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Archives for October 2018

Health officer ends life at home

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Woman BBMP health officer committed suicide at her residence on Monday.

The deceased, Dr Ashwini(32), was working as the BBMP health officer in Vijayanagar ward.

It has been learnt that, Ashwini got married a year ago and was unhappy in her married life was back to her maternal home. Her parents complained that her in-laws demanded dowry and harassed her.

The police visited the house and recovered a handwritten note in which she has written ‘Sorry’.

A case was registered under Section 174 of CrPc at the Nandini Layout police station.

PTI

Complaint booked against Man gives ‘triple talaq’ to wife via WhatsApp.

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A 26-year-old Muslim man in Aurangabad district of Maharashtra allegedly gave triple talaq to his wife through WhatsApp, and was booked following a complaint lodged by her, police said Thursday.

The man, Javed Saber Pathan, a resident of Khandala village in Vaijapur taluka in the district, was booked on Wednesday under section 4 of the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Ordinance, 2018, a police officer said.

“Javed had married Shabana Nisar Shaikh alias Sabha in December 2016. Things were fine between them for about a year. However, after that they regularly started arguing over small issues,” police inspector Anant Kulkarni said.

“On September 9 (2018), Javed dropped Shabana at her maternal aunt’s house in Kannad tehsil (in the district), but did not return to take her back. Shabana’s parents visited his house to request him to patch up with her. But on September 23, Javed sent a triple talaq message on her WhatsApp,” he added.

Shabana lodged a complaint against him with Vaijapur police station on Wednesday, following which a case was registered, Kulkarni said.

Javed was yet to be arrested, the inspector said adding that an investigation has been launched into the case. On 28 December 2017, the Lok Sabha had passed The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017.

The bill made instant triple talaq (talaq-e-biddah) in any form spoken, in writing or by electronic means such as email, SMS and WhatsApp illegal and void, with up to three years in jail for the husband.

The Union cabinet last month approved an ordinance making triple talaq a punishable offence.

PTI

Literature Round Up

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“The Diary On The Fifth Floor By Raisha Lalwani”

The Diary on the Fifth Floor is not just a story about a girl dealing with her issues. This book is about our society and how we are all going through similar experiences. The book is about the lack of emotions in our everyday interactions. It is about our inability to emote & express ourselves. We hear stories from friends & family, from our neighbors. They aren’t pleasant so we express our sympathy & then forget about them. Writing gave me an emotional outlet to express these deep-seated feelings of our everyday struggle, of our joys, of our loneliness & our longings

The Diary on the Fifth Floor is a fascinating tale of a 25 year old woman that takes hold of us from the moment she enters the hospital; more precisely, the 5th floor. Visibly terrified, she clutches at her cloth bound Diary, caught in the horns of a terrible dilemma, whether or not to hand over the diary to the doctor. She fears that she will be declared insane if her tangled web of thoughts, unspooling in dark mysterious stories is read by the dissecting eye of a doctor.
What does this diary contain?

As the novel progresses, we are drawn into characters & stories that are toe curling, strange & haunting in their raw intensity. What is the story of this woman? What secrets lie in the pages of her Diary?

What happens on the fifth floor?

The book revolves around one single question. It is not asked upfront but has been sent out in the void & resurfaces at the end of every chapter

Raisha Lalwani elabores on her novel, “Having lived in Bombay, Jaipur, Delhi & Dubai, life has been one long travel tale! I went to a bunch of schools in different cities & most of my experiences, friends & memories revolve around these cities. After having graduated from The University of Delhi, I decided to test the waters of International Business. When I started writing, it was without any distinct goal in mind. Some write for money, others as a hobby, I write for peace & quiet it brings me. Writing was how I could express myself & it has made me braver than I thought I could be.
It is funny how “nocturnal” was the 1st ever word that came to my mind when I thought about who I am. Whether it was studying for my Board exams back in the year 2004 or working on my book all these years later, I feel my mind is more active during the later hours of the evening. Like my husband says, I am a “homemaker” by day & a writer by night.”

