Category Archives: World Opinion

Xavier’s alumni shares expansion vision

Education, Leaders, NRI's / PIO's, Records, All, World Opinion

Kolkata :

This year’s Beyond Boundaries — the annual global convention of St Xavier’s College — will reach out to its global alumni to collect funds to aid the college’s ambitious expansion plans.

The convention is slated to be held at Melbourne between October 10 and 12.

“In the last three years, we have partially reached our vision,” said Fr Felix Raj, the college principal. “The Raghavpur campus, which is the rural face of St Xavier’s College, has benefited around 126 students who have already enrolled in various courses started on the campus. In Raghavpur, we have been able to begin three courses at the moment — BCom honours, Bengali Honours and BA (general) courses. We will soon open history honours and political science honours on the same campus. We are also planning to start a community college and offer certificate and diploma courses along with degree courses on vocational subjects. Primarily, we are aiming to start vocational subjects like mechanics, agriculture, fisheries and nursing, among others. We will also take care of placements,” he added.

Fr Raj spoke about the college’s further plans of expansion. “By 2017, a communication campus is set to be unveiled at the EM Bypass plot which St Xavier’s College has acquired behind the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI). The campus will offer graduation and postgraduation courses in journalism, mass communications, videography, multimedia and animation. The Educational Multimedia Research Centre (EMMRC), which is now at Park Circus and run by the college, will be shifted to the same campus,” he said.

The St Xavier’s College (Calcutta) Alumni Association (SXCCAA) plays a vital role in the college’s expansion process, said Firdausul Hasan, secretary of the association. “Every year, we have a mission and this year it is raising funds to aid expansion. The Rajarhat campus of the college, inaugurated by CM Mamata Banerjee last year, will also host an engineering college and the convention will help us realise Father Felix Raj’s vision 2020, which is our mission for this global convention,” Hasan added.

“This vision will only be possible with the alumni’s help. They have always stood by us. As president of SXCCAA, I am confident that the vision will be realised because of the association’s support,” said Fr Raj.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Kolkata> TNN / October 01st, 2014

Heroic turban to be on display at Victoria

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links / Pre-Independence, Records, All, World Opinion

Maharaja Nandakumar was hanged by the British 240 years ago

: With his head held high, he faced the wrath of the mighty British Raj when he raised allegations of corruption against India’s first Governor General Warren Hastings. Now, more than 240 years after Maharaja Nandakumar was hanged in 1775, the turban that adorned his head will be put on display at the Victoria Memorial Hall in Kolkata.

Some historians have described the hanging of Maharaja Nandakumar, primarily a revenue officer under the Nawab of Bengal, as one of the first ‘judicial murders’ in the country.

“Decorated with a straight zari ribbon, light brown and cream in colour, the turban was purchased by the Art Purchase Committee of the Victoria Memorial Hall in 1984 from Gauri Shankar Roy of Murshidabad,” Jayanta Sengupta, Secretary and Curator of Victoria Memorial Hall told The Hindu.

This rare textile artefact will be put up on display in October, VMH authorities said.

With an aim to preserve the turban and other textile artefacts, in December 2013, the VMH had organised an in-house workshop in which international textile conservation expert Jamie Lightfoot had participated.

Although, Nandakumar had assisted the British during the Battle of Plassey (1757), he generally was hostile to the British, historians have said.

It was in 1775, a year after Warren Hastings became Governor General of India that Nandakumar accused him of having accepted bribes from the nawab and others. However, Nandakumar himself was in turn accused by Hastings of conspiring to coerce a third party to make the bribery accusation against him.

This charge against the revenue collector was soon dismissed, but in an unrelated case an accusation of forgery was brought against him. Despite the fact that the person who had levelled the charges against him was an Indian, Nandakumar’s case was judged under British laws where forgery was a capital punishment. A newly established British court at Kolkata sentenced him to death.

“Maharaja Nandakumar was publicly hanged on the banks of the Hooghly at Kidderpur at a place known as Collie Bajar,” Sankar Kumar Nath, who has worked extensively on the history of Calcutta told the Hindu.

