A three-day international seminar on Indo-Iranian Persian Literature organised by the Department of Persian began at the University of Kashmir in the auditorium of Ibn e Khuldun Alama Iqbal library on Thursday.
The theme of the seminar is “emergence of moral and ethical values in Indo-Iranian Persian literature and its relevance in modern times”.
The scholars and professors from different countries of the world have taken part in the 3-day seminar to present their research papers and to share their experiences with the students, various scholars and professors from the different states and different universities including Delhi, Lucknow has also participated.
The seminar was started with the recitation of Holy Quran by Dr Shanawazz shah followed by the naat by Syeda Mysooma.
Vice Chancellor Prof Khurshid Iqbal Andrabi presided over the seminar, addressed the guests and welcomed them with his warm speech.
In his presidential address, Prof Andrabi said that morals are the basic requirement of an individual, and is very fascinated by the beautiful culture, language of Iran.
Dr Jehangir Iqbal, Coordinator, Department of Persian, underlined the aims and objectives of the seminar and also highlighted the achievements of the department over the years.
Prof Shaief Hussain Qasmi delivered the keynote address.
Dr Ali Raza Ghazvey, Director literary Innovative center Academy of Art Tehran, Iran said: “it seems that we have entered a little Iran with the same culture that we are sharing with each other and the effect of Awraadi Fatah by Mir Syed Ali Hamadani ( rah) has kept the lost glory intact.”
Another guest and professor from the University of Kabul Afghanistan while presenting his research paper and sharing his experience with the students present there said: “we must look to the Persian language, not as an option but we must take it as the objective.”
Meanwhile, Arif Ayoubi who is a chairman Fakhhur Din Ali Ahmad committee said that the best students and scholars will be awarded the gold medals and some cash where they also would be helped and guided in future.
Now the next 2 days of the international seminar will be dedicated to the students and scholars from various faculties and universities to present their papers during these 2 days.
source: http://www.kashmirlife.net / Kashmir Life / Home> Kashmir Latest News / by KL News Network / June 21st, 2018
A fashion show was recently organized by a private institut of fashion designing at Paryatan Bhavan.
Organized by the second year students of the institute, the show had Yamaha Fascino Miss Diva 2016 Miss Universe India Roshmitha Harimurthy, and actor and Lucknowite Mohit Kesarwani as showstoppers for the evening.
SP Singh, vice-chancellor of Lucknow University and Anis Ansari were the chief guests of the event which had Madrid as its theme.
However, the highlight of the event was the fbb Campus Princess 2018 auditions in which Chitrapriya Singh was adjudged the winner. Being gratified as the finalist of the fbb Campus Princess pageant, Chitrapriya will get an opportunity to get groomed and participate in the Miss India organisation’s national beauty pageants.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> News> City News> Lucknow News / TNN / June 20th, 2018
One of the projects taken up by the Triple O Studio
Any mention of Chennai’s architectural marvels instantly brings to mind large, red public structures built in the Indo-Saracenic architectural style. But, there is more to the city’s architectural history in its residential areas.
Madras Inherited, an initiative of a group of architects and volunteers, aims to unravel these hidden architectural gems through heritage walks and document the fast disappearing residential structures in the city.
Spearheaded by Triple O Studio, an architectural firm, Madras Inherited will focus on small residential buildings across the city that have gone unnoticed unlike public heritage structures. While Chennai has some of the finest Indo-Saracenic structures, it is also a confluence of many intriguing architectural styles that the group will research and map through a series of walks.
Tahaer Zoyab, architect and co-founder of Madras Inherited, said a project to document the old houses of Mylapore came as an eye-opener to the vanishing heritage in the city. “The character of the interior lanes is fast changing and we wanted to share the stories with people before residential buildings disappear and also document the rich legacy,” he said.
The team has so far documented architectural designs of about 50 houses in Mylapore. “We have traces of Neoclassical, Gothic and Art Deco styles in structures across the city. We can still find traditional vernacular architecture in some of the Agraharam houses of Mylapore, Tiruvanmiyur and Triplicane,” he said.
Classic example
George Town, one of the older settlements in the city, presents a classic example of a confluence of different styles. Dare House in Parrys Corner, for instance, is designed in the Art Deco style in which there is an emphasis on vertical lines and the distinct design of a ‘sunburst jaali’ for ventilation, Mr. Zoyab pointed out.
