SUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2016

MARKETPLACE | 6 HEALTH | 9 BOLLYWOOD | 11Male athletes choke more under pressure than women: Study

EAT FAT GET THIN

P | 4-5

Email: dohatoday@pen.com.qa

MARKE D | 11

What healthy fats can do is shut down cravings, speed up metabolism and help prevent and reverse heart disease, not cause it.

Retaj Al Rayyan Makkah Hotel

celebrates Hajj season

Great time to take risks in Bollywood: Sonakshi Sinha

CAMPUSSUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2016 03

Shantiniketan hosts Inter-School Polemic Challenge

Shantiniketan Indian School organised the Inter-School Polemic Challenge 2016 at Multipurpose Hall on November 10. Students

from seven Indian Schools debated on the topic “It is too late to Reverse Climate Change through Conscious Global Efforts.”

Participants from DPS-MIS, MES Indian School, Birla Public School, DMIS, Ideal Indian School, Al Khor International School participated in the event. Rizwana Rahim of SIS moderated the debate that was very closely contested. DPS-MIS walked with the trophy for the Best School and Sandra Ramchandran of DPS emerged as the Best Speaker. The award for the Best Rebuttal was won by Kevin Kimi Alex of DMIS.

The judges expressed their pleasure on the topic chosen to be debated and the ideas expressed by the debaters on the most

concerning issue confronted by the countries of the world today. All the

participants spoke with great con-viction and made their points very

clear creating a highly competitive environment.

QU-CMED team visits KSAU-HS,

KFSH&RC and KFNCCC

A delegation from Qatar Uni-versity College of Medicine (QU-CMED) comprising QU

VP for Medical Education and CMED Dean Dr Egon Toft, CMED Associ-ate Dean for Academic Affairs Dr Hossam Hamdy and CMED Profes-sor Dr Ala-Eddin Al Moustafa recently visited King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sci-ences (KSAU-HS), King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Cen-tre (KFSH&RC) and King Fahad National Centre for Children’s Can-cer (KFNCCC).

The visit included a meeting with Dr Khawla S Al-Kuraya, Pro-fessor of Pathology and KFSH&RC Director of KFNCCC, to explore opportunities for collaboration between QU Health and KFNCCC. It is part of the college’s commit-ment to expanding its international collaborations in line with its mis-sion to provide a medical education of international standard with a national focus.

The first day’s program fea-tured a series of presentations delivered by KSAU-HS College of Medicine (COM) Dean Dr Ahmed Al Rumayyan, COM Associate Dean for Academic & Student Affairs Dr Nawfal Aljerian, KSAU-HS Direc-tor of Educational Affairs Ms Susan Poskey, COM-Female Branch Asso-ciate Dean Prof Hanan Al Kadri, COM Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs Dr Saud Al Jadaan, Profes-sor at COM Department of Medical Education Prof Mohi Eldin Magzoub, and Senior Medical Librarian at COM Medical Library Mr Shakil Khalil.

They presented a wide range of topics such as “COM Curriculum”,

“Student Academic Management System (SAMS)”, “Assessment Unit”,

“Clinical Simulation Center & Clin-ical Rotation”, “Masters of Medical Education”, “Comprehensive Aca-demic Management System (CAMS)

– Curriculum Alignment Project”, and “Learning Resources”.

COVER STORY SUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 201604Des Bieler The Washington Post

The weight-loss industry has long been saturated with gimmicky, too-good-to-be-true diets, so one could be excused for

thinking the main benefit of “Eat Fat, Get Thin” is to burn calories by causing particularly vigorous eye-rolling.

I mean, doesn’t eating fat, like, make you fat?

Actually, the answer is a big, fat no, at least according to Mark Hyman, director of the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medi-cine and the man behind the “Eat Fat, Get Thin” plan. He is also, apro-pos of this moment, a key medical adviser to Hillary and Bill Clinton, but in a recent interview, I found him as silent on that topic (citing potential HIPAA violations) as he was expansive on the benefits of healthy fats.

Hyman is credited with mov-ing the Clintons to his eating plan

— in Bill’s case, getting the former president, who had gone vegan after quadruple bypass surgery in 2004, to eat some meat and cut down on carbohydrates. For the 56-year-old physician and best-selling author, there are two key concepts: Dietary fat does not, in fact, increase body fat, and all cal-ories are not created equal.

“The misinformation that has been pushed on our population by the food industry and our govern-ment, which is that all calories are the same — that’s true in a labora-tory, when you burn them,” Hyman said. “It’s not true when you eat them.”

In a blog post on his website last year, Hyman compared the effects of consuming 750 calories of soda vs. 750 calories of broccoli, point-ing out the many adverse effects of the former, including an insulin spike, which increases the storage of belly fat. In our conversation, he noted, “Fat, on the other hand, does not raise insulin.”

