Kamla Bhatt Show

(http://kamlashow.com/podcast/wp-content/uploads/LeelaChander_1930sbangalore-e1333610914809.jpg)Leela Chander is 91 years old, and in 1938 she came to Bangalore as a young bride.  She arrived by train from Pune and settled down in Bangalore's cantonment area, where she worked alongside  her physician husband at his Dr. Chander's Clinic on Mosque Road. What was Bangalore like in the 1930s? She shares her vivid and delightful memories of 1930s Bangalore and about wide avenues, bunglows, and a city famous for its greenery. The Bangalore, Mrs. Chander describes, reminds you of  Peter Colaco's (http://www.dsouzaweb.com/books/peter-colaco-s-bangalore) book where he writes (http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/mp/2003/02/06/stories/2003020600940200.htm), "The original Bangalore was space and grace personified. It was a lazy little place, an English speaking Goa, minus the sea, but with parks, lakes and  gardens to compensate." (Aside: the book has a series of delightful illustrations by Paul Fernandes.) Mrs. Chander's nostalgic-tinged memories transport you back to a laid-back city known for its gardens and as a paradise for "pensioners." Some of the places she mentions exist, while others have completely disappeared from Bangalore's landscape. Lal Bagh (http://www.horticulture.kar.nic.in/lalbagh.htm), Cauvery Emporium, MTR, Albert's Bakery (http://youtu.be/LWqSejEOUdw) are familiar landmarks in 21stc Bangalore, but others like Plaza (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plaza_Theatre_(Bangalore)) and Globe cinema theatre no longer exist. Here is short video clip (http://kamlashow.com/content/910000/maincontent/mp3/broadband/LeelaChander_KamlaShow.mp3)of Mrs. Chander talking about Bangalore, which is now known as "Silicon Valley of India." Suggested Reading: Bangalore: A Century of Tales From City and Cantonment by Peter Colaco with illustrations by Paul Fernandes.  

(http://kamlashow.com/podcast/wp-content/uploads/JohnKnoll.jpg)Academy-award winner John Knoll works behind the scenes, but you have probably seen his visual effects magic in "Avatar (http://youtu.be/aVdO-cx-McA)," "Rango (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-OOfW6wWyQ)," "Pirates of the Caribbean (http://youtu.be/UdAEYLWMY3A)," "Hugo (http://youtu.be/Hv3obL9HqyY)," Mission Impossible (http://youtu.be/Kxrndgt7gIY)," "Star Wars (http://youtu.be/FMaHM0ZvC7A)"  and many other films. Knoll is a visual effects supervisor at Industrial Light and Magic (http://www.ilm.com/index2.html)and in 2007 won an Academy award for Best Visual Effects for "The Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest." In this interview Knoll  talks about Photoshop (http://www.storyphoto.com/multimedia/multimedia_photoshop.html), working in films like "Avatar" and  "Rango (http://youtu.be/aqJdbgsVTdg)," and Johnny Depp. He also shares about the legendary Italian director Sergio Leone's (http://youtu.be/8zIEDBGRFUw) work and how it influenced (http://youtu.be/7R2Atsh6hHA)in the making of "Rango (http://youtu.be/9CyY7xI2TBE)," which won an Academy award for animated film (http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2012/feb/27/rango-best-animated-film-oscar) in 2012. We start off our conversation talking about Photoshop, which was originally written by his brother Thomas Knoll (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Knoll). It was John, who worked with his brother in further developing the product and demoing it in Silicon Valley and piqued Adobe's interest. He talks about Silicon Valley's role in filmmaking and  "democratization of technology."  When tools become inexpensive then talent and time become crucial he points out in the interview. This interview was recorded in Silicon Valley in September 2011 at the Palo Alto Internatinal Film Festival. Photo credit: Jenny Elwick in  the Official Celebration IV blog (http://starwarsblog.wordpress.com/)

