The colours used on these idols are the main ingredient responsible for polluting the water. The level of lead, mercury, cadmium used in these colours is very high. Why are we not encouraging the use of natural colours for these idols? Why the artisans are not using organic vegetable colours?

The ornaments worn over these idols are also made of metals and polluting the water. The flowers, ornaments, cloths and other offerings to these idols should be removed before immersion. The synthetic colours and the fabrics also pollute the water. It’s really difficult to clear the water from these toxic chemicals and heavy metals.

The artisans are so used with the chemical colours that they hardly want to switch. They are also now perfect about the appropriate quantity of the colour to be used. They get variant of colour in different shades also. Using of eco friendly colours might not give them different choices and will be less attractive also.

The government should take measures for the use to eco friendly colours and use of bio degradable material. In fact recycling process should be adapted. Why cannot the idols be recycled? Flowers can also be recycled for making paper. The coconut and other food items that are also immersed along with the idols should be distributed among the poor. The ornaments could be also made of recycle materials. And on top of all why do we really need to make gigantic idols? Why cannot we go for small idols and worship?

Let’s raise voice against it and create awareness among all.

Immersion of Idols and Polluting the water – Who is responsible ? by Nidhi Paul originally appeared on Technospot.IN on 2010/07/29. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

If you want to read more about Mughal Empire, you can refer to this Wikipedia page. Here we are talking about an interactive online resource, Mughal India, which helps you to easy learn more about the Mughals and Mughal Empire.

As soon as you open Mughal Indian in your browser, it presents a Staff Room in front of you, this room has several objects, and almost all of them are clickable and hold some story or information relevant to Mughal Empire.

Here like you can see when I hovered my mouse cursor over the bookshelf it allows me to access some books, you get a perfect book reading experience and you can actually flip the pages of books, in same way, the model of Taj Mahal kept on the table lets you know about the Taj, Globe allows you o see the Mughal Emipre regions, the green colored Turtle tells you about the Jade Terrapin found at the bottom of water cistern during the excavations in Allahabad, etc.

Mughal India is a great way of leraning about Mughals, best suited for kids and someone who is starting to know about the Mughals or Mughal Empire. Visit Mughal India

Learn about Mughal Empire [ Online Interactive Resource ] by Manav originally appeared on Technospot.IN on 2010/06/20. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Indian Music

The music of India is said to be one of the oldest unbroken musical   tradition of the world. The origin of Indian music goes back to the Vedas. Many different legends have grown up on the developing the Indian music.

Types of Indian Music:

Indian music is divided into three main categories

• Indian classical music
• Folk music
• Modern music

Indian classical music

It is one of the most complex and complete music system ever developed. It is broadly divided into two main stream,  one is the north Indian tradition known as Hindustani music and another is the Carnatic music which belonging to the South Indian traditions. Indian classic music is monophonic in nature and the performance is based melodically on particular ragas and rhythmically on talls.

Folk music

Rajasthan folk music

It consist the music according to the state and regions. Some of them are:

Bhangra music-It is a lively form of folk music and originated from the land of Punjab. It is performed with one person playing the dhol drum and another is flute, dholak drum and other musical instrument.

Dandiya music-It is a type of music generally performed in the state of Gujarat. The present musical style is derived from the traditional musical accompaniment to the folk dance.

Haryanavi music-The folk Music of Haryana has been spread by the Bhats, Saangis and Jogis. It is sung and played in the state of Haryana, parts of western UP and neighboring districts of Rajasthan and Punjab. The tradition of music in Haryana goes back to the Vedic times, and it is the only state in India to have towns and villages named after different ragas.

Qwallis music-They are the tradition form of Islamic songs and closely linked to the spiritual and artistic life of Northern India. It is also linked to the Sufi tradition and performed with one or two lead singers with several musical instruments like harmonium, tabla, dholak etc.

Gazal music-It is a type of music with a short poem with a series of couplets. Each couplet is an independent poem.

