Showing posts with label keralamore.blogspot. Show all posts
Showing posts with label keralamore.blogspot. Show all posts
Friday, March 13, 2009
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Monday, February 23, 2009
Oscar nominees
A.R. Rahman performs during the 81st Academy Awards Sunday, Feb. 22, 2009, in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles. Rahman won the Oscar for best original song "Jai Ho" from the motion picture "Slumdog Millionaire."
A.R. Rahman performs during the 81st Academy Awards Sunday, Feb. 22, 2009, in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles. Rahman won the Oscar for best original song "Jai Ho" from the motion picture "Slumdog Millionaire."
Music: A R Rahman: Slumdog Millionaire:
A.R. Rahman accepts the Oscar for best original song "Jai Ho" from the motion picture "Slumdog Millionaire" from Alicia Keys during the 81st Academy Awards Sunday, Feb. 22, 2009, in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Bad roads cost KSRTC dear . . . .
Long way to go:( The pathetic condition of roads has cost the KSRTC Rs.21 crore during the period from June to August)
KOCHI: The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation is finding it difficult to operate its fleet of 3,650 buses because of unmotorable roa
ds in most parts of the State.
The Corporation suffered losses totalling Rs.21 crore from June to August end, just because of bad roads and fever. This has increased the Corporation’s monthly loss from Rs.16 crore to Rs.23 crore.Gloomy picture
Highly placed sources in the Corporation said the monthly additional burden because of increase in demand for fuel, tyre bursts and damage to leaf springs alone has been estimated at Rs.2.5 crore. This is apart from the heavy loss incurred because of wear and tear of mechanical parts, increase in accidents, the steep fall in number of long-distance passengers and cancellation of schedules.
The average mileage of each bus has fallen from 4.16 km per litre to 4 kmpl. This has resulted in a monthly expenditure on fuel alone going up from Rs.28 crore to Rs.30 crore.
“Superfast buses of the Corporation now take three hours to cover the Thrissur-Palakkad stretch, something which took hardly 90 minutes prior to June,” says G. Venugopal, Executive Director (Operations) of the Corporation. Buses which used to have four daily trips now find it difficult to run at least three.
A senior official in the Corporation said the savings to the tune of Rs.2.5 crore every month (pre-June) on fuel bills have been drained away by the pathetic condition of roads.
This, and the fall in mileage of buses, will add to the dues (Rs.130 crore now) that the Corporation owes to IndianOil. Unhappy workers
The undue delay in repairing roads has affected the collection-based incentives being given to workers. Workers have become demoralised because of buses encountering frequent potholes that take a heavy toll on their (and passengers’) condition.
The pathetic condition of roads has negated the gains made by way of drivers’ training programmes carried out by experts from the Petroleum Conservation Research Association (PCRA), to save fuel, reduce wear and tear, and to increase the lifespan of buses.
Though the training took a breather during the past few months, it resulted in the mileage of each bus increasing to 4.16 kmpl from 3.84 kmpl in 2005.
A PCRA official said that ill-maintained and narrow roads were the bane of Kerala’s transportation sector and these two factors had an impact on the functioning of the KSRTC.
Long way to go:( The pathetic condition of roads has cost the KSRTC Rs.21 crore during the period from June to August)
KOCHI: The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation is finding it difficult to operate its fleet of 3,650 buses because of unmotorable roa
ds in most parts of the State.The Corporation suffered losses totalling Rs.21 crore from June to August end, just because of bad roads and fever. This has increased the Corporation’s monthly loss from Rs.16 crore to Rs.23 crore.Gloomy picture
Highly placed sources in the Corporation said the monthly additional burden because of increase in demand for fuel, tyre bursts and damage to leaf springs alone has been estimated at Rs.2.5 crore. This is apart from the heavy loss incurred because of wear and tear of mechanical parts, increase in accidents, the steep fall in number of long-distance passengers and cancellation of schedules.
The average mileage of each bus has fallen from 4.16 km per litre to 4 kmpl. This has resulted in a monthly expenditure on fuel alone going up from Rs.28 crore to Rs.30 crore.
