A BYTE OF LIFE Thursday, October 30, 2008

02 06
FOUR LEGS GOOD IN TROUBLE
The vegetarian diet for your dog match-fixing shadow over ICL

FREE CIRCULATION Vol. 2 No. 206

They are most recognised for their original music and even
more original name. Meet the mad men behind the music

» PAGE 03

PHOTO: R. RAVINDRAN
02 NAMMA CHENNAI ERGO Thursday, October 30, 2008

Being Mrs Chennai?

Amurtanjan Cutis Mrs. Chennai 2008 is gearing up for its first round with a
cookery contest. The event will be held at The Accord Metropolitan, T.
Nagar on November 2 at 3 p.m. Participants should prepare a savoury dish
at home. Applications can be downloaded from www.virgoevents.com. For
details call 98417 02271 / 99410 18210 / 2489 2798.

Guru Dutt – The icon

Retrospective of Guru
Dutt Films at South Indian
Veggie
Film Chamber Theatre
delights

F or over a decade yesteryear actor Guru

Dutt ruled the hearts of film lovers with his
acting, direction, production and
choreography. He is credited for ushering in
the golden era in Indian cinema.
The Indo Cine Appreciation Foundation is
organising a ‘Retrospective of Guru Dutt
Films’. The films will be screened at South
Indian Film Chamber Theatre, 606, Anna Salai
till November 2. A dog enjoys a slice
Although he made less than 50 films during of watermelon. FILE
PHOTO: V.V. KRISHNAN
his lifetime, they are believed to be the best
in Bollywood’s Golden Age, known both for
their ability to reach out to the common man
and for their artistic and lyrical content. A vegetarian diet is ideal for a dog’s health and longevity
Films to be screened include:
Chowdhavin Ka Chand (October 30; 6.30
p.m.); Kagaz Ke Phool (November 1; 3.30
p.m.); Mr. and Mrs. 55 (Nov 2; 3.30 p.m.) and
SRIYA NARAYANAN
Sahib Bibi aur Ghulam (Nov 2; 6.30 p.m.).
pets@goergo.in
For details call 98401 51956.
Ergo Correspondent

A
re you a new dog owner
who’s evaluating food op-
tions for your pet? Or do
you already have an adult
dog, but want to switch to vege-
tarian food without compromis-
ing on your pet’s dietary
requirements?
It is a common myth that dogs
need to be brought up on meat or
processed non-vegetarian food.
They can be just as healthy if pro-
vided a balanced veggie diet.
Dr. Chinny Krishna, Chairman
of Blue Cross of India, has over
six decades of experience in car-
For Adoption
A handsome seven-year-old
Doberman has been abandoned
by his owners. The dog is
currently at Blue Cross. Write to
bluecrossofindia@gmail.com to
adopt him. He is heart-broken
because he is used to living with
a family and needs a new one
very soon.
ing for animals and currently has
15 Indian dogs in his home. He
tells us that his pets are 100 per
cent vegetarian as are the dogs
owned by his family members.
These canines have a great qual-
ity of life and have often been
prize-winners at dog shows.
Here are some options that
your furry friend will approve of.
Milk; fresh curds; whole wheat
bread; vegetable rice made with
unpolished rice, cooked with car-
rots, peas, potatoes, greens with
turmeric (manjal/ haldi) with a
spoonful of ghee and served
when the food is warm.
Chapattis given when warm
would also be happily eaten. ■
Watch out for these killer
foods:
* Chocolate in any form is
deadly
* Raisins are dangerous too
* Avoid anything fried, spicy or
oily
* Puppies and small dogs will
choke on hard-boiled toffees and
mints
ERGO PETS’ PICK
OF THE WEEK
Bettina Mueller, an
NGO professional, who
is relocating from
Chennai to Bangalore,
was looking for a safe
place for her dog
Diego and was thrilled
when Anandh
Subramanian (of TCS)
and his family offered
to keep him until they
settled down in the
new city. Here’s a big
thank you to your
family, Anandh. Hope
more people are
inspired to follow suit.
 Thursday, October 30, 2008
03
Ghost and chills
This week’s Big Story is all about the scariest books and the films
that gave you sleepless nights. Write to us at feedback@goergo.in
and nominate your favourite horror flick or fiction (or non-
fiction) and tell us why. Photographic evidence will be highly
appreciated. Please limit your write-up to 150 words.

And then there was Skrat

Marching to their own tune, their signature
genre is happy rock’ with soulful lyrics

J
ust how does one come up
with a band name like Skrat?
Tapass Naresh (drummer)
and T.T. Sriram (guitars, vo-
cals) were chatting online, look-
ing for ‘stupid names’ while Ice
Age was being aired on television.
The band, besides the above,
include the chimerical Chirrag
Sheth (guitars) and Satish Na-
rayanan (bass, backing vocals)
who are all in college. They call
themselves a ‘happy rock’ band
with truthful lyrics, laced with
funk and a number of their influ-
ences such as Pearl Jam, Rage
Against the Machine, Foo Fight-
ers, Oasis, including the electron-
ic outfit, Gorillaz.

College story
The band was formed in 2006
and has been touring the college
circuit, where they have won a
number of competitions. IIT
Chennai, NIFT Chennai, Madras
Christian College are some of the
notable venues, especially where
their own compositions have
made a mark. The band members
are studying in college currently,
at Loyola College, SRM Universi-
ty, MNM Jain Engineering Col-
lege and Meenakshi
Sundararajan Engineering Col-
lege (MSEC).

