Khan on swimming with sharks

11

04 Gender Wars Rebelz Theatre group on their next

Vol. 2

No. 239

FREE CIRCULATION

Cricket

WINS

» PAGE 08

Date Disasters Do you remember the time when you took your friend or colleague to impress them and it turned topsy-turvy when you realised that you had forgotten your wallet or when your guy friend subtly points to the lettuce stuck between your teeth? Well, write them in to [email protected] for our weekend’s Big Story on date disasters.

02 NAMMA CHENNAI

ERGO Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Sizzler strokes Enjoy a sizzler every Friday and Saturday between 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. at the poolside restaurant of The Accord Metropolitan. For reservations call 2816 1000/ 4391 1000

Bake me a cake Christmas is not complete without cakes and other eats. But, just in case you have no time to bake them yourself, these people could dish out something for you from their home kitchens

Toll plaza takes a toll on traffic

Cakes and vattayappam Marina Thomas bakes fresh rum, raisin, and cashew nut soaked plum cakes, which she prepares the traditional way (by soaking all the ingredients for over a month). Apart from cakes, another hot-selling item is the traditional vattayappam prepared in Kerala homes. For orders call 99405 62353/ 2664 3875.

New Year bakes Maya Mathew has her hands full for Christmas. But if you are planning a bash post-X-Mas or New Year, then her fruit cakes, chocolate cakes and cookies can be customised accordingly. For orders call 98410 10080.

Cakes, any time Padma and Srinivas Naik promise to let you and your guests feast on their homemade plum cakes, mud cakes and chocolates. They are open for orders. Call 2499 5701/ 2499 7567.

More than cakes Christmas and New Year is not only about cakes. Revathi Shanmugan prepares murukus, adarasam, rose cookies and kala kal. Place your order by calling 2434 1543/ 99401 05019.

Choc-a-bloc: The first day at Toll Plaza was chaotic.

PHOTO: M. KARUNAKARAN

Thousands of motorists piled up on Monday morning at the Rajiv Gandhi Salai, delaying thousands of office-goers ERGO CORRESPONDENT [email protected]

T

he new toll plaza that started to function on Rajiv Gandhi Salai in Perungudi (OMR) from Sunday midnight brought vehicular traffic on the line to a standstill for over two hours on Monday. Motorists, especially officergoers heading to Perungudi and Thoraipakkam, had a difficult morning as vehicles moved at snail’s pace following the introduction of formalities at the new toll station. The bottleneck situation started at 7.30 a.m. and continued till 11 a.m., with the line of vehicles stranded stretching from the toll area to as far as Tidel Park in

Taramani. I.Praveen Kumar, a resident of Throraipakkam, terms the Monday morning situation as chaotic. “I had to cross the new toll gate to get my kids to school. There was heavy traffic on the opposite side but the problem I faced was that I didn’t receive the Residents’ Pass which we had applied for three months ago. Therefore, I wasn’t allowed to pass initially,” Praveen said. Many motorists even opted for byroads to evade the toll, resulting in unusually heavy traffic there as well. “The road from Pallikaranai to OMR that connects to Rajiv Gandhi Salai was also packed with vehicles in the morning,” said M. Arun of Infosys, OMR, who also informs that

his colleagues coming from the city turned up late to work because of the traffic jams. The traffic situation returned to chaos on the opposite side of the road in the evening, as vehicles heading to the city via Rajiv Gandhi Salai had to pass the new toll gate. The new toll plaza by the Tamil Nadu Road Development Corporation (TNRDC) started functioning from Sunday midnight and collects a toll fee of Rs. 6 for autorickshaws, Rs. 17 for cars, Rs. 28 for vans, Rs. 44 for buses, Rs. 66 for trucks and Rs. 132 for multiaxle vehicles. Two-wheelers and vehicles of residents of the area are said to be exempted from paying the toll fee. ■

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

03

04 KALEIDOSCOPE

ERGO Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Driving records In the United States, deaf people have safer driving records than hearing people nationally.