What healthy fats can do, Hyman wrote in his forthcoming book, “The Eat Fat, Get Thin Cook-book,” is “shut down cravings, speed up metabolism” and “help

prevent and reverse heart disease, not cause it.” He points the finger at a long-standing and misguided obsession with calories, one that demonises fats for containing more of them than processed carbohy-drates and sugars, leading to

“dangerous low-fat diets.”“The basic idea is that the qual-

ity and composition of your diet

matters more than the calories,” Hyman said. In terms of his cook-book, that means not only making sure to eat healthy fats, including

“wild fatty fish (sardines, mackerel, herring, wild salmon), grass-fed meat or organic poultry (skin and fat left on), nuts and seeds, avoca-dos, extra-virgin olive oil, and coconut oil,” but even adding fat to

coffee.Of course, many of

us do that already, in the form of half-and-half, but Hyman is not a fan of most dairy products, except for grass-fed butter and ghee, a form of clarified butter. So, he says, go ahead and mix that into your coffee! Yes, butter. Or, perhaps, MCT (medium-chain triglyc-erides) oil, a derivative of coconut oil, of which Hyman is a big fan.

The Washington Post’s own healthy-eat-ing expert, Ellie Krieger, recently wrote, “Don’t buy into the coconut as

cure-all hype, and do stick to unsaturated oil for everyday cook-ing.” But coconut oil, as well as milk and flour derived from the plant, show up frequently in Hyman’s rec-ipes. The medium-chain fatty acids found in coconuts are a “special type of fat that is differentially absorbed by the liver” and help speed up metabolism and curb appetite, he said.

Of course, as with any eating regimen (Hyman dislikes the word

“diet” almost as much as he dislikes Twinkies), it’s not all coconut-fla-voured fun and buttery games. The shoe that’s waiting to drop on those going the “Eat Fat, Get Thin” route is, for many, a drastic reduction in dietary sugar and carbohydrates.

“For the first few days, it’s often very challenging,” Hyman said of his plan. He doesn’t tell people to eliminate sugar entirely, but he refers to it as “a recreational drug.”

In fact, Hyman’s emphasis on avoiding processed foods — “leave the food that man made and eat the food that God made,” he says — and most dairy products constitutes a hybrid of the Paleo diet and vegan-ism, or what he calls “Pegan.”

Does eating fat make you fat?

COVER STORYSUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2016 05

“Its really a way of eating that your body was designed for, which is what we’ve been eating for thou-sands and thousands of years,” he said. Sugar and flour “are really new foods for us, and yet now they’re the most abundant sources of our calories.”

What Hyman prescribes is for

“slow carbs or non-starchy plant foods,” such as green leafy veggies, broccoli, mushrooms, tomatoes, peppers and bok choy, to “make up 75 percent of your plate,” along with four to six ounces of protein. The good news is that, instead of hav-ing to squeeze a lemon onto the broccoli or using some similarly

low-fat condiment, you can add some EVOO or avocado to it.

“By volume, it’s pretty much non-starchy plant foods,” Hyman said of his plan. “By calories, it’s mostly fat.”

Bill Clinton, who appears to have lost plenty of weight since his White House days, seems to be a

fan of the plan. The work of Hyman, who, according to a 2014 New York Times profile, was introduced to him by Hillary in 2005, “inspired” him to make “drastic changes to [his] own diet and exercise routine,” the former president said in a tes-timonial on the physician’s website.

Hyman also pointed me toward work by others that bolsters his position, including a 2012 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association pos-iting that “a strategy to reduce glycemic load rather than dietary fat may be advantageous for weight-loss maintenance and car-diovascular disease prevention.”

In a personal testimonial in his cookbook, Hyman wrote, “I’m now eating more calories and losing more weight, and I eat fat with every single meal!”

That sounds pretty palatable, although it helps that I’m already a fan of broccoli and sardines. In case you’re wondering, I have yet to try the “Eat Fat, Get Thin” di . . . er, eat-ing regimen, although heaven knows I could stand to lose some weight.

My wife and I have been exper-imenting with coconut oil, though, so maybe I’ll take a baby step by mixing some into my coffee. Gotta start somewhere, right?

MARKET PLACE/COMMUNITY SUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 201606

Retaj Al Rayyan Makkah Hotel celebrates Haj season

The “Retaj Al Rayyan” Hotel, which was recently opened in Makkah, has successfully

hosted its first pilgrims for Haj sea-son of 2016.

Commenting on this, Retaj Al Rayyan Hotel in Makkah General Manager Islam Yussri (inset)expressed his deep thanks and appre-ciation to the government of the Saudi

Arabia for hosting yet another suc-cessful Haj season. “We have faced a challenge, providing special service and accommodating more than 3,000 guests from different traditions and

nationalities. Ensuring that Retaj high standard of service was in place to achieve guest satisfaction. This achievement was possible due to the teamwork of all staff and manage-ment. I would like to thank them all for a job well done” said Yussri.

Located in Ash Shishah area under Al Rawda Bridge, only 15 minutes from Al Haram through Al Fiasaleyah tunnel, and 10 minutes from Al-Aziziya shopping area.

“Retaj Al Rayyan” Makkah Hotel offers free transportation to and from the Haram around the clock.

The hotel offers 670 rooms, suites, studios and rooms with multi-beds upon guests’ request. In addition, a separate mosque for male and female. Also, a restaurant offering an open buffet catering to all tastes, a coffee shop, meeting rooms and free Internet service throughout the hotel. The hotel rooms design were inspired by the authentic Arabian heritage found in all Retaj Hotels in Qatar, Turkey and Comoros Islands “Retaj Al Rayyan” Makkah is the perfect home for all visitors and pilgrims in Makkah, as well as tourists and businessmen alike.