Festival Round Up

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The 7th Edition Of Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF) Announces Its Full Line-Up

The Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF) which will be held from 1st Nov, 20p18 to 4th Nov, 2018 in the beautiful mountain town of McLeod Ganj, Dharamshala, home of His Holiness the Dalai Lama & the meeting point of a rich & cosmopolitan mix of people & cultures. The 7th edition of DIFF will build on the hallmarks that have given the festival its reputation as a cutting-edge event, an intimate & carefully curated festival in the Himalayas showcasing an eclectic mix of the best of independent features, documentaries, shorts & animation films from India & around the world.

Dar Gai’s Namdev Bhau: In Search of Silence will open & Ere Gowda’s Kannada debut feature Balekempa will close the 7th edition of Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF) 2018. Both directors will be present.

Manoj Bajpayee, the lead actor of Bhonsle, and internationally renowned photographer Raghu Rai will be attending the festival along with his filmmaker daughter Avani Rai for her debut documentary, Raghu Rai: An Unfinished Portrait.
Indian feature film directors Ere Gowda, Anamika Haksar, Devashish Makhija, Ridham Janve & Priya Ramasubban will be present.
International filmmakers attending the festival include Tashi Gyeltshen (Bhutan), Dar Gai (Ukraine), Mathieu Roy (Canada), Hiroshi Sunairi (Japan) & Luc Schaedler (Switzerland).
Indian short filmmakers Siddharth Chauhan, Sudha Padmaja Francis, Mukul Haloi, Rishi Chandna, Tarun Jain, Raghbir Singh Toor, Natesh Hagde, Abhijeet Phartiyal, Divya Unny, Pia Shah & Ajitpal Singh will also be present.

The DIFF 2018 lineup includes Indian fiction & documentary features: Balekempa, Bhonsle, Ee.Ma.Yau, Ghode Ko Jalebi Khilane Le Ja Riya Hoon, The Gold-Laden Sheep & the Sacred Mountain, Ma•ama, Ritu Sarin & Tenzing Sonam’s The Sweet Requiem, Namdev Bhau: In Search of Silence & Raghu Rai: An Unfinished Portrait & international fiction & documentary features: 48 Years: Silent Dictator, A Long Way Home, Bamboo Dogs, Boom for Real, The Dispossessed, Father to Son, House of My Fathers, In the Intense Now, Little Forest, Namme, Of Fathers & Sons, The Red Phallus, Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda & Waru.
Short Films include: Amma Meri, Eye Test, Khurafat, Letter To Home, Namage Navu Godege Mannu, Pashi, Sakhisona, The Open Door, Tungrus & Two Brothers.
Children’s Films include: 2 features Chuskit, Cross My Heart & 4 shorts Abu Adnan’s Father, Beauty, Hadia (The Gift) & Rammat Gammat.

The Indian Programming highlights at the festival include Devashish Makhija’s Bhonsle, Lijo Jose Pellissery’s Ee.Ma.Yau, Ridham Janve’s Gaddi language feature film The Gold-Laden Sheep & Sacred Mountain, Dominic Sangma’s Garo language film Ma’ama & documentaries like Raghu Rai: An Unfinished Portrait by Avani Rai, Asia Premiere of Ritu Sarin & Tenzing Sonam’s The Sweet Requiem which has its World Premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival 2018 & Anamika Haksar’s Ghode ko Jalebi Khilane Le Ja Riya Hoon.
The International Programming highlights at the festival include the Indian Premieres of Hiroshi Sunairi’s 48 Years: Silent Dictator (Japan), TIFF 2017 Official Selection Waru (New Zealand), Tashi Gyeltshen’s The Red Phallus (Won FIPRESCI at Busan), Zaza Khalvashi’s Namme (official entry to Oscars from Georgia) & screenings of Yim Soon- Rye’s Little Forest (Korea), Hsiao Ya Chuan’s Father To Son (Taiwan) & documentaries Boom For Now (Sarah Driver, USA), In the Intense Now (João Moreira Salles, Brazil), A Long Way Home (Luc Scheadler, Switzerland) & Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda (Stephen Nomura Schible, USA/Japan).