The music
Sriram’s vocals reflect teenage
angst and passion, also found in
his songwriting.
I know its time, I feel it slipping
away, it’s just too strong, yesterday
is taken, be alone
These are lyrics that run
through the bass-slapping, the
drum wizardry and guitar distor-
tion, where the lyrics reflect a tor-
rent of feelings that is true; much
like Superfuzz who is liked for
this exact reason – that they
whined about school and friends,
more than war and violence. For
the one track on their MySpace
profile page, Brother had a re-
semblance to Rihanna’s Umbrel-
la, if it were a ballad. But before
Skrat Attack: (From left) Satish, Sriram and Chirrag and (seated) Tapass PHOTO : R_RAVINDRAN.
the brickbats arrive, let me con- has settled comfortably in funk, ture says, “We often try to aim for problem though is that the crowd
firm that such are the varied with Greyshack, Public Issue, Af- the style of metal bands such as here is extremely educated about
sources of inspiration for Skrat. ter Burn, Rainbow Bridge and Nerverek or Blind Image, who are music - they know their instru-
Remember Travis’ rendition of many others, so isn’t the scene actually playing to a niche au- ments and beats. So, we really
Hit Me Baby One More Time? saturated? Sriram, who is quite dience, because there isn’t much have to know the instrument be-
The Chennai rock music scene passionate about the band’s fu- of a fan base for metal in this city. fore we weave it into our music.”
They manage to capture the au-
dience no matter whom they are Podcast alert
The problem though is that the crowd here is playing for,” says Sriram. Since Log on to www.goergo.in to
Tapass is trained in the mridan- hear the band reeling out a list of
extremely educated about music - they know gam, the band did try out the their influences, guitarist Chirrag
their instruments and beats kanjira at one of their perfor- at the butt of all jokes and where
mances. He continues, “The to listen to their music. ■
04 VILLAGE
The highest
paid speaker
Former British premier Tony Blair gets
US$ 2,50,000 for a speech of 90 minutes
F
ormer British premier Tony
Blair, who is said to be the
highest paid speaker in the
world, is learnt to have
amassed a wealth of 12 million
pounds over the past one year
since vacating 10 Downing Street.
This is more than six times of
the income he earned during his
prime ministership.
Such is the demand of Blair
that he has a two-year waiting list
for bookings, with clients pre-
pared to pay 250,000 dollars for a
typical speech of roughly 90 min-
utes. The ex-PM works exclusive-
ly through the blue-chip
Washington Speakers Bureau.
Blair tours mainly include
speaking to audiences including
investment banks, private equity
firms and chambers of com-
merce. Since launching himself
on the speaking circuit last Octo-
ber, Blair is understood to have
earned more from speeches than
Bill Clinton, the former US Presi-
dent, did in his first year after
leaving the White House.
As the stock market plummet-
ed and the housing market
slumped, the man who as Prime
Minister championed the “light-
touch” system of financial regula-
tion blamed by some for the cur-
rent crisis is enjoying an
unprecedented boom of his own.
Blair receives 84,000 pounds of
taxpayers’ money to run a private
office and is entitled to an annual
pension of 63,468 pounds, but
this pales to insignificance beside
his private earnings. He has made
4.6 million pounds from his
memoirs, an estimated 2 million
pounds from JPMorgan Chase —
including bonus — and 500,000
pounds from Zurich Financial
Services.
Besides, he has exceeded the
5.8 million pounds that Clinton
earned, according to his wife Hil-
lary’s financial disclosures, from
speeches in his first year outside
the White House. ■
ANI
ERGO Thursday, October 30, 2008
Unexpected topping
A U.S man was surprised to find a
topping he hadn’t ordered on his tacos
- a small bag of marijuana.
Website documents trace
lives of Jews worldwide
A new online collection of millions of historic Jewish records
is helping families trace their personal history. The documents
on Ancestry.com include Schindler’s List - the names of almost
2,000 Jews working for a German who employed them to
save them. Their story was told in the Oscar-winning film
directed by Steven Spielberg. Many of the 26 million
documents are online for the first time - from photographs
and immigration data to memorials offering first-hand
accounts of the Holocaust and its aftermath. Also on the site
are records about displaced Jews provided with food, medical
care, clothing and emigration assistance.
PTI
Phelps gets US$ 100,000 for
swimming at showbiz party
Golden Olympian Michael Phelps is said to have
made US$ 100,000 just for appearing at a showbiz
party, and swimming some laps. The ace swimmer,
who won eight gold medals at the Beijing Olympics,
was reportedly offered US$ 156,000 cash in Aussie
money to show his prowess in the pool at a posh
bash for the wife of a TV network boss in Los
Angeles. A New York Post report suggests that the
23-year-old accepted the offer, according to the
Daily Telegraph. Phelps has been on a fast track to
riches since the Beijing Games, with endorsements,
TV gigs and more. Many estimate him as heading
up to 30 million dollars.
ANI
Google settles
copyright dispute
Google and book publishers and authors announced
a landmark settlement to a copyright dispute that
will make millions of books available for purchase
online. Under the terms of agreement, reached
after two years of negotiations, the Authors Guild
and the Association of American Publishers (AAP)
agreed to drop their lawsuits against Google over
its Google Book Search program. The settlement
calls for Google to pay US$ 125 million to establish
an independent Book Rights Registry, to resolve
outstanding claims by authors and publishers and to
cover legal fees from the lawsuits against Google.
AFP
Former political prisoner
elected Maldives president
A former political prisoner has swept to victory in
the Maldives’ first-ever democratic presidential
election, unseating Asia’s longest-serving leader,
officials said on Wednesday. The Indian Ocean
archipelago nation’s election commission said
that with nearly all votes from Tuesday’s historic
polls counted, Mohamed ‘Anni’ Nasheed had won
54 per cent of votes to 46 percent for incumbent
leader Maumoon Abdul Gayoom. Gayoom, 71,
had ruled the tourist paradise islands
unchallenged since 1978, and had in the past
thrown Nasheed into jail.
AFP
 Thursday, October 30, 2008
05
Hippopotamus This day, that year
A hippopotamus has a It was in October 20, 1918
stomach 10 feet long, that the Slovaks agreed to a
capable of holding 6 union with the Czechs under
bushels of grass. the name of Czechoslovakia.

