A break-through initiative that aims to transform music enthusiasts to trained musicians

We all know that, ‘music knows no boundaries’.  Few people like to listen and enjoy and the other few to sing or play while some live with a longing and hesitation that they couldn’t learn to sing or play music. 

To encourage the music enthusiasts to either learn vocals or play music and to ward off those hesitations and shortcomings, is the whole theme behind this new and bold initiative by 'Kalaimamani' Padma Shankar, an internationally acclaimed Violinist, Vocalist and an excellent educator in her own right.

This new initiative brings together all music enthusiasts worldwide, to converge on a single platform called “Violin Padma – Select Club”, a digital platform specially designed for this purpose.

This initiative is being conducted through the most elegant online educational program.  

This initiative, which integrates the tradition and the new technological advancements, provides a unique opportunity to all the music enthusiasts across the globe, to learn the music they love, cutting across the boundaries of race, language, country and continent from an internationally renowned artist and an excellent scholar.

In addition, you can also directly interact with Padma Shankar online, to clarify your doubts on prior appointment at appropriate intervals during the course of the program.

About 'Kalaimamani' Padma Shankar:

Padma Shankar is an internationally acclaimed violinist, vocalist as well as an excellent educator. She is recognised for her beautiful musical expressions, creativity, grace and soulful playing. 

A privileged student of one of the great violin maestro, Padmabhushan. Shri.Lalgudi G. Jayaraman.  Padma, who has done her masters in music Padma is presently the advisor-affiliate of Shankar Mahadevan Academy an online university of music

Actress Palak Lalwani speaks on Kuppathu Raja

Spontaneous transformations into any roles are what it makes an artiste lauded. Of course, the girl-to-next-door looks and easy to recognize as the belle of neighborhood stands out to be yet another demanding attribute. With all such inherent traits, Palak Lalwani has already drawn the attention of spotlights, particularly with her presence in the trailer of Kuppathu Raja. As the film gears up for worldwide release on April 5, the actress opens up on her experience of working in this film. 

 “While taking up this offer, I had mixed feel of being excited and quite nervous too. Since, the film is set against the local backdrops; I had to be at least closer to the perfection of delivering dialogues in unique slang of Tamil. Thanks to director Baba Bhaskar sir, GV Prakash and others. They were quite patient and helpful over enhancing the verbal quotients,” says Palak Lalwani. 

Ask her about her role in the film and she says, “As I mentioned, the story happens across slum region in Chennai and I play one such girl in those neighborhood.” As the trailers and other visual promos signify, it looks like the major conflict in the film is about serious issues. So, how well is her character shaped up in the movie? “When Baba Bhaskar sir narrated me the script, I was really excited with the script and the commercial ingredients with a commendable theme interwoven together. If you’re looking out for my character, I would say that it has been nicely written and it is not something that we call ‘Blink and Miss’. I have a substantive role in Kuppathu Raja and am keeping my fingers crossed that audiences will appreciate my performance.” 

Featuring GV Prakash (also music composer for this film), Parthiepan and Palak Lalwani in lead roles, the film has an ensemble star-cast including Yogi Babu, Poonam Bajwa and few more familiar actors. The film is produced by Saravanan M, Saravanan T and Siraj for S Focuss Production. Mahesh Muthuswamy’s cinematography is already highly noticed in the trailer and songs and Praveen KL has worked on editing.

VELAMMAL HAILS VICTORIOUS IN BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT

The U – 14 Basketball team of Velammal Main School, Mogappair Campus participated in the 1^st Interschool Basket ball tournament and emerged victorious beating twenty teams and won the 1^st prize and a rolling trophy. It was organized by Shri Subramania trust held at T. Nagar recently.