Such intricate details imbibed in residential and private building architecture will be documented and shared with heritage enthusiasts in the city. Madras Inherited will focus on cultural tourism and heritage education and management through a series of interactive events like photo walks in historical areas. The initiative will be launched on June 16 with a walk through the lanes of Royapettah, where participants will get to decode the architectural history of the area. The walk that starts at 6.30 a.m. will cost adults Rs. 700 and students Rs. 450. Participants get to take home a bag of custom-made souvenirs, ranging from coasters to bookmarks.
The locality has a range of styles from Agraharam houses, traces of Gothic design and Islamic-style houses. The proceeds from these walks will be used to fund the mapping and documentation of city’s heritage structures. There are plans to expand to areas like Periamet, Vepery and George Town after September.
For details on the walk, send an e-mail to mail@madrasinherited.in or contact +91-8939135048.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Tamil Nadu / by K. Lakshmi / Chennai – June 15th, 2018
Sunni believers from different parts of the State attend an annual mega prayer gathering organised by the Madin Academy in Malappuram on Monday.
Thousands of Sunni believers from different parts of the State attended an annual mega prayer gathering organised by the Madin Academy here on Monday night.
Although the organisers had cut down the size of the programme by shifting the stage into the Madin Grand Mosque and reducing the publicity for the event in view of the Nipah virus scare, there was no decrease in the turnout of the orthodox Sunnis who reached the Swalat Nagar for the blessings of Lailathul Qadr. Lailathul Qadr or “the night of decree” is the holiest night of the year for Muslims across the world.
According to the Koran, Lailathul Qadr is “better than a thousand months”. In his special message to the people, Madin Academy chairman Sayed Ibrahim Khaleel Bukhari Thangal exhorted the mahals and the community to give extra stress on cleanliness and hygiene.
All India Jamiyyathul Ulama general secretary Kanthapuram A.P. Aboobacker Musliar inaugurated the function. Samastha Kerala Jamiyyathul Ulama president E. Sulaiman Musliar presided. Mr. Bukhari led various prayers such as Thouba, Tahleel and Swalat.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Kerala / by Staff Reporter / Malappuram – June 12th, 2018
Shujaat Bukhari was leaving his office in Press Enclave in Srinagar’s Lal Chowk when he was shot at. He is in a critical condition, police said.
Shujaat Bukhaari is the editor of newspaper Rising Kashmir. (Picture courtesy: Twitter/Shujaat Bukhari)
Veteran journalist and Rising Kashmir editor Shujaat Bukhari was shot dead by unidentified gunmen outside his office in the heart of this Jammu and Kashmir capital, police officials said on Thursday.
Bukhari, who was leaving his office in Press Enclave in the city centre Lal Chowk for an iftar party when he was shot, officials said.
The two policemen who were guarding him are also injured, they added.
source: http://www.hindustantimes.com / Hindustan Times / Home> India / by PTI, Srinagar / June 14th, 2018
The iconic Tipu Sultan Mosque has, for the first time in its 184-year history, opened its doors for women this Ramzan.
The Esplanade landmark has arranged for iftar and evening prayers for women under a temporary shamiana inside its premises, lending a crucial support system that lets them leave home for shopping in the city’s famed central commercial area without worrying about how and where to break their fast and get some shelter from the sun and, right now, the rains.
The shamiana, with adequate lighting, fans and water, has proved to be a huge relief for women working in offices in the central business district, with the masjid authorities providing the iftari comprising fruits, chhola, sweets and sherbet.
“You do not even have to get your own iftari. We will provide it. Just reach the mosque minutes before iftar and take your seat,” Prince Anwar Ali Shah, the mosque’s mutwali (caretaker) and great-grandson of Prince Gholam Mohammad, Tipu Sultan’s eldest son, said.
The Esplanade landmark has arranged for iftar and evening prayers for women under a temporary shamiana inside its premises, lending a crucial support system …
The mosque was built in 1834 by Prince Gholam Mohammad, when was in exile in Kolkata.
“A lot of women come to Esplanade from far-flung areas for shopping during Ramzan and do not have any proper place to go to when it is time for iftar. Many are forced to break their fast on the road and forgo their evening prayers,” Shah said, explaining the rationale behind the decision.