Autism research discussed

at WCM-Q Grand Rounds

The latest research on the prev-alence, diagnosis and treatment of autism was

shared by one of Qatar’s leading child and adolescent psychiatrist at the most recent installment of Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar’s Grand Rounds series.

Dr Muhammad Waqar Azeem (pictured), Inaugural Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at Sidra Medical and Research Center, said that autism is now believed to affect approximately one child in 68, with boys four to five times more likely to be affected than girls.

Autism is a lifelong develop-mental disorder that usually becomes apparent in early child-hood and is characterised by

persistent deficits in social interac-tions and communication, difficulty understanding social relationships, and restricted and repetitive behav-iours. While the disorder can lead to social isolation and anxiety, early diagnosis and sensitive professional care can help children with autism and their parents lead fulfilling and better lives, explained Dr Azeem.

He said: “Early diagnosis is cru-cial as early intervention including speech therapy is extremely impor-tant. Furthermore, children with autism can become frustrated and throw temper tantrums which can be mistaken as simple bad behav-ior, which will leave the child confused and will damage their self-esteem. “However, if we reach

a diagnosis early we can work closely with the parents to make positive interventions that help them understand behavior patterns better and modify the child’s activ-ities to achieve stability and emotional wellbeing.”

Dr Azeem, who is also Associ-ate Clinical Professor at the Yale Child Study Center of Yale Univer-sity School of Medicine in

Connecticut, explained that the way autism is diagnosed has changed significantly in recent years. Sev-eral subtypes of autism that were previously categorized separately have been brought under the sin-gle umbrella diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder, as outlined in the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, known as ‘DMS-5’.

MARKETPLACESUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2016 07

Marriott hosts customer appreciation week

Every year Marriott Inter-national takes the opportunity to thank their most loyal customers and partners for their business

during Global Customer Apprecia-tion Week. This initiative has become a cultural pillar for all Marriott hotels worldwide, showing appreciation to its customers for their continuous support and loyalty.

This year, Global Customer Appreciation Week was celebrated from November 6 to 10 with an array of exciting sales activities, executive calls and Spirit to Serve Our Community initiatives. Sales associates from eight Marriott Inter-national properties in Qatar visited top corporate clients and custom-ers to reinforce relationships, while taking the opportunity to establish new connections with new clients. It is for the very first time that Mar-riott International and Starwood Hotels and Resorts are celebrating the special occasion of Global Cus-tomer Appreciation Week jointly after the merger.

Participating hotels were the Doha Marriott Hotel, Marriott Mar-quis City Center Doha, The Ritz Carlton Doha, Sharq Village & Spa, a Ritz Carlton Hotel, Sheraton

Grand Doha, The St. Regis Doha, W Doha and The Westin Hotel & Spa.

On the occasion of Global Cus-tomer Appreciation Week, Marriott International Middle East and Africa Chief Sales & Marketing Officer Neal Jones said: “Marriott International has grown to be the world’slargest hotel company, dramatically expanding our ability to provide exceptional experiences to our cus-tomers across the globe. In Qatar, our hotel portfolio doubled this year, offering now 8 hotels across 6

exciting brands. As we continue to grow across the Middle East and Africa continent, we are acutely aware that the hospitality sector is becoming more and more compet-itive. Global Customer Appreciation Week provides us with an invalu-able opportunity to personally thank our guests andcustomers for their ongoing support and their commitment towards Marriott International.”

The highlight of the week’s cel-ebration was the grand customer

event on November 8, hosted at the Marriott Marquis City Center Doha Hotel. The event was also attended by Marriott International and Ritz Carlton regional representatives including Paul Dalgleish, Vice Pres-ident Sales, Marriott Middle East& Africa. 450 guests were able to explore all eight Marriott Interna-tional properties in Doha and were treated to an entertaining evening with live music from the Doha Jazz Band and culinary signatures from all eight participating hotels.

Max launches ‘Fashion for Real People’

Max, the largest and most trusted value fash-ion brand in the region, announced the second chapter of its award winning ‘Fash-

ion for Real People’ brand campaign. Echoing the importance of individuality, the campaign champi-ons the need of every individual to discover, embrace and express their own unique style statement.

The next phase of Max campaign celebrates the innate sense of style that all real people possessand aims to inspire millions more to accept their distinc-tive personality.

In the first phase, launched in November 2015, Max joined forces with Arab youth icon, Mohammed Assaf. The campaign received outstanding reception across the Middle East region and won the prestig-ious Dubai Lynx 2016 awards, bagging Silver in Integrated Media category and two Bronzes in the Media-Product/Service andInteractive - Online Video categories respectively.

The second phase of the campaign portrays dif-ferent facets of Assaf’s daily life. Photographed in a natural setting, the images capture him in a library, at a studio and in the gym. The idea is to present a fun and colourful collage of cherished moments from Assaf’s daily life, featuring him in the Max collections that fans can relate to. The campaign will come to life on broadcast, digital and print media. Moham-med Assaf will also embark on a regional tour to meet fans at Max stores in UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Jordan and Lebanon.