The popular DIFF Children’s Film Programme is once again curated by Children’s Media Specialist, Monica Wahi & the line-up includes 2 award-winning features, Chuskit (Priya Ramasubban, India) & Cross My Heart (Luc Picard, Canada) & 4 internationally acclaimed shorts, Rammat Gammat (Ajitpal Singh, India), Hadia the Gift (Sinem Sakaogl,Germany/Turkey), Father (AbuAdnan, Denmark), Beauty (Christina Willings,Canada)

DIFF has always recognized the importance of short films as a category in its own right & for the 5th year in a row, filmmaker Umesh Kulkarni has curated a selection of 10 shorts including Tungrus And Eye Test. Besides this, DIFF is partnering with Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films to present a package of short films.

This year, DIFF is thrilled to host the 1st ever Dharamshala PJLF Editing Workshop, an initiative supported by NFDC. The 2 selected projects are Where the Winds Blow by Director Karma Takapa & Editor Anadi Athaley, & 4Sum by Director Neeraj Gwal & Editor Rishiraj Bhattacharya. A third project, Chola, directed & edited by Sanal Sasidharan, was unanimously recommended by the selection committee & will receive editing consultation from the mentors. The projects will be mentored by internationally renowned editor Jacques Comets who co-headed the editing department at France’s leading film school, La Femis, along with editor & Artistic Director of the Kerala International Film Festival, Bina Paul & producer & script/editing mentor Olivia Stewart.

5 filmmakers from Himachal Pradesh, Rahat Mahajan, Aman Sharma, Mrinalini Singha, Vaasu Soni & Kesang Thakur will be mentored by renowned National Award-winning filmmaker Gurvinder Singh & award-winning documentary filmmaker Anupama Srinivasan in this year’s edition of DIFF Film Fellow initiative. The initiative, started in the year 2014, is supported by the HP Government’s Department of Language, Arts & Culture & this year focuses specially on filmmakers from Himachal Pradesh.

Riddham Janve’s Gaddi language debut feature, The Gold-Laden Sheep & Sacred Mountain & Shimla based filmmaker Siddharth Chauhan’s short film, Pashi, shot in Himachal Pradesh, are part of this year’s Spotlight on Himachal.

Talking about this year’s line-up at DIFF, Festival Director Ritu Sarin who along with Tenzing Sonam directed The Sweet Requiem which had its World Premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival averred, “It’s been 7 years since we embarked on this amazing journey & we’ve had so many good movies & happy memories.” She adds: “With each edition we’ve learnt new things & tried to improve DIFF as much as possible. As always, we have tried our best to put together a range of unusual & thought-provoking films, several of which are India premieres. Especially important to us is our community outreach programmes & initiatives to help young filmmakers. This year we’re thrilled to launch the 1st ever Dharamshala PJLF Editing Workshop in which 2 promising editor/director teams will benefit from mentorship from internationally renowned professionals. And we are very happy that our DIFF Film Fellows initiative this year is geared specifically to budding filmmakers from Himachal Pradesh.”

With an exciting line-up of films & events, DIFF 2018 promises to provide another unique, captivating cinematic experience against the backdrop of the dramatic Dhauladhar range.
The 7th edition of Dharamshala International Film Festival will be held in McLeod Ganj from 1st Nov, 2018 to 4th Nov, 2018. Filmmakers Ritu Sarin & Tenzing Sonam, who are long-term residents of Dharamshala, initiated the festival in the year 2012, with the aim of bringing high-quality independent cinema to the mountains, encouraging local filmmaking talent & creating a meaningful platform to engage the area’s diverse communities.

DIFF is presented by White Crane Arts & Media, a trust founded by filmmakers Ritu Sarin & Tenzing Sonam to promote contemporary cinema, art & independent media practices in the Himalayan regions of India.
The 1st ever edition of DIFF was held in the 2012. Since then, it has established itself as one of India’s leading independent film festivals. DIFF’s cutting-edge & eclectic programming, which includes many India premieres, and its policy of inviting as many directors as possible has made it one of the go-to events in any cinephile’s calendar. Last year, the films & side programmes at DIFF attracted a viewership of around 6000, of which at least 60% were from out of town from places as far away as Kerala, Bangalore, Hyderabad & Mumbai. Some of India’s best-known film critics & journalists from leading media houses were on hand to cover the event.

