Yoga

Yoga
Originally uploaded by Kalleda1.

Schoolkids in Andhra Pradesh started a Photo project to post daily pics on the internet. This is one of a great collection that I guess will just keep growing.

My Wishes For You

Dear Family and Friends,
this Christmas, as I'm busy at work and you're busy
partying or whatever, remember to thank your Maker
that you are together with your loved ones.

Then have another round, light up another one, put
another Shrimp on the barbie, or just sit around and
just...
Be Happy !

Sexy Samosas

Here's an interesting review of Samosas served
at an Indian restaurant in Houston, Texas.
Almost makes me hear the waiter ask,
"Some more, Sir ?"

from Hot Plate, a column at The Houston Press :

Samosas are savory Indian pasties. Sold on the streets of
every Indian town, they're normally filled with potatoes,
vegetables or meat. At Restaurant Indika (12665 Memorial,
713-984-1725), the samosas ($8) don't follow tradition.
They're stuffed with crabmeat and laced with hot peppers,
and instead of the traditional triangular shape, they come in
round mounds, like small breasts, replete with tiny nipples on top.
A pair sits comfortably on the plate, on top of field greens and
next to a delicious, homemade sweet papaya-and-ginger chutney
-- the perfect counterpoint to the spicy snacks.

Getting Around India - 05 (7-28-05)

Getting Around India - 05 (7-28-05)
Originally uploaded by RTQ.

This is not an attempt to get into The Guinness Book of Records, just a way of life for some folks in India, where extreme opposites are the norm. Filthy rich and destitute, brilliant and uneducated, Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Christian or Buddhist, they have all somehow lived together in peace since gaining Independence from the British in 1947.

More in this Flickr series at :
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rtq/

That XBox 360 Gal

click to enlarge

Sometimes it just runs in the family.
The model in the XBox 360 poster above is
Madooo's daughter Aiesha. Here's an e-mail
excerpt :

Hey Fred!

Attached is a jpg of Sophia and Aiesha posing
in front of an ad that Aiesha modeled in... for Xbox.
There are several posters of her. This one is at the
Union Square location in New York City.

She has also modeled for Fiona Apple's new TV
commercial (the new album release)....

Ol' madooo

Explore Xbox 360

Jesus : The Rumors

Rumor has it that

JESUS WAS JEWISH:
He went into His father's business.
He lived at home until He was 33.
His Mother was sure He was God.

But then again, just maybe
JESUS WAS IRISH:
He never got married.
He was always telling stories.
He loved green pastures.

Or perhaps,
JESUS WAS PUERTO RICAN:
His first name was Jesus.
He was bilingual.
He was always being harassed by the authorities.

Then again it is possible that
JESUS WAS ITALIAN:
He talked with his hands.
He had wine with every meal.
He worked in the building trades.

There are those who believe
JESUS WAS BLACK:
He called everybody "brother".
He liked Gospel.
He couldn't get a fair trial.

Some of us suspect that
JESUS WAS CALIFORNIAN:
He had long hair.
He walked around barefoot.
He started a new religion.

However, there is one other possibility -
MAYBE JESUS WAS A WOMAN:
He had to feed a crowd at a moment's notice
when there was no food.
He kept trying to get the message across to
a bunch of men who just didn't get it.
Even when He was dead, He had to get up because
there was more work for Him to do.

---

 

Ho Ho Ho This !

A Christmas Story
'Twas the night before Christmas--Old Santa was pissed.
He cussed out the elves and threw down his list.
Miserable little brats, ungrateful little jerks.
I have a good mind to scrap the whole works!

I've busted my ass for damn near a year,
Instead of "Thanks Santa"--what do I hear?
The old lady bitches 'cause I work late at night.
The elves want more money--The reindeer all fight.

Rudolph got drunk and goosed all the maids.
Donner is pregnant and Vixen has AIDS.

And just when I thought that things would get better
Those ***holes from the IRS sent me a letter.
They say I owe taxes--if that ain't damn funny !
Who the hell ever sent Santa Claus any money?