KALPAGAM SARMA

T

hey are from among you and so are their stories. Rebelz, a theatre group started by IT professionals of the city, have drawn from their personal experiences in “pursuit of love” for their new stage production “The Battle of the Sexes” that debuts at the Alliance Francaise this Sunday. As Ergo caught up with the group at their rehearsal at Vidya Sagar school in Kotturpuram last weekend, the 15-member team were busy running some final checks on their props. Since the team is small, most of its members have multiple roles to perform. So the writers double up as actors and even handle some bits of production work. The play is an “unabashed take of youngsters finding love”. “None of us are married yet,” Pradeep, the publicity manager of the group, says. “And since we are in the process of finding our life partner, we thought it would be a good idea to stage a play on the subject. We are confident that all youngsters will be able to identify with the themes.”

Battle of the Sexes is be a collection of three stories - The Ideal Man, Maiden Venture and Bride and Prejudice. Each of it explores the clash of perspectives, opinions and actions between men and women on relationships. The core team of Rebelz – Vinodh, Harish, Bharath, Pradeep, Vipin and Parthsarathy – came up with the script. The group says its main target is to get the young IT crowd to come and watch their plays. They hope to achieve it through original plays – grounded in realities – than go for adaptations. Their motivation behind sticking together through all their heavy duty working schedules, on site trips and deadlines, is to do something different and have an identity of their own. That is why they call themselves Rebelz. ‘The Battle of the Sexes’ will debut on December 21, 2008 (Sunday) at ‘Top Storey,’ Alliance Francaise, Nungambakkam .The timings for the shows are 2.30 PM, 5.00 PM and 7.30 PM. The tickets are available at Fruitshop on Greams Road and Gangotree. You can also log onto to www.bookmyshow.com to block tickets or call 98400 95253. ■

PHOTOS: R. RAVINDRAN

Gender Wars

Rebelz Theatre Group is ready with their new play ‘The Battle of the Sexes,’ which it says is a honest take on relationships

“Since we are in the process of finding our life partner, we thought it would be a good idea to stage a play on the subject”

05

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

A collection of quirky animation www.fat-pie.com Bored at work- try this essential website www.bored.com

US $ Pound Euro 100 Yen

47.94 72.07 64.70 52.69

SOURCE: RBI

Websites of the day

New psychotherapy effective in most eating disorders

R

esearchers have developed a new form of psychotherapy that is effective in most cases of eating disorders in adults. “Eating disorders are serious mental health problems and can be very distressing for both patients and their families,” said Christopher Fairburn, professor and principal research fellow at the University of Oxford. “Now for the first time, we have a single treatment which can be effective in treating the majority of cases without the need for patients to be admitted to hospital,” added Fairburn, who led the study. These disorders are a major cause of physical and psycho-social impairment in young women, affecting at least one in 20 between the ages of 18 and 30. Eating disorders are less common in young men. Three eating disorders are recognised: anorexia nervosa, (hunger signals are ignored to control the desire to eat), accounting for 10 percent cases in adults; bulimia nervosa, (repeated binge eating) which accounts for a third of all cases; and the remainder are classed as atypical eating disorders, which account for over half of all cases. In these atypical cases, the features

Archaeologists discover ‘oldest human brain’

Archaeologists have found the remains of what could be Britain’s oldest surviving human brain. The team, excavating a York University site, discovered a skull containing a yellow substance which scans showed to be

shrunken, but brain-shaped. Brains consist of fatty tissue which microbes in the soil would absorb, so neurologists believe the find could be some kind of fossilised brain. The skull was found in an area first farmed more than 2,000 years ago.

Three eating disorders are recognised: anorexia nervosa, (hunger signals are ignored to control the desire to eat), bulimia nervosa, (repeated binge eating) and the remainder are classed as atypical eating disorders of anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are combined in a different way, according to an Oxford release. These disorders vary in their severity, but typically involve extreme and relentless dieting, self-induced vomiting or laxative misuse, binge eating, driven exercising and in some cases marked weight loss. Common associated features are depression, social withdrawal, perfectionism and low self-esteem. The disorders tend to run a chronic course and are notoriously difficult to treat. Relapse is common. ■

For Khan’s look

UN takes different view away from climate summit The UN climate summit has ended with delegates taking very different views on how much it has achieved. Western delegates said progress had been encouraging, but environment groups said rich countries had not shown enough ambition. Developing nations were angry that more money was not put forward to protect against climate impacts. The meeting is the halfway point on a two-year process aimed at reaching a deal in Copenhagen. WENN

쒀 Aamir Khan looks on during a promotional event for his upcoming movie Ghajini, in Mumbai on Monday. Around 100 staff of a theatre in Mumbai shaved their heads in imitate Khan’s look in the film. AFP PHOTO

IANS

06 VILLAGE

ERGO Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Last orders A English man’s last wish has been honoured when his ashes were buried in the pub where he spent nearly all of his life.

