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JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 1 asian lifestyle magazine vol 6 | no 7 | issue # 37 | july 2008 C o m p l i m e n t a r y C o p y $3.99 w w w . D i y a m a g a z i n e . c o m 07 7 7 1 5 4 2 6 8 8 0 0 1 7 3 6 > V i s i t w w w .D i y a M a g a z i n e . c o M t o V i e w t h i s i s s u e & w i n p r i z e s Katrina World’s sexiest Women Anh Tran BusinesswomAn of the month Viva Las Vegas! Party Cambo style i i i i i i i i i 2 DIYA JULY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 3 4 DIYA JULY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 5 6 DIYA JULY 2008 Now opeN!!! Book your ne xt party @ Roma Palace & Bar JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 7 8 DIYA JULY 2008 CONTENTS july 2008 50 “ ” my only message to people who come to this country with great dreams is that if you never lose sight of your goal, approach it with sincerity and dedication and take life one step at a time, you too will be able to make the american dream come true... anh tran Founder & owner of Cindi’s n.y. delicatessen restaurant & bakery chain volume 6 numBeR 7 Features 50 businesswoman of the month - anh tran 44 interracial relationships’ in the U.s. 54 Viva las Vegas! 64 Katrina - World’s sexiest? Beauty 44 how to get the beautiful radian skin! Fashion 34 Fashion - things not to wear Food 86 secret’s of eating well 86 Chicken tikka masala - receipe 87 restaurant reviews Movies 72 hollywood reviews 73 east asian movie reviews 75 bollywood movie reviews 76 tamil movie reviews 78 telugu movie reviews 79 malayalam movie reviews 80 bollywood movie Previews every issue 11 note 12 horoscope 18 book reviews 20 scoop 83 love advice 28 dallas scene: irving mayor victory party JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 9 10 DIYA JULY 2008 BANKING united Central Bank 4 972-487-1505 BANQUET subzi mandi 6 214-315-4428 BEAUTY Rukhsar 22 972-245-7727 CAR CARE AAmCo 79 972-251-1811 CLOTHING/BOUTIQUE silk threads 60 972-432-9599 Jehaans 83 972-238-8561 CPA/LAw sunil maini, CPA 70 972-516-1172 sherin thawer, P.C. 31 214-239-4511 AA PAssPoRt 35 469-835-2731 DECORATION Zwoom Design 27 214-738-1667 DOCTOR/MEDICAL CARE Primary Care Clinic 63 972-221-6005 EVENTS Diwali mela 33 682-553-8012 FINANCIAL Rahman financial 48 972-250-1775 GROCERY taj Grocers 15 972-570-2504 Bismillah int’l Grocery 25 214-504-1868 shandiz 58 972-943-8885 india Bazaar 76 972-312-0114 HOTEL Radisson 21 214-341-5400 IT/JOB Prudent tech 2 469-544-9282 impressive systems 80 972-241-3500 Gallop 89 972-869-1020 JEWLERY Govindji’s 3 972-231-6776 malani 53 972-234-4653 Almas Collection 81 888-504-9199 ENTERTAINMENT/PHOTOGRAPHY DJ sameer 71 972-415-4326 BigDcats.com 62 972-400-1878 support diya magazine (& the advertisers) Say you saw their ad in the magazine! guide advertiser’sArmale Photo 19 214-676-7531 Asian Photography 16 214-783-3297 Bombay Photography 23 972-679-7921 RADIO/MAGAZINE/THEATHER funAsiA 13 972-672-8341 REALTY Dream home mortgage 82 972-245-5626 RELIGIOUS telugu Bible Church 28 RESTAURANT Ruchi Palace 5 972-818-9588 Bombay sizzlers 17 972-255-5400 india Palace 9 972-392-0190 Roti Grill 84 214-521-3655 mayuri 33 972-910-8788 Cindi’s n.Y. Deli 49 214-739-0918 saffron house 68 972-239-1800 our Place 36 214-574-7117 shandiz 56 972-943-8885 tandoor Grill 67 469-241-0449 Bombay sweets 77 214-441-2124 masala wok 65 469-362-5586 mehfil Bar & Grill 86 972-839-9449 indian Cafe 90 972-929-6400 Rice 1 Roll 63 972-506-7423 Karma wine 32 469-233-2322 india Cafe 90 972-929-6400 SCHOOLS Desi Driving school 69 972-437-4740 SECURITY/CREDIT K-Link 74 972-484-6464 Vinod Kumar 24 214-662-7552 SUPER MARKET subzi mandi 4 972-235-4300 TRAVEL horizon travel 29 972-479-0553 skypass travel 64 214-634-8687 travel Plus, inc 78 469-361-1594 VEDIC STORE swami Krsna 14 214-550-1427 WIRELESS B2B wireless 7/66 214-276-0251 texas wireless 82 972-243-1001 wireless solutions 91 972-255-2400 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 11 PUBLISHER & CEO Rick Kolluri rick@diyamagazine.com EDITOR IN CHEIF & PRESIDENT Monicca Sharmaa monicca@diyamagazine.com EXECUTIVE EDITOR OFFICE MaNagER gENERaL MaNagER & advertising consultant SWaPNIL RaI RaHUL KOLLURI aNTHONY TRaN 214-868-4673 anthony@diyamagazine.com VP SaLES & MaRKETINg aDVERTISINg EXECUTIVE jOHN ROgERS 214-642-2298 john@diyamagazine.com Binoy Binoy@diyamagazine.com CONTRIBUTINg EDITORS Prianna, anthony Tran, anwar ali, Naseem, Mosin abudulla, jay Patel. CONTRIBUTINg WRITERS tracey mallette, abhisek nagrath, heather safran, Mike ghouse, Mary Lorenz, Kathe Nielsen, Subhash K. jha & Tamana jOSHI aRT DIRECTOR design RICK KOLLURI Raj SHINDE, DaVID HaUCK PHOTOgRaPHY Rehan Obaid, Bombay Photography, Prince Photography, Ink Studios (EmeryVille, Ca), Manav & jack Hol- lingsworth COPY EDITORS amy Presley, Prashant gupta & RENU HOROSCOPE EDITOR Swami Krsna (vedicstore.com) DISTRIBUTION Lewis, binoy, & rahul INTERNS Meniecia Ford, aSaD BIRaNI, & ZaIN. SPECIaL THaNKS aKBaR BIRaNI, RONNIE BaSU, DaVID, jOSE, PaREZ MaLIK, MUIZZ WaLjEE, DR. aMER, DR. KHaNNa, SUBHaSH, BaLDEV SINgH, DR. SRINIVaS SCOTT, DR. YOgINI PaTEL, SWaPNIL RaI, jaCK HOLLINgSWORTH, MaNISHa, aFTaB, SUDHa, SUDHEER jaYaPRaBHU, MICHELLE SaNCHEZ OF MODa MODEL, MaNOHaR REDDY, jOHN HaMID, Pa- RIMaL & HEENa, jaYPaL REDDY, aMIR RajVI LaW & TOM MELTON aT THE COOK LaW OFFICES. Diya magazine is FRee subscribe today & pay only for shipping. Visit www.DiYAmAGAZine.com to subscribe Diya magazine is published by Diya media inc. Vol. 6, no. 7, issue #37, JuLY 2008 Copyright © 2008 Diya magazine. All rights reserved. Reproduction of pictures, articles in whole or in part without written permission of the Publisher is prohibited. Not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or pictures. Views expressed by editorial/advertorial contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of the Publisher. Printed in U.S.A. The information in the publication is believed to be accurate. However, Diya Media Inc. d/b/a Diya Magazine cannot and do not guarantee its accuracy and will not be liable for the quality or performance of goods and services provided by advertisers or any other portion of the publication. Submissions for editorial consideration or for any questions, please, e-mail info@diyamagazine.com. volume 6 | numBeR 7 | ISSue no. 37 PuBlISheR’S note aDveRtise with Diya magazine & get 15% oFF call monica at 972-658-3890 oR Rick at 972-948-6814 oR email us at sales@Diyamagazine.com applies to 1st time customeRs. min oF 6 months agReement. less than 3 months - get 10% oFF. make a point herbert gears, mayor of irving, tX & Rick kolluri as you may already know, diya magazine has been serving you for the past 5 plus years, now in- dependently without any ties to a media conglomerate. to make diya filled with ever more quality content & stunning editorial & pictorial content (of course with a balance of content & ads)...we ask that you to make a point to reach out to the advertiser’s listed in the magazine by supporting them & letting them know that you saw their ad in the magazine (when you visit them or call them - you get discounts when you mention diya, see their ads for more info). and sending us an email with ideas and suggestions. this month’s issue is bit special - we have showcased an amazing person & entrepre- neur, anh tran, living a true american dream (page 50). the first asian american lady (non-desi) as the “businesswoman of the month.” Visit her chain of restaurants, Cindi’s, to taste some great food (and “make a point” to say hi to her). irving, texas, as you may already know, is thriving with the asian american businesses and community. one person who recognizes and supports the culture & community is the mayor of irving, mr. Gears. as he re-commits to support during his re-election winning party (page 28). also, there are two other special features in this issue - thanks to swapnil rai, Prianna staley, and anthony tran; they are ‘interracial relationships’ (page 44) - a sneak peak at the pros & cons and the true meaning of love; and ‘Viva las Vegas’ (page 54) - as the gaming industry recognizes asian american spending more and more money on entertainment & family fun activities. harrah’s appointed Cambo as one of their asian representative to make the customers experience a smooth sail. no issue is complete without ‘scoop’ and ‘bollywood’ - check out the latest reviews and tidbits of informative content. sincerely, rick Kolluri Publisher rick@diyamagazine.com 972-948-6814 (direct) 12 DIYA JULY 2008 hoRoScoPe Karka Rashi: A period of challenge and crisis and the degree varies from person to person depending on your birth chart and circumstances. Op- positions from others without any adverse effects except worries and anger. Your efforts to complete a project or to get reward or other con- sequences will be challenged. The events will relate to the period three months ago when Sun in transit was in opposition to your Natal Sun. Care of health, delay or loss in occupation, reputation etc. Just play it safe! Simha Rashi: A good period for men- tal and correspondence pursuits. But it may create worries and anxiety in various ways. The mind will be unset- tled, changeable and prone to make mistakes and look to the things from an unfavorable standpoint. There can be conflict with people but if you listen to others you may avert them. Be self critical and avoid being stubborn. Be careful in personal interviews, signing papers, and in all correspondence. On the whole this transit is not bad, but detracts away from full realization, preventing matters causing to fruition. Poor health is suggested, just take it easy! Kanya Rashi: A period of strong sense of well being. This transit is the strongest and produc- es good effects. Harmony and domestic bliss; beneficial in all directions, good relations with all. Do not be over adventurous; do not en- ter into challenges and make major changes. Restore your inner peace and tranquility! You will be helpful to others. A new and fortunate friendship is in the horizon. You will enjoy prof- itable pursuits and journeys. Good for health and domestic harmony. Your children will be very important to you. Relations with opposite sex are generally very good at this time. Provided by: Swami Krsna Jyotish Acharya of India website: www.vedicstore.com phone: 214-550-1427 email: swami@vedicstore.com Vrishabh Rashi: This month you will feel well shaped and look elegant, look out for remarks! Gain through art and science is indicated. You will be learned and demonstrate to be polite. Good for social get together. Spend time with friends, loved one and with the opposite sex. Daily sur- roundings will be more pleasant than usual. Commercial transactions, buy- ing and selling as well as professional life will be favorable. Good for plea- sure resorts, functions and meeting. A pleasant trip away from home is suggested. Mithun Rashi: This is a fortunate period which may bring positive changes of various kinds which will be pleasant or beneficial in their effects. There may be some changes in life, some new pursuits may begin. A good period for coming before the public, journey and success in long term finances. Good for health, domestic and personal affairs. Emotional repression of one kind or another is a probable consequences of this transit. Pay atten- tion to home, personal hygiene and organization of personal aspects of your life. Take care of your health which is essential. Take care when signing any important document or contract. A fortunate and favorable month. It brings you good health, bright and cheerful mind. You will be hopeful and all affairs will tend to go well. Beneficial attachments affecting your domestic or social welfare can be formed. You will enjoy harmoni- ous and stable relations with all. Short distance travel is indicated. Rela- tions with opposite sex will be more congenial than before. Good time for parties and pleasurable pursuits, friendship and love can result. This is a good period for personal and emo- tional life. JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 