Men prefer ‘women in red’

W
ant to drive your bloke
crazy? Just wear red, la-
dies!
A new study has found
that women in red are regarded
as better looking and more desir-
able to men – in fact, this is dri-
ven by nothing but primal
instincts that associate the colour
with sex.
According to lead researcher
Prof Andrew Elliot, the study
aims to provide hard evidence of
“society’s enduring love affair
with red”. “Although this ‘red
alert’ may be a product of human
society associating red with love
for eons, it also may arise from
more primitive biological roots.
“It could be this very deep bi-
ologically-based automatic tend-
ency to respond to red as an
attraction cue given our evolu-
tionary heritage,” Prof Elliot was
quoted by British newspaper The
Daily Telegraph as saying.
The researchers from the Uni-
versity of Rochester came to the
conclusion after carrying out an
experiment, involving over 100
men who were shown photo-
graphs of a ‘moderately attrac-
tive’ young woman.
The subjects, mostly university
undergraduates, were shown the
pictures and asked to rate how
pretty they were, how much they
would like to kiss them and how
much they would like to have sex
with them.
The men were shown a wom-
an, with some of the pictures bor-
dered in red and some in white,
gray or green. Even though it was
the same picture the males rated
her as more attractive when bor-
dered in red than by another col-
our.
Other photos showed a woman
in different colours of shirts and
again red scored strongly. It was
also estimated they would spend
almost twice as much on her if
she was dressed in red compared
to her in blue.
Despite the effects, the men al-
so insisted colour played little
role in their choices, which would
suggest they were unaware of the
power of red. The study has been
published in the latest edition of
the ’Journal of Personality and
Social Psychology.’ ■
PTI
Women in red are
regarded as better
looking and more
desirable to men,
says study

Honeymoon period ‘lasts a See the sea

little over two years’
other, and their relationship, for
granted.
And, by the third marriage an-
niversary, most couples don’t
even bother to continue celebrat-
ing the date they tied the knot, it
found.
The researchers of company
OnePoll have based their findings
on a poll of 5,000 couples who
had been married for over a dec-
ade. It revealed that more than
half of the couples felt underva-
lued two years into wedlock.
Seven in ten men admitted
they’re so comfortable with their

A re you planning to get mar-

ried? Just remember that the
honeymoon period may not last
more than two years, according
to a new study.
Researchers have found that
the honeymoon period is official-
ly over two years, six months and
25 days only after a couple ties
the knot – in fact, this is the point
where both partners take each
spouse they often scattered socks
and pants around the house and
left the toilet seat up, the British
media reported.
On the other hand, two thirds
of the women polled said they no
longer made the effort to dress up
and look nice for their husbands, 쒀 Various of sea creatures are shown inside a sea life farm tank in Jakarta. Demand
while 54 per cent no longer both- among the US and the European consumers for snakes and coral has nosedived
ered wearing make-up. ■ since the onset of the global financial crisis. AFP PHOTO
PTI/ANI
06 SPORT ERGO Thursday, October 30, 2008

PCB starts security groundwork

Desperate to ensure that India does not back out of the tour to Pakistan owing to
security fears, the PCB is meeting top government officials to start the
groundwork for the series, which is still a couple of months away. Pakistan Cricket
Board’s (PCB) Director-general Saleem Altaf says he is confident that India will go
ahead with the tour as it has confirmed the itinerary.

Saqlain falls prey to

BCCI diktat
Pakistan off-spinner Saqlain
Mushtaq is on the verge of being
Chink in the chain,
AGAIN
released by English county Surrey
because of the bowler’s
participation in the “rebel” Indian
Cricket League (ICL).
County teams are under pressure
to cut their ties with the ICL,
where Saqlain plays for the
Lahore Badshahs. The ICL is regarded by the
Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)
as an unwelcome rival to its own Twenty20
event, the Indian Premier League, and it has
done all it can to make boards around the
world ostracise ICL players.
Kent, for example, have effectively been
barred from the lucrative inaugural
Champions League because of the ICL
players in their ranks.Earlier this month
Lancashire released ICL-affiliated captain
Stuart Law, the former Australia batsman.
“We are not prepared to go into next
season with an ICL player,” Surrey chief

PHOTO: AKHILESH KUMAR

executive Paul Sheldon told the BBC. “Clubs
are not being encouraged to be associated
with ICL players and it’s our policy not to be.
We are talking to Saqlain about how we can
come to some arrangement because he can’t
get out of his ICL contract.”
ERGO CORRESPONDENT
AFP
feedback@goergo.in

