Political India: Engaging America

From The Hindu

Rajat Gupta (62), a former Managing Director of consulting giant McKinsey and Company and independent Director at banking conglomerate Goldman Sachs, has been charged with insider trading by the United States Security and Exchange Commission.

In an order instituting cease-and-desist proceedings against Gupta, the market regulator alleged that he illegally tipped off Galleon Management founder and hedge fund manager Raj Rajaratnam with inside information on the quarterly earnings at Goldman Sachs and Procter & Gamble and also an impending $5 billion investment by Berkshire Hathaway in Goldman.

The charges brought by the SEC’s Division of Enforcement further alleged that Gupta supplied Rajaratnam, who is already facing impending trial proceedings for insider trading, with “material non-public information” that Gupta obtained during calls with management boards of Goldman Sachs and Proctor & Gamble.

Subsequently, the SEC said, “Rajaratnam used the inside information to trade on behalf of some of Galleon’s hedge funds, or shared the information with others at his firm who then traded on it ahead of public announcements by the firms.”

This trading activity resulted in Rajaratnam and others generating more than $18 million in illicit profits and loss avoidance, the SEC noted, pointing out that Gupta was at the time a direct or indirect investor in at least some of these Galleon hedge funds, and had other potentially lucrative business interests with Rajaratnam.

Robert Khuzami, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, said “Gupta was honoured with the highest trust of leading public companies, and he betrayed that trust by disclosing their most sensitive and valuable secrets,” adding, “Directors who violate the sanctity of board room confidences for private gain will be held to account for their illegal actions.”

The order against Gupta went on to cite specific instances of large scale fraud by Gupta, including an allegation that while Gupta was a member of Goldman’s Board of Directors, Gupta he illicitly passed on information to Rajaratnam about Berkshire Hathaway’s $5 billion investment in Goldman Sachs and Goldman Sachs’ upcoming public equity offering before that information was publicly announced on September 23, 2008.

The SEC order said, “Gupta called Rajaratnam immediately after a special telephonic meeting at which Goldman’s Board considered and approved Berkshire’s investment in Goldman Sachs and the public equity offering.” It added that within a minute after the Gupta-Rajaratnam call and just minutes before the close of the markets, Rajaratnam arranged for Galleon funds to purchase more than 175,000 Goldman shares, leading to Rajaratnam making illicit profits of more than $900,000.

Under the administrative proceedings to follow the imposition of the SEC’s charges, authorities will determine what relief, if any, is in the public interest against Gupta, including “disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, prejudgment interest, financial penalties, an officer or director bar, and other remedial relief,” the SEC order said.

From The Hindu

In the backdrop of continuing violence inflicted by Libyan forces against protestors in Tripoli the United States military and its European allies were reported to be repositioning naval and air assets for “various contingency plans,” including a no-fly zone and humanitarian evacuations and assistance.

Quoting unnamed Pentagon officials the Washington Post reported on Tuesday that the “range of possibilities,” included moving two aircraft carriers in the Red Sea and Persian Gulf area and that that “U.S. and NATO forces had sufficient resources in Italy and elsewhere in the Mediterranean to take a number of actions if necessary.”

It was also reported that a U.S. destroyer had crossed through the Suez Canal over the weekend Sunday and taken up a position in the south-western Mediterranean and an amphibious assault ship, the USS Kearsarge, with helicopters aboard, was in the Red Sea and heading toward the Canal. Anonymous official sources added that the USS Ponce amphibious assault vessel was “moving toward the area.”

The strategic repositioning by Western military forces came even as top Obama administration officials refused to rule out military intervention in Libya, given the steady deterioration in the security situation in that country.

In media interviews Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, “We know that this violence must end. And if we can take action that would expedite its end, we have to consider that.”

In a speech at the Human Rights Council in Geneva over the weekend she further said, “Nothing is off the table so long as the Libyan Government continues to threaten and kill Libyans.”

Similarly in a read-out of the conversation between President Barack Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper the White House said that in addition to “tough unilateral sanctions against the Libyan government,” the leaders agreed to coordinate closely in consideration of “other options should they become necessary.”

Susan Rice, U.S. Permanent Representative to the UN said in a briefing that the UN Security Council’s unanimous adoption of Resolution 1970 implied that “a tough and binding set of sanctions” would be aimed at stopping the Libyan regime from killing its own people.