Rabindra sangeet-It refers a complete range of songs written by Rabindranath Tagore. Many elements of Indian classical music used in Rabindra sangeet to make it effective. Many singers in West Bengal and Bangladesh base their entire careers on the singing of Tagore musical masterpieces. The national anthem of India and national song of Bangladesh are the example of Rabindra Sangeets.

Rajasthani music-It is one of the most popular forms of music in India. The essence of Rajasthani music is derived from the creative symphony of string instruments, percussion instruments and wind instruments accompanied by melodious renditions of folk singers. It enjoys a respectable presence in Bollywood music as well.

Modern music:

Indi-pop-Indian pop music, often known as Indipop or Indi-pop, is based on an amalgamation of Indian folk and classical music, and modern beats from different parts of the world.

Related :  Types of Dance Styles in India and Dance Institutes in India and abroad

Image Source

Types of Music in India by Shweta Mohta originally appeared on Technospot.IN on 2010/05/25. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Dowry Free Marriage

A Matrimonial site namely “dowryfreemarraiges.com” has been launched recently by  the Nilambar Village Panchayat in Kerala offers a forum for the open minded people with a vision of abolishing the Dowry system from the country. Nilambar village is located at the heart of Kerala with majority of Muslim population.

The site has got immense response from day 1 of launching as a result within a weeks time they have been able to register almost 1000 candidates from across religion like Hindu , Muslim or Christian. Nilambar Panchayat has also undertaken an innovative attempt of Dowry Free Village campaign with the help of Kerala Mahila Samakhya Samity. Different Workshop, Gramsabha , Cultural Programs have been conducted by the committee to spread the awareness and also to change people’s mindset regarding dowry.

No doubt it’s a commendable effort of the people behind the screen to undertake such great effort which really has great value. Its high time now to create the awareness to mass village population beside celebrating Women’s day within few number of Urban Population.

To know more about the website please visit here

Dowry Free Marriage – An Innovative Idea of Keralites by Nidhi Paul originally appeared on Technospot.IN on 2010/03/12. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Disclaimer : I got the images in a mail, and its credited to whoever it belongs to.

Pictures of Old times of India by Nidhi Paul originally appeared on Technospot.IN on 2010/02/12. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

‘Mile Sur MeraTumhara’, was telecast for the first time on Independence Day 1988, after the telecast of the Prime Minister’s speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort. Again on Independence Day 2010 the song has been launched in the new version in Mumbai.

The Old – Mile Sur MeraTumhara 

The concept of Mile Sur MeraTumhara was developed by LokSeva Sanchar Parishadand India’s Ministry of Information. Composer Mr Ashok Patki with co-composed & arranged by Louis Banks had framed the song so beautifully with the lyrics by Piyush Pandey that even today it shakes the patriotic feeling of every Indian. 

The New – Mile Sur MeraTumhara

The new version retains the old gems of the original track. Again directed by Kailash Surendranat and retaining the music composer/arranger Louis Banks. The new video is actually 5 mins longer than the old one. The unique point in this video you will see is the use of sign language enacted by Salman Khan with small children and showcasing the Indian Armed Forces in the end. 

Both the songs end by the final notes from the Indian National Anthem.

The remarkable point in the new version is opening by the King of Music Mr A.R Rahaman followed by Big B. Maximum use of all the types of musical instruments has been used.

The Soul Lyrical format

New Version: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/videoshow/5502160.cms

The unique feature of the lyric is one phrase, repeated in 14 Indian languages: “Mile sur mera tumhara, to sur bane hamara”, meaning “When my tune and your tune merge, it becomes our tune”.

