Greetings Curry Lovers!

I've been pondering the paradoxes of Asian Youth, or "yoof" as the toothsome Janet Street Porter - probably the oldest person in charge of youth programming ever - would say. Paradoxes like how we expect Asian youth to be young yet wise, ambitious yet humble, independent yet dutiful, adventurous and yet stable, creative but traditional, Westernised but with Eastern values - feel free to join in with your thoughts.

These and many more paradoxes were discussed at last month's Asian Youth Conference at the House of Commons. Asian Youth are certainly in demand. Business wants to attract bright Asian things, as does the Advertising Industry which launched its own study into the woeful lack of brown faces in agencies. This was swiftly followed by the launch of Operation Hindu Vote. It seems political parties want Asian Youths to take up politics - community minded yet high earning I wondered?

London Mayor Ken Livingstone has always supported Asian Councillors and intends to work with the Association of Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority Councillors to achieve his goals. Ironic that this was quickly followed by an announcement by the CRE that they found the Labour Party in Birmingham guilty of racial discrimination. Ah now....that's one thing we all know a lot about.

Anserhouse of Marlow, a diversity expert launched its 100 Best Diversity Practitioners list that featured only one commercial organisation (BT) in the Top 10. Interestingly this was the same commercial organisation that the IPA felt was embracing cultural diversity well in its advertising. Humph!.....I've obviously either been watching the wrong channel or been sampling too much of South Asian Arts. A fact for which I am amazingly grateful as Redhotcurry.com has been shortlisted in the 'Arts & Culture' category for the BIMA (British Interactive Marketing Association) Awards 2003. The endless hours idled away at the South Bank Centre bar have obviously helped.

LABOUR GUILTY OF DISCRIMINATION	MAYOR TO SUPPORT ASIAN COUNCILLORS
The Labour Party has been found guilty of racial discrimination and victimisation against a former Birmingham City Councillor. Mr Raghib Ahsan, a Pakistani Muslim, was Councillor for the Sparkhill ward of Birmingham in the 1990s. read more	Mayor Ken Livingstone is to work in partnership with the National Association of Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority Councillors (NABAEMC) to improve ethnic minority representation across London Boroughs. The aim is to raise race awareness. read more
REDHOTCURRY UP FOR BIMA AWARD	BEST 100 DIVERSITY PRACTITIONERS
Redhotcurry.com has been shortlisted in the 'Arts & Culture' category for the BIMA (British Interactive Marketing Association) Awards 2003. read more	AnSer House of Marlow UK, a leading authority on HR diversity practice, has launched the UK's 100 BEST DIVERSITY PRACTITIONERS league table. Only ONE commercial organisation (BT plc) was listed in the top 10. read more
ASIAN YOUTH CONFERENCE	"UNIVERSITY CHALLENGE" A WINNER!
Money, drugs & sex were the three topics hotly debated at the second Asian Youth Conference, organised by Asian Voice newspaper, that took place on Saturday 20th September 2003 at the House of Commons. read more	An Indian version of the BBC TV quiz University Challenge, which launched on August 7th 2003, has proved a major winner with its online promotion receiving over 2 million responses. The show will run for twenty-eight weeks. read more
****NEWS IN BRIEF****NEWS IN BRIEF****NEWS IN BRIEF****NEWS IN BRIEF****
SCHEME TO HELP ETHNIC MINORITIES INTO LAW (09/03) Law firms are being asked to support the Law Society's Diversity Access Scheme aimed at benefiting students currently deterred from qualifying as a solicitor. ICAN FOUNDATION LAUNCHES ITS OWN 'FAME ACADEMY' (09/03) Recent Fame Academy stars Paris, Audley and Barry were on hand to to launch The Ican Foundation's own "fame academy". OPERATION HINDU VOTE (09/03) 'Operation Hindu Vote' is an initiative designed to unify and strengthen the political lobbying power of this hitherto passive religious group. FOOTBALL FOR ALL? (09/03) The FA's 'Connecting Communities' conference will focus on how black and ethnic minorities can break through football's glass ceiling. "LIFE'S A PITCH!", IPA TELLS ASIAN STUDENTS (09/03) Ethnic minorities in the UK are under-represented in the advertising industry states a new IPA report, with only 4% of the industry workforce from ethnic minority backgrounds. BRITISH AD AGENCIES WAKE UP TO ETHNIC MINORITIES (09/03) The Institute of Practitioners (IPA) has today launched an online guide to ethnic diversity in the UK.

Slaving away at trying to run a business has, on the other hand, been completely fruitless. Although mums and housewives drive female entrepreneurship according to Barclays Bank, Asian Women still face obstacles when starting out. This is based on new research conducted for the NES programme, an initiative that sprang out of an idea by The Treasury!

Trade and Industry Secretary Patricia Hewitt was firing off letters to Top Companies in the UK this week, urging then to join up with Race for Opportunity, a specialist offering ethnic benchmarking services. Shame then, that the National Business Awards, dubbed as the UK's "Business Oscars" couldn't find any women to shortlist for their Business Leader of the Year category. Asians Shelim Hussain of EuroFoods UK and Surinder Arora of Arora Holdings are competing for the Entrepreneur of the Year Award though.

