Weinstein is in the eye of the storm but is this the only case?
Signing entry to Hollywood.(Image - CCO Public Domain | Pixabay)
The famous Hollywood Mogul Is accused by many women for acts of impropriety but the casting couch is part of Bollywood and Hollywood folklore.
The Casting Couch is a rather old-fashioned phrase that is associated with Hollywood. What does it mean? It means that powerful movie moguls make sexual advances to young actors or actresses in return for a role in a film. Ambition, and greed, dictate the reaction and a fresh actress aspiring for stardom may very well succumb. This is a universal human failing and it's something that cannot be wished away. Now we have the Case of the Miramax founder Harvey Weinstein, accused of exploiting women and actresses.
The casting couch theory has been reinforced but it has always been in existence, ever since Hollywood appeared on the scene.
There are tons of stories of sexual harassment that have been circulating since Hollywood first began. One of the first cases of sexual assault was in 1921 when the million-dollar star, Roscoe ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle, reportedly raped a young actress. Now a hundred years later allegations against Weinstein are doing the rounds, according to a report by CNN.
Sexual harassment
Movie mogul Harvey Weinstein stands accused of sexual harassment by nearly 30 women, many of whom are in the film industry.
The accusations have piled up thick and fast. The majority who have accused Weinstein of acts of impropriety are women, who were either aspiring to be actresses or were looking for a break in the film world. The lid has been blown and the movie mogul stands unmasked, more like the emperor who had no clothes at all. One thing is clear, men like Weinstein have got away with their actions as the victims were trapped.
The victims were powerless as men like Weinstein had the backing of the establishment and aspiring starlets were afraid that if they spoke out, it would be the end of their careers. Weinstein was in that position and he exploited his power to the hilt. Though he has denied it, there are reports that he carried out settlements with at least eight of his victims, the BBC reported.
Last word
This phenomenon is not confined to Hollywood but its clone Bollywood is replete with tales about the casting couch.
Weinstein was not the first and certainly not the last. Many top actresses have now come out in the open, but one can't help feeling its a little too late in the day. He probably will be punished and his personal life is ruptured with his wife leaving him. The New York police have also opened an investigation into him. Weinstein's goose is cooked and he may even end up in prison. That is part of the 'game' he should have factored in - there is always a price to pay.
Iran fires more than a dozen missiles at two US military bases in Iraq
The attack on Ain-Assad and Erbil was dubbed 'Operation Martyr Soleimani' but no significant damage is reported as both bases were on high alert
The Middle East crisis is hotting up. After the killing of General Suleimani close to Baghdad airport, the Islamic Republic of Iran has retaliated. The attack, dubbed "Operation Martyr Suleimani," resulted in Iran launching more than a dozen missiles at two US military bases that house US troops in Iraq.
This appears to be in retaliation for the American airstrike that killed the Iranian general. CNN has reported that this attack means President Donald Trump is faced with the biggest test of his presidency to date.
No immediate reports of any casualties have been reported.
The attack
The US military has confirmed that Al-Asad airbase in Iraq's Anbar province was hit at least six times. The Pentagon also confirmed that at least one other base in the northern city of Erbil was targeted in the attack which commenced around 1:30 AM. The Khaleej Times has reported Tehran fired more than a dozen ballistic missiles
The American president struck an upbeat tone in the immediate wake of the attacks.
All is well! Missiles launched from Iran at two military bases located in Iraq. Assessment of casualties & damages taking place now. So far, so good! We have the most powerful and well equipped military anywhere in the world, by far! I will be making a statement tomorrow morning.
The Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said on Twitter that Iran has carried out this attack as a "proportionate measures in self-defense.
" It is not clear whether Iran will take any further action as a reprisal for the death of General Suleimani. The general headed the elite al-Quds Force, an external operations wing of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The IRGC has a strength of about 150,000 and is better armed and trained than the regular army. The al-Quds force which was commanded by Suleimani has a strength of about 5000 and is positioned in Iraq.
Iran took & concluded proportionate measures in self-defense under Article 51 of UN Charter targeting base from which cowardly armed attack against our citizens & senior officials were launched.
We do not seek escalation or war, but will defend ourselves against any aggression.
So far, no report of any damage or death has been reported. The United States has said it was working on an initial assessment of the damage and said that the bases had been on high alert. An Iranian response was expected after the killing of the general.
Iran has signaled that if the USA does not retaliate there would be no further attacks.
The cavalry had been the mainstay of the British Indian army and one of the most famous was the Deccan Horse. Originally raised in Hyderabad by the Nizam who was an ally of the British, the regiment became an integral part of the British Indian army.
