Theme Semester Newsletter #7 This week we look forward to hosting Safina Uberoi for a screening and discussion of her film, My Mother India.This film promises an insightful look at what it is like to grow up in a mixed marriage family in modern India, and also takes up the issue of the anti-sikh riots of 1984. For those of your who haven't yet had a chance to make it to the India map exhibition at the Clark Library, check out the online version of the exhibition here: http://www.lib.umich. edu/online-exhibits/exhibits/show/india-maps For the full roster of Theme Semester activities, please refer to our website: lsa.umich.edu/ India This week s newsletter features upcoming events, a quote, a Hindi phrase, an interesting fact about India, featured news stories, an Indian recipe, and a work of art from a UM collection. Please refer to our website and Facebook page for any updates. This newsletter has been brought to you by the Theme Semester Student Advisory Board. To subscribe to this newsletter please register here. Learn Hindi! आप कह? Aap kahaan se hain Where are you from? Upcoming Events February 19 - March 1 All events are free and open to the public. February 20: How Sturdy Are the Indo-Iranian Relations?- a lecture by Mehrzad Boroujerdi, Syracuse University, 4:00 pm Michigan League Vandenberg Room. Sponsored by the Center for Middle Eastern and North African Studies. UPCOMING EVENTS To explore the full range of Theme Semester activities, including conferences, lectures, music, and more, please go to our website. Did you know? The Kumbh Mela (or Grand Pitcher Festival) is a huge Hindu religious festival that takes place
February 21: My Mother India, Film Screening and Conversation with the Director - with Safina Uberoi, 4:00 pm room 1636 School of Social Work Building. This event is sponsored by the Center for South Asian Studies and co-sponsored by the Department of Screen Arts and Cultures (Cohn Fund) and the Language Resource Center. February 21: Swaranjali - a dance performance by Michigan Sahana, 7:30 pm room Michigan League Ballroom. in India every 12 years. In 2001, 60 million people attended, breaking the record for the world s biggest gathering. The mass of people was photographed from space by a satellite. February 24: Excerpts from the Ramayana (1986) and Sita Sings the Blues (2008)- part of the Theme Semester Media Series, 7-10 pm, Room 2435, North Quad. The Ramayana was televised on Indian television in 1986 and gained spectacular popular appeal. Sita Sings the Blues is an animated version of the epic Indian tale of the Ramayana set to the 1920s jazz vocals of Annette Hanshaw. The media series is sponsored by the Center for South Asian Studies and co-sponsored by Screen Arts and Cultures (Cohn Fund) and the Language Resource Center. February 24: Reading Culture Book Club: Arvind Adiga's The White Tiger- 4:30 pm Ann Arbor Public Library This book club is sponsored by UMS and the Ann Arbor Public Library. Weekly Quote Men are mortal. So are ideas. An idea needs propagation as much as a plant needs watering. Otherwise both will wither and die. - B.R. Ambedkar India in the News Extracted from notable news sources Indian publisher withdraws book, stoking fears of nationalist pressure. Under
pressure from an advocacy group, Penguin Books India agreed to an out-of-court settlement that will require them to withdraw and destroy all copies of Wendy Doniger's The Hindus: An Alternative History. Read More The steel art of India s Damien Hirst. A show by one of India's top artists, Subodh Gupta, in Delhi brings together his paintings, sculptures, videos and installations. Read More. Aam Aadmi Party to take on Ministers, party chiefs in Lok Sabha polls. Declaring its intention to go all out for the Lok Sabha elections, the Aam Aadmi Party on Sunday released its first list of 20 candidates. Read More. My mother and Harvard taught me the value of hard work: Chidambaram's dig at Narendra Modi. Finance Minister P Chidambaram used the last budget of the UPA government to take a swipe at BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narenda Modi. "My mother and Harvard taught me the value of hard work," Mr Chidambaram said while presenting the interim budget. Read More A Guide to Aam Aadmi Party s National Candidates. Two days after the Aam Aadmi Party's Arvind Kejriwal resigned having served just 49 days as Delhi's chief minister, the activist-turned-politician announced that his party was moving to the national stage. Read More Imtiaz Ali s Highway creates Europe buzz. Filmmaker Imtiaz Ali's new film, Highway, created a buzz across Europe as the film made a London stopover after its premiere at the Berlin Film Festival last week. Read More. Gulab Jamun Servings: 2-3 Total Time: 55 mins Prep Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 25 mins Source: vegrecipesofindia.com Ingredients For the gulab jamuns: 1 cup milk powder ¼ cup all purpose flour or maida 1 tsp oil or ½ tsp ghee a pinch of salt (optional) a pinch of baking soda 1 to 2 tbsp yogurt a few blanched pistachio or almond slices for garnishing For the sugar syrup: 2 cups water 1.5 cups sugar 3-4 green cardamoms, husked & crushed or powdered a pinch of saffron (optional) 1 tsp rose water (optional) Instructions Preparing the sugar solution:
1. Mix water, sugar, cardamom and saffron. 2. Keep this sugar solution on fire and cook till you get a syrup consistency. 3. There should be no thread formation in the sugar solution. 4. Stir in the rose water and keep aside Preparing the jamuns: 1. First mix the milk powder, all purpose flour, soda in a bowl. 2. Add oil or ghee and just 1 tbsp of yogurt. 3. Mix and keep on adding little of the yogurt to get a soft sticky mixture. 4. The dough should not be crumbly or dry. if it is then add some yogurt. 5. Make smooth small balls from the dough. 6. Heat the oil and the reduce the flame to low. 7. Add the balls and fry them stirring often to get even color. 8. When they become golden, remove from a slotted spoon and add them to the sugar syrup. 9. Let them soak in the sugar syrup for atleast 1-2 hours. 10. Gulab jamuns can be served warm or cold. if they are at room temperature, then warm in the microwave and serve gulab jamun topped with sugar syrup. Krishna & Radha Krishna massaging the feet of Radha Punjab Hills, Mankot, circa 1730 Ink, opaque watercolor, gold, and beetle thorax casings on paper Source: UMMA Krishna, the cowherd of Vrindavan, was one of human manifestations of the Hindu god Vishnu. Precocious and naughty as a child, he grew to overcome many obstacles and conquer ferocious demons to save himself and his tribe. The love affair between Krishna and his favorite gopi (cowgirl), Radha, is a common theme in north Indian painting. Their
passionate relationship is a metaphor for the unquenchable love of the soul for the supreme god. As seen here, it is not always Radha who is in a subservient position in this love affair: often Radha is proud and aloof, and it is Krishna who is the ardent wooer.