Cherian Heart Foundation are the frontrunners in Transcatheter Heart Valve Therapy

Frontier Lifeline Hospital &Dr K M Cherian Heart Foundation are the frontrunners in Transcatheter Heart Valve Therapy

·         India’s first Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation (TAVI) was done in 2010 under supervision of Dr KM Cherian with a team led by Dr Prashant Vaijyanath

·         First valve TAVI in India was done in 2015 by Dr Rajaram Anantharaman at Frontier Lifeline Hospital, Chennai for a failed Bioprosthetic Aortic valve

·         Recently in March 2019, South India’s first transcatheter pulmonary valve implantation was done by Dr Rajaram Anantharaman & Dr Raghavan Subramanian under the supervision of Dr KM Cherian

Frontier Lifeline Hospital &Dr KM Cherian Heart Foundation, headed by the pioneer of pediatric cardiac surgery in India- Dr KM Cherian is leading the way in Transcatheter Heart Valve Therapy in the country through its breakthrough surgeries. Transcatheter heart valve therapy also known as as percutaneous valve implantation has been proven a lower risk alternative to surgery in otherwise high risk or inoperable patients.

In the recent past, south India’s first transcatheter pulmonary valve implantation (TPVI) by Dr Rajaram Anantharaman &Dr Raghavan Subramanian at St Gregarious Cardiovascular Centre, Parumala, Kerala was done under the supervision of Dr K M Cherian on 16^th March 2019. Today, at Frontier Lifeline hospital, the young 24-year-old patient on whom this procedure was performed had come down to Chennai for his check-up. He also shared his experience of undergoing this surgery and thanked Dr Cherian for the diagnosis.

Commenting on the occasion, Dr KM Cherian, Chairman & CEO-Frontier Lifeline Hospital, Founder – Frontier Mediville said, “Studies show that transcatheter valve replacement procedures are safe in all patients affected by severe valve disease and pose a lower threat than surgery. Currently the cost of these valves is highly expensive in India (15-20 lacs), owing to which this technology is scarcely available in the nation. The solution here is to indigenously produce these valves here in the country at affordable rates, so that this life saving technology is available for those in need. At Dr K M Cherian Heart Foundation, Frontier Medivelle Science Park, phase 2 research is underway for the same.”

Further talking about the subject, Dr Rajaram Anantharaman, Senior Consultant, Frontier Lifeline Hospital said, “People with congenital heart disease or structural heart disease undergo multiple cardiac surgeries in their lifetime to restore or improve pulmonary blood flow, which also results in many health complications for the patients. With minimally invasive technology such as Transcatheter Heart Valve Therapy, a lot has changed. Most patients are able to return home the following day without the prolonged recovery period that follows conventional open-heart surgery. Both short- and long-term outcomes appear to be promising with freedom from intervention over 90% at 1 year and a major complication rate of less than 3%.”

In India under the supervision of Dr K M Cherian the first transcatheter aortic valve implantation was done in 2010 by team led by Dr Prashant Vaijyanath along with the first South Asian Transcatheter Valve workshop on 24^th April 2010. The first valve in valve TAVI in India was performed in 2015 by Dr Rajaram Anantharaman at Frontier Lifeline Hospital, Chennai for a failed Bioprosthetic Aortic valve.

GRSE Delivers 99th& 100th Warships FIRST INDIAN SHIPYARD TO DELIVER 100 WARSHIPS

गार्डन रीच शिपबिल्डार्स एण्ड इंजीनियर्स लिमिटेड (भारत सरकार का उपक्रम) GARDEN REACH SHIPBUILDERS & ENGINEERS LTD (A GOVT OF INDIA UNDERTAKING)