The Nizam of Hyderabad spent a lot of time and money in raising the regiment, which was taken over by the British and incorporated in the Indian army
The Deccan horse had the best horses and was officered solely by Britishers. As good horses were not available in India the horses were imported from far off places like America and Australia. The Deccan horse was in India at the outbreak of the war in 1914. With the Central powers led by Germany launching a ferocious assault, it was imperative to shore up the Allied defence. The Deccan horse was thus shipped to England from there they were transported to France.
Most Military theorists had come around to the view that a cavalry charge was an outdated war tactic, but some die-hard generals still believed in the efficacy of a cavalry charge on horseback. These old fashioned officers' thoughts prevailed and the horse regiment was ordered into battle against the German guns.
The Deccan horse was thrown into battle at High Wood on 14 July 1916 in a phase of the battle of the Somme. This till today remains one of the legendary exploits of the regiment and is celebrated as an act of great courage against heavy odds.
The order to charge was received in the morning and the Deccan Horse moved towards the German machine guns. This was the last charge by a cavalry unit as after the heavy causalities the General staff learned its lesson and the cavalry with the horse as a component was not used again. The charge itself is a saga in bravery as with machine guns flying all around the soldiers of the Deccan horse pressed forward. The regiment in the initial salvo lost 50 men and 72 horses, but a brave group reached the German gunners and cut them up. It was an act of great bravery and we today must be proud of this achievement of the Indian army. An inquiry was held later, but it could not be pinpointed as to who gave the fateful order.
The Deccan horse was not used for any more charges in Europe till it was equipped with tanks. This charge on 16 July is remembered as an act of dare devilry not surpassed by anyone else.
The Air Force is a fine place and one of the services that have an aura and glamour of its own. Despite a PG in Nuclear Physics I joined the Air Force and trained hard to pass the course and become a Pilot Officer. That was the first rank in the hierarchy at that time( Now this rank is abolished). The culmination of a rigorous period of training was a dinner dance after the passing out parade. I remember the passing out parade as a nostalgic moment in my life as we passed out from cadetship to become officers to the band playing "Auld Lang Syne", a Latin tune. For long the forces retained the Anglo marching tunes like " Colonel Bogey" and it was only much later that a few Indian tunes were incorporated, but the western tunes still hold sway. The passing out parade( I shall write about it later) is followed up with a dinner dance for the cadets ( now officers), their relations and guests. Also invited are some girl guests who we had come to know during the times we were allowed to book out in mufti. The final training and dance were at Coimbatore.
I recollect that the first dance I attended was as a cadet. We were all very apprehensive as none of us had ever been at a formal dance. We confessed our fears to our Flight Commander a chap named Aminuddin Ahmed. He had a big laugh and told us not to worry as you have the Air Force crest in your pocket and that itself is an invitation. We were not allowed to book out of camp without our blue blazer with the Air Force crest on its pocket and the cadet tie as well. The flight commander was right as at the dance we had no problems looking for partners and most girls preferred to know us. I became close to an Anglo-Indian girl and it was the start of a wonderful time. I invited her for the passing out parade ( POP) as well as the dinner dance. I can say my mother was aghast and didn't like it one bit, but she came and we danced the foxtrot to the soulful music of Louis Armstrong. It was also the first time I tasted whiskey. This dance remains a memorable time to remember. After the dance, I dropped her home on a borrowed bike ( my flight commanders) and we promised to meet each other forever. But before that, we drove miles and miles towards Siruvani the dense jungles around Coimbatore. It was a heady time in the forest with the cool breeze enveloping us. I dropped her home in the early hours of the morning. But our affair, if I can call it that did not flower as she later migrated to Australia. I have an old photo of the dance with me in Mess dress along with Mrs. Victor Srihari, who was the wife of Commander in Chief at that time. Well times and events take place and I do believe in what Lord Krishna says " Not a leaf moves without my will"
Sometimes, I write on a topic which to many may appear outlandish. Yet, I mean no offense and I would vehemently deny the charge of racism though I have affairs and loved only fair-skinned girls and women. I am now going to touch a half-century of life and yet feel fit as I was when I was 25. I play golf, ride horses and drive around in my BMW and Ford Mustang. I alternate between Mumbai, UAE, and Singapore as I head one of the top multinationals in this part of the world. I also write and have I think nearly 10000 posts on the net on at least 50 sites, some closed, some dormant and some active.
I have served in the Air Force earlier and that has been my gateway to the world of women. Girls and women have been fascinated with meeting a man who flies planes at Mach 2.5 + and that adds to the aura of mystery in life for them.
Women as is known, for all men are a permanent fixture in life and in my case it is also the same. I have had more than my fair share of fair damsels and the word rejection does not exist, yet I have not followed umpteen women who are darkish or not fair. I do not know why, but my loves have all been fair women and the fairer the better. Thus an entire legion of dark women has never been part of my life. In India, my preference is only for Punjabi, Kashmiri and Tamil Girls (only fair Brahmins). Yes only Brahmins and not others, but I am not a racist.