This year, for the 3rd time in a row, the festival will take place in the peaceful environs of Tibetan Children’s Village, a short distance from McLeod Ganj. Along with 2 existing auditoriums at the school, this year DIFF is excited to partner with Delhi-based Picture Time to set up a mobile digital theatre with state-of-the-art projection facilities at the festival venue.

Alok Nath absence for court hearing, Orders to present for the next hearing,

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After accusing Alok Nath of sexual harassment, TV writer Vinta Nanda filed a police complaint against the actor on Wednesday. While Vinta Nanda said that the process of lodging the complaint was smooth, however, the Mumbai court objected to Alok Nath’s absence from the court and asked his lawyers to ensure that he is present in the next hearing as he is the main person.

In the wake of the Me Too movement, TV writer-producer Vinta Nanda had accused Alok Nath of rape and sexual harassment about 19 years ago. Ever since Nanda accused Alok Nath, a lot of actresses have come out in the open and accused Alok Nath of sexual harassment. In one of the latest developments, on Wednesday, Vinta Nanda made an official police complaint against Alok Nath in Mumbai. After filing the complaint, Vinta Nanda said that the police complaint has been accepted by the police and thanked the officials for their help.

While Vinta Nanda admitted that it wasn’t easy to recount the whole event which took place in the 90s, however, Nanda is happy that the entire process went smoothly. However, as reported by media, a Mumbai court didn’t pass an interim order and allowed writer-producer, who accused actor Alok Nath of rape and violence, to use social media to comment on the ordeal and the allegations against the actor.

Few days back, Alok Nath had filed a Rs. 1 defamation case against writer-producer Vinta Nanda. Earlier, while talking to a news channel, Alok Nath’s lawyer, Ashok Saraogi dismissed all the charges leveled against his client and said that Alok Nath will speak at an appropriate time. But on Wednesday, while hearing Alok Nath’s defamation suit, the court questioned Alok Nath’s lawyers for Nath’s absence. While the court asked Alok Nath’s lawyers to make necessary amendments in the suit, owing to technical errors in it, the court dismissed his lawyer’s plea to exempt Alok Nath to be present in the court. “Alok Nath’s lawyer asked for the actor’s exemption to be present in the court, to which the defence objected stating that he is the main person and needs to be present. The court also objected to his absence and asked him to be present in the next hearing, which is slated to be held on October 25,” as quoted by media.

In retrospect, Vinta Nanda had recounted her account of rape on Facebook detailing the years of isolation, trauma and depression that she endured. today as we speak, Vinta Nanda stands fearless as she had said, “I am fearless today because I have spoken what I had to and I’ve let it out.”

Vinta Nanda was the writer and producer of Tv serial Tara, in which Alok Nath played a lead role.

There’s love but no jihad says NIA ends Kerala probe

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The National Investigation Agency’s (NIA) “examination” of interfaith marriages in Kerala has not unearthed any evidence of coercion that can result in prosecution in these cases, officials familiar with the matter said. One of them added that while there may have been efforts to facilitate the conversion of either the man or the woman involved, there was no evidence of a larger criminal design.

“The NIA is not supposed to file any further report in this regard in the Supreme Court. As far as the NIA is concerned, the matter stands closed as the agency has not found any evidence to suggest that in any of these cases either the man or the woman was coerced to convert,” said a senior agency official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The agency picked 11 cases of interfaith marriages in Kerala for examination as part of its probe into so-called cases of “love jihad” at the instance of the Supreme Court.

These 11 cases were picked up from a list of 89 interfaith marriages that were already before law enforcement authorities (usually because of complaints by parents) and which were referred to the federal anti-terrorism agency by the Kerala police.
The investigation happened in the context of the celebrated Hadiya case.
Hadiya converted to Islam and married Shafin Jahan, but her marriage was annulled by the Kerala high court on the basis of a petition filed by her father; the Supreme Court set aside the high court order.