13 Tula Rashi: Success, friendship and association with opposite sex, gain of money, new clothes, victory, joy and happiness. Your personal communica- tions will have an emotional depth and will be fruitful. Control of your emotions will be helpful. You may make a bad impression upon some one by react- ing automatically rather than thinking a thing through and being proactive. Fe- male relatives and friends may play an important role in your life at this time. Vrishick Rashi: This is a time of in- creased communications and social intercourse. You may develop new friendships with youngsters. Happiness at home, prosperity, gains of money, honor, and satisfaction - a good and favorable time. Group working will be beneficial. Intellectual exchange with friends is highly indicated. Good transit for spiritual focus. Pleasure in charitable activities, helping others, especially loved ones who are near and dear. Be careful not to give false hopes of support to others. Dhanu Rashi: This month is associated with partnership such as marriage, le- gal or otherwise, business, existing rela- tionships, law suits in partnership. During this transit you may form new relation- ships for various purposes. Examine your relationship with your spouse for better cooperation. You must be effective for your partner as he or she is for you. Un- successful efforts and troubles are indi- cated. Do not take action alone; work with a partner or consult with an expert in that specific field. Do not enter into direct conflict during this month. Avoid wearisome traveling. Health of wife and children may concern to you. 14 DIYA JULY 2008 Makar Rashi: Now a good period for planning and entering into corre- spondence, conversations and read- ings. You can make good relations with friends and tackle the outstand- ing problems. Request your superiors also for favors by explaining your view point, which will be accepted. Con- tracts and negotiations will be favor- able, short travels will be gainful. Gain of wealth and happy married life. This is a critical time in your development. You will receive recognition of your work, A time of heavy responsibil- ity and hard work. Take care of your health when you work hard. Kumbh Rashi: You may become inter- ested in occult sciences through which you can benefit; also through works of secret mission. Service to those in an in- ferior position and victory over enemies are indicated. You may experience some intuition or prophetic dreams. Watch out as you may suffer loss in company of mean people; acidic pain in chest and heart, do not be quarrel- some, immodest and hostile to rela- tions. Things will work out in the end, just take it easy! This transit denotes short term travel. Meena Rashi: Happiness from elders and children. Younger generation will get good position in profession. Gain of money; conceiving of child, honor from superiors and elders. All these points to- wards your desired goals! You will have helpful friends. You will perform virtuous deeds and achieve fame. This is a good month for entertainment, amusement as well as affairs of children. Love rela- tionship will be favorable. Try to stay bal- anced. Good for all kinds of enjoyable activities. You will make a good impres- sion upon others, for recreation, enjoy- ments and love making. So enjoy life with loved ones and relax. Creative and craft project will be favorable and profitable. hoRoScoPe JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 15 16 DIYA JULY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 17 18 DIYA JULY 2008 BooKS Quote of the Month “A feeling of Home in the world comes through caring and being cared for.” - Milton Mayeroff 101 Workouts: Build Muscle, lose FAt And reAcH Your Fit- ness GoAls FAster by Michael Berg, Muscle & Fitness Magazine, editors of Muscle & Fit- ness ISBN: 1600780245 there are 101 fully photo-illustrated workouts presented here, with each workout generally occupying a two- page spread. this concept allows enthusiasts the opportunity to glance at the photos during each workout to check their faithful following of the routine. 101 Workouts: For WoMen: everYtHinG You need to Get A leAn, stronG, And Fit PHYsique by Muscle & Fitness Hers Magazine isBn-13: 9781600780233 there are 101 fully photo-illustrated workouts presented here, with each workout generally occupying a two- page spread. this concept allows enthusiasts the opportunity to glance at the photos during each workout to check their faithful following of the routine. Get fit this summer! by daniel G. Amen isBn-13: 9780812929980 sYnoPsis in this breakthrough bestseller, you’ll see scientific evidence that your anxi- ety, depression, anger, obsessiveness, or impulsiveness could be related to how specific structures in your brain work. You’re not stuck with the brain you’re born with. Here are just a few of neuropsychiatrist dr. daniel Amen’s surprising—and effective—”brain pre- scriptions” that can help heal your brain and change your life: to quell Anxiety and Panic: ¸ use simple breathing techniques to immediately calm inner turmoil to Fight depression: ¸ learn how to kill Ants (automatic negative thoughts) to curb Anger: ¸ Follow the Amen anti-anger diet and learn the nutrients that calm rage to conquer impulsiveness and learn to Focus: ¸ develop total focus with the “one- Page Miracle” to stop obsessive Worrying: ¸ Follow the “get unstuck” writing exercise and learn other problem-solv- ing exercises Biography daniel G. Amen, M.d., is a clinical neuroscientist, child and adolescent psychiatrist, and medical director of the Amen clinic for Behavioral Medicine in Fairfield, california. by Jillian Michaels isBn-13: 9780307382511 sYnoPsis Are you in good shape but struggling with those last ten to twenty pounds? do you have an event on the calen- dar where you’d love to make jaws drop? or do you just want to see what it would be like to have the best body you’ve ever had? then you need to discover what millions who’ve seen Jillian’s train- ing methods on the Biggest loser already know! Making the cut em- powers you to: • Identify your unique body type and meta- bolic makeup (are you a fast, slow, or bal- anced oxidizer?) and customize a diet plan that is perfect for you • Acquire the mental techniques that will greatly enhance your self-confidence and sharpen your focus on success • Develop your strength, flexibility, coordination, and en- durance • Reach levels of fit- ness you never before thought possible Biography JilliAn MicHAels is a strength trainer and life coach for nBc’s hit series the Biggest MAkinG tHe cut: tHe 30-dAY diet And Fitness PlAn For tHe stronGest, sexiest You cHAnGe Your BrAin, cHAnGe Your liFe: tHe BreAktHrouGH ProGrAM For conquer- inG AnxietY, dePression, oBsessiveness, AnGer, And iMPulsiveness 1 Position yourself into a back-extension station by placing your feet under the leg brace/anchor so that it is hooked there. 2 With your upper thighs resting on the bad, lock your hands behind your head and bend forward at the hips until your upper body is just short of being 90 degrees to the floor. 3 slowly raise your tor- so until it’s in line with your lower body, then lower it. Alternatively, you can hold onto a weight by bracing it with your arms across your chest and do the same motions. BAck rAise exercises source: Full Fitness (c) 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 19 20 DIYA JULY 2008 ScooP chinese women in bikinis set world record chinese women in bikinis form the five olympic rings at changlong Water Park in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, June 15, 2008. the 1,202 who participated in the event broke the Guinness World records for the largest swimsuit photo shoot, which was previously held by 1,010 Austrians in 2007. Australia becoming fattest nation on earth “cAnBerrA: Australia is on track to becoming the fattest nation, a study has showed, although experts questioned on Friday whether it had overtaken the united states and small Pacific countries for the unenviable title. About 4 million Austra- lian adults, or 26 per- cent of the population, were obese, eclipsing the 25 percent rate in the us, the study by the Baker Heart and diabe- tes institute released in Melbourne said. “if we ran a fat olympics we’d be gold medal winners as the fattest people on earth at the moment,” the institute’s preventative cardiology head, Professor simon stewart, told the Age newspaper. the report, titled “Australia’s Future Fat Bomb”, to be presented to a government in- quiry into the nation’s obesity problem on Friday, said 70 percent of men and 60 percent of women aged 45 to 65 were technically overweight or obese. in total, 9 million people were “too heavy” - almost half the 21 million population - and 123,000 were at risk of early death over the next two decades, the study said. While the report said Australia had over- taken the us as the fattest nation, recent us studies showed that about 34 percent of Americans are overweight or obese. small Pacific nations also top World Health organization (WHo) lists, with 94.5 percent of people in tiny nauru classed as overweight, leading to chronic diabetes problems on the island. the Federated states of Micronesia (91.1 percent), the cook islands (90.9 percent), tonga (90.8 percent) and niue (81.7 percent) rounded out the WHo top five, while the us came in 9th, with 74.1 percent overweight or obese. Australia came in at 21, behind countries such as new Zealand, Mexico, Greece and kuwait, the WHo reported. in all, there are cur- rently 1.6 billion overweight adults in the world, a number that is expected to grow by 40 percent over the next decade, the WHo said. nutrition expert rosemary stanton said that while Australia may not lead the world, it did need to take urgent action to address growing obesity and rethink failed health messages.” By xinhua (nAsA image by robert sim- mon and reto stöckli) Beijing registry authorities will open a new on-line marriage book- ing service on Friday in anticipa- tion of a boom in couples wanting to tie the knot on the opening day of the olympic Games. But officials are recommending they book in person at county or district civil affairs bureaus in order to avoid a virtual traffic jam. couples wanting to register August 8 as their wedding date can apply from June 20 to August 5. they will get their marriage certificates on August 8 with the booking form, a Beijing Municipal civil Affairs Bureau official said on Wednesday. they can also book on the Beijing Municipal Marriage and Adop- tion registration services Website (www.bjhysy.bjmzj.gov.cn) or the Beijing Municipal civil Affairs Bu- reau website (www.bjmzj.gov.cn) from July 7 to August 5, he said. Foreigners, overseas Chinese and citizens of Hong Kong Special Administrative Re- gion, Macao Special Admin- istrative Region and Taiwan Province, can also benefit from the service. chinese couples are keen to tie the knot on an auspicious date. August 8, 2008, or 8-8-08, is more than just a date: it marks both the opening of the Bei- jing olympics and is consid- ered a lucky day for marriage with all the number eights in the date. eight is the most auspicious num- ber for chinese who believe it brings fortune and happiness. "they might be better of register- ing in person for their own peace of mind because of the possible inter- net traffic jam after the online regis- tration opens," said Zhai Jianyong, Municipal Marriage registration service center director. Beijing to open online marriage booking service JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 21 22 DIYA JULY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 23 24 DIYA JULY 2008 ScooP entertainment Software Set to Grow 17% by 2010 Worldwide home entertainment software revenue will grow 17% between 2008 and 2010 to $78.2 billion, fueled by growing consumer demand for next-generation videogames and Blu-ray disc, according to a new forecast from Media control Gfk international. the report, which covers videogame and home video software, predicts worldwide consumer spending of $67.1 billion in 2008, up 10% from 2007 (including a foreign