43/46, गार्डन रीच रोड, कोलकाता-700 024, भारत

43/46, Garden Reach Road, Kolkata-700 024, INDIA

दूरभाष/Phone: # 91 (0) 33 2469 8100-13, फैक्स्/ Fax: # 91 (0) 33 24698150 वेबसाइट/ Website: www.grse.in    GRSE Delivers 99th& 100th Warships FIRST INDIAN SHIPYARD TO DELIVER 100 WARSHIPS Garden Reach Ship Builders and Engineers Ltd., (GRSE), a Miniratna Category 1 and a leading warship building company in the country under the administrative control of the Ministry of Defence delivered its 100th warship to the Indian Navy today, March 30, 2019. This makes GRSE the first Indian shipyard to make and deliver 100 warships to the Indian Navy, Indian Coast Guard and Mauritius Coast Guard. What started in 1961 with the delivery of Seaward Defence Boat (Mk-I) is seeing a splendid culmination with the delivery of the 100th ship - A Landing Craft Utility, L-56 – today, 30 March 19. The 99th warship - a Fast Patrol Vessel – was delivered to Indian Coast Guard on 27 Mar 19. The 100th warship, “IN LCU L-56” was formally “Handed Over” by Rear Admiral V. K. Saxena, IN (Retd.) Chairman & Managing Director, GRSE to the Commanding Officer of the Ship, Lt. Cdr. Gopinath Narayanan of Indian Navy at the Ceremony held in GRSE today. Brigadier SY Deshmukh, CSO(Tech), A&N Command carried out Final Inspection of the Ship prior to acceptance by the Indian Navy.Shri Sanjay Mitra, IAS, Defence Secretary, Govt of India, Vice Admiral BK Verma, AVSM, ADC, Commander in Chief, A&N Command,Vice Admiral MS Pawar, AVSM, VSM, Dy Chief of Naval Staff, ShriApurva Chandra, IAS, Director General (Acquisition) at Ministry of Defence,Cmde IB Uthaiah, VSM, Principal Director Ship Production, ShriSarvjit Singh Dogra, Director (Finance), ShriAsit Kumar Nanda, Director (Personnel) and Cmde. SanjeevNayyar, IN (Retd), Director (Shipbuilding) and other Senior Officials of GRSE, Indian Navy were present at the Occasion. The 100th warship, a Landing Craft Utility (LCU) named IN LCU L56 is the sixth of an order of eight such vessels from the Indian Navy. The entire design of these LCU Mark IV ships has been developed in-house by GRSE as per requirements specified by Indian Navy. The construction of the balance two ships is progressing as per the schedule. LCU Mk-IV ship is an amphibious ship with its primary role being transportation and deployment of Main Battle Tanks, Armored Vehicles, troops and equipment from ship to shore. These ships based at the Andaman and Nicobar Command, can be deployed for multirole activities like beaching operations, search and rescue, disaster relief operations, supply and replenishment and evacuation from distant islands. The LCU is 63 m in length and 11 m wide and has a displacement of 830 T with a low draught of 1.7 m. It can achieve speed of 15 knots. The LCU is designed to accommodate 216 personnel and is equipped with two Indigenous CRN 91 Guns to provide artillery fire support during landing operations.The ship is fitted with state-of-the-art equipment and advanced systems like Integrated Bridge System (IBS) and Integrated Platform Management System (IPMS). Earlier in the week, on March 27, 2019, GRSE had handed over its 99th warship, “ICGS Priyadarshini”, an advanced “Fast Patrol Vessel” to the Indian Coast Guard. GRSE is executing order for five Fast Patrol Vessels for the Indian Coast Guard and the ship ICGS Priyadarshini, is the first in the series. The balance four ships are in advanced stages of construction. The FPV is a medium range surface vessel capable for operations in Maritime Zones of India. These fuel efficient & powerful platforms are designed to perform multipurpose operations e.g. patrolling, anti-smuggling, anti-poaching and rescue operations. The entire design of these FPVs has been developed in-house by GRSE as