Assaf added: “The Max Fashion for Real People campaign is a movement that has touched millions of hearts through its inspirational message. I am delighted and privileged to be part of this journey that focuses onpositivity and pride in self-expression.” Max Fashion is part of Landmark Group, one of the larg-est retail and hospitality conglomerates in the Middle East and India.

FOOD SUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 201608Ellie KriegerThe Washington Post

I was served a version of this dish at a neigh-bourhood restaurant in Milan last fall and was completely smitten with it. It provided the comforting, belly-warming satisfaction

a chilly night calls for, and it charmed me with the rustic-chic elegance that came from pairing chickpeas with farro, an ancient variety of wheat that is officially on trend these days, I’m happy to say.

When I began to experiment with my own take on it, I realized that the dish involved the same basic technique as a familiar favorite, pasta e fagioli (pasta and beans), which, growing up in Queens, I always knew as “pasta fazool.” The basic idea is the same: The classic onion-carrot-celery triad is softened in a pot with some garlic; then broth, tomatoes and herbs are stirred in along with the beans (which, here, are chick-peas); after those cook for a while, the grain is added and cooked al dente.

In this recipe, of course, the grain is farro, rather than the usual pasta, and it lends an appealing chew and subtly nutty flavor to the stew.

Besides the ancient grain, another unique element here is the luxurious texture of the broth, owed to the creamy puree of chickpeas that is stirred into the pot toward the end. Baby spin-ach leaves also are added at that point and are cooked until just wilted, to lend fresh flecks of green throughout. Once plated, the dish is fin-ished with a sprinkle of freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano for a quick one-pot din-ner that’s as homey as it is stylish.

Chickpea and Farro StewIngredients (4 servings (makes 6 cups)• 3 cups cooked or no-salt-added canned chick-

peas (from two 15-ounce cans; drained and rinsed, if using canned)

• 3 1/2 cups no-salt-added chicken or vegeta-ble broth

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 medium onion, diced• 1 medium carrot, scrubbed well, then diced• 1 rib celery, diced• 2 cloves garlic, minced• One 14.5-ounce can no-salt-added diced

tomatoes• 1 sprig rosemary• 1/2 teaspoon salt• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper• 1/2 cup pearled farro (see headnote)• 2 cups lightly packed baby spinach leaves,

coarsely chopped• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

cheese

Method:Combine 1 cup of the chickpeas and 1/2 cup

of the broth in a blender and blend to form a smooth puree.

Heat the oil in a medium soup pot over medium heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the onion, carrot and celery; cook for 6 to 8 minutes,

stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are sof-tened but not browned. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute, then add the remaining 2 cups of chickpeas, the remaining 3 cups of broth, the tomatoes and their juices, the rosemary, salt and pepper, stirring to incorporate. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 15 minutes.

Add the farro and increase the heat to medium-high; once the mixture returns to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the farro is tender, about 20 minutes.

Discard the rosemary sprig. Add the chick-pea puree, then stir in the spinach and cook for 1 or 2 minutes, until it is just wilted.

Serve hot, garnished with the cheese.

Nutrition | Per serving (using vegetable broth): 440 calories, 19 g protein, 65 g carbohydrates, 13 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 5 mg cholesterol, 520 mg sodium, 15 g dietary fiber, 15 g sugar

A one-pot comfort food

HEALTHSUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2016 09

Reuters

A multidrug-resistant superbug infec-tion that can cause life-threatening illness in people with cystic fibrosis (CF) has spread globally and is becoming increasingly virulent, Brit-

ish researchers said on Thursday.In a study published in the journal Science,

the researchers said the bug, a species of multi-drug-resistant bacteria called Mycobacterium abscessus (M. abscessus), can cause severe pneu-monia and is particularly dangerous for patients with CF and other lung diseases.

“The bug initially seems to have entered the patient population from the environment, but we think it has recently evolved to become capa-ble of jumping from patient to patient, getting more virulent as it does so,” said Andres Floto, a Cambridge University professor who co-led the study.

Cystic fibrosis is a relatively rare genetic dis-order that affects the respiratory, digestive and reproductive systems. It causes patients’ lungs to become clogged up with thick, sticky mucus and makes them vulnerable to respiratory infections.

In this study, researchers from Cambridge and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute sequenced the genomes of more than 1,000 sam-ples of mycobacteria from 517 CF patients at specialist clinics in Europe, the United States and Australia.

They found that the majority of patients had picked up transmissible forms of M. abscessus

that had spread globally.Further analysis suggested the infection may

be transmitted within hospitals via contaminated surfaces and through the air, the researchers said - presenting a serious challenge to infec-tion control practices in hospitals.

Because the superbug has already become resistant to many antibiotics, it is also extremely difficult to treat successfully, Floto said. Patients infected with it need 18 months or more of treat-ment with a combination of powerful antibiotics, and fewer than one in three cases is cured.

Julian Parkhill of the Sanger Institute, who worked on this study, said that while its findings were alarming for CF patients, they did also pro-vide a degree of hope.

