Bold beauties go after world title

Mississauga, Ont. -- Seven South Asian finalists channeled their inner Tyra Banks, smiling with their eyes at a photo-shoot today, gearing up for the 7th annual Miss Pakistan World pageant next weekend.

“Compared to Toronto pageants, I’m pretty sure we have the most well-known pageant, only because of the negativity or the controversy,” says president Sonia Ahmed. For many conservatives, “Muslim model” is an oxymoron.

The swimsuit component of Miss Pakistan World has been replaced with a pool-side photo shoot in tank tops and shorts. “There are people who don’t like it,” Ahmed says. Contestants wear a traditional bridal gown and two evening gowns, and showcase their talent.

Since the early ’90s, Canadian supermodel Yasmeen Ghauri has made headlines, turning heads on the conventional runway and as a Victoria’s Secret Angel. Her father is a Muslim cleric from Pakistan.

“It’s a very male-dominated country,” says Ahmed. “These women are one of the few that are coming out and opening up society for Pakistani communities here in North America and Europe.”

Women from as far away as Scotland are competing, while others living in the Greater Toronto Area are also drawn in. Tahmena Bokhari, 29, the oldest contestant, is a social worker from Vaughan.

“I identify as a Muslim-Pakistani woman,” she says. “I’m a woman of colour in the Canadian context.” Bohkari hopes to use the competition as a platform for global awareness. On her to-do list: addressing violence against women and opening doors for women to become economically self-sufficient. She has the full support of her family, who will be there cheering her on.

Yusra Mumtaz, an 18-year-old student from Sugar Land, Texas, is excited about dancing to Pakistani music on-stage. “Ever since I was little, I’ve always wanted to do something like this,” says the youngest contestant. Her parents are also giving her the green light to compete. “They support me 100 per cent. They’re my little backbones,” Mumtaz says.

String bikini or not, there’s more focus on brains in this pageant. And that has one contestant applauding. “We’re so diverse,” Bokhari says. “I’m so proud to be part of this group of seven. Everybody’s so smart.”

Miss Pakistan World is on Saturday, June 27 in Mississauga.

[Article published in South Asian Outlook]

Putting down the rye bread

In the last month, I’ve yanked four grey hairs. One for each week, it seems. So when my dad extended an invitation to a lecture on How to Overcome Stress, the fascinating silver strand being examined between my thumb and index finger provided the answer.

Dada J.P. Vaswani, a renowned humanitarian and non-sectarian spiritual leader, packed the stunning BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Toronto yesterday.

A brief promotional video, then out he came. Dada’s motto: to be happy, make others happy.

Engaging and lively for a man 90 years young, his keys to success are neither costly nor time consuming. Dada listed five major points, but my overworked memory only retains three: smile; laugh; your attitude is everything.

Sounds great, doesn’t it? It’s so much easier said than done, though. Especially if you’re a journalist who can’t resist booting up the laptop with her morning chai instead of practicing asanas.

It seems Dada read my mind. Instead of heading straight into the kitchen for breakfast, he suggests two changes. Smile as soon as you wake up, and while still under the covers, ask, “Lord, help me smile all day.”

Easy as chai.

This morning, I smiled at the alarm clock on the dresser, but forgot to ask for a lovely Sunday. So I did what he suggested, putting down the rye bread and heading back to the bedroom. I laid back down and made a simple plea. “Lord, help me smile all day.” Then I booted up the laptop and sipped the chai.

The quest for a Sunday filled with shanti was seamless. One breath at a time, mindful reflection is a beautiful thing. For the sake of my twenty-something head of hair, let’s hope it becomes a habit.

Local MP says no time for jubilee

[XAVIER FAMILY PHOTO] Mary Xavier-Pierce (left) grew up in Sri Lanka. “We had to flee so suddenly, we didn’t really pack much but grabbed what we needed and left overnight,” she says.

The alleged collapse of the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka yesterday has members of the Sinhalese community celebrating. “There was a sense of great relief because 20 million citizens of Sri Lanka had been going through a real nightmare of not knowing when they would be struck down,” says Mahinda Gunasekera, honorary president of the Sri Lanka United National Association of Canada.

He is all too familiar with the civil war –pitting north against south, government versus rebels, Sinhalese opposite Tamils-that has plagued the island for over 25 years, killing around 70,000 people.

