Interviews with co-chairs
Interviews with host committee members
Spotlight on excellence awards
Preview of Lokvani 10 celebration

(This article is sponsored by Attorney Trupti Patel)

New Englander, Dr. H. Harish Hande, Managing Director, SELCO-India, was awarded Asia's prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award for 2011, also sometimes referred to as Asia's Nobel Prize. He spoke to Lokvani about his work, the concept of social enterprise and the need for new sustainable business models. Harish Hande will be the keynote speaker at TIE-SE's Forum for Social Entrepreneurs to be held on Oct. 1, 2011 at MIT. [more]

(This article is sponsored by Emerson Hospital)

Leading Carnatic vocalist and most sought after dance accompanist, Srikanth speaks about his musical career and provides advice for upcoming musicians. Srikanth will be performing a solo recital on Saturday, August 6 at 4:30 pm at Sri Lakshmi Temple, Ashland, MA. He will be accompanied by Haribabu on the Mridangam and K.V.S. Vinay on the Violin. [more]

(This article is sponsored by Monique Kornfeld, Esq.)

Nervous as hell about his first screen kiss, it seems Tusshar Kapoor is not destined to kiss Vidya Balan. [more]

(This article is sponsored by Russian School of Math)

The Lokvani@10 team is delighted to partner with Ubuntu@Work, an organization that creates market driven solutions to help women living under $2 a day become successful. The Lokvani@10 souvenirs are being created by these entrepreneurs. In the Ubuntu way, each souvenir bag will have the detail of the entrepreneur who made the bag. Lokvani salutes Ubuntu for their tremendous work. [more]

(This article is sponsored by Mumbai Chopstix)

On July 25th, NE Warriors scored a huge total to beat FBI (Full Blooded Indians) in the finals to win 11th Annual IDRF “Cricket for a Cause” tournament held in Nashua (NH), Hudson (NH) and Andover (MA). 46 teams participated in this six-a-side tournament, helping IDRF’s Boston chapter raise more than $9,000. [more]

(This article is sponsored by Prashant H. Fadia Foundation)

Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam addressed the Urgent Need to Skill Youth ata National Seminar on Skill Development in Delhi. The American India Foundation (AIF) is an emerging key player in the skill building landscape of India, especially in underserved and marginalized areas across the country. It’s Market Aligned Skills Training (MAST) program equips disadvantaged youth with skills to access jobs in high growth sectors, matching the demands of the local economy. Through MAST, AIF had been able to train more than 60,000 youth with a placement rate of more than 75%. [more]

Ustad Ghulam Ali Khan, the king of ghazals wowed Boston audiences on July 31st during his concert in Chelmsford High School. His music is truly universal as the attendees ranged from young to old and were of various nationalities and walks of life. [more]

Playback singer, Neeraja Pandit, who has sung for several bollywood movies including, Traffic Signal (2007),Sheen (2004), Indian Babu (2003), Yeh Dil (2003) and Khoobsurat (1999) will be presenting a concert at the Chinmaya Mission at 1 union st, Andover Ma on Aug 5 7:00 pm. Buy Tickets. [more]

The 2011 International Basava Conference (IBC) was resounding success. From vetting the topics and speakers to planning all the minute details of the program the IBC team and the Convention team brought forth a vision conceived by VSNA leadership. [more]

Once again, hundreds of exuberant dancers in spectacular costumes and a bevy of talented musicians and singers will perform at India Day 2011 on Sunday, August 14, 2011, from 4 p.m. until 8 p.m., at the DCR Hatch Memorial Shell in Boston under the auspicious of IAGB. [more]

Hindus in the US plan to donate blood to commemorate the 10th anniversary of 9/11 this year. The Hindu Mandirs Executive Conference (HMEC), an apex body of about 600 temples in the US, has appealed to the Hindus who form majority of the approximately three million Indian-Americans in the US to join the effort. The initiative is expected to benefit patients of Asian descent who require a closer blood match than that provided by ABO positive/negative blood typing. [more]

Raghav Mishra of Shrewsbury, MA, represented the USA at the International Olympiad on Environment (GENIUS Olympiad, i.e. Global Environmental Issues and Us). He secured the 1st place and was awarded the Gold Medal (along with an ACER Net Book). Raghav also won the 'Most Knowledgeable' award. [more]

Divya Padmanabhan, a recent high school graduate from Lexington, is a student of Smt. Jothi Raghavan. She has been learning Bharathanatyam from Jothi for 8 years in Vazhuvoor style and prior to that was a student of Smt. Nina Gulati. The arangetram was held at The Performing Arts Center at Littleton, MA on July 9, 2011. [more]

The 2011 MetLife South Asian Spelling Bee concluded its 10 city tour this past weekend with two events in the New York & Boston areas. In Boston, Surabhi Iyer from Franklin, MA was the regional champ and Pratima Rao from West Bloomfield, MI was first runner up while Anshul Joshi from Acton, MA was second runner up. [more]

Dr. Ramesh Donepudi,who completed his residency in internal medicine at Lahey Clinic and a fellowship in sleep disorders at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, joins sleep medicine, pulmonology, and critical care services at Emerson Hospital. [more]

Being Hindu isn’t something that you can wash off. It’s embedded deep in my skin; it lies dormant under the surface and colors my thoughts and actions with a light brush. I don’t make too much of a concession to my Hindu culture; underneath I still have on my trusty jeans. And if you look much, much deeper there you will see that inner peace, that resonant “Om” deep at my core. It’s always there, a gentle reminder of who I am and where I belong in this world. [more]

This was the first time IIFA was held in North America. Following the tradition of previous years, this year IIFA again popularized efforts against global warming, choosing to roll a green carpet rather than Hollywood’s red carpet. [more]

The ancient Tamil work "Thirukural" written by the famous poet Thiruvallur nearly 2500 years ago addresses a wide range of topics and provides guidance on all aspects of live. We look at Valluvar's view on the use of sweet words. [more]

We humans love to experiment. In times bygone, we have gained a great deal from these experiences and we have corrected our mistakes. [more]

The Aligarh Alumni Association of New England (AAANE) strongly condemns the tragic bombing in Mumbai on July 13, 2011 killing and injuring innocent civilians. AAANE expresses deep condolences and sympathies to the victims and their loving families. [more]

Catch up, register and purchase tickets for the events and concerts during this upcoming fortnight including Neerja Pandit in Concert, Vivekananda Family Camp, Lokvani@10, Sir Syed Mushaira, Krishna Trishna and Saheli Second Annual Gala. [more]

Congratulations to Prabhakar Nadkarni, who was the winner of the last set of puzzles. Here is one easy puzzle for students and one for adults. [more]

Talking to me? [more]

(This article is sponsored by Sounds Of India)

Pritam , Himesh Reshammiya,Shabbir Ahmed and Neelesh Misra have come together to create this album. [more]

Lokvani Team thanks all those who took the time to nominate candidates for various categories. We salute all the nominees for their outstanding work. [more]

Laughter in the classroom. [more]

Eggs make a great meal addition and are nutritious too. [more]

En route to Boommalramaram near Hyderabad. The joy of farming. [more]

Never regret. If it's good, it's wonderful. If it's bad, it's experience. - Victoria Holt. [more]