A BYTE OF LIFE Monday, July 6, 2009

08
HARD AT WORK
Indian football team trains in Dubai
ahead of the Nehru Cup

FREE CIRCULATION Vol. 3 No. 125

The Mompreneurs
Creative mothers are findings new ways to balance home needs
and a business. Meet namma Chennai’s savvy entrepreneurs.
» PAGES 02 & 03
02 NAMMA CHENNAI
Is it free?
A senior state
politician got
some state-of-
the-art interior
decoration done at
his home sometime
ago. The assignment
completed by a private firm
was worth a whopping seven-figure
amount. Though thoroughly satisfied
with the work, the political simply
refuses to pay the bills, leaving the
interior designers lamenting.
Adding fuel to the fire
A senior police officer was left stunned
recently after some media persons
informed him that he was being
transferred out of Chennai. Agitated by
the news, the officer checked through
his sources and found out that the
transfer news was a hoax. He is known
to have called the journos and told
them, “Why are you adding fuel to the
fire? I’m already under immense
tension.”
No cams watching
roadies
Most of the CCTV cameras fitted in
traffic signals in the city aren’t in
working condition for months now. The
reason – the contract with the agency
that installed and operated the CCTVs
had expired. The renewal of the
contract is known to have hit a
roadblock due a cold war between two
decision-making officers.
ERGO Monday, July 6, 2009
Meet these Chief But it wasn’t an easy decision the children niche. Flexible work-
for Bhavani to leave her 10 years ing hours, support of family
of corporate experience to devote members, need-based invest-
herself full-time to her growing ment and, above all, getting to
sons. “After returning from a stint spend quality time with their
in the U.S. we were in search of a growing kids are some of the pros
CBSE school for my son, where of being the mompreneur. And
my parents’ knowledge was out- for many, a home-based venture
W
hen Bhavani Raman, a dated. Neither friends nor rela- is the ideal way to start off.
software engineer, gave
birth to her first child she
tives could give me a concrete
picture. That’s when I decided to Juggling roles
opted for “flexi working connect with other moms Yifat Agam along with Pindi
hours” so as to spend more time through the virtual world,” she Karra conceptualised Vanilla
with her son Vikas. The company, says about her enterprise. Children Place four years ago. “I
HP, accepted her request, provid- Bhavani channelised her soft- was pregnant with a third baby.
ed she completed her assigned ware knowledge to start That gave us a lot of doubts, but
duties. “Be it 11 a.m. or 11 p.m. I www.chennaimoms.com, where we took a decision and trusted
had to be present for the confe- she is the product designer, ad- our instincts that this project
rence call as I was leading a team, ministrator and manager. She would make a difference,” recalls
which was a 24x7 support only incurred the server cost, the interior designer. Two weeks
process.” while the base was developed by after her third daughter, Tsoofi,
Two years later, when the engi- her husband. “It is a different ex- was born, the partners were at
neer was carrying her second perience, though I miss my cor- the site renovating.
child, she realised it was difficult
to juggle a corporate job and kids
porate job, the fat pay cheque,
the perks and coffee breaks.”
Today, the venture is one of the
most happening places in the
who tend to fall sick very often.
She resigned to take a two-year
Like Bhavani, an increasing
number of moms have taken to
city, catering to the needs of par-
ents, parents-to-be and children,
break for her children, now aged starting their own businesses, a with an environment for one to
three-and-a-half and one-and-a- majority of which are drawn from learn, play and shop. How has her
half years. personal experience and are in experience been? “It is a constant
For the last
one year I
have also
been learning
the ropes of
running a
start-up. I am
more inclined
towards
starting a
pre-school
and this
exposure will
help me
Jothi Priya
with her
children
 Monday, July 6, 2009
03
What are we doing?
Now, follow First Innings on
www.twitter.com/firstinnings.

Family Officers
Balancing babies and a
business is not everybody’s
forte, but these moms have
been doing it with élan
challenge that keeps pulling you
from heights of fulfilment and joy
to moments of questioning
whether it’s worth the sacrifice,”
says the director.
However, the major difficulty
for Yifat was to cope with the ba-
sic needs of her children. “They
want to see me at home when
they are back from school; be like
other moms, drop and pick them
from friends’ homes or attend to
school activities.”
Challenging task
However, running an enter-
prise and a home is a tightrope
that one has to balance intelli-
gently and smartly.
Garima Agarwal, a self-made
design entrepreneur, took
around seven years before fulfill-
ing her creative urge with a pro-
fessional set-up, Peek-a-Book
Patterns.
“I wanted to enjoy my married
life, plan my babies, send my
children off to school and find
some breathing space before
starting my venture,” says the
designer. “A commitment
is a commitment whatev-
er be the nature of
work. The biggest ad-
vantage I get here is freedom
and the happiness that I
have fulfilled my creative urge,
plus get feedback from
customers.”
Bhavani will also vouch that
running the business meant dou-
ble the responsibility.
“At HP, I had seniors who were
ready to guide me when I go
wrong. Here, I am on my own and
all the decisions rest on me,
though I am happy I
found a playmate
for my son
from the next
street and
made many friends for myself,
which I could never make in a
fast-paced job,” says the 31-year-
old mother.
She next plans to introduce the
concept – a platform that allows
mothers to search, address, laugh
or rant about anything concern-
ing them – in Bangalore and Del-
hi. “I am looking at it going
commercial.”
Sharing and learning
Jothi Priya was working as a
teacher in the U.S. when the cou-
ple decided to return to India to
bring up their growing children.
Apart from being the chief family
officer at home, Jyothi takes care
of her husband’s business as Ma-
naging Director of Ennovasys, an
RFID technology business. “For
the last one year I have also been
learning the ropes of running a
start-up. I am more inclined to-
wards starting a pre-school and
this exposure will help me,” says
the mother of two.
Above all, giving these ventures
a backing is the support, trust
and goodwill of the family. ■
This is a weekly column that
celebrates the spirit of
entrepreneurship