And the kids these days--they all are the pits
They want the impossible--Those mean little shits !
I spent a whole year making wagons and sleds
Assembling dolls...Their arms, legs and heads.
I made a ton of yo yo's--no request for them,
They want computers and robots...they think I'm IBM!

Flying through the air...dodging the trees
Falling down chimneys and skinning my knees...
I'm quitting this job, there's just no enjoyment
I'll sit on my fat ass and draw Unemployment.

There's no Christmas this year, now you know the reason,
I found me a blonde...I'm going SOUTH for the season !

An X'mas forward

Merry Christmas !   
As the holidays approach, my heartfelt appreciation goes out to all
of you who have taken the time and trouble to send me "forwards"
over the past 12 months. 

Thank you for making me  feel safe, secure, blessed, and wealthy.

Extra thanks to whoever sent me the one about rat crap in the glue on
envelopes 'cause I now have to go get a wet towel every time I need to
seal an envelope.

Also, I scrub the top of every can I open for the  same reason.

Because of your concern I no longer drink Coca Cola because it can
remove toilet stains. I no longer drink Pepsi or Dr Pepper since the people
who make these products are atheists who refuse to put "Under God"
on their cans.

I no longer use Gladwrap in the microwave because it causes cancer.

I no longer check the coin return on pay phones because I could be
pricked with a needle infected with AIDS.

I no longer use cancer causing deodorants even though I smell like a water
buffalo on a hot day.

I no longer go to shopping malls because someone might drug me with a
perfume sample and rob me.

I no longer receive packages from nor send packages by DHL or FedEx since
they are actually Al Qaeda in disguise.

I no longer answer the phone because someone will ask me to dial a number
for which I will get a phone bill with calls to Jamaica, Uganda, Singapore, and
Uzbekistan.

I no longer eat KFC because their "chickens" are actually horrible mutant freaks
with no eyes or feathers.

I no longer have any sneakers -- but that will change once I receive my free
replacement pair from Nike.

I no longer have to buy expensive cookies from Myers or David Jones since I
now have their recipe.

I no longer worry about my soul because at last count I have 363,214 angels
looking out for me.

Thanks to you, I have learned that God only answers my prayers if I forward
an e-mail to seven of my friends and make a wish within five minutes.

I no longer have any savings because I gave it to a sick girl who is about to die in
the hospital (for the 1,387,258th time) .

I no longer have any money at all - but that will change once I receive the $15,000
that Microsoft and AOL are sending me for participating in their special email program.

Yes, I want to thank you so much for looking out for me that I will now return
the favour!

If you don't send this e-mail to at least 144,000 people in the next 7 minutes, a
arge pigeon with a wicked case of diarrhoea will land on your head at 5:00 PM
(Australian WST) this afternoon. I know this will occur because it actually
happened to a friend of my next door neighbour's ex-mother-in-law's second
husband's cousin's beautician.

Happy Holidays in advance !

( thanks, PPinto ! )

Pics for the Season

Click to enlarge

Fun Time

A woman's husband dies. After everything is done at the
funeral home and cemetery, she tells her closest friend
that there is no money left. The friend says, "How can that be?
You told me he had $40,000 a few days before he died.
How could you be broke?"

The widow says, "Well, the funeral cost me $6,500. And of
course, I had to make a donation for the church and the organist
and all. That was $500 and I spent another $500 for the wake,
food and drinks, you know. The rest went for the Memorial stone."
The friend says, "$32,500 for the Memorial stone? My God, how
big was it?"

The widow says, "Three and a half Carats."

**********************************************
The Pope was finishing his sermon and ended it with the
Latin phrase, "Tuti Hominus" -- Blessed be mankind.

A Women's rights group approached the Pope the next day.
They said, 'We noticed that the Pope blessed all Mankind,
but not Womankind.'

The next day, after his sermon, the Pope concluded by saying,
"Tuti Hominus et tuti Feminus." Blessed be mankind and womankind.

The next day a Gay-rights group approached the Pope. They said
they noticed that he blessed mankind and womankind and asked if
he could also bless all the homosexuals. The Pope said, "Sure."