Pointing out that Sir Elijah Impey, the presiding judge who imposed the death sentence on Nandakumar, was a close friend of Warren Hastings, Dr Nath, an oncologist by training, said that eminent statesmen like Edmund Burke and Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay had described Nandakumar’s hanging as a ‘judicial murder’. Dr Nath also pointed out that the turban is an artefact of great significance as Nandakumar’s story can actually be called one of the early acts of rebellion against the British rule, and heralded one of the most important periods of British history in India.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Kolkata / by Shiv Sahay Singh / Kolkata – September 29th, 2014

Bengal Leads scouts on multi-nation odyssey

Business & Economy, World Opinion

GlobeTrottingKOLKATA02oct2014

Calcutta :

Babus from Bengal are packing their bags to go around the world to draw participants for a global business summit that will put to test industries minister Amit Mitra’s ability to attract investment in Bengal.

Sources in Nabanna told The Telegraph that at least six senior IAS officers will visit parts of Europe and Asia after the Puja holidays to hold roadshows for the Global Bengal Business Summit — Bengal Leads, scheduled between January 6 and 8 at Eco Park, on the eastern fringes of Calcutta.

“The industries minister wants to make the event a grand success and so he is sending the officers to hold roadshows…. The officers will visit several countries, hold meetings with investor communities and invite them to take part in the summit and explore opportunities in the state,” a source in Nabanna said.

Although no one in the government was officially willing to comment on the roadshows, sources rolled out a probable list of names of officials and their destinations (see chart).

Apart from the roadshows overseas, the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation will organise five meetings in Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad.

“Mitra has gone into Ficci mode…. The success of a chamber event is ascertained by participation, but for a state devoid of investment, the test is in getting investment. The question is can an investor meet achieve that?” asked a senior official.

Although the government did not organise any business meet this year, there was little to talk about the first two editions of Bengal Leads.

If the Nabanna buzz is to be believed, Mitra has promised Mamata Banerjee that the business summit next year would be a “success” and would put Bengal on the map of attractive investment destinations.

The chief minister, sources said, has given Mitra a free hand. “After around three-and-a-half years in the government, the chief minister has realised she needs investment in Bengal… Amitda has promised to deliver,” a Nabanna official said.

Delivering on the promise will be easier said than done in a state where the government is firm on not acquiring land for industry besides fiercely adhering to its stand on not offering SEZ status to any project or relaxing the urban land ceiling act.

Not just policy hurdles, the state is also suffering because of Trinamul-backed syndicates, which mostly supply inferior construction materials at higher prices.

“Domestic investors are shying away from putting in their money…. It is too much to expect that foreign investors will come,” a senior government official said.

The chief minister is confident of getting investment, the official said. He blamed senior ministers such as Mitra for giving her an impression that Bengal is on the verge of hitting a growth trajectory.

“No one talks about the reality here,” the official said.

Mamata had assigned Mitra the industries department keeping in mind his former role as the Ficci secretary-general.

More than nine months have passed since Mitra took over, but his achievements have been few, other than diagnosing Ratan Tata with motibhrom (senility) and organising the Singapore trip for the chief minister and senior bureaucrats.

“Till now, there is no answer to what the government has got from Singapore…. Now, the government will again spend taxpayers’ money and send officials to various countries. This cannot go on,” said Rahul Sinha, the BJP state president.

The ruling establishment can blame the BJP, which is eyeing the principal Opposition’s space, for politicising the issue, but representatives of chambers of commerce and senior bureaucrats have questioned the need for the roadshows overseas.

“The event (Bengal Leads) is in the first week of January and the officials are going for roadshows after the Pujas. How can they assume that foreign investors will come to Calcutta in less than two months’ notice?” asked a senior official of a leading chamber.

According to the official, such events need at least six to eight months’ planning so that the target group for the programme can be reached well in advance.

The Gujarat government had started planning for Vibrant Gujarat 2015, immediately after the previous edition. From identifying focus sectors to giving a detailed programme outline, the organisers had uploaded everything about the show on its website.

The schedule for Bengal Leads, however, remains sketchy despite just over two months to go before Mamata flags off the event.

A veteran of organising events for an industry body expressed dismay when told about the destinations the officials were heading to.

“I heard that a team will visit Ireland with focus on getting investors for food processing…. I didn’t know about Ireland’s achievements in food processing,” the chamber veteran said.

Sources said the food processing team included the Netherlands and Israel in their itinerary. “I understand the inclusion of the Netherlands, but why Israel?” he said.