T
he second
edition of
the Indi-
Indian boxers packs League
an Cricket
(ICL)
a punch has failed to live
up to its hype
Balwinder Beniwal (69kg) and Thokchom and has been
Nanao Singh (48kg) entered the marred with con-
quarterfinals but with losses in three other troversies so far.
categories, it turned out to be a mixed day After the ICL go-
for India at the inaugural AIBA Youth verning body had
World Boxing Championship in Guadalajara, suspended Chandi-
Mexico. garh Lions’ skipper
Balwinder, Olympic bronze medallist Chris Cairns and middle-
Vijender Singh’s cousin and a gold medallist order batsman Dinesh
at the just-concluded Commonwealth Youth Mongia on disciplinary
Games, beat Puerto Ricop’s Jonuel Tapia grounds, Mumbai Champs
23-6 in yet another dominating coach Sandip Patil was also dis-
performance on Tuesday. The Haryana- charged from his duties after his
boxer next faces German Satula Abdulai. side’s below-par performance.
Nanao Singh, another CYG gold medallist, The Mumbai team has only won
was equally clinical in a sensational 22-4 win five of their 24 ICL games.
over European cadet champion Mikoya Rumours of a possible match-
Butsenko of Ukraine. Nanao Singh will now fixing scam are in the air and al-
be up against Uzbek Jasurbek Latipov in the though the Subhash Chandra-
last-eight stage. However, there was backed ICL has vehemently de-
disappointment for India in three
nied such reports there might be
other categories. In the light weight some truth in these allegations.
division, Neeraj Goyat lost 7-13 to
Russia’ Vage Sarukhanyan. V Santosh
ICL governing body member Ki-
ran More tried to play down the
Kumar gave a walkover to Javier matter and said: “The two players
Minor Mendoza Salazar of Costa Rica have been suspended on disci-
in the light welter weight pre- plinary grounds and an investiga-
quarters. But most disappointing was tion is on. They were important
Bajrang’s heartbreaking loss on count-back players of the Chandigarh team
in the bantam weight category. The Indian but if they are found guilty of any
was tied 7-7 with Dominican Republic’s wrongdoings they will have to
Angel Miguel Queliz de la Cruz at the end pay the price. But, like most ad-
of four rounds before losing on individual ministrators, we don’t want to
judges’ count. brand them guilty before proven
PTI
so.”
However,
sources said
that ICL has
enough evi-
dence against
the two and
more stringent
action is expect-
ed to follow.
Speaking about
Patil, More clarified:
“Sandip has not been
suspended. His morale
was down after a string
of bad performances by
his side and he wanted
some time off to recharge his
batteries and we have agreed to
it.
He is very much a part of ICL
and will always be.”
The reports of match-fixing
couldn’t have come at a worse
But, like most time for the ICL, which has been
administrators, pursuing with the ICC their case
for authorisation of the league,
we don’t want
and the ICC had instructed the
to brand them BCCI to look into the application.
guilty before Like all other sports, cricket has
been weighed down by a match-
proven so fixing scandal at the start of this
decade, when several interna-
tional players, like former cap-
tains Hansie Cronje and
Mohammad Azharuddin along
with big names like Ajay Jadeja,
Manoj Prabhakar, Salim Malik
and Mushtaq Ahmed, were said
to be involved in throwing
matches away in lieu of money. ■
 Thursday, October 30, 2008
07

‘‘DIEGO
There’s obviously underlying reasons why Symonds is still here in Australia but I
think if you put aside all the issues that may be underlying and pick your best
Australian team to play in the third Test match in Delhi, Symonds would probably be one of
the first guys you would pencil in.
Tom Moody

Argentina
back at helm poised to
gamble on
A
rgentinean football legend Diego Maradona capped a
remarkable comeback from a near fatal heart attack
four years ago to being named coach of the national
side in Buenos Aires on Tuesday.
Maradona , who will be 48 on Thursday and who has no Maradona
top level coaching experience, said he hoped to repeat the
success of the 1986 World Cup when as a player he inspired
them virtually single-handedly to the title.
He will be assisted in that mission of winning the 2010
World Cup in South Africa by another integral member of the
1986 set-up coach Carlos Bilardo, who will be the director of
football. Their respective roles were rubberstamped at a
meeting with Argentinean Football Association (AFA) presi-
dent Julio Grondona.
“During the conversation with Grondona and Bilardo it
became clear that I was to coach the team,”
said Maradona, whose international play-
ing career came to an ignominious end
when he failed a dope test at the
1994 World Cup finals. “However,
I am going to listen to everything
Bilardo has to say. He is going to
help me as we can’t leave so-
meone with the success, expe-
rience and knowledge he
brings on the sidelines. Gron-
dona’s ideas are the same as
mine and Bilardo’s. My job
will be to go and watch the
players as often as pos-
sible. The idea is to re-
turn the squad to the
spirit of 1986.”
Maradona – who al-
so was part of the Ar-
gentinian side that
muscled its way into the
1990 final only to have
two players sent off as
they lost 0-1 to then West
Germany – won crucial
support last week in his
bid to become coach when
the man charged with find-
ing Alfio Basile’s successor
threw his weight behind the
World Cup winning skipper.
“I’d like Maradona to be the next coach,” said
Noray Nakis, the president of the AFA selection
commission.
Basile resigned a fortnight ago after a World
Cup qualifying defeat to Chile which left them
in third place after 10 matches, seven points
adrift of leaders Paraguay. Maradona faced
competition for the job from Carlos Bianchi,
the former coach of Boca Juniors, whom he led
to four national league titles, San Lorenzo coach
Miguel Angel Russo and Sergio Batista who took
the under-23 squad to Olympic gold in Beijing in
August. ■
AFP