(From left) Garima Agarwal of Peek-a-

Boo Patterns, Yifat Agam and Pindi
Karra of Vanilla Children Place and
Bhavani with sons, Vikas and Dhayan

FILE PHOTO: R. RAGU

04 KALEIDOSCOPE ERGO Monday, July 6, 2009

Numerology
GDP rate:6.1%
Food grain production:229.9 Million tones
Industrial growth:2.6
Export growth:3.6%
Import growth:14.4%
Foreign Exchange reserves:252.0 Billion
USD
End of load
With PRADEEP YUVARAJ investors who made investments di-
Quiz pradeep@finerva.com rectly with the fund houses should not
be charged any entry load.
SEBI
I
n a drastic move the market watch-
1: What is the interest rate paid on Employee dog Securities and Exchange Board Better advice at lower cost
Provident Fund deposits?
a) 8% removing of India (SEBI) has directed the
mutual fund industry to do away
The above directive will make the
mutual fund industry competitive and
b) 8.25% with the practice of charging an entry services of distributors will be more
c) 8.5%
d) 7.5%
the entry load on investments made in any professional and hopefully unbiased.
scheme, old or new. Any new invest- Since the advisor’s (distributor’s) in-
2: The document presented a few days be-
fore the annual budget is called load on ment into a mutual fund henceforth
could give you a saving of 2.5 per cent.
come will now come from the custom-
er rather than from the company, there
a) Monetary Policy
b) Fiscal Plan mutual The board meeting held on June 18
issued the following directive: “There
will be more focus on trying to give the
product at competitive prices. Al-
c) Pre-budget Report shall be no entry load for the schemes, though price will be a major factor,
d) Economic Survey
Send your answers to finergo@goergo.in or SMS
funds, existing or new, of a mutual fund. The customers will also look at returns and
upfront commission to distributors hence advisors would be forced to sell
your answers to 92813 98889. For example if you
choose A as the answer to question 1 and B as you have shall be paid by the investor to the dis-
tributor directly. The distributors shall
products, which are the best for cus-
tomer rather than those that give them
the answer to question 2 type it as 1A2B and disclose the commission or otherwise, higher commissions.
send it. Winner will be chosen by lucky draw
from all correct answers.
just received by them for different This could be the first step in the
schemes/ mutual funds, which they direction of having more professional
Answers for last week’s quiz:
1: 10% saved are distributing or advising the inves-
tors.”
financial planning professionals rather
than vendors selling financial prod-
2: Permanent Account Numb ucts. ■
some Till recently, all mutual funds were
charging a flat fee of 2.5 per cent
of the prevailing NAV on the day
News you can use money you make your investment. The
current directive follows a simi-
lar directive given last year, in
8.5% interest on PF deposits which SEBI had said that
The Employees Provident Fund Organisa-
tion, which held its meeting on July 4, has giv-
en positive news to salaried professionals. It
has decided to keep the interest payable on
Provident Fund deposits at the existing 8.5 per
cent per annum.
The news is positive as there has been wi-
despread speculation that the government is
looking at reducing interest rates on all small
savings instruments.

Car loan space gets hotter

The Car loan industry has seen some com-
petitive moves during the past few months. If
it was the PSU banks which reduced their rates
in the last couple of months, it’s the non bank-
ing financial companies’ turn to turn the heat
on. Tata Auto Finance has reduced rates by
close to 3 per cent to 12.5 per cent, Mahindra
Auto Finance has reduced its rates by nearly 2
per cent to 12.5 per cent.

NRE rates hiked

Corporation bank has increased the interest
rates payable on NRE accounts with effect
from July 1, 2009. It has announced a rate of
3.36 per cent for 1-2 year deposits and 3.87 per
cent for 3-10 year deposits.
The rate of interest on domestic deposits is 8
per cent for investments below Rs. 15 lakhs for
maturity period of eight years and above.
 Monday, July 6, 2009
05
Business networking
for the small player
MyTradeBook.com
is a free B2B tool
for SMEs, with 40
per cent of the
registered users
being Indians The Indian
SMEs are yet to
LIFFY THOMAS
liffythomas@goergo.in
take complete
advantage of
If Twitter is increasingly gaining
popularity on the Net as a busi- online marketplace
ness tool, MyTradeBook.com
promises to show the way as an tools as compared
overall Internet marketing strate-
gy for companies. The portal has to the U.S. and
amalgamated business network-
ing and Business-to-Business
the U.K.
(B2B) market place, where interest
groups can buy, sell, network,
recruit and partner with prospec-
tive customers.
Anton Koulakovskii, Director
and Co-founder of
www.MyTradeBook.com, talks
about its increasing reach among
Indian SMEs and future plans.
Excerpts from an email interview:
Running a small business
with a global appeal and
limited marketing budget is
tough. How does
MyTradeBook come of help
to Small and Medium
Enterprises (SMEs)?
There are many small and me-
dium businesses that have prod-
ucts and services with global
appeal but are constrained with
limited marketing budgets, which
become even more pronounced
in the current economic scenario.
MyTradeBook.com is designed to
cut through the clutter of the ex-
isting B2B marketplaces by offer-
ing users effective ways to reach
out, collaborate and showcase
their products and services in a the Indian community In the first month of its oper- TradeBook.com completely free Critical to the success of My-
much more targeted fashion. different from that of the ation MyTradeBook.com has al- for all. So the more people use the TradeBook.com is the connec-
At the same time, users can ad- U.S. or the U.K.? ready helped a number of site the better, as we can serve tion with international markets.
vertise their products and servic- The nature of business spans website development companies more page impressions. In the fu- We initially launched in the U.K.
es for free in the ‘Trade Pages’ across various segments like generate new contracts from new ture there may be some addition- and India and as part of our
section. manufacturing, garments, handi- customers. The platform has also al paid-for services but the core short-term business strategy,
These posted adverts can be crafts, gems and jewellery, ma- helped small companies, like a functionality as it is today will re- which means in a year or two we
linked to various interest groups chinery, etc. They are basically business providing overnight main free. have plans to launch it in other
and viewed by any visitor. exporters and importers across proofreading services from New What will be the future of English-speaking countries in a
It also allows users to share business segments. Zealand, get more publicity and banner advertising space phased manner.
them with other social network- We feel the Indian SMEs are yet generate new clients. online? As part of our long-term busi-
ing sites. to take complete advantage of What is MyTradeBook’s Banner advertising space on- ness strategy MyTradeBook has
In less than two months of online marketplace tools as com- revenue model? line has already picked up and is plans to develop a multi-lingual
its launch MyTradeBook has pared to the U.S. and the U.K. We are going against the cur- a stable revenue model for online interface and establish easy col-
over 40 per cent users from Could you cite an example rent marketing trend of falling trade marketplace tools. We see a laboration between people
India alone. What is the of a very rare business that advertising revenue and we make rapid growing trend globally with speaking different languages
nature of business of these an individual is promoting money from banner advertising. regard to online advertising. from across various parts of the
registered users and how is through the site? This is why we made www.My- Next plans? world. ■
06 VILLAGE ERGO Monday, July 6, 2009