“Superfast buses of the Corporation now take three hours to cover the Thrissur-Palakkad stretch, something which took hardly 90 minutes prior to June,” says G. Venugopal, Executive Director (Operations) of the Corporation. Buses which used to have four daily trips now find it difficult to run at least three.
A senior official in the Corporation said the savings to the tune of Rs.2.5 crore every month (pre-June) on fuel bills have been drained away by the pathetic condition of roads.
This, and the fall in mileage of buses, will add to the dues (Rs.130 crore now) that the Corporation owes to IndianOil. Unhappy workers
The undue delay in repairing roads has affected the collection-based incentives being given to workers. Workers have become demoralised because of buses encountering frequent potholes that take a heavy toll on their (and passengers’) condition.
The pathetic condition of roads has negated the gains made by way of drivers’ training programmes carried out by experts from the Petroleum Conservation Research Association (PCRA), to save fuel, reduce wear and tear, and to increase the lifespan of buses.
Though the training took a breather during the past few months, it resulted in the mileage of each bus increasing to 4.16 kmpl from 3.84 kmpl in 2005.
A PCRA official said that ill-maintained and narrow roads were the bane of Kerala’s transportation sector and these two factors had an impact on the functioning of the KSRTC.
Actress Menaka shares her favourite recipes.
Menaka :THE Malayalam actress of yesteryear, today leads a busy life looking after her husband and children. The success of the Malayalam movie, `Vettom', which she produced, has not brought about much of a change in her routine. "I was a producer only in name; I hardly visited the set during the discussions or production," she says with a smile.
Love for cooking
Cooking has always been an obsession with her. She learnt it on her own, though observing her mother cook the traditional Tamilian dishes and her mother-in-law the Kerala fare helped her a lot. She is an ardent fan of the gourmet, Mallika Badrinath. "I have a collection of her books, and I have tried out most of the recipes. I also watch cookery shows on TV, be it in any language, and try out the recipes," she says.
Though Menaka and her daughters are strictly vegetarian, she likes to try out non-vegetarian recipes but substitutes the meat with vegetables such as mushroom or potatoes. "I love Andhra and Mangalorean food. I've even tried my hand at Thai recipes," Menaka says. She is fond of Kerala food, but would rather avoid coconut. "Coconut gives a distinct taste to any dish. I love food with a natural flavour; adding coconut just spoils it," she adds.
Painting and dancing
Painting is yet another of her passions. Tanjore, glass and mural paintings made by her adorn the living room of her flat. She attends classes to learn the Raja Ravi Varma style of paintings and wants to dabble in Kerala murals too.
"I love to dance and am a student of Padma Subramaniam," she says. Whenever time permits, she goes to Chennai to attend Bharatanatyam classes conducted by Padma Subramaniam. "I don't sing, though I've had to take music lessons as part of my training in dance. But I love to listen to soft music, be it in Hindustani, Carnatic or English classical," she says.
Here are two of Menaka's easy-to-prepare and tasty recipes:
Kathirikai thokayil
Ingredients
Kathirikai (green brinjal) cubed - 1 cup Red chillies - 10 Coriander powder - 2 tsp Urad dal - 1 tsp Tamarind - a small ball Onion (chopped coarsely) - 1 medium-sized one Salt - to taste
Method
Heat oil in a kadai. Add urad dal, red chillies and coriander powder. Fry until the dal turns brown. Powder the dal and chillies and keep aside. Pour four to five teaspoons oil in a pan and fry the brinjal until it is cooked. Add a little water to the tamarind and make a paste. Coarsely grind the fried brinjal, tamarind paste, salt, onion and add the masala powder that had been set aside. Kathirikai thokayil is ready. It goes well with curd rice or kanji.
Keera Masiyal
Ingredients
Green spinach (finely chopped) - 1 cup Onion (finely chopped) - 2 medium-sized ones Green chillies (cut in a round) - 8 Green mango (skin removed) - 1/2 Green brinjal (finely cut) - 2 to 3 Tamarind paste - 2 tsp Sugar - a pinch Tomato (optional) - 1 Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp Salt - to taste For seasoning Mustard - 1 tsp Red chillies - 2 to 3 Urad dal - 1 tsp Bengal gram dal - 1 tsp
Method
Cook spinach, brinjal, onion, green chillies, mango, chilli powder, sugar or jaggery, salt and tamarind paste for seven to eight minutes. Once cooked, mix well using a wooden ladle. Using a grinder will not give the desired taste. Season the mixture with mustard, urad dal, Bengal gram dal and red chillies. Keera Masiyil goes well with chappatis and even rice.
