Tribe Desi Blog: New York

Showing posts with label New York. Show all posts

Sunday, July 10, 2011

With U.S. military aid cut, Pakistan eyes China

With U.S. military aid cut, Pakistan eyes China - World Watch - CBS News:

"On Sunday, the senior Pakistani official who spoke to CBS News on condition of anonymity following the Times report said, 'This tightening of U.S. military aid was expected. That's where our long-term relations with China will help to meet this gap.'

In recent weeks, Pakistani officials have pointed towards China's increasing role in the past decade as its main supplier of military hardware, as Pakistan established closer ties to the U.S. campaign against terror following the September 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington."

Saturday, September 25, 2010

India a 'must-invest market': Nooyi

India a 'must-invest market': Nooyi

"If I used the word appalling that would be bit of an understatement," Nooyi said during the panel-discussion in New York organised by the Indian American Foundation and Yale University.

She said although there has been some development in infrastructure but the couple of highways and airport were not enough.

"I'm not saying developments have not been made but its not as fast as it needs to be...Unfortunately every project that starts, there is too much of slippage."

The Indian-born businesswomen stressed on the need for India to do a lot more to strengthen its basic infrastructure, for companies wanting to invest in India. "The first biggest issue we have is infrastructure."

Monday, September 13, 2010

Islam and the Two Americas

Op-Ed Columnist - Islam and the Two Americas - NYTimes.com

An excellent column by Ross Douthat. A must read for those who are interested in the Mosque in NY issue, as well as Islam in America in general.

"They’ll need leaders, in other words, who understand that while the ideals of the first America protect the e pluribus, it’s the demands the second America makes of new arrivals that help create the unum".

Monday, August 30, 2010

Survivor Stands on Verge Of a Grand New Expansion - WSJ.com

Interesting article - a true capitalistic success story, complete with drama, cut-throat competition, bankruptcies and a meteoric growth. The article goes into details to push the concept of transformation from immigrant to a lifestyle of the Rich & Famous candidate...."Signs of Mr. Chatwal's largesse are evident in both the U.S. and India. In 2006, he organized a seven-day, three-city wedding for his son Vikram, now 38, a part-time Bollywood actor and party companion of Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, among others. The wedding, one of the most grandiose in recent Indian history, was filmed by Discovery Travel.

In the elder Chatwal's 45th-floor penthouse on the Upper East Side, many walls are covered with letters from politicians and photos of him with heads of state. He notes that he helped organize a 2007 New York fund raiser for Mrs. Clinton, then seeking the Democratic presidential nomination, that drew 1,400 people at $10,000 per table.

Mr. Chatwal says his motivation in politics is to foster closer U.S. ties with India. He and his immediate family have directly donated a cumulative $305,000 to national political candidates, almost all Democrats, in the past 25 years, according to Opensecrets.org, which tracks political donations".

The linkage to India is well documented too :"In April, Indian President Pratibha Patil presented Mr. Chatwal with the Padma Bhushan, among the highest awards for Indian citizens, for his role in rallying U.S. politicians to support a civil nuclear pact between the U.S. and India, clinched in 2008. Various political parties in India denounced Mr. Chatwal's selection for the award, some citing his past bankruptcies and legal troubles.
"I see it as a great learning experience," Mr. Chatwal said of his earlier troubles..."

Saturday, August 21, 2010

'Hiding Divya' was a real challenge for Pooja Kumar

Actress Pooja Kumar at the premiere for the IF...

Image via Wikipedia'Hiding Divya' was a real challenge for Pooja Kumar
Pooja Kumar has come a long way. From the early days of Miss India America to a familiar face on ads on NYC buses to her latest movie, Hiding Divya. In fact, at a recent meeting at a large financial planning company, their standard product collateral had a picture of her - maybe showing diversity or the girl next door..
.
The movie sounds very intriguing, but with a new director, its always iffy...as NY TImes states, “Hiding Divya” has moments that feel drawn from life, and the nurturing, smothering Indian community where Divya lives is nicely sketched in. But Ms. Mirza’s storytelling has too many holes: pieces that don’t add up, scenes that leave you with fundamental questions. In the end, you’re none the wiser about mental illness or even about these characters. "