exchange gain on the dollar of about 2%). “Worldwide, consumers spent $61 billion at retail on dvd and games software in 2007, more than double what was spent at the worldwide box office,” said Amy Heller, Gfk u.s. president. “that amount is expected to grow to $67 billion in 2008 thanks to growth of new formats like the Wii. Hopefully, the industry will be able to band together on information sharing and data gathering for this somewhat elusive market, as clearly it will be an important segment to manage as the transition to digital copy is made.” Growth for this year and the next several years will be almost exclusively from the games sector, with game software for all console, Pc and handheld platforms expanding to $33.3 billion this year, up 22% from 2007. Games growth will be about 18% in 2009 and 12% in 2010, according to the report. Home video, meanwhile, will remain virtually flat at either side of $34 billion worldwide through 2010, with growth from the fledgling Blu-ray disc format compensating for declines in the aging standard dvd. Wanna Graffiti? Wii style... Your mom might not approve your graffiti inside your house but if you turn a Wiimote into a virtual spray can and create a vir- tual masterpiece, i’m sure no one will stop you. of course, it is no longer a Wiimote but a Wii spray. Play with your mouse! What if your mouse has a life of its own? Perhaps it can yell at you when you are playing too much games. Although this interactive Mouse from dArFon won’t yell at you, it can react to mu- sic with its sound, light and vibration. if you got an email or iM message, it will also notify you in real time. Yes, this time you can really play with your mouse. image: AvinG JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 25 ScooP if you’re tired of all those boring little walkway lights to make your garden illu- minated all through the night, this pot is a cute little alternative. it works in the same way any of the other solar lamps works, it just happens to house a plant as well. the odd little pot comes in either a chic look- ing white or the slightly geeky alternative which flashes between several different colors. When you’re committed to being a bit of a gadget addict, you can’t have a pot that doesn’t do some other function besides hold a plant. by Ally in electronic Gadgets, solar Powered Gear Powered Plant Pot... anyone? "Do you struggle to sleep in economy?" not really — i keep myself busy looking for the pretzel fragment i dropped underneath my seat. But i digress. it’s called, Jetsleeper® ($30) Jetsleeper allows you to sleep upright, which is fundamental in getting a good flight’s sleep in economy class. The pillow can be used on either side of your head, providing stability and comfort for your entire journey. The strap attaches to the top of your seat and loops over your armrest. (source: bookofjoe.com) info: http://anscom.ehost-servic- es107.com/jetsleeper_us.html lG Decoy — 'First phone in the world with a Bluetooth headset built in' What an excellent idea. But wait — there's more. "the headset is automatically charged on the phone when the phone is being charged." now if only you could charge the headset via Bluetooth. $179 at verizon. Waterproof 70-Inch High-Definition Plasma TV Full 1080p panel with custom waterproofing, intended for on-deck viewing aboard your yacht or whatever boat you're floating. (source: bookofjoe.com) (source: bookofjoe.com) SpecialS: Tue: $1.99 Kabab roll Wed: $2.99 biryani Thu: $2.49 Keema mon: $2.99 rice, dal WiTh veg 26 DIYA JULY 2008 ScooP miss universe contestants in vietnam the 57th annual Miss universe competition which will take place in nha trang, vietnam at the crown convention cen- ter on July 14, 2008. source: santabanta.com Miss Kazakhstan - Alfina Nassyrova miss Japan, mima hiroko miss korea, sun lee miss malaysia, levy li su lin miss thailand , gavintra photijak miss philippines , Jennifer barrientos miss usa, paula Diaz miss sri lanka, aruni Rajapaksha miss china, ziya wei miss vietnam, Dayana mendoza miss india, simran kaur mundi miss mauritius, olivia carey miss guam, siera Robertson miss canada, samantha tajik miss mexico, elisa najera miss India, Simran Kaur mundi age: 22 height: 5'9" hair color: brown eye color: brown what are your interests and what do you enjoy doing the most? listening to music, sketching and being around kids. what is your career ambition? my career ambition is to open a beauty school as there is a dearth of such schools in india. i would like to introduce one and help aspirants get the needed grooming and advice, as I know this line well and would like to use it for the benefit of others. what is your proudest personal accomplishment? my proudest personal accomplishment was when i bagged the all rounder trophy in the last year of my schooling. what is something unique that has happened to you; some interesting thing about you? i got a scar on my right thigh trying to save a little puppy's life. since then i consider it to be my lucky scar. what do you want the judges to know about you? i am aware, focused, disciplined, determined and courageous. i love my family and animals. i love to interact; i would rath- er be surrounded with people than live in isolation. i am a city girl, very comfortable in front of the camera. i love being around people. being on stage in front of an audience gives me a high because of the instant reaction. JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 27 28 DIYA JULY 2008 Telugu Bible Church Every Sunday inside the McArthur Blvd Baptist Church “Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and pur- chased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.” - Revelation 5:9 8001 mustang drive irving, Texas 75063 we are located at 8001 mustang Drive at the corner of mustang Drive and Ranch- view in valley Ranch, irving. From i-635 take the macarthur blvd. exit and go north to Ranchview. turn right (east) and go to mustang Drive. Join us every Sunday! Scene south Asian’s of dallas Fort worth metro arranges a congratulatory dinner for the re-elected irving Mayor, Herbert A. Gears. Irving mayor victory party Sonia Rehman Graduation party Tajmahal I m p o rT s 972-644-1329 e-mail: tajmahalimpor ts@yahoo.com store hours: open all seven days 10:30am to 8:00pm One & Only location serving DFW metroplex since 1983 100 S. central expway, #26c Richardson, tX 75080 varieties of spices, Rice, Dals beans, grains, Fresh Flours, chutneys, sauces, ketchups, pickels, Frozen Foods. FResh vegetables & sprouts. Fresh homemade Rotis, chapatis, theplas, paratis, naan, yogurt, idli, Dosa mix, utthapam mix, sambar-chutney and more... exclusive collection of utensils, cookers, statues, paintings, trendy bangles, henna, tattoos, Jewelry and more... visit our chaat coRneR for chatpatta bhel, panipuris, vada pau, sev puri, paneer masala, pav bhaji & top it off with a Fresh sug- arcana Juice! JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 29 DM 30 DIYA JULY 2008 BeAuty take care of your skin! basic things you need to take care of your skin With all the available skincare products available today, it can be incredibly confusing to find the right skincare product for you. in addition, you might be confused as to what skincare really is, and what exactly you should be using in terms of skincare. From cleansers to toners, to masks and moisturizers, how do you know which products are right for your skin? it’s time to breakdown the basics of skincare regime, and get you back on track to a manageable and understandable skincare cleansing process. your basic skincare regime consists of four basic steps: 1. cleanse 2. tone 3. moisturize 4. Protect But there are so many varieties of each step - cucumber cleansers, witch-hazel toners, day or nighttime moisturizers and endless products with sPF are bursting out of cos- metic counters. not to worry, we’ve got your answers. the first step in finding the right products for your basic skincare regime is to deter- mine what skin type you are. there are three common skin types: dry, oily and normal/combination skin. other skin types to consider are sensitive skin, problem skin and acne-prone skin. A dermatologist is best to treat these skin types because s/he can prescribe the proper skin care regime for problem skin. Cleansing: Finding a cleanser for your skin type is the first step in treating your skin. For dry skin, a creamy or milky cleanser is best. A milky or creamy cleanser provides more moisture for dry skin, thus giving your skin the hydration it needs. For oily skin types, look for a foaming cleanser that promotes ‘deep cleansing’. this will ensure that the cleanser will con- trol your skin’s oil production and give your skin a squeaky clean feeling. A normal or combination skin type would benefit from a cleanser such as the suki lemongrass exfoliating cleanser, which is a gentle cleanser that promotes clear and healthy skin. regard- less of your skin type, the process is the same: when cleansing your face, dampen with warm water and then apply your cleanser. rinse with cool water to tighten your pores. Tone: using a toner is important because it removes any residue that you may have missed while cleansing. toning also pro- motes healthy skin because toners work to clean out and tighten pores. A ton- er can be as simple as witch hazel for oily skin types, or sophisti- cated such as Juara tamarind tea Hydrating toner with moisturizing benefits for the drier skin types. if you pre- fer natural or vegan products, we suggest you try Aqua dessa lychee tea refresher Facial toner which is full of powerful antioxidants, vitamins and skin brighten- ing botanicals. Whichever toner you use, the application process is the same. Af- ter cleansing, apply toner to a cotton ball and gently wipe the toner over your face, avoiding the eye area. Moisturize: A moisturizer benefits the skin for many reasons including moistur- izing or hydrating, but it also works to protect your skin from external factors. choose a moisturizer based on your skin type. For a dry skin type, you will want a deeply hydrating moisturizer that is very creamy and almost heavy in consistency. To start, let's define the four steps of a basic skincare regime. JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 31 sHerin tHAWer 32 DIYA JULY 2008 source: fashiontrendsetter.com BeAuty this type of moisturizer will keep dry skin hydrated all day. A light- weight moisturizer is best for nor- mal to combination skin. A light- weight moisturizer will provide just enough moisture for your skin without leaving your skin feeling greasy or heavy. For oily skin types, find a moisturizer that will control oil and shine throughout the day. new technology in moisturizers for oily skin include, ‘mattifiers’ and ‘microsponges’, which soak up ex- cess oil on your skin throughout the day. choosing the correct moistur- izer for your skin type will balance out your skin and give your face the hydration it needs. A moisturizer should be used after your toner on clean, dry skin. Protect: Protecting your skin is the final step in your basic skin care regime, and arguably the most important. Protecting your skin against harmful uv rays helps prevent skin cancer and premature aging. the easiest form of skin protection is sunscreen. if you work primarily indoors throughout your day, using a skincare product with a sPF 15 is sufficient to protect you from a minimal amount of sun. However, if you are working outdoors or plan on being outdoors for the majority of the day, using a skincare product with sPF 30 or higher is sufficient defense. sun protection is important for not only your face, but your entire body. sPF can be found in various makeup prod- ucts including moisturizers and foundations, but it’s important to remember that using products with sPF could clog your pores. using a proper skincare regime of cleansing, toning and moisturizing - as described above - will help eliminate clogged pores and keeps your skin looking healthy and strong. remember, a basic skincare regime is really that basic. Four steps are all you have to remember to get started on the road