Inmate robs jail

An inmate in a U.S. jail has increased his sentence
by stealing a computer from the prison while he
was being held there for another crime.

Wine cheaper than water in Rice designed

Australia to fight
The unprecedented meltdown that Australia’s wine industry
is facing has driven wine prices lower than bottled water. allergies
The price collapse and over-planting has forced Australia’s Scientists in Japan have
biggest winemaker, Foster’s, to sell 31 vineyards across the achieved a
country. Major wine retailer Dan Murphy’s has started breakthrough in
selling cleanskins for 1.99 dollars a bottle - cheaper than advancing towards the
some bottled water, news.com.au reports. next generation of
Thanks to the all-time low wine industry, some vineyard genetically-modified
owners are leaving grapes to wither on the vine. rice, which will fight
ANI allergies instead of causing them.
According to report in Live Science, the new transgenic
rice has been designed to fight a common pollen allergy
that appears safe in animal studies.
Disney adds robotic Obama to Fumio Takaiwa and colleagues note that the first
generation of genetically-modified crops was designed to
attraction help keep crops free of weeds and bugs.
An audio-animatronic model of US President Barack The next generation of transgenic crops is being
Obama, the most dynamic figure Disney has ever created, developed to directly benefit human health.
has made its debut in Orlando’s Disney World as part of This includes vegetables and grains that produce higher
American Independence Day celebrations. levels of nutrients, such as vitamins and minerals, or even
Obama is surrounded by his 42 predecessors at Walt Disney medicines and vaccines.
World’s newly-revamped ’Hall of Presidents’ in Orlando, The rice plant has been genetically engineered to fight
Florida. allergies to Japanese cedar pollen, a growing public health
“The magic of the show is actually being able to see all of problem in Japan that affects about 20 per cent of the
the Presidents throughout history on this stage together,” population.
CNN quoted Eric ANI
Jacobson, senior vice-
president of creative
development at Walt
Disney Imagineering as
saying. Man kills wife over Facebook entry
The group travelled to A British man murdered his estranged wife after she
Washington, D.C., to changed her marital status on social networking site
record Obama’s voice Facebook to “single”, a media report said on
for the show. They also Sunday.
worked with White Edward Richardson, 41, stabbed Sarah Richardson,
House staffers to make 26, to death at her parents’ home in Staffordshire
sure his wardrobe, hair May 12, 2008, BBC News reported.
and mannerisms were Richardson, who tried to commit suicide after the
portrayed as accurately attack, has been sentenced to life with a minimum
as possible. of 17 years in prison.
PTI IANS

Girls convey their anger through meanness

W
hile girls are often taught
not to be aggressive, their
hostility and anger are
often expressed through
meanness, says a researcher.
“Girls are not brought up to be
assertive. They’re raised to be
nice and pretty and have lots of
friends,” said Nicole Landry, a re-
search coordinator with the De-
partment of Community Health
and Epidemiology in the Faculty
of Medicine. In a society where
being rough and tumble is re-
garded as an important part of
being a boy, it is different for girls
who are not taught to express
aggression.
They tend to bully by gossip-
ing, backstabbing, and excluding
others from activities.
“Kids are like little adults, but
they don’t have the things that
we have to give them status and
power: a good job, a nice house,
wealth. They use meanness as a
way of negotiating their place in
the hierarchy,” she said.
During the study, Landry
looked at 24 teen girls, aged eight
to 11. She initiated discussion by
showing movie clips and pictures
and asking questions.
Each of the girls was also asked
to record her thoughts and feel-
ings in a “reflection journal”.
According to the girls, popular-
ity is affected by class and race;
popularity, which is equated
with power, is awarded to
rich, white girls who can
afford the coveted la-
bels but also to white
girls from less-well-off
families as long as they
are pretty.
According to the girls,
some of rules for popular girls
include: “Always sass everyone;”
“Get boys to like you;” and “Whe-
never you have a chance to make
fun of someone else, do it.”
The findings have been pub-
lished in the book, The Mean Girl
Motive: Negotiating Power and
Femininity. ■
ANI
 Monday, July 6, 2009
07
Websites of the day Squirrel surprise
Remember the pop legend: Police in Ohio got a shock while they were interviewing a suspect -
www.michaeljackson.com a baby squirrel climbed out of her top, much to the surprise of the
Get a new pet: officers. But the woman didn’t explain the strange event - simply
www.pets4homes.co.uk scooping the squirrel up and placing it back in her cleavage.