Women devotees have welcomed the change. Park Circus resident Asma Momin had come to Esplanade to buy essentials on Tuesday. “I was not carrying any food at all,” she said. “The shamiana and the iftari were a godsend,” she added.
Sabrina Yasmin had come to Dharamtala from nearby Wellesley but was caught in the rain; for her, the shamiana provided the much-needed shelter. “It is a great decision and shows the mosque authorities’ inclination to change with the times,” she said. Around 150 women partake of iftar at the Tipu Sultan Mosque daily.
Fasting during Ramzan is one of the five obligatory pillars of Islam, along with the declaration of faith, the namaz, the Haj pilgrimage and giving zakat (an Islamic levy). The conclusion of Ramzan heralds the arrival of Eid, the biggest Muslim festival.
source: http:///www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> News> City News> Kolkata News / by Zeeshan Javed / TNN / June 13th, 2018
Nellihudikeri Village, Siddapur (Kodagu Distrct), KARNATAKA :
Madikeri:
A farmer and a vintage car collector died after a tree branch fell on him at Nellihudikeri village near Siddapura in Kodagu district yesterday.
The deceased, 67-year-old P.C. Ahmed Kutti Haji, was working in his Mubarak Estate along with his son Ashraf at around 11.30 am. Due to heavy rain and wind, a branch of a banyan tree fell on Ahmed Kutti. He was immediately rushed to a hospital. But he succumbed to his injuries in the hospital. Kodagu Deputy Commissioner P.I. Sreevidya has announced Rs.5 lakh compensation to his family. She sent the cheque through the Tahsildar.
With his death, Kodagu has lost a collector of Vintage ‘beauties
Ahmed Kutti Haji is a coffee planter and also an industrialist. He has a huge collection of vintage cars which he threw open to public. Collecting vintage cars was a hobby for Ahmed who has 86 of them and over 15 vintage petrol jeeps. Not to stop there, he also has 20 old two-wheelers, a 125-year-old bicycle and a 200-year-old bullock cart. The oldest car in the collection is 1925 model.
Normally vintage car collectors eye Bengaluru to add cars to their collection. Changing the trend, Ahmed focussed on old workshops in Kodagu and surrounding areas to hunt vintage ‘beauties.’ After picking them, Ahmed gave old cars a fresh coat of paint and tuned them to working condition.
Almost all foreign cars owned by Ahmed were manufactured between 1925 and 1965. Barring Dharmasthala, no other place in the State has such a wide collection of vintage cars.
With his death, Kodagu has lost a vintage automobile enthusiast.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> News /June 10th, 2018
It is 8am on Saturday and big black cauldrons that will slowly simmer dal in them have been put up on burning embers with the help of two strong men. For the past 179 years, the ritual has been repeated every Ramzan in the bawarchikhana (kitchen) within the premises of the Chhota Imambara.
While it is dal and tandoori roti that is cooked for three days, an Awadhi delicacy called ‘taley hue aaloo ka salan’ (fried potato curry) with roti follows for the next three. The cycle continues for the entire month of Ramzan, feeding around 600 poor people as their dinner the the entire month of Ramzan.
In the same kitchen, a different set of snacks is also prepared for the specific purpose of serving rozedars coming to offer prayers in 15 mosques under Husainabad & Allied Trust (HAT).
Around 2,500 people will receive a plate of gujhiya, phulka, chana, suhaal, dates, a fruit (preferably banana) along with bread-butter and cake outsourced from a bakery, thanks to a king’s commitment to the poor.
The third King of Awadh, Muhammad Ali Shah, had created the Husainabad Endowment Deed in 1839 to feed the poor. Since then, the two massive community kitchens within the Chhota Imambara have been following the tradition of sending out iftari to the 15 mosques under its umbrella.
Every Ramzan, by the end of the day, this kitchen would have fed over 3,000 mouths.
“A sum of around Rs 16 lakh is passed for the iftar and dinner services every year. Two separate dedicated teams of chefs and their assistants are engaged for it. Everyday, activity in the kitchens begins at 8am. By 4.30pm, we send out the first batch of iftar food for the mosques,” said Habibul Hasan, an official from HAT.