of beautiful and healthy skin. products mentioned in this article all these products available at makeup.com suki. exfoliating lemongrass cleanser sundari lavender moisturizer for Dry skin b kamins. sunbar uv shield spF 48 Juara tamarind tea hydrating toner aqua Dessa lychee tea Refresher Facial toner JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 33 34 DIYA JULY 2008 “Fashion is the part of our life. today is a time of fashion. When it comes to fashion and trends, we all want the same thing: to look superb. Many fashion trends is go and come every year. these fashion false pas are visible, and can completely ruin a perfectly good outfit.” Don’t wear incorrect colors not all skin tones are created equally. choose appropriate color combination of clothing to complement your skin. the colors you wear should compliment your natural features – eyes, skin, and body shape. inaccurate colors equal your skin appearing sallow and dull. Appropriate colors make you look lively & healthy. Don’t wear loose clothes choose clothes that fit your body. You should wear clothes that fit right for your body that is flattering. Best way to get perfect fit is to have a tailor modify your clothing. there are numerous tailors in dallas metro – we rec- ommend Jaheen’s Boutique (972-238-8561) next to govindji’s Jewelerys in richardson. Don’t keep cheap odd undergarments to be a true fashionista - select right under- garments. celebrities wear body trimmers, push-up bars, and tops to fit into the designer garments. Wear well fitted undergarments under your clothes. Don’t wear too tight clothing. it’s obvious too tight clothing will make you uncomfortable and makes other people uncomfortable – choose clothes that fit you body not squeeze body. Get ride of them by donating to salvation Army or find a non- profit organization that ship clothes to third world country (or sell them and make some cash to donate – at Plato’s closet located in Plano on Alma & spring creek next to Bharat Bazaar). Don’t wear shoes which are not coordinated with your outfit shoes make your outfit/look com- plete. choosing correct shoes that match or compliment your outfit; guys – keep your choose clean – pol- ish them! Don’t wear these at work! short skirts - if its more than 3 inches above your knees – that would be a no-no – especially in work environment; plunging necklines, stilettos, sleeveless tops, too much jewelry, leather pants, see-through clothing, or anything that glimmers – you are not at rock concert! Don’t wear more than 3 colors of garments. it’s called the 3-color rule. that’s one of fashion mistake people make – too busy, too many colors. Also try these: Wear a tie with a long sleeved button-down shirt. Wear bright colors wisely and only on your most flattering body parts. Wear pants that are straight leg or boot cut – worn slightly long. Always wear nail-polish – it looks great! try fabrics like chiffon or georgette for dresses. What are you wearing? Fashion mistakes & tips. get that! greatglam.com (c). cognac (white). $24.80 FAShIon JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 35 the movie Brick lane is the story of an immigrant family who struggles. this interview took place in dallas in June. this was a very busy month for tanishtha and sarah Gavron who came from u.k for their publicity campaign. dilshad dayani interviewed the director sarah Gavron and the lead actress tanishtha chatterjee who were here with Angelika’s regional publicity manager Jo ellen. dilshad says “it was really an interesting example of humility when sarah and tan- ishtha started chatting and answering my questions as if we knew each other and shared common experiences…. We could have spoken and shared this exciting cross cultural conversations for hours... if they did not had to leave for n.Y… it is true art connects and bonds us as human beings.” 1. What was the inspiration behind “Brick lane”? it’s kind of an aggressive venture in terms of what you had to endure during its pro- duction? What inspired me about the story was that it was a universal, human story of a family and their lives, loves, strug- gles, set against the backdrop of the shifting cultural landscape of a city. As i was an outsider to the Bangladeshi community it was important for me to work closely with people from inside that commu- nity who contributed a huge amount. We had a lot of support in the lead up to making the film from Bangladeshi east londoners who came on board to work as cast and crew. it was only during the filming that a tiny, if vo- cal, group objected to the idea of the film. this small group did not represent the ma- jority of the community and it soon became clear that their objections were only based on rumor and speculation. We continued making the film and did not change anything. And i am grateful that the finished film has been welcomed by the community and by an inter- national audience. 2. the movie holds impressive body language conveying strong emotional details from a women’s perspective...as a director was it a tough proposition? Yes, adapting the novel was a daunting pros- pect as so much of it describes the interior life of nazneen. We found cinematic ways of translating nazneen’s journey to the screen. We used the camera, lighting, sound and music to convey how the world appeared through her eyes. And most importantly tan- nishtha chatterjee gave a very subtle and nu- anced performance as nazneen and managed to show emotion through her eyes and body language. more at www.Diyamagazine.com exclusive interview with the Director of “Brick lane” by Dilshad Dayani 36 DIYA JULY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 37 38 DIYA JULY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 39 40 DIYA JULY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 41 42 DIYA JULY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 43 44 DIYA JULY 2008 DM DM 44 DIYA JLY 2008 Jaime Garzaro and Kim Seng. Photo by Asian Photography. JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 45 DM I sat by the patio of the local coffee house the other day, soak- ing in the rays of the beautiful weekend. The early bursts of summer has a magical power of urging families to venture out of their houses to enjoy the season, and to allow regular people like me to do what we do best-people watch. I took a double look at the family. I don’t know why I did that, but I did. They were an interracial couple, with an interracial child. As human as they are, as normal as they are, they became my subject of fascination. They were an interracial couple, and I took a double look. While the world today has come a long way from the dark days, some 50 years back, where interracial unions were banned, people still remember the past where countries like South Africa, Germany, and even certain states in the southern USA made it impossible for a young couple from difference races and skin color in love to beat the odds. Fast forward 50 years later, where the world has become a tad bit liberal, we boast about famous interracial couples like Heidi Klum and Seal, David Bowie and Iman, Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren, and Ellen Pompeo and Chris Ivery. In a way, daily reminders of pictures of these celebrities make the modern day accept unions such as this to take place. Hold up, acceptance? Since when does the world need to accept two people in love? In my opinion, marriages should be about two people in love, and not their skin color or race. Alas, there is a rather bold line between the glamour of the celebrity mixed marriage, and a real life mixed marriage. Here, we focus on three real life couples that placed love above and beyond their skin color. We talk about struggles, love, and differences. And from them, we learn. Dr. Paul and Dr. Neeti Haas Doctors in the Dallas/ Fort Worth area. Married 5 years. Together 8.5 years. Expecting twins Sep- tember 2008. Fate brings you together in different places. Take Paul and Nee- ti for example. They grew up in Arizona, >>> Interracial in Today’s Modern World I looked around and saw an elderly lady doing the crossword puzzle, two tables away. I listened to two teenage girls, chatting about a boy from school. I smiled at a young couple huddled together, reading the newspaper. And then my eyes rested on family of three-a father, mother, and a young boy, enjoying the day. B y P r i a n n a S ta l e y J LY 2008 .DIYA AGAZI E.CO 45 46 DIYA JULY 2008 30 minutes away from each other, and met for the first time in medical school in St Louis, MO. He walked up to her and told her she looked familiar. He asked her if she was from Arizona, and she said yes. And since then, they’ve been together. Sounds like just another love story, but the only difference is, she’s Indian, and he’s Caucasian. They dated for 3 years, and then took their relationship to the next level. They got en- gaged to be married. So again, you ask. What’s the big deal? It’s two people in love. Isn’t marriage normal in situa- tions like that? Well, no. Neeti is brown, and Paul is white. You see, until someone says hello to you, the first thing they notice is the difference in your skin color. “I come from a very traditional Sikh family where you’re expected to be well educated and end up marrying a nice Punjabi boy. We moved back to India when I was young because my father want- ed us to be Indian, and then when I was 16 years old, we headed back to Arizona to finish school. Because of my time in India, I am very close to the Indian culture. I am religious, I go to the Gurdwara (Sikh temple) every Sunday, I speak Hindi and Punjabi fluently, listen to Hindi music, and I think the Indian community didn’t see this happening, not to me at least! So when I met Paul and we got engaged, it wasn’t as easy. He met my mom and my siblings immediately, but we waited three years before he met my dad.” “When you got engaged?” I asked. “Yes. Partially because we were in med school in St Louis and he was in Arizona, but also because he wasn’t ready to meet Paul. After the engage- ment, dad didn’t speak to me for a few months, and I had some resistance from other family members about Paul and I being together and taking our relationship into a marriage. It was frustrating at times, I even suggested we just do a simple courthouse marriage but Paul refused. He knew I’ve always wanted a traditional Sikh wed- ding and that’s what we were going to have. But you know, my dad never once said I forbid you to marry him. He was incredibly worried about the cultural differences between the both of us. He knew of too many interracial couples that hit that roadblock and ended up in divorce. But he told me it was my life, and I should decide.” The turning point for her dad was when Neeti and Paul went to India for a month as part of their medical training. Over there, they lived with her aunt and uncle. They then called Neeti’s dad and told him what a great guy Paul was. It took a simple phone call from his family for him to open up his heart to his daughter’s love. Paul had been somewhat quiet this entire time. (Probably because he had worked at the hospital the whole day). But I had to ask him if he felt hurt about being judged before anyone met him just because he was from a different culture. “Of course not. I was going to do what I needed to do regardless of what people thought. Of course I wanted her family to like me, but if they didn’t, I wasn’t go- ing to change my mind about Neeti. That was back then. Today, her father and I hang out all the time when we’re in the same town. He met me for the first time at our graduation and we were set to get married 3 weeks after that. Within those 3 weeks, we bonded. It was a matter of her dad knowing I had a good head on my shoulders and I could take care of his daughter. Our families get along with each other and are always at each other’s houses for social or family events or dinner parties. Its not a typical set of in laws who get together just for the sake of their chil- dren. They are each other’s families; they are each other’s friends. It also helps that they live 30 minutes from each