“Now that we know the extent of the prob-lem and are beginning to understand how the infection spreads, we can start to respond,” he said.

The sequencing data has thrown up poten-tial new drug targets, he explained, and the researchers now plan to focus on seeking to develop new medicines to beat the bug.

IANS

Male athletes are far more likely to choke under competitive pressure

than their female counterparts, researchers have said.

“Our research showed that men consistently choke under competitive pressure, but with regard to women the results are mixed,” said Mosi Rosenboim of

Ben-Gurion University in Beer-sheba, Israel. “However, even if women show a drop in perform-ance in the more crucial stages of the match, it is still about 50 per cent less than that of men,” Rosenboim added.

According to the researchers, stress influenced by an onset of heightened cortisol levels is one of the possible culprits.

Previous studies have already

shown that high amounts of cor-tisol correlate with poor second serves in tennis and worse golf performance, the researchers said.

“The study indicates that in response to achievement chal-lenges, cortisol levels increase more rapidly among men than among women, and that high lev-els can harm the mind’s critical abilities,” explained Offer Moshe Shapir of New York University in

Shanghai, China. For the study, published in journal Researchgate, the researchers analysed game-level tennis data of 4,127 women’s and 4,153 men’s tennis games of all four Grand Slam tournaments in 2010

They examined, within each tennis match, whether and how much each gender deteriorated or improved at crucial stages of the match.

Male athletes choke more under pressure than women: Study

Superbug spreads globally Superbug spreads globally in cystic fibrosis patientsin cystic fibrosis patients

FASHION SUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 201610

AFP

Fashion designer Stella McCartney unveiled her first menswear col-lection on Thursday at London’s famous Abbey Road recording studio, where she promised men

a more free and fun wardrobe. McCartney chose to present the collection at the record-ing studio made famous by her father, Paul McCartney, and his three fellow Beatles when they named one of their albums after Abbey Road.

His fashion designer daughter referred to the 1969 album cover, which shows the band walking across Abbey Road, by parad-ing models over the same white stripes to photographers’ flashes.

McCartney said the venue was special both for its musical and family ties.

“It really means a lot to our family this studio... seeing and hearing what’s been cre-ated here, the best music in the world.

“It’s such an iconic place. So many peo-ple have recorded here,” she said.

Pink Floyd, Radiohead, the Manic Street Preachers and Blur are just some of the other bands to have recorded at Abbey Road in recent years.

Trained at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, McCartney has built a reputation as a designer but has only just decided to enter the world of menswear.

The collection shown at Abbey Road ranged from playful casual wear, such as blue pinstripe pyjama-like shirts and bright

yellow socks, to more formal tailoring including a black suit and camel overcoat.

“The challenge has been just to look at how men dress but also not over thinking it,” said McCartney.

“We want them to be a bit freer and hav-ing more fun with their wardrobe and also have timeless beautiful pieces at the same time.”

The launch was attended by British cre-atives such as actress Anna Friel and rapper M.I.A, as well as models Kate Moss and Twiggy. Music performances included Run-DMC, who played the well-known track

“Walk this way”.McCartney’s womenswear collection

for spring 2017 was also unveiled at the event.

Stella McCartney unveils first menswear collection

BOLLYWOODSUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2016 11By Sugandha Rawal IANS

Sonakshi Sinha, who feels the lines of gen-der divide in Bollywood are fast fading, says this is a great time for female actors to take risks with new characters and

stories.From Sonakshi -- who was recently seen in

an action avatar in “Akira” -- to Alia Bhatt, Shrad-dha Kapoor, Deepika Padukone to Anushka Sharma... Bollywood’s women brigade is seen exploring new cinematic zones with each of their projects.

“If there is any time to take risk, it is now with films, filmmaking and characters, because we never know what clicks with the audience. And every time you give them something dif-ferent, they accept it and lap it up,” Sonakshi told IANS.

The 29-year-old actress feels the gender scale of the industry will find a balance soon.

“It is a very good time to be a girl in the indus-try because they are making characters for women. Roles keeping women in mind, and scripts are being written for women. So, I feel that way it is definitely on a rise,” she said.

Many would think that Sonakshi -- daugh-ter of actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha and Poonam Sinha -- had it easy in the enter-tainment world considering her “star kid” tag. But considering how she was body-shamed, it hasn’t been an easy ride.

However, she always let her work speak for her talent, starting from her debut film

“Dabangg” to subsequent hits like “Rowdy Rathore”, “Lootera” and “Holiday: A Soldier Is Never Off Duty”.

The actress will next be doing some heavy duty action scenes as a RAW agent in “Force 2”,

and then will be seen as a journalist in “Noor”. Sonakshi says the fact that the projects are

diverse, gives her professional satisfaction. “I feel there has been a visible shift in the kind

of films being made, with challenging roles... So, I feel there is a lot to choose from. Honestly, I made a promise to myself that ‘Akira’ onwards, I only want to do roles that challenge me in one way or another,” she said, adding that “whether it is ‘Akira’ or ‘Force 2’ or ‘Noor’, they all chal-lenge me in some way or the other”.

There is one thing that bothers Sonakshi, and

that is the extra attention given to any film with a female actress in an action avatar.