40 years ago man first walked on the moon

F
orty years ago on July 20,
1969, American astronaut
Neil Armstrong realised the
oldest dream of human civ-
ilisations when he became the
first man to walk on the moon.
As an estimated 500 million
people around the world waited
with bated breath crowded
around fuzzy television screens
and radios, Armstrong stepped
down the lunar module’s ladder
and onto the lunar surface.
“That’s one small step for man,
one giant leap for mankind,”
Armstrong intoned, his words
slightly distorted by distance and
communications equipment, in a
phrase now etched forever into
the history books.
The excited crowds burst into
cheers as he was joined by fellow
astronaut Buzz Aldrin who de-
scribed the “magnificent desola-
tion” of the lunar landscape,
never before witnessed in close
up on earth.
Only 12 earthlings have walked
on the surface of the moon, the
earth’s lone mysterious satellite,
which has fuelled our dreams and
imaginations since the earliest
humans walked the planet.
And the last moonwalk was al-
ready more than a generation ago
in 1972.
The Apollo program, which led
The space
race became
symbolic of
the Cold War
battle for
dominance
between
competing
ideologies
and polarised
world powers
This 21 July 1969 NASA photo shows the lunar module, with Neil Armstrong and Edwin
Aldrin, approaches the Apollo 11 command module for a rendezvous with a half-earth in
the background. Armstrong and Aldrin became the first men in history to walk on the
moon’s surface 20 July, 66 years after the first powered flight by the Wright Brothers.
FILE PHOTO: AFP/NASA
to six successful moon landings lenge to Congress to put a man dent on the ground.
between 1969 and 1972, had be- on the moon within the decade. Then on July 16, 1969, Arm-
gun eight years earlier in 1961 But the Apollo program hit strong, the mission commander,
when then President John F. Ken- some setbacks. In 1967, three as- Aldrin and Mike Collins settled
nedy threw down a bold chal- tronauts were killed in an acci- themselves into the orbiting
command module Columbia on
the Apollo 11, which was taken
up into space perched on the Sat-
urn V rocket.
The huge rocket, towering
some 111 metres high, lifted off
from the Kennedy Space Center
at 9:32 am (1332 GMT).
Four days later, Armstrong
manually manoeuvred the lunar
module, dubbed “Eagle,” to land
on the moon’s Sea of Tranquillity.
“Houston, Tranquillity Base
here. The Eagle has landed,” he
told mission control in Houston,
Texas.
At 22:50 pm (0250 GMT), the
38-year-old Armstrong left the
module and stepped down a
short ladder. With a small leap,
he landed on the moon’s surface
at 22:56pm and 48 seconds (0256
GMT). Twenty minutes later he
was joined by the 39-year-old Al-
drin. Together they spent 21
hours on the moon’s surface,
planting the American Stars and
Stripes and a steel plaque bearing
a message of peace.
They collected some 21 kilos of
rocks and then returned to Co-
lumbia where Collins was await-
ing them for a triumphal return
to earth. They landed back on Ju-
ly 24, ditching into the Pacific
Ocean. ■
AFP

Costa Rica tops

happiness poll
C osta Rica is the happiest place on
earth, and one of the most environ-
mentally friendly, according to a new
survey by a British non-governmental
group. The New Economics Founda-
tion looked at 143 countries that are
home to 99 per cent of the world’s pop-
ulation and devised an equation that
weighed life expectancy and people’s
happiness against their environmental
impact. By that formula, Costa Rica is
the happiest, greenest country in the
world, just ahead of the Dominican Re-
public.
Latin American countries did well in
the survey, occupying nine of the top
10 spots.
Australia scored third place, but oth-
er major Western nations did poorly,
with Britain coming in at 74th place
and the United States at 114th.
The New Economics Foundation’s
measurements found Costa Ricans
have a life expectancy of 78.5 years, and
85 per cent of the country’s residents
say they are happy and satisfied with
their lives.
Sociologist Andrea Fonseca said Cos-
ta Rica gives its citizens the “tools” to
be happy, but cautioned that happi-
ness cannot be calculated just by look-
ing at life expectancy and
environmental practices. She added
that the country’s rise to the top of the
Happy Planet Index “has a lot to do
with social imagination.”
Costa Rica has a peaceful reputation
because it does not have an Army, and
is also known for its protected ecolog-
ical zones and national slogan “pure
life,” she said. ■ 쒀 General view of the Arenal volcano at the back of La Fortuna church in La
AFP Fortuna, some 80 km northeast of San Jose, Costa Rica. PHOTO: AFP
08 SPORT ERGO Monday, July 6, 2009

Chowrasia 77th
SSP Chowrasia’s game came unstuck when it really mattered and the Kolkata pro stuttered to
six-over 77 in his penultimate round to slip to the 77th place in the Open de France Alstom golf
tournament. Lone Indian in the fray after compatriots Jeev Milkha Singh and Jyoti Randhawa
failed to make the cut, Chowrasia turned in his worst card of the week so far to total an
unflattering 219 that dashed his hopes of a top finish in the elite European Tour event.