Several others this newspaper spoke to wondered about the choice of the destinations for the roadshows. “If you want overseas investors, why leave out the US, the UK, Germany?” he said.

No one in the government was available to explain why the government was expecting international participation in an event just over two months away.

“The New Year hangover stays at least for a week… I don’t know whether senior officials or CEOs of big companies would come to Calcutta by sacrificing their Christmas and New Year break,” said a senior officer in a leading chamber.

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph, Calcutta / Front Page> Bengal> Story / by The Special Corrrespondent of The Telegraph, Calcutta / Calcutta – September 29th, 2014

Slice of Durga worship, a la Kiev

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, World Opinion

Kolkata :

They live in a country that is practically at war. Violent clashes between Russia-backed separatists and Ukranian forces has already claimed around 300 lives after a Malaysia Airlines flight was brought down near Donetsk in July. Advisories from nearly all countries, including India, have warned citizens against taking risks and avoiding mobs.

But the Indian community in Kiev has not allowed these developments to come in the way of Durga Puja and Navratri celebrations.

For the third year running, Indians in Kiev, nearly 5,200km away from home, will celebrate Durga Puja. The idol has already reached Ukraine from Kumartuli, and the purohit is from the Delhi Kali Bari. The community also encourages Ukrainians to participate in the festivities. “We have been celebrating Puja here for the last two years. Due to the unstable condition here in Ukraine, we have decided to celebrate Puja at my residence this year, around 20km from Kiev.

The Indian community here is very small and we all get together and prepare for the celebrations. We have cultural programmes on all days after the evening arti,” said Kasturi Saraiya, who hails from Assam but was born and brought up in Kolkata.

Saraiya is a member of Sanskriti, Centre for Indian Culture, in Kiev. This organization celebrates all Indian festivals and spreads awareness about them among locals. So much so, that Ukrainian dancers perform during the Puja celebrations.

The small community of Indians might be living thousands of kilometers away from home, but they celebrate in style, trying to maintain a lot of the traditions. As far as the actual puja is concerned, there is no compromise. “Our aim is to present and popularize Indian art and culture.

We want to create awareness among the local community about Indian culture, traditions and ethics. Nowadays, there are many Ukrainians who look forward to attending our prgrammes,” said a member of Sanskriti.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Kolkata / by Jayanta Gupta, TNN / October 03rd, 2014

Synagogues on Makeover Mode as Govt Charms Israel

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All, Travel, World Opinion
The Thekkumbhagam Synagogue in Kochi
The Thekkumbhagam Synagogue in Kochi

New Delhi :

The synagogues in Israel may be caught in cross-firing, but those in India are going to be spruced up soon, courtesy the Modi-led BJP government. The files started moving with speed within the Culture Ministry when the Palestine issue got worse — signifying the BJP government’s political stance in the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Though the move to protect the synagogues was initiated during the UPA rule, the Manmohan Singh government developed cold feet later as Israel and Palestine has always been a volatile subject in our country. “Our team had visited the synagogues in Kolkata and had even finalised the sketches way back in 2010. But the project did not go beyond that, as there was some terse communication to go slow,” said an ASI source.

The Archaeological Survey of India is busy moving the files and renovation is expected to start soon. Sources admit that the renovation of synagogues is a political decision. “Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj are planning to visit Israel towards the year end and there are enough reasons to believe the renovation is closely connected to the visits,’’ said a government source.

There are around 35 synagogues in India—most of them in Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Ahmedabad. “The synagogues in our country represent a rich cultural and religious tradition. The ASI is actively thinking of renovating the synagogues across the country. Most of them have been encroached upon by private parties and some, even by governments,’’ said a source in the Ministry of Culture.

The source added that the renovation work will start initially in Kochi’s Thekkumbhagam Synagogue and the Beth El Synagogue and the Maghen David Synagogue in Kolkata. The government is also planning to start a “Jewish tourism circuit” connecting all synagogues in the country, the source added. Though the government gave in following pressure and even vouched its support to the ‘‘Palestinian cause’’, it is an open secret that many BJP leaders, including PM Modi, have a close affiliation with Israel. Modi visited Tel Aviv as the CM of Gujarat, a state which has old diamond trade ties with Israel.