The next day he concluded his sermon with: "Tuti hominus et tuti
Feminus et Tuti Fruity"

John Lennon Anniversary Links

Links from the BBC :

LATEST NEWS

Fans pay tribute to John Lennon

Emotions run high in New York

Lennon reveals all in new tapes

Lennon's friends recall ex-Beatle

Tapes of Lennon's killer to air

Lennon's murder explored in film

REMEMBERING LENNON
The Life of a Pop Icon

Celebrities pay tribute to Lennon

Is Lennon an icon to the young?

Yoko's Iron grip

'I was there' - Tom Brook

Sunhere Sapne via Boing Boing

Hand-painted B/W of and by the
artist - from The Walsh Gallery

As usual, Xeni Jardin, who is one of the editors at Boing Boing
has unearthed another unlikely India-related link. This time it's
about the wonderfully gifted female artist from Bangalore named
N. Pushpamala, whose work has been seen not only in India but
also in Johannesburg, Perth, Australia, the U.K., the USA, etc.
Unfortunately, decent-sized images of Ms. Pushpamala's work
are unavailable on the web so definitely check out the links at :
http://www.boingboing.net/2005/12/07/photography_n_pushpa.html

Thanks, Xeni !

The Unforgettable John Lennon

Dec. 8th, 2005 marks the 25-year anniversary* of
John Lennon and there are zillions of tributes via
concerts, exhibitions, Radio, TV, films and the
worldwide web. Too many links to wade through
so I decided to feature the one source most responsible
for the popularity of John and the rest of the Beatles :
The BBC
http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/lennon/

Phil P. from Perth sent in this link to an Indian
slideshow tribute designed by Uday Kuckian
http://specials.rediff.com/movies/2005/dec/07slid1.htm

* Death anniversary

Indians and Auto Status

* From the New York Times, Dec. 5th 2005 :
Poor Indians rely, in addition to their feet, on an extraordinary
array of contraptions for transport. They pile on top of buses in
the Indian version of the double-decker. They ride tractors and
bullock carts and pack 13 strong into Tempo taxis made for 6.

What they cannot regularly rely on is public transport.
While New Delhi and Calcutta have built subways, most cities
have not, and they face severe bus shortages as well.
Cars speed by waiting bus riders, who stand like spectators.

The rise of the auto, and the investment in highways, dovetails
with a larger trend of privatization in Indian life, in which the
"haves" are those who can afford to pay for services the
government does not provide: efficient transport, clean water,
good schools, decent health care.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/05/international/asia/05highway.html

* This is a lengthy article and the NY Times requires Registration
but I can e-mail the entire item to you if requested in the Comments
area of this post - Fred

Lennon Remembered

Hello All You John Lennon (Beatle) Fans Out There

Don't forget, 8 December 2005 marks 25 years since
John Lennon died.

Check out these activities planned as tribute in NYC:
http://tinyurl.com/798ja

John was the greatest. Simple and plain. Gifted. A genius.

I will never forget the day he was taken from us and I will
never forget his music and message. The world could really
use his gifts and talent right about now.

Love you John, Rest in Peace

Phil

All He Was Saying was... Come Together

The Ultimate Band List

Every week, the UBL (Ultimate Band List website)
editorial team picks the best and brightest artists on
the UBL and showcases them...this week, in the World
Music genre, it's Madooo !

Adam, who is the UBL product manager said he "really
enjoyed" the version of 'Norwegian Wood'....another
feather in the cowboy hat for The Big Dooker !

Link to Madooo featured at UBL

The Elgin Talkies

From a Flickr set by Paul Keller

Link to Article from The Deccan Herald
"Its beginning coincided with the birth of cinema in India -
in 1896 - when the Lumiere Brothers presented their
year-old invention for the first time to an astonished
audience in Bombay at the Watson Hotel. Tents followed
and after 1907 came the cinema houses. There are many
cinema houses of the early 20th century vintage.
But I doubt if any of them is exactly as it was originally built.

Original building
The Elgin (which takes its name from Lord Elgin who ruled India)
was built in 1896 - when India woke up to magical cinema -
brick by brick exactly as it was designed. Even today it follows
strict segregation of the sexes - booking, entrance and seating!*
Thus it becomes the oldest building remaining unchanged in
every aspect since 1896, now serving as a cinema house."