PHOTO: AFP
08 ROADSTER
Your car, your way
The
modified
Cedia
Sparco sports seats inside the Cedia
S
top drooling and don’t jump off your seat to
check if these cars are available at your nearest
showroom. These Cedia and Swift are two of
those unique cars designed and developed by
a custom car builder in India. The owner of the
Cedia and Swift, when he bought the car, had just
one thing in mind and that was to modify the cars
inside out.
So what do these machines have in them? A lot of
time and money has gone into body kit design and
suspension upgrade. The body kit of the Cedia is a
unique kit specially fabricated for this car and so is
the kit made for the Swift. The Swift has a special
matte finish paint job for the exteriors as you can
see in the picture – it’s a no-gloss finish. The interi-
ors have a dual-tone paint job that adds a nice fla-
vour and ambience for the driver. The black and
silver colours compliment each other on the dash
and door pads. The Recaro seats (replica) replace
the stock driver and passenger seats. The seats are
tastefully done with black leather cover with stitch-
es in red highlighting the lines of the seats.
The modified Swift
The Cedia has a very sophisticated suspension kit
from Hot Bits capable of multi-level height and
dampening adjustment. The Hot Bits suspension
kit has variable settings to customise dampening
settings to Street or Race specifications. The other
cool part is you can lower the car two levels down
and increase the height a level up. You can lower
the car by 1 to 2 inches and increase its height by an
inch more than stock height.
A simple cold air intake system and free-flow ex-
haust kit add to improved performance of the car.
The intake system from Green Twister makes a little
difference to the stock performance of the car. Body
styling is something we don’t see much on cars in
Chennai. Anyone listening out there?
Cedia Modification:
~ Monza red paintjob with graphics
~ Custom wide-body design including bumpers,
side skirts, fenders, rear panel extensions, mild steel
wheel spacers
ERGO Thursday, October 30, 2008
Renault Laguna Coupe
Only weeks after celebrating its world
debut at the Paris Motor Show, the
Renault Laguna Coupe goes on sale in
Europe at a starting price of 30,300
euros (40,715 dollars).
Here’re some ways
to spruce up your
Swift and Cedia
~ Evo 8 style hood & GT wing
~ Sparco style sports seats with 4-point racing
seatbelts
~ Complete leather upholstery for seats and doors
~ Black and silver coating on interior plastics
~ Evo gear knob
~ Momo carbon handbrake cover
~ Llumar black 35 tints
~ Smoked tail lamps
~ Projector headlights with angel rings
~ Xenon HID low beam + high beam
~ Green Twister intake with cold air intake
~ NGK iridium plugs
~ Magnaflow Race Series stainless steel muffler
~ Hot Bits DT2 racing coilover suspension
~ Audio Install including: Hertz Energy Compo-
nents, Hertz Energy Coaxials, Audison SRx5 Amp,
Image Dynamics 12" Sub, Connection Audison
Wiring
~ Mechanically perfect running Mobil 1 engine
oil.■
 Thursday, October 30, 2008
09
Cigarette bike
K. Sudhakar, wacky vehicles designer
from Hyderabad, seen riding the
cigarette bike he created recently in
order to spread awareness about the
ills of smoking.

SNIPPETS

Civic bodykit
The Mugen-style bodykit is too good to
resist. The kit comprises front and rear
skirting with the window visor. Grill
and door sills are at extra cost.
Price: Rs.36,000 to Rs. 40,000.

Lancer sports taillights

Sports type taillights for the Lancer
improves the aesthetics of the car,
giving it a totally different outlook.
The taillights are available in both
black and chrome finish.
Price: Rs. 9,000

HID Kit
Bosch and Kelvin HID kits are available
in 4000k – 12000k colour temperature.
Some of the best brands in the market.
Price: Rs.9,000 to Rs.12500
10 FLICK ERGO Thursday, October 30, 2008

France honours Roger Moore

British actor Roger Moore, who played the suave secret
agent James Bond seven times, was awarded the Order
of Arts and Letters, one of France’s highest honours, at a
ceremony in Paris on Tuesday.

L
egendary rock band Led Zeppelin are In a statement on his website on September
planning to return to recording and tour- 29, Plant said he had “no intention whatsoev-
ing – without singer and frontman Robert er” of touring with anyone for at least the next
Plant, bassist John Paul Jones told BBC ra- two years once his current tour ends.
dio. “Contrary to a spate of recent reports, Ro-
Jones said the hard-rocking British band bert Plant will not be touring or recording with
were trying out different singers to replace Led Zeppelin. Anyone buying tickets online to
Plant, who has repeatedly voiced his reluc- any such (an) event will be buying bogus tick- ‘Once is enough’
tance to join in a full reunion after a mammoth
one-off gig at the O2 Arena in London last
December.
ets,” the statement read.
“I wish Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and Ja-
son Bonham nothing but success with any fu-
John Travolta has
revealed that he won’t
be playing Edna
Some 20 million people applied for 20,000 ture projects,” he added. ■ Turnblad again for the
tickets for the charity concert – the band’s first AFP forthcoming sequel of
full gig since they split in 1980 following the Hairspray.
death of drummer John Bonham. The two-time Academy
Jones said he, guitarist Jimmy Page and Bon- Award-winner, who
ham’s drummer son Jason were keen to get was applauded for
out playing concerts again, and were not his performance
hanging around waiting for Plant to change in the musical
his mind. hit, insists he
“We are trying out a couple of singers,” the won’t be seen
62-year-old said. “We want to do it. It’s sound- donning the
ing great and we want to get on and get out fat suit one
there.” more time.
Jones said the band was not searching for a “I think
Plant replica. once is
“It’s got to be right. There’s no point in just enough. I
finding another Robert,” he said. “You could did it and I
get that out of a tribute band, but we don’t did it well
want to be our own tribute band. There would but I’m not
be a record and a tour, but everyone has to be a big
on board.” sequel guy,”
However, promoter Harvey Goldsmith said
the band – who he has worked with in the past Contactmusic
– should not tour without Plant under their quoted him
original name, saying: “If they’re going out as telling
with another singer it’s not exactly Led Zeppe- Moviehole.net.
lin.” However, the
He said if they did do something all togeth- 54-year has
er, it should not include old material but “so- signed to do a
mething new and innovative that would turn remake of The
them on”. Taking of Pelham 123
The O2 show – the first time the original and is set to share the
three played together in public for 19 years – screen with Denzel
was part of a tribute concert for the late Atlan- Washington. ■
tic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun, who ANI
signed the group in 1968.
Led Zeppelin went on to sell more than 300
million albums worldwide, with ‘Stairway to
Heaven’, ‘Whole Lotta Love’ and ‘Kashmir’
among their best-loved songs.
But while the others seem keen on keeping
the momentum going from their hugely suc-
cessful reunion gig, Plant has said the context Paparazzi making her
would have to feel right and he would not
want to tour old material. a nervous ‘wreck’
Plant has been busy touring with US country
violinist Alison Krauss following a well-re-
ceived hit album together.
A shley Olsen has lashed out
at the paparazzi and blames
aggressive photographers for
turning her into a nervous
“wreck”.