Flintoff let us down:

Flower
Andy Flower has no qualms in
admitting that Andrew Flintoff’s
latest indiscretion has let the
team down but the England
coach made it clear that it’s “not
the end of the world” for the
talismanic all-rounder. Asked if
he felt let down after Flintoff
missed the bus for the team’s
pre-Ashes bonding trip to the trenches
near Ypres, Flower said, “Yes, (England
captain) Andrew Strauss has made player
responsibility a very big part of our game
and we’ve come along very well in that
regard.”
Flower sought to put a lid on the episode
and said, “This incident was disappointing
but we’ve all made mistakes. It’s not the
end of the world for Fred to make one.
But it is important to learn from it. More
importantly, Fred knows he made a
mistake. It’s been handled in-house and we
move on as a team,” he said. The former
Zimbabwe batting mainstay revealed
punctuality was a problem with a few
others as well. “It’s not the first time
anyone running a team has had
timekeeping issues ... Andrew Strauss as
captain was supporting Andrew Flintoff.
But you can’t keep on stepping over the
line and still expect serious support,” he
said.
PTI

Beckenbauer wants WC
back in Europe
Franz Beckenbauer believes Europe should
host the World Cup in 2018 after South
Africa and Brazil stage the next two finals.
The former World Cup-winning captain
and coach with West Germany stopped
short of endorsing any individual bids but
said England would be capable of hosting
the tournament.
“It’s (the decision) too far away, it’s more
than one year to go,” he said: “(But) It
will be Europe’s turn (in 2018). As a UEFA
member, I would like to see it in Europe
but it is an open race as to which country
might get it. England could host it
tomorrow because they have the stadiums,
the infrastructure, the fans, everything.
But there are a lot of other
different countries bidding. Let’s

Away fro
wait and see.”
Beckenbauer is one of 24 members
of Fifa’s Executive Committee that
will decide which countries host the
2018 and 2022 World Cups at a
meeting in December next year.
FIFA have received nine bids for
2018 and 11 for 2022 although bids from
the same continent as the successful host
for 2018 would be ineligible for 2022.
Team India trains in Dubai as national coach complains about
Beckenbauer said a country like Australia
could be a strong candidate for 2022 if
2018 went to Europe.
Reuters

FILE PHOTO: R. SHIVAJI RAO

 Monday, July 6, 2009
09

‘‘
I think if you hold three grand slam titles, maybe you should be number one, but not on the WTA
Tour obviously. My motivation is maybe just to win another grand slam and stay number two, I
guess. It is what it is. I’d definitely rather be number two and hold three grand slams in the past year than
be number one and not have any.
Serena Williams expresses bemusement that winning a third grand slam title in 10 months will not be enough to take her to number one in the world

AYON SENGUPTA
ayon@goergo.in

A
way from the criticism and ugly ground realities,
the Indian football team is gearing up in Dubai for
next year’s Asia Cup. The 10-day-long stint in Dubai
will be followed by a month-long exposure trip to
Barcelona for the “bhangra boys”.
“Doing well in the Nehru Cup in August is our first
priority. And these two tours will help us find our rhythm
as a team,” national coach Bob Houghton said from Du-
bai. “It’s important for the players to get the right facil-
ities to reenergise their batteries after a long domestic
season. So we are mainly concentrating on physical con-
ditioning for this camp in Dubai. In Barcelona we will
play four to five practice games and also try working out
different dead ball tactics.”
India, the defending Nehru Cup champions, were
forced to shift base to Dubai for training after Houghton
complained of lack of decent training facilities here. “We
would have trained in Goa, but the rains make it difficult
for us to train there now. The Emirates ground is as good
as any in Europe and the players are making most of it,”
Houghton said about the move.
His players too tow the line.
“If we had good training facilities in India we would
stay at home. But the problem is we don’t have a training
ground in India,” goalkeeper Subrata Paul said. “If we
can train in India, it is better for us. We will feel at home
in familiar surroundings. But we should get the facilities
that are being offered to us here.”
Skipper Baichung Bhutia, a touch diplomatic, felt the
same. “While training you need all the facilities close at
hand. Gym, swimming pool, good hotels and a proper
training ground with floodlights and other amenities are
difficult if not impossible to find in India. At times our
hands are tied,” he said. “If you have the opportunity
you should always settle for the best and not hold on to
old sentiments.”
The team, though, is happy with the sudden splurge of
money by the federation and wants to hit back at their
detractors with a good showing at the Asia Cup in Qatar.
“Let’s be realistic about our chances at the 2011 AFC
Asian Cup. We are up against the best. But the boys have
the belief after recent successes, so let’s see how far we
can go,” Houghton said with a word of caution. “Our
idea is to have the team spend time together as much as
possible.”
Elaborating, he added: “Regional powerhouses like
South Korea, Australia, Japan and, more recently, North
Korea have kept their national teams together for long
periods and reaped the benefits. That is what we should
do from next June till the Asian Cup in January. The AIFF
acting president (Praful Patel) suggested that they stay
together from now. The clubs had some problems
though, so starting from next June will be a more real-
istic time.”
During their time together as a unit, Houghton hopes
to play at least three international friendlies every
month. “We just can’t train but also need to test our
skills against quality opposition,” the coach said. “Stay-
ing somewhere in Europe, like Portugal, will help be-

om home
cause we will find ample club teams to take on without
travelling great distances.”
With an elaborate and well thought-out plan for suc-
cess all ready, Houghton now needs his federation bosses
to get in the sponsors to make things a reality. The feder-
ation till now, although heavily burdened by the finan-
cial meltdown, is confident of providing all necessary
means to the team. “The team will get all the facilities
they ask for. There may be a few budget constrains but
t lack of decent training facilities in the country we can tide over them soon,” All-India Football Feder-
ation vice-president Subrata Dutta clarified. “We have
reached a certain height and the players need all the
encouragement to keep moving forward.” ■
10 FLICK ERGO Monday, July 6, 2009

Ritchie gets more eco-friendly with home

British film director Guy Ritchie, once married to pop star Madonna, is getting
more eco-friendly and wants to make his country home self-sufficient. Ritchie has
plans to grow fruit, vegetables and vines in an effort to turn his 9-million-pounds
country home self-sufficient, dailymail.co.uk reports.

