Greetings Curry Lovers!

What is wrong with us Asians? Given to bouts of abject sycophancy, we persistently crave the recognition that Awards, upon Awards heap upon us and seek yet more. We cannot seem to get enough accolades, with a Knighthood being the "jewel in the crown" of our endeavours. We practically invented the term "currying favour" and wallow in the after glow of "The Raj", harking back to a period that was nothing more than apartheid for most South Asians. I have not yet come across an Asian who has turned down an award in the Queen's Honours list with quite the same impact as poet Benjamin Zephaniah who openly dismisses it as a legacy of colonialism. Zephaniah said that the very name, Order of the British Empire, reminded him of "thousands of years of brutality...of how my foremothers were raped and my forefathers brutalised."

Cynically Asians realise, of course, the commercial value of Awards. It gets you free publicity, more business and looks good on the stationery to boot.....but I wonder if the time has come to give the Queen's Honours list the boot instead.

Asians receiving honours this week included Sanjeev Bhaskar who was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by his former University and Bashir Ahmed who was named 'National Warden of the Year'. At least Reuben Singh was putting his accolade as "British Ambassador for Entrepreneurship" to good use - he hosted the inaugural dinner on behalf of Timebank's multi-faith initiative.

HURRAH FOR ZEPHANIAH!	CRACKDOWN ON TIME SHARE OPERATORS
In the light of the poet Benjamin Zephaniah's refusal to accept an OBE in the Queen's Honours list, diversity specialist Elaine Sihera, argues the irrelevance of the honours system to visible minorities in Britain. read more	A new report calls on the government to crack down on rogue traders in the holiday club and timeshare market who find ways round the law to fleece unwary holiday makers. Paradise Lost is based on evidence from Advice Bureaux. read more
'NATIONAL WARDEN OF THE YEAR' AWARD	SINGH PUTS HIS FAITH IN TIMEBANK
Bashir Ahmed, Manager of Walsall Neighbourhood Wardens, was presented with the National Manager of the Year Award 2003 . The awards recognise the 'outstanding work by Wardens in enhancing the lives of local communities'. read more	Entrepreneur Reuben Singh, held the inaugural 'respect' dinner for the Timebank multi-faith initiative. read more
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SANJEEV BHASKAR AWARDED HONORARY DOCTORATE (11/03) Comedian Sanjeev Bhaskar, star of The Kumars at Number 42 and Goodness Gracious Me, returned to the University of Hertfordshire to accept a second degree. He was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Business School in recognition of his outstanding contribution to entertainment. read more SOUTH YORKSHIRE FIRE SERVICE WIN DIVERSITY AWARDS (11/03) The 9th British Diversity Awards, saw South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Services (SYF&RS) win three awards: as Diversity Champion in the Public Service, Maria Tonks (its diversity manager) was Manager of the Year and finally the accolade as Diversity Practitioner of the Year. read more

Bollywood fans will be in a frenzy this month. November saw the release of Janasheen and Kal No Naa Ho, situational comedy 'Out of Control', Lollywood production 'Larki Punjaban' and 'Pinjar'. December sees the release of Tehzeeb and big-budget production, Akbar Khan's 'Taj Mahal'. Not to be confused with Robin Khosla's 'Taj Mahal'. This tale of "two Taj's" will become a trio in 2004 with the scheduled release of Bharat Bala's 'Taj Mahal' starring Aishwarya Rai. It seems the Moghul era is the "new Bollywood" for 2004. I am certain we shall be hearing a lot more about the peacock throne and dancing girls of the zenana.

TEHZEEB, UK RELEASE 5 DECEMBER 2003	JANASHEEN, UK RELEASE NOVEMBER 2003
After her mind-blowing performances in 'Bhoot' and 'Pinjar', Urmila Matondkar plays the leading role in 'Tehzeeb'. The film is an emotional thriller about Rukshana Jamal - an ambitious playback singer. read more	Janasheen is the story of Lucky Kapoor [Fardeen Khan], living in Australia and who's driven by the ambition to be a Super Bike Racing champion. He is an unwilling successor to his father's legacy. read more
KAL HO NAA HO, NOVEMBER 2003	OUT OF CONTROL, NOVEMBER 2003
Kal Ho Naa Ho is the romantic story of Aman, Rohit and Naina's journey together - how they discover themselves, find the courage to love and come together to celebrate life. read more	Jaswinder of Punjab reaches America with dreams in his eyes and a career his intent. Little does he know that when his dreams come true, he will lose sleep forever. read more
SPICE! AT THE ICA, 1 - 31 DECEMBER 2003	SPICE TOUR, OCT 2003 - JAN 2004
A selection of five contemporary films from the South Asian subcontinent showcasing an array of talent, visual styles and themes that put India under the microscope. read more	An eclectic season of contemporary independent films highlighting the wealth of talent from the South Asian subcontinent's most exciting arthouse directors. Exploring themes and styles rarely tackled by mainstream Bollywood. read more
ROBIN KHOSLA'S 'TAJ MAHAL', NOV 2003	AKBAR KHAN'S 'TAJ MAHAL', DECEMBER 2003
Directed by Robin Khosla, who performs a remarkable feat depicting sixteenth century culture, 'Taj Mahal' stands on its own as a rich tribute to the 7th wonder of the world. A love story of epic proportions. read more	Akbar Khan says of his film "I want to bring this glorious passage of history to life. I want to put the audience on the lap of the Golden Era, to experience the romance of Emperor Shah Jahan and his Empress Mumtaz Mahal. read more
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LARKI PUNJABAN, UK RELEASE NOVEMBER 2003 Larki Punjaban is a story of a Sikh girl, Preetam who falls in love with Muslim, Shamyl Khan, when visiting Lahore. The inbred hatred of their parents, stemming from the tragic events of the partition of 1947 threatens to keep the lovers apart. Will the painful memories of their elders come to haunt the young lovers 55 years on with tragic results? Or has half a century taught them to live and let live? read more PINJAR - BEYOND BOUNDARIES, UK RELEASE NOVEMBER 2003 During the Indo-Pak partition, full scale riots broke out in which families were displaced overnight. Thousands of helpless women were raped and kidnapped. While the riots were in full swing, there were people who still hoped for humanity to survive and for their dreams to come true. read more