Not only would the resolution refer the situation in Libya directly to the International Criminal Court and include a travel ban and assets freeze on key Libyan leaders, she said, but it would also impose a complete arms embargo on Libya and take new steps against the use of mercenaries by the Libyan government to attack its own people.

Action against the Libyan regime by the U.S. and its allies has intensified following reports that the Qadhafi regime attempted to “direct certain actions from the air against targets on the land,” in the words of Ms. Clinton.

The Secretary suggested in a media interview that while such reports of the Libyan authorities’ use of helicopters to attack ground targets could strengthen the case for imposing a no-fly zone, the drawback of doing so was that “sometimes absolutely horrible regimes decide that that means it is [acceptable] to open fire on the ground.”

From The Hindu

Could a feel-good film about two middle-aged men working through a speech defect in early 20th-century England be a likely candidate to win the top awards of the movie industry? Even when it was pitted against the crisply plotted tale of the bitter rise of the world’s youngest billionaire and his ubiquitous website? Or a riveting thriller about a ballerina discovering her dark side?

The judges of the 83rd Academy Awards, also known as the Oscars, certainly seemed to think it could. On Sunday night, in Hollywood’s Kodak Theatre, they presented The King’s Speech with not only the Best Motion Picture award but also those for Best Actor (Colin Firth) and Best Director (Tom Hooper).

The narrative of a future king of England afflicted by a stutter and his Australian speech therapist beat out the likes of The Social Network and Black Swan, despite some critics calling Mr. Hooper’s film the "latest manifestation of British narcissism". The only top award that it missed out on was Best Actress, which went to an emotional Natalie Portman for her electrifying portrayal of a troubled ballerina in Black Swan.

While the highly acclaimed performances of Mr. Firth, as King George VI, and Geoffrey Rush, as his witty therapist with a disdain for propriety, may have well swayed the Academy judges panel, the talent of some of the leading presenters on awards night was however questionable.

The evening was principally hosted by James Franco of Spiderman fame and Anne Hathaway, who made a name for herself in The Devil Wears Prada – yet their combined total of flat jokes and hysterical outbursts, respectively, might well have set a new record.

A first for expletives

When one of the award winners, Melissa Leo for Best Supporting Actress, dropped a four-letter expletive on live television, it was definitely the last straw. Christian Bale, who won Best Supporting Actor for his role alongside Ms. Leo in The Fighter, didn’t help matters when he trooped up looking like Gandalf, in a ratty looking reddish beard, and threw in a few minor expletives too.

Yet the evening was saved by the genuine warmth and good humour of some of the awardees themselves, including David Seidler, winner of Best Original Screenplay for The King’s Speech.

Mr. Seidler (74), himself a childhood stutterer and cancer survivor quipped, “My father always said I’d be a late bloomer.” Almost every other award-winner associated with The King’s Speech praised Mr. Seidler’s inspirational role in bringing the film to fruition.

India’s own son, A.R. Rahman also teamed up with British singer Florence Welch to supply a most soulful rendition of "If I Rise" from the soundtrack of 127 Hours. For his score, performed with mega star Dido in the original film, Mr. Rahman was nominated for both Best Song and Best Original Score. Unfortunately he won neither, with the awards respectively going to those behind Toy Story 3 and The Social Network.

The Franco-Hathaway flop notwithstanding, there was still much to cheer for at the awards ceremony, including the expected dazzling array of evening gowns and high-caliber tuxedos. Cate Blanchet wore Givenchy, Scarlett Johansson was draped in a fuchsia lace Dolce and Gabbana number and Justin Timberlake, whose date for the evening was his mother, admitted to wearing a tailored Tom Ford suit.

At the end of the evening all the hullaballoo of the awards came down to good, solid maternal influence. Tom Hooper, award-winning Director of The King’s Speech, summed it up well when he said in his acceptance speech that it was his mother who first spotted the potential for his movie and persuaded him of it, saying, "So the moral of the story is, ‘Always listen to your mother’."

From The Hindu


On January 29, the Sundance Film Festival Awards recognised the independent film “Circumstance” as the winner of the U.S. Dramatic Competition Audience Award. On the occasion it was not only the film's Iranian-American director Maryam Keshavarz who took a bow but also the rising star of Indian origin who composed its musical score: Gingger Shankar.

