Vijay Singh wins his fourth Barclays Classic title after playoff

Vijay Singh of Fiji won his fourth Barclays Classic title on August 24 after beating Spain's Sergio Garcia and American Kevin Sutherland in a playoff.

Singh birdied both playoff holes at Ridgewood Country Club on the way to snaring the title.

A three-times winner of the event when it was played across the Hudson River at Westchester Country Club, Singh matched Garcia's birdie on the first playoff hole (18th) while Sutherland was eliminated.

The 45-year-old Singh then birdied the parfive 17th to close out world number four Garcia, who hit his tee shot into the left rough, punched out into the right rough and narrowly missed a birdie chip.

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Undocument families of 9/11 to get legal status

Seven years after September 11, Debra Brown Steinberg, the lawyer for spouses and children of 16 undocumented workers who died that fateful day, feels she is moving toward getting them legal status from Congress. The short list of families may contain Indian or South Asian family members.

"I can't give you any information like that (names) until they finish going through the process and then they will be lawfully 'present'. Hopefully, before September 11," Steinberg told Desi Talk.

Only the U.S. Congress can pass a bill giving the illegal immigrants legal status.

"I have been trying to get a bill passed but the U.S. Congress demanded that unless I identify the families to them, they will not. I couldn't reveal the names because then they would be subject to deportation," Steinberg explained her dilemma.

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Obama calls for redesigning relationship with Pakistan, building stronger ties with India

As Senator Barack Obama is officially crowned as the Democratic Presidential nominee, his views on foreign policy toward India and South Asia take on added importance. So do his views on domestic issues such as healthcare and small business.

He wants to fashion a what he calls a 'new partnership' with Pakistan instead of giving a blank check, and to 'deepen' relations with Washington's 'vital partner' India.

While he may have made pronouncements earlier on India and Indian Americans and congratulated India on its 61st Anniversary of Independence, his platform spells out in some detail what policy he wants to put forward if he is in the White House.

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Travel Watch Summer Along the Seine: Normandy

The River Seine runs through Paris and then turns northwest, coiling into the heartland of Normandy, through abundant fields and lovely medieval towns hugging the riverbanks, past abbeys and chateaux gripping onto the lime- stone hillsides, till it empties into the English Channel port of Le Havre.

The river valley is a tableau of color , golden bales of hay rolled to dry in the summer sun, white Charolais cattle feeding on rich green grass, acres of yellow flax ripening in the fields, bright limestone cliffs lining the river way, and horses, cows, sheep, pigs, chickens and goats giving life to the landscape that was so loved by the impressionist painters.

Throughout Normandy there is a special light and texture to the air that inspires artists. Powder blue skies and fleecy white clouds captured on canvases echo the bucolic life along the banks, towns and fields of the Seine.

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At least 5 South Asian films screened at Toronto festival

The ninth Annual Filmi South Asian Film Festival was held in Toronto from August 13 to 17.

According to the festival's website, the vision of the festival is to promote, discover, introduce and celebrate cinematic endeavors by talented South Asian filmmakers, and highlight works with South Asian themes that can be brought to a mainstream audience.

The opening ceremony was held at the Foundation Room on Aug. 13. Highlights of the films to be screened at the festival were shown.

This year's lineup at the festival includes:

• ‘Yeh Mera India', Director. N. Chandra .
• ‘When Kiran met Karen', Director Manan Katohora .

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Sania Mirza retires from singles with wrist injury

Sania Mirza retired with a wrist injury against Czech Iveta Benesova in the first round of the Olympic tennis event on August 11.

Mirza was trailing 6-2 2-1 when her right wrist became too painful.

"It was hurting before I even came to Beijing but it's the Olympics so you have to try and give it your best shot," Mirza told reporters clutching an ice pack.

Mirza, who recently had wrist surgery, said she may still try and play doubles with Sunitha Rao.

They were given a walkover into the second round when French pair Tatiana Golovin and Pauline Parmentier pulled out after an injury to Golovin.

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Verizon launches 'Bollypop Video Dance Competition'

A spiring dancers can enter 'Bollypop,' an online dance competition sponsored by Verizon to help showcase the growing amount of Bollywood movies and music videos the company offers its FiOS TV and V CAST customers.

The Bollypop (www.verizon.com/bollypop) contest is open to all U.S. residents and is maintained by Saavn, the largest digital distributor of South Asian movies, music videos, audio tracks and ringtones. Contest entrants can be either individuals or dance troupes (maximum of four performers) and must submit a video of any dance moves to one of 11 Bollywood songs.

The video with the most votes will win the grand prize, which includes airfare, hotel and transportation to Mumbai, and an appearance in a Bollywood film. Additionally, the grand prize winner or winners will get a three-day trip to New York City to attend a celebration in their honor.

