DISCOVER TIPS | Knowledge Magazine

By Tishani Doshi As the author engages with the late Bhupen Khakhar's art, she finds a clear and strident message serving as a warning for those being peddled nostalgia into supporting Britain's estrangement from Europe Some days ago I visited the Tate Modern in London to see the Bhupen Khakhar retrospective “You Can’t Please All”. I went with an agenda: to love the show. My friend and teacher, the choreographer Chandralekha, had shared many stories with me about Bhupen. When I began dancing with her in 2001 she told me about his incomparable wit. She said that he was a homosexual with a toothy smile, that they were always laughing together and that his paintings were marvellous and playful and ribald. She must have said more, but this is what I remember. When he died in August 2003, after a battle with prostate cancer, I found Chandra sitting outside her house in Madras, staring into space. “They’re all going,” she said. She was 74 then, losing friends steadily. I had only

1. ISRO launches record 20 satellites in a mission i. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has launched a record 20 satellites in a single mission from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.  ii. The launch has been made by using Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) C-34, carrying India’s latest earth observation satellite Cartosat-2 along with 19 co-passengers satellites from US, Canada, Germany, Indonesia and two Indian academic institutions.  iii. With 20 satellites, the ISRO has beaten its previous record of placing 10 satellites into orbit in a single mission in 2008. While, Russia holds the world record for placing the most number of satellites in a single launch. Its Dnepr rocket launched 37 satellites in 2014. 2. Vice President inaugurates a two-day international conference on Yoga i. Vice President Hamid Ansari has inaugurated a two-day international conference on 'Yoga for Body and Beyond' in New Delhi. ii. About 70 internationa

1. International Yoga Day : 21st June i. India and the whole world are celebrating the International Day of Yoga, or commonly and unofficially referred to as Yoga Day annually on 21st June since its inception. This resolution was adopted under the agenda of ‘Global Health and Foreign Policy’. 21st June was selected because it represents summer solstice (one of the two solstices) and it is the longest day in the Northern Hemisphere which has special significance in many parts of the world.  ii. The theme for 2016 International Day of Yoga is “Connect the Youth”. This is the second edition of the International Day of Yoga. iii. In India, the Union Government organized the event titled 'The National Event of Mass Yoga Demonstration' at the Capitol Complex in Chandigarh in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, where he also performed yoga. 2. Union Government approves 100% FDI in Aviation, Defence and e-commerce sectors i. The Union Government has radically liberalized

If all Indians spoke just the one language, you might need to designate it official status. But the nation is too diverse and decentralised to suggest that embracing one language will improve employment prospects. Roughly a week ago, Union minister Jitendra Singh made an  announcement that the government was going to undertake measures to popularise Hindi in the Southern and North-Eastern States of India, a move, according to the minister, which would make the language a common medium of communication for the whole country, and improve young people’s chances of landing better corporate jobs. As expected, the news drew varied and mixed reactions, from flak to favour. The first thing that came to my mind when I read the news, though, was a very specific scene from the 80s tamil film, Indru Poi Naalai Vaa . One of the main characters, in a bid to get closer to the girl of his dreams, decides to learn Hindi from her father, a Hindi teacher with a short fuse. The closer he gets to the fat

By Shruti Radhakrishnan/Shubhashree Desikan The notion of Time travel has always fired up our imagination. There is something about being able to navigate and interact with events — before or after they happen. Is it theoretically possible though? What does it even mean? Who doesn’t dream of time travel at some point or the other. Everyone has regrets in their life that they want to go back and change, or go into the future and change things there too. Ask Ronald Mallett, a famous proponent of the possibility of time travel, who latched on to the obsession of going back in time because he wanted to save his father, whom he lost at age 10, from dying. While the invention of time travel has to be the coolest Fathers' Day gift ever, it's worth pondering if this is at all possible. Mallett, backed by the science of no less than Albert Einstein, thinks so. And what if it is possible? Many ideas, in film and fiction, have explored the possibility of time travel and how play

Today everyone is celebrating International Yoga Day, an initiative started by Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. Yoga is not a new thing, Yoga culture is very popular from ancient times and it is believed that it's roots were present in India. But now it has come to limelight with specifying a separate day for it. There have been many monks, Yog gurus who are spreading Yoga culture all around the World. Now Yoga is internationally famous and many countries are conducting Yoga camp and sessions for their locals. It's a matter of pride for India that everybody is following the path of good health and disease free world. Let's hope Yoga will make your life more pleasurable  and stress Free. Jai Hind Jai Bharat

1. 20 June : World Refugee Day i. World Refugee Day was observed on 20 June 2016.  ii. It is observed annually to draw attention to the plight of refugees, celebrate their courage and resilience and renew commitment to solving refugee problems. It also recognises contributions of the refugees made to the countries that host them. iii. The UN General Assembly via its resolution 55/76 on 4 December 2000 decided to observe the World Refugee Day on 20 June every year.  2. PM Narendra Modi, Sri Lankan President inaugurate Duraiappah stadium in Jaffna i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena have inaugurated Duraiappah Stadium in Jaffna which was renovated by India.  ii. Sri Lankan President Sirisena was present at the stadium in Jaffna while PM Narendra Modi joined the event through video-conferencing from New Delhi. iii. The newly renovated Duraiappah Stadium has been named in honour of a former Mayor of Jaffna late Alfred Thambirajah Dura

