10th Jagran Film Fest to Pay Homage to Late Greats of Indian Cinema: Veeru Devgun, Kader Khan, Mrinal Sen & Girish Karnad

 

The 10th edition of the Jagran Film Festival (JFF) will pay homage to some of the most iconic gems from various disciplines within Bollywood. With the film festival celebrating a decade of cinematic culture, the festival will be paying tribute to Kader Khan, Mrinal Sen, Veeru Devgun and Girish Karnad, whose recent demise left their family, friends, fans and the fraternity in mourning.

The festival’s Homage section will have filmmaker Rohit Shetty in-conversation with film critic Rajeev Masand on Veeru Devgun, whom Shetty regarded as his ‘Guru’, at Siri Fort Auditorium on 20th July 2019. Two movies of each legend will be screened at the film festival in remembrance of their great contribution in Bollywood.

Image result for girish karnadGirish Karnad: Girish Karnad was an Indian actor, film director, Kannada writer, playwright and a Rhodes scholar, who predominantly worked in South Indian cinema and Bollywood.

He was conferred Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan by the Government of India and won four Filmfare Awards, of which three are Filmfare Award for Best Director – Kannada, and the fourth is a Filmfare Best Screenplay Award. He was also the recipient of the 1998 Jnanpith Award, the highest literary honour conferred in India.

Karnad made his acting as well as screenwriting debut in a Kannada movie, Samskara (1970), which won the first President’s Golden Lotus Award for Kannada cinema. In television, he played the role of Swami’s father in the famous TV series Malgudi Days. He made his directorial debut with Vamsha Vriksha (1971) which fetched him the National Film Award for Best Direction. He acted in a number of Nagesh Kukunoor films, starting with Iqbal (2005), Dor (2006), 8 x 10 Tasveer (2009) and Aashayein (2010). He played a key role in movies Ek Tha Tiger (2012) and its sequel Tiger Zinda Hai (2017) produced by Yash Raj Films.

Veeru Devgan: Veeru Devgan was an Indian stuntman, action choreographer and director in Bollywood movies. He began his career in 1974 and choreographed fight and action scenes for over 80 Hindi films, including Mr Natwarlal, Ek Khiladi Bawan Pattey, Jigar, Dil Kya Kare, etc. Veeru Devgan also directed the film Hindustan Ki Kasam (1999) which starred his son Ajay Devgn, Amitabh Bachchan, Manisha Koirala and Sushmita Sen. The late stunt choreographer also acted in a few films, including Sar Utha Ke Jiyo', Kranti, Mr Natwarlal, Captain Singh, Muqabla and Ek Khiladi Bawan Pattey. He also produced two films Dil Kya Kare and Singhasan. Veeru also worked in Phool Aur Kaante (1991) as action coordinator. It was the debut movie of Ajay Devgn and bagged the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut.

Related imageKader Khan: Kader Khan was an Indian-Canadian film actor, screenwriter, comedian and director. As an actor, he appeared in over 300 Hindi and Urdu films after his debut in the 1973 film Daag. He played a variety of roles across genres like comedy, action, romance, family, social and political. He was popularly recognized for playing a supporting role with actors like Rajesh Khanna, Jeetendra, Mithun Chakraborty, Amitabh Bachchan, etc. He also started getting lengthy roles as supporting actor after 1984, with films like Masterji, Dharm Adhikari, Nasihat, etc. From 1988, there were films written by him in main lead, like Jaisi Karni Waisi Bharnii, Hum Hain Kamaal Ke, Baap Numbri Beta Dus Numbri etc. From 1989 onwards, he started doing mainly comedy roles in films like Sikka, Kishen Kanhaiya, Hum, Bol Radha Bol etc. Masti Nahi Sasti, Hogaya Dimaagh Ka Dahi are few of the last films of Kader Khan.

Khan delivered some of the biggest hits of the ’90s and early 2000s with David Dhawan, including Shola Aur Shabnam, Hero No 1, Coolie No 1, Aunty No 1, Haseena Maan Jayegi and Mujhse Shaadi Karogi, among numerous others. He was also a noted screenwriter and wrote dialogues for over 250 Bollywood films like Roti in 1974. Some of Amitabh Bachchan's films with popular dialogues and script were written by him include Mr Natwarlal, Khoon Pasina, Do Aur Do Paanch, Satte Pe Satta, Inquilab, Agneepath etc.