(http://kamlashow.com/podcast/wp-content/uploads/220px-Sam_Pitroda_at_the_India_Economic_Summit_2009-150x150.jpg)In Part-2 of our conversation Sam Pitroda (http://www.sampitroda.com/index.php?lang=en) talks about his second innings in India, and what brought him back from his hometown of Chicago to New Delhi?  He is currently an advisor to the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Public Infrastructure, Information and Innovations. He shares his thoughts about being part of the Knowledge Commission of India.  The knowledge needs for a billion people is an exciting proposition to tackle and that is one of the chief reasons why he came back to India. Where would you get such an opportunity he asks. On innovation in India, he feels there is a different model that will come out of India and China, which will address the needs of the people in these regions. The US style of innovation is led by consumption, and is not a sustainable model for the future is Mr. Pitroda's line of thinking. There is a shortage of leaders at every level in India combined with a shortage of skills points out Mr. Pitroda. How and who will drive this innovation in India? Where are the leaders? Tune in to find out. This interview was recorded in Silicon Valley  in 2008, and was first published in Live Mint (http://www.livemint.com/). In case you missed, you can listen to Part-1 (http://kamlashow.com/podcast/2012/03/14/in-conversation-with-sam-pitroda-part-1/) of our conversation with Mr. Pitroda. Photo credit: Wikipedia

(http://kamlashow.com/podcast/wp-content/uploads/220px-Sam_Pitroda_at_the_India_Economic_Summit_2009-150x150.jpg)1984 was a pivotal year in India's history from a technological perspective. It was in 1984 that C-Dot (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C-DOT) was founded, which in turn unleashed the Indian telecom revolution (http://www.cdot.com/about_us/berif_history.htm)and highlighted how technology can help bring change in India, especially rural India. C-Dot (http://www.cdot.com/) was also an incubator of sorts for new ideas and a new way of thinking for a whole generation of Indian engineers and technologists. Meet Sam Pitroda, the man responsible for helping found C-Dot. An innovator and entrepreneur, Mr. Pitorada is currently an Adviser to the Prime Minister of India on Public Information Infrastructure and Innovations. He feels there are lot of things that need to be done right from building infrastructure to education to telecom for a nation of over 1 billion people as he explains in this interview. A mix of arrogance and ignorance helped started his telecom journey in India. In the 1980s Mr. Pitroda pitched his business case to Mrs. Gandhi and her son Rajiv Gandhi. C-Dot was established in August 1984 just a month prior to Mrs. Gandhi's assassination. "We clicked," explains Mr. Pitroda when he first met Rajiv Gandhi. "He was the key driver. Without Rajiv Gandhi I would not be able to do what I did.  He had the political will…He was a man in a hurry …He wanted to modernize India...He believed in technology… " Mr. Pitroda was also a man in a hurry and was keen on using technology to solve problems in India, especially in telecom. He explains, "Technology means problem solving….it's a tool that helps solve complex problems. Our goal was to take technology to people…C-Dot was set up as a by-pass to focus on rural communication, digitization etc." Growing up in Orissa he had no access to a telephone line since it was considered a luxury item in the India of 1950s and 1960s. He was 22 years old when he first used a telephone. In 1964 he travelled to Chicago, USA, where he studied and eventually settled down. What brought him back to India after 20 years? How did his journey in India start in the 1980s? Tune in to listen to Part-1 of our conversation with Mr. Pitroda. This interview was recorded in Silicon Valley in 2008, and was first published in Live Mint (http://www.livemint.com). Sam Pitroda's photo credit: Wikipedia

Meet  3 time Oscar-winning editor (http://www.chicagohumanities.org/Genres/Arts-And-Architecture/2011f-Behind-the-Scenes-Hollywood-Sound-Design-with-Walter-Murch.aspx)and sound engineer Walter Murch (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2WGP4dofgQ), who talks on how technology has changed film editing and how "digital revolution has invented the equivalent of aensthetic for the cinema." Mr. Murch points out before the digital revolution film editors were "physically cutting through the substance of film." Mr. Murch (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CekY1JJe5A) started his career in the 1960s and has worked on a string of iconic American films like Apocalypse Now, American Graffiti , Ghost,  all three Godfather films, The English Patient, The Unbearable Lightness of Being, The Talented Mr. Ripley and  Hemingway and Gellhorn set to release in mid-2012. Mr. Murch is also the author of " In The Blink Of An Eye (http://www.amazon.com/Blink-Eye-Revised-2nd/dp/1879505622)." This interview was recorded at the First Palo Alto International Film Festival (http://paiff.net/) in 2011.