Thai opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva elected premier

Compensation payments for wounded troops to double

Opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva was chosen as Thailand’s third prime minister on Monday. Abhisit, a 44-year-old Oxford-educated economist, has the onerous task of bringing stability to the economy which is trying to come out of stagnation after antigovernment protesters took over the airports last month leading to their closure for a week. It led to more than US$ 85 million losses a day, badly denting tourism sector

Compensation for the most seriously injured British soldiers is to be doubled after criticism that not enough is being done for injured personnel. The Ministry of Defence said on Monday that all wounded soldiers who received awards under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme would see an increase of between 10 and 100 percent, taking the maximum lump sum up to 570,000 pounds. The money comes on top of the tax-free monthly payment paid for life to the most seriously injured troops. “Our armed forces are inspirational and they deserve the very best support,” said junior defence minister Kevan Jones. The MoD said letters had been sent to 140 of the most seriously injured to inform about the additional cash. In total 10 million pounds will be paid to 2,700 injured men and women.

PTI

Vietnam helmet law saved over 1,000 lives A law enforcing crash helmet use for Vietnamese motorcyclists has saved more than 1,000 lives and prevented over 2,000 serious injuries in a year, the World Health Organisation said on Monday. But the WHO stressed that the law must be enforced for under 16s, many of whom now ride as passengers without helmets because of a widespread and misguided belief that helmets can damage their necks. Thanks to the introduction of mandatory helmet laws there are more people alive today to enjoy time with their family and look forward to Tet (Lunar New Year) celebrations,” said WHO country chief Jean-Marc Olive. “The alternative does not bear thinking about,” he added in a statement, released one year after the helmet law started to be enforced with fines. AFP

Reuters

Greek protests to continue as landswap scandal resurfaces Athens police were out in force Monday ahead of a rash of protests and court appearances relating to the police shooting of a teenager police, and as Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis flew to Cyprus. And the release of a parliamentary inquiry into a land scandal, which has also generated widespread anti-government sentiment, threatened to increase the pressure on Karamanlis’ embattled right-wing government. AFP

Iraqi reporter throws shoes at Bush

A

n Iraqi reporter called visiting U.S. President George W. Bush a ‘dog’ in Arabic on Sunday and threw his shoes at him during a news conference in Baghdad. Iraqi security officers and U.S. secret service agents leapt at the man and dragged him struggling and screaming out of the room where Bush was giving a news conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri alMaliki. The shoes missed their target about 15 feet (4.5 metres) away. One sailed over Bush’s head as he stood next to Maliki and smacked into the wall behind him. Bush smiled uncomfortably and Maliki looked strained.

“It doesn’t bother me,” Bush said, urging everyone to calm down as a ruckus broke out in the conference room. When asked about the incident shortly after, Bush made light of it. “I didn’t feel the least threatened by it,” he said. Other Iraqi journalists apologised on behalf of their colleague, a television journalist. Bush arrived in Baghdad earlier on Sunday on a farewell visit before he leaves office in January. The U.S.-led invasion in 2003 to topple Saddam Hussein triggered years of sectarian bloodshed and insurgency in Iraq, killing tens of thousands. ■ Reuters

An image grab shows US President George W. Bush (L) reacting as an Iraqi journalist hurls one of his shoes at him during a joint press conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki (R) in Baghdad on Sunday. AFP PHOTO

07

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

One look is all it takes NEWS AND NEWSMAKERS IN PICTURES

Quote of the day Sonam Kapoor during a portrait session on day four of The 5th Annual Dubai International Film Festival held at the Madinat Jumeriah Complex on Sunday. GETTY IMAGES

‘‘

If there’s a message, it’s, ‘you gotta help somebody. Even if it’s somebody’s car breaking down, use your cell phone. Something little like that. We gotta help one another to get the quality of life we’re all striving for.” Will Smith, who is promoting his latest film ‘Seven Pounds’ said.