Related imageMrinal Sen: Mrinal Sen was a famous Indian filmmaker and directed films primarily in Bengali and Hindi. He was known as one of the pioneers of the New Cinema movement in India. His earlier films are characterized by their left-leaning, often Marxist approaches to Indian society. Sen won the National Film Awards 18 times. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2008 and the Order of Friendship in 2005. The same year, he was awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for his contribution to Indian cinema. He is considered one of the greatest Indian filmmakers of all time. Mrinal Sen first feature film was Raat Bhore (1955). In 1982, he was a member of the jury at the 32nd Berlin International Film Festival. In 1983, he was a member of the jury at the 13th Moscow International Film Festival. In 1997 Sen became the member of the jury at the 20th Moscow International Film Festival. After a long gap of eight years, at the age of eighty, he made his last film, Aamaar Bhuvan (“My Land”, 2002).

During his career, Mrinal Sen’s films received awards at almost all major film festivals, including Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Moscow, Karlovy Vary, Montreal, Chicago, and Cairo. Retrospectives of his films have been shown in almost all major cities of the world. He was also elected as the president of the International Federation of the Film Societies. He received the Taj Enlighten Tareef Award which is given for a lifetime contribution to the world of cinema in 2008. He also received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 10th edition of the Osian's Cinefest Film Festival 2008.

The Jagran Film Festival kickstarts in Delhi from 18th July and will travel through Kanpur, Lucknow, Allahabad, Varanasi, Agra, Meerut, Dehradun, Hisar, Ludhiana, Patna, Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Gorakhpur, Raipur, Indore and Bhopal. The festival will culminate on September 29 in Mumbai.

Government’s Plan to Set Up Charging Infrastructure for Electric Vehicles Needs Stronger Push

Arumugham Shankar, COO - Strategic Consulting, JLL India

Rapid urbanization witnessed in the country demands for smart urban mobility solutions that are less taxing on the environment. In such a scenario, electric vehicles come as a possible solution. Instead, the conventional fleet of ve hicles in India is growing rapidly: total vehicle sales (including motorcycles) increased stood at 262677.83 bn in 2018-19, according to SIAM data (Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers). The total number of vehicles on the road is expected to grow significantly by the end of the next decade. As part of its overall mission to address the challenges related to urban mobility, the Union Budget 2019-20 emphasized the very need to promote the use of electric vehicles (EVs).

Administrators at the centre, the states and the cities understand the pressing need to explore green fuel and zero-emission vehicles. This also means, in a decade, the government wants the cities to transition to options like electric vehicles. However, scrutiny of the current status of this ongoing transition in India reinforces the need for time-bound and impactful action towards this shift.

Why the push?

The rise in the use of EVs will in a way impact the development of our urban spaces and infrastructure. Here’s how:

With po licies and schemes in place for the introduction of EVs in both, the public and private transportation realms, the government is already working on a roadmap for setting up of supportive infrastructure across cities, around our homes and other places of importance such as educational institutions, community parking places etc. A key element here is the charging station infrastructure in the country.

Union Budget 2019-20 announcement incentivizes the use of EVs

“Phase-II of FAME ( Faster Adoption and Manufacture of (Hybrid and) Electric Vehicles) Scheme, following approval of the Cabinet with an outlay of INR 10,000 crore for a period of three years, has commenced from 1st April, 2019. The main objective of the Scheme is to encourage faster adoption of Electric vehicles by way of offering an upfront incentive on the purchase of electric vehicles and also by establishing the necessary charging infrastructure for electric vehicles. Only advanced battery and registered e-vehicles will be incentivized under the Scheme with greater emphasis on providing affordable & environment-friendly public transportation options for the common man.”

The National E-mobility Mission Plan 2013 targets sale of 6-7 mn electric vehicles by 2020 and plans to a transition where 30% EVs has been envisioned on the road by 2030.

To promote the use of electric vehicles, the government will also provide additional income tax deduction of INR 1.5 lakh on the interest paid on loans taken to purchase electric vehicles.

What is required now?

A)    Set up of a smart charging infrastructure: If we plan to use electric vehicles in a big way in coming decade and envision ourselves as the global manufacturing hub for electric vehicles, charging stations will have to be set up across all urban areas, and highways across the country to ensure assured and sustainable transition to electric vehicles.