(http://kamlashow.com/podcast/wp-content/uploads/tajmahal-150x150.jpg)India discovered America and made it their own though jazz music explains Naresh Fernades (http://www.tajmahalfoxtrot.com/?page_id=7), whose book Taj Mahal Foxtrot, chronicles how jazz (http://www.tajmahalfoxtrot.com/?p=1234)entered Bombay and found a new home in this port city.  Taj Mahal Foxtrot (http://www.tajmahalfoxtrot.com/?p=1147) was the first jazz song recorded in Bombay. The early American musicians were traveling ministrels, who came to Bombay in the mid-19thc. By early 20thc there was a steady stream of jazz musicians, mostly African-American, who came to Bombay and played at the Taj Mahal hotel, which was the musical nerve center for the city. Teddy Weatherford was one such musician, who played extensively in Bombay, and helped mentor Indian musician, mostly from Goa, which was a Portuguese colony then. Jazz heralded the birth of India and Pakistan as Naresh explain in the interview. Mohammad Ali Jinnah had his favorite jazz band especially flown in from Bombay to celebrate the birth of a new nation - Pakistan. And in Bombay's Taj Mahal jazz was being played  as the Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru was reading his famous freedom at midnight speech in New Delhi.  Among the audience at Taj Mahal was Vijaylakshmi Pandit, Nehru's sister. And in the 1950s a string of jazz ambassadors traveled to India including Dave Brubeck, Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington. Although jazz made a slow disappearance from Bombay, you can still find its influence on Hindi (Bollywood films). If you missed it, you may want to listen to Part-1 of the interview (http://bit.ly/zmBuBB) with Naresh. Note: Apologies for the audio quality.

(http://kamlashow.com/podcast/wp-content/uploads/irapande_2-150x150.jpg)Shivani and Manohar Shyam Joshi are two well-known Hindi writers, whose work until a few years ago was confined to Hindi readers. However in the last few years Shivani and Joshi's books were translated in English by  Shivani's daughter Ira Pande, who is an author herself. Shivani's (http://www.streeshakti.com/bookG.aspx?author=6) Diddi and Apradhini (http://www.hindu.com/lr/2011/06/05/stories/2011060550260600.htm) and Joshi's T'Ta Professor (http://www.livemint.com/Articles/2008/07/11235748/Fool8217s-paradise.html)were translated into English by Ira. In Part-1 of our conversation Ira talks about how and why she translated these books into English and the change in Indian publishing landscape and the impact of Chetan Bhagat. Apradhini is an unusual collection of stories from 3 different perspective on the same subject - women in prison for committing crimes of passion. Ira shares how her mother got the idea to write about women in prison. Sometime in 1971 Shivani received an invitation from a doctor in a Lucknow prison to come and meet the female inmates and listen to their stories. What started out as a visit turned into a powerful experience for Shivani, and she then became the medium for these women as Ira puts it. Shivani did not write to titillate as Ira put it, and instead wrote about crime without diluting the moral dimensions. Ira is the chairperson of The DSC Prize for South Asian Literature for the 2012 Jaipur Literary Festival. She has worked in the publishing industry for many years, and was the managing editor of Dorling-Kindersley and chief editor of Roli Books India (http://www.rolibooks.com/). Currently, she is the chief editor at India International Center (http://www.iicdelhi.nic.in/). Tune back in for Part-2 where Ira talks about the changes in Indian publishing and Jaipur Literary Festival (http://jaipurliteraturefestival.org/). Previous podcast interview (http://kamlashow.com/podcast/2006/03/18/ira-pande-remembers-shivani/) with Ira on her mother Shivani.