“At least one among the 11 marriages under examination was purely a matter of relationship gone sour. In most of the other cases we found that a similar set of people and organisations associated with Popular Front of India (PFI) were involved in helping either the man or the woman involved in a relationship to convert to Islam, but we didn’t find any prosecutable evidence to bring formal charges against these persons under any of the scheduled offences of the NIA, like the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act,” added the official.
The official said the Constitution of India had provided freedom to practice and promote religion in a peaceful manner to all citizens as a fundamental right. “Conversion is not a crime in Kerala and also helping these men and women convert is also within the ambit of the Constitution of the country.”

PFI’s legal advisor KP Muhammer Shareef labelled the concept of love jihad a “sinister design cooked up by right wing forces” to “target the Muslim community at large” and claimed the effort was aimed at portraying the Front and (its political arm), the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), as conduit pipes for love jihad.

“Umpteen investigations and enquiries conducted by various agencies have now found the allegation of love jihad is obnoxious, fictitious and without any scintilla of evidence,” said Shareef.
Still, the results of this investigation should not be construed as a “clean chit” for PFI, the NIA official said.
“There are separate criminal cases of serious charges of murder going on against the alleged cadres of PFI. Those matters are being dealt (with) separately.”

Among the 11 cases examined by the NIA, there were at least four cases of interfaith marriages where Hindu men embraced Islam or where efforts were made to convert them to Islam. In the rest of the cases examined by NIA, Hindu women married Muslim men.
“The NIA probe found that in at least three cases, efforts at conversion failed,” said a second NIA official who asked not to be named.

Hindustan Times

Shuttler Srikanth advances in Denmark Open

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Kidambi Srikanth thrashed Hans-Kristian Solberg Vittinghus of Denmark in the opening round to advance in the Denmark Open here late on Tuesday night.

Srikanth defeated Vittinghus 21-16, 21-10 in a match which lasted 35 minutes.

India’s campaign in men’s doubles and mixed doubles ended as the men’s pair of Manu Attri and Sumeeth Reddy and the mixed pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Ashwini Ponnappa went down in their respective matches.

The Indian duo went down to Kim Astrup and Anders Skaarup Rasmussen paring in a marathon men’s doubles match while Ashwini and Satwik went down to Seo Eo Seung Jae and Chae Yujung of South Korea.

Earlier on Tuesday, Star shuttler Saina Nehwal survived a scare before progressing to the second round while Rio silver medallist P.V. Sindhu crashed out after being stunned by unseeded American Beiwen Zhang in the opening round of the women’s singles event.

 

IANS

Kuldeep will be India’s No.1 spinner going forward: Harbhajan Singh

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Going forward, chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav will become India’s primary spin weapon, feels veteran bowler-turned-cricket commentator Harbhajan Singh.

“Kuldeep has shown glimpses of what he can do on a first-day wicket. He is slower in the air and gets the ball to turn both ways. Going forward, he should be India’s key and deciding factor. He will be the No.1 spinner in future,” Harbhajan told IANS in an interview.

Kuldeep was the second-highest wicket-taker against the West Indies in the just-concluded two-match series, picking up 10 wickets. Earlier, Kuldeep played just the second Test in England and was wicketless, bowling nine overs and leaking 44 runs. India lost by an innings and 159 runs.

Harbhajan, a lethal and celebrated off-spinner in his time who was part of India’s World Cup-winning team, did not want to read too much into that performance.

“In England, the conditions were seaming and the day he bowled, it was the coldest day in summer. So, for a wrist spinner, it is very difficult. He could not do the things he wanted. He has time and again proved his credentials and the team depends a lot on him and will in the future,” said Harbhajan, who was commentating during the England tour and watched Kuldeep from close quarters.

Asked about the two-Test series sweep against the West Indies, Harbhajan said the visitors were no side to beat at the moment, adding that this Indian team has in it to win the upcoming Test series Down Under. With Steve Smith and David Warner unavailable, this is their best chance.