Transport and rural development minister Nitin Gadkari, too, visited Israel three years ago when he was the BJP chief while Sushma Swaraj is a self-declared “fan” of Israel. She, as the chief of India-Israeli Parliamentary Friendship Forum in the past, visited Israel last year.

“Both countries are victims of the growing religious fundamentalism and it is natural that they grow closer. It also helps that both share unique ethnic and religious aspects,’’ said a Culture Ministry official, who is part of the renovation project.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> The Sunday Standard / September 28th, 2014

Leander Paes wins Malaysian Open title with Matkowski

Records, All, Sports, World Opinion
Leander Paes,and Marcin Matkowski defeated Jamie Murray and John Peers to lift the men's doubles title at the Malaysian Open tennis tournament in Kuala Lumpur. Photo: AP
Leander Paes,and Marcin Matkowski defeated Jamie Murray and John Peers to lift the men’s doubles title at the Malaysian Open tennis tournament in Kuala Lumpur. Photo: AP

Kuala Lumpur:

Veteran Indian star Leander Paes, who skipped Asian Games to get some valuable ranking points, vindicated his decision by lifting the ATP Malaysian Open with new partner Marcin Matkowski, here today.

The fourth seeded Indo-Polish pair rallied to beat the second seeded Briton-Australian combo of Jamie Murray and John Peers 3-6 7-6(5) 10-5 in the summit clash.

It was Paes’ first title of the season during which his ranking plummeted to 35 from top-10. This win will give Paes 250 ranking points and USD 25065 as prize money.

The 41-year-old had ended runner-up at Washington with Australia’s Sam Groth in July in the first final of the season.

“In a match like that, especially in the final, the margins between winning and losing are very small. What I really like about Marcin’s game after playing with him this week is that he is a student of tennis. On the court, he’s always looking to improve,” Paes said after the win.

“We didn’t play our best tennis in the beginning today. We were playing a team that were very confident. They don’t give you much rhythm. But then when we were down, we found our groove and it was pretty much a different story then,” the Indian added.

In the 2013 season Paes had won two titles, including the US Open with Radek Stepanek.

Matkowski said, he was “happy to play with Paes.

“He’s a great player. We’ll try to play a few more tournaments in the fall, in the indoor tournaments in Europe. We’ve enjoyed a very good start and we look forward to continuing this way,” he said.

source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Sports> Tennis / PTI / September 29th, 2014

Punching above her weight

Records, All, Sports, World Opinion

Sakina Khatum talks about her weightlifting career and her route to success at the Commonwealth Games

Such a long journey Sakina Khatum courted success after many trials including being struck by polio / The Hindu
Such a long journey Sakina Khatum courted success after many trials including being struck by polio / The Hindu

Sakina Khatum hit the headlines with a bronze-winning effort at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games, last month. But the 25-year-old promises to do even better at the Incheon Asian Games, come October.

An irony, or call it fate, as polio struck Sakina, one of the four siblings when she was just a year and half old, and since then, it has been a story of determination and fighting all odds.

Four operations below the knee on the right leg helped her to walk, rather than crawl on fours. A doctor advised Sakina to take up swimming to strengthen the leg, and thus began her tryst with sports.

“I was national champion a year after taking up swimming, and for the next four years, ruled the pool in my category. I did not get any recognition or an international call up,” says the girl, who comes from a poor family. “My father is ailing. My brother does not stay with my family.”

She adds, “I came to Bangalore for the selection camp, ahead of the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

After three months away from home, I was not picked despite impressing coach Dabas, who referred me to ace para power-lifter Farman Basha. And the rest is history.” Farman, himself restricted to a wheelchair says, “She was lifting only 25 to 26 kgs. To turn her into an international star was a challenge, but with coach Dabas insisting, I agreed. I had no money to spare but asked her to train under me. I found her a small accommodation near K.R. Puram.. Four years down and she has won two international medals (both bronze) for her country,” says Farman.

The journey has not been easy.

“One Mr. Majumdar, from Kolkata used to send Rs. 5000 initially and then increased it to Rs. 10,000 per month for her basic expenses (though that has now stopped after her Commonwealth Games success). He supported her financially, till last month. He even procured her tickets to the Hungary Open, early this year where she won her first international medal. We don’t spend our money (on international tours) and save up to buy supplements – a must for every lifter. When I am short of money, we fall back on local produce,” adds Farman.