(http://kamlashow.com/podcast/wp-content/uploads/IMG_98122-150x150.jpg)The Hindu festival Pongal (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thai_Pongal) is celebrated on 15th January all over South India. This harvest festival is to give thanks to the Sun god for a bountiful harvest, and takes place 21 days after the winter solstice. In the former French colony of Pondicherry there is an interesting tradition where the Catholics celebrate Pongal to mark their festival of epiphany (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epiphany_(holiday)). Lourdes (Lulu) Louis Thiruvanjiam talks about this fusion of Hindu and Christian elements in their Pongal celebrations in the former French colony. This includes attending an early morning mass, and celebrating a traditional Pongal lunch with their family and friends. Pongal is a dish that consists of rice and lentils that you cook in a claypot and let it boil over. But Lulu and the Catholics of Pondicherry make their pongal a little differently. Instead of milk, they use coconut milk as one of the ingredients in their preparation of Pongal, which is served with  a special gravy made up of  13 different types of vegetables. Until about 25 years ago the Catholics of Pondicherry celebrated Pongal on January 15th like the Hindus. Due to a change announced by the Vatican - epiphany is now celebrated on the first Sunday after Christmas. Even though the dates have changed the tightly knit Catholic community of Pondicherry continue to celebrate Pongal with their mix of Hindu and Christian traditions. This year Lulu celebrated Pongal with her family and friends on January 8th, one week ahead of the traditional Hindu celebration. Lulu is the author of  Cuisine Traditionenelle de Pondichery (http://www.indeenfrance.com/pondy.php/main-5/cuisine-traditionnelle-de-pondichery).

(http://kamlashow.com/podcast/wp-content/uploads/tajmahal-150x150.jpg)Naresh Fernandes is the author of  Taj Mahal Foxtrot (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRZba8regDg) that traces the history of jazz in Bombay, a thriving and important port city of India. Just like the American jazz age of the 1920s, there was an Indian jazz age in the 1920s that continued to grow and flourish until the 1940s. At first it was American ministrels that arrived in Bombay in mid-19thc. The San Francisco Ministrels were the first band to arrive to this port city. But,  it was not until the 20thc that jazz became popular among a certain section of the city's population. Bombay's Taj Mahal hotel introduced the latest trends to its population, and jazz was certainly one of the latest trends that the hotel introduced in the 20thc. "Hot music," is how this new American brand of music was described in the early 20thc. Many of the musicians, mostly African-Americans, came to Bombay including Leon Abbey (http://www.allmusic.com/artist/leon-abbey-p485737), Crickett Smith (http://www.allmusic.com/artist/crickett-smith-p508198), Teddy Weatherford (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6AD2DTpHq0&feature=related) and others. This hot music (http://www.tajmahalfoxtrot.com/?p=1147) became a big hit with musicians from Goa, who in turn introduced jazz elements into Hindi (Bollywood) cinema.  The influence of hot music was not limited to Indian cinema, but also influenced films in China since Shanghai. Tune back for Part-2 of our interview with Naresh. Apologies for the audio quality.

(http://kamlashow.com/podcast/wp-content/uploads/akshat_set_face0-150x150.jpg)In 2011 "Delhi Bell (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xcKn9BxTg1A)y" proved to be unusual success in Bollywood. Unusual because this funny, comic thrilled is largely in English with a few sentences in Hindi thrown in. The film was dubbed in Hindi to make it accessible to a larger audience in India. "Delhi Belly (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGYA_P7ZHcw)" was also unusual since this was Los Angeles-based Akshat Verma's first Bollywood screenplay. In Part-2 of our conversation Akshat talks about studying and working in Los Angeles. He studied at UCLA's film school,  where he wrote the first version of "Delhi  Belly" for  Richard Walter (http://richardwalter.com/) screenwriting class.  Originally titled "Say Cheese" Akshat had to wait 15 years before he saw his screenplay on the celluloid screen. He also talks about his current and future plans, which includes directing his first Bollywood film. At the moment he is busy writing a screenplay for Bollywood's Yashraj Films (http://www.yashrajfilms.com/). Delhi Belly stars Imran Khan, Shennaz Treasury, Vir Das, Kunal Kapoor Roy, Poorna Jagannathan and Aamir Khan. Director: Abhinay Deo Music Director: Ram Sampath (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxMRgJL9tFU) You can check out Part-1 of (http://kamlashow.com/podcast/2011/11/24/delhi-bellys-akshat-verma-part-1/) our conversation with Akshat, where he talks about how Aamir Khan discovered his screenplay and how they went to make the film.