Plant
Olsen (22) finds that being
of a small stature makes it
even more difficult for her to
escape the photographers who
are desperate to take her
picture.

not rooting for this “Honestly, I’m a wreck, Every

time I see a camera, I’m a
wreck. I don’t tend to react as
though ‘I have to do this, it’s
my job.’ I am reacting as a
Led Zeppelin to tour, record woman who is five-foot-one
whose space is being invaded
without singer Robert Plant, by a bunch of men whose aggression I can literally feel,”
Contactmusic quoted her as having told the New York
says bassist Times. ■
ANI
 Thursday, October 30, 2008

No dead end, this

11
Frobes.com has ranked Elvis Presley the top-earning dead celebrity for the
second year in a row. Presley pulled in $52 million in the past year, helped
by increased visitors to his Graceland estate to commemorate the 30th
anniversary of his death and new ventures like the Elvis Sirius Satellite
Radio show, according to the website.
Reuters

B en Affleck has opened up

Ben Affleck take in that we fell in love, we

about his relationship and
high-profile engagement to Jen-
nifer Lopez.
Affleck, who insists that they
had been “too accessible” to the
media, had started dating Lopez
in 2002 after meeting her on the
set of their film Gigli and were
supposed to wed in September
2004.
But they ended up splitting
shortly before their wedding date
and both blamed the media at-
tention for it.
“I think Jen and I made a mis-
Cine City
were excited and maybe too ac-
blames cessible. I don’t think either of us
anticipated the degree to which it
media glare would take on a world of its own,”
Contactmusic quoted him as say-
for break ing.
Both stars have now moved on
up with with their lives, and Affleck is ex-
pecting his second child with ac-
Jennifer tress Jennifer Garner, whom he
married in 2005, later this year.
Lopez Lopez married Latin singer
Marc Anthony in 2004 and gave
birth to twins in February 2008. ■
ANI

Chaya to replace Meera

Actress Chaya Singh is replacing Meera Jasmine in
Ananthapurathu Veedu, a movie produced by
Shankar’s S Pictures and directed by Naga. The
reason cited was that Meera turned late for the
shooting. The film has Nanda in the lead role. It
is also heard that Chaya Singh is planning to
direct a film with one of her friends. The movie,

n
tentatively titled Gandhi Bazaar, is about the

e
youth of our country who don’t recognise the

B
value of our culture.

Ho w
le f t J e n
Sada sheds weight
Actress Sada, who shared the screen with actor
Vikram in Anniyan, did not get any good offers
in Tamil after the blockbuster movie. But what
we hear now is that the actress has signed four
projects in Bollywood. Sada has also lost about
10 kgs after some of her friends advised her to
reduce weight to shine in Bollywood.
12 ERGO Thursday, October 30, 2008

Wednesday’s Question:
The one cost-cutting measure you
would love to see is…
■ Cutting working days and giving more holidays for
festivals like Diwali. It effectively reduces the
expenditure.
R.Pradeep Babu, TCS
■ Shut down the computer daily for 4 hours from 9 am
to 6 pm in office.
Chandru
■ Pay and use restrooms in all offices.
Anitha, TCS
■ There should be an hour of power cut without UPS
backup in the office.
Balram, Cognizant
■ I would love to see reduced bus fare.
Vineetha, Wipro
■ Stop printing those DCFCs.
Eva J, CGSL Murugakumar of Financial Software and Systems has nominated his Team Golden gate as
■ Send entire VP’s and AVP’s home - a BIG cost Partners in Crime. The photo was taken at Pondicherry.
cutting.
Sunil, CGSL
■ Switching off the monitor for at least 20 hours, since
monitor consumes more power
Joe, TCS
■ Give layoff to the securities. And threaten the
employees to work as a security as part time job.
Satish, Ramco Systems
■ Using public transport most of the times.
Girija, Ford
■ Make employees who are at bench to stay at home,
pay them for their work from home, which will be cost
cutting for both employee and company.
Deena, Patni Computer System
■ Reduce the salary for Manager’s and TL’s.
Robz, Wipro
■ Allow employees to work from home to save
commutation costs and to save employees from their
boss’s peeking noses.
Natraj, Covansys
■ Switch off the monitors post lunch.
Jaya Bharathi, EDS
■ No buses and cars, only bicycles allowed in Chennaì.
Jags, Polaris
■ Sack all Tech Mgrs and convert their big full cabins Pradeep from CGSL has nominated his friends as Partners in Crime.
to six seaters.
Shiva, EDS
■ Switch off AC during rainy season.
Praveen Kumar, Allsec Tech
■ Switching off a/c and power on weekends and after
8 p.m. on weekdays.
Sreenivas, HCL
■ I would recommend to switch off all monitors for 5
hours so that we can save some power and money and
being a part of finance team, I am bit worried about
companies revenue.
Sundar, Adventnet
■ To reduce working hrs from 8 to 6, which will inturn
reduce EB bill, cafeteria cost, cab cost etc.
Srinivasan .D Verizon