other. If you look at the core of both of our families, regardless of color or culture, their values are exactly the same. We couldn’t ask for better in laws”. Neeti feels the same about her in laws. The one thing she loves about Paul is that he is an understanding person with good values. He respects her needs to still be Indian, and she is free to do what she wants within the culture. He supports her from time to time by following her to the Gurdwara when there is an important event going on, or watches some Hindi movies with her even though he doesn’t understand the lan- guage, and she attends sporting events with him even though it’s not really her thing. Wait, he goes to the Gurdwara? >>> 46 DIYA JLY 2008 Paul and Neeti Haas. Photo by BombayPhotography. JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 47 “Yes, I do at times. I wear a kara (Sikh bangle) as a to- ken of respect for her religion and her dad who gave this to me, but I am not Sikh. I go to support her, but religion is something we discussed prior to get- ting married. I come from a Christian background, and she comes from a Sikh background. And we both agree that while we have different believes and I may be more liberal than she is, asking the other person to change their religion is not an option. If that even came up, that would be a deal breaker in this mar- riage. I think that’s one of the biggest challenges couples face. The one thing that prevents interracial couples from taking their relationship into marriage is when you are demanded to change your religion for the other person.” Neeti adds, “That will be a deal breaker for me, as well. Also, if Paul restricted me from doing anything Indian. You need to have respect for each other when it comes to things like that. That’s the key to making any relationship work.” Such true words. So tell us about the wedding. “We did a traditional Sikh wedding but we Americanized it a bit. As in, we had bridesmaids and groomsmen, but they wore traditional Indian wear. And at the reception, we had Paul’s grandfather precede the traditional Christian wedding vows.” Paul piped in “It’s not as easy going as it sounds. As open as my family is to other races and cultures, they were slightly concerned that Neeti wasn’t Christian. We thought about doing a church wed- ding, but the church wouldn’t marry us because she wasn’t Christian. We had some people from my church not come to our wedding because of that. And some of Neeti’s parents friends didn’t show up to our wedding because I was not Sikh.” It didn’t end there. In the Indian tradition, when a couple is newly married, they are welcomed in people’s houses with warmth and affection. “People my parents knew did not invite us over. We didn’t have that for us, because we weren’t of the same religion. I think it hurt my parents more than anything, because he would go to their children’s weddings and have them over, give them money, and help celebrate their marriages, but they wouldn’t do it for us.” On today’s struggle post marriage as an interracial couple versus a same race couple, Paul says regard- less of color or religion, there are certain things you do in a marriage. You give and take. However, he says, living as an interracial couple in Dallas seems easier than how it would be in a small town. Neeti, on the other hand, feels being interracial in a bigger, more diverse city such as Los Angeles would be easier. She still gets the double looks from Indian and American people in Dallas, especially when they are out grocery shopping together. People tend to look, but they do not say anything about it. Partially it’s because we haven’t come to the point where every other person walking down the street is interracial. At this point is it purely curiosity of something different before their eyes. Seeing Neeti is about to go into her third trimester, I had to bring this up. Children. They are lovely gifts from God, but they are also being born to two parents with two different religions. How would they address this with their children? Neeti seems more concerned about this than Paul is. “I worry the children will not know what to affiliate themselves to, before they are old enough to know which religion to embrace themselves with. I grew up in India, so I definitely want them to know they are Indian. They also need to know that they are American, and I think that being around family will help alot. The best we can do, that we decided together, is expose them to as much as we can, from both our cultures. I will take them to the Gurdwara every Sunday with me, and celebrate Indian festivals and events, and they will go to church regularly as well. At the end of the day, both families will play a large role with raising their children’s beliefs.” Because eventually, all they pray for together, regardless of color, race, or religion, is a family with high values. Jaime Garzaro and Kim Seng Business Consultant/Realtor, Dallas Friends since 2000. Engaged in 2007. Getting mar- ried August 2008 I met Jaime and Kim over drinks one evening, and through the loud chatter and stiff martinis, they opened up about their journey together as a modern day power couple who are very much in love with each other. Unlike many interracial couples I’ve met, Jaime and Kim seemed to have the least resis- tance in their relationship from the people around them, which was odd to me. Only later, did I find out they’ve been through alot of hardships early in their life, and as Jaime quotes, “Life’s too short to sweat the petty stuff.” Let the story begin. Jaime was in Thailand in 2000, on a tour group visiting the islands when his tour group met up and joined with Kim’s tour group. Each in their own relationships at that time, they passed each other off as friends, exchanged contact information and set off their different ways. Jaime went back to New York, and Kim went back to Dallas. They kept in touch and remained good friends, until 2005 rolled around and they started visiting each other. And that’s when they started dating. Two years later, they got engaged after a Celine Dion concert in Vegas. (Jaime wants to make sure we set the record straight that he did not propose AT a Celine Dion concert, rather it was AFTER the concert, in a restaurant). To amuse him, we shall go with his story. Things are fine and dandy when you’re friends, but as you can somewhat guess, they are obviously interracial. Kim is a Cambodian born Chinese, and Jaime is mainly European who grew up in Guate- mala and America. And truth be told, opposites attract, as it did in their case. And when they started getting pretty serious with each other, it was time to meet the family. Typically, this is the first obstacle with an interracial couple. But in Jaime and Kim’s case, they breezed through the introduction with no problems. Kim says, “We both come from mixed backgrounds. I have Chinese, Cambodian, and French blood in me, and Jaime has Italian, German and Irish blood in him. Couple that with the fact that he grew up in Guatemala, so he has every bit of the Latin in him as well. Similarly, our parents obviously have been part of this mix even with themselves, so me bringing him home, or he bringing me home to meet the parents was never an issue.” Must be nice, I say. Because that’s not always the case for all couples. “Well, there was a bit of a concern”, says Jaime. “As open as my mom was, she was still a tiny bit worried about the difference in our cultures and whether Kim could make me happy based on the culture I’ve been accustomed to, and likewise, if I could make Kim happy according to the culture she was accustomed to. It was never said out loud, it was more of an unspoken concern I knew she had. But once she saw how much Kim loved me, it was never a problem again. It was that simple.” Kim agrees. “Actually, the only problem I saw us having was the fact that my mom didn’t know we were living together until she came to visit one day and found out when she saw our clothes mixed up in one closet. It was a little hard for her. But that’s minor. We actually were very lucky, as we had no opposition from the local Asian community that my parents are still very close to, or even the uncles and aunts in both our families. Obviously when we travel overseas it’s a little more conservative, but otherwise we had no problems.” At this point I was a bit worried that this article was going to be a short and sweet, and-the-couple-lived- happily-ever-after kind of article. But I kept digging. Nothing? I ask. No problems? No differences? No culture shocks? The look at each other and smile. I get excited. >>> JLY 2008 .DIYAAGAZIE.CO 47 48 DIYA JULY 2008 “Kim had a huge problem with calling my mom by her first name. In the Asian culture, you simply do not go by first names. I on the other hand, had to be told about certain things in the Asian culture that I was to be sure I got used to, like removing my shoes before walking into the house, ways to greet aunts and uncles of different ages on each side of the family, and things like how you do not speak to the elders until they spoke to you. I think the one thing that stood out was the difference in our cultures. My culture is very social, we love to dance, we kiss each other on the cheek alot, and we love to party. Kim’s Asian culture is more reserved and conservative.” One thing that Jaime loves about Kim is even though they may look different; both their cultures hold something high above anything else in this world. Family unity. Because of their past, this is something very important to the both of them. If either family didn’t have these values instilled in them, it would be a deal breaker in their relation- ship. Jaime tells me the story of how his parents met. His father is Sicilian and his mom is German-Irish. His grandfather on the mom’s side was a full blooded German who opposed the union so much that he told his own daughter that her children will be born monsters because of the mixed blood with a tanned Sicilian. And because of that, Jaime’s mother brought her children up to never judge another person based on the color of their skin. Ironically, all it took was the birth of Jaime for his German grandfather to change his old views. Jaime ended up being his favorite grandchild. Kim on the other hand, grew up in the devastating Khmer Rouge era. As a Chinese living in Cambodia, her family’s life was constantly in danger of execu- tion. She remembers her father coming home and telling her and her siblings that from that day on, they were only to speak Cambodian and no other language. No French, no Chinese. Her mother would make her play outside and rub mud onto her skin so she would get darker in the sun so she could blend in as a Cambodian. They moved around constantly to escape being killed in the country they were born in. After you go through things like that, the color of someone’s skin is the last thing you are going to worry about. “It’s funny, because my mom called us today and we told her that we were being interviewed by this magazine on their feature about interracial couples, and she said, what interracial? You guys aren’t inter- racial! And I had to remind her that Kim is Chinese, and she went, oh yeah, I tend to forget that!” Kim laughs. “People always ask me what my fiancé is, and I always answer back, ‘He’s Jaime!’ I can’t tell the color or culture difference between us, and neither can our families.” Okay so you guys can’t tell the difference, but the rest of the world can when they see you. Kim and Jaime go through difficulties with strangers not accepting them in public. When they walk down the street holding hands, Jaime notices stares and dirty looks from Asian men, and likewise, when they go to a Latin bar, Kim gets some hostile attitude from the women. While it doesn’t phase their relation- ship, they cant help but feel a bit annoyed with the mentality of the society who can’t see past skin color. On the touchy subject of children born to parents of different religions, they plan to instill deep family values and high discipline in them. They will be exposed to both cultures and will be brought to their parent’s hometowns so they can learn where their parents grew up and how they grew up. Kim is very proud of her Asian upbringing, and so is Jaime of his Latin roots. And when they children are old enough to associate themselves with a preference of religion, the only thing Jaime hopes for them to do is choose their religion based on what their heart feels instead of acceptance of society. “Be proud of who you are today,” they both say. Be proud. That is the essence of a good person. Sounds like a happy story for these couples, doesn’t it? But the truth is some people I ask on the streets are not that acceptable to being in an interracial relationship. Out of a group of 60 people that I asked, I had 25% say absolutely not to being in an interracial relationship, 25% who would only date certain races and not others (religion played a factor in the reasoning behind this), 25% who wouldn’t do it because they already know their parents would oppose to a mixed relationship, and the remaining 25% who said yes, with a smile, and one of them quoted my favorite line of all time: “Love is love”. Dm JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 49 50 DIYA JULY 2008 feature 50 DIYA JLY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 51 JULY 2008 .DIYAAGAZIE.CO 51 B U S I N E S S W O M a N O F T H E M O N T H B Y S Wa P N I L R a I Anh Tran landed in the United States in 1979, without money, without any pro- fessional education or skills, and cradling a daughter only nineteen days old in her hands. Lacking the financial and educational means to succeed in America, she instead relied on her self-determination to attempt to “make a good living” for herself and her family. Twenty-nine years later, Anh is now a restaurateur and entrepreneur running a chain of New York Style Delis. Over the years, Cindi’s NY Deli & Restaurant earned rave reviews for its sumptuous food, and Anh responded to the demand by expanding to more locations across the DFW metroplex. Today Cindi’s NY Deli has four branches across Dallas with a fifth one under way. 52 DIYA JULY 2008 52 DIYA JULY 2008 Journey through Troubled Waters Anh Tran’s journey from Vietnam to the United Sates was not an easy one. Married at the young age of nineteen, Anh had to separate from her husband Hong five years later when he— an offi- cer in the Vietnamese Army — was taken away to a prison camp by the Viet Cong. “I spent three years going from one prison camp to the other trying to meet my husband,” she recollects. During the time that Hong was away, Anh’s house was raided several times. “The north Vietnamese soldiers would just come in and take away all our money. It was very tough for us.” Those tough times seemed to continue unabated, until one day Anh’s husband was thankfully released from prison. The political situation however did not change much. With Anh s e v e n - m o n t h s pregnant, the Tran family de- cided to escape to Indonesia through the seaport escape route. Ini- tially Hong tried to learn how to deliver a baby in a boat, but perhaps fortunately, they missed the first chance out. Their baby girl Minh-Hai, named after that fishing village, was born less than a month before they boarded a small boat with 200 other people and headed for freedom in Indone- sia. From there, the family endured an extremely long and arduous journey to Dallas, Texas, which included stops in Singapore, Hong Kong, and Hawaii. Under a United States government pro- gram that allowed Vietnamese refugees to resettle in America, the Tran family set new roots in the Lone Star State. In Anh’s words, “Freedom was the main reason we left Vietnam, although we had a very comfortable life in Saigon and were mon- etarily well off, life had become very tough for us. We decided to come to the U.S. for the freedom this country had to offer.” In essence, it was the tenets of democracy and liberty rather than mate- rial wealth that attracted the Tran family and so many other immigrants to America. Timid Bride to Enterprising Restaurateur “When we first landed in Dallas, everything was so new. I had just had a baby and often I would go into bouts of depression missing my family, whom I feared I would never see again,” recalls Anh. “I was so shy I never interacted with other people. I used to ask my husband to do all the talking for me and when he did, I used to tell him he could have said it better. His reply was, ‘Why don’t you talk?’” And sure enough, she did. Anh mustered up her courage and pushed herself to do things that she had never done before. She had rarely cooked in Vietnam but she learnt to cook American food and bought her first restau- rant that specialized in Southern cuisine. “The kind woman who cooked at the restaurant taught me some excellent cooking skills. With her help I learnt to cook Southern food. My first American dish that I cooked from scratch was a hamburg- er,” reveals Anh. With the gradual but steady success of her first restaurant, Anh felt ready to handle a bigger chal- lenge. Anh Tran took over Cindi’s Deli & Pancake House on North Central Expressway in 1989. She changed the restaurant’s name from “Cindy’s” to “Cindi’s” and retained its essence as a NY style deli. Construction on Central expressway in the 90s made it very difficult for her to divide her at- tention between two businesses on opposite sides of the metropolis, so she sold her BJ’s restaurant on Harry Hines. Four years later, she bought Bagel Emporium at 7522 Campbell road and changed it to the second Cindi’s . “When I bought Cindi’s, they had a very small menu. Today our menu se- lection has a huge variety. We serve everything from chicken and dumplings to matzo ball soups, f r o m c o r n e d beef on rye to hamburg- ers, and b a g e l s and chal- lah bread to pancakes” says Anh, content smile lighting up her face. Anh attributes her relatively smooth transition from a young housewife to a successful entre- preneur to her mother. Anh’s mother owned a flourishing fabric business in Vietnam and taught Anh by example business savvy and female em- powerment. “As a child I remember telling my mother that I will never have my own business because it is very hard work. I just want to have an easy life.. But once I got here I realized that if you don’t work hard you don’t make it. I worked hard and I think my mother’s genes helped too,” says Anh, smiling. Making Her Mark For all her humility, Anh is a sharp and astute businesswoman. After taking over Cindi’s she realized she had to make herself an expert on preparing quality Jewish items if she was going to keep the established customer base of the kosher deli. “I worked very hard to serve the best food that I could because I did not want people to say that this Asian woman opened New-York style Deli and does not know what she is doing. So, I worked even harder making sure that the recipes were authentic and I got the best chefs for the job.” The secret to Anh’s business success has been her constant effort to improve the quality of food served at Cindi’s. “I am always open to customer feedback. In fact I expanded our menu based on what the customers asked for. If there is something on the menu that they don’t like I take it off and get suggestions from them on improv- ing the recipe,” avows Anh. Her diligence and the consistent quality of food served at Cindi’s have earned the deli a loyal following of custom- ers. Many elderly customers are regulars at Cindi’s because the food is made only with best ingredi- ents that are generally good for you, New York cheesecake notwithstanding.. “We make healthy choices like using canola oil in our food and the result is that we have customers that eat here ev- eryday. I think this is also our biggest differentiat- ing point from other Deli’s; we cook with the best and choicest ingredients,” says Anh. Cindi’s offers not only delectable down-home food but that down-home feeling as well that be- comes evident as you watch Anh embrace and a female customer, a regular at Cindi’s, as she walks into the restaurant. “I have had Jewish people come in here and say that Cindi’s Matzo ball soup is the best that they’ve had, and that is just a won- derful feeling. I just try to offer the best to my customers and such remarks suggests that I’ve been successful,” says Anh. Secret of Success Anh Tran is living the “American Dream,” but she did not initially set out to realize this dream per se. Her road to success began rather with the simple desire to make ends meet for her family and to provide her four kids with a good edu- cation. However, dedication, diligence and hard work have been the constants in her success tra- jectory. “I always believe in taking little steps and carrying them forward. I take life one step at a time,” explains Anh. When they landed in the U.S., Anh and Hong scraped by with little saving and relied on the kindness of relatives. Gradually, they saved enough for a small business step by step and eventually expanded it to the success- ful Deli chain that it is today. According to Anh, the guiding spirit for her business success is her dedication, hard work, open mindedness to learn more and more and her ability to always try and push herself beyond her comfort zone. “My only message to people who come to this country with great dreams is that if you never lose sight of your goal, approach it with sincerity and dedica- tion and take life on step at a time, you too will be able to make the American dream come true for you” shares Anh. Anh Tran epitomizes the never- say-die spirit and her success bears testimony to the dictum that if aspirations are tempered with dedication, courage and gumption, success is in- evitable. “I always believe in taking little steps and carrying them forward. I take life one step at a time” cinDi’s locations 1) campbell location 7522 campbell Road, #117 (sw corner of campbell and coit) Dallas, tX 75248 (972) 248-0608 (972) 248-7672 (Fax) 2) central location 11111 n. central expwy (between northaven and Royal) Dallas, tX 75243 (214) 739-0918 (214) 739-1722 (Fax) 3) Forest lane location 3565 Forest lane (Forest & marsh ln.) Dallas, tX 75234 (972) 241-9204 (972) 241.3474 (Fax) 4) carrollton location 2001 midway Rd. suite 132 (just east of addison airport) carrollton, tX 75006 (972) 458-7740 (972) 458-2329 (Fax) Dm JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 53 54 DIYA JULY 2008 I JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 55 Viva Las Vegas! spotlight Originally from Miami, Cambo Thanh Nguyen’s early life consisted of attending the University of Florida, majoring in International Business. Growing up in an entrepreneurial family, Cambo owned and managed several businesses in the beauty and restaurant indus- try. With his day to day experience with customers, Cambo developed his people skills to better service his clientele. “I enjoy talking and networking with people. That seems to be one of my best assets,” Nguyen said. As an Asian American, casino games came naturally to Cambo. He was born in Macau, China, known as the “Vegas of the East.” Gambling has been deep rooted into the Asian cultures for many centuries, present during the Chinese/ Vi e t n a m e s e New Year (Lu- nar New Year) celebrations. “As a child, I was surrounded by family members who played cards and >>> c ambo’s p hoto: b ombay p hotog R aphy - aF tab. 56 DIYA JULY 2008 gambled as a tradition during the Vietnamese/Chinese “Tet” New Year celebration,” Nguyen ex- plained. “As I grew older, I often traveled to Las Vegas and visited casinos all over the world, from Las Vegas to Europe and Asia, like Germany, Poland, Holland, Czech Republic, Vietnam, Macao, and Bahamas.” Spending most of his life in warm weather, Texas was a natural choice for Cambo to migrate in late 2007. He was offered a position to work for Harrah’s Entertainment as a Player Development Manager. He focuses on the Dallas/Fort Worth Asian players. With his natural ability and personal experience, Cambo understands his customer’s needs; therefore, he was the perfect candidate. Some of the perks that loyal cus- tomers to Harrah’s receive are shopping