The splendors of an Indian maharaja's (king) court is the stuff of legend that you may have heard or read in books. (http://kamlashow.com/podcast/wp-content/uploads/Jaffer1.thumbnail.jpg)In Made For Maharajas A Design Diary of Princely India (http://www.amazon.com/Made-Maharajas-Design-Diary-Princely/dp/0865651744) (Vendome Press, 2006) Dr. Amin Jaffer (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/26/style/26iht-Luxury08-Jaffer.18176031.html) takes us on a splendid journey of the lifestyle of the rich and famous  Indian maharajas and maharanis  from 1857 till 1947. And what a treasure trove these kings and queens amassed over the  years. You can catch a glimpse at some of these luxurious and bespoke items that were created for the Indian royals at The Asian Art Museum of San Francisco's exhibit  "Maharaja: The Splendors of The Indian Royal Court (http://www.asianart.org/maharaja/)," that runs from Oct 21, 2011 to April 8, 2012. It was Europe where these various maharajas and maharanis went on their shopping sprees. The well-heeled Indian elite rank among the early patrons of famous designer houses like  Cartier, Boucheron, Van Cleef & Arpels, Louis Vuitton, Ferragamo, and others. And now more than 160 years later the same clutch of European design houses are back in India courting the rich and famous with their dazzling array of jewels, watches, bags, clothes and shoes. What makes Dr. Jaffer's  book interesting is the reproduction of receipts, and the stories of how the representative of the various design houses courted their Indian clients. According to Dr. Jaffer to date Cartier's highest commission came from a sales transaction to the Maharaja of Patiala. The book is filled with stories about the lifestyle of Rani Molly of Pudukkotai; Yashwant Rao Holkar-II of Indore (that is his photo on the cover of the book); Maharaja of Kapurthala; Maharaja of Patiala and numerous other Indian princes and princesses. Dr. Jaffer is International Director of Asian Art at Christies. This interview was originally recorded in 2006 when Dr. Jaffer was visiting Manhattan, New York.

(http://kamlashow.com/podcast/wp-content/uploads/akshat_set_face0-150x150.jpg)This year's Bollywood film "Delhi Belly" was an unusual success. Tthe film was in English, which is a big departure since most Bollywood films are in Hindi. And then there was the fact that the screenplay writer cum associate director and  director were making their debut in Bollywood. But, backing this film was a successful actor/director/producer Aamir Khan and that appears to have made a big difference explains Akshat Verma (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2356415/), who wrote the screenplay and was associate director of "Delhi Belly." Abhinay Deo, the director and Ram Sampat, the music director were well-known in the ad film space, but not in Bollywood. Akshat takes us behind the scenes and shares how Bollywood's "Delhi Belly" was made. He wrote the screenplay over 15 years ago as a student at UCLA, but very few people showed an interest in his script in Bollywood. Plus, Akshat lived and worked in Los Angeles, and was far removed from Mumbai, the epicenter of Bollywood film industry. But  lady luck must have been smiling on Akshat the day Aamir Khan (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdBw6ct_Zow) discovered his wife Kiran Rao laughing over a script she had pulled out from a pile of scripts on his table.  That is how Aamir Khan discovered the script and and decided to make a film. "Aamir is a risk taker and will stick his neck out when he has an instict," says Akshat. Getting the green signal from Aamir to make "Delhi Belly,"was the easy part. They struggled for nearly a year to find the right cast and crew that finally included Aamir Khan (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGYA_P7ZHcw&feature=related) in a cameo role.  The rest is history as they say. "Delhi Belly"  was released in English along with a dubbed Hindi version and did well at the box-office. The film is available in Netflix (http://movies.netflix.com/Movie/Delhi-Belly/70152959) in the USA. Photo Credit: Rakhee Yadav