Preity Zinta during a portrait session on day two of The 5th Annual Dubai International Film Festival held at the Al Qasr Jumeirah Hotel. GETTY IMAGES

Abhishek Bachchan during day four of The 5th Annual Dubai International Film Festival held at the Madinat Jumeriah Complex on Sunday in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. GETTY IMAGES

08 SPORT

ERGO Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Sehwag MoM

Virender Sehwag was adjudged the Man of th that set India’s successful run-chase. Chasing a innings, he gave the hosts a perfect start scori (his 83 came in 68 balls) on the fourth day eve target of 256 in the final day.

PHOTOS: K.R. DEEPAK AND AGENCIES

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

he Match for his blistering 83 mammoth 387 in the fourth ng at better than run a ball ening giving India a realistic

‘‘

09

What happened in Mumbai was extremely unfortunate. Cricket cannot lessen whatever happened... I hope this 100 will give some amount of happiness to the people. I salute the NSG commandos, Taj hotel staff, police, public and everyone. SACHIN TENDULKAR

INDIA SCRIPT A REMARKABLE BATTING PERFORMANCE TO ACHIEVE THE FOURTHHIGHEST RUN CHASE IN TEST HISTORY

B

atting great Sachin Tendulkar hit an unbeaten 103 as India achieved the fourth-highest run chase in history to stun England by six wickets in the first Test in Chennai on Monday. The hosts surpassed the seemingly improbable victory target of 387 on a wearing wicket with 20.3 overs to spare on the fifth and final day to take a 1-0 lead in the two-match series. Tendulkar, 35, swept off-spinner Graeme Swann to fine-leg for the winning boundary that also brought up his 41st Test century amid loud cheers from 30,000 home fans at the M.A. Chidambaram stadium. Left-hander Yuvraj Singh chipped in with 85 not out in a fifth-wicket stand of 163 with Tendulkar to dash England’s hopes after Kevin Pietersen’s men dominated a major part of the match with both bat and ball. The first Test match in India since last month’s terror attacks in Mumbai provided a thrilling finale with all four results – victory for either side, a draw or a tie – possible going into the final session. India required 83 runs from 40 overs and England needed six wickets in the last two hours of play, but Tendulkar and Yuvraj survived the second new ball to fashion a remarkable win. Tendulkar, showing the form that has made him the all-time leading scorer in both Tests and one-day cricket, anchored India’s chase for five hours in which he hit nine boundaries. Yuvraj, recalled to the Test side following the retirement of former captain Sourav Ganguly, made up for his first innings score of 14 by coming good when his team needed it most. The top three run

chases in history are the 418-7 by the West Indies against Australia in 2003, 406-4 by India against the West Indies in 1976 and 404-3 by Australia against England in 1948. India’s victory was set up the previous day by flamboyant opener Virender Sehwag, who smashed 83 off 68 balls with 11 fours and four sixes to leave the hosts 131-1 at the close. When play resumed on Monday, India suffered a blow in the third over when Andrew Flintoff had the struggling Rahul Dravid caught behind by wicket-keeper Matt Prior for four. Dravid, a veteran of 130 Tests at an average of 52.12, may find the selectors lose patience with him after managing just 32 runs in his past four Tests. 0Gautam Gambhir, who shared a century stand with Sehwag, put on 42 for the third wicket with Tendulkar as the Indians attempted to overcome the early loss of Dravid. The left-hander moved to 66, his eighth Test half-century, when he flirted with a wide ball from James Anderson and gave Paul Collingwood a low catch at gully. Venkatsai Laxman made 26 in a fourthwicket stand of 41 with Tendulkar when he dabbed at a ball from off-spinner Swann to Ian Bell at short-leg soon after lunch. The second Test starts in the northern town of Mohali on Friday. Brief scores England 316 (Strauss 123, Prior 53 not out, Cook 52) and 311 (Strauss 108, Collingwood 108, Z Khan 3/40) lose by four wickets to India 241 (Dhoni 53, Flintoff 3/49) and 387/4 (Tendulkar 103 not out, Yuvraj 85 not out, Sehwag 83, Gambhir 66). ■ AFP

10 FLICK

ERGO Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Not so sound During one scene in The Sound of Music, an orange box can be clearly seen stamped with the words ‘Produce of Israel’. The film was set in 1938, 10 years before Israel was founded.