“When a hero does anything, then nobody really questions it. But when you put a woman in his place, you have to explain why she is doing the action. It is wrong. I feel this kind of mind-set needs to be changed. In today’s age, where women are doing everything -- be it going to outer space or winning medals at the Olympics, I don’t think we should do this.

“I think the mindset should change and peo-ple should approach it differently.”

Great time to take risks in Bollywood: Sonakshi Sinha

Actress Shilpa Shetty Kundra’s four-year-old son Viaan appeared on the stage of dance-based reality

TV show, leaving her proud and excited.Viaan will be seen on the Children’s

Day episode of the Sony TV channel’s show “Super Dancer”. Shilpa is a judge on the show with filmmaker Anurag Basu and choreographer Geeta Kapur.

The 41-year-old actress says she could completely relate to the other mothers who see their children perform on stage.

“It was so much fun to see Viaan

perform on the show...I could completely relate to how proud and excited the other mothers feel to watch their chil-dren perform on the show,” Shilpa said in a statement.

The “Phir Milenge” actress’ husband Raj Kundra planned the impromptu sur-prise and was waiting in the wings along with son Viaan.

Viaan will be seen performing one of his favourite songs “Tattad tattad” from filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s “Goli-yon Ki Rasleela Ram-Leela”, starring Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone.

Shilpa Shetty Kundra ‘proud’ about

son Viaan’s TV debut

HOLLYWOOD SUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 201612

AFP

Leonard Cohen, one of his genera-

tion’s most respected musicians

and poets who delved into the spir-

itual on songs such as “Hallelujah,”

has died at age 82.

“We have lost one of music’s most

revered and prolific visionaries,” read a

statement Thursday on his website and

Facebook page.

Cohen, who was brought up in Mon-

treal but lived in California late in his life,

will have a memorial service in Los Ange-

les at a later date, the statement said.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Tru-

deau mourned Cohen, long considered

one of the country’s foremost writers, as

a “remarkable Montrealer.”

“Leonard, no other artist’s poetry and

music felt or sounded quite like yours.

We’ll miss you,” Trudeau said in a

statement.

Trudeau said that Cohen would be

“fondly remembered for his gruff vocals,

his self-deprecating humor and the haunt-

ing lyrics that made his songs the

perennial favorite of so many

generations.

“Leonard Cohen is as relevant today

as he was in the 1960s. His ability to con-

jure the vast array of human emotion

made him one of the most influential and

enduring musicians ever. His style tran-

scended the vagaries of fashion,” Trudeau

said.

Cohen began as a poet before seek-

ing a more stable career, comparatively

speaking, as a musician. While at first

receiving a lukewarm reception, Cohen

went on to become a critical favorite with

meditative songs such as “So Long, Mar-

ianne” and “Suzanne.”

“Hallelujah,” an anthem of uplift rich

in biblical reference, has been covered

by a vast array of artists including Jeff

Buckley, John Cale, k.d. lang and Rufus

Wainwright.

Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre ordered

the city’s flags to fly at half-mast.

“Tonight we lost one of our greatest

ambassadors and icons,” he tweeted.

Dozens of fans converged spontane-

ously around Cohen’s home in Montreal

after news of his death, lighting candles

and leaving flowers as well as one of the

top-hats that were his signature look late

in his career.

Young and old, Cohen’s fans played

some of his best-known songs on their

smartphones. A wire hanging on the front

door read out the letters

“H-A-L-L-E-L-U-J-A-H.”

Cohen, who spent much of his young

adulthood on the Greek island of Hydra,

retreated in the 1990s to a Zen Buddhist

monastery near Los Angeles before

returning to music.

But he kept a strong connection to

Montreal. In 2000, Cohen was a pallbearer

at the state funeral of former prime min-

ister Pierre Trudeau, the father of the

current Canadian leader, joining former

US president Jimmy Carter and Cuba’s

then president Fidel Castro.

Cohen released his final album, “You

Want It Darker,” just last month, featur-

ing the singer reflecting at length on his

own mortality.

The Recording Academy, which in

2010 presented Cohen with a lifetime

achievement Grammy, mourned him as

“one of the most revered pop poets and

a musical touchstone for many

songwriters.”

“His extraordinary talent had a pro-

found impact on countless singers and

songwriters, as well as the wider culture,”

Academy president Neil Portnow said in

a statement, adding, “He will be missed

terribly.”

Music-lovers mourn poet, musician Leonard Cohen

Leonard Cohen, one of his generation’s most respected musicians and poets who delved into the spiritual on songs such as “Hallelujah,” has died at age 82.

TECHNOLOGYSUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2016 13

Steven OverlyThe Washington Post

The latest product to be unveiled by tech giant Google was not a new smartphone or wearable device or search feature designed to be used by millions of everyday consumers.

Rather, it was a $6,000 whiteboard designed to be used in your office conference room.

The release of Jamboard puts the Silicon Val-ley behemoth into the niche but increasingly competitive market of interactive whiteboards, the high-tech equivalent of those dry-erase boards that employees use to scrawl out dia-grams, lead presentations or brainstorm new ideas.