“I asked Sakina to move into my place to save up on rent and travel time for training. We train for about four-five days a week,” says the gritty lifter.

For more successes, it is important that the state government and the numerous corporates that endorses sports step forward and make it easy for them to travel and perform at the highest level. Is anyone listening?

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus / by Avinash Nair / September 29th, 2014

Barcelona musician joins gypsy and Baul music

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, NRI's / PIO's, World Opinion

Kolkata :

He was born and brought up in Belgrade by his Bengali mother and Serbian father. He got his degrees, including a Masters, in Austria, where he spent eight-odd years. But with a name like Robindro, he could not escape music.

Barcelona Gipsy Klezmer Orchestra’s clarinet player-scholar Robindro Nikolic is in town, holding workshops and bringing the worlds of gypsies and bauls together.

“My mother, Manjula Mukherjee had gone to Europe with her parents who were diplomats based in Yugoslavia. She studied medicine, but later took up Ayurveda. She met my father, who is a Serbian, at Belgrade,” Robindro narrated in his accent.

He further explained what brought him to Kolkata for the first time, four years ago.

“In Switzerland in 2007, I was performing with Zubin Mehta when I met Pandit Tanmoy Bose, who was collaborating with Anushka Shankar. We exchanged numbers, spoke about music. He urged me to make my own music as I was part of a huge orchestra. He really inspired me. In 2010, I came to Kolkata, where Bose introduced me to many people — musicians like guitarist Bodhisattwa Ghosh with whom I jammed at Someplace Else, and the cultural organization Banglanatak. I was keen to research on music medicine and music therapy, so Bose’s wife, Bonnya, who was with ITC Sangeet Research Academy at the time, introduced me to their archive where I spent considerable time,” he told TOI on Wednesday.

“Many people think my name is Brazilian or Portuguese. But I tell them no, it’s Bengali,” he said.

When prodded on his association with Indian music, he said, “I have researched on the broad science of Indian ragas and music therapy in India. But this is the first time I’m having a musical exchange with Bengal folk musicians. We found many similarities between the folk forms of the two worlds. ‘Doina’, a Jewish folk form from East Europe, is very similar to Baul, as my fellow musicians pointed out. It’s about spirituality and not religion. I’m also keen on exploring the Bengal wind instruments.”

But Baul is not a “new love” for him, he said. “When I was little my mother would travel back home and get, among others, Baul music recordings for me.”

Singer Dipanwita Acharya, who was part of the workshop, said, “It was a wonderful experience. And I’m so happy to learn about ‘Doina’. So many similarities with our Baul music and the storyline of these music forms are the same globally.”

Percussionist Sandip Bag, who played ‘dubuka’, an instrument from Middle East, at the workshop, said the rhythms Robindro played were quite different, and this was a refreshing experience.

Arpan Thakur Chakraborty, a guitarist, added, “This was very helpful for me. I learnt a lot about scale variation and progression while playing ‘jazz manouche’ or gypsy jazz with him.”

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Kolkata / by Shounak Ghosal, TNN / September 25th, 2014

INCHEON ASIAN GAMES 2014 – Saurav Ghosal settles for silver in men’s squash

Records, All, Sports, World Opinion
Saurav Ghosal on Monday outplayed 35th-ranked Beng Hee of Malaysia to enter the finals of men's squash event. / PTI
Saurav Ghosal on Monday outplayed 35th-ranked Beng Hee of Malaysia to enter the finals of men’s squash event. / PTI

Loses title clash to Kuwait’s Abdullah Almezayen, narrowly misses out on becoming the first Indian squash gold winner in Asian Games.

Saurav Ghosal on Tuesday squandered a two-game advantage to narrowly miss out on becoming the first Indian squash player to win the gold medal at the Asian Games.

Ghosal was leading after the first two games of the gold-medal match but his opponent, Kuwait’s Abdullah Almezayen, staged a dramatic fightback winning the next three games to clinch the top prize.

Almezayen won the title clash 10-12 2-11 14-12 11-8 11-9 at the Yeorumul Squash Courts. The Indian missed out on a gold-medal point with the scoreline reading 12-11 in the third game, which eventually proved to be the decisive game.