‘That should answer why I’m not seen in the publicity’ Jiah Khan on Ghajini Streep too ‘ugly’ for King Kong

SUBHASH K. JHA

O

scar-winning actress Meryl Streep was rejected for a role in 1976 movie King Kong by filmmaker Dino De Laurentis because he thought she was too ugly to fit into the character. Streep went for an audition with the veteran Italian producer, but Laurentis was unimpressed with her physical attributes and dismissed her crudely in Italian, not realising the actress spoke the language fluently. Imdb.com quoted Streep as saying: “He said to his son, who organised the meeting, ‘She’s ugly. Why did you bring me this thing?’ He didn’t realise I’d just graduated and studied Italian 105. When I replied in Italian, he looked like he had been shot.” Instead of Streep, the role went to Jessica Lange. ■

J

iah Khan, who thinks in English, got into trouble when she was asked to deliver lengthy emotional Urdu dialogues for Ghajini in sync sound, but says her co-star Aamir Khan bailed her out. “I must admit it was a bit of a problem. Aamir and the director got me an Urdu dialogue coach, Athar Nawaz, who guided me. And each time I’d be stuck with a line Aamir helped me out,” says Jiah. “My mom, who lives in London, flew down during the shooting. She speaks Urdu fluently. She ran through the dialogues with me over and over again. I think I’ve done my lines very well. To have my lines dubbed would have taken away from my performance. I think I managed my lines well,” she adds. Other than speaking Hindi, Jiah, who debuted with Ram Gopal Varma’s Nishabd, has also learned Bollywood style dancing. “Like the Urdu-Hindi, I’ve mastered the dancing to a large extent,” she said. Jiah has also shot a song titled ‘Lattoo’ in Ghajini with choreographer Gita Kapoor. Ad filmmaker Ravi Udyawar has directed it. “I realised how hard it is to do a sizzling song. The song is a very Jennifer Lopez kind of number. It’s very stylish and chic. In a week’s time, it goes on air. That should answer the question why I’m not seen in the publicity,” she said. ■ IANS

Aamir and the director got me an Urdu dialogue coach, Athar Nawaz, who guided me. And each time I’d be stuck with a line Aamir helped me out

IANS

T

roubled singer Britney Spears is all set to perform in London and Madonna is expected to join her. According to Spears’ choreographer, Wade Robson, Spears is in talks with Madonna to make a series of appearances. Thesun.co.uk quoted Robson as saying: “There has been talk of Madonna making an appearance and there’s so many places we could take that. At this point, the main issue is timing.” Spears’ North American tour Circus is due to start in New Orleans on March 3. She will do eight nights at the O2 Arena in London from June 3. ■ IANS

Madonna joining Britney, again

11

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Playboy spoilsport

Scream about this

When Michael Jackson was informed that his Thriller co-star Ola Ray had posed nude for Playboy in June 1980, Jackson confessed that he had never heard of the magazine.

During the filming of the movie Scream, director Wes Craven kept telling Drew Barrymore real life stories about animal cruelty in order to keep her looking scared and crying. She is a keen animal lover in real life.

F

or actor Zayed Khan, who is trained in scuba diving, shooting underwater scenes for his forthcoming venture Blue was no big deal. But he faced a real challenge when he had to swim around sharks in the thriller. “Just the idea of swimming around with these unpredictable beasts (sharks) was difficult. We always had our trainers and divers around,” says Zayed. Blue, a big-budget underwater action adventure shot extensively in the Bahamas and Thailand, is Anthony D’Souza’s directorial debut. Being made at a whopping Rs. 1.29 billion budget, the film also stars Sanjay Dutt, Akshay Kumar, Lara Dutta and Katrina Kaif. Blue is said to be the first Indian film to have been extensively shot underwater with a screen time of 20-25 minutes and with real sharks, almost 40 in number. For Zayed, shooting these action sequences was a real adventure. “When you train as a student, you go till a maximum of 35-40 feet. But when we trained for the film, we had to dive down to 85-90 feet deep enough to get actual shots of weed and sunken ships. It was scary,” recalls Zayed. But the director used adequate safety measures while filming the risky shots, he adds. “We were always surrounded with safety divers and all of them used to be at a distance of not more than 10 metres while the shot was being taken. There were 20 other divers around doing someth-