Languages – Marathi,Hindi, Kashmiri, Punjabi, Sindhi, Urdu, Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam, Bangla, Assamese, Oriya and Gujarati

 People featured then –  

Amitabh Bachchan, MithunChakraborty,TanvirAshai, Kamal Hasan, K.R.Vijaya, Revathi, Jeetendra, WaheedaRehman, HemaMalini, Tanuja, Sharmila Tagore, ShabanaAzmi, DeepaSahi, Om Puri, Dina Pathak, MeenakshiSeshadri (Actors: Film and T.V.) Mallika Sarabhai (Dancer) Mario Miranda (Cartoonist) MrinalSen (Filmmaker) Sunil Gangopadhyay, Annadashankar Ray (Authors) Bhimsen Joshi, M Balamuralikrishna, LataMangeshkar, SuchitraMitra (Singers) NarendraHirwani, S Venkataraghavan, PrakashPadukone, Ramanathan Krishnan, ArunLal, PK Banerjee, ChuniGoswami, Syed Kirmani, Leslie Claudius, Gurbux Singh (Sportsmen), PratapPothen, [AV Ramanan], Shashi (AanaPaappaan)

People featured now –

Amitabh Bachchan, AbhishekBachchan, AishwaryaRaiBachchan, A R Rahman, Sonu Nigam, Salman Khan, Aamir Khan, PrasenjitChatterjee, BaichungBhutia, Shahrukh Khan, Mahesh Babu, DeepikaPadukone, RanbirKapoor, ShahidKapoor, Shaan, BhupenHazarika, KavitaKrishnamoorthy, Dr. L. Subramaniam, Anoushka Shankar, Mammootty, Shivkumar Sharma, Rahul Sharma (musician), Gurdas Mann, JuhiChawla, ZakirHussain (musician), ThetakudiHariharaVinayakram, Vikram, Surya, AbhinavBindra, SudarshanPatnaik, ShilpaShetty, Vijender Singh, Sushil Kumar, Karan Johar, K. J. Yesudas, ShiamakDavar, ShobanaChandrakumar, ShreyaGhosal, RohitBal, Priyanka Chopra, Louis Banks, RituparnaSen Gupta, Amjad Ali Khan, Amaan Ali Khan, Ayaan Ali Khan and Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy 

Although the new version has been launched but we need to see how it overtakes the eyes and ears of the viewers of the older version. The new avatar has been criticised by many as it has more to do with Bollywood stars and the older one has stick more with the different languages representing the different states. The song has tried to retain the old theme of the song but we need to judge if it has really?

‘Mile sur mera tumhara’ – How soothing is the new version? by Nidhi Paul originally appeared on Technospot.IN on 2010/01/31. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Wedding cans

You must be thinking that how that will help them? As per the couple aluminum recycling is one of the most sustainable and useful form of recycling. The couples have also given the drop off locations  that will enable the peoples to help them. They are also providing the pick up facility if you’re in the Spokane, WA or surrounding area.

 For more details please visit – Wedding Cans

Selling Aluminium cans to help for wedding by Nidhi Paul originally appeared on Technospot.IN on 2010/01/11. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

With trends changing even the fat marriages are getting on diet and going green.  Green Wedding is the new term which is not only eco-friendly but also pocket friendly to fin in your budget.  Lets have a glance how the preparation starts.

Green wedding

Wedding Cards : 

Prefer Email over Paper Mail for your friends : When you get your wedding card ready, get a scan of it and send it as an email invitation. This way you can save tones of wedding card getting printed and send them faster with zero cost.

Relatives to whom you cannot send email or where a personal touch is required a paper wedding card is must. To make it more economic and eco-friendly get your Wedding card printed in a recycled paper ( Like one of those CRY cards ).

Green wedding invitation

You can even think of making  a hand-made card out of left over packing papers combined with bamboo or sugarcane cuttings etc. Yes you will need help of your friends and relatives. It will really tempt you to know the new idea about  this wedding. but “keep the enviroment green” is what these cards are also trying to spread. I would suggest you to watch the kids show where they really show how to use left overs to create excellent impressive stuff.

Attire of Bride and Groom

Next thing that will strike is about the attire of the bride and the groom. Choose organic cotton and khadi over synthetic and silk. One might not like the simple material. After all we all want to look different on our BIG DAY.If you want to wear silk than go for non-violent silks.try out silk achkans and kurtas.many fashion designers have started using eco-friendly fabrics on wedding attires.