“The result shows that this was a one-sided affair. More than how well India played, the West Indies was not even competing,” said Harbhajan, who has 417 Test wickets in 103 matches.

“They have always produced some match winners, but at the moment I doubt whether they have any. This is worrying for cricket. Sri Lanka is going down, so is Zimbabwe. All these teams used to be so good,” said the most successful off-spinner the country has produced.

India will play four tests starting December 6 in Adelaide.

“If we bat well there, we have got the bowling to get them out. Without Smith and Warner, this is our best chance to win a series there,” Harbhajan opined.

Lauding 18-year-old sensation Prithvi Shaw, who ended the series as the highest run-getter and was adjudged the Man of the Series, and young wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant, Harbhajan said while the former has played fearless cricket, the latter is ready to take over in all three formats.

“He plays a fearless brand of cricket which is great to see. His confidence is beyond his years and that is due to the number of runs he made in school cricket and Ranji Trophy. This is where credit should go to our infrastructure and the BCCI.

“As far as Pant is concerned, the way he played in the IPL, he took the game away from the opposition. He has got power, balance and everything what you need as a batsman in the modern era to score runs. He deals in fours and sixes with so much ease.

“He is someone who is ready to play in all formats. MS (Dhoni) is playing which is great as he will learn a lot from him.”

IANS

Bengal celebrates Mahanavami

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Kolkata Devotees from all walks of life, dressed in their best attire, headed towards the puja marquees on Thursday as the city celebrated Mahanavami — the fourth day of Durga Puja.

“I have already visited many pandals (marquees) but will try to cover more before the festivities end,” a young girl said with enthusiasm.

Following the almanac, Mahashtami formally came to an end on Wednesday afternoon, and Mahanavami (ninth lunar day) began with Sandhi Puja held at their confluence.

Amidst beats of ‘dhak’ or drums, some Puja communities like Bagbazar Sarbajanin and Samajsebi sangha offered ‘Kumari Puja’, the ritual of the worship of a pre-pubescent girl as a goddess on Navami.

The little girl is seen in a red sari, adorned with floral ornaments and given ‘sindur’ (vermillion) mark on her forehead which is usually a part of Mahashtami.

She sits before goddess Durga’s idol on a decorated chair as priests chant hymns.

The Maha Arati on Navami is a special attraction. In many of the traditional households celebrating the festival, ‘yagna’ (rituals done before the sacred fire) is organised before the morning puja rituals come to an end.

Thousands of devotees bond over sumptuous community feasts at marquees. The delicious ‘bhog’ (community feast of food items offered to the Goddess first) platter includes a varied spread from ‘luchis’ (deep fried puffed bread) to ‘khichuri’, vegetable items, to fish and even mutton.

Santoshpur Trikone Park marquee, Ekdalia Evergreen, Maddox Square are some of the Pujas that drew mammoth crowds. This year the two puja committees- Sribhumi Sporting Club and the Md Ali Park recreated Chittorgarh fort as seen in the period film ‘Padmaavat’, were the major crowd puller.

On the other hand, long queues could be seen outside the cinema halls and multiplexes as some chose to watch the latest films of their favourite actors.

As per Hindu mythology, goddess Durga killed Chando and Mundo — two ‘asuras’ or demons at the confluence (sandhi) of the two days. The goddess is worshipped as the undefeated divine force with lotuses and offered her favourite food items.

The five-day festival is considered the biggest event in this part of the world when even newspapers don’t hit the streets and roads are choked with devotees and revellers throughout the day and night.

According to Hindu mythology, goddess Durga, accompanied by her four children — Ganesh, Kartik, Lakshmi and Saraswati — descends on earth every year to visit her parents to fight evil. This is the occasion that the puja celebrates.

Durga, the slayer of demon Mahishasur, comes astride her mount lion and wields an array of weapons in her 10 hands in symbolic representation of Shakti, or woman power.