Outside India, Russian and American girls with many from Eastern Europe have been part of my life. I recollect on my first visit to the USA I preferred corporal a pure white blonde girl to a black girl NCO. Nothing racist about it, but my choice was the fair blonde and that led to a rollicking affair, for which I got a reprimand for sleeping with a non commissioned ranker. You can’t break the officer- men divide in the military. But I have no explanation for it. But my benefactor the old Foggier stood behind me.
Twenty-seven visits to Russia and Eastern Europe were some of the most exciting periods of my life. I had some lovely golden Russian girls as dates and mates. It was common among the Indian officers and I know of at least two colleagues who resigned their commission to marry and live in Russia. Russia is great, but their women are simply the fairest of all.
American white women have also been part of my life and the last affair with a young American blonde doctor was the most serious of them though she was 20 years younger. There have been fleeting affairs all over. Earlier at least two Brahmin extremely fair Tamil girls from Chennai were my source of inspiration simply unforgettable, but I have no regrets.
I remember at a dance as a young subaltern, I waited to dance with the fairest girl till I got my chance and swept her off to the land of love. Yes, so may dark girls who eyed my Air Force emblem, wanted to dance. I danced, yes but my preference was for the fair-skinned Brahmin girl. I won.
.These are just a few stray thoughts from my journal. I remember Nirad Choudhary wrote Autobiography of an Unknown Indian and rocketed to fame. Maybe it’s about time I wrote something similar and put my thoughts on fair women, guns, and planes on paper. I have a confession, beautiful fair women remind me of them with a snake, I don't know if there is a connection
Mongolia at one time ruled the world. We have read of the great conqueror Chengiz Khan who ravaged the world. He was a Mongol. His descendant at a later date was Taimur and from him, we have the lineage of Babar. Mongolia today is a country landlocked with no access to the Sea.It is encircled by Russia on one side and in the south by China. The Mongols are basically Buddhist and have a long connection with India. Narendra Modi had visited Mongolia in 2015 and an opening was made to this landlocked country.
Mongolia is now progressing further and both Russia and
China has joined hands with Mongolia to hold a beauty contest called the "Snow Queen Contest". girls from these 3 nations take part in an annual contest. So far this contest is held 13 times and last year the contest was held in China. Girls paraded in their national dress and also had a bikini round. This was followed by a parade in long gowns and then a question-answer session. At the end of the contest which lasted from 5-25 December 2016, the winner of the Miss " Snow Queen" contest was announced. the first position went to a Mongolian girl and the second position went to a Russian
and the third position was occupied by a Chinese girl.
In all over 45 girls took part and there was a lot of enthusiasm for the contest. It is a premier contest in Central Asia and this region is generally out of the orbit of tourists and travelers. It is never the less a great opening for girls from this remote area to showcase their talents and bring out their dreams
There is a need for such contests to be held in remote areas and India can take heart from such contests and it will be a good idea to conduct similar contests and pageants in remote and tribal areas in India. Such pageants give confidence to girls and make them more hardy to face the vicissitudes of life.
The " Snow Queen " contest was started in 2003 with an idea to give girls from Central Asia an avenue for self-expression. From all accounts, the pageant attracted a lot of attention and it was a splendid chance more so for girls from Mongolia to come forward and parade in Bikinis to show they are among the best in the world.
Gandhi was a man interested in his image and for this, he could do anything like letting Bhagat Singh hang.
A Man Interested only in his Imag
Gandhi is the holy cow in the world and many people talk of him as a saint. Much of this adulation is perpetuated by Richard Attenborough with his Film “Gandhi”. However, Gandhi is not what he claimed to be. In fact, he was an out-and-out politician who just wanted to further his ideas and was ruthless to anybody who opposed him. As an example, Gandhi described the militant Indian youth fighting against British Imperialism as ' misguided souls ‘. He often said that militant nationalism was injurious to India's struggle for freedom. In reality, he knew that if those methods became popular among the Indian masses his own popularity would decline, and his ' Mahatma Hood ' may disappear.
When the British sentenced Bhagat Singh to death, Gandhi made no effort to save his life. He never wrote any letter to the British Viceroy to commute his sentence, nor did he issue any public appeal for this purpose, and he never went to meet Bhagat Singh in jail when the latter was on hunger strike. Gandhi's compromise with the British on their executions made him unpopular, and he was greeted with negative slogans and black flags wherever he went.
By diverting the genuine freedom struggle against the British from its revolutionary path to harmless and nonsensical channels like satyagraha, Gandhi was ensuring that British rule over India would continue.