Meet Draco Malfoy

Harry Potter’s nemesis revels in
hard-edged new film

B
ritish actor Tom Felton said he was relishing two violent
dust-ups with Harry Potter when he resumes his role as
the evil Draco Malfoy in the sixth film of the boy wizard’s
adventures.
Audiences will see Felton, so often in the shadow of Daniel
Radcliffe as Harry in the previous films, occupy a central role in
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, which opens across the
world from July 15.
Having sparred with each other in the corridors of Hogwarts
wizarding school for years, the clashes between Harry and Mal-
foy in the new film have a harder edge in keeping with the
overall theme of impending adulthood.
“We have a few conflicts in the film so it was great fun to
finally get physical. I break his nose and he rips me open, so it
was good to release some of the tension that we’ve been build-
ing up over the years,” Felton said in an interview with journal-
ists in Paris ahead of Tuesday’s world premiere in London.
Like Radcliffe and the other young Potter stars, Felton, now
21, has dedicated a substantial chunk of his childhood to the
films and done his growing-up on the set.
Though still a pupil of Hogwarts, in the new film Felton’s
white-blond character is suited and booted in head-to-toe
black while our trio of heroes – Harry, Hermione and Ron – are
still wearing the jumpers of teenagers.
Felton, who has grown tall and angular in the eight years
since Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone kicked off the film
series in 2001, said he originally tried to get the part of Harry
himself.
“"I tried for Harry Potter and Ron, and finally Draco. My hair
was dyed brown, ginger and then finally blond.”
He admits though that he quickly settled into the skin of the
brooding, threatening Malfoy.
“I take great pleasure in being evil in the film so I’m very
grateful for playing Draco. A lot of kids that came on to the set
were very keen on the idea of meeting Draco, but they were
never keen to shake my hand, so I take that as a compliment.
If I can terrify a little child then I’m assuming I’m paid for
something!”
Yet Felton admits that when Malfoy is given the opportunity
to prove his true evil in the The Half-Blood Prince, he finds he
might be out of his depth.
“"I think he revels in this opportunity at first and loves the
idea of being the bad boy, but he quickly crumbles and realises
he quite doesn’t have a heart the size of his young friend
Harry.”
Other roles are sure to follow for Felton when the series
wraps up with a two-part adaptation of the final book, Harry
Potter and the Deathly Hallows, which is currently in produc-
tion.
Yet the pride he derives from being part of the Potter pheno-
menon is clear.
When the author of the Potter books, J.K. Rowling, wrote to I tried for
say how much she liked the latest film, the Felton household
was bursting with pride. Harry Potter
“That’s the ultimate compliment from her. I was amazed at and Ron, and
receiving it. I had my mum crying within five minutes of receiv-
ing it so she was very proud,” he recalls. ■
finally Draco.
AFP My hair was
dyed brown,
Tom Felton attends the launch of the Harry Potter and ginger and
the Half-Blood Prince magical tour, held in Leicester then finally
Square, on June 19 in London, England. PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES blond
 Monday, July 6, 2009
11
Mammootty’s website gets more
Actor Mammootty’s website is set to get a new look, have
more interactive features and would include a blood bank
service too. The veteran actor said it could now be called
a portal and not just a website as www.mammootty.com
is more exhaustive than before.

Cine City

Marriage rumours worry

Nayan’s parents
Right now Nayanthara is under parental
surveillance, thanks to rumours of her marriage
with Prabhu Deva. The actress is said to be so
much in love with Prabu Deva that she has
tattooed his name on her left hand. Nayanthara’s
parents are now a worried lot and have told their
daughter that they would accompany her
everywhere. They have even told her that in case
she didn’t agree to this, they would stop her from
acting. The actress is, therefore, seen regularly
with her parents on movie sets. She may not be
enjoying their forced company, but the production
executives of her films are surely at the receiving
end – they now have to look after the needs of
Nayan’s parents as well, informed sources said.
IANS

Grint and bear it

Harry Potter star Rupert Grint complains of too much money

A
ctor Rupert Grint, who plays Ron Weasley in the superhit Harry Potter
franchise, has more money than he knows “what to do with”.
The 20-year-old star, who featured in Forbes magazine’s list of top earn-
ing young superstars in 2007, said he had no clue what to do with the
money, reported Femalefirst.
“There was a moment where I remember thinking, ‘I have no idea what I’m
going to do with all this money’” said the actor who shot to stardom at the age of
12 with the film Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
Despite his worries, the star has made every effort top put a dent in his wealth,
buying a pick-up truck, ice-cream van, hovercraft and a home for his parents.
The actor added that it was not money that he considered the best part about
his fame.
“Money isn’t the only good thing about the job. I’ve gotten to meet heroes like
Robin Williams. Although, my grandfather spent the whole time doing Mrs.
Doubtfire impressions,” added Grint. ■
PTI
No takers for Vishal
It seems there are no takers for Tamil action star
Vishal in southern filmdom as his much-hyped
home production, Thoranai, as a dud and the
producer of his upcoming romantic film Theeratha
Vilaiyattu Pillai has backed out. The film was to be
made by Ramesh, who produced Pokkiri. Sources
say Ramesh shelved the project after seeing the
debacle of Thoranai. Unfazed by this, Vishal got in
touch with a few production houses, but the
response was said to be far from encouraging.
Finally, he has decided to make Theeratha Vilaiyattu
Pillai under his own banner,G.K. Film Corporation.
IANS