The 179-year-old Nawabi tradition saw a break only in 2015. During Ramzan that year, a movement against alleged corruption in the UP Shia Central Waqf Board being spearheaded by Shia cleric Maulana Kalbe Jawad had brought the tradition to a halt. Protesters had locked the entrances to both the Bada Imambara and Chhota Imambara, restricting all entry. Even the kitchens could not function.
However, people from the neighbourhood of the 15 mosques came together to fund the food. HAT had also roped in private bakeries. Even during the mourning months of Muharram, food is served from the traditional kitchens of the Imambara.
source: http:///www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> News> City News> Lucknow News / by Yusra Husain / TNN / May 21st, 2018
RICH DIET: A handwritten cookery manuscript containing a glimpse of the menu from England’s first Indian restaurant has sold for $11,344 (Rs 7.6 lakh) at a London book fair.
It refers to dishes like “pineapple pullaoo” and “chicken currey” from the Hindoostane Dinner and Hooka Smoking Club, opened in 1809 at Portman Square, London, by Sake Dean Mahomed, whose roots lay in Bihar.
“This is the first known record of a priced menu from Britain’s first Indian restaurant – at a time when printed menus were rarely available,” said Brian Lake of Jarndyce Antiquarian Booksellers in London, which sold the volume at the ABA Rare Book Fair to an American institution last month.
The manuscript, titled Receipt Book 1786 on the front, also contains handwritten recipes and receipts. It includes a two-page “bill of fare” from Hindoostane, listing 25 Indian dishes with prices.
These include makee pullaoo (1.1.0 pounds), pineapple pullaoo (1.16.0 pounds), chicken currey (0.12.0 pounds), lobster curry (0.12.0 pounds), coolmah of lamb or veal (0.8.0 pounds), together with breads, chutneys and other dishes.
It ends by noting that there are “various other dishes too numerous for insertion”.
Towards the end is a recipe “to make a curry powder”, attributed to Lord Teignmouth (1751-1834), who was governor-general of Bengal between 1793 and 1797 and later became a patron of Mahomed’s restaurant.
Mahomed went bankrupt in 1812, and the eatery struggled on as Hindostanee Coffee House under a new management before disappearing in 1833.
source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph,Calcutta,India / Home> India / PTI / June 04th, 2018
Nawabuddin, the oldest town crier of Delhi’s Walled City, roams the streets at night during Ramzan to wake devotees for the pre-dawn meal and to reconnect with his neighbours and the community
It’s 2:30 am in Old Delhi’s Sheesh Mahal area, a cricket match in being played to an audience looking out from their balconies. Further away, young men on motorbikes, a flea market and food stalls hum away. For Nawabuddin, 75, or ‘Peer ji’ to do his job as a town crier—of waking people up for sehri in the month of Ramzan— he must remain oblivious to the fact that the Walled City is actually awake. (Burhaan Kinu / HT Photo)
At 2.30 am, more than two dozen two-wheelers have been pushed aside to make space for a cricket match being played under halogen floodlights in a boundaried compound in Old Delhi’s Sheesh Mahal area. Its audience: women from balconies of cramped flats overlooking the compound. And some street dogs. The match will continue for the next one hour but break as the boys retreat for sehri (pre-dawn meal) followed by namaaz.
Nawabuddin, 75, or ‘Peer ji’ doesn’t intend to acknowledge the game, or the young men performing stunts on motorbikes in the next street, the overcrowded tea stalls, or the flea market that is still serving its last customers.
For him to do his job as a town crier— that of waking people up for sehri in the month of Ramzan— he has to indulge in a minor self-delusion, be oblivious to the fact that the Walled City is actually awake.
Wearing a white pathani suit, skull cap and a keffiyeh spread across his left shoulder, all Peer ji can see in the darkness is a maze of match-box like buildings. He limps to each structure, carrying a wooden stick which he lifts to bang on the doors. “Rozedarooo, uth jao (Those fasting, awake),” his hoarse, throaty call encircles the street.
Peer ji is perhaps the last generation of Old Delhi’s town criers. Intrinsic to Muslim culture around the world, people like him are known by various titles –– Nafar (in Morocco), Musarati ( Egypt), Hil hiwai (UAE) and Seher Khan (Srinagar). In most of these regions, they roam the neighbourhood donning traditional attire, blowing trumpets or beating drums to draw people’s attention. In Delhi’s Walled City, they don’t have any such name and they don’t carry musical instruments.