TERMINATOR’S BACK T

he plot to the fourth instalment in the Terminator franchise has been revealed. Set in post-apocalyptic 2018, Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins will release on May 22, 2009, reports Hollywood.com. The film picks up the story of John Connor, son of Linda Hamilton’s character from the previous Terminator films, as he sets out to avenge his mother’s murder at the hands of the terminators. He leads the human resistance against skynet, which is the army of terminators. Directed by McG, the film stars Batman actor Christian Bale as the new and improved grown up Connor and Helena Bonham Carter. ■ IANS

‘It was scary’ Zayed Khan on swimming with the sharks and listening to Eminem underwater ing or the other, so we were secured. Trainers instructed us not to keep long hair and not to colour them blonde as sharks get attracted to white. Then they told us that we shouldn’t have any cuts on our body and if at all we had any, we should bandage it well. So when we went down, it was always with a lot of baggage in our head,” Zayed says. For Zayed, the real heroes were the stuntmen, who accompanied the actors under water and ensured that the shooting goes on smoothly. “The stuntmen made it look so easy. They have a way of dealing with fear. There were times when they first made me touch the sharks and slowly got me to do the fight sequences. But it was all done very carefully.” Zayed also recollects how stuntmen used to sometimes ask him about his favourite song and he used to hear them through an apparatus fixed in his ear under the water. “Once I told them I wanted to listen to Eminem songs. In seconds, I could hear it and I believe all the stuntmen and divers could hear it on their apparatus too because they started dancing. It was such a surreal scene. I thought I was walking on the moon,” he says. Produced by Shree Ashtavinayak Cine Vision Ltd, Blue is scheduled for release next year on May 29. ■ IANS

The film stars Christian Bale as the new and improved grown up Connor and Helena Bonham Carter

Trainers instructed us not to keep long hair and not to colour them blonde as sharks get attracted to white

Shilpa and her sunglasses

S

hilpa Shetty recently injured her foot and blames her big sunglasses for the mishap. The actress says that it has disrupted the schedule of her international project, Desire. “I hurt my foot bad enough to get 15 stitches… don’t ask me how. In a freak accident, thanks to my big sunglasses and nose in the air, I overlooked a sharp metal piece that slit my foot, thankfully not below but over the foot,” Shilpa posted on her blog www.shilpashettylive.com/ blog/. ■ IANS

12

ERGO Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Friday’s Question: Which pair from Indian film industry do you think would match perfectly the ‘Romeo and Juliet’ characters? ■ Vadivelu and Kovai Sarala would be a perfect pair Vijayachakravarthy - Infosys, Javid - Cognizant

■ Ajith & Trisha will be a perfect pair for ’Romeo & Juliet’ characters Kalyan, Infosys

■ Surya-Jyothika Annapoorani M, Roger, Lavanya M - TCS, Jubair Cognizant

Vel Murugan of Secude Solutions has nominated his team as Partners in Crime. This pic was clicked at Shelter Beach Resort.

■ Shahrukh Khan and Kajol anytime the best to match Rahul Bhatia - TCS, Rajesh P - Perot Systems

■ Koundamani and Kovai Sarala R Vijay - TCS, Hariharakumar - Zylog Systems Ltd

■ Kamal Hassan and Sridevi Sajini - TCS

■ Superstar and Sridevi Brooklin, Wipro

■ Sivaji Ganesan and Saroja Devi Karthikeyan.R - Infosys

■ Pawan Kalyan and Sneha Ullal Gowtham, Ramco Systems

■ T Rajendar-Mumtaj Elampooranan A - HCL Technologies, Sripradha Chakravarthy - Infosys Technologies Ltd, Anandbabu N - TCS

■ Hrithik Roshan and Priyanka Chopra

Roshind Raghavan of Sutherland has nominated his friends as Partners in Crime. This pic was clicked at Sutherland Office.