sprees, concerts, cash and promotional chips. Many play- ers are willing to fly around the country or even the world to re- deem their promotions. In addition, Cambo can also arrange sporting events such as golf tournaments and professional football games that take place near casino resorts throughout the country like Harrah’s New Or- leans and Lake Tahoe. Cambo has also organized tournaments in games like Baccarat, Blackjack, Craps, and Roulette. Currently he is focused on bringing players to the Harrah’s properties of New Orleans, Bossier City, Louisiana, Las Vegas, and Lake Tahoe, along with many others. “There are so many incredible destinations, I love sending my players to have new and exciting experiences,” Nguyen said. For VIP players, Cambo can arrange private chartered jets and transpor- tation to national and international casino resort destinations. Q & A: Q. What is your favorite part of the job? A: Traveling and meeting new people. I can be in Las Vegas one week and New Orleans the next. I love meeting people and showing them a good time. Q: What would you consider as a high-roller? How much do they need to play to be a high-roller? A: “A High-roller varies from host to host. I consider most of my clientele to be high rollers. Most of their aver- age bets start at $500 and they play extremely long hours.” Q: What does it take to receive comps and special treatments? A: “Comps are based on your average bet and the number of hours played. So, the higher the average bet and the more hours you put in, the comps will escalade. All players benefit at Harrah’s Casinos through the Total Rewards program, exclusive to all Harrah’s properties.” Q: What’s your favorite table game and why? A: “I love Baccarat! Baccarat is my preferred table game, but I do par- ticipate in other games of chance. Baccarat has one of the lowest house edge for players, meaning you have a better chance to win.” Q: What is your favorite Casino/Ho- tel in Las Vegas? A: “Paris Casino because they have one of the best steak houses, phe- nomenal customer service, and a magnificent view of the strip from atop the Eiffel Tower.” Q: Where can someone get more in- formation about all the casino prop- erties that you have to offer? A: They can easily access all the in- formation on my website at www. harrahs-vip.com/CamboNguyen Harrah’s Background: On January 28, 2008, Harrah’s Entertainment was acquired by affiliates of private-equity firms TPG Capital and Apollo Global Management. Harrah’s Entertainment, Inc. is the world’s largest provider of branded casino entertainment. Since its beginning in Reno, Nevada, more than 70 years ago, Harrah’s has grown through development of new properties, expansions and acquisitions, and now owns or manages casinos on four continents. The Company’s proper- ties operate primarily under the Harrah’s®, Caesars® and Horseshoe® brand names; Harrah’s also owns the London Clubs International family of casinos and the World Series of Poker®. Harrah’s Entertainment is focused on building loyalty and value with its customers through a unique combination of great service, excellent prod- ucts, unsurpassed distribution, operational excellence and technology leadership. We concentrate on building loyalty and value for our custom- ers, employees, business partners, and communities by being the most service-oriented, technology-driven, geographically diversified company in gaming. For more information, please contact Cambo Nguyen at (407) 968-6333 or visit www.harrahs-vip.com/CamboNguyen Dm JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 57 58 DIYA JULY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 59 60 DIYA JULY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 61 62 DIYA JULY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 63 still on a high after performing at the recently concluded iiFA in Bangkok, katrina kaif is enjoying the wishes and accolades that are coming her way. dancing to a medley of her hit numbers, ka- trina's biggest regret is, "i wish Akshay kumar could have joined me on stage, but as he flew in a night before, we could not rehearse together." Although she did not win any award for her histrionics, she grabbed the style icon award at the iiFA. And it was no surprise as she has just won FHM's sexiest Woman of the year. kats was voted at the no. 1 spot in FHM india's 100 sexiest Women in the World poll, fending off competition from the likes of Hollywood superstars Angelina Jolie and scarlett Johansson, singers rihanna and Ma- donna, Bollywood superstars like kareena kapoor, deepika Padu- kone and Bipasha Basu, supermodels like Adriana lima and Gisele Bundchen, amongst several other sexy and successful women in the world. "i think it's a nice thing that people have taken the time out to vote for me as FHM 's sexiest Woman in the World, and that's what makes this really special to me," said katrina kaif. "this poll is something you have to smile about – it's fun, it's sweet – and i'm really happy to have won this." After a whirlwind shoot of vipul shah's “singh is kinng”, which was shot across the three continents of Asia, Africa and Australia, kats will be planning for her Yashraj film. not bad for a girl who was written off as just another english speaking phirangi trying her hand at hindi films. source: katrinakaif.org Katrina, the sexiest women in the world! 64 DIYA JULY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 65 katrina kaif denied that boyfriend sal- man khan hit her in her vanity van during the filming of subhash Ghai's Yuvraj, after seeing photos of her cozying up with Akshay kumar during an iPl match in delhi. “nothing of the sort happened. i don't understand, why can't the media leave us alone,” katrina told Ht city. the reason why the media cannot leave them alone is because a source on the set told Mid day that unit member heard salman scream- ing at katrina and abusing her, while the two were locked up in her vanity van for three hours. “He was overheard telling her, 'How can you treat me like this, what the [bleep] do you think you were doing with Akshay in that match…now you're here like nothing has happened and trying to act all cool!'” the source says. “katrina was quiet even as sallu raved and ranted. once or twice, she tried to reason with the actor but to no avail. katrina was crying and what she was saying was inaudible. But she surely said something which pissed salman off even more because we heard a loud slap! Which was followed by many more.” salman's publicist told Ht city, “sallu bhai is too chivalrous to do such an act. He is too soft hearted to raise hand on katrina.” However, there have been reports earlier of salman physically abusing katrina. He was reported to have slapped her in front of several onlookers at Bandstand Barrista, a coffee shop in Bandra. that story too was denied by katrina. katrina, 23, and salman, 42, have an intriguing relationship. the two have never declared themselves an item yet katrina frequently hosts parties at sal- man's house and attends public events as his arm candy. When Aishwarya rai broke up with sal- man she said in a newspaper interview: “the salman khan chapter was a night- mare in my life and i am thankful to God that it is over. i stood by him enduring his alcoholic misbehavior in worst phases and in turn i was at the receiving end of his abuse (verbal, physical and emotion- al), infidelity and indignity. that is why like any other self-respecting woman i had ended my relationship with him.” is katrina kaif at the receiving end of a similar abusive relationship now?! source: katrinakaif.org Katrina at the receiving end of Salman Khan’s abuse? 66 DIYA JULY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 67 ScooP the last show of the first day in lakme Fashion Week brought some heat to the otherwise not so exciting day. there were a lot of exciting faces, but the most exciting entry however, was that of our very own deepika Padukone and neetu kapoor. it was a rather clandestine entry. quite unlike the entry of stars in the show before that. But once they were in, all eyes were off the ramp for a good 5 minutes. lakme Fashion Week Priyanka & Harman at “Lovestory 2050” promotion event Get Gorgeous finalists watch “Get Smart” Salman Khan unveils “Singh Is Kinng” music album 68 DIYA JULY 2008 RateD “eXcellent” by zagat 2007/2008 “best oF Fine Dining” city seaRch JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 69 Actress michelle yeoh teams up for new Production company Mainland china's actress Yang shan shan, taiwan actress kelly lin, Hong kong actress Pace ng, bottom left, Hong kong actor Mark cheng and Malaysia actress Michelle Yeoh celebrate with a promotional event for their new established entertainment produc- tion company in Hong kong. From top left: yang shan shan, kelly lin, pace ng; botton left: mark cheng, michelle yeoh. (ap photo) taiwanese American Kelly lin Stars in “Sparrow” taiwanese American kelly lin co- stars with simon Yam in the stylish and witty Johnnie to film sparrow. in a film notable for having taken 4 years to produce, lin plays a mysterious woman who enters the lives of four virtuoso Hong kong pickpockets, bringing both good fortune and bad. sparrow was a Golden Bear nominee at the Berlin Film Festival. kelly lin poses after a press conference of sparrow in hong kong Friday, may 30, 2008. (ap photo/vincent yu) Shanghai Film Festival opens Jackie chang and Zhang Ziyi were among the first stars to appear on the red carpet prior to the opening ceremony of the 11th shanghai international Film Festival at shanghai. Wonder Girls Perform Jewelry’s one more time on sBs inkigayo on the 29th, furthering the notion that this is in fact the song that never ends. As if performing Jewelry's one More time wasn't torture enough, Wonder Girl sun Ye also sang the vocals for epik High's one. Ayumi Hamasaki finishes 10th anniversary tour tokYo —singer Ayumi Hamasaki, 29, on sunday night finished her nationwide tour marking the 10th an- niversary of her debut in tokyo. she held 17 concerts in 10 cities since April, attracting 230,000 fans. ScooP 70 DIYA JULY 2008 JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 71 Southern sirens ooze oomph! Here's a look at who's rocking the four southern film industries shriya is from north india and completed her education from delhi. she entered southern cinema only in 2001 with telugu film ishtam, after having modelled on the ramp and in commercials. she’s starred in several telugu and tamil films. she has also done some Hindi films. shriya probably has one of the highest number of videos on Youtube, put up by fans. Shriya last hit: “sivaji”, the Boss with the longest-reigning superstar in tamil cin- ema, rajnikanth. coming up: kandasamy in tamil super- star vikram orkut fan clubs: More than 60 suPerstAr cluB - shriya saran (3,346 members) sHriYA sArAn FAn's (1,912 mem- bers) true fans of shriya saran (1,838 members) shreya saran (1,485 members) Fan sites: www.shriya4u.com sporty Namitha Kapoor aka namita vankawala is a six-footer and former Miss india. But the actress is known more for her assets thanks to her physique. Her first hit was engal Anna opposite vijayakanth. she has also acted in kannada, telugu, Hindi and english films. last hit: “Billa” 2007 with the hot star Ajith coming up: “1977” with sarath kumar, “Pondy” with raghava lawrence, “kettavan” with simbu and “Perumal” with sundar c. orkut fan clubs: More than 100 namitha - Fan club (2,897 members) nAMitHA (2,574 members) nAMitHA (800 members) orkut hate clubs: two. Both called 'i hate namitha'. one with 51 members and the other 15. Fan sites: www.namithaweb.com called the numero uno of tamil cinema in 2007, Asin is not a bimbette but an actress of repute. she's won the southern Filmfare Award twice – for “Amma nanna o tamila Ammayi” in telugu (her first hit) and of course, for Gha- jini in tamil. the latter is being remade into a Hindi film starring Aamir khan, Jiah khan and none other than Asin. not to mention, the actress is getting more interesting offers in Bollywood, and has reportedly moved to lokhandwala, Mumbai. last hit: “Ghajini” and “vel” with surya and “Pokkiri” with vijay. coming up: “dashaavtaram” in tamil with veteran kamal Haasan and Bollywood hotbod Mallika sherawat. next is Ghajini in Hindi with Aamir khan. Ileana Maybe not as successful as the others, but she's certainly hot. A relatively younger and less experi- enced actress, ileana d'cruz has a long way to go. last hit: “Munna” coming up: “karz” (Hindi) with Himesh reshammiya, “romeo Juliet” (telugu) with tarun kumar and “Jalsaa” (telugu) with Pawan kalyan. ScooP 72 DIYA JULY 2008 “in an almost completely wordless first 40 minutes, we meet the workaholic robot Wall e (Waste Allo- cation load lifter earth-class) as he goes about the daily tasks--organizing an abandoned junk yard with remnants of what life was like before mankind was forced to leave earth (or die) in the 22nd century. Ap- parently, no one remembered to turn his switch off so he con- tinues to do his thing in the shadow of an eerily empty city. one day a spaceship lands and drops off a spiffy search robot named eve (extra- terrestrial veg- etation evalu- ator). eve strikes up a touching, even romantic rela- tionship, with little Wall e, his first contact with anything or anyone (other than a pet cockroach) in about 700 years. When eve discovers that Wall e may have come upon the living proof that earth is once again inhabitable, she blasts off to tell the humans aboard the Axiom--a massive shopping mall-like space station--that it may finally be safe to return home. not wanting to let her go, Wall e hops on during takeoff and blasts into the outer reaches of the universe where he experiences the surreal future and brings hope from the past. “ hollywood.com Says “A clever and groundbreaking motion picture like nothing you’ve seen before, Wall-e is a hilarious, heartfelt and extraordinary comedy adventure that pushes animation to new heights while providing pure out-of-this-world summer fun.” running time: 1 hr. 37 min. MPAA rating: G “Based on the popular ‘American Girl’ series of books and doll line, this first edition focuses on kit kittredge (Abi- gail Breslin), an aspiring young cub reporter who, during the Great de- pression, finds her sunny world turned upside down when her father’s (chris o’donnell) car dealership goes un- der, and he must leave cincinnati to find other work. this leaves kit and her mother (Julia ormond) to fend for themselves selling eggs and home- grown veggies and renting out rooms in order to keep the family home. kit always has time for others, bringing home a stray Basset hound or convinc- ing her parents to let a couple of hobo friends (Max thieriot, Willow smith) help out around the house in return for meals. they are among the color- ful characters in her life, including the kittredge’s new tenants, a magician (stanley tucci), a man-hungry dancer (Jane krakowski) and a ditzy librarian (Joan cusack)...” By Pete Hammond hollywood.com Says “kit kittredge is a harmless, old-fashioned, very G-rated family film. in this case, though, the ‘G’ stands for girls only.” Kit Kittredge: An Ameri- can Girl (G) Wanted (R) “Based on a graphic novel, the violent tale revolves around Wes (James McA- voy), a meek 25 year-old office worker who hates his life. His boss berates him, and he can’t even summon the balls to tell his slutty girlfriend to stop sleeping with his best buddy. But his world is suddenly rocked when Fox (Angelina Jolie)--a mysterious, tattooed woman with a gun and a red sports car--takes him on the ride of his life. she takes him straight to the Fraternity, a centu- ries old legendary group of hired assas- sins who live--and die--by their code: kill one to save a thousand. seems Wes’ long-lost father was a member who has just been whacked, and he is now summoned to join up and unleash the inner killer in his genes. After a rigorous training regimen in which he is almost beaten to a pulp, he emerges as the organization’s new golden boy and finds self-esteem in his new excit- ing alternative lifestyle. However, the group’s enigmatic leader sloan (Mor- gan Freeman) may have other plans in store for Wes that he isn’t quite sharing at the moment.” by Pete Hammond Myers’ Guru Pitka could have used a little more back story and a little less shtick. the thin plot has Pitka uttering philosoph- ical piddle like “an eye for an eye leaves everyone blind,” and repeating his mantra “Mariska Hargitay” over and over. But Pitka is not happy with his standing in the spiritual community--especially with the success story of his childhood friend and colleague deepak chopra (who cameos in the film). chopra has been on oprah, for god’s sake! suddenly, Pitka sees the possibility of the fame when Jane (Jessica Alba), the owner of the toronto Maple leafs hockey team, summons him to help get back her star player darren’s (ro- many Malco) mojo back, after his wife Prudence (Meagan Good) leaves him for the legendarily well-endowed l.A. kings star Jacques “le coq” Grande (Justin timberlake). Pitka’s spiritual mission? Get darren and Prudence back together in time for the leafs to win the all-important stanley cup. hollywood.com Says “Mike Myers’ first live-action comedy in five years has a few good yuks, but the love Guru’s laughter karma fizzles more than sizzles.” The Love Guru (PG-13) “improving on his last two duds, the village and the dreadful aquatic nymph tale lady in the Water, writer/ producer/director M. night shyamalan gets back to the kind of eerie, paranoid thriller he so successfully mined in early efforts like ‘the sixth sense’ and ‘signs’. the results this time are mixed in this story of a mysterious environmental “happening” on the east coast that is causing large groups of people to commit suicide. As he does in his most effective films, shyamalan focuses on a core group of people who must find a way to survive these strange events. elliot (Mark Wahlberg) is a Philadelphia science teacher already dealing with marital problems with his attractive but rather unstable wife Alma (Zooey deschanel), now thrust into full crisis mode as he, his wife, a fellow math teacher, Julian (John leguizamo) and Julian’s daughter Jess (Ashlyn sanchez) hit the road by train, then car to escape the unusual plague, first thought to be a terrorist attack.” By Pete Hammond in the picture: director M night shyamalan The Happening (R) Rating: HHHHI Rating: HHIII Rating: HHIII Rating: HH II hollywood Rating: HHHHI movIe RevIeWS Photo © 2008- thegurupitka.comPhoto © 2008- sPicturehouse- Photo : 20th century Fox & dream Works© 2008 DisneyWALL-E source: wallpapermovies.blogspot.com JULY 2008 WWW.DIYAMAGAZINE.COM 73 Rating: HHIII Rating: HHIII Rating: HHHII Rating: HHHII three desperados make a dead run on hot, scorching asphalt in search of freedom but collide head-on with the crude realities of life in the award-winning independent film off road. this low-budget, road movie revolves around three social misfits: a slacker car-wash employee who longs to escape his daily grinds, an ex-banker-turned-taxi driver who has no hope for the future, and a prostitute who dreams of returning to a normal lifestyle. detouring from the normal route, they find much sought after escapism, though clear signs of impending doom looms on the horizon. selected as the opening film at the 2007 Jeonju international Film Fes- tival and invited to compete in the international film category at the tampere international short Film Festival, ‘off road’ was jointly funded by the korean Film council and the local government of north Jeolla Province, korea. A graduate of the prestigious korea national university of Arts and currently a professor at Jeonju university, director Han seung ryong, who previously co-edited films like ‘Bongja’, ‘resurrection of the little Match Girl’, and ‘untold scandal’, offers a sensitive and poignant insight into the agony and struggles of youth. one day, disgruntled car-wash employee cheol Gu (Baek soo Jang, see You After school) robs a bank. stuffing the stolen cash into a bag, he runs into a taxi that happened to be parked in front of the bank and threatens taxi driver sang Hoon (Jo Han cheol, Peppermint candy) to speed away. As luck would have it, sang Hoon was in the middle of robbing the same bank; he was waiting for his partner-in-crime to withdraw a large sum of money from the bank when cheol Gu barged into his cab totally ruining his plan. While speeding on the highways, a gunshot injures cheol Gu’s shoulder and the two men quickly take cover at a nearby motel to treat the wound. there they run into an attractive prostitute Ji soo (sun Woo sun, My scary Girl). With all eyes on the moneybag, the three outlaws jump on the ride of their lifetime. (YesAsia) Off ROAd (KOREAn) The Chaser (Korean) ex-cop pimp Jung-ho is irritated because his girls keep disappearing without clearing their debts. one night, he gets a call from a cus- tomer and sends Mi-jin. Jung-ho realizes the phone number of the customer matches that of the calls the missing girls got last. during his search, Jung-ho dents a car in the alley. When Jung-ho spots blood splattered on the driver’s shirt, he senses the man, Young-min, is the suspect. After an intense chase, Jung-ho catches Young-min. But because of Jung-ho’s pretense as a cop, they are both taken to the police station. At the station, the man bluntly confesses he has killed the missing women, and the last girl, Mi-jin, may still be alive. As the whole police force is obsessed with a ran- dom search for corpses, Jung-ho is the only one who believes Mi-jin is still alive. With only 12 hours left to detain the serial killer without a warrant, Jung-ho’s hunt begins, searching for Mi-jin entrapped in a place no- body knows. cast: yun-seok kim, Jung-woo ha, yeong-hie seo. subtitles: english/korean. Directed: hong-jin na lawrence lau (aka lawrence Ah Mon) is without a doubt one of Hong kong’s best and most under-appreciated directors, specializ- ing in gutter-trawling tales of down-and-out youth frittering their lives away in an end- less orgy of petty crime and street hustles. GAnGs, sPAcked out and queen oF teMPle street are all essential parts of the Hong kong canon (especially queen oF teMPle street about a brothel mad- am dealing with her out-of-control teenage daughter; it’s a movie that deserves the cri- terion treatment). He still directs like a mad- man, with lau ching-wan’s MY nAMe is FAMe as his latest highest-profile movie, but he also recently made A citY WitHout BAseBAll which was released in novem- ber, 2007. Besieged City (Chinese) With only 23 days left to live, l (Matsuyama kenichi) burns the remaining death note and proceeds to work day and night solving as many cases and consuming as many sweets as possible. one final case is sent his way in the form of a thai boy who alone survived a deadly virus outbreak in his village. l gets another guest when 12-year-old girl Maki (Fukuda Mayuko, little dJ) shows up on the doorstep. Both children are connected to an ebola-influenza virus developed by Maki’s fa- ther which has been stolen by terrorists. With the terrorists hunting for Maki and threaten- ing to unleash the virus, l is forced to leave his chair and venture out into the real world, both children in stow. the days tick down as l rushes to develop an antidote and catch the terrorists before time runs out. Cast: Ken’ichi Matsuyama, Mayuko Fukuda, Shunji Fujimura. Directed: Hideo Nakata L Change The WorLd (Japanese) On Air (Korean) this new drama is about the behind the scenes of tv drama production. it also portrays how the whole production team and performers complete a project in a tight schedule and as well as how actors, actresses, and entertain- ment agencies handle rumors surrounding them. Jang ki Joon is a manager who is in charge of the activities of many famous actors and actresses. one of them is oh seung Ah who is a rising actress. lee kyung Min is a drama Pd, seo Young eun is a script writer with a young child. cAst: lee Bum soo as Jang ki Joon kim Ha neul as oh seung Ah song Yoon Ah as seo Young eun Park Yong Ha as lee kyung Min Genre: romance movIe RevIeWS Asian (Regional) Rating: HHHII 74 DIYA JULY 2008