Peer ji knows the occupants of most houses by name or profession. “Doctor sahab”…“Master ji”… “Vakeel sahab,” he calls out. Standing beneath tenements in closed alleys, he positions himself in certain areas that are most likely to echo his call, rather than go to each house.
Who is awake at this hour? “The men are either in deep sleep or are idling away their time when I do the rounds. It is the women who usually pray at this time,” he says, making his way through the labyrinth of passages. Men hardly respond to his call, he says. But those who do, are usually not welcoming. “You don’t have to be so loud. Kids are sleeping,” shouts back a voice, leaving Peer ji despondent for a moment.
Around 3.30 am, when he is done with the rounds, Peer ji is back at his house for sehri. (Burhaan Kinu/HT PHOTO)
“That was Rameez tailor’s son. As a child, he used to be very fond of me. Now he is all grown up and talks back to me. Perhaps he didn’t get adequate sleep,” says Peer ji with a grimace, murmuring to himself. By 2:45 am, he breaks for a quick tea at a makeshift shop. He notices that someone is pulling his shirt. It’s a little boy. “Aap uthane waaley hain na? (You wake people up, don’t you?),” he inquires. “Yes, my son,” says Peer ji, happy with the recognition. “Everyone in the locality knows me. No other profession would have given me such popularity,” he says. Those who acknowledge his efforts, reward him with cash and delicacies on Eid.
Mahtab Rahi, Peer ji’s neighbour, greets him next. “I have seen him since my childhood. Every passing year, the job of people like him become irrelevant. Still, undeterred by such factors, he is offering his service in a selfless manner. It is unfortunate that we don’t value him as much as we should,” says Rahi.
Peer ji’s job begins at 2 am, but he hardly sleeps post dinner. He spends his time at a neighbourhood mobile recharge shop. After midnight, he goes home for tea, and collects his stick and torch before leaving.
BECOMING PEER JI
Peer ji faces no competition, compared to 40 years ago, when he first began to volunteer for the task. Every Muslim neighbourhood used to have one man designated for this duty. There are, at present, only three left in Old Delhi.
At night, Peer ji would encounter various groups of hymn singers carrying lanterns; each group visited a different locality each day. They are not found anymore. “While the neighbourhood people would tip me only on Eid, the singers were paid each time they ventured out. Now they are a rare sight. Most of them have died,” he says.
As a young lad, Peer ji would spend time with his uncle who was a peer or spiritual guide to many in the neighbourhood. (The family association got him the title, Peer Ji.) He was a 20-year-old vegetable vendor when Mohammad Umar, the town crier in his locality, died. People requested him to carry forward the responsibility because he would be awake early in the morning due to his trade. None of his three sons are inclined to take up the job after him.
“It is alright. Today, people want to invest their time and energy only when they see monetary returns. People of my generation did a lot of things simply for sawaab (spiritual reward),” he says. He says he never pushed his sons though. “This task has its own complexities. One may encounter thieves on the streets. One also has to be wary of households in which only women live and consider their privacy. I don’t want my sons to land in trouble,” he says. Although the job seems simple, the town crier does follow a protocol. For instance, Peer ji waits beneath the house of heavy sleepers, till they respond to his call. He has to ensure not to intrude into another town crier’s area. And he never calls out the names of those who are dead even if theirs was the name he would call out earlier. “You never know, family members may get emotional,” he explains.
To make sure that he does not miss his duty, he avoids consuming oily snacks and chilled water, during Ramzan. Around five years ago, during Ramzan, he had a sore throat, so he took his son-in-law with him for the rounds so that he could call out.
By 3.15 am, having covered multiple lanes on more than a 2- km-long stretch, Peer ji heads back home. His wife and sons await him with the sehri platter — buff curry, rusk and tea.
Peer ji is well aware that every passing year, with people using clocks and mobile phones to set alarms, his job is becoming obsolete. “They will realise my importance once I am gone. Yahi duniya ka dastoor hai (This is the way of the world),” he says. It is time for the morning prayers. From the neighbourhood mosque, the muezzin is calling.
source: http://www.hindustantimes.com / Hindustan Times / Home> Lifestyle> Art and Culture / by Danish Raza, Hindustan Times / June 04th, 2018