Rakshita Sreenivasan, Wipro Technologies

■ Hrithik and Aishwarya Rai Anusha, Sree Hari, Asath Kani M - TCS

■ Cute Shalini and smart Ajith Hariharan - Ford, Jeya Krishna - Perot Systems, Vetri - HCL Technologies Ltd

■ Best pair would be Genilia and Sidharth Rajee Anand, Coastal Training Technologies

Today’s Query: If you win a lottery of Rs.1crore, what would you do with it? By Rajee Anand, Coastal Training Technologies. Send your mobile query suggestions to [email protected] with subject line: Mobile Query Suggestion

Thirumalai of Perot Systems has nominates his PBC team as Partners in Crime. This pic was clicked at Pondicherry.

13

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Arun prasad of IBM has been nominated as Office Angel by Wave 12 of IBM. Arun Prasad is a very helpful and enthusiastic person who is known for his versatility. He is an extrovert who takes special care in enlighting and encouraging the no voice candidates He is a valuable asset for the company.

■ Hi Jill (Ever Smiling gal), Iniya Piranthanal valthukkal... Indru pol endrum punnagaiyodu iruppayaga... Have a great Life ahead... Keep smiling,... Keep Smiling... Keep on smiling... Wish you many more returns of the day.... Ippadiku Muthu, Laavanyaaaaaa, Saravanan, Madhu, Sindil, SIva, RJPal, Laks, Gopi, Anne, Patti, JP, Karthi(Lite House), Target, Ramya^2, Lavnaya, Varalakshmi, Deepti, Anbil, Vinoth^2, Venki, Beulah... Wipro Technologies

■ Hi Sudarsan.K ( MOKKAI BOSS ) Friends are God’s way of taking care of us. Thank God we’ve got you A very happy birthday to you dear friend.

R. Bhaskar of Ramco Systems has doodled this.

Wishes from Gopalan, Kris, Raj, Venkat, Balaji, Arul, Ananth, Ganesh, Karthi, shyam, padamaraj, Bala

■ Dear Rajani, A simple celebration, a gathering of well- wishers and friends,wishing u a very happy and blasting birthday :-) God Bless you with all success and joy :-) Cheers, CustomerWorld Team, TCS.

■ Hi Naga, Many More Happy Returns of the Day!! May you find success in all walks of life and all your dreams come true in the days to come Wishing you a great year ahead… Your friends NK, PK , Ramesh anna, Nithya& Ernest

■ Dear Avinash, Many More Happy Returns of the Day. Hope your special day brings all that your heart’s desires. With Luv, Shirley, Govind, Kavishree, Bharath, Nandhini, Lakshmi , Jacklyn , SivaKumar, AC-UAT Team ,Hexaware Technologies

Question : Can you tell me a male story that everyone haas read during school? Answer : Its “His Story” (History) Nixson, Infosys

Person1: Yean unga TV screen-la night 8.55 manikku thanni thelikiranga? Person2: Sun TV la 9.00 maniku “KOLANGAL” podaporangallam Manomani Kesav, HCL

■ Dear Ramachandran (RC) May life’s brightest joys illuminate your path, and may each day’s journey bring you closer to your dreams! Happy Birthday With Regards Team DTCC (Tata Consultancy Services)

■ Dear Rajesh.R ,(Belated wishes)

Wish You Many more Happy Returns of the Day!!!!!!!!!!. Regards, Abdulrahim.S Ramco Systems

■ Dear Joshua, happy b’day..... wishing u another gr8 year of joy n prosperity. Some words of wisdom for u on ur b’day, "Smile while you still have teeth!" With luv Sreejith

■ My dear Jo, May this birthday be just the beginning of a year filled with Happy Memories, Wonderful Moments and Shining Dreams! May GOD bless you with happiness all through your life! Ever Yours, S.Indhu , TCS

■ Hi Purna S, "Hey ,ur 1 year older now,1 year smarter now,1 year bigger now, and now u r 1 year closer to all your wishes ...HAPPY BIRTHDAY " Sethuraja, Saranya

■ Hi my Lovable 31st July C/S batch mates:) I miss U guys loads:) Hats off 2 you ppl who made me surprised by your Sweet Friendship n Unconditional luv in a short span. Really Njoid Life in Mumbai with U guys:) Hope 2 meet u al soon:) Mumbai Life is one of the important n unforgettable pages in My Life Keep Rocking:) 4ever Urz.............. Divi

■ Dear Rajesh.R ,(Belated wishes) Wish You Many more Happy Returns of the Day!!! Regards, Abdulrahim.S Ramco Systems