Ghosal took 21 minutes to take the first game before consolidating his position by clinching the second in merely six minutes of play. The Kuwaiti squash player then made a grand fightback as he took 19, 12 and 17 minutes respectively to win the next three games.

Prior to this, the 28-year-old Ghosal had three Asian Games medals to his name – singles bronze in 2006 Doha Games and two more, including one in doubles, in the 2010 edition in Guangzhou.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Sport> Other Sports / PTI / Incheon – September 23rd, 2014

Kolkata loses its favourite raconteur

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Historical Links / Pre-Independence, Records, All, Travel, World Opinion

Kolkata :

The morning durbars under the portico of the delightfully eccentric Fairlawn Hotel on Sudder Street have just become history. The ‘Duchess of Sudder Street’, as Vi (Violet) Smith was popularly called, will not be holding ‘court’ there anymore. And legions of her fans, as well as the galaxy of loyal customers of her hotel, will no longer be regaled by her stories about the Kolkata of yore. Smith passed away at her first-floor quarters of Fairlawn Hotel on Saturday at an age of 93.

The stories she narrated were as eclectic as her personality, and the hotel itself. One of her favourites was how Shashi Kapoor (“drop-dead gorgeous he was,” recalled Vi) met and fell in love with Jennifer Kendall. In the spring of 1965, the Kendals, who used to own a mobile theatre company called ‘Shakespeareana’, were putting up at Fairlawn and Prithvi Theatre (owned by Shashi’s father Prithviraj Kapoor) also happened to staging shows at New Empire at the same time. Jennifer had gone to watch a show there and it was “love at first sight” for Shashi, who courted Jennifer, joined ‘Shakespeareana’ and eloped with her to Bombay to get married after her father Geoffrey refused permission for marriage. The couple spent their honeymoon in Room No 17 of Fairlawn, and Vi named it ‘The Shashi Kapoor Room’.

Vi was also very fond of telling visitors about Patrick Swayze who stayed at the Fairlawn while shooting for ‘The City Of Joy’ in 1991. “He was very nice and soft-spoken. He had told me about the ranches he owned in California and New Mexico, about his wife Lisa and his childhood,” the coiffed and elaborately made-up Vi told this correspondent a couple of years ago. She was also an encyclopedia on the Calcutta of the glorious past.

Violet Smith was an Armenian whose grandfather escaped the genocide of the Armenians by the Ottomans in Turkey in 1915 and reached India through Iran and Afghanistan. Violet married Edward Frederick Smith, a British army officer, in 1944 and moved to England later, but returned in 1962 to take over the affairs of Fairlawn. Violet’s mother Rosie Sarkies had bought the property from two British ladies in 1936. The sprawling structure that houses the hotel is 231 years old now, having been constructed by one William Ford in 1783.

Vi lent her personality to the hotel she dearly loved. Stepping in through the iron gates of the hotel is like entering a green oasis set amidst the bustle of the city. A profusion of plants, mostly palms, provides an immediate soothing experience and leads to the portico where, every morning, the redoubtable Violet used to hold court. Not just the abundance of potted plants, the colour of the walls, linen, wicker and cane chairs, settees and stools, many of the draperies and even some of the crockery are green or have splashes of it. It’s Violet’s favourite colour. “Green symbolizes freshness, vibrancy and reminds one of nature,” she used to say.

Other regular guests at Fairlawn that Vi would often talk about were filmmakers Ismail Merchant and James Ivory, actors Melvyn Douglas, Penelope Cruz, Julie Christie, Felicity Kendal (Jennifer Kapoor’s sister) and Om Puri, writers Gunter Grass, Eric Newby, Dominique Lapierre, Ian Hislop and Glen Balfour-Paul, British playwright Tom Stoppard, TV presenters Dan Cruikshank and Clive Anderson, and even Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner (Sting, for the uninformed)!

And all have paid glowing tributes to the hotel and its wonderfully charming owner Violet Smith. Lapierre went to the extent of wishing he loses his passport when he stays at Fairlawn the next time so that he can stay on at the hotel forever. Newby calls Fairlawn his “most favourite hotel”. Vi would often say her motto was to “receive tourists as guests and send them away as friends”. For her innumerable friends all over the world, Fairlawn, and Kolkata, will never be the same without Vi.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Cities> Kolkata / by Jaideep Mazumdar, TNN / September 22nd, 2014