(http://kamlashow.com/podcast/wp-content/uploads/PATANG_Prashant_Bhargava_Director-150x150.jpg)Prashant Bhargava's (http://www.tribecafilm.com/news-features/news/The_Kite_Prashant_Bhargava.html) new film "Patang" (The Kite) is set in Gujarat (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gujarat) located on the west coast of India. The film unfolds in the old town of Ahmedabad (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmedabad) against the backdrop of the colorful kite festival that takes place every January. "Patang" (Hindi) is an interesting narrative film, which at times feels like a documentary where the characters "live their lives on the screen."  It features music like a typical Bollywood film, and yet "Patang"  is not a Bollywood film. The film has won awards and recognition at various film festivals. Born and brought up in Chicago Prashant has a computer science degree from Cornell University. He worked in the tech sector for a few years before making his first film "Sangam."  "Patang" is his second film. Prashant wrote, directed and edited "Patang" that stars Seema Biswas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seema_Biswas) (who acted in "Bandit Queen (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8W9qc1AdvkE)") Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sugandha Garg, Mukund Shukla and Hamid Shaikh. You can watch "Patang" at the 9th San Francisco International South Asian Film Festival (http://www.thirdi.org/festival/) (Nov 9-11, 2011).

(http://kamlashow.com/podcast/wp-content/uploads/PaulDebevec.jpg)Meet Prof. Paul Debevec described as "Hollywood's Master of Light" by MIT's Tech Review.  His pioneering work at the intersection of technology and films has won him recognition and awards. In 2010 Debevec won (http://chronicle.com/article/And-the-Academy-Award-Goes-to/64005/) an Academy Award in science and engineering for his digital facial-rendering technology. You can see Debevec's digital innovation (http://www.ted.com/talks/paul_debevec_animates_a_photo_real_digital_face.html) in virtual cinematography in Hollywood films like "Avatar," "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,"  "Matrix" and "Superman 2". He also worked on an Indian film  "Endhiran - The Robot" starring Rajnikanth. He leads the Graphics Laboratory at the University of Southern California's (USC) Institute for Creative Technologies and is a Research Associate Professor, Computer Science Department, USC.  You can check out his YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/user/pedebevec) channel. In this interview he talks about the light stage systems that is used to create the stunning visual special effects and working with Rajnikanth for "Endhiran - The Robot." This interview was recorded at the First Palo Alto International Film Festival in October 2011. Photo credit: USC-ICT

(http://kamlashow.com/podcast/wp-content/uploads/GerardButler1.jpg)Gerard Butler (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0124930/) talks about Bollywood, India and Danny Boyle. Many years ago, Mr. Butler auditioned for a Bollywood film, but did not land the part. That was 13 years ago. Since then he has gone on to make a name for himself in block-buster Hollywood films like "300 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efSYlfCbTPY)." Bollywood is on Mr. Butler's mind, and he says he is open to acting in a Bollywood film. Perhaps this piece of news may come as a surprise to him, but perhaps not. Mr. Butler has a big fan following among Bollywood dance groups in US universities. Reportedly  50% of Bollywood dance groups in US universities use chants and slogans from his film "300" to get them pumped up before appearing in a live performance. Would Mr. Butler be open to acting in a Bollywood film?  What is the connection with Danny Boyle? Tune in to find out. This interview with Mr. Butler and Michelle Monaghan was recorded in San Francisco. In case you missed, you can listen to Part-1 of the interview (http://bit.ly/oPI5Da) with Gerard Butler and Michelle Monaghan where they talk about their film "Machine Gun Preacher."