* Even as I post this, Frank Sinatra is on TV's Turner Classics
in 'The Joker Is Wild' (1957) and Mitzi Gaynor tells him that
in India the movie houses had segregated seating for the
Untouchable classes...

The Lard's Prayer

(click to view full size)

Prayer of the 'Health Food' buffs
Our fibre who art in Heaven,
Hallowed be thy neem,
Thy karela come,
Thy methi be done, in rotis as in leaven,
Give us this day our daily roughage,
And forgive us our triglycerides,
As we forgive those who hydrogenate fats against us.
Lead us not into cholestrol,
And deliver us from BP,
For Thine is the isabgol,
The gobi and the mooli,
For ever and ever,
....Amla

Thanks : Big Dooker !
and http://www.badmash.org/

Forbidden Kung Fu

"The Grandmaster said the most challenging
object he ever has pulled was a 60-foot truck
— and that was with another man. These days,
however, he's looking to up the ante... Master Tu
has another extraordinary stunt in the works.
He is in the process of getting clearance from the
Taiwanese government to borrow a 747 jet airplane.
It promises to be an attention-getting event if they
can pull it off - or rather pull it forward...."
Pull this

So you want to marry an Indian ?

REUTERS/Stringer photo

To be outspoken in India is to be subject to
humiliation and public scorn. Take the case of
actress Khushboo (shown here during a film
shoot in Chennai). Kushboo has been
pelted with sandals, tomatoes and rotten eggs *
and hauled before court for telling Indian men not
to expect their brides to be virgins anymore.
Yahoo News story

* Brings to mind the Biblical tale of Mary Magdalene
who was about to be stoned in public for being a
harlot, when Jesus Christ saved her with his words,
"Let him who is without sin cast the first stone".
No Jesus available this time around...

Fred Before n after2aa

Before n after2aa
Originally uploaded by FredMikeRudy.

Omly in America can a man dream that one day he can grow up to become President....
of the Hair Club For Men. Yes, I'm not only not a client but I'm also not the President!

Angie and Brad in Pakistan via UNHCR

Angie and Brad in Pakistan
Winter was on everyone's minds as UNHCR Goodwill
Ambassador Angelina Jolie visited earthquake zones
in northern Pakistan last week. She helped to deliver
food and blankets to remote mountain villages and
spoke to women in a camp on their struggle to
survive through the cold spell.

UN Refugee Agency news item on Brad Pitt

Indecency guide for tourists to India

Tourists Jackie and Wayne say it is important
to know the culture

Wayne, says: "We do not kiss or embrace each other
in public because I know it is not liked here. When you
open up a bottle of beer you can make out from the
looks around you, it is not liked," he says.

On the heels of a previous Virtual Poona report:

New Guidelines from Rajasthan state
- BBC News, Delhi

Men should never touch women in public, even to help a
woman out of a car, unless the lady is very elderly or infirm

In Indian culture...men socialise with men, and women with women.

Married couples in Asia do not hug, hold hands or kiss in public.
Even embracing at airports and train stations is considered
out of the question

Generally it is improper for women to speak with strangers on the
street and especially to strike up a casual conversation

Drinking alcohol or smoking in public, no matter how innocent, are
interpreted as a sign of moral laxity and are not acceptable.*

* It is comforting to me to know that I participated in all the
'restricted activities' before Progress set in...

Flickr Photo : Cental, Pune Mall

Cental, Pune
Originally uploaded by lecercle.

Found this at Flickr.com - a Puneite's Photo album with some
great shots in and around Pune. This Pune mall blows away most
of the ones in Houston, Texas since this part of the country is not
Tornado-proof, and safety concerns mandate two-story structures.

Visit lecercle's Flickr album

Jackie Chan in Mumbai

At Cannes (click to enlarge)

Everyone wanted a piece of Jackie Chan. And at the
media gathering at J W Marriott, Juhu, the Chinese superstar
who’s here to promote The Myth, was at ease even when
the cameras trailed him to the loo.