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Senator Hillary Clinton to get roll-call vote at convention

After weeks of maneuvering aimed at producing a display of unity when Democrats gather in Denver later this month, Sen. Barack Obama's presidential campaign announced on August 14 that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton will be formally nominated and her name included in a roll-call vote at the Democratic National Convention.

The move represented the latest, and potentially most important, symbolic gesture by Obama to Clinton supporters, and could blunt the threat of an upheaval on the convention floor. Some Clinton backers have threatened to stage a walkout or leave Denver altogether after she speaks on Aug. 26 to protest what they view as a flawed and sexist party nominating process.

In a joint statement, the two camps said the decision to enter Clinton's name into nomination was mutual, and they countered the idea that she had forced her way back into the spotlight.

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Glamour and couture at Nargis Dutt 's 27th Annual Fund raiser

Nargis Dutt Memorial Foundation continue to entice the diehard fashionistas and the trendy New York sophisticates to indulge their passion for fashion to a night of silk, spice and everything nice at their 27th Annual Benefit Dinner and Fashion show featuring Priya and Chintan's collection in Long Island, New York on August 24.

The celebrity on the catwalk in their collection is none other than Bollywood actress Vidya Balan, who has captivated moviegoers worldwide with her critically acclaimed portrayal of roles. The foundation is very thankful to their sponsors Lufthansa, Aetna and Sahara One who have extended their support for the 2008 fund raiser.

Nargis Dutt Memorial Foundation has taken giant strides in their quest to provide better health care to the needy and the underprivileged. "The dream of Nargis Dutt still burns bright in the members of the Foundation, and we share the unified vision of service," says Dr. Inderpal S. Chhabra, President of Nargis Dutt Foundation.

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Independence Day celebrated: over 34,000 attend the parade

Rain did not dampen the spirit of estimated 34,000 Indian Americans who were at the Independence Day Parade at Oak Tree Road on August 10. The parade organized by the Indian Business Association (IBA), the New Jersey Federation of Indian Associations (NJFIA) had the support of over 90 New Jersey based Indo-American organizations.

It started at 2 p.m. from Cinder road, snaked along a 1.5 mile stretch and ended at Chowpatty Hall at around 4:30 p.m.The parade included about 25 floats, costumed characters, ethnic dancers and over 30 booths.

Governor Jon S. Corzine walked the distance in a display of solidarity with the Indian-American community and wished everyone a happy Independence Day and thanked the community for their contributions to the state.

Woodbridge Mayor John McCormac, expressed his happiness at being able to host the parade. Also attending the parade were Edison Mayor Jun Choi, Assemblymen Upendra Chivakula and Sam Thompson, Assemblywoman Linda Stender and NJ State Senator Leonard Lance.

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India celebrates long-awaited individual gold

India, the world's second-most populous country, celebrated its first individual Olympic gold medal on August 11 when Abhinav Bindra won the men's 10m air rifle.

Despite a population of around 1.1 billion people, India had only won four individual medals, none of them gold, since sending their first team to the Summer Games in 1928.

Bindra's victory was particularly sweet following the Indian men's hockey team's failure to qualify for the Games for the first time.

They have won the Olympic hockey tournament eight times and taken three other medals in the sport, though none since 1980.

Indian Sports Minister Manohar Singh Gill said Bindra's performance would lift the success-starved country.

"This is going to give a huge incentive in going up further and becoming a dominant (sporting) power," he told Indian TV.

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Lineup of superstars along with Bollywood heart throbs - the Bachchan family

The Unforgettable Tour 2008', was at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City on August 9.

Produced and directed by Wizcraft, the show, an 11-city tour, choreographed by Shiamak Davar, featured Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan, Preity Zinta, Madhuri Dixit, Riteish Deshmukh, Shekhar Ravijani and Vishal Dadlani.

"It was a sold-out show," Bharat Jothwani of Poonjanka Entertainment, one of the presenters, told Desi Talk. The seating capacity in the hall was 13,400 and according to Jothwani, more than thousand people had to be turned away for lack of space.

"This is an unparalleled, unforgettable show in the history of show business in North America. It was the best production ever."

The show was presented by Poojanka Entertainment, Victor Khubani and Dreamkakers.

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Elmhurst Hospital Center opens new cancer care pavilion

Elmhurst Hospital Center celebrated the opening of ‘The Hope Pavilion', a new state-of-the-art, comprehensive cancer treatment facility on July 31.

The $11.6 million project was funded by the City Council through Councilwoman Helen Sears, the Office of the Mayor, and municipal bonds.

The six-story, 24,000 square-ft. building will house a number of cancer-related out patient clinics and services including chemotherapy, oncology, hematology, and specialized social work services.

"The opening of ‘The Hope Pavilion' at Elmhurst Hospital Center represents another stride forward in Health and Hospitals Corporation (HHC's) $1.2 billion capital program towards providing safe and effective patient-centered care in modern therapeutic settings," HHC President Alan D. Aviles said.