The Ministry of Power, Government of India has rolled out the Guidelines on Electric Charging Infrastructure for EVs. In the list of cities that offer the most favourable environment to the shift to EVs are cities with high pollution levels and a population of greater than four million residents. These are Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Kolkata, Surat and Pune.

Setting up of charging stations will be a de-licensed activity and thus the rollout of these charging stations are expected to be quite rapid. The charging station will also be free to obtain electricity from any power company through the open access system. Once applied for, the charging station will also be given priority for an electric connection by the distributing agency.

Although the government maintains an optimistic stand when it comes to the transition to EVs, it must be borne in mind that charging infrastructure is key to the success of the desired shift. The size, type and capacity of the charging station, power requirements and inter-operability of charging stations set up at residential, commercial and institutional establishments are important criteria to be standardized, with an option for customization, for successful implementation of the plan. Different segment of vehicles (2W, 3W, PVs, CVs) may require a different type of charging standard (& connector), however, the charging infrastructure, at least at public places, should be common to the extent possible to reduce the infra cost.

The FAME Scheme and the phased Manufacturing Programme (by NITI Ayog) will soon facilitate easier and cost effective methods of setting up of EV charging stations by introducing norms and standards for Charging stations. There are currently only three acceptable global standards – the ones provided the Japanese, the Chinese and the European Countries. The standards will help project charging stations as a feasible model for the public as well as private modes of transport.

B) &nbs p;   Spatial planning of EV charging infrastructure: Optimal locations for EV charging installations will change according to the type of equipment in use. For example, long-duration charging may be a good match for home or workplace locations, but is generally not recommended for shorter duration parking areas, such as grocery stores, commercial establishments, etc. The process for installing EV charging at a particular location will depend on the property ownership and type of land use. Availability of power, constructability, environmental conditions, barriers or mounting options, signs and markings to designate sites and restrict the use and suitability are the attributes to be looked at.

On similar lines, amendments have also been made to the URDPFI Guidelines 2014 (Urban and Regional Development Plans Formulation and Implementation Guidelines) to make provisions for and ensure smooth accommodation of EV public charging stations within the urban setting.

Considering that the optimal locations for EV charging infrastructure in most cities with a tight land supply are difficult to obtain, it is significant to assess carefully, the planning of these sites in metros. Utilizing existing space within crowded cities is key here. This being said, if cities wish to reap the vast benefits of the shift to EVs and improve public health and quality of life, they will need to plan for the dramatic expansion of electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

What is the immediate requirement?

We need to prepare a master list of locations within the city and connecting highways, where the charging infrastructure for public as well as private modes of transport will be set up.

Regulating how land is used in a community is one of the most powerful tools that the local government has. On the infrastructure side, the states can use its zoning laws to allow extension of the electricity grid, installation of charging infrastructure, vehicle parking, and the creation of charging hubs.

The building bylaws can be used to permit charging points in existing construction and encourage or require it in new construction. Town and Country Planning Organization, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, GoI has made amendments in the Model Building Byelaws 2016 (MBBL – 2016) to make provisions for ‘Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure’ / Public Charging Stations (PCS) in urban areas.

Finally design and collaboration matters

However, we must bear in mind that ‘design’ matters. Bad charging station design can deter EV adoption rather than stimulate it. Good station design can help make it highly visible, easy to access, pleasant to sit at, and unlikely to be blocked by other vehicles. Working such features into EV charging station regulations and plans in cities can ensure that we move EV adoption forward.

It is important that governments and the private sector coordinate their deployment activities to ensure that convenient, affordable, and reliable public cha rging infrastructure is available to all EV drivers. There is still much more work to do. All including the centre, the states, the public level bodies and the private sector have to join hands to develop a robust charging infrastructure network.  

AMD Unleashes the Ultimate 7nm Gaming Platform, Available Now

Today, AMD announced worldwide availability of its new 7nm leadership PC gaming platform based on the AMD Radeon RX 5700 series graphics cards, 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen Desktop Processors, as well as Ryzen 3000 Series Processors with Radeon Graphics.