‘‘I don’t know how the Indian film market functions, how
many theatres are there, how many prints you need, but I
will learn,’’ said Chan. Accompanied by director Stanley Tong
and agent, Willie Chan, his reason for coming to Mumbai for
the premiere was because Mallika Sherawat wailed on
the phone.

Sherawat was reconciled to the fact that she wasn’t the
only one attracting the flashbulbs. ‘‘I can tell my grandchildren
that I’ve done a film with the world’s most famous Chinese
man,’’ she said when asked why she chose to do a role that
supposedly amounted to nine minutes of screen footage.
‘‘It’s a full-fledged role, much longer than nine minutes.
But it’s a Jackie Chan film.’’

Read the expressindia article here

Travel Tip : The Lock 'Em Inn

Drunks are being offered a weekend break with a difference
by police in eastern England -- "convenient accommodation
with lots of bars" at the "Lock'Em Inn."

A spoof brochure is being distributed by Ipswich police in an
effort to remind revelers of the effects of drinking too much
during the first festive season under Britain's new
open-all-hours drinking laws.

Police have produced more than 30,000 leaflets proclaiming
the dubious attractions of the "Lock'em Inn," an establishment
"conveniently located within easy reach of Ipswich pubs,
clubs and criminal courts."

"Built in the 1960s, the atmosphere is truly unique," the leaflet
says of the local police station. The accommodation is
"minimalist chic with economy in mind."

A picture of a microwave meal promises: "Warm food lovingly
reheated in seconds."

Minimum stays are available of between four to six hours, but
the leaflet suggests "Why not make it a long weekend? Get
arrested on a Saturday and stay with us until court Monday."

New licensing laws come into effect across England and Wales
Thursday, which will allow pubs and bars to open for longer.
Senior judges and police have warned the new rules could make
the country's already serious drinking problems worse.

Badmash : Comic strips

At Badmash., an insightful and funny look at Desis like the
one above, plus music and movie reviews. Check out the
Viral video clips and Desi Stand-up Comics !

RE: Yahoo! News Photo - World Cyber Games on Yahoo! News Photos

Heh thanks for the photo! --XJ -----

Original Message-----
From: Fred Miller [mailto:frdmill.2005@blogger.com]
Sent: Monday, November 21, 2005 6:16 AM
To: xeni@xeni.net
Subject: World Cyber Games on Yahoo! News Photos

Laxmi Road Mirrored in Canada

You can take the man out of Pune
but you can't take Pune out of the man...
Pune, November 20: A bit of Pune remained inside
Nashik-born architecture student Yogeshwar Navagrah
when he went to the University of Calgary, Canada.

Laxmi Road with its open shopping area and walking down
Fergusson College Road with friends were etched so deeply
in his memory that he decided to incorporate it while
redesigning a suburban mall into a contemporary shopping
district in Calgary.

His new design fetched him the Mayor’s Urban Design Award
2005 in the student category. Navagrah, a student of
Environmental Design at Calgary, attributes his success to the
“vibrancy of Pune streets that make it a sought-after place
by people”.

“I selected this project because I didn’t find many places in
Calgary that I would love to go to as in Pune. The core concept
was creating a good street with lots of small shops and
restaurants,” says Yogeshwar, an Abhinav Kala Mahavidyalaya
graduate, who plans to use the skills gained in Canada in urban
design, in India.
Link
Pune images at Leitmotif

George Carlin: "I'm a Modern Man"

George Carlin, November 5th, 2005
Beacon Theater, NYC
George Carlin recently did an HBO Special in which
he shows why he's still the most astute Stand-up Comic
around as he examines our world once again :

I'm a modern man.
I'm a modern man.
I'm a modern man.
I'm a modern man.

I'm a modern man,
A man for the millennium,
Digital and smoke free.

A diversified multicultural postmodern deconstructionist,
Politically anatomically and ecologically incorrect.

I've been uplinked and downloaded.
I've been inputted and outsourced.
I know the upside of downsizing.
I know the downside of upgrading.

I'm a high tech lowlife.
A cutting edge state-of-the-art bicoastal multitasker,
And I can give you a gigabyte in a nanosecond.

