Real-estate firms have welcomed the Goods and Services Tax Council's reforms, expecting better affordability for buyers, spurring demand. The council has reduced the rate on cement from 28 per cent to 18 per cent, while the rate on sand lime bricks or stone inlay work and granite blocks has been cut to 5 per cent from 12 per cent.
'Madhubala in Kala Pani looks divine and yet, she's not just there for glamour.' 'In Do Raaste, the character of Neelambari (played by Bindu) isn't a heroine in the traditional sense but she has such a pivotal role.' 'That Raj Khosla gave a non-heroine such a central role, instead of the heroine, says a lot about how he valued female characters.'
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is set to investigate a case involving a UK-based Pakistani agent, Mughiz Ahmad Shearachiikh, who has been suspended by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) for breaching its anti-corruption code. Shearachiikh and his company, International Cricketers Association (ICA), had signed several centrally contracted Pakistani players last year.
O Saya was nominated at the 81st Annual Academy Awards for its brilliant lyrics and music, by A R Rahman and M.I.A. The song didn't win, but it's still really worth a listen. If you want to sing along, here are the lyrics.
The skit was part of SAYA!'s annual event to showcase the efforts of the youth, held in the First Presbyterian church in Elmhurst, the basement of which serves as the SAYA! office. The program included skits and performances by various groups, including those from Middle School 137, Richmond Hill High School and Flushing High School. Desi Girls, one of SAYA!'s own groups, had a skit on stereotypes and the South Asian girl;
Udai Tambar, an Indian-origin CEO involved in youth development services in the US, is among 15 experts appointed as members of the newly-formed racial justice advisory board in New York City.
Cash registers are ringing more frequently at hotels and resorts with the return of the big fat Indian wedding after a two-year hiatus. This comes even as the small and intimate ceremonies - which became popular during the pandemic - are also set to keep those employed in the hospitality sector on their toes. As many as 2.5 million marriages are expected to get solemnised during the wedding season that gets underway from next week and stretches on till April, according to industry estimates.
What makes Wonder Women brilliant is the breeziness of the events and issues it tackles without delving on it too much or surrendering to it completely, observes Divya Nair. Wonder Women Review
Tambar, who holds a master's in public administration from Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, taught a course there on immigrant youth for a semester. He is assistant deputy commissioner for parent and community engagement at the New York City Human Resources Administration.
A Ganesh Nadar/Rediff.com pays tribute to his school mate, Talat Jani, the man behind quite a few episodes of Kyunki... Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi...
When it came to his cross examination by Sanjeev Khanna's lawyer Niranjan Mundargi, Imtiaz Shaikh appeared to be afflicted by that peculiar gap-in-one's-memory or Choosy Memory Syndrome with his recall of other dates in his life, except those directly related with the murder, shaky or non-existent.
A report on South Asian youth demolishes model minority myth, says George Joseph
The yesteryear actress has been living as a tenant in Asha Bhosle's bungalow for over four decades.
Sharmila Tagore remembers yesteryear dress designer who passed away recently.
Slumdog Millionaire bagged 10 Oscar nominations at the 81st annual Academy Awards.
Dancing to the tunes of Slumdog Millionaire has become a craze at many fitness and dance schools across the US.
The singers give a beautiful performance in the US.
As humanitarian agencies are rushing aid for survivors, experts are piecing together the details of the seismic slip that sparked the fatal tsunamis following the world's biggest tremor in 40 years and fourth largest since 1900.
A study of American nurses found that one additional serving of fries per week at ages three to five increased the risk of breast cancer by 27 percent.
A US congressional paper says the recent arrest of eleven men in Virginia, allegedly connected with the Lashkar, raises the prospects of a new terrorist threat in the US.
A dossier submitted to the government accuses, among others, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq and Yasin Malik of making anti-India statements abroad. The Centre may impound their passports.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has announced the appointment of Nisha Agarwal, one of the leading advocates in the city for the immigrant communities, as commissioner of the Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs.
'We are on the world map. Every country is watching this event.'
Poor policymaking, a fractious industry and the cockeyed nature of regulations are to blame, saya Vanita Kohli-Khandekar.
Colombo can handle more container traffic than all of India's ports put together. For a country with a long maritime tradition, this is a pathetic state of affairs, saya T N Ninan.
The seasons in 2012 and 2013 went by with hardly any property launches, mainly due to an economic slowdown and a need to clear the backlog
'Her death has left a small hole in me. That little space that her songs and her screen image always filled in me. She had not worked in films for years, but somehow I always sensed she was there, somewhere in Bombay where movie magic is made.'
Raja Sen feels Dedh Ishqiya is a genuinely smart film.
Consumer durables and electronics companies are putting the final touches to their festive period plans.
'I would like to believe that out of this struggle (to effect climate change) will be born a generation that will be able to look upon the world with clearer eyes than those that preceded it; that they will be able to transcend the isolation in which humanity was entrapped in the time of its derangement; that they will rediscover their kinship with other beings, and that this vision, at once new and ancient, will find expression in a transformed and renewed art and literature.'
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