(IANS)

Savour a slice of Burma in Noida (Foodie Trail-Noida) By Parul Soni

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Noida It’s quite a task to convince one’s tastebuds to try vegetarian food when you belong to the opposite world. The probability of liking the place in question drops significantly when it is also alcohol-free. Still, I dared to land in Burma Burma — a completely vegetarian restaurant and tea room — that is making waves in foodie circles for its authentic Burmese cuisine and enhanced tea experience.

Located in the DLF Mall of India, this recently-opened Burma Burma outlet is its fifth in India and the first in Noida.

Visiting here is a visual treat as it gives one a fascinating insight into Burmese culture and art. This establishment brings to forefront Mandala art — an ancient Buddhist art form — which is an essential element of Burmese culture. Digitally printed bright Mandala patterns on the walls, a pagoda statue, colourful furniture and cane chandeliers all over the place gives it a lively and artistic vibe.

Once seated, I was offered sunflower seeds to munch on while I went through the vast food menu to decide my meal for the evening.

Burma Burma juxtaposes spicy, sour, sweet and raw flavours of the cuisine and presents that beautifully on your plate in varied forms — soups, salads, noodles, curries and fried snacks.

The tea bar here has a suspended designer display rack above it showcasing beautiful Burmese artefacts made from paper, cane and bamboo.

One can take their pick from the huge variety of white, black, green teas and herbal infusions.

Without further ado, I started with Nutella bubble tea. A harmonious blend of black tea, milk and gooey tapioca pearls with Nutella, it was refreshing and well-balanced.

Coming to soups, I tried the “Samosa soup” which is highly recommended for people who love spicy food. A little samosa was served in the tangy soup with spring vegetables and spiced black chickpeas. It was tangy, bursting with intense flavours and alluring aromas. This was hands down my favourite.

Other options that can be tried in this category were chickpea tohu soup and pumpkin and basil soup.

Next came the Thoke sampler or a salad platter that comprised of a raw mango salad, tea leaf salad and sunflower leaves and crispy wheat flakes salad. Being a person who doesn’t enjoy salads, I was pleasantly surprised.

The salads were fresh, crunchy and savoury. I loved all three varieties, but the sunflower salad topped with crispy wheat flakes and tossed with tamarind chilly dressing, outshined.

In starters, I was served tohu mok palata — chickpea mash cooked with onions, tomatoes and spices. It came with a Burmese-styled layered flaky parantha that looked like a mini Malabari parantha. It was delicious.

Next up were Burmese falafel, panfried rice dumplings and paukse or steamed buns with crunchy tofu patty.

Falafel — made of yellow lentils, spices, onions and coriander and finished in zesty garlic sauce was decent and the gravy was quite interesting.

However, the rice dumplings topped with papaya salad fell flat and were kind of bland.

The cute white mini burgers or steamed buns with tofu patty looked tempting and were juicy and delectable.

While gobbling down these appetisers, I pampered myself with heavenly Seabuckthorn Mary and Spiced Ginger coolers.

Seabuckthorn Mary with pink salt rim is by far the most fascinating and unique thirst quencher I have ever had. It was a mix of seabuckthorn, multiple spices, tabasco sauce, kaafir lime, jalapenos and fizz. Topped with a lemon wedge, this beauty was mentally-stimulating. This one should not be missed.

The Spiced Ginger cooler, decorated with a red chilly and lemon wedge, came with inverted cranberry popsicle. It was equally enticing and left a lingering aftertaste on the palette.

A visit to Burma Burma is incomplete without trying the traditional Khowsuey or noodles which come in different versions like dry, medium dry or in curry form. I ordered Taungyi shan khowsuey with pounded mock meat, sweet soy and pickled greens. Six toppings — peanuts, fried garlic, pepparica, fried onion, diced spring onion and lemon — were presented separately with the delicacy.

The dessert range here is elaborate and stellar — from sinful smokey avocado and honey caviar ice-cream to Rangoon baked milk — house-based milk served with saffron pistachio cream, vanilla whipped ganache, raspberry gel, fried brioche and almond nougatine.

What makes the latter special and easy-to-love is that after it is served, a frozen rose is sprinkled over it.

Overall, Burma Burma provides a memorable and classy dining-cum-artistic experience and it is totally worth the hype.

(IANS)

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