PHOTO: AFP
12
Friday’s Query:
What first comes to your mind when you
think about Michael Jackson - music, dance
or controversies. And why?
■ His fancy outfits
Mukund SCB,
Scope International
■ His hairstyle bcoz his own style to
the range of pop
Sivapriya Allsec Technologies
■ The song "Blood on the Dance
Floor". Very energetic song
Jerin Anand TCS
■ The one and only black pop singer
who changed the destiny of English
albums all over the world.
His mesmerising voice and his
amazing dance cannot be replaced
Hariet TCSe-serve
■ The ’dangerous’ performance n
’moon walk ’ bcoz doing it 1st n in
best form makes him a real king
Krishna HCL
■ Dance he is a king of pop and
finder of moon walk. No one can fill
his place as a dancer
Rajeshkumar.D Allsec Technologies
■ Nature’s gift to the music world
with summer cloud white face,
winter cloud black hair, thunder
voice and lightning speed
Thirumal 3i-infotech
■ Music- awesome, dance-stunner,
controversies -
Today’s Query:
Actor Vijay is rumoured to start a new
political party. Help ’Ilaya thalapathy’ to
coin a party name.
ERGO Monday, July 6, 2009
born with celebrities
K.Sivaramakrishnan Allsec
■ Michael jackson endrale dance
than! Dance endrale Michael Jackson
than Karthikeyan from Wipro Technologies has nominated
Baskar, Nanthakumar.G, TCS his friends as Partners in Crime. This photo was clicked
at Blackthunder.
■ If break dance is the religion, then
MJ is the God
Dhananjayan Scope International
■ His way of attracting people by
dance and song. No one can beat
him. Jackson rocks
Syed Ali Shell Transource,
Saranya.M Cognizant
■ His famous toe standing position
Sukhanya.P Cognizant
■ His awesome and stylish dance
movements
G.Sudha Cognizant, Pinky IBM,
Prabhu.C Mphasis, Vijaykumar,
Anu Allsec, Gerard Ajuba
■ He rejuvenated the entire pop
world with his unique way of
dancing & music. No matter what Gokuldass from Calsoft has nominated his friends as
kind of controversies he was in to Partners in Crime. This pic was clicked near Vivekananda
Mirdhula CSS rock in Kanyakumari.
■ Music, for his extraordinary work
in ’little Susie, and ’stranger in
Moscow’
Priyesh Anand Patni Computers
Rakhee from Wipro Technologies has nominated her
friends as Partners in Crime. This photograph was taken
at Besant Nagar beach
 Monday, July 6, 2009
Peter Balaji has been nomi-
nated Office Angel by his
team members from ZOHO
Corporation.
Peter is the most composed
person in our team. Despite
vast knowledge in his role, he
has always had the attitude to
learn at any point of time
from even the junior-most
team members. His sporty,
athletic appearance and
patience are his most
admirable strengths. He is a
kind-hearted person with a
friendly nature.
Ramkumar K. of Changepond
Technologies Ltd. doodled this.
The sketch is of his colleague
Vinod’s son, Vishal.
One day a man went to a VCD shop and bought a Kadhal film
VCD and kept it in the fridge.
Do you know why ?
Because he wanted to see Jilunu Oru Kadhal.
Sudhakaran
Congruent Solutions Pvt .Ltd
13
■ Dear Kavitha,
May each moment of your BIRTHDAY leave a memory to treasure, MAY A
WORLD of happiness adorn your LIFE FOREVER. Have a wonderful BIRTHDAY
Best wishes from
CC team
Tata Consultancy Services
■ Hi Karthik KS
May this special day be filled with sweet memories and happy hours. Wishing
you all the fun and excitement that only birthdays can bring!
With Cheers,
Human Resources,
Coastal Training Technologies
India (P) Ltd, Chennai
■ Dear Madhu (HERO MAMA)
Wish your bike many happy returns of the day da. I still remember “once
upon a time u use to do Wheeling but it become a circus, anyhow u Managed
and say its style ma” wish you bike Dreams come true, pls atleast today put 1
liter Petrol da.
Your dhost, friends, nanban,
Rajesh.P
■Hi Arihann Ayyanar,
Many more happy returns of the day and have a KEWL life ahead. have a
wonderful and blasty year. i miss ur b’day this year. nzoy!!!
with love
PraDz
■Dear Mr.Karthu Kandasamy,
Many More Happy Returns of the Day May all your dream come true. Have a
joyful and funfilled Birthday
From S & S Store Billing/Supply chain Billing Mphasis
■Dear Nithiya,
There was a heavy rain when you were born not because the weather was
bad, but reality is the sky was crying because it lost its most beautiful star.
Fine.. Jokes apart.. This message has no Fat, No cholesterol and No addictive.
This is all natural excerpt, with a lot of sugar. But it can never be as sweet as
the one reading it. Happy Birthday Dear Nithiya. We love u a lot. Wish you a
many more happy returns of the day.
With lots n lots of luv, Kirthi, Shyamala & Jaffe.
■Dear All in all azhagu Rani,
Before wishing you on ur birthday, thanks for reminding us to send the post
Yenunga gounder amma Solla koodathu chumma Seekiram set aaganum
mama Adhu varaikum kaathirunga aama Neenga illena naanga poiduvom
koma Adhanaala team ku venum NEE ma Iniya pirantha naal nal vaazhthukkal
With luv, eBay - EDISTA Team
■Dear Rasgulla,
On this wonderful day, We wish you fine and simple pleasures. We wish you
many years of laughter. We wish you all of life’s best treasures. May each new
birthday be the best one ever for you; You deserve it! Happy Birthday Dear..
With Carts of Loads of Wishes,
Senthil, Nisha, Bala, Nithya, Nitya, Yogitha, Ajanth, Lokesh, Kamal, Gopi, Matrum AHD 08
ILP Mates.
Belated wishes
■ Dear Jeni,
I am wishing you another year Of laughter, joy and fun, Surprises, love and
happiness, And when your birthday is done, I hope you feel deep in your
heart, As your birthdays come and go, How very much you mean to me, More
than you can know.
G.Sathyaraj,
HOV Services
■Dear Er.Elavazhagan,
May your day be filled with laughter On this your special day And may the
finest things in life Always come your way. Hope this B’day is very Special for
a good start..... All the Best for your Future!!!
with warm regards,
Ambika KG,TCS-Chennai.
14 TRAFFIC JAM ERGO Monday, July 6, 2009