Today’s Question:
If you had the chance to call back
the spirit of a famous personality
whom would you call and why? Poornima of Hexaware Technologies Ambattur has nominted her friends as Partners in
Crime.
 Thursday, October 30, 2008
13

■Hey Sweetest,
En imsaikalodu Ne Pallandu Pallandu Palakodi
Padmanabhan has been nominated as Office An- Nootrandu Vazhga... Piranthanal Vazhthukkal... :)
gel by Srinivasan Sivaraj of Satyam. Inganam,
Padmanabhan is our office assistant. He is a Periyanayagi Thangavelu
dedicated worker. He does different types of works Wipro Technologies
related to Admin and HR department. He even ■Dear Anbu (a) Love Beauty,
extends his working hours according to the need and Wish you a happy Birthday. May all your dreams
never hesitates to do any kind of job at any time. come true. Good Luck.
With love,
PENSTOCK Team,
HCL Technologies
■Dear Algates,
We wish you a many more happy returns of the
day.We hope all of your wishes come true. God
bless you and your family Health,Happiness and
Wealth.
Regards,
Your lovable Friends,
Kumaran Systems
■Dear Jaya,
We wish you a many more happy returns of the
day.We hope all of your wishes come true. God
bless you and your family Health,Happiness and
Wealth. Excepting as many gifts as your age(100) to
our TEAM.
Regards,
Quality Team,
Kumaran Systems
■My Dear Justeen,
A birthday will not be complete without wishes &
greetings from near, dear & loved ones. Times are
hard, here’s my fricking birthday card. My dear
teenager, i’ve done my duty and wished you, So,
when are you going to reciprocate with a "treat"? I
am willing to make sacrifices, (will take
unscheduled leave if necessary) let us have the treat
Ramkumar K from by the last date of this month itself.
Changepond Yours affectionately,
Technologies Ltd Mohd. Shiek.
doodled this. (TCS - Sholinganallur)
■Dear Prade (Kuttima),
"Birthday quotes are another wonderful way of
making people smile on their special day"
Happy birthday, our precious friend(preity),
Our love for you, we wish to extend.
Experiences filled, with joy and laughter,
Special memories, we shall recall after.
From the beginning, you made us smile,
Accepted us, without any trial.
Never judged or jumped to conclusions,
Exciting friendship; random infusions.
We cannot ask, for anything more,
So many things, we simply adore.
Hope this birthday never ends,
In our hearts, time transcends.
Hope, this birthday poem will bring more laughter
and smile to you on your birthday.
Wish you an awesome birthday as you are.. God
bless you, dear friend!!.
With Lots of Care and Affection,
Geetha, Sathya, Srimathi
Enakkum ennai pudikala Excelacom Technologies Private Ltd
Avalukkum ennai pudikala ■Hello Gang,
So, renduperum ennai oothama dosai suttu saapittom Send your greetings to sticky@goergo.in, with the
Arasu word ‘greeting’ and the preferred date of
Mohan Bakery ku pona Enna Paatu Paduvar??? publication in the subject line. Example: “greeting:
Malaiyoram vesum katru, manasodu padum Paatu Cake-tha Cake-tha November 4”. This will help us organise the column.
KK, Wipro Also, those who want to dedicate greetings, please
Neenga kadhalikkira ponnu kadhali aagalaam! send your full name, company name and contact
Aana neenga kalyanam pannikka pora ponnu number for verification.
Kalyani aaga mudiyadhu!!" Cheers,
Sathish Shankar. M, Tata Consultancy Services Team Ergo
14 TRAFFIC JAM ERGO Thursday, October 30, 2008

Dozy driver
A teenager who sped away from police
at more than 100 miles per hour said
she was having trouble seeing while
talking on her mobile phone.

sudoku

D. Anand of HP
Global Soft Ltd.
clicked this picture
at Sanjay Gandhi
National Park in
Mumbai.
Hobbies: Trekking,
rafting,
photography and
travel

What strikes you

the most when we
talk about
‘poverty’? Tell us
through one of
your best
photographs that
has moved you,
with details of the
place, person, etc.
Theme ‘Poverty’
will be featured in KAKURO
So you think you would make a terrific photographer but never really had the the Click Pick
platform? Mail us your best work and we’ll publish it in this space, with credit. section till
E-mail: clickpick@goergo.in November 15.

TEAM
Editor: Karthik Subramanian
karthik@goergo.in

Sr Dy Chief Designer: J.A. Prem Kumar

Dy Chief Designer: R. Ravi Kannan
Illustrator: R. Venugopal

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V.R. Vasudevan, K.G. Gurumurthy
N. Ravichandran, E. Baskar

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Sriya Narayanan
ads@goergo.in

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M.G.M. Sharief
copies@goergo.in

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Printed and Published by S. Karthik on behalf of

KASTURI & SONS LTD., at Plot B-6 & B-7,
CMDA Industrial Complex, Maraimalai Nagar,
Chengleput Taluk, Kancheepuram Dist., Pin:
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Anna Salai, Chennai-600002. Editor: S. Karthik
(Editor responsible for selection of news under
the PRB Act). RNI No. TNENG/2007/24553
 Thursday, October 30, 2008
Silly sausage
A woman was rumbled trying to
smuggle spicy sausage across the US/
Mexico border in babies’ nappies.
15
Word’s worth
"Quar" (kwor) an obsolete word meaning ’to
choke or fill up (a channel orpassage).’ Anyone
who has a narrow hallway that seems to collect
every random bicycle, awkward pair of shoes, and
child’s toy possible has a use for this word.