Microsoft and Google have both gotten into the interactive whiteboard market this year, cre-ating new competition for the largest and most entrenched player, Smart Technologies, a Cana-dian firm recently acquired by Foxconn.

“The last piece of equipment in the office and classroom that hasn’t made it into the modern age is the whiteboard,” said Smart Technologies chief technology officer Warren Barkley. “We, along with Microsoft and Google, see this as an opportunity to move that static, physically iso-lated content into the wider world.”

Though commonplace today, the standard whiteboard is an innovation itself. Popularized

in the late 1980s and 1990s, the whiteboard has, in many instances, replaced the dusty black-board that always left hands, clothes and floors coated in a thin layer of chalk residue.

The digital whiteboard is a more modern invention and it continues to evolve.

Smart Technologies takes credit for creat-ing the first interactive whiteboard in 1991. Barkley said those devices were primarily large display devices that used projectors and had maybe one or two touch points. Today, interac-tive whiteboards come with high-tech LED touch screens whose ease of use more closely resem-bles a tablet computer.

That evolution has come with fits and starts, he said, and new arrivals could advance it further.

Google’s Jamboard is a 55-inch, touch screen monitor that connects to the cloud and taps into Google’s G Suite of productivity apps, including Google Drive, Docs and Calendar. Equipped with machine learning technology, the board is mar-keted as a tool for companies to make information gathering and brainstorming more seamless.

As senior product manager T.J. Varghese said succinctly in a recent blog post, “At Google, we’ve set out to redefine meetings.”

Varghese wrote in an email that the com-pany will first offer Jamboard to the roughly 2 million customers who subscribe to its work-place software, and it will review how those businesses put the board to use before selling it to other corporate customers.

It’s unclear whether Jamboard will have a meaningful impact on Google’s income. It strikes a different tone from the company’s other prod-ucts, which are generally lower cost and marketed to the masses, because the electronic whiteboard is distinctly aimed at a business crowd with a hefty I.T. budget.

Google also faces stiff competition in the workplace technology market, said Vanessa Thompson, a research analyst at IDC, a market research firm specializing in technology.

In March, Microsoft began shipping its own interactive whiteboard, called Surface Hub. Much as Jamboard integrates with Google’s other prod-ucts, Surface Hub integrates with Microsoft’s established slate of workplace software, includ-ing Skype and Microsoft Office. The 55-inch Surface Hub sells for $8,999, and the 84-inch version goes for $21,999.

“At the very highest level, I would say almost every company today is going through some form of digital transformation,” said Julia Atalla, sen-ior director of Microsoft’s Windows and Devices group. “Medium- to large-size businesses, they’re looking at ways they can innovate faster.”

Interactive whiteboard purveyors say their products meet that need. Collaboration has become harder in office environments where some employees work remotely or travel often, and information is increasingly stored in digital formats and shared through email. Having a dig-ital interface that all workers in a meeting can connect with to share information, video con-ference and otherwise engage makes those gatherings more productive, they say.

But I.T. trends could also make the large cap-ital investment needed to purchase the boards harder to justify, Thompson of IDC said.

“There are some macro trends impacting the way we work, like decentralization in large organizations, small team-oriented work, per-sonal productivity tools augmenting tools provided by organizations,” Thompson said.

“These behavioral themes mean that workers are just as likely to use personal tools to share and collaborate as they are a space in the office.”

Tech battle brewing over whiteboards

The release of Jamboard puts the Silicon Valley behemoth into the niche but increasingly competitive market of interactive whiteboards, the high-tech equivalent of those dry-erase boards that employees use to scrawl out diagrams, lead presentations or brainstorm new ideas.

BABY BLUES

HAGAR THE HORRIBLE

A former neurosurgeon embarks on a journey of healing only to be drawn into the world of the mystic arts.

Note: Programme is subject to change without prior notice.

DOCTOR STRANGE

NOVO ROYAL PLAZA

AL KHOR

ASIAN TOWN

MALL

LANDMARK

Operation Chromite (2D/Action) 11:15am, 1:45, 4:15, 6:45, 9:15 & 11:45pmShut In (2D/Thriller) 10:10am, 12:00noon, 2:00, 2:30, 4:00, 6:00, 7:00, 8:00, 10:00, 11:30pm & 12:00midnightTrenk, The Little Knight (2D/Animation) 10:00, 11:40am, 1:20 & 3:00pmThe Accountant (2D/Action) 4:45, 7:10, 9:30pm & 12:00midnight Jack Reacher: Never Go Back (2D/Action) 10:15am, 2:45, 7:15 & 11:35pmOuija: Origin of Evil (2D/Horror) 12:45, 5:15 & 9:35pmAndron (2D/Action) 11:30am, 1:30, 5:30, 7:30, 9:30 & 11:30pmAsal Abyad (2D/Arabic) 10:00am, 12:15, 2:30, 4:45, 7:00, 9:15 & 11:30pmTrolls (2D/Animation) 11:00am, 1:00, 3:00, 5:00 & 7:00pmBoo! A Madea Halloween (2D/Comedy) 9:00 & 11:15pmDoctor Strange (2D/Adventure) 12:00noon, 4:30 & 9:00pm Doctor Strange (3DIMAX/Adventure) 10:00am, 12:20, 2:40, 5:00, 7:20, 9:40pm & 12:00midnight