The kudos heaped upon Gingger at Sundance was only the latest in a string of accolades for the California-based daughter of violin maestro L. Subramaniam. The gifted singer, virtuoso violinist, composer, model and songwriter grew up in Los Angeles, where her accomplishments already include working with top producers and film composers such as Mel Gibson, Mike Nichols, Mike Myers, and James Newton Howard.

While Gingger was the artist and co-composer behind the poignant score of Mel Gibson's blockbuster “The Passion of the Christ,” her music can also be heard in Mike Nichol's film, “Charlie Wilson's War,” starring Tom Hanks, where she had a chance to collaborate with film composer James Newton Howard. Her vocals can also be heard in Jackie Chan's film, “The Forbidden Kingdom,” and she also worked with George Clinton on Eastern arrangements for the Mike Myers picture, “Love Guru”. Further, Ms. Shankar composed music for the Sundance award-winning documentary “Recycle”, directed by Al Massad.

However, it is her instrumental specialism that truly puts her in the category of musician extraordinaire. She is one of the few female artistes in the world to have mastered the 10-string double violin, an instrument that covers the entire range of the orchestra's double bass, cello, viola and violin. There are said to be only two in existence currently.

Gingger has also perfected the art of collaborative ventures with a myriad of artists from East and West. In 2008 she debuted with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra as a soprano and later performed at New York's famous Carnegie Hall. She then went on to partner with such uniquely talented and diverse artists as The Smashing Pumpkins, Trent Reznor, L. Shankar, Zakir Hussain, Phil Collins, Steve Vai, Peter Gabriel, Tony Levin, Cheap Trick and the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. Her style has been described as an “experiment with elegant and exciting mixtures of sounds” that “weaves an intricate tapestry of musical genres.”

After “Circumstance” received a standing ovation following its screening at Sundance, Keshavarz said, “I requested (the opportunity to work with Gingger) because I wanted someone who not only intimately knew West Asian music but also pop and hip-hop music. Gingger has a great diverse range.”

In this interview, Gingger Shankar talked about the sources of her musical inspiration, her love for the unique double violin and her experience working with Hollywood's A-list celebrities.

Could you explain where your passion for your art comes from, and what role your parents have had in that, especially in your childhood?

I was raised in a family of musicians. I grew up with music around me; it was part of my everyday life. I was learning music and dance from the time I was very young and was always going to concerts. My mother is probably the biggest influence in my life (personally and musically). She would play me everything from M.S. Subbulakshmi to the Beatles. She took me to opera classes, violin classes, and piano classes. She was an incredible singer as well.

My father exposed me to so many incredible musicians and composers as well: Heifitz, Beethoven, and Mozart. I remember meeting M.S. Subbulakshmi, Yehudi Menuhin, Stephane Grapelli, V.G. Jog and so many other incredible artists as a child. Now I understand what blessings I had! I am definitely inspired by all the musicians in my family as well.

As I became a teenager, music became my life and career. I don't think I ever made a choice. It was very natural and something I always wanted to do. I love it and couldn't imagine doing anything else.

Have you spent much time in India, and if so did that expose you to any particular musical influences there? Did any Indian artists (besides your parents) inspire you?

I went to Kalakshetra as a child. I spent many summers in India growing up and as an adult I try to come out every year (although it has been a few years now). Besides my parents, I have always been inspired by so many Indian artists: Ravi Shankar, Ali Akbar Khan, Alla Rakha, Laskhmi Shankar, Shivkumar Sharma, Hariprasad Chaurasia, M.S. Subbulakshmi, Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle, V.G. Jog, Zakir Hussain, Vikku Vinayakram, A.R. Rahman and so many more. There are so many inspiring and fantastic artists in India.

You play a unique and special instrument, the double violin. Could you tell us what sets it apart from other instruments and what drew you to it?

It is an instrument that covers the entire orchestra range: violin, viola, bass and cello. There are only two in the world and I love the sound of it. It provides a tone and sound unlike any other instrument. Whether I am performing live or doing soundtracks, it gives me such a wide range of sounds to work with.

Having spent much time in the music scene in Los Angeles, how hard would you say it is for a South Asian-origin artist to rise in prominence as you have?