I'm new wave but I'm old school,
And my inner child is outward bound.

I'm a hot wired heat seeking warm hearted cool customer,
Voice activated and biodegradable.

Link generously provided by Viewpoint West Partners, LLC :

http://vpwpartners.blogs.com/viewpoint_west_partners/2005/11/

Bloody Indian Merry-Go-Round

Let's see here now :
Once upon a time the Pilgrims sailed to the New World
(America) to escape the British and after many bloody battles
drove the British out of the American colonies and established
their own rule in 1776.

The British bowed to the military demands of World War II and
the bloody opposition in India to whom it granted Independence
in 1947.

Decades later, workers in Indian call-centres vacate their bloody
jobs because bloody Americans verbally abuse them and cause
them trauma.

So who do we have as prime recruits to field calls from the USA ?
None other than the bloody Brits !

It should be interesting to see how well these British call-centre
recruits fare in this new Indian battleground where it's Britain vs.
America vs. the rest of the world...

WIRED Blog reports :
Young Britons flock east to answer India's
call-centre crisis
In a remarkable reversal, the subcontinent's telesales firms
are eagerly recruiting British labour to fill a skills shortage

An army of British workers is being recruited to staff India's
vast network of call centres because of a shortage of
suitable candidates on the subcontinent.

In a remarkable reversal of the outsourcing that has seen
thousands of jobs lost in the UK, telesales operations are
looking to fill a skills gap in the east with young Britons
willing to work on Indian wages.

And they are eagerly taking up the challenge. Both recent
graduates and those with experience of working in British
call centres are flocking to sign up for jobs in Bombay,
Delhi and Bangalore that pay just $350 (U.S.) a month.

It might not sound like much, but many are finding that
they can earn enough to live on for six months or a year
before heading off travelling. Indeed, a stint in the call centres
followed by a period mellowing out on Goa's beaches or
touring the palaces of Rajasthan is becoming the fashionable
way for single young Britons to spend a gap year.
http://wiredblogs.tripod.com/sterling/index.blog?entry_id=1284171

Thai government censors Ramayana opera - Yahoo! News

Thai government censors Ramayana opera - Yahoo! News

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061118/ap_en_mu/thailand_operatic_intrigue

============================================================
Yahoo! News
http://news.yahoo.com/

Yee- haw ! DISH TV !

They've had it up to here with Cable TV
and they're not going to take it anymore in
Clark, Texas

'A Texas town has changed its name to DISH in exchange for
10 years of free satellite television service...the best part of
the contract, Mayor Merritt said, is the free television will
be extended to anyone who moves to Dish and any land that is
later annexed by the town. The new town signs were a bonus,
designed and paid for by DISH Network '
Link to AFP/Yahoo article

2005: An Honorary Sri Lankan

Arthur C. Clarke Honored by Sri Lanka
One of the first to suggest the use of sattelites
orbiting the earth for communications, Clarke
has written more than 80 books, including
"2001 - A Space Odyssey" and 500 short stories
and articles.

IIn the 1940s he forecast that man would reach the
moon by the year 2000, an idea experts dismissed as
rubbish. When Neil Armstrong landed in 1969, the
United States said Clarke "provided the essential
intellectual drive that led us to the moon."

On Monday Arthur C. Clarke became an Honorary Citizen
of Sri Lanka and was awarded its highest civilian award for
his contributions to science and technology and his
commitment to his adopted country.

Link to Reuters item via Yahoo news
http://tinyurl.com/789q7

Eureka !

No special genius required here, just
a basic knowledge of the English Language
Here's a fun thing to do : change the famous Einstein
equation to one of your own choosing like I did,
save the image to your PC and then you can e-mail it,
all in seconds !
Visit http://www.hetemeel.com/einsteinform.php
for instructions and other fun stuff...