B.C

ARIES MARCH 21 - APRIL 20

You may face delays in work due to problems in a
technical device. Ganesha suggests you to remain
cool, else you may spoil professional relations. True
love to your partner may be expressed passionately
and your heartbeats may be playing higher octaves.

TAURUS APRIL 21 - MAY 20

You may handle all responsibilities at office. There
will be complete job satisfaction if you look at it
objectively. At home or in the company of beloved,
you may be in a quixotic mood. The day promises
satisfaction on personal and professional fronts.

GEMINI MAY 21 - JUNE 20

Ganesha finds you busy solving complicated issues
BORN LOSER related to work. Your analytical abilities may help
you fix problems quickly. You might have to work
till late. In personal life, you might have to put in
efforts to convince partner for a particular point.
CANCER JUNE 21 - JULY 20
You may be very quick and accurate in your work.
Ganesha finds you referring to various web pages to
find out answer to something that you wish to
know to enhance your knowledge. Your personal
life seems to be hassle free and smooth.
LEO JULY 21 - AUG 20
There can be re-establishment of lost contacts.
Ganesha suggests you not to confront with those
superior in knowledge or post. At home, you may
prefer comfortable life and wish to have delicious
food. In short, it is a day with mixed bag for you.
VIRGO AUG 21 - SEPT 20
If your prime area of work is research, it is highly
FREE RANGE WORKING IT OUT favourable day for you. In important meetings you
will be able to communicate your ideas well. If you
refrain from imposing decisions on your partner
there may not be any problem in personal life.
LIBRA SEPT 21 - OCT 20
Ganesha foresees you getting rewards in proportion
to your efforts. Your bosses will encourage you. You
may be assigned more responsibilities. On the
personal front, you may remain bit dissatisfied due
to some odd conversation with mate or beloved.
SCORPIO OCT 21 - NOV 20
Ganesha finds you highly determined today. While
you are active and in good mood at work, ensure
that your vindictive side of nature is restrained. In
personal life, you may desire to spend private and
undisturbed wonderful time with your beloved one.
SAGITTARIUS NOV 21 - DEC 20
Ensure that you don’t run behind fruitless pursuits
today. Your abilities to take things in right spirit
may be a little low today.Try to remain objective
and take things on face value. In relationships, you
are advised to avoid ’doubts’ and ’blame-games’.
CAPRICORN DEC 21 - JAN 20
If you are handling a team, your time may be spent
in sorting out their issues. You can be firm in your
decisions. Act tactfully today. In personal life, you
may avoid sticking firmly to your own views. This
will help you maintain cordial terms with beloved.
AQUARIUS JAN 21 - FEB 20
PREVIOUS You are advised to avoid being impatient. If you
rush for things, you may not achieve desired results
ISSUE’S but if you let things happen on their own, it will be
better. It may be a challenging day. Ganesha finds
SOLUTIONS you working on emotional side of relationships.
PISCES FEB 21 - MARCH 20
Ganesha foresees you feeling upset due to someone
else’s progress. Ganesha advises you to develop
better professional relationships around. Greater
concern for someone you love the most may make
you very emotional and touchy today.
Predictions by Bhavesh N. Pattni
16 ! ERGO Thursday, October 30, 2008

Catch me if you can, he said Man behind Britain’s biggest

A n India-born computer spe-
cialist who was the master-
mind behind Britain’s biggest
fake credit card racket has been
jailed for six years.
Anup Patel and his accomplic-
es had amassed nearly 2 million
pounds (over $3 million) by mak-
ing counterfeit credit cards and
using them in several countries in
Asia and Europe. Police believe
they would have cheated people
of 16 million pounds by now had
they not been caught.
A computer sciences graduate
from Kingston University, Patel
stole original credit card numbers
and PIN (Personal Identification
Numbers) and engraved them on
counterfeit cards. The fake cards
were transported by one of his
accomplices, Anthony Thomas,
to countries in Asia, like Thai-
land, and eastern Europe where
the chip-and-PIN security system
is not in use.
Local members of the gang
withdrew money using those
cards by faking signatures of the
original card holders.
The operation was busted in
October, 2006 when the police,
acting on an intelligence tip off,
fake credit card racket jailed
raided Patel’s rented office prem-
ises in south London.
Patel gave himself up to the po-
lice after learning that his accom-
plices had been arrested.
The Times has revealed that
Patel compared himself to a com-
puter thief featured in an English
film. He thought he was like
Frank Abnagale, the con artist
played by Leonardo DiCaprio in
Catch Me If You Can.
Apparently, Patel once called
Detective Sergeant Simon Rus-
sen, who was hunting him after
the bust, and told him that the
policeman was like the FBI agent
played by Tom Hanks in the film.
“Catch me if you can,” he is said
to have told Russsen during the
two-minute conversation.
IANS

The man who turned

orange
A British man’s doctors were puzzled to
see that his skin turned orange after
drinking too much of cider and still
survived the condition. Forty-seven-year-
old Michael Stenning, who spent three
weeks at the Royal Sussex County Hospital
in Brighton, began drinking more than
four litres of cider a day after losing his
job as a courier.
His friends convinced him to seek medical
attention after his skin began to change
colour.
“It was a miracle. I have never seen
someone as sick as him leave the hospital
alive,” the Telegraph quoted Dr. Sumita
Verma, who researches alcoholic hepatitis,
as saying.
ANI

Expensive
shot
A South Korean
golfer has paid a
heavy price for an
embarrassing shot
that landed his
caddy in hospital.
The golfer,
identified by the
country’s Supreme
Court only as
‘Jung’, was fined 2
million won
($1,400) for the
incident, which
occurred at a club
in Gunsan Province
more than two
years ago.
Reuters