I have grown up in the music scene in LA. There have definitely been struggles not only as a South Asian artist, but as a woman as well. I have always spent my career going outside of the box; everything from doing classical Indian shows to operas to performing with rock bands to doing soundtracks and solo projects. Whenever I have gone outside the Indian classical box, it has been tough. In the recent years, Indian influences are definitely hitting the mainstream. Slowly we break those doors down one day at a time.

Which moment or event would you describe as your biggest breakthrough?

I don't think there has been one “breakout” moment. I feel that I have had many important moments, but that the best is yet to come!

Can you talk a bit about working on the score for “The Passion of the Christ”? Did you ever interact with Mel Gibson? How was he to work with?

That was my entrance into composing film music. I loved working on the film. Having the opportunity to have that much artistic freedom and being inspired by scenes and creating with them was a brand new learning experience. I met Mel the first day and he was with us in the studio almost every day. I really enjoyed working with a director who was so passionate about his work. He expected everyone to work hard, but he did the same. It is definitely inspiring to work with someone who is so dedicated to their art and vision.

Much of your music so far has been associated with film festivals such as the Sundance Film Festival, the Dubai International Film Festival and the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles... Do you find your musical interest blends well with the context of indie films?

I got into films by accident through “The Passion of the Christ”. After that, I was accepted into the Sundance Film Composer's programme. I have worked on mainstream and indie films since then. I definitely found my voice in film and I enjoy it. I feel that I love the touring and recording side of being an artist, but films definitely give me the opportunity to compose all styles of music. On the film “Circumstance” that we are in Sundance with, I composed everything from traditional western score to Indian to Iranian to punk to hip hop to dance. It was so exciting for me as an artist to be able to play with all those types of music.

Many of us will be watching your career with interest. What path might we expect the blossoming career of the talented Gingger Shankar to follow? Might we hear your vocals in more tracks or see you act in films too?

I am currently wrapping up two more feature films as well as finishing up my solo record which is much more pop and contemporary. There are quite a few vocal songs of mine in “Circumstance” as well as my other films. I would love to get into acting too, since I studied it and love that creative outlet.

From The Hindu

After days of prevarication through the peak of the Libyan crisis, the United States government finally moved on Friday evening to impose unilateral sanctions against the regime of Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi.

The Obama administration’s latest move came even as the United Nations Security Council planned to reconvene on the subject of violence in Libya and the consequent prospect of UN sanctions.

In a statement on Friday U.S. President Barack Obama said, “The Libyan government’s continued violation of human rights, brutalisation of its people, and outrageous threats have rightly drawn the strong and broad condemnation of the international community.”

Indicating the U.S. intention to coordinate its punitive actions with the international community Mr. Obama said that his administration would work closely with the UN and other allies in this regard.

Meanwhile the UNSC, including India, contemplated further sanctions against the Qadhafi government for its violent repression of protestors in Tripoli and elsewhere.

Maria Luiza Ribetro Viotti, who holds the rotating UNSC presidency for February, said in a statement that the Council was poised to consider a draft resolution on Libya on Saturday and action was “possible” against Tripoli given that “there is a sense of urgency,” regarding developments in that country.

In comments to media Ms. Viotti warned that the situation in Libya was deteriorating with reported violations of human rights, adding, “The [UNSC] draft resolution includes targeted measures aimed at putting an end to violence and [achieving] a peaceful solution to the current crisis, and ensuring accountability of the Libyan people.

In imposing a freeze on all assets and property of certain individuals and institutions linked to the Qadhafi regime Mr. Obama said in an executive order that his administration had found that “Colonel Muammar Qadhafi, his government, and close associates have taken extreme measures against the people of Libya, including by using weapons of war, mercenaries, and wanton violence against unarmed civilians.”

In the order Mr. Obama said the he further found that “there is a serious risk that Libyan state assets will be misappropriated by Qadhafi, members of his government, members of his family, or his close associates if those assets are not protected.”

Given these circumstances, and the fact that growing numbers of Libyans were seeking refuge in other countries from the attacks, the deterioration in the security of Libya posed a serious risk to its stability and to the national security and foreign policy of the U.S., Mr. Obama concluded, and this justified the imposition of sanctions. Meanwhile the State Department confirmed that it had completed the withdrawal of its embassy personnel from Tripoli and suspended all embassy operations effective February 25th.