Tag Archives: Sameer Khan

An Indian restaurant in Tashkent celebrates Uzbekistan’s love for Bollywood

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INDIA / Tashkent, UZBEKISTAN :

Housed in the Le Grande Hotel in Tashkent, the restaurant is a definite stopover for tourist groups from India and is popular for its Bollywood nights

Wall dedicated to Indian celebrities who visited Raaj Kapur restaurant in Tashkent. | Photo Credit: PTI

In the heart of Tashkent, a city known for its rich history, stands an Indian restaurant celebrating the legacy of legendary Bollywood actor Raj Kapoor and the love of the Uzbeks for him even 35 years after his death.

Styled on the Bollywood theme, the ‘Raaj Kapur’ restaurant which is one of the three major Indian restaurants in Tashkent, is not new but at least 16 years old and is a hit among not only Indian tourists but also locals for its lip-smacking dishes.

Three superstars from the Kapoor family — Randhir Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor and Shashi Kapoor — have also dined at the restaurant on different occasions.

“People in Uzbekistan are crazy about Bollywood and generations of people from Uzbekistan and Russia – even the young – are aware of Raj Kapoor and his cinema and regard him as Bollywood’s numero uno. The restaurant attracts more crowd for its name and less for Indian food, which most visitors discover after enjoying a meal,” Sameer Khan, Resident manager, Raaj Kapur restaurant told PTI.

‘A definite stopover’

Housed in the Le Grande Hotel in Tashkent, the restaurant is a definite stopover for tourist groups from India and is popular for its Bollywood nights where Uzbeks also groove on top chartbusters from the 90s.

While Khan, who is originally from Mumbai, manages the property, the idea of the restaurant was first conceptualised by Jay Al Atas, an Indonesian who fell in love with Indian food during a visit to the country and was also impressed with the craze for Raj Kapoor in Russia and Uzbekistan.

“A lot of Indian tourist groups come here on a regular basis while Uzbeks enjoy the food on occasions and also love clicking pictures here. Whenever a Bollywood celebrity from India comes here, there is a bustling crowd,” he added.

The restaurant is also the official caterer for the majority of Indian events — be it the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Samarkand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit or ones like a recent Bollywood night which saw performances by Daler Mehandi and Ravi Kishan.

Five chefs from different parts of India are behind the variety-loaded menu at the restaurant.

“We offer all kinds of cuisine that are available in India. Our bestselling dishes are butter chicken, biryani, cheese naan and dosa,” said chef Kalamuddin Sheikh who hails from Orissa.

Wall dedicated to Indian celebrities who visited Raaj Kapur restaurant in Tashkent. | Photo Credit: PTI

Celebrity guests

A wall in the restaurant boasts of the renowned people who have visited the restaurant be it politicians like Sushma Swaraj and Rajnath Singh or Bollywood celebrities like Mithun Chakraborty, Shibani Kashyap, Daler Mehandi, Gulshan Grover, among others.

“We have placed signed sketches of the celebrities from India who have visited us. The restaurant is a big hit here,” Sohail Khan, Quality Manager at the restaurant told PTI.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Life & Style> Food / by PTI / October 30th, 2023

Self-Driving Car Wins Plainfield Teen 2nd Place At Science Event

Amazing Feats, Education, Green Products, Karnataka (under research project), NRI's / PIO's, Science & Technology, Transport, World Opinion, , , , ,

Bengaluru, KARNATAKA  / Illinois,  U.S.A ;

Amaan Khan placed at the National Junior Sciences and Humanities Symposium in Maryland.

AmaanKhan02MPOs20may2018

PLAINFIELD, IL :

Plainfield South High School sophomore Amaan Khan won second place in the National Junior Sciences and Humanities Symposium (JSHS) held in Maryland May 2 to May 5, 2018, for creating a self-driving model car.

He advanced to the national competition after winning first place at the regional JSHS competition in March.

Khan’s model car can drive within designated lanes, stop and go at traffic lights, and avoid obstacles.

His second-place finish earned him an $8,000 scholarship in addition to the $2,000 scholarship for winning the regional event. The regional competition is open to ninth through twelfth grade students.

Most of the 97 national competitors were high school juniors and seniors. “Second in national is still really great,” Khan said.

Students compete in several categories including computer science and math, bioengineering, behavioral science, medicine, health, physics, engineering and environmental science.

Khan wants to enter the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair next year, he said.

Photo/article via District 202

source: http://www.patch.com / Plainfield Patch / Home> Kids & Family /  by Shannon Antinori , Patch National Staff / May 17th, 2018

Plainfield South High School sophomore creates, programs self-driving car

Amazing Feats, Education, Green Products, Karnataka (under research project), NRI's / PIO's, Science & Technology, Transport, Videos, World Opinion, , , ,

Bengaluru, KARNATAKA  / Illinois,  U.S.A

Amaan Khan, 15, to travel to national competition

Photo provided
Photo provided

Plainfield :

A Plainfield South High School sophomore is traveling to a national science competition, after he created and programmed a self-driving car.

Amaan Khan, 15, will compete this week in the National Junior Science and Humanities Symposium in Maryland, after winning the Illinois Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (JSHS) in March, according to a news release from Plainfield District 202.

Khan created and programmed a self-driving car that can drive within designated lanes, stop and go at lights and avoid obstacles.

He won a $2,000 college scholarship and free trip to the national competition. He is one of two students from Illinois heading to Maryland to compete Tuesday through Saturday with 93 students from across the nation.

Competitors must submit a research paper and present their projects before a panel of judges and an audience of their peers.

Khan became interested in robotics and artificial intelligence last year, after he built a voice-controlled toy car. He took online college courses and watched college lecture courses and YouTube videos to teach himself computer programming.

“As I was learning I kept building the project,” Khan said. “I’d learn one thing, implement it, learn another thing and implement that.”

Patrick and Samantha Scanlan, PSHS science teachers, have supported Khan along the journey.

Samantha Scanlan helped Khan register for the contest. Patrick Scanlan helped Khan polish his oral presentation.

“[Khan] knows what he wants and seeks out the resources to do it,” Patrick Scanlan said. “And if there’s something he needs to learn, he’s able to figure out what he needs to be successful.”

The JSHS is designed to challenge and engage students in science, technology, engineering or math.

To see Khan’s car in action, visit youtube.com/watch?v=3dEgJ7sz6XA.

source: http://www.theherald-news.com / The Herald-News / Home> Local News  / by The Herald-News / April 30th, 2018