It is said that Gandhi gave us Independence in 1947. This is totally false. In fact, by diverting the genuine revolutionary independence struggle against the British in India to harmless and nonsensical channels like ' Satyagraha ' Gandhi was ensuring that India should not become independent.
Why then did the British leave? Surely it was not because of the dramas Gandhi was carried out like fasting, salt march, non-cooperation, and such things. I ask, does a nation give up its Empire because of this? Did America win independence from England by satyagraha, or by bullets fired by George Washington's Continental Army in the American War of Independence (1775-1781)? Did Latin America win independence from Spain by satyagraha, or by Bolivar's battles? Did Lenin come to power by Satyagraha or a revolution with guns? did Lenin come to power by Satyagraha or a revolution with guns? The fact is the British left of their own will after being emaciated by Hitler and losing the support of the British Indian army.
It is a travesty of Indian history that the Congress party came to power after the British left and they rewrote history where the real patriots who fought for independence are barely mentioned. They have been reduced to a footnote in the history books. The Mahatma and his coterie, are depicted as the real freedom fighters, nothing could be further from the truth
Whiskey was introduced in India during the days of the Raj. The British introduced as well as encouraged its manufacture. This was given the term Indian Made Foreign Liquor( IMFL). This nomenclature distinguished it from the local brands. Distilleries were set up at a number of places in Murree( now in Pakistan), Kasauli, Rampur, and Mysore.
The Amrut Single Malt
India became free in 1947 and many independent entrepreneurs entered the field of manufacture of IMFL. One of the first after independence was Shri JN Radhakrishnan who in 1948 founded Amrut Laboratories.
During the 1950s and 1960s, Amrut launched products for the Indian armed forces. These products were marketed through the military supply chain CSD( Canteen Stores Department). The products of Amrut found ready buyers in the military. Later the company started marketing its products for the open market. They began by marketing spirits like the dark rum Amrut XXX and Silver Cup Brandy. During the 1970s, Amrut began marketing a grape brandy called Bejois, made from Bangalore blue grapes.
From Rum manufacture, the company graduated to manufacture of whiskey. From about the eighties the company began producing malt whiskey. The guidelines for what constitutes a whiskey are decidedly lax in India and there is no stipulation of a three year incubation period like in Scotland. 90% of whiskey consumed in India is made from molasses and blended malt whiskey can contain as little as 4% malt whiskey.
Amrut wished to market world products to rival Scotch. To meet this requirement whiskey experts from Scotland were brought in for a large fee. As recommended by experts, to perfect the processes the barley is specially grown in the foothills of the Himalayas and the whiskey is matured at 3,000ft at Bangalore. Due to the tropical conditions, the whisky matures extremely quickly. As much as fifteen percent abv is lost every year to the angel’s share.
The Amrut product launched in the 21st century is Single Malt Whiskey. Its the costliest brand from India and generally connaisseurs have opined that the whiskey is good. Its characteristics are as follows.
Tasting Note by The Chaps at Master of Malt
Nose: Sweet cure bacon, smoke, malt, sweet peat, a touch of caramel.
Palate: Soooo fruity! Peat doesn't even get a look-in. Lots of malt, tart.
Finish: Medium, peat emerges as the end, fruit teas.
The world of fashion has a niche of its own. People love fashion and new trends and try and relate it to their lives. There are many fashion experts and designers who have made a name for themselves and some have become household names. One designer who has lately caught the attention of the public is Julien Macdonald, often referred to as the master of the fur. This might appear strange as fur is an animal product and not appreciated by many.
Julien is a national of the United Kingdom having Welsh origin, but his family moved to Scotland where he was born at Tyndrum Stirling and also schooled there. Julien attended Cyfarthfa High School, and after passing out from school entered the Faculty of Arts and architecture at Brighton in the UK from where he earned his Masters's degree.
This was the stepping stone of further success as he brought to the fore his knowledge of knitting which he had picked up from his mother while he was at school in Scotland.
Julien started off by joining Karl Lagerfeld and also in his spare time created knitwear with his knowledge of knitting for Alexander McQueen. The world of fashion is sometimes crazy and it requires a genius to feel the pulse and visualize what throbs for the people. Above you must have the element of luck with a touch of genius. Thus Julien had in plenty as he moved from strength to strength.
His rise has been meteoric starting with his appointment as Chief Designer at Paris Haute Couture house of Givenchy in 2000. Further laurels followed and he has adjudged the British Fashion Designer of the Year in 2001. The same year he designed the flight attendants uniform for British airways which were going in for a facelift.
However, one aspect of Julien's designing has been the use of fur. Many animal rights enthusiasts have protested against this, but Julien feels it's his trademark and he cannot give up fur. He was also flour bombed when he went for a function with Paris Hilton. But he insists that he cannot do without fur as his trademark will be affected.
All said and done Julien despite opposition continues using fur for his designs.