“This is not a time for happiness,” says Scarborough-Agincourt Member of Parliament Jim Karygiannis, who estimates 3,000 Tamils are living in his riding.

Karygiannis visited the island in 2005. He says he was impressed by the work being done by the Tigers to rebuild. “They were moving very quickly to overcome the tsunami. In the government-controlled territory, little was being done.”

The Liberal MP isn’t afraid to throw around ‘the G word.’ “I wouldn’t hesitate to say it’s genocide in the making, but both sides are at fault here.”

Mary Xavier-Pierce, 28, grew up in Kayts, north of Sri Lanka.  “It was sad we lived in fear of the country we were born in,” she says, adding she didn’t understand why people were fighting to separate the nation. Her family fled to Colombo, then fled again to Canada in 1992, eventually settling in Scarborough. “I am saddened for all the blood that has been shed but I am also glad it has come to an end.”

Karygiannis is critical of the Conservative Canadian government “sitting on its laurels” and says international intervention is overdue. “We’re heading down to Washington, D.C. to see if we can do a little bit of persuasion.”

Moving forward, he has a few other items on his agenda, including fast-tracking sponsorship applications and fund-raising. Sending money back home is a priority for many Sri Lankans in Canada, who would like to see family members rehabilitated and resettled.

But there are skeptics who say the money never makes it to their relatives. “It goes to the government and they use it for the Sinhalese, and the Tamil people aren’t getting anything,” says Birdy Thanabalasingam, a 14-year-old student at Gordon Graydon Secondary School in Mississauga. Gunasekera disagrees, and says his organization has sent food, medicine, clothing and other essential items. “It gets to the Tamil civilians who have been displaced.”

Karygiannis says he would like to see willingness from Tamils and Sinhalese to get together, but acknowledges it may take awhile. “It’s not an easy time.” There is hope for amicable relations between the two communities in Canada, but not Sri Lanka, Thanabalasingam says. “People get along way better here.” The student has one wish for relations between the two groups in Sri Lanka. “I think they should become equal and share.”

[Article published in South-Asian Outlook, click here to read.]

Why Chai?

I giggled the first time I saw it on the menu at the coffee shop: chai tea. “Why does it say chai tea? Chai is tea,” I said to my mom, Catherine. “Why do they want me to order a tea-tea?”

Growing up with East Indian parents, I knew chai was the Hindi word for tea. Like most children, I had no concept of ethnocentricity, and assumed everyone called it chai.

My parents flirted over a cup of chai on their first date 28 years ago in India. After immigrating to Canada in the ’80s, they finally settled in Mississauga, Ontario and have been drinking chai together ever since.

“People drink chai three to four times a day in Bombay, no matter how hot it is,” Catherine says. “It’s refreshing, it’s a social drink, instead of alcohol. Women mostly drink more tea than alcohol in India. It’s more entertaining for people too, it’s like a courtesy to offer tea and some snacks. It always goes hand in hand.”

‘Tea at three’is a British tradition that was instilled in my mom while growing up in southern India, and she passed it on while raising me in southern Ontario. “I was watching how my mother made tea for people and that’s how I learned it,” Catherine says.

Busy as we are, having chai is more than just a beverage. Chai is equated with bonding and quality time, meaning we spend 15 minutes together either discussing the day or just sitting in comfortable silence. For over 19 years now, my 56-year-old mom comes home from her 7 to 3 shift and immediately makes a cup of chai. She was not always an expert, though.

“The first time I tried to make it, it was too strong, and I wasn’t able to drink it. It tasted very bitter, like poison, and I don’t know how poison tastes but I couldn’t drink it,” Catherine says.

“Now I’ve become an expert, after 25 years of drinking it. Even if I have to make it for 12 people, or 20 people, I know exactly how much to put, in terms of sugar, tea leaves and milk. It comes with practice,” she says.

Parul Amin, 39, is a retail associate in Burlington, Ontario. She is a family friend who also considers herself a chai guru. “Mummy, of course, introduced me to chai when I was around 25 years old,” she says. Her recipe is slightly different from my mom’s, as she hails from Gujarat, along the northwestern coast of India. Like all Indian recipes, chai varies from region to region. Depending on geographic location, certain spices are used more than others.