Achcham Yembadh (Tamil) 2:30pm Sahasam Swasaga Sagipo 5:15pmRock On 2 (2D/Hindi) 2:00 & 11:00pmTrenk, The Little Knight (2D/Animation) 2:30 & 4:00pmAssal Abyad (2D/Arabic) 7:30pm Puli Murugan (2D/Malayalam) 8:00pm Doctor Strange (2D/Adventure) 5:00pm Trolls (2D/Animation) 5:30pm Shut In (2D/Thriller) 7:15pmLahore Se Aagey (2D/Urdu) 9:00pmOperation Chromite (2D/Action) 9:30 & 11:30pmAndron (2D/Action) 11:30pm

Trenk, The Little Knight (2D/Animation) 2:30 & 5:45pmRock On 2 (2D/Hindi) 2:30 & 10:30pmShut In (2D/Thriller) 3:00 & 7:15pm Trolls (2D/Animation) 4:00pmPuli Murugan (2D/Malayalam) 5:00pm Sahasam Swasaga Sagipo 8:00pmAssal Abyad (2D/Arabic) 5:00 & 9:00pmDoctor Strange (2D/Adventure) 7:00pm Operation Chromite (2D/Action) 9:00 & 11:00pm Andron (2D/Action) 11:00pm

Trenk, The Little Knight (2D/Animation) 2:00 & 6:00pmAndron (2D/Action) 2:00 & 9:30pm Rock On 2 (2D/Hindi) 2:30 & 8:15pmShut In (2D/Thriller) 3:30 & 11:30pm Trolls (2D/Animation) 4:00pmPuli Murugan (2D/Malayalam) 5:15pm Assal Abyad (2D/Arabic) 5:30 & 9:30pm Rock On 2 (2D/Hindi) 8:15pmDoctor Strange (2D/Adventure) 7:30pm Operation Chromite (2D/Action) 7:30 & 11:30pm Achcham Yembadh (Tamil) 11:00pm

Trolls (Animation) 10:30am & 12:30pm Achcham Yembadh (Tamil) 12:30, 3:15, 6:00, 8:45 & 11:30pm Puli Murugan (Malayalam) 11:45am, 2:30, 5:30, 8:30 & 11:30pm

Shut In (Thriller) 2:45, 5:00, 7:15, 9:30 & 11:45pm

Puli Murugan (Malayalam) 4:30, 6:30, 7:30, 9:30 & 10:30pmAchcham Yembadh (Tamil) 7:00 & 10:00pmSahasam Swasaga Sagipo 4:30pm

SUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2016

VILLAGGIO & CITY CENTER

CINEMA PLUS14

CROSSWORD CONCEPTIS SUDOKU

ALL IN THE MIND

09:00 Boko Haram10:30 Inside Story11:00 News11:30 Talk To Al

Jazeera 12:00 News12:30 TechKnow13:00 NEWSHOUR14:00 News14:30 Inside Story15:00 Al Jazeera World16:00 NEWSHOUR17:00 News17:30 The Listening

Post18:00 NEWSHOUR19:30 101 East 20:00 News20:30 Inside Story21:00 NEWSHOUR22:00 News22:30 Talk To Al Jazeera 23:00 Orphans of the

Sahara

13:05 Ax Men13:55 Billion

Dollar Wreck15:35 Pawn

Stars16:00 American

Pickers16:50 Storage

Wars17:40 Mountain

Men18:30 TimeTeam19:20 American

Pickers20:10 Pawn

Stars22:40 Britain’s

Bloodiest Dynasty

00:45 Pawn Stars Australia

01:10 American Restoration

12:55 Bondi Vet13:50 Weird

Creatures With Nick Baker

14:45 Weird Creatures With Nick Baker

17:30 Weird Creatures With Nick Baker

19:20 Treehouse Masters

20:15 The Vet Life21:10 Wildest

Europe22:05 My Cat

From Hell23:00 Treehouse

Masters23:55 Gator Boys

13:05 How It’s Made: Dream Cars

13:30 Storage Hunters

13:55 Extreme Collectors

14:20 Alaskan Bush People

15:10 Gold Divers

16:00 Deadliest Catch

18:30 Deals, Wheels And Steals

20:35 Extreme Collectors

21:00 Car vs Wild22:40 Rebel Gold23:30 Fast N’

Loud

King Features Syndicate, Inc.

BRAIN TEASERSSUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2016 15

Yesterday’s answer

Conceptis Sudoku: Conceptis Sudoku is

a number-placing puzzle based on a

9×9 grid. The object is to place the

numbers 1 to 9 in the empty squares so

that each row, each column and each

3×3 box contains the same number only

once.

CATNAP, DAYDREAM, DOZE,

DREAM, DROWSY,

EXHAUSTED, FANTASY,

FATIGUED, FORTY WINKS,

HIBERNATE, IMAGINATION,

KIP, MIRAGE, NIGHTMARE,

NOD OFF, RELAX, REPOSE,

REST, SHUTEYE, SIESTA,

SLEEP, SLUMBER, SNOOZE,

STARGAZE, TIRED, VISION,

WEARY.