HEWITT URGES RACE AWARENESS	ALL BOYS AGAIN FOR "BUSINESS OSCARS"!
Trade and Industry Secretary Patricia Hewitt today wrote to 500 of Britain's top companies to urge them to join Race for Opportunity (RFO).The RFO organisation offers specialist support. read more	The finalists competing for the 2003 UK "Business Oscars" are announced. Ethnic minorities are represented with Shelim Hussain of EuroFoods UK and Surinder Arora of Arora Holdings competing for the Entrepreneur of the Year Award. read more
ASIAN WOMEN STILL FACE OBSTACLES	HOUSEWIVES DRIVE ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Women from ethnic minority backgrounds still have to overcome social, cultural and institutional obstacles if they want to start their own businesses according to new research. read more	Mums and housewives are an important source of female entrepreneurs. Non-working women are just as likely to start a business as those in work, unlike men in the same position, according to Barclays figures. read more

If all these paradoxes like.... be joyous but without abandonment ....and above all be happy but without the stimulation of tobacco, alcohol, cigarettes or sex-before-marrige...is driving you to music then you are not alone. The dynamic Asian Music scene is currently replete with more remixes than you can shake "what your mamma gave you" at. Mary J Blige's single 'Love @1st Sight' has been remixed by Rishi Rich. This Asian musical genius was also busy last month with the launch of the 'Bombay Mix' CD. In case he'd missed out anybody, this month, Nitin Sawhney's 'Rainfall' taken from his latest album 'Human', has been remixed by Rishi too - just to make sure.

Young Kasanova is taking no chances with the title of his new album - 'New GenerAsian' is out now. So given that Asian Yoof can no longer spell, or sing without being remixed , it is refreshing to hear that 1970's band 'Shakti' are back with a short UK Tour, prosaically entitled 'Remember Shakti', in November. Also back that same month is the veteran of ghazal singing - Jagjit Singh.

MARY J BLIGE REMIXED BY RISHI RICH	BOMBAY MIX, OUT NOW
Grammy award-winning US soul queen Mary J Blige whose hugely anticipated new album "Love & Life" was released on August 25th, has had her new single "Love @ 1st Sight" remixed by Asian musical genius Rishi Rich. read more	This CD should have been called Rishi's Bombay ReMix given that it contains no less than eight of his remixed tracks. The first CD, mixed by The Bhangra Knights has a real Euro-pop feel to it. read more
NITIN SAWHNEY 'RAINFALL' REMIXES	NEW GENERASIAN BY KASANOVA, OUT NOW
'Rainfall' remixes features 21-year old Taio on vocals, who is fast becoming one of the record industry's most sought-after British soul talents. 'Rainfall' is a beautiful R&B classic. read more	After releasing two albums that have taken the Bhangra industry by storm, Opus-Asia proudly presents "New GenerAsian" by Kasanova which is released on 6 October 2003. read more
REMEMBER SHAKTI, 2 - 9 NOVEMBER 2003	JAGJIT SINGH: UK TOUR, 14 - 19 NOVEMBER
Guitar legend John McLaughlin and tabla maestro Zakir Hussain first took the world by storm with their band Shakti's supreme fusion of Indian classical music and jazz. Remember SHAKTI takes the synthesis to new heights in November. read more	Jagjit Singh has become the unchallenged emperor of Ghazals not only because of his ability to compose and sing, but also because of his modernisation of Ghazals through his unique combination of music and poetry. UK tour runs from 14-19 November. read more

Whoever said that "youth is wasted on the young" was obviously an old geezer who hadn't been out for curry in a while. Curry Lovers in the UK will be delighted to know that the Kingfisher World Curry Week returns from 19 - 25 October 2003. When I heard that award-winning restaurant group Cafe Lazeez has been contracted to bring curry to the Natural History Museum I was delighted. It will now be far easier to feed the old relics....and apparently they have dinosaur exhibits there too!

WORLD CURRY WEEK, 19 - 25 OCTOBER	CAFÉ LAZEEZ TO SERVE TIKKA WITH T-REX!
Curry lovers across the country will be in heaven during Kingfisher World Curry Week® 2003 (19-25th October) as restaurants pull out all the stops to ensure that the UK's favourite Ethnic cuisine, is celebrated in style. read more	Party guests in London could be enjoying Tikka with a T-Rex after caterer Payne & Gunter teamed up with restaurant group Café Lazeez to bring authentic ethnic dishes to the Natural History Museum. read more

Some other "youthful" comebacks this month include 1970's Dream Girl, Hema Malini, in BR Chopra's 'Baghban' which is out in cinemas now. The Times London Film Festival (22 October - 6 November) has curiously low-key screenings of Indian films with only Hanif Kureishi's 'The Mother' getting a gala screening. As this is about a widow starting a relationship with her daughter's boyfriend, you can see that I haven't lost my thread of youth completely! Young lovers, Preeya Kalidas and James McVoy are to get a screening this October in their film "Bollywood Queen". The simply brilliant Rahul Bose, playing a young Ad Man in 'Mumbai Matinee', is wondering how to lose his virginity in this Bollywood masala film.