Radeon RX 5700 Series, superior 1440p gaming, incredible visual fidelity, highly responsive gameplay

Raising the bar for gamers with the all-new RDNA architecture, support for PCIe 4.0, and 8GB of GDDR6 VRAM, the Radeon 5700 Series graphics cards deliver up to 1.25X performance-per-clock and up to 1.5X performance-per-watt over the previous Graphic Core Next (GCN) architecture.
Powerful new features include: Radeon Image Sharpening that brings crispness and clarity to in-game visuals; FidelityFX, an open-source toolkit with high-quality post-process effects; and Radeon Anti-Lag that reduces input-to-display response times to give eSports gamers a competitive edge.
The Radeon RX 5700 XT and Radeon RX 5700 are available today from AMD.com and leading etailers and retailers for $399 and $349 USD SEP respectively. The AMD 50th Anniversary Edition Radeon RX 5700 XT is available for $449 USD SEP from AMD.com. and JD.com
The latest Radeon Software Adrenalin 2019 Edition release, available today here, brings support for Radeon RX 5700 Series and other Radeon graphics cards with innovative new features.
3rd Gen AMD Ryzen Desktop Processors, dominating gaming and productivity for everyone

Harnessing the new “Zen 2” architecture with high-performance 7nm process technology and utilizing the innovative X570 chipset featuring PCIe 4.0, the 3rd Gen Ryzen delivers world-class gaming, game streaming, and content creation performance – offering up to 58% higher performance-per-watt than the competition.

Fully unlocked and supported by AMD Precision Boost Overdrive, 3rd Gen Ryzen can increase the maximum clock frequency by up to 200MHz at the touch of a button.
3rd Gen Ryzen Desktop Processors are available today from leading etailers and retailers starting at just $199 USD.
Ryzen 3000 Series Processors with Radeon Graphics – high-power, low-cost

Ryzen 3000 Series Processors with Radeon Graphics are armed with higher clock speeds, super-fast graphics, and new driver feature, providing the world’s most powerful graphics on a desktop processor with the Ryzen 5 3400G.
Ryzen 3000 Series Processors with Radeon Graphics are available today from leading etailers and retailers starting at $99 USD. Learn more in a new blog post, here.

June 2019 Records 22% Y-o-Y Growth in Talent Demand: TimesJobsRecruiteX

TimesJobs has released the findings of its RecruiteXJune 2019edition. As per the June 2019 edition, talent demand is on an upswing at India Inc. - indicating that it is business as usual at the corporate floorsas the Modi 2.0 government is settling in and formulating the new union budget. RecruiteX is a monthly recruitment index that records the demand and supply of talent across different industries.

The month of June 2019 posted 22% Y-o-Y growth in talent demand, like the May 2019 trend. The latest edition revealed that theIT/Telecom sector noted highest Y-o-Y talent demand with 28% growthfollowed by the Consumer Durables/FMCG sector which posted 23% Y-o-Y growth in talent demand.

Commenting on the findings of the June 2019 edition of TimesJobs RecruiteX, Sanjay Goyal, Business Head, TimesJobs and TechGig said, “It’s promising to see that the talent demand is positive despite the recent elections and government formation - a period that typically sees some instability. While the IT sector has traditionally been a big employment generator in India,it’s good to note that other key sectors such as Healthcare, Construction, and Consumer Durables/FMCG sectors have also witnessed strong Y-o-Y growth in talent demand. Even the location-wise hiring trends have shown a positive picture with Chennai showing a Y-o-Y growth of 46%.”

In sector-wise Y-o-Y analysis revealed that Healthcare and Construction sectors have witnessed 21% growth each in talent demand, thereby claiming the third and fourth spot on the list.

Retail sector (7%) noted the highest growth in talent demand in the M-o-M analysis. The sector was followed by Consumer Durables/FMCG (3%).

The key findings of TimesJobs RecruiteX are:

Sectors with most talent demand (Y-o-Y study):

·     IT/Telecom- 28% growth
·     Consumer Durables/FMCG - 23% growth
·     Healthcare - 21% growth

The Retail sector claimed the highesttalent demand in June 2019’s M-o-M comparison andnoted 16% Y-o-Y growth.

Functional-areas most in demand (Y-o-Y study):

·     IT/Telecom – 31% growth
·     Logistics/ Supply Chain Management – 20% growth
·     Sales/Business Development – 19% growth

IT/Telecom sector has been consistently posting stronggrowth in talent demand since December 2018.

Locations with most talent demand(Y-o-Y study):

·     Chennai – 46% growth
·     Indore – 46% growth
·     Bengaluru – 42% growth

Among states, Andhra Pradesh (Except Hyderabad) posted an impressive 64% uptick in Y-o-Y study of talent demand.