■ Dear Tiger, A special person like you deserves the best that each day can bring... Hope your Special day brings all that your heart desires..U have been the most treasured one for all of us.... Do keep the spirits.......Wishing you a day full of pleasant surprises. Happy B’day!!!!!!!! From, Uthra, Praveen,Rama Wipro

14 TRAFFIC JAM

ERGO Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Rolling stones street Dartford, Kent - the home town of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards - is to honour its famous sons by naming streets on a new estate after their songs.

sudoku

Vallatharasu of Sella Synergy India Ltd. clicked this picture in Italy. Hobby: Listening to music

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Tuesday, December 16, 2008

eBay seat

Word’s worth

A West Yorkshire grandmother has sold the best seat in front of her TV on eBay for Christmas to avoid family rows - the item went to her daughter-in-law for $20.11.

"Selcouth" (sel-kooth) an adjective meaning ’unfamiliar, rare, strange, marvelous, wonderful.’ It comes from Old English words meaning ’seldom known.’ Uncouth and selcouth used to be synonyms, but uncouth now means ’unpleasant, rude.’ another rare, etymologically over determined word meaning ’rare’ is rarachose, which comes from French rare chose, ’rare thing.’

B.C ARIES MARCH 21 - APRIL 20 You may remain highly creative today. Pace of work may slow down as you may be in a mood to take things very easy. You must avoid ego conflicts with superiors. You will be able to express your love very dramatically in front of your beloved or spouse.

TAURUS APRIL 21 - MAY 20 Although it is a favourable day for you, Ganesha doesn’t find you in a mood to do the hard work. You may just try to maintain pace of routine work. On the personal level, your relations with beloved or spouse may get strained if you display inflexibility.

GEMINI MAY 21 - JUNE 20 Ganesha finds you communicating with higher authorities today. You may need to be extra careful about language. You need to be very careful of misgivings on professional and personal fronts. Still, you will be able to please your life partner.

BORN LOSER

CANCER JUNE 21 - JULY 20 Others may find you acting authoritative today. This could be because of the language that you use today. Ensure that your relations do not get spoilt. Besides this, it is a smooth day at work. You may wish to enjoy spicy dinner with your life partner.

LEO JULY 21 - AUG 20 You may be assertive, creative and over-enthusiastic today. Others may count on you for important decisions. In personal life, your partner may find you very charming which will make you feel very good. You may remain in a very romantic mood today.

VIRGO AUG 21 - SEPT 20

FREE RANGE

WORKING IT OUT

Ganesha finds you running after a mirage today. You may not be able to judge whether you are working in right direction or not. Technical difficulties at work may pull your nerves. Lovers may spend money lavishly for the partner.

LIBRA SEPT 21 - OCT 20 Group discussions and important meetings should go well today. You are in a mood to showcase your talents and you will be rewarded well for the hard work. You may need to control your ego while you are talking to spouse or beloved one.

SCORPIO OCT 21 - NOV 20 Ganesha finds you taking your day to day work very easy today. You will be focussed while you’re at desk so there are least probabilities of goof ups. If you are at a higher position, you may not allow indiscipline. Love life may take back-seat.

SAGITTARIUS NOV 21 - DEC 20 You will be full of energy and vigour today. Your relations with superiors may improve. Personal life may remain cool. Ganesha finds you in a mood to treat your life partner or beloved very nicely. It’s a good day to gift something to the beloved one.

CAPRICORN DEC 21 - JAN 20 Ganesha finds you getting frustrated over petty matters at office. Ensure that your outbursts do not create problems at office. You will need to control anger. You may remain romantic hence may wish to spend time in quite environment with beloved one.

PREVIOUS ISSUE’S SOLUTIONS

AQUARIUS JAN 21 - FEB 20 Ganesha suggests you not to waste time and energy behind false arguments at office, with anyone. You are very friendly by nature so you can win people’s heart. On the personal front, you must avoid conflicts with spouse or beloved.

PISCES FEB 21 - MARCH 20 It is day to put in more efforts to prove your abilities. While you are in process to finish off your work even by staying back at office till late, ensure that your health doesn’t suffer. Your love life may require nurturing and due attention. Predictions by Bhavesh N. Pattni

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ERGO Tuesday, December 16, 2008