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Immigrants from India slow to assimilate culturally, but integrate well economically

Despite a high level of 'economic' assimilation into the U.S. mainstream, immi grants from India are among the slowest to assimilate overall as a result of a low 'cultural' assimilation index, according to a study recently released by the Manhattan Institute.

The study entitled ‘Immigrant Assimilation in the United States' by Jacob Vigdor, Associate Professor of Public Policy Studies and Economics at Duke University, shows that among 10 large countries- of- origin immigrants in 2006, those from India were just a tad higher on the assimilation index than those from Mexico.

Immigrants from Mexico have the lowest assimilation index at 13, and India the second lowest at around 17, drawn down mainly because of the low cultural assimilation variable. Those born in Canada had the highest assimilation rates at 53. And immigrants from Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Korea, the Philippines, and Vietnam had assimilation-index values higher than the national average of 28.

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Jaydev Desai lead engineer for part of World Trade Center project

His humble demeanor and mild speech belie the important position Jaidev Desai, 65, holds as Lead Mechanical Engineer for part of the project to build the underground garage at the World Trade Center's construction project.

Ahmedabad-born Desai is with Liberty Security Partnership (LSP), a joint venture of STV Inc, DMJim Harris, and Washington Group, which is responsible for the underground garage design for the new construction at what is probably the most memorable site in global consciousness, the Twin Towers.

"The World Trade Center is a very big and complex project and the job has been divided amongst various engineering firms," Desai told Desi Talk.

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YWCA of Queens Summer Literacy Festival 2008

T he YWCA announced the annual 'Summer Literacy Festival 2008,' a one day event sponsored by HSBC, to be held on August 16.

"300-500 visitors are expected at the festival. With the new changes that we have incorporated in our programs like the puppet show instead of the music show, we believe our participants and attendees are going to enjoy the new experience," Kaye Kum Bok Min, President, YWCA of Queens told Desi Talk.

The festival is to have competitions like spelling bee, drawing contest, essay writing, literacy bingo games, face painting, balloon show and moon bouncing.

The festival is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. with a drawing contest for children between ages 3 and 5. This is to be followed by a spelling bee contest for children entering 1st-8th grade by September 2008.

Application deadline for both the contests is August 12.

Participants for the essay-writing contest are to be between 15-18 years of age, and have to submit their entries by August 8. The literacy bingo games will be held from 12 p.m. -1:30 p.m. for pre- Kinder garden - 4th grades and 3:10 p.m. -4:00 p.m. for 1st-8th graders. All participants must submit their proof of age. The winners of each contest will be awarded Barnes and Nobles gift cards of $25, $35 and $50.

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Bloomberg and Gates commit $500 m, invest in India

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Microsoft founder Bill Gates announced a combined investment of $500 million to India and other developing countries on July 23, to help governments implement proven policies to help control tobacco use. There are more than 1 billion smokers in the world today (more than 1 in 4 adults), and tobacco kills more people than any other single agent.

"Unless urgent action is taken, as many as one billion people this century-more than two-thirds in the developing world-could die from tobacco caused illnesses," said a July 23 release from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Bloomberg's Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use, which was established in 2005 and includes a $125 million commitment, will be extended with a new $250 million, four-year commitment.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced it will invest $125 million over five years to fight the tobacco epidemic, including a $24 million grant to the Bloomberg Initiative.

In addition to the grant to Bloomberg, the Gates Foundation will support complementary efforts to reduce high rates of tobacco use in countries such as China and India, as well as to help prevent the tobacco epidemic from taking root in Africa, the release said.

More than 80 percent of the world's tobacco related deaths will be in low- and middle-income countries by 2030, according to the release.

India's toll of premature, tobacco-related deaths is expected to rise from 700,000 annually to 930,000 by the year 2010, with bidis currently accounting for 77 percent of the market for smoked tobacco.

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‘The Dragon's Gift' at Rubin Museum of Art: a glimpse of reclusive Bhutan

In its regulated lifting of the veil that has draped the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan from the world's view so far, one major step is 'The Dragon's Gift: The Sacred Arts of Bhutan' which is coming to the Rubin Museum of Art (RMA) in New York from September 19, 2008 - January 5, 2009, after its historic opening at the Honolulu Academy of Art early this year.

Organized by the Honolulu Academy of Arts and the Department of Culture, Ministry of Home and Cultural Affairs of the Royal Government of Bhutan, 'The Dragon's Gift' is a history making exhibition of rare religious Buddhist art with a special focus on ancient ritual Buddhist dances that have been preserved intact in Bhutan.

The exhibition will have its only east coast showing at RMA. Apart from its museum showings -- early this year in Honolulu, in New York, and in San Francisco in early 2009 -- there was a public celebration by the Smithsonian Institution on the National Mall in Washington DC in the summer, over the June 29 and July 4 weekends.

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