Dancer Rukimini Devi's true-life story is told in 'Dancing Within Walls' starring Coronation-street actress Shobna Gulati and the imprisonment that closed doors bring to the lives of women suffering domestic violence is explored in photographic exhibition 'Behind Closed Doors'.

DANCING WITHIN WALLS, 4 - 13 DEC	BEHIND CLOSED DOORS, 27 NOV - 3 DEC
Fusing drama, dance and music, Dancing Within Walls tells the true-life story of a woman who broke all the rules. Dancer Rukmini Devi was one of 20th century India's most fascinating women. read more	The 'Behind Closed Doors' exhibition will feature striking photographs as well as a number of exhibits, such as a burnt wedding dress, that graphically highlight issues such as suicide and honour killings. read more

In the title story in Meera Nair's book 'Video', Nasser is accidentally exposed to video pornography and when he asks his wife to perform some of the sexual acts, she retreats behind the closed the doors of the 'Sandaz', taking up permanent residence and acquiring "guru-like" status along the way! Nair's book has just been awarded the Asian American Literary Award 2003 and hopefully she will be collecting it next week, unlike Hari Kunzru who has just turned down the John Llewellyn Rhys Award for his debut novel 'The Impressionist' on the grounds that it was sponsored by the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday. Apparently Mr Kunzru objects to the editorial stance of both papers when it comes to refugees, asylum seekers and ethnic minorities. Is this high-minded of him, or merely inverse PR? Doing the right thing is obviously hard work! In Shyama Perera's novel she urges the reader to 'Do the Right Thing' in completely the wrong way.

VIDEO: STORIES BY MEERA NAIR	DO THE RIGHT THING BY SHYAMA PERERA
In the title story 'Video', Naseer is accidentally exposed to video pornography. A straight-laced upbringing fails to dampen his thrust for more and little does he realise the calamity that will befall him when he asks his wife to perform some of the acts he from the video! read more	The ebullient Ms Perera's attempts to adapt the mythological tale 'The Ramayana' for modern day in her romantic novel 'Do The Right Thing' just proves how impossible the task really is. She uses 'The Ramayana' as a foil to argue her case that being "right" is more important than being "righteous". read more

Perhaps the Awards worth winning are culinary ones. Chad Rahman of the Mumtaj Restaurant in St Albans has pulled off a coup by winning the CIEH- FSA 'National Curry Chef of the Year' Award for the second year running. As these awards focus on creative cooking and excellence in hygiene, I feel a trip to St Albans coming on. The nation, of course, hardly needs to be urged to eat more curry. In Shrabani Basu's newly-published book 'Curry: The Story of the Nation's Favourite Dish' she explores how Britain has come to take curry to its heart. Redhotcurry.com has TWO copies of her book to give away, so make sure you take a moment to enter our competition.

CURRY CHEF OF THE YEAR 2003	CURRY: THE NATION'S FAVOURITE DISH
Chad Rahman of the Mumtaj Restaurant in St Albans, Hertfordshire has done it again. He today triumphed in culinary combat to carry off the title National Curry Chef 2003. This is a unique prize in the Asian restaurant trade. read more	Britain has become a nation of curryholics - there are more than 8000 curry restaurants in Britain, visited by two million people each week. Annually £2bn is spent in Indian restaurants. But how did Britain come to take curry so much to its heart? read more
***CURRY: THE NATION'S FAVOURITE DISH COMPETITION ***
We have 2 copies of the recently published 'Curry: The Story of the Nation's Favourite Dish' to give away. To win a one, simply answer the question below: Q1) Which Englishwoman recorded the first recipe for curry powder in the UK? HOW TO ENTER 1. Reply to this email with your answer. Ensure you provide your full name, a DAYTIME DELIVERY address and TELEPHONE NUMBER. 2. If you are unable to reply to this email, send a separate email to webmaster@redhotcurry.com with your answer. Ensure you provide your full name, a DAYTIME DELIVERY address and TELEPHONE NUMBER. TERMS AND CONDITIONS 1. Competition is open to UK Residents over the age of 18 only. 2. You must be a registered member of Redhotcurry.com. Please take a moment to sign up. 3. Winners will be chosen from the first two correct answers received. 4. The Editor's decision is final.

I'm now off to...errr.....St Albans.

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.