I did not realize the significance of chai in my daily routine until I moved away to university eight years ago. Drinking it –and making it– wasn’t the same without my mom. Now that I’ve mastered her method, I’m thrilled to share the family recipe. “Homemade tea is better than store-bought tea, and it’s just so easy to make it,” Catherine says.

Once you make it a few times, you will find your own special blend. Feel free to add or subtract spices to suit your definition of what a great cup of chai entails.

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Catherine’s Chai (Recipe serves two)

Gather ingredients/instruments:

Small saucepan

Mortar & pestle

Small strainer

2 orange pekoe teabags

Whole cardamom pods

Ginger root

2% milk

Water

Sugar

• 1. Crush 2 cardamom pods in the mortar & pestle.
  2. Grate ½ teaspoon of fresh ginger root.
  3. Pour 1 cup of cold water into a saucepan, add 2 orange pekoe teabags.
  4. On high heat, bring water to a boil.
  5. Add 2 crushed cardamom pods.
  6. Add ½ teaspoon of freshly grated ginger.
  7. While the water is still boiling, add 1 cup of 2% milk.
  8. Continue boiling on high fire for 3-5 minutes.
  9. Reduce to medium heat and let brew for another 2 minutes.
  10. Turn off stove. Strain the tea into mugs and add sugar to taste.

Mom says you should always offer tea with Indian snacks. I wouldn’t want to get you in trouble, so here are a few recommended munchies, available at any Indian grocery store (or even try the international food aisle at the supermarket):

Haldiram’s Cornflakes Mixture

Shah’s Chakri

Bhel Puri

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For thousands of years, Indians have used tea for its healing properties. Adding fresh spices such as cinnamon, cloves and ginger, also known as masala, gives chai a distinctive taste that is both healthy and delicious. In Canada, Starbucks, Timothy’s World Coffee and The Second Cup serve chai and chai lattes for around $4 per medium cup.

“A lot of people like the chai more than the green tea,” says Teresa Stevenson, a Second Cup sales associate at Erin Mills Town Centre in Mississauga. “It’s not too sweet, but it has that kick to it. I find that our chai latte –I’ve tried a chai latte at Starbucks and found it too spicy – ours is smoother going down,” says Stevenson.

“Even in the warm weather, people still like their coffee-oriented beverage,” Stevenson continues. “I’m a real chai tea drinker, and there’s certain ones that have a stronger blend.”

Nima Syed, manager of Timothy’s World Coffee, also in the mall, compares her chai latte ingredients to her competitiors’. “We use a pre-made instant powder, Second Cup uses liquid,” Syed says.

Their versions, artificial sweetness aside, fulfill the craving, but nothing compares to mom’s custom blend.

Indian feel-good flick set to debut at TIFF

What is more unlikely, a Canadian actor playing the role of a rickshaw driver, or a rickshaw driver as the protagonist in a film?

Rupinder Nagra, star of Amal, debuting tonight at the Toronto International Film Festival, says the fact he was cast is more surprising.

Amal -the title character- is a working-class man whose life becomes conflicted when a billionaire names him as his heir. The film ultimately questions values, morals and personal growth. Directed by Mississauga native Richie Mehta, and receiving local accolades, Amal is on its way to becoming a blockbuster.

Filled with energy on the eve of the premiere, Nagra chats over a drink at the Royal York Hotel and reveals he read the script and signed on immediately. “The end really shocked me and actually challenged my viewpoint of success and what it means to me,” he says. “If I’m feeling that way, that’s so great –anyone in the audience will feel that way too.”

The film also stars Bollywood heavyweights Naseeruddin Shah, Seema Biswas and Roshan Seth. Working with them was, “basically like living in a dream.” Filming in New Delhi over the course of two months was a new experience for the actor. “In Canada, no one cares but in India everything stops,” Nagra says. Hundreds of people showed up each day. “It was almost like street theatre,” he says.

How does a Hamilton-bred Indo-Canadian portray a character as spiritually connected as Amal? Prior to filming, Nagra spent six weeks with an actual auto-rickshaw driver to prepare for his role.

Working as an Indo-Canadian actor is challenging, he said. Getting people to look beyond colour has not been easy. The streets were packed while shooting, and Nagra is hoping people show up at the box office, too. “People will like it, it’s a beautiful fable.”