Green wedding shoes

Decor

• Use oil lamps instead of electricity. You might have to careful but this can be done by using good idea and taking precaution at the same time.
• Tents made of Khadi is used in place of synthetic fabrics.
• Real flowers, potted plants and seasonal flowers will add the beauty all around instead of using plastic decor which are harmful when disposed.
• Use kitchen masala and colours to make Rangolis instead of buying synthetic colours. Use Wooden dust, turmeric etc .

When we are discussing all have you noticed one thing. the preparation is going on without adding pressure on the environment ?  It will make you feel as if the Mother Nature is enjoying with you.

Photography and Sound

Eco-friendly wedding means no camera, no sound? definitely not. Now we cannot totally remove but we might think of optimizing it.

Most of the weddings play music too loud which not only disturbs the outside environment but also inside. Use 2 large speakers instead of 4. This way you will be able to save electricity and reduce noise pollution. Play music in such a way that it doesn’t hurt you ears.

You can pickup photographers who follow the green trend. Taking pictures might not have so much of alternative yet but when you get your wedding album ready here are few tips you can follow :

• Get a digital album done instead of a physical album. You can send it across the copy of it all your relatives. Being in age of computer and Internet we should be leveraging these facilities.
• Share your pictures on professional sites like Facebook, Flickr or Photobucket. These sites do offer you pro account at very cheap rates which can help you host your photographs and memories forever.

Food

• Go for vegetarian food.
• Avoid using coal and wood, use regular gas instead.
• Use organic ingredients.
• Instead of using glossy plates made of glass etc use disposable plates which can be recycled later. The same idea which we were trying to put into wedding card.
• Or If you are arranging where people can sit and eat, use Banana leaves and cups made of betel leaves.

The Venue :

• Select a venue which is open and has more of natural light and fresh air. This will cut the amount of light required when you prepare for a function in day time.
• Get an electrician or a person who is good in placing lights. The advantage you would get over regular guy is proper usage of lights which gives you most light and you save some bucks. Use more of less power lights than high power, they waste electricity and produce more heat.

Few Examples which I have cited online :

• Joy + Sean’s Travel Themed Wedding, Jen has lot of idea on green wedding.
• Great Green Wedding

I am eagerly waiting for such wedding invitation and I know that no one will miss the chance if invited. Do spread the message and idea to keep the environment clean and green. If you do have a marriage coming up share these with them and see if you can make it happen.

Though the older generation might not like it but if the new generation can start making up these soon we will see people saving money on marriages and make the environment green too.Lets raise voice against global warming. and take steps to protect the world. come up with ideas and suggestions.

Making Fat Indian wedding greener : Green Wedding Ideas by Ashish Mohta originally appeared on Technospot.IN on 2010/01/11. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Royal mail stamps

According to the Telegraph the stamps for Rabindranath Tagore might get released this coming book fair and will also be available to public for direct sale.

I remember as a kid I used to collect stamps and this reminds me of those days. It’s good to get reminded of people in history through this so if not too much but involve your kids into stamp collection so when they come across a picture or an event displayed on stamp they ask you about it.

Royal Mail Uk will release Stamps for Rabindranath Tagore by Ashish Mohta originally appeared on Technospot.IN on 2010/01/10. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Pulse home

The catch behind Pulse Magazine i sthe embedded audio hot spots which one touched by a special pen results in play back of 60 minutes of audio, music, interviews, aduio lessons and advertisement.  This way you can not only enjoy reading but also listen to understand more with joy. 

Pulse Magazine

The pen has a 500MB inbuilt memory, runs on 2 AAA battery, USB cable, headphone point and a speaker.

Pulse talking pen

I wasnt able to find a video which would tell us how is the experience of this pen with their audio magazine but the idea certainly sounds good. An excellent opportunity for magazine lovers to go ahead on step and enjoy the audio experience as they read the book. Check out Pulse

Pulse : Magazine with talking hotspots by Ashish Mohta originally appeared on Technospot.IN on 2010/01/09. Please see our terms for use of feeds.