Faux pas? Padma award goes to wrong person

The Padma awards committee seems to have conferred the prestigious Padma Shri award in the field of art and culture to a man who turned out to be an exporter of shawls and not a national craftsman.

The blame game has already begun with senior government officials saying they had never recommended Hashmat Ullah Khan’s name in the first place.

Spokesperson of J&K Academy of Art and Culture Javed Rahl said, “There is no person by that name in the field of art and culture in this state. Also, the J&K Academy of Art, Culture and Languages did not recommend anyone by this name.”

Khan was nominated for the Padma Shri under the art, culture and literature category. Then it was corrected to the craftsmen category, but when the hunt for Khan started after his nomination, it was found that no craftsman by that name existed in Jammu and Kashmir.

According to Khan, he got a call on January 24 evening informing and congratulating him for the award.

Dev Patel wants to work with Will Smith

Slumdog Millionaire star Dev Patel is a huge fan of Will Smith and is so eager to work with him that he is using interviews to urge the star to get in touch with him.

Patel once waited at a premiere for three hours just to get a photo with the actor, according to reports.

In a recent chat

with US news show Extra, Patel said: “Hello, Mr Smith Please let me do a film with you. I stumbled upon your premiere of Hancock in London and I waited three hours. I was dying to go to the toilet and I’ve got a picture of you on my phone. It’d be great. Just a small role. Shake your hand or something… Thank you.”

Patel also has big plans to work with Jim Carrey and Leonardo DiCaprio. Frieda Pinto, who played Patel’s love interest in Slumdog Millionaire, too is a big fan of “DiCaprio” and would love to work with him.

She said: “I’ve fantasised about him. I had a crush on him. Ever since Titanic… This is really embarrassing, but I had a scrapbook with everything Leonardo in it… He’s a really nice person. The crush is gone but the admiration is still there.”

Hundred days of Chandrayaan

India’s maiden mission to the moon, Chandrayaan-1 has been a remarkable success so far. The unmanned satellite is currently orbiting the moon, and it completes 100 days in space on Thursday.

To mark the occasion, about 100 lunar specialists from India

and abroad are meeting in Bangalore to analyze the first results and to pave the way forward.

In 100 days, Chandrayaan-1 has sent back some spectacular images of the moon’s surface. According to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), all its instruments are working normally.

Among the first tasks of Chandrayaan was to send a special computer monitor-sized gadget hurtling down to the moon’s surface, that was plastered with India’s flag. It gets us the first look at the video taken by the moon probe as it approached the moon surface. It also brings us images of lunar regions never ever visualized in all previous moon missions.

“India’s lunar satellite Chandrayaan-1 is sending down incredible, never seen before images of the moon. It includes pictures taken as the moon impact probe worked its way down creating history,” said Pranesh Kumar.

There are over 100,000 pictures already with ISRO, which have been taken with amazing clarity. Spectacular three-dimensional views of the moon and its mountains at great resolution are available.

But what is exciting lunar explorers most are a set of images of the moon’s very deep craters on the south pole, that have never ever been viewed till date.

“All the 11 instruments are functioning as expected and looking into details of the moon’s regions and craters. Those are places which people have not seen before. Chandrayaan-1 baby is doing very well. Today, Chandrayaan-1 baby is a healthy baby doing what is expected,” said M. Annadurai, Project Director, Chandrayaan-1, ISRO, Bangalore.

Chandrayaan is a two-year mission, and it is collecting data in humongous quantities. Its interpretation is a different ball game altogether, a realm where scientists tread gingerly. But hopefully, the moon’s many mysteries may be solved through the Indian eye on the moon.

I am playing my best, says Saina

Saina Nehwal speaks at the press conference in Bangalore on Wednesday.

BANGALORE: The junior World badminton champion and World No. 10, Saina Nehwal, feels that she is playing at her best at the moment and there is absolutely no pressure on her as she sets her sights high.

Saina, who has been signed by Herbalife, a health and nutrition product as a ‘Brand Ambassador’ here on Wednesday, said: “I am playing my best game now. Being World No. 10 doesn’t add any pressure and I am enjoying every bit of it and hope to break into the top five.”

Saina, however, said that while becoming a World No. 1 was a big dream, she has not set any time frame on that.

“At the level I am playing, there are a lot more experienced players and who are really good. It is going to be a tough act but I will keep doing my best.”

Training abroad

Saina also discounted the possibility of training abroad. “Personally, I don’t think I can do that. I enjoy training here.

“At Gopi Chand’s academy, I put seven to eight hours of training, which is not possible if I go abroad. We have all the facilities here and some of the best coaches in the world like Prakash Padukone, Vimal Kumar and of course my mentor Gopi Chand.”

“I did have a bit of pressure when I won the Philippines Open last season, following which there were a lot of expectations but I can now handle it. I do a lot of meditation and stay calm,” she said.

Game wise, she felt that everything was in place. “I am confident and perfecting myself in every way,” added Saina.

Asked whether it is the age of youth in badminton, Saina was quick to retort: “We youngsters are much fitter and faster but look at players like Zhang Ning, who have so much experience on their side.”

New points system

On the new points system in vogue in the game, Saina opined that it benefited both senior and junior players alike. “Senior players had the advantage of playing the longer version of the game and so they have the staying power while we the younger lot, with better tactics to suit the system, have been beating them.”

She rated Chinese champion Zhou Mi as her main rival.

Saina said that she now looks forward to the challenges ahead, playing in the All England, Swiss Open and later the World championship at Hyderabad.

“World championship is a big one for me, that too playing at home.

“I had great crowd support when I won the world juniors at Pune and I expect the same kind of backing from Hyderabadis,” said the champion.