per requirements specified by Indian Coast Guard. The ship is 50 Meter long, 7.5 Meters wide with a displacement of around 308 Tonnes. The ship is designed for a maximum speed of 34 knots with an endurance of more than 1500 nautical miles, and is equipped with 03 nos. Main Engines with Advanced Control Systems, Water Jet Units and an “Integrated Bridge System” integrating all Communication and Navigation systems. The ships are also fitted with 40/60 Gun as main armament and will also have improved habitability features with fully air conditioned modular accommodation for 35 personnel. With the handing over of “ICGS Priyadarshini” & IN LCU L56, GRSE has once again demonstrated its’ Commitment to Strengthen the Maritime Security of the Nation, thereby meeting the aspirations that the country has reposed on this Mini Ratna Shipyard. This also proves GRSE’s ability to provide end-to-end solutions to their customers ranging from product conceptualization, design, system integration and project management thus increasing the capability to meet customer demands. Currently GRSE has a strong order book of Rs. 21700 Croreapprox. equipping the shipyard with a deep pool of revenue-generating projects. 14 ships across 5 projects including 04 Nos. Survey Vessels (Large), won on competitive basis, are presently under construction. GRSE has also been declared successful bidder in competitive bidding for another 08 ASWSWC ships for the Indian Navy. GRSE’s association with the Indian Navy is long and strong as over the last six decades the shipyard has been building warships and other vessels for the country’s Navy and Coast Guard. With 100 warships successfully built, the shipyard already boasts of constructing highest number of warships in the country. 67 of the 100 warships were for the Indian Navy and are varied in their range and scope. From Frigates, Missile Corvettes, Anti-Submarine Warfare Corvettes, Fleet Tankers, Landing Ship Tank, Landing Craft Utility to Survey Vessels, Offshore Patrol Vessels and Fast Attack Craft - the repertoire is rich and varied. GRSE has embraced infrastructure modernisation over past decades with Rs 605 croreinvestment towards creating an integrated shipbuilding facility enabling concurrent construction of 20 ships. Over last 59 years, GRSE has built around 780 platforms which include 100 warships to Indian Navy, Indian Coast Guard & Government of Mauritius which is highest number of warships built & delivered by any shipyard in the country. From building 05 ton boats to 24600 ton Fleet Tanker, GRSE has done it all and has proved its mettle as a pioneer warship builder of the nation. Delivery of 8 warships in 22 months (June 17 – Mar 19) is no mean feat which the shipyard has achieved.  Shipyard’s R&D Department has been recognized by Department of Scientific & Industrial Research (DSIR), Ministry of Science & Technology. A multidisciplinary strong design team of 100 plus design engineers is working continuously towards developing concept designs for ships that can cater to current & future requirements of Indian Navy & Indian Coast Guard, GRSE continues to raise its bar higher in the sphere of maritime engineering excellence. The ace shipbuilder has set sail towards a growth trajectory in line with its vision to be a world leader with focus on four fold increase in VOP, in next 4-5 years, increased thrust on export of warships, incorporation of latest technologies (Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Data Analytics) in various areas of operations to improve internal efficiencies & profit margins. Continuous research and innovation, excellent product quality, lean thinking and a strong corporate structure powered by an outstanding human capital promise a great future for GRSE.