THE TIMES LONDON FILM FESTIVAL	'BOLLYWOOD QUEEN' LAUNCHES IN OCTOBER
This year's London Film Festival (October 22nd - November 6th) has a surprisingly low-key presence of films from the Indian sub-continent despite the fact that the British Film Institute honours Satyajit Ray with an award in his name. read more	Bollywood Queen is set for release in October 2003. Starring Preeya Kalidas and James McAvoy it combines all the traditional Bollywood elements of romance, heartbreak, family and tragedy! read more
'BAGHBAN' - HEMA MALINI'S COMEBACK?	MUMBAI MATINEE
BR Chopra is set to make a comeback after twenty years with the huge family drama ‘Baghban’. The Dream Girl of the 1970s Hema Malini, is also set to make a comeback in this movie. read more	Mumbai Matinee stars Rahul Bose, Vijay Raaz, Anusha Dhandekar and former soap actress Perizaad Zoribian. The film is a far cry from the typical masala films that are usually turned out by Bollywood, and it is great to see India finally touching on a taboo subject. read more

But coming back to the subject of Asian Youth (did we ever leave it?), books for Asian teenagers seem to be in short supply. Tanuja Desai Hidier's 'Born Confused' about American-desi teenage angst was hailed as creating a new genre for the book business. Vineeta Vijayaraghavan's Motherland' is also a charming "coming of age" novel about a fifteen-year-old American-desi girl who is sent back to South India for the summer. My best buy recommendation is 'The Story of Ram & Sita - The Origin of Diwali'. This beautifully illustrated book retells the story of The Ramayana and would make an excellent Diwali gift for children.

THE STORY OF RAM & SITA	BEASTS OF INDIA BOOK
'The Story of Ram & Sita - The Origin of Diwali' by Nirmal Hirani retells the story of The Ramayana - one of the most convoluted Hindi mythologies with a myriad of human and animal characters - in a stylistically straightforward way. read more	Tara Publishing, Chennai, India have launched 'Beasts of India: Art from Court, Tribe and Village', a handprinted bestiary featuring some of the best Indian tribal artists. read more
MOTHERLAND BY V VIJAYARAGHAVAN	BORN CONFUSED BY TANUJA DESAI HIDIER
Motherland' is a charming "coming of age" novel about fifteen-year-old American-desi girl Maya. Sent back to South India to spend a summer with her mother's family, Maya arrives petulantly angry about being banished from her American home. read more	Dimple Lala is confused. An American Born Confused Desi, some would say. Not Indian enough to be Indian and not American enough to be American. Born Confused by Tanuja Desai Hidier charts Dimple's struggle to bring together her two cultural identities. read more

Goodness, this newsletter is getting longer and longer each time.

The contribution made by young Asian men and women during World War II is celebrated at the RAF Museum which has a series of events running throughout October, which is designated Black History Month. This weekend also sees the start of Orientations at Watermans Arts Centre. Described as a "a wild gender-bending mix of dance, film, theatre questioning masculinity, femininity and everything in between!", it needs no further explanation.

I'm off to Mela 2003 this weekend, but those of you who are simply worn out by all this youthful exuberance can sit back and watch telly. The 'TV Gems of the Week' is a new "name and shame" list which assesses TV programmes that strive to portray minorities in a realistic, fair and dignified way each week in multicultural Britain. Needless to say there are fewer gems and more shirkers!

RAF MUSEUM - BLACK HISTORY MONTH	ORIENTATIONS, 10-18 OCTOBER 2003
Find out more about the ethnic contributions to the Royal Air Force and the British Armed Forces during Black History Month. Runs till 14 November 2003. read more	'Orientations' begins as a soap opera: Amrit, a young man disappears to India after attending a Yakshagana dance class presented by a visiting Guru. read more
MELA 2003, 10-12 OCTOBER AT WEMBLEY	SANJEEV BHASKAR TRIUMPHS FOR ITV
The UK's biggest Asian lifestyle exhibition and interactive event takes place on the 10-12 October 2003 at the Wembley Exhibition Halls. Mela 2003, is presented by the UK's largest Asian cable TV channel, Zee TV. read more	ONE LIFE (BBC1) has landed the top spot in the latest TV GEMS OF THE WEEK. DES O'CONNOR'S entertaining interview with SANJEEV BHASKAR (ITV1) was second, while CHANNEL 4 NEWS is in third place. read more

I would finish with a joke about youth and shirking, but I hate to admit that this ailment applies to the not-so-youthful too!

Until next time,
Lopa Patel (Editor - redhotcurry.com)

PS. Our special free gift offer for new users who sign-up is simmering nicely, so why not tell a friend to sign-up? They might be grateful for the suggestion.