By Suhasini Haider Tel Aviv and Jerusalem are two sides of the Israel coin — one the seat of Ultra-Orthodox traditionality and the other a haven for modernists and innovators. The contrast is stark, yet bespeaks the same Jewish identity. Israel, we are told, is a tale of two cities: Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. As much as Jerusalem is steeped in thousands of years of history and conflict, Tel Aviv is young, hip, bright-lights-big-city. Tel Aviv, built right by the ancient port town of Jaffa (Yafo), is only about a hundred years old, settled on sand dunes by a group of European Jewish immigrants. With the most gorgeous waterfront and continuous beach, Tel Aviv is the city that doesn’t sleep, the party city and the gay capital of the Middle East. When we land in Tel Aviv, the city is awash in rainbow colours because of an upcoming gay pride parade that is amongst the world’s biggest. On our first night, we walk into a club on Tel Aviv’s iconic Dizengoff Street (named after its first mayor) w

By Suhasini Haider Having moved back to the Promised Land — from Calcutta, Cochin, Manipur — over the last few decades, Indian-origin Jews, or Bene Israel, are large in number but not as prosperous. (This is the third piece in a series that tries to take take an in-depth look at Israel and its dynamics. Have you read the first piece,  Israe'l's many flashpoints , and the second,  Homes that don't belong ?) ‘ Ajeeb dastan hai yeh, kahaan shuru kahaan khatam  [A strange story this is..where it begins, where it ends]...’ For 35 years, Yona Shimson Kasukar was chief engineer in the little-known Israeli town of Ashdod before he retired. But the years here, far away from Mumbai where he was born, have not dimmed his memory of the songs of his youth, and he sings the 1960s hit song with great gusto. Mr. Kasukar is not alone in remembering them, and soon, the rest of the restaurant on the Ashdod beach, where a group of Bene-Israelis from the area have gathered, joins in to sing

1. First batch of three female fighter pilots commissioned i. Creating history, the first batch of three female pilots - Avani Chaturvedi, Bhawana Kanth and Mohana Singh were inducted in Indian Air Force fighter squadron. On successful completion of their training, the trio were formally commissioned by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. ii. Ms. Avani from Satna in Madhya Pradesh, Ms. Mohana Singh from Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan and Ms. Bhawana Kanth, who hails from Darbhanga in Bihar. iii. In February 2016, President Pranab Mukherjee had announced that all military combat roles will be opened to women in the future. 2. Kerala Tourism bags four awards at ‘FilmAT’ International Film Festival in Poland i. Kerala Tourism won four awards at ‘FilmAT’ which is one of the biggest international film festivals dedicated to tourism, art and ecology in Poland. ii. Three of the honours were given to a single campaign. ‘Responsible Tourism’ initiative started by Kerala Tourism won three awards un

1. Peter Thomson elected as President of 71st session of United Nations General Assembly i. The United Nations General Assembly elected Peter Thomson, Permanent Representative of Fiji, as President of its upcoming 71st session. ii. Mr. Thomson, who will replace current General Assembly President Mogens Lykketoft, will begin his tenure in September at the commencement of the 71st General Assembly session. iii. The Fiji representative will replace current General Assembly President Mogens Lykketoft. Thomson will begin his tenure in September 2016 at the commencement of the 71st General Assembly session. 2. Government approves Rs 2,070-crore highway project in Punjab i. The Union Cabinet has  approved a Rs 2,070-crore highways project in Punjab under its hybrid annuity mode to ensure faster movement of traffic between Chandigarh and Ludhiana. ii. The project is part of Chandigarh-Ludhiana section. Six/ four laning of Kharar to Ludhiana section of NH 95 (New NH 5) has been approved b

1. Railways flags off 1st time-tabled freight train i. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu has flagged off India's first timetabled freight train, named ‘Cargo Express’, from Delhi to Bengaluru.  ii. The move aims to reduce the delay and uncertainty over the time schedule for delivery of goods.  iii. Earlier, passenger trains in the country used to get preference over goods trains for transportation across busy routes. 2. Union Cabinet approvals on 15th June,2016 i. The Union Cabinet gave its ex-post facto approval to the MoU for the cooperation in the field of agriculture and allied sector between India and Taiwan. Besides, the cabinet also gave its nod to the signing of Air Services Agreement between both the countries. The MoU was signed between Taipei Economic and Cultural Centre in India and India-Taipei Association in Taipei, Taiwan. ii. The 2nd approval by Union Cabinet is for the Enforcement of Security Interest and Recovery of Debts Laws and Miscellaneous Provisions (Amen