Menaka :THE Malayalam actress of yesteryear, today leads a busy life looking after her husband and children. The success of the Malayalam movie, `Vettom', which she produced, has not brought about much of a change in her routine. "I was a producer only in name; I hardly visited the set during the discussions or production," she says with a smile.
Love for cooking
Cooking has always been an obsession with her. She learnt it on her own, though observing her mother cook the traditional Tamilian dishes and her mother-in-law the Kerala fare helped her a lot. She is an ardent fan of the gourmet, Mallika Badrinath. "I have a collection of her books, and I have tried out most of the recipes. I also watch cookery shows on TV, be it in any language, and try out the recipes," she says.
Though Menaka and her daughters are strictly vegetarian, she likes to try out non-vegetarian recipes but substitutes the meat with vegetables such as mushroom or potatoes. "I love Andhra and Mangalorean food. I've even tried my hand at Thai recipes," Menaka says. She is fond of Kerala food, but would rather avoid coconut. "Coconut gives a distinct taste to any dish. I love food with a natural flavour; adding coconut just spoils it," she adds.
Painting and dancing
Painting is yet another of her passions. Tanjore, glass and mural paintings made by her adorn the living room of her flat. She attends classes to learn the Raja Ravi Varma style of paintings and wants to dabble in Kerala murals too.
"I love to dance and am a student of Padma Subramaniam," she says. Whenever time permits, she goes to Chennai to attend Bharatanatyam classes conducted by Padma Subramaniam. "I don't sing, though I've had to take music lessons as part of my training in dance. But I love to listen to soft music, be it in Hindustani, Carnatic or English classical," she says.
Here are two of Menaka's easy-to-prepare and tasty recipes:
Kathirikai thokayil
Ingredients
Kathirikai (green brinjal) cubed - 1 cup Red chillies - 10 Coriander powder - 2 tsp Urad dal - 1 tsp Tamarind - a small ball Onion (chopped coarsely) - 1 medium-sized one Salt - to taste
Method
Heat oil in a kadai. Add urad dal, red chillies and coriander powder. Fry until the dal turns brown. Powder the dal and chillies and keep aside. Pour four to five teaspoons oil in a pan and fry the brinjal until it is cooked. Add a little water to the tamarind and make a paste. Coarsely grind the fried brinjal, tamarind paste, salt, onion and add the masala powder that had been set aside. Kathirikai thokayil is ready. It goes well with curd rice or kanji.
Keera Masiyal
Ingredients
Green spinach (finely chopped) - 1 cup Onion (finely chopped) - 2 medium-sized ones Green chillies (cut in a round) - 8 Green mango (skin removed) - 1/2 Green brinjal (finely cut) - 2 to 3 Tamarind paste - 2 tsp Sugar - a pinch Tomato (optional) - 1 Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp Salt - to taste For seasoning Mustard - 1 tsp Red chillies - 2 to 3 Urad dal - 1 tsp Bengal gram dal - 1 tsp
Method
Cook spinach, brinjal, onion, green chillies, mango, chilli powder, sugar or jaggery, salt and tamarind paste for seven to eight minutes. Once cooked, mix well using a wooden ladle. Using a grinder will not give the desired taste. Season the mixture with mustard, urad dal, Bengal gram dal and red chillies. Keera Masiyil goes well with chappatis and even rice.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Asin Thottumkal :
Asin Thottumkal (born October 26, 1985[1]) is an award-winning Indian film actress from the state of Kerala. She is currently considered to be one of the most popular actresses in the South Indian film industry.
Asin Thottumkal (born October 26, 1985[1]) is an award-winning Indian film actress from the state of Kerala. She is currently considered to be one of the most popular actresses in the South Indian film industry.
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