ஏப்ரல் 12ல் சேரனின் #திருமணம் மறு வெளியீடு

மார்ச் மாத துவக்கத்தில் இயக்குனர் சேரன் நடித்து இயக்கிய 'திருமணம்' திரைப்படம் வெளியானது.

கதாநாயகனாக உமாபதி ராமையா, நாயகியாக காவ்யா சுரேஷ் நடித்திருக்க, முக்கிய வேடங்களில் இயக்குனர் சேரன், தம்பி ராமையா, எம். எஸ். பாஸ்கர், சுகன்யா உள்ளிட்ட பலர் நடித்துள்ளனர்.

குடும்ப உறவுகள், நடைமுறை வாழ்வின் யதார்த்தங்கள், சென்டிமெண்ட் என நல்ல கதை களமும், அருமையான விமர்சனங்களும் கிடைத்த போதும், மாணவமணிகளுக்கு தேர்வுகள் இருந்ததால் மக்கள் பெருமளவில் வரவியலாத நிலையிருக்க, திரையிடுவதற்கு போதுமான திரையரங்குகளும் கிடைக்காததால் பல இடங்களில் திரையிட முடியவில்லை.

பல்வேறு தரப்பினரின் வேண்டுகோளுக்கிணங்கவும், திரையரங்குகளின் மேலான ஒத்துழைப்போடும்,

இத்திரைப்படம் வருகின்ற ஏப்ரல் 12ம் தேதி, 75 திரையரங்குகளில் மறு வெளியீடு செய்யப்படுகிறது.

Rotary Club of Madras and Sotheby's present 'Painting Lives'

Rotary Club of Madras and Sotheby's present 'Painting Lives', an art exhibition from 29th March 2019 to 10th April 2019 at Acropolis

Rotary Club of Madras and Sotheby's present 'Painting Lives', an art exhibition from 29th March 2019 to 10th April 2019 at Acropolis. This exhibition will feature 120 artworks by artists like Arpana Caur, Redappa Naidu, Paresh Maity, Shakti Burman and more.

All lovers of art are welcome to walk in, see the exhibit and buy on the spot.

The online sale is available at ashvitas.com

The makers of the upcoming film 'PM Narendra Modi' have released the third dialogue promo!

Check the intriguing promo here:

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/ModiTheFilm2019/videos/570814943414751/  

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/ModiTheFilm2019/status/1111894310553681920  

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Bvn5tqund9Q/  

Producer, Creative Director and story by Sandip Ssingh. Produced by Suresh Oberoi and Anand Pandit, the film is directed by biopic maestro Omung Kumar, will hit the theaters on 5th April 2019.

Five noteworthy stories talks about the most sensitive issues of all times

Five noteworthy stories from the Bollywood archives that carefully 

talks about the most sensitive issues of all times!

Amazon Prime Video’s Prime Original Series, Made in Heaven is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video

After a landmark judgment by India’s Supreme Court for the LGBT community last year, ecstatic LGBT activists across the nation stood together to rejoice the moment. Not only did the arbiters of a transitioning society voice their full-hearted support, but also notable stalwarts from the cinema industry came ahead vocally supporting the lifting of the colonial-era ban.

Portrayal of homosexuality has often been caricature-ish in mainstream Indian movies. But filmmakers across the globe including that Bollywood has changed with times and is widening its horizons and becoming an agent of social change.  

Here we bring to you a list of unconventional stories that sensitively portrayed homosexuality in India and helped make a small change the way Indian society looked upon this important subject.

1.      My Brother Nikhil- Filmed in an era when homosexuality was considered to be immoral, directed Onir brought My Brother Nikhil- a brave journey into the forefront. Starring Sanjay Suri, Juhi Chawla, and Purab Kohli in lead roles, the film was a mindful attempt at tackling sensitive issues with utmost care and love.

2.      Margarita with a Straw- Winning hearts across the globe, Margarita with a Straw stars Kalki Koechlin in the lead. She plays the role of a young, romantic, and secret rebel on a wheelchair. The story takes shape when she embarks on her journey of self and sexual discovery. The careful treatment of the film surely makes it unmissable, till date.

3.      Padmavat- Who can forget Jim Sarbh and Ranveer Singh’s on-screen chemistry in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s magnum opus, Padmavat!

4.      Kapoor & Sons- Directed by Shakun Batra, Bollywood’s much-loved film, Kapoor and Sons portrayed homosexuality exceedingly well. Enacted by actor Fawad Khan, the idea was to raise the conversation around gay culture without making it a significant part of the story. The film beautifully conveyed the message that no individual should become an outcast, basis his or her sexual preferences.

5.      Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga- Director Shelly Chopra Dhar has consciously weaved her sensitive-take on such an important issue of our times. . Set against the backdrop of a family drama, Ek ladki ko dekha toh aisa laga beautifully captures the nuances of a lesbian love story.

Over recent years, television and cinema have been an active change agent, breaking labels and challenging societal taboos.. Amazon Prime Video’s Original Series, Made in Heaven is a careful attempt at highlighting some hard-hitting realities of today’s India – a culture in transition.

Amazon Prime Original Series, Made in Heaven is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.