Battle of The Sexes

WIFE VS. HUSBAND
A couple drove down a country road for several miles,
not saying a word. An earlier discussion had led to an
argument and neither of them wanted to concede their
position. As they passed a barnyard of mules, goats,
and pigs, the husband asked sarcastically,
"Relatives of yours?"
"Yep," the wife replied, "in-laws."*

WORDS
A husband read an article to his wife about how many
words women use a day... 30,000 to a man's 15,000.
The wife replied, "The reason has to be because we
have to repeat everything to men..."
The husband then turned to his wife and asked, "What?"

CREATION
A man said to his wife one day, "I don't know how you
can be so stupid and so beautiful all at the same time."
The wife responded, "Allow me to explain. God made
me beautiful so you would be attracted to me;
God made me stupid so I would be attracted to you!"

WHO DOES WHAT
A man and his wife were having an argument about who
should brew the coffee each morning.
The wife said, "You should do it, because you get up
first, and then we don't have to wait as long to get our coffee."
The husband said, " You are in charge of cooking
around here and you should do it, because that is your
job, and I can just wait for my coffee."
Wife replied, "No, you should do it, and besides, it
is in the Bible that the man should do the coffee."
Husband replied, "I can't believe that, show me."
So she fetched the Bible, and opened the NewTestament
and showed him at the top of several pages, that indeed
it says.........."HEBREWS"

Mother India and my Father

Checking TV listings for Turner Classic Movies for Nov. 13th I noticed
Mother India scheduled for 1:00 a.m.

Something made me want to read more about this movie and then
I figured out why: my father, Sam Millar was doing the artwork for the
poster and I had watched him as he worked on this project at our home
in Pune, India.

Unfortunately my brilliant old man wasn't too keen on being associated with
Indian films in those pre-Bollywood days, having spent a major part of his
life growing up under British Rule and being a starving, tortured artist in the
truest sense of the word. He had a deep knowledge and love of film-making,
in Cecil B. DeMille proportions that he freely shared with anyone who was
willing to listen. And listen they did, and learned, and profited immensely from
his incredible talents in Art, Music, Language and... ....you name it.
He was associated with all the major Indian film studios of the day in
some way or the other and this I know from personal experience, having
spent many a night at the homes of movie stars and producers while they
brainstormed and partied into the wee hours. So the pre-Bollywood history of
Indian film-making has many wonderful contributions of art provided by my
father, the Great Anonymous, the Great Unknown.
I figured a man of such legendary stature must surely be remembered in some
way other than as my Father. So I conducted a quick search for the film
on Google, which yielded this link to a recent U.K. Art Gallery exhibit that
features...my father's poster for Mother India ! Link to Gallery

Unfortunately, Samuel Vincent Millar received little or no credit for most of
his work during his lifetime (not unlike Vincent Van Gogh, his idol), often
using the pseudonym Vincent. The Internet Movie Database has one
lonely link to support my story here :

A contract for a huge series of portraits for the U.S. Supreme Commander
of the Armed Forces in Vietnam led to an extended visit to Jhansi as
houseguest of General Westmoreland, and a subsequent offer of
Permanent Migration to the U.S. Much as he adored Hollywood, his dislike for
American Politics and morals influenced my father's decision to spend the
rest of his life humbly in Thane, India. Oddly, my own Karma led me to migrate
to the U.S.A. in 1976 and here I am setting the record straight for Sam Millar....

Xeni Jardin mail

Yowsa ! The incredibly talented, brainy and beautiful
Xeni Jardin found time to thank me for a
previous comment !

From:	xeni
Subject:	Re: You've been Flickrd on my blog
	Jeepers! That's incredibly kind and generous of you. I am hardly deserving of that sort of praise, but I am very grateful for your note, Fred. Thank you so very much. --XJ

Cynthia Lennon Meets Madoo in NYC

His story in the making and I have the pleasure of bringing it to you :
These Cynthia Lennon (seated) meets Madoo pics made me remember
how in the '60s I devoured Melody Maker and New Music Express (UK)
mags, when The Beatles were just starting to make it to the Indian airwaves
and turntables, and were still with their first wives. Now when an Indian
artist like Madoo actually gets to give his Tribute CD to a Lennon, I see that
as a milestone on many levels...for India, Indians, and Madoo and his family.

Click on the pics to enlarge, and stay tuned for further Madoo updates, it
gets bigger and better !