Work experience most in-demand(Y-o-Y study):

•          10-20 years of work experience – 31% growth
•          Less than 2 years – 21% growth
•          5-10 years – 19% growth 

Innovator Sonam Wangchuk and Kumari Shibulal Endorse Teach One to Transform Lives Through Education

Kumari Shibulal, Founder and Managing Trustee, Sarojini Damodaran Foundation(SDF) and Mr. S.D Shibulal, Trustee, SDF and Co-founder, Infosys along with Mr. Sonam Wangchuk, Founder SECMOL (Student’s Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh),  endorsed “Each One, Teach One” at an event in Bangalore.

Vidyadhan, a higher education scholarship platform is a Shibulal Family Philanthropic Initiative, under the aegis of SDF. Together, they pledged their support to Vidyadhan’s vision to increase its impact from 13,000 scholarships in 10 States to 100,000 scholarships in all States in the next 5-7 years.

While access to higher education in India has improved, the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) for higher education stands at 25.8% today. Therefore, a vast majority of our youth does not have access to higher education and the opportunities to a better livelihood that result from it. “Each One, Teach One” is the only way we can fulfill our moral responsibility to give back to the society and also to make higher education accessible to all.

Currently there are 3500+ students enrolled in the program. Vidyadhan has provided 13,000 scholarships and is expected to grow to 100,000 scholarships, impacting more than 10,000 students and their families in the next 5-7 years. We urge individuals, corporate and developmental sector organizations to join our movement and bring to life, our vision, “Each One, Teach One.”

Honorary guest, Mr. Sonam Wangchuk, Founder SECMOL said, “I sincerely believe that “Each One, Teach One”, as a movement has the potential to transform lives through education and to make higher education accessible to all. If such a movement gains momentum across the country, it would not only help increase the Gross Enrollment Ratio, but will also help meritorious students achieve their full potential. In my own experience, through SECMOL, we have learnt that a group of committed and passionate individuals can truly make a difference and start a movement of change.”

About Sarojini Damodaran Foundation (SDF): The Sarojini Damodaran Foundation (SDF) is a part of the Shibulal Family Philanthropic Initiatives (SFPI). Established in1999, SDF emerged from a sense of responsibility towards the society to transform lives through education. SDF started by giving two scholarships to meritorious students from economically disadvantaged families in Kerala. Today, SDF is a constantly growing entity expanding its reach to various causes including education and sports (Vidyadhan, Vidyarakshak and Vidyakreeda), child healthcare (Ayurdhan), organic farming (AkshayaSree Awards) and social causes (Harishree) in different parts of the country.

Johnson's Baby Educates Indian Mums from Across the Country on Baby Products

Johnson & Johnson unveils a new initiative which was launched in the presence of 85 + Mums from across the country along with renowned Global experts ‘Robert Kwon’ and ‘James Kennedy’. Johnson’s Baby educates mums from across the country on the importance of Turn to Learn about ingredients in baby products at The School of Gentle. More than 85 mums along with their kids were part of the learning on July 5th, 2019.

Leadership Changes in Mindtree Following Change of Control

Mindtree, a global technology services and Digital transformation company, announced that Krishnakumar Natarajan, Executive Chairman, N S Parthasarathy, Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer and Rostow Ravanan, CEO and Managing Director have submitted their resignations as members of the Board of Directors of Mindtree Ltd and as employees of the company. They will stay as Board members till 17 July 2019 and as employees in line with their employment contracts to ensure smooth transition. Further, along with the other founders of the company, they have asked the company to de-classify them as promoters under applicable laws.

The company will announce a new leadership team in due course.

“Mindtree has delivered exceptional performance for all our stakeholders over the last 2 decades through our differentiated strategy and unique culture. We are grateful to all our customers, Mindtree Minds and external stakeholders for their steadfast support throughout our journey” Krishnakumar Natarajan, Executive Chairman, Mindtree. ”We wish the new leadership team at Mindtree the very best”.

Mindtree is a global IT consulting and services company which helps clients across 17 countries achieve business agility, competitive edge, and growth. We harness the power of Continuous Delivery, our digital expertise, industry knowledge, and research in emerging technologies to drive efficiencies and enable business innovation for over 349 clients.

Mindtree is consistently regarded as one of the best places to work. This is a reflection of our entrepreneurial, collaborative and dedicated “Mindtree Minds” who embody the winning culture that defines our commitment to excellence, innovation, and co-creation.