Toad eats snake

A toad has turned the tables on its natural
predator - the snake. A toad in China has been
photographed munching on its natural enemy.

sudoku

Reena Nagar
from TCS
E-serve shot
this picture
at Central
Park, New
York using a
Sony DSC-
S980 camera.
Hobbies:
numismatics
and
photography

KAKURO
So you think you would make a terrific photographer but never really had the
platform? Mail us your best work and we’ll publish it in this space, with credit.
E-mail: clickpick@goergo.in

TEAM
Editor: Karthik Subramanian
karthik@goergo.in

Sr Dy Chief Designer: J.A. Prem Kumar

Dy Chief Designer: R. Ravi Kannan
Illustrator: R. Venugopal

Technical Support:
V.R. Vasudevan, K.G. Gurumurthy
N. Ravichandran, E. Baskar

ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES:
Contact: 2857 5757
E-mail: ads@goergo.in
Website: www.goergo.in

Head of Circulation:
M.G.M. Sharief
copies@goergo.in

SNAIL MAIL
859/860, Anna Salai,
Chennai - 600 002
mail your feedback to
feedback@goergo.in
FAX 2857 6691

Printed and Published by S. Karthik on behalf of

KASTURI & SONS LTD., at Plot B-6 & B-7,
CMDA Industrial Complex, Maraimalai Nagar,
Chengleput Taluk, Kancheepuram Dist., Pin:
603209 & at Kasturi Buildings, 859 & 860,
Anna Salai, Chennai-600002. Editor: S. Karthik
(Editor responsible for selection of news under
the PRB Act). RNI No. TNENG/2007/24553
 Monday, July 6, 2009
15
Word’s worth Lucky Chihuahua
Myomancy (mye-uh-man-see): divination by the
A tiny Chihuahua in Australia has made an
movements of mice. Modern scientists probably study the
amazing recovery after being stepped on by her
movements of mice as much or more as the ancient
best mate - a massive Clydesdale horse.
myomancers ever did, and for ends that are not dissimilar.

B.C

ARIES MARCH 21 - APRIL 20

Ganesha says that, at the end of the day, you will
be satisfied with whatever fruits have been reaped.
No harm in asking your colleagues and seniors for
help, if at all you feel the need. Don’tspend your
precious time chit chatting away.

TAURUS APRIL 21 - MAY 20

Avoid the lesser walked upon path today, says
Ganesha. You will definitely get what you deserve,
provided you show patience while dealing with
those who are superior to you. If you let success
get to your head, the results will be terrible. The

GEMINI MAY 21 - JUNE 20

day will be spent obliging people since you’ll have
BORN LOSER to meet them and run a few chores out of
compulsion but then, no better time to rise in their
eyes. The day will end with your beloved giving you
soothing and endearing company after a tiring day.
CANCER JUNE 21 - JULY 20
Ganesha says, today you will meet people with a
lot of demands and unfortunately you will spend a
lot of time fulfilling their expectations. Ganesha
advices to have a large heart towards your partner
since forgiving is the best way to avoid tiffs.
LEO JULY 21 - AUG 20
Lion that you are, you will never have one boring
moment in life. The day will pass by packed with
lots of activities. Today give yourself completely to
your partner and make his/her day.

VIRGO AUG 21 - SEPT 20

Today will be a mixture of boring work like cleaning
FREE RANGE WORKING IT OUT your desk and important tasks like attending an
important client. But the evening will be exciting
and the company of your beloved will make you
look forward to the evening.
LIBRA SEPT 21 - OCT 20
Balancing home and work has always been tough
and today will be no different. Still trying won’t
harm you. Work will be affected since your mind
will be elsewhere, so leaving office early today will
be a good option. Spend quality time at home.
SCORPIO OCT 21 - NOV 20
Work has never seemed as fruitful as it will today.
Apart from appreciating your dedication to work,
people will line up to consult you with trivial as
well as important matter. Things at home will run
smooth.
SAGITTARIUS NOV 21 - DEC 20
Deadlines have to be met today at any cost. But
rest assured, Ganesha predicts that you will do that
without putting in any extra hours. Today you might
take up the topic of occult or philosophy with your
beloved.
CAPRICORN DEC 21 - JAN 20
Today you will dominate the day with your charm
and affability. Playing and being so good with
words will come easily. Though the day will be
occupied with developmental meetings, the evening
will be relaxing and fun with your beloved.
AQUARIUS JAN 21 - FEB 20
PREVIOUS The morning may turn out to be a major headache.
But as the day unfolds, luck will favor you. Trivial
ISSUE’S things may take up a lot of efforts. But the evening
will be lined with maximum entertainment and ease
SOLUTIONS with your beloved.
PISCES FEB 21 - MARCH 20
Morning will bring you a lot of luck but the rest of
the day will be a bit tough minus any slogging.
Some surprises are in the store for you which will
thrill you immensely. Your family will praise you to
no end today. All in all, a day to look forward to.
Predictions by Bhavesh N. Pattni
16 ! ERGO Monday, July 6, 2009

Beyonce performs during the 2009 Essence Music Festival

at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans.
PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES/AFP

A model parades in
a swimsuit during
the New Silk Road
Model Look China
contest in Beijing.
PHOTO: AFP The New York City skyline as seen in the distance as
fireworks explode over the Hudson River during the Macy’